Eusebeia with Josh Kruger

Reading Revelation 13:1-4 (RR35)

Beast-monsters arise out of the sea for Daniel.  A beast-monster arises out of the sea for John.  And behind that monster - unmasked! unveiled! apocalypse! - is the true evil: the dragon.  The dragon uses the beast-monster for his purposes.  For Daniel these were the empires of the day.  Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece.  For John that empire was Rome.  And people worship Rome, the beast-monster, and its head, the emperor. And in so doing they worship the spiritual power behind the beast: the devil, the satan, the serpent, that old dragon.  John's apocalypse continues.

Reading Revelation 12:14-18 (RR34)

The dragon tried to destroy the Son of Israel.  He failed.  Was defeated by Jesus.  The dragon tried to destroy Israel. He failed. So now the dragon turns attention to the church. Attacking the followers of Jesus. All this is moving toward unmasking the powers.  Check it out.

Reading Revelation 12:7-13 (RR33)

War!  War erupts between Michael (and his angels) and the dragon (and his angels).  The dragon is thrown down to earth. We learn more about who this dragon is and what he's been up to on earth.  John's apocalypse - the unveiling - the revealing - continues.  John gives us a vision of the true spiritual reality behind what we might see with our human eyes.  

Reading Revelation 12:1-6 (RR29)

A vision!  A portent!  A sign!  Just like seers Joseph and Daniel, so too John sees hidden realities behind what appears in front of him.  Revelation 12 is full of symbols and images.  We discover what these mean, how they point both backward and forward, and set the stage for a new big movement in the story being told in John's Apocalypse.

Reading Revelation 11:15-19 (RR28)

Mission accomplished!  The kingdom of the world has at last fully become the kingdom of the Lord and Messiah!  What God desired all along.  Israel failed.  Jesus proclaimed that kingdom and succeeded.  That put the kingdom of the worldly powers on the defensive.  And here in 11:15 the kingdom is fulfilled. Mission fully accomplished!  God is victorious and reigns as King and Judge.  Temple space is opened to John (and us) once again.  Final judgment and reward is here.  Exciting!  Check it out in this episode of Reading Revelation.

Daniel (RR30)

Part 3 of 3.  Our little mini prophetic detour within "Reading Revelation" comes to a conclusion.  This is in response to listeners and Bible students who use the study guide.  This part 3 of 3 is Daniel - an exploration of the summaries of the chapters of Daniel.  And when taken together what those summary sentences tell us about the overall flow and meaning of the book.  This helps us immensely in understanding John's Revelation.

Bible 101

I had the honor of subbing for a teacher at our church. He was going to be gone for the introductory session of a class this fall semester called Bible 101. And I have the privilege of launching that class with this introductory teaching. So if you're looking to learn what the Bible is or if you'd just like a refresher on some Bible basics you once knew but maybe forgot, then check out this podcast on Bible 101!

Ezekiel (RR29)

Part 2 of 3.  Our little mini prophetic detour within "Reading Revelation" continues.  This is in response to listeners and Bible students who use the study guide.  This part 2 of 3 is Ezekiel - an exploration of the summaries of the chapters of Ezekiel.  And when taken together what those summary sentences tell us about the overall flow and meaning of the book.  This helps us immensely in understanding John's Revelation.

Isaiah (RR28)

Part 1 of 3.  A little mini prophetic detour within "Reading Revelation" in response to listeners and Bible students who use the study guide.  This part 1 of 3 is Isaiah - an exploration of the summaries of the pericopes (context chunks) of Isaiah.  And when taken together what those summary sentences tell us about the overall flow and meaning of the book.  This helps us immensely in understanding John's Revelation.

Reading Revelation 11:8-14 (RR27)

The two witnesses, the two prophets, are killed. The world gloats.  The beast seems to be winning.  Even Jerusalem is in on it. But God brings resurrection!  This will lead us to a major event in the next episode.  But for now check this one out and the connections to the Old Testament and the roles of prophets facing empires.