He Reigns
Bible reading
1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who ‘will rule all the nations with an iron sceptre.’ And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
– Revelation 12:1-9 (NIVUK)
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down – that ancient snake called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Devotional
I like the end of a really good thriller when all the pieces finally fall into place and all the confusion of the last two hours is answered. At the same time, I do enjoy trying to figure out what’s going on, trying to fit the pieces together and waiting to see if I’m right or if I didn’t understand a thing.
This is what is happening with John. He is living this thriller called life and he knows that he is just a small part of it. The story began a long time ago and might not end for many more years. He’s been given a view of the end, to see how all the pieces are going to fit together. And in Chapter 12 he’s been given images of the past that help him, and us, understand our present reality which gives us hope and assurance for the future.
This is a history lesson of earthly events from a heavenly perspective. This is the real version of what the birth and ministry of Jesus looked like from Heaven!
The war in heaven was started at the birth of Jesus, continued throughout his ministry, and finally stopped at his death and resurrection. All of heaven fought against the dragon and his angels and it is here that the war ended because Jesus was victorious, and the dragon was defeated.
We don’t always remember that heaven won. Life is often difficult, and we see evil all around us. But the reality is that Jesus is victorious, and the power of evil is limited and will be short-lived. We can stand assured that all evil will be dealt with completely. We can overcome it because we stand safe behind the Lamb who won our salvation and offers it to us.
– Connie Main Duarte
This devotional is part of a series that helps us navigate the texts of the book of Revelation with fresh eyes. A new devotional every Saturday.
These devotionals are available in Portuguese and in English.