The believer who has been taught that to overcome is to make a profession of belief in Christ, to thus identify himself with the Overcomer, should read for himself the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation. He will find that the rebukes of the Lord are concerned with "works." Christ did not find the Laodiceans nauseating because of their incorrect doctrinal position but because of their personality and behavior.

The belief that Jesus is the Christ of God does not make a rebellious, self-centered, lustful person acceptable to the Lord. The demons themselves understand very well that there is a God and that Jesus is the Holy One who has come from God.

Modern preaching and teaching, especially the teachings that all believers in Christ receive the same reward; that overcoming merely is a matter of doctrinal position; and that God loves Gentile Christians too much to allow them to suffer; is producing lukewarm, apathetic, indifferent believers. They are neglecting their salvation and shall not escape punishment.

The believers of the Laodicean age will be exposed to the most terrible hour of tribulation and lawlessness mankind has known. Only the purest and most fervent of the believers of that hour will be able to escape being destroyed spiritually by the things that will come to pass and to stand in victory before the Son of Man.

So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:16)

Christ does not rebuke us because our doctrine is not perfect but because our whole personality is not aflame with love and zeal toward Himself. The lukewarm believers, who constitute the majority of the Christians in the wealthy nations of our day, will not enter the Kingdom of God. They will be vomited from the mouth of Christ. Let God be true and every man a liar.

Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: (Revelation 3:17)

Notice that Jesus is not rebuking the Laodicean believers because they do not believe He is Christ but because they regard material wealth as the sign of the blessing of God. The Laodicean worships money. Money is his God. He has no need of the true God because money protects him from all danger (he supposes).

We see therefore, that to "overcome," in spite of what many are claiming, has little to do with a doctrinal position. To overcome is to live victoriously in Christ, successfully resisting the claims of the world, the lusts of our flesh, and our self-centeredness.

Antichrist will persecute viciously the true saints of the Lord but he will subsidize the Christian churches that choose to serve Christ in their own strength. Antichrist will not do away with the Christian institutions. Rather, he will leave their "dead bodies in the street" of the lust of the flesh (Sodom), the lust of the eyes (Egypt), and religious pride and self-will (Jerusalem) (Revelation 11:8).

To be continued.