The Woman vs. the Dragon
REVELATION 12: 1-17
(December 21)
Have you ever seen something and been so astounded by what you saw that you couldn't believe you were actually seeing it? That has happened to me several times. Once, I witnessed an accident between a vehicle and kid on a bicycle. It was so unbelievable to me as I watched the impact and what happened next. I almost couldn't believe I was seeing what I saw.
Another time, I had an up close and personal experience with my favorite country western singer. (If you really know me, no names are necessary.) I was equally incredible, only in a much more positive way, and my mind couldn't believe what was happening.
I can only imagine what amazement we will all have when we witness Jesus face-to-face. Will we even be able to comprehend the majesty of what we are seeing? It is exciting to think about.
In today's scripture reading, John sees something in heaven that he finds incredulous, and of great significance. A woman, clothed with the sun appeared. She had a crown of stars on her head (12 to be exact) and the moon at her feet. She was crying out in labor pains as she was about to deliver a baby.
A large red dragon appeared. This dragon had seven heads with seven crowns, and it had ten horns. With a tail so large it swept away 1/3 of the stars in the sky, it had no problem tossing those stars down to earth. That dragon stood there waiting for the woman to give birth, because it had every intent of devouring that baby.
The woman gave birth to a son who would rule all the nations. The child was snatched away from the dragon and caught up to God and to his throne. The woman ran off to the wilderness to a place that had been prepared for her for protection in the coming 1,260 days.
What does this all represent? How are we to decipher this vision? The woman represents the faithful followers of God. They have been waiting for the Messiah to come. The crown of 12 stars that adorned her head represents the 12 tribes of Israel. The male child, of course, is Jesus. If you remember in the story of his birth, King Herod was anxiously waiting to destroy the infant, who he saw as a threat. This desire was encouraged by Satan (red dragon) because he also wanted the Savior of the world to die.
So what happened next? The "war in heaven" began, in which the forces of good and evil went toe to toe. The good fought against the bad, and the good won. The dragon and his angels were forced out of heaven and were thrown down to the earth. The dragon threatened the woman again, but she was given two wings to fly to safety. When the devil tried to drown her with a flood of water from his mouth, the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river. The dragon declared war against the rest of the woman's children ... literally all who keep God's commandments and follow Jesus.
Do you see that come to pass in your own life? Has the devil come after you, time and time again? He is fulfilling the promise made to war against us. He is doing his best to yank us from the loving arms of Christ and hurl us into the fiery flames of his rule.
But we are stronger than he thinks, and he has no authority over us as long as we cling to Jesus. He may cause us some pain and suffering, but we win in the end, because with Christ, we are victorious against the enemy.