“To the one who overcomes, I
will grant to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God) (Rev.
2:7 NASB 2020).
“The one who overcomes will not
be hurt by the second death” (Rev. 2:11 NASB 2020).
“To the one who overcomes, I
will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a
new name written on the stone which no one knows except the one who receives it”
(Rev. 2:17 NASB 2020).
“The one who overcomes, and the
one who keeps My deeds until the end, I will give him authority over the
nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the
patter are shattered, as I also have received authority from My Father; and I
will give him the morning star” (Rev. 2:26-28 NASB 2020).
“The one who overcomes will be
clothed the same way, in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the
book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His
angels” (Rev. 3:5 NASB 2020).
“The one who overcomes, I will
make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it
anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city
of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and
My new name” (Rev. 3:12 NASB 2020).
“The one who overcomes, I
will grant to him to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat with
My Father on His throne” (Rev. 3:21 NASB 2020).
What is interesting in all these cases is that the Greek
word translated as “overcomes” is in the present tense, which, in Greek,
indicates an ongoing activity. These verses could have been translated as “to
the one who is overcoming” or “the overcoming one.” This is even more
interesting when compared to what John previously wrote in his first letter to
the church. John wrote, “You are from God, little children, and have overcome
them [the antichrists]; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in
the world” (1 John 4:4 NASB 2020). Here, the verb is in the
perfect tense, which indicates a one-time past action whose effects are still
being felt today.
When we come to Christ, we are placed on the winning team. The
book of Revelation tells an epic story where, as believers, we overcome and win
in the end. However, this does not mean that we do not face daily battles,
battles in which we are called to fight and overcome by the grace of God. While
we have won the battle, we still must secure that victory through daily skirmishes
with the enemy. We have both overcome, and are overcoming, through our daily
lives through the power of God that lives within us. Our daily victories flow
from the grand victory we won over the enemy when we first became believers.
What comfort this ought to give us as we fight our battles and learn to
overcome day-by-day.
David Robison
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