Hopefully by now you're very aware that it is St Patrick's Day
on Tuesday.
The life of Patrick the missionary to Ireland is not one
that is insignificant.
It's one that has completely shaped this island since 444 A.D.
and so, on this Sunday closest to the day when we remember that
missionary endeavor, let me lead us in prayer with a prayer of
Patrick that brings us before the Lord.
Let us pray.
I bind myself today to the power of God to guide me, to the
might of God to uphold me, to the wisdom of God to teach me, the
eye of God to watch over me, the ear of God to hear me, the word
of God to speak to me, the way of God to lie before me, the host
of God to defend me.
Amen.
Last week in the first six verses of chapter 12, we saw two
great signs appearing in heaven.
In verse one, a woman, and in verse three, a red dragon.
Now these signs appearing are like any sign that we see.
They point us to something of deeper meaning and understanding.
It was this week that a Liverpool supporter walked up to
me and said, you were spot on on Sunday night.
I says, was I?
And he said, yes, you were the Red Dragon, the Red Devil, Manchester
United.
How could I deny such truth?
Well, if you're a Manchester United supporter, I'm sure you'll
have some other questions for the Liverpool supporters.
But you had these two signs presented to you as John saw them,
pointing us to something deeper, pointing us to something
that must be understood.
And what these first six verses have done for us is to really
set us on a path.
They set the scene for what we now come to in verse seven, but that
will continue for the next chapters.
And so now in verses 7 to 17, we see it being built upon where
more detail is given about the Red Dragon and the conflict there
is between the dragon and the woman.
And in verse nine, we're told who the dragon is, as John tells
us, and the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent
who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole
world.
He was thrown down to the earth and his angels were thrown
down with him.
So the dragon is confirmed to us as the Devil.
He is the one who is waging war in heaven.
And particularly in these days, we see the realities of war
played out on our television screens.
We see the missiles and drones hitting their targets.
We see the destruction of buildings and we see the human casualties.
Pictures like this should horrify us because war should never
be celebrated.
And yet we have a sense of it in the here and now, and yet how
much more is that war in heaven, in the heavenly realms, that
spiritual war?
You see, the sad reality is, as we look at pictures like this
on our television screens, we don't very often see because of how
the media wants to protect us, but the weight of human casualties
in scenes like this, we on this side of the world are seeing
the impact of that war that's going on in the Middle East.
And we've prayed about that.
We have seen fuel prices rise, and maybe soon we will begin to see
our food and other services increase in price.
Because a conflict, a war, will inevitably impact quite a lot
of the world.
But when we turn to Revelation, we're not seeing a war
image like this.
It's a different kind of war that John's trying to communicate
to us, because this is a war in the heavenly realms.
Therefore, it is a spiritual war.
And that spiritual war is not contained only to heaven, but as
we see in this passage, that spiritual warfare comes to the earth.
And we don't have just two characters as if we're pitting one
against the other.
Yes, for sure, it is good versus evil.
But we're introduced to more people in John's vision tonight,
and he's now shown as he reveals to us who those others involved
are.
And it begins in verse seven, where we started, where he confirms
now, war arose in heaven.
And here we're introduced to Mark, Michael and his angels fighting
against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
The language here is one that we must understand is deep conflict.
This is not passivity, as if the devil's going to roll over because
he knows who he's fighting.
If the devil has a breath in his body, and that's another theological
debate, whatever breath he has, he will fight to the bitter
end.
That's why these words here, the dragon and his angels fought
back.
This is to tell us this is no mediocre conflict that simply passes.
This is deep battle.
This is warfare that has never been seen before.
And the conflict, it rages.
And so in this verse, as introduced, we're given an image
of who is fighting the devil.
And the theme of this vision, starting here in verse seven, is
actually one that should give us hope, because it's one of the
defeats suffered by the devil because of the death, the resurrection
and the ascension of Christ.
Now, Michael's presented to us here, he's mentioned here, and we've
already met him before in Scripture, because In Daniel, chapter
10 and verse 13, Daniel describes Michael in this way, the
prince of the kingdom of persia withstood me 21 days.
And then Daniel says, but Michael, one of the chief princes,
came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia.
So what's going on?
This verse is part of a wider context, as you'll appreciate.
Daniel had prayed for God to forgive his people and restore them
to Jerusalem.
And an angel was dispatched to tell Daniel that his prayer had been
heard, but its passage was blocked by an evil angel.
And it was only when Michael, described here as one of the chief
princes, came to help that Daniel's angel then could get through.
So Michael is indeed a mighty warrior.
And on that occasion, it seems that Daniel's persistence in prayer
provided the spiritual resources for Michael's victory.
And the book of Daniel ends with a promise that during the trials
of the church age in Daniel, chapter 12 and verse 1, that indeed
we will see Michael again.
Because Daniel 12, verse 1, says of the time of the end, at that
time shall arise Michael, the great prince, who has charge of your
people.
And there shall be a time of trouble such as never has been seen
since there was a nation till that time.
But at that time your people shall be delivered everyone whose
name shall be found written in the book.
Now, hopefully, already as we've gone through 11 chapters of
Revelation, we see the parallels with Daniel, and here again
we see them.
Daniel tells us that there's going to be tribulation.
Daniel makes mention of Michael, the great prince will arise.
But who are the victors?
Well, Christ ultimately is the victor, but it is his people whose
names are written in.
Daniel calls it the book, but what we know it as, the Lamb's Book
of life.
And so Revelation 12.
Now, jumping back to that and verses seven, it describes this long
foretold holy war that Daniel mentions.
And to understand this passage, we must realize that this
battle took place during the life and ministry of Jesus Christ,
culminating with his ascension into heaven.
Now, why do we say that?
Because of what verse 13 says in chapter 12.
Because it tells us that after the dragon had been thrown down to
the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the
male child.
Now, if we understand this, that the male child is Jesus Christ,
and the woman who gave birth to him, as we discovered last week,
is not literal Mary.
Then who is she?
Well, it seems obvious that the answer for each generation, regardless
of geopolitical opinions, this woman is the representation of the
people of God won by the blood of Christ.
This means that the dragon was cast down just before the church
age Jesus, victory on the cross, crowned with his ascension
to heaven's throne, defeated Satan and his army, after which verses
8 and 9 tell us.
But he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them
in heaven.
And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent
who is called the devil, and Satan, the deceiver of the whole
world, he was thrown down to the earth and his angels were thrown
down with him.
Now, the first thing we have to say about this, or the first question
is, isn't this great news?
Isn't this great?
Look at the start of how verse 8 begins.
Satan is defeated.
He has no authority anymore, no authority to condemn in the heavenly
realms, nor authority to condemn the people of God.
As Paul tells us in Romans 8:1, there is therefore now no condemnation
for those who are in Christ.
Jesus.
Christ's covering of his people by his blood means they do
not face the accuser, the sin Satan, without the confidence that
Christ is enough.
So in his defeat, Satan is enraged and goes after the people
of God.
Now, previously, Satan could legitimately accuse believers in
God's presence because of their sin.
But now that sins are cleansed and forgiven through the cross, he
has no grounds for accusation.
He has no standing, nor does he have a place in the presence of
God.
So this great enemy of the people of God is identified as that
ancient serpent.
So now we know he's the one here in Revelation who spoke to Eve
in the garden and tempted her to sin.
He's also called the devil, the one who slanders and accuses
the people of God.
And Satan, the great adversary and accuser of God and his saints.
He is the one who deceives the entire world, that is, those who
refuse to believe in Christ Jesus.
Nevertheless, both the dragon and his angels are thrown to earth.
They're removed from heaven forever.
Why?
Because of Christ's death and resurrection.
He can no longer be the accuser of God's people because we
have a Redeemer and mediator who stands for us.
And so verse 10 comes with great celebration, loud and clear,
as John tells us of a loud voice in heaven booming this truth.
We're told, that complete victory is the Lord's and his rule
and reign is established forever.
But it's in verse 11, as we've already mentioned, where the real
significance of the war can be seen.
And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the
word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives, even
unto death.
How is Satan defeated?
Defeated by the blood of the Lamb, the Lamb's blood that sets
us free.
That by faith we trust in Christ, just as we saw this morning
with those in Egypt who put the blood on the doorposts and on
the lintel of the door.
By faith they believed.
And still the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sins
as we believe by faith in him.
And so the profound point of this verse is more than Satan being
thrown out of heaven and literally locked out of the eternal
realms there.
The point is that he has no warrant nor basis to accuse believers
now that Christ has come.
And God pays no heed to Satan's accusations, since sin's
penalty has been paid by the blood of the Lamb.
And so this should be a joyful celebration for us as God's people,
for all who trust in the Savior.
And we're told there in verse 12 to rejoice, for we are on the
side of victory.
But like a scorpion with a sting in its tail, the casting out
of Satan and his angels wreaks havoc on the earth.
Satan isn't simply done away with.
And verse 12 confirms that, even as we're called to be joyful
in his defeat, it also warns us and gives a woe unto the earth
that Satan knows his time is short, so he will do whatever he
can to frustrate the children of God.
He.
And so verse 13 tells us.
And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth,
he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
The target of Satan's attack are the people of God.
He's going after them with vengeance.
He'll not rest until he has done away with all Israel.
And so the image of the woman is now presented in verse 14 as being
able to escape having been given two wings.
The passage says of the great eagle.
This enables the people of God to fly away to the wilderness.
And if you recall last week, we know that the wilderness is a
place of refuge and it's a place of sustenance or restoration,
because this is where God meets the needs of his people.
And so this image of rescue on the wings of the eagle is not new
to us.
Again, we go back to the Old Testament and we see this rich imagery
coming from the Old Testament and now making more sense in the
New, because God has already demonstrated this image of salvation
in Exodus 19, verse 4, where he says, you yourselves have seen
what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagle's wings
and brought you to myself.
The Lord declares that he rescued Israel from Egypt by bearing
them on the wings of an eagle, promising, promising to catch them
in those wings, that they would not fall to bear them on his
pinions, or that outer part of the bird's wing, including the flight
feathers.
God would do everything in his power to rescue his people, and that's
what he did in Egypt, and that's what he will do for those
whom the dragon goes after.
So the Lord rescues his people and he brings them into the wilderness,
just as he did with Israel in the Exodus and Elijah in his need
to escape from Ahab and Jezebel.
And as we've seen before, we're given a period of time when
the people of God will be nourished.
So we're told that they will go into the wilderness.
And all we're told is for a time and times and half a time.
Now, this period of time, like the others, is to demonstrate that
God had set a time limit on this action rather than a specific
number of days, weeks, months, or years.
For how can we calculate a time and times and time and a half?
It is to assure God's people that in the midst of tribulation,
he will nourish them and keep them until the period is over, for
he knows how long it is going to last.
And this is what we see in verse 15.
The image is given to us of water coming out of the serpent's
mouth or the dragon's mouth.
The purpose of this is to try and sweep away the woman so that
she cannot escape, but in fact will be devoured by the dragon.
And this is where the spiritual and the physical now combine.
Although the war is spiritual and the attacks of the devil will
come against the people of God, the devil will use physical
means of war, famine, disease and persecution in the midst of the
tribulation to harm God's people and stop them from worshipping
him as their Lord and Savior.
You see, there's something we need to know tonight about Satan.
The devil is cunning and the devil is crafty.
He will do whatever he can to draw God's people away and lead them
into temptation of sin to ruin their testimony and to make them
doubt God just as he did with Eve in the very beginning.
Now, it's not a simple response to sin to say then that
the devil made me do it.
That's not how it works.
You can't blame the devil for you falling into sin.
It is the devil who will tempt us into sin.
See, we know right from wrong, or we should know right from wrong,
and the consequences of our sin are our own.
But the devil will do whatever it takes.
And when we think we have success over an aspect of sin.
Well, he will present the very same sin to us in a different way
so that we will be pulled away from God again and pulled down into
the sin that we're so desperate to avoid and escape.
This is what he does.
As we read it here in verse 17.
Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make
war on the rest of her offspring.
Remember, she's gone into the wilderness, so he's now going to
turn on her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of
God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
And he stood on the sand, the sea.
I'll just say here that standing on the sand of the sea is
setting us up for what's going to come next week, what's going to
come out of the sea.
And so we leave that for now and pick that up next week.
But look at who he's making war on.
On those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the
testimony of Jesus, the people of God.
And so the reason why the devil remains furious with the woman
is that in verse 16, we're told that the earth came to her aid
and actually combated the tribulation that the dragon spewed
quite literally out of its mouth to try and sweep her away.
The passage says that the earth opened up to let this water
drain away.
And so using this image of the earth opening up tells us that God
provides a means of escape for his people, just as he did when Israel
was rescued from Egypt and, and the waters of the Red Sea were
parted for them to walk through.
So we must know that even when the devil comes to try and attack
and pull us away, we will not be destroyed by the serpent.
Because here we're told that God provides a way for our salvation.
The people of God may be rocked by false teaching or moral
compromise, but they will finally and ultimately stand straight
and steadfast because of the victory of Christ.
The devil cannot and will not win, no matter how crafty or cunning
he is.
He will try his best, but he will not succeed.
And so now we see the emotion of the devil.
The devil is enraged because God is protecting the woman.
But his work is not done, as verse 17 tells us.
He takes off to make war against the offspring of the woman,
those who faithfully keep those commandments of God and uphold
the testimony of Jesus.
The conflict that began at the very beginning of history between
the offspring of the woman and the serpent and the does not end
quickly.
The dragon does not cease attacking the people of God.
The battle is unrelenting until the final day.
You see, the dragon will have his strategies and he will contemplate
his victory over God's people.
He stands on that seashore and looks to the sea.
That sea, as we know for the Hebrew people, was a place of chaos
and of evil.
And as we'll see without giving too much away from that very
sea, that place of chaos and evil he calls his allies, he calls
a monster from the midst of the sea to attack the offspring of
the woman.
You see, this tribulation of the devil is relentless, but it does
come to an end.
So what is life like for Christians in this era of history?
According to John, we face the fury of the devil, but too often
we ignore him and rarely contemplate his full scale attack
against us.
I think sometimes the world of Hollywood has belittled our understanding
of the devil.
I've used this many times before where it's often caricatured
that hell is a place of fun, where it's in one endless party with
all your old mates and heaven is this place that is just like church
according to Hollywood.
Or you see the devil on one side and an angel on the other dressed
in white and the devil looking red and with that poker teal and
the person listening to the voices.
And more times than not, who do they side with?
They side with the devil because it's given to us.
Apparently the devil is more fun.
So we've been desensitized to the realities of spiritual warfare
that are raging.
The devil is real, the devil is crafty, the devil is cunning.
And the devil is at work this very night, even in this building.
While preaching a sermon one Sunday morning, I felt the attacks
of the devil.
And anyone who stands in a pulpit will face attacks as well
as any other believer who continues to be drawn close to the
Lord.
For the devil doesn't want us.
When will the devil not work?
Well, the devil won't work when we simply think we're okay and
don't need Jesus.
He doesn't have to do anything, but he will work against
the church.
He will work against God's people, He will work against the
faithful because he wants to pull us away.
But fortunately we have someone who is on our side.
And I love the hymn that Martin Luther wrote at the time of
the Reformation.
It is a great hymn where he describes this person to us as a
man of God's own choosing.
In the verse, Martin Luther writes, did we in our own strength
confide our striving would be losing Were not the right man on
our side, the man of God's own choosing?
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus.
It is He, Lord Sabaoth.
His name.
From age to age the same, and he must win the battle.
Lord Sabaoth.
There is simply the word for Lord of hosts.
But doesn't Luther get it spot on?
Who do we need?
The man of God's own choosing.
Ask who it is and we will tell you.
It is Christ Jesus, the Lord Almighty, the Lord of hosts, and
he must win the battle.
Luther continues to ask, can we endure the devil's rage?
We can, because one little word shall fail him.
Luther's hymn A Mighty Fortress Is Our God is a powerful
hymn that I actually enjoy singing quite a bit because of what
it tells us about the defeat of the evil one, all because of the
blood of the risen Lord Jesus Christ.
This evening I would say to you, O weary or angry desperate soul,
tonight, know that the devil cannot accuse you when you're in
Christ.
He will try, but he will not succeed because we have the man of
God's own choosing on our side, and he has won the battle.
He that is the devil is a defeated foe because of Jesus.
But he will pursue you with that sting in his tail to persecute
you.
But do not fear, because Jesus assures us.
Now, for the second week in a row, with this passage in John 16:33,
Jesus says, I have said these things to you that in me you may
have peace.
In the world, you will have tribulation.
But take heart, I have overcome the world.
So what do we do tonight with this?
How do we make this passage real to us?
That's talking about a battle in the heavenly realms, where Satan
is cast down, where the people of God, where indeed all Israel,
will be persecuted in tribulation because of the attacks
of the fallen devil.
Because he knows he is a defeated foe with short time on his
hands.
Well, if you're in Christ, take heart, because these words of
Jesus assure us that indeed he has overcome the world.
He is the one who will keep us.
He is the one who will protect us.
He is the one who will take us into periods of wilderness to.
To give us refuge and to nourish us.
So trust in him.
Do take heart, O weary and angry and desperate burdened soul,
because he is the victor.
But maybe you're sitting here tonight and you're feeling the weight
of the world and you don't know where to turn because you've
never turned to Jesus.
Well, the weight of this world is Heavy.
And we will see the rage of the Evil One against this world.
Because sin has far reaching consequences.
And so the invitation tonight for your weary, angry and desperate
soul is to come to Jesus for salvation.
To know that there's more than simply the day ahead.
To know that there is a battle that will be wonderful, that Christ
will be the victor.
And that as in the challenge of verse 11 and verse 12, we will
be people of great joy because of that victory over the Evil One.
His time is limited too.
But actually all of our time is limited.
For a day will come when Christ will return.
And those who have trusted him, those who know he has overtaken
the world and so can, can take heart because of what Christ has
accomplished on the cross, will go to be with him in heaven.
But if you're sitting here tonight fighting the tribulation
of this world on your own, well come to Jesus because you don't
have to bear that burden, you don't have to have that weight.
As he's overcome the world for me, so he can overcome the world
for you.
And by his blood.
Just as His Blood cleanses me from my sin, so his blood will cleanse
you if you will but come to Him.
Please don't set your standard by another Christian, because I will
speak for myself and on behalf of other believers that we don't
get it right all the time.
That's why there's wonderful joy in the forgiveness of sins.
Let Jesus be your standard.
Let Jesus be the mark by which you gauge salvation.
For the devil will only want to use you by distracting you and
don't let Him.
If you are thinking of the things of Christ tonight, set Christ
as your standard and look to him and him alone.
Because that's what I strive to do every day.
And I know that other believers in this building do the
same.
So once again we discover that the same responses to demanded from
each of us this night.
As we face the devil, as we face the sting in his tail, as we
face the tribulation that he will bring about on this earth.
And it is to take heart and to come to Jesus because He has won
and he will forgive us of all our sins if we will only but trust
in Him.
We will go to that wilderness and we will know times of refuge
and refreshment not provided by ourself, but by God alone as his
people.
So will you take heart?
Will you trust in the Saviour tonight, knowing that he has overcome
the world?
Therefore, fear not, simply rest Him.
Let us pray.
Our Father God, we thank you that even in passages like this that
speak of warfare, there is glorious hope in the midst of the
battle.
For what we see is a risen Savior who has won where the devil
is cast down, never able to accuse your people again because
of the blood of Jesus.
And so we say thank you for that blood this night.
Thank you for its saving power.
Thank you that it is the only way by which we can come to you for
salvation.
Because Christ has paid it all on the cross.
So Father, help us to respond where our hearts and souls are weary
and angry and desperate and tired.
Father, help us to look to Christ and not to the world where
we need to know refuge and nourishment.
May we take heart because Jesus has overcome the world and
so we can trust in him to keep us until the day when he will take
us home.
Father, may we all respond to Jesus this night.
May we all by faith trust in him and know him as our Lord and
our Savior as we continue to look ever to you, the God who will
lead us home.
And we ask it in Jesus name, Amen.