Just Wait a Little Longer

Recently, I woke up early in the morning.  As I went into the bathroom to get ready, I saw a piece of paper with very crude, childlike writing on it.  I could partially make it out, but what I made out didn’t make any sense.  I stared at that for a long time, trying to figure out what it meant.  That night when I got home from work, Carrie told me a story.  The night before, I went to bed early.  When she came into the bedroom, I spoke out loud, though I was clearly still asleep.  I said, “We got a better Puerto Rican.”  She thought that was so odd, she went into the bathroom to write it down, but all she had to write with was an eyebrow pencil, which explains why the writing was so crude.  I would love to be able to tell what I was dreaming about that night, but I have no idea. Perhaps it was about baseball.  Perhaps I dreamed the Astros got Carlos Beltran back...or someone better, the "better Puerto Rican."  Sadly, the mystery of “We got a better Puerto Rican” will probably never be solved. 

 

  I'm currently preaching on the book of Revelation at WBC.  There are some very mysterious words and images in this book.  I don’t claim to be able to understand them all, and frankly, I don’t trust anyone who claims that they do.  Last week (chapters 4-5), we saw how only Jesus is worthy to open the scroll that represents the plan of God for the consummation of human history.  This Sunday, we’ll see what happens when Jesus opens that scroll (chapters 6-7).  It is sealed with seven seals, and each time Jesus opens a seal in Heaven, something happens that impacts Earth.  I don’t think the purpose of this was to give us a blow-by-blow account of how the End Times are going to play out, so that we could watch the news and say, "Aha!  It is just as it was foretold in the prophecy!"  Remember, this is a letter written to real Christians who lived 2000 years ago, meant to inspire them to be ready and to not give up.  They were facing difficult times, persecution, poverty, alienation among their people, and they wanted to know how God felt about all that.  This was God’s answer to them, and encouragement to us.  I think you'll be encouraged by this passage; I hope you'll be there.