Three C’s of Victory

Rev. 12:11

Intro: This is a familiar verse from Revelation about how people CAN and DO overcome Satan.
     Yes, Satan is pictured as a dragon and that seems very intimidating; in addition to being called a dragon, the devil is also called a Serpent and a Lion; both fearful creatures in themselves; We do have a strong enemy; we do have a real battle to fight to make it from earth to heaven; no denying it- BUT there is Victory to the people of God; there is a way to Overcome the devil; this verse gives what I call the three C’s of victory for all of us.

I. Calvary
     They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb.
     We are not ignorant of the power of the blood of Jesus Christ.
     It is powerful because it was Sinless blood- there was no taint of sin in Jesus' blood; he did not inherit man’s sinful nature that has been passed down from Adam. The Holy Ghost conceived Jesus Christ in the womb of the virgin Mary, bypassing the natural means of human reproduction and bypassing the contamination of the human sinful nature. His blood was Sinless.
     It is powerful because it was Sacrificial Blood- the blood of Jesus wouldn’t have provided any victory for us if he had not been willing to be our Sacrifice. Paul says of Jesus that he was our Passover- he was the Sacrificial Lamb of God slain that our sins could be Covered and Cleansed; Forgiven and Washed Away. There is power in the Sinless, Sacrificial Blood of Jesus.
     Power that the Devil cannot overcome; power to be Saved From sin; power to be Kept From sin; power to Live Free from the dominion of Sin, of Satan, of Self.
They overcame him, the devil, by the blood of the Lamb! Thank God for Calvary!
     Would you be free from the burden of sin? There’s power in the blood. Would you over evil the victory win? There’s wonderful power in the blood.
     If you expect to overcome Satan and make a safe entrance into heaven you must come to Calvary; you must come to the Cross of Jesus Christ; you must come to the blood of the Lamb for salvation.
                                          Are you washed in the blood?

II. Confession.
     They overcame him, the devil, by the word of their testimony.
We do not really understand how powerful Confession is; we do not understand how powerful our word of testimony is.
     It starts with our confession of Sin; and our confession of the Savior. Romans 10:9 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. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
     Then we are to Continue this Confession of Christ throughout our lives.
-We should Give Testimony to the Lord about our Salvation and Spiritual blessings; we usually call that Praise!
-We should Give Testimony to the Lost about our Salvation and our wonderful Savior; we call that witnessing.
-We should Give Testimony to Ourselves at times about our Great God and Savior- we call that Encouraging yourself in the Lord.
-We should Give testimony to Our Brothers and Sisters in the Lord; telling about God’s Goodness; his Grace in our lives; his healing power; his holy Word- we call that testifying.
-We should Give testimony to the Devil about our Glorious salvation and our precious Savior Jesus Christ- we call that Rebuking or Resisting the devil.
               How are you doing when it comes to this second C of victory?

You did confess your sins and confess your belief in Jesus Christ as Savior? Right?
How are you doing at testifying to God about how great he is?
How are you doing at testifying to the lost about how great your Savior is?
How are you doing at testifying to Yourself about how great your God is?
How are you doing at testifying to your brothers & sisters in the Lord about how great your God is?
How are you doing at testifying to the Devil about how great and powerful your God is? Are you rebuking and resisting him or do you spend more time listening to and humoring him?

III. Commitment.
      They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto death. What a phrase- they loved not their lives unto the death.
     They did not love their earthly life so much that they would refuse to be saved. Some love their earthly life too much to be saved; only thinking about what they Won’t be Able to Do; where they won’t be able to Go; what they can’t listen to or watch; who they won’t be able to run around with; on & on. What a Shame to Miss out on such a great salvation; such a great life of joy and peace; such an abundant life with God’s blessings here and eternal life forever in the presence of God!
     They did not love their earthly life so much that would refuse to live Holy lives. Some love their TV more than their eternal soul; some love their ungodly dvd’s more; some love their ungodly music more; some love their ball games and rodeos more; some love their worldly fashions more; some love their make up and jewelry more; some love those unsaved friends and associates more. If you want real victory over the devil you cannot love your earthly life more than Jesus; more than the Word of God; more than the Holy Ghost; more than a sanctified life.

     They did not love their earthly life so much they would compromise what they believed. They were willing to DIE rather than to give up their salvation; willing to die rather than give up their Savior; willing to die rather than give up their obedience to the Word of God; A Commitment of their very life in order to be pleasing to God.
                              [After all- you are going to Die anyway!
          - Only one out of 700 Million will own a Lamborghini sports car.
          - Only one out of 175 Million will Win a lottery.
          - One out of 700,000 will be struck by lightning.
          - Only one out of 1.5 million will ever become a movie star.
          - One out of 35 Americans are classified as millionaires.
          - One of 7 will be called for Jury Duty.
          - One of three will have some form of cancer.
          - ONE OUT OF EVERY ONE DIES!
     You need to make a Commitment to live for the Lord and, if necessary, to die for the Lord. Live or Die; Sink or Swim; Now and Forever: I belong to Jesus! I belong to Heaven!
     With these three C’s you too can live and die with victory over the devil:
Calvary, Confession, Commitment!