HE THAT OVERCOMETH

 

There are many promises in the Bible that are addressed specifically to "him that overcometh."  They include:

• To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.  (Revelation 2:7).
• He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death [lake of fire and brimstone].  (Revelation 2:11).
• To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.  (Revelation 2:17).
• And he that overcometh, and keepeth My works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations [to rule and reign with Christ in the Kingdom of God].  (Revelation 2:26).
• He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels.  (Revelation 3:5).
• Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of My God.  (Revelation 3:12).
• To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne.  (Revelation 3:21).
• He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son.  (Revelation 21:7).

Clearly, God has called His people to be overcomers and to obtain all that God has called us to be.  To overcome means to conquer, to prevail, and to get the victory.  We understand the battles that the believer faces and the need to prevail against all those things that would defeat us.  Carnal weapons will do us no good, however, in this spiritual fight that we Christians must face day to day.  Knives, swords, guns, fists, and angry words avail us nothing.  It requires faith in the finished work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to win this fight.  "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:4, 5).  Our strength alone is not sufficient to meet the challenges of the Christian walk; but, thanks to God, His strength is perfected in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

We must be attuned to what the Spirit of God is speaking to us in order to be an overcomer.  We must also respond to what we hear Him saying, and do the things that we are instructed to do.  There are many Christians who are hearers of God's Word only, but not doers.  Hearing is certainly important and necessary.  Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.  After each of the promises cited above, we are told, "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches."  With all of the contradictory voices in the world today, we must learn to hear the Spirit of Truth, and discern it from the spirit of error.  The goal of the overcomer, though, is to perform what God has instructed them to do.  Scripture tells us, “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” (James 1:25).  Jesus said, “If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31, 32).

Just who or what are we to overcome then?  It is that great red dragon of Revelations 12.  It is the tempter, the father of lies, the prince of the power of the air, and the lion that walks about seeking whom he may devour.  It is he who comes to kill, steal, and destroy.  It is the spirit that works in the children of disobedience.  It is the devil, Satan, Beelzebub, and Lucifer.  Though he may be a formidable foe, yet he has already been defeated by the Son of God.  He knows his time is limited, so he is intent on deceiving as many as he can in order to drag them down to hell with him before the end.  Jesus said of Satan, "When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: but when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, He taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils."  (Luke 11:21, 22).  The strong man in this case is Satan, but the stronger man is Christ.  Jesus has overcome Satan, taken his armor from him, and spoiled his goods.  Now, if we are in Christ, then we are entered into this victory by the power of His Holy Spirit.  "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world."  (1 John 4:4).  Not only have we defeated the enemy in Christ Jesus our Lord, but we also now have victory over all the works of the enemy that we have been enslaved to all our lives!

St. John wrote in Revelations 12:11, "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death."  We are given three things by which we can defeat the enemy of our souls, and become overcomers.  We no longer have to be defeated, discouraged, and tossed about by every whim of the accuser of our soul.  We no longer have to be slaves to sin, driven by our lusts, and worshipping at the altar of our own ego.  We can truly be more than conquerors through Him Who loves us.  Let's examine these three powerful keys to victory.

By the Blood of the Lamb

Blood is a powerful force to God.  He told the Israelites repeatedly that they were not to drink the blood of the animals that they slaughtered for meat or for sacrifice because, “the life is in the blood.”

When man was first created, he was innocent and pure.  He had free access to the Tree of Life which would have preserved his life forever had he been allowed to continue to eat of it.  Unfortunately, he transgressed against his Maker by disobeying His one command.  God plainly warned man that if he ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he would surely die.  Sure enough, when man sinned, he lost access to the Tree of Life, and death came upon all of mankind after that time. 

When Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit, their eyes were opened and they suddenly realized that they were naked.  They were ashamed by this and understood they must cover up.  Scripture tells us that God fashioned skins for them to replace the leaves that they were trying to cloth themselves with.  Where did the skins come from?  An innocent animal had to die to provide man with the covering that he required.  This is the first account of anything dying in God's creation.  Blood had to be spilled to cover man's sin – a life for a life.  Later, when Cain and Abel brought their offerings to God, Cain's was rejected because there was no blood.  Without blood there is no remission of sin.  The wages of sin is death.  Make no mistake, when we commit sin, there is a price to be paid.  Somehow, somewhere, there is death and suffering that results from it.  Whether it is literal or spiritual, there is death.

Jesus came as the ultimate sacrifice for sin.  His blood is a much more powerful agent to cleanse away sin than the blood of bulls, goats, and sheep that the Israelites offered to God.  Those sacrifices had to be repeated continually because the worshippers kept sinning, and had to offer more blood.  The blood of the Lamb of God, however, is the answer for all our sins: past, present, and future.  "For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"  (Hebrews 9:13, 14).

Satan has no power against the blood of Jesus.  He can lie to us, and seek to deceive us into thinking that we cannot or have not been forgiven, but the blood of Jesus has purged our conscience once and for all so that the accuser's lies become powerless and impotent.  Every drop of the Savior’s blood that flowed from His wounds was to cleanse us from our transgressions.  The blood of the Lamb allows us to let go of the guilt of our sin that would weigh us down and steal the sweet victory that is ours in Christ.  Jesus’ blood was also shed for our healing.  With every bloody stripe of the Roman lash we are healed! (See Isaiah 53:5).  

Of Jesus’ death on the cross, the Apostle Paul writes, “But this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till His enemies be made his footstool.  For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:12-14).  Because Jesus has overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil by laying down His life for us on the cross, we can now be overcomers also!

By the Word of Their Testimony

Once we accept the gift of God's grace, and the redemption that is in the blood of Jesus, we experience the forgiveness and love of the Father, and enter into a very intimate and real relationship with God, and with His Son.  We then have something to testify about.  A testimony is an eyewitness account of an event.  When we accept Christ's gift, we become eyewitnesses of His grace and salvation, having experienced it first-hand.  John wrote, "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (for the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ." (1 John 1:1-3).  This life has been manifested to us as well if we have accepted Christ and believed on His Word. 

Writing to the Roman church, Paul said, “The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:8-10).  Notice the two-fold work going on in these verses.  Our faith and our confession go hand-in-hand.  Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man will talk about good things because his heart is full of good, but an evil man will talk of evil because that is what fills his heart (Luke 6:45).  The testimony of our lips is a mighty weapon against the devil.  What Christ has done in our lives, Satan cannot deny, but he will lie to us to try and convince us that God’s promises do not apply to us.  We must not allow him to make us think that Christ is not working in our lives, though.  If he can convince us that God is not working in us, he can defeat us; but, remember that faith is the victory that overcomes the world! 

Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” (Mark 11:23).  There is great authority in the name of Jesus when we learn to operate in the Spirit and not in the flesh.  Under the Lord’s direction even the mountains have to obey!  Such faith starts with hearing the word that God speaks to our hearts, embracing that word, and speaking, or confessing it.  As Paul says, “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak.” (2 Corinthians 4:13).  This kind of confession gives us power to become overcomers.

They Loved Not Their Lives Unto Death

Sadly, Satan gets a lot of help from us.  We love our lives above everything else, and for this reason it becomes very difficult to overcome.  Our flesh demands our allegiance.  Whatever it craves, we try to fulfill.  We become very selfish in our existence, and we make it hard for the love of God to dwell in us.  It isn't until we learn to loosen the death grip that we have on our lives that we can truly begin to glorify God. 

Jesus said, "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it.  For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?  For whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels." (Luke 9:23-26).  We cannot claim to be His disciples if we cannot learn to deny ourselves.  The more we let go of our life, the less hold Satan can have over us.  When we say yes to God in an area of our life, we remove any power that the enemy had in that area.  Also, we give Christ power to infill us with more of Himself.  The more we empty ourselves of ourselves, the more He fills us with Himself.  As John the Baptist said, "He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 3:3).

Salvation comes when men see Jesus.  How important it is, then, that the life of Jesus be seen in us!  The more our life fades, the more Jesus can be truly manifested in us.  Jesus spoke of a kernel of wheat being buried in the ground and dying so that the germ of life contained inside that kernel could begin to grow and, eventually, bear fruit.  Our life is that kernel.  As long as it remains in the seed packet, it is useless by itself.  When it is buried in death, however, the real life can emerge.  The world teaches us to be self confident, but God instructs us to be confident in the Lord only.  We are taught to save our lives, but we must learn to lose them if eternal life would be ours.

If we would be overcomers in this life, and if we would inherit all of the promises that God has made to them who love Him, we must learn to do battle with that great red dragon.  We can overcome him by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of our testimony, and by not loving our lives unto the death.  Satan's greatest weapon is his lies.  Become established in the truth of God's Word so that you will recognize his lies when he tries to whisper them to you.  God loves you, and has provided you with every tool you need to become a powerful, victorious, overcoming child of God!  Trust in Him with all your heart, and don’t rely on your own understanding or in what the world promotes.  As the heavens are high above the earth, so also are God’s ways far above ours.  Amen!

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33).