The First Blessing In Revelation Series

But that’s hard, when the world’s way is so easy.

I admit, I’m as guilty of this as anyone- It’s easier to bury our heads into social media, video apps, and shorts- little hits of dopamine, which is the chemical in the brain that makes you feel good.

The problem with that is it’s very short lived, and then you feel even hungrier and go back for more of that distraction instead of putting it down and pulling a chair up to the table of God for some spiritual nourishment-

That is what you are really craving, even if you don’t know it.

Again, sowing and reaping-

If we sow to not hearing God when He is speaking to us- either through a message on a Sunday morning or when the Spirit is speaking to us directly through the Logos found in the bible, or the Rhema when the Holy Spirit is trying to speak to us

You will fulfill your hunger elsewhere, and usually try to fulfill that hunger by feeding our flesh.

I’ve said this repeatedly over the years, and I’ll say it again for us this morning-

You are a Spirit, residing in a body- you have to feed your spirit first, then your body will follow. Discipline yourself to hearing the Word of God first and foremost in your life.

And HE WILL take care of the rest.

That brings us to our next blessing-

III. The Blessing of Keeping

*“…and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.”*

To keep the words of this prophecy means to obey and guard them. This applies specifically to the Revelation, but it’s principle can be applied to the whole of the bible.

Early in my ministry preparation, I noticed something in the pastoral epistles of 1 and 2 Timothy. Paul ends the first letter by exhorting Timothy to “Guard what has been entrusted to your care”

He begins the second letter saying “Timothy, Guard the deposit with the power of the Holy Spirit”

Why do we guard something?

Because it’s valuable. IN this case, this treasure is the Gospel. It’s the way of salvation for everyone on earth.

It’s the cure for spiritual cancer.

We need to guard it with all of our hearts, minds, soul, and spirit so that we can keep this truth and live it before those who do not know God.

And God even tells us why- because the time is near. We are almost finished with the church age, and the coming age won’t be very pleasant so we need to be proclaiming, hearing, and keeping God’s word until Jesus comes.

I remember hearing this in Children’s Church-

It’s been said that the word “Bible” is an acronym meaning “Basic instructions before leaving earth”

It’s a very true statement.

Before I went into the military, I held a job in a furniture warehouse putting together pieces of furniture like the huge stereo system cabinets or entertainment centers.

My boss had a simple instruction to me- open the box, and read the instructions from cover to cover before you pick up a single tool or screw.

Well, I was young, and I’m male and that means I’ll be a prideful idiot sometimes, and looked at the picture on the box, looked at pieces on the floor in front of me and said, “Yeah, I can do that” and tossed the instruction book in the garbage.