Personal Devotions
Notes from Mark's personal Bible reading and meditation
With a goal to apply one truth from each day's reading to my life that day
Nov 10, 2022, 2:41 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 17-18
Meditation Verses: 18:4-5
Thought
Whatever place Babylon here represents, the Lord urges His people to separate themselves from it, so they they do not share in her sins nor suffer her consequences. Like Lot dwelling in Sodom, he managed to keep himself from sharing in their sins, but his family suffered: His wife loved the place so much that when they fled she looked back and was lost; his daughters were almost raped because of their father, and they easily justified sleeping with their father.
Nov 9, 2022, 2:42 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 15-16
Meditation Verse: 16:21
Thought
At this point, all seems lost. These last plagues are horrible in nature, yet still no one repents. Instead, they blaspheme God. They have no doubt about who is in charge of these plagues, and they are gathering their army to fight against Him. They would rather curse and fight Him to the death than repent. This is the state of mankind. We are practically there now. Men choose their freedom, they demand their right to do as they please.
Nov 8, 2022, 2:43 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 13-14
Meditation Verses: 13:4-7
Thought
There are so many important things here to describe the beast. He has a deadly wound that's healed, and all the nations marvel at him and follow him. Because of him, they worship the dragon who gave his power to the beast, and the beast is able to make war on anyone and succeed. He blasphemes God and makes great boasts, but he only has power for forty two months or three and a half years. He speaks against God, His temple and those in heaven.
Nov 7, 2022, 2:45 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 11-12
Meditation Verse: 11:18
Thought
The Lord will reward all the prophets and saints and all those who feared Him, whether small or great. He will reward them when He finishes His judgment on those who destroy the earth. That in itself is an interesting note: It seems like unbelievers are more concerned about saving the earth than are believers, but they analyze the problem incorrectly. They think it's because of this or that pollutant, which surely play a part, but the real problem is sin!
Nov 6, 2022, 2:46 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 9-10
Meditation Verses: 9:5-6
Thought
These locust have power to torment men for five months, and though the men seek death, they cannot find it. They will not be able to kill themselves! But then the angels and their armies will be released and kill a third of mankind, what remains at that point. This is amazing to me, that God so fully controls life and death, that when men try to take their lives, they fail! They cannot die until God is ready to kill them.
Nov 5, 2022, 1:47 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 7-8
Meditation Verse: 7:3
Thought
Before God can begin His wrath on mankind, He marks a portion of the Jews from each remaining tribe, to protect them, and He removes all those who have believed in Christ from the earth. All non-Christian Jews must go through the torment of those days, but no Christian will. Of the Jews who endure it, 144,000 will be marked as a special possession of the Lord's, preserved through His wrath on mankind.
Nov 4, 2022, 1:48 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 5-6
Meditation Verses: 5:9-10
Thought
This song is apparently sung by the four living creatures and the elders, and they sing that the Lamb purchased "us" for God out of every tribe and made "us" kings and priests to God to reign over the earth. The four living creatures do not appear to be men, but the elders could be, since they're never really described. This song implies that at least the elders are men, but surely they're not from every tribe, unless all people on earth can be folded into 24 tribes.
Nov 3, 2022, 1:50 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 3-4
Meditation Verses: 3:15-16
Thought
It is not good to be lukewarm in deeds toward God; it is no better than being cold. The only works God is pleased with are hot works, zealous works for the Lord. The advantage of cold is that they can be convicted; it is clear to them that they are cold. The danger of lukewarm is that when conviction comes it is reasoned away, it is silenced by speaking of the occasional, half-hearted deeds done for God. Such a person thinks he's good with God, but God here is clearly saying He's not good with such deeds.
Nov 2, 2022, 1:51 PM
Passage Read: Revelation 1-2
Meditation Verse: 2:20
Thought
The church in Thyatira allowed a women to teach, a woman who claims to be a prophetess, and she teaches God's children to go astray, to commit fornication and to eat idol sacrifices. Why is it that the teaching of women all tends to lead to these things? This woman claimed to be a prophetess, which suggests she was pushing herself forward. It wasn't that others had found her to be a prophetess.
Nov 1, 2022, 2:22 PM
Passage Read: 3 John 1 - Jude 1
Meditation Verses: 3 John 1:9-10
Thought
Diotrephes is an example of an immature believer who worked his way into power. Somehow he had gained influence over the whole church, and control, so that whomever he rants against, he is able to keep others in the church from helping. He had power to kick out of the fellowship anyone who doesn't follow his instruction. He has set himself up as gatekeeper and father, so that no one is willing to cross him.