Diving into the Book of Revelation.

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Revelation: 1:1-4, 2:1-5

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him,
to show his servants what must happen soon.
He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,
who gives witness to the word of God
and to the testimony of Jesus Christ by reporting what he saw.
Blessed is the one who reads aloud
and blessed are those who listen to this prophetic message
and heed what is written in it, for the appointed time is near.

John, to the seven churches in Asia: grace to you and peace
from him who is and who was and who is to come,
and from the seven spirits before his throne.

I heard the Lord saying to me:
“To the angel of the Church in Ephesus, write this:

“‘The one who holds the seven stars in his right hand
and walks in the midst of the seven gold lampstands says this:
“I know your works, your labor, and your endurance,
and that you cannot tolerate the wicked;
you have tested those who call themselves Apostles but are not,
and discovered that they are impostors.
Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name,
and you have not grown weary.
Yet I hold this against you:
you have lost the love you had at first.
Realize how far you have fallen.
Repent, and do the works you did at first.
Otherwise, I will come to you
and remove your lamp stand from its place, unless you repent.”’”

The Word of the Lord.

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From now until the start of Advent, we’ll be reading from the Book of Revelation, which contains strange, almost mythical, language. 

Often when we think of Revelation, we might imagine the end of the world, that final battle between the Archangel Michael and the ancient, serpentine beast, Satan. 

While the book does address the end of time, there are four primary themes: the nearness of God; persecution; endurance in faith; and above all, worship.

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The author begins by addressing seven different churches in Asia, each of which held a large pagan temple where the gods of Rome were worshiped. 

Whereas pagan worship was seen as blasphemy, Christians were encouraged to worship the one, true God, particularly at Mass, even if it cost them their lives. Death here on earth was better than being cut off from Christ forever, a “second death.”

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Another challenge for these early Christians – as it remains today – was to be in the world, but not of it. 

At that time, the Roman Empire was the strongest empire the world had ever known. It provided its citizens with security, housing, food, and water. The pressure was to assimilate and “do as the Romans do,” paying your taxes and worshiping Roman gods.

While the emperor had their pockets, he couldn’t capture Christian hearts. Many freely accepted death instead of bending their knee to a mortal king.

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Perhaps there’s a word in that for us today.

The challenge in every age is to put God first in our lives, seeking the things of heaven over earth, remaining steadfast in our faith, even in times of trial. 

As we approach this Advent season, perhaps we might ponder: What prevents us from worshiping God with all of our heart, mind, and soul? 

Busyness, spiritual malaise, a particular sin?

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May we strive to overcome these obstacles through discipline and grace, saying what we mean, and meaning what we say:

Come, Lord Jesus.

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Image credits: (1) David Jeremiah Blog (2) AWFUMC (3) Redbubble