December 29

Zechariah 14:1-21,, Revelation 20:1-15,, Psalm 148:1-14,, Proverbs 31:8-9



Pray: Father, show me what I need to know. Revelation was written to seven early New Testament churches and there are lessons to be learned. But there is much more. Unravel the mysteries of what lies ahead so that I can walk wisely before You and recognize false Christs and deceptive doctrines and works. Show me the real Jesus each and every day so that I might reject the counterfeits.

Read: (Revelation 20:4-5) "And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony about Jesus and for proclaiming the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his statue, nor accepted his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They all came to life again, and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years. This is the first resurrection. (The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years had ended.)" Blessed and holy are those that share in the first resurrection. For them the second death holds no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him a thousand years.

Edify: The apostle John saw an angel come down from heaven and seize Satan. The angel bound Satan in chains and then threw him into the bottomless pit which was shut and locked for 1000 years. For the next 1000 years Satan could not deceive mankind. But after the 1000 years passes Satan will once again be loosed for a time and deceive two empires setting the stage for one last battle between light and darkness…good and evil. Satan is defeated in this epic battle and thrown into hell to be tormented forever. So, the first resurrection is for those who gave their lives for Christ. This resurrection is limited. And those resurrected will reign with Christ over the nations of the world for 1000 years. Then Satan is released. An epic battle follows. Satan is defeated and cast into hell. Then all who have died and not yet been resurrected are brought to life and stand before God. Those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life will reign and rule with Him but first their works are judged. Works that stand the test of fire are rewarded. Works that don’t stand this test are not rewarded but neither is the doer punished. But those whose names are not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, who did not receive Him and His gift for them, will be cast into the Lake of Fire to join Satan in eternal torment.

Practice: A basic doctrine of the faith is repentance from dead works. A dead work can be a very good thing, but at the same time be a thing that God did not tell you to do. Good things don’t stand the test of fire. God things do! Be careful to ask yourself whether what you are doing is a God thing or a good thing.

December 28

Zechariah 12:1-13:9, Revelation 19:1-21, Psalm 147:1-20, Proverbs 31:1-7

Pray: Father, help me to live like it is my last day on Earth even though I am destined to live forever. Help me keep my eyes on eternal things, things that really matter, and help me to be ready to either meet the Lord or have the Lord meet me.

Read: (Zechariah 12:10, 13) "Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me (Jesus) whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died. All Israel shall mourn, each clan by itself, and with husbands separate from their wives." Isaiah 44:18 describes Israel as being unable to know or understand because God had shut their eyes and their hearts because they rebelled against His WORD and rejected His Son. But there is coming a day when the blind eyes of Israel will see. God will pour out His spirit on Israel and upon seeing they will grieve over what they have done and rejoice in God’s infinite mercy.

Edify: Psalm 147:2 declares that God is rebuilding Jerusalem and bringing the exiles back to Israel. This passage was written hundreds of years before Christ and yet is taking place today, There was no Israel until 1948. And Jerusalem was divided into two cities until 1967. The desert is blossoming and the city is being restored. All in preparation for the great battle of the ages to come.

Practice: Pray for peace, but know there will be no peace until the Prince of Peace is crowned.

December 27

Zechariah 10:1-11-17, Revelation 18:1-24, Psalm 146:1-10, Proverbs 30:33

Pray: Father, You desired that Israel would be the vessel through which all nations would be blessed. They have rejected You and been scattered. They have suffered greatly and in their sufferings You have called them together again. Bless this nation mightily and may they receive Your Son.

Read: (Zechariah 10:8-10)" When I whistle to them, they will come running, for I have redeemed them. From the few who are left, they will grow as numerous as they were before. Though I have scattered them like seeds among the nations, they will still remember me in distant lands. They and their children will survive and return again to Israel." Israel was set apart by God to be a nation of priests to reveal God to the whole world. But Israel rejected God repeatedly. And when they did they were scattered across the world. This chain of events has been repeated over and over again throughout their history. They reject God, they are scattered, and then they gather once again. But there will come a time when Israel recognizes Jesus Christ as their Messiah. There will come a time when the Muslim world recognizes Jesus as well. Every nation, every tongue, and every kindred will come to know…but before this happens there will be those who claim to be Christ but are not.

Edify: Those who bless Israel will be blessed. Those who curse Israel will be cursed. America for generations has chosen to bless Israel. Wars have been won and peace with prosperity resulted. But over the last few years America chose not to bless Israel. And America is not the nation any longer that all nations call blessed. Perhaps things are changing for the better?

Practice: Pray for Israel. Pray for the leaders of this nation that they might be protected and remain committed to the nation of Israel.

December 26

Zechariah 9:1-17, Revelation 17:1-18, Psalm 145:1-21, Proverbs 30:32

Pray: Father, taking a stand is not easy. But help me to understand that I must give voice to what is right and what is wrong according to Your WORD. And when I see that my attitudes and actions are on the wrong side of Your WORD help me to repent quickly and allow You to further change me into His likeness.

Read: Revelation 17:1-18 is one of the most difficult passages in all of scripture to understand. It is the story of ever escalating evil and darkness going to war with the Lamb of God and the people of God. Sin has corrupted the whole of creation. It has permeated world systems and world governments. Righteousness is under attack and the battle crosses all borders and all realms. The final battle of human history lies just ahead. Evil is soon to be defeated. But the picture is indeed bleak as the angel shows John what is to come.

Edify: There is a time to speak the truth in love. Sometimes it seems like silence is easier. But we are called to be lights on a hillside, a city that cannot be hid.

Practice: We need to have crucial conversations with those in our lives. They must choose whom they will serve. But we cannot avoid conversations that point them towards that choosing.

December 25

Zechariah 8:1-23, Revelation 16:1-21, Psalm 144:1-15, Proverbs 30:29-31 

Pray: Lord, the Red Sea did not open up until Moses stuck his foot in the water. Remind me to do what You say rather than wait for a blessing that will not and cannot come until I put my foot in the water.

Read: (Zechariah 8:4-5) "This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: All of this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God’s people. But is it possible for me? Says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies." God is a promise keeper. But much of what He promises seems impossible. There was but a small remnant of Israel left. God speaks to the remnant and tells them to be strong and finish the task. He is telling you and I the same thing. Grab His promises and hold on. Keep hanging on until they take place. The foundation for the temple had been laid but it had remained unbuilt for a long time. There were no jobs and there was no money. And the city of Jerusalem was not safe. What better time to start a building project? God relishes impossible circumstances to begin His work. At the worst possible time for men we discover that God says, “Get started and get going.” Rebuild the temple for the blessing of peace, prosperity, and abundance follows obedience. Change your periods of mourning and proclaim periods of joy and celebration.

Edify: God’s ways are not our ways. It is not unusual for God to pick the worst possible time under the worst possible circumstances to show Himself strong. The inhabitants of Jerusalem had no money, most had no jobs, and the city was not safe. So what does God say? BUILD!

Practice: God sees the end and works His way back to the beginning. We see the beginning and hope for a good ending. God saw the temple as completed, yet the stones had not been laid. His commands were based on things the people of Jerusalem could not visualize. Some of us, most of us, wait to be blessed BEFORE we start to obey. This is very poor practice and even worse theology. Here is the thing. Provision comes after obedience not before it. The blessing follows obedience. The jobs, the money, the crops, and the peace would come…but only after stones were being laid. What are we waiting for?

December 24

Zechariah 6:1-7:14, Revelation 15:1-8, Psalm 143:1-12, Proverbs 30:24-28

Prayer: Lord, our prayer today is to express our awe and deep appreciation that You left heaven and came to earth so we could find our way to heaven and a relationship with You now and eternally. We are ready to celebrate Your birthday, so we may celebrate and remember our spiritual birthday.

Read: With angels, chariots, bowls and plagues in both Zechariah and Revelation, one can get confused and overloaded with metaphor and symbolism. One overarching commonality that both texts reveal is that the Lord God of heaven's armies—the Lamb who has come to take away the sins of the world is ultimately in charge. The Lamb will bring justice and for those who have put their faith and trust in Him there will be a day of rejoicing.

Edify: The prayers of a child are often some of the most honest among us. No editing, no worries as to who is listening, but honest requests. One child once prayed, “…and Lord please take care of Yourself for if anything happens to You we are all sunk.” The little fella was on the right track. The Psalmist is just as honest in saying that his depression deepens and if the Lord was to turn away from him he would surely die. The other side of this is also true that God’s love is unfailing and when we turn our lives to God then we have life.

Practice: There is no greater request, no more important prayer, second only to receiving Christ as Lord, than to ask God, “teach me to do Your will”. You see, our flesh gets in the way. We are not born knowing how to do God’s will. By accepting Christ as Savior, then committing to Him as our Lord, we take the first step. The second greatest step is to be pliable enough to ask the Holy Spirit living within us to teach us to do the will of God. We know it always has to do with two things, “love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself.” So, attend worship each weekend and each week attend to the needs of your neighbor and you will be living into the prayer of the Psalmist.

December 23

Zechariah 4:1-5:11, Revelation 14:1-20, Psalm 142:1-7, Proverbs 30:21-23



Prayer: Lord, our hearts are yearning to experience something fresh and new. We do not want Christmas to just be another day. Lord, we pray that Your message will come to us as clearly as it did Zechariah, who spoke of the power of God to move mountains.

Read: We read in Zechariah, an often quoted verse, which speaks to the Lord’s work through faithful folks, “Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” We have a tendency to take charge and feel that the outcome is all up to us. We should pray as if the outcome all depended on God but work as if it all depended on us. We have a responsibility to do our best while yielding to the Lord’s capacity to work through us in amazing ways.

Edify: The number 144,000 in Revelation is often one of the most misunderstood symbolic numbers in the scriptures. Some have come to believe that this is the number of persons who are going to heaven. Most scholars do not even mention this as a viable option, rather it can be one among several options: 1) A faithful and loyal people who bear the mark of their Lord, 2) A representation of refuge and safety for those who have suffered and yearn for peace, 3) A mark of ownership—belonging to something beyond ourselves, 4) Security or 5) Dependence upon the God who created us. In other words, we who follow Christ are highly valued.

Practice: We strive to measure up and feel important in life. Our desire to measure up often eclipses our innate desire to experience God. The Psalmist speaks for us all in saying, “you are my refuge, you are all I want in life”. How would I live my life differently today if the Lord was truly my refuge? How would my focus change today if I truly believed that the Lord is all I need?