How to Overcome the Devil

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

Rev 12:10-11

This loud voice seems to come from the martyrs of chapter 6, who were given white robes and are seen under the altar crying out, How long, O Lord, before you avenge our blood upon the earth? (Revelation 6:10). They are the ones who now rejoice that the devil has been cast out of heaven.

Verse 11 is very important because it shows how the saints of any age can overcome the wiles of the devil. We too are continually assaulted by the devil. Lies and misleading propaganda pour into our ears from every side today. Wrong and hurtful philosophies are widely believed. We are being accused before the presence of God, and in our own hearts we hear these accusations by the devil. We need to know how to answer. There are three steps to take:

First, they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb. Have you ever heard the devil accusing you? Do you ever hear a voice saying, What kind of a Christian are you? Look at the way you have acted. God could never love you! What makes you think you are acceptable in his sight? You are a mess! How do you handle that? According to this text, you ought to admit it. It is true. We mess up all the time. We believe lies, act selfishly, are malicious and self-indulgent at times, and hurt others thoughtlessly. It is all true. Admit it! But then, remind the devil of the blood of the Lamb and the cross of Christ. There on that cross, Jesus bore our sins so that we are no longer to be judged or even accused before God.

Second, they overcome him by the word of their testimony. Christians need to share with others the freedom into which Christ has brought them. How many among us have come to Christ because some person you were watching told you that at the cross he or she found forgiveness of sins, and that you could have that, too? They witnessed of the joy and peace the Lord brought into their life — it was by the word of their testimony that you came to Christ.

Third, Satan was overcome because they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. They would give up anything but Christ. They cared more for his honor and truth than all their possessions, all their status before men — even their own lives! It was apparent by their actions that nothing was worth more than Christ's presence in their lives. They would rather die than deliberately bring shame to his name. That is the way to overcome Satan. It means that you have not only exercised faith in the blood of the cross, and love towards others who are bound by Satan's lies, but also you are laying hold of the hope of a Christian — the fact that death is rendered meaningless because you have been promised an inheritance beyond.

Father, give me strength today to overcome the enemy. Amen.