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Faithful Truth and Promise of Eminent Completion.

Revelation 22:6-7  And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. 7) Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 

The grand End Times vision contained in the book of Revelation is winding down and the angel speaking to John emphasized that all of it is faithful and true. What God said will happen is exactly what will happen. In fact, the angel made it a point to stress that this prophetic vision will happen shortly. Blessing is reserved for those who keep the sayings of this book. The word "Keepeth" means to learn it, observe it, guard it and live with hopeful anticipation of seeing our great God bring all these things to pass.

John was completely overwhelmed.

Revelation 22:8-9  And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. 9)  Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God. 

We see the aggregate impact upon the apostle John. He was in his 90's when he wrote Revelation. After seeing His resurrected Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ in all His glory, seeing and hearing all of these things that make up the End Times, John was completely overwhelmed. 

He fell down at the feet of the angel to worship. The angel was quick to redirect the aged apostle to worship only God. This seems to indicate just how moved and affected John was by all of that he heard and saw. He was so emotional and spiritually charged that his worship began to spill out. 

John told not to seal up the book.

Revelation 22:10-11  And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. 11) He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. 

Here is an interesting contrast between the End Times books of Daniel and Revelation. Daniel was instructed to seal or close up the words of the visions that he saw. However, John was specifically told to not seal up the book of Revelation. Why? The reason given is that all of these things are "at hand" meaning that the rapture of the church should be regarded as an eminent event. Therefore, since time is running out for people to hear the gospel and repent of their sins, the angel said let the wicked continue in their wickedness and let the righteous remain faithful.

Christ's Promise to Come Quickly

Revelation 22:12-13  And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13) I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 

John recorded some more words of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said I am coming quickly, bringing His reward for those faithful believers who will appear before their Lord at the "bema" judgment seat. Jesus declares again that He is Jehovah in the flesh, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

The place of Blessing is Obedience

Revelation 22:14-15  Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 15) For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. 

We are all reminded that the place of blessing is reserved to those who do His commandments. All saints will have free access to the tree of life and entrance into New Jerusalem. All the evil and wicked will be consigned to the eternal lake of fire. 

God's Open Invitation

Revelation 22:16-17  I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. 17) And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. 

Jesus spoke again and stated that He sent His angel to bear witness about all these things to John and the churches. The invitation is still open. Both the Spirit of God and the bride (the Church) are calling, summoning sinners to come to Christ in repentant faith. It is an invitation that remind us that God wants all sinners to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Warning to Not Tamper with God's Word

Revelation 22:18-21  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19) And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. 20) He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 21)  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. 

John included a warning against those who might attempt to add to the words that Christ gave him, or to those who may try to take out parts of the prophetic message. Our Lord says again that He is going to come quickly. His grace is sufficient to seek and save the lost, to sustain each born again soul for eternity. What a grand way to wrap up the End Times.

Thoughts to Ponder...

Much more time could be spent studying the End Times. Each prophet spoke about them which makes bringing the teaching about this vast subject very challenging. 

I hope that I have brought voices from many prophets together with Daniel and John's End Times visions in a way that enhances our understanding of these things. 

Our duty as believers is to learn these truths and allow what God has said to impact our lives. As we do so, we will become more ardent worshippers of God, more willing to be witnesses for God, more happy in our daily walk with God.

May Jesus Christ be praised.

Bob


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