Revelation 12: 12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath because he knows that he hath but a short time.
17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
As a general rule, we try to avoid doing cute Bible studies, where smooth things are spoken to soothe itching ears. Those watered down truths which are tailormade to suit the masses of people, and those cute doctrines that do not stir the conscience, nor awaken persons to the urgency of the moment, are to be strictly avoided, by persons who are called to preach the everlasting Gospel to our generation.
Our first passage tells us that as the final conflict of the ages looms into view, devils will rage as roaring lions, and because they know their time is short, it is inevitable that the heat of the furnace will soon be turned up several notches, with the remnant people of God being the special targets of attack.
So, if you find that your troubles are increasing quite significantly of late, if you have recently observed a spike in the number of attacks against your person, and if there is an unusual amount of difficulties, and trials heading your way, know for sure that the devil will be targeting the remnant people of God, as his universal rule is challenged.
Especially will this be the case with persons who are preaching the straight unadulterated truths for this generation, which expose and identify error, and in turn point earth’s teeming multitudes to the truths of God’s word.
So, basically in a nutshell, if you are a true remnant currently, you must understand that the devil would be coming after you with a baseball bat, to put it in layman’s terms. This statement is not a figment of our imagination, it’s just the plain old truth, verified via sacred history, through the annals of time.
Our first passage specifies who are the main objects of the dragon’s ire. It’s not the popular majority who are already doing his bidding, it is the few remnants who are keeping alive the knowledge of God on the earth. The presence of God-fearing persons upon the earth presents a persistent nagging problem for the dragon, and this enrages him exceedingly.
Thus, all who make a conscious decision to live in harmony with the law of God, become the objects of his wrath. Basically, that’s what our first passage is saying in a nutshell. The serpent went after Abel for the sole reason that he obeyed God.
He went after Joseph for the same reason, for when it was made manifest that he could not overthrow him with his snares and devices, he employed the use of force as his last resort. He went after Job for the same reason, for the Bible tells us that Job was a just and upright man, who obviously obeyed God by keeping His commandments.
He went after the three Hebrew boys, and Daniel for the very same reason, because he couldn’t get them to bow, or eat forbidden foods. He went after John the Baptist, he went after all of the disciples and last but not least the serpent vented his rage against the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.
Therefore, our first passage in Revelation does not reveal something new, it’s just a culmination of the historical pattern of angst against all who choose the ways of God. That’s just the raw facts in the matter.
The enemy of souls isn’t too worried about those in his camp already, he is focusing his attention on the few who are resisting his rule, and according to that last verse in Revelation 12, the individuals who keep the commandments of God are to expect a military campaign against them as the final conflict between good and evil intensifies.
This is not meant to scare anyone, because Christ is our hope of eternal salvation, and He has made us a very solemn promise to be with us till the end of the world. And since God is faithful, we can certainly be assured that He who has brought us thus far will not leave us to the mercy of devils.
But He has also put us on notice that we are not to expect days of wine and roses ahead, because we’re now approaching the final leg of that long running marathon of salvation, and as satan sees he is losing individuals to Christ’s kingdom, he will up the ante, and employ tit for tat strategies against the remnant as per the last verse in Revelation 12. Let’s read:
Revelation 12: 17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
The text is very specific, and it singles out the few, and the minority, who will be found faithful in the final conflict of the ages. The same sentiments, and truths are echoed by other prophets in the Bible, so that we need not be deceived into thinking that the trials will be a breeze. If you are thinking thus, you will be in for a very rude awakening. Let’s read:
Jeremiah 30:5 For thus saith the Lord; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.
Joel 3: 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
16 The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
The following are just a few snippets of truth which expand upon what we have already read. God will grant grace and power to meet the emerging threat but the saints will have to pray earnestly, like never before, because we are dealing with a determined, and well experienced foe. Let’s read:
[Last Day Events pp 147] Satan has a thousand masked batteries which will be opened upon the loyal, commandment-keeping people of God to compel them to violate conscience.
Let those who desire to be refreshed in mind and instructed in the truth study the history of the early church during and immediately following the Day of Pentecost.
Study carefully in the book of Acts the experiences of Paul and the other apostles, for God's people in our day must pass through similar experiences.
[Last Day Events pp 148] In the last great conflict in the controversy with Satan those who are loyal to God will see every earthly support cut off. Because they refuse to break His law in obedience to earthly powers they will be forbidden to buy or sell.
Satan says ... “For fear of wanting food and clothing they will join with the world in transgressing God's law. The earth will be wholly under my dominion.”
[Last Day Events pp 173] We are in the shaking time, the time when everything that can be shaken will be shaken. The Lord will not excuse those who know the truth if they do not in word and deed obey His commands.
Prosperity multiplies a mass of professors. Adversity purges them out of the church. When the law of God is made void, the church will be sifted by fiery trials, and a larger proportion than we now anticipate will give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils.
Now that we have observed the great intensity of the conflict, let’s turn to the nature of the conflict so as to better understand what is at stake. Ever since there was war in heaven, there have been only two opposing forces operating in the universe, one is to be found under God, the other is under satan.
And the battle for the minds of individuals and men has raged back and forth ever since. But much has been done to blur the lines, so that persons would not be aware of the real issues in the conflict.
According to Revelation 12 to 14, the law of God will be front and center to the final conflict, and persons would have their allegiance registered under one of two banners, with Jesus Christ at the head of God’s kingdom of light and righteousness, and satan at the head of the kingdom of darkness and error.
There is no middle ground, no sitting on the fence, and no sitting on the sidelines. Your decisions, and choices are inevitably being baked into a character that will put persons squarely into one camp or the next.
This is the inconvenient truth that has been hidden under a bushel for too long and must now be put on the front burner of the mind. Persons can say what they want and we could claim to believe in whoever we like, but at the end of the day, choices, decisions and actions are all burnished into the character, and these determine who we are, and whose we are.
The warfare that began in heaven has never ceased, it has just shifted to this one planet, which is now at the center of final conflict. In heaven it was the law of God that was at stake, in Eden, it was God’s law that was the focus of the serpent’s foray into Adam, and Eve’s decision-making process.
And in our day, the same issue now rages back and forth on the left on the right and in the center; it all boils down to the law of God, plain and simple. Let’s start with the cause of the war in heaven. No doubt, it was covetousness that drove Lucifer and all of the angels who fell with him, to pick a fight with God.
The 10th commandment, is described as being the basis for all other sins, and it was this one that did Lucifer in, when indulged in his mind, and brought to fruition in commensurate decisions and actions. Let’s read:
Exodus 20: 17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's.
[Patriarchs And Prophets pp 309] The tenth commandment strikes at the very root of all sins, prohibiting the selfish desire, from which springs the sinful act. He who in obedience to God's law refrains from indulging even a sinful desire for that which belongs to another will not be guilty of an act of wrong toward his fellow creatures.
Isaiah 14: 13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north.
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most-High.
That’s covetousness in real time, and since it forms the foundation for any other sin you could possibly think of, satan uses it as the template, whenever he strikes the human family. Everything that’s currently wrong in our world today could be traced right back to its roots, which is covetousness.
Then, after being cast out of heaven with the angels who fell with him, the very same foundational sin could be traced in the strike against our first parents as he enticed them to partake of that which was not what their own.
It was not merely about some fruit, it was the law of God, and the allegiance that would be given to God through obedience, or the allegiance that would be given to the devil through disobedience. God told Adam and Eve not to touch this one tree, which He reserved for Himself, as the owner.
They could eat of the hundreds and thousands of other trees, but this one teeny weeny tree God had reserved for Himself, thus giving them the majority, and keeping only this one.
Thus, by touching and eating of it, our first parents stole the fruit, and since stealing is the byproduct of covetousness, they broke two commandments, and killed two birds with one stone, as it were.
The laws of God are always broken in pairs with the sin of covetousness being the foundation, and then satellite sins such as adultery, killing, or stealing, but one thing is certain, all roads lead to covetousness.
Later on they lied about it when approached by God and therefore, the eating of the fruit, and their lying about doing so were satellite strands of the basic sin of covetousness, which manifested itself in the word and deed. And ever since that unfortunate day, the human race has been torn between our allegiance to God, or to the serpent. Let’s read:
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden.
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die.
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
After the fall, the same basic issue again resurfaced between Cain and Abel. God had instructed them to bring a lamb, and again, obedience would put them squarely in God’s camp. But disobedience would put Cain in the camp of the serpent, and again the same issue of covetousness resurfaces.
Cain coveted the favor of God that was shown Abel because of His obedience, and therefore, when he was reprimanded for not doing so, covetousness led him to shed innocent blood upon the earth for the very first time. Again, murder was the end resulting sin, but the foundation of Cain’s act was rooted in covetousness. Let’s read:
Genesis 4: 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering.
5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
6 And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7 If you do well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if you do not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
Then as time went by, the Antediluvians faced the very same scenario, of whether to obey God or the devil. God’s law says you must not commit adultery, and thou shall not kill, but again, the human family found itself, for the most part on satan’s side of the issue.
Indiscriminate violence and the wanton shedding of blood characterized their era, as were the violations of the 7th commandment. When Lamech introduced polygamy to our planet it was covetousness that led him to do so. And the senseless murders which took place in Noah’s day were the result of covetousness.
And just as it was with Adam and Eve, the world was divided into two distinct camps with Noah, and the likes of Methuselah representing allegiance to God, and His law by obedience to it, and, on the flipside, those who cast aspersions on the commandments through their violations, thus giving their allegiance to satan. Let’s read:
Genesis 6:1 And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
And as we travel through the annals of time, down to our day, you have the same issues now deciding the destiny of millions, and the very same common thread of covetousness, the foundation of all sins is now to be found in all varieties, strains, and flavors.
The war between Russia and Ukraine is the result of covetousness, the drug war is the result of the same basic sin, when any man leaves his wife, and sleeps with a prostitute, it is covetousness that drives him to do so, even if he may pay for it. When one pays to indulge in coveting, it is still recorded as such.
Just because a person could afford to be covetous does not make it any less of a sin. Covetousness is an illegal desire that, when cherished, will cause a man or woman to do some very strange things.
Sam Bankman Fried employed covetousness to steal billions from cryptomaniacs, all Ponzi schemes have the same working principle at their roots, politicians rail against each other as they covet the votes of the masses of people, and some of them will say and do whatever it takes to win.
Bernie Madoff, made off with fifty billion, from his unsuspecting victims. Unbridled credit card debt is the result of covetousness, in most instances, and the illegal harvesting of human organs from inmates is the result of covetousness.
Fraudulent advertising is the result of covetousness, fad diets abound, because persons covet the bodies of slim souls, and as persons endeavor to be like this one or that one some end up starving themselves in the process, and many throw their metabolism out of whack permanently, in some cases.
And the serpent isn’t finished with us as yet, for he is determined to sow the seeds of covetousness into the fabric of society in high and low places wherever allegiance to God is attempted.
Thus, it becomes obvious that the world has a huge problem on its hands, in the form of those continual violations of God’s law, through the foundational sin of covetousness. This brings us to our study today in which “The final conflict between good and evil” is to be decided in the valley of covetousness, versus obedience to God’s law.
When God gave humanity the Sabbath, He followed the same format as He did as when He gave Adam and Eve every other tree, but reserved this one for Himself. They could eat freely of all, except of this teeny tiny one that God had reserved for Himself.
In other words, in harmony with God’s selfless Spirit He gave them the overwhelming majority of trees to eat from while He reserved only this one as His own as stated in the Bible. Let’s read:
Genesis 2:16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof thou shalt surely die.
The same format rings true of the Sabbath, for God has given us every other day for ourselves, but He reserves this one alone for Himself. God does not change, because His very character is to give more than He retains for Himself, so here again He gives us the overwhelming majority of days, but reserves just one for Himself. Let’s read:
Exodus 20: 8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work. 10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord
thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates.
11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
But just as it was up in heaven, in Eden, in Noah’s day, and in the here and now, humanity covets the time God has reserved for Himself, and in doing so the law of God is broken again and again.
This is the reason why the final conflict between good and evil will of necessity be centered around God’s law, for this is where our allegiance, is, and has always been decided.
The conflict over the Sabbath is centered directly in 4th and 10th commandments because covetousness will lead us to take to ourselves the sacred time that belongs to God alone, and appropriate it for uses that are contrary to the plain instructions of God.
Someway, somehow, the serpent has succeeded in causing the seventh day sabbath to be the busiest of the week, and it has almost become a no brainer for persons to run errands, go shopping, do laundry and catch up on all of the other unfulfilled secular duties over the sacred hours of the Sabbath.
Another point of contention is the perspective put forward that the ten Commandments were for the Jews only, and therefore are not binding upon those who follow Jesus. Some even point to the scriptures saying that God’s law was given at Mt Sinai and thus were for the Hebrews in particular.
There are serious problems with that perspective as we will discover, when reading the Bible, line upon line and precept upon precept. First of all, the 7th day Sabbath was given to the human family in Eden, when there wasn’t a single Jew around.
Adam wasn’t a Jew, neither was Noah, yet they both kept all of God’s commandments including the 7th day Sabbath. Even though the law was hand written by God at Mt. Sinai, that does not necessarily mean that it was nonexistent up until that time.
Just because something isn’t written does not mean to say it does not exist, and therefore, if God’s laws were not binding in Eden, Adam and Cain could not be guilty of any sin for sin is the transgression of the law.
It becomes obvious, from a study of the Bible that the ten commandments were handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. Let’s read:
Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
Genesis 4: 6 And the Lord said unto Cain, why are you wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7 If you do well, shalt you not be accepted? and if you do not well, sin lies at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
Romans 5:13 For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
1st John 3: 4 Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
Genesis 39: 7 And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master knows not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;
9 There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back anything from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
Genesis 26: 4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;
5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
All of these took place long before Sinai, and thus, it becomes clear from the Scriptures that not only was the law given to all of humanity, but there were and are still valid.
Therefore, the final conflict between good and evil will be settled in the valley of decision as everyone on planet earth will have to make a choice, between allegiance to God, or allegiance to the serpent.
Persons are to understand current world events in this larger context, for it is the serpent’s plan to try to wipe the knowledge of God from the face of the earth so as to make his rule universal. Our Sunday- keeping brethren and friends are to understand the issues in clear distinct lines, so that their decisions in favor of the truth can be made.
Therefore, when we hear those statements such as Christianity is being attacked, when we see the rise of Christian nationalism, and when we hear clamors for America to return back to God, we may know for certain that there will be a very severe final conflict between the Biblical form of worship which includes the 7th day Sabbath, and the alternative form which includes Sunday worship.
In fact, when we read in the Bible of the man of sin sitting in the seat of God showing himself to be God, it is the tendency and habit of the antichrist system to coerce and persuade through economic sanctions a form of worship and obedience that pits all those who subscribe to it, against the God of heaven, and the true worship that is due to Him.
Therefore, the choice is clear, and the question is singular: Will the you and me in the here and now worship God in harmony with the scriptures, thus showing our allegiance to The God of heaven, or will we go with the flow of the popular majorities, and give our allegiance to the serpent?
The answer to this question lies within our freedom of choice, and will ultimately determine our eternal destiny. We therefore end with two passages from the Scriptures, showing us the gravity of the choices before us. Let’s read:
Acts 5:29 Then Peter and the apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
Joel 3: 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
16 The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
God Bless!