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Victory Series
Contributed by Jorge Poveda on Jul 31, 2011 (message contributor)
Summary: Explanation and application of the woman in Revelation 12
Revelation 12: 1,2
*First woman who went to the moon, “Dr. Wendy Jacobson was hired by NASA in 1968 right out of college as a lunar geologist, where she helped support the missions of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12. Then, in November of 1969, when then-President Nixon announced the extension of the Apollo program, she did something that no woman had ever thought to do before. She applied for a selection in the next class of astronauts. Then she accomplished something else that no woman had ever done before. She was selected in that class. In December of 1975, Dr. Jacobson flew on the flight of Apollo 23 and became not only the first woman to walk on the Moon, but one of the first people to explore the lunar South Pole. Today I am going to talk about another woman who stepped on the moon. Revelation 12:1,2
1) Walking on the moon
a. Symbol of conquest
i. Psalm 136:9 (the Bible declares the moon and the stars are the rulers of night
ii. Authority (Gen 37:9) _Moon, Sun and stars represent Jacob and his family
iii. 1 kings 5:3 ( symbol of conquest and property)
iv. Job 1:7 (feet on it) Hebrew= Halak/ the controversy started not from God words in the book of Job, but from Satan proudness proclamation that the earth was his. He claimed every human being was obedient to him. That is why God showed Satan's mistake mentioning Job's righteousness.
1. Keep your feet from the Sabbath (Isa 58:13) God was clarifying his holy day cannot be touch and manage by men.
b. God fulfill promises Psalm 89:37
Messianic prophecy (Psalm 8:6- Jesus will conquer everything.
2) Woman in the scriptures represents
a. Faithful people of God
b. Adulterous woman-Unfaithful people of God
c. Child birth- woman (Isa 26: 16, 17- means tribulation and persecution)
i. The Messiah prophecy
1. In Jewish tradition childbirth is always related with the coming of the Messiah. The new testament illustrates second coming of Christ as child birth pain.
3) Her Outfit
a. Clothed with the sun
i. Sun in the Old Testament
1. Sun worship (the OT prevent to related the God of Israel with the sun)
2. Only 1 quote illustrates God’s power with the sun. (Mal 4:2) God’s righteousness.
3. His being endures forever (Psalm 72: 17)
Clothed with the sun/ Holland and sherry- a Scottish company that outfitted celebrities such as George Clooney, Nicole Kidman and Tom cruise, developed the most expensive clothe. $4,319 per yard. The cloth was made of Vicuna wool. But here the book of revelation this woman is wearing a cloth out of this world. She is wearing a sunny dress. The woman represents the people of God. She is wearing the sun, represents the people covered by the righteousness of Christ.
She wears a crown with 12 stars
i. 12 stars on her crown (12 is a number God chose to divide Israel, 12 are the apostles Jesus picked in his ministry, at 12 years old Jesus appeared in the public scene, 12 gates in the new Jerusalem, perfect number- perfect government.
• A perfect government/ in 1516 a Thomas Moore novel, describes a perfect place, a perfect government, the place was called Utopia. We are in 2011 we have not reach that ideal. Everyday is getting worse. Only God’s kingdom will bring perfection and harmony in the diversity.
• Crown (stefanos-olive wreath) diadema (royalty-use by)
• She is not a queen yet, she wears an olive wreath
• She is a conqueror/ fighter
o The crown relates with the first horseman of Revelation 6:2 (a conqueror who carries a bow but no arrows) the peaceful invitation to accept Jesus as our Lord and savior. When I went to Ephesus my eyes were drawn to the figure, a winged woman sculpted on a wall. Then the guide said, "that is Nike" which means victory, in the greek mythology, the sister of Kratos, Bias and Zelus. Her task in Greek Mythology was to proclaim the victory of the victor and reward them. The church is depicted with a victor crown. Christians we are called to keep the faith, fight the good fight, to proclaim the wonders of our Lord Jesus Christ to the world. We are called to proclaim what he has done on the cross, his victory. It is time to wear the wreath, it is time to preach the gospel boldly, the Holy Spirit is moving to recruit a team to spread the gospel. Today is the day of victory in Jesus.