BECOMING OVERCOMERS

Discouraged by the Enemy

For the past several weeks, I have been struggling to write the devotion I intended to write. I may yet finish it, but, for the time being, it isn't meant to be. Instead, this devotion will flow out of the chain of thoughts that began one morning as I was reading and reflecting on my life. I don't remember how, but I ended up in the Psalms. And, as I read, I could really relate to some of the things the psalmists said. I considered how often and easily I seem to become discouraged as I echoed their cries: “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?” (e.g., Psalm 43:5). Like David, I have often wondered, “How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?” (Psalm 13:2).

Romans 8:37: More Than Conquerors

“...my enemy...” These words, in particular, stuck in my head. “How long will my enemy triumph over me,” David asked. I know how he felt, because I, too, have often felt overcome by the enemy. In this Psalm, the word “enemy” is probably a reference to King Saul who, in a jealous rage, continuously sought to take David's life (e.g., 1 Samuel 18:6-11, 19:1,11,15). But as I read this Psalm, the word “enemy” meant something different to me. My enemy—indeed, the enemy of God and of all mankind—is Satan. He oppresses me every chance he gets and, unfortunately, often makes me feel overcome.

ccc Overcome... This is a loaded word. The first thing it makes me think of is the phrase repeated in the book of Revelation, where Jesus promises good things “to him who overcomes” (Revelation 2:7,17,26, 3:21). This phrase reminds me that, as children of God, we are meant to overcome the enemy, not to be overcome! To be overcome is to be defeated... But Jesus did not die on the cross for us to live a life of defeat! These are the thoughts that were going through my mind as I meditated on the word, “overcome.” And then a new phrase passed through my mind: “...more than conquerors...”

ccc I turned to my Bible to look up the full verse and to get the context: “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). I'd like to deviate a little from my initial chain of thoughts and dwell on this verse. Let's look at the first part of the verse first: “...more than conquerors...” According to the World English Dictionary, the verb to conquer means “to overcome (an enemy, army, etc); defeat... to overcome (an obstacle, feeling, desire, etc); surmount... to gain possession or control of by or as if by force or war; win.” Do you, like me, ever feel like discouragement and defeat are reigning in your life? I hope you will begin by recognizing that this is a trap of the very enemy that we are meant to conquer and overcome!

ccc The second part of this verse—“through him who loved us”—is so important because it is the means by which we overcome. Discouragement and defeat do not come “through him who [loves] us.” They come from the enemy! To give in to these things is to give in to the enemy. We do not overcome the enemy when we come into agreement with him that our life is hopeless or bleak. Such things are not true. Instead, we look to Jesus who “loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). It is only by looking to Jesus that we become “more than conquerors.” Don't listen to what the devil says about you... listen to what Jesus says about you! Let the truth set you free (John 8:32)!

Romans 8:35-39: Nothing Can Separate Us

The immediate context of the verse discussed in the preceding section is Romans 8:35-39: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

ccc It is interesting that both before and after our key verse, Paul refers to a separation from the love of God. What is he talking about? Isaiah 59:2 gives us a clue: “your iniquities have separated you from your God...” It is a fact—we have all sinned, and our sins separate us from God. As the Bible tells us, the fate of those who have sinned and rebelled against God is to be “shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). I believe this is the separation that Paul is talking about in Romans 8:35-39—an eternal separation from God that is a natural consequence of our sins...

ccc I would like to meditate for a moment on what it means—or what it would be like—to be separated from God. I think many of us—sometimes even Christians—don't think it would be that bad to be separated from God. We consider that many people who don't know God live pretty decent lives here on earth without Him. However, the truth is that God is yet present in this world, working in the lives of believers and unbelievers alike. As Matthew 5:45 says, God “causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Likewise, Psalm 145:16 says of God, “You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” According to James 1:17, “Every good and perfect gift is from above...” God is our source of love (1 John 4:19), our source of life (Isaiah 42:5, Acts 17:25), and the One who sustains us (Ruth 4:15, Nehemiah 9:21, Psalm 3:5). Although God's presence affects the lives of all people now, the same will not be true of eternal life. Some of us will live with Him forever, and some of us will live without Him forever. To be “shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power” is to be separated “from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Forever without God... Forever without love... Forever without the gifts of God that we so often take for granted... Forever without the source of hope and life... It will be an endless, meaningless misery. Sounds kind of like hell, doesn't it?

ccc Because sin is genetic, our natural state, by birth, is to be separated from God. As Colossians 1:21-22 says, “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.” Yes, our natural state is a state of separation from God. But God, through Jesus, has reconciled us to Himself. Jesus paid the price for our sins and we are now “free from accusation.” It is from this position that Paul confidently and rhetorically asks, “Who shall separate us [ the children of God] from the love of Christ?” The answer? No one!

Romans 8:28-32: God is For Us

Within the broader context, this week's key verse (Romans 8:37) is part of a larger section of Scripture beginning with Romans 8:28. The first few verses of this section are particularly relevant to those of us who tend to feel defeated by the enemy: “(28) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose... (31) What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” The statement of verse 31 is, I believe, in response to verse 28 and the preceding discussion of Romans chapter 8. One point I'd like to make is that if God works for our good, as verse 28 tells us, then He is most certainly “for us.” Verse 31 has the conditional statement, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” But it really ought to say, “Because God is for us...” Paul is not questioning whether or not God is on our side. He has already established that God is emphatically on our side, and he underscores this point by following up with verse 32, which adds, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him [Jesus], graciously give us all things?” Yes, God is more “for us” than anyone else on this earth could ever be.

ccc But let's return to Paul's question: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” If we have been called according to God's purpose, the real question we are asking is, “Who can overthrow God's purposes?” The obvious answer is, “No one.” Job said of God, “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2). No one can hinder God's plans and, according to Romans 8:28, His plans are for our good! “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Romans 8:33-34: No Condemnation

Soon after this verse, Paul continues, “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us” (Romans 8:33-34). In these verses it is clear that Paul has a courtroom setting in mind. We are defendants on trial, and Satan—who continually tries to bring charges against us—is the accuser. But who is the Judge? Satan brings the accusations before the Judge, but the Judge has the final say. God is both the One who judges and the One who justifies. Therefore, if we have been chosen, we have nothing to fear from Satan's accusations because we have been justified by God—by the Judge Himself—and we are, therefore, “free from accusation” (Colossians 1:22). Furthermore, if we will accept Him, Jesus is the superior witness who always testifies in our favor. As Romans 8:34 tells us, He is always interceding for us before the Judge!

ccc Make no mistake, we are not innocent, and we must all enter a plea of “guilty” if we are to accept the plea bargain that the Judge is offering. We are in debt, but He Himself has offered to pay the penalty in full. If we do not take the deal, we certainly will be convicted, and the inevitable sentence is death. But if we admit our guilt, then we will be saved... But the price must still be paid: His life for ours.Will I admit my guilt? Will I accept the mercy that God freely offers? “Yes, I am guilty. I accept.” The Judge agrees, the gavel strikes, and Jesus says, “It is finished” (John 19:30)—“paid in full.”

ccc So you see, even though Satan tries to bring charges against each one of us, God will not accept any charges against His children, because their debt has already been paid in full. Zechariah 3:1-2 is a good example of this: “Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. The LORD said to Satan, 'The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?'” God had chosen Joshua, and those He chooses He also justifies (see Zechariah 3:4). To be chosen is to be justified. If we have been chosen by God—if we are “in Christ”—then Satan has nothing on us because Jesus stands in our place at the trial, testifying to God the Father that He has paid our debt. That is why “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

Conclusion

For those of you who, at times, find yourselves oppressed by the enemy, I hope you will be encouraged by these words. Though you may feel defeated by the enemy, you are not. Beware: the enemy's words can come into your mind under the guise of your own thoughts and feelings! This is something that God has been teaching me. Our feelings are not always reliable, and we are under an obligation to disagree with our feelings whenever they disagree with the words of Christ. We must “take captive every thought [or feeling] to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)!

ccc Friends, it is only by knowing God's Word that we can submit to it—not only in our words and deeds, but also in our thoughts and feelings. As Ephesians 6:13-17 says, the Word of God (the Truth) is a powerful weapon against the attacks of the enemy. And, if “the word of God lives in you,” then you can “overcome the evil one” (1 John 2:14). So, decide today whom you will believe. Will you chose to believe the condemning and discouraging words of the enemy? Or will you chose to believe Jesus' words—even though they may contradict your feelings? I hope you will chose to be an overcomer. Why not take God at His word? Hope and trust in Him:

Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and my God.

~ Psalm 43:5 ~