Thursday, January 30, 2014

Victorious Faith


How many adjectives can we use to describe the profound blessings of faith in our lives?  We could start making lists and find the answer to be a lot.  Some of our answers would be synonymous with others and some would reveal promises we may not have yet explored.  Colossians 2:6 is one of my favorite verses.  It says simply, “As you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, so walk in Him.”  We received Him by faith.  We trusted what God said and moved by the Holy Spirit, we responded and believed in Christ.  Now we are to walk by faith.  Still, it is a matter of believing what God has said, and being convinced of the same by the Holy Spirit, we walk in faith of the promises given.  
One kind of faith that we need to believe God provides is victorious faith.  In I John 5:4 John wrote, “This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.”  Paul shared in I Corinthians 15 that faith gives us victory over death.  John told us in Revelation 15 that faith gives us victory over the devil.  When we stop to consider all the areas covered by victory over the world, the devil and death, we begin to see great promise in our life for victory in so many situations that we encounter daily.  I John 2 tells us that our three great enemies are the world, the flesh and the devil.  Since our flesh cries out for immortality, the victory over death also covers victory over the flesh. 
When we are tempted by the world, the flesh and the devil, we can respond by saying that Jesus overcame these three enemies.  I am in Jesus.  Therefore I can overcome these three enemies.  That is placing our faith in Him, not in us.  That is walking by faith in this one area of victory.  But we don’t always say that do we?  We give in and upon reflection and conviction we know we shouldn’t have.  Then we have guilt.  Faith gives us the victory over guilt as well.  Jesus Christ is alive.  He promises forgiveness that is absolutely complete.  We can confess our sin and know that we are washed completely from it.  There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, wrote Paul.  So we have the victory over Satan’s accusations by faith in the promises of God.  What a grand thing is victorious faith. 
John Yates wrote the hymn “Faith is the Victory”.  Sing with confidence these lines.

Encamped along the hills of light, ye Christian soldiers rise, and press the battle ere the night shall veil the glowing skies. Against the foe in vales below let all our strength be hurled; faith is the victory, we know, that overcomes the world.  Faith is the victory! Faith is the victory! O glorious victory that overcomes the world.

You can contact me and find inspiring Christian books at my website: www.davidccraig.net
You may also find some of my selected daily devotions at http://blog.febc.org/
You may also enjoy my new Gospel dog blog, The Gospel According to Molly and my new Alzheimer’s blog, “Taking Care of Joe: An Alzheimer’s Blog” found on my website.  

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