Revelation 12: The Epic War Of The Ages (Part 2) Series

Dr. Bradford Reaves

Crossway Christian Fellowship

Hagerstown, MD

www.mycrossway.org

https://mycrossway.churchcenter.com/episodes/141884

We are continuing through Revelation 12 tonight and we are considering the topic of this chapter on the Epic War of the Ages. We introduced this to you a couple of weeks ago. With having a couple of weeks off, it would be a good idea to provide you with a brief review of what we’re studying.

Chapter 12 is a broad brushstroke of history going all the way back to when Satan fell and attempted to lead a rebellion against God in Heaven and continues through to the victorious coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and his defeat over Satan. We learned last time that since the fall of Satan and then the deception and fall of man, Satan has worked insidiously to hinder God’s people and thwart God’s blessings over His people, especially Israel.

That was the essence of Revelation 12:1-6 that we studied a couple of weeks ago. The Woman described in Chapter 12:1 is Israel. She is pregnant with a child, meaning Christ the Messiah. The Dragon in verse 3 is obviously Satan. And the child in verse 5, of course, is Jesus Christ. Lastly, in verse 6 we hear that the woman (Israel) was forced to flee into the wilderness for 1,260 days, which is 3 1/2 years, meaning the last half of the Tribulation Period, known as the Great Tribulation. It is at this time that the Antichrist will turn against the Jews, offer an unholy sacrifice in the Temple, and demand that he himself be worshipped as God.

Jesus talks about this event in Matthew 24:15-16: “15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.” A key characteristic of this period of time is the great deceptions that Satan will actively employ to deceive people. Matt 24:23-24 “23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”

The only way you will not be deceived is to know God’s Word. If you don’t know your Bible, then it is impossible to know doctrine and theology and if you do not understand the foundations of doctrine and theology then you will not be able to discern false doctrine and teachers. Satan is on a mission to destroy your faith - he wants to unseat Christ from the throne of your heart. If not to destroy you, then to prevent you from sharing that faith with your family, children, and friends.

7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 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. (Revelation 12:7–9)

This may come as a surprise to you and really, it needs to be understood because it leads to a great deal of bad theology, but Satan’s current home is not in Hell. In fact, Satan has never been to hell. Satan spends most of his time right now in Heaven. Verse 10 tells us what he is doing:

10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. (Revelation 12:10)

Satan accuses us of our sins before God. Satan doesn’t want God to extend His grace and forgiveness to us, nor does he want us to be the recipient of God’s forgiveness and blessings. Satan will do whatever he can to convince you that you are unworthy of God’s gift of salvation

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44)

Satan’s goal is the same as it was in the Garden: to deceive us to rebel against God’s moral law and fall into the trap of his counterfeit kingdom. Throughout all of history, Satan has deceived the nations and he will continue to do so. I believe he is well aware of the late hour of this world and is working overtime deceiving us through demonic philosophies, psychologies, the media, medical ‘science,’ immoral behaviors, and so on. Satan makes war against God, His holy angels, and the people of this earth who worship and serve Christ Jesus. He wants the entire world to worship him and destroy those who follow Christ.