"Your testimony is not who you used to be. That's your history. Your testimony is who Christ is for you and how you encounter Him on a continual basis."
Over the years I have heard people share their testimony and it typically went something like this: "My name is ______________ and I was a ________________...this is how I came to know the Lord...etc." Their testimony, in other words, had more to do with who they used to be rather than who they were in Christ. The danger in this is that it causes us to live out of our past rather than live out of the reality of who we are in Christ.
Earlier today I was having a conversation with the Lord about battles that we face as believers. For the most part, we believe that the war was won at the Cross but we struggle to get through some of the battles. We may be secure in the love of God and believe in our identity in Christ but we fail in the same areas over and over again. These failures are different for everyone. Some will fail in relationships, others in the areas of addiction, but regardless of the area of our problems/mistakes we are stuck with the question of "WHY?" If I believe I am loved, and if I am secure in my identity in Christ, AND...if I know the war has been won then why am I still struggling?
Now back to why the earlier statement became so powerful. I was having this conversation with the Lord and this is what I heard him say (the reason why we struggle): "It's because we live out of our history rather than our testimony." Revelation 12:11 talks about those who overcome the accuser of the brethren. How did they do it? "They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death." WOW!!!
Let's be honest by saying that the first part of this verse makes perfect sense. "They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb" registers in our religious mindsets because we know how powerful the blood of Christ is for us. We have banked everything on the blood. However, John did not stop there. He heard another word. It wasn't just the blood of the Lamb but the "word of their testimony." What was the word of their testimony? "They loved not their lives so much as to shrink from death." They had discovered such a relationship with Jesus that it didn't matter what they endured or went through. THEY WOULD OVERCOME!!!
This is important so please pay attention. When you live out of your history rather than your testimony then it's really easy to go backwards. What used to have power over you still has power over you. What used to control/dominate your life can still control/dominate your life today. However, when you live out of your testimony, you will always live with the awareness of what Christ has done and who He is for you on a continual basis. This is what we need to learn.
It may require going a little deeper in your understanding of why you used to do the things you did but it's worth understanding. If you find yourself resorting to actions of self-preservation it may be because you have yet to understand the Lord as your defender or provider. Knowing this will allow the Lord to become those things for you. Then your testimony of Christ changes. He's not just the One who saved you. He's the One who keeps you, defends you, and provides for you. Allow your testimony to become more powerful than your history. You cannot allow who you used to be to undermine who the Lord is and what the Lord has done in your life.
May prayer is that each of us will encounter the power of these statements. Living from our testimony will help us to see clearly through the battles of life. I don't have to give in to "this" temptation because the Lord is my provider. I don't have to resort to the things I used to do because the Lord is the One who sustains me. I don't have to give in to the lies of the enemy because the Lord continually speaks to who I am in Him. Does this make sense? How I have encountered the Lord in the past and how I continue to encounter Him to this day becomes the foundation for me to experience His reality in my life. I may not be perfect but thank God I'm not who I used to be. This is my testimony: I am LOVED, I am ACCEPTED, and I am HOLY in Christ. And nothing the enemy says or does can change that.
No comments:
Post a Comment