Ongoing war in Ukraine. Israel at war with Hamas. Political division. Our world is experiencing the tumult of wickedness and sin. And one of the realities of our lived experience is trying to make sense of the world around us. What is real? What matters? How do we understand and make sense of the chaos around us?

For several hundred years since the age of the Enlightenment, philosophical, political, scientific, and religious thinkers alike have tried to make sense of reality apart from a biblical worldview. But as we are witnessing, when we interpret geopolitical events, human nature, and reality apart from God, we end up with chaos, uncertainty, fear, and turmoil. 

Maybe you’ve become so jaded with cultural tensions that you ignore the news headlines and fear-baiting. Maybe you’re so busy with your own world and chaos in your own life, you don’t have a lot of time to worry about everything going on everywhere else. Maybe you don’t stop too often to consider what’s going on because you’re afraid you’ll lose it emotionally or that you will retreat into your own mind and lose yourself to indifference and apathy. We’re not the first persons to be afraid, emotional, or challenged by our surrounding circumstances. In John’s vision of heaven in Revelation 5, when “no one was found worthy to open the scroll or look into it,” John wept loudly. 

But we don’t have to weep. There is One who is Worthy. 

⁵ And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” ⁶ And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷ And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. ⁸ And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 

Revelation 5:5-8

For several weeks now, we’ve been in a sermon series at Wilkesboro Baptist Church entitled, “Good News from Green Pastures.” We began the series as a study of Psalm 23. You can find our podcasts here or wherever you listen to podcasts. Our worship services are on Vimeo and Youtube as well. Our study has encouraged us to know and follow Jesus, our Shepherd.

We’re concluding the series with a reflection on Jesus as the Lion and the Lamb from Revelation 5. This text helps us make sense of history, our current situation in the world, and the hope that can only be found in Jesus Christ. We would love to have you join us for worship this Sunday as we celebrate Jesus who took our sin and rules from Heaven’s throne.

Let me also encourage you to pick up and read the book of Revelation. It is the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:1). I realize the book can be intimidating, but there is a way to read it that will be encouraging. Take time to read through all 22 chapters highlighting or underlining all the verses that reference Jesus Christ. Then go back and just read the highlighted/underlined verses. I realize the book of Revelation contains more than pictures of Jesus and some of the apocalyptic imagery is challenging and difficult. But Jesus is the primary focus of the book, and the pictures of Jesus encourage and strengthen us. We we will see this in chapter 5.

Jesus our Shepherd is the Lamb slain for the redemption of our neighbors and the nations and is also the Lion who reigns and rules. This is how we can make sense of current reality. This is why we can have hope today and tomorrow. This is why we don’t have to fear.

Photo by Iván Díaz on Unsplash