Walking in Victory

Many Christians today are living day after day in quiet defeat. Maybe we are among those who would say, “My days are a series of small defeats and clusters of sin that I just can’t seem to overcome.”  That may be true, but it doesn’t have to be that way. God has given us what we need to live every day in victory.  First, we receive the strength that we need from the Holy Spirit who resides in us.  Second, we receive a detailed strategy for victorious living in the pages of the Word of God.    If we have these keys to walking in victory, why aren’t we?  The answer is…US. We have the Holy Spirit.  We have the Word of God.  But you can have the Holy Spirit within you and read the Bible every day and still live a defeated life because you choose to ignore them both and follow after the flesh.

In Romans 13:14 we are given a genuine, hands-on strategy to live the kind of life we’d like to be living when Christ returns.  This verse has two calls to action:

1. Put on Christ
2. Make no provision for the flesh

What do these mean?  Let’s look at them one at a time.

1. What does it mean to “put on Christ?”  Ray Stedman suggests this approach:  “When I get up in the morning, I put on my clothes, intending them to be a part of me all day, to go where I go and do what I do.  They cover me and make me presentable to others.  That is the purpose of clothes.  In the same way, the apostle is saying to us, ‘Put on Jesus Christ when you get up in the morning.  Make Him a part of your life that day.  intend that He go with you everywhere you go, and that He act through you in everything you do…”
2. What does it mean to “make no provision for the flesh?”  The Bible tells us that we are to flee from four things: Idolatry, Youthful lusts, Materialism and Sexual immorality. 

The enemy of your soul has a broad arsenal of weapons that he will use to try to steal from you, kill you, and destroy you.  But you are not helpless.  You have been given what you need to walk in victory. 

The next time you are faced with temptation, remember to listen to the Holy Spirit, hold firmly to the Sword of the Spirit (the Word of God), and remember the price that was paid to purchase your salvation (Jesus’ death on the cross).  You’ve been given the keys to walk in victory.  Now it’s time to use them. 

(adapted from Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World by Dr. David Jeremiah)