Victory!

“This IS the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith (1 John 5:4).”

“But thanks be to God who IS GIVING us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:58).”

“Nay, in all these things we ARE more than conquerors through Him that loved us (Romans 8:37).”

“Now thanks be to God Who ALWAYS CAUSES us to triumph in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14).”

“I AM the Way, the Truth, and the life (John 14:6).”

We are not working from defeat to victory, but from victory to victory. Victory is not a point of departure or even a destination. IT IS A WAY OF GOING. It does not rest on what we are, have done, or are doing. It rests on Him-the Lord Jesus Christ who is the VICTOR. In short, since victory is a way of going and Jesus is the way, VICTORY IS SIMPLY JESUS CHRIST. You cannot have victory without a victor.

“Christ is living the victorious life today; and Christ is your life. Let Him do it all. Your effort or trying had nothing to do with the salvation which you have in Christ; in exactly the same way your effort and trying can have nothing to do with the complete victory which Christ alone has achieved for you and can steadily achieve in you” (Charles Trumbull).

“Victory is ever and only God’s order of the day. It is something we already possess. It is the Christian’s right as truly as the air he breathes. However, he must understand the conditions. He must see himself enthroned with Christ. He must see himself according to God’s own Holy Word, as crucified with Christ, dead, buried, raised and made to sit in heavenly places with his Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ” (F.J. Huegel).

It is impossible to get something you already have. This is the reason that many people are not walking in victory. They are seeking an experience in which something which they do not have will become theirs. What do you have need of that you do not have? Think on the answer for a moment. You will find yourself thinking of many things that you do not apparently have, that is they have not become obvious to you. You will find, regardless of how long and deeply you think, that you cannot think of anything that you do not already have. “Christ is all” (Colossians 2:10). “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9).”

We have the victory because we have Him who has won the victory. Our faith in Him brings the victory which is already in us to light. As we reckon it continuously by faith, He continues to make it real.

But alas, dear reader, this does not mean that you are walking now in victory! In fact, it may be that at this very hour you have been confronted by a problem of such nature that your victory is seemingly gone. You are thinking, “If this is victory, I wonder what defeat is like!” To have victory as a possession does not mean that you have victory as a practice.

You can own a Cadillac and walk!

You can have groceries and go hungry!

You can have friends and be lonely!

You can have the’ Holy Spirit and be motivated by the devil!

YOU CAN HAVE THE VICTORY AND BE LIVING IN DEFEAT!

Jack R. Taylor, Victory over the Devil (Bedford, TX: Burkhart Books, 2013), 113–114.