Introduction

My friends, we move on to Revelation Chapter 12. The theme is "The Way of Victory for the Brothers and Sisters Who Are Not Raptured."

The Woman and the Male Child

This passage of Scripture speaks of a woman and a male child. We do not know exactly who this woman is; the world has produced all kinds of wild interpretations. But as for the male child, we can grasp his identity with some certainty, for he is mentioned quite prominently in the text. Let me read it to you:

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth.

And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; but her child was caught up to God and to his throne. (Revelation 12:1-5)

My view is that this woman represents the people of Israel in the Old Testament. Jesus Himself was a Jew, and Christianity emerged from Judaism. That is to say, Christianity and Judaism are deeply connected. Judaism believes in the Old Testament Scriptures. Although Jesus was a Jew in the New Testament, the Jewish people did not accept Him.

This child was caught up to God and to His throne. He represents those throughout the generations who followed Jesus Christ and overcame; they are all caught up to the throne. In other words, this newborn male child prefigures the victorious church. Therefore, the theme of this chapter is "The Way of Victory for the Brothers and Sisters Who Are Not Raptured."

When the last trumpet sounds, the overcomers will be raptured. It is not all the saved who are raptured. Thus, this woman represents Judaism, and this male child represents the church. The church and Jesus Christ are one.

What does the Scripture say? Jesus Christ is the firstborn for us in the kingdom of God, and He will bring many brothers into God's kingdom. Jesus Christ is the head, and the church is the body of Jesus Christ. We must establish a victorious, born-again concept of the church.

This passage is a vision seen by the Apostle John, but it is a prefigurement. This woman is clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. Who is she? We must return to the Old Testament. The stars, moon, and sun are related to Joseph, because Joseph had a dream in which the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him.

Joseph is an outstanding model of an overcomer. This woman follows the pattern of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph in the Old Testament, and from this woman, the church is born. When we reach Revelation, these two things are linked. In truth, victory in the Old Testament is the same as victory in the New Testament.

Although we now have Jesus Christ, if we can achieve what Joseph achieved, I wish you the best of luck! We must go through Joseph’s trials and be born again before we can become a victorious church.

This male child is the church, caught up to God. This refers to the sounding of the seventh trumpet mentioned earlier. The overcomers have already been raptured. In the previous chapters, the two witnesses were killed, remained on the earth for three and a half days, and then the breath of life entered them. They were caught up into the air, followed by the rapture of the church.

Then, for whom are Chapters 12, 13, and 14 written? They are written for those who remain on the earth. In fact, from Chapter 14 onwards, we see the reality of the seven bowls. By that time, there will be no Christians left on earth. Those who were to be killed have been killed; those who had to jump into the Nile have jumped.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you must know how crucial victory is! In the Chinese Mingding Doctrine, we do not focus on a passive concept of salvation. Instead, we must hammer the concept of victory deep into our bones. Some say, "Pastor, I am weak, I cannot control myself..." Cut that out! Whether you overcome or not depends on your own resolve and destiny.

If you care so much about yourself, how can you talk about victory? Joseph was sold into Egypt, yet he did not fall into the judgment of good and evil. But we, sometimes we sell others out, and then we still judge good and evil. Learn slowly! I can only wish that you all overcome.

The Overcomers Are All Raptured at the Sound of the Last Trumpet

She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; but her child was caught up to God and to his throne. (Revelation 12:5)

Her child has already been raptured. This shows how critical victory is! He was born of this woman, representing rebirth. For a person who is not of the flesh, we do not debate whether he is saved or not; we only discuss whether he overcomes. The Bible records with absolute clarity what happens to those who overcome. From the very beginning, Revelation has been about the church, and at this point, it is still about the church.

Therefore, the overcomers are all raptured when the last trumpet sounds. Those who are left behind are those who did not overcome. What happens to them? You still have an opportunity to overcome. The opportunity is what the Scripture says: "And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death." This is victory!

If you love your own life, you will not overcome. If, after the church is raptured, you still cling to your life, you will be just like the people of the world, having nothing to do with Jesus.

Thus, after the last trumpet sounds, Chapters 12, 13, and 14 of this book are written for those who were not raptured. From Chapter 15 onwards, it has little to do with us! If you fall into Chapter 15, it is game over; there is absolutely no hope left.

Victory Is Born Out of Pain and the Agony of Labor

If you truly digest the Old Testament, you will no longer be a legalist. The Old and New Testaments share the same lineage and form a complete system. A person is born out of pain and the agony of labor. This means that putting the flesh to death is no easy task; the flesh is incredibly powerful! The rebirth of a person is like a crab shedding its shell or a cicada emerging from its pupa—it is a highly painful process.

Today, we must rid ourselves of the sin that clings so closely, rid ourselves of the evil desires of the flesh, and overcome. For a person to put the flesh to death, be born again, and overcome is an extremely difficult process. The stronger your flesh, the harder it is to put it to death. Therefore, victory is born out of pain and the agony of labor.

Was Joseph miserable when he was sold into Egypt? It is impossible that he was not! If Satan had whispered lies to him, saying, "Joseph, you should have gone to university, become a professor, an executive, or run your own business. Now, you don't even own yourself. Your life is ruined!" And if his mind had dwelt on this daily: "It is because my brothers sold me into Egypt that I am now a slave. I am finished."

Have you ever had such an experience? The voice in your head plays on a loop like a broken tape: "You are finished! He treated you so badly, how can you still be like this?" You must have experienced this. How could it not be painful? It is in full stereo, as if four speakers are placed in the four corners of your room, playing on a loop. Will you fall into it? Joseph dragged himself out of this. How difficult it is to put the deeds of the flesh to death!

If you do not see through the trivialities of life, and if your mind is filled with worldly, fleshly logic, it will be very difficult to overcome. In no time, you will be exhausted and run a fever, like a computer overloaded, the CPU overheating without water cooling. Your hardware is limited, yet you run it to death in an infinite loop, resulting in total exhaustion.

How did Joseph deal with this? Joseph adopted a godly logic: "My future is in God's hands. God is always in control of my life. It was God who sent me ahead into Egypt!" How formidable such a person is! This is a person clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars!

I deeply admire Joseph. When Joseph had his first child, he named him Manasseh, meaning "God has made me forget all my hardship." How could he not have suffered through those events? Yet victory is born this way. It is normal to feel pain!
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, do not think for a moment that you can overcome with a mere shrug of your shoulders. It is born out of pain and the agony of labor!

Sometimes the night is filled with helplessness. I often shed tears alone in the midst of hardship and struggle. I have struggled time and again, but I thank God! I will follow Joseph's example. Devil, get behind me! I will not listen to your voice. I choose to rejoice! I will rely on God; my God is my future!

Of course, my experiences are not as painful as Joseph's; mine are but a drop in the bucket. Yet, they are still hard. Therefore, do not think you can overcome with a simple decision or a stomp of your foot. It is "crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth." This is how victory comes.

Every Overcomer Faces the Dragon’s Attempt to Devour Them at Birth

And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. (Revelation 12:4)

When a person comes into this world with a destiny, the dragon knows it, and God knows it. The dragon stands there waiting to devour. This passage reminds me of my own life. When I was very young, my mother told me, "You will be an extraordinary child in the future." Of course, she told me this in private, so as not to arouse jealousy in others. I asked, "Why?"

My mother said, "I carried you for a full ten months, well-nourished. The night before you were born, I dreamed of a huge black python descending from heaven, about to devour me. I woke up in a cold sweat, and you were born that very day."

After I was born, I had a peculiar trait. My mother would wrap me in a blanket and place me on the bed, and I would never cry or make a fuss, unlike other babies who cry incessantly. I still remember things from my childhood. For instance, when my mother was in meetings, I would not cry even if I was hungry or in pain. Thus, she could attend her meetings and do her work without any trouble. Looking back, how similar this is to this passage! It turns out I came with a destiny!

Therefore, if a Christian wants to overcome, the dragon will stand at your door. Once you are born again, you will immediately see the dragon with its mouth wide open, ready to devour you. But it cannot devour you, because it does not have the final say. The Scriptures are interconnected. In Genesis, it says, "sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it."

If you are mastered by sin, that is your own undoing! Do not think for a moment that being mastered by sin will bring any good results. Failure brings great misery. Did Cain live a good life? He had no physical lack, yet he was in agony. Joseph, on the other hand, encountered all kinds of disasters, but he was not in agony.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, when you believe in the Lord and want to overcome, the first thing you see is the dragon's mouth waiting to devour you. In my experience of casting out demons, I have found that many demons want to devour those who love God. But they do not have the final say; this is a warfare.

"So that when she bore her child he might devour it." But did he devour it after birth? No. "She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; but her child was caught up to God and to his throne." What is our destiny? If we set our hearts to trust in God, our destiny is to overcome and to rule the nations with a rod of iron. This is the way of victory.

The Dragon Has Already Been Defeated

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, "Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God." (Revelation 12:7-10)

Why was he thrown down? Do you think he is only targeting us? No, the devil came to this world to destroy the people of this world, but his primary targets are the victorious brothers and sisters. He was thrown down because Christ has already overcome for us.

In the days of Adam and Eve, God did not force their mouths open and stuff the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil down their throats. Rather, the devil released a lie or two, and they ate it. You must have encountered similar situations. But this dragon has already been defeated. We no longer believe those lies because Jesus Christ has already overcome for us! We must emulate Jesus Christ and emulate Joseph.

Joseph's victory was nothing compared to the victory of Jesus Christ. The victory of Jesus Christ is absolute. Therefore, the dragon is defeated by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony! If you say you have never witnessed victory, you are lying. We have experienced plenty. Do not be deceived by a lie and follow the devil, or it will be game over.

In truth, demons exist to deceive people, making them lose their bearings, unable to tell good from bad, completely confused. In the end, their minds are filled with trivialities, and they begin to suffer. Satan the devil relies on deception to destroy people, but once we master the way of victory, we will not be deceived.

The Way of Victory for the Brothers and Sisters

We do not wait until Chapter 12 to think about the way of victory. We must walk in the way of victory throughout all the preceding chapters. Victory comes by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, loving not our lives even unto death.

...those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 12:17)

If you do not care about your life in this world, how can the devil deceive you? He cannot! If all you care about are the trivialities of this life—money, face, the pride of life, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh—how can you overcome? You cannot!

Some brothers among us think daily about the trivialities of worldly life. They long for a wife, yet they cannot marry because of physical limitations, which they dare not speak of out of shame. Yet they still yearn for it day after day. Are they not trapped fast?

If a person has a destiny and sees through the things of this life, desiring only to overcome, he should have the gift of celibacy. People live for these things, living in conflict and tension. I truly do not know how to shepherd such people!

Therefore, the way of victory is to keep God's commandments, hold to the testimony of Jesus Christ, by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. Every grace we have experienced is the reason for our victory. We love not our lives even unto death! It is that simple.

If you insist on caring about face, getting entangled, competing, and comparing, eventually, when you kick the bucket and close your eyes, all of this will become vanity of vanities. In fact, even before you kick the bucket, it is already vanity of vanities. Our minds are already limited; caring about these things only makes them more useless.

My brothers and sisters, you must know that the way of victory is to not care, loving not your lives even unto death! If by Chapter 12 you still cannot achieve this, you will slide straight into Chapter 15, which is no different from being an unbeliever. Victory is by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, loving not our lives even unto death.

If a person does not even care about his life, what else is there to care about? The devil cannot deceive you with any lie. "Flies do not swarm around an unbroken egg." If you can be deceived, it is because there is a crack in you, and a cracked egg will breed maggots.

Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!" (Revelation 12:12)

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, we must begin to overcome. No matter what, we must overcome! If you do not overcome yourself, no one can help you. I cannot do it for you, otherwise I would have done so long ago.

The Persecution the Jews Will Experience in the Last Three and a Half Years

And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood.

But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 12:13-17)

...and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. (Revelation 12:6)

One thousand two hundred and sixty days is three and a half years. If we divide the final seven years into two halves, the first half corresponds to the period of the first six trumpets before the seventh seal. The seventh trumpet sounds in the middle of these seven years.

The remaining three and a half years will be incredibly difficult, not fit for human living. The Antichrist will rule the world, much like Emperor Qin Shi Huang unifying the seven warring states. There will be much work to do, keeping him busy for three and a half years. God will sustain them for these three and a half years. At the end of the seven years, the serpent will pour water like a river out of his mouth to sweep the woman away. Has this woman given birth? Yes, many more will be born and turn to Jesus Christ. Although the Jews do not believe in the Lord now, during these three and a half years, they will find that many more children who believe in Jesus are born.

"Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus." At that time, the dragon will certainly overcome physically, so you will have no option but martyrdom. Once you fear death and cling to your life, you are finished. You cannot overcome, and you will slide straight into Chapter 15 to experience the seven bowls.

Therefore, for the brothers and sisters who are not raptured—meaning those who have not yet overcome—the way of victory remains: they conquer the devil and the enemy by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, loving not their lives even unto death.

I have connected the threads of Revelation Chapter 12. I believe this explanation is quite clear. Brothers and sisters, do not forget to overcome. The more you cling to your life, the more you care about the trivialities of your existence, the more certain it is that you will perish in the days to come.

Since we know the precious blood of Jesus and have personally experienced the power of God, we must trust God now just as we did in the past. Stop establishing your own righteousness; seek only the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and that will suffice. Reflect on this, and see where you are still failing to overcome. It is useless to contend with your pastors, leaders, or me. What is the point of not overcoming?

Brothers and sisters, overcome! There is still time, for the seventh trumpet has not yet sounded. Otherwise, when that time comes, you will truly have no chance. Whether you like it or not, falling into that state will be utterly miserable.

We will conclude our sharing here. May God bless you all!

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