Lord, we are continually thankful for the great privilege we have to gather around Your table. It speaks of the great testimony of Your very life—Your love, a life laid down. We are thankful that, as we remember You at the table, there is a hope set before us of Your soon return.
Lord, as we have been considering this matter of church history, we have seen Your great faithfulness in spite of man—Your great faithfulness throughout the centuries. As we draw near to the end of the age, we want to be those who continue to seek You in a fuller and greater way, that we may be prepared for Your return and be those who are hastening Your return.
May we be those who are the testimony of Jesus in the days in which we find ourselves living. In Your wonderful name. Amen.
Well, we have finally drawn to the conclusion of this. For those of you who have a good memory, we started in March of 2021—almost two years ago. So, you know, there will be no test for review. You can all relax.
But we are going to do a little review to start our time. I am going to review why we have been considering this, then look at a snapshot of church history in a little chart—trying to summarize a couple thousand years in a couple of PowerPoint slides—and then consider some lessons we should be learning as we prepare for the days in which we are living.
Why are we considering this matter of the testimony of Jesus throughout church history? It encourages us in faithfulness by showing how He has always been faithful and continues to be faithful in accomplishing all that is upon His heart—His purpose.
Everything our Lord does is related to the testimony of Jesus: His Son having preeminence in everything, all things being summed up in Him. That is the goal. That is the end. That is what He is jealous for: His bride being made ready.
It also gives us a greater perspective on our heritage. So often we live only in the present, but as we reflect back, we can see the great heritage of those who have gone before us and enabled us to gather so freely today.
Even as we consider the Lord’s table, there were those who died in order to preserve the purity and testimony of this table, while we are able to partake of it so freely today.
Church history also keeps us in a balanced walk. We should not think too highly of ourselves: “Oh, look, we are it. We have really come into something.” No, that is the pride of life, and it ends up being divisive—thinking that you are better than others.
But neither should we think too lowly: “This is nothing. What have we been brought into? This has just been going on; it is nothing.” There is a balance concerning the special walk into which He has called us.
It has been shared many times throughout the centuries. It is His story. As we look at history, it is all about His story—His testimony of who He is. It is not our testimony. It is not about us. It is about Him.
We also see that there is nothing new under the sun. So often, as we look at the days in which we are living, we can lose perspective concerning everything that has gone before us.
In Ecclesiastes, Solomon speaks about what is under heaven and what is under the sun.
I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven.
It is a sore travail that God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised therewith.
I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Where is the “all is vanity”? It is what is under the sun. There is a contrast in these verses concerning our perspective. Are we walking under the sun, or are we walking under heaven?
John Blanchard shared years ago about our natural eye versus the eye of faith. If we look with the natural eye at the world today, we can be discouraged, disappointed, and in despair. It looks hopeless. We may ask, “How is God ever going to accomplish anything?”
But if we are living under heaven, we are encouraged and strengthened to press on. Really, it is a matter of which Son we are living under. The Son is the One under whom we are living, and that helps us with our perspective.
As we look back through history, we see that there is nothing new under the sun upon this earth. In the first century, and even before Christ, there were abortions, homosexuality, pandemics, social injustice, racial inequality, unjust governments, and Christianity in weakened conditions. There is nothing new here.
But we must keep it in perspective as we draw near to the end. It does not make what we are going through any less intense or severe, but the intensity is accelerating. There is an accelerating factor in the days we are living in that those before us did not face.
What is the testimony of Jesus? He testifies of Himself in Revelation 1:17-18. He testifies of who He is—His character and His nature—and of what He has done and what He desires.
He desires for His life to be seen and expressed in His people, individually and corporately. That is what He is jealous for. He is jealous that we would not merely know about Him or merely have His life in us, but that His life would be expressed.
Think about the city of Antioch in the Book of Acts. That is where the disciples were first called Christians. Before the disciples came, people were simply living their own lives. Antioch was like a small city or town today, where everybody knows everybody and knows their business—their lives, their ups and downs, and everything else.
Then these disciples came into town and began sharing this strange message. As people heard it and accepted it, their lives changed. Instead of going out drinking one night, they gathered together. Instead of gossiping about people, they cared for people. Instead of looking down on people, they went and cared for those in need.
What the other people in Antioch saw was a new life expressed in these believers. It was not merely because they went to meetings. Meetings are important, but it was not simply because they gathered together. Their neighbors saw this life expressed.
They had known them before, but after they learned about this One called Jesus, their lives were different. That continued to expand the gospel. There was a testimony of His life being expressed through believers, and that is what He is jealous for today.
Why is this matter of the testimony of Jesus so vital? It is the key to everything that God is doing. Throughout both the Old Testament and the New Testament, how does God renew, recover, or strengthen His people? Always by a fresh and greater revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Consider Abraham, Joshua, and Isaiah. Isaiah was greatly discouraged after Uzziah died. What happened? He received a greater revelation of Christ. The Lord appeared to Abraham, called him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and throughout Abraham’s life continued to reveal more and more of Himself.
In the New Testament, Hebrews is a letter written to those in a time of great crisis. What is the whole essence of Hebrews? It brings them back to our Lord Jesus.
Consider Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith.
Consider Him as your High Priest.
Consider Him as the better sacrifice.
Everything brings us back to Him. That is what the Book of Revelation is about: revealing His Son to us because the time is near. How we need to pray that, in the days in which we are living, we would receive a fuller and greater revelation of our Lord Jesus.
It is vital that we see what we have been called unto in this day and time. Without purpose, we simply go anywhere and do whatever we want to do. But as we see the testimony of Jesus in church history, we begin to see what God wants and what His desire is.
T. Austin-Sparks said that the testimony is what God wants to be displayed or seen. It is not a creed, a doctrine, or a system of teaching; it is His life in His people.
The testimony of Jesus was entrusted to the church. The lampstand in Revelation 2 and 3 was not the focus in itself, but there was a bright light shining forth—the light of life. The church is the vessel to keep whole and display the testimony of Jesus, that light of life.
The church does not have a message of its own. We have the message of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we see Christ in all His fullness, we will see His Body; we will see the church.
We can learn from the past, but we are called to live in the present. That is one of the challenges throughout church history, and really throughout history in general. Things go a certain way, then God moves and wants to reveal something more, but many people want to live in the past rather than in the present.
Consider the Mennonites and the Amish. We may make fun of the way they dress today, but when they first began to meet and the Lord touched their hearts, they did not sit down and ask, “How can we dress to have a uniform?” They dressed simply, in a way that was contemporary for their own day and time. They did not stand out at all.
But then they held on to the past and said, “Now we have to keep dressing like this.” They did not continue to live in a contemporary way for the days in which they were living. It was similar with the Quakers. Their dress was simply the way people dressed in that day.
There is always resistance to change. One thing we notice throughout church history is that, after the first period, religious organizations and Christendom in general often provide resistance to what God is doing through His people and His Son.
In brief overview, the church was predestined before the foundation of the world. Adam and Eve were the first picture of Christ and the church—the corporate expression of the Head and the Body.
Through the fruit of Christ’s travail at Calvary, the church was born. It begins in the Book of Acts, where the one hundred and twenty were baptized into one Body.
Many have said that the Book of Acts is still being written. In Acts 1:1, Luke speaks of all that Jesus “began both to do and to teach.” Acts was the beginning; the book is still being written today.
The early church had a good and healthy birth. It was never sinlessly perfect. In spite of Ananias and Sapphira, in spite of the widows being neglected, the church continued to grow.
Sometimes we think problems hinder, but problems can reveal more of Christ to us. If there had never been problems in the churches, we would not have many of the epistles. Through those issues, we received a greater revelation of Christ and His heart.
God did not come to the believers in Colossae and say, “Since you are practicing all this Gnosticism, I am through with you.” No. He humbled Himself, revealed more of Christ, and brought them back. That is God’s heart. He is always for the recovery and strengthening of His people. He never throws us out; He has paid too great a price.
At first, Christians were considered a sect of Judaism. But persecution under Nero, followed by the destruction of the temple in AD 70, brought about a clear distinction between Judaism and Christianity. Christianity was no longer viewed merely as a subsection of Judaism.
In the first five hundred years, persecution arose, but there were always faithful ones. Around AD 300, Constantine came into power and made Christianity the state religion.
Once Christianity became the state religion, a great distinction arose between the testimony of Jesus and Christendom. If you were a member of the state and did certain things, you were automatically considered a member of the church, whether you were a believer or unbeliever.
A great mixture came in. This was a significant point in history because a great divide began between Christendom and the testimony of Jesus.
From approximately AD 600 to 1300, the Roman church continued to gain more and more power. Yet there were faithful believers scattered throughout Europe and Asia.
This period is generally referred to as the Dark Ages. In the midst of great persecution and the Inquisition, believers were killed for their faith. Islam also arose, and there were two great powers coming against the testimony of Jesus: Islam and the Holy Roman Empire.
A great divide within the Roman Catholic Church occurred when East and West divided. The East moved toward Russia and Greece, while Rome remained throughout Europe. The Crusades also took place, and even today people remember their consequences.
The world does not make a distinction between believers and Christendom. It sees all Christianity together. It is sad how much various ones have done to damage the name of our Lord Jesus.
From approximately AD 1300 onward, the Lord used various ones to prepare the way for the Reformation. In general, there was spiritual death everywhere and little testimony, but there were faithful groups such as the Waldensians.
Then there were names with which we are familiar: Wycliffe, Hus, Tyndale, and Savonarola. They were preparing the way for Luther, Zwingli, and others.
In Chronicles, we read that God’s eyes move to and fro throughout the earth, looking for one whose heart is completely His, that He may strongly support him. The people whose names we mention today were nobodies before that, but they were faithful, loving not their lives even unto death.
There was chaos in the world: the Hundred Years’ War, the Black Death, and the rise of Islamic power through Constantinople. One of the major developments affecting Christianity was the invention of the printing press.
The printing press could be used to print tracts and Bibles, but it could also be used to print things against believers. These things can be used for good or evil.
Then came the Reformation. Praise God, justification by faith was recovered. Before this, people thought they had to work their way into heaven. Justification by works had replaced the gospel of grace.
The authority of the Word of God was also recovered. The Word had been greatly neglected, but its authority was restored.
The truth that all believers have direct access to God was also recovered. Before that, people believed they had to go through a religious person—a priest or someone else. But all may come directly to God.
That is precious as we gather around the table. Everyone can open his or her mouth in worship. We do not have to wait for someone to lead us or direct us.
The Reformers went so far, but the Radical Reformation continued further. There was also a great move among the United Brethren. Yet out of this period many denominations were formed: Baptists, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, and many others.
After this came the Great Awakenings, with Wesley, Whitefield, Zinzendorf, and the Moravians. There were great moves of God. This was the golden age of hymns.
One of the hymns we sang this morning came from this era. The hymn that Mari graciously taught us was written by John Newton. We have a great treasure as part of our heritage.
As we come nearer to today, we recognize names such as Spurgeon, Moody, and the Brethren. Then there were the Jesus movement, the charismatic movement, and many independent fellowships throughout Europe, China, the United States, India, and elsewhere.
These were assemblies gathering under the headship of Christ. Because of what the Brethren and others recovered, many were able to gather freely. It has been a tremendous work that God has done.
We also see that when God moves, the enemy brings in a counterfeit. During this period came groups such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons, as well as Marxism, Darwinism, and Freud—“fraud,” rather.
When we speak about unity and the unity of the brethren, we also see the ecumenical movement. The difference is that the Lord begins from within. When we are born again, we are born into the Body of Christ; we are one. He calls us to maintain that unity.
The ecumenical movement begins outwardly, attempting to bring everyone together externally, while the inward reality may not be there. We are thankful for these two thousand years and for the testimony of Jesus throughout them.
There are certain characteristics we see as the fruit of the testimony of Jesus in His people throughout the centuries.
The world sees that it is not merely these people doing something; it is Christ who has done it. That may be the greatest gospel message the church has.
When we mention the cross, we often think of it as negative. We say, “Oh, there is the cross again. It is heavy.” But that only shows that we do not have a full understanding of the cross.
If we truly see what Christ accomplished at the cross, we see that He has liberated us from the world, from ourselves, from sin, and from the flesh. He has brought us into the fullness of His life.
The cross is the greatest blessing of life we have ever received. It is the way by which we enter into the enjoyment of the fullness of all that He has for us. The cross is our friend.
The enemy loves to distort it and say that it is merely about dying. Yes, but what is dying is worthless. What needs to die is utterly worthless in eternity, though we may think it is of tremendous value.
Once we see Him, we see the vanity of the things to which we hold, and we let them go. That is what we see in the testimony throughout the centuries.
As we pray for the Lord to strengthen us individually and corporately, these are some of the matters we desire to be strengthened in our lives and in our midst, that He might receive more glory and honor and that we might be the people He is calling us to be.
There is an absolute necessity for revelation of God’s heart and purpose. Unless we truly see His heart and purpose, we will not go on. We must see the end; we must see His desire.
Sadly, throughout church history, within a generation or two—perhaps occasionally three generations—most movements weaken, become formalized, or become institutionalized.
As God moves, new wine needs fresh wineskins. The materials produced through God’s work are eternal and never lost. Recovery is progressive.
When God gained ground and touched life in AD 500, the gold worked out there—the life of Christ expressed there—is in the eternal city. It is there permanently.
We see a progression of recovery: justification by faith in the Reformation; sanctification emphasized through Wesley and Whitefield; and more of the priesthood of all believers recovered through the Brethren. We do not know what else He has to reveal, but we want to be open and teachable in the days in which we live.
God desires a corporate expression of His life. How is a corporate expression strengthened? You cannot strengthen a whole group apart from strengthening each individual.
There is a great relationship between the individual and the corporate. We sometimes separate them, but we cannot have a strong corporate expression of His life without strong expressions of His life in individual believers.
Proverbs 5 speaks of one who was “almost in utter ruin in the midst of the assembly.” Sometimes we place our security in an assembly and say, “I meet here, and everybody else is so spiritual. They will carry me through.” No.
We are thankful that we can meet together regardless of our condition and that, through trials, others help us. But each individual has a calling. To whom much is given, much is required. We have been given much, and each one must be faithful with what God has placed in his or her hands.
There is great diversity, but it is all related to the bride making herself ready. If we do not see the end, we will give up.
Brothers and sisters are so precious that you cannot live with them, but you cannot live without them. Anyone who has been in assembly life for a while can become upset, irritated, or think about leaving.
But if we do not see what it is all about—if we do not see that there is an end in view and that it is not about us—we will quit. We will shrink back. We will say, “It is not worth it. I am not going to pay that price.”
Norman Grubb wrote in his autobiography, “Once caught, no escape.” Have we been caught by this revelation? It is not merely a doctrine or a teaching. We must see His purpose.
It only comes by revelation from Him. It is not something we can merely be taught, although it must be taught. We need to pray for the Lord to open our eyes and help us maintain a fresh revelation and relationship with our Lord Jesus.
We must not allow a living revelation simply to become a teaching or tradition. It is easy in our humanity to let things become routine and tradition. In His love, God shakes us. He wants to wake us up so that we may wholly hold on to what He has.
Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.
Without vision—without revelation—we do not see the fullness of God. It is absolutely vital to see what God’s heart and purpose are.
John Comenius, of the United Brethren, spoke of one thing being needful. Remember that this was written several hundred years ago:
Christendom hath become a labyrinth, or a maze. What can help?
Only one thing is needful, or necessary: return to Christ and walk in His life.
There is only one life, but death comes to us in a thousand forms.
There is only one truth, but error hath a thousand forms.
There is only one Christ, but a thousand antichrists.
So thou knowest what is the one thing necessary: either thou turnest back to Christ, or thou goest to destruction like the antichrist.
If thou art wise and wilt live, follow the Leader of life.
How relevant that is for us today.
John Wesley also spoke concerning the future of Methodism, and what he said eventually came to pass:
My fear is not that our great movement, known as the Methodists, will eventually cease to exist or one day die from the earth.
My fear is that our people will become content to live without the fire, the power, the excitement, and the supernatural element that makes us great.
His fear was that they would live without His life and develop into a form. That is so vital for us to consider.
William Booth said:
The chief dangers which confront the coming century will be religion without the Holy Ghost; Christianity without Christ; forgiveness without repentance; salvation without regeneration; politics without God; and heaven without hell.
The modern gospel can be tragic. So many of the things these men feared have come about in Christendom. We need to make sure they do not come about in our own lives.
Within a generation or two, most movements weaken. The first generation is captured in a fresh way and lives dependent upon the life of the Lord. But the next generation begins living off the life of the first generation—or off man rather than the Lord.
They are not experiencing the Lord with the freshness the first generation knew. It leads to weakness and eventually division. Great movements—the Puritans, the Wesleyans, the Brethren—were broken up within a few years.
The Brethren movement was one of the great movements of God, but within twenty years there was already division.
T. Austin-Sparks said:
The history of all divisions is a demonstration of one fact: the life and power of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has been thwarted by the asserting of the self-life—man’s ability, interests, organizations, traditions, and so on.
Brothers and sisters, we must allow that Spirit of life in Christ Jesus to remain alive and fresh in all our hearts and lives. We do not want to hinder it in any way.
Jesus rebuked religious leaders because they hindered people from entering in. We do not want to be those who thwart His life; we want to encourage others to enter in more fully and deeply.
New wine needs fresh wineskins. As God moves, people are often resistant to change because there is a certain comfort in what they have known and done before.
In the sixteenth century, the Reformation was greatly resisted by the Roman Catholic Church. Many were put to death and persecuted. The resistance was tremendous.
But the Reformers themselves went only so far. They established state churches and maintained certain beliefs. Then the Lord raised up Anabaptists who wanted to go further.
The ones who had been persecuted—the Reformed churches—became the persecutors. This happens repeatedly throughout Christian history: the persecuted become the persecutors.
It happens in social life as well. Those who were once persecuted become established and then persecute others. It is natural to man, and we need to make sure it does not happen in the church.
The Lord raised up Wesley and Whitefield in England. They saw something beyond the walls of the Church of England and were thrown out. Wesley ended up preaching on his father’s grave, while Whitefield preached to twenty thousand miners at a time in the open air.
There was even resistance to hymns. Why would there be resistance to hymns? In some ways, it was similar to the resistance to choruses in our lifetime.
The major resistance to hymns was that they were written by man rather than by God. Before that, people sang primarily from the Psalms. Many hymns were written by dissenters outside the Anglican Church, such as the Wesleys and Newton.
They used common, everyday words rather than highfalutin religious or theological words. They used language that could communicate with ordinary people. But they were criticized as common people, and it was said that hymns led to enthusiasm.
“Enthusiasm” was a bad word in those days. Methodists were first called enthusiasts. Today, we might wish there were more enthusiasm in the house of God for Him.
There was also resistance to mission work. William Carey, one of the first major missionaries whom God used wonderfully, shared his burden for the lost and his desire to consider going to other places.
The leadership abruptly interrupted him and said:
Young man, sit down. You are an enthusiast.
When God pleases to convert the heathen, He will do it without consulting you or me, and He can do it without your help.
We may think, “Missions—just go out and share the gospel.” But that was a change, and there was resistance.
When the Brethren movement came about, there was change through independent gatherings and the functioning priesthood of all believers. People asked, “How can you meet without a pastor? You do not have somebody wearing a clerical collar. How can common people preach and share the Bible?”
There was resistance in our own lifetime to the Jesus movement and the charismatics. “Who are these people? They are crazy and fanatical.” Now, some of them were. We still have Kenny here with us—one of those flaming charismatics.
But we are thankful that the Lord draws from charismatics and from fundamental Baptists and brings them together, allowing them to experience the oneness they have in Christ. And lo and behold, here we are today. It is wonderful how He works.
This is why we need the Holy Spirit and a fresh relationship with God. There is the truth of contending for the faith and holding to the ancient boundaries, but God is also moving on and revealing more.
God is always contemporary with the days in which we are living. Only the Holy Spirit can reveal how these two truths work together for the fullness of His life to be expressed. That is why we want open, teachable hearts.
The materials produced by God are eternal and never lost. Before Solomon was born, David gathered materials for the house of God.
In 1 Chronicles 26:28, we see that Samuel, Saul, Abner, Joab, and others had dedicated materials for the house of God. That can be surprising. Saul was a man of the flesh. Abner was the head of Saul’s army. Joab often caused David trouble.
But these people had lives with more than one aspect. Saul had some good characteristics as well. Joab could be David’s greatest problem, but at times he spoke truth when David did not see it. He warned David not to count the people, but David did not listen and paid the price.
This is not speaking of things from the world coming into the house of God. These are people of God—believers. So often we look around and judge what value someone has or what that person could possibly contribute.
We must be careful, because we do not see the hidden work. We see in part. We do not know all that is going on, but God does.
He sees the gold going into the city whenever Christ is expressed. Whenever Christ gains something in our life, whenever we say no to ourselves and yes to Him, it is as though a little more gold is registered in that city.
Praise God for that. Ecclesiastes says:
I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever:
nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it;
and God hath done it, that men should fear before Him.
Everything He does remains forever. These materials are never lost. They are gold in the city.
Recovery is progressive. John Robinson, one of the Puritans, was sending believers from England to the United States. Some were originally going on the Speedwell, but it sprung a leak, and they came over on the Mayflower.
He charged them:
I charge you before God, that you follow me no further than you have seen me follow Jesus.
If God reveals more of Him to you by another instrument of His, be ready to receive it as you received any truth by my ministry.
I am persuaded the Lord has much more truth to break forth from His holy Word.
That is still true today. We are thankful for what we have received from many, both living and passed away, but there is still more of Christ to be revealed. We want to see that.
Watchman Nee also spoke of this in The Church and the Work, concerning what God had done in China. The truths in that book had been gradually learned and practiced over past years, but numerous adjustments had been made as greater light was received.
He said that if they remained humble and God continued to show mercy, there would be further adjustments in the future. As greater light is seen, the Lord continues to reveal what adjustments need to be made.
Thank the Lord. Even concerning whether to have a sign or not have a sign, He will show us what to do. He answered that for us. Praise God.
Where are we today? Overall, Christendom and Christianity are in a weakened condition. We are thankful for sparks of life in many places, but in a general way there is weakness.
Three Scriptures came to my heart concerning times when God’s people were in weakened conditions. We see the same characteristics today.
At the end of Judges, we read:
In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
Today, we could say that in these days our Lord Jesus is not acknowledged as Lord or King, and everyone does what is right in his own eyes. That is one of the great tragedies of our day.
Malachi says:
Ye have wearied the Lord with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied Him?
In that ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He delighteth in them.
Isaiah also speaks of those who call evil good and good evil. It is sad that things which are evil today are called good, while things which are good are called evil. I am not speaking merely about the world; I am speaking about Christianity—things that are accepted, endorsed, and even boasted about.
Revelation 3:17 says of Laodicea:
Because thou sayest, I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing;
and knowest not that thou art the wretched one and miserable and poor and blind and naked.
The tragedy at the end of both the Old Testament and the New Testament is that God spoke truth about the people’s condition, but they did not know their own condition.
The people in Malachi thought they were fine. The church at Laodicea said, “We are fine. Look, we are rich. Everything is going great.” They did not know that they were blind, poor, naked, and miserable.
We do not know ourselves. We do not need to become introspective, but that is why we have the Holy Spirit. Praise God, He loves us. We have the cross, we have the blood, and He can adjust us and show us our ways.
As we draw near to His soon return, I still believe His eyes move to and fro throughout the earth, that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. He is actively looking for people.
Isaiah 59 says:
So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west,
and His glory from the rising of the sun.
For He shall come as a rushing stream,
which the breath of the Lord driveth.
When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord raises up a standard against him. That standard is the testimony of Jesus—His life expressed individually and corporately through His people.
That is the standard He is jealous to have raised up in this day and time. Throughout history, when the enemy came in like a flood, even through the Dark Ages, there was a testimony. There was a bright light.
The world may not have noticed it, but God noticed it. There is gold in that city. In the days in which we are living, that standard needs to be strengthened.
Revelation 2 and 3 contain the last call to the churches: the call to overcome. There is a great call in this hour to overcome.
Who are the overcomers? This is one of the most misunderstood matters. Sometimes people think overcomers are an elite group, better than others. But no.
Christian Chen said that the overcomers are those who are overcome by the love of God. When you are overcome by Him, you are an overcomer.
T. Austin-Sparks said they are those still in the race at the end—those still pressing on. Brother Kong described them as those living the normal Christian life in a time of declension.
They are not super-Christians. When the general level of life has declined, these are people simply living a normal Christian life. Think of the remnant in Ezra and Nehemiah. They were not perfect, but they had a heart to return and build the house.
The testimony of the overcomers is not that they are great or that they are doing this or that. Revelation 12:11 says:
And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb,
and because of the word of their testimony;
and they loved not their life even unto death.
They overcome by the blood of the Lamb because they recognize that they are sinners saved by grace. They make many mistakes, but they allow Him to deal with them.
The word of their testimony is not their own testimony. What is it? Jesus Christ is Lord. That is their boast.
They do not love their lives even unto death. Some experience physical death; others live a martyr’s life. As we allow the cross to work within us, we become part of that faithful remnant which will hasten His return.
How do we overcome today? How did our Lord Jesus overcome? By dying on the cross—the greatest victory in history.
How did Paul overcome? By dying daily. How do we overcome today? We do not overcome by winning; we overcome by dying.
When we look back at history, one of the greatest examples of believers overcoming was the early church living under the Roman Empire. Eventually, the church prevailed and the empire crumbled.
How did those believers in the first few hundred years handle the Roman Empire? Did they protest? Did they fight? They laid down their lives.
The empire saw a testimony of how they loved one another. We get so hung up on winning today. But the Lord is not interested in winning America; the Lord is interested in winning Americans.
He wants believers. One way we can hinder the gospel is by becoming too political. I am not saying there is no proper way to pray for governing authorities, as we see in Timothy. But when believers, or the church in particular, associate themselves with certain political groups, they can shut the door to the gospel for those who are not in that group.
Whether Democrat or Republican, when a group openly identifies with one side or the other, it can shut the door to the gospel for others. We do not need to do that.
We are so focused on winning, but our God won by dying. Would we be willing to die today?
How did the church in China survive? Not by defeating communism, but through saints willing to overcome by the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and loving not their lives unto death.
They are winning for Christ by dying. We need to have our eyes adjusted to see the great call He has upon us in the days in which we are living.
How do we die daily? By repenting, offering ourselves as a living sacrifice, and praying for an ear to hear and obey what the Spirit says to the churches.
That is what He is calling us to: an ear to hear and obey.
What is the solid and sure hope—the foundational hope—we have in everything going on? It is His great promise. We can look around and become discouraged, but we have His promise that He is able to finish and complete everything He does.
And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
That is the promise we have. His Word is absolute and sure, and it gives us great hope. When we look around, it may appear impossible.
Yet it is amazing that the testimony of Jesus is still alive today. It is amazing that the nation of Israel is still around today. We live by His promise.
We see beyond the present. We see the end to which He is calling us. We have a hope that is sure and steadfast, and it will keep us through whatever we face.
As we daily offer ourselves to Him, that we may be met by Him, kept by Him, and available to Him, He will enable us to live in the present. We are called to live in the days in which we are living.
We are thankful for the past, and we can learn much from it. But as we live today in the present, by His life, mercy, and grace, we desire to be a testimony unto Him.
We can never say, “We are the testimony. We are the overcomers. We are the remnant.” No. We simply have the desire to be that.
As we humble ourselves before Him and continue offering ourselves daily to Him, He will be able to work the great work He has promised to do. The gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Let us pray.
Lord, we are thankful.