What Jesus Looks Like Now
Read: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; Revelation 1:12-17a When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. (Rev. 1:17a) What’s your mental picture of Jesus? Some might think of a painting that once hung in many a church lounge, a portrait of an olive-skinned Jesus with brown hair and beard and a rather dreamy […]
In the Spirit on the Lord’s Day
Read: Revelation 1:10-11; John 20:1-10, 19-20 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day. (Rev. 1:10) I have a pastor friend who likes to explain Scripture phrases by running them through the “Bible decoder ring.” If you run our key verse through that, it comes out “I was worshiping one Sunday.” John was doing […]
A Wonderful Way to Worship God
This book is a series of weekly meditations, designed to last for a whole year. Instead of reading a new passage and meditation each day, you will read the passage selected and the meditation to start a week of sustained reflections. For the remainder of the week, read the passage again each day. After reading, […]
Partners in Tribulation
Read: Revelation 1:9; John 16:25-33 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus. (Rev. 1:9) A key word in the book of Revelation is thlipsis, meaning distress, suffering, tribulation. John knew all about thlipsis, and so did the churches he was writing to; […]
The Alpha and the Omega
Read: Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God. Alpha and omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. I’m it, says God. Everything from A to Z comes from me and belongs to me. I’m the beginning and the end—and all that’s in between. Nothing exists […]
He is Coming
Read: Revelation 1:7; Acts 1:6-11 This Jesus . . . will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven. (Acts 1:11) A lot of ink has been spilled over Jesus’ second coming. Will there be a millennium, a literal thousand-year reign of Christ on the earth? Will the church be snatched […]
To Him Be Glory Forever
Read: Revelation 1:5b-6; Revelation 5 . . . to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. (1:6) A doxology is literally a “word of glory.” Doxologies are brief ascriptions of praise that Christians have used in worship since the very beginning. The salutation of Revelation 1:4 is Trinitarian. We’ve considered God the Father; we’ll […]
The Firstborn of the Dead
Read: Revelation 1:4-5a; 1 Corinthians 15:42-52 Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. (v. 5) Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. all were powerful leaders in the struggle for a more just society. Each of them inspired millions, and each died a […]
The Eternal God
Read: 2 Corinthians 4:16–5:10 Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come. (Rev. 1:4) Following his introductory comments, John opens with what our liturgy’s Order of Worship used to call the Salutation: “Grace to you and peace . . .” The apostle Paul began most of […]