Overcomers and Conquerors

I was listening to the Book of Revelation this morning while I was running and as the narrator was reading through Revelation 2-3 something that is repeated time and again jumped out to me. As John addresses the churches each letter ends with a challenge to a certain group of people in each church. In the King James Version they are called overcomers in the English Standard Version we find the word conquerors. I like that one but they are for the most part interchangeable words. The idea to conquer something or to overcome it means that no matter what trial you face you have persevered and achieved a goal that others have attempted but failed to achieve. I could provide examples of many people who represent this concept and you can too.   They have overcome disability such as the South African Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius who was the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics this past year. That is what I imagine it means to overcome and to conquer something. The scriptures tell us in Revelation 2-3 that too those that overcome the world and continue to walk in the faith of Jesus Christ as there Lord and Savior. That continue abiding by His teachings that God has promised certain things to those who overcome. Let me share these passages with you.

7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

 

Revelation 2:7 (ESV)

11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’

Revelation 2:11 (ESV)

17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’

Revelation 2:17 (ESV)

26  The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, 27 and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. 28 And I will give him the morning star. 29  He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

Revelation 2:26-29 (ESV)

5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.

Revelation 3:5 (ESV)

12 The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.

Revelation 3:12 (ESV)

21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.

Revelation 3:21 (ESV)

The question I had to ask myself and that I now put to you is; are you and overcomer and a conqueror, do you have what it takes to be victorious in your walk of faith? If so God has laid blessings up for you in heaven and one day when our time has passed we will be able to enjoy the blessings He has prepared. Until that day comes we must be moving forward for His glory and in His righteousness sharing the Gospel one life at a time as the pastor shared yesterday starting with your own relationship with God and those around you. We are all able to be overcomers and conquerors but it is our choice if we will move forward with it. I close with this simple prayer today; Lord empower me and those who desire to serve you to understand and realize we are already overcomers and conquerors because we have trusted in you Help us each day to walk in accordance with your word so that others will come to know you and experience this same outpouring of your presence in their lives. I thank God for every person who reads this today and I pray that God’s anointing fall on them wherever they might be so that they may be used of You today. Amen Be blessed as you walk in the light of God’s Word.

Living in Exile

Do we ever consider that today that there are those who live in exile from the will and hope of God because they fail to see and understand the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. You see as much as we might love this world we live in scripture tells us that since Adam’s fall the whole world groans in anticipation of being set free once again. Just as each of us as Christians do; Romans 8:19-22 (NLT.) I look forward to that day every morning when I rise and every evening when I go to sleep. Yet as I wait along with you I have come to realize we live in exile from the place we long to be. In 1 Peter 1: 1-2 we read a greeting that while addressed to certain cities and regions applies to each of us today. Peter states;

1 This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. 2 God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace. 1 Peter 1:1-2 (NLT)

 

Today we are living in a world that sees what we believe as Christians as more and more foreign to what the world holds as truth. We are foreigners in a country and a world that once held many of the same beliefs and was founded on the same principles outlined in God’s Word. Yet today there is a movement to forget that and move away from it and establish a world based on man’s ethics and ideas.  So when we as Christian believers hold fast to God’s word we find ourselves mocked and ignored often seen as ignorant and intolerant of others. The same was true of those Peter wrote to; many were dispersed and came to live in these places but many more were converted and began to change the communities in which they lived. The truth is the church flourishes under persecution and the more the world tries to exile it from the public the more growth it sees in the lives of people. I just want to challenge you today to hold fast and know that to walk in the light of God’s Word through a real relationship with Jesus Christ will bring you one day into the place God has created for you and me. The exile will be over and one day He will welcome us home.

Supplying Faith

Are you one of those people who feel like there is no need for you to attend church. That you have it all figured out and you are more than capable of experiencing a healthy and righteous relationship with God; if so than this post is for you. I have often been confronted by individuals who tell me that they have no need to attend church or even associate with other Christians to live a righteous and godly life. I have had people tell me there was no need for them to go to church with a bunch of hypocrites. I often agree with them and tell them they are right and that they would find the fit in pretty well.Then I begin to explain why they are needed in the church and that they might be surprised by what they find.  You see God's word tells us in Hebrews:

 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:23-25 (ESV)

You would think this directive from Paul would be enough for a believer as we try to  understand the purpose in our gathering together, but we still fail to see all the value in it. When Paul wrote to the Thessalonias he was worried that the devil had weakend their faith and that they had again returned to their idolatry. When Timothy had returned his report was good and that there was a strong body of believers present and that even in persecution they were moving forward with the Gospel. The truth is the need for believers to come together in worship and study is to provide growth within the body of Christ. Paul explains in 1Thessalonians 3:9-10 the real purpose:

 9 For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you, for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God, 10 as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? 1Thessalonians 3:9-10 (ESV)

We are to join together so that we can supply what is lacking in one another's faith. Each of us alone has certain issues that we struggle with be it pride, envy, greed or gluttony just to name a few; the problem is when we try to face those issues on our own the devil knows how best to exploit them to bring us down so that we find ourselves ashamed and embarrassed by the fact we really don't have all the answers. Now when we join in unity and give thanks for one another bearing each other up in love and respect those issues that often control us are overwhelmed by God's Grace and Mercy. Which is what God's word tells us should happen in the lives of those who believe. Our fellowship whether it be Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday or anytime two or more believers are together should produce positve things in the lives of those present. If it is not than the focus and purpose of the time is not to build one another up as it should be and the best thing we can do is avoid it. They are not gossip sessions but sessions that create relationships both for individuals and the individual and Jesus. I really hope that if you are reading this and find yourself struggling today that you have someone in whom you can confide. That will supply you with the pieces that are lacking in your faith. May the Lord God bless you as your walk in the light of His Word.

Where Should We Turn

16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (ESV)

I know it is often hard to accept the fact that trials come into our lives. I have listened to people all week talk about how bad it is going to be during the next four years because of who the President of the United States is going to be. Yet during this week I was reminded of the church and its rapid growth throughout history and even today in the world where persecution is part of the life of the believer. We often fail to realize that when we chose to become Christian we have chosen to be different than the world around us. We have accepted the charge to live in a way that the world around us especially in the Western Hemisphere has begun to view as archaic. Yet we must always understand our charge no matter what opposition we face when life begins to pile on and everything seems to becoming against you there is one truth I can share from my own life. It is found in God’s word,

 “God will make this happen, for He who calls you is faithful.” 1 Thessalonians 5:24 (NLT)

Each trial we face no matter how small or great is designed to strengthen our dependence on God through our relationship with Jesus Christ. People will think you are strange or even crazy, I know this from experience. But as the song says, “Where else can I go but to the Lord.” I hope today in what every trail you face instead of turning to the world for answers you will take the step of faith and ask God to show you what He has for you in your present trial and how He plans for it to become a place of strength for you today and in the future. I pray God bless you and that the Holy Spirit lead you in all righteousness as you walk in the light of His Word.