The world and its empires and kingdoms all operate on the same playbook - oppression, exhaustion, division. But God has a different playbook. We see how this plays out in 1 Kings 19 when we encounter an exhausted Elijah who is afraid and running for his life. God gives him rest and renewal.

The Narrative Lectionary tells us about Solomon's Temple. It's glorious - a house for the Lord. And there is a human tendency to keep God in locked in that house - to make God confined, sanitary, and unable to upset the status quo. But God cannot be contained. The sermon is based on 1 Kings 5:1-15 and 8:1-13.

In the first creation account, God creates and notices that creation is good. We are a part of that creation. And while the world tries to force messages upon us that tell us otherwise, Genesis reassures us of an eternal truth - you have value, you have worth, and you matter. The sermon is based on Genesis 1:1-2:4a.

The message of Revelation is ultimately this - that no matter how terrible things get, God is with us, God will restore, and God will heal. This message is just as important now as it was when Revelation was written. The sermon is based on Revelation 21:1-6 and 22:1-5.

John takes us into the pit of Revelation 13, the low point of the letter. There are beasts, a dragon, the mark, 666. It's all there. The point is not to scare, but to name the reality for what it is, and to show that all these things are full of lies and will fall. They cannot stand. All empires fall. And we should rejoice when they do. They don't fall by using their methods. Instead, the Lamb who was slain brings them to an end. The sermon is based on Revelation 13:1-18.

Empires exert control. But the faithful worshippers of God are part of the multitude. Revelation presents monsters that tear the faithful apart. What are the beasts of today? And what are we called to as we face them? The sermon is based on Revelation 7:9-17.

Revelation 5 gives a glimpse of what worship of God is about. It includes all of creation without exclusion. It shows God's power over the powers of this world. It flips the script on what strength and might and power are. And sometimes we get glimpses of that in worship here on earth. The sermon is based on Revelation 5:1-13.

Revelation 4 brings us to the throne room of God, where we see worship. It's also a courtroom where empire will be put on trial. John gives a vision of that. Imagine what it might sound like to put the empires of today's world on trial. That's what happened in the sermon. The sermon is based on Revelation 4:1-11.