KG Dec. 25-31

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December 25, Sunday

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Merry Christmas! — What a great passage to read on the day that we celebrate the birth of Jesus!  Three times it is said that God “sent his Son” to the world (vv. 9, 10, 14).  It even includes the third member of the Trinity, by mentioning that God also “has given us of his Spirit” (v. 13).  All of this Christmas giving was motivated by God’s love: “…love is from God … because God is love” (vv. 7-8).  Notice how closely love is tied to giving in these paragraphs.  This giving connection is why we practice giving gifts at Christmas time.  Love wants to give.  God gave His Son to us for three stated reasons.  First, it was “so that we might live through him” (v.9).  It was the gift of eternal life.  The second reason was for Jesus “to be the propitiation for our sins” (v. 10).  It was a gift that paid the penalty for our sins, satisfying God’s justice by appeasing His wrath toward our sin.  Third, God sent Jesus “to be the Savior of the world” (v. 14).  It was the gift of salvation.  God’s love provided the greatest gift ever.

For God so Loved the World – YouTube

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December 26, Monday

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Grasping Eternity — Much of today’s reading centers on Jesus Christ, but it begins and ends with identical statements about the Father, “… who is and who was and who is to come” (vv. 4, 8).  That speaks of the eternality of God.  Using a metaphor of the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, He referred to Himself as “the Alpha and the Omega” (v. 8).  He is the beginning and the end.  Actually, He was before the beginning and will be after the end as far as time is concerned.  He exists outside of time.  He sees the beginning of your life and the end of your life simultaneously.  He is timeless in His nature.  That is hard for us to understand because all of our experience has been in the realm of time.  We only know about eternity because of what God has told us about it in His Word.  Someday, however, we will be ushered into the realm of eternity, when we leave this body and go to be with God.  Only then will we really be able to grasp eternity.

Eternity – YouTube

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December 27, Tuesday

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Awesome God — You may have noticed in this chapter that John made little attempt to describe the One who sat on the throne, except that He “had the appearance of jasper and carnelian” (v. 2).  This is an indication that God’s appearance was indescribable for John’s limited ability.  He made no effort to define His clothing or what He looked like.  Maybe it was just too indistinct—just a splash of splendor.  Of course, God is invisible, so when there is any “appearance” of God, He is only providing something for human eyes to see.  God’s splendor was not only visual (“jasper and carnelian … [and] flashes of lightning”), but also audible (“rumblings and peals of thunder”—vs. 5).  Sensory overload!  How about those beings who were constantly in God’s presence?  The four living creatures “never cease to say, ‘Holy, holy, holy …’” (v. 8).  They praised His holiness, His might, and His eternality.  Then, the 24 elders were repeatedly falling before Him in submission, honor, and worship, saying, “Worthy are you … to receive glory and honor and power…” (v. 11).  As John had difficulty describing the glory of what he saw, so we often have a hard time expressing our praise to God.  How about just memorizing verse 11 and praying it to God when you run out of your own words?  Be a 25^th elder!  God is worthy of our praise.

Here is a fitting song of praise suggested by a reader in the Philippines.
Unbroken Praise – YouTube

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December 28, Wednesday

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Righteous Government — Most New Testament scholars believe that the sounding of the seventh angel’s trumpet signals the Second Coming of Christ, when “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ” (v. 15).  That is when the Millennial Kingdom on earth begins.  This is what Jesus’ disciples thought was going to happen in their time, when Jesus would defeat the dominance of Rome over the then-known world, and rule in righteousness.  No, that reign is still to come.  Can you imagine government rule without selfishness, greed, corruption, and injustice?  One day, godly people will have no fear or distrust of government.  The Lord will reign through His Son over all the earth.  Bring it on!

Jesus Shall Reign – YouTube

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December 29, Thursday———————ACCOUNTABILITY TIME!

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Just and Good — Today, we step back in time from yesterday’s reading.  The judgment of the wrath of God will be poured out on the earth before the Millennial Kingdom is established.  The singers with “the harps of God … had conquered the beast” (v. 2) during the Great Tribulation by maintaining their faith, even though they were martyred.  They sang to the Judge, “Just and true are your ways” and “your righteous acts have been revealed” (v. 3).  As terrible as it will be when God’s wrath is executed, it is just and it is righteous.  It is sometimes hard for us to balance in our minds the justice and the goodness of God, but He is both just and good.  Thankfully, by the grace of God, we will also stand in heaven with those martyred for their faith.  We will sing this deserved praise to Him: “…you alone are holy” (v. 4).

I could not find a video for this hymn by Isaac Watts,
but it fittingly shows the justice and goodness of God.

ACCOUNTABILITY TIME!  If you are up to date in your reading for this month,
please click here to leave your email address or let me know today at accbibleread@gmail.com.

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December 30, Friday——————ACCOUNTABILITY REMINDER!

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Just, Holy, Eternal — In this chapter, the seven bowls of God’s wrath are being poured out in judgment on the earth.  With the third bowl, there is a statement about who God is.  The angel responsible for turning drinking water into blood said, “Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was” (v. 5).  God is just, holy, and eternal.  Those judgments will be just because He is just.  Their punishment “is what they deserve!” (v. 6).  We would be in the same deserving category if we had not turned in submission to Christ, accepting His sacrifice that paid the penalty for our sin.  God is also the “Holy One,” who alone meets His high standard because He is perfect.  He is set apart from us in terms of purity and goodness.  His holy perfection is the target for our own conduct.  Finally, as we have seen many times, God is eternal.  He exists outside of time, so He has always been and will always be.  We who know Jesus will spend the rest of eternity with Him.

Ancient of Days – YouTube

ACCOUNTABILITY REMINDER!  If you are up to date in your reading
as of Dec. 30, and did not report yesterday, please click here to leave your email address or let me know today at accbibleread@gmail.com.

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December 31, Saturday—————ACCOUNTABILITY FINAL DAY!

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The Last Hurrah — Those of us who are born-again believers will be a part of that heavenly multitude that cries out, “Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns” (v. 6).  Our struggle with sin will be over and all resistance against God will be finished.  From then on, God will reign in a way we have never seen before.  The Creator and Savior is King!  We won’t mistakenly fall down to worship an angel, but we will “Worship God” (v. 10) alone.

Please sing along with this great hymn of the church as we close out this year. 
Imagine yourself in heaven with that great multitude of redeemed saints.
O Worship the King – YouTube

ACCOUNTABILITY FINAL DAY!  If you have not reported in
the last two days, please let me know today the status of
your reading for the month, at accbibleread@gmail.com.

Thanks so much for reading with us this year.