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Well again, good morning. Please turn in your Bibles to Revelation chapter 12. We'll be looking at verses 7 through 10, but I want to read to you verses 7 through 12. Revelation chapter 12, beginning in chapter 7. I mean chapter 12, verse 7. And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon.

The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough. And there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old, who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come. For the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night. And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony.

And they did not love their life even when faced with death. For this reason, rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time.

Well, the text again takes us into this ongoing conflict between good and evil. It continues to rage, continues to rage now. It has been raging since the very beginning, and it will continue to rage until this war we just read about. All earth reels in the wake of this great conflict.

And this conflict really boils down to a basic struggle: who is going to control humanity? Will humanity bear the image of God's enemy, or will man bear the image of his Creator? So much of the world that we live in is shaped by evil, the presence of evil.

Why do we have wars? Why do you have locks on your doors? That almost rhymes. Why do we have wars and locks on our doors? Why are there police forces? Why jails? All of this. We live in a world that is impacted by evil and our having to deal with evil.

We see it all around us. We see it within us. We identify with the struggles that this world is going through because very much we are part of it. We feel the pool. We feel the influence of evil upon our own lives. And though we live in the presence of evil, we're informed that evil will one day be done away with.

And in the meantime, God wants us to overcome the evil. He wants us to overcome the evil among us. He wants us to overcome the evil within us. How do we do that? Well, our text is going to answer these questions and more. If you'll remember, last week, we started looking at chapter 12.

Right after the seventh trumpet is blown, there is this, again, interim, this interim. That depicts a lot of things that is going to help us understand the end and what's going to come later in Revelation 12. Chapter 12 gives us that big epic picture going all the way back to the very beginning of this conflict between good and evil and takes us all the way to the future.

Last week, we looked in the first six verses, we looked at the woman, her child, and the dragon. The woman, Israel, national Israel. Her child, Christ. Unquestionably, Christ. The dragon, the personification of evil. And he is a complete personification of evil, as we will see a little more in our text.

Next week, we're going to, Lord willing, see this dragon's pursuit of the woman. And we're also going to see God's protection of the woman, a pursuit that will take place in the future, and a protection that will take place in the future. But this week, we want to look at the defeat of the dragon.

And this is another aspect to this backdrop that sets the stage for this final conflict between good and evil. Evil. What chapter 12 does is it helps us understand the backdrop on which this final battle for good and evil, between good and evil, is going to take place.

And so this morning, we'll be looking at the defeat of the dragon. Now, this several verses here, verses 11 or 7 through 12. First, we're going to see the defeat of the dragon in heaven. Second, we will recognize that he is currently being defeated on earth now. So there is a future defeat that is coming.

But also in this text, it speaks of a current defeat that is happening right now. And third, we'll see as we work our way through this text his rage over his defeat, which sets the stage for the final conflict, his rage. But for today, as I'm working through this, I realized we'll only get through the first one.

There's too much theology about angelology here. There's too much theology about soteriology here. How you're saved, angelology, the origin of evil, and the depiction of evil. All that's here. There's also a lot about eschatology, that which is to come. So, we're going to take our time and let this text teach us theology as we walk through it.

But this morning, we'll look at the defeat of the dragon in the heavenly realms. And I want you to look at this defeat that is coming. I want you to see this defeat to encourage you to defeat him now in your own life. So, first, I want you to notice that he will be defeated in heaven.

Look back at verse 7. And there was war in heaven. Stop there for a moment. War came about in heaven. In conjunction with the woman fleeing into the wilderness, and maybe even the cause of the woman fleeing into the wilderness, war erupts in heaven. Why does it erupt?

Doesn't explicitly say. Who attacks who? Doesn't explicitly say. Why it erupts? Well, it's error. We could be sure that it's because with the seventh trumpet blast, you remember there's a couple of announcements. The kingdom of God and his Christ has come. That means the old regime has to leave.

Not his kingdom is coming, still ahead. No, his kingdom has come. With the blowing of the seventh trumpet, his kingdom has come. Now, there's a period of time in the days of the trumpet. We know it's a period of time. But what's happening during that period of time is a retreat of evil, a defeat of evil, and in a continual retreat.

Now, many see this passage here speaking about Satan's original fall. No, this isn't Satan's original fall. This is a future fall. There have been many conflicts in this struggle between good and evil. Satan's defiance of heaven has been epic, and so has his fall, seen in many falls.

Don't confuse this with the original fall. You remember Isaiah. Speaks, gives us a window into that original fall, Isaiah 14:12. Oh, how you have fallen, O star of the morning, son of the dawn, you have been cut down to earth, you who have weakened the nations. But you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven, I will raise my throne above the stars of God, I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north, I will ascend above the heights of the cloud, I will make myself like the Most High.

Nevertheless, you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit. It was his initial pride. The very essence of this evil one is pride. It starts out with, I know more than God does. God has said, He will sit on high, but I say I will elevate my throne above His.

Pride. It's an arrogance. It's an arrogance. It's an inflated view of self and a low view of God. But he will be cast down to the pit, to the recesses of the pit. This is where pride takes us. This is where pride will take you. Do you know more than God?

Do you think so highly of yourself that you would say, God, I will go about my own way, even though I know your word says I shouldn't? That's the image of Satan. That's the spirit of Satan. Whose authority are you under? To whom do you bow? Satan has already fallen.

In the past, Satan has already fallen from the favor of God. We see that very plainly. Sometime before Genesis 3, he fell, or in conjunction with Genesis 3, he fell. But it's clear that he has fallen out of the favor of God. That's his first fall. He is cursed.

Cursed. And God has promised that his kingdom, his power, his influence, his grip, his hold, his persuasion over the earth will be crushed, obliterated, done away with. No, he's already fallen, fallen from God's favor, fallen from a future place. In heaven or on earth, destined to be crushed by the seed of the woman.

So don't confuse this with Satan's original fall. Also, don't confuse this war in heaven with the fall of Satan under the preaching ministry of the disciples in Jesus' name. You remember, Jesus sent out the disciples, gave them power and authority to go and preach and to call people to repent, to call people to himself.

He gave them power and authority over everything that would stay in the way or oppose that proclamation. And the disciples came back in Luke chapter 10, verse 70, 17. The 70 returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. See how powerful the name of the seed of the woman, this Christ who the woman bore in chapter 12, and who is caught up into heaven to God and to his throne, this one, even his name, brings the demons into subjugation.

And Jesus goes on to say, I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to transform. Tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.

You see, the power in the seed of the woman over the dragon is seen in the very power of his name, the mention of his name, and the ministry that goes on in his name. His name has power, the proclamation of his name has power. And this apostolic testimony, this apostolic proclamation is what we continue to proclaim today: same power, undiminished.

Not because we're anything, but because the apostolic testimony connects us to the Christ of Scripture, to whom even the demons are subject to his great name. Also, don't confuse this future war we read about in Revelation 12 with the casting out of Satan at the cross of Christ.

Satan fell at the cross. Satan fell originally in his pride and arrogance. He fell at the beginning. He fell under the teaching and preaching ministry of the apostles. He also fell at the cross. John 12, 31, Jesus says this, now judgment is upon this world. Now, and he's speaking about the time of the crucifixion.

Now, the ruler of this world will be cast out. And if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. And then he goes on to say in John 14:30, I'm not going to speak anymore with you. For the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in me.

But so that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded me. Then he goes on. It says, the ruler of this world has been judged. In John 16, 11. You see, Jesus faced the cross. He faced every temptation to turn back, to avoid it.

His love for the Father was complete. And out of love for the Father, he said, I want the whole world to know how much I love the Father, how much I trust the Father, I will go to the cross and be crucified. And in the process, he atoned for God's people.

He put in the power of God. By his work, he gave God the power to be just while he justifies sinners. Something that Satan could not stand. God can be just in justifying sinners because of the work of Christ. It's Jesus' crucifixion forever throughout, that forever threw out Satan's hope of finding sin in Christ.

It was also at the crucifixion that Jesus threw out Satan's claim against Christ's people on account of their sin because Jesus took their sin. He removed the offense before God. Satan can no longer incite God against his people on the basis of their sin because Christ has paid it all.

God has judged his people's sin in Christ. God can be just in justifying people. So the crucifixion cast out the very basis of Satan's empire and hold over humanity. The perfect humanity has been revealed. Christ. Earth will be populated by a humanity that looks like him. That's what the cross teaches us.

But that fall at the cross is not the fall that's coming in the future. All these falls reveal to us that Satan's power has been diminishing since the very beginning. His power has been fleeting. And the defeat in our text this morning is a continuation of this continual diminishing power and authority of Satan.

It describes yet another future epic battle that will further diminish Satan's power. There was war in heaven. Look back at verse 7. And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war. Who is this war between?

Well, he's going to be defeated in heaven before Michael and his angels. Michael and his angels. Versus the dragon and his angels. And the emphasis is upon the leaders, Michael and the dragon. Michael is called the archangel in Jude 1:9. He is called the chief prince in Daniel 10, 13.

It's clear that he stands guard over Israel in Daniel 12, 1. In fact, let me read that. Daniel speaks of this time. Daniel 12, 1. Now at that time, Michael, the great prince, who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time.

So it's Michael that is leading the angelic forces against the dragon. And in the flow of this prophecy, this war appears, or let me say it like this: this war in heaven really amounts to the dragon's last attempt to devour the woman's child. You remember in the first six verses, we get this sign in heaven, the woman, and then we get this dragon that stands ready to devour the child when the woman gives birth to the child.

His objection. hasn't changed. Even though this child has now been caught up to God and to his throne, that is where he is when the trumpet blows and the announcement is made that the kingdom of God and his Christ have become the kingdom of this world, or the kingdom of this world has now become the kingdom of God and his Christ.

There's war. His desire is still to devour the child. It's still his primary objective, but he must take the war to heaven because that's where Christ is. What is the objective of the conflict in heaven? To devour the Christ. It's futile. It's an assault upon the throne of God.

Objective. Take down the Christ. And if you think about this war, think about what's happened in context. The dragon's demonic forces have been maximized. Remember, in chapter 9, the abyss is open up. The demonic army comes out, does its tormenting, and then the release of the angels bound at the Euphrates unleash a whole demonic cavalry, vast that kills so much of humanity.

Is forces are feeling pretty good. Tanks are full. But with the sounding of the judgment, or the sounding of the trumpet, there's a couple of announcements. Remember, there will be no more delay, says the mighty angel 10, verses 6 and 7. And that Christ has taken hold of his power and has begun to reign.

Chapter 11, verse 17. And in response, the dragon launches his attack in the heavenlies. It is his last major offensive against the woman's child, Jesus Christ. He will be defeated soundly. Why will he be defeated? Look back, verse 8. And they were not strong enough. If that's what you have the NASB, that's what it says.

The ESV is correct. It is not they, it is he. It is he. It is a singular. And he was not strong enough. It's a comparison between the two: Michael and the dragon. But if you look at this. The reason for his defeat, it's upon the dragon, not upon Michael.

The emphasis is, and he was not strong enough. The emphasis is not being put upon the strength of Michael and his angels and the heavenly forces. Oh, that's certainly implied, but the text is having us focus upon the deficiency of the dragon. He's insufficient. Literally, he was not strong enough.

He was insufficient, not capable, not adequate. In so many ways, he is inadequate. Think about what he's doing. He's launched this big attack. He's insufficient. His view of God is insufficient. His view of himself is insufficient. His view of Michael and the angels, insufficient. He's not a good war planner.

Insufficient. And in so Many other ways he is insufficient. His advice is insufficient. His philosophy is insufficient. His ability to satisfy humanity is insufficient. So, why do you serve him? Why go after him? He is insufficient. His ability to deliver, to satisfy, to protect, insufficient. His wisdom is insufficient.

So why follow the God of this age? He is insufficient at every point. And that's. He couldn't stand insufficient to even take care of his own forces. He led them into a slaughterhouse because of his insufficient view of himself and his insufficient view of God, his insufficient tactical planning.

He missed it all. The dragon isn't as powerful as he thinks he is. He isn't as powerful as he makes others think he is. He overestimates himself. As do all those who follow him. Are you humble before the Lord? Do you have an inflated view of yourself? Do you think you know more than God?

Do you purposely set aside God's word and elevate your throne above him? Then you're just like this dragon. Come out of that world. Come out of that realm. Submit to the Creator of your soul and to the Son who He has appointed to reign over you. Well, Satan's defeat is decisive, it's quick and it's complete.

Look back, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. Notice because He was insufficient and because He was not strong enough, there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. There is no longer, there is not a place anymore found for them, the dragon or his angels, dragon and his angels.

It will be a complete defeat. It will be a complete defeat. And the completeness of this defeat, I just want you to see what this looks like. And there was no longer a place found, could be found. As if a great search of a retreating army is looking for a place to find some little place to hold on to.

None. It's like an expansive search done, looking at all options, just to maybe keep just a little place of retreat in heaven. None. It wasn't found anywhere. So the completeness, but it's also the completeness of seeing that he couldn't even leave an informant. The dragon and his angels, all of them, there wasn't a place for even one of them to be able to stay.

Not even a little corner, somewhere. It's a complete, complete defeat. Not even a place to retreat. Therefore, his angels are expelled. He and his angels. They're all gone. It's a complete defeat. But there's also something I want you to see here: it's a complete defeat. Not just because it's a complete expulsion.

But it's a complete expelling of all of his operations in heaven. Look at the identity of the dragon. Look at the different names given here in verse 9. This is incredible. The author of Revelation wants you and I to know precisely who the dragon is. Like I said, there's a sign when God gives us a sign in the scriptures, he knows how to give a sign.

A good sign points us to the reality behind the sign. And he's told us right here: a great sign appeared, a woman, and then another great sign, a dragon. And he tells us exactly and precisely who this dragon personifies. Look at verse 9. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old, who is called the devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world.

He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with them. These names: serpent of old, devil, Satan, who deceives the whole world. This is a description of the evil persona. In fact, it is the most extensive description of the evil persona in the New Testament.

Let's just look at each one of these for a moment. I want you to see who is expelled from heaven and his capacity, all of his operations in heaven cast down. It is, first of all, the great dragon. With the great dragon, he is emphasizing that certainly is emphasizing his ruthlessness, his remorseless hostility, his remorseless brutality.

He is vicious, he is cruel, he is monstrously cruel, the great dragon. Cruel, the murderer, the man-killer from the very beginning, the god-hater and man-killer. He is brutal and ruthless. He's also the serpent of old. And this takes us back to the beginning, this ancient deceiver. This title, The Serpent of Old, is emphasizing his deception activities and how he caused mankind to fall in the first place to their ruin, how he plunged all of mankind into ruin in the first place.

It emphasizes the cleverness in his deception. He is crafty. Skillful, subtle, devious. His philosophies sound good. If you get this picture of a horrific monster with this serpent of old, you're kind of missing the point. He deceives himself. He deceives. He is a master at masquerading. His wisdom seems good at first.

Blush. But what does he do? What did he do to Adam and Eve in the garden? He enticed them to sin, and then he turned around and accused them. Run, boy. You're naked. Run away from God. Isn't that the way he works? Entices you into sin so that he can accuse you before God.

Second, he's called the devil. Devil. This title emphasizes his slanderous works. He defames God. He defames people. He accuses falsely. That's what he does. Has God really said? No, I'll tell you why God doesn't want you going down that road, Eve. It's because he knows when you do.

You'll be just like him. He's not a good God that has given you all this stuff. He's a bad God that wants to keep you down. And that lie is still taken in by the vast majority of inhabitants on earth. You can't submit yourself to God. That's tyranny.

You need to be free to do what you want, when you want, and how you want. Such a God just keeps you down. You don't want to serve him. You want to serve me, says the devil. Serve me by doing what you want, when you want, and how you want.

That's the way he operates. He is the devil. He seeks to separate people from God by slandering God. That's how he killed them in the first place. And he seeks to divide brothers from brothers by slandering one another. That's how he causes death among the household of people.

Also, notice this. He is called Satan. Satan. And this speaks of this. Superhuman adversary, age-old, and it is emphasizing his relentless opposition to God. There is no repentance, there is full-on opposition, unrepentant, unrequited, implacable, continual, always raging, always opposing God, always opposing God's people. That is the name Satan.

That is what he does. That's who he is. And it's interesting to note in many of the contexts where you see this name Satan, it's also in the activity of accusing someone. Job 1. There's Job minding his own business, honoring God. And then there's this event in heaven where Satan comes before God and says, or God starts it all, I guess, by bragging on Job.

What do you think about Job? And Satan gets after him and says, I'll tell you what's wrong. I'll tell you why Job loves you, is because you have protected him so well. But now, if you will set your hand against him, he will curse you to your face.

What's Satan doing in that context? He's accusing God, and he's accusing Job. Who he is, but notice also, he deceives the whole world. Look back. The great dragon thrown down, the serpent of old, called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world. He was thrown down. Well, he deceives the whole world, thrown down.

Three times. He's thrown down, thrown down, thrown down. That speaks of the decisiveness of his defeat. But his chief aim in all of his operations is to deceive people by enticing them into sin, by slandering God, by opposing them. And then, when he does that, he seeks to accuse them before God.

And this is the dragon. He is ruthless. These are his weapons. This is how he operates. He ruthlessly enjoys ruining people. This is why there's such a command: flee from him. Flee. Don't play around. Repent. Turn away. Turn. But notice the decisiveness of his defeat. He will be thrown down.

He will be thrown down. The dragon thrown down three times. Three times in that verse. Boy, our time goes fast. Well, as with any war, there is going to be an impact of this defeat. As with any war, the geopolitical landscape changes. Well, such is the case here.

The dragon's defeat in heaven impacts both heaven and earth. Because it's what happens in the heavenlies that shows up in the earthlies. First, I want to look at the impact of this defeat in verse 10. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come.

Stop there. There's an impact on earth. An impact. Then I heard a loud voice. This is probably the chorus of humanity, not angels. This is a loud voice, and probably best in concert, just like the great multitude, though they were many. They spoke with one great voice in unison, just like the great multitude in 7.10, and just like the martyrs in 5.

10. I think I said 510. Yeah, 710 and 510. Both one voice. Appears to be brethren, human, because they're talking about our brothers. So this is a loud voice, a chorus of the great multitude, the people of God, the martyrs. Most likely, that's who this loud voice is.

But look at what they're saying. Now, just now, immediately, present at once. That is, with the events of the seven trumpets, the events that are depicted in the blowing of that seven trumpet, which is a time period which we've already seen, corresponds with three and a half years, 42 months, times time, and a half a time, all that, same time frame.

Now, now what has come? The salvation, notice of our God. It's the salvation, power, and kingdom of our God. The salvation of God has come, in contrast to the bondage of the dragon, the one who deceives the whole world and so keeps them in that state of deception and bondage.

Now, the salvation of God has come. The influence crushed with the sounding of the seventh trumpet when it is done. Power, not only the salvation of God, but the power of God, that is, might, his power. The same power that brought forth the woman's child, the same power that resurrected and caught the child up into heaven, the same will be turned to eradicate evil.

That power now turned upon the earth, has come against evil. That power fully come against evil to eradicate it. But it's the kingdom of our God, the salvation, power, and kingdom of our God. And that's in contrast to the kingdom of the world. And as we keep going, that's going to include the thousand-year period and the eternal state.

The kingdom has come now with the blowing of the seventh trumpet, when those events have completed the kingdom of our God. But even it begins with the beginning of the blowing, and that's why there. Is such a retreat. The old regime is in retreat. And the kingdom of God, in this sense, has not come yet.

The accusing work of Satan continues at present, but at some point it will be done. And the old regime in retreat. The impact to earth is epic. But there is also an epic impact to heaven. Look back at verse 10. For the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down.

He who accuses them before God and day, day and night. The accuser. Now, here's another name for the great dragon. And this is in the place of emphasis. Well, they're all emphasized, but this one, all of those others lead into this one. All of those. Whether it's deception, whether it's his work as the serpent of old, whether it's his work as Satan, whether it's his work as the slanderer, it's all to bring about accusation against God and against you before the throne.

This describes the primary activity of Satan. It's against God, against his people. Whatever falls Satan has experienced prior to this event, he still Has access to heaven to accuse God and his people. Just like Joshua, the high priest, being accused in Zechariah, just like Job being accused. Whatever falls Satan has experienced, he still has this access.

But in John's day, now there was this thing called this person that was called a delater. Now, we don't use that word today. We would probably call it more like a prosecuting attorney. But there was these delators or these individuals who could be hired, and they were usually hired for nefarious reasons.

And they were hired to go into a court to come up with some kind of accusations in order to bring somebody down. A denouncer. And a denouncer is someone who seeks to convince a court that a person has committed a crime and is punishable to the full extent of the law.

So we would think of this as a prosecuting attorney, but in some instances today, a prosecuting attorney is doing a good thing. But this idea of this denouncer or this delater was, it was typically associated with nefarious to bring somebody down through slander. He has been thrown down.

The accuser of our brethren. In conjunction with this war in heaven, the dragon, the serpent of old, the devil, Satan, and his ability to accuse God and his people will be thrown down. That will be over. Day and night he accuses. And this describes an incessant accusation, incessant accusations.

Another time we see this word in Revelation speaks of the incessant song of the living creatures. You remember Revelation 4, verse 8, and the four living creatures day and night do not cease to say, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God the Almighty. And just as heaven hears this incessant praise ascribing glory to God Almighty, it has also been subjected to the raging accusations of this monster since the beginning.

This monster's slanderous accusations have been hissing and growling and rumbling in heaven. But one day his mouth will be shut. His prosecuting arguments over. His case dismissed. thrown out, judged inadequate, insufficient, and he will have to rest his case. Silence in heaven for the first time since the beginning.

Impact in heaven. Impact on earth. Well, even though we live in a world shaped, enlarged by evil, God wants us to refuse the evil and embrace the good. How do we do this? Well, first of all, we need to know that the dragon and all of his evil operations and all that he represents will be done away with.

But second, we need to know that he is currently being defeated right now. Even before this great war in heaven, verse 11 shows us that he is being overcome now. He will be overcome in the future by the angels in heaven. He is being overcomed right now by the saints on earth.

And you need to know how that happens. So you just have to come back next week. We need to know. It's the how, how to be an overcomer, how to overcome this foe. But know that evil in all of its forms is going to be defeated. So it is foolish to serve him.

Believe the scripture. Know where humanity is going. Surrender to the King of kings, the Good Shepherd now. All this word spoken to you this morning is one great big invitation for you today to come more and more under the true King and to flee every vestige of serving this monster, the enemy of your soul.

Flee and come to Christ. Turn to Him today. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we do want to come under your Son's loving dominion, under your loving dominion that you exercise through your Son. He is adequate. He is sufficient. He came forth from the grave. He is sufficient to carry our sin away.

He is sufficient to be our shepherd, to be our guide. He is sufficient to transform us, to cause us to grow. He is sufficient to lead us into victory. To satisfy our soul and to give us every good thing in you. So, Father, we come, forgive us where we have not quickly obeyed and quickly come under His leadership.

But we ask now, by Your grace, by your Spirit, that you would accomplish this in our souls. In Jesus' name, amen.