Visit our new blog. It lists all the new things that we are doing and what new material has been added to our site. We even list new missionaries who sign up with us for technical support so you can pray for them. FCM News
1 A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman
clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of
twelve stars on her head.
2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give
birth.
3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with
seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads.
4 His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them
to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about
to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was
born.
5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations
with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to
his throne.
6 The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by
God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
Revelation 12:1-6
Explanation:
The seventh trumpet ushers in the bowl judgments, but in the intervening
chapters John sees the conflict between God and Satan. He sees the
source of all sin, evil, persecution, and suffering on the earth,
and he understands why the great battle between the forces of God
and Satan must soon take place. In these chapters the nature of
evil is exposed, and Satan is seen in all his wickedness. The woman
represents God's faithful people who have been waiting for the Messiah;
the crown of 12 stars represents the 12 tribes of Israel. God set
apart the Jews for himself and that nation gave birth to the Messiah.
The male child is Jesus, born to a devout Jew named Mary.
Evil King Herod's desire to kill this newborn king,
whom he saw as a threat to his throne, was motivated by Satan, who
wanted to kill the world's Savior. The heavenly pageant of Revelation
12 shows that Christ's quiet birth in the town of Bethlehem had
cosmic significance. The enormous red dragon, Satan, has seven heads,
ten horns, and seven crowns, representing his power and the kingdoms
of the world over which he rules. The stars that plunged to earth
with him are usually considered to be the angels who fell with Satan
and became his demons. According to Hebrew tradition, one-third
of all the angels in heaven fell with Satan. For more on demons,
see the notes on 9:3ff and Mark 5:1-20. The desert represents a
place of spiritual refuge and protection from Satan. Because God
aided the woman's escape into the desert, we can be sure that he
offers security to all true believers. Satan always attacks God's
people, but God keeps them spiritually secure. Some will experience
physical harm, but all will be protected from spiritual harm. God
will not let Satan take the souls of God's true followers. The 1'260
days (3 1/2 years) is the same length of time that the dragon is
allowed to exercise his authority (13:5) and that the holy city
is trampled (see the second note on 11:3).
7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against
the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.
9 The great dragon was hurled down--that ancient serpent called
the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled
to the earth, and his angels with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come
the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the
authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses
them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.
11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of
their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink
from death.
Revelation 12:7-11
Explanation:
This event fulfills Daniel 12:1. Michael is a high-ranking angel.
One of his responsibilities is to guard God's community of believers.
Much more happened at Christ's birth, death, and resurrection than
most people realize.
A war between the forces of good and evil was under
way. With Christ's resurrection, Satan's ultimate defeat was assured.
Some believe that Satan's fall to earth took place at Jesus' resurrection
or ascension and that the 1,260 days is a symbolic way of referring
to the time between Christ's first and second comings. Others say
that Satan's defeat will occur in the middle of a literal seven-year
tribulation period, following the rapture of the church and preceding
the second coming of Christ and the beginning of Christ's 1,000-year
reign. Whatever the case, we must remember that Christ is victorious--Satan
has already been defeated because of Christ's death on the cross.
The devil is not a symbol or legend; he is very real. Originally
Satan was an angel of God, but through his own pride, he became
corrupt. The devil is God's enemy, and he constantly tries to hinder
God's work, but he is limited by God's power and can do only what
he is permitted to do (Job 1:6-2:8). The name Satan means accuser.
He actively looks for people to attack. Satan likes to pursue believers
who are vulnerable in their faith, who are spiritually weak, or
who are isolated from other believers. Even though God permits the
devil to do his work in this world, God is still in control. And
Jesus has complete power over Satan--he defeated Satan when he died
and rose again for the sins of mankind. One day Satan will be bound
forever, never again to do his evil work. Many believe that until
this time, Satan still had access to God. But here his access is
forever barred. He can no longer accuse people before God. The critical
blow to Satan came when the Lamb, Jesus Christ, shed his blood for
our sins. The victory is won by sacrifices we make because of our
faith in him. As we face the battle with Satan, we should not fear
it or try to escape from it, but we should loyally serve Christ,
who alone brings victory.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But
woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to
you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."
13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he
pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she
might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she
would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of
the serpent's reach.
15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to
overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent.
16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing
the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make
war against the rest of her offspring--those who obey God's commandments
and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
Revelation 12:12-17
Explanation:
The devil begins to step up his persecution because he knows that
his time is short. We are living in the last days, and Satan's work
has become more intense. Even though the devil is very powerful,
as we can see by the condition of our world, he is always under
God's control. One of the reasons God allows Satan to work evil
and bring temptation is so that those who pretend to be Christ's
followers will be weeded out from Christ's true believers. knowing
that the last great confrontation with Jesus Christ is near, Satan
is desperately trying to recruit as great an enemy force as possible
for his final battle. While the woman represents faithful Jews and
the child represents Christ, the rest of her offspring could be
either Jewish believers or, most likely, all believers. The apostle
Paul tells us that we are in a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:10-12).
John says that the war is still being waged, but the outcome has
already been determined. Satan and his followers have been defeated
and will be destroyed. Nevertheless, Satan is battling daily to
bring more into his ranks and to keep his own from defecting to
God's side. Those who belong to Christ have gone into battle on
God's side, and he has guaranteed them victory. God will not lose
the war, but we must make certain not to lose the battle for our
own souls. Don't waver in your commitment to Christ. a great spiritual
battle is being fought, and there is no time for indecision.
