Prophecy
11
The Rise of Babylon –
Revelation 12:7 – 14:5
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[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
2-
A second
reason why Jesus ascended on
Resurrection Sunday. During Old
Testament times, firstfruits were
presented to God on the first day of
the week.[25] Therefore,
it was fitting that Jesus be
presented to the Father that morning
as the firstfruits of the dead.
Finally,
Jesus was called to Heaven on Sunday
morning to receive a very special
gift. When Adam and Eve sinned, Jesus
volunteered to die in their place. In
return, if Jesus successfully
redeemed mankind, the Father promised
to give the world over to Jesus.[26] After
resting in the tomb, the Father
called Jesus to Heaven to restore His
rightful position as the “prince
of this world.” What Lucifer
stole through deceit, Jesus purchased
with His blood.
The Bible
indicates that Lucifer would not
relinquish his position. There was
war in Heaven that morning and after
Jesus forcibly expelled Lucifer from
Heaven for the last time,[27] He
returned to Earth Sunday afternoon.[28] Jesus
spent the next forty days with His
disciples. He did this for two
important reasons: First, Jesus
needed to provide undisputed evidence
that He had been resurrected.[29] Second,
Jesus needed to prepare His disciples
for His departure and the mission
that loomed before them.[30]
Positions
Change
To appreciate
why the war occurred in Heaven on
Sunday morning, some additional
information is necessary. God is love
and He only rules over those who love
Him and want Him to rule over them.
When Adam and Eve sinned, Jesus lost
His position as “the prince of
mankind” because the carnal
nature of sinners keeps them from
wanting God to rule over them.
Sinners want self-rule and
self-determination. Immediately after
the guilty pair sinned, they became
rebellious toward Jesus because the
sinful nature is naturally hostile
toward God.[31] Think
about this: The sinless natures of
Adam and Eve immediately changed
after they sinned. They became immature
miniatures of Lucifer.
Thus, they became less like Jesus and
more like Lucifer. This is how sin
(and the originator of sin) became
lord and master over them.
When Adam and
Eve sinned, the Father granted the
devil certain authority over Earth.
This recognition explains how Lucifer
became known as “the prince of
this world.”[32] Before
Jesus died on the cross, the Father
permitted Lucifer to attend
administrative meetings in Heaven as
a representative of Earth.[33] After
Jesus paid the penalty for sin on the
cross, the Father resurrected Jesus
and called Him to Heaven so that the
Father could bestow on Him the title
“The Prince of this World.”
Evidently, it was the Father’s
plan that Jesus would serve as
“The Prince of this World”
until He was found worthy to conclude
the sin problem in 1798. At that
time, Jesus was given sovereign power[34] and the
title, “King of kings and Lord
of lords.”[35]
On
Resurrection Sunday, a Heavenly
confrontation took place that
possibly went something like this:
The Father summoned Lucifer and all
of his angels to Heaven. When Jesus
arrived as a triumphant conqueror,
the holy angels fell at His feet.
Naturally, Lucifer and his angels
refused to show any sign of worship
or adoration. The contrast between
Jesus and His angels with the sulking
and hateful Lucifer and his angels
could not have been more obvious.
Before their fall, Lucifer and his
followers had been physically
beautiful.[36] In
fact, Lucifer had stood beside
God’s glorious throne as an
anointed cherub. But now, things were
vastly different. His evil and
tortured mind had disfigured his
beautiful countenance. His face was
malevolent and hatred glowed in his
eyes. Lucifer’s angels also
exhibited the horrifying effects of
sin.
Jesus and
Lucifer stood before the awesome
brilliance that enshrouds God’s
throne. The contrast was shocking.
Lucifer had incited the Jews to
murder Jesus just three days earlier
without considering that he would
have to face the Son of God on this
morning. Since Jesus had perfectly
complied with the Father’s plan
to redeem mankind, the Father had
legitimately and righteously
resurrected Jesus. The tension was
obvious. Everyone standing in that
assembly knew that Jesus had faced
and overcome every temptation Lucifer
had put before Him.[37] Everyone
also knew the Father had promised to
give Earth to Jesus if He perfectly
carried out His will.[38] It was
obvious to everyone in the Heavenly
court that Lucifer was not going to
yield to his mortal enemy without a
fight. Arrogance would rather die
than accept defeat. Lucifer would
rather die as “a hero in
battle” than to surrender to the
authority of Jesus. The Father
presented the facts about the
ministry of Jesus and how He overcame
every temptation, even the temptation
to avoid the second death. The Father
then asked Lucifer to surrender his
position and step down as the prince
of Earth. Lucifer responded bitterly
and swore that he would never
surrender.
The
Sequence:
Revelation
12:7
And
there was war in heaven: Michael and
his angels fought against the dragon;
and the dragon fought and his angels,{7} There
was a war in Heaven. Michael (the
name which Jesus used before coming
to Earth as a human)[39] and His
angels fought against the great red
dragon and his angels.
A few hours
before His death, Jesus made the
following statement: “
‘Father, glorify your
name!’ Then a voice came from
Heaven, ‘I have glorified it,
and will glorify it again.’ The
crowd that was there and heard it
said it had thundered; others said an
angel had spoken to him. Jesus said,
‘This voice was for your
benefit, not mine. Now is the time
for judgment on this world; now
the prince of this world will be
driven out.’ ”[40] Jesus
knew that Lucifer would be
permanently cast out of Heaven if the
Father approved His sacrifice. When
Jesus said, “Now is the time for
judgment on this world,” He
meant that the time had come for the
Father to determine who should be the
rightful prince of this world. When
Jesus said, “now the prince of
this world will be driven out,”
Jesus predicted the war described in
verse 7. This war occurred on
Resurrection Sunday.
Revelation
12:8
And
prevailed not; neither was their
place found any more in heaven.{8} But
the devil and his demons were thrown
out of Heaven, never to enter again.
God did not
destroy the devil and his angels on
Resurrection Sunday because His
purpose for them was not finished.
God permitted open warfare in Heaven
between Lucifer and his angels and
Jesus and his angels for a
significant reason. The Father wanted
to make sure that among the holy
angels, no sympathy for the once
adored and highly exalted Lucifer
remained. This war was not a test of
faith as the first war had been.[41] This
war produced a revelation. The Father
allowed the battle to last long
enough to see where each angel firmly
stood. After 4,000 years, there was
no change. Those loyal to Lucifer
defended their evil leader and
remained unchanged. Those loyal to
Michael also remained unchanged.
Revelation
12:9
And
the great dragon was cast out, that
old serpent, called the Devil, and
Satan, which deceiveth the whole
world: he was cast out into the
earth, and his angels were cast out
with him.{9} Once
the loyalty of the angels was
confirmed, the devil and his angels
were once again thrown out of Heaven,
at the speed of lightning.[42] The
Father threw the devil and his angels
into an earthly abyss and confined
them there.
Ever since
Resurrection Sunday, the devil and
his angels have been bound to this
planet, limited to the dimensions of
the spirit realm (represented to John
as the abyss). Originally, the great
red dragon and his angels were hurled
out of Heaven because of defiance.
Four thousand years later, their
defiance remains unchanged. The great
red dragon is that ancient serpent
called the devil, or Satan, who leads
the whole world astray. He was
hurled into the
Earth, and his angels with him.
Note –
At the fifth trumpet, the devil and
his angels will be permitted to exit
the abyss. Therefore, a time is
coming when the devil and his angels
will physically appear before the
people of Earth.[43] At the
Second Coming, Jesus will destroy the
bodies used by the devil and his
angels and Jesus will return them to
the abyss (spirit realm).[44]
Revelation
12:10
And
I heard a loud voice saying in
heaven, Now is come salvation, and
strength, and the kingdom of our God,
and the power of his Christ: for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down,
which accused them before our God day
and night.{10} After
the war in Heaven ended, I heard a
loud voice in Heaven say: “Now
that salvation has been paid in full
and the devil has been defeated, the
gospel of Jesus Christ and His coming
kingdom will advance with clarity and
power throughout the Earth.
Lucifer’s position as “the
prince of Earth” has been
honorably overthrown by the perfect
life, ministry, death, and
resurrection of Jesus Christ. The
accuser of our human brothers, who
accuses them before God day and
night, has been hurled down and his
endless arguments and accusations in
Heaven against repentant sinners have
been silenced.”[45]
Revelation
12:11
And
they overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb, and by the word of their
testimony; and they loved not their
lives unto the death.{11} The
voice continued: “Even though
our brothers on Earth are sinners,
they are not hopeless or defeated.
Lucifer’s claim that God cannot
legally justify sinners has been
silenced because Jesus paid the price
for every sinner who surrenders to
the directives of the Holy Spirit and
the gospel of Jesus Christ. Through
faith in Christ, repentant sinners
are covered with Christ’s
righteousness (justified as though
they never sinned) in God’s
sight.”[46]
When a person
surrenders to the directives of the
Holy Spirit, he honors and upholds
the Word of God at all costs, and the
word of his testimony proves that he
is loyal to God, even willing to die
for Him if necessary.
Revelation
12:12
Therefore
rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that
dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters
of the earth and of the sea! for the
devil is come down unto you, having
great wrath, because he knoweth that
he hath but a short time.{12} “Therefore,
rejoice holy angels, all of you who
live in Heaven because atonement for
sinners has been paid in full, but
woe to God’s people on Earth for
the devil’s wrath is upon you!
He is filled with fury, because he
now knows that he will fail
miserably. Lucifer and his angels
know they have no further standing in
God’s courtroom or in the court
of public appeal. They are doomed,
condemned to die the second death.
The demons know their days are
numbered and the countdown cannot be
stopped.”
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
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