Overview
Christians are overcomers by God’s own design: he does not remove the obstacles, he provides the strength, the wisdom, and encouragement in Christ to overcome them. Rev. Rico Magnelli works through Romans 8, 1 John 5 and Proverbs 3 to show that God promises the victory but not the process to reach it, so the answer may arrive immediately or through a protracted series of steps. Christianity was never designed for God’s children to be victims. Trusting God, refusing to lean to our own understanding, and letting go of what is beyond our control is how the victory he has already embedded in the situation unfolds for us.
Transcript
God’s Design for Christianity Is That His Children Be Overcomers
We want to talk a few minutes about Christians as overcomers. God’s design for Christianity is that his children would be overcomers more than conquerors in life. This does not mean God removes all obstacles and challenges.
Anybody that’s lived a little, you know that that’s not true, but rather he provides the strength, the wisdom, and encouragement in Christ to overcome those challenges. Sometimes the victory is not instant, it’s not immediate, but rather a protracted process. It takes some time and a series of steps perhaps to receive the victory.
God simply promises the victory. He doesn’t necessarily promise the process to reach the victory. So whether it comes immediately or over time or even requiring a number of steps to achieve, God does promise the victory.
And trusting God allows the victory to unfold for us. And these challenges can be in many different categories, but he guides us through the challenges, leads us to the victory. It could be physical, it could be financial, it could be emotional, it could be in relationships, career, job.
The point is simple, that Christianity was never designed for his children to be victims. It was always designed for his children to be victorious because Jesus Christ set the pattern as the first fruits from the dead. Jesus Christ is the firstborn among many brethren and he was victorious in life because he fulfilled God’s will.
Romans 8:28: All Things Work Together for Good to Them That Love God
So he sets the pattern. And here in Romans chapter 8, verse 28, it reads, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. So God has a plan for you in whatever challenge you may be facing.
We see all things coming together for good, not that everything that happens to us is good, but the things that God’s involved in directing and guiding will come to good. But we see it when we love him, when we love him. He set up Christianity for each of his children to be an overcomer, a super conqueror.
It goes on to say, for whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Jesus Christ is the first son of God. And then God has had many children since then, all of us included.
Foreknew, Predestinated, Called, Justified, Glorified
Moreover, whom he did predestinate, then he also called, and whom he called, then he also justified, and whom he justified, then he also glorified. These actions are all done by God himself by way of the accomplished work of Jesus Christ to fulfill man’s redemption. He foreknew us beforehand.
He experienced us before we were even around. He predestinated us, meaning he decides beforehand based on the decisions he knows we will make, and particularly here, he knew that we would believe on his son, Jesus Christ. And therefore, he called.
He also justified. He legally acquitted us of all sin and guilt, and he glorified us. He brought us into union with him, which manifests his glory.
And all this through the accomplished work of Christ, or we could say the faith of Jesus Christ. What shall we then say to these things if God be for us who can be against us? See, God never promises that life is going to be a bed of roses. He just promises that you will be victorious if we engage him, if we partner with him, if we involve him.
If God Be for Us, Who Can Be Against Us?
He that spared not his own son but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifies. In other words, who can condemn anyone that God’s already justified? Nobody. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
So is Christ, with all his accomplished work, is now he going to come back around after he’s saved us and redeemed us through his own blood? Is he going to come back now and condemn us? No. So why do we listen to people that do? Well, I think we need to listen to the accomplished work of Christ as noted in the scripture above what people say. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword? Often these things come through people.
You don’t usually see tribulation coming from the squirrels or the chickens or, you know, that kind of thing. Usually it’s people. They bring distress, persecution, famine, and so forth.
As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Paul is making a point here. He’s saying, I’m going to contrast this with you.
More Than Conquerors Through Him That Loved Us
Hey, we’re not victims. Christianity was never meant to be a group of victim-minded individuals because Christ already gave us the victory. Verse 37, nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors or super conquerors through him that loved us.
Again, there’s that love that keys so much of the victory. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. If love can be separated from us, if we can be separated from the love of God, then we have no shot.
But if we cannot be separated from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord, then we are super conquerors. And that should be our mindset regarding any challenge that comes up. Look at 1 John, please.
1 John 5: Whosoever Is Born of God Overcometh the World
1 John chapter 5. It doesn’t mean that challenges are fun. They can be very daunting. They can be very tempting to overwhelm us.
But that’s why we have God and his word, the accomplished work of Christ, and we have each other to help us. Now, we might not be experiencing a challenge right now. You may or may not be.
But you can always help someone that is. And if you and I are not convinced that Christianity was never intended for us to be victims, then you and I will succumb to the world’s pressure that we’re victims, and therefore we won’t be able to help anybody, really. Chapter 5, verse 1. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ, there’s only one Jesus Christ, he is the Christ, is born of God.
And everyone that loveth him, that begot, that’s God, loveth him also that is begotten of him. Well, we love God, we love Jesus Christ, and we love those that God has begotten, his children. By this we know we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments.
For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments, and his commandments are not grievous. Love is not difficult in the sense that the way the Bible teaches. For whatsoever, or everyone would be a better way to render that, is born of God overcometh the world.
This Is the Victory That Overcometh the World, Even Our Faith
And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Our faith is referring to the faith of Jesus Christ that we have made our own. It’s our faith.
Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the son of God. This stuff is extremely powerful. And you see again how love is so key to being an overcomer.
Because when we love God, we understand that all things work together for good. There is going to be challenges. The world is full of them.
But what we do when we are met with a challenge, we pursue the open door, or the answer, or the solution that God has already embedded in the situation. It’s the way he works. Now again, like I said, that victory, solution, answer may take a series of steps or time to develop and unfold for us.
That’s where trusting God comes in. Look at Proverbs chapter 3. You got to trust him. You and I have to relinquish the challenge to him.
Proverbs 3:5: Trust in the Lord With All Thine Heart
Trust him. And not rely on our own ability, on our own knowledge, on our own resources even. Because he truly wants us to be victorious.
Because it is such a witness to the world that yes, we can be challenged physically, emotionally, financially, in relationships, careers, all the different things. But we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, which is the victory that God has provided for us in Christ Jesus, in whatever situation. It says in Proverbs chapter 3, familiar section, verse 5, trust in the Lord with all thine heart.
I find that this isn’t just a one time I trusted him 10 years ago. I find that this is a daily experiential exercise for me. And lean not unto thine own understanding.
That doesn’t mean you forget your name and your passwords and all that. It means that you don’t trust in your understanding. And this is very challenging for people that have accumulated a lot of experiential knowledge or understanding, especially in a certain discipline or category.
God says don’t trust your own understanding. It doesn’t mean you throw it out. It just means you don’t trust it.
In All Thy Ways Acknowledge Him and He Shall Direct Thy Paths
You trust him. In all thy ways acknowledge him, meaning you seek him out. A great way to seek him out is prayer.
Prayer is a great way to acknowledge him in all your ways. Casting your care to him is a great way to acknowledge him in all your ways. And he shall direct thy paths.
Now if God is guiding you, if God is directing you, you will not stumble and fall. You will not fall in the ditch. You will not be brought into a blind alley.
Now the world will tell you oh you know oh be concerned about this or be concerned about that or what if those endless ad infinitum what if scenarios that life throws at us in whatever category. What if this happened? Well why not trust God? See trusting God also requires a letting go of things beyond our control or our understanding. Now that’s a big one.
Letting Go: Why Holding On to Things Produces Works
Holding on to things can lead to too much of our own involvement and therefore produces works. I’m going to say that again. Holding on to things that we shouldn’t be holding on to can lead to too much of our own involvement, meaning our own thought time, our own trying to figure it out and therefore subtly works creep up on us.
Works are what we do without God. Good works as the Bible talks about it is what we do with him when we partner with him we cast our care to him and then just keep living. He is very capable of communicating to you what you need to know and when you need to know it and if he doesn’t tell you then you don’t need to know just keep living.
It says be not wise in thine own eyes fear or respect the Lord and depart from evil. Absolutely. To depart from evil here in the context one of the things that it would mean is the evil that’s coming in the world to try to get you to rely on your own understanding.
Depart From Evil: Only God Knows Everything
Have you ever met people that know everything? I have. They know everything and in a category they’re very confident in that they know everything. You already know they don’t know because only God knows everything.
So it’s a waste of time to solicit their input. I’ve met people like this and they make me uncomfortable because they’re not humble to their own craft. They think that they figured everything out and there isn’t a person on this earth that has figured out every discipline, biology, physics, chemistry, entertainment or blah blah blah blah blah blah go on construction.
Nobody’s figured it all out only God. So to keep us from that you’ve got to depart from evil because the world wants to mold you into an expert in some category. You got to be careful because then it just foments ego and God is not involved.
I am not saying there’s something wrong with being educated and understanding things. There’s everything great with that but not to the point where we are exclusively the only person that knows everything in this category. It can’t happen.
Health to Thy Navel and Honoring the Lord With Thy Substance
It says it shall be health to thy navel which is referring to your entire body and marrow to thy bone. So there’s health involved here for our lives and he can direct your steps when it’s a health issue that’s you’re not immediately delivered. He can guide you to the right medical people, the right people to pray for you or whatever you need so you can get the victory.
He will direct your steps. That is the wisdom of God. Honor the Lord with thy substance and with the firstfruits of all thy increase.
Yeah, recognizing that the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof is a great thing. All material wealth belongs to him anyway. So shall thy barns be filled with plenty and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
Despise Not the Chastening of the Lord: Correction as Instruction
My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, neither be weary of his correction. Chastening here is instruction. He guides gently but consistently.
It’s whether we’re listening and recognizing him at work and sometimes you know what? He’s working with people around us to help us because he knows that perhaps Rico doesn’t really get this point so he’s going to work with people around us to help us. See it all the time. For whom the Lord loveth, he correcteth.
Look at this. He loves so he corrects, he instructs even as the father of the son in whom sometimes what it is, his instruction is, well that didn’t produce the right fruit in my life. Maybe I need to make an adjustment there.
Sometimes that’s the instruction because it’s not producing the right fruit, the right spiritual fruit in my life so I just need to make an adjustment and that’s part of his instruction because he doesn’t endorse it because it doesn’t have the right fruit. Happy is the man that findeth wisdom. Those are the paths that are directed by God and the man that getteth understanding for the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver and the gain thereof than fine gold.
Wisdom’s Ways Are Pleasantness and All Her Paths Are Peace
She, wisdom, speaking of it in the feminine, is more precious than rubies and all the things that thou canst desire not to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand and in her left hand riches and honor. Her ways, speaking of wisdom, are ways of pleasantness.
Now watch this. And all her paths are what? Peace. That’s a great indication that you’re on the right track by him directing your steps.
The world won’t have peace. You’ll have peace. Fantastic.
You’ll have that inner quiet welfare and completeness because he is guiding your steps. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her and happy is everyone that retaineth her. The Lord, by wisdom, hath founded the earth.
The Lord by Wisdom Hath Founded the Earth: Nature Shows How God Guides
By understanding hath he established the heavens. So nature is a great illustration. Nature takes its cues from what God set up.
He directs the paths of nature. He does it. And you can follow those paths, animals, plants, many different things, water, and you can learn how God guides.
He directs paths in the right way. Amazing. By his knowledge, the depths are broken up and the clouds drop down the dew.
I mean, isn’t it convenient that rain falls from the sky and comes down to the ground and not the other way? I mean, he just thought about all this. My son, let not them depart from mine eyes. Keep sound wisdom and discretion.
Thy Foot Shall Not Stumble and Thy Sleep Shall Be Sweet
So shall they be life unto thy soul and grace to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely and thy foot shall not stumble. The world and people around you may stumble.
They may walk into walls, but that’s not you because your paths are directed by the one true God because you trust him completely. That’s right. When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid.
Yea, thou shalt lie down and thy sleep shall be sweet. What a great benefit. That sleep that restores our physical bodies, that gives us the refreshing that we need to take on a new day.
Be not afraid of sudden fear. This is a big one. Neither of the desolation of the wicked when it cometh.
The Lord Shall Be Thy Confidence: Jesus Christ, the Quintessential Overcomer
For the Lord shall be thy confidence and shall keep thy foot from being taken. We trust in him and it yields safety, sweet sleep, and confidence. Maybe you’re not confident in a situation.
The Lord says he will be your confidence when we’re tempted to be afraid. The world promotes sudden fear. Like I said, what if scenarios? What if this? What if that? I mean they do it ad infinitum, endlessly.
So you stop listening to that and we get back to the book, the Bible, and we realize that God has called us individually and collectively in Christianity to be overcomers. The challenges will be there but he will guide our steps. He will guide our paths so we can navigate each challenge whether it has immediate deliverance and victory or it’s a more extended process.
God already has the answers. He has the right people. He has whatever you need to bring victory in that situation and you can’t get a better example than Jesus Christ because he is the quintessential overcomer.
Key Takeaways
- God’s design for Christianity is that his children would be overcomers, more than conquerors in life. This does not mean God removes all obstacles and challenges, but rather he provides the strength, the wisdom, and encouragement in Christ to overcome those challenges.
- God simply promises the victory. He doesn’t necessarily promise the process to reach the victory, so whether it comes immediately or over time or even requiring a number of steps to achieve, God does promise the victory.
- Christianity was never designed for his children to be victims. It was always designed for his children to be victorious, because Jesus Christ set the pattern as the first fruits from the dead.
- Love is what keys the victory. If we cannot be separated from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord, then we are super conquerors, and that should be our mindset regarding any challenge that comes up.
- Trusting God also requires a letting go of things beyond our control or our understanding, because holding on leads to too much of our own involvement, and works are what we do without God.
- Wisdom’s ways are ways of pleasantness and all her paths are peace. Peace is a great indication that you’re on the right track by him directing your steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does being an overcomer mean God removes a Christian’s problems?
No. This does not mean God removes all obstacles and challenges, but rather he provides the strength, the wisdom, and encouragement in Christ to overcome those challenges. God simply promises the victory. He doesn’t necessarily promise the process to reach the victory, so whether it comes immediately or over time or even requiring a number of steps to achieve, God does promise the victory.
What does 1 John 5 say is the victory that overcometh the world?
Everyone that is born of God overcometh the world, and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Our faith is referring to the faith of Jesus Christ that we have made our own. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the son of God. Love is so key to being an overcomer, because when we love God, we understand that all things work together for good.
What does it mean to lean not unto thine own understanding?
That doesn’t mean you forget your name and your passwords and all that. It means that you don’t trust in your understanding. It doesn’t mean you throw it out, it just means you don’t trust it. You trust him. In all thy ways acknowledge him, meaning you seek him out, and a great way to seek him out is prayer. Casting your care to him is a great way to acknowledge him in all your ways.
Scripture References
Romans 8:28; Romans 8:37; 1 John 5:1; Proverbs 3:5
This text was prepared from the teaching audio. Please verify scripture references against your own Bible.
