The Revelation of Jesus Christ

THE END IS HERE.

2009-05-14T06:19:00.001-07:00

Well, the end of Revelation has come and it sure was a journey. I hope
you made it out to our final night last night- With One Voice. It
certainly lived up to the hype! What a way to end it all!

What did you think?

THE END IS NEAR...

2009-05-05T15:21:00.001-07:00

TOMORROW NIGHT, Wed, May 6, we'll be rocking our Revelation Recap night where (as you could probably guess from the title) we'll be recapping the whole book of Revelation! It will include a bunch of great things: our news hosts, Al K. Seltzer and Chanda Lear, some amazing skits, cardboard testimonies, and a brief look at each of the chapters of Revelation! You definitely don't want to miss this night!

EVERYONE IS INVITED: MIDDLE SCHOOL, HIGH SCHOOL, COLLEGE, AND ADULT!

If you want, you can find out more info as well as RSVP for it on our Revelation Recap Facebook event page.

Don't forget about next Wed, May 13 - it's our With One Voice worship night. You can also RSVP for this event and get the word out on our With One Voice Facebook event page.

2 EPIC nights that you don't want to miss!!!

2009-04-29T14:02:00.000-07:00

EVERYONE (middle school, high school, college, and adult) is invited to these events, so spread the word!

Revelation Recap Night is coming up Wednesday, May 6. We'll take a look back at the entire book of Revelation. It's taken us 9 months to study the whole thing, but we'll get an overview of the whole book in one awesome night! Check the video HERE!

RSVP for this event and get the word out on our Revelation Recap Facebook event page.

With One Voice Worship Night is coming up in 2 weeks - Wednesday, May 13. We're inviting everyone from 5th grade-adult to come worship with us as we wrap up the book of Revelation! It will be an unforgettable night as we lift our hands and our voices together and reflect on what Jesus has done for us. There will be tons of great worship, plus Scripture reading and communion! You don't want to miss this night.

RSVP for this event and get the word out on our With One Voice Facebook event page.

Special guest speaker...Kevin?!

2009-04-19T21:39:00.000-07:00

That's right. I was my own guest speaker on Sunday. I got a call on
Saturday morning that the pastor of Calvary Santa Fe was sick and they
wanted me to go teach for him. So, I studied for Revelation 20 as
planned, and since we can't afford to miss another weekend in
Revelation if we're going to finish on time, we video taped the
service from Saturday and played it back on Sunday morning. So while I
was teaching in Santa Fe twice, I also taught 50 miles away in
Velocity! It must be some weird time-space continuum thing or something.
From what I hear, it went really well...although I wouldn't know
because I wasn't there!

Revelation 20 sure was a crazy chapter though. Never before had we
seen God display His merciless judgment as He did then. After
thousands of years of chances, He finally throws Satan and ALL those
who rejected Him who ever lived into hell for eternity. Pretty awesome
to know sin is dealt with, but pretty sobering to think we may know
some of the people who were judged and thrown into hell!

We'll take next weekend off for The Weekend (sign up at http://www.theweekendabq.org
if you haven't yet), then we'll get our first glimpse into "The
Eternal State" in heaven in Revelation 21! It's almost over...

It can only get better from here!

2009-04-18T09:05:00.000-07:00

It can only get better from here, because it can't get any worse for sinners in Revelation than when they are finally judged mercilessly in Revelation 20:11-15. This weekend in Revelation 20, we're asking the question, "Who's The Boss Now?!" as we look at Satan and his people who mistakenly thought they were in control. We'll see the reality of who is in control and what He'll do to those who reject Him. Get ready for a heavy message - one of excitement for those of us who follow Christ, but one of fear for those who don't!

Are you being fooled?

2009-04-04T13:57:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was April Fool's Day, as you probably know. It's the day that you can lie, make someone feel stupid, and they think it's funny. Everybody has their gimics - one company advertised a 5-star hotel inside a helicopter called a "hotelicopter". Their YouTube video (below) caused hundreds of people from around the world to call, wondering how to reserve a room! X-Box also released an advertisement for a new version of Guitar Hero called "Alpine Legend". Only this time, there's no guitars - only yodeling (video below)! YouTube even flipped their videos upside-down (which you can still do by adding "&flip=1" to the end of the URL). Expedia even offered $99 flights to Mars, advertising that "now you can save over $3 trillion on a Mars vacation"!

Satan is the king of fooling people. Revelation 19 reveals an event known as The Second Coming of Christ. He comes as a Judge to judge the sinful world. It's a highly significant event that the Bible talks a lot about:

- There are more prophecies about Jesus' Second Coming than His First Coming.
- The Second Coming is dealt with 1,845X in the Bible
- Jesus Himself mentioned it 21 times
- 1 out of every 30 verses deals with the subject & 7 out of every 10 New Testament chapters
- Second Coming is mentioned 8 times to every 1 time the First Coming was mentioned

Jesus coming as Judge is obviously a VERY significant event. In that case, why don’t we pay a little more attention? Are you being fooled into thinking that something else is more important? What has Satan used to pull your attention away to the warnings of God's Word? It's time to do as Hebrews 12:1 says and strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.

What is fooling you or tripping you up? Throw it down and keep your eyes focused on Jesus!

The "Hotelicopter"

X-BOX's "Alpine Legend"

God's Idea of "All-You-Can-Eat"

2009-04-03T10:55:00.000-07:00

Revelation 19 gives us a unique picture of God's idea of an all-you-can-eat buffet. In the first 10 verses, we'll see a picture of us, the followers of Christ, feasting on all-you-can-eat VICTORY! There's rejoicing, singing, and praising God for His almighty power. In fact, the scene is called "The Marriage Supper of the Lamb." We, the bride of Christ, will finally be united with our groom, Jesus!

Then, there's the other side of the buffet - DEFEAT. God's enemies have suffered defeat after defeat, but in Revelation 19, it's finally over for them. We see Jesus, on a white horse, riding to defeat His enemies at Armageddon. We're with him in pure white robes, but we have no weapons. Can you guess why? Because we don't have to fight! With a word a judgment from His mouth, all of Christ's enemies are slaughtered and there's unprecedented bloodshed. In fact, Henry Morris described it this way - A mighty cutting wind sweeps across their ranks, up the 180-mile column of massed men and horses, proceeding like a slicing sword directly from the powerful Word of the majestic Rider as He rides up from Edom. Like grapes trampled in a winepress, the blood bursts from their veins and death is instantaneous. Wow! Not only do God's enemies get a hearty helping of defeat, but the birds of the air get a buffet of their own! Revelation 19:21 says And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

Read Revelation 19 in preparation for God's Idea of "All-You-Can-Eat"! Hope to see you this weekend for an unforgettable service!

Bible From 30K week 1

2009-04-01T20:07:00.001-07:00

Tonight we rocked Bible From 30K with the adults in the main service!
We made sure to represent with a few screams of course- no need to be
boring just because we're in with the adults, right?

Skip is finishing off B30K with a 2-part teaching on Revelation. It's
taken us 21 weeks to cover 18 chapters and Pastor Skip will cover the
whole thing in only 2 weeks! Wow! It was a great review. Come next
Wednesday to review a bit more and also look ahead to the end of the
book.

Also, make sure to read Revelation 19 in prep for this weekend's
message- the marriage supper of the Lamb and the SLAUGHTER or
Armageddon!!!

A few things Satan would've left out...

2009-03-27T13:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend, we're going to blow through 42 verses in Revelation 17-18! Wow! It's going to be pretty heavy as we take a step back in our Revelation time line, do a little review and get a bird's eye view of the Antichrist and his reign. Here's the problem, though, when Satan takes over the earth during the Tribulation, he'll use more deceitful tactics than he ever has. The whole world will be united behind him and everyone who's not worshiping Christ (there will be very few of those people, by the way) will be worshiping the Antichrist and Satan. However, like normal, Satan will leave some parts out. In fact, if he were writing the Bible (which would be kind of weird), I'm pretty sure he'd leave this weekend's text, Revelation 17-18, out. It talks about the final fall of his empire on earth and gives us a preview of his eternity. The Antichrist's world system is directly attacked and suddenly destroyed by God and the whole world is shocked out how quickly it happened. I'm pretty sure he doesn't want us reading Revelation 17-18...so we're going to do it anyway.

Come this weekend as we take a look at the consequences of seeking pleasure in the world and what the end of Satan and his followers will be.

Oh, and Satan, if you're reading this, I HOPE YOU HAVE A TERRIBLE WEEKEND!

Does Satan Exist? The Nightline Face-Off

2009-03-26T17:04:00.000-07:00

If you're interested in watching the face-off debating on whether or not Satan exists, go to Nightline's website.

"More Bowl Judgments, please!"

2009-03-25T12:51:00.000-07:00

This is obviously a funny approach to a very UNfunny topic - the complete wrath of God poured out on the earth! Come to Velocity tonight to learn how to avoid "7 Helpings of Judgment!"

Does Satan Exist?

2009-03-25T10:49:00.000-07:00

This was the question that was asked to a panel of 4 people last Friday in front of a live audience. Debating the topic was a doctor, a pastor, an ex-prostitute, and a bishop - 2 believe in Satan and 2 don't.

Why is this so important?

We've talked a lot about Satan in our study through Revelation and we've certainly discussed that the normal red, horned, hoofed, pitchfork-toting devil isn't what he's actually like. However, the Bible makes it very clear that he's real and at work to attack God's people and thwart God's plan. Satan would love if the world thought he was fake. If Satan can persuade people that he's not real, no one will think he's a threat - he'll be more of a fairy tale to them.

Make sure to watch this debate TOMORROW (Thursday, March 26) to get a good perspective on Satan's reality, but also how the world views him!

Click HERE for a 2-minute preview of who will be debating and what their opinions of the devil are!

Stoned to death

2009-03-22T12:34:00.000-07:00

This weekend we looked at the last 4 of the 7 bowl judgments in
Revelation 16. Wow. Everything from skin-eating sores, to the oceans
and rivers turning to blood to the sun scorching men and unprecedented
earthquakes and hailstorms- crazy, unvelieveable stuff! The highlight
had to be the 100-pound hailstone that we unveiled during service. We
talked about how much damage hail has done in the past and how we can
only imagine what thousands of hailstones this size will do! My
favorite part had to be when we looked back to Leviticus 24:16 where
God tells the punishment for blasphemy- being stoned to death! What's
so interesting about that? Well, we read 3X in Revelation 16 that
people, knowing God is behind the judgment on Earth, blaspheme Him and
curse Him for His judgments. It's as if God sees that no one else will
stone them for their blasphemy, so He does it Himself!

God is not messing around is He? That's why we asked the question,
"What will God have to do to get MY attention?" If these people
wouldn't repent, what will we need to bring repentance in our lives?

Hail from hell

2009-03-21T11:24:00.000-07:00

That's a pretty big hailstone, huh? Can you even imagine chunks of ice
that big falling at hudreds of miles per hour to the earth?! Wow!

Well believe it or not, the hailstone in the picture will look cute
and petite next to the hailstone we'll learn about at the end of
Revelation 16. Come this weekend and see for yourself how big they'll
really be!

Oh, and read Revelation 16 in preparation for the study!

A Victory Parade

2009-03-19T12:03:00.000-07:00

Last night was a party in Velocity! Last weekend, we studied the first of a 2-part teaching on Revelation 15-16 - the 7 bowl judgments. However, before God's complete judgment is poured out on Earth in Revelation 16, the saints and angels party in heaven. Here's how I see it: Victory in Christ is SO guaranteed that we might as well start the party now!

Last night we looked at the before-judgment party and the vision of victory that John had as well as the songs of salvation that were being sung. Although the saints in Revelation 15 were temporarily defeated on earth, they stand eternally victorious in heaven! So cool! We also talked about how as Christians, we should be the life of the party. Not because we have drugs or premarital sex, but because we have JESUS! He's worth partying over!

2 Corinthians 2:14 - But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to LEAD US ALONG IN CHRIST'S TRIUMPHAL PROCESSION. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume.

Since Christ leads us along in His triumphal procession, we figured we'd celebrate with a triumphal procession of our own. So, in small groups, we all decorated banners and a big float that advertised why living for Christ is such a party! Then, we all headed outside and screamed and marched and partied up because WE HAVE VICTORY IN CHRIST!

As we marched, everyone chanted part of the song of the Lamb in Revelation 15.
The girls chanted: "Great and marvelous are Your works...
The guys chanted: "Lord God Almighty!

Apparently they could hear us from inside the book store! That was the point!

Any guesses?

2009-03-15T21:59:00.000-07:00

What could a 55cm Body Ball and a bunch of water have to do with
Revelation? Read Revelation 16 and see if you can come up with any
ideas. You'll find out for sure next weekend as we look at the last 4
of the 7 bowl judgments!

Leave a comment with your guess at what we're going to do with the ball!

Temporarily Stunned

2009-03-14T11:22:00.001-07:00

No, these goats aren't dead. And actually, they didn't even faint, although they've earned the nickname "Tennessee Fainting Goats." Why? They have a hereditary disorder called “myotonia congenital” that causes their muscles to lock up when they're startled (watch a video of them in action HERE or come to service this weekend to see it). They don't actually faint, but when they get scared, their muscles lock up and they easily toppled over. Within seconds, they're back on their feet and running around like nothing happened.

These goats actually kind of reminded me of God's enemies in Revelation 16. The time has come for their judgment and He begins to pour out His wrath in rapid, violent, sudden floods of judgment. The people being judged (who actually survive) seem to act similar to these goats. They are writhing in pain after breaking out in sores all over their body or being scorched by the sun, but then look how they respond:

Revelation 16:9 - ...and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.

They're temporarily stunned, but then turn around and blaspheme God and continue in their sinful ways! Horrible! Don't make God teach you the hard way that He's the Judge and He's in control. It's a painful lesson that you don't have to learn hands-on.

Shock and Awe

2009-03-14T07:33:00.000-07:00

I'll never forget the time I first heard the phrase "Shock and Awe," President Bush used it just a couple months after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in NY. I was standing in the old coffee shop at church, listening to a press conference with the President about how they were going to attack (see a video of the attack below). Here's a basic definition of "shock and awe" from Wikipedia - "technically known as rapid dominance, is a military doctrine based on the use of overwhelming power, dominant battlefield awareness, dominant maneuvers, and spectacular displays of force to paralyze an adversary's perception of the battlefield and destroy its will to fight." The idea is to hit the enemy as hard and as fast as possible, so that they're so shocked and in awe that they can't really fight back. That's the strategy God seems to use in Revelation 15-16 this weekend as we look at the last of His judgments on the earth. The attacks on sinful mankind are so rapid-fire and ruthless that people can't even try to fight back, they simply curse God and continue in their sin.

Buckle up for a wild ride this weekend as we see the Satanic kingdom on earth crumble. We'll watch as everyone who took the mark of the beast breaks out in nasty sores, huge 70-100-pound hailstones hit the earth, the sun's heat multiplies and burns men, ALL water on the earth is turned to blood, and much more! Believe me, you DO NOT want to endure all of this, so surrender your life to Christ NOW before it's too late!

You thought it was bad before...

2009-03-12T20:33:00.000-07:00

These 3 pictures all have something in common. The first picture is 60 pounds of Coca-Cola. The second picture is a 70-pound fish. The third picture is an 80-pound pumpkin!

So, what do they all have in common? They all weigh about the same amount as the final plague of hail that will pummel the earth at the end of the bowl judgments in Revelation 16.

Here's how the Bible puts it:

Revelation 16:21 - And great hail from heaven fell upon men, each hailstone about the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since that plague was exceedingly great.

According to the "Ask A Scientist" page on the Department of Energy website, "the terminal fall velocity of an ice sphere the size of a golf ball (1.68 inches in diameter)...is 234.7 miles per hour." Wow! Just imagine an 80-pound hailstone falling to the earth at hundreds of miles per hour! Now imagine thousand of them that size falling...all at the same time! Millions of people will be killed instantly. The biggest hailstone on record right now, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weighs in at about 1.5 pounds and measures 7 inches across - the size of a small soccer ball. That's a big hailstone...but NOTHING compared to the hailstones in Revelation!

Don't forget though, hail is just one of the many things that will happen to the earth in the end. When it's all said and done, God's words will be "It is done!" (Revelation 16:17).

Join us this weekend in Velocity as we look into the (almost) final judgment of Satan and his gang. If you thought it was bad before, you just wait. The nightmare has only begun!

I wouldn't want to end the blog like that, though, without reminding you that you don't have to endure all of that pain and suffering. God has offered us all the free gift of eternal life because Jesus died the death that we deserved - to pay for our sin. We all deserve the wrath of God that is poured out in Revelation, but thanks to Jesus, we can be those people at the beginning of Revelation 15, standing with Jesus having victory over the beast! Commit your life to Jesus TODAY - you're not guaranteed another day.

Side Effects May Vary

2009-03-07T15:16:00.000-08:00

You've seen those commercials for certain types of prescription drugs where the voiceover reads off a list of side effects that the drug may have on you. Sometimes it seems like it would be better to suffer without the drug than risk having to deal with the side effects. Satan always leaves out the side effects when he tries to deceive or tempt us. As we look at Revelation 14 today, it will give us the side effects of taking the mark of the beast...

Revelation 14:9-11
9 Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

It's not that Satan didn't know that those things would happen, it's just that he doesn't care...AT ALL! His whole goal while he still has a chance is to ruin our lives and pull us away from the Lord. Revelation 14 is a great reminder to always think through what you're about to do - if it involves sin, it will never lead anywhere good.

Here's a parody on a medicine commercial that talks about potential side effects of the drug...

Mowing down His enemies

2009-03-07T09:16:00.001-08:00

Revelation 14:14-16
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp SICKLE. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Thrust in Your SICKLE and reap, for the time has come for You to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16 So He who sat on the cloud thrust in His SICKLE on the earth, and the earth was reaped.

Below is a REALLY BORING video of a guy using a scythe (similar to a sickle, but with a long handle). A scythe is what you normally see "the grim reaper" holding. Why post a video of this? Well, mainly because in our age of remote-controlled lawn mowers, we don't really know what a scythe or a sickle is. It's a good visual to get in your mind as we study John's vision in Revelation 14 when the Son of Man reaps the earth. This won't really be a battle - it's literally God annihilating His enemies.

(If it gets too boring for you, fast forward to about 2:00 - that's when you can see the ducks...and oh man is that exciting!)

You Don't Have to be a LOSER!

2009-03-07T08:40:00.001-08:00

That's the title of the message this weekend...and it's also the GREAT NEWS of the message! Revelation 14:14-20 looks ahead to the 7 bowl judgments (next week in Revelation 15-16) and the Battle (more like a slaughter) of Armageddon in Revelation 19. Revelation 14 describes a blood bath of epic proportions. Toward the end, it pictures Christ holding a sickle about ready to mow down His enemies. It makes me thankful that I know what side of the sickle I'll be on and reminds me what an urgent message we have to proclaim.

The best part is, even if you are on the losing side right now, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE! Jesus has offered you a position on the winning team!

666 = the ticket to fun?

2009-03-04T22:05:00.001-08:00

Tonight we had a VIP party jammin before service. Everyone was invited
and all you had to do was get marked...with 666. No big deal though-
everyone was doing it and that's how to really have a good time.

It really was a lot of fun and even now as I look at the 666 on my
wrist it reminds me of how easy it was and how it seemed so right. I'm
sure it will to the people in Revelation too. It will just make sense-
they'll be able to buy and sell, all currency will be the same, etc.

We looked at 3 marks tonight: THE Mark, Our Marks, and Jesus' marks.
Each person marked with something reveals what they value. The
challenge tonight was to pan back and ask "What marks my life?" In the
end, many will take the mark for the Antichrist, but don't forget that
Christ took the marks for us!

The MARK

2009-03-04T12:32:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we studied Revelation 13 and this week, we continue it. We looked at a few possibilities of what "the mark of the beast" will be in the end times and we'll look at them again tonight. We'll spend most of our time tonight, however, talking about the marks you already have, then as we close in worship and communion, we'll talk about the marks Jesus took for us! Should be a great night!

MAKE SURE TO COME EARLY FOR THE V.I.P. PARTY FROM 6:45-7:15!.

We'll also have barcodes like the one pictured available for you to take home if you'd like. It says "Revelation 13" on the front, and on the back, you can read Revelation 13:16-18 along with our blog address. Hand a few out at school - see what happens!

Oh, and going with the news theme, Al K. Seltzer and Chanda Leer will have some reports on people's experiences with THE MARK. Here's a sneak peek at one, come to service to see both...

A Satanic Puppet Show

2009-02-28T12:00:00.001-08:00

In Revelation 12, we learned who Satan really is - a lying, deceiving, hateful, vicious dragon out to thwart God's plan and kill God's people. We looked ahead to the future when Satan will be kicked out of heaven for good - putting him one step closer to finally being dumped into hell for eternity. This weekend in Revelation 13, we get a look at what he'll do when he gets to earth. He'll be so mad that he'll do some things he's never done. Through his human "puppets" he'll actually successfully unite the whole world against God and annihilate almost every Christian left living. These men that we know now as the antichrist and the false prophet, will be used by Satan to seal many people's eternal destination in hell. Although Revelation 13 only talks about God when it speaks of Him being blasphemed and His people killed, you have to remember that He's STILL in control. In fact, He limits Satan's destruction on the earth to the 2nd half of the Tribulation period - 3 1/2 years! God is ALWAYS in control...even when things seem really bad!

Get the word out!

2009-02-27T07:18:00.000-08:00

March business cards are in! We put out new cards each month so that
you can hand them out to your friends and invite them to come hear
about the future! Grab a handful in Velocity and take them with you- a
coffee shop, Hastings, Flying Star, your school, Wal-Mart... Get the
word out and get people excited about Jesus coming back!

Faith, Hope, Love Kids Ranch

2009-02-25T15:18:00.000-08:00

This is a video slideshow of all of the kids that live at the Faith Hope Love Kids Ranch in the Philippines. Don't forget to bring your money to contribute to the $34 a month that helps to support Joer!

We made the news!

2009-02-11T10:56:00.001-08:00

...the Calvary news, that is! It's really a rare thing for mid-schoolers to get the kind of information we're getting weekly as we study through Revelation! There are MANY ways to stay informed with what's going on: right HERE at the Revelation blog, on our YouTube channel, and of course on iTunes with the audio and video podcasts!

The 2 Witnesses of Revelation 11

2009-02-10T17:20:00.000-08:00

We'll learn more about them on Wednesday in Velocity - who could they be? What kind of powers are they given? How effective will they be? What does this all mean to us? We will also be debuting our "High Velocity" newscast that you won't want to miss. Here's a little preview...

By the way, who do you think the 2 witnesses are? Any guesses? Leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!

The Devil's REAL identity...

2009-02-07T15:48:00.000-08:00

Humans have such a skewed view of who the devil is. We get this picture of some guy with horns, a pitchfork, and a tail. He often has piercings, and sometimes even seems like he'd be pretty fun to hang out with. Well, this weekend, I hope to blow away all of those thoughts about him as Revelation 12 exposes who he REALLY is. Just check out how it refers to him...

vs. 3 - a fiery red dragon
vs. 9 - a serpent
vs. 9 - "the Devil" = "slanderer"
vs. 9 - "Satan" = "enemy"
vs. 10 - the accuser of our brethren

Pretty fierce! It paints him as a powerful, vicious dragon out to kill and devour as many of God's people as he can. He cares about no one besides himself and wants to take as many people to hell with him as possible.

The title of the message this weekend is "Learning Lessons the Hard Way." We'll look at how Satan has been learning lessons the hard way for thousands of years and will for the rest of eternity. The most important part, though, is the great promise that we don't have to join Satan in that punishment - Jesus' death paid the price for our eternity in heaven!

Rockin' the challenge!

2009-01-04T18:01:00.000-08:00

I hope you are loving The 90-Day Challenge as much as I am! If you haven't started yet, it's not too late! If you need to download the bookmarks and get started reading, you can get them HERE!

I don't know about you, but the challenge has given me a new hunger for God's Word! I can't wait to read my 12 or 13 chapters when I wake up in the morning! It's crazy to think that in 5 days, we'll have already read the entire first book of the Bible! I was just looking at a normal reading schedule for reading the Bible through in a year and it would take 25 days usually to read as much as we'll read in 5! Awesome! Anyway, as you may remember, when we started our study in Revelation, we looked closely at Revelation 1:3 - Blessed is he who READS and those who HEAR the words of this prophecy, and KEEP those things which are written in it; for the time is near. I fully believe God is so honored that we are spending hours in His Word every day and I know that you will never regret any of the time you give or sleep you lose. It's really important to remember, however, that just reading it isn't enough - there MUST be application. So, don't just read, DO WHAT IT SAYS!

I was stoked to find out today that Taylor started a blog about her 90-Day Challenge experience, and as I checked it out today, I found out that there are a few other students doing them too (see below). If you have a 90-Day Challenge blog going and you'd like us to know about it, leave a comment and let us know the address. I'll throw some links up on the side so people can read what God is showing you!

Here is Taylor's blog.

Check out Ashley's blog here.

And make sure to swing by Hannah's blog while you're at it!

Also, don't forget that I'll be doing a weekly video update each Friday summarizing what we've been reading (below is the first episode). They will also be available through iTunes soon as a weekly video podcast so you can download them straight to your iPod! If you want to subscribe to our YouTube channel, go to youtube.com/velocityabq and click on the "Subscribe" button at the top by our profile info. It will email you each time we update our channel.

Oh, and one more thing - if you're on facebook, make sure to join the 90-Day Challenge group!

A Real-Life Nightmare

2009-01-03T23:36:00.000-08:00

Here's a pic I took with my iPhone tonight right when I got up in
stage. I talked about how the old brick phones from the 80s seemed so
high tech then but if you look at technology now, the 80s was just
the tip of the iceberg. The illustration corresponded with Revelation
6 & 8. Revelation 6 was bad, but it was just the tip of the nightmare
that chapters 8 & 9 would turn into! We saw some more indirect forms
of punishment on the earth in the forms of earthquakes, meteor
showers, and such, but then in chapter 9, as the 5th and 6th trumpets
sounded, we saw a new direct form of attack. 2 different armies of
demons were released to infest the already crumbling, godless earth.
Nightmares came to life as people sought esape through death, but were
unable to die for 5 months while they were tortured! Wow. It was
heavy, but a great reminder that God is in control even when he world
falls apart.

Revelation 8-9

2009-01-03T17:46:00.000-08:00

Revelation 9:1-6
1The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. 2When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. 3And out of the smoke locusts came down upon the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. 4They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5They were not given power to kill them, but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes a man. 6During those days men will seek death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.

Some people believe the locusts John talked about here are actual demon-possessed insects, others believe he was describing today's technology the only way he could think of.

Could THIS be what he was talking about?

What do you think?

New Year's Eve

2009-01-03T07:12:00.000-08:00

Our New Year's Eve service was so cool on Wednesday. We had some awesome visuals of how Christ saved and during the Bible study, we asked the question, "How Does Your Future Look?" as we looked ahead into the new year. After the Bible study, 6 of the leaders performed a skit to a song by Lifehouse called "Everything." It was a really powerful skit. Here it is. Make sure to tell your friends about this and if you go to our youtube channel (youtube.com/velocityabq), you can post the video in your own blog or your facebook or myspace or whatever. Enjoy!

New January business cards coming soon!

2008-12-23T07:45:00.000-08:00

They should be here right in time for 2009! Don't forget - we order 1,000 of these each month and they're a great way to get the word out to your friends about what is up and coming in Velocity! So grab a handful next time you're at Velocity and make sure your friends know!

Here are some ones we've had in the past. Click on them to see them in detail.

Mercy in judgment

2008-12-20T19:46:00.000-08:00

Ray led us in worship tonight right before we studied Revelation 7.
One of my favorite lines from on of the songs we sang tonight "Sweetly
Broken" talks about Jesus on the cross "bruised and crushed shows us
that God is love and that God is just." So good. That song went
perfectly with the message tonight entitled "A Breath of Fresh Air."
Revelation 7 is a break from God's judgment of the earth when He sets
His 144,000 sealed servants in motion and an innumerable amount of
people are saved from their sins and of course God's judgment. It was
a much-needed break as we were reminded to remember mercy in wrath
(Habakkuk 3:2). Even though people on the earth really deserved God's
judgment, He desires that none should perish and that all would come
to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). God is good and He worked tonight!

Merry Christmas!

Do something crazy in 2009!

2008-12-20T10:54:00.000-08:00

The challenge is on to read the whole Bible through in 2009...but not how you may think. Instead of doing it in 365 days, the challenge is to do it in only 90 days! Sure, that's a big challenge, but think about it:

- Reading the Bible at a conversational rate only takes about 72 hours, so to read the whole thing in 90 days, you're looking at a commitment of a little less than an hour a day for 90 days

- It's a great way to get a good overview of the whole Bible and how it all fits together

- After reading your Bible for an hour every day for 90 days, think about what a great Bible study habit you will have developed!

Don't be scared - it will be worth the necessary sacrifices of your time. Find someone to do it with you and go for it! By the end of the first week, you'll have read all of Genesis and half of Exodus! Download bookmarks for January through March HERE!

With One Voice

2008-12-10T23:36:00.000-08:00

We advertised that our worship night would be "a worship experience of
EPIC proportions." That it was. I taught for 20 minutes and the rest
was worship and communion. There were probably 250-300 people there
aged 10 to 96 (no kidding!)! That's about 5X as many people as normal!
The band was huge, the crowd was loud and God was very clearly
present. We'll have to do it again when we get to Revelation 21-22 and
everyone is in heaven!

The teaching will be up soon at velocityabq.org >> the truth. Enjoy!

"A Worship Experience of EPIC Proportions"

2008-12-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

This Wednesday, Velocity is hosting a worship night we're calling "With One Voice." The idea is to pack the PLEX (hopefully to standing room only) full of people of all ages as we join together "With One Voice" to worship. It should be a great night. Richard will be quoting a Jimmy Needham poem off of his latest album, we'll have some Scripture readings, communion, a short devotion on worship, then all of our Velocity worship leaders will be rotating through.
I'm stoked about it, but one of the main reasons I'm writing this blog is to let you know that YOU'RE INVITED!!! We're inviting everyone from middle school age and up as we get a very small view of what heaven is all about.

Revelation 5:11-12
Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice:
“ Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
To receive power and riches and wisdom,
And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

I'm excited that both of my parents will be there. It should be a lot of fun, so please come! If you need more info, let me know. You can also read about it here on the Velocity website.

Such a cool weekend

2008-12-07T20:05:00.000-08:00

It was Revelation 6 this weekend. I said this when I was teaching through Genesis too, but Revelation is officially my favorite book that I've ever taught through. I haven't made it anywhere close to teaching through the whole Bible, but I'd love to one day. Anyway, this weekend was Revelation 6 - the beginning of the end. Jesus, the Lamb who was slain, begins to open up the seven seals on the scroll that is the title deed to the earth. Each time a seal is broken, a new facet of God's judgment is poured out on those who have rejected Christ. It gets really bad. REALLY bad. I called the message "Why You Don't Want to be on God's Bad Side" and we looked at how God viewed sin. It was a bit of a heavy message as I talked about what would happen in the end - worldwide famine, disease, murder, earthquakes, meteorites, etc. That kind of stuff fascinates me. I even did a couple hours of research (I wish I would have had more time) on NASA's website and other scientific sites learning about the earth, meteorites, and what a large meteorite could do to the earth. I also talked to Gary Hook, a friend who works on the base testing weapons of mass destruction. I asked him what his job title was and he said "Deputy Director, Counter Weapons of Mass Destruction Test Division Defense Threat Reduction Agency." WHOA. I asked him about the possibility of annihilating 1/4 of the world's population as it talks about in Revelation 6:7-8. He named off about 7 countries (and there are more) that currently possess weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and he said there are currently enough weapons out there to annihilate ALL of the earth's population! Wow. I could go on and on about all of that - as you can probably tell - the scientific part of it really fascinates me. However, the highlight of the weekend had to be that 9 students accepted Christ! How cool. It always blows my mind and humbles me that God uses me to bring people into His kingdom! They will always look back on that one day, that one message, with that one tall guy as the the day they surrendered their life to Christ! How cool. It was a great weekend, thankfully Chapter 7 is a breath of fresh air from all the slaughtering when we see the 144,000 Jews who were sealed and the multitude of people who get saved even during the Tribulation!
If you're interested in hearing the message, go here. You can also subscribe to our audio podcast in iTunes or the video podcast.

Heavenly

2008-12-01T11:26:00.001-08:00

I don't know about you but I have loved Revelation 4-5 as we've
studied it over the last 2 weekends. It's been an indescribable view
into the future as John did his best to put it all into words. It's
also been refreshing after we studied about so many churches that
didn't have many people there living the true life of a Christian.
It's been great learning about this incredible worship, but now the
stage is set. The Lamb who was slain has taken the title deed to the
earth from the right hand of God and He is the only one worthy to open
its seals. Starting this weekend, God's wrath will be poured out on
the earth unlike any other time in history. It's about to get crazy as
we continue to study- don't miss out!

-Kevin

Sent from my iPhone

Heaven, here we come...

2008-11-22T09:50:00.000-08:00

A lot of people have their own theories about what God looks like and what heaven is all about, like the stories below:

Endless artists have tried to portray the scene the John describes in Revelation 4. They say "a picture is worth a thousand words", but unfortunately, 1,000 words falls severely short of what is need to accurately describe heaven. John, one of the few people we know who has genuinely experienced a glimpse of heaven couldn't even find all the right words to describe God and our eternal home called "heaven." Join us this weekend as we look at "A World Beyond Words" in Revelation 4.

What a contrast!

2008-11-12T21:47:00.000-08:00

Tonight in Velocity, we studied the last of the 7 churches - the Lukewarm church in Laodicea. We talked about what it means to be lukewarm and that it makes God sick. Check out the blog below ("Lukewarm Experiment") to see an example of how Kevin and Kourtney learned hands-on about how disgusting lukewarm can get.

What a contrast there was between the lukewarm church - a church full of people who thought they were Christians, but really were not - and the persecuted church, who we ended in prayer for. The end of the night was great. We got in small groups and cut out parachutes for Voice of the Martyrs. Those parachutes will have bags of Gospel tracts attached to them and then will be dropped out of airplanes of the jungles in Colombia! Missionaries have found this to be a killer way to reach the guerillas deep in the jungles. I'd say it's safe to estimate that there's 1,000 tracts per bag. We made 105 parachutes. Do the math, and that means we could be sending out 105,000 tracts! Awesome!

The Lukewarm Experiment

2008-11-12T05:47:00.000-08:00

Kourtney & Kevin took a hands-on approach to the idea of being lukewarm in Revelation 3. The last and worst of the 7 churches in Revelation was the Lukewarm church in Laodicea. They were doing enough good things to feel good about themselves and shield themselves from feeling their need for God. This video gives you a good idea of how discgusting being lukewarm is (Revelation 3:15-16). Bon appetit!

Nat'l Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

2008-11-09T15:19:00.000-08:00

Services were a little different this weekend as we finished the last
of the 7 churches which was also the worst of the 7. It was "The
Lukewarm Church" in the city of Laodicea. They were doing just enough
"good" things to feel good about themselves and shield themselves from
feeling their need for Jesus. They were false Christians- the most
danger type. What a contrast it was as we studied a church that didn't
care what God said, then prayed for Christians around the world who
don't care what the world says! May God give them boldness and
perseverance as they stand up for Christ!

Make sure to join us next weekend as we start Revelation 4 and get a
glimpse into heaven after the church has been raptured and the Great
Tribulation has begun. It's going to get intense over the next few
weeks, so make sure to be there and invite your friends!

A rare day

2008-10-31T06:22:00.000-07:00

Today is the one day of the year that you shouldn't be shocked if the
person driving next to you is all bloody or has fangs or is a witch,
although somehow it always catches me off guard. This morning at
Saxby's, a zombie made my coffee and a Ninja Turtle served it to me.
That's never happened before.

On a spiritual note- on Wednesday in Velocity, we talked about how
Satan is all about ruining our lives so I think we should set out to
ruin his. Since today is his holiday, I think we should try extra
hard. We talked about the weapon we have to ruin his day. We called it
our "Satan basher," but it's more commonly known as PRAYER! He hates
when we pray! Plus, on a day when people are consumed with death, it
can be a strategic time to talk to them about what happens after
death. That sure would ruin Satan's day if we used his special day to
bring even more people to his enemy's kingdom! I love ruining stuff
for him! And hey, while you're at it, ruining his day and all, turn to
Revelation 19 & 20 and remind him of his future!

Satan is real.

2008-10-29T23:19:00.001-07:00

We talked about the reality of Satan and demons tonight. No need to be worried though. We are more than conquerors! Check the blog below or our youtube channel to see the Letter From Hell video that we played. The video podcast will be up in a few days as well!

Hell is real...

2008-10-27T21:15:00.000-07:00

Here's a little preview of what's coming this Wednesday when we look at the spiritual battle going on for our souls: "You are wanted dead AND alive".

The Dead Church

2008-10-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend in Velocity we learned about the Dead church in Revelation 3:1-6. There were 5 commands in this passage that the Lord can use in your life if you feel like you're relationship with the Lord is dying out.
1. Be watchful. If you are living every day in anticipation that the Lord could return at any moment, you will grow in your walk with the Lord!
2. Strengthen the things which remain. Think of an area in your life that you aren't struggling with like going to church, hanging out with Christian friends, or respecting your spiritual leaders. Start getting more involved in church or ask your Christian friends and your spiritual leaders to hold you accountable in your weak areas. The more you surround yourself with things of the Lord, the less you will be tempted in those areas.
3. Remember. Remember when you first gave your heart to the Lord. Think about the excitement and realization that God, the creator of the universe, died for you! Think about how he made a sinful, dead you into a new person! You are freed from the power of sin in your life! Each day remember something that the Lord has done for you. Make a list. How could you ever want to go back to that place of death when God has given you so much life!
4. Hold fast. Hold on to the Lord even when times are hard. (And they will be.) Stay in the Word, prayer and in fellowship.
5. Repent. Pray daily and ask the Lord to help you turn away from those things that cause you to fall away from Him. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Signing the Book of Life

2008-10-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

Make sure to sign the Book of Life in service!

Video is up!!

2008-10-15T04:50:00.000-07:00

FINALLY, the video from our persecuted church night is available at
velocityabq.org >> the truth OR on our video podcast (which you should subscribe to if you haven't already). Go to velocityabq.org/podcasts if you need help subscribing.

-Kevin

Sent from my iPhone

Last Wednesday Recap - Compromise

2008-10-14T05:24:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday we studied Revelation 2:12-17, the Compromising Church. We saw that there are several different ways that can hinder our walks with the Lord. First, stumbling blocks can get in our way and cause our focus to be taken off the Lord. A stumbling block is anything that trips us up on our journey on the narrow path that God has called us to walk. Usually, these are things that start of small and if we get our focus back on Jesus we can quickly conquer these things. If we don't take care of business right away when those stumbling blocks creep into our lives, they can turn into an idol. Remember Mandy's story about her addiction to Myspace? There is nothing wrong with Myspace, but when it (or anything else) becomes something we can't live without, it becomes an idol. Anything is an idol if we put before our relationship with God. The first two ways of compromise mostly deal with ourselves, but the third ALWAYS has effects on ourselves and others. Sexual immorality, or sexual sin, is possibly one of the most consuming sins you could deal with. The Bible says, "Flee sexual immorality." Remember the story of Joseph? He was in charge of Potiphar's house and Potiphar was a very weathly man in Egypt. As Joseph was doing his daily tasks around the house one day, Potiphar's wife approached Joseph and tried to seduce him. Since Potiphar was a very wealthly and powerful man, his wife must have been very beautiful. This wasn't the first time she had flirted with Joseph. Instead of giving in to temptation (which could have been hard for Joseph) he chose to be obedient to God and he ran from her! Each one of you will face the same temptations in your life. Remember Joseph's story and the command of the Lord to flee! Sin starts out small in our lives in the form of a stumbling block that trips us up, then if we don't watch out it becomes and obsession or an idol. Finally, sexual sins have very deep emotional effects on ourselves and others.

Last Night!

2008-09-25T15:33:00.000-07:00

We want to hear some feedback from you guys on what you thought of last night! Wasn't it amazing!?!?! Sometimes it is so hard to realize that there are people who go through terrible persecution everyday. What about you? Can you tell us about a time when you were made fun for your belief in Jesus? How has being a Christian affected how you live your life? Is there anything in your life that you are going to change as a result of what you learned about last night? Maybe you'll start praying for the people in those countries, maybe you'll write to a Christian prisoner (see previous blog), maybe you'll start thinking about being a missionary to those people when you get older.

Don't Miss It!

2008-09-24T06:13:00.001-07:00

If you're being sneaky at school and checking the Velocity Revelation Blog, remember to invite all of your friends tonight! Why not invite people who aren't your friends? It's gonna be amazing and you don't want to miss it! See ya there!

Bored?

2008-09-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

Let's face it, we've all had a boring day and we whine about how there's nothing to do. Here's a great idea to cure that boredom: Go to www.prisoneralert.com and write to a Christian who is in prison for his or her faith. Help give them hope and encouragement while they are really suffering for Jesus.

How Far Would You Go?

2008-09-22T17:56:00.000-07:00

Check out this blog at www.undergroundreality.com It's about 8 teenagers who smuggled Bibles into Vietnam. Watch the video, it's incredible! Maybe the Lord will call some of you to go boldly to share the gospel someday! Have any of you ever thought about being a missionary?

Hardcore Christianity

2008-09-22T12:54:00.000-07:00

Just one story...

2008-09-21T20:36:00.000-07:00

See more HERE!

Remember Joer!

2008-09-17T15:33:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to support Joer! Bring your pennies, dimes, dollars or fifties!

Benediction

2008-09-14T20:12:00.001-07:00

This weekend we studied Revelation 2:1-7 - the church h in Ephesus
that was busy doing lots of great things, but had gotten so busy that
they had lost their first love. We talked about how, without love, no
matter what you're doing, it's meaningless. At the end, Richard came
up and recited a poem by Jimmy Needham off of his first CD, "Speak."
Its called "Benediction" and it talks all about what Jesus' love looks
like for us. He did an awesome job and it was really powerful. Next
weekend is the persecuted church in Smyrna.

Advertising

2008-09-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

A little Revelation advertising amongst the lawncare, concerts, and
babysitting advertisements at Hastings.

Meet Joer

2008-08-28T12:48:00.000-07:00

$34 per month will help save his life. Bring your money to Velocity
each month!