A Story To Tell

Revelation 12:7-11

English Standard Version Chapter 12

7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 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. 10 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. 11 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.

The End of the Year Is a Story Moment

The end of the year is a natural pause.

A moment for reflection.

A moment for taking stock.

But it is also something else.

The end of the year is a powerful time to reclaim your story.

A time to update your testimony.

A time to decide who gets to tell the story of this year—you, or your enemy.

Title: A Story to Tell

There Are No Insignificant Stories

Revelation 12 gives us a strange and beautiful vision.

A cosmic conflict.

War in heaven.

Angels, dragons, forces we cannot see.

And John is teaching us something subtle but important.

This vision tells us that our lives are caught up in a wider conflict than the one we can see.

This is not exactly Paul’s language in Ephesians—where he says we wrestle against spiritual forces of evil.

John goes further.

This conflict is not just demons versus people.

Angelic forces are involved. Heaven itself is engaged.

What God is doing is so much bigger than anything that is happening in this life:

To compare your life to your neighbor’s life or some celebrity’s life is to miss the point

It comparing our ability to swim from New York Harbor to the coasts of Ghana West African

Eventually we all drown.

What gives your story significance is not what is happening in this world, what you are contributing to this cosmic battle.

Your obedience is not insignificant.

Your faithfulness is not unnoticed.

It matters in heave.

And if it matters in heaven, then your story really matters.

Don’t Let Your Enemy Tell Your Story

John names the enemy very carefully.

Devil — slanderer

Satan — adversary

Deceiver

He is, quite literally, the father of misinformation.

To John’s first-century audience, this was not poetic language.

It was political and It was existential.

In the Roman world, there was a figure called a delator—a paid informer.

A professional accuser.

Their job was to tell your story to the authorities.

And if their accusation stuck:

Property was confiscated

Families were exiled

People were imprisoned

Some were even executed

And the delator got paid.

But here’s the key: The delator didn’t need to lie about everything.

They just needed to frame the story.

A careless word.

A misunderstood loyalty.

A private belief.

Spun into treason.

John is telling the churches:

That is how the devil works.

The satanic work in Revelation 12 is not claws and chaos.

It is narrative warfare.

There Is Power in the Story You Tell

Here is the turning point of the text: “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.”

Notice what it does not say.

It does not say they overcame by denying what happened.

It does not say they overcame by pretending it didn’t hurt.

It does not say they overcame by winning every battle.

What happened is not your testimony. Your testimony is the story you tell about what happened.

John is writing to tell the churches—and to tell us—

The end of the story is already written.

It doesn’t matter what you are facing today.

The outcome is already decided...You win.

And here’s the warning: The only way you lose is by testifying against yourself.

By agreeing with the accuser.

By letting shame tell the story.

By letting fear narrate the year.

So don’t let the devil rob you of your testimony.

Tell your story.

Tell it truthfully.

Tell it through the blood of the Lamb.

Tell it from the perspective of victory.

As this year closes, don’t just turn the page. Reclaim the story.

QUESTIONS

Looking back over this year, what story have you been telling yourself about what you experienced—and who or what has been shaping that story?

Where have you noticed accusation, shame, or fear trying to interpret your story for you—and what might it look like to tell that part of your story through the lens of God’s victory instead?

As you step into the new year, what is one sentence of testimony you want to carry forward—something true about what God has done or who He has been to you?

Closing Prayer

Gracious and faithful God, As this year comes to an end, we pause before You—not to rehearse every moment, but to place our story back into Your hands.

We thank You that no part of our lives has been overlooked. No obedience wasted. No tear unnoticed. No struggle insignificant.

We confess that there are moments we have let other voices narrate our lives— voices of accusation, fear, shame, and disappointment. We repent of agreeing with those voices, and we renounce every story that contradicts what You have spoken over us.

Thank You for the blood of the Lamb, that settles the verdict before the accusation is ever made. Thank You that our victory does not rest on our perfection, but on Your finished work.

Teach us to tell the truth about what has happened— not with bitterness, not with denial, but with hope shaped by Your faithfulness.

As we step into a new year, give us courage to speak our testimony clearly, humility to trust Your outcome, and wisdom to refuse every false narrative.

May we leave this place knowing that the end of the story is already written, that the victory belongs to You, and that our lives are held securely in Your hands.

We offer You our stories—past, present, and future— and we do so in the strong and saving name of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Benediction

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen. (Jude 24-25)