“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 ESV).
In John’s revelation, the Lord pulled back the curtain between heaven and earth, allowing him to see things from a heavenly perspective. In Revelation 12, John saw the cosmic warfare surrounding Christ’s birth. For he saw a vision of the devil in the form of a dragon, seeking to kill the Christ child as soon as he was born.
Every year I remind our church that we need to correct the nativity scenes that we display in our homes at Christmas. For they have merged the two accounts of the angels and shepherds in Luke 2 with the star and the Magi in Matthew 2. Those two events happened two years apart. Yet upon reading today’s New Testament reading in Revelation, I wonder whether another adjustment should be made. Should we add a dragon to our nativity displays?
Certainly, we can see the dragon at work in the heart of King Herod, who sought to kill the Christ child by sending soldiers to Bethlehem to murder every baby boy under the age of two (Matt. 2:16-18). But that’s a part of the story that we’d rather forget. We don’t like being reminded that we’re tempted to worship the worldly king Herod rather than the true King Jesus. We’re all under the influence of the dragon apart from faith in Christ Jesus who came to save us.
John’s revelation reminds us that Christmas was a cosmic event, filled with drama and spiritual warfare. His book pulls back the curtain and lets us see Christmas from God’s perspective.
I’ve never seen a Christmas nativity set that included a dragon. But he was there. And he is still at war with all those who seek to worship the one true born King.
PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for pulling back the curtain so that we can see the profound spiritual importance of Christmas. Help us to see with fresh perspective and with spiritual eyes the wonder of the gift of Your Son this season. And strengthen us to recognize the spiritual battle for our worship. In Jesus’ name, amen.