Author: Ben Bourland

“And they swarmed up over the broad plain of the earth and encircled the fortress (camp) of God’s people (the saints) and the beloved city; but fire descended from heaven and consumed them.” Revelation 20:9  ->me:  Here we see the final act of God to extinguish evil.  As the hordes of godless nations surrounded God’s people and they city they are in God sends fire from heaven to consume the followers of the great deceiver in a quick moment…no battle, no war, just a quick judgement executed by a holy and pure God.  What keeps going through my mind is not the swiftness in which God doles out justice in this passage but all the opportunities He provided leading up this moment; the many instances of grace to allow a people turned from Him to acknowledge His Son as the One True solution to their problems.  Some might look at this and see a wrathful God anxious to pour out a consuming fire, but what I see is the final stoke of a loving God after so many years, opportunities, and signs that point to Him as the only Hope.  Directly succeeding this is the hurling of the dragon (satan) into the lake of fire where he will stay with the beast and the false prophet forever and ever.  Knowing what comes ahead I am again reminded of how much work there is to be done.

“Then I saw thrones, and sitting on them were those to whom authority to act as judges and to pass sentence was entrusted. Also I saw the souls of those who had been slain with axes [beheaded] for their witnessing to Jesus and [for preaching and testifying] for the Word of God, and who had refused to pay homage to the beast or his statue and had not accepted his mark or permitted it to be stamped on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived again and ruled with Christ (the Messiah) a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4 ->me: Well I am nearing the end of Revelation and this chapter (20) is one of the most contested.  Denominations have been split over pre-millennial, post-millennial, and Amillennial stands.  One thing is clear though -> that God is in control and that satan has no power that he is not given.  Another thing that I read was that John uses the word ‘throne’ 47 times and in all of them except satan’s throne and the beasts throne, all of the instances are in heaven.  So, that begs the question, is the 1000 reign in heaven?  Regardless, this whole verse talks about those reigning who were executed for their faith and stance with Jesus when faced with death.  There is a special place in God’s heart and Kingdom for those who gave all they could (their life) in His name.  What do I give up every day for the Lord?  Do I make the sacrifices I need to in recognition of His almighty power and love?

“And the beast was seized and overpowered, and with him the false prophet who in his presence had worked wonders and performed miracles by which he led astray those who had accepted or permitted to be placed upon them the stamp (mark) of the beast and those who paid homage and gave divine honors to his statue. Both of them were hurled alive into the fiery lake that burns and blazes with brimstone.  And the rest were killed with the sword that issues from the mouth of Him Who is mounted on the horse, and all the birds fed ravenously and glutted themselves with their flesh.” Revelation 19:20-21 ->me: This is so final – Just before these verses there is an angel that calls all the birds of the air together to be ready for “God’s great feast”.  Then it talks of a ‘Braveheart’ like moment where the opposing armies face each other for war.  Then these 2 verses – notice how no battle is spoken of actually occurring…at one moment they are facing each other down and then next ‘the beast and his false prophet are seized and overpowered’…and then all of the rest of the armies of the earth are killed by ‘the WORD of God’ -> Jesus.  When God is ready to dole out justice, His action is swift.  When He goes before me I have nothing to fear – satan has no power to himself.  What he has is only what God allows him to have, and only for a time.  What is even more crazy is that this power spoken of here is something I have through the armor of God -> the Sword of the Spirit (God’s Word).  I have not memorized any new verses lately (sharpening my Sword before battle); something I plan to change starting today.

“From His mouth goes forth a sharp sword with which He can smite (afflict, strike) the nations; and He will shepherd and control them with a staff (scepter, rod) of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath and indignation of God the All-Ruler (the Almighty, the Omnipotent) and on His garment (robe) and on His thigh He has a name (title) inscribed, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 19:15-16 ->me: These 2 verses from the passage here in Revelation depicting our Savior on His white horse coming with His angel armies is so awesome. Rather than try to take this apart piece by piece I will just tell you what I take away. The Word of Jesus (God) has the power to smack down nations of people and He has absolute authority…He cannot be resisted. In the previous verses it talks about His angel armies behind Him but they have no weapons because their leader alone is the one that conquers. When Jesus returns it will be clear Who He is and the Sovereignty that comes with. Today my prayer of humility and strength continues. This visual makes it very easy to come before my King in meekness and weakness knowing He comes in all power to wage war on those who resist Him. This life on earth is a place to grow strong in perseverance and character as we await my risen King. The knowledge and understanding won’t come without experience and practice standing up to the evil desires and distractions of this world. In this job, God has given me a great training ground but I must not let the evil one use it for his own purposes to sidetrack my life.

“Then [the angel] said to me, Write this down: Blessed (happy, to be envied) are those who are summoned (invited, called) to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me [further], These are the true words (the genuine and exact declarations) of God. Then I fell prostrate at his feet to worship (to pay divine honors) to him, but he [restrained me] and said, Refrain! [You must not do that!] I am [only] another servant with you and your brethren who have [accepted and hold] the testimony borne by Jesus. Worship God! For the substance (essence) of the truth revealed by Jesus is the spirit of all prophecy [the vital breath, the inspiration of all inspired preaching and interpretation of the divine will and purpose, including both mine and yours].” Revelation 19:9-10 ->me: ‘Blessed are those who are summoned’ – this phrase just rings over and over in my head. You are blessed when you are called because you are given access to Jesus (John 6:65). Jesus then gives us access to the Father through the shed blood of His Son. Then when John falls at the feet of the angel (big no no) the angel corrects him – Worship God alone! The meat of the truth spoken by Jesus is the undertow of all prophesy. So, when we listen to the call of the Father and follow His Son we are in the divine plan of God.

“Rejoice (celebrate) over her, O heaven! O saints (people of God) and apostles and prophets, because God has executed vengeance for you upon her! Then a single powerful angel took up a boulder like a great millstone and flung it into the sea, crying, With such violence shall Babylon the great city be hurled down to destruction and shall never again be found.” Revelation 18:20-21 ->me: Tonight I finished chapter 18. The whole chapter is on the final destruction of the harlot -> Babylon (civilized man apart from God). This voice from heaven asks all the Saints and all for heaven to rejoice because God has avenged us by destroying and hurling all the putrid things of this world into the sea like a great stone…never to be heard or seen ever again. This is the final act that cleanses the earth of iniquity, setting up the scene for the reign of the Almighty. What a day that will be when the world is no longer a welcome place for anything other than our God and His heirs. The one thing that this chapter really taught me is that God sees sin and worldly living as corrupting force that until it is gone, will be a threat to all who flirt with her. Such a strong message – a married man should NEVER place himself in a situation where might even be the hint of impropriety — So as the bride of Christ we (I) should apply same logic.

“I then heard another voice from heaven saying, Come out from her, my people, so that you may not share in her sins, neither participate in her plagues. For her iniquities (her crimes and transgressions) are piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her wickedness and [her] crimes [and calls them up for settlement].” Revelation 18:4-5 ->me: This passage has me chewing. This follows the description of the harlot (the representation of civilized man apart from God). This appears to be an indictment by association. ‘Come out of her’ – remember my QT from the 8th – RUN AWAY!. ‘that you may not share in her sins’ – I take this to mean that we have very little power within ourselves to withstand the temptations of this world when we allow ourselves to be rubbing shoulders with her. We must run away to our Father in Heaven to stay pure and holy. ‘God has remembered her wickedness’ means that if I don’t get away I could find myself in harm’s way as God’s wrath comes down on her. I don’t think John is talking about a physical closeness but a heart and treasure one. As part of our reading this month for my men’s study at church we have been reading The Treasure Project. This book really focuses on redirecting our treasure building forward, no investment here (earth)…at all. In the verses before this one it talks about the businessmen becoming rich with the wealth of her excessive luxury and wantonness – such a powerful warning and association with our dealings with the world to make money. How can I possibly think that unless I am steeped in God’s word and communal prayer with Him (this is how I define ‘to come out from her’) that I stand any chance of making any right decisions on my own. Without the Holy Spirit actively drawing me to the right decisions and life choices, I am doomed to participate in the harlot’s sinning and plagues. I put myself at risk of her evil and despicable wickedness rubbing off on me.

“They will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them; for He is Lord of lords and King of kings—and those with Him and on His side are chosen and called [elected] and loyal and faithful followers.” Revelation 17:14 ->me: This is a topper to the message by Pastor Steve, phone call with my best friend, and the last week on this new project.  When Pastor Steve told us to ask ourselves what we were needing right now -> Courage or Strength; it was an automatic answer for me…STRENGTH!  This last week has been full of distractions, pressure, stress, hurriedness, and excitement…none of these things are bad unless they draw you away from the Almighty.  I was talking Teague (my best friend) on the phone this evening and explaining how quickly distant I had become from the Lord by just being…Busy.  I need the Lord’s strength to stay true to my ultimate hope which rests in Him.  God has given me the skills and job that I have, but He also deserves my obedience, focus, and surrender to Himself.  When I am in these places of structured focus work towards an objective, I can quickly start to use my own strength and know how to get the job done but God is the main focus of my desire and He should receive all the glory for the work I do…not me.  God has the end-all-be-all power in the Universe; the same power that will defeat satan and these rulers (the ‘they’ in the beginning of the verse today).  I need the Lord’s strength to remember Him through every moment, meeting, conversation, and work situation that is to come over the next months.

“This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated” Revelation 17:9 ->me:  Revelation 13:18 also uses this same requirement for understanding “This calls for wisdom: let him who has understanding reckon the number of the beast, for it is a human number, its number is six hundred and sixty-six”.  Putting this together with “Keep awake” in Rev. 3:2, 3:3, and 16:15; it is a call to how we should live in these last days.  God is the Giver of wisdom and the start of that wisdom begins with fearing God -> The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord brings instruction in Wisdom (Proverbs 15:33).  I must remain alert and awake, not going into the sleepy dream state of this world around me.  Even though I operate in this world I must live every moment awake in the Lord.  With a reverential and worship filled heart I must fear the Lord (fear disappointing him, fear of looking bad before Him, fear of losing my time with Him).  It is through living in this way that the wisdom required here, is possible.  I am reading a lot of commentaries and petitioning the Lord for understanding but I can rest without fear or worry knowing He is in control regardless of whether I understand the things in Revelation or not.

“I also saw that the woman was drunk, [drunk] with the blood of the saints (God’s people) and the blood of the martyrs [who witnessed] for Jesus. And when I saw her, I was utterly amazed and wondered greatly.” Revelation 17:6 ->me:  This is so vivid of the brutality of the world in persecuting the Saints/Martyrs.  The fact that she was drunk means that the blood flowed freely and that the amount was great in quantity.  It also implies that she enjoyed the process.  When she persecuted the church she did not think of herself as performing a distasteful but necessary duty…She rejoiced in it as a drunkard rejoices in his wine.  So when we turn to entertain the ways of this world and the signals it so enjoyably sends our way to coax us in, the world stands ready to pounce, to slay without thought, and even out of enjoyment.  The world longs to consume and squash the spiritual lives of those Saints she is able to pull in, pull in with false doctrine, pull in with poor company/friends, pull in with demands of work, pull in with pornography and sex addiction.  This seems to paint a bleak picture for one who is caught up in her schemes…the amount of blood is so great it appears that few get away.  RUN AWAY BEN! Do not open yourself even a little bit; the speed and violence of her grip is true to even the smallest target!