Revelation 8

Bible Passage:  Revelation 8

Waiting for that Day

Home sweet home.

Indeed, most of us feel that home is the best place because we associate it with warmth, comfort and love, and we feel a sense of belonging. For this reason, we will look forward to going home, whenever we have been abroad for some time.

After being away from my own family for almost a year, I really look forward to seeing them again – I’m going home. Yet, in order to go home, I need to prepare myself – save up money for the travelling cost, buy gifts for the family, settle all urgent issues at work before going on leave.

In the same way, Revelations 8 reminds us to prepare ourselves for the day when the Lord will come again to take us home.

The fire on the altar before God’s throne was fed through the incense that the angel with the golden censer brought. This incense represents our prayers (Rev 8:3-4, 5:8). When the angel with the golden censer threw fire from the altar to the earth, the final seven trumpets were blown. This introduced the coming of God’s final judgment. The believers thus had a part in bringing about Judgment Day.

As believers of the end time, we should naturally long for that last day. For Judgment Day will be the time for us to receive our eternal inheritance in heaven – it will be the day when we can finally go home. For this reason, we need to pray for God’s kingdom and judgment to come soon:

“… Your kingdom come …” (Mt 6:10)

But do we really look forward to go home? Or are we like the prodigal son, enjoying our life in this world so much, that we completely forget our loving father in heaven?

While we look forward to going home, we also need to prepare ourselves.

And I looked, and I heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!” (Rev 8:13)

The angel in the midst of heaven warned the people in this world of the impending woes. His aim was to turn them back to God and prepare them for Judgment Day. Like the angel, we too must warn those around us, who have not yet believed in God, i.e. we must preach the gospel to them. For God desires all men to be saved; He will not come to take us home until the number of the sealed ones if fulfilled (Rev 7:3-4).

So, apart from praying with anticipation for God’s kingdom to come, we also need to do our part to make God’s kingdom come true. Have we done our part? Are we ready for that Day to go home?