Dear Ones:
In this spiritual warfare in which we find ourselves, there are victories and there are casualties. It can be a vicious struggle at times, as our enemy is a ruthless foe. However, in every consideration of this conflict, we always begin with our Captain, the victorious Christ. He has defeated all of our foes, both visible and invisible. As we mentioned in a previous meditation, “…And (He) having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” (Col. 2:15) We always begin with our Captain, and the work that He accomplished over our foes.
Christ taught us to pray, “…and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil (lit. “the evil one.”) James writes, “… submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (Ja. 4:7) These verses deal with temptation and confrontation of our enemy as we proceed in the path of following the Lord. But what about the enemy’s tactics, and how to overcome him?
In Revelation 12:11, we read, “…And they overcame him (the accuser of the brethren…the enemy called ‘that old serpent, the Devil, and Satan…’), by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” One of the great, and most effective tactics of the enemy is “accusations” and “condemnation.” When we look at Joshua the high priest before the Angel of the Lord (Zech 3), there is Satan accusing him, resisting him. Now, we must confess that Joshua is covered with dirty garments, representing unconfessed, and thus, uncleansed sin. The resulting fact is that Joshua is totally neutralized by the accusatory condemnation by the enemy. It is only when the basis for the accusation is removed, that with a good conscience and right heart, Joshua can go forward. It is the same for us today. The Christian must come to grips with the fact that positionally speaking, he is “justified by the blood” of Christ. He has been redeemed by the blood, and nothing can change that. But the disciple needs the daily, moment by moment cleansing from sin as he walks this earth…otherwise, the “accuser of the brethren, ” who accuses him/her night and day, will neutralize them. For they cannot serve God unless they have a good conscience before God.
Secondly, if we are to overcome our enemy, we must hold to the “word of their (our) testimony.” We must take the stand that, not only are we committed fully to believe God and follow wholly the Lord Jesus Christ, but that He is fully, and totally committed to us, to meet every need. We take Him to be our only Captain, and Shepherd. Lastly, we do not “love their (our) lives unto the death.” The surrendered, committed disciple, is one who can say with the Apostle Paul, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” To be Christ’s for life and death is to be free to follow the Captain, and overcome the enemy of our souls where we live, and that, in the will of God.
So, today, let us overcome, reign in life, “do valiantly,” believing in the victory of our Captain, who has become our victory. May we be what we ARE, victorious in Him. What a wonderful reality that Christ has conquered ALL our foes, even death, and that now, “…nothing shall separate us from the love of Christ.”
Love, Dad