December 19: A PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory. Revelation 18:1
John’s amazement at the sight of the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus (17:6), is far exceeded by the thrilling vision of our opening verse. The two distinguishing characteristics of this messenger of God are his great authority and his glory. The message he imparts is a message that brings illumination to the earth. It is a life-saving message!
Before Jesus ascended to heaven to begin His high priestly ministry, He delivered the Great Commission to His disciples: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me…to the end of the earth.” (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8)
As His disciples, you and I are to grow in likeness to His character. There is a glory that accompanies a Christlike character. The angel in John’s vision had great authority by virtue of the command given him by the Lord Jesus Himself. As a loyal, humble, obedient servant, this messenger comes to share glorious illumination that saves. Are we not to be such messengers? Every message from heaven is powered and propelled by incomparable love that emanates from the tender heart of Christ. GLORY!
The three angels of chapter 14 bring a succinct summary of earth’s final warning (6-12). Today’s angel follows those three to remind God’s last-day people of the authoritative commission from Jesus to bring to the world the pure and undefiled Gospel. It is the everlasting gospel (14:6). The parallel message with it warns the world of the confusing, counterfeit messages from the bottomless pit (9:1); it contains positive identification of the propagators of these false teachings. Many have been deceived and ‘imprisoned’ by erroneous doctrines, and the solution is to become undeceived. The key that unlocks the bottomless pit’s prison door is a genuine love for the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:10).
Dear Heavenly Father, I praise You for Your amazing character of pure love! I want to know more of You… to hear Your voice… to see Your glory. I confess that my knowledge of you is small, but You are the Master Teacher who is ready to open my spiritual eyes and cleanse my heart. Impart to me a willingness to step forward in gratitude and obedience as You reveal more of Yourself to me. I ask You to restore Your image in me. Enable me to effectively proclaim Your praises, as Your Spirit is gently calling so many others out of darkness into Your marvelous light. You have commanded light to shine out of darkness to give the light of the knowledge of Your glory in the face of Jesus Christ. Oh! To behold that face and gaze into those eyes is a promise I humbly claim. And in His precious, matchless name I pray. Amen.
References: Psalm 23:3; Isaiah 38:16; 42:7; Jeremiah 9:24; 31:3; Matthew 10:25; 2 Corinthians 4:4,6; Philippians 2:13; 3:10; 1 Peter 2:9