He Reigns
Bible reading
14 They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. 15 ‘Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.’ 16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon. 17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘It is done!’
– Revelation 16:14-17 (NIVUK)
Devotional
It had been a busy week and I was tired. I still had to clean the house and then I knew I needed to work on the back garden, it was a mess and I needed to dig it out. I was not looking forward to it! It took me a while to clean the house and I felt bone-weary, but the garden was still there and I couldn’t put it off any longer. I slowly changed into my work clothes dreading the work ahead. I walked to the back door, took a deep breath and opened the door. And there, standing in the garden were my husband and my son, both holding shovels, and with smiles on their faces, it was done, the work I had prepared to do, that I was dreading to do, was finished! I didn’t ask them to do it, they offered. I didn’t know they had done it; it was a surprise gift.
This is the image that John sees in Revelation 16:14-17. The powers of evil have all joined together to fight in a great war against Jesus and heaven. They are prepared and ready for a battle. They have gathered all their evil in one place, and now, with their swords drawn they want a fight. Suddenly, heaven opens, and a voice from the throne says: “it is done”. And just like that, it’s over. There is no fighting, no blood shed, no war to be fought… it is done!
This is probably the biggest shock in the book of Revelation. Evil seems to be winning, the Church seems weak after being under constant attack and appears to be ready to collapse. All of society has turned towards evil and they want to destroy everything that is good. So, they are ready to fight and take the victory. But the victory has already been won. Jesus defeated Satan, evil and death when He died on the cross and rose again. No other battle was necessary. It is done!
As we look at our society and see the degradation of what we hold dear and even sacred we might be tempted to think that we’ve lost. We might start to believe that darkness just might overcome the light. But do not fear and do not be dismayed. The battle belongs to the Lord. It is done! The Lamb is victorious, light has overcome the darkness and life has triumphed over death. So stand firm and live and share hope, the Lamb has overcome – it is done!
– 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.