“Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,
“Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority
of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down,
he who accuses them before our God day and night.“ And they overcame him because of the blood of
the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love
their life even when faced with death” (Revelation 12:10–11).
The full manifestation of the kingdom of God, ushered
in by the coming of the Messiah and all that He made possible, was the
difference-maker in the cosmic battle between God and satan, the malevolent
accuser of God’s people. The devil and
his demonic forces had launched an attack on heaven itself but soon discovered
they didn’t have the strength to defeat Michael and his angelic host. As a consequence of their defeat, satan and
his army were thrown down to earth.
Never one to sit idle long, the devil turned his attention to the
earthly members of God’s kingdom, seeking to destroy them. Would the earthly servants of God have the
same success against the accuser as the heavenly defenders?
Thankfully, the answer is “yes.” The text above attributes their success to
three things. One, the blood of the
Lamb. There would be no victory over
Satan if all we had were our own efforts.
First and foremost, we need the blessings that accompany the sacrifice
of Jesus and the victory over sin and death it secured before we have any hope
of success. Two, the word of their
testimony. The words and life of these
overcomers testified to their loyalty and commitment to their Lord. In a climate where the pressure was great to
compromise to avoid persecution and suffering, these Christians stood firm. Three, they weren’t afraid to die for their
faith. Nothing, not even martyrdom,
could sway these followers of God.
Sounds like a great battle plan to me. Difficult but effective. What do you think?
God loves you!
Mike
1 comment:
I pray I would be that faithful and strong.
Post a Comment