Every single person who is born of the Spirit, or “born again,” has unique challenges to face. Before we are born again, we are going with the natural current of the world system. This is true even if we make some religious efforts outwardly. Inwardly, we are entertaining all manner of evil and engaging in it when opportunities come. 

You see, it takes no effort to be an enemy of God. We are basically born with a nature that wars with Him—so doing evil is the most natural thing. The problem comes when we are born of the Spirit. At this point, our spirit is born into enemy territory. 

First of all, it is born encased in a carnal body that still has an evil nature that needs to be crucified daily. It is carried along by this body in a cursed world where a system of evil generally prevails. Then, we must also consider the hordes of evil spirits assigned by the devil to discourage, confuse and weaken the believer. There are also, potential persecutions by our fellow men.

Trials & The Way Through

If you stop and think about it, the possibilities for opposition and hardship for the believer seem almost endless. But there’s always a but for the believer. There’s always a way through—and sometimes even a legitimate a way out. 

As we face one trial after the next in our new life, we soon conclude a few things: first of all, the ultimate victory is always ours in Christ Jesus. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. Even when we seem outnumbered and surrounded with evil, we can rest assured that our God is more than equal to our challenge. 

Strategic Trials & Overcoming

The next thing we might eventually conclude, is that the enemy of our soul will still keep on devising and plotting against us even if the ultimate victory is ours. We will keep facing challenges and hardships. The enemy is hoping to weary and discourage us enough to either make us useless against him in our faith, or to forsake our faith altogether. 

Another thing we notice as time goes on is that there are benefits we gain from these hardships in life. They seem strategically targeted toward weaknesses of ours by the enemy’s design, but with each victory, these then turn into strengths. In other words, everything the enemy means for evil, God turns into good—if we endure and remain faithful.

But beyond these immediate comforts, there are promises in the Bible for those who overcome and are faithful to the very end. The book of Revelation outlines several of these and they are good medicine for a weary soul. Take time to circle back and read the context leading up to each promise if you wish. They are contingent on overcoming problems facing various of the early churches, but they are problems we still face today, as well. I would especially advise this for the very last one, which applies to the Laodicean church, which has more in common with the modern western church than any other.  

The Promised Rewards

Revelation 2:7 …To the one who overcomes, I will grant to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.’ 

Revelation 2:10-11 …Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.’

Revelation 2:17 …To the one who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows except the one who receives it.’

Revelation 2:26-28 …The one who overcomes, and the one who keeps My deeds until the end, I will give him authority over the ^[q]nations; ²⁷ and he shall ^[r]rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are shattered, as I also have received authority from My Father; ²⁸ and I will give him the morning star.

Revelation 3:5 The one who overcomes will be clothed the same way, in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

Revelation 3:12 The one who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.

Revelation 3:21 The one who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat with My Father on His throne. – NASB