Some things in this life are a mystery. Most of the things yet to come are most certainly a mystery. Agreed?

But have you ever thought about what a mystery really is? A mystery is something that absolutely cannot be understood without being revealed. You can’t figure it out. You can’t manage or measure it. It is either revealed to be known, or it is not revealed and it’s left in the unknown. Some mysteries are revealed by God – other mysteries are intentionally left in the unknown.

In Revelation chapter 10, there’s a part of what John sees and hears in visions of the Tribulation to come that he is told, “Keep this secret and do not write it down.” Well, isn’t that just a humdinger? There are absolutely certain things in alignment, however we are NOT to know them. It is to remain an unknown mystery. This is the part where God says, “You’re going to have to trust me here.”

An angel speaks to John and says in verses 6-7, “There will be no more delay. When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets.”

It’s a mystery, but it’s a plan, and it’s God’s plan. God isn’t just making this up as he goes. It has been laid out since before the beginning of time. The delay of fulfilling this plan has been for one purpose – saving me and saving you. Saving more souls from the Tribulation to come. He’s been giving us time to come to him, time to get it right, time to surrender our lives fully to him.

2 Peter 3:9-10, “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. (This is when Jesus comes to get his believers. The rapture, when we are snatched up and saved from all that is to come. This is the fulfillment of 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-17, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the 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.”) – Now, back to 2 Peter 3, verse 10 – Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.” (And that’s the coming of the great Tribulation we’ve been reading about in Revelation.)

Verse 11, “Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live. (Now, we bring it back to how we’re living right now. We can’t stay stuck in this extreme fear of the Tribulation or in an inactive faith where we just watch the sky for Jesus to come get us. Now, we must be LIVING. We’ve been told enough of what is to come and now we’re expected to be living accordingly.)

Verse 14, “While you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in his sight.”

Our job is not to figure it all out – our job is to live lives that are pleasing to God as his plan unfolds.

What we see in chapter 10 is God has a plan, it is a mysterious plan which we have no way of knowing unless it is divinely revealed to us, and some parts of that plan are simply NOT revealed. Without our understanding and without our knowing, God is going to fulfill his plan perfectly and it will happen exactly as he has said.

Now, chapter 11 shows us something about God’s plan that has left me in awe. If you’re just reading, you might miss it. If you’re just trying to get through your Bible reading plan so you can finish this thing up and check the box, you might feel like the entire chapter is confusing and overwhelming with a whole lot of predicted terror. But in all of this predicted terror is the sweetest revealing of God. Let’s look for it –

Verses 1-3, “Then I was given a measuring stick and I was told, ‘Go and measure the Temple of God and the altar, and count the number of worshipers. But do not measure the outer courtyard, for it has been turned over to the nations. They will trample the holy city for 42 months. And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will be clothed in burlap and will prophesy during those 1,260 days.'”

Do you see it? The destruction is limited. The damage is measured. The hard days are numbered.

God knows exactly what is going to happen, he has measured it, and he limits how long it will go on.

I may not know what you’re waiting on, but God knows – and he knows how long the wait will be. It’s measured.

I may not know what you’re going through, but God knows – and he knows how long it will continue. It’s limited.

I may not know what battle you’re facing, but God knows – and he knows precisely how and when the victory will come. It’s predicted.

God knows. God measures it. God limits it.

These future events were being revealed to John over 1,900 years ago! And how many more years until the unfolding of these events … well, that’s kept secret. But in all these years of God patiently waiting to activate the unfolding of his plans, giving us time to come to him so he could save us from what is to come, GOD ALREADY KNOWS HOW LONG THE DETAILS OF SPECIFIC HARDSHIPS WILL LAST.

He already has it planned. 1,260 days. That’s 42 sets of 30 day increments. Then God says, that’s enough. That’s over.

This gives me so much assurance in facing my own delays. That delay is known, measured and limited by God. He knows the days and the hours and he controls it all. He’s known about this from the beginning of time and he has a plan for it – for me – for you.

These 1,260 days were known about over 1,900 YEARS ago. And honey, your days were known about too. They’re all held by a great big, loving, patient God who has a plan, and that plan WILL BE FULFILLED PERFECTLY.

Later in chapter 10 we read these 2 witnesses that prophesy during those 1,260 days are brutally killed. Their bodies are drug out in the middle of the city where people will celebrate their death. Verse 11 says, “BUT AFTER THREE AND A HALF DAYS, God breathed life into them, and they stood up!”

Revealed 1,900 years ago, still to come in the future days of Tribulation, and so specifically measured and limited. Not dead 1 day, not dead 2 days, not even dead 3 days – but 3 and a HALF days. Not dead forever, but 3 1/2 days.

God’s plan misses nothing. It’s all held in his hand. Specifically. He limits the destruction. He measures the chaos. He knows the way to save us, and that is his plan.

God’s plan is to save you.

Later in the chapter it flashes to a scene that includes us – God’s people who are gathered around the throne worshiping him. The ones Jesus found to be faithfully following him when he came and snatched us up before the world faces this horrible time of Tribulation. And you know what we’re found saying in our worship of God? Verse 17, “We give thanks to you, Lord God, the Almighty, the one who is and who always was …”

Almighty. That’s our God – he is the Almighty. The original Greek word is pantokrater and it means “the one who has his hand on everything.”

Yes, our God truly does have his hand on everything. From the beginning of time, he’s known about OUR time. He’s known about YOUR time. He’s measured it and he’s limited it. Everything we will face is measured by the Almighty. Every trial that comes our way will be limited by the Almighty. He has his hand on EVERYTHING.

Some things in this life are a mystery. Some mysteries are revealed, and other mysteries remain in the divine unknown. But all of it is known, measured and limited by the Almighty. His hand is on every detail of our lives and we can trust him.

This may only last 3 1/2 days – you may wait 1,260 days. No matter the number, God knows it, God has measured it, and God limits it. His plan is perfect and it will be perfectly fulfilled. May you find comfort in that today.

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