Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.
Revelation 12:10-11 NKJV
By the blood of the Lamb:
Revelation 12:10 tells us that the accuser of the brethren accuses us before God day and night. Who is the accuser? Satan.
The word “Satan” means: the accuser or devil – which perfectly describes his character.
The word “devil” means: false accuser or slanderer.
One of Satan’s strategies is to remind us of our past and try to convince us that we haven’t changed. Another strategy of the enemy is to attack our identity in Christ. He does this to bring guilt, shame and condemnation which can result in discouragement if we believe his lies. But thanks be to God, because He has made a way for us to overcome Satan’s strategy. The bible tells us that we overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of our testimony and we do not love our lives unto the death. In order for us to overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony, we have to know and understand what the blood of Jesus has already done for us. From there, we can in faith profess this truth, believing it in our hearts.
I have laid out some examples below of what our testimony could look like based upon what the Bible says the blood of Jesus does for us:
- Our testimony: “Through the precious blood of Jesus, I have been redeemed from of the power of darkness and brought into the kingdom of the Son of His love, and all my sins are forgiven.”
For He has rescued us and has drawn us to Himself from the dominion of darkness, and has transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption (because of His sacrifice, resulting in) the forgiveness of our sins (and the cancellation of sins’ penalty).
Colossians 1:13-14 AMPC
2. Our testimony: “The precious blood of Jesus cleanses me from all sin as I continue to walk in the light and have fellowship with other believers.”
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:7 NKJV
3. Our testimony: “Through the precious blood of Jesus, I am justified (made righteous). His blood has taken my guilt away.”
Therefore, since we have now been justified (declared free of the guilt of sin) by His blood, (how much more certain is it that) we will be saved from the wrath of God through Him.
Romans 5:9 AMPC
4. Our testimony: “Through the precious blood of Jesus, I have boldness to enter the Holiest.”
Therefore, believers, since we have confidence and full freedom to enter the Holy Place (the place where God dwells) by (means of) the blood of Jesus.
Hebrews 10:19 AMPC
5. Our testimony: “The precious blood of Jesus sanctifies me. I am set apart to God for His plans and purposes.”
Therefore Jesus also suffered and died outside the (city) gate so that He might sanctify and set apart for God as holy the people (who believe) through (the shedding of) His own blood.
Hebrews 13:12 AMPC
6. Our testimony: “The precious blood of Jesus brings me near to God.”
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Ephesians 2:13 NKJV
By the word of our (unique) testimony:
We overcome Satan’s accusations when we stand firm in the truth that God has set us free from the power of sin. We overcome him when we know our identity in Christ because we will recognize his accusations as false and completely irrelevant because of what Jesus has done for us. We overcome these accusations because we know that Jesus has given us a new heart and that He has changed us to be like Him. When we look back, we will just know that we are no longer the person we used to be. We can with boldness declare that our old man has been crucified and buried with Christ, and that we are a new creation in Christ. This is our testimony: We were slaves of sin, but the Lord has set us free from the power of sin and changed us. Thank You Jesus!
I can honestly say that I have won many spiritual battles (or accusations) by declaring that my old life is buried with Christ and that God no longer remembers my past because I have been forgiven. When we know our identity in Christ, we can stand against the lies and false accusations from the enemy. I hope this next bit of advice will help someone: If you feel like your joy or peace has been stolen from you, it may be because you are believing the lie from the enemy. May I please encourage you to ask God to show you the truth, because knowing the truth will make you free (John 8:32). His truth will also give you peace and joy.
Sharing our testimony:
I have seen in my life how the enemy tried to prevent me from sharing my testimony with others, because he knows that sharing our testimony with others brings God’s name to reputation and it gives Him the glory. When I had overcome many things, I was reluctant to share my testimony with others because I thought that the enemy would just attack me in those same areas to disprove my testimony. At this time, God really encouraged me to share my testimony with others because many people struggle with the same things that we have struggled with, and our testimony may give them hope. They will see that if God did it for us, He can also do it for them. The enemy doesn’t want others to have this hope in God, and that’s why he may try to hinder us, but God is faithful. Thank You Jesus!
And we do not love our lives unto the death:
I believe there is a two-fold application here:
- We faithfully obey and follow Jesus, even if it means dying for our faith.
Scripture tells us that there is a chance that we may face death as a result of persecution. Many of us want to believe that we would be strong enough to die for our faith in our Beloved Jesus if it came to that. Jesus told us in Acts 1:8 that we would be His witnesses. In the bible strongs, the word “witness” also means “martyr”.
The purpose of me writing about this is not to bring fear, but rather to bring hope and understanding. When we understand that Jesus has already defeated death, it brings us to a place of hope. Jesus has promised those who believe in Him (those who faithfully obey Him) eternal life. Therefore, the fear of death has been taken out of the way because we know that we will live with the Lord forever. Through the sacrifice of Himself, Jesus has delivered us from the fear of death:
Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Hebrews 2:14-15 NKJV
This is good news for us, because it means that we can boldly proclaim the gospel message, pray or people, cast out demons and live for Jesus without the constant fear of persecution and possible martyrdom. When we are willing to lay down our lives (if it had to come to that), it sets us free to boldly preach the good news of the kingdom of God and obey Jesus’ teachings and commandments.
2. We faithfully obey and follow Jesus, even if it means laying down our lives as a living sacrifice for the good of others.
The Scripture from Revelation 12:11 says that we overcome Satan because we do not love our lives unto death. The second application can be understood in this way: Do we love our lives (our time here on earth and the things/pleasures of the world) so much that we are not willing to lay them down? Are we willing to die to self?
I believe it means laying down our lives as a living sacrifice for the good of others, as well as putting to death the deeds of the flesh. Have we fully surrendered to the Lord? Have we said, “Lord, not my will but Yours be done.” I believe when we have come to a place of fully surrendering our will to the Lord so that His will can be done through us, we are in a good place to overcome Satan.
May I encourage you with these words: We are all on our journey with the Lord and we are all at different places within our journey. Overcoming the enemy is usually not an overnight experience because we are all still learning how to overcome in all areas. Jesus is our good Shepherd and He will take us on our journey at a pace He knows we can handle. He leads us with gentleness and care because He loves us. He will teach us everything we need to know in order to overcome, and as we apply what He teaches us – He secures our victory. Stand in the truth and reject the lies from the enemy. God is faithful and He will complete the good work He has started in us. Thank You Lord Jesus!