Unplugged Revelation: Wisdom for Modern Times

1. Revelation UNPLUGGED THE APOCALYPSE – A MESSAGE FOR OUR TIME

2. Revelation || Unplugged Session One A Devotional Quest Session Two A Centring Vision Session Three A Faithful Witness Session Four A Just Cause Session Five An Ultimate Reality

3. Revelation UNPLUGGED THE APOCALYPSE – A MESSAGE FOR OUR TIME A Just Cause

4. 9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters,[c] were killed just as they had been. Revelation 6

5. 7 The Lord said, ‘I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians... ' Exodus 3:7

6. ‘I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. 22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. 23 Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. 24 But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! Amos 5

7. ‘Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. 2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. 3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; 4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.’ Isaiah 42

8. Seeing the FLOW of the passage…. The “empire brings about its own demise,” meaning that justice, not merely revenge, is at work. In the seven trumpets, mercy “tempers the destruction,” which is partial rather than total and is intended to bring about repentance. In the figure of the slaughtered Lamb raised by God we see God’s life-giving, nonviolent, counter-Roman means of triumph. The Lamb’s final conquest comes not in the form of military action but in “revealing, persuading, and judging” words from one who did not kill but died for others. Divine judgment ensues only when people refuse to repent. The “overarching agenda seems to be salvation, not vengeful destruction.” God’s people are not called to overthrow Empire violently but to resist it by nonviolent faithful living. Reading Revelation Responsibly – Michael Gorman

9. The Conviction of Amber Guyger • How much light does his response bring into this situation? • In what way are his actions powerful? • What does it take to get to this place and respond in this way? • In what way does his actions shed light on what it means to live as a non violent, non vengeful human being? • How could the world be changed by this type of response?