Revelation 12 Devotional

An Enemy Who Has Already Lost

“They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. And they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.”Revelation 12:11 (BSB)

Revelation 12 shows the conflict behind the scenes. A woman gives birth to a son who will rule the nations, and a great red dragon waits to devour the child, but the child is caught up to God (12:1-5). The dragon is named plainly: the ancient serpent, the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world (12:9). He loses the war in heaven and is thrown down to earth.

Heaven answers with a song of victory. The accuser who charged believers before God day and night has been cast out (12:10). And they defeated him not by their own strength but by the Lamb's blood and by the testimony they spoke (12:11). The devil is furious because he knows his time is short (12:12), so he makes war on those who keep God's commandments and hold fast to Jesus' testimony (12:17). That explains the hostility believers face, but it leaves no doubt about the outcome. When accusations rise in your own heart, the blood of the Lamb has already answered them.

To think about: What accusation do you keep hearing against yourself, and how does the blood of the Lamb answer it?