Number 6 – Overcomers. All of us have struggles. We all have things to overcome, and the battles most of us fight, to overcome something, are in private and secret - seen only by God, and it's very clear that Jesus will reward us according to what we've overcome. We see that in Revelations 2:2-3, where He makes promises to the overcomers. An overcomer has faced a challenge, and over a period has overcome it, and maintained overcoming it, and they qualify for reward.
Revelations 3:21 – “To him who overcomes, I will grant with him to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne”.
Overcomers are promised specific rewards. Someone who has stood, and held onto the word of God, had some ups and downs, but eventually prevailed, and overcame some of the challenges in life, then it's appropriate that God acknowledges that.
James 1:12 – “Blessed is the man who endures temptation, after he's been tried, he'll receive the crown of life”.
Overcomers are promised rewards, for overcoming a whole range of things. Revelations 2 talks about cold love, where a heart goes cold, and we need to return to our first love, so maintaining a passionate heart is something that requires us to overcome coldness, indifference, the lukewarmness.
We're called to overcome persecution, so when we're opposed, when people resist us, when people attack us, when we're given a hard time, it's very easy to become embittered, discouraged or overcome by the adversity we've gone through. There's a reward for those who overcome persecution.
In Revelations 2, it also tells us about the necessity to overcome false doctrine. False doctrine are any teachings that are contrary to the true spirit and intent of the word of God. They may seem very appealing, and they may condone various kinds of things, but we need to overcome false doctrine, so we need to then be students of the word of God. To do that, we need to study for ourselves what God's word says, so we can overcome teachings that are not true.
The Book of Revelation also refers to overcoming false teachers, and false prophets. Teachers that come into the church, who look plausible, and prophets that come and look plausible, and I'm sure they do love the Lord, and have their own relationship with Him, but there's something out of alignment in their lives. God calls them false teachers, and false prophets. Primarily, they're concerned about building their own lives, and their own ministry, and we have to watch we don't get seduced away by the pull that they put on our life, and end up away from the course God called us onto.
In Revelations 2, it also talks about the Spirit of Jezebel - how there was a woman in the church, and she taught and led, and the servants of God strayed into immorality and compromise and an idolatrous society. Again, that's something we must overcome. Every one of us must overcome the desire to control; or the influence of that spirit, which is very seductive.
Revelations talks about entering compromise, about being lukewarm, or compliance. “I have this against you: you're neither hot nor cold, you're lukewarm”. Lukewarm-ness is prevalent throughout the western church. It's something we must overcome, and that requires that we have engagements with God, have fresh revelation, and stay passionate, in our pursuit of Him. Lukewarm-ness, and temptation, are some of the things we must overcome.
Number 7 - another thing that God considers is: what we've become.
We know that the purpose of God in sonship is intimacy; and assignments, or faithfulness in what we're doing; and that we're transformed to become more like Jesus.
In 2 Peter 1:3-11, he's saying you need to add to your foundational faith, all the character qualities: patience, and brotherly love - he lists a whole number of things that we are to build, and incorporate into our life. This is about inward transformation, so we become a loving, humble, and meek person.
2 Peter 1:8 – “If these things are yours and abound (or be in you, and abound), you'll neither be barren nor unfruitful”.
Here is a promise: if we let God work in our life to transform us, then we'll never be barren - we will always be fruitful for the Lord; but he says if you lack the things, you're short-sighted and can't see afar off. Then he gives exhortation:
“…brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do all these things he's referred to, adding and building into your character and life, so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly, into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ”.