A Sermon on Revelation 12:7-12 for the feast of St. Michael and All Angels. Delivered by Pastor Caleb Strutz.

On August 12, 1880, General William Tecumseh Sherman addressed a crowd of 10,000 in Columbus, Ohio: “There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell.” General Sherman had seen the terrors and destruction of war during the Civil War, and he did not find it something to boast about or be proud of, but something that could only be compared to hell. If war is hell, it seems odd to read in Revelation 12 that there was a war in heaven. How can this be?

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Michael and All Angels. This is an occasion to study and reflect on the doctrine of angels and their role in our lives today. Angels do lots of things, but one of their roles is warrior. As we look at the war in heaven in Revelation 12, we’ll examine the sides in this conflict: Michael the Archangel and the holy angels versus Satan the dragon and his demons. We will also see what and who the angels are fighting for.

I. Satan the Accuser

Revelation is a complicated book and there is a lot going on here, so let’s take a minute to get our bearings. The book of Revelation is a series of visions that the Apostle John received while in exile on the island of Patmos. Immediately before our text, John sees a woman and a dragon. The woman is pregnant and about to give birth and the dragon was waiting before the woman, so that he could devour the child as soon as it was born (vv. 1–4).

The woman “bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne.” (v. 5). The Child is Jesus and the dragon is the devil. The devil wanted to destroy Jesus, but when He was taken up into heaven at His ascension, the devil tried to chase after Him.

The ensuing warfare happens in this timeframe. Although we see Satan thrown down, this is not the initial rebellion which happened while Adam and Eve were in paradise. These visions take place in the New Testament era, not the Old.

So what does it mean that “war broke out in heaven?” Well, heaven is perfect. Nothing can disturb its peace. Rather, as St. Paul writes in Ephesians 6, “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (v 12). This battle did not happen in heaven, the place, but in the spiritual realm, more broadly speaking.

The conflict is whether Satan has a right to exist in the spiritual realm. The dragon wants to replace the Child as the one who stands before God and represents humanity. Satan claims that he and his words best represent us. The battle is really about us.

Satan is the accuser who accuses us before God day and night (v. 10), “who deceives the whole world” (v. 9). And his accusation is accurate. Satan holds our sin before God’s sight. The evidence is on his side. We have sinned. We have gone astray. We have not perfectly obeyed God and His law. Just as Satan rebelled against God, so we too reject His dominion and authority every time we prioritize ourselves over Him, our will over His. Although Satan is the father of lies (Jn 8:44), here no lie is necessary.

II. Michael and Christ

And, in the other corner, we have Michael, the archangel (Jude 6). He is one of the few angels who is named in Scripture and he pops up in interesting places. Here, he is shown as the general of the angels, and in Daniel 10 we are told that he maintains the cause of Israel (v. 21). Against Satan, the adversary and accuser, stands Michael, the helper of God’s people. And the warfare begins.

But remember that this battle took place after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. So the life and work of Jesus is really the basis for this battle.

And when Jesus was facing His passion, He said, “now the ruler of this world will be cast out” (Jn 12:31). By His death on the cross, Jesus removed Satan’s accusation. Our sins have been washed away in Jesus’ blood. Satan’s claims are now baseless. The devil has been conquered “by the blood of the Lamb” (v. 11).

Jesus rose from the dead, proclaiming His victory over Satan. Death could not hold Him. Jesus’ body and soul were reunited again by His own power as God. In His body, which was put to death, Jesus went down to hell to announce His triumph (1 Pet 3:19).

When Jesus ascended into heaven, He received “All authority … in heaven and on earth” (Mt 28:18). Now the power of Christ has come (v. 10). Christ ascended and cast down Satan. His accusations have proven to be false, so he stands in contempt of court and is banished. Christ removes both sin and accuser, both guilt and accusation.

But what do the angels have to do with it? We’re trying to talk about angels but we end up talking about Jesus! But that’s kind of the point. The angels are under Jesus’ control and never take the honor for themselves. That was Satan’s sin. But the angels serve God and do His bidding. And the angels are always active in God’s gracious dealing with His people. Angels announced the good news at the Savior’s birth, they appeared to the women at the empty tomb, and they encouraged the disciples after Jesus was taken up into heaven. They’re there every step of the way.

So also, they cast down Satan. Just like in the parable of the wedding banquet, the king doesn’t soil his hands by throwing out the unworthy man, but orders his servants to do it (Mt 22:13). So too, Jesus uses His angel army to cast the devil out of the heavenly realms. The name “Michael” is Hebrew and, when translated, it poses the question, “Who is like God?” As Michael the Archangel throws down the great dragon, you can hear this question on his lips: “Who is like God? Certainly not you.”

The devil is no longer a dominating power in the spiritual realm. Christ’s victory is secure, Satan has been bound in “chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment (2 Pet 2:4). His time is short. But he knows it. So watch out.

He has been kicked out of the heavens, but “Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you” (v. 12). He will still try to tempt people here on earth. He has lost the spiritual war, but he’ll still try to pick fights with the Church here on earth. He has “great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (v. 12).

Here’s where the angels come into play in our daily lives as the war in heaven is waged in a lesser degree here on earth. Satan is defeated and limited, but not powerless. He’s like a dog on a chain—he’s bound, but he has a certain reach. God’s holy angels help us and protect us in this fight.

There’s a lot of mystery surrounding angels, but what we do know about them provides much comfort.

Psalm 91:11–12: “For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.” God sends His angels to guard us and protect us in everything we do.

Hebrews 1:14: Angels are “ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation.” These powerful, spiritual warriors serve us!

Jesus told us in our Gospel lesson that each of us has a guardian angel or angels who view the face of our heavenly Father.

And elsewhere in Scripture, we learn that angels pray for us and join their prayers to ours (Acts 10:3–4; Rev 8:3–4). Our worship here on this earth is a taste of heaven because we’re doing here what the angels are doing there. But we also learn from Scripture that they are with us as we worship (1 Cor 11:10). Angels are here, right now. Lots of them. We can proclaim with Jacob, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!” (Gen 28:18). Because we gather here with the angels to receive God’s gifts and sing His praises, this is Bethel, the house of God. God sends us His angels to guard us, fight for us, and worship with us.

Because Christ has bound Satan, because we have these powerful allies, when we are watchful, when we resist, when we fight the devil, he cannot bring harm to us. There is a battle going on. Although the victory has been won, individuals may still be lost. Rejoice in Christ and His victory, but remain vigilant. Don’t rest on your laurels, but don’t be afraid either. You have an army of mighty warriors surrounding you.