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The numbers will shock you. We don’t think about it often because of the marvelous freedoms we have in this country, but we should at least be aware and prayerful of what is taking place around the world with our brothers and sisters in Christ. The population of the persecuted exceeds the population of the USA. Thousands of people were killed last year because they professed faith in and loyalty to Jesus Christ. This is not new. Since Jesus ascended to Heaven, His people have suffered on behalf of His name. It’s real.

A man named Marshall McLuhan once made an observation on the interesting design of human ears by writing, “Mankind does not come equipped with earlids, but we compensate for this oversight by developing selective listening.” Eugene Peterson went on to comment, “We are conveniently deaf to sounds that challenge our pride, command our obedience, interrupt our fantasies or call attention to our lapses.” It is truly amazing what we can miss—willfully.

W. A. Criswell, a Southern Baptist pastor, expositor and writer wrote a “volume” on the book of Revelation. You’ll likely hear him quoted a few times over the next year as we journey through the “sixty-sixth book.” He referred to the incarnation of Jesus as the Advent of Veiled Deity and the return of Jesus as the Advent of Unveiled Deity. It’s tough to improve upon that distinction! Jesus was fully God and fully man when He came the first time and He will be fully God and fully man when He returns. The only difference is that the first time it was as the Christmas Hymn says so well, “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity.” When He returns, the veil will be lifted, and we will see Him in all His glory and splendor.

Are there some people in your life that lift your spirit when you see their face or hear their voice? When you say, “Good to see you,” you really mean it because they have a life-giving presence. The sound of a voice, the sight of a face, an appropriate touch, encouraging words; all this is present in Revelation chapter 1. The apostle John had not seen Jesus for over 50 years and suddenly, on the Lord’s Day, while John was worshipping, the Holy Spirit opened the unseen realm to John.