Day 3 - Verse 99 - "He who testifies about these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20

The sun comes up

It's a new day dawning

It's time to sing Your song again

Whatever may pass

And whatever lies before me

Let me be singing

When the evening comes

Bless the Lord oh my soul

Oh my soul

Worship His Holy name

Sing like never before

 Oh my soul

I'll worship Your Holy name

Matt Redman - 10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord) 

Just as quickly as the night changes to morning (I wondered again as I looked out of my kitchen window this morning, can you ever catch that exact moment?), our world will change from one of darkness to eternal light with the coming of our Lord Jesus.  

On that glorious day, it will truly be time to sing like never before!  For we will never see the darkness of evening again...we will live in His eternal presence and light.

Oh, bless the Lord!  Worship His Holy name!  He has made all things new while He also is the Alpha and the Omega!  God truly is everything!  And all things will praise His name forevermore.

It really does take your breath away when you let it sink in, doesn't it?  God, who has been forever, who is the Creator of all, longs for us...created this realm of time for us...and has planned from the beginning of time a place where we will live with Him, forever.  Bless the Lord, oh my soul!

Coincidentally, I read Isaiah 40:28 the other morning and talked about it with Robert (husband)...

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.

I love the way Isaiah phrases his testimony...it's like he's saying, "Of course you know...of course you've heard....REMEMBER!"  We know that God is everlasting...that HE is the Creator of all that we know and see...and that He will never wear out, will never give up on us, and has wisdom and knowledge that we cannot even begin to comprehend.  

I said, "coincidentally", because the very next day my darling 9 year old granddaughter, Genevieve, texted me this same verse.  Since she moved to Kansas City eight months ago, we have had a habit of texting each other Bible verses that we read and want to share with each other.  I loved that God was speaking His same words of reassurance to both of us at the same time in our lives.  

His words of reassurance can ring in all of our ears..."Do you not know?"  Yes, we know!  "Have you not heard?"  Oh yes, Lord, we have heard!  You are great, you are mighty, and YOU ARE COMING QUICKLY!

Bless the Lord, oh my soul...whatever may pass and whatever lies before me, let me be singing....

WHEN HE COMES!

Day 2 - Verse 99 - "He who testifies about these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen! Come Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20

Jesus is our Promiser --- He promises His return!  Three times in Revelation He makes this same promise, in verses 7, 12, and here in 20.  "Look, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he one who keeps the prophetic words of this book...Look! I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me...Yes, I am coming quickly!"

When the Bible states something in threes it is a point of emphasis.  Jesus wants us to hear His promise and know deep within us that it is true and sure...He IS coming soon!

Robert Morgan states, "The immediate response of John in verse 20 was "Amen!" This is a term of agreement, meaning, "so be it!"  Then John offered the Bible's concluding prayer, "Come, Lord Jesus!" This is the equivalent of the Aramaic term Maranatha.  It's a prayer for us to repeat frequently  What a tragedy that Christians seldom pray specifically for the Lord to return.  Let's start including Maranatha in our prayer vocabulary."

Join with me today in praying for Christ's return, praying that His church will be prepared for Him like a bride waiting for her bridegroom, praying that He will find us faithful and anxiously awaiting His arrival!  Pray that every person that is to hear His Word hears it soon and that we take seriously the responsibility of proclaiming His coming...both His first arrival as a baby, teacher, suffering servant, Son of Man, crucified Son of God and risen Savior, and His second as our victorious King and Lord of Lords!

Every day we are given here on this earth is a day of opportunity to share Jesus' promise...every morning that we see dawning could bring with it the day of Jesus' return.  "Come, Lord Jesus!" Maranatha!

We need to review our last set of verses of the Alpha and Omega...starting with Isaiah 9:6 and going through Revelation 22:20....

Isaiah 9:6  "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be on His shoulders.  And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,The mighty God, The eternal Father, The Prince of Peace."

Luke 2:10   "But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all the people.' "

Luke 2:11  "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:12  "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped snugly in a cloth and lying in a manger."

Acts 1:11 "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven?  This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven."

Revelation 21:1  "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer."

Revelation 21:2 "I also saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband."

Revelation 22:20 "He who testifies to these things say, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

Day 1 - Verse 99 - "He who testifies about these things says, 'Yes, I am coming quickly.' Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20

What can you say about this next to the last verse of all of Holy Scripture?  The final verse adds John's benediction, "The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen."  So the very last things that Jesus leaves us with (as He is the one testifying to John throughout the book of Revelation) is to remember that He is coming, and coming quickly.  And John's response is, "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

First, do we still truly believe that Jesus is coming, or have we fallen into a state of semi-disbelief, and join in with the scoffers that are described in 2 Peter,  "Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:3

It is easy to listen to those who say that the world has been going on for a kajillion billion years and that it will continue on for another kajillion billion years, if we take good enough care of it.  Biblical truth tells us that our earth was created for a specific purpose, and once that purpose has been served, it will cease to be and will be replaced with God's perfect new earth as we learned in Revelation 21:1. One of the reasons that I do not believe the earth is as old as secular scientists claim is that it takes away from the truth that the earth was created for a finite time...it had a beginning and it will have an end.  But secular scoffers see the world through a different view, and that everything we see here and now will continue on through the ages, with no end in sight.

We, as Christians, need to hold fast onto the truth that Jesus proclaims in His parting sentence to John, and to us.  "Yes, I AM coming quickly!"  Jesus IS coming.  Just because He hasn't made His reappearance in the past 2,000 years, does not mean that He will not return.  He will come at the precise moment His Father gives Him the nod, and not a moment sooner.  "Now concerning that day and hour no one knows-neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son -except the Father only." Matthew 24:36

Remember that our ways are not God's ways and our thoughts not His, and that a thousand years to us, is like a day unto the Lord.  (Isaiah 55:8 and 2 Peter 3:8)  So let us not grow weary, and let us not give up our hope...Jesus IS coming again, and if He said quickly to John, then we are 2,000 years closer to His soon return!

Second, do we respond as John did to Jesus' pronouncement of His return?  "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!" or have we grown so comfortable in this world, that we are not anxious for Jesus to come and transport us to the next?  Would we be disappointed that our earthly plans have been upset?  Have we grown comfortable living in ways which would cause us shame if Jesus returned right now?  If we looked up into the sky today and saw Jesus descending from the clouds, on a white horse of glory, would we run toward Him or run the other way to try to hide ourselves from His judgment?

John's response shows no hesitancy...he is ready!  This is a good tool for self-examination of our spiritual lives.  How do you respond to Christ's proclamation that He is coming quickly?  Are you ready?  Have you embraced Him as your Savior and asked for His blood to cleanse you from all your unrighteousness?  Are you living in a way that proclaims that truth in your life...living to bring God glory in response to His graciousness to you?

Jesus is coming, He is coming quickly.  Let the church be ready...as a bride ready for her bridegroom!

Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.  Revelation 19:7