The Daily Word of Righteousness

A Missing Element, #8

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)

God has given us the blood of the Lamb so we may have access to the Most Holy Place in Heaven, before His throne, and there obtain grace to help us in our hour of need. The need for help arises because we are learning to overcome sin and there remains much darkness in us. The blood of Jesus covers our evil nature while we are putting to death, through the Spirit of God, the deeds of our body.

The saints could never overcome Satan if it were not for the forgiving, cleansing power of the blood of the Lord Jesus. Without the blood, Satan would accuse us and we would be guilty in the eyes of God and also in our own eyes.

Now, through the blood of the Lamb, we have confidence before God as we continue to press forward in His will.

We overcome the accuser by the word of our testimony. As we walk in the Holy Spirit of God, He conforms our thoughts, our words, and our actions to the Word of God. We learn to practice righteousness, love mercy, and walk in humility before God. Such behavior is the fruit that comes from the Holy Spirit who is in us and helping us, and the fruit is the Divine testimony to angels and men.

Also, the Holy Spirit performs through us the words and works of the Lord Jesus. We see the Divine testimony of the Spirit given through the anointed saints, in the eleventh chapter of the Book of Revelation. We receive power after the Spirit comes upon us—power to overcome Satan with the testimony of Christ.

The testimony of God in the Church is revealed in the godliness of the saints and also in the miraculous works they perform. The godliness and the miracles, which can come only from the Holy Spirit, overcome the accuser.

The saints overcome the accuser by loving not their lives to the point of death. As long as there is a speck of rebellion in us we cannot overcome the accuser. As Samson, we slay the Philistines, not by our life but by our death.

The saints who overcome the accuser are a firstfruits to God and the Lamb. Satan and his angels harass them and test them in every conceivable manner. They share the suffering of Christ. They cry out, "I thirst! I thirst!" They call to God from where they are being gored on the horns of wild oxen. They are brought down to the dust, their hopes crushed.

"How long, how long," they moan. Yet, they get up on their feet and press on, keeping faithfully to their covenant with God. They stumble and fall. They cannot understand why God does not prevent their confusion. They hope in the promises of the Scriptures. No explanation is given. They live in trust that God does not change—not ever!

Finally, God asks Satan, "What else would you like to do to them?"

Satan is silent. He has no answer. The saints have overcome him through Christ.

Satan and his angels rebelled while in the midst of Paradise. But the saints, like Abraham, obey God when their heart is torn out of them; when they cannot understand the mysterious, painful circumstances they have to endure.

To be continued.