The Church Waiting Between Advents - Revelation 12:11-17

We continue our series in Revelation chapter

Revelation 12 · chapter mention

12. This is the last message in this series where

we consider Revelation 12 as it relates to the

birth, the life, the death, the resurrection,

the ascension, and the enthronement of the Lord

Jesus Christ. Now, in Revelation 12, verses 12

Revelation 12:12–17

through 17, John continues the image that he's

been building, that he's been putting forth.

So what is the image that he is putting forth

for the recipients? Well, it's this. It's the

defeated dragon is ejected. out of heaven, and

notice in verse 12, the focus turns from heaven

to the earth. There's this swap that takes place,

and the rest of verses 13 through 17 have to

do with the earth, in a sense. He's switching

the focus. So the dragon is ejected. The dragon

is cast out. The dragon, is thrown down from

heaven. And because of his defeat, he is enraged.

He's angry and he's mad because he's been defeated

and he's been conquered by the male child who

was enthroned and accomplished his work, who's

caught up to the throne of God. Well, we see

that the dragon, tries over and over to stomp

out, to squash, to destroy, to overwhelm the

woman. But we also see that God has a place prepared

for the woman, and God takes care of the woman

who's in the wilderness, who's in this period

of... testing, the desert in a sense. We even

see allusions to the Old Testament in the book

of Exodus. Throughout this, the two wings of

the great eagle, the wilderness language, we

see in verse 16 where the earth helped the woman

and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the

river which the dragon poured out of his mouth.

Remember back in the Old Testament when the earth

Helped the people of God. And swallowed up the

enemies of God's people. In their midst. And

God judged them. God defended his people. So

he's alluding to Old Testament imagery. This

is the picture he's painting. The dragon raging.

Because he's defeated. Yet. God sustains and

preserves the woman. And even blesses the woman.

In this period. So it's the entrance of a new

age. That we see taking place. A new era of time.

Following the exaltation of the male child. And

the casting out of the dragon. So what does this

picture mean? How do we explain this? How do

we interpret this? Well it's this. Christ accomplished

his work. He was born, he lived, he died, he

rose, he's exalted, he's enthroned. The devil

loses his accusatory powers at the throne of

God because of the accomplished work of the Lord

Jesus Christ. And for a period of time, the devil

rages against the church. The devil thrashes

against the church. He tries to destroy the church.

He tries to destroy her children or individual

Christians, as we see in verse 17. But we find

that God sustains, preserves, blesses, and provides

for the church. all throughout this age where

the devil is raging against the church. Now,

a couple important things to note before we start

making our way through this text. The devil is

presented as raging in this text, but the devil

is also presented as restrained by God in this

text. In a sense, he's an enemy, but he's...

An enemy on a leash. And we will see this, and

we'll see this evidence in the text itself. Though

he's a real enemy, he is a creature. He's not

sovereign. He's not absolute. He still operates

under the sovereignty and the superintendence

of a sovereign, good, faithful, covenant -keeping

God. He still serves his maker, even in his evil,

malicious... So we're going to consider this

period of time in which the church waits for

the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. We're

going to consider this age or this era. So the

very first thing we're going to do is clarify

the period of time that the text speaks about.

Specifically, this wilderness period of time

that the text speaks of. But the second thing

we have to do is this. We have to understand

the nature of the enemy's activity in this age.

How he operates, what he's doing, his restraint,

his power, his ability, and ultimately his fall

and his final judgment at the end of this age.

And the third thing we'll have to consider today,

we have to establish the fact. Of God's special

care for the church throughout this period. God's

covenantal provision and care for his people

throughout the entirety of this age. So considering

the first. Clarifying this period of time that

is spoken of. In verses 12 through verse 17.

Now notice that this period is described with

wilderness imagery. Or this wilderness motif

or theme we could say. We see this in verse 6

where we read this. Then the woman fled into

the wilderness where she had a place prepared

by God. We read the same thing. In verse 14,

but the two wings of the great eagle were given

to the woman so that she could fly into the wilderness.

Now, when we think about the wilderness, there's

another word that we oftentimes probably don't

associate with the word wilderness, but the Bible

does, and that is desert. And so we think about

the Old Testament. We have many examples. of

the wilderness or the desert. We think about

Israel in particular. They were redeemed and

then they entered into what? The wilderness.

God brought them out of Egypt. He delivered them

and he brought them out of Egypt into the wilderness.

And all that while God led them. He guided them.

He provided for them. He protected them. And

that period was prior to the promised land. So

it's this in -between period. But we also find

other examples throughout the Bible of the wilderness.

We can think about the prophet Elijah. He went

into the wilderness a couple times. Then we could

think about the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Didn't

the Lord Jesus himself, prior to the beginning

of his ministry, wasn't he compelled out into

what? The wilderness by the Spirit of God. And

what took place in the wilderness in all of these

cases? Testing, trials, hardship, refining, purifying

times. Though there was difficulties, there was

also good things that happened in the wilderness,

like God's provision. Specifically, if we think

about the Exodus, God provided for his people

time and time again. He provided water. He provided

manna. Their shoes didn't wear out. Their clothing

didn't wear out. We could read that in the book

of... Deuteronomy. He cared for them. He watched

over them. He provided for them. We could think

about Elijah. The Lord provides for him with

ravens. We could also think about the Lord Jesus

Christ himself. What happens in his trial after

the prominent trials and tests of the devil?

Angels minister to the Lord Jesus. He's cared

for. He's nourished in the wilderness. John wants

us to lay hold of this wilderness concept. This

wilderness motif. Because he is saying that the

church following the work of Christ is in the

wilderness. That just as we see these themes

throughout Scripture, the church now is in the

wilderness waiting for the promised land once

again. Christ has redeemed us. He's saving us.

He's leading us. He's guiding us in and through

the wilderness with what? The promised land in

front of us. That means that the church's time

in this era. And this period of time will be

marked by trial, testing, purification, refinement,

but it will also be distinctly marked by God's

provision, God's blessing, God's leading, God's

guiding, God's preservation, God's sustaining

power in the life of his people. So the wilderness

idea that John is putting forth is meant to convey

a few things. It's an in -between period. That's

between the point of redemption and the time

of full and final realization of the promises.

That is the state the church is in now. Christ

has come. Christ has redeemed us. has been victorious,

and the full and final redemption, and the full

and final realization of all his promises, the

new heavens and the new earth, the promised land,

brothers and sisters, is in front of us. We're

in this in -between stage. But he also wants

us to understand that it is a time of testing

and provision. So we see that it's described

with this wilderness. Imagery. Now he also describes

it with this symbolic duration. Or we could say

with a symbolic calendar. Notice what he says

in verse 6. And he associates it with this era.

In verse 6 he says this. Then the woman fled

into the wilderness where she had a place prepared

by God. So that there she would be nourished

for 1 ,000. 260 days. Now, we read that and we

think, very, very exact. Now, we also read in

verse 14. But the two wings of the great eagle

were given to the woman so that she could fly

into the wilderness to her place where she was

nourished for a time and times and half a time.

I'm sure that many of you, as we've read this,

have thought, what in the world is John talking

about with these numbers? What do I make of these

things? Well, as we've said many times, John

is using apocalyptic language, brothers and sisters.

So he's not intending to communicate an exact

time period. He's not intending to communicate

a certain amount of definitive days. He's talking

about a symbolic time in which the church dwells

in a wilderness period. Other places throughout

the book of Revelation this is referred to as

42 months. What is 1 ,260 days? It is 42 months.

This is the time. When the witnesses are preaching.

This is the time when the law and the gospel

are actively being proclaimed in the world. When

the law is resounding and men and women are being

converted. And the law is sounding forth, convicting

men of sin and drawing them to Christ. This is

the age in which that takes place. Throughout

the Bible. this is also referred to as this present

evil age. In Revelation chapter 20, it's referred

Revelation 20 · chapter mention

to as the thousand years. We can also see in

other parts of the Bible that it's referred to

as commonly the last days. This is what John

is putting forward, that the church is in this

age. Period. In this time. Now, we think about

those numbers and the apocalyptic use of them

by the apostle. We think about these things.

In our end, from the church as we're in it, it's

an uncertain, indefinite period of time. Ultimately,

it's going to be cut short by the return of Christ.

But from heaven's perspective, Is it uncertain,

brothers and sisters? From a divine perspective,

is this period of time indefinite or is it ordained?

Is it determined? Is it certain? Is it fixed?

Is it unchanging? Brothers and sisters, From

our perspective, it's a time of difficulty and

hardship that's mixed with good and evil. That

we don't know when it will come to an end. But

from God's perspective, he knows when the last

day will come. The Father knows. It is fixed,

it is determined, and it is definitive. So this

is apocalyptic language. that is utilized to

convey this idea of this wilderness period of

time. This is the age the church is in now. Ever

since Christ has completed his work, his birth,

his life, his death, his resurrection, his exaltation,

and his enthronement, brothers and sisters, ever

since the completed, finished work of Christ,

The church has been in this age. And when will

this age come to an end? When will this age cease

and stop at the return of the Lord Jesus Christ?

If that is the end of this age, then we enter

into the next, the world to come, the age to

come, brothers and sisters. That is the age that

all history is marching on. That is the age that

all history is building and progressing to. The

coming age that follows the return of the Lord

Jesus Christ. And it is constantly, all the time,

everywhere, presented as following the return

of Christ, never preceding the return of Christ.

The full and final realization of all things

and all God's promises are brought about and

that glory alone is reserved for the Lord Jesus

Christ, not the church, brothers and sisters.

He ushers in the manifest kingdom. He ushers

in the glory. He ushers in the full and final

stage of redemption. The next great redemptive

event comes with Christ when He comes back to

this world. So this is the age that the church

lives in. Now, this is the church age, or as

it's otherwise called, the gospel age. Now, why

would it be called the gospel age, brothers and

sisters? Because it's the age, the period when

the gospel is proclaimed, when the gospel is

preached and the church is built. when sinners

are saved, and Christ's kingdom expands and grows

in and throughout this world. Now, let's turn

to Matthew chapter 13, and we'll see this. In

Matthew 13 · chapter mention

Matthew 13, we have a very well -known parable,

starting in verse 24, the parable of the tares

and the wheat. Jesus presented another parable

to them, saying, The kingdom of heaven may be

compared to a man who sowed good seed in the

spill. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy

came and sowed tares among the wheat and went

away. But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain,

then the tares became evident also. The slaves

of the landowner came and said to him, Sir, Did

you not sow good seed in your field? How then

does it have tares? And he said to them, An enemy

has done this. The slave said to him, Do you

want us then to go and gather them up? But he

said to them, No, for while you are gathering

up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.

Allow both to grow together until the harvest.

And in the time of the harvest I will say to

the reapers, First gather up the tares and bind

them in the bundles to burn them up, but gather

the wheat into my barn. Notice in this parable

that there's a mixture of wheat and tares. And

both of them grow together and build and expand

until the reaper. Now, Jesus explains this parable,

starting in verse 36. Then he left the crowds

and went into the house, and his disciples came

to him and said, Explain to us the parable of

the tares of the field. And he said, The one

who sows the good seed is the son of man, and

the field is the world. And as for the good seed,

these are the sons of the kingdom, and the tares

are the sons of the evil one. And the enemy who

sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the

end of the age, and the reapers are angels. So

just as the tares are gathered up and burned

with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age.

Brothers and sisters, This is the period in which

we live. The wheat and the tares. And all of

history is accumulating and progressing towards

one singular point. All of history is working

towards one time. One moment. When the Lord Jesus

Christ returns. When he will reap. the tares,

and he will harvest the wheat. When he will bring

his people to himself, and he will judge the

wicked on that great and final day. This age

will be distinctly marked by the good works of

God in and through the life of the church, and

it will be distinctly marked by the activity

and the work of the devil. All throughout this

period. Now, we also have to understand the nature

of the enemy's activity in this age. We have

to grasp this. Because we don't want the wool

pulled over our eyes. It's sad to me that I oftentimes

hear individuals making light of this. Terrible

enemy. Almost as though he doesn't really exist.

Almost as though he's not real. I listened to

part of a podcast the other day, and the individual

was putting forward that the devil, and this

is becoming a prominent view, is just the personification

of evil. The personification of sin. He's a concept.

That epitomizes everything that's wrong and bad

with the world. But that's not what the Bible

teaches, is it, brothers and sisters? The Bible

is clear that the devil is a real, personal being.

That he exists and he has autonomy. That he is

a creature made by God. That he is a real...

dangerous, powerful adversary that lurks, who

is active, who is scheming, who is strategizing.

He is active in and throughout this age. If we're

going to understand his activity and his work

and his attacks, we really need to understand

his motives, don't we? His motives are this.

It's very simple from the text. He says this,

because the devil has come down to you, in verse

12, having great wrath, knowing that he has only

a short time. He knows that he's defeated. He

knows that he's been conquered by the cross.

He knows that Christ has been successful and

victorious, brothers and sisters. So he is raging,

but it is the raging of a foe who is already

defeated. He knows his days are numbered. He

knows he has no power and authority over the

believer. He knows the cross is destroyed. His

prosecutorial powers and the throne of God. His

accusations fall flat. He knows these things

and that is what motivates him. I only have so

much time to hurt the Messiah, the Christ in

his people. The one who dwells in them. He failed

to thwart the coming of the Messiah. But now

he goes at the Messiah as he dwells in his people

by the Spirit of God. He can't hurt Christ on

the throne who is ruling and reigning. But brothers

and sisters, he knows. He can get a good shot

in here and he can get a good shot in there.

He can do a little bit of damage here and he

can do a little bit of damage there to his people

in this world. He is an enemy and a foe that

is defeated and rages from defeat and because

of defeat. He doesn't have hopes of winning.

That's not in his game plan. The devil knows

there's no more success for him in the future

because he knows he was enthroned and he knows

what is coming. In a sense, he has nothing to

lose from this period onward with the church.

in the world. Now, in this age, his attacks are

real. They are dangerous and they are powerful.

But it's very important for us to understand

this. Though he is a fierce enemy, he is not

a sovereign enemy. He is not absolute in his

power. He is a creature. He only has what power

and what ability and what authority the sovereign

King of Kings and Lord of Lords permits him to

possess in this world throughout this age. Actually,

the Bible teaches that he is bound in this age.

He is restrained throughout this period. Now,

we would put forth that there's a period toward

the end of this age where that restraint is lifted.

Where that restraint is loosened. And he's given

more freedom and more activity to work woe in

the world. But just as... he's getting ready

to make his decisive strike, Christ will return

in glory and rescue and deliver his people. He

will judge the wicked and the devil and he will

deliver his people fully and finally. So, how

is the devil restrained in this world? What does

it mean that he is bound? As Revelation chapter

Revelation 20 · chapter mention

20 puts it. Well, one, we already know this.

He's limited in time. His time is short. He only

has so much time to work. He only has such a

period to accomplish his schemes and his strategies

because of the work of Christ on Calvary, in

Christ's enthronement. His time is short, according

to verse 12. But he's also limited in his authority

over believers. We know all throughout the Bible

that believers are no longer blinded by the devil.

They're no longer deceived. They're no longer

children of wrath. according to Ephesians chapter

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

2. They no longer walk after the course of this

world. They're children of God. They've been

made alive together with Christ. So his authority

in the life of believers is broken. No longer

are believers slaves. No longer do they dwell

in the dominion of darkness and sin, in the sphere

or the realm of sin in which the devil so powerfully

and persuasively allures and persuades men and

draws out the lusts of their hearts. The believer

is not in that sphere anymore. They have the

Spirit of God dwelling within them. They have

a new, regenerate nature. Brothers and sisters,

you have been born again by the power of the

Holy Spirit. Christ rules and reigns in your

heart. The devil has no authority in the heart

and mind of the believer. It is a mistake for

any Christian to believe that you must obey the

temptations of the devil. You do not have to

give in to temptation when the devil dangles

it out in front of you. That power of sin, which

he works through, Has been broken. So his authority.

In the life of the believer. Is gone. His accusatory

powers. At the throne. Are destroyed. By the

work of Christ. And think about this. As the

church. Of Jesus Christ. Continues to grow. In

an accumulating fashion. Throughout the ages.

generation by generation, throughout the world

and around the globe, how much more does his

authority diminish? How much more does it shrink?

How much more power and persuasion does he lose

as the gospel advances and grows throughout time

and throughout the generations? As we approach

and near the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

His authority is done away with in the life of

the believer. He is limited in his ability to

stop the advance of the gospel. When Christ saves

sinners. He doesn't ask the devil's permission.

He regenerates them and he gives them faith and

repentance. And his authority is gone in the

believer's life. Their eyes are opened and they

see Christ in all his glory, in all his greatness,

in his majesty, in all his power. And they trust

in him. The devil cannot stop that, brothers

and sisters. He's restrained. In the intensity

and the directness and the effectiveness of his

attacks in the life of the church. Look at verses

15 through 16. And the serpent poured water like

a river out of his mouth. After the woman. So

that he might cause her to be swept away with

the flood. But the earth helped the woman. And

the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river,

which the dragon poured out his mouth. And then

if we go back to verse 14, we read this. But

the two wings of the great eagle were given to

the woman so that she could fly into the wilderness

to her place where she was nourished for a time

and times and a half time from the presence of

the serpent. So, meaning there's an indirectness

with regards to the attacks. There's a shielding

of God from the activity and the full brunt of

the devil's power in this world. He's restrained

in that capacity. He cannot destroy the church

corporate. Notice in verses 16 and 17 where he...

pours out this flood from his mouth. And the

idea is that it's such an amount of water that

it's meant to sweep the woman away and drown

her and completely and totally destroy her. But

we read that God helps her and that her presence

continues. And actually the fact that he can't

destroy her enrages him, according to verse 7,

so the dragon was enraged. Why? Because the woman

remains. Because he's incapable of snuffing her

out. He's incapable of obliterating the church

universal throughout the world. He's incapable

of destroying God's church. He's limited. He

is restrained in all of these ways. Chapter 20

of the book of Revelation calls this, says this

is the devil being bound by God. So he's a fierce

enemy. But brothers and sisters, he's an enemy

with a collar on. He has a leash. And it's only

so long, brothers and sisters. And the one holding

the leash works for the good of... his people.

He even uses the opposition, the attacks, the

work and the activity of the devil for the good

of his people. Now, we know how he's restrained,

but what is the focus of the devil's activities

in this world? This is clear and obvious, isn't

it? The church corporate but also the individual

Christian. Notice that a great deal of the emphasis

throughout 12 -17 is on the woman. And if you

recall, the woman is the covenant community of

God's people. As a whole. All of them. The corporate

body. But we read in verse 17 that this woman

actually has Children. We read this in verse

17, which says this. So the dragon was enraged

with the woman, meaning he couldn't destroy her,

and he went off to make war with the rest of

her children. Individual believers. Individual

Christians. We see in our day, in our age, brothers

and sisters, There is persecution throughout

the globe of the Christian church. This is coming

to the forefront because of so many things that

are taking place overseas right now. Christians

are being persecuted. Why is it that the Christian

church has always been the most persecuted religion

in the world throughout history? Why is it that...

It's like there's a vacuum that's sucking all

the persecution right to the Christian church.

What's behind that? Why are there so many martyrs

throughout history that we praise God for, that

we're willing to die for their faith? Why do

we look at the first couple centuries of the

church and we see that the epitome, and the ultimate

expression of spirituality and faith was martyrdom.

Why was that even necessary? Because the enemy

focuses on the church as a whole, but because

he's incapable of destroying the church as a

whole, what does he do? He goes after the individual

Christians. We've even seen this in our day in

the last two years. with prominent individuals

who have fallen to the trap of the devil. He

can't squash out Christ's people as a whole,

but he sure can get one man to have an affair.

He sure can go after the one individual and harden

their heart and bring about bitterness and lies

and deceit in their life. He may not be able

to destroy the church as a whole, but he can

focus his attention on individuals. He can go

after the children of the woman. The focus of

the devil throughout this age will always be

on the people of God. Because it's in the people

of God that Jesus Christ dwells through the Spirit

of God. They are his prized possession. They

are the ones that... image him in this world.

They are the ones that are being conformed in

the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. They

are the ones that display his glory and his goodness.

They are the light of the world just as he was,

brothers and sisters. And the devil hates Christ's

people. So the object of his fury and his rage

is the church corporately. and Christians individually.

Now, how does he attack? What methods and strategies

does he go after the church and Christians with?

Well, his names help us understand this to a

degree. The accuser, the adversary, the deceiver.

He brings up guilt and shame. In sin, he draws

men's minds and hearts away from God. He seeks

to deceive them with false doctrine, personally

and individually, and error. But corporately,

we see that he seeks to overwhelm the church

with error and false teaching. Notice in verse...

That the primary attack of the devil comes from

where? His mouth. Why is that? Because it's words.

It's ideas. It's doctrine. It's error. It's...

truths and half -truths that are mangled by him.

This is his primary way of attacking the church

as a whole. False doctrine and error. But, throughout

the book of Revelation, we also find that this

enemy of ours has three helpers. And that these

are three of the primary ways that he works to

oppose the church. The beast, the false prophet,

and the harlot, or the prostitute. You can read

further in the book of Revelation, and you'll

encounter all three of these individuals. All

three of these figures, these types, these symbols.

These realities that the devil works in and through

to oppose the church in this world. How does

he work? Through the beast. Unbelieving government

that persecutes and ostracizes God's people.

The false prophets. False competing religions

in the world. That hate Christ. And the prostitute.

The harlot that sits on the beast. How does she.

Oppose the church. At the will of Satan. The

world. And sexual immorality. And sensuality.

In the world. These are the big waves. These

are the big helpers of the devil in opposing

and attacking and working against the church

of Jesus Christ. All of these things he utilizes.

Now, the devil's activity will only go so long.

His end is determined. His end is fixed. The

end of this age, the end of this era, brings

about the end of our great nemesis, brothers

and sisters. The end of this in -between phase

brings about the end and the destruction and

the final judgment of our great enemy, Satan.

It's at this point. that he will be destroyed,

and he will work no more woes for the church.

Praise be to God. Now, we hear this about the

activity and the work of the devil throughout

this age, and we think, well, this might be a

bit disheartening. We have this enemy who's working

against us. Yes, he's restrained, but... This

could send me into despair if I just focus on

this, if I just know this, if I just think about

this, knowing that there's a real personal enemy

who's powerful and dangerous working against

the people of God. But just as the church is

the focus of the devil in this age, brothers

and sisters, more importantly, we must always

remember that the church is the focus. of God's

special care throughout this age. This is the

last thing we have to consider. The special care

of God for the church throughout this age. Now,

this care is sovereign in design. Notice in verse

6, the woman fled into the wilderness. where

she had a place prepared by God, so that there

she would be nourished for 1 ,260 days. It's

talking about the fact that God has put divine

forethought into the woman's travel, into the

woman's place, into her time in the wilderness.

It's sovereign in design. I think of the Old

Covenant and the first one or two sermons in

this series. We discussed how God constantly

superintended and sovereignly oversaw and countered

the repeated thwarts and attempts of the devil

to stop the coming of the Messiah. The same thing

is true. Of the church throughout this age. God

is sovereign. And superintends everything. We

look out and see chaos. And see chaotic activity

at times. We look out and we see craziness in

the world. But brothers and sisters. This age.

This period. Is not purposeless. It is not accidental.

It is sovereign in design. It's evident and clear

from verse 7. But we also see that it's rooted

and grounded in God's covenant faithfulness to

his people. We see this because it says in verse

14, But the two wings of the great eagle were

given to the woman. Let's turn to Exodus chapter

Exodus 19 · chapter mention

19. We read this in verse 4. You yourselves have

seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore

you on eagle's wings and brought you to myself.

The Lord didn't just redeem the people in Egypt

and forsake them. No, his covenant faithfulness

cost him. To lead them and guide them and protect

them throughout the wilderness period. Brothers

and sisters, the true is same for the church.

Christ did not just die for us and accomplish

an objective victory and then forsake and abandon

his people throughout this age. His faithfulness

remains and it guarantees and secures. His protection

and provision and preservation in their lives,

in the life of the church throughout this age.

Now, this divine care itself manifests itself

in the form of the Lord sustaining and preserving

the church throughout this age. in the face of

the adversary and his assaults. We see this in

particular in verses 15 and 16. Where the devil

seeks to drown the woman, what happens? The ground

opens and swallows up the water and helps the

woman. God doesn't just restrain the devil's

activity. Brothers and sisters, he sustains the

church in the face of the devil's opposition

and attacks. He doesn't allow the church to be

destroyed or obliterated throughout this age.

He doesn't allow the church to be done away with.

Christ said, I will build my church. And he is

faithful to that promise, to that word which

he made. Now what takes place in the desert?

We find that God cares for his people by nourishing

them and providing for them throughout this period.

Twice in this text, it is said that God nourishes

his people. Surely this is an allusion to God's

provision in the life of Israel while they're

in the wilderness. The manna and the water and

God's provision for them. God nourishes the church

in and throughout this age. And that is one of

the primary purposes of this age. That the church

would be strengthened, refined, purified, built

up, stronger than she was before. And how does

that take place personally in a person's life?

Is it through ease and comfort and the absence

of hardship? Does comfort and ease and the absence

of hardship bring about greater sanctification

in our life, typically and normally? No. Hardship,

trials, difficulties bring about strengthening.

They bring us to an end of ourselves where we're

reliant on the Lord. Now think about the church

corporately throughout this age. How does God

refine and purify, nourish, strengthen and build

up his people throughout the entirety of this

age? Through trials, difficulties, hardships.

He teaches the church The vanity of its own strength

and its desperate need to rely upon Him and His

power for their perseverance and their sustaining,

their maintenance in life and their success in

the life of the church and throughout this period.

He nourishes the church. This is one of the purposes

of the wilderness, is it not? It's not just for

trials and hardships, but it's to teach dependence,

On God. To look to him for nourishment. And for

help. And for aid throughout this life. The ultimate

evidence. Of all of this. Of God's special care

in the life of the church. Throughout this age.

Is the ongoing presence. Of the woman. And her

offspring. No matter what the devil tries. No

matter what he throws at the church. She continues

to be. She continues on. The Lord sustains her

existence and her life and her vitality. He continues

to build the church. to grow the church and expand

the church. How do we know that? Because she

has children. She continues to multiply and grow

throughout this world in the face of the enemy.

The ultimate evidence that God cares for his

people in this world is that the church still

exists, brothers and sisters. Why has the church

not been done away with yet? Think about the

history of the world. Why has the church not

been obliterated by now? Why has the church not

been blown up and done away with by now? Because

the sovereign King of Kings and the Lord of Lords

sustains, preserves, and blesses and keeps the

people of God. And He will bring them into glory.

He will bring them into the full and final realizations

of His promises. He will bring them into glory

either by their death or by Christ's return,

brothers and sisters. That's why we should rejoice

that there are healthy churches throughout the

world. That means God is sustaining and God is

working throughout the world, brothers and sisters.

God's special care is not Hopeful thinking. This

is not hopeful thinking that God will probably

take care of his church. Brothers and sisters,

this is guaranteed because Christ has been exalted.

This is for certain because Christ was born.

Christ lived. Christ died. Christ rose. Christ

exalted. Christ was enthroned, brothers and sisters,

because of his completed, finished work. The

special care of the church is absolutely guaranteed

for the entirety of this age until the return

of the Lord Jesus Christ. 100%. No doubt. All

of this ought to help us in understanding the

world in which we live. All of these things ought

to inform our worldview of this age or this period

of the world. Now, how does it do that? Well,

it does it first because it requires of us to

have a holy skepticism of this present evil age.

We must have a holy skepticism, brothers and

sisters, of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Because we know that there is an enemy behind

that which we see, working for our woe, working

for our ill. He is our adversary and he will

continue to be our adversary until the end of

this age. We must have a holy skepticism with

regards to the world and empires and powers and

cultures and societies. It is a biblical necessity

when we understand the nature of our enemy, brothers

and sisters. Our enemy cannot be reformed. Do

you understand that? Our enemy. cannot be transformed.

He hates God and he hates God's people. We must

have a holy skepticism regarding the unbelieving,

unregenerate world, culture, and society at large

because we know that the devil is actively working.

That must be balanced with a holy optimism and

confidence in the kingdom of God throughout this

age. Yes, we have to have a holy skepticism with

regards to the world, the flesh, and the devil,

this present evil age. But brothers and sisters,

we must have a bolster. a vital optimism regarding

God's work in the life of the church, the preaching

of the gospel, the work of the Spirit in this

world. We must take that away. We must embrace

the reality that God will build His church, that

God will be with His church. That God will work

in and through his church. That God will sanctify

his people. That he will mature his people and

edify them. That he will refine them and purify

them in this age. As he does those in the wilderness.

We must have a holy confidence in the work of

God. And those have to be balanced. There's a

danger in having an imbalanced view one way or

another. What happens if we focus too much on

the things taking place in the culture, in the

world, in society at large, in governments, in

rulers, in earthly kingdoms? It can easily lead

to despair and frustration. It can easily lead

to being disheartened in this life and lead us

to a place where we say, Lord, what are you doing?

What is taking place around me? What is happening

in the world around me? Brothers and sisters,

don't let that determine and dictate your faith

in God and His work in the life of the church.

Two different things. Two different categories.

Where must our hope rest, wholly and completely?

In Christ. In His rule, in His reign, in and

through the life of God's people and the life

of the church. We must balance the two. We must

find a healthy balance between the two. But we

must. Have a holy skepticism of the world, the

flesh, and the devil. And we must have a holy

optimism and confidence with regards to the kingdom

of God. So much so that we can say this. I am

skeptical of the present evil age. But I am absolutely

confident. In God's work. In the kingdom of God.

In this world.