Forest Lake Talks

Text: Revelation 12:7-11 

And war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven proclaiming,

“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Messiah,
for the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down,
who accuses them day and night before our God.
But they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,
for they did not cling to life even in the face of death.

Devotional:

Here's a devotional on Revelation!

I read this portion of a sermon from New Testament scholar, Brian Blount, this morning and thought I'd share it with you. He wrote these words in 2011:

"To witness for the Lordship of Christ is to witness against evil in any form, institutional or personal, it takes. We don't do it alone, as Michael did not do it alone. We do it by appealing to the world transforming messianic victory of the resurrection. That is the call. This is the moment. Sign up or step aside. Michael's call is our call.

What John wants to tell his churches and us today is this: every moment you live, every decision you make, every class you teach, every worship service you attend, every baptism you celebrate, every church you encourage, every office assignment you staff, every effort you engage, makes you more like Michael than you know.

Be like Mike!

That is our call. Our call is not to sit passively in the pew or loiter too long in the library. Our call is to witness as Michael witnessed in heaven, as Jesus witnessed before the cross, on the cross, and especially after the cross. Our call is to stand up and say something, stand up and do something, stand up and change something. Reconnoiter the situation, gather up your resources, ratchet up your resolve, call out your crew, step into the moment, and say, 'My Lord and my God, I report for duty."

Prayer: Fill us this day and beyond with your Spirit, Lord, as we report for duty. May we be like Mike! Amen.

Work Cited: Blount, Brian. Invasion of the Dead: Preaching Resurrection. (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994), 41-43.