December 24 - Revelation 18: Gone Awry

"The judgment theme is completed in the portrayal of the Great Whore. First, her destruction is prophesied in chapter 17; then there is a song about her destruction in chapter 18. 

"Sunk like a millstone in the sea, the destruction of the Great Whore is a warning - not only to first-century Christians but to us. Whore is a sexual image, but in Revelation 17 and 18, the image isn't about sex. It's not about physical affections that have gone awry but about spiritual affections that have gone awry. 

"John has nothing to say about sexual immorality in the first century. His business is with spiritual immorality. His pastoral responsibility is to prevent Christians from abandoning the arduous life of worship in favor of something that appears just as spiritual but looks a lot better and is a lot easier. He uses the image of the Great Whore to open their eyes to the differences between the worship of the Lamb and this other worship, which isn't worship at all but keeps us from true worship. 

"Throughout biblical history, worship has always been vulnerable to infidelity. We so quickly go after other gods. We're so easily seduced into idolatry of one kind or another. And that's as much a temptation today as it was then." Eugene Peterson, Conversations, pg. 1972

It's been a day of spiritual affections gone awry.

I thought I was prepared for the holiday with the family. Not so much, if prepared means that I would be consistently loving others well. The familiar rush of irritation and disappointment and wishing that things were different overwhelmed me from the get-go this morning. I struggled to keep it under wraps, trying to process it with the Lord through my journal, asking God to love my family through me.

And then I was surprised by a wonderful worship service near the beach. A pure gift from the Lord. This small little gospel-preaching church of those worshiping in spirit and in truth led me back to the throne of Jesus, and I was ohsograteful, tank filled with Jesus, ready to wade back into the fray to love well.

And once again, my idols of control and comfort reared their ugly heads, and I fell headlong into another carnal funk, disappearing to my room and into my journal to regain God's perspective. How much I long to live fully in the Spirit, particularly around family, and not retreat into annoyance, frustration, and resentment.

The battle was very real today, and for much of the day, I was kept from true worship. My flesh's desire for things to go my way led me depressingly astray.

But God knows that about me. I am powerless over my sinful patterns. And that's what makes the Christmas story even more beautiful to me on this day. A Rescuer entering the world to save me from my sin. Oh, how much I need a Rescuer!

Grateful beyond words for Jesus today.