Jesus Wins

The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it. — Revelation 1:1, Revelation1:3-4

Be honest! When someone mentions the book of Revelation, what is your immediate reaction? Now try to figure out why that’s your response.

Every book in God’s Word offers words that encourage, teach, guide, provide hope, increase understanding, and bless us. Yet Revelation is the only book that, in its opening passage, promises to bless the readers of what comes as well as “those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it.” Maybe we students of Scripture need to see in black and white the promise of blessing, because this book can be a little intimidating! But we needn’t be intimidated.

The custodian opened the gym for some seminary students. As they played basketball, he read his Bible. When one of the students asked him what he was reading — “Revelation” — he then asked, “Do you understand it?” And the custodian confidently said, “Yes. Jesus wins.”

Very truly I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. – John 5:24

Excerpted with permission from The Story Devotional, copyright Zondervan, 2014.

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Your Turn

We don’t have to fully understand the book of Revelation. That’s not the point. At a minimum, though, we need to understand that Jesus wins! Today, let’s remember that no matter what happened last year — good or bad — and no matter what is to come as we’re just a couple of weeks into 2016, Jesus wins! Come join the conversation on our blog! We would love to hear from you!