“Seven Seals: A Gospel Word Against Evil”

Bible Text: Revelation 6, Revelation 7 | Preacher: Pastor Mark Verbruggen | Series: The Book of Revelation | A committed atheist is sometimes more tolerable than a sentimental Christian. Someone who outright rejects the existence of God can have more intellectual integrity than the person who is all sentimental about God and Jesus. When you look honestly at the world, it takes hard faith to believe in God. The book of Revelation is a book of pictures and symbols that depict a greater reality. Some of that reality is very raw. What we see can make us question the very existence of a God who is in charge of the universe. It’s no wonder that “No religion” is one of the fastest growing categories identified by the young. Even if they believed in God at one time, they no longer do. N.T. Wright asks, “How can they believe in a “God” who seems to do nothing when faced with the terrors and torments of this world? How can we claim he’s sovereign over the world when the world is in such a mess?”

Revelation 6 and 7 is a challenging text that shows us a “Gospel Word against Evil”. Such a thing exists and we can thank God for it. Only when we can look evil straight on and name it for what it is, will we have the intellectual integrity to proclaim a better Word and Vision that conquers it. If the Gospel is better than the pious platitudes of secular minds; if it is truer than what you read on social media and hear on the networks of the world, then you had better be prepared to look evil in the eye, name it, and know the solution to the problem.