Peace and grace in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 1:17
1:17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.
John the Apostle was exiled to Patmos Island to suffer in the flesh, not because of sinning but the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ, so he could fall at His feet. Falling at Jesus’ feet means worshiping with a contrite heart and worshiping until the flesh does not sound anymore. As a result, Jesus laid His right hand on John the Apostle, and he experienced three things as follows.
ad. 2. I am the First and the Last.
The first refers to the Altar of Burnt Offerings in Tabernacle. In the past, animal was burnt as a sin offering. Now, we do not need to do that anymore since Jesus as the Lamb of God has been sacrificed.
Thus, the Altar of Burnt Offerings refers to the appearance of Jesus as the Savior or Jesus’ first coming to die on the cross to save sinful men. It equals to the first love.
The last refers to the Ark of Covenant in Tabernacle. It refers to the appearance of Jesus as the King of kings and Heavenly Bride, or Jesus’ second coming to lift us up to the glorious clouds. It is the peak of love or perfect love.
Thus, by falling down at Jesus’ feet and through the touch of His hands, we can receive the first love that increases to the perfect love.
Matthew 24:12
24:12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
We really need the love from God that increases, because in the last days sins also increase and cause the love of many grow cold. Many servants of God will have no love. The example in the Bible is Peter who had no love.
Without love, everything will be useless and in vain. Everything will be destroyed forever.
The steps to receive the love that increases are as follows.
God blesses us.
Revelation 1:17
1:17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.
John the Apostle was exiled to Patmos Island to suffer in the flesh, not because of sinning but the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ, so he could fall at His feet. Falling at Jesus’ feet means worshiping with a contrite heart and worshiping until the flesh does not sound anymore. As a result, Jesus laid His right hand on John the Apostle, and he experienced three things as follows.
- “Do not be afraid”, meaning the renewal of the feeling so there is no more fear but only confidence toward God.
- “I am the First and the Last”, meaning receiving the love of God.
- “I am He who lives”.
ad. 2. I am the First and the Last.
The first refers to the Altar of Burnt Offerings in Tabernacle. In the past, animal was burnt as a sin offering. Now, we do not need to do that anymore since Jesus as the Lamb of God has been sacrificed.
Thus, the Altar of Burnt Offerings refers to the appearance of Jesus as the Savior or Jesus’ first coming to die on the cross to save sinful men. It equals to the first love.
The last refers to the Ark of Covenant in Tabernacle. It refers to the appearance of Jesus as the King of kings and Heavenly Bride, or Jesus’ second coming to lift us up to the glorious clouds. It is the peak of love or perfect love.
Thus, by falling down at Jesus’ feet and through the touch of His hands, we can receive the first love that increases to the perfect love.
Matthew 24:12
24:12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
We really need the love from God that increases, because in the last days sins also increase and cause the love of many grow cold. Many servants of God will have no love. The example in the Bible is Peter who had no love.
Without love, everything will be useless and in vain. Everything will be destroyed forever.
The steps to receive the love that increases are as follows.
- Reconciliation.
1 John 4:10
4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to bethe propitiation for our sins.
God sent His Son as the sin offering because He loves us. Jesus must be willing to suffer and die on the cross to reconcile our sins and to save sinful men. It equals to first love from the cross.
To be able to receive the first love from the cross, we must reconcile, meaning as follows.- Confessing our sin to God (vertical) and the others (horizontal). If we are forgiven, we must not repeat it anymore.
- Forgiving the others’ sin and forget it.
Proverbs 10:2-3
10:2 Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, But righteousness delivers from death.
10:3 The Lord will not allow the righteous soul to famish, But He casts away the desire of the wicked.
The results are as follows.- Righteousness delivers from death and perdition.
- We are blessed and cared by God.
- Confessing our sin to God (vertical) and the others (horizontal). If we are forgiven, we must not repeat it anymore.
- Being obedient to the command of God or the Bible.
John 14:15
14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
Genesis 6:5-7
6:5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man wasgreat in the earth, and thatevery intent of the thoughts of his heart wasonly evil continually.
6:6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.
6:7 So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”
The present fact is men in the world since the days of Noah until now have bad conscience. They are disobedient to God and do evil and unclean deeds that make God grieve. Men during the days of Noah were judged by the floodwaters. In the last days, men will be judged by fire from the Heaven.
1 Peter 3:20-21
3:20 who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while theark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.
3:21 There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
We get good conscience through true water baptism or being newly born by God.
There is only one true water baptism as there was only one ark of Noah that could save men.
The true water baptism is the baptism as written in the Bible, and being baptized as Jesus is.
Romans 6:2,4
6:2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
The execution of the true water baptism is one who has died to sins is buried in water together with Jesus in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that is Lord Jesus Christ. Afterwards, he is raised together with Him and receives new life that has good conscience or obedient conscience. Thus we can hear the Word solemnly and obey it.
John 10:27
10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
We will become well and right shepherded sheep. It equals to stretching out our hands to the Good Shepherd.
Be careful because there are many unrighteous servants of God who do not want to feed the sheep. There are also many bad sheep that spy out and are disobedient. Those kinds of lives will cause destruction as Judas.
John 10:11
10:11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
John 15:13
15:13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.
If we stretch out our hands to the Good Shepherd, He will surrender His life for His sheep. He will stretch out His hands to us, and we experience the great love of God.
John 10:28
10:28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
The result is we live within the hand of the Good Shepherd with His greatest love. Thus, there is certain guarantee for our present and future life, up to eternal life forever. The greatest love of God is able to solve all huge problems (marriage problem, financial problem, et cetera).
Genesis 6:8
6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.Let us pray so that our family can get the grace of God to enter the true water baptism, to be well and right shepherded, and to live within the hands of the Good Shepherd to experience the greatest love of God. - Worship prayer, falling down at Jesus’ feet.
Matthew 17:1-2
17:1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves;
17:2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.
Worship prayer is seeing the countenance of Jesus that shines like the sun. It equals to experiencing the perfect love so we will have a cheerful countenance. We will become strong and of good courage.
It means as follows.- Being joyful and keeping giving thanks to God in any situations, and although we are in the midst of suffering.
- Not being desperate or disappointed, and not leaving God in facing anything. We keep believing God and worshiping Him. We keep struggling with Him.
32:24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.
32:28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
32:29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell meYour name, I pray.” And He said, “Why isit thatyou ask about My name?” And He blessed him there.
32:30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
32:31 Just as he crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip.
Jacob represents a husband or pastor who needs to struggle.
Jacob struggled to meet Esau, that is false prophet with false teaching and gossips that destroys the shepherding and marriage.
Jacob also struggles for the salvation of his family. A family must sit down, meaning being well shepherded. Thus, they will be cared and saved.
Jacob also struggles to get new name. It refers to life renewal until we enter the last shepherding place in New Jerusalem.
A woman must also struggle.
The woman who had a flow of blood must struggle to touch the train of Jesus’ robe.
Revelation 19:13,16
19:13 He wasclothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.
19:16 And He has on Hisrobe and on His thigh a name written:KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
A woman must struggle to touch one robe, that is one true teaching Word. Thus, miracle will happen. The flow of blood is stopped. All physical illness and impossible problems will be solved. The flow of blood also refers to breakup. If we touch only one robe, there will be unity and peace.
A youth must also struggle.
The example is Daniel who struggles for the true ministry and worship although he must face hungry lions.
We must keep struggling until Jesus’ second coming. We can cry out “Alleluia” to welcome His second coming on the glorious clouds. Jesus struggled for us on the cross until “It is finished”. Everything will be beautiful and finished in His time. - Being joyful and keeping giving thanks to God in any situations, and although we are in the midst of suffering.
God blesses us.