Reveling and Reckoning

Like the passage from the November 25th sermon (Revelation 19:11-21), some people try to tie this passage into current events, in an effort to predict the End Times; such intepretations are not very useful.  On the other hand, we shouldn't just ignore this passage or other grim, apocalyptic parts of Scripture, as difficult as they may be to read.  

Jesus's words in this text may not lend themselves to direct application to events in any particular era of history, but they are a good summary of all of history.  This world is full of evil and darkness, as are our own hearts; we must always be careful to not get caught up in it.  The darkness of this world can be an easy thing to miss in our peaceful, affluent society, when violence and catastrophe seems to happen to other people in other places.  It can be even easier to miss when we are actively indulging in evil, or when we benefit from evil in some way (when we are accessories after the fact, to quote a legal phrase).

Jesus calls us to be on our guard against evil, but he also reminds us that the world--and our hearts--are being renewed by his power.  The light is shining in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

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