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3 Ways to Overcome

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“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” Revelation 21:7
“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.” Revelation 12:11

I feel a little bit crazy writing a blog post on two verses from Revelation…but to be honest, the topic of overcoming seems like an important and often overlooked one.

When I think of the word overcome, I think of triumphing over something; gaining the victory; winning the battle. It’s a very intense word. It carries a lot of weighty implications. There was blood, sweat and tears involved. There was a fight – a wrestling match between evil and good – and good came out on top. When we live the Christian life casually and apathetically, we never find a reason to understand these two verses of Scripture, or the countless others that call us to engage in military warfare against the Enemy of souls. But apathetic is not God’s best. None of us should sit in that place for long without encountering repentance and responding to the call of God on our lives.

Overcoming is hard. But it’s worth the effort. Revelation 21:7 says that the person who overcomes – although they will pay a high price to do so (Rev. 12:11) – will receive in reward a much greater return than they originally invested. How can we be overcomers? Revelation 12:11 gives us 3 instructions:

1.) The blood of the Lamb – first and foremost, we’re not going anywhere without the power of the cross behind and before. There’s no reason to fight without the blood of Jesus on our minds and in our hearts. The Gospel makes some audaciously sacrificial choices look small. It invites us to give our all for Someone who gave HIS all for us. That kind of love will propel us to overcome almost any obstacle.

2.) The word of our testimony – Kind David was a prime example of using the word of testimony to overcome. The biggest tests and trials in life can cause us to forget that we ever saw God in the past, and therefore, despair and lose hope. David always spoke the truth about His trials and how overwhelming his feelings were. But he never left out the truth about what God and done for him, and in him in the past. Remember, your testimony includes what God has done for you, but also, how He has changed you in miraculous ways that defy the natural inclinations of your sinful flesh.

3.) Finally, death to self. The Christians spoken of in Revelation 12:11 were not afraid to die. They didn’t love their lives more than their Savior. Paul exhorts us to “die daily” to ourselves and our opinions in exchange for the truth of what Scripture says. The only way to overcome sin is to operate by a worldview that far surpasses the capability of our human nature. So we are called to put on the mind of Christ who made Himself of no reputation and humbled Himself to death on a cross. When we count our lives as nothing in order to win Christ, we will have obtained the title of overcomer. 

Don’t be apathetic and complacent. Cry out to the Lord for the grace and strength to overcome. Start by surrendering your worldview for His. Let His truth replace the lies that your flesh is living by.

By: Hannah Stelzl

Photo Credit: Flickr


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