You Can Defeat The Dragon.
They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. – Rev. 12:11 NIV
433-You Can Defeat The Dragon_19062021
Please click the link above to download the full text of this ministration.
The disciple John was the one whom the Bible referred to as “the one that Jesus loved”. He was also the one whom Jesus was supposed to be referencing when he was quoted as saying that “he could remain alive until his return if he wanted that for him” – Jn. 21:7; 20-22. Fondly called the disciple of love because of the dominance of the message of love in his New Testament Books, he was probably the only one of the disciples of Jesus Christ that did not die the death of a martyr as all the rest were killed using not too acceptable methods because of their strong adherence to their religious belief. He was taken prisoner and restricted to the Island of Patmos where he probably lived the rest of his life and was suspected to have been taken to heaven directly. It was during his incarceration that he was taken through a spiritual experience on a particular Lord’s Day (Rev. 1:9) where he was able to receive several revelations concerning the state of the seven churches in Asia at that time (Rev. 2:1-3:22) and the events of the last Days – Rev. 4:1-22:21.
Amongst the events of the last days revealed to him was the appearance in heaven of a woman in labour, clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head, and was crying out to heaven for support against the then approaching dragon – Rev. 12:1-2. The dragon had appeared, standing before the woman in readiness to devour the baby that was about to be delivered by the woman.
The plan of the dragon however failed as the baby was snatched up into the heavens immediately after delivery while the woman ran to a prepared location in the desert for a period of one thousand, two hundred and sixty days, for safety – Rev. 12:3-6.
A war subsequently ensued between Michael and the dragon, both having the support of their angels. The dragon lost out and subsequently lost his position in heaven and was hurled to the earth – Rev. 12:7-9. This event brought great joy to the inhabitants of the heavens but as expected, brought great woes to the occupants of the earth and Sea, as the now very furious dragon was in their midst.
Although, all these events made Salvation and Power, required to pave the way for access into the kingdom of God and the possession of the authority of Jesus Christ, available for the inhabitants of the earth, as their accuser before the throne of the Almighty God had been eliminated, only those who will be able to overcome the dragon that was now inhabiting the earth will be able to access it. The scripture for today’s Devotional reveals what many of the brethren had to do to overcome the dragon and access the now available benefits that resulted from his defeat by Michael and his angels, and this they did with the help of the blood of the lamb, the word of their testimonies and their willingness to sacrifice their existence in this realm, if necessary
So, even with all its possessed abilities, the dragon who is also called the devil, in all his fury and rampage, was still unable to overcome the brethren, not because of their own ability but more by the three identified factors earlier listed. The Christian today therefore cannot be excused for any failure supposedly caused by this same devil as all such needed to have done was to access and apply these same factors and would also become an overcomer. If the brethren as revealed to John the Disciple were able to defeat the devil using this weapons, then all the Christian today need do is to apply these three weapons which are further explained below;
1. They overcame by the blood of the lamb. That defeating the dragon will require supernatural ability which can only be sourced from the Almighty God is not in contention. However, the Almighty God will not make available His spiritual support to anyone who is stained by sins and that remains a permanent feature of man. The psalmist asserts this saying that man was conceived and born in sin (Psa. 51:5) and the disciple John supports this with the statement that all claims to not being a sinner is hypocritical and a journey in self-deceit – 1Jn. 1:8. All attempts made to reconcile man to the Almighty God through the shedding of blood as given to Moses failed to sufficiently sanctify man hence the Almighty God Himself having to offer the ultimate sacrifice of His son as a lamb for the remission of sins – Jn. 3:16. Grace was thus made available for all who believe, to access the ultimate power that can guarantee victory over the dragon. Simply put, only those who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, can access the power of his shed blood, required to overcome the dragon. If you indeed desire to overcome the furious dragon that has been hurled to the earth, then the beginning of your journey to victory is in genuinely accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Then and only then can you be presented pure and holy before Him and thus possess the supernatural ability necessary for victory over the dragon.
2. They overcame by the words of their testimony. The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Corinthians noted that faith is a product of spoken words – 2Cor. 5:17. Spoken words indeed have a significant role to play in deciding how much success one is able to achieve over the challenges of life because they are mostly products of what we believe. The one who pronounces defeat will hardly be able to be victorious, as such has already accepted defeat. Such a Christian by this denies the omnipotent ability of the Almighty God. Such should never expect the support of the one who is not so acknowledged. The Christian must pronounce words that testify to the overwhelming ability and greatness of Jehovah and not by pronouncements, give undeserved glory to the dragon and his angels. The latter is what Christians do when they are not positive about their situation. The three Hebrews in the face of a life threatening challenge never stopped seeing the saving ability of Jehovah and this they confirmed with their testimony, that they are sure that the Almighty God will save them – Dan. 3:17. Learn to make testimonies that constantly affirm the greatness of Jehovah. It is in such situations that He is challenged and releases sufficient Grace to guarantee your victory over that situation created by the dragon.
3. They overcame because they were not scared of death. Again the three Hebrews made it clear to Nebuchadnezzar that they were not afraid of death if that was the choice they were left with. Fear of death remains a major tool with which the devil defeats men, Christians inclusive. Unfortunately, every one eventually dies, whether scared or not, about death. The Christian must always operate with the principle of the Apostle Paul who affirmed that he will only live in Christ as to die in Christ will be gain for him – Phil. 1:21. Until Christians realise that death is an ultimate price that all must pay, they will always be victims of the use of the tool of fear of death by the dragon. Possibility of death of family members, friends, businesses, etc remains a major scare which makes most individuals compromise their faith in God. The wise Christian will always be ready to welcome death in any form as it is indeed the ultimate destination for all men. The devil loses a major weapon once he discovers that the individual he is after, genuinely has no fear for death.
You too can also defeat the hurled-to-earth dragon if you apply these principles rather than letting your life be a piece of toy in the hands of the Devil. You only have this one life to live and it remains only your own fault if you allow the devil to mess it up. Take charge of the direction of your life, not by your personal ability but by applying the above principles and you will be able to live a victorious life that is deserving of a true child of God. May that be your portion in Jesus name. Amen.
good content, i love it