Wednesday, July 5, 2006

Good Morning  

 

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July holiday  

 

Today's Reading:    Revelation 17:1-6 , Barclay 160-165

 

-- Several quick sections focusing on portions of chapter 17.  As noted earlier, we are going to try to pick up the pace and do multiple sections so that we can finish this study by the end of July.

 

-- Some quick thoughts about today's readings. First, a couple of thoughts on the use of the concept of a "whore" to describe Rome.  First, it is interesting that, in trying to communicate the idea that Rome is the most sinful of cities, that whore (and by definition), sexual sin is associated with it, rather than other sins such as greed, or hatred, or violence, etc.  That leads into the second point, which one that Barclay references, is the idea that a prostitute not only sins herself, but intentionally persuades others to sin.  There is this idea, this thought in Revelation, that many will be coerced into worshipping the beast and taking his mark, and that may be true (through economic sanctions and threats of violence).  But this imagery in Chapter 17 leads us to believe that many will be seduced into worshipping the beast, and that is a different thing to resist altogether.

 

-- A second thought about Rome, etc -- Barclay quotes from Tacitus on page 165 about Christians, and Tacitus has this quote about Rome:  "where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular."  There are those who would assign such a description to New York perhaps, or maybe better yet, Hollywood.

 

-- On a completely different thought, there is this idea of John being taken in the spirit to the desert, to the wilderness, to see this vision.  This is a regular theme in the Bible, through all of the prophets, and even in Jesus life -- to go the wilderness to better commune with God, to hear his message -- to find a place where all of the distractions around us are gone.

 

Today's Scripture 

 

Be dressed and ready for service and keep your lights burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.

 

Luke 12:35-36

 

Today's prayer requests:      From Kelley Thaxton -- emailed at 3:20AM, July 4th:

 

(fyi, Kelley has been very faithful in following along with the class via email for a couple of years now)

I would like to ask you to pray for my husband, Don Thaxton.  He was in an extremely bad car accident on Friday morning at 4:20am on I-459 S.  You may have seen it on the news.

He is going to survive, but it will be a long time before he’s out of the hospital.  

Additionally, our daughter, Sierra, is having a very hard time with this, because she wants to see her daddy and to come home. (She’s staying with my mother in Huntsville right now.)

Additionally, the woman who was in the car he hit is in total despair and unsaved.  (We are asking everyone to keep her in their prayers.)

Obviously there are many aspects to this.  I am currently spending all of my time at the hospital, from the 10:30am first visit until the 12:30 am last visit. 

God’s hand is all over this, and we are truly experiencing small miracles every day.  You’d be astounded at all of the different ways that God is revealing his might, wisdom, and plan through so many different people.

Today's class member prayer: 

Brad Douglas     

 

Jay