SERMON NOTES:

Prayer Requests

Y Pray for Jerry Hermsen who was diagnosed

with thyroid cancer. Y Prayers of strength for Jim Halbert's family. Jim passed away Sunday evening. Y Pray for Jennifer Huehns family friend, Elaine Slotty, who is in hospice for cancer. Y Pray for Kate O-Brien-Soltau who is taking an ordination exam this week. Y Special prayer to Bakia Ndips elder sister, Ayuk Bakia Parker, as she will undergo blood clot treatment at a hospital in Maryland. Y Pray for Mor Bakia in his job search. Y Pray for Samuel Atu-Tetuhs son Mbah while he travels to Ethiopia. Y Pray for Diana Zile-Young, friend of Ivers, who is better but still struggling with alcoholism which is destroying her liver. Y Pray for Jerry Hermsens friend Stephanie who is having a very serious operation on February 8th. Y Pray for Hussein, Angelicas coworkers husband, who suffers from leukemia. Y Pray for Rose Tendoh to find a job with Gods guidance. Y Pray for John Thiessen as he goes through chemotherapy treatment. Y For Bobbie Pearson, friend of Gloria Ivers, whos suffering from cancer. Y Pray for Beverly Dols, John Ivers sister, who suffers from lung cancer. Y Pray for Dave Schwartz and Marg Olson (friends of George & Dianne Black) who are both going through cancer.

Y Pray for Ward Sessing, member of the Presbyterian Church of the Way, who is suffering with cancer. Y Pray for Donna McCullen, wife of Ken McCullen, who is suffering from cancer.

DEVOTION

The seven chapters that we read this week are the most difficult of the book of Revelation. It might at first glance seem hard to find a word of the Lord in them. If we look deeper, though, we can discover a message that is relevant for our lives today. We can learn and see the consequences of idolatrythat is putting something before God. Next week we will finish reading the final four chapters of Revelation. Comments and thoughts about the devotion can be E-mailed to Pastor Paul at pastor@colpres.org. Enjoy!! Monday, February 4 Read Revelation 13 The difficult visions continue with the rise of two beasts. The first beast was given authority for forty-two months. Even though it was obviously a grotesque creature uttering blasphemous words, many inhabitants of the earth worshipped it. The second beast was similar. The number of the second beast was 666an infamous number that is connected with the book of Revelation. One way to see this chapter is as an illustration of how people will worship creatures, things, idols that arent the one,

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living God. We as humans create idols. We put things in front of God in order of importance to us. Just as the church at Ephesus was chastised in chapter 2 for abandoning its first love, we can abandon our first love. Most likely we wouldnt worship something as grotesque as this beastour idolatry is much more subtle. We might worship a person, or an idea, or a relationship, or a jobfill in the blank. One of most difficult task for a disciple is to put God first. Prayer: We are all susceptible to idols. With your gentle Spirit help me be able to name the idols in my own life. Help me take steps in putting you first in my life. Tuesday, February 5 Read Revelation 14 This chapter shares a vision of contrast with the gruesome vision of the two beasts in the previous chapters. Some people have looked at the 144,000 as a literal number describing how many Christians or elect are on earth. This approach fails to realize all of the rich symbolism in the book of Revelation. At the end of verse 11 we read this: there is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image and for anyone who receives the mark of its name. There are consequences for shutting God out in our lives. Perhaps the consequences for each of us arent as stark as shared in this chapter. But the idols we follow are ultimately not life-giving. We will suffer the consequences of what the idols cannot deliver.

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Fortunately God is always present with us and wants us to experience the living water of grace. Prayer: Dont let me worship any beasts or images that are different from you. Help me experience the living water of your grace. May this satisfy me. Wednesday, February 6 Read Revelation 15 Verses three and four are reminders of the words of Miriam in Exodus 15. Miriam shared these words after Pharaoh and his armies had been killed as the Israelites passed through the Red Sea. That chapter is described as the Song of Moses, but most people believe Miriam wrote the words. The lesson for us is that even in the midst of these terrible visions, God has not left us. God still claims us. We can ultimately trust God. One important idea in this sermon series is we can always trust God. The book of Revelation can cause us to pause in our own trust of Godso many terrible things happen. These two verses in Revelation 15 remind us of the glory of God. Take some time to read these two verses slowly and carefully. Try to commit them to memory. They can come in handy the next time you go through a difficult time! Prayer: You indeed are holy, O God. Great and amazing are your deeds. Help me to understand that you never let me go, and I can always trust you. Thursday, February 7 Read Revelation 16 These bowls of wrath remind us of the ten plagues that God inflicted on the Egyptians in the Exodus story.

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In the last first century Christians lived under the political authority of the Roman statewith Nero and then Domitian as the leaders. From the outside these leaders seemed powerfulalmost invincible. But even these invincible leadersjust like Pharaoh in the Old Testamentwere fallible. They wouldnt live forever; their empires wouldnt live forever. They eventually would crumble. This is what eventually did happen. These bowls of wrath poured out in this chapter remind us that God is ultimately powerful. Prayer: You are everlasting, Creator God. No ruler, no matter how invincible the ruler looks, can last forever. Continue to show me that your word and your values do last forever. Friday, February 8 Read Revelation 17 John continued to show that Rome would fall. The great whore is Rome. John is certain that the Empire is going to fall. It cannot last even though it looked very mighty and powerful. According to Bruce Metzger, Christians were terribly persecuted at times int eh first century. Some were clothed in the skins of wild beasts and then exposed in an arena where half-famished dogs were released. Some were dipped in tar and then put on crosses that were put on fire. Despite these gruesome displays of power the agents of the State couldnt last! Prayer: All human institutions are fallible and might not last over the long-term. Help me to put my trust in you. Keep me from discovering undue satisfaction in anything else but you.

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Saturday, February 9 Read Revelation 18 In his book Breaking the Code Bruce Metzger gave an excellent description of these two difficult chapters17 & 18. What do we learn from this part of the book of Revelation? Certainly John wrote in order to stimulate faithfulness on the part of persecuted Christians living in the first century. He assures them of the ultimate victory of Christ. B ut Revelation also has a warning for believers Babylon is allegorical of the idolatry that any nation commits when it elevates material abundance, military prowess, technological sophistication, imperial grandeur, racial pride, and any other glorification of the creature over the Creator. The message of the book of Revelation concerns the character and timeliness of Gods judgment not only of persons, but also of nations and, in fact, of all principalities and powers which is to say, all authorities, corporations, institutions, structures, bureaucracies, and the like. (Pages 87-88) Prayer: Help me always put you first in my life. Thank you for helping me do this. Remove the idols that I can inevitably develop.