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December 21 Daily Reading- Read the Bible in 1 Year
10 Plays4 days ago
Happy Hanukkah! If you would like to watch the 2025 Hanukkah service from the Messianic Jewish congregation I attend, you can find that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ5AT87INFU&t=5385s
If you would like to download my FREE calendar for keeping track of your commitment to read the Bible every day, you can find that on my site, here: https://www.inthefamilywaycoaching.com/pages/read-the-bible-in-1-year
Monthly memberships to support this event can be purchased on my site, here: https://www.inthefamilywaycoaching.com/offering_packages
Today we will begin continue reading the Book of Revelation, Chapter 2.
In today's reading we will begin to read and discuss the letters that Jesus sent to the seven churches of Asia. In each letter Jesus tells the church what they are doing well and what needs improvement. Each letter ends with the question, "Do you have ears? Then listen to what the Spirit tells the churches." The letters are meant as a warning and promise of blessings for us, too! We need to be sure that we do not forget our first love- Jesus! We need to be sure that we are not letting people infect our churches with wrong teachings and sexual immorality. We need to be sure that we are not worshipping idols, but instead, are making Jesus the most important one in our lives. As rewards for our faithfulness and obedience we will be allowed to eat the fruit from the tree of life; we will have eternal life with Jesus; we will be given secret manna and a white stone with our new name written on it! Jesus will let us rule. He will give us himself! We have so many wonderful things to look forward to as we endure hardships here on earth. We need to remember to keep our eyes on the prize and remain faithful to Jesus no matter what, all the way to the very end.
If you enjoyed today's reading and feel like God has lit YOUR light please click the LIGHT button (it looks like a thumbs up or a heart) and consider subscribing to or following my channel, if you have not done so already done so.
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Transcript
Introduction and Significance of December 21st
00:00:03
Speaker
Good day, everybody. Welcome to the December 21st daily reading out of the Day by Day Kids Bible written by Karen Henley. And also welcome to the eighth and final day of Hanukkah.
00:00:17
Speaker
I know that it is quite late and you probably won't actually get to see this until the 22nd. So I hope that you enjoyed this last eight days of Hanukkah. I hope that you chose to celebrate in some small way at least to at least acknowledge the the holiday going on.
00:00:35
Speaker
Well, if you are following along in your bookmarking commitment calendar, it's time to take out that. It's time to take out your crayon, your pencil, your marker, or your sticker.
00:00:47
Speaker
Because we're going to cross off our days. Because we're about to hear the Bible today.
00:00:54
Speaker
I just want to point out too that today is the 21st and it is the first day of winter. So this is also the shortest day of the year, whether it's 2025 or any other year. ah At least that is always the same year after year.
00:01:13
Speaker
I can't speak for the days of Hanukkah. That does always come on the 25th of the month of ah in the biblical calendar, not necessarily in December.
00:01:24
Speaker
We don't calculate that by the month of December. They use the lunar biblical calendar. So thank you for joining me today, whatever day you are getting around to watching or reading the daily reading for today. And I hope that you are having a fantastic, blessed day, that you are finding daily application in all of our daily readings and that you are finding that God is bringing things into your life to allow you to practice what you have been learning in our daily applications.
00:01:56
Speaker
I know he has for me. And so I trust that our God is so faithful that he is doing the same with you, no matter how young or how old we may be.
Introduction to Revelation Chapter 2
00:02:06
Speaker
it Well, today we are going to be complete picking up, continuing rather, in the book of Revelation, and we will be covering chapter 2. This is going to start the letters that Jesus is asking John to write to the seven churches of Asia.
00:02:26
Speaker
And so what we are going to begin to see is both promise of ah reward and rebuking for areas where they need correction.
00:02:39
Speaker
So we're going to be seeing some correction as well as some promises for faithfulness and obedience. And these promises are valid for us, too.
00:02:51
Speaker
There are so many promises of good things. And we have to be mindful of the consequences of doing wrong things. And so that is what Jesus is writing his letters about. He is giving John john what to say to each of the individual churches.
Understanding the Nicolaitans
00:03:09
Speaker
Now, one of the things that it was going on in this day and age when the book of Revelation was written is that there was a group of people called the Nicolaitans. And we don't know exactly who they were, but we seem to be able to find out that they were Christians.
00:03:31
Speaker
ah encouraging people to specifically to eat food that was sacrificed to idols, and as well as some other things like sexual immorality.
00:03:42
Speaker
And so we while we do know and have been taught that if you unknowingly or even if you know that food has been sacrificed, that it's okay to eat it if you think that it's okay, and that if you don't think that it's okay, then you should abstain from it.
00:04:01
Speaker
But what we're looking at here is a specific teaching that they should be eating food that has been sacrificed to idols, which means that probably there was idol worship going on and that this particular foods, whatever they were, that they were being encouraged to eat, that was it was specifically being sacrificed to those idols. So that's what we're going to be seeing in a couple of the readings today as we go through some of the letters to the seven churches.
Symbolism of the Seven Stars and Menorahs
00:04:37
Speaker
Now, if you remember a couple of weeks ago, we read that Jesus is the morning star. So keep your ears open today. I told you that it would be coming again in Revelation, that we would need to remember that because we would be hearing the term the morning star used in relation to Jesus when we got to Revelation.
00:05:01
Speaker
And we're going to start to hear that today.
00:05:05
Speaker
So here we go, starting in chapter two today. That's the only chapter we are covering today.
00:05:14
Speaker
To the angels of the churches. So it's most likely that the angels that Jesus is referring to is to the leaders, is to the the people who are in charge there.
00:05:32
Speaker
So I will give us a little bit of a reminder where we left off yesterday. Write about what you saw. Write about what is happening now.
00:05:44
Speaker
Write what will happen later. Here's the mystery of the seven stars I hold. The seven stars stand for the angels of seven churches.
00:05:58
Speaker
And the seven lamps stands for the seven churches. So there were seven menorahs. Now what's interesting about those menorahs, I thought I would point out, is that while we have menorah with, for eight days, plus the center Hamash light, the menorahs that were used in the temple had seven lights.
00:06:25
Speaker
there were there was not the the one in the There was the one in the center, but they were all even, and they had three on each side and then the one in the center. It was not the one we see here. These are Hanukkah menorahs or Hanukkiah.
Messages to the Church in Ephesus
00:06:46
Speaker
Then the one who looked like a man said this, Write this to the angel of the church in Ephesus. This is from the one who holds the seven stars.
00:07:00
Speaker
He walks among the seven gold lamps. Here is what he says. I know what you do. I know how hard you work.
00:07:12
Speaker
And I know you keep going no matter what. I know that you cannot stand sinful people. And I know that you checked out people who said that they were apostles but they were not who they said they were.
00:07:28
Speaker
And you found that out. You have kept believing. You have gone through lots of hard times for me. And you have not gotten tired.
00:07:41
Speaker
But there is something wrong. You forgot the love you had at first. Remember how far you have fallen away from that love.
00:07:54
Speaker
Be sorry and change. Do what you used to do. What if you do not change? Then I will come and take your lamp away.
00:08:10
Speaker
But here is something good about you. You hate the sinful things that some people do. In our Big Bible, it says that it's were specifically referring to the Nicolaitans.
00:08:23
Speaker
These people are part of the church, and I hate what they do too. Do you have ears? Then listen to what the Spirit tells the churches.
00:08:36
Speaker
Keep following me, no matter what, and then I will let you eat fruit from the tree of life. It is in God's heavenly land.
00:08:51
Speaker
These are promises for us too, remember? so that means that we also have to be listening for what not to do.
00:09:01
Speaker
Write this to the angel of the church in Smyrna. This is from the one who is first and last. He died and came back to life.
00:09:14
Speaker
He says this, I know your troubles. I know how poor you are, but you're really rich. I know that there are people who say they are Jews, but they are not.
00:09:31
Speaker
They are from Satan's worship place. They say bad things about you. Do not be afraid of hard times that will come. Satan will send some of you to jail, and that will test you.
00:09:48
Speaker
People will hurt you for 10 days. Keep believing in me, even if it looks like you are going to die. I will give you life forever.
00:10:03
Speaker
Do you have ears? Then listen to what the Spirit tells the churches. Keep following me, no matter what. and then you will not be hurt one bit by what happens after death.
Messages to Smyrna and Pergamum
00:10:22
Speaker
Write this to the angel of the church in Pergamum. This is from the one who has the sharp sword. This sword has two edges.
00:10:36
Speaker
Remember that Jesus had a sword coming out of his mouth because the word of God is like a two-edged sword.
00:10:45
Speaker
He says this, I know where you live. You live where Satan rules. But you keep following me. You didn't stop believing even when one of my followers was killed in your city.
00:11:03
Speaker
He kept telling the truth about my kingdom. But there are a few things that are wrong. Some of your people act like belong.
00:11:15
Speaker
He led people into sin and he got them to sin with sex. He got them to eat food given to idols. Some of your people believe the teachers who do what is wrong.
00:11:30
Speaker
So change, be sorry and start doing right. If you do not, I will come soon and I will fight against these people with my mouth, which is like a sword.
00:11:47
Speaker
Do you have ears? Then listen to what the Spirit tells the churches. Keep following me, no matter what, and then I will give each person heavenly food.
00:12:05
Speaker
Our Big Bible says secret manna. Remember, manna is what God provided for the Israelites in the desert when they wandered for 40 years. Every morning they would go out and there would be manna on the ground for them to pick up and eat.
00:12:24
Speaker
So God, well Jesus is promising that each person will receive heavenly food, secret manna. I will also give each person a white stone, and it will have a new name on it.
00:12:41
Speaker
And only the one who gets the stone will know the name.
00:12:48
Speaker
I want to get a stone with a name on it. How about you? And I would love to get some of this secret manna. Oh, that would be amazing.
Messages to Thyatira
00:12:58
Speaker
Write this to the angel of the church in Thyatira.
00:13:04
Speaker
This is from the Son of God. His eyes shine like fire. His feet are like brown, shining metal.
00:13:15
Speaker
Our Big Bible says like bronze. Here is what he says. I know what you do. I know how you love.
00:13:27
Speaker
And I know how you believe and serve. I know you keep following God's way, no matter what, and you do more now than you first did.
00:13:42
Speaker
But there is something wrong. You let the woman named Jezebel be in your group. She says that she tells what God has to say, but she leads my people to do what is wrong.
00:13:59
Speaker
She is getting my people to sin with sex. And she is getting them to eat food given to the idols. I gave her time to change.
00:14:10
Speaker
But she does not want to change. So I will send troubles to her. And people who follow her will be in trouble too. They will be in trouble unless they are sorry and stop doing wrong.
00:14:27
Speaker
Jezebel's children will die. then the churches will know who I am. i am the one who looks into people's hearts and minds, and I will pay you back for what you have done.
00:14:42
Speaker
Now some of you do not follow her, so hold on to what you believe until I come.
00:14:52
Speaker
Keep believing. Keep obeying me no matter what. Keep on to the very end, and then I will let you rule the nations.
00:15:06
Speaker
I will let you rule like my father lets me rule, and I will give you the morning star too. Do you have ears?
00:15:18
Speaker
Then listen to what the Spirit tells the churches.
00:15:25
Speaker
And that is the end of our reading today.
00:15:30
Speaker
Wow. Can you imagine if you were John and you were seeing and hearing all of this and you had to write it down in order to give it to the seven churches?
00:15:43
Speaker
Wow. That would be scary for me, I think.
00:15:49
Speaker
What is something that Jesus said to every single church? He said, keep following me no matter what. Always keep obeying me, all the way to the very end.
00:16:06
Speaker
Do we have ears? Then we need to listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. These warnings about behavior and promises for when we get to heaven are not just for the those particular churches.
00:16:25
Speaker
Jesus was definitely addressing each of the churches, but he makes it clear that these are messages for all of us when he says when he asks us if we have ears to hear and that we need to listen to what the Spirit tells the churches.
Universal Truths of Love and Avoiding Idolatry
00:16:42
Speaker
We need to keep making sure that we love God with all of our hearts, that we are loving that we are obeying God, that we are not using our bodies inappropriately to sin with sex.
00:16:56
Speaker
We need to be sure that we are not worshiping idols. Money can be an idol. Other people, for heroes, that can be an idol.
00:17:08
Speaker
If we are worshiping or putting any person above God, that is idolatry. We want to be sure that we are making Jesus and God the most important ones in our lives, not just today, but every day, and not just for a while.
00:17:29
Speaker
But Jesus tells us to the very end. Even when times are tough, Even if it looks like we may be in danger of dying for it or being put in jail, we need to keep doing the right things.
00:17:46
Speaker
Never stop. And Jesus tells us of some of the many things that await us as our eternal reward when we see him in heaven. We will get to eat from the fruit of the tree of of life.
00:18:02
Speaker
And that is in heaven. I wonder what that fruit looks like and I wonder what it tastes like. I bet it tastes amazing. oh i bet it's the sweetest, juiciest fruit ever.
00:18:15
Speaker
Oh man, and it's on a big tree.
00:18:20
Speaker
I'm so excited. We will get a new name, a white stone with a name written on it. We've talked about identity exchange this year and knowing that we can exchange the lies that the enemy wants to tell us to receive names from God.
00:18:38
Speaker
Who does he say we are? Things like accepted, things like obedient and witness, and many other things. But God has a name for each of us that is special that we won't know until we get to heaven. And he gives us a white stone with our new name on it.
00:19:00
Speaker
My gosh, I want to know what that name is. ah And that will be one of my favorite things. Let's see what else.
00:19:11
Speaker
Oh, the heavenly manna. Oh my gosh. I want to taste that too. i wonder if I can have that along with the tree of life fruit. That sounds wonderful. Jesus says that he knows how poor they are, but they are really rich.
00:19:29
Speaker
How are they rich? In spiritual gifts. We have learned this year that we are rich in spiritual gifts. That is wonderful. We need to remember to share our riches, share our spiritual gifts with others.
00:19:47
Speaker
And did you hear that Jesus will give you the morning star too? Who is the morning star? It is Jesus.
00:19:59
Speaker
He will give us his very self. He will give us himself.
00:20:09
Speaker
He's already given his life to bring us life. That is an amazing promise to know that he will also give us himself when we get to heaven.
Encouragement to Share God's Word and Build Community
00:20:21
Speaker
Jesus is so generous and so gracious. He is so giving. He is just wonderful, isn't he?
00:20:33
Speaker
I can't imagine what that will be like when we get there. That's just unimaginable.
00:20:41
Speaker
Well, I hope that you are encouraged and excited as we read about the gifts and the promises and the warnings for us to be making sure that we are remembering our first love and that we are being faithful to him.
00:21:00
Speaker
when a We want to remember to keep loving. That is very important. So much so that Jesus wrote to one of the churches about it. said they have forgotten their first love.
00:21:13
Speaker
We need to remember that Jesus is our first love. He is to be the very most important one in all of our lives so that we can love him and love others.
00:21:26
Speaker
That's very important to him, or he wouldn't have said it. So I hope that you are encouraged to keep on loving and that you are looking forward, that at some point when we get to heaven, of all the many rewards that we will have waiting for us, where moth and rust do not destroy,
00:21:47
Speaker
And I hope that you are using your spiritual gifts as you are rich in order to benefit others, to help other people to grow and to be strong and to be an encouragement with them so that we can build one another up and make not just ourselves strong by using them, but to build up the entire body of Jesus so that we can help bring more people into God's kingdom.
00:22:15
Speaker
I hope that you are using your ears to hear today and that you will use your action to do these things, not just listen, but to do them as we go out into our daily lives.
00:22:30
Speaker
And remember these words from Jesus. Well, thank you for joining me today. i hope that you have a fantastic rest of your day. And before you go, i hope that you will click your light button. It looks like a thumbs up. It looks like a heart, but it is a light button.
00:22:50
Speaker
It could also look like a share or a follow or a subscribe if you have not done so already. And together, when we light our lights, we are helping to spread the word about reading God's word.
00:23:03
Speaker
And I love to do that. That is one of my very favorite things to do. I like to use God's word as encouragement. It is useful for everything, for correction, for learning, for building one another up.
00:23:17
Speaker
And i want everybody to know what God's word says so that we can be encouraged. And most of all, too, is that it is training us up so that we are prepared for all the good works that God has for us to do.
00:23:33
Speaker
We are learning how to do God's will. And that helps us to grow. And I love that. And one more reminder before we go tonight, I hope that you are being the light of the world in a world that is full of darkness.
00:23:51
Speaker
Jesus, remember we've talked about recently, has reminded us that the world, in the world the love of most will grow cold. So we need to be sure that we are loving and being Jesus's light in the world up until the very end, as he mentioned today.
00:24:12
Speaker
So I hope that you are going out into the world and letting Jesus's light shine so brightly through you. but with so much love that everyone will know that you are a follower of Jesus by your love.
00:24:28
Speaker
Have a fantastic rest of your day. And I will see you again next time for our daily reading out of the Day by Day Kids Bible written by Karen Henley.