Christmas is often depicted as a time of joy, peace, and goodwill. But behind the serene scenes of a baby in a manger lies a darker, more sinister reality—a reality that Revelation 12 brings into sharp focus. While we see shepherds and angels in Luke’s gospel, heaven saw a fierce and desperate attack by the enemy of our souls, Satan himself.

 

Revelation 12:4 tells us that the red dragon “stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it.” This dragon, Satan, was not simply a passive observer of the birth of Christ; he was an active predator, waiting for his chance to strike. The moment the Messiah entered the world, Satan was ready to destroy Him.

 

But Satan’s attack didn’t begin in Bethlehem. His efforts to stop the coming of the Messiah had been in motion since the beginning of time. In Genesis 3:15, after the Fall, God declared that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent’s head. From that moment forward, Satan launched an all-out assault on that promise.

 

He tried to corrupt humanity through the wickedness of the pre-Flood world, but God preserved the line of the Messiah through Noah. He attempted to wipe out the people of Israel during their captivity in Egypt, but God raised up Moses to lead them to freedom. In the time of Queen Esther, Satan nearly succeeded in exterminating the Jewish people through Haman’s evil plot, but God intervened and preserved the line of David.

 

All of these attempts were part of the enemy’s long war to prevent the birth of the Savior. But when all else failed, and Jesus was finally born, Satan intensified his attack. We see his desperation in the actions of King Herod, who, upon hearing of the birth of a new “King of the Jews,” ordered the massacre of all male children two years old and younger in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16). Herod was a pawn in Satan’s hands, another tool in the enemy’s effort to devour the Christ child.

 

Yet Satan’s attack didn’t stop with Jesus’ birth. He continued his assault throughout Jesus’ life. He tempted Jesus in the wilderness, trying to derail His mission by offering Him power, prestige, and glory if He would only bow down and worship him (Matthew 4:1-11). He used religious leaders to plot against Jesus and to spread lies about Him. Ultimately, Satan thought he had won when Jesus was nailed to the cross, suffering a criminal’s death.

 

But here’s the incredible irony: Satan’s greatest attack became God’s greatest victory. In his attempt to destroy Jesus, Satan unwittingly fulfilled God’s plan for the redemption of humanity. Jesus’ death on the cross wasn’t a defeat; it was the crushing blow to the serpent’s head that God had promised in Genesis 3:15. Christ’s resurrection shattered Satan’s power, proving once and for all that the enemy’s schemes would never prevail against God’s purposes.

 

The enemy’s attack against Christ was relentless, but it was ultimately futile. And while Satan continues to rage against God’s people today, his fate is sealed. Revelation 12:12 says, “The devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short.” Satan is a defeated foe, lashing out in his final days.

 

This Christmas, let’s not forget the reality of this spiritual battle. Christ came to defeat sin, death, and the enemy who seeks to devour us. In the birth of Jesus, we celebrate the victory of God’s unstoppable plan—a plan that no attack of the enemy could ever destroy.