Untitled Sermon (10)

OVERCOMING BY THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY

MAY 31, 2026

OVERCOMING 1 - BY THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY

Revelation 12:11 “And they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives until death.”

P. 1235

Says; test prophetic words; if they are from the Lord, respond appropriately. Ask God to develop your ability to hear the things He desires to speak to His people. We have just spent 5 weeks learning this. Are you pursuing this? Are you practicing this? It is vital that you do.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, PRAYER REQUESTS AND TESTIMONIES

The church being sold.

PRAISE, WORSHIP AND OFFERINGS

SERMON:

I have been through the most intense 5 months of my life. At 84, in Jan. there were two demonic attempts on my life. Then Feb, Mar. & April was the intense legal and personal responsibility for Julie’s life; and in May, the death of an adopted grandson and the near death of my grandson, and now a total change for this church.

I now understand why God has been so often bringing up Jeremiah 12:5 ““If you run with footmen and they have made you weary, then how will you contend with horses? If you have fallen in a peaceful land, then how will you do in the thickets of the Jordan?”

I fear I haven’t handled this very well. I have complained and grown weary while trying not to whine. I said, “Lord, we have to contend with horses?” Yes, we contend with men but we also contend with the spirits that propel them.

AND, we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of OUR testimony. This is a law of God. A legal proclamation

The blood of the Lamb has been done. This was God’s part and it is finished. We are to apply it; utilize it: trust it and teach it, but it is done and waiting for us to apply and use it.

Our part is the word of our testimony. There are some things we need to understand for this basis to operate.

God is the Great Lawgiver and Judge

Genesis 49:10 “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff between his feet, until Shiloh comes. And to him shall be the obedience of nations.” (Shiloh is a symbolic name for Judah)

Psalm 60:7 “Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine, and Ephraim is the helmet for my head; Judah is my scepter.”

Isaiah 33:22 “For Yahweh is our judge; Yahweh is our lawgiver. Yahweh is our king; he is the one who will save us.”

James 4:12 “There is one lawgiver and judge who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” (Not his heart, but yest, judge his words.)

We need to understand some background to see what John is saying. Testimony = 1a) a solemn declaration usually made orally by a witness under oath in response to interrogation by a lawyer or authorized public official. b) firsthand authentication of a fact; evidence; c) an outward sign. 2a)an open acknowledgement; b a public profession of religious experience; 3a)1. tablets inscribed with the Mosiac law; 2 the ark containing the tablets; b)a divine decree attested in the Scriptures

The word court in the Bible simply means a yard or hamlet surrounded by a fence or walls; court, tower or village. But the king’s court was a place of judgement. In the temple the Ark contained God’s judgement (the Law) covered with the Mercy Seat. God sits over the Law in the Mercy Seat. God sent His prophets to proclaim God’s judgement on the nations and they usually went before the king or the priests. When one came into the palace or temple, the courtyard became the courtroom where the complaint or the testimony was made and/or the witnesses heard.

God is always depicted as seated in heaven - as Ruler and Judge of all things. Our accuser is there. Our advocate or lawyer is there. And it is here that we are judged on our words (or testimony). Words give power to the act, so the word behind the act is judged. This is why we want to take captive every thought. The thought is not evil unless enter-tained. We take it captive and replace it with God’s Word.

When we tell of the Jesus we KNOW, our words will defend us. 1 John 3:20–21 “For if our heart condemns us, (we know who condemns us) we know that God is greater than our heart and knows all things. (If our heart condemns us, God knows our hearts; whether we are rebellious or ignorant or misled and will correct us. If we are under conviction, we are ready to repent and be restored to righteousness. We need to go to court and clear this thing up) Dear friends, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God,”

It is here, in this confidence, that we have testimonies. When we know that we have been forgiven by God, or seen our God in action - doing wonders, then we have testimonies It is in hearing God reveal Himself in His Word that we have testimonies. It is when we have answers to prayer that we have testimonies. Our testimony is that God is alive and holds the keys of Hel and Death. He paid the price for our sin and forgave us all and that He loves us and does miracles in our behalf.

Then we have to put Word to our testimonies and share them. He says “by the Word of their testimonies”

What does the Word of our Testimonies do. This means spoken testimonies. It overcomes the enemy of our souls. It also encourages us. It encourages others to believe or strengthens them to persevere .

These testimonies have power and authority. Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love her will eat of her fruit.”

Matthew 21:23 “And after he arrived at the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him while he was teaching, saying, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?””

Matthew 28:18–20 “And Jesus approached (His disciples - that’s us) and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (Not half or some or most but ALL) Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days until the end of the age.”” (not just on the days we feel like it)

Like Greg with all of the authority of the State of Virginia and the U. S. Constitution, comes all of the tools - the badge to prove it; the radio for back up; and the mace and gun to enforce it. Like Greg, we are sent with all the tools; the blood of the Lamb, the word of our testimony and not loving our life to the death. We have baptism to prove it; prayer for back up; and Holy Spirit and the word of our testimony to enforce it.

So we, as His disciples go in “all” of His authority, not a portion, but all. If we don’t believe, we have no authority. If we don’t believe we have authority, we have no authority. Kinda, sorta belief doesn’t count. Yet all of our words can be used for us or against us. We have an enemy waiting to pounce on our faithless words.

If we know God and His Word in our minds only, it is finite and our own strength. If we believe with out hearts and our hearts teach our minds, then it is eternal and God Almighty’s strength. Whew! That is powerful.

We just studied the way God sees our prayers and the power of them - the power is for those who believe; who have testimonies, who have seen it in action. It is presenting the need; speaking the provision; and rejoicing that God heard and provided. We have to agree with God and see it as finished Past tense. Its a done deal. Continue to speak it with thanksgiving. This is our confidence when we pray according to the Word.

Our prayers go up to God as do all of our words. Our words are eternal and we will account for every one.

God is the Great Judge. Abraham pleading for Lot in Genesis 18:25 “Far be it from you to do such a thing as this, to kill the righteous with the wicked, that the righteous would be as the wicked! Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do justice?””

Leviticus and Deuteronomy is God teaching His law so that the priests, judges and prophets and kings can judge righteously. (this is also us)

John 5:30 “I am able to do nothing from myself. Just as I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will, but the will of the one who sent me.”

God has sent us and we are to judge all things, but only by what we hear God saying - not our own opinion. This is why I taught so long on hearing from God with our five senses; so that we can judge righteously.

1 Corinthians 6:1–3 “Does anyone among you, if he has a matter against someone else, dare to go to court before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if by you the world is judged, are you unworthy of the most insignificant courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels, not to mention ordinary matters?”

1 Chronicles 16:33 “Then the trees of the forest shall sing for joy before God Almighty, for he comes to judge the earth.”

Psalm 82:8 “Rise up, O God, judge the earth, because you shall inherit all the nations.”

Romans 14:13 “Therefore, let us no longer pass judgment on one another, but rather decide this: not to place a cause for stumbling or a temptation before a brother.” (We are to judge what is said but not their hearts)

Hebrews 12:22–24 “But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to tens of thousands of angels, to the festal gathering and assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of righteous people made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks better than Abel’s does.”

There is another word of our testimony of which we need to understand for our negative testimony is just as powerful.. One of death, unbelief and unrighteousness.

Numbers 11:1 “And it happened, the people were like those who complain of hardship in the hearing of God Almighty, and God became angry, and the fire of God burned among them, and it consumed the edge of the camp.”

Psalm 77:2–3 “In the day of trouble, I seek the Lord. At night my hand stretches out continually; my soul refuses to be comforted. I remember God and I complain; I meditate and my spirit is overwhelmed. Selah”

As we meditate on our complaints and grievances, we get overwhelmed. As we contemplate on our Provider, we are encouraged and even emboldened.

James 3:5–6 “So also the tongue is a small member of the body and boasts great things. Behold how small a fire sets ablaze how great a forest! And the tongue is a fire! The world of unrighteousness, the tongue, is set among our members, defiling the whole body and setting on fire the course of human existence, being set on fire by hell.”

Complaining is doubt and unbelief which is unacceptable in a saved person according to God’s Word.

When you hear yourself complain; repent and replace it with praise and the Word of God. Make it a testimony. It is our choice to turn our calamity in a testimony - to spiral upward instead of downward.

A saved one fights from victory, not to victory! IT IS FINISHED!

CLOSING PRAYER