Tag: overcomes

Do Not Love This World

Do Not Love This World

The Bible gives us some helpful information about the world that we live in, and we do well to pay attention to it.

No one can serve two masters, because either he will hate one and love the other, or be loyal to one and despise the other.  (Mt 6:24 ISV)

The wisdom of the Scriptures is apparent here in reminding us that no one can serve two masters.  If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Redeemer, then we serve only Him.  To try to do otherwise is folly.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.  (1 Joh 2:15 NIV)

We’re advised that we should not love the world or anything in the world.  This is not speaking about people, but about material things and the world’s way of valuing what is important. 

The most important thing in life is to serve the Lord and to maintain a vital and living relationship with the Lord Jesus.

. . . for whoever is born of God overcomes the world, and the victory that overcomes the world is our faith.  (1 Joh 5:4 MEV)

We’re reminded that we who have accepted Christ as our Savior are born of God, and we are overcomers!  Glory to God!  What do we overcome?  The world and its systems and its empty values.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  (Joh 16:33 NIV) Jesus is speaking to us in this verse above in John 16.  He says that in this world we’ll have trouble.  But He reminds us that He has overcome the world.  It is Jesus’ victory that makes His followers overcomers.  Rejoice in this truth today.

What Makes the Enemy Run?

What Makes the Enemy Run?

What makes enemies run away?  The presence of the Living God! 

What about God’s presence in us and with us causes our enemies to “perish at His presence”?

When my enemies turn back, they shall fall and perish at Your presence.  (Ps 9:3 NKJV)

This verse tells us that the enemies begin to run away (‘turn back’) and then they fall and then they perish (or die).  God’s power, perfection, and glory have this devastating effect on those who work in defiance of God and of His will.

You will make them turn their backs when you aim your arrows at them.  (Ps 21:12 NCV) 

They run from God in fear and terror because the enemies of our souls are aware that God is always victorious, and His arrows never miss their targets.

You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes.  (Ps 18:40 NIV)

The explanation for this verse is that the enemy (satan) sets ambushes for people and aims arrows of lack, sickness, strife and fear at God’s people.  God’s arrows are the power of His spoken Word, His living Word, and His written Word.   With the power and authority of Jesus Christ and His finished work of salvation, the Lord overcomes and overpowers the enemy easily as we trust in Him, and speak His Word in faith and power into our circumstances.

Rejoice in the goodness and the mighty power of our God!

How Can We Overcome?

How Can We Overcome?

How can a human being overcome in the manner discussed in the Bible?

To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.  (Rev 3:21)

For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?  (1 Joh 5:4-5)

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.  (Rev 12:11 NIV)

Overcome means to conquer, defeat, triumph over, or annihilate.  They triumphed over the enemy of our souls, satan. 

I believe the key verses that tell us how to overcome are shown above:  1 John 5:4-5 and Revelation 12:11.

  • Our faith in God, which is a gift from God, is one of our weapons designed to carry us to victory.  Our faith in Christ as our Savior, who is the Son of God according to the Word, is a stabilizing factor throughout life.  Hold onto this truth and never let it go.
  • Acknowledging that the blood of the Lamb of God (Jesus) cleanses us from all sin is another tool of victory bestowed upon us by the gift of salvation.  Remain mindful of this truth, and thank and praise God for it.  It has purchased our righteousness.
  • The ‘word of our testimony’ is also mentioned as part of our armament against the enemy that will sustain us and transport us to victory.  A testimony is a declaration—even evidence—of our life experiences.  As we daily state and affirm (1) who we are in Christ Jesus; (b) what we have through Christ; and (c) all of the blessings that we have received through salvation, we deepen and strengthen our roots of faith.  As we maintain this continuous testimony, we firmly plant ourselves (our roots) in the realm of victory.

According to Romans 8:37, the Lord has made us MORE than conquerors (winners, victors, overcomers).  All overcomers will spend eternity in heaven with the Lord Jesus.  Glory to God!

A Shield Called Faith

A Shield Called Faith

. . . above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.  (Eph 6:16, emphasis added)

For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.  (1 Joh 5:4, emphasis added)

We see that the Bible mentions a “shield of faith” in Ephesians chapter six.  This is quite an important concept, when you think and meditate upon it.  Shields were used to in ancient times to block attacks from hand-held weapons like swords as well as from projectile weapons such as arrows. 

The shield can also symbolize steadfast principles, commitment, loyalty and protection, which are afforded to us by taking up the spiritual “Shield of Faith” in Christ Jesus, our Savior.  This spiritual shield protects our hearts and minds from the attacks of the enemy which are designed to rob us of peace and joy.  Our spiritual shield also enables us to persevere in times of trials and crisis.

Cling to your confession of faith, brothers and sisters!  Heed Romans 10:8-9:

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Safe in God’s Secret Pavilion

Safe in God’s Secret Pavilion

Have you had a circumstance where people were speaking evil reports about you—and they were untrue?  Are you aware that somehow you’ve made an enemy at work and that person is making plans to undermine you?  Has a close relative or friend turned against you for no apparent reason? 

Do you realize that God has a safe hiding place for you that will protect you while He works on your behalf?  This hiding place exists within your heart and mind.

You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.  (Ps 31:20)

You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and need not fear destruction when it comes.  (Job 5:21)

For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high upon a rock.  (Ps 27:5)

You are my hiding place. You protect me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.  (Ps 32:7)

You are my hiding place and my shield; I put my hope in Your word.  (Ps 119:114)

Psalm 32 says that the Lord surrounds us with songs of deliverance.  God says that He will rescue you, and set you free from these types of situations!  Thank the Lord!

In the secret dwelling place of God, the holy of Holies (the inner sanctuary of God’s tabernacle), we may relax in peace because we are secure in the knowledge that God is our protection.  In this state of mind and heart, we are free to pray in faith and to ask the Lord to help us and to give us His wisdom, revelation, and insight into our situation. 

He promises to hear us when we call, and to answer! (Ps 66:19; Pro 15:29; 1 Joh 5:14)  As Psalm 32:7 reminds us, God has already surrounded us with songs of deliverance—that means that in the spiritual realm where time does not exist, your deliverance is already an established fact.

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  (1 Cor 15:57)

For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.  (1 Joh 5:4)

According to the two Scripture verses above, God gives us the victory through Jesus by the faith in our hearts that is born of God and this gift of faith overcomes the world.  Remember, you have received overcoming faith to stand upon God’s Word and to expect Him to deliver you from evil.  Stand firm and expectant of great things from God.  God bless you.