Readings for today: Revelation 11-13
Christmas Day. The day the world shifted on its axis. The day the Kingdom of heaven established a foothold on earth. The day the Messianic plan of God found fulfillment. In a very real sense, today is the beginning of the beginning of the end. The end of the world as we know it. The end of suffering and pain and grief and death. The end of sin and evil and the works of the devil. From this point forward, the enemy will be in retreat. From this point forward, the forces of darkness will flee before the light. From this point forward, death begins to work backwards as Christ begins to establish His rule and reign over all He has made.
This is why I loved reading the cry of victory from Revelation this morning. “The seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever.“ The twenty-four elders, who were seated before God on their thrones, fell facedown and worshiped God, saying, “We give you thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry, but your wrath has come. The time has come for the dead to be judged and to give the reward to your servants the prophets, to the saints, and to those who fear your name, both small and great, and the time has come to destroy those who destroy the earth.” Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant appeared in his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and severe hail.” (Revelation 11:15-19 CSB) While we have yet to hear the seventh trumpet, the birth of Christ is God’s guarantee that one day soon it will blow. By sending His only Son to become flesh and blood and take on a fully human nature, God is guaranteeing His final victory. He is giving us every reason to place our trust in Him. We don’t have to wonder. We don’t have to worry. We don’t have to play the odds or take bets. Christ is God’s answer to all that wrong in the world. Christ is God’s guarantee that all will be made right.
As I said earlier, today marks the beginning of the beginning of the end. This is why the angel calls the birth of Jesus “good news of great joy for all the people.” Today presents an invitation to every human being living on earth to join the winning side. Become part of the winning team. Because of Jesus, the Temple of God in heaven is now open. We have access to 24/7 into the presence of God Himself. God has taken the extraordinary step to establish a relationship with us. And the celebration of Christmas is our chance to respond to Him.
Readings for tomorrow: Revelation 14-18