December 29, 2022
It is easy for us to look around this terribly sinful world and think it will never end. We can easily be deceived into believing that evil has the upper hand, that the devil will reign forever, and that nothing will ever change.
But we would be wrong. The beloved apostle, John, saw it in the great revelation of the future.
"Then the seventh angel sounded; 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." (Revelation 11:15)
God has allowed evil for His sovereign purposes to reign for a season. But it is always under His thumb. Soon all wickedness will end, and God's purposes in it all will be finalized. And then, a judgment will come that will be sure and final.
"And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth." (Rev. 11:18)
When God closes the book, glorious things will happen:
1) The unrighteous and unbelieving will be judged. Every wrong will be avenged. Everything in this world that is upside down will be put in its proper place. Everything that needs to be judged and righted will occur.
2) All those who love and fear God's name will be rewarded. It will make no difference if they are great, recognized men and women of God or the smallest, humblest believer. It will all be put in place.
3) God’s final kingdom will come, and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This world will be purged with fire, the new heaven will come down (think of the Paradise of Eden), and Christ will reign perfectly and fully forever and ever.
There is a longing in every soul for more, for different, for right. And it is coming. My favorite Easter poem says,
Lift up your heads, ye sorrowing ones and be not sad of heart. For Calvary's day and Easter day—earth's saddest day and gladdest day—are just three days apart."
What is true of that brief weekend is true of all of human history. Evil abounds, but lift your head ... He will soon reign forever and ever!
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