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The
Child And
The Great Red Dragon
–
Revelation Twelve is a dividing line in the book of Revelation.
The picture in this chapter takes us back to Genesis 3:15. "And I will put
enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall
bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his
heel." The seed of a woman was in a struggle with Satan. Satan was ready
to devour the child. Here we do not see the battles. Those are pictured in the
Gospels.
The woman in this story is the whole family of God or the true
Israel of God for all times. "Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth
is named." (Ephesians 3:15) God's people are in a war against Satan. There
is also war in heaven; a struggle between the powers of heaven and the great
red dragon. (Revelation 12:7-9) Michael and his angels fought against the
dragon, in behalf of the people of God.
A shout of victory is heard because of the blood of the Lamb.
"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,
ye heavens, and ye 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 knoweth
that he hath but a short time." (Revelation 12:10-12)
Satan, through his lies, works to destroy the church but victory
belongs to the faithful people of God.
A woman and a great red dragon – Revelation 12:1-3:
Who is this woman? The woman is the true Israel of God.
"Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and
cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of
the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith
the LORD." (Isaiah 54:1)
The woman includes the Old Testament Israel, because through them
the Messiah was born. The nation of
The people of God may be looked upon by those on earth as lowly,
persecuted, and hated people. God, from the heavenly viewpoint, sees His people
through radiant glory--Arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her and a crown
with twelve stars upon her head. God's covenant people will see victory.
"And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy,
and upon the Israel of God." (Galatians 6:16) The Devil is a looser man,
but the faithful of God always win!
Who is the child that is brought forth? The only logical
conclusion is that He is Jesus. He is to rule all nations with a rod of iron.
"And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that
with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron:
and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and
wrath of Almighty God." (Revelation 19:15)
In contrast with the woman and her child is the great red dragon.
This can only be Satan. He is pictured with: (1) Seven heads--authority or
world dominion, (2) Ten horns--complete destructive power, and (3) Seven
crowns--symbolizing a ruler and not victory. This can only be the one first
pictured in Genesis 3:15.
The child and the dragon – Revelation 12:4-6: The
great red dragon was so cunning that at his fall he took with him a third of
the angels of heaven. He even did his best to destroy the child that was born.
However, the child lived to become the Lamb of God. Satan could do nothing as
Jesus is caught up into heaven. The Devil then turns to destroy the woman but God
also has a place of protection for her.
In spite of all that the Devil did
the woman brought forth a man child. "For unto us a child is born, unto us
a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name
shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty
God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of
Peace." (Isaiah 9:6) The picture in Revelation twelve is not just that of
the birth of Jesus, but also His death, resurrection and ascension.
Just as
War in heaven – Revelation 12:7-12: Michael
and his angels fought against the Devil and his angels. The Devil had once been
in heaven in the presence of God. (Job 1-2) Now there is joy in heaven because
he is cast out. Now the Devil can be overcome.
God's people overcome by the blood of
Christ. It is not by their merit at all. They overcome by the word of His
testimony. The only ones going to heaven are those who personally live by God's
word and teach it to others. They overcome by loving God more than they love
their own lives. They will be faithful even if it means death!
War on the earth – Revelation 12:13-17: The
war on earth had to do with the persecution of the church by man and the
protection of the church by God. God's people were given strength--two wings of
the great eagle. They were in a place of nourishment. The three and one half
years is the entire Christian age. God protects preserves and loves His people.
During all this time the Devil is
still trying to win. He dumps rives of water upon God's people in the form of
ungodliness, destruction and wickedness. The destructive lies of Satan are just
another attempt to destroy the church. "In this chapter, Satan, the great
enemy of mankind, depicted here as the dragon, has been introduced; but he will
appear repeatedly in several different guises in the subsequent chapters of
this prophecy."
It must be the goal of every true
Christian to honor God regardless of the difficulty in doing so.
The gospel is God's great news that Jesus died for sinners.
Jesus said, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." (Mark
- - -
- Charles Box
News & Notes
1. Prayer
List:
2. Requesting
Our Prayers: Jeff Owens responded to our Lord’s invitation. Please
remember him in your personal private prayers.
3. Placed
Membership: We welcome Frankie Friend to the Walnut Street Church of
Christ. Her husband is William (January 29th), daughter is Melissa
(October 30th), granddaughter is Abigail Grace (August 2nd),
and Frankie’s birthday is July 19th. Their address is
4. Remember
To Pray: Eric Bagents
needs our prayers as he serves in
5.
6. Golden
Age Banquet: The Golden Age Banquet will be on
7. Birthdays:
Celebrating birthdays this week are: December 25th Emma Lee Gafford, December 26th Jamie
Powell, December 27th Liz Sessions, December 29th Sydney
Owens, and December 31st Libby Bozeman and Tim Croley.
8.
9. Church
Meeting Again: Mark Lance reported that the church in
10. Youth
Group Provides Plaque: Our youth group provided a plaque for the bench
made by Nelson Daughtry which reads: “Made by Nelson Daughtry, Elder 1965-1997, Walnut
Street Church of Christ.” Nelson, we love and appreciate you!
11. Sign-Up
Sheets For 2006: The sign-up sheets for closing the building, driving
the van, preparing communion, and greeting visitors for 2006 are on the
bulletin board. Please sign-up to help – NOW!
12.
Ladies Bible Class: The Wednesday morn-ing
Ladies Bible Class will not meet until
13. Bible Class Teachers Needed: The church always needs good Bible class teachers. There is a need for a Toddler teacher at present. See Mike Bagents if you have an interest in teaching. Teaching a Bible class is a wonderful opportunity to serve God.
I WANT...
As we near the
holiday season, let us all remember just how extremely blessed we all are. Let us all find contentment in the life that
God has given us. “I want a nicer car. I
want some nicer clothes. I want more money. I want a new CD. I want a flat
screen TV. We hear ourselves or others make statements like these just about
every day don't we? We live in a very materialistic society. Sure, we need
material things to survive, and it's alright to have nice things, but we shouldn't be too concerned about the things
that we have. Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy
"I've got it made," is a phrase that we sometimes hear people say. The devil uses earthly riches to fool us into thinking that we can get along just fine without God. It is a sad day when a mortal begins to feel this way.
Jesus once told a parable about a man who trusted in riches: “And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, what shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, this will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. (Luke 12:16-21)
The question
that we ask ourselves as we go through life should not be, "What do I
want?" But rather, "What can I give?" If we search after
monetary gain and physical possessions, then what will we have at the end of
life aside from disappointment and regret? If we have the attitude of,
"What have I done for Christ today?" instead of, "I want this
today," then we will seek righteous things and we will be rich toward God.
Be Rich in the things that matter...”
----Jonathan Powell
God will
forgive those who start late in life to serve Him, but He will not forgive
those who quit early.