You will not overcome whatever you're needing to overcome if you are a secret agent Christian. Dr. Tony Evans says God's power in your life can only be evident once you choose to reveal Him. Once you have now identified with Christ, you have positioned yourself to be an overcomer. This is the alternative broadcast featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans. It may seem like if you focus on a problem, you're more likely to find a solution.
But today, Dr. Evans explains that sometimes your focus is the problem. Let's join him as he talks about how the right perspective empowers us to overcome challenges. To understand the key to being an overcomer and whatever needs to be overcome in our lives, you have to—watch this—begin to look at Jesus differently. He begins in chapter 1 of the book of Revelation, verse 1, saying the revelation of Jesus Christ. He says, I'm going to disclose Jesus to you. He takes this look at Jesus in verse 7. Behold, He is coming with clouds. Every eye will see Him, even those who pierce Him, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him, so it shall be amen.
Now watch this. John then says in verse 12, I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me. Jesus speaking to him. And having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands. In the middle of the lampstands, I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe, reaching to his feet, girded across his chest with a golden sash. His head and his hair were white like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like brandished bronze when it had been made to glow in a furnace. His voice was like the sound of many waters.
In His right hand, He had seven stars. Verse 17, when I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man, and He placed His right hand on me and said, Do not be afraid. I am the first and the last, the living one. If you and I are going to be overcomers in practice, not in principle, you're going to have to see the Jesus that John saw. This is not Jesus meek and mild. This is not Jesus in a manger.
No, no, no. This is Jesus on fire. Colossians 2 15 says, I disarmed them. So the reason why the devil can defeat us is because he can deceive us into thinking their bullet's still in the gun. But what Jesus did on the cross, the Scripture says, is He disarmed them.
He took away the authority. So now you're beaten by deception that feels like reality, looks like reality, seems like reality. Look at chapter 12 of Revelation, verse 11. And they overcame Him. There's our word.
Because of the blood of the Lamb, because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death. God places victory in your reach, not in your hand. Overcoming is in your reach. You can get it, but it's not in your hand. See, what a lot of folks come to church and they want God to drop victory in their hand.
Uh-uh. He puts it within your reach because He needs to see you exercise faith to get it in your hand. He says they prevailed, overcame, because of their identification with the cross, with the confession, and with the commitment.
What does that mean? It means that they began by the blood, He says, to understand that the cross 2,000 years ago was relevant right now. See, for many people, the cross is a historical event. Two thousand years ago, Jesus died on the cross, and I believe He died for my sins. I accept Him as my Savior, and because of that, I'm saved.
I'm going to heaven. And all that's true. But these folks are overcoming Him by the blood in the present, in the present of this text. They're not just overcoming Him because the blood worked 2,000 years ago. That's why when Paul described his identity in Galatians 2.20, he said, I am right now crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, it's Christ who lives in me. And the life which I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. He says, if you want to look at my life now, I am controlled by the cross. That is, I am controlled by the work that Jesus Christ did 2,000 years ago that affects my decision-making in the present. It is my current point of reference.
In other words, the reality of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, which was why He said when He got up from the dead, Matthew 28, 19, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Translation, I'm in charge now. I'm in charge now. I haven't come to take sides. I've come to take over. I'm in charge now. I call the shots, but He says the cross is my point of reference. Who died, why He died, and the victory that He accomplished, I'm going to transfer to today. He says, secondly, they overcame Him by the word of their testimony.
Ooh, watch this now. Stay with me. You will not overcome whatever you're needing to overcome if you are a secret agent Christian.
So let's get that straight. If you're a spiritual CIA representative, if you're a covert operative, forget overcoming, because Jesus Christ, with fire in His eyes, is not trying to help folk to overcome who are embarrassed to be associated with Him. He says, you deny me before men, I will deny you before my Father, Matthew 10. You confess me before men, I will confess you before my Father. If you don't want to be associated with me in public, you just want this private meeting with the saints on Sunday, but you don't want other folk to know that you are a follower of Jesus Christ, which was the point of your baptism when you went public to say, I am publicly proclaiming my identification with Jesus Christ. Don't be calling on me for overcoming in your life when you don't want to be associated with me.
The word of their testimony. Let me say it another way. Trying to camouflage it by talking about I believe in God won't cut it.
Okay? Using God's name won't cut it. God has placed everything in the hand of His Son. At the name of Jesus, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father. So the Father is glorified when Jesus is the superstar. We got folk going public protesting.
We got players getting on their knees letting them know where they stand. We got everybody declaring what they believe in, who they believe in, even if they're not worth believing in it, because they're making their declaration. And you gonna tell me He was wounded for your transgressions, bruised for your iniquities, the chastisement of your peace was on His shoulders, by His stripes, you are healed, and you can't identify with the risen Christ?
He said it's by the word of your testimony. Oh, and then He hits us with a zinger, because He says, number three, and they did not love their life even when faced with death. Oh, they overcame Him because of a love relationship that they possessed with Him that transcended dying. Now that's some serious love when it transcends dying, but it's not unusual. Most parents, if they had to, would give their life for their children. Most parents, because of the depth of their love. You have men who would give their lives for their mates because of the depth of their love.
It was a choice between the two. So in the human level, we know what it is to sacrifice the life for love, right? He says to be an overcomer, because he got fire in his eyes, to see an overcomer. That's why Paul says in Luke 9, he says, I die daily. Every day when I get up in the morning, I say, I am dead to me and I'm alive to you. You are my life. You're not just a place I go on Sunday, you're my defining definition.
You are my life. If any man would be my disciple, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. That there is this understanding that I am pursuing a relationship with somebody that I want to fall in love with more than life itself.
In other words, this is serious commitment, but you probably got some serious stuff to overcome. So this is not casual Christianity here. Got folk running around, oh bless me, oh bless me, oh bless me.
So God gets a visit once a week, and they think something miracle is supposed to drop from heaven when it's part-time Christians wanting a full-time deliverer. He says, no, you know, you got to deal with the risen Christ now. And the risen Christ is in charge. That's why I love what Paul says. Paul says, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Now you don't go looking for death, you don't go wishing death, but he says, but he says, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Paul says, I don't know whether to stay here or to go home to be with Christ.
He said, I'm betwixt and between. If I stay here, it's to serve Christ. If I die, it's to go be with Christ. And if I suffer, he says, I reckon that the suffering of this present time is not be worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed unto me.
So he's saying, basically, I'm in a no-lose deal. Living, dying, it's all Christ. So if I've got to be rejected because of Christ, if I've got to be misunderstood because of Christ, I've got to be not liked because of Christ, not because of my foolishness, but because of Christ, then that's the way it is. Dr. Evans will return in a moment to describe the benefits of a committed relationship with Christ. But first, I want to let you know that the lesson you're hearing today is one of our top 24 of 2024, and we're bundling it along with 23 other powerful and popular messages presented on the alternative broadcast this year. Right now, when you make a contribution in support of this ministry, we'll send you this special two-volume compilation on either CD or digital download.
It's our way of saying thanks for your investment in us, which enables us to continue investing in you. And as an added bonus, we'll also include a new Christmas music collection from renowned gospel artist Anthony Evans. The Greatest Gift is a nine-track album featuring new arrangements of holiday classics, as well as original songs that Anthony has written and produced.
Enjoy this music for yourself or pass it along as a gift to someone you love this Christmas season. Visit tonyevans.org for details on how to get The Greatest Gift Christmas album and the top 24 of 2024. And when you do, you'll also see an opportunity to add a hardcover edition of the Tony Evans Study Bible. Find out how to do that at tonyevans.org or by phone any time of the day or night at 1-800-800-3222. I'll repeat that contact information for you after the second part of today's message and this special word from Dr. Evans. Let me start off by thanking all of our friends for how you've walked with us and stood by us all year long. We've felt your prayers, and they've made a difference in the lives of people that we've had the privilege of ministering to. And as we anticipate the new year, we want to not only end this year strong, but go into the new year able to take advantage of all the opportunities that God has brought our way for the building of strong, biblically-based families, for strengthening churches so that they're able to do the work of kingdom building God has called them to do, and for speaking into the culture. This culture needs to hear a word from God and a word that works, and that's what we're committed to do. Stand with us with your generosity and your prayers, because you know this word, a word that the world desperately needs today. Visit tonyevans.org to give.
That's tonyevans.org. Once you have now identified with Christ, you have positioned yourself to be an overcomer. You have positioned yourself to see the move of God overrule in the circumstances of life.
There must now be a shift in perspective. You must look at Jesus now differently as the sovereign on fire Lord who now rules. We all believe in the Son, S-U-N. We believe in the Son, right? Everybody believes in the Son.
But I don't know if too many people go around to this all day looking at the Son, just walking. Yeah, I believe in the Son because I'm looking at the Son all day. Let me tell you the main reason you believe in the Son. I believe in the Son.
We believe in the S-U-N. The main reason we believe in the S-U-N is because, because of it, we see everything else. We don't go looking at the Son all day, but we look at everything else all day. But because of the Son, you see everything else. Well, what's true in the physical world, because of the S-O-N, you're supposed to look at everything else.
Everything else is supposed to be because of Him shining, whether you see Him or not, and therefore brought in line with Him. As I've said before, I still don't wear glasses. Haven't had surgery. Don't wear contacts. And let me explain how that happens. My left eye is off. My left eye is off.
It's like 2050 or something. So if I cover my right eye and just look at you with my left eye, things are fuzzy. Things are fuzzy, because my left eye is a little off. But my right eye is 2020. See, my right eye is what they would put in the category of perfect vision. So my right eye can see clearly, but my left eye is fuzzy. But because my right eye is 2020, it compensates for the weakness in my left eye. So the only reason I'm not wearing glasses is not because I'm perfect, but because I'm covered.
My right eye overcomes my left eye so that my left eye becomes subject to my right eye so that I don't wear glasses, so that I am not submitting to the weakness. I'm overriding it with the strength. You know, I've lost about 45 pounds. Now, the main thing I do is the treadmill.
The main exercise is the treadmill. I will admit to you, I am unmotivated. That's not something like, I look forward to do it at 5.30 or 6 o'clock. Me, myself, and I, we've got to have a congregational gathering. I am laying there in bed and I am saying, do I want to do this today?
So yeah, I know what you're talking about. I'm not really going to do this today. We have to meet because it's not something I want to do. But I do want to get healthier and I do want to lose some weight. So the goal of overcoming the weight affects the getting up to get on the treadmill. But it's still a problem because walking and going nowhere is just a struggle. So I drag myself out of bed, put on the workout stuff, walk into the room where the treadmill is. Right in front of the treadmill is a chair. I sit in that chair and try to talk myself to getting up out of that chair to get on that treadmill. The problem is on that treadmill, I sweat. On that treadmill, I'm huffing and puffing. On that treadmill, I'm struggling because I got this goal in mind, but I'm struggling on this treadmill.
It's a struggle. So what I always do to mitigate the struggle of overcoming the treadmill and the fact that I don't want to do it is I turn on the news. So right in front of me, I stare at the news for 45 minutes.
It has my undivided attention. That news does not take away the sweat. I don't sweat less because I'm looking at the news.
It doesn't take away the breathing. It distracts me. It gives me something else to focus on. And I discover I can go longer when I'm focusing on that than when I'm focusing on this. I got to do this, but I try not to make this my focus. I try to make that my focus, because when I make that my focus, it affects how well I do this. If you really want to overcome bad enough, then Jesus says you got to do this.
But the way you do this is by focusing on that. And if you understand that I have already overcome, and you're walking through this thing you need to overcome, it's sin or circumstance, but you're looking at me and you say, okay Jesus, I thank you, you've already overcome this. You've already overcome my emotions. You've already overcome my circumstance. You've already overcome my pain. You've already overcome my addiction. I just want to thank you that you've already overcome it.
I'm sweating and I'm tired, but I'm more than a conqueror in Jesus Christ who loved me and gave Himself for me. And I just want to give you glory, because I'm going to focus on the news of heaven during my struggle on earth. Dr. Tony Evans will return in a moment with encouragement for those who doubt their life story could have an overcomer's ending. If you'd like to hear the full-length version of today's message, it comes as a part of our current year-end series called The Top 24 of 2024. As mentioned earlier, all 24 messages in this collection are our gift to you when you make a contribution to help us keep Tony's teaching on this station. And for a limited time, we're also including a copy of The Greatest Gift, the new Christmas album from acclaimed gospel music artist Anthony Evans. Just drop by tonyevans.org where you can get all the details and make your donation online. You'll also discover how you can sweeten this year-end offer and add your own copy of the Tony Evans Study Bible. Again, get all the details at tonyevans.org or call our 24-hour resource center at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our team members help with your request.
The number again, 1-800-800-3222. It's an old saying, but it still holds true. God accepts us the way we are, but He loves us too much to leave us that way. Next time, Dr. Evans will take a look at the spiritual makeover process God uses to make us not only look different, but to be different.
Right now though, he's back to wrap up today's lesson with this final story. Any of you who like pro wrestling, let me explain something. It's fake. They have already decided who the winner is going to be. That has been pre-decided, pre-destined, pre-determined, elected.
That's all has decided before the match even starts. You're looking at the match and you see other wrestlers coming out right in the nick of time to jump in the match. All that's scripted. They even pay if you bleed.
If you bleed, they pay you more because you made it look more real. So they have scripted this thing. But even if you're being defeated, even if you're being thrown down, even if you're being abused, if it has already been pre-destined that when this thing is over, you're going to be more than a conqueror, that thing is going to turn around in some way somehow. I know the devil's been slamming you. I know circumstances have been beating you. I know sins have been owning you.
I know it looks like the evil one is controlling you. But Jesus Christ on the cross has already prescripted that you are a winner. He's already prescripted that by relationship to Him, you're overcomer. He's already prescripted that Satan has no longer any control over you. He's already prescripted that greater is He that's in you than he that's in the world. He's already prescripted that those folks don't control you anymore. He's already prescripted that that circumstance doesn't control you anymore. I know you're being thrown down. I know you're being beaten up. But you can now look at it and declare, I am an overcomer and I'm coming back at you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
