“And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them … Continue reading –>
Revelation 14 opens with what? A heavenly scene, showing the 144,000 thousand who were “redeemed from the earth” (vs. 3). It starts out with a vision of the future, of what it will be like, at least for this group, when they stand before God in heaven. And though the text doesn’t come right out and say it, … Continue reading –>
From the introduction onward, we have seen how the final end-time crisis will center around the question of worship. The issue of worship is not a small matter. The eternal destiny of souls hangs on it. This crucial truth becomes more apparent in what unfolds in Revelation 13 and 14. Read Revelation 13 and answer the following questions: … Continue reading –>
Though the book of Revelation still holds many mysteries, the dominant motif comes through time and time again, and that is—of worship. All through Revelation are scenes of various beings worshiping the Lord. Read the following texts. What can we learn about worship from what appears in them? What themes appear here that we have seen … Continue reading –>
Perhaps one of the greatest revelations we have been given of the majesty and power of God has come to us through astronomy. Most of the ancients had no idea of the size and expanse of the cosmos. In the twentieth century, with the incredible advances in various telescopes, we have been given a view … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Job 42:1–6, Rev. 1:13–18, Revelation 13, 14:6–12, 19:1–5. Memory Text: “And they sang as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth” (Revelation 14:3). Few books of the … Continue reading –>
In the days of the early church, we can see another example of the issue of worship, and of what people worship—this time in the ministry of the apostle Paul when he was in Athens, the place where three of the world’s most influential philosophers (Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle) once lived. What a different audience … Continue reading –>
A great part of the Protestant worship tradition has been the preaching of the Word. A sacred responsibility falls upon the one given the task to feed the sheep, to teach and to preach and to exhort and to encourage. Music, liturgy, prayer, the Lord’s Supper, and foot washing all have their place, but, perhaps, … Continue reading –>
From a human perspective, Jesus’ earthly ministry did not look so successful. Though He had attracted a fairly popular following while alive, it did not catch on en masse. Many leaders rejected Him, and, of course, the Romans crucified Him, causing His closest disciples to scatter and flee. Things looked pretty bad until His resurrection … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Acts 1:1–11, 2:14–41, 17:15–34, 18:1–16, 1 Corinthians 13. Memory Text: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1, NIV). Soon after Christ returned to heaven, the early church began to … Continue reading –>
