Heralds Digest

"And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely." (Revelation 22:17 NKJV) The opportunity cost on the pursuit of the material things of life is often covered by the lousiness of promotions, possessions, and prosperity. Whereas the soul of man is famished by every distraction from the race of godliness. Being the source of the problem for the misplace of priority, the reward system on earth appears comfortable with the strength of its soft promotion in the heart of man. Actually, as the body desires comfort, the soul should thirst for the refreshment of the spirit. Otherwise, the water of life (real reward) could be lost in the pursuit of the wealth of life (fake reward).

"But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life." (Revelation 21:27 NKJV) The New Jerusalem as the city of God is more glorious than the mortal man can expressed. As an epitome of the glory of God, the building materials are made of precious stones, the tabernacle reveals the presence of God, while His glory gives the light. But as the Lamb's bride, the preparation of the New Jerusalem in heaven signifies the expected preparation of the Church of Christ on earth. The Lamb's bride will not accommodate anything that defiles, no matter how intense the pressure from the world.

"He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son." (Revelation 21:7 NKJV) Sin is inherited by man by virtue of the fall through Adam and Eve. Inspite of the grace of God through faith in the atoning blood of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, freedom from sin remains a continuous battle until the end of life. However, the overcomers are those who maintains the clear understanding of the difference between " all things " and " these things ". The things that the eyes and the senses of man can see and feel today may constitute a strong source of temptation; but they are largely the destroyers of the joy of a potential overcomer. The battle of life is lost when the promised " all things " from God are substituted for the paraded " these things " of the world.

"And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books." (Revelation 20:12 NKJV) Judgment in the court of law is based on superior statement or status. It implies that the concept of court of justice is remote to the system of the world. Even the decisions in the supreme court are subject to controversy because they are made by natural beings. Unlike the court of law, the White Throne Judgment will show no regard for statements and status. The small and the great will appear before the just God to know their fate. Deeds and works on every single day in life are captured in the books. Appearance before this throne will merely be for conviction and evidence of justice. God's Judgment Day will be a day of eternal damnation for all who will miss the First Resurrection.

"Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." (Revelation 20:6 NKJV) The celebration of the distasteful legalization of immorality and un-righteousness across the world may appear a distraction to holy living. Actually, it helps to separate the wheat from the chaff. Soon and very soon, the righteous of the Lord will be cut off from the polluted scene. The darkness of the present age will only be a concern for the unfortunate bride, who will be part of the 7-year tribulation period thereafter. The raptured bride will be saved by grace through the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, while the tribulation bride will be saved by her own blood. Either way, the bride of Christ is blessed, holy, and will be a worthy partaker of the First Resurrection.

"And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”" (Revelation 19:10 NKJV) Privilege to prophecies is promoted by many on earth as a great possession, or a potentate that demand worship. Obviously, Apostle John was carried away by the revelations of the prophecy of a new phase of event at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Previous revelations have been largely focussed on the tribulation accounts and the punishments of the ungodly elements on earth, after the rapture of the saints. Because John had the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophesy, he has got the most important passport to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Only God who issue the prophesy passport for all the callers is worthy of worship.

"The light of a lamp shall not shine in you anymore, and the voice of bridegroom and bride shall not be heard in you anymore. For your merchants were the great men of the earth, for by your sorcery all the nations were deceived." (Revelation 18:23 NKJV) Like Thomas Edisson's invention of electric light, the earth has been blessed by the inventions from the great men of all ages. Everyone's contribution or the little light is expected to always outlived the inventor. Whether it is the discovery of methods or machinery, the earth's advances have been driven by the activities of the created great men of the earth. While man's little light can boast of the mastery of certain circumstances, only the Creator knows the limit of every little light. Sincerely, wise inventors will choose the superiority of the Lord's light above the ability of their little lights.