March 1 - The Woman and the Child (pt. 2)

March 1 – The Woman and the Child (pt. 2)
Revelation 2:1-2

“A great and wondrous 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. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.” (Rev. 12:1-2)

Yesterday we learned about the woman in this passage – Israel. Let’s look at the birth of Christ.

Isaiah 66:7-11 is amazing – especially in the context of what we are learning in Revelation.

“Before she goes into labor she gives birth; before the pains come upon her, she delivers a son. Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has ever seen such things? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children. ‘Do I bring to the moment of birth and not give delivery?’ says the Lord. ‘Do I close up the womb when I bring to delivery?’ says your God. ‘Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice greatly with her, all you who mourn over her. For you will nurse and be satisfied at her comforting breasts; you will drink deeply and delight in her overflowing abundance.’”

I hope you read those words. The prophecy of the birth for the Messiah was that an entire nation would mother this child. The nation of Israel, the city of Jerusalem. God’s chosen people.

In Rev. 12:4, we find the woman about to give birth and the dragon (I’ll tell you right now that it is Satan – no surprise there) is waiting to devour the child as soon as it is born. Rev. 12:5 tells us that she gave birth to a male child, who would rule all the nations with an iron scepter.

In Psalm 2:9, we read, “You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.” Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, is returning to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Old Testament prophecy has been telling us this, Jesus told us who He was and now we see in Revelation that it will come to pass. The kingdoms of the earth will be ruled by Him.

Satan has tried since the beginning of time to stop Israel from moving to the point of the birth of Christ. He tried once before to devour the child. In Jeremiah 51:34, we read that Nebuchadnezzar devoured Israel, throwing them into confusion. It also says “Like a serpent he has swallowed us.” Satan used his tool very well, the imagery was plain to them!

In Ezekiel 29:3, we read about a great monster lying in Egypt’s streams. The King James version translates this as ‘the great dragon.’

Satan tried to stop Israel from forming into a nation. Pharaoh / Egypt wanted to kill the young children so Moses wouldn’t be born. Nebuchadnezzar tried to destroy the Hebrew nation, but he was stopped. King Herod tried to kill young children in Bethlehem to stop Jesus from achieving adulthood. Satan has attempted to interfere in God’s plan throughout time and has failed miserably.

Rev. 12:5 tells us the child was snatched up to God and to His throne. We went straight from Jesus’ birth to the moment of His ascension.

J. Vernon McGee says: “In the gospels, the emphasis is on the death of Christ. In the epistles (letters), the emphasis is on the resurrection of Christ. In the Revelation, the emphasis is on the Ascension of Christ.”

God’s idea of time is different than ours. In a few verses, we realize that heaven crammed those 33 years Jesus lived on earth into a breath between words. They were important to each of us, but in the overall picture of eternity, Jesus was born and then ascended into heaven.