As the Revelation 12 passage says, Satan accuses us before God day and night.
We overcome him, first,
by making personal application, to ourselves, of the innocent, atoning, Blood of the Lamb of God, who is the Lord Jesus
Christ. This means embracing him as personal Lord and Savior.
John the Baptist spoke as he looked at Jesus in John 1:29:
Behold the
Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
John the
Baptist personally witnessed the Holy Spirit descending from Heaven upon Jesus.
In John 1:32-34:
And John
bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me
to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same
is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
And I saw, and bare record that this
is the Son of God.
In Revelation 1:5 we read:
And from
Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.
Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto
God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Forgiveness with God requires a qualifying innocent blood sacrifice for atonement for sins. In the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3) Adam
and Eve sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. This may have been cute, but it was completely inadequate in God’s sight.
God made them coats of skins. It takes an innocent blood sacrifice to atone for sin. Innocent animals had to die.
And they
had to PUT THE COATS -- ON -- or rather, GOD, clothed them.
In Genesis
4 God accepted Abel’s offering, but refused Cain’s offering. Again, an innocent blood sacrifice is necessary
for acceptance with God. Abel’s offering had this feature, Cain’s did not.
The new testament book
of Hebrews tell us that Jesus Christ obtained eternal redemption for us by the offering of his own innocent blood, and he
has paved the way for us to be reconciled to God, and to properly serve God:
In Hebrews 9:12 we see
that Christ actually entered into the temple in heaven to offer his own innocent blood:
Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having
obtained eternal redemption for us.
Revelation 11:19 says,
And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament:
and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
If it were not for the
Lamb’s innocent blood sacrifice, God would NOT be able to ignore the Devil’s accusations against us.
Romans 4 says God “imputes” righteousness to true
believers in Jesus Christ. He “reckons,” or "counts" us righteous by faith in Christ.
This is the same as God counted Abraham "righteous" because he believed God!
Romans 4:
3For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was
counted unto him for righteousness. 4Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
5But to him that worketh not, but believeth
on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
6Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without
works,
7Saying, Blessed are they
whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
8Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
Baptism symbolizes the uniting of the new believer with Christ, and thus, just as God accepted Christ's
sacrifice, so God accepts true believers on the basis of their embracing the Savior Jesus Christ, and his substitutionary sacrifice, and
payment for their sins.
Romans 3:3-5 says:
Know ye not, that so many of us as were
baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from
the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together
in the likeness of is death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.
Again,
Revelation 12:11 says:
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony;
and they loved not their lives unto the death.
The word of our own testimony is essential in overcoming the Devil’s
accusations. Believers
testify that they have personally embraced the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and firmly believe in him and his accomplished
work of salvation.
We should publicly acknowledge him whenever possible. The Resurrection of Christ, which Christians
celebrate at Easter, proves that God accepted Christ’s offering, and thus all true Christians are also accepted by
God, because they are members of Christ’s body.
There were literally hundreds of personal eye-witnesses to the
physical resurrection of Jesus Christ still alive at the time the Apostle of Christ, Paul, ministered.
1Corinthians: 15:1-7
says:
Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received,
and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in
vain.
For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received,
how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day
according to the scriptures:
And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once;
of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep (death of their bodies).
After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.
In
the book of Romans chapter 10 the Apostle Paul tells how the Israelites, though zealous for God, had failed in their attempt
to find salvation. Their good works could not make them right with God. Only embracing Jesus Christ
by faith can do this.
True believers DO find salvation by genuine faith in the completed atoning
work of Jesus Christ. This is the ticket to salvation, the boarding pass to Heaven.
Confessing
the Lord Jesus Christ with one’s mouth is vital to becoming saved.
Romans
10:1-13:
Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be
saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have
not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to every one that believeth.
For Moses describeth the righteousness
which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.
But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into
heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the
dead.)
But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart:
that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth
the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
For
the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon
him. For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Jesus
spoke of this as “coming” to him.
In
John 6:37-40: 37: All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast
out.
38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but
the will of him that sent me.
39 And this is the Father's will which
hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may
have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.
In
Romans 5:16-17 the Apostle Paul speaks of salvation as a free gift. For salvation, one must RECEIVE this free
gift:
And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the
free gift is of many offences unto justification.
For if by one man's offence death reigned
by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus
Christ.
Jesus also, said in Matthew 10:32-33:
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before
men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
Again,
Revelation 12:11 says:
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony;
and they loved not their lives unto the death. They loved not their lives unto the death.
Nobody wants to lose his or her live needlessly, but true believers
are not afraid of God’s judgment, and thus, need not keep that desperate grasp on this life. The believer knows
he or she is eternally saved and right with God.
If you are unsaved, take the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior today!
Just pray and
embrace him by faith in who he is, and what he has done, asking him to save you!
See my page -- They Came to Jesus!-- Three Men who embraced Jesus as Savior! Only these
three - right before our eyes.