Revelation 12 Sign

1A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”^a And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days. (Revelation 12:1-6)

Thoughts: Usually this passage is interpreted as the first incarnation.  Mary gives birth to the Son of God and the dragon (Satan) tries to kill the baby- like Herod tried to kill the babies of Bethlehem.  Mary, Joseph, and the baby fled to the wilderness and then went to Egypt to escape the evil wrath- of the devil- shown through Herod's soldiers.
    Some have recently (see wikipedia article) interpreted this in a more astronomical/ astrological way.  Specifically they see this the stars- Virgo (the Virgin) and Leo (the symbol of Judah) intersecting on September 22, 2017 on Rosh Hoshanah (the Jewish New Year- also called the "Feast of Trumpets").  There are many verses that speak of the trumpet sounding when the Lord comes back (Mt. 24:31; 1 Cor. 15:52 et al).  The twelve stars are the nine stars of Leo along with the planets Mercury, Venus and Mars.  The moon will be at the bottom of Virgo and the sun will go through its middle.  Jupiter will also pass right through the constellation in September.
     So what does this mean?  For Christians, believers in the Bible, we should always be ready to see Jesus face to face.  We may see Him face to face by death or we may see Him when He comes- but we will see Him (if we do not believe that, we should question our faith).  Martin Luther, who believed Jesus was coming back 500 years ago because of the immorality of the church, was asked what he would do if he knew the Lord was coming back tomorrow.  He spoke of reading the Bible praying, and then planting his field.  His point was being faithful is the most important way to prepare to see God.
    Sure there are signs- earthquakes, wars and rumors of war (North Korea vs. USA, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria), signs in the heaven (like solar flaring, hurricanes, eclipses, planets aligning, etc).  But such signs have been there before.  These are all reminders simply to do our duty- worship Him, give ourselves to Him, live faithfully for Him- and not for what is temporary and passing.  I do not yawn at the signs.  But I also know there are people who so want to see Christ that they see His signs everywhere. Jesus tells us to always watch and pray. That doesn't mean to quit our jobs and go on a mountain.  It does mean to live for Him. Our reaction should be the same as it should be each day- live in faith, hope and love faithfully for His glory and honor.  

Prayer: Lord, let me always be ready to see you face to face no matter what the time.