The prophetic word of the Scripture, as the shining lamp to the believers, conveys spiritual light to shine in their darkness (not merely knowledge in letters for mental apprehension), guiding them to enter into a bright day, even to pass through the dark night until the day of the Lord's appearing dawns and the morning star rises in their hearts.
Because of the prophetic word, the Lord warns us to watch. In Matthew 24:42 the Lord says, "Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord comes."
In Luke 21:34 the Lord warns us to take heed to ourselves that our hearts may not be weighed down with debauchery and drunkenness and anxieties of life, and that day come upon us suddenly as a snare.
We also need to be watchful, at every time beseeching, that we may prevail to escape all the things which are about to take place and to stand before Christ (Luke 21:36). To escape all the things which are about to take place is to be raptured to the heavens before the great tribulation to meet Christ at the beginning of His parousia.
We also need to keep the word of Christ's endurance (Rev. 3:10). Every word that the Lord has spoken in the Bible is a word of endurance (cf. Rom. 15:4). If we keep what the Lord says, we will suffer. The Lord today is still suffering rejection and persecution with His endurance. We are the joint partakers, not only of His kingdom, but also of His endurance (Rev. 1:9). Hence, His word to us today is the word of endurance. To keep the word of His endurance, we must suffer His rejection and persecution.
We also need to overcome and keep the Lord's works until the end (Rev. 2:26). The Lord's works are the things the Lord has accomplished and is doing. These works include all His doings to accomplish a full redemption for us. He died and resurrected to redeem us. He is still doing something today to sanctify us, transform us, and conform us to His image. These are the Lord's works which we have to keep. Many Christians have been enlightened to realize something of the Lord's works, but because of the world's attraction, they would not keep His works. Instead they would deny and forget about what Christ has accomplished for them. If we are the overcomers, we will not neglect the Lord's works. We will keep the Lord's redemption, telling people that Christ died and resurrected for us and that today He is still working within us to sanctify us, to transform us, to renew us, and to conform us to His glorious image. If we keep the Lord's works until the end, He will be the morning star to us at His appearing (Rev. 2:28).
Our study of the prophecy of the four "sevens" in the Bible is timely, especially because of the world situation today. The world situation is under the Lord's sovereign arrangement. He is working to arrange the world situation for the fulfillment of His prophetic word.