The Woman and the Dragon: The Place of the Church in the Last Days
Revelation 12:1-17
The book of Revelation is filled with strange and wonderful symbolism, which is charged with emotion. In chapter 12, a woman appears clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. The woman represents the people of Israel (Genesis 37:9). The sun is Jacob, which God called Israel, the moon is his wife Rachel, and the twelve stars are the twelve sons of Israel. The purpose of Israel was to bring forth the Messiah into the world. The red dragon is the devil who once was a glorious angel, but who rebelled against God, and in an attempt to take his place, led a revolt, taking with him a third of the angels of heaven who then became demons. The prophet Isaiah describes the scene when he writes: “How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit” (Isaiah 14:12-15). The devil, represented by the dragon, is said to attempt to kill the woman’s child. He hates God and God’s Son, as well as the people of God. Remember that shortly after Jesus’ birth, Herod, the Roman ruler, followed the devil’s will as he killed all the children in that region in an attempt to kill Jesus, the child-king. His parents escaped to Egypt. The devil also roused the people of Jesus’ own hometown to kill him (Luke 4:29). Finally, the devil tried to kill him on the cross, but Jesus was “snatched up to the throne of God,” and Christ’s resurrection and ascension decisively defeated the devil’s plans to destroy the Messiah. God’s plan to save the world through Christ prevailed, and the devil was thrown down to the earth through the redemptive work of Christ. Finding himself limited to the earth, he pursues the woman who now represents all the people of God in an attempt to harm God’s followers. As Austin Farrer says, “It is precisely when Satan has lost the battle for the souls of the saints in heaven that he begins the fruitless persecution of their bodies.” The water that spews forth from the dragon’s mouth like a river represents the persecution of the people of God. In other words, a flood of persecution comes against the church as the devil goes off to make war against the woman and the rest of her offspring — “those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” It is interesting that it is water that comes from the dragon’s mouth. Normally, the imagery is fire coming from a dragon’s mouth, but this is symbolic of his lack of power to do real harm. The basic message of Revelation 12 is that there is a vital role for the church to play during the world’s last days. There are three important messages that John is giving us in this chapter about the place of the church in the last days, and the first is: They will be God’s witnesses. As the world’s darkness deepens, it is never more important for us to be the light of the world. As the world travels further into error, it is never more important for us to announce the truth. As the world becomes more and more immersed in its own sin, it is never more important for us to be an example of moral and ethical integrity. As the world gives in to the pressures of conformity, it is never more important to be people of courage and strength.
The Bible describes the last meeting between Jesus and his disciples, prior to his ascension. It says, “So when they met together, they asked him, ‘Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He said to them: ‘It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:6-8). This is our purpose as the church. Being God’s witnesses is the work we are to be involved in until the Lord returns. And it is not done in our own power, but only as the Holy Spirit comes upon us. A Mercedes Benz TV commercial has a camera follow their car as it collides with a cement wall during a safety test. The car comes through the test amazingly well — far less damage to the body than you would expect, and leaving the crash dummy without a mark. A man then interviews the company spokesman, asking him why they do not enforce their patent on Mercedes Benz’s energy-absorbing design, especially since they know other companies are copying their design. The spokesman simply looks at him and says, “Because some things in life are too important not to share.” In other words, Mercedes Benz is more concerned about saving lives than they are protecting their rights. Something that will save lives is just too important not to share. The purpose of our lives is not to protect our rights, and ourselves because what we have is just too important not to share. We dare not keep this to ourselves and thereby shut others out of the kingdom. Plus, it is the thing that gives our lives power and enables us to overcome the evil of this world. Remember how the persecuted people of God overcame the power of evil in the last days? It says, “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 12:11). They did not overcome by being silent, but by the word of their testimony, and they did so under tremendous opposition and persecution.
Jesus taught his disciples, saying, “Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Matthew 10:17-20). Our purpose is to speak the word of truth and share with people the transforming power of Jesus Christ. They need to know that he can change their lives and bring them forgiveness. But how will they know if we do not tell them? We cannot be more concerned with protecting ourselves than we are about getting the word out, because that is what Christ has charged us to do. I am always amazed as I read about the lives of the first Christians. Listen to this passage from the book of Acts: “They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 5:40-42). They were beaten, and threatened with more, but their minds were on the honor of sharing in the sufferings of Christ, and the privilege of sharing the good news. John wrote the book of Revelation to a group of people who were suffering greatly because they dared to be Christ’s witnesses. John too was suffering, for he wrote, “I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos (a prison) because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus” (Revelation 1:9). They refused to be quiet, because the news was too good and too important to keep to themselves. In spite of the persecution, “the word of God continued to increase and spread” (Acts 12:24). Why should it be any less today?
The second thing we should understand about the church’s place in the last days is: They will be persecuted. Whatever your interpretation of Revelation, whether you believe the people of God will go through the Tribulation or be spared from it, you understand that the church will face persecution. In fact, the church is facing persecution in almost every corner of the world today. In China, followers of Jesus are killed, imprisoned and tortured. Their homes are destroyed and their means of making a living are taken from them. When the Iron Curtain came down, and all the missionaries were expelled from the country, many thought that was the end of Christianity in China. But when China became open to the West again, what we found was a church that had multiplied greatly. The number of Christians had exploded, and the church was strong in spite of the enormous price people paid in order to follow Christ. What we have discovered throughout history is that when the church is persecuted it becomes stronger and more pure than ever. People take their faith seriously. We have to understand that we are in a spiritual war, and we have a very powerful enemy. The apostle Peter wrote, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings” (1 Peter 5:8-9). We have an adversary who wants to destroy us spiritually and rob us of eternal life. His hatred toward God extends to God’s people. But we are not to fear him, for Jesus said, “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). We need to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world who are at this very hour undergoing enormous suffering, merely because they dare to name the name of Jesus. Churches are burned in many of the Muslim countries, and it is illegal to become a Christian. Families disown those who put their faith in Christ.
They are being sold into slavery in the Sudan. Christians are beaten or arrested for having a Bible in North Korea. But in spite of their suffering, they are begging for Bibles and sharing their faith. They meet secretly for worship. They are living out what we have read about in the 12th chapter of Revelation. Jesus said, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). The wrath of our enemy is against us, but, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). We are to expect opposition, and we are to expect God’s strength, which will enable us to endure. The Bible says, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). Not everyone is going to love us, and some will even hate us. But God will be with us like he was with Daniel in the lion’s den. He will be with us like the Hebrews in the fiery furnace. He will be with us like he was with Jeremiah and the other prophets who spoke the word of God and experienced mistreatment by the world, but came through it victoriously. The Bible speaks of those who were persecuted for their faith when it says, “Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated — the world was not worthy of them” (Hebrews 11:36-38). The world was not worthy of them, but heaven will welcome them. The third thing we should understand about the church’s place in the last days is: They will be victorious. Here is the power of God. The people of God are often in the minority; they are persecuted and killed for their faith; they are overwhelmed by the political and military powers of the world, and yet they are victorious. They overcome all the odds and overcome the world. Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Listen again to how the people of God become victorious: “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 12:11). The church will overcome when they take great risks for the kingdom of God. We overcome when we begin to risk and live dangerously for God. It is not in sitting in our comfortable homes, or church, that we overcome; it is by getting outside the walls and beginning to make a difference in the world. It takes courage to overcome, and this is a precious quality, which God rewards mightily. Near the end of the book of Revelation, we hear Jesus say; “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ He said to me: ‘It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death” (Revelation 21:3-8). Those who are cowardly find themselves sharing the same fate as those who have been immoral and evil. But those who are willing to suffer for Christ find that every tear is wiped away and they have no more pain. They find that everything is new.
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. preached about death and heaven like he might be going there at any time. He said, “The minute you conquer the fear of death, at that moment you are free. I submit to you that if a man hasn’t discovered something that he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.” Many years later, Cassie Bernall who was shot to death at Columbine High School, after telling her assailant that she believed in God, was inspired by King’s words. She had underlined King’s thoughts on death and courage. Did she, like King, sense what would happen in her life and the courage she would need for that time? One writer said, “Why did these words speak to her at such a young age? It is such a great mystery. But I do know this. She had found something she was willing to live for, and even to die for, and that made all the difference in her life.” Jesus said, “This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). We are called to be God’s witnesses and to endure temporary persecution, in order to be ultimately victorious and inherit an eternal kingdom.
