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REVELATION 1:3
Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this
prophecy, and keep those things that are written in it; for the time
is near.
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The only book in Scripture containing a beginning
statement of blessing for reading, hearing, and
keeping the things that are written in it.
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But in truth, this statement would be applicable to all portions
of Scripture (Psalm 12:6;
138:2;
2 Timothy 3:15-17;
John 17:17).
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Yet, Revelation is the capstone of Scripture; it is about
the whole of Scripture. It brings all previous revelation
together in an apex, with the “mystery
of God”
being brought to a completed state in this book (Revelation 10:7).
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The word “mystery” comes from the Greek word musterion,
which means something that man cannot explain, requiring an
unveiling through a divine means. It is something revealed in
the Old Testament, which is further clarified in the New
Testament. It is not something new, i.e., something that
is separate from and unknown in the Old Testament; otherwise,
the “Word made flesh” (John
1:14)
before the New Testament was written would have to be separated
from it, which, of course, He isn’t.
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There are numerous mysteries discussed in the New
Testament.
Of the kingdom (Matthew
13:11;
Mark 4:11;
Luke 8:10)
Of Israel’s blindness (Romans
11:25)
Of the rapture of the Church (1
Corinthians 15:51)
Of the revelation to Paul (Ephesians
3:3)
Of Christ and the Church (Ephesians
5:32)
Of God (Colossians 2:2)
Of iniquity (2Thessalonians 2:7)
Of faith (1 Timothy 3:9)
Of godliness (1
Timothy 3:16)
Of the woman and the beast (Revelation
17:7)
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The “mystery
of God”
in
Revelation 10:7
(at a mid-point in the book), which is the revelation of God
that began in
Genesis 1:1,
has at this point been opened and fully revealed through a
revelation of His Son (Colossians 2:2,
ASV, “.
. . the mystery of God, even Christ”),
just as, and for the same reason, that “the
kingdom of the world”
can become that “of
our Lord, and of His Christ”
in
Revelation
11:15
(ASV). Why? Because they are both connected to the sounding of
the seventh trumpet, signaling a completion of God’s judgment
upon the earth and its inhabitants through its
seven bowls of God’s wrath.
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The words “reads” and “hear” need little explanation; but the
word “keep” is another matter. It comes from the Greek word
tereo, which contextually means “to observe” or “to give
heed,” i.e., keep the prophetic truth of God’s coming judgments
always at the forefront of one’s thinking. Why? Because it
will validate your “fear
of the Lord,”
which is the “beginning of knowledge and wisdom” (Psalm 111:10;
Proverbs 1:7).
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And God’s coming judgment of Christians should be of most
interest, since it is at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2
Corinthians 5:10,
11;
Romans 14:10;
Galatians 6:7;
Colossians 3:24,
25
[1
Corinthians 3:12-15];
Revelation 22:12)
that the Bride of Christ will be selected from determinations
and decisions made there, which will result in the Bride’s
“out-resurrection” (Philippians
3:11,
exanastasis) from the Body of Christ, and which will
determine a Christian’s participation in the Messianic Era by
co-reigning and co-ruling with Christ.
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And the reason one should “read,” “hear,” and “heed” these
coming judgments from God is because “the time
[for them] is near.”
As the Rapture is imminent (i.e., can happen at any time)
and God’s judgments are sure, there is no time to waste when it
concerns doing the business of our Lord.
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