Middle Work
Revelation Check-in: “Middle Work”
As I shared on Sunday, we are at the half-way point in our study of Revelation. The end of chapter 11 was the beautiful close of act 1. We ended with the glorious vision of the heavens opened to reveal the temple of God and the ark of the covenant. I suggested that we are in the middle. The middle is a hard place to be. It can feel like things are never ending- more war, more suffering, more injustice. We see the nations, the kingdoms, the empires rage as if their rule was uncontested. But our faith proclaims that there is an end- a telos- a goal, a consummation, a glorious re-creation when all will be healed, when suffering and death will be no more.
Over the next three weeks we will look at three very practical ways to live in the middle with hope. We will engage in our middle work, so to speak. This Sunday, in a sermon called “666, or How to Name the Beast,” we will learn how to name the forces around us that challenge the reign of God. The next Sunday in a sermon called, “Armageddon, or The Battle That Never Was,” we will learn how to resist without resorting to violence. Then in a sermon entitled, “Babylon has Fallen, or When to Jump Ship,” we will explore creative ways that faithful people have quietly or not-so-quietly refused to grant legitimacy to the beast.
Join us as we work our way through this difficult text to find words of wisdom for the times in which we live.
Join us!
Rev. Dr. Scott Hovey
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