Senior Pastor Kristen Lee delivered the message Sunday, October 30, 2022. The title was “Mark of the Beast.” The scripture was Revelations 11:15.
15Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.”
Revelation 11:15 (NASB95)
The offertory hymn was Order My Steps, which I had never heard before. I found the words to be quite engaging, given my own Sunday school message centers around walking the path God has for each of us. You can see the lyrics HERE.
Pastor Lee’s opening question centered around asking the following:
What is it about monsters that draw us in?
"Apocalypse with Patristic commentary, The mark of the beast, Walters Manuscript W.917, fol. 136v" by Walters Art Museum Illuminated Manuscripts is marked with CC0 1.0.
She highlighted discussing Chaos and using a Genesis scripture last week for the beginning of the sermon series and this week using Revelation to bookend the idea she was framing. Genesis defines the adversary as a lack of order, Chaos. This week, we see a clear definition of our opponent. She did not state, but I found it intriguing that while her point is that we have a clear definition of Good and Evil thanks to scripture, the pages between her scripture and the Genesis 1 Chaos scripture we have the pages of the Bible defining Good and Evil for us. Pastor Lee’s point was that we have a clear definition between Good and Evil, Right and Wrong, and we know who the “Monster” is.
With that stated, she said she would be quoting a lot from Revelation, and she did. Revelation 12:1-6 sets the stage for the next point:
1A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars;
2and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth.
3Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.
4And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.
5And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne.
6Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
Revelation 12:1–6 (NASB95)
The Revelation to John is sometimes viewed as a confusing set of prophecy about the end of the world. While it is end times, it should not be viewed as the cataclysmic ending some fictional writers make it out to be. That draws in fiction readers more, but this is a discussion of how God’s plan comes full circle. In the context of the monsters and good versus evil, this passage of revelation becomes more about who God is, which is a past, present, and future statement. The woman who gives birth is provided for in a place prepared for her by God.
Another interesting point I will have to spend time contemplating is this idea stated in the sermon:
Evil has no entrance into the world but through human agency.
What does that mean? A famous quote attributed to Edmond Burke sums it up:
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
We are the avenue through which bad things are permitted to happen. Our bad choices, the things we allow to exist without resistance, and our willingness to turn a blind eye to things God does not like are what let evil into the world. Not necessarily Christians in general but all of Mankind. Human beings, our bad decisions, our choices, and the consequences thereof let evil into the world.
7The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men.
8They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions.
9They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle.
10They have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months.
Revelation 9:7–10 (NASB95)
The locusts of scripture are either John using the best descriptions he could come up with to represent the images of what the Angel of God was actually showing him or an allegory for suffering, destruction, death, and the horrors Man can inflict upon Man. It could be both because God is big enough to do both. In either case, the Monsters of our lives we can connect with are suffering, destruction, and death. These are real things we or people we know experience or have experienced in their lives. These monsters are very real. We can see them, touch them, and understand them. But we can also deal with them, confront them, and defeat them. People have done this throughout history, and we can too.
1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
2And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
3And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
4and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
5And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.”
6Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.
7“He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.
Revelation 21:1–7 (NASB95)
“He who overcomes will inherit these things.” Overcome what? Doubt. Inaction. Sloth. Ignorance. Fear. We, as the Saints, the cloud of many witnesses, the hands and feet of Jesus, become those things that overcome. We gather together to both support and be supported in the Church Universal with other believers. We remove the stumbling blocks and impediments to faith, stoke the fires of the Holy Spirit, and enable the loving embrace of one to another. These things we do in Jesus' name when we identify our own weaknesses for the things we embrace that God does not like, and we repent of those things turning back to His ways. When we do this, our brothers and sisters in Christ link arms with us, and we hold each other up so that if one should slip, we can support them but also, if we are to fail, we can be supported.
The title of Sunday’s sermon carried a double entendre of the end-times “mark of the beast” but also the monstrous beasts we face in our lives right now. In both cases, God has given us His word to face them. We can defeat them. We can move beyond them to a better way. How? Through His ways, His words, and His Son Jesus. Ultimately, that was the point of Pastor Lee’s sermon. The likeness of God, the embrace of God, and the Love of God are contained in the scripture. We just need to become used to seeing Him in them.
The bulletin had three questions for us which I will list below, and present my best answers as I have them right now. I encourage you to contemplate the passages above in the context of your own walk with God and journal your own answers. The growth begins when the seed is planted.
I see the image of God in [ANSWER]
when [ANSWER].
I see the image of God in [ANSWER]
when [ANSWER].
I see the image of God in [ANSWER]
when [ANSWER].
I see the image of God in my life when things happen around me that seem coincidental until I consider that God is looking out for me.
I see the image of God in the things I write when scripture, order, and form come together with zero effort from me.
I see the image of God in my family and friends when they help keep me humble as I think more highly of myself than I should.