October 31, 2004
Morning Worship
Text: Revelation 12:7-12
Subject: Satan Thrown Out of Heaven
Title: I Just Didn’t Know
In case any of you haven’t noticed, I like to preach. The more I do it the more I feel called to do it. And as I preach I go through seasons where I know that I am supposed to deal with certain areas such as healing, faith, prayer etc… Now as I have been spending time in prayer concerning where we go from here, the Lord is giving me clear direction.
We have been spending a lot of time in the area of basic Christianity and how we are to live our lives. Now I am being led to take you to different areas of Christianity to show you, not what is expected of you, but what is promised to you.
When I worked in construction down south we had a young man right out of high school come to work on our crew. Now our crew was noted for being able to take the time to train new carpenters, but this young man, we’ll call him Ox (we told the boss that he was a strong as an ox and as smart as one too!) –anyhow, Ox just couldn’t get it. We would show him, and help him understand for the moment, but when it came time for the next house, he just didn’t get it. What made it difficult was that everything he needed to know was right there for the asking, but he would stumble through the job doing things wrong and struggling all the way. When we would ask him, “Why did you do that?” he would reply every time, “Uh, I didn’t know.”
Many in the church stumble through life without direction or purpose and if you asked them why I am sure the answer would be very much the same as my young friend’s answer, “Uh, I just didn’t know!”
So now it is time for the church to rise up to become what it is supposed to be. I pray that as I preach today that you will take to heart what I am saying.
Revelation 12:7-12:
And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”
Key verse:
Verse 11, “and they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”
I. SPIRITUAL WARFARE EVERY DAY (verse 7)
A. Warfare in Heaven. Do you know that there are dozens of conflicts going on around the globe as we speak? We don’t often hear about much other than Iraq or Afghanistan, but there are battles taking place every day. But those are taking place in the physical realm. The bible tells us that there are battles taking place in the spiritual realm and those battles are continual. The apostle Paul says that as Christians, we are in a battle every day of our lives. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Our battles are taking place in the heavenlies with God’s angels fighting battles for us against the forces of the god of this world. That battle begins as soon as we call on God to act on our behalf for a certain situation. (We don’t have to fight the battle; but we initiate the fight) Sometimes the battle is difficult. We know that it took an angel twenty-one days, after Daniel prayed, to break through the spiritual stronghold that had been set up around the nation of Persia and he needed the help of Michael to do that. So every time people call on the Lord for help the battle begins.
B. This is a Classic Battle. You know all the old movies. There was a real clear distinction between the good guys and the bad guys. The good guys wore white hats. In the physical realm the difference is no longer apparent because people are calling good evil and evil good. But in the spiritual realm it is the battle between the angels of God and the angels of satan. Verse 7 says, “war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon…” The book of Job tells us that satan has always had access to the throne of God. Job 1:6, “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and satan also came to them” But at some point in the history of the world satan is kicked out for good and will no longer have that access. That doesn’t stop him from being the accuser of the brethren. It just means that he can’t accuse us before God any longer. This classic battle continues to the end of time.
C. A New Battle Ground. While the angels and demons are battling in the spiritual realm there is a battle that is taking place in every believer, and it take place in our minds. The enemy has the ability to lie to us and make us believe things that are not true and disbelieve the things of God. People commit sin and the devil says, “you’re not saved.” People are baptized in the Holy Spirit and he says, “That wasn’t God.” He tells people that God could never forgive them. So even though there is a battle in heaven there is a great battleground in our minds as well.
II. SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY RIGHT NOW. (8-9)
A. The Battle is Won. “They did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.” Folks, if there is no longer any place for the enemy in heaven, why do we allow him to sway our thoughts and influence our lives? Because we can’t remember that we are the ones with authority over him. Jesus said that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him and He has given us the keys to the kingdom so that whatever we bind on earth is bound in heaven and whatever we loose on earth is loosed in heaven.
B. The Deception is On “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the devil and satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to earth and his angels were cast out with him.” Even though Jesus won the battle at Calvary satan will tell God’s children that the world has all the answers to all the problems that men will face. Remember this is the same snake that told Eve, “Surely you will not die…” How can Christians make the mistake of falling for satan’s lies? Many will simply be like our young OX from years past and say, “Uh, I didn’t know.” Yet the word tells us that without a doubt, "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world…” We sing that song occasionally, “I’ve got the victory. Jesus gave it to me. Because of Calvary. I’ve got the victory. How can we sing a song like that and not believe what we are saying? Because we allow satan to convince us otherwise.
III. SPIRITUAL VICTORY FROM NOW ON. (Verses 10-12)
A. The Benefits in Jesus
1) Salvation – we are saved from death and hell. Plus we are promised physical healing and provision. (Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you…”
2) Strength - “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me…” according to the original Greek it refers to the ability to work miraculous deeds. The word dunamis. (dynamite)
3) The kingdom of our God – Jesus went around proclaiming the kingdom of heaven is at hand… and we are heirs to the kingdom.
4) The power of His Christ – That power is the Holy Spirit. This is a different Greek word that is used than the word that is translated strength. This word means “superhuman ability that is delegated to someone to give authority, liberty, power, or strength. That is the Holy Spirit. Jesus said that it is to our advantage that He should go away because if He goes He will ask the Father and HE will send another Helper, the Holy Spirit. Why? So we can take the authority that is rightfully ours and use it against the enemy, “for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.”
5) When were all these things given to us? One word at the beginning of verse 10 tells us. “Now!” Not later. Not when Jesus comes again to set up His millennial reign. Not when the old world is destroyed and the eternal kingdom is restored. But now! The question is, if satan is cast down from heaven, why isn’t he cast out of your lives? “I forgot!” or “Uh, I didn’t know!”
B. Boldness in Jesus. How do you think that those who overcome satan do it? I must stop an laugh sometimes, because when I look at the apparent lack of power in the church in general (not this church in particular) I have to believe that there must be a lot of people who are thinking, “boy I really did good there.” Or, “I handled that problem without too much trouble”, or even, “Take a look at me now. I’m somebody.” But Christians know that “We are overcomers by the blood of the Lamb…” It’s not our power – it’s His gift that makes us who we are. His gift of salvation; His gift of the Holy Spirit; His gifts of the Spirit… all these things that stem from the cross make us overcomers. There is another important statement that I don’t want to miss here. We are overcomers by the blood of the Lamb and “the word of our testimony.” The words we speak when we remember God’s redemptive work do something to us. Positive confession does not work like some magical hocus pocus, but positive confession in remembrance of God’s word will build your faith and allow things to happen in your life that you never thought possible. “Whoever comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” The faith of Abraham was in a God who “gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; who contrary to hope in hope believed…” you know if you tell your kids that they are stupid or they will never amount to anything, how do you think they will turn out. But if you pronounce good and positive things over them they will likely rise up to your expectation. In the same way, if you go around saying, “boy, this Christian life sure isn’t easy”, what do you expect to happen? That is not power. That’s not faith. That’s not hope. That’s defeat. But let’s go around saying, “I’m a blood bought, Holy Spirit baptized, Bible loving, Bible believing, bible quoting, overcomer, by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony…” and see how satan responds. You can resist the devil by the words of your own mouth and he will flee from you, or you can tell everyone about your struggles and how sickness is going to come to your house because the flu is going around and I always get it then my wife gets it and then the kids and by the time they are done I get it again. Or I never have enough money to match the week that I have. Always more week than money. Or you can say, “Lord, you said in your word, “bring all the tithes into the store house that there may be food in My house. And try Me in this, says the Lord, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.” God, I’m going to try to out-give You. You invited me to try it, so let’s see what happens. Your tongue contains blessings and curses, not just for others, but for yourself as well. Why can’t we remember that? “Uh, I didn’t know!” God You said in Your word that you want us to receive from You and if You are giving things away, I know they have to be good. God doesn’t give you junk. He gives crowns and thrones, and judicial appointments, (do you not know that you judge angels?)
C. Living for Jesus. At the end of verse 11 it says, “they did not love their lives to the death.” What does that mean? It’s real simple. They were not in love with self. They were in love with Jesus. Remember Jesus’ condemnation of the church in Ephesus for leaving their first love? Overcomers don’t do that. Overcomers hang in with Jesus all the way. I’ve heard people make comments like, “I went to church before” or “I tried Christianity once.” No, you tried something that had the form religion but denied its power. Overcomers take on whatever satan throws at them and repel the fiery darts. The world looks to the hills for help but overcomers say, “My help comes from the Lord.” Overcomers respond to adversity the same way that the Psalmist did in Psalm 77. Verses 10-15. The Psalmist went from “This is my anguish…” in verse 10 to “I will remember the works of the Lord; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old; Who is as great a God as our God; You are the God who does wonders. You have declared Your strength among the peoples. You have with Your arm redeemed Your people…” When we remember God, His word, and His promises and stand on them by faith, (we walk by faith and not by sight) we defeat the enemy and become overcomers. I like what Paul wrote to the church in Corinth. “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it why do you act as though you have not?” In other words you haven’t done anything on your own, it’s a gift from God. And if you did receive it why do you go on acting as if you haven’t? If you have received salvation why do you act like hell? If you have received financial blessing, why do you act like you did it on your own. If you have received healing why do you continue to be sick?
D. Rejoicing in Jesus. Verse 12 Says that those who are inhabitants of the spiritual realm are to rejoice. Those who belong to the world are under the influence of the devil and will suffer the consequences. The devil is working hard because he knows that his time is short. Consider for a moment just what it is going to be like in the presence of God. Revelation 21:4, “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” That reflects the total restoration of God’s original plan. We have received the down payment on that eternal plan. It’s God’s promise sealed by His Holy Spirit. “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say rejoice!”
“And they overcame (they conquered, got the better of overpowered or overwhelmed) him (satan) by the blood of the Lamb (the life source of the perfect sacrifice, Jesus) and by the word (the verbal exclamation) of their testimony (legal declaration of truth)…”
What is it that keeps us from being the overcomers that God has intended us to be? Is it lack of knowledge? (Uh, I didn’t know)! Or it may be “I forgot”.
Psalm 119 gives us some wonderful words of encouragement.
“Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep His testimonies…; Remember the word to Your servant, upon which You have cause me to hope…; Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in Heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations…” Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path…the entirety of Your word is truth…; great peace have those who love your law.”
God has given you victory in your life and authority over every circumstance that might come against you. It is time to rise up like children of the King and claim our inheritance – not like the prodigal son who squandered his inheritance – but to claim it for the glory of the King and His kingdom.
Rise up and Praise Him!
Now I know!!!
