I'm Following Jesus – Page 1601 – Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

King James Bible Study – “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” – Mark 8:34

Date: Monday, December 30, 2019
Chapters: Revelation 12-17
Message: Better Is The End Than The Beginning

Hello My Friend,

“You must bear the cross, or you shall never wear the crown; you must wade through the mire, or you shall never walk the golden pavement. Cheer up, then, poor Christian. “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.” See that creeping worm, how contemptible its appearance! It is the beginning of a thing. Mark that insect with gorgeous wings, playing in the sunbeams, sipping at the flower bells, full of happiness and life; that is the end thereof. That caterpillar is yourself, until you are wrapped up in the chrysalis of death; but when Christ shall appear you shall be like him, for you shall see him as he is.” – Charles Spurgeon

There is always something about the end of the year that brings us to reflect not only on the year, but over the years as well. Even I asked God this morning if things were better today than this time last year. God reminded me that this year did have some ups and downs, I did make some better decisions, most of all that reflected upon my relationship with Him. I have to say that this year in regards to my spiritual walk with Christ, has improved greatly, and when that improves so does life itself. We all have crosses to bear, and if we try to carry them by ourselves we always trip and fall, but Jesus is there to help us carry them. We have so much awaiting us on the other side of our lives with Christ, and while our beginning is full of ups and downs, our ending will be so much better. “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.” – Ecclesiastes 7:8.

“and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.” The proud in spirit are the ones who refuse to submit to any kind of authority. Now, we know that the beginning of the Bible tells us how God created our world, and the end tells us how it will all be destroyed due to its evil. However, the beginning of the Bible does not tell us how this evil ended up on earth to begin with other than it start with Satan. Now, while Jesus is giving John these visions of the tribulation, that seventh trumpet we read about yesterday revealed more than what will take place just before Jesus returns, it reveals what happened to Satan, and how he ended up on the earth.

“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” – Revelation 12:1-9.

“a woman clothed with the sun,” Bear with me as there is a lot to explain here so, I will break it down. The woman represents the Church, or believers of Christ. She was clothed with the sun, meaning she is justified, sanctified, and shining by her union with the Sun of Righteousness. “and the moon under her feet,” This represents the footstool, by which all believers stand upon, having defeated the enemy. “and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:” This represents the twelve Apostles ad the doctrine of the Gospel preached, and is a crown of glory to all true believers. “And she being with child cried,” Of course, this is Jesus, and while we do have to endure some pain and suffering in life, we have are clothed with the Sun. “and behold a great red dragon,” This is the devil, and he tried to stop God from sending His Son. “having seven heads and ten horns,” The ten horns represents ten kingdoms, having seven crowns, representing the seven forms of government. The seven heads represent Satan’s minions who would assist in persecuting and seducing the ministers and teachers of the Gospel.

“And there was war in heaven:” Many people confuse this to mean that this takes place after the tribulation, but this is actually what happened that led to Satan and his minions seeking vengeance on God and using man, whom He created in His own image, to get that vengeance. “he was cast out into the earth,” And this is how we know that this did not take place during the tribulation. This gives us an account of the war between the Church and Antichrist, in other words, the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent (Genesis 3:15). You see? This was not the end, there is a much better end. God had this plan from creation, Satan tried his hardest to destroy every bit of life God created out of pure hatred toward his Creator, and yes, God created him too, his spirit just became evil when he decided he knew better then God, and wanted to take over, which was not going to happen. In the same chapter, Jesus reveals what the plan was all along. “And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” – Revelation 12:10-11.

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb,” It was important that God wait until this time to reveal what took place in the beginning so that we can better understand that there is a better end than the beginning. That we who believe do overcome Satan, death, and hell through the blood of the Lamb. Now, as we get back to the revelation, Jesus reveals to John the two beasts who will ascend out of the bottomless pit before Christ returns that Satan will use in one last attempt to change his fate and get revenge on God’s creation.

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:” – Revelation 13:1-3,6-8,11-12,15-16.

“having seven heads and ten horns,” Again, this is the same beast from the previous chapter, which were the seven forms of government, and divided into ten kingdoms. He is the Antichrist, ruled by Satan. “whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb” These are the unbelievers, siding with the Antichrist, and making war with the saints. “miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast;” This is the false prophet, and he is not going to look like the beast described at first, he is going to look like Jesus, his beastliness will be revealed when he gets caught. Jesus also reveals to John the angels that will pour the vials of wrath upon the earth, and those who worship these beasts will be in the midst of all this. “to receive a mark in their right hand,” This is of course the 666 mark of the beast, and anyone with this mark will be destroyed along with Satan.

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.” – Revelation 14:9-13.

“and they have no rest day nor night,” This may not be taking place right now, but those who attack those who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ do not rest, they are judged, but since their spirit is full of pride they will never admit they need Him, and their end will be much worse than their beginning. “Here is the patience of the saints:” As Christians, we are going to witness some devastating things as we get closer to the tribulation, but we will endure, even in death, because we will be with Jesus. Praise God! Even the angels were saddened by the things they were doing to the earth, but they knew it was inevitable because while God is a loving God He is also a just God. We could ask ourselves why all this has to take place anyway, and why God does not just end it all right now and destroy Satan this instant. From what the entire Bible tells me, this is for two reasons, one, for God to put His wrath upon the reprobates, and two, to save those who are not. After all this takes place, and after all of God’s people are gathered and safe from harm, including the ones in the graves, God will send one last judgment upon the earth, seven plagues that will destroy it completely. Jesus reveals something amazing to John, all who have been saved by the blood of Christ singing and praising God while all this is taking place.

“And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God. And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.” – Revelation 15:1-4.

“Great and marvellous are thy works,” To read these passages to an unsaved soul, and perhaps some who are saved, God could not possibly bring such judgment upon the earth. But think about this, God is the Creator of everything, the devil took it upon himself to turn everything He made into something evil, and while God is letting him have his glory for a while, it and he will come to an end, along with those who followed his ways. While God is merciful and gracious, He is also a just God, meaning He gives all the same opportunity. God sends the seven angles with the vials containing the seven plagues and they begin to pour each vial upon the earth.

“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.” – Revelation 16:13-17.

“It is done.” Just as Jesus, while on the cross, proclaimed that what He came here to accomplish was finished, God will proclaim that what He has accomplished in putting an end to Satan and all the evils that he brought with him will be done. The second we are born we have an expected end of death, some souls never even get the chance to be born, but our beginning is not the best part of life, it is our ending, that is as long as we trust Jesus Christ as our Saviour. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” – Jeremiah 29:11-13.

Today’s Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for giving Your life to save me, You truly are the truth, life, and only way to be saved from death and hell. The love You have for us is astounding, You rather see every soul saved then end up facing the ultimate judgment of the lake of fire, but sadly, not all believe in You, and many even go as far as deceiving lost souls into believe their lies so they do not find You. Lord, I know that my end will be so much better than my beginning, as I endure the ups and downs of this life, keep me faithful and strong in Your Word, lead me and guide me in Your truths, and let me not fall into the deception of those working for the devil. Give me Your power, mercy, and grace to become more like You, be ready for the tribulation, and look forward to the day You take me away from it all. In Your name, Jesus, Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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