Two weeks ago we looked at 3 of the 7 prominent personalities (players) found in chapter 12 of Revelation... players who are introduced after the blowing of the seventh trumpet...
□ the Woman (Israel),
□ the Man Child (Christ) and
□ the Dragon (Satan).
Tonight we look at another 2 personalities... also found in Chapter 12.
4 ■■ Michael the Archangel wars with the Dragon.
☆ Revelation 12:7-9...
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the Dragon; and the Dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great Dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
▪ "And there was war in heaven..."
Now here's something that's difficult to imagine... war in heaven??
And yet the Word of God says so.
Who... how... why... what and when?
One guess who is at the centre of it all...
Yep, you got it... the Dragon... Satan!
▪ "Michael and his angels fought against the Dragon; and the Dragon fought and his angels..."
Q 1: What is Satan doing in heaven?
Q 2: And who is this Michael that fights against Satan?
A 1: Satan still has access to heaven and, as long as he does, there will be problems.
In the Book of Job, Satan came with the sons of God to appear before God. ☆ Job 1–2
He apparently had as much right there as they did.
Satan has access to God, and... he is able to carry on a communication with God. ☆ Luke 22:31...
Remember also that he is the accuser of the brethren.
A 2: Michael is an archangel... a prince of angels.
☆ Jude 1:9...
"Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the Devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke you."
Michael the archangel is the protecting angel assigned to Israel... he has special charge over the nation of Israel. We find this information the book of Daniel.
☆ Daniel 10:13...
"But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia."
☆ Daniel 10:21...
"But I (the Son of God) will show you (Daniel) that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holds with Me in these things, but Michael your prince."
☆ Daniel 12:1...
"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which stands for the children of your (Daniel) people (Israel): and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book."
At that time, we are told, there will be a time of great trouble, the Great Tribulation. Michael will step out and drive Satan out of heaven, because he happens to be the prince who watches over the nation of Israel.
▪ "And prevailed not... neither was their place found any more in heaven."
▪ "... he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
Satan and his cohort angels will be no match for Michael and his angels.
There will be a fierce struggle... a war!
Satan won't give up easily, but Michael and his angels will prevail, and Satan and his angels will be cast out of heaven... and... cast out into the earth!
The Lord Jesus spoke about this in ☆ Luke 10:18...
"... he said to to His disciples, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
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There is absolutely no mistaking who this evil, vile, diabolical creature is that is thrown out of heaven. The Lord gives us a very clear picture of of this very unsavoury character Satan.
He is real. He is terrible. He is our enemy. He is not to be trifled with.
▪ 1. He is called "the old Serpent."
This takes us back to the Garden of Eden where he lies to and deceives Adam and Eve into disobeying God.
Right from the beginning we see what an evil, vile character is.
▪ 2. He is called "Devil,"
The name "devil" in the Greek is 'diabolos' meaning 'slanderer' or 'accuser.'
He is labelled the accuser of the brethren. You and I would be very surprised what he throws up before God. There is nothing that you do or say or think which he does not turn in against you up in heaven. He's a slanderer and liar from the beginning. He is the origin of all lies today... including gossip.
This is why the believers need an Advocate with the Father.
Praise God, the Lord Jesus is our Advocate. ☆ 1 John 2:1...
Jesus Christ the righteous is up there defending us right now.
▪ 3. He is also called "Satan,"
The name "Satan" means 'adversary.'
He is against God. He is against us.
He is God's enemy and He is our enemy.
The Apostle Peter tells us to...
"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour."
☆ 1 Peter 5:8...
Satan doesn't pussyfoot around either.
He's out there to devour us.
Satan has a lot of people trapped in his clutches, including many Christians sad to say. We must steer clear of him at all costs and keep our eyes, our lives firmly fixed on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith.
Jesus is our deliverer and our deliverance.
We would do well to read Ephesians 6:12-18 every day and put on the whole armour of God at the beginning of each day.
Listen carefully to the Holy Spirit Who will warn us when temptation to sin is just around the corner.
▪ 4. Finally, he is called "... he that deceives the whole (inhabited) world."
Satan is the great deceiver.
This is a huge part of his lying strategy.
During the Great Tribulation he will pull out all stops where he will totally deceive the earth dwellers. He will use every avenue of deceit available to him. I see the internet as a very powerful tool that he will use.
• Satan deceives man relative to man... he makes out that mankind is better than he is. Yet he despises us. He loves the philosophies of "materialism", "humanism" and "hedonism."
• Satan deceives man relative to the world, flesh and the Devil. He gets us to think we are big and strong enough to overcome the world, the flesh and the Devil. We can't!
• Satan deceives man relative to the Gospel. He doesn't mind man going to church but he doesn't want us to get saved. Satan has thoroughly blinded the minds of the unbelievers from the Gospel of Christ.
☆ 2 Corinthians 4:4...
"... the god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, Who is the image of God, should shine unto them."
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☆ Revelation 12:10-12...
"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, [Now is come] salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
Therefore rejoice, you heavens, and you that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has but a short time."
▪ "And I heard..." reminds us that the Apostle John is still the spectator of all that is seen and heard. And remember his testimony is true.
When Satan is finally kicked out of heaven there will be great rejoicing by and among the redeemed. Ohhh yes!
▪ ... a loud (great) voice saying in heaven..."
Very likely refers to the Old Testament saints and/or the Tribulation saints who have been martyred up to this point because they mention their brethren on the earth... "for the accuser of our brethren is cast down."
They wear white robes.
☆ Revelation 6:10-11...
"And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, do You not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."
The next great demonstration of power to be exerted against evil after (since) the death and resurrection of Christ is the casting out of Satan from heaven.
This will lead to the Lord Jesus taking over the reins of government down here on earth at long last.
Christ's victorious death on the cross, opened the way for Satan being cast out of heaven.
There is...
• power in the Cross of Christ,
• power in the Blood of Christ,
• power in the Name of Jesus.
[Why Satan's removal from heaven hasn't taken place sooner, I don't have an answer for. God is sovereign. He sees all and knows all. It is not for me, a mere mortal, to question God. But, I do wonder. This is a mystery that God still has to disclose.]
☆ Colossians 2:14-15...
"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross...
And having spoiled principalities and powers, Christ made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it."
We now look at four great blood bought heavenly freedoms that are going to come to pass when Christ comes.
▪ "Now is come"... that is come to completion... consummation time at last!
▪ "now is come salvation..."
Our salvation will not be totally complete in every detail (consummated) until we are in His presence.
When we are born again, we are saved. We live our salvation on earth on this side of eternity. When we die and go to heaven we enter into our full salvation.
When on earth we receive a down payment. In heaven we receive it in it's entirety... it will be paid in full!
☆ 1 John 3:2...
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is."
▪ "now is come strength (power)..."
Over the centuries mankind, individuals and nations have abused their power... big time. Millions upon millions of lives have been destroyed, cities have been decimated... untold misery unleashed.
How awesome and how wonderful it will be when Jesus Christ finally takes power and control on this earth.
He will rule in power, in righteousness and with justice.
▪ "now is come the Kingdom of our God..."
is finally established on the earth.
When Christ takes control then there will be true peace and righteousness and freedom on this earth.
This very statement confirms the fact that this physical Kingdom wasn't established on the earth at Christ's first coming.
What did Christ establish at His first coming?
The Kingdom of heaven within man's heart.
▪ "now is come the power (authority) of His Christ..."
This shows that Christ has not yet taken over the governmental authority of this world.
But He will rule and reign. Absolutely!
Satan will no longer be in control.
All of the terrible judgments in Revelation are in preparation for Christ's return to earth.
The earth dwellers are being warned and... are still given an opportunity to turn to Him...
Multitudes will do so... but sadly many will still refuse to repent.
There is always a note of grace in the judgment of God.
▪ "... the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night."
As already mentioned, Satan the accuser will be finally cast out of heaven. Note how persistent he is... he accuses day and night. A real tattle-tale.
Making accusations is a big part of Satan's strategy to thwart Christ's Church today and even the Tribulation saints tomorrow.
This is the reason for Christ's present ministry in heaven... Advocacy (defense) for the saints.
Victory for the "accused saints" (overcoming Satan) is achieved in 3 ways...
▪ they overcame "... by the blood of the Lamb..."
The many references to the blood of the Lamb makes it necessary for it to be on display in heaven. This is not a crude idea. Rather, it's the awfulness of our sins which made it necessary for Him to shed His precious blood.
If you have victory, it will be because Christ the Lamb of God shed His blood for us.
▪︎ they overcame "... by the word of their testimony..."
This reveals that they were true martyrs... true witnesses. Those who are Christ's cannot deny Him. There is something strengthening in giving a testimony. Let the world know that you belong to Christ and that you are in Christ. There is something very powerful in sharing your own personal encounter with Christ, with the unbeliever.
▪︎ they overcame by "... they loved not their lives unto the death..."
This is truly an exalted plane in life to come to, where you and I make the Lord Jesus the first love in our life and put love of self down to second, third, fourth, or some other place.
This is where you willingly lay down your life (die) for the Lord Jesus and His cause. He becomes more worth to you than your own life.
Remember, Jesus Christ is the Resurrection and the Life and He holds in His hands the keys of death and Hell.
Death is something that is no longer feared by the Christian.
▪ "Therefore rejoice, you heavens, and you that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea, for the Devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has but a short time."
There are two very radical reactions to Satan being cast out of heaven.
• Firstly... there's great rejoicing in heaven because this treacherous, vile, evil fiend has been thrown out of heaven forever. A case of good riddance to bad rubbish.
• Secondly... there is a terrible WOE upon the earth dwellers.
The Devil has come down on the earth... and he is in one foul mood (having great wrath).
This is the third woe that extends through to the pouring out of the seven bowls (vials) of wrath.
The only joy, if you can call it that, for the earth dwellers is that Satan's sojourn on the earth is brief... forty-two months. There is a big step up of tribulation during this period.
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The Dragon (Satan) persecuted the Woman (Israel).
☆ Revelation 12:13-14...
"And when the Dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the Woman which brought forth the Man child.
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the Serpent."
When Satan sees he has been cast onto planet earth, he is full of wrath and he's out to do what he does best... wreak havoc on the earth.
Satan hates the Woman and so he persecutes Israel, because it is Israel who brought into the world... Christ the Manchild.
This is the last wave of anti-Semitism that will roll over the world, and it is the worst, because Satan has been cast down to the earth and knows that his time is short.
We now enter a time called Jacob's Trouble.
▪ "... to the Woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place..."
God has prepared a place for the Woman in the wilderness.
It is her safe place... it is a specific place organised by God. He gives her "two wings of a great eagle."
Not eagle, but great eagle.
Is she flown (air lifted?) to safety.
Whatever... God is in total charge of her safe removal.
Israel is not unfamiliar with the phrase... "two wings of an eagle."
It is reminiscent of the grace of God in His past deliverance of Israel from Egypt.
He said to them... "You have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto Myself.
☆ Exodus 19:4...
Israel did not come out of Egypt by her own effort or her own ability.
She came out because God brought her out, and eagle's wings became a symbol to her.
Here again in the Great Tribulation, Israel cannot deliver herself, and no one is interested in delivering her.
But God... will get her out on "eagle's wings" by His grace.
Remember, when Christ was teaching His disciples about the end times, He said...
☆ Matthew 24:16...
"Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains..."
I believe this to be a literal wilderness.
Is it possible for it to be the same one in which Israel spent forty years under Moses?
Could the location of Petra be a possibility after all?
What about Masada??
▪ "... where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the Serpent."
God will undergird and sustain the Woman (Israel).
God will supply all her needs according to His riches in glory.
☆ Philippians 4:19...
In Moses' day, God provided manna from heaven and water from the Rock.
That was Divine supernatural sustenance.
What God did then... He can and will do again.
How long will she be nourished for in this wilderness?
We are told she will be there three and a half years (42 months instead of 40 years)
And from whom? The face of the dreaded Serpent (Satan).
☆ Revelation 12:15...
"And the Serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood."
What is Satan's response?
The Serpent spews from his mouth water as a flood.
This could be literal water... a lot of it... a flood of it.
Satan's intention is to "drown" the Woman... that is, to destroy her completely.
In the past God delivered the children of Israel from water before they entered the wilderness and... again at the end of the wilderness at the Jordan River.
God can do that again.
"The Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save."
☆ Isaiah 59:1..
Another possibility...the "flood of water" could be representative of enemy armies "flowing like a river" upon them.
This figure of speech has been used by Isaiah.
☆ Isaiah 8:7...
"Now therefore, behold, the Lord brings up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria, and all his glory: and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks."
If an army(ies)... whose army(ies) might they be?
The armies of Antichrist??
We will have more to say about him later.
Antichrist is the dangerous tool... is the treacherous mouthpiece of Satan himself.
Satan empowers and energises the Antichrist to do his evil bidding.
In Ezekiel's picture of the end time, the king of the north (Russia? Syria?) is seen marching on Israel. Hmmm!
How will this "king" be stopped?
Are there other "kings" marching against Israel?
Sadly, we find out, there is no nation to help Israel.
Satan will use every possible means to destroy this people.
But... but... but... God is there!
God has not given up on Israel. Never!
☆ Revelation 12:16...
"And the earth helped the Woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the Dragon cast out of his mouth."
God delivers Israel (helps the Woman) by opening the earth and swallowing up the flood of water.
An earthquake perhaps causing a giant fissure in the earth?
With God, all things are possible.
God using natural forces? Oh yeah!
Remember... He is the God of Creation.
What did He do at the Red Sea when God led the children of Israel out of Egypt??
☆ Ezekiel 38:22...
"And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
☆ Ezekiel 38:23...
"Thus will I magnify Myself, and sanctify Myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD."
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5 ■■ The Remnant of Israel...
☆ Revelation 12:17...
"And the Dragon was wrath with the Woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ."
Satan is extremely unhappy. He is absolutely livid with the Woman. He didn't have his way... he couldn't destroy her.
He looks for someone else to pick on. So he makes war with the remnant of her seed.
Who are they?
All we are told is they keep the commandments of God (are they under the Law?)... and... they have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
They are born again but are not the Church.
▪ "... the rest of her seed..." may refer to the remnant who are God's witness in this period... the 144,000 Jews who have been sealed (chapter 7) by the Living God.
They are believed to be Jewish evangelists evidently witnessing throughout the world.
Note... "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
☆ Revelation 19:10...
The 144,000 Jews could be prophets as well as evangelists.
I will repeat a statement I made earlier to finish off chapter 12 of Revelation...
I personally believe, that all anti-Semitic attacks are rooted in Satan's deep hatred for God, for Israel and for Christ. Satan has been a constant thorn in Israel's side and he has used and is still using people and nations to persecute, harass and destroy Israel...
This has included people groups such as the Arabs and Muslims... and countries such as Iraq, Iran, Egypt, the German Nazi regime during WWII as well as the Russian progroms under Stalin...
Unfortunately during the Great Tribulation an even greater attack on the Jews will be seen... but