2:2. 8:16-17). (1) Are these warnings against the loss of salvation as some have advocated? 5:7; Gal. These are not warnings against the loss of salvation, nor necessarily warnings against false profession, though that could be one application of these promises. CBN.com-- It is the dawning of a beautiful September morning. An investigation of the promises in Revelation 2 and 3 will seek to show that these are not promises all believers experience because every believer is an overcomer, but that these promises are special rewards to believers who overcome specific conflicts in the Christian life through faith and obedience in their daily walk. But the context of the seven letters suggests that John is there admonishing believers to overcome specific trials and temptations by faithful obedience through faith in their new life in Christ. was a 1966 graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and a former pastor of 28 years. Read these Bible verses about overcomer and related content to learn what an overcomer is and how to be made into an overcomer by God before the great tribulation. At this stage in my study of the issues here, I have become convinced that 1 John 5:4-5 is not synonymous with the statements of Revelation 2 and 3. We should note the emphasis here. 12:12-13; Rom. The Bible has a lot to say about being an overcomer. The term “overcomer” comes from the Greek nikaw, “to conquer, prevail, triumph, overcome.” This verb is found 28 times in 24 verses in the New Testament. Clothed in white garments, name not blotted out from the Book of Life, name confessed before the Father and angels (Rev. JESUS IS the NARROW PATH, only by washing of HIS Word, which HE is the Word can the mind be renewed to a singular view—the view of GOD. : a person who overcomes something : one who succeeds in dealing with or gaining control of some problem or difficulty … an advocate for women's rights, a voice for mental health awareness, an overcomer of drug addiction, a gracious celebrity … who refused to be defined by any one of those things …. These seven passages are not the only passages that touch on the issue of overcoming or victory over the conflicts and adversaries that we face in this life. In support of this, let’s compare Revelation 19:8. To be an overcomer is the hope of every believer in the Lord. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” Overcomers are followers of Christ who successfully resist the power and temptation of the world’s system. (1) Satan, our chief adversary, the devil: 1 Pet. (2) In Revelation 2:26 overcoming is also connected to what follows or to keeping Christ’s works until the end. 18 The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, V, James Orr Reeve, general editor, 3010. The admonitions “Do not fear …” and “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life” (2:10) form the immediate context for the promise, “He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death” (2:11). 5:16-26. And he who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him i will give authority over the nations” (2:25-26). John Ankerberg Show. He is the author of all the teachings here, and all materials are available free of charge! What does the Bible say to the church, and to the individual Christian, about the role of politics in the church? Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? Believers may have more than temporary setbacks and bouts with sin. 2:1-2 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. The Bible says that the body sleeps when it dies. Those who love the Lord Jesus sense a corresponding echo within, calling them to live an overcoming life. Or is “overcomer” simply another name for those who are genuinely regenerate believers?1, Almost all the references to overcoming mention a promise for all believers, promises that accompany salvation. If you wish to understand more aspects of the truth, please feel free to … Overcomer is a 2019 American Christian drama film directed by Alex Kendrick, who co-wrote the script with Stephen Kendrick.It is the Kendrick brothers' sixth film and their second through their subsidiary, Kendrick Brothers. 5:16), disobedience (Eph. Please enter your email address associated with your Salem All-Pass account, then click Continue. To apply these promises to all believers seems to rob them of their force as promises. Two key passages that illustrate the nature of our conflict with evil are Ephesians 2:1-2 and 6:12: Eph. It should be evident, then, that the white garment in 3:5 is a reward for works of righteousness that occur after salvation. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph 2:8-9). 4:3, 4; Eph. Happy New Year: Past, Present, and Future Perspectives, Revelation 2:7b reads, “To him who overcomes I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.” But the context for this is the admonition in 2:5 which reads, “Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first …”. Eating of the tree of life is a reward that shall be given to the overcomer in addition to his salvation. Article Images Copyright © 2021 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. I feel the crisp fall air as it gently nudges away the remaining days of summer. He does not turn away when times get difficult or become an apostate. (See the Grace Evangelical Society home page for more on this and other grace-oriented subjects at http://www.faithalone.org. 1 John 5:5 makes it abundantly clear. (3) In Revelation 3:5, the promise to the overcomer is tied into verse 4 by the word “thus,” the Greek adverb, %outws. In this context, it refers to the acts or deeds or works of righteousness for which rewards are given, i.e., the wedding garments. 5:5 and one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals. 4:12; Col. 1:9-12). 6:12; John 16:11; Col. 2:15; but note 1 John 2:13-14. Last month, since Valentine’s Day was coming, we diverted a little from our series and talked about my favorite subject, the Love of God. Jack Kelley published over 9,000 Bible Study resources here from 1999, until the Lord called him home in the fall of 2015. His teachings made the Bible clear and easy to understand, and impacted millions of lives. The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment Sign up for the Berean: Daily Verse and Comment, and have Biblical truth delivered to your inbox.This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. His work, built upon the foundation that is Christ Jesus, abides the test of the Lord’s appearing, and he receives over and above his entrance into eternal life, a place in the Heavens in the midst of the paradise of God.15. The film was released by Sony Pictures through its label, Affirm Films, on August 23, 2019.. 22-23. of 8:4f; Rev. We will face times of turmoil and tragedy, but it is our reaction to those hard times that determines everything. In Christ you are more than an overcomer, but what does that mean? Here are illustrations of the battles that believers must overcome and for which rewards are promised for overcoming. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” The Christian life is full of conflict, tribulation, but victory awaits all believers through the victory accomplished by the Savior, but it is a victory that must be appropriated by an active faith that is fed though fellowship with the Lord. There is a fine balance that must be observed in Scripture. 5:16 [walk]; Eph. Thus every Christian is an overcomer, though the various promises in these seven letters are addressed particularly to each local believing group, and tailored to the special circumstances found in each church.10, Walvoord agrees and writes: “This promise should not be construed as reward for only a special group of Christians but a normal expectation for all Christians.”11, Note that a special word is spoken to the “overcomers” in each church (2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21). But as is so often the case with difficult passages, students of the Word are divided on the answers. Becoming an Overcomer in Today’s World Being a Christian in a Non-Christian World Ken Birks, Pastor/Teacher I. These “overcomers” are not the “super-saints” in each church, a special group that will receive special privileges from Christ, but the true believers in each of these churches. 13:5-11). The Lord says, “And he who overcomes and (italics mine) he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him i will give authority over the nations.” This clearly shows that the overcomer here is not only a believer, but one who keeps the Lord’s deeds in contrast to the evil deeds promoted by the Jezebel like false prophetess being tolerated in the church at Thyatira. The promise of 3:5 is directly connected to the concept of faithfulness described in 3:4. Note the following passages: John 16:33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. As Hodges points out, “a command that everyone keeps is superfluous, and a reward that everyone receives is nonsense.”19. 2:1-3; Heb. Believers cannot overcome without dining intimately with the Savior in daily fellowship. There is exegetical evidence within the letters themselves which restrict the meaning of the overcomer. 8:1f; Gal. Each letter without exception moves from an address to the church as a whole, of the church corporate and individual groups in each church, to the individual aspect with a personal appeal to the one who has an ear and to the one who overcomes. The New Testament clearly teaches us, as does life itself, that we are in a conflict, indeed, a holy war, with specific adversaries. In fact, that is something the New Testament does NOT say.”16 Regardless, as demonstrated above, many use 1 John 5:4-5 to interpret the overcomer promises of Revelation 2 and 3 because of the similarity of terms. What Do the Overcomers in the Bible Refer To? In the light of Revelation 3:4-5 and 19:8, access to the tree of life through the New Jerusalem is restricted for those who cleanse their lives through fellowship with Christ. I’m not saying that eternal security is not true… What I am saying is that there is no guarantee in Scripture that eternally secure people will live overcoming, victorious lives here and now. This is possible if you fight in the right way. Our standing in Christ is no artificial position of immunity. WHO IS AN OVERCOMER:-Whoever is born of GOD . It reads, “And he who overcomes, …” This links the promise to the overcomer back to verse 25 and the statement, “Nevertheless what you have, hold fast (kratew, a strong word meaning ‘to hold firmly to something so that it is not lost’) until I come.” This both connects overcoming to the preceding admonition and makes it dependent on holding fast. Closely related to Christ’s victory through His person and work on the cross is another aspect of the means of our victory, the work of the Spirit in regeneration and indwelling. There are five Greek words that should be considered: “Overcomer” and “conquer” are translations of nikaw, “to overcome, to conquer, prevail, come through victoriously.” “Victory” is nikh, the noun form of nikaw. The main questions as I see it are simply, who is the overcomer and what is the nature of the promises? 12 Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines On the New Testament, electronic media. Even after salvation, the conflict still rages in and against the life of the Christian. It may look at what follows, or it may draw an inference to what precedes as here. 11:29-32 with Heb. They occur in different books, with different contexts that contain a number of differences and the differences are such that they suggest that the references to overcoming in Revelation 2 and 3 are not defined by 1 John 5. The apostle Paul declared that “neither death nor life … nor things present nor things to come … shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 8:38-39). Those holding to the rewards view would say the overcomer passages are promises given to believers to encourage and kindle love and obedience in view of who they are in Christ and what they posses in Him. 10:17; Eph. (3) The view that all believers are overcomers: According to this view, all believers become overcomers the moment they believe in Jesus Christ. In the exposition of the messages to the seven churches of Revelation I will cover each of the overcomer promises in their contexts. This encompasses the character and disposition of the overcomer: This Christian is busy helping to care for others’ needs; not lazy, but 100 percent surrendered to Jesus Christ. 2 Mal Couch, “Soteriology in the Book of Revelation,” in Mal Couch, ed., A Bible Handbook to Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2001), 164-165. They admit that there may be temporary setbacks and bouts with sin, but that ultimately, true believers live victorious, holy lives to the end. 8:37), a compound of nikaw and the preposition %uper, “over, beyond, above.” “Triumph” is qriambeuw, “to triumph over, to lead in triumphant procession” and hence to make a public spectacle of a conquered enemy (Col. 2:15). Believers can fail.9. “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Rom. Barnhouse has a similar view which sees the promises to the overcomer as promises of rewards for faithfulness and writes: Some have said that eating from the tree of life was the equivalent of receiving eternal life, but this is most evidently a false interpretation. Does debt affect giving in modern times in light of the Israelite tithe and slaves? “Overwhelmingly conquer” is %upernikaw (Rom. Rev. In every period of history, there have been true saints in the professing church (often called “the invisible church”). (3) Indwelling sin or the flesh and all its corrupting power and life dominating patterns: Rom. However the term overcomer is especially prominent in the book of Revelation, where Jesus encourages His people to remain steadfast through trials ( Revelation 2:26 ; 3:21; 21:7) Warnings against the life of the tree is for overcomers in the world, but it is His record keeps. Isaac ( Gen. 24:1-67 ) period of history, there have been true saints the! 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