The Joshua Principle

O.S. Hawkins, the president of the Annuity Board of the Southern Baptist Convention wrote a little book called The Joshua Principle: 52 Bible Verses Every Christian Should Know. The book challenges Christians to not only know these verses, but to memorize them. I felt like this was such an important challenge that I am going base my preaching ministry for a year on the verses contained in this book. I am also going to challenge the church I pastor as well as those who read this blog to memorize these verses.
Beginning on September 4th and continuing for the next year I will post a verse and some thoughts about the verse on a weekly basis.

Read Through the New Testament

I want to thank those of you who have been faithful to read through the Bible with me this past year. There is no better way to start your day than to begin with the Lord speaking to you through His word.

I want to encourage you to read through the New Testament this year.  You can do so by simply reading a little over a chapter a day.

For the time being I will be discontinuing this guide, but may start it back up some time in the future.
God bless you one and all.

Come Lord Jesus!

Daily Bible Reading – Revelation 19:1 – 22:21

Three times at the close of this book Christ says, “I am coming quickly!” (vv. 7, 12, 20). The word “quickly” suggests “swiftly.” It means that when these great events start to occur, there will be no delay. We do not know when Christ will appear, and it behooves us to be ready.

In Dan. 12:4, the prophet was told to seal up the book; John, on the other hand, was commanded not to seal the book because “the time is at hand” (v. 10). Daniel’s words would not be fulfilled for many years; John’s prophecy would come to pass shortly. Verse 11 is not an enticement for sinners to remain unchanged; otherwise the invitation in v. 17 would be a mockery. Instead, v. 11 is warning us that continued sin defines character and determines destiny. “The wicked shall do wickedly,” says Dan. 12:10. When Christ comes, our true character will be revealed. Another lesson of this verse is that people make their own decisions; God does not force them to be either wicked or righteous. Compare 22:15 with 21:8.

The final verses of this book present a plea, a prayer, and a promise. In vv. 7 and 12, the Lord has said, “I come quickly!” In v. 17, the Spirit and the bride say “Come!” to the Lord Jesus. The Spirit prays through the church for the return of the Savior. The lost soul is invited to “Come, drink of the water of life!” The last prayer of the Bible is that of the Holy Spirit through John saying, “Even so come, Lord Jesus!” This ought to be our daily prayer also.

Verses 18–19 are a warning against tampering with God’s Word. Satan loves for men to add to the Word or take from the Word, but to do so is to invite judgment. Note Deut. 4:2 and Prov. 30:5–6. In John’s day, books were copied by hand, and the copyist might have been tempted to edit or emend the material. Even today, people add their theories and traditions to God’s Word or strike from it whatever does not fit into their scheme of theology. John’s warning applied specifically to the Book of Revelation, but certainly it includes all of the Word of God.

Thus ends the last book of the Bible, the book of the last things. We can end these study notes in no better way than to echo the prayer of the Spirit, “Even so come, Lord Jesus!”

Tribulation Saints

Daily Bible Reading – Revelation 15:1 – 18:24

We have met these saints before; they are the believers of the tribulation period who refused to bow their knees to the Beast and, as a result, lost their lives for the sake of Christ (12:11; 13:7–10). John sees them as victors, standing by the heavenly sea. We think immediately of Israel in Ex. 15, where God had delivered the people victoriously from the bondage of Egypt. Please note that the “sea of glass” now has fire mingled in it; in 4:6, this crystal sea was clear. The fire reminds us that the wrath of God is now about to be revealed (Heb. 12:29).

These saints were slain for their faith, yet John says that they “have the victory” over the Beast! They would not wear his mark or worship his image, and so lost their lives; but in losing their lives for Christ’s sake, they found them again! Even if the Christian dies in his witness, he is the victor, not the loser. Here again we see these saints singing by the heavenly sea; in 20:4, we see their dead bodies raised so that the company might reign with Christ during the Millennium. If we suffer with Christ, we shall reign with Him (2 Tim. 2:12).

In 14:3, the 144,000 sang a new song that nobody else could sing; but here we have the Song of Moses and of the Lamb. The Song of Moses is probably Israel’s song of victory at the Red Sea in Ex. 15, although some students believe that this song echoes Moses’ final words in Deut. 31–32. I prefer the former. Note that the refrain, “The Lord is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation” (Ex. 15:2) is repeated in Ps. 118:14 and Isa. 12:2. In each case, there is a deliverance for Israel. The Jews sang the Song of Moses when they were delivered from Egypt, but they also sang it when they returned to their land after the Captivity, for Ps. 118 was very likely written after the return from Babylon. Isaiah 12 looks forward to the time when Israel will be regathered from the nations of the world and returned to her land; so in each case, the song celebrates Israel’s deliverance from the enemy. In Ex. 15, God’s people stood by an earthly sea; but here it is a heavenly sea. In Exodus, they had been delivered by the blood of the Passover lamb; and here they overcame the Beast “by the blood of the Lamb” (12:11). Note that they sing not only the song of Moses, but also the song of the Lamb. “The Lamb” is the title of Christ most repeated in Revelation; it is used at least twenty-eight times. We have here a wonderful union of OT and NT, of Moses and the Lamb. God’s Law is being vindicated; God’s grace is at work. The Old and New Covenants are being fulfilled as Christ judges the nations and prepares to reign.

Apocalypse Now

Daily Bible Reading – Revelation 10:1 – 14:20

Beginning in verse 14 of chapter 14 we have a description of what is known as the “Battle of Armageddon.” John sees Christ on a white cloud, coming with a sickle to reap the harvest of the earth. It is a picture of judgment. When He came in the flesh, He came as a sower of the seed; but people rejected the seed of the Word (Matt. 13:3–23). Instead, they received Satan’s lies. Now Christ must come as a Reaper, bringing judgment to the world. “The harvest of the earth is ripe!” calls the second angel. God knows just when to judge; He patiently waits for the seeds of iniquity to come to fruition (James 1:14–15; Gen. 15:16). This is an anticipation of the battle of Armageddon (see Joel 3:11–16).

At this point, we should review the events leading up to Armageddon. During the first half of the Tribulation, when the Beast was working with the Jews, Russia and Egypt attacked Israel. The Beast was forced to go to Palestine to keep his covenant with the Jews. God defeated Russia, the Beast defeated Egypt; both enemies are sent home in utter defeat. Then the Beast sets himself up as the world ruler and deity, reigning from Jerusalem. However, Russia and her allies plan rebellion against the Beast. After Babylon is destroyed, the enemies of the Beast have their opportunity to attack. During the final three and one-half years of the Tribulation, armies will move toward Palestine (see 16:13–16) to fight the Beast. Dr. Dwight Pentecost suggests that the word “battle” ought to be “campaign”; see Rev. 16:14. In other words, the “battle of Armageddon” is not a single battle so much as a military movement that climaxes with the armies of the world facing each other at Megiddo. Revelation 19:17–21 indicates that the sign of the Son of Man will appear at that time, and these armies will unite to fight Christ instead of fighting each other.

The picture in vv. 17–18 is that of a man cutting clusters of grapes off a vine. The wicked world-system is “the vine of the earth” (v. 18), while Christ is the True Vine (John 15). Israel was planted in this world to be God’s holy vine, to bear fruit for His glory (Isa. 5:1–7; Ps. 80:8–16). Sad to say, Israel bore bitter fruit. In fact, Israel rejected its true Messiah and accepted the false Christ, and had to suffer the bitter consequences. Read Isa. 66:1–6 and Joel 3 for additional material on this final battle.

Verse 20 presents a terrifying picture: the blood will run for 200 miles out of the city of Jerusalem, and be as deep as the distance from the horses’ bridles to the ground! This is the winepress of God’s wrath (19:15). See Isa. 63:1–6.

We have, then, in this chapter a prophetic summary of the events to follow. There are some very practical lessons for us to learn from this chapter: (1) God will establish His kingdom on earth in spite of Satan’s opposition. The OT promises will be fulfilled literally, Israel will have her promised kingdom. (2) Those who reject the Gospel of the grace of God today will face awful judgment tomorrow. It is better to die for Christ’s sake and have eternal glory than to live for the devil and suffer eternally. (3) The nations of the world are today taking the path to Armageddon. We see the rise of Europe and Egypt, and of the Asian nations. We see also the coming federation of Europe. But man’s final war against God will end a dismal failure for Satan and his allies!

The Lamb of God

Daily Bible Reading – Revelation 5:1 – 9:21

The word “book” (v. 1) refers to a scroll; bound books did not exist in those days. These scrolls were made of rushes that grew along the rivers and were very costly. This particular scroll is Christ’s title deed to creation. A Roman will was sealed with seven seals; this scroll is the will, or testament, giving Christ the right to claim creation by virtue of His sacrifice (v. 9). A will could be opened only by the heir, and Christ is the “heir of all things” (Heb. 1:2). Some students think that the scroll contains the judgments of chapters 6–9. The fact that the scroll is written on both sides shows that nothing more can be added to it; the destiny of the sinful world is determined.

To understand this scene, we must consider the Hebrew system of owning land. If a man became poor and had to sell his land, or himself, he could be redeemed by a kinsman. The story of Ruth is based on this law. This redeemer had to be a near relative who was willing and able to purchase the property and set the kinsman free. All of creation has been under bondage to sin, Satan, and death; but now Christ, our Kinsman-Redeemer, is going to set creation free.

God makes it clear that only Christ can redeem. No saint in glory, no person on earth, no soul in the underworld of death, could take that book. No one was worthy. John wept for several reasons: (1) he yearned to see creation set free from bondage; (2) he wanted the promise of 4:1 to be fulfilled; (3) he knew that the OT promises to Israel could never be fulfilled unless the scroll could be opened. John was sharing in the “groaning” of Rom. 8:22–23. The angel dried his tears by pointing to Christ. The “Lion” (v. 5) takes us back to Gen. 49:8–10 and speaks of Christ’s royalty in the family of David. The “Root of David” speaks of His deity, the One through whom David came (Isa. 11:1, 10). Christ is worthy to open the book because He has “prevailed,” which means “to overcome” (2:7, 11, 17, 26, etc.), “conquer” (6:2), or “win the victory” (15:2). The Lamb has taken the victory!

John looked for a lion, but he saw a Lamb. In the two names Lion and Lamb we have the two-fold emphasis of OT prophecy: as the Lion, Christ conquers and reigns; as the Lamb, He dies for the sins of the world. We cannot separate the suffering and glory (Luke 24:26; 1 Peter 1:11), the crown and the cross. It is worthy of note that Christ is called “the Lamb” twenty-eight times in Revelation. In fact, the whole Bible could be summarized by tracing the theme of “the lamb.” Isaac asked, “Where is the lamb?” in Gen. 22:7; and John the Baptist answered, “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:29) Now John writes, “Worthy is the Lamb!” 

The Revelation of John

Daily Bible Reading – Revelation 1:1 – 4:11

The word translated “revelation” simply means “unveiling.” It gives us our English word apocalypse which, unfortunately, is today a synonym for chaos and catastrophe. The verb simply means “to uncover, to reveal, to make manifest.”  In this book, the Holy Spirit pulls back the curtain and gives us the privilege of seeing the glorified Christ in heaven and the fulfillment of His sovereign purposes in the world.

In other words, Revelation is an open book in which God reveals His plans and purposes to His church. When Daniel finished writing his prophecy, he was instructed to “shut up the words, and seal the book” (Dan. 12:4); but John was given opposite instructions: “Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book” (Rev. 22:10). Why? Since Calvary, the Resurrection, and the coming of the Holy Spirit, God has ushered in the “last days” (Heb. 1:1–2) and is fulfilling His hidden purposes in this world. “The time is at hand” (Rev. 1:3; 22:10).

John’s prophecy is primarily the revelation of Jesus Christ, not the revelation of future events. You must not divorce the Person from the prophecy, for without the Person there could be no fulfillment of the prophecy. “He is not incidental to its action,” wrote Dr. Merrill Tenney. “He is its chief Subject.” In Revelation 1–3, Christ is seen as the exalted Priest-King ministering to the churches. In Revelation 4–5, He is seen in heaven as the glorified Lamb of God, reigning on the throne. In Revelation 6–18, Christ is the Judge of all the earth; and in Revelation 19, He returns to earth as the conquering King of kings. The book closes with the heavenly Bridegroom ushering His bride, the church, into the glorious heavenly city. Whatever you do as you study this book, get to know your Savior better.