Main characters—
The Woman
Revelation 12:1-2 NIV
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.
She is not than Mary, but she is far than Mary.
Revelation 12:6 NIV
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 12:17 NIV
Those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
The woman is God’s redeemed across redemptive .
The Dragon
Revelation 12:3-4 NIV
Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads.
The dragon is personified, opposing God’s redemptive work through lies, fear, and coercive .
Revelation 12:9 NIV
The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.
Revelation 12:4 NIV
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.
The dragon always like the of the age.
The Child
Revelation 12:5 NIV
She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.
This child is the , born to .
“Why jump from birth to ascension? Why go right from being born in Bethlehem to being installed on the throne of the Universe? Because, that is the purpose for which He was born! In his trial before Pilate, who was unknowingly in cahoots with the dragon, Jesus says, ‘You have correctly said that I am a King. For this purpose I have been born.’ Because that is the whole point. He was born into the world to be King of the world.” —Darrel Johnson, Future Hope
Revelation 12 is prophetic .
Revelation 12:10-12 NIV
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.
This is not the nativity story we grew up with, but it is the nativity story all the same. Jesus’ birth excites more than wonder, it excites evil. It is John’s Spirit-appointed task to ensure that the nativity cannot be sentimentalized into coziness, nor domesticated into drabness, nor commercialized into worldliness… He takes Jesus in a manger, attended by shepherds and wise men and put him in the cosmos attacked by a dragon. The consequence for our faith is that we are fortified against intimidation. —Eugene Peterson, Reversed Thunder
“Therefore rejoice.”
Advent’s Reasons to Rejoice—
1. Joy is from heaven, not on earth.
Luke 2:10-11 NIV
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
Question for Reflection:
What circumstances have I been waiting to change before allowing myself to rejoice, and what would it look like to choose joy now, trusting that God is already at work?
2. Empire depends on ; joy exposes its .
Question for Reflection:
Where do I notice fear shaping my reactions, habits, or decisions, and what might it look like to respond with worship or trust instead?
3. Joy silences
1 John 2:1-2 NIV
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
Question for Reflection:
What accusing voice am I listening to that God has already disqualified, and what would change if I stopped giving it authority?
Answer Key: less, more; community, history; evil, power; dresses, dominant power; Messiah, rule; parody; announced, manufactured; fear, lies; accusation.