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Topic: Persecution of the Church
[DCLM Daily Manna 27 August 2019 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Revelation 17:1-8 (KJV)
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
KeyVerse: “And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration” (Revelation 17:6).
MESSAGE:
Pastor Richard Wurmbrand who spent fourteen years in the Communists’ prison in Romania with horrible tortures and sufferings was released to become the voice of the underground churches in captive nations. He says: “…the Seed of the woman will bruise the head of the serpent” (Genesis 3:15). We tickle the serpent on the belly making him to laugh. Today, the serpent continues to crawl through China, North Korea, Vietnam and Laos… and in the Middle East where no one church building is allowed to stand. The plight of such captive nations must continually be addressed by Church leaders and mission directors, as well as by every thoughtful Christian”. From the time of Abel through the law, prophets, the Early Church and to the contemporary time, people have been oppressed, tortured and killed for their faith.
In the account of today, the great whore, that is, the woman arrayed in purple and scarlet with the title, Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of all Harlots and Abomination of the Earth, symbolises any system that is hostile and opposed to God. Her being drunken with blood shows her pleasure in the persecution of the saints and martyrs of Jesus.
Today, many Christians have suffered unspeakable tortures in the hands of their tormentors and persecutors under the influence of this old serpent (the devil). Believers who are in persecution free nations should see it as an assignment to constantly and passionately intercede for the sustenance of the faith of our fellow pilgrims including missionaries in those countries. We should always be ready to support mission work when the need arises.
Thought For The Day: Persecution is the true test of the Christian faith.
The Bible In One Year: Psalm 39–43
