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♡♥♡ There are no surprises. / Revelation 22:10-15
*** Introduction
When we say 'Apocalypse', most meanings are closed. So people don't really understand what it means. But at the end of the last chapter of the apocalyptic book of Revelation, the Lord said, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecies of this book. The time is near.” He told John to open the book. To say that the book is open means that it is open so that anyone can read and understand the words of prophecy. The reason we opened the way for the Word is “because the time is near.” The time is the time of the second coming of Jesus.
There is an allegorical work titled The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis. The content depicts scenes from hell.
It's incredibly hot, it rains every day, and it's always a dark street. It is an environment where you do not want to live there even for a day. However, God has provided a way for us to move to the shining heaven. You sent a Shuttle Bus to Heaven. Opportunities are frequent because they leave every hour. But what is surprising is that no one takes the bus to heaven. Most people arrive on time to the bus stop. But they don't get on the bus. The ride is free, so anyone can ride it. They come out of the station and look at the bus and think.
“If you go there, there are a lot of things you can’t do. The pleasure of seeing other people's mischief disappears, and the satisfaction of being a boss with a little talent is applauded by foolish humans. The status game shouldn't be there. Why are you going to a world you can't brag about or shrug for? ”
So they only go to the station once a week, and the bus doesn't go on for a long time. There is one unannounced thing about them. It's a fact that there are only a few days left before this regular bus stops running.
As in this parable, in this world now the door of salvation is open so that anyone can enter the kingdom of God. But not many people are looking for it. Even among those who go to church and say they believe in Jesus Christ, many are standing around the door. Perhaps they are hesitant because they cannot easily turn away from the pleasures and glory of the world. I think they might go towards the end and expect a dramatic reversal.
In the world, dramatic reversals and surprises happen all the time. Even in this World Cup, extraordinary things happened that the people of the world could not have imagined. Whether ‘Senegal’, who participated in the World Cup for the first time, defeated the previous champion, or Korea advanced to the quarterfinals, these are all great surprises. There are also dramatic twists, such as scoring an equalizer with two minutes left in the match against Italy and scoring a golden goal in overtime.
1. When you have the opportunity, you should wash the romagi.
Verse 14 says, “Blessed are those who wash their robes… ” he said. ‘Sinking the robe’ means ‘the saints washing their deeds in the blood of Jesus Christ’. In particular, the word ‘suck’ refers to ‘one must be faithful to God while continuing to depend on Jesus in any circumstance’.
This blessing is the seventh and last among the seven blessings of Revelation. In other words, blessed are those who are awake in the last days and purify themselves. Because those who have prepared in this way will receive eternal life and the authority to enter the new heavens and new earth. Are you guys preparing for this now? Opportunities are given to those who are awake. ‘It’s peaceful. What will you do if the Lord suddenly comes one day while you are indulging in laziness or immersed in the world while saying, ‘It’s safe.
During the Tang Dynasty in China, the An Lushan Rebellion broke out. One day, An Loxan's army besieged Ongseong. At this time, the garrison commander of Ong Guseong was a man named ‘Jang Soon’, but the rebels of Anroksan were so strong that Ong Guseong was isolated. Jang Soon wrote a secret book and ordered all the soldiers to ‘make at least a thousand straw dolls and dress them in black.’ Then they tied the dolls to a rope and hung them down the castle at midnight.
When the rebels of Anroxan, who were besieging the castle, saw this, they thought people were coming down, and they fired their bows frantically. After a while, Jang-soon made the doll roll up, and effortlessly got tens of thousands of arrows stuck in the doll. And in the middle of the night the next day, Jang Soon went down the castle with 500 elite troops on a rope. The rebels of Anroxan laughed without firing their bow as if, ‘Are you able to trick me again?’ Jangsun's elite forces annihilated Anroxan's army at once.
The hordes of our adversary, Satan, are making us suspicious of the Lord's return and reassuring them that we are at peace, just as they did when they deceived Eve. But our Lord says now is the time for us to be awake. You never know when this opportunity will suddenly pass.
2. Do not expect a fluke and prepare diligently.
A lot of people say, 'I would believe in Jesus, but not now, I will enjoy the world a little more and believe after making some money.' I really hope that the second coming of Jesus will happen in such a relaxed way. However, the second coming of the Lord or the end of our lives will come one day without a sound or warning. Just like in the parable of the ten virgins, the Lord came while the five virgins who did not prepare extra oil went to prepare.
Therefore, we must abandon the auspicious mind of enjoying the world to the fullest and entering the kingdom of God. That is why the Lord says in verses 11-12, “The unrighteous will receive the unrighteous, the unclean, the unclean, the righteous, righteous, and the holy, holy.” And he will repay them according to their deeds at the judgment seat. There are no dramatic twists or surprises at the judgment seat of the Lord.
In verse 15, the sins of those who cannot enter the city of God are revealed. Here, except for the ‘dogs’, five kinds of people are already included in the list of ‘those who will have a part in the lake burning with fire and brimstone’ in verse 8. “Dogs” are used in the Bible to refer to “dirty and wicked people.” That is, those who reject and oppose God's will and rule. And especially, 'they like to lie and make up' is Satan's attribute.
In order not to be tainted or sympathetic to these things, you must be alert. And you must sanctify your deeds while faithfully purifying yourself.
It says in 2 Timothy 2:20-21. “In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also vessels of wood and earthenware, some of which are noble and others of lowly use. You will be prepared for work."
I pray that all of us do not wait for the apocalypse but stay awake in faith, purify ourselves, and live a life worthy of the Lord's use in the last days.