Evening, November 30, edited from Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening

“And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war.” — Revelation 12:7

War will always rage between the two great sovereignties until one or the other will be crushed. Peace between good and evil is an impossibility; the very pretense of it would, in fact, be the triumph of the powers of darkness. Michael will always fight; his holy soul is provoked by sin, and will not endure it. Jesus will always be the dragon’s foe: and that not in a quiet sense, but actively, vigorously, with full determination to exterminate evil. All his servants, whether angels in heaven or messengers on earth, will and must fight; they are born to be warriors. At the cross they enter into agreement never to make a truce with evil; they are a warlike company, firm in defense and fierce in attack. The duty of every soldier in the army of the Lord is to fight against the dragon daily, with all his heart, and soul, and strength.

The dragon and his angels will not reject the fight; they are incessant in their onslaughts, sparing no weapon, fair or foul. We are foolish to expect to serve God without opposition: the more zealous we are, the more sure are we to be assailed by the unrelenting minions of hell. The church may become sluggish, but her great antagonist not so; his restless spirit never allows the war to pause; he hates the woman’s seed, and would willingly devour the church if he could. The servants of Satan share much of the old dragon’s energy, and are usually an active race. War rages all around, and to dream of peace is dangerous and futile.

But, glory be to God, we know the end of the war. The great dragon shall be cast out and forever destroyed, while Jesus and they who are with him shall receive the crown. Let us sharpen our swords tonight, and pray for the Holy Spirit to strengthen our arms for the conflict. Never is a battle so important, never a crown so glorious. Every man to his post, you warriors of the cross, and may the Lord tread Satan under your feet shortly!