Overcomers
Today, for The Weekly Reminder, I wrote what I think is the antithesis to my previous post on heartbreak.
The past couple of weeks have been full of news of suffering from the persecuted church. I have found it hard not to get discouraged by all of the attacks on God’s Kingdom, all over the world! And yet, the legacy of these believers is not one of discouragement, but of eternal hope. This, the legacy of Christians standing against evil, reminded me of one of my all-time favorite verses, Revelation 12:11.
Imagine, if you will, the greatest heavenly battle of all time. Imagine a dragon so huge that he cast down a third of the stars with his tail, warring with his demons against the angels of God. Imagine this dragon, so evil that he fights a war he cannot win simply to perpetrate death and destruction on the people he hates.
That is the picture of Revelation 12, a heavenly fight between demons and angels for power over the lives of men. The dragon, of course, is cast down. He is cast down to earth with his demons, where he tries to make up for his defeat by ceaselessly accusing the brethren. Like a cornered bear, he lashes out at God’s people.
But God’s people are not defeated. “And they overcame him by the blood of Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” (Rev. 12:11) Starting with the power of redemption through the blood of the Lamb, these believers stood firm against the dragon, being even willing to die for their love of the Savior.
Their overcoming is not the end. As verse 12 says, “For the devil is come down to you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” His last struggle is to “make war” with those that “keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Rev. 12:17)
Persecution is, simply put, the last gasp of a defeated foe. Those that suffer and overcome are evidence of the victory of Jesus Christ over the devil. Even those that “loved not their lives unto the death” are evidence of a glorious and eternal life to come.
Let us continue to pray for these victorious overcomers.