even after death & dirt

let 'em know who said it first

Sermon Series on Revelation; Revelation 13:

Today’s scripture is like something straight from a horror movie…

Two beasts; one rises from the sea, the other rises from the land. Wreaking havoc in service of the dastardly Dragon. They force all they encounter to worship that Dragon by hook or by crook, they method matters not…

It was before the passage of scripture we read that we meet the Dragon these Beasts serve. John tells us he is the ancient serpent who is called Devil and Satan. 

After the birth of the Messiah, the Dragon tried to kills the Messiah, but he was snatched away to safety in Heaven, So the Dragon tried to storm Heaven. The Dragon, however, is no match for the arch-angel Michael and his battalion. He’s unceremoniously thrown from Heaven, and lands to earth in a heap. Like a pile of dirty laundry. 

Bested, the Dragon unleashes his fury on the inhabitants of earth. His cronies in this chaos are the two Beasts.

Now the temptation, is to go down the rabbit hole. Who are these Beasts? How do they operate? In what ways do they show up in our day and age?

You know, like those TV specials, “Demons; Then and Now.”

~But that would be an exercise in missing the point.

Because while John spends a little time describing how the Beasts operate; his main goal lies elsewhere. In fact, if you watch where John’s vision keeps redirecting us, you can’t miss what he has to show…

So quickly, just for clarity sake; the first Beast—the one who shows up from the sea, like Rome’s navy landing on the shores of one of their subjected nations, is the Beast that conquers by power. Might.

This Beast demands our loyalty by offering us safety, opportunity and prosperity by their power. This Beast says they can give what only God can, salvation. 

The second Beast, the one from the land, is the Beast who looks like a lamb but sounds like a dragon. A wolf in the sheep’s clothing of religion. 

This is Beast who mixes a little respect for the powers and principalities into worship. Until eventually we lose the wherewithal to tell who exactly we’re worshipping!

And tragically, we know only too well how Christianity is so often coopted to sanction the ambitions of other interests…

But John’s point isn’t to analyze the Dragon and his methods. His vision is called Revelation; and it doesn’t fail to live up to that. 

John’s vision shows us, that like horror movies, these monsters are not as dangerous as they seem. Like the movie, they always lose. And in real life, they’re just camera tricks…

See, John is unmasking the Dragon! Showing the Beasts for what they really are. Who they actually serve. Where their power really comes from. 

John is Blowing their cover!

Like that scene in the Wizard of Oz when Todo pulls back the curtain; revealing the Wizard of Oz is really just a frightened little man!

John shows us; the forces of the Dragon are NOT as strong as they appear. As we’re afraid they are.

John shows the Beasts for what they are. Just a mishmash of left over monster parts; a leopard with bear paws and a lion’s mouth?!?! Nothing more than a Frankenstein, one that’s a little shopworn when you take a close look. 

And a religious functionary who calls everyone who doesn’t tow their line a “heretic.” But all you have to do is put your heads together, and you can figure out his game easily enough. Outsmart him.

John wants us to see these Beasts for what they really are. Not terrifying monsters, but comic parodies of real power. Doing everything they can to keep us cowering, so we won’t see how weak they really are. 

What John is up to is like that great scene in the other book about the battle of Good and Evil; “Harry Potter.” 

The way, at first, Harry and his friends won’t even say the name of their nemesis. Instead, nervously looking around and whispering, “he who must not be named.” Until Dumbledore—who is to Harry, as John of Patmos is to us—tells Harry, “Call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use a proper name for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”

John shows the Beasts for what they really. Like a parent who comes into the frightened child’s room; turns on the lights, opens the closet and looks under the bed. Soothing the child, telling them there’s nothing to be afraid of. 

John shows us the Dragon can’t win. Not in The End, anyway. That his minions can be stood up to!

But here’s the rub; we all know we’re not going to be sentenced to death for our faith. The Dragon seems to have changed tactics when is comes to dealing with us nowadays… 

There’s an affecting book about this predicament, “Silence.” It’s about a couple of Portuguese, Jesuit missionaries in 17th century Japan.

They’re on a mission to vindicate their mentor and spread the faith. They go to Japan willing to do anything for their cause. Even lose their lives… 

The only trouble is, by the time these priests arrive in Japan, the samurai there have discovered that killing these missionaries, only spreads the faith. Their witness in the face of death only creates more converts.

So instead of letting these missionaries have their heroic martyrdom, they’re forced to renounce their faith, and then just live a respectable life.

…And we know what that’s like, don’t we?

In fact, these days we’re learning the hard lesson that indifference is more dangerous to the church that persecution. That apathy is more effective at silencing Christians than killing them.

Now the Beast threatens us with social-suicide. “Don’t do that, you’ll look strange.” “Don’t say that, they might think you’re one of those Christians.” 

And folks, if I’m being honest, I can name these Beasts so easily, because I’ve known them. I confess, I’ve listened to them a little too closely. Honestly, today John’s vision convicts me. 

His message is as just as much of a challenge for me, as it is for you. 

So here’s the deal, it isn’t fair for me to ask you to do something I won’t. To tell you to get out there and talk about Jesus, unless I am, too… 

*So; let’s just do that, huh?

Take John at his Word. It’s in Canon, after all. It’s holy. God promises to deliver on it. Right?

I’ve already told you how much I love the show, “Fargo.” Well, season 3 just wrapped up, and it’s as apocalyptic as any other show on TV. But there’s a great scene that depicts just how John is working to stiffen our spines. 

The small town cop, Gloria, is doing everything she can to stop the evil she’s uncovered, but at every step she’s thwarted. 

So one night, after a long day, she meets a friend at a bar. Confiding she's ready to give up. Why bother, she wonders. She can’t win. 

But without missing a beat, her friend raises her glass and says, “Yeah, but Jesus wins in the end.” Her friends shows Gloria The End to give he strength for the present. And that’s what John is showing us today. 

So, while the Dragon may have switched up his tactics, in the end he still only has those two same ‘ol Beasts. 

And John shows us they’re pretty bedraggled. 

Because the one they serve, the one they get their power from, the Dragon; he’s ALREADY lost!

The Dragon that has been thrown down from Heaven. A better translation of that word would be, “bounced.” Michael and crew bounced the Dragon from of Heaven. 

Yes, the Dragon rages for now; but it’s only because he’s already lost! 

The destruction of the two Beasts, its just the fury of a tyrant who knows his days are numbered! Their threats, their power isn’t anything to fear. Not in the end, anyway. Because while they may appear to have the day, in the end; they’re doomed!

John wants us to see that clearly. 

He shows us these Beasts, and makes no bones about what they can do, the real threat they represent. But John is just as clear, that they’re not as strong as they pretend to be. They can be stood up to!

Their power isn’t the kind that can conquer. Because while the Beasts may have the fury of the Dragon, they don’t have the victory of Christ. 

The victory you’ve been sealed by!

I know it doesn’t always feel that way. For now we walk by faith, don’t we?

The Beast can, and does, make a mess of things. 

And each week we come here, putting our best foot forward. But under it, we’re worn down by the Beasts. We’ve felt how weak we are in the face of their worst.

So John calls their bluff for us. All they have is death.

The death of a past life, one held by the Beasts. Towing their line. Trying to keep up appearances.

And, real Death too. The Death we will all face. Probably a quiet one. 

What John shows us is that when the Beasts come with the death they’ve been threaten us with, they will find out we have the mark of the one who threw their master down. 

And we will find out just how feeble the Beasts are in the face of our savior. The one who sits in Heaven and laughs them in derision.

We catch glimpses of this from time to time, but on the Last Day our faith will be transformed to sight. We will see that John’s vision wasn’t a vision at all, it’s how things really are. That we’ve been walking around with a mark that’s stronger than we think. A mark of the victory that matters, the victory over Death.