SERMON MANUSCRIPT
There’s nothing quite like a good comeback story—when, against all odds, a person, group, or team seems so down-and-out, so defeated, and so oppressed and yet finds a way to climb back into contention, grab success, find safety, and even secure victory. These tales are surprising, satisfying, inspiring, and exciting.
It seems near-blasphemy to call the eventual victory of Jesus Christ “a comeback story” but, in our text today, we’re going to witness a big win snatched from, what seems like, the jaws of defeat.
In Revelation 12 and 13, Satan has the upper-hand, blue-chip players, home-field advantage, and is running up the score before, all of a sudden, in chapter 14, the Lord dramatically and definitively turns the tables. For those of us who know the power of God, it won’t be a surprising comeback but it will be satisfying, inspiring, and exciting.
THOUGH THE DRAGON SEEMS TO BE WINNING …
Now, up to this point, John has been recording chronologically. The seals were broken and the trumpets were sounded in order and the text drives the progression: “Then I saw” (6:1), “After this I saw” (7:1), “After these things I looked” (7:9), “Then I looked” (8:13). But chapters 12–14 are an interlude of sorts, giving us a peek behind the sequence at the otherwise invisible war that will fuel this coming chaos.
This invisible war, as with all wars, has a cast of characters. The first is the woman. [12:1–2] This woman is a symbol of Israel. [Gen 37:9–11] The sun and moon are Jacob and Rachel. The twelve stars are the sons of Jacob or, the twelve tribes of Israel. And she’s crying out in pain, ready to deliver a child. Talk about vulnerability!
The second character is the dragon. [12:3–4] This murderous monster has enough power and authority to knock angels from heaven and, yet, his focus here is singular: kill this child when its born. A massive dragon versus a labouring mother and baby. The odds don’t look good.
You’ve likely guessed who the child is but John clarifies. [12:5] This is the Messiah, Jesus, delivered to the world through the nation of Israel with a destiny of global rulership. No wonder the dragon hates this kid—the boy threatens his demonic, global rule.
But the child escapes, caught up to God, and so does the woman, fleeing into the wilderness. [12:6] So, Messiah’s gone and Israel’s on the run. Things aren’t looking good for the good guys.
As the scene shifts from earth to heaven, we’re introduced to another character: the angel, Michael. [12:7–9] We here learn the dragon’s identity. The same serpent who slithered into Eden at the beginning is still working to undermine God at the end, deceiving the whole world and, as we read elsewhere, accusing God’s people before God himself. [Job 1:6; Zech 3:1] But, as John was shown, there’s coming a time when Satan will be barred from God’s presence, defeated by heaven’s armies, and banished to the earth.
At first, this seems like a win, doesn’t it? [12:10–11] Heaven’s armies overpower and expelled the dragon’s, paving the way for the salvation of Messiah’s kingdom made possible by Messiah’s blood and declared by God’s word. No more accusations from the Accuser! Hooray!
But not so fast. [12:12a] Who’s dwelling in heaven? The church caught up before the tribulation and the martyrs who died in the tribulation. Sure, they can rejoice, but [12:12b]. Now the dragon’s mad, his pride’s hurt, he’s backed into a corner and relegated to earth. It’s one thing to know there are coyotes around Oakville, it’s another to lock a rabid, scared, and hungry coyote in a room with a bunch of kids. That’s the dragon here. His time is short, his domain limited, and he’s seething with fury. Woe to the earth and sea, indeed.
[12:13–17] Having failed to devour the child and having been flung to earth, Satan turns his maniacal rage back upon the woman Israel, and, if not for God’s supernatural protection, she wouldn’t stand a chance.
This scene gives us a glimpse of not only a war that’s coming but a war that’s been ongoing. Satan heard God’s promise in Genesis 3:15, that One would be born to crush his serpentine skull. So, he tried to prevent his birth, polluting and pillaging humanity. When God later clarified that the Promised One would come through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (i.e., Israel), Satan focused on destroying and distracting them.
And when he, Messiah, came anyway, Satan attacked him, tempting him in the wilderness, leading his rejection and betrayal, and, ultimately, having him killed. Now he’s with the Father and the world is still waiting to see the serpents’ flattened head under his messianic boot. It didn’t happen at his first coming but it will at his second, an event that sits on the other side of Israel’s repentance. [Acts 3:19–21]
So, though he can no longer prevent Messiah’s first coming, Satan tries to prevent his second coming by killing, persecuting, and distracting Israel, stopping them from doing the one thing that would usher in his sure and final demise. And, at this point of the story, he seems to be winning, doesn’t he?
And he doesn’t let up in chapter 13 where a couple more characters show up. First, the beast. [13:1–2] Here we have, as Daniel 7 predicted, a terrifying ruler of rulers arriving with global influence, blasphemous ideology, and demonic empowerment.
[13:3] These are the same words used in chapter 5 of the Lamb, standing as if slain. So, it seems this beast will be killed and then restored to life. The world goes nuts, following and fawning over him like they should have when Jesus did the same thing. But, instead of worshipping the Father because of Christ, they worship Satan because of his antichrist.
[13:4] “Call time of death! Start the ten-count. This fight is over!” And the beast’s influence, his irreverence of God, his hatred of God’s people, and his popularity with the unsaved keeps growing. [13:5–10]
To finish the job, the dragon calls his final character: the sidekick. [13:11] We can tell he’s deceptive from the get-go, looking like a lamb and sounding like the dragon. [13:12–14] Any influence the beast lacks, his beastly sidekick gets for him. He’s his evil propagandist.
It’s clear that, at this point of the war, Satan’s setting himself up as god with his resurrected antichrist and holy hype-man. This is the unholy trinity of the tribulation. I once heard it said, “nothing makes a creature less like God than the urge to be his equal.” And that’s exactly what Satan tries to do. Miracles are performed, benevolence and peace promised, and worship demanded.
But it isn’t long before the cheers turn to fears. [13:15–18] Execution for resistance, forced participation, controlled commerce. Not really the heaven promised by the true God, is it? It seems the victory is secure.
We cannot underestimate the Enemy of our souls. Satan is cunning, powerful, and ruthless. And, because we belong to his enemy, because we serve the One he hates, because we believe in the One who will eventually end him, he hates us.
He prowls about this earth like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Pet 5:8). He was a murderer from the beginning, there is no truth in him, he is the father of lies (John 8:44), leading the thoughts of believers away from pure devotion to Christ (2 Cor 11:3). He can cause pain, oppression, and disease (Luke 13:16; Acts 10:38; 2 Cor 12:7).
He blinds the minds of unbelievers, blocking the light of the gospel (2 Cor 4:4), snatching up the seed of the word before it produces faith (Rom 10:17). He disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:13–15) and has wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matt 7:15), teaching doctrines of demons as though saving truth (1 Tim 4:1). In the last days, as we’ve seen, he will come with deceptive power (2 Thes 2:9).
There is a war coming but we’re in a war now. [Eph 6:11] Without God’s help, it’s checkmate. Unbelievers are under Satan’s power but believers are not immune. He will discourage, distract, and bring doubt. He loves apathy, arrogance, legalism, and idolatry. Satan is too much for us and against such power, desperation, and skill there’s no comeback without the Almighty.
… THE LAMB INEVITABLY WINS!
With him, however that’s another story, one previewed in Revelation 14. [14:1–5] Just as the dragon had stood before the woman (12:4) and the beast had stood on the sand of the seashore (13:1), so the Lamb is now seen standing on his heavenly mountain with his glorified army, comprised of Jews who refused the mark of death, the saints who preceded the wrath, and the living creatures. His is not an army of broken, idolatrous slaves screaming in terror but of purchased, blameless children singing of victory. And this is just the first fruits of his army—many more are coming to join the ranks.
If chapters 12 and 13 were a peek behind the curtain of the tribulation, chapter 14 is sort of a peek behind that curtain. While on earth the unholy trinity is sprinting toward victory, we’re now shown heaven and behold the Lamb, and he doesn’t look too worried.
[14:6–20] The Lamb has his army. He also has his victory cry being declared to the whole war-torn earth: “fear, glorify, and worship the true God who is Creator and Judge!” The Lamb’s not worried.
While there will be those on earth coming to faith during these days (vv. 12–13)—persevering saints and martyrs who are known by God, are collected by God, and rewarded by God—there are many who reject that eternal good news, that warning and invitation. These, like wicked Babylon and those who worship the beast, will experience the undiluted, never-ending wrath of God. The Lamb’s not worried.
It may have looked like Satan had the upper hand, that he had the best players, and that his lead was insurmountable. But there’s coming a time when, from heaven, the Lamb will make all things right, sovereignly reaping the withered, lifeless inhabitants of earth and those ripe with false religion. The Lamb’s not worried, he’s worthy to win.
What we’re being shown will happen in the future has happened all throughout the past. Repeatedly, Satan has attempted to attack God, God’s Son, God’s people, and God’s plans and, every single time, God uses that evil further his own, holy, and redemptive ends, and move the serpent closer to the boot.
Satan rallied humanity to build the Tower of Babel, a monument of humanism. God used that act of self-worship to dole out languages and create ethnic groups that will one day all stand around the throne and worship the Lamb together, a monument to God’s creativity.
Satan caused Job to suffer and Job became a picture of godly lament and trust. Satan afflicted King Saul and God anoints King David. Satan tempts Christ, proving his worthiness. Satan enters Judas, fulfilling prophecy. Satan torments Paul, giving him humility. Satan kills the Christ, atoning for the sins of the world and paving the way for the resurrection and the death of death.
Every single time the dragon wages war, the Lamb wins. It’s happened constantly in the past and will happen climactically in the future. It’s true when it seems Satan is winning, when it seems the Lord is silent, when it seems wickedness is prevailing, persecution is rising, and apathy is growing. Brothers and sisters, the Lamb’s not worried.
Perhaps those who belong to him shouldn’t be either. I’m not saying Satan is not dangerous, this world is not fallen, our flesh is not convincing, sin is not enticing, and suffering is not real. All of those thing are just as true and real as the coming tribulation upon the earth.
But, if our Saviour’s sovereign (and he is), if our Lord cannot lose (and he can’t), if our God sits on his throne and laughs at the rebellion of the wicked (and he does), if he has given us all we need for life and godliness (and he has), if we are total victors in Christ (and we are), and if our future is secured by the infallible promises of an all-powerful God who cannot lie (and it is), then maybe we can rest. [Mark 4:36–41]
I’m aware of some of the trials represented in this room. They’re significant, heart-wrenching, burdensome, chaotic, painful, faith-testing, and confusing. We’re not being told to overlook them, marginalize them, explain them, or spiritualize them. We’re being invited to, in spite of them, fear God, give him glory, and worship him (14:7).
The Lamb is not worried, bothers and sisters. He’s worthy to win. And we who are covered by his blood, win with him. Let’s pray.
Josiah has served the Oakridge Bible Chapel family as one of its elders and one of its pastoral staff members since September 2018, before which he ministered as an associate pastor to a local congregation in the Canadian prairies. Josiah's desire is to be used by God to help equip the church for ministry, both while gathered (edification) and while scattered (evangelization). He is married to Patricia, and together they have five children—Jonah, Henry, Nathaniel, Josephine, and Benjamin.
