John's vision speaks to the confusion that has come to identify our lives in today's world as a spiritual wilderness in which even the church is included. While God calls his people out of the wilderness, John's vision of the prostitute, the kings, and the scarlet beast shows Christians the three dominant spiritual challenges they face: pornography, the abuse of power, and the demonic. Responding to John's vision asks for a commitment of the whole community to confront the wilderness. This is a message of courage and hope with the knowledge that these challenges will be defeated by the Lamb of God.
