Hi John,
The Revelation study this past weekend was wonderful and brought back memories of how Jesus drew me to him. One day in our third grade religion class, at the Catholic school I attended, a nun read from the second chapter of Joel, regarding the wonders in heaven to come, i.e. the sun turning dark and the moon turning to blood before the terrible day of the Lord. Even though I was only 9 or 10 years old I felt terror from those passages.
Later, when I was about 24 or 25 years old, I found a dog-eared, paperback book hidden in a cabinet drawer at the place I was working at the time. It was called The Late Great Planet Earth, by Hal Lindsey. Even though the author’s interpretations of the end time visions of Ezekiel, Zachariah, John, etc. were for the most part fictional, he used enough truth to put me under conviction. The same terror I felt at 9 years old was just as real at age 25. It drew me to Jesus.
I realize now the value of the fear of the Lord. The fact that I could feel a touch of His wrath and act on it is precious and not to be taken lightly. Not many people in this world give any thought to the wrath of God as you described in the Revelation study.
One last thing I would like to mention. When the planes hit the World Trade Centers on September 11, 2001, great and sudden fear came over this nation and others as well. I remember reading this Scripture at that time, Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh, (Pr 3:25).
Putting all of our trust in Jesus is the only way this can happen, no matter what comes in our life time.
I appreciate the time and prayer you have put into the Revelation study. I pray we will all value the blessings Jesus intends to give us.
Tom