Claim the Victory

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57)

Have you ever assumed a task “for the Lord” fully confident that you had all the skills, talent, and training necessary to perform the task with excellence only to have the fruits of your labor shrivel on the vine? Conversely, have you ever refused to assume a roll of responsibility in some ministry because you felt unqualified or unworthy? The problem with either scenario is self-reliance rather than “Christ-reliance.”

A good example of both of these cases is the Apostle Peter walking on the water (Matthew 14:23-33). When the disciples saw Jesus walking on the water they were fearful thinking that He was a ghost. Once Jesus had identified Himself, impetuous Peter said, “Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water” (v. 28). Peter wasted no time getting out of the boat when Jesus bid him to come. He was confident in his own abilities at first, and he trusted that Jesus could make him walk on the water. And he did! – for a while. But then he took his eyes off of Jesus and noticed the winds and the waves and the overwhelming laws of physics that would deny him such a feat. That is when he sank. “And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (v. 31) Peter! Did you not know that God has given you the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ?

Paul writes, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13). Jesus said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5). So whether we have all the talent, skills and abilities in the world, or we feel that we have nothing to offer, the power to do whatever He asks will only come when we claim and rely on His victory, not our own abilities.

Seeing Is Not Believing

But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. (John 20:31)

Our text follows our Lord’s appearance to Thomas. Thomas had heard the news that Jesus had risen from the dead, but he refused to believe it. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe” (John 20:25). Often we too can be like Thomas. Unless we see some evidence, we are unwilling to take God at His word and believe His promises to us. It matters not that the whole of creation proclaims His glory: “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen” (Romans 1:20); yet we insist on seeing something new, something fresh.

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews says that “faith is the substance [Greek: hupóstasis – a setting under, a support or a foundation] of things hoped for, the evidence [Greek: élengchos – proof or conviction] of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Abraham is someone who had faith in “things not seen.” God promised Abraham that his descendents would be numbered as the stars in the heavens. At the time, Abraham was childless and far advanced in years. He sojourned from place to place without a parcel of land to call his own, much less an heir to establish a nation. Yet “he believed in the Lord; and he [the Lord] counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6).

It is “through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” (Hebrews 11:3). “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). God gave us His Word so that we could believe without seeing.

The Same Old Story

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Genesis 3:6)

Solomon lamentably commenting on human affairs rightly stated, “there is no new thing under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Satan’s tactics have not changed. He still tries to cast doubt on God’s Word: “Yea, hath God said, ‘Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden’" (Genesis 3:1). He still attempts to defame God’s Word: “Ye shall not surely die!” (Genesis 3:4), and he still endeavors to denigrate God’s character: “God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5).

Sadly, humans still fall for the same old temptations: “the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life” (1 John 2:16). From our text, “the woman saw that the tree was good for food” – the lust of the flesh; “it was a pleasant to the eyes” – the lust of the eyes, and “a tree to be desired to make one wise” – the pride of life.

In 6000 years, nothing has changed; Satan still employs the same strategies, and people still fall for the same old temptations. The good news is that “when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). To all who believe in Him, He has given the power to become sons of God (John 1:12), and with that power comes the strength to “resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). For the believer, it does not have to be the same old story!