What a tremendous moment! The climax has come! The devil and his angels are finally thrown out of Heaven – once and for all. The devil has not been able to achieve anything. The ‘child’ is safe with God and His throne, as John already sees at the beginning when he at first entered Heaven.1 Scripture has shown numerous fulfilments of this divine principle that is becoming visible in Heaven. ‘Snatching away’ is always associated with elevation and glorification in the Bible, and the image of justification. The ‘two witnesses’ are snatched away, taken up into Heaven.2 Jesus is taken up into Heaven.3 Enoch is taken up.4 Elijah is taken up.5 Those who humble themselves will be exalted.6 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.”7 When He comes, His Church will go to meet Him in the air.8 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in Glory.9 Until that moment He is praying for us—not for us to be taken away, snatched up, taken up from the world, but for us to be protected from the ‘evil one’,10 that the devil will not drag us into his force field and we become ‘backslidden’. If we really fall into the clutches of the devil, then we are really lost. The devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour,11 knowing that his time is short,12 and that his end will be in the ‘lake of burning sulphur’.13 He will always try to ‘devour’ and drag as many as possible down with him into everlasting damnation. The Ascension of Christ implies the Ascension of the Church, however. It is encapsulated in it. In God’s wisdom Christ and His Church have never been separated from one another as the Head would otherwise have no body.14 Our life is hidden with (in) Christ, in Heavenly realms.15 We have died and been buried with (in) Him, but also been made alive and resurrected with (in) Him, and seated with (in) Him in Heavenly realms.16 He is the guarantee of our salvation. The child has been snatched away to God and His throne, and God does not deviate from this Heavenly principle. The people of God of all the ages, from Israel and the nations, is safe by His eternal principles, to which the Heavenly ‘sign’ witnesses, and the effect of which is seen on earth. And our body will shortly be set free and, raised incorruptible, brilliant with everlasting quality, resurrected and ‘glowing’ with eternal life. Died, buried and risen, in Him.17 In that glorious future there is no more room for the devil and his angels. But there is for us! Michael (meaning, who is like God?), pre-eminently the angel of Israel,18 and his angels throw the devil and his angels out of Heaven. Not just like that. A heavy battle has to be fought, as always when demons are thrown out somewhere.19
• Jesus’ death on the cross is seen as the victory over the ‘powers of darkness’.20 However, at the same time He says: “The prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over Me.” (John 14:30 NIV)
• The Holy Spirit convicts of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged (John16:11) by the finished work of Christ. There, the serpent’s head is already crushed and he will be shortly thrown into the fire.
• Hebrews 2:13b – 15 NIV “…He says, “Here am I, and the children God has given Me.” Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.”
Bible References:
1.Revelation 5:6 2.Revelation 11:12 3.Acts 1:9 4.Hebrews 11:5–6 5.2 Kings 2:11 6.Luke 18:14 7.John 14:1–3 NIV 8.1 Thessalonians 4:15–17 9.Colossians 3:4 10.John 17:15,20 11.1 Peter 5:8 12.Revelation 12:12 13.Revelation 20:10 14.Colossians 1:18 15.Ephesians 1:20 16.Ephesians 1:22 17.Romans 6:1–14 18.Daniel 10:13, 12:1: Jude 9 19.Matthew 17:19–21 20.Luke 22:53
