I finished the New Testament last night. I have literally been reading the New Testament for an entire year now. I have come to the conclusion...God is brilliant. He is brilliant for many reasons, but concerning the Bible from a reader/knowledge seeker's stand point, he perfectly and powerfully put these books together.
We start off reading the 4 gospels, which are life changers. My friend, Seef, tells me that John chapter 17 changed her life. Whether having heard it preached in some form or having read it themselves, one way or another the gospel has changed the life of each Jesus follower. The gospels are followed by the awesome book of Acts where Luke writes about the Holy Spirit and spreading the gospel of Jesus. Then there is a large collection of letters. Many are written by the apostle Paul while he is in jail. Paul writes to the church, giving orders and instruction on how to live for God's glory. Other letters were written by various followers of Jesus giving instruction to christians in general. THEN after all that build up and preparing of the heart, we get to a grand finale. Revelation!
We have all heard about and read parts of Revelation. This book is known to be scary and is usually avoided. My reading log allowed 7 days to read through the book of Revelation. Having Bible time in the morning before class and at night before bed, I read it in two days! I literally could not put the book down. I have been reading and studying the Bible for a while now and I honestly do not remember a time when I have read so intently and aggressively. My eyes were glued to this book. Why? I can't fathom it. It blew my mind over and over again. When I finished, I felt as though the wind had been knocked out of me. The power in these words make me feel like I am an ant living on a playground. I am powerless. Then I realize I, along with many other ants, have been chosen to live in a protected ant farm. Only, I am watching from the window as all the ants who are still outside are cluelessly awaiting torture. One day a kid is going to bring his magnifying glass and burn them all up.
Alright, I understand we aren't all ants running around scared for our lives. But, the message of Revelation is real. Our world is causing us to lose focus on the REAL reality. This is serious. I do not know how to comprehend this knowledge. The world must hear this! I am troubled by this. I cannot keep from shedding tears at the thought of these truths. I cannot stop dreaming about this terror. We have an emergency! God's word isn't teasing us! This is not a joke!
No more shrugging it off. We must go into all nations preaching the good news as if the events described in Revelation were occurring TOMORROW! If God is gracious enough to reveal Himself, I am going to act on it!
