Time is at hand

Rev.1:3, ‘Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.’

 The book of Revelation is the last book of the Bible. It was written by one of the  apostles named, John. Most of us do not usually read or meditate this book, for only a few portions of this book is written in a way which we all can understand easily. But the apostle wrote about the blessedness of this book. This write-up focuses on the importance of this book. If we need to be blessed through this book, we need to do three things : Read, hear and keep it. Reading  involves our mind, mouth, time and efforts. Hearing involves our ear & heart and ‘keeping it’ involves our entire life. If any one of the these are missed out, we will loose the blessings.

The word ‘revelation’ means something revealed which was hidden earlier. This book reveals many scenes that would happen during the end days. All this reveal our Lord in a deeper way. The more we understand our Lord, the more we understand about what is being expected from us. The only reason John points out as to why its blessings should be received is ‘the time is near’. The book of Genesis, the first book in the Bible begins with ‘In the beginning’. The phrase ‘the beginning’ does not mark the beginning of God, for our God is eternal with no beginning or end. He Himself is the ‘Alpha’ and the ‘Omega’ i.e. the beginning and the end. ‘The beginning’ marks the beginning of ‘time’. And this time began by God is now coming to an end. Each passing day is bringing us closer to this end. The book of revelations mark the end of the church on earth & the end of ‘time’. Knowing our end is important to correct our ‘present’. If we know only our beginning, we might fall. God’s mercy and grace marks the beginning of our faith life & His power and plan marks the beginning of our creation. But when we read this book, we see God as God of justice. His justice marks our end & His mercy and grace prepares us for His justice.

This is a book of ‘revelations’. Rev.1:1-2, ‘The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, ² who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.’ The revelations were revealed by God to Jesus Christ, who in turn handed them over to an angel. The angel revealed them to the apostle John, who later passed them on to the churches on the earth. All divine revelations come from God, which are to be passed on faithfully. They should not be kept hidden, because they bless all who receive them. And all revelations that come from God come to pass.

Apart from this, any new understanding about the Lord from the Word of God is  called ‘revelation. Every experience in life with the Lord  reveals a new understanding about our Lord. As we grow closer to the Lord, more and more of Him is revealed to our inner eyes and that’s how we get transformed more and more like Him. Ephes. 1 says about  the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of our Lord.

 Rev.1:9, ‘I, John, ^[f]both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.’ John, one of the twelve apostles saw this revelation. He addressed himself as ‘your brother’. Though he had the privilege to see the greatest revelation recorded in the Bible, he always humbled himself. Divine revelations are revealed to the humble ones. He also called himself ‘companion in tribulation’. He loved the people of God and he considered himself no where greater than them. Moreover, he went through tribulations and persecutions for the sake of kingdom of God. A person who sees revelations will be persecuted. This has been proved all through out the Bible too. He was thrown into an island called Patmos, which was inhabited by wild animals. Yet, John stood boldly for the word of God and testimony of Christ Jesus. Revelations are given to the ones who dare to stand boldly for the same. Rev.1:10 says, ‘I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day,….’ Its easier to be in the fullness of the Spirit while in the midst of a fellowship but John chose to be filled by the Spirit of God even when he was constantly facing the threats of the wild and poisonous animals. Revelations are given to the ones who pants for the fullness of the Spirit of God in all situations of life.

Rev.1:17, ‘And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead.’  John had been with Jesus all the three and a half years of His ministry on this earth. He had watched Jesus pray, performing miracles, preaching, sleeping, walking and even being transformed into glorious figure on the mount. He had seen the crucifiction of Christ and also the resurrected Christ. He had received the power of the Holy Spirit along with all other 119 disciples on the day of Pentecost. Yet, here, when John saw Jesus in His glorious form, which he had never seen before, he fell at His feet as dead. This new revelation of Christ here transformed John himself first. The transformation is visible in the writings of this book, where he presents Christ as a judge from whose justice no soul can escape. While in all other books written by this apostle, we see Jesus more as God of love. Revelations not only transform the ones to whom they are revealed, but also the works they do for the Lord. Prophet Isaiah served the Lord through the gift of prophecy. Yet we see a difference in his prophetical ministry after he saw the vision of the holy God sitting on the throne.

 The intention of this book of Revelations is to make us, the body of Christ overcomers. Heaven is reserved only for the overcomers. As the Lord gives messages for seven churches in Asia, He appreciates them, rebukes them, corrects them and warns them. Knowing and believing the gospel does not make us overcomers. We have every chance to fall away from grace of the Lord without even knowing about it. In order to be overcomers,

1. We need to be encouraged and thankful to the Lord for all that we are being appreciated by our Lord.
2. We should be keen to know about our shortcomings from the Lord, in order to take efforts to repent and to overcome.
3. We ought to realize that one shortcoming, which might be small in our sight can deprive us from the inheritance of eternal life in Christ.
4. We should be willing to be corrected, for which a keen ear and an obedient heart is essential.
5. We should be able to hear from the Spirit of the Lord often and be sensitive to obey His voice without loosing time.
6. We should fear the holiness of the Lord, without which we cannot see Him.
7. Our aim of life ought to please Him every day of our life and thus be ready, for the time is at hand.

The Bible would be incomplete without this blessed book of Revelations. If the Bible would be incomplete without this book of Revelations, our preparation for the glorious coming of the Lord too would be incomplete without reading, hearing and keeping the words of this book. Indeed, the time is at hand. We cannot afford to loose any more time, resources and opportunities being made available to us. Let’s take every effort to seek the depth of His heart and His will for us. Let’s use the time to prepare many for His kingdom, for the time is at hand. Let’s overcome every shortcoming and obstacle that hinder this race of faith by the power of His Spirit, His Word & His blood…..for the time is at hand. Rev.16:15, ‘ “Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”’

God bless us all

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