In a surprisingly simple way, a passage about meat sacrificed to idols has a great deal to teach us about how we use our money. As Paul addresses various needs in the church at Corinth, he draws us into the most basic reality in the universe: the earth is the Lords and everything in it.

As Paul applies this truth to help the Corinthians understand matters of food, he offers us a profound insight into matters of money. Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Jesus talks about money more than almost anything else. In the context of the Sermon on the Mount, this passage sits between teaching on hypocrisy and anxiety and the message is simple: only God satisfies. What we treasure shows us what we serve. How we see reveals the desires of our hearts. Servanthood is the way we’ve oriented our lives around what we think will ultimately keep us safe or make us significant. Jesus challenges us to serve God, not treasure; to leverage everything in our lives so that we look to him as our safety and our satisfaction.

Revelation puts the inaugurated cosmic reign of Jesus on display in order to enable endurance and cultivate longing for its consummation. As we close out our series on Revelation we have to ask the question, "What should this book do to us?" The answer: refocus our sight and cultivate longing in our soul for the consummation of the reign of Jesus. This is critical because unless we consistently train our eyes to see reality through Revelation, it will be impossible to faithfully endure in obedient allegiance to Christ. AND instead of longing for the consummation of his kingdom, declaring, "Come, Lord Jesus!" we will settle for the costume kingdoms of this world.

What you believe about the future dictates how you engage the present. In the final vision of Revelation we see the new heavens and the new earth. Notice what's missing - the sea between heaven and earth, between God and his people. Heaven is the realm where we get to experience the fullness of God. What’s present there? The nations are reunited and praising God together. What should we do now? As we live in the tension of what is now and what is to come, there are three ways we can respond. We long for the work God will do and is already doing. We commit ourselves to proclaiming the gospel to the nations. We contend for the coming of Christ by praying, longing, and asking God to come.

This striking vision is a warning about the partnership of power, money, and pleasure, and how they have operated together as weapons of darkness throughout the centuries.

First we see the Beast, representing imperial militaristic power throughout history. In every world empire, conquest undergirds the pursuit and accumulation of wealth. But over and over throughout Israel’s history God displayed his power as far supreme to this Beast, in whatever form it took. Whether it was Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, or Rome. The major takeaway from Revelation and ultimately the entire Bible, is that God wins! And he invites us to trust him, even when it looks like the world is winning and compromise seduces us.

The Prostitute symbolizes the seductive appeal of a worldly economic system, that provides a means to self-gratification and the rejection of moral restraints. The nations of the world throughout history are drunk on the wine of what unbalanced economic systems produce. So the Prostitute and the Beast cooperate, feeding off one another.

The Dragon, The Beast, and the False Prophet form a counterfeit trinity in Revelation, and Babylon is a counterfeit church, seducing the world to give its allegiance to this counterfeit Trinity.

Christians are victorious by association with the Lamb and the nations are guilty by association with the Beast and Prostitute and will share in their judgment. This is a call for watchfulness and repentance for the people of God to not be enticed by demonic lies.

We all worship something. When John falls down before the angel in Revelation 19, he rebukes him, saying: “Worship God!” Worship isn’t just the songs we sing at church but the deepest longings of our hearts - where we go in disappointment, triumph, fear, and instability. God’s glory is revealed in salvation and in judgment, one seen in the image of a wedding and the other in the image of war. We worship God for his salvation and his judgment and long for the day when he will make everything right and we will be with him forever.

What happens to those who oppose the beast? In chapters 12-13, the dragon and the beasts persecute the church and rule over the peoples of the earth. But, what about those who endure? In chapters 14-15, John shows us that even though the forces opposing God look strong, Jesus Christ, our champion and savior, is stronger than the dragon and the beasts. He protects his people with his presence, and he subdues and defeats his enemies in the end. These passages don't just point to a future reality, but show us the things that are going on throughout the lifespan of the church. For all of history, God has been protecting his people and the church sings of the glory of Christ and resists the power of evil.