DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR THURSDAY DECEMBER 31:
WORD OF WISDOM
Be the ray of sunshine that breaks through the dark clouds in someone's day.
___
DAILY DEVOTION
Building Project
"Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased
not to warn every one night and day with tears. And now, brethren, I commend
you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and
to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified."
Acts 20:31-32
As churches have grown over the years, we have built a number of buildings
so we can worship and study the Word together. I have noticed as we go
through the building process again and again, that while the structures may
have different designs and different purposes, every building project has
one feature in common. For instance, no building project that I have ever
seen or heard of has been quick! They all take time.
It is the same way in the Christian life. We want to see immediate results,
but the work that God is doing in our hearts through His Word and His grace
takes time. Before any building is constructed, a foundation must be laid
that will provide structure and stability so the building will last. As you
look toward the new year, remember that the foundation for God's work in
your life must be solid before anything great can be done for Him. Don't be
discouraged in the preparation process.
It's also important during any building project not to let delays and
problems deter you from your purpose. Things aren't always going to go
according to plan. There will be days when it seems like nothing is
happening. Yet we must not be discouraged "for in due season we shall reap,
if we faint not" (Galatians 6:9). Keep on moving forward through the new
year. The blueprint God has given us in His Word is tested and proven. Live
each day in such a way that at the end of the year you will be closer to God
than you were at the beginning. Simply trust Him to build your life!
Allow God to do His work in your life on His timetable, and you will be
amazed at the results.
___
DAILY BIBLE READING
CONGRATULATIONS to those of you who have kept up with the "Daily Bible
Reading" and now have reached the end of the year and have read the entire
Bible in 2020.
Revelation 19-22 New King James Version (NKJV)
Heaven Exults over Babylon
19 After these things I [a]heard a loud voice of a great multitude in
heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to
[b]the Lord our God! 2 For true and righteous are His judgments, because He
has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication;
and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her." 3 Again
they said, "Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!" 4 And the
twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God
who sat on the throne, saying, "Amen! Alleluia!" 5 Then a voice came from
the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear
Him, both[c] small and great!"
6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of
many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For
the[d] Lord God Omnipotent reigns! 7 Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him
glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself
ready." 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and
bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
9 Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the
marriage supper of the Lamb!' " And he said to me, "These are the true
sayings of God." 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to
me, "See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your
brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of
Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
Christ on a White Horse
11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him
was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
12 His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He
[e]had a name written that no one knew except Himself. 13 He was clothed
with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And
the armies in heaven, clothed in [f]fine linen, white and clean, followed
Him on white horses. 15 Now out of His mouth goes a [g]sharp sword, that
with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a
rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of
Almighty God. 16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:
KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS.
The Beast and His Armies Defeated
17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice,
saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, "Come and gather
together for the [h]supper of the great God, 18 that you may eat the flesh
of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of
horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, [i]free
and slave, both small and great."
19 And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered
together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.
20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked
signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of
the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into
the lake of fire burning with brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with
the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And
all the birds were filled with their flesh.
Satan Bound 1,000 Years
20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the
bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon,
that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a
thousand years; 3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up,
and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till
the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released
for a little while.
The Saints Reign with Christ 1,000 Years
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to
them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness
to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his
image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands.
And they lived and reigned with Christ for [j]a thousand years. 5 But the
rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished.
This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the
first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall
be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.
Satanic Rebellion Crushed
7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his
prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four
corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle,
whose number is as the sand of the sea. 9 They went up on the breadth of the
earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire
came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. 10 The devil, who
deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where[k] the
beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night
forever and ever.
The Great White Throne Judgment
11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face
the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before [l]God, and books
were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the
dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written
in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and
Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one
according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of
fire. This is the second [m]death. 15 And anyone not found written in the
Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
All Things Made New
21 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the
first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, [n]John,
saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from
heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell
with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and
be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there
shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain,
for the former things have passed away."
5 Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And
He said [o]to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful."
6 And He said to me, "It[p] is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the
Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life
freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes [q]shall inherit all things,
and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly,
[r]unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers,
idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with
fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
The New Jerusalem
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven
last plagues came [s]to me and talked with me, saying, "Come, I will show
you the [t]bride, the Lamb's wife." 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit
to a great and high mountain, and showed me the [u]great city, the [v]holy
Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God.
Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as
crystal. 12 Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve
angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the
twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 13 three gates on the east, three
gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.
14 Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the
[w]names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And he who talked with me
had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16 The city is
laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured
the city with the reed: twelve thousand [x]furlongs. Its length, breadth,
and height are equal. 17 Then he measured its wall: one hundred and
forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
18 The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold,
like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned
with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the
second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth
sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the
ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth
amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was
of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent
glass.
The Glory of the New Jerusalem
22 But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its
temple. 23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine [y]in it,
for the [z]glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. 24 And the
nations [aa]of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of
the earth bring their glory and honor [ab]into it. 25 Its gates shall not be
shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). 26 And they shall bring
the glory and the honor of the nations into [ac]it. 27 But there shall by no
means enter it anything [ad]that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie,
but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
The River of Life
22 And he showed me a [ae]pure river of water of life, clear as crystal,
proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its
street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore
twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the
tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more
curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His
servants shall serve Him. 4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be
on their foreheads. 5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor
light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign
forever and ever.
The Time Is Near
6 Then he said to me, "These words are faithful and true." And the Lord God
of the [af]holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things
which must shortly take place.
7 "Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the
prophecy of this book."
8 Now I, John, [ag]saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I
fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these
things.
9 Then he said to me, "See that you do not do that. [ah]For I am your fellow
servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words
of this book. Worship God." 10 And he said to me, "Do not seal the words of
the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. 11 He who is unjust, let
him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is
righteous, let him [ai]be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy
still."
Jesus Testifies to the Churches
12 "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to
every one according to his work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the
[aj]Beginning and the End, the First and the Last."
14 Blessed are those who [ak]do His commandments, that they may have the
right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. 15
[al]But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers
and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.
16 "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the
churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning
Star."
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say,
"Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the
water of life freely.
A Warning
18 [am]For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this
book: If anyone adds to these things, [an]God will add to him the plagues
that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of
the book of this prophecy, God[ao] shall take away his part from the
[ap]Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written
in this book.
I Am Coming Quickly
20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming quickly."
Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be [aq]with you all. Amen.
