Daily Light For Our Path

The Spiritual Battle of the Christian

by Grant Goble on October 20, 2020

And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.   Revelation 12:11 (ESV)

The spiritual warfare of the Christian is real as the Bible testifies and Christian experience attests. He or she must struggle, not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of darkness that seek to destroy his or her life (Eph. 6:12; John 10:10). The good news is that the Christian is not alone in this battle, which is so important because the Christian cannot win the battle on his or her own strength. The Christian is completely reliant on the victory of the Lamb of God over sin and death. It is the victory of the Lamb of God that the saints of God stand in. It is by the blood of the Lamb that they wage this warfare against the devil and his minions (Rev. 12:11). 

The blood of Jesus Christ is the blood that testifies of the covenant of God, the new covenant sealed by the blood of God's own son (Heb. 9:11-15). This seal of forgiveness is what secures the sinner's heart to his Lord and heals the heart from every wound of sin and from the power of death. For it is through the blood that the saints find real forgiveness (Heb. 9:22). It is through the blood of the Lamb that they are able to stand before the holy God. They are clothed with the righteousness of God and it is the Lord's righteousness that justifies the sinner and makes him or her a saint, a holy one (Rom. 3:21-26; 5:1-5).

The devil seeks to destroy Christian faith through accusation (Rev. 12:10). He is the one who accuses the Christian of his sins before the holy God. He tempts the Christian to trust not in the forgiveness given through Christ, but to stand in his own righteousness. He plays upon human pride to make the Christian justify himself, his behavior, his sin before a holy God. The accuser of the brethren also brings up before sinners, their sins, and accuses them in order to drive them away from the presence of God in shame thus destroying their fellowship with God. The victory over sin and shame lies in the power of God's forgiveness through the blood of the Lamb, which restores true fellowship with the Living God.

The Christian fights against these accusations through humility and faith in God's victory through the Lamb. The Christian humbly confesses his or her sins and allows the forgiveness of God to be their only defense. He or she simply points to the blood when accusations return. He or she stands his or her ground knowing he or she has been forgiven and points to the powerful cleansing blood of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.

What this means for our daily lives is that we are to live in the confidence of God's forgiveness in Jesus Christ. We must confess our sins to God, renounce them by the power of his Spirit, and turn to God and obey him. As we live, we are to constantly repent from any known sins, but then rest in God's forgiveness promised to us in Jesus Christ.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." This is God's promise to us in Christ. If I confess my sins to God, he promises to forgive and to cleanse me. The devil hates this promise and he tries to make the Christian doubt God's love and his faithfulness to his Word. But the one who promised is good and true and righteous. He has pity on those who humbly confess their sins and genuinely ask for his forgiveness. It's Christ's blood that gives us the victory over the accuser of our souls. It is Christ's work on the cross that enables us to stand and not be moved. His work on the cross is a sure foundation and God's faithfulness to his new covenant is firm and eternal. 

The devil in his accusations tries to weigh down the Christian soul with such shame that she feels like she cannot come to God and receive forgiveness. The reality is that God hears the cry of the broken hearted and the contrite in heart (Pss. 34:18; 51:17). He will not turn away the humble and the meek who cry to him for his forgiveness, no matter how many times they have failed (Luke 18:9-14).

The lie of the devil and the accusations of the devil try to destroy the hope, faith, and love that the Christian enjoys in God. The devil is jealous of humankind who has been made in the image of God and enjoys fellowship with God. The devil tries to destroy that fellowship through casting accusations and lies upon the mind of the believer. The believer's defense is always the blood of the Lamb. We simply point to the blood of Jesus as our defense in the heavenly courtroom. We are not alone in the courtroom. Jesus Christ, the righteous, is our defense, "We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" 1 John 2:1 (ESV). The Spirit of God stands next to us as well as our divine advocate reminding us of Christ's blood shed for us and empowers us to trust in the blood of Jesus for our salvation and deliverance from the accusations and lies of the devil.

It is through the blood of the Lamb that the ancient and modern martyrs for Christ find their victory. Those who have been slain for faith in Christ, find victory in the blood of Jesus that overcomes death. The apostle John in an earlier vision described what he saw, "After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'" (Rev. 7:9). The angel explains to John that those clothed in white robes are "the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." (Rev. 7:14). The ones who overcome the accuser, the great dragon, Satan, are those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and now stand before him cleansed and white.

 

"A Song for the Battle"

Are you weighed down with sin and shame?

Come to the Savior who won't turn you away.

He will forgive you and cleanse you from every sin,

And heal your broken heart as he makes his home within.

He will guard and protect you from all evil,

And will bring you to his eternal home in glory

Where you may dwell with him forever.

He will stand next to you in the battle,

And will assure you of his power

That holds you close to him and will never let you go.

Rest weary traveler along the path to heaven.

Your journey's end is not too far away,

Keep holding on to your Master's promises.

He will come to your aid standing next to you in defense,

Showing his bloody wounds, the sign of his covenant.

Tags: spiritual battle, blood of the lamb

Previous Page