You are reading this as a result of God’s grace and providential care. We here in the United States are highly blessed by God. Perhaps the greatest of these blessings is our access to the Holy Scriptures. Let us not, however, be as ancient Israel who ignored and despised God’s goodness. The goodness of God is for a purpose…
We are seeing this morning, the kingdom of Christ proclaimed. We recently discussed the two witnesses - we saw the trials we believe the church went through. We saw the Satanic opposition to God's church. This morning, we have a beautiful, encouraging passing where we see the triumph of a church. This passage aplies to the age that we are in, with the church often being persecuted and despised but never destroyed.
Martin Luther the reformer lived in a dark cloud for much of his life. That cloud was the fear of God, knowing that God is righteous and that he wasn't. The Reformation was really the rediscovery of the doctrine of justification by faith alone.
We want to consider the church's witness to the kingship of the Lord Jesus. One of the tings we see over and over again is that we see it is applicable now, not just the future. So when we study this book, we see what God is speaking to His people today.
