The Lamb and the Dragon

Every man and woman must choose whether to follow the Lamb or submit to the Dragon and his antichrist agenda.

Satan tempted Jesus by offering him power over all the nations of the Earth. However, he refused this seductive offer, choosing instead to walk the path of self-sacrifice and obedience to God, a decision that resulted in his death on the imperial cross.

Implementing the kingdom of God through the political systems of this age is contrary to the example and teachings of Christ. The Servant of the Lord is characterized by humility, self-denial for the sake of others, and mercy. He is a messianic leader sent by God to save men and women, not to conquer nations and destroy sinners:

• “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well-pleased: I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will declare justice to the nations. He will not strive or cry aloud. Neither will any man hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax he will not quench until he sends judgment unto victory. And in his name the nations will hope” – (Matthew 12:18-21, quoting Isaiah 42:1-4).

[Crossroads - Photo by Miltiadis Fragkidis (London) on Unsplash]

In the Book of Revelation, Jesus is portrayed as the slain lamb who ransoms his people from enslavement to sin and Satan. He is the opposite of the imperial beast from the abyss, who is energized and controlled by the Dragon.

In the Gospel of Matthew, the Devil shows Jesus all the political systems of this world and offers him absolute power over kingdoms and empires, but with one contractual obligation:

• “Again, the devil took him to an exceeding high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory. And he said to Jesus, All these things I will give you if you will fall down and pay homage to me” - (Matthew 4:8-9).

Thus, to acquire sovereignty over the nations, Jesus must swear fealty to the Dragon, “the Ancient Serpent, he who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole habitable earth” - (Revelation 12:9, 20:1-2).

Jesus is the Messiah appointed by God to rule the Cosmos, but how can he subjugate nations and governments without the military and economic might of the Empire? Why not accept Satan’s offer? Is this not “the way the world works”? Why should Christ suffer death when the Dragon offers a smoother path to power, one that circumvents the Cross? - (Psalm 2:6-9, 110:1, Daniel 7:13-14).

Rather than bow to the Dragon, the Nazarene took the path of the Servant of the Lord described in the Book of Isaiah. He became the Lamb sacrificed to redeem humanity. His kingdom differs radically from the empires and political methods of this world.

The Lamb gave his life to liberate humanity. He did not come to enslave nations or slaughter his enemies:

• “You know that those men who presume to rule over the nations dominate them, and their great ones tyrannize them. But it must not be so among you. But whoever would become great among you, he will be your servant. And whoever would be first among you, he will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man also came not to be served, but to serve, AND TO GIVE HIS LIFE A RANSOM FOR MANY” – (Mark 10:42-45. Note the verbal allusion to Isaiah 53:12 [“Because he poured out his own soul unto death, and he carries the sins of many…”]).

• And they sing a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain and purchased for God with your blood, men from every tribe, AND TONGUE AND PEOPLE AND NATION, and you made them a KINGDOM AND PRIESTS for our God. And they are reigning upon the earth. <…> Worthy is the Lamb that has been slain to receive the power and riches and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing!” – (Revelation 5:9-12. Note the allusions to Exodus 19:5-6, Daniel 7:14. Compare 1 Peter 2:5-10).

FOLLOW THE LAMB

Jesus obeyed his Father even when doing so meant death, and God vindicated his sacrifice by raising him from the dead and installing him as Lord on the Messianic Throne. Unlike the kings and emperors of this world, the Nazarene gave his life for friend and foe alike. Through his self-sacrificial death, he qualified to reign over the Cosmos:

• “He that overcomes, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne” – (Revelation 3:21).

• “Behold, THE LION FROM THE TRIBE OF JUDAH, the ROOT OF DAVID, has conquered to open the scroll and its seven seals! And I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb standing, as though slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And he came, and he took the scroll out of the right hand of the one who sat on the throne” – (Revelation 5:5-7. Note the verbal allusions to Genesis 49:10, Isiah 11:1).

Jesus was enthroned and became the King of kings and Lord of lords because of his sacrificial death and resurrection. It was not the predatory lion who approached the throne to take and open the sealed scroll, but the slain Lamb.

God highly exalted Jesus and gave him the name above all names because of his “obedience unto death,” so every knee should bow, and every tongue confess, that Jesus the Messiah is Lord - (Philippians 2:5-11, Revelation 1:4-6, 17:14).

This same Lord and Messiah will return “on the clouds of heaven.” On that day, “he will recompense each man according to his works.” It will be the hour of the judgment, the Day of the Lord. - (Revelation 1:7, 6:16-17, 20:12, 22:12):

• “And THE NATIONS WERE ENRAGED, and your wrath came, and THE TIME OF THE DEAD TO BE JUDGED and to give their reward to your servants, the prophets, AND TO THE SAINTS, and to those who fear your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those WHO DESTROY THE EARTH” - (Revelation 11:18. Note the allusions to Psalm 2:1-3, Jeremiah 51:25, Daniel 7:10, 7:22. Compare Revelation 20:4).

Between now and the arrival of the Son of Man, every man and woman must choose whether to follow the Lamb or the Dragon. And to follow the Lamb means overcoming the Dragon and his plans in the same manner as Jesus - (“I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame”). Choosing the Dragon and his methods will mean disaster in the end.

If we “follow the Lamb wherever he leads,” we will suffer persecution and perhaps death (“I saw the souls of those who had been slain for their testimony underneath the altar” – Revelation 6:9).

However, if we persevere in our witness and emulate the Lamb’s example, we will conquer the Dragon, the name of the Lamb will be inscribed on our foreheads, and our names will be written in the book of life. We must overcome the Dragon and his earthly agents in the same way that Jesus of Nazareth did:

• “And they conquered the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and because they loved not their life unto death” – (Revelation 12:11. Compare Revelation 1:9, 2:13, 14:1-4).

If we follow the Lamb and remain steadfast in our witness, we will “eat of the tree of life.” We will not experience the second death. We will rule the nations with Jesus. We will be arrayed in white, and the Son of Man will not blot our names out of the book of life, “and he will confess our names before his Father.” We will become pillars in the sanctuary of God in the Holy City, New Jerusalem - (Revelation 2:7, 2:11, 2:17, 2:26, 3:5, 3:12, 3:21, 22:1-5. Compare Matthew 10:32-33).

• “These are those who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men, the first-fruits for God and the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no falsehood. They are without blemish” – (Revelation 14:4).

• “And NOTHING UNCLEAN WILL ENTER THE CITY, nor he who makes an abomination and a lie, but only they who are written in the book of life of the Lamb” – (Revelation 21:27. Note the allusion to Isaiah 52:1).

Only those men and women who have been redeemed by Christ’s death and who have washed their priestly robes in the blood of the Lamb will inherit everlasting life in the eternal city – (Revelation 7:9-17).

In contrast, the men and women who choose to swear allegiance to the Dragon will receive a far different fate:

• “And all the inhabitants of the earth will swear fealty to the Beast, whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. If any man has an ear, let him hear” – (Revelation 13:8-9).

• “And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a great voice, If any man swears fealty to the beast and his image, and takes the mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger” – (Revelation 14:9).

• “And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire” – (Revelation 20:14-15).

The Book of Revelation reiterates the exhortation to the saints and the inhabitants of the earth multiple times: “Let him who has ears, hear what the Spirit is saying.” This is a call for us to decide today either to follow the Lamb or to submit to the Dragon and take the mark of the Beast. The warning demonstrates that the decision is in our hands and therefore we must decide whom we will follow. The consequences will be everlasting, one way or the other.

• “Blessed are they that wash their robes, that they may have the right to come to the tree of life, and they may enter in by the gates into the city” – (Revelation 22:14).

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[Citations of Old Testament passages in this article are based on the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint (see the links here and here). Text printed in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS represents quotations and verbal allusions from the Old Testament. The Septuagint is represented by the Roman numeral for ‘seventy’ or LXX based on the Latin name of the translation, ‘Interpretatio septuaginta virorum’]

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SEE ALSO:

• The Lamb is King - (Jesus is the Lamb, the King whose sovereignty is total, and the Messiah sent by God to redeem men from every nation)

• Worthy is the Lamb! - (Jesus is the Lamb and the true Messiah of Israel. He was sent by God to redeem men from every nation by his sacrificial death)

• Priest and Sacrifice - (Jesus is the high priest of his people, and he summons us to participate in his ministry and reign as members of his priestly kingdom)

• L'Agneau et le Dragon - (Chaque homme et chaque femme doit choisir de suivre l'Agneau ou de se soumettre au Dragon et à son programme antéchrist)