OCT. 30, 2013
The
Last Chapter
Read: Revelation
22:6-20
Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. —Philippians 4:5
I
have a friend who reads the last chapter first when she starts a new thriller.
“Takes the anxiety out of reading,” she claims. So with Christians: Because we
know the end of the story, we can be centers of peace in the midst of utter
chaos, calm in the face of disaster.
The
apostle Paul calls this attitude “moderation” in Philippians 4:5 (kjv). It’s a term that implies “peace under
pressure.” It refers to the calm and deliberate strength with which we meet the
disquieting circumstances of our days. Kingdoms may fall, friends may falter,
churches may fold, oceans may rise, and mountains may crumble, but we can be at
peace.
How
do we maintain such composure? By remembering that “the Lord is at hand” (Phil.
4:5); He is near. Our Lord is standing just outside the door ready to burst
through and turn everything that’s wrong right-side up. Then this world and all
its troubles will become the kingdom of our Lord, and “the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of theLord, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:14).
Jesus
said, “Surely I am coming quickly” (Rev. 22:20). Today could be the day! It’s
the very last thing He said in the very last chapter of His book.
Lord, thank You for dispelling the fear from our lives
by letting us know the end of the story. We can rest
in the assurance that as Your followers we will one
day be with You in Your glorious, eternal kingdom.
No doctrine is more closely linked to practical daily living
than that of the Lord’s return.
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
