Revelation 12:18-15:4
Dr. Robert Wall
Suggestions for Daily Readings
- 12:18-13:10
- 13:11-18
- 14:1-5
- 14:6-13
- 14:14-20
- 15:1-4
- 15:3-4 (Memorize and meditate on this song of worship)
The plot thickens.
Sometimes the opening sentence says it all: “Then the dragon took his stand
on the sand of the seashore” (12:18). What
follows is an introduction of two additional characters that form an “unholy”
trinity waging war on the saints.
In chapter 13, The Dragon, Satan,
has two powerful servants in this epic battle:
-
The Beast that rises from the sea, represented by a personal number 666, known as “the beast” (some refer to this beast as “the antichrist,” and while the beast is most definitely opposed to Christ, the word antichrist does not appear in the text of Revelation…only in 1 & 2 John).
- The Beast that rises out of the earth, exercises the authority of the first beast, elsewhere in Revelation known as “the false prophet.”
-
With the Lamb are the 144,000, representing the full number of God’s people who remain faithful (the number is more figurative than literal).
- Three angels announce judgment on the unfaithful and the defeat of Babylon.
- Assisted by a number of temple angels, the Son of Man gathers the faithful as a harvest of wheat and brings judgment on the wicked as a harvest – and crushing – of grapes.
Worship Wars
You’ve heard of worship wars, battles in congregations between
proponents of different styles of worship.
Well, the battles in this central section of Revelation have to do with
worship…but with much more at stake than musical preference. In addition to reading carefully and
repeatedly to understand the scene, characters, and messages of these chapters,
pay special attention to the overarching theme of WORSHIP.
In chapter 13, it seems the whole world worships the
dragon and the beast (13:4). The beast
does not worship Almighty God, but rather utters blasphemies against God
(blasphemy is a worship word that represents the opposite of true worship - attack
& ridicule is offered rather than devotion & respect). The second beast, “the false prophet,” forces
the inhabitants of the earth to worship the beast, enabling the killing of
those who do not obey.
In chapter 14, the Lamb is on Mt. Zion and the 144,000 are
singing praise songs to him (14:3). It
turns out their worship involves not only their singing but also their living,
as they demonstrate their worship of God by their blameless lifestyle. The angels’ announcement of judgment is a
call to worship God: “fear God,” “give him glory,” “worship him.” Judgment is reserved for those who worship the
beast (the tattooing with the mark/number of the beast on foreheads/hands is an
act that demonstrates ultimate worship and allegiance).
Questions for Application
- How is your worship life?
- How dedicated are you to God over the things that oppose God?
- Do a time audit: How much time & energy do you offer to God in comparison with other pursuits?
- Are you serving the beast – or blaspheming God – in a particular area of life (think through the topics of money, sex, power).
- What measures are available to you to bring this area under the worshipful authority of God?
As always, here are some general questions to reflect
upon or discuss:
The Scene
What does the scene look like? What stands out to you visually?Revelation contains a strange mix of vision elements – some readily understood and others quite mysterious. What do you understand? What remains mysterious?
The Characters
Who are the living characters who appear in this
scene? What does the text tell you about
them? How do they interact with one
another…what is the dramatic action? What remains mysterious about them?
The Message
What do the characters do or say or sing? If you were to summarize this in a word or
phrase, how would you put it? What remains unclear or mysterious with regard to a
message in the text?
Memorize or Meditate on Revelation 15:3-4, an angelic
song of worship.
…The song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb:
“Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty.
Just and true are your ways,
King of the nations.
Who will not fear you, Lord,
and bring glory to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship before you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
No comments:
Post a Comment