======================================================================== THE CALL OF THE OF THE OVERCOMER by Stephen Kaung ======================================================================== Summary: The call to overcome is the last call to the Church in general, and it is a call to overcome sin, death, the world, and Satan, and to be willing to lay down one's soul life for the Lord. Duration: 52:42 Topics: "End Times", "Spiritual Warfare" Scripture References: Revelation 12:11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------ This sermon focuses on the call to overcome as highlighted in the book of Revelation, emphasizing the importance of being overcomers in Christ. It discusses the significance of the overcomers in the last days, their readiness for the imminent return of the Lord, and the need to prioritize spiritual life over worldly desires. The sermon also delves into the symbolism of the woman and the man-child in Revelation chapter 12, representing the church and the overcomers respectively, and the challenges faced in remaining faithful to the Lord amidst trials and tribulations. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Will you please turn to the last book of the Bible, Revelation. Revelation chapter 2, verse 7. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him that overcomes, I will give to him to eat of the tree of life which is in a paradise of God. And also the same book, Revelation chapter 12. Revelation chapter 12, verse 11. And they have overcome him by reason of the blood of the Lamb, and by reason of the word of their testimony, and loved not their life even unto death. Let's have a short word of prayer. Dear Lord, we want to thank thee for inviting us to thy table. Thou art truly our food and our drink. Thou art our very life. Thou art everything to us. We thank thee for giving thyself so fully to us, that we may not live for ourselves, but live only by thee and for thee. We thank thee for giving us opportunity to share thy word. We pray that thy Spirit will reveal thy mind to us. That we will be those who really follow thee, and do thy will, and to prepare for thy imminent return. We ask in thy precious name. Amen. Amen. We find in the book of Revelation chapter 2, verse 7, that word to him that overcome. And this word is repeated seven times in chapter 2 and chapter 3. We know that our Lord Jesus is the overcomer. How on the cross he cast out the devil from the world. How on the cross he overcome sin, death, and hell. He is the overcomer. And because he has overcome, we who believe in him shall also overcome. We find in 1 John chapter 5, verses 4 and 5, who is he that overcome the world? Those who have faith in Jesus Christ. So dear brothers and sisters, as the Lord is the overcomer, so his church is also the overcoming church. But unfortunately, we find that the church on the whole has failed the Lord. And that's the reason we find in Revelation the call to overcome. As we read the scripture, we will find that the call to overcome is the last call of this age. It is because of the failure of the church in general. Therefore, the Lord is calling for overcomers. The overcomers are not someone special. The overcomers are only the normal ones. So brothers and sisters, we need to remember that the call to overcome, to overcome sin, death, the world, and Satan, that is the normal Christian. It is not something special. Often times, we think that to be an overcomer is to be special. But we must remember, to be an overcomer is a normal Christian life. It is because many Christians are abnormal. Therefore, those to overcome seem to be special. But as a matter of fact, this is what we Christians ought to be. When you come to the last book of the Bible, towards the end of the first century, because the apostle John, he was at that time already an old man. For the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus, he was exiled to the island Patmos. And there on the Lord's day, probably he was sitting on a rock facing Asia Minor. Because that was the place that he served before he was exiled. We can imagine, at that time he must be thinking about the churches in Asia Minor that he served before he was exiled. And there the Lord gave him what we call the Patmos vision. First of all, he saw one like the Son of Man. And that is the risen Lord. He saw the glory of the risen Lord. And he also saw the ministry of the risen Lord. When our Lord Jesus was on earth, he was the apostle. That is, he was one sent by God for a special reason. He came to this world. He fulfilled his mission as an apostle. But now he is back in heaven. And of course we know, not because the work of salvation has been accomplished. So he was sitting there in heaven doing nothing. But thank God, our Lord Jesus in heaven was as busy as he was on earth. Because there he intercedes for us. The Bible tells us, he intercedes for us unceasingly. That we who approach to him may be saved to the uttermost. So there you find our Lord in heaven is ministering to the seven churches in Asia Minor at that time. As a matter of fact, this is what the risen Lord is doing today. I don't know if you know that story. In the United States, there was a minister, A.J. Gordon. He was a young man, a minister in Boston. He had a large church. And once he dreamed a dream. He saw that he was sitting on the platform, waiting for the meeting to begin. Then he saw a stranger coming in. The usher find a seat for the stranger. But somehow, the stranger attracted him. So when he began to preach, his eyes were centered upon that stranger. He was wondering whether the stranger will approve his preaching. Then he thinks of the church there. They have a choir. He wondered if that stranger will approve the choir. In his church there is a pipe organ. So he began to wonder if the stranger will approve the pipe organ. So throughout his preaching, his eyes were centered upon that stranger. He decided, after the meeting was over, he must meet that stranger. And you know the custom of the various churches. After the pastor finished his preaching, he would go to the door to meet all those attendants. So he decided to meet this stranger. But when he went to the door, the stranger was already gone. So he asked the usher, do you know who this stranger is? And the usher said, don't you know him? He is Jesus. In other words, Jesus visited that church. Brothers and sisters, even though we do not see him with our naked eyes, but in our faith we know that our Lord Jesus is visiting us today. And because of this, it changed the whole life of A.J. Gordon. The choir was gone. The pipe organ was gone. And the Lord really used him mightily in the Boston area. Brothers and sisters, what do you think? Do you think the Lord is here with us this morning? Or do you think he just remained in heaven, had nothing to do with our things, our earth? If the Lord is here this morning, what will be our attitude? What will be our attitude? Will we begin to wonder whether our Christian life is right before him? Whether he will approve of us or not. I hope this is what we are wondering this morning. The Lord is with his church all the time. He is ministering to his church even today. He wants the church to be like him. You know this is what you want me to do. I will do it. I went down from my friend's room and knocked the next door where Watchman Lee lived. He opened the door. He knew me. He said, what do you want? I said, I want to be baptized. He said, did your father know? He knew my father. I said, no. But I felt the Lord has told me to do it. And I was baptized by immersion the next day. Do you know what happened to me? I can recall. This was the beginning of having my eyes opened. I began to understand the word more than before. It opened up my understanding. Until this morning. Brothers and sisters, do we see the need of the blood of Jesus? Do we live with the testimony of Jesus and proclaim it? Are we willing to lay down our soul life for him? These are the conditions to be raptured as a man child. I hope everyone here this morning is an overcomer by the grace of God. If he should come now, I hope the whole place is emptied. May the Lord have mercy on us. Shall we pray? Dear Lord, we have presented thy word to thy people. We pray that thy Holy Spirit will impress thy word into us. That all of us will follow thee closely. None will continue to live for himself or herself. Lord, we want to be totally thine. Lead us on until thy return. We ask in thy name. Amen. We find this call to overcome is given to us. We may even say, the call to overcome is the last call to the Church in general. Because as you read Revelation, you find there is no more other calling. This is the last call to his Church, whether we overcome or not. In the beginning of the book of Revelation, from chapter 1 to chapter 3, you find the call to overcome to the seven churches in Asia Minor at that time. And then when you read on in the book of Revelation, you find in chapter 7, the second part. You see a great multitude of people. You cannot number their number. And they were clothed with white clothes. And they had the palm branches in their hand. Brothers and sisters, who are they? The apostle John didn't know who they were. But the angel explained to him, these are people who come out of the great tribulation. For the sake of the Lord, they have shed tears. They have gone through difficult environments. And yet they were faithful to the Lord. So these are the overcomers throughout the ages. Nobody can number their number. From the second century up to almost our time, we have overcomers throughout the centuries. But when we come to our time, now our time is a very thrilling time. Because it is quite possible for the Lord to return in our time. We do not know the exact time. But from the Scriptures, we find that all the prophecies precede the coming of the Lord has been fulfilled. There is no more prophecy that needs to be fulfilled before the coming of the Lord. True, there are still prophecies that need to be fulfilled. But these will be fulfilled during the coming of the Lord and afterwards. So dear brothers and sisters, you need to wait to see what prophecy is fulfilled before the coming of the Lord. All the prophecies precede the coming of the Lord have been fulfilled. All the prophecies preceding the coming of the Lord have been fulfilled. All the remaining prophecies precede the coming of the Lord have been fulfilled. The Lord can return at any time. In the first century, they expect the Lord to return. Were they wrong? No. Because the Lord could return in the first century. And every century, you find Christians waiting for the Lord. They were not wrong. The Lord could return at their time. But the Lord had not returned until now. So dear brothers and sisters, we are on the verge of the return coming of the Lord. And if He should return today, suppose our Lord will come back now, what will happen to us? How good it will be if this auditorium is emptied, that everyone has been caught up. But the Lord knows who are ready for Him. That's the reason why I say this is a very thrilling time. Our Lord can come back any moment. So it is very important, most important, that we be ready any moment. That brings us to Revelation chapter 12. We know Revelation chapter 12 tells us how is the Lord coming back. I know the most difficult thing in studying Revelation is to know the time. When I was young and got saved, I was very zealous for the Lord. And I heard an Englishman speaking on Daniel that giant image. And that started me the interest for prophecy. So I spent lots of time in studying prophecy. I tried to get books concerning prophecy. And the most difficult thing in studying prophecy is to set the timing. What prophecy will be fulfilled at certain time? And I tried, even tried to put the timing of the book of Revelation. But brothers and sisters, I discovered you may try whatever you can. But you have to be open. Maybe it will not fulfill in the way that you think. The timing in the book of Revelation is the most difficult thing to study. But thank God, as we studied the book of Revelation, we began to realize that we are living at the time that he can come any moment. If that's the case, do you realize how thrilling that must be? But also, how terrible that will be. Are we ready for him? When you read the book of Revelation, chapter 12, it tells us how the Lord is coming back. You see a woman. He is clothed with the sun, moon, and stars. He is clothed with the sun, moon, and stars. This woman represents the woman in the last age. I cannot go into details because of time. I would just suggest that this woman represents the church in the last age. He is related to the law. What's the word I want to use? Those people before the law, like Abraham and so forth, patriarchs. He is related to the patriotic stage. He is also related to the law stage. Law. And he is also related to the Lord's timing. He is also related to the Lord's timing. We can say that that woman represents the church in the last stage. But strangely, she was not the attention of the dragon. Why? Because the church in the last stage has failed the Lord. So she is, in a sense, already in the hand of Satan. So the dragon does not pay attention to her anymore. But what the dragon was paying attention to was the man-child to be born from that woman. Because he knows that man-child has much to do with him. The man-child will mean that the end of his dominion. So you find the dragon is waiting before the woman. Waiting for the man-child to be born. And he wants to swallow her. Now, brothers and sisters, we will ask this question. Who will be the man-child that is to be born? Now, of course, you have different interpretations. Some think the man-child is Christ. But you find that after Christ was born, he lived on earth thirty-three and a half years before he returned to heaven. But the man-child, after he was born, he is immediately taken to the third heaven. So, most likely, the man-child cannot be Christ Jesus. But who is the man-child? Our thinking is the man-child is a corporate term. We think the man-child is a collective term. It is not just one person. It represents the overcomers at the last stage. The overcomers at the coming of the Lord. And as soon as the man-child was born, he was immediately taken to the third heaven. Now, brothers and sisters, do you know where the headquarter of Satan is? The headquarter of Satan is the air around the earth. And whoever is able to penetrate through the air into the third heaven shows that this world has overcome. So the man-child represents the overcomers at the time of the coming of the Lord. And they become the target of the enemy. Brothers and sisters, even so, the dragon was waiting for the birth of that man-child. The dragon was waiting for the birth of that man-child. But when that man-child was born, he was not able to swallow that man-child. Now, in Matthew 24, when our Lord Jesus is telling us about what is going to happen, he said, the woman will be in travail. That is to say, the church is in traveling through all these difficulties around the world. As the church goes through all these circumstances, the point is, he begins to have travail within her. And number three, they love not their lives even unto death. The life here is a soul life. In other words, they are willing to deal with the soul, with ourselves. And whatever is not of the Lord, they are able to confess and get a cleansing. Brothers and sisters, do you love your soul life more than the Lord? Have you been challenged by the Lord? I remember when I was a young Christian, one day the Lord challenged me. The Lord said, if you love your father and mother more than me, you cannot be my disciple. I love my father very much. He loved the Lord. He is a servant of the Lord. He is a Methodist pastor. He baptized me by sprinkling in my head when I was a baby. So after I was saved, people began to tell me that I need to be immersed by baptism. I say no. I have been baptized already. Even though it is just sprinkling, but it is in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I have to honor that name. So for quite a long time, I resisted to be baptized by immersion. But I was studying the Bible. I began to be convicted that it should be by immersion. But when people talk to me about it, I still argue with them. I wouldn't do it. I promised the Lord. I say, it is not convenient to be baptized by immersion now. Give me time. After I finish college, after I became independent, I will be immersed. You know what the Lord said? The last time when I was asked about it, I argued against it. So that brother who talked to me thought that I was hopeless. He went to sleep. I was sitting in a chair. I prayed. I told the Lord, I will eventually be immersed. But not now. Until I was independent, then I would do it. You know what happened? That was the first time in my life I heard a voice speaking to me. He who loves his father and mother more than me cannot be my disciple. That broke me down. I always want to be a disciple of Christ. So I told the Lord, if this is what you want me to do, I will do it. I went down from my friend's room and knocked the next door where Watchman Lee lived. He opened the door. He knew me. He said, what do you want? I said, I want to be baptized. He said, did your father know? He knew my father. I said, no. But I felt the Lord has told me to do it. And I was baptized by immersion the next day. And do you know what happened to me? I can recall this was the beginning of having my eyes opened. I began to understand the word more than before. It opened up my understanding until this morning. Brothers and sisters, do we see the need of the blood of Jesus? Do we live with the testimony of Jesus and proclaim it? Are we willing to lay down our soul life for him? These are the conditions to be raptured as the Virgin. I hope everyone here this morning is an overcomer by the grace of God. If he should come now, I hope the whole place is emptied. May the Lord have mercy on us. Shall we pray? Dear Lord, we have presented thy word to thy people. We pray that thy Holy Spirit will impress thy word into us. That all of us will follow thee closely. None will continue to live for himself or herself. Lord, we want to be totally thine. Lead us all until thy return. We ask in thy name Amen. From Jesus, Jesus, Amen. ======================================================================== Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/JzcTKmIrR4s.mp4 Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/stephen-kaung/the-call-of-the-of-the-overcomer/ ========================================================================