Living Victoriously

In preparation for preaching next Sunday, God's Word keeps asking me a question, "How does one live victoriously?". Not just the occasional moments of triumph and success like making a last second jump shoot 3-pointer or scoring a touchdown for victory in Ultimate Frisbee. I mean how do I (and how do we) live a life that is victorious daily? A life that overcomes (1 John 5:4*)? A life where we are more than "conquerors" (Romans 8:37**)?

How do I live as an "overcomer" every single day?

There is a recent song in the radio by Christian singer Mandisa called "overcomer" with a catchy tune. At first, the song sounds like your typical pop song driving down the road. However, there is biblical message found in the chorus that God is upholding us.

"You're an overcomer Stay in the fight ‘til the final round You're not going under ‘Cause God is holding you right now You might be down for a moment Feeling like it's hopeless That's when He reminds You That you're an overcomer You're an overcomer"

Ephesians 6:10-13 says, "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

So, yes it is possible to live a victorious life daily. But, I will also say, that it is not as easy as it sounds. Just like this passage says, we Christians are not fighting against what we can see (flesh and blood) but against what we cannot see (cosmic powers and spiritual forces). And trust me, it is a lot harder to fight things that you cannot see! Just imagine trying to stand up against or fight Invisible Woman...it's almost impossible to overcome what you cannot see, feel, or touch.

The beauty of Scripture, however, is that God has GIVEN us what we NEED to be an OVERCOMER. We are strong in the Lord and strength of His might when we accept, use, and put on God's armor: His helmet of Salvation, His breastplate of Righteousness, His belt of Truth, His sandals of the Gospel, His shield of Faith, and His sword of the Spirit. For the reminder from Ephesians is our battle is a spiritual one and an important one. And most importantly, we have a victorious Savior and Lord Jesus Christ who has already won the victory at the Cross (1 Corinthians 15:57***). We no longer have to be afraid but we can trust in His promises.

*1 John 5:4 says, "For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith"

**Romans 8:37 says, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."

***1 Corinthians 15:57 says, "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."