Rev 12 The Woman, The Dragon & The End Time PDF

The Woman, The Dragon & The End Time 1  Revelation 12 The 12th chapter of Revelation outlines the age-long battle between The ‘woman’, the true church of Jesus Christ, and the Dragon, Satan. There will be no respite in this battle until t...

The Woman, The Dragon & The End Time 1  Revelation 12 The 12th chapter of Revelation outlines the age-long battle between The ‘woman’, the true church of Jesus Christ, and the Dragon, Satan. There will be no respite in this battle until the Groom, Christ, intervenes to deliver His bride & bring an end to sin and Satan. 2  Revelation 12 cont’d The Woman: The church of Jesus Christ – His bride. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church & gave Himself for it…that He might present it to Himself a glorious church…” Ephesians 5: 25, 27. 3  The Bride of Christ – The Church “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” Rev 19: 7, 8. 4  The Bride of Christ – The Church The Woman is clothed with the sun. What does the sun represent? “But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings.” Malachi 4: 2. 5  The Bride of Christ – The Church So the church (the Woman) is clothed with the glory of Christ, the Sun of Righteousness. 6  The Woman The Moon under her feet. The moon is the lesser of the two great lights in the heavens. It reflects or testifies of the light of the sun. 7  The Woman Since Christ is the True light of Righteousness, the ‘moon’ which reflects that light is the foundation on which the church stands, i.e. the Scriptures. 8  The Woman cont’d “Now…you are…members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.” Ephesians 2:19, 20. 9  The Woman cont’d Jesus Himself said: “You search the Scriptures…for these are they which testify of Me.” John 5: 39. 10  The Woman cont’d The woman wears a crown of twelve stars. She is royalty, the bride of the King, transitioning from the “12 tribes” church of national Israel to the “12 apostles” church of spiritual Israel. 11  The Woman cont’d In both Old Testament and New Testament times Jesus chose 12 to begin His “Holy Nation Church”. 12  The Woman cont’d The Woman is pregnant & cries out in labor pain to give birth, (Revelation 12:2). The Woman is clearly the (Jewish) church at the time of Christ. She is under Roman oppression (the birth pains), and is anticipating the coming deliverer (the Messiah, the Seed of the Woman). 13  Enter the Dragon “And another sign appeared in heaven: a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth”. 14  Enter the Dragon cont’d “And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her child as soon as it was born.” Revelation 12: 3, 4. 15  The Woman and the Dragon It is clear from this passage that the dragon is Satan and the stars are the angels that were cast out of heaven with him. “So, the dragon [is]that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan.” Rev. 12: 9. 16  The Woman and the Dragon The crowns and the seven heads suggest he rules through the Roman kingdom which was built on seven mountains (see Rev. 13:1, 2). The tail by which he drew a third of the angels is significant. 17  The Woman and the Dragon By what means did Lucifer convince the angels to join him in rebellion against God? By lies, deceptions. “…[A]nd the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail,” Isaiah 9:15. “…[F]or he is a liar and the father of it,” John 8:44. 18  The Male Child “And she bore a Male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and to His throne.” Revelation 12: 5. 19  The Conflict At the time of the birth of Jesus the Roman Empire ruled the world, including Judea. The Jews were under severe oppression (the birth pains) and they were eagerly anticipating the appearance of Messiah to destroy their enemy and restore their sovereignty. The Messiah came but not the way they expected, and so not many accepted Him as Messiah. 20  The Conflict cont’d The Roman power tried to destroy Jesus at His birth. “The dragon stood before the woman… to devour her child as soon as it was born.” Rev 12:4. The Bible tells us that Herod, the Roman king, did try to kill Jesus, the Male Child, while He was still a child. The dragon worked through Rome. The dragon did eventually kill the Male Child, who, three days later arose and ascended to heaven. (See Gen. 3:15). 21  The Conflict cont’d It is interesting that the description given of the dragon is identical to that of Rome, the Beast of Revelation 13. 22  The Conflict “Then…I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns…” Rev 13: 1. Therefore, the conclusion is that Rome was, and is, the chief political & religious agent through which Satan works. 23  The Conflict cont’d The next event that John witnessed after the ascension of the Male Child is the Woman, the Church, fleeing into the Wilderness where she is nurtured and protected by God for 1260 days/years. What could possibly cause this flight of the Woman? The next verses will give us the answer. 24  War in Heaven Immediately after stating the ascension of the Male Child, Christ, John said that war broke out in heaven: “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.” Rev 12:7, 8. 25  War in Heaven The context of the chapter suggests that this war occurred after the crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Christ. The logical question arises: Wasn’t Satan cast out of heaven many thousands of years before, after he sinned? 26  War in Heaven “John now presents briefly the history of the great controversy between Satan and Christ in heaven, from its origin to the time of Christ’s victory at the cross… 27  War in Heaven “…the final casting out of Satan at that time to this earth (Rev. 12:10–12), and the course of the controversy on earth down to the time of the end,” (Rev. 12:7–9; cf. Col. 2:14, 15. 28  War in Heaven “This brief survey stands as a background for the extended delineation of developments in the conflict during the time of the end, by means of which it is finally and successfully terminated (Rev 12:17 – 20: 15).” Nichol, Francis D., The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol.7, 809, (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association) 1978. 29  War in Heaven “Nevertheless, it seems that he [Satan] had access to heavenly beings, and to a limited extent, possibly as ‘prince of this world’ (John 12:31; Lk 4:6), but not as an inhabitant of heaven.” 30  War in Heaven “That John here (Rev 12:9) refers most particularly to events connected with Christ’s triumph at the cross is evident from the context.” SDABC, Vol. 7, p. 810. 31  War in Heaven “Obviously, the fall here referred to came after a period during which Satan had been accusing “the brethren,” and it would therefore appear that this cannot be the original casting [down] of Satan prior to the creation of our world.” (SDABC, Vol. 7, p. 810). After he sinned, Satan was cast down from the ‘high mountain of God’ (His throne) but not immediately cast out of heaven. (See Eze.28: 16, 17 for the casting down and the casting out). 32  War in Heaven Jesus intimated that His death would result in the casting out of Satan and salvation for the world: “Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” John 12: 31, 32. 33  War in Heaven God clearly revealed to the Son, in a vision, what His death would accomplish. Jesus said to the 70 missionaries that He sent out: “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” Luke 10: 18. 34  War in Heaven “In this statement Jesus looked forward to the crucifixion, when the power of Satan would be broken.” Nichol, Francis D., The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association) 1978. 35  War in Heaven Lucifer’s actions were so shrouded in mystery that the loyal angels themselves needed to clearly see that his actions and accusations against Christ were false. 36  War in Heaven cont’d There are passages in the Bible that indicate that Satan had access to heaven for a long time after he sinned. He was removed from his high position as one of the covering cherubim but not yet completely banished from heaven. Two key passages give insight into that issue. 37  Satan’s Comings & Goings “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. And the LORD said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’” 38  The Accuser of the Brethren cont’d “So Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.’” Job 1: 6, 7.” This verse indicates that Satan traversed between heaven and earth for a while. 39  The Accuser of the Brethren Satan often tempts us to sin and then stands before God to accuse us. Case in point: “Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. And the LORD said to Satan, ‘The LORD rebuke you, Satan! …Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?’” Zech 3: 1, 2. NKJV. 40  The Accuser of the Brethren cont’d The Joshua scene is clearly a court scene. Joshua stands guilty before the bar of God, with his accuser presenting a case before God of the high priest’s offense. However, the Angel of the LORD, Christ, stands in defense of Joshua. This scene was a vision given to Zechariah to reveal to him the legal battles that frequently take place in the heavenly courts. 41  The Accuser of the Brethren cont’d  All these scenes took place in the universal court, in the presence of God, with Satan being the accuser and Jesus being the defender of the accused. These are indicators of the perennial legal battles that have transpired in the heavenly courts. These accusations from Satan challenge God’s justice, God’s righteousness and our worthiness to be saved. 42  War in Heaven  What could possibly be the reason for this war in heaven? Could Satan have challenged God about Christ’s position and authority? The Bible reveals that at the resurrection of Jesus a [seeming] legal challenge arose. 43  War in Heaven  According to Ephesians 4:8 - “…When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts to men.”(NKJV).  “…When He ascended on high He led a host of captives and gave gifts to men.”(ESV). What does this mean? 44  War in Heaven cont’d At the resurrection of Jesus, a number of saints rose with Him. “…and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.” Matthew 27: 52, 53. 45  War in Heaven cont’d These He took with Him to heaven as a token of His victory over death and Satan. He had the legal right to the “purchased possession” which He purchased with His own blood. The price for our redemption was paid and Satan no longer had any claim over God’s people. He stood before the universe a defeated foe. 46  War in Heaven “The loyal angels did not then understand fully the issues involved. But when Satan basely shed the blood of Christ, he stood exposed completely and forever before the heavenly world. Henceforth his activities were further restricted” (see DA 761). SDABC Vol. 7, p. 809. 47  War in Heaven cont’d Satan’s accusations were silenced; he had no counter argument. His lies and all his diabolic schemes were laid open before the universe at last. In his Satanic rage he launched an attack at Christ. 48  War in Heaven cont’d “And there was war in heaven: Michael and His angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon… 49  War in heaven cont’d “…and his angels fought; but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them… 50  War in Heaven cont’d “…in heaven Any longer.” Revelation 12: 7, 8 51  War in Heaven cont’d “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth and his angels were cast out with him.” Revelation 12:9 52  War in Heaven “That John here (Rev. 12:9) refers most particularly to events connected with Christ’s triumph on the cross is evident from the context (vs. 10–13).” Nichol, Francis D., The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association) 1978. 53  War in Heaven This casting out is also the fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy: “…therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God…” “I will cast thee to the ground...” Eze. 28: 16, 17. 54  War in Heaven And also, Isaiah’s taunting hymn at Lucifer’s fall, that it was after many years of destroying nations that he was finally cast out. 55  War in Heaven “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground which didst weaken the nations!” Isaiah 14:12. 56  War on Earth Heaven is now free from the accusing taunts of the dragon. His lies, his deceptions, his hatred of Christ and His law are all clearly revealed to the heavenly hosts. He has completely lost all their sympathies. He is embarrassed, full of wrath and terrified of his impending fate. 57  War on Earth “The casting down of Satan as an accuser of the brethren in heaven was accomplished by the great work of Christ in giving up His life. Notwithstanding Satan’s persistent opposition, the plan of redemption was being carried out. Man was esteemed of sufficient value for Christ to sacrifice His life for him…” 58  War on Earth “…Satan, knowing that the empire he had usurped would in the end be wrested from him, determined to spare no pains to destroy as many as possible of the creatures whom God had created in His image. He hated man because Christ had manifested for him such forgiving love and pity… 59  War on Earth “…and he now prepared to practice upon him every species of deception by which he might be lost; he pursued his course with more energy because of his own hopeless condition.”  3Spirit of Prophecy, 194, 195. 60  War on Earth He has been exposed and banished from heaven. He will now unleash his fury upon the Woman, the bride of the One he hates so much. 61  War on Earth At the casting out of Satan there is great rejoicing in heaven. “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before God day and night, has been cast down.” Revelation 12: 10. 62  War on Earth The consummation of the plan of salvation was delayed during the legal battles with the dragon. God had to give Lucifer a fair chance to develop and present his case against the justice and righteousness of God in saving a fallen human race. 63  War on Earth Now that the matter is settled in the heavenly courts, the hosts of heaven rejoice in anticipation of the imminent salvation of their brethren on earth, and the restoration of the kingdom. They rejoice to know that the blood of the Lamb has prevailed to ransom the Church from the powers of sin and death. 64  War on Earth  They joyously declare that the saints would overcome “…by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” The blood of the Lamb would give the assurance of salvation and victory to the saints down through the ages of the conflict with Satan. 65  War on Earth The heavenly hosts knew that the dragon would unleash his Satanic fury on the Woman (the Church), and so they declare: “Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” Revelation 12:12 66  War on Earth Indeed, the devil has for centuries unleashed a wave of persecution against the woman: “Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.” 67  War on Earth History is drenched with the blood-written testimonies of the martyrs of Christ. Ever since the founding of the Christian church Satan has had a field day in the unleashing of his wrath against the woman. But he has always lost the battle, for even in death the saints were victorious. They “overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” 68  War on Earth  The dragon unleashed his attack firstly from among the Jews and then the Romans. They targeted the leaders of the church first of all. History tells us that all the apostles, except John, suffered a martyrs death in various parts of the world where they went to minister. 69  War on Earth Martyrs of Jesus Stoning of Stephen  Stephen was stoned to death by the Jews in the autumn of A.D. 34.  James the son of Zebedee, the elder brother of the apostle John, was executed about A.D. 44 by King Herod Agrippa I of Judea. 70  War on Earth  Matthew was said to have been pinned to the ground and beheaded in Nadabah, Ethiopia, about A.D. 60.  James the brother of Jesus was said to have been cast down from the Temple tower in Jerusalem around A.D. 66. When he was not killed by the fall, his head was bashed in by a fuller’s club. 71  War on Earth  Matthias is said to have been stoned at Jerusalem and then beheaded.  Andrew, the brother of Peter, was crucified on an X- shaped cross in Edessa. This cross came to be known as the St. Andrews Cross. 72  War on Earth  Mark was dragged to pieces in Alexandria when he condemned idolatry.  Peter was crucified upside in Rome by Emperor Nero.  Paul was beheaded by Nero in A.D. 66. 73  War on Earth Jude was crucified in Edessa, Mesopotamia about A.D. 72  Bartholomew was beaten and crucified in East India after he translated the Gospel of Matthew into their language. 74  War on Earth  Thomas preached in Persia, Parthia, and India. In India he was tortured by angry pagans, thrust through with spears, and thrown into the flames of an oven.  Luke is said to have been hung from an olive tree in Athens, Greece in A.D. 93. 75  War on Earth  John the apostle, was arrested and sent to Rome where he was thrown into a large vessel of boiling oil but he was not harmed by it. He was then banished by Emperor Domitian to the Isle of Patmos where he wrote the book of Revelation. After his release he returned to Ephesus where he died a natural death in A.D. 98. 76  War on Earth With the passage of time the persecution became more intense and relentless. After the Roman Empire collapsed the Apostate Church of Rome took the reigns of power. “The serpent spewed water out of its mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood.” Revelation 12:15. 77  War on Earth The dragon worked through the Roman Empire & the Roman Church in its attempt to destroy the True Bride of Christ. The mouth of verse 15 is the organ of speech. A nation speaks through its legislature. 78  War on Earth History confirms prophecy, because it is a fact that the Church of Rome issued decrees (Papal Bulls), & nations under her dominion also issued orders (decrees) for the persecution of Christians. 79  War on Earth  Like a flood, the persecution did threaten to “carry away” the woman. Over the centuries millions of committed Bible-believing Christians were cut down by the dragon. But they all died as victors, claiming the efficacy of the Blood of the Lamb. With their death many others were born for the kingdom. 80  War on Earth  “For several centuries the papal church raged throughout the world like a hungry beast, slaughtering thousands of true believers in Christ and torturing and mutilating thousands more. It was the “Dark Age” of the Church. The Waldenses in France were the first victims of the fury of the papal persecution.” Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, 52. 81  War on Earth  “About A.D. 1000, when the light of the true Gospel had almost been put out by darkness and superstition, a few …became determined to show the light of the Gospel in its real purity.” By 1140 the number of reformed believers was so great “that the pope became alarmed and wrote many princes that they should drive them out of their principalities.”  Ibid., 52. 82  War on Earth  “The Inquisition was a medieval church court appointed to prosecute heretics, those so named who opposed the errors and superstitions of the papal church…In 1231, Pope Gregory IX formally instituted the papal Inquisition. …Gregory ordered convicted heretics to be…burned.”  Ibid., 55. 83  War on Earth  After many centuries of hiding in the “wilderness” the true woman was to find a place of retreat. “But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of its mouth.”  Revelation 12:16. 84  War on Earth  How did the earth help the woman? What is the meaning of “earth” in this passage? In symbolic prophecy ‘seas’ or ‘waters’ symbolize very populous areas. See Daniel 7:2, Rev 13:2; 17:15. By contrast, ‘earth’ represents a less populous area of the planet. 85  War on Earth History reveals that the persecuted church of Europe found freedom from persecution in a land across the Atlantic, America. 86  War on Earth  That voyage began an exodus of persecuted Christians from the Old World to the New. A new nation, built on the principles of religious liberty was founded. 87  War on Earth The first set of pilgrims left Holland in the ship the May Flower and Landed on the shores of America in November 1620. They founded a nation and enshrined religious liberty in its constitution. 88  War on Earth  “In that grand old document which our forefathers set forth as their bill of rights- the Declaration of Independence- they declared: 89  War on Earth “We hold these rights to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” 90  War on Earth “…that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; 91  War on Earth “that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.’” The Great Controversy, 295. 92  War on Earth  ‘The earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood.’ As the floods represent persecution, and the mouth represents legislation, the way the earth (America) helped the woman, was through its laws that guaranteed religious freedom, thus eliminating persecution that was legislated in the Old World. 93  War on Earth “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Great Controversy, 295. The earth did help the Woman. 94  War on Earth  The dragon lost the battle once again. This time he is very angry: “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war the remnant [those who remain; those who have escaped; those who are saved] of her seed, that keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus.” Rev. 12:17.  The final battle of the ages will be most intense. But the blood of the Lamb is still potent. We shall overcome the dragon once again. 95  War on Earth Under the current New World Order, the true followers of Jesus Christ will not be tolerated. Global Governance will mean global oppression for the people of God. It happened in the past, it shall happen again. The dragon knows that he has but a short time. He intends to destroy the people and the religion of God from the earth. 96  The Victory  “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.” Rev 12:11.  Unless the individual has a living experience with Jesus Christ he/she will not be able to conquer the dragon. 97  The Victory  Only those whose names are written in the Book of Life will stand against the dragon in these last days. The intensity of the persecution that is just ahead of us will require a faith ten times stronger than that of Daniel’s. No one who does not have an intimate experience with Christ will stand in the upcoming crisis. 98  The Victory  The prophet Daniel gives us a sneak preview into what lies ahead for the people of God: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation… 99  The Victory  “…even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book.” Daniel 12:1. 100  The Invitation  Jesus is knocking at your heart’s door. He wants to save you, but He will not force his way in. Only you can let him in. That emptiness in your heart was created by Him & for Him to fill. 101  The Invitation “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev 3: 20. 102  Ready or Not… “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Rev 22: 12. Are you ready for Jesus to come? 103