Episode 197: Violence in the Bible, Part 6--War of the Lamb

In the early life of the church, followers of Jesus needed a word of hope to assure them that the destructive and arrogant ways of the Empire wouldn't last forever.  They needed to know that God's victory over evil was assured, and that there was reason to keep on in their faith, showing love and humility in the face of Rome's cruelty and pride.  Against that backdrop, the book of Revelation makes a certain kind of sense--it is resistance literature written in coded language to encourage people to continuing following the way of Jesus no matter how strong or invincible the powers of the day seemed.  Part of what is difficult for modern-day American readers, then, is the disconnect between our situation (living pretty comfortably in the superpower of our day) and the setting of the book of Revelation.  So in today's episode of Crazy Faith Talk, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve look at the imagery of violence in the book of Revelation, and explore some of the ways modern-day readers read (or mis-read) this book, and what difference it makes to ask whether God's victory in the end comes through fighting a battle with Christians as soldiers, or whether God's victory is already accomplished through the death and resurrection of Jesus, whose robe is soaked, not in his enemies' blood, but in his own.  Join us for an important and thought-provoking conversation on this week's Crazy Faith Talk!