We turn to God's Word again in
the portion we read, Revelation chapter 21. Wanting to direct
you this evening to the words that we find here at verse 7.
Revelation 21.7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things and
I will be his God and he shall be my Son. he that overcometh shall inherit
all things and I will be his God and he shall be my son. The promise of the new covenant
is what we have here that covenant that is spoken of back in the
Old Testament in Jeremiah 31 and that the Apostle makes mention
of when he addresses his epistle to the Hebrews there in Hebrews
chapter 8 verse 10 following, This is the covenant that I will
make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord.
I will put my laws into their minds, and write them in their
hearts, and I will be to them a people, and they shall be to
me I shall be to them a God and they shall be to me a people
and they shall not teach every man his neighbor and every man
his brother saying know the Lord for all shall know me from the
least to the greatest for I will be merciful to their unrighteousness
and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more and here
is the promise At the end of verse 10, I will be to them a
God, and they shall be to me a people. It's the same promise
that we have here at the end of our text. I will be his God,
and he shall be my son. And the promise is clearly addressed
to those who are the overcomers. And so, the theme that I really
want to take up is that of the overcoming faith, that faith
that endures, as we read there in that portion in Mark, chapter
13, he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved,
the same then shall enter into that blessed place that is spoken
of, of course, in this 21st chapter of the Revelation, John's vision,
of the holy city of Jerusalem, the heaven of God. Enduring, overcoming, these are
some of the marks of that faith that is saving faith. Again, remember the language
of the Apostle John when he writes there in his first general epistle,
this is a victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. who is he that overcometh the
world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God."
All that overcoming faith, and it centers in Him who is the
great overcomer, the Son of God, who was manifested in this world
to destroy all the powers of darkness, to defeat Satan and
sin. Those who are the church of Jesus
Christ, those churches that are gathered in certain localities,
are to be made up of overcomers. We see that in the second and
third chapter. Remember, in those chapters we
have the seven letters that the Lord Jesus, the Exalted Savior,
addresses to the seven churches in Asia Minor and in each of
those letters we see that one of the marks of the church is
that those in the church are overcomers. If you go back to
the second chapter for example and as we read through those
various letters there in chapter 2 at verse 7 the words of Christ to the church. He that hath an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. To him that overcometh
will I give to eat of the tree of life which is in the midst
of the paradise of God. And then again at verse 11, He
that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches. He that overcometh shall not
be hurt of the second death. Again in verse 17, He that hath
an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches
to him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna and
will give him a white stone and in the stone a new name written
which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it and so on through
all of the letters to those seven churches we see that that is
such an evident mark of the church those who are the church have
faith and that faith is this overcoming faith. He that overcometh
shall inherit all things and I will be his God and he shall
be my son. The theme then that I want to
address is that of overcoming faith and first of all to observe
that Christ himself is the one who is the pattern for such a
faith as that Christ is the pattern the perfect pattern of faith
what does he say when he addresses the church of the Laodiceans
in the third chapter in chapter 3 and there at verse 21 To him that overcometh will I
grant to sit with me in my throne even as I also overcame and am
set down with my father in his throne. He that hath an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches. And that's
the last, of course, of those seven letters. There are the
final words of the Lord Jesus Christ as He addresses the churches. He addresses them as that One
who Himself is the Overcomer. Christ is the great pattern then
that we're to look to and we're to follow. As a man, didn't the
Lord Jesus Christ live the life of faith? And what do we read here in the
promise of our text? I will be his God and he shall
be my son. And there is that sense in which
we are to think of the Lord Jesus Christ as that one of whom it
could be said, I will be his God and he shall be my son. He is the eternal son of God.
He is God's son, in truth. Not an adopted son, but God's
only begotten and eternal son. and he is also the son of man
and as a son of man he lived a life of faith and he looked
to his God and he prayed to his God and he lived a life of dependence
upon God as a man here upon the earth how Christ evidently lived
that life though the son of God We often think of those words
of the Apostle in Hebrews 5 concerning Jesus of Nazareth who in the
days of his flesh when he had offered up prayer with supplication
and strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him
from death and was hurt in that he feared. Oh, he was the most
pious man, the most prayerful man, though he were a son. The
Eternal Son yet learned the obedience by the things that He suffered. Here is that One who is the pattern
of faith, He is the author of faith, He is the finisher of
faith. We are to be those who are looking on to Jesus, the
author, the finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set
before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and He sat
down at the right hand of the throne of God. that one who gives
faith, that one who is the author of our faith himself lived a
life of faith. And what do we see in that life
of faith that the Lord Jesus lived? Why did not the Lord Jesus
Christ overcome the world? He is the overcomer. He says
to his disciples there at the end of John 16, in the world
ye shall have tribulation. but be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world." Plainly, he states the fact and he is
the one who has overcome the world. And what is the world?
The world lies in wickedness. John gives that exhortation,
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.
If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in
him. All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the
lust of the eyes and the pride of life, we're told he's not
of the Father but he's of the world and how the Lord has overcome
the world, how he overcame Satan when he comes with his temptations
and promises him all the kingdoms of this world, all the riches
of this world all the Lord has overcome the world and how did
he overcome the world? he overcame by spiritual weapons
by spiritual weapons his kingdom is not a kingdom of the world
my kingdom is not of this world he says if my kingdom were of
this world then would my servants fight it's a spiritual kingdom
and so Paul says the weapons of our warfare are not carnal
but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.
This is the language of faith, isn't it? This is the life that
the Lord Jesus Christ himself lived here in this world. Or
what was he in this world? How was he spoken of? Amazing
words there in Psalm 22, he says, I am a worm and no man. He was a man, of course a real
man, but a man of sorrows. and acquainted with grief. He's not one of the mighty men
of the world in that sense. He's one of those who is so much
despised by the world and in the world. And yet this is the
very way in which he has overcome the world. Even by the humiliation
of his incarnation, the humiliation of the life that he lives here
upon the earth, the humiliation of the cruel death that he dies
upon the cross. Or how the Apostle speaks of
him there in Philippians chapter 2 being in the form of God we
are told he thought it not robbery to be equal with God. Equality
with God was not something he must grasp after that was his. He is equal, he is the co-eternal
and the co-equal son of the Eternal Father and the blessed Holy Spirit. He is one of the three persons
in the glorious Godhead. And yet, he makes himself of
no reputation and takes upon him the form of a servant. And
he's made in the likeness of men. and being found in fashion
as a man he humbles himself and becomes obedient unto death even
the death of the cross. You know the words of the Apostle
there in that second chapter of Philippians and then we come
to the wherefore wherefore God also has highly exalted him given
him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus
every knee is to bear with things in heaven and things in earth
and things under the earth and every tongue is to confess that
he is Lord to the glory of God the Father this is how he has
overcome the world he has overcome the world and as I've already
intimated he overcame satan himself he overcame satan himself Reading
just the other day, I was struck by remarks made concerning the
four of our first parents. You remember there in Genesis
3, 5, when the serpent, Satan's instrument, comes to Eve with
a temptation. And what does the serpent say? God does not know. that in the
day that ye eat thereof your eyes shall be opened, and ye
shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." And what was said,
what was intimated in what I was reading was that that was a very
assault upon God's eternal Son. Your eyes shall be opened, says
the serpent, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. It's the prerogative of the eternal
Son of God to be equal to God. He only is the image of the invisible
God. Man was made in God's likeness,
created after God's image, but you see what Satan is doing there. He is challenging the very second
person in the Triniton, the eternal Son of God, the image. of the invisible God and how
the Lord has come and overcome that wicked one all for as much
as the children were told were partakers of flesh and blood
he likewise took part of the same that he might destroy him
that had the power of darkness deliver them of all their days
were full of fear because of death. He has overcome him who
is the author of confusion and of death. The Lord himself is
that one who has triumphed over all the powers of darkness. He
says there in Luke 10.18, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from
heaven. How has this come about? It is
through the Lord's coming into this world and resisting all
the temptations of Satan, not only at the beginning of his
public ministry, but throughout that ministry he was tempted. When he comes to the end of his
ministry, he says to the disciples, ye are they which have continued
with me in my temptations. All his life was one scene of
temptations. The devil comes to him at the
beginning, yes, but then he leaves him, but it's only for a season. Here is one, you see, who is
such a pattern to us. A pattern of real faith, overcoming
faith, overcoming the world, overcoming Satan. Or we can say,
the prince of this world cometh. And that's nothing he made. There
was nothing that Satan could take advantage of in his human
nature, because he was the sinless one. holy, harmless, undefiled
and separate from sinners what was conceived in Mary's womb
by the Holy Ghost was that holy thing that shall be called the
Son of God or Satan can find nothing and what does Satan do?
he throws everything everything at the Saviour the intensity
of his temptations. And what does Christ do? He passes
through all these territories, all these terrors, even death
itself. And he vanquishes the devil as
he vanquishes the world. Christ himself is that one who
is truly the pattern of what it is to overcome. And he overcomes
as a man. He is the man Christ Jesus. he
overcomes sin and he overcomes the law of God
which is the power of sin or what does the law say? cursed
is everyone cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things
written in the book of the law to do them all things that the
law commands are to be obeyed. And James says, if a man obeys
every commandment and yet falls in just one commandment, he is
guilty of all. It must be complete, it must
be perfect obedience, otherwise the curse. But Christ, says Paul,
hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse
for us, for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a
tree. Oh, He has answered the law in
all its holy demands. He has suffered the just for
the unjust to bring the sinner back to God. What does the Apostle
say there in Colossians 2 verse 13? You being dead in your sins,
he says to these Colossians, They were at Gentile church,
of course, you being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision
of your flesh, that He quickened together with Him, having forgiven
you all trespasses, blotting out the handwriting of ordinances
that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out
of the way, nailing it to His cross. and having spoiled principalities
and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over
them in it. Or in the cross, you see. He
has overcome sin. He has overcome the curse of
the broken law. O death, where is thy sting?
O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin. The
strength of sin is the law. But, says Paul, thanks be to
God. Thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ. He has overcome in every area
of life. He has overcome the world. He has overcome Satan. He has
overcome sin. He has overcome the law. This
is the great work that the Lord Jesus Christ came to do. when
he was born of a woman, he was made under the law, he has honoured,
he has magnified the law of God, he has done everything. And I
say again, he is the pattern of overcoming faith. And what
does it say in the text? He that overcometh shall inherit
all things. All these things, as the margin
says. and I will be his God and he
shall be my son. Oh, the way in which Christ has accomplished that
great redemption and what does he bestow upon his people? He
bestows adoption. He is the Son of God, as I said,
the Son of the Father in truth and in love. And these who overcome,
they are also the sons of God. They are sons by adoption. But
their adoption is rooted in Christ and His eternal sonship. Because
you are sons, Paul says, God has sent forth the Spirit of
His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. He is the true
Son, the Eternal Son. but he has sent into the hearts
of his people that spirit of adoption whereby we're able to
address God as our God and our Father, and here is the promise,
I will be his God and he shall be my Son. What a wonder it is,
this faith that overcomes But how are we to understand this
overcoming faith? Now, I'm sure you're aware that
some would speak of it in terms of a certain steady progression
which I term a progressive sanctification a continual growing holier and
holier and holier until one attains that state where one is ready
for heaven itself That's how some speak. Receiving fresh grace,
believers are those who are increasingly overcoming, and by degrees they
become ever less sinful, ever more holy. But is that really
the case? We sometimes sing the words of
the hymn by John Kent, Sinless Perfection, we deny the chief
of Satan's wiles, do thou my soul to Calvary fly, as oft as
sin defiles?" And if we are singing those words sincerely, we must
deny what so many term that progressive sanctification. But what does
God's Word say? It's one thing to quote the hymn,
but what does the Word of God actually say? Well, we're told
quite clearly, aren't we, that which is born of the flesh is
flesh. That which is born of the spirit
is spirit. Flesh is flesh. Spirit is spirit. And those are
the words of the Lord Jesus Christ. And how the Apostle Paul echoes
those words, writing to the Galatians, he says, the flesh lost us against
the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary
one to the other and he cannot do the thing that you would he
cannot do the thing that you would, why? because the flesh
doesn't get more holy but the flesh is lasting against the
spirit and the spirit is reacting to the flesh and there's a conflict
All nature never changes. The believers then can't escape
that conflict. A conflict with themselves really. And that's what the Apostle speaks
of, as you know there in Romans chapter 7. But also in the Song
of Solomon. there in chapter 6 and verse
6, what will you see in the Shulamites? What will you see in the Shulamites
as it were the company of two armies? The Shulamites being
representative of the child of God. And what is the heart, the
soul of the child of God? It's a scene of conflict between
the two natures. And in this conflict God teaches
his children lessons and what is the lesson the principle lesson
that he is teaching them? He is showing them more and more
the vanity of the creature. He teaches them more and more
their utter inability to do anything for themselves, anything to help
themselves, anything to save themselves. There is a growing
knowledge by experience of what sinful self is and it was a lesson I've already
referred to Romans 7 it's certainly a lesson that that man Paul who
was once Saul the Pharisee had to learn he was a most self-righteous
man of course when a Pharisee as he says in Philippians chapter
3 he considered himself to be blameless before the Lord of
God touching the righteousness which is of the law he claimed
to be blameless he kept the law so he thought but he didn't at
all because he didn't know the law and then he saw it when his eyes
were opened the commandment said thou shalt not covet and his
heart was full of covetousness full of desire evil desire concupiscence
is the word that we have in our authorised version there it was
in that 10th commandment he saw it because that command thou
shalt not covet doesn't have to do with the man's actions
it has to do with the attitude of his heart and he had to learn
a bitter lesson. What was it that he was being
taught? That God's law is a spiritual law. Oh, he says it. We know
that the law is spiritual but I am carnal, sold on the sin. What could he do? Where could
he look? He has to look to the Lord. Because he now sees what
he is, what his nature is. And that nature is never going
to change. You see, there's There's no overcoming in the sense of
changing the flesh into the spirit. That that is born of the flesh
is flesh, it's always that. It never changes, it never grows
any more whole. That that is born of the spirit
is spirit, there's a conflict between the two. And so Paul
is the same man who writes of the Corinthians, not that we
are sufficient of ourselves, he says, to think anything as
of ourselves. Is He not there acknowledging
He cannot even of Himself think a right thought? If He's going to think right
thoughts His thinking must come from Heaven. Again the language
of Isaiah 26 Thou also has brought all our works in us O Lord our
God, other lords beside Thee have had dominion over us by
thee only will we make mention of thy name, by thee only. Oh
God must accomplish all our works in us, that's what the prophet
is saying. There's no progressive sanctification. We're not to
think of overcoming faith in terms of that sort of thing that
the somehow or other the the flesh is being changed and improved
and growing better. But there is an overcoming. We
have to acknowledge that there is an overcoming. I'm not suggesting
for a moment that we have a license just to indulge ourselves in
sin because we have an old nature. No, the believer is called to
a life of mortification, putting to death the deeds of the body.
crucifying self how are we to understand this overcoming faith? well there is a truth that we
do see in scripture that of a growing there is a growth in the life
of the child of God there is a growth in grace when
we are born naturally We come out of our mother's wombs as
babes. But babies soon grow, don't they?
Before long, they're little toddlers. We say, well, they seem to be
little babies hardly any time at all. Before long, they're
little children, then they're soon older, they're teenagers.
How quickly the years pass. We grow. And there is also a
spiritual growth. There's a growth in grace. grow
in grace says Peter and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ that growth comes of course because there's nourishment
there's a nourishment of the word of God there's that sincere
milk of the word the babes are to receive but then as the child
of God grows he can take stronger meat we need to feed our souls
as well as to feed our bodies. There is a growth in grace and
that growth in grace is bound up with growing in the knowledge
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Well, what is that knowledge?
The Lord says it's life eternal to know Thee, the only true God
and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent but there's more and more
that we need to know We need to know more of ourselves. We
need to know more of God and God of course as he has revealed
himself in the person of his only begotten son. And the more
we know what we are the more we want to know what Christ is.
And these two go hand in hand don't they? It's not then a growth
in conscious goodness. but in felt necessity and the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." That's the language
of the Gospel Standard Articles, Article 20 on growth in grace. And I think it's a fine statement
of faith, not a growth in conscious goodness. It's not that we think
that our old nature is getting weaker, and we somehow or other
are converting it and it's becoming a holy nature? No, it's not that. Not a growth in conscious goodness
but in felt necessity and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ. And what does Paul say then?
Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through
him that loved us. that's how we conquer, we can
only overcome through him who himself is the great overcomer
and this is what we have here in this book back in chapter
12 and verse 11 how do they overcome? how do
they overcome satan? the accuser of the brethren They
overcame Him, it says, by the blood of the Lamb, and by the
word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto
death. It's the blood of the Lamb. It's the work of the Lord Jesus
Christ, that obedience unto death, even the death of the cross.
It's the word of their testimony. It's what they're living to prove
in their experience day by day, complete and utter dependence
upon the Lord Jesus Christ. and dependence upon the Spirit
of Christ I said just now that there is a call to the mortifying
of the deeds of the body how do we put to death the deeds
of the body? if ye through the Spirit it says
if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body ye shall
live all that crucifying Paul says He's crucified. I'm crucified with Christ. Nevertheless
I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. In the life which
I live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who
loved me and gave himself for me. Always our dependence upon
the Lord God. He must come, He must work all
these works in us. What work can we perform? Oh, it's painful. It's humbling,
isn't it, to feel our utter helplessness as sinners. That as sinners we
can really do nothing for ourselves. Nothing at all for ourselves.
And that's what Paul was brought to. As he says there in that
7th chapter of Romans, I know that in me that is in my flesh
dwelleth. No good thing. There was nothing
at all in him. When he was a Pharisee, a self-righteous
man, he thought everything was in him. He could do anything,
everything. But no more now. He's learned that lesson. How
did the Lord overcome? As I said there in Philippians
2, He overcomes by lowliness of mind, humbleness of spirit,
and that's the only way we can overcome. when we're brought
to the end of ourselves, our whole salvation is seen to be
then in the Lord Jesus Christ. Of Him are ye in Christ Jesus,
who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification
and redemption. He is our sanctification. We cannot sanctify ourselves.
This notion of progressive sanctification, that's all it is, a notion. But
remember what Paul comes to at the end of that 7th chapter of
the epistle to the Romans and then into the 8th chapter. The end of Romans 7 he says,
I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Or what have He said
previously, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from
the body of this death? I thank God, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. So then with the mind I myself
serve the Lord of God, but with the flesh the Lord of sin. There
is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,
who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. Well, that's
how the Christian walks, you see. He walks by faith and not
by sight. That's overcoming faith. You
have to walk by faith. And there's no condemnation to
those who are in the Lord Jesus Christ. They're walking not after
the flesh, but after the Spirit. But see what he says there at
the end of that seventh chapter. With the mind, I myself serve
the Lord of God, but with the flesh the Lord of sin." Here we see the two natures, the flesh and the mind, or the
flesh and the spirit. And he says there that the mind or the spirit is the
real himself. So then with the mind he says,
I myself, there's an emphasis in the pronoun, isn't there?
This is the real self, this is the real me, says Paul. The new man of grace is the real
apostle Paul, not the old man of sin. So then with the mind,
I, not just I serve, but I myself, the real me. serving the Lord of God, but
with the flesh the Lord of sin. What is it that's in the believer?
There is, of course, that new nature. And it's a divine nature that's
been brought into the very soul of the sinner. They're partakers
of the divine nature. And so John says, Whosoever is
born of God doth not sin, for his seed, that is God's seed,
remaineth in him. And he cannot sin, because he
is born of God. Well that's the Christian's calling.
That's the real Christian. He doesn't sin because he has
a new nature. The old nature is here, the conflict is forever. His experience in his mortal
life here upon the earth. He's living the life of faith.
And what is the life of faith? It's a life of conflict. But
in that conflict the believer is the one who is continually
overcoming. And he's overcoming because he
is living on the promise of God. We have the promise at the end
of the text, I will be his God. He shall be my son. And so He
overcomes. He overcomes the world. He overcomes
Satan. He overcomes sin. He overcomes
himself. And he that overcometh shall
inherit all things. And God says I will be his God
and he shall be my son. Oh God grant that we might be
favored with such a faith that we might be those who desire
only to live that life. that life of faith, being crucified with Christ,
yet living, yet not I, not you, but Christ living in us, and
the life which we're living in the flesh, the life of the Son
of God who loved us and gave himself for us. May the Lord
be pleased to bless his word.