“Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying,
‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.’ And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying,
‘We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth’” Revelation 11:15-18
There are better times ahead. The present system, with its corruption, greed, oppression, and abuse of power, is destined for defeat. Not that it will go down without a fight: “the nations were enraged.” Those in power enjoy the power, and there are many who benefit from the present system. But, a better system is coming to replace that which is.
It is worth noting that the momentous events described in Revelation 11 take place at the blowing of the seventh and last of a series of trumpets. This is in complete harmony with the last trumpet of 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15, and Jesus’ description of His Second Coming in Matthew 24:30-31.
Our great hope is that this world’s kingdom will become the kingdom of God and Christ, that the dead will be raised, and the people of God rewarded. While this is our hope, it is not something we merely mark the passing of time with as we await its fulfillment. Hope matters today in that it is motivating. No passage describes it better than 1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
Rather than looking longingly to the sky while standing idle, we stand our ground, refusing to be shaken or disturbed in our faith. We don’t just get by with attending church services or reading a chapter or two from the Bible on a whim. What we do is take service initiative in helping and encouraging others, in actively seeking ways to share the gospel, in being red-hot in our devotion to God and Christ.
If hope really is hope, it motivates and moves. May we be hope-motivated today, and every day.
©Steve Taylor, 2025--Used by permission
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