Daily Dose of the Word of God - Revelation 17: 1-7

Gregg DeMey, Lead Pastor

Transcript

Gregg DeMey 0:07  

Good morning and welcome to Elmhurst CRC's Daily Dose of the Word of God. It's Thursday, February 13. This is Gregg DeMey, Lead Pastor at the church. God is inviting us to get more of his word into our hearts and lives. Today's reading takes us to the apocalyptic, prophetic and poetic Book of Revelation, chapter 17, verses 1 through 6.

Gregg DeMey  0:30  

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.” Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. The name written on her forehead was a mystery:  babylon the great, the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth. I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.  When I saw her, I was greatly astonished.Then the angel said to me, why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and the beast she rides.

Gregg DeMey  1:45  

What wild images there are in apocalyptic literature in general and in this chapter of the Bible. Apocalyptic literature is a subset of Biblical prophecy, in which ideas, images and truths rhyme, but words do not. A few of the key images in this passage: an ange (or angels) who hold bowls. Bowls that earlier in Revelation are mentioned as being full of the prayers of God's people. Bowls here are being described as pouring out the corrective judgment of God as well. There's the image of the Great Prostitute. And what's the nature of the cheating or adultery here? Cheating on God and the allegiance, devotion and worship that we owe only to God. And it turns out that cheating on God leads to death, destruction and bloodshed. Would you like to hear more, or how this resolves? Sunday's coming and Pastor Jeff is going to help guide us into the hope and victory that Jesus achieves, even among the strongest, darkest and most abominable opposition.

Gregg DeMey  3:03  

Let's pray. Oh Lord, we're grateful that you treasure and even collect the prayers of your saints, your sons and daughters. We are grateful that the day is coming soon when those bowls full of prayers get poured out and those prayers are finally answered in full when you bring your coming kingdom and corrective judgment upon the earth - when you finally and fully redeem all things, including the likes of us and make all things in heaven and earth the way you've always intended them to be. We pray maranatha, come Lord Jesus, amen.