A nation that sings about a battle it nearly lost is made stronger by the song. The preacher notes that Poles and Americans have such an anthem while Canadians do not, and that it costs them part of their identity. The Christian song, however, runs differently, because we are not the ones who win: Christ wins for us (Revelation 12-13). The chapters that follow strip the costume off the beast: the systems of this world hold real but borrowed power and merely impersonate the Lamb, like a banknote that is genuine money and yet worth nothing in another country. Listen and ask whose song you are humming when you look at the news.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- According to the sermon, who are the dragon and the two beasts in Revelation 13, and what did they mean to the first readers living under Rome, which demanded worship in its temples?
- The second beast looks like a lamb but speaks like a dragon (Revelation 13:11). How do you understand this image, and where might evil today wear the disguise of something good or godly?
- The sermon contrasts national anthems about fighting with the Christian song in Revelation 12:10-11, where Jesus wins the victory for us. How does knowing you don't fight in your own strength change the way you face your struggles?
- The speaker reminded us that government authority comes from God, yet it can demand a loyalty greater than our loyalty to God. How do you tell the difference between gratitude and civic responsibility and worshiping something that is not God?
- The world attacks Christians not only through persecution but also through cultural seduction, wanting us to look like it. In which areas of your life do you feel the strongest pressure to conform?
- In Revelation a mark shows whom we belong to. What is one concrete thing you can do this week so that your everyday life shows more clearly that your highest loyalty belongs to Jesus?
