Things Are Not as They Seem

I typically spend the summer studying a book of the Bible in my devotional time with God. This year I am trying to get a feel for the book of Revelation. It is not the easiest portion of Scripture to understand, but I have been helped by a specific commentary that distills its message with stunning clarity:
 
Things are not as they seem. That is the foundational conviction of the kind of literature we are dealing with in the last book of the Bible. There is more to reality than meets the unaided senses. There is more to reality than we can know through our eyes and ears, our hands, nose and mouth. And it is the purpose of Revelation to open up that more (129).
 
Things are not as they seem. Things are not just as they seem. I find myself repeating this phrase at several points throughout the day. Like a prayer mantra, the words instill calm by helping me remember that God remains good and God remains trustworthy. What might it look like to consider the sobering realities of our moment through the ‘more to reality’ lens opened for us in the pages of Scripture? 
 
Nearly 600,000 have died from Covid-19 world-wide. Nearly 140,000 people have died in the US. A beloved member of Resurrection South Austin died last week. Death is all around us. But things are not just as they seem. One day soon there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things will pass away. (Rev. 21:4)
 
Racial disparities that long preceded the virus have created a scenario in this country where Black and Hispanic people represent nearly two-thirds of coronavirus deaths among people under 65. We’re not talking about racial prejudice that exists in peoples’ hearts; this is the way generational sin continues to corrupt institutions like healthcare, housing, education, etc. There is much for us to repent of and lament. But things are not just as they seem. The injustices of today are indexed to a glorious future where a multitude from every nation, tribe, people and language will gather together and cry out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God! (Rev 7:9-10)
 
A recent poll tells us that we have never been unhappier. Some of you reading this have lost your job. Many of you have canceled vacations. All of us have been apart from family and suffered some strain on our mental health (anxiety, loneliness, grief, etc). But things are not just as they seem. Jesus continues to stand among us and knock upon the door of our hearts, promising that all who hear his voice and open the door can thrive in his presence. (Rev. 3:20)
 
Christians have sometimes been guilty of evading the responsibilities of the present by fixating on an otherworldly future. This is not the teaching of the final book of the Bible. It holds out the hope of finding courage and perseverance to attend to today’s challenges by learning to say, in the language of your own heart, things are not just as they seem.  Can we do it? Yes. Because, to quote Bishop Todd, no matter how hard this year will be, something else is more true: This is our Father’s world—and humanity remains God’s project. No person (or virus) can get in the way.