Today, we have been given the gift of time. Yes, time to live, but also time get it right. God is being patient with us. He’s literally holding back what must happen next to warn us of the dangers of living this life without him.

After avoiding the book of Revelation for my 49 years of existence, I’ve started a deep dive into the very scriptures that once only confused and terrified me. Remember, the Greek word for revelation is apocalypse. Now of course, apocalypse has come to have a doom and gloom fear based meaning, but that world really meant “a revealing”. What is being revealed in the final book of our Bible is Jesus. Jesus wants us to know him and he wants us to know HE IS COMING.

We’ve spent the past 2 weeks studying the first 3 chapters of Revelation and we’ve come to see Jesus’ words to his church back then still apply to us today. We’re still his people and he’s still teaching us how to live this life. Now, here’s something radically interesting, the word “church” is mentioned 19 times in those first 3 chapters. Church means God’s people. Then suddenly, we’re not mentioned again AT ALL until chapter 22.

You know what happens in those chapters where we’re not mentioned … the most horrific of things you can imagine. The doom and gloom all happens there. And God’s people are NOT even mentioned. Do you know why? BECAUSE THAT SIMPLY ISN’T FOR US.

JESUS HAS SAVED US FROM ALL THIS WORLD MUST FACE!

I have the gift of faith. Blind faith. I don’t need to see it to believe it. I don’t need to understand it to be sure of it. Faith comes naturally and easily to me. Because of that, so does confusion. Since accepting Jesus at 15, I didn’t really know what I believed, I just knew I believed. The problem is, I couldn’t then lead anyone else into faith because I had no clue what God’s word really said about what is to come. And when you don’t know, then you don’t realize how big of a deal your salvation truly is.

I knew I was saved, but I really didn’t know what I was saved from. Jesus wants us to know. He wants to reveal himself and what he’s doing for you. That’s the entirety of the book of Revelation. THIS IS WHAT JESUS HAS DONE FOR YOU. HE’S SAVED YOU.

It’s a work of the enemy to keep us fearful and confused so we dismiss ourselves from the life changing awareness of Jesus’ unmatched gift for us. You have to know what happens without a life covered by the seal of the lamb. You have to know what can happen to a life caught up in worldly pursuits without the blood of Jesus. That’s why you read Revelation. It’s not to be avoided.

Remember, back in the very beginning of the book in the opening chapter, John writes in verse 3, “God blesses the one who reads the words, who listens to these words and obeys what it says.” There are blessings waiting for you in studying what Jesus told John to write. And today we’re about to discover the biggest blessing Jesus is revealing.

Chapter 4, after John has written to each of the 7 Churches Jesus’ clear instructions about how they are to clean up their living and get it right, Jesus says to John, “Come up here, and I will show you what MUST HAPPEN AFTER THIS.”

Underline those words. MUST HAPPEN AFTER THIS. God has a plan and Heaven has an order. It’s important to understand the order so you know where you fit in and where you don’t. It’s important to know where YOU WILL BE, and that’s really the big question.

WHERE WILL YOU BE?

Jesus shows John the future where angels are gathered around the throne of God and day after day and night after night, they say, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty – the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come. Then, whenever the angels give glory and honor and thanks, it says, “the 24 elders fall down and worship the one sitting on the throne. And they lay down their crowns before the throne (and they worship).”

These elders represent the believers. The Christ-followers. The sold out. That’s me – is that you? Here’s where we will be – We will be around the throne of God with the angels. We will have crowns because we have been declared victorious through Jesus. And around the throne we will lay down our crown of victory and we will worship God. And that’s where we will stay. What is to happen next simply DOES NOT INCLUDE US.

In the plan of God and order of Heaven, we will not be on this Earth because something truly miraculous has happened – we’ve been snatched up by God! This is what we call the rapture. 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-17, “The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of tha archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.”

The original word used for “caught up” is harpazo which means snatched up! God comes and snatches up all the believers who have already died, and all the believers who are still live on earth, and we are immediately taken to be with him forever. And that’s where we stay. With God!

We’re not left on this earth to experience what happens next in God’s plan and Heaven’s order, BUT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT IT.

What happens next is Jesus breaks the 7 seals on the scroll. The scroll is the history and destiny of all creation. The seals are the events that must unfold in the process of that history and destiny. And this is where it gets bad. Like really, really, really bad.

This is the destiny of the world and all who belong to it.

Reading in chapter 6, first, a white horse comes with its rider carrying a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rides out to win many battles and gain the victory. Let’s be clear, this isn’t Jesus. Jesus doesn’t carry a bow. You know who does? Satan. Ephesians 6:16 tells us of the fiery arrows of the devil. The one riding in with the bow on the white horse, given a crown winning victory in battles is Satan, the enemy of our soul. This is the warning of the antichrist. The one who looks like Jesus, but he’s not. He is a deceiver.

But again, WE WILL NOT BE HERE FOR THIS. God’s people are already around the throne in his glorious presence. This is a revealing of the terror those without Jesus will face as Satan is given rule over the earth.

Then, the second seal on the scroll is broken and we read of the next event. A red horse comes and it’s rider is given authority to take peace from the earth. Literally, all peace will be stripped. There will be no safety. There will be no hope. There will be no joy, no happiness. It’s all taken.

Then it just keeps getting worse. The cost of simply surviving will be more than can be afforded. And now famine, disease and chaos hit. The sky goes dark, the moon turns red, the stars fall from the sky, the mountains and islands are shaken and moved, and everyone hides in fear taking shelter in caves. But it gets worse and worse. Chapter 8 tells us of the earth being set on fire, the water in the sea becoming blood, and 1/3 of all living creatures dying.

But again, remember, God’s people are not here for this. We are literally SAVED. Where are we? We’re around the throne of God with the angels. We’ve been rescued.

On the top of the pages in my Bible detailing these horrific and fearful events that must come, I have written, “I’M SAVED FROM ALL OF THIS BY JESUS.” And that’s the truth. We are saved. Jesus rescues us before the seals are broken and before these events unfold.

Again, the question is, WHERE WILL YOU BE?

Will you be one covered by the redeeming blood of Jesus because you choose to believe NOW – or will you be one who is left on this earth when Satan runs wild and is given the power to bring utter destruction?

I’m coming to understand I’ve truly taken salvation for granted. By never being willing to study what is to come in this world, I’ve missed the truths of what I’m really being saved from. Now, I understand why John says we will be so blessed by hearing and reading what is being revealed in the book of Revelation … what’s being revealed is really all Jesus is SAVING US FROM.

If you have been afraid and confused by the book of Revelation, I encourage you to write and highlight at the top of your pages from chapter 6 to chapter 22: I’M SAVED FROM ALL OF THIS BY JESUS. I KNOW WHERE I WILL BE, AND IT WON’T BE HERE. THANK YOU, JESUS!”

Salvation. It is the sweetest gift that perhaps we have taken for granted.

Salvation. it is the sweetest offer you can share with others. God has literally invited you into partnership with him to help bring others to the gift of salvation and completely avoid all that must happen to the world in the future.

Do you know where you will be when all this destruction comes? There’s only one thing that will save you, and that is a relationship with Jesus. A faith placed in him. A life surrendered to him. A reservation made around the throne of God that saves you from all that is absolutely guaranteed to come on this earth.

I’ve never been more grateful for my salvation – how about you?

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