April 12th, 2026
by Lars Dahl
by Lars Dahl
The Bible is not a collection of disconnected stories. It's one unified narrative about God's relentless pursuit to redeem His people to Himself. From the first pages of Genesis to the final chapters of Revelation, a scarlet thread runs through every book, every prophecy, every promise, and that thread is Jesus Christ.
A Plan From the Beginning
Many people mistakenly view the cross as "Plan B", as if God had to scramble to fix humanity's mess after the fall. But Scripture reveals something far more profound: redemption through Jesus was always the plan.
In Genesis 3:15, immediately after the fall, God declares to the serpent: "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." From the very beginning, God announced that a Savior would come who would crush the enemy, even at great personal cost.
This wasn't an afterthought. Jesus was present at creation. John's Gospel tells us, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." The Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, worked together from eternity past, and redemption was woven into the fabric of their plan.
More Than Avoiding Hell
Here's an uncomfortable truth: we often have embarrassingly low expectations of our Christianity. We settle for three basic benefits: avoiding hell, having a clean conscience, and maintaining a positive outlook on life. While these aren't bad things, they fall drastically short of what God offers.
The scarlet thread isn't about religion, denominations, political positions, or managing shame and fear. It's about the complete redemptive plan of Jesus Christ, a plan that transforms not just our eternal destination but our present reality.
Throughout Scripture, we see this plan unfolding. In Exodus 12, the Passover lamb's blood on the doorposts saved the firstborn. In Psalm 22, written a thousand years before crucifixion was invented, David prophetically describes the nails piercing hands and feet. Isaiah 53 foretells a suffering servant who would bear the weight of our sins. Micah pinpoints Bethlehem as the birthplace of the eternal ruler.
Every prophecy, every sacrifice, every promise pointed forward to one person: Jesus.
Not Just a Memory
The story doesn't end at the cross. It doesn't even end at the empty tomb. We don't follow a memory or honor a martyr. We praise, worship, and follow a risen, reigning, revealed King who is alive right now.
Revelation 1 pulls back the curtain to show us Jesus as He is today, not the baby in the manger, not even the suffering servant on the cross, but the glorified King. He declares, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End... who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
He is the Eternal One. The Risen King. The Glorious Judge with eyes like flames of fire, symbolizing perfect, just judgment. And here's the beautiful truth: He is in our midst. He hasn't left us. He doesn't just show up on Sunday mornings. His presence is with us continually.
A Worship-Starved Culture
Our culture struggles with authentic, heartfelt worship. We're embarrassed about what people might think if we express genuine adoration for God. We hold back, self-conscious and restrained, even in the safety of gathered believers.
But in heaven, they've got it right. The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of worship as it should be, uninhibited, wholehearted, focused entirely on the One who is worthy.
Revelation 5 presents a powerful scene. John weeps because no one is found worthy to open the scroll containing God's purposes. Then an elder announces, "Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed."
John looks and sees a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne. And the heavenly chorus erupts: "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!"
Then every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and on the sea joins in: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!"
This is the King we worship. The King of kings and Lord of lords.
The Victorious Return
The next time Jesus comes to earth, He won't arrive quietly in Bethlehem. Revelation 19 describes His return as the conquering King: "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True... On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS."
The same Jesus who came in grace is coming back in glory.
All Things New
Revelation 21 gives us the breathtaking conclusion: "Then I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.'"
No more sin. No more suffering. No more death. God will be with His people once again, just as He walked with Adam and Eve in the garden before the fall.
Living Today With Eternity in View
So what does this mean for us right now? Three things:
Live ready. Jesus is returning. Scripture says it will happen "in the twinkling of an eye." God the Father will say, "My Son, go get Your bride," and it will happen instantly. Are you ready?
Live faithfully. What you do matters, but why you do it matters even more in light of eternity. Are you serving with a joyful heart or just going through motions? Your motivation reveals your heart.
Live with hope. Hope isn't pretending things are easy. It's choosing to believe God is at work even when things are hard. First Peter 1:3 reminds us: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."
Don't wait for your circumstances to change before you choose hope. Choose hope and watch how you walk through the circumstance differently.
The Question That Matters
The book of Revelation forces us to answer one crucial question: Are you ready for the King?
Not superficially, not because you're sitting in church, but genuinely, in your heart, are you ready? If Jesus returned this very moment, would you be prepared?
The scarlet thread can be summarized simply: Jesus Christ came. Jesus Christ died. Jesus Christ rose from the dead. And Jesus Christ is coming again.
This is the thread that runs from Genesis to Revelation. This is the story of redemption. This is the hope we carry into a broken world.
A Plan From the Beginning
Many people mistakenly view the cross as "Plan B", as if God had to scramble to fix humanity's mess after the fall. But Scripture reveals something far more profound: redemption through Jesus was always the plan.
In Genesis 3:15, immediately after the fall, God declares to the serpent: "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." From the very beginning, God announced that a Savior would come who would crush the enemy, even at great personal cost.
This wasn't an afterthought. Jesus was present at creation. John's Gospel tells us, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." The Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, worked together from eternity past, and redemption was woven into the fabric of their plan.
More Than Avoiding Hell
Here's an uncomfortable truth: we often have embarrassingly low expectations of our Christianity. We settle for three basic benefits: avoiding hell, having a clean conscience, and maintaining a positive outlook on life. While these aren't bad things, they fall drastically short of what God offers.
The scarlet thread isn't about religion, denominations, political positions, or managing shame and fear. It's about the complete redemptive plan of Jesus Christ, a plan that transforms not just our eternal destination but our present reality.
Throughout Scripture, we see this plan unfolding. In Exodus 12, the Passover lamb's blood on the doorposts saved the firstborn. In Psalm 22, written a thousand years before crucifixion was invented, David prophetically describes the nails piercing hands and feet. Isaiah 53 foretells a suffering servant who would bear the weight of our sins. Micah pinpoints Bethlehem as the birthplace of the eternal ruler.
Every prophecy, every sacrifice, every promise pointed forward to one person: Jesus.
Not Just a Memory
The story doesn't end at the cross. It doesn't even end at the empty tomb. We don't follow a memory or honor a martyr. We praise, worship, and follow a risen, reigning, revealed King who is alive right now.
Revelation 1 pulls back the curtain to show us Jesus as He is today, not the baby in the manger, not even the suffering servant on the cross, but the glorified King. He declares, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End... who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
He is the Eternal One. The Risen King. The Glorious Judge with eyes like flames of fire, symbolizing perfect, just judgment. And here's the beautiful truth: He is in our midst. He hasn't left us. He doesn't just show up on Sunday mornings. His presence is with us continually.
A Worship-Starved Culture
Our culture struggles with authentic, heartfelt worship. We're embarrassed about what people might think if we express genuine adoration for God. We hold back, self-conscious and restrained, even in the safety of gathered believers.
But in heaven, they've got it right. The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of worship as it should be, uninhibited, wholehearted, focused entirely on the One who is worthy.
Revelation 5 presents a powerful scene. John weeps because no one is found worthy to open the scroll containing God's purposes. Then an elder announces, "Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed."
John looks and sees a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne. And the heavenly chorus erupts: "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!"
Then every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and on the sea joins in: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!"
This is the King we worship. The King of kings and Lord of lords.
The Victorious Return
The next time Jesus comes to earth, He won't arrive quietly in Bethlehem. Revelation 19 describes His return as the conquering King: "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True... On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS."
The same Jesus who came in grace is coming back in glory.
All Things New
Revelation 21 gives us the breathtaking conclusion: "Then I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.'"
No more sin. No more suffering. No more death. God will be with His people once again, just as He walked with Adam and Eve in the garden before the fall.
Living Today With Eternity in View
So what does this mean for us right now? Three things:
Live ready. Jesus is returning. Scripture says it will happen "in the twinkling of an eye." God the Father will say, "My Son, go get Your bride," and it will happen instantly. Are you ready?
Live faithfully. What you do matters, but why you do it matters even more in light of eternity. Are you serving with a joyful heart or just going through motions? Your motivation reveals your heart.
Live with hope. Hope isn't pretending things are easy. It's choosing to believe God is at work even when things are hard. First Peter 1:3 reminds us: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."
Don't wait for your circumstances to change before you choose hope. Choose hope and watch how you walk through the circumstance differently.
The Question That Matters
The book of Revelation forces us to answer one crucial question: Are you ready for the King?
Not superficially, not because you're sitting in church, but genuinely, in your heart, are you ready? If Jesus returned this very moment, would you be prepared?
The scarlet thread can be summarized simply: Jesus Christ came. Jesus Christ died. Jesus Christ rose from the dead. And Jesus Christ is coming again.
This is the thread that runs from Genesis to Revelation. This is the story of redemption. This is the hope we carry into a broken world.
Lars Dahl
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