Christmas from Revelation 12

John threw up twice Saturday morning but then worked busily the rest of the day and said he felt mostly better.  I woke up feeling very nauseous this Sunday morning - the 23rd of December.  He said he was still nauseous.  I desperately wanted to go to church.  I enjoy church almost always, no matter where we are.  I had missed the last time we were here in Mississippi because Jonah was getting sick and my hair dryer broke, and we have to attend First Baptist, and nappy wet hair and a sick baby just felt like a recipe for a really awful morning. That Sunday John took the rest of the kids.  Then we were on break the next Sunday at home in Huntsville and I missed church because we did not want Jonah to get passed around to a ton of people right in the height of the flu epidemic.  Honestly, we're not being crazy over protective. The flu outbreak was all over the news, with lots of nearby schools closing early for a few days because of the flu outbreak. Also, a random person in Zaxby's had commented on how cute Jonah was then said, "But keep him bundled up, there's a bad baby fever virus going around Huntsville right now! We took our daughter to the pediatrician for it yesterday and he said there was a big problem with it this week." Scary! So, I stayed home and surfed around Bible Gateway and some Christian blogs about family, marriage, and parenting, and played with Jonah.  This was the third Sunday I was about to miss church.  I couldn't do it.  I needed to hear a good message, and I wanted to sing Christmas songs, and pray with a body of believers again.  I ate a piece of toast and developed a real "Suck it up" attitude as I got ready for church feeling queasy, and trying to decide if John or I was feverish, contagious, or food poisoned, or what.  It's not easy to get a family of 7 out the door when the two adults feel like they might have to puke at any second, but somehow, against all of satan's little pansy schemes, we made it just in time to not spread any germs by socializing before service started. (We were about 5 minutes late for church, Sunday School at this point was not even feasible.)

When our new pastor down here put up that his scripture for his Christmas message was Revelation 12, I was pretty confused.  What about the story in Luke of Jesus' birth? However, I was blown away by his wonderful message of how Christ's birth was fought in the spiritual realm.  I tend to avoid Revelation because I have very limited knowledge of what it means.  I also know lots of Christians dispute the prophesies therein, even arguing about end times and such, which I really just don't care about because I am certain that my faith in Jesus Christ will result in me getting to heaven eventually, so whether there will be a rapture of the Christians first or not, I don't mind.  Therefore, I just typically don't read it much on my own other than to have it brought up in devotions, usually referring to the luke-warm/spit you out analogy.  This sermon changed my perspective though, because the pastor explained that some of Revelation is actually historic, not prophetic. Revelation 12 is just that.
     It depicts Christ's birth from the spiritual realm's perspective.  This is my favorite part which describes just after his birth:

⁷ Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. ⁸ And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. ⁹ This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.

¹⁰ Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,

“It has come at last—
    salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
    and the authority of his Christ.^[a]
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters^[b]
    has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
    before our God day and night.
¹¹ And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
    and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
    that they were afraid to die.
¹² Therefore, rejoice, O heavens!
    And you who live in the heavens, rejoice!
But terror will come on the earth and the sea,
    for the devil has come down to you in great anger,
    knowing that he has little time.”

I love that "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony...He is filled with fury because he knows that his time is short. " Victory in Jesus my friends! Christmas was fought for us on a spiritual level, not just in a stable in Bethlehem here on earth, but in Heaven, and all around us. That is awesome! It reminds me of Max Lucado's book "Cosmic Christmas" which I read about 10 years ago and I haven't been able to find since. I just love imagining the glory of those Angels appearing to the shepherds, breaking the blackness of night to reveal the light of the world. How brilliant it must have been! Then "He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." ("Filled with fury" is the NIV 1984 version for the end of verse 12). Satan is mad at us, and he is constantly trying to win the battles, although he has already lost the war. That is why we must: 

¹³ Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous.^[a] Be strong.

I also know that having my own little baby boy this year is making the magnificence of Jesus coming as a baby boy very real for me.  I am so thankful that God came to earth as a baby to be my Redeemer, my Savior. 

Merry Christmas!