Those who submit absolutely to Christ are the overcomers. They are the man-child born of the universal woman mentioned in Revelation 12. The universal woman signifies Christians in general, that is, the church as a whole. The entire church is the universal woman. The man-child signifies the stronger part of God’s people, the overcomers who love the Lord. There is a man-child in the universal woman. One day a group of overcomers will be produced from the church.
The condition of the church is weak, as represented by a woman, but the overcomers are like a strong man-child. In the Bible the woman is the weaker vessel, and the man is the stronger vessel (1 Pet. 3:7). The church as a whole may be weak, but there is a group of people who love the Lord, who allow the Lord to reign, and who have the Lord’s throne in them. The kingdom is in them, and their inner being is Christ’s domain. This group of believers, composed of both brothers and sisters, is truly strong and victorious, like a man-child.
The spiritual condition of most saved ones, including the brothers, is weak, like a woman. When they learn of the need to pay a price to follow the Lord, they decline, saying, “Do we not receive everything as a gift from the Lord? How is it that we need to pay a price? What kind of price are we able to pay anyway?” This is the tone of a weak woman. Hence, not only the sisters are women, but the brothers also may be women in this sense. Those who truly love the Lord, however, remain faithful even at the risk of death. They allow the Lord to rule and reign in them; they submit to the Lord’s ruling. They love the Lord to such an extent that they have no fear even when facing death. As long as they have the Lord’s presence, they are able to go anywhere for Him. All those who truly love the Lord, not only the brothers but also the sisters, have this boldness. Everyone who truly loves the Lord is strong; everyone who faithfully loves the Lord fears neither heaven nor earth. This group of believers includes both brothers and sisters. They are the man-child, a group of strong ones.
In the woman in Revelation 12 there is a man-child; this means that in the weak church there is a group of strong overcomers. Perhaps we do not see this situation today. It seems that the man-child is still being conceived in the woman’s womb and is hidden among the believers. One day, however, the travail of the woman will come. Travail is a suffering, a trial. At the end of this age a great tribulation will come upon the whole inhabited earth (Matt. 24:21; Rev. 3:10). When this trial comes upon the church, the man-child will be brought forth, and the weak ones will flee and hide (12:6). At that time the strong man-child will say, “I am here.” Hence, Revelation says that the brothers overcome the accuser and that they do not love their soul-life (v. 11).
When the affliction and the trial come upon the church, the weak will still be weak, and the strong will truly be strong. At that time the woman will cry out because of her pain and her travailing in birth, and the man-child will be brought forth (vv. 2, 5). Those in the man-child are so strong that they love not their soul-life even unto death. In verse 5 the phrase brought forth signifies resurrection, as in Acts 13:33, meaning that the man-child is composed of overcomers who overcome even death and are raised from the dead, just as the Lord was raised.
Because the man-child is such an overcomer, he is Satan’s adversary. When the man-child is caught up to heaven, a war will be stirred up. There will be war in heaven, and Satan’s place will no longer be found in heaven (Rev. 12:7-8). The reason for this is that the overcomers will be caught up to heaven. Wherever the overcomers are, Satan has no place. When the man-child, this group of overcomers, is in heaven, Satan’s place will no longer be found there. Revelation 12:9 says that Satan will be cast to the earth, and his angels will be cast down with him.
Verse 10 says that at that time there will be a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now has come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ, for the accuser of our brothers has been cast down, who accuses them before our God day and night.” The accuser is the devil, the one who has been cast down. The devil hinders God’s authority and damages God’s kingdom. Through this group of overcomers, however, the devil will be cast down so that God’s kingdom can come and Christ’s authority can be carried out. At this point the kingdom can be manifested. Today it is a kingdom with authority only, but on that day it will be a kingdom with an actual sphere. The kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (11:15). The rebellious Satan will be cast down, first to the earth and then to the abyss (20:1-3). Who will actually cast down the rebellious Satan? It will be the overcomers, the group of believers who allow Christ to reign.
We need to remember that the Lord’s desire in us is to establish His kingdom. To be a Christian is not merely a matter of being holy and victorious; it is a matter of submitting to the authority of the kingdom. To be a Christian is not only a matter of grace, enjoyment, life, and power; it is also a matter of allowing Christ to have the right to govern us, constitute us His kingdom, set up His throne, and carry out His will in us. When there is a group of people in the church who are willing to allow Christ’s authority to flow among them, this will bring Christ’s kingdom to the earth. When there is a group of overcomers in the church, these overcomers will bring the authority of heaven, the kingdom of God, to the earth. At that time the church will be victorious, and the enemy will be powerless.