“And this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4
Dear Ones;
The elderly Apostle John, who had in essence, “climbed the steep ascent of heaven, through peril, toil, and pain,” commands our attention in one of his last letters, with the fact that faith is KEY to knowing the victory that is in Christ. It is one thing to talk about victory, even to preach it. It is quite another thing to LIVE it, know the veracity of it, and experience its power. But, is our faith “true faith?” Is it of a quality and nature that God will respond and meet us in the area of our need, and in our circumstances?
Jesus once used the illustration of two houses built upon two foundations, one upon a rock and the other on sand. The “faith” of the world, built upon the sand, is that confidence and reliance upon the speculations, philosophies, and imaginations of men. It can also be based upon the facts of creation, without any consideration of the Creator. But TRUE faith is that which is “born of God,” comes from God, and is inseparably one with the nature and disposition of God. It is founded solely, and thus, wholly, upon the holy nature of God, and the expression of that nature in the word of God. Why? Because there is NO discord, disassociation, or divergence in essence between the nature of God and His Word. He IS what He says, and will always act accordingly. True faith is based upon the Rock, the Lord Jesus, and every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Paul put it like this: “…for they (our fathers) drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” (1 Cor. 10:4) So, what does the knowledge of true faith have to do with the “victory that overcomes the world?”
True Christianity is not a religion of men, nor of the imaginations of men. It is a declared and proclaimed relationship between God and men, where God intervenes in the individual life, first of all to give LIFE. From the point of the new birth onward, the great issue becomes that of receiving this eternal, victorious life of Christ by faith. This life is lived by dependence upon the revelation and power of the Spirit, whereby the believer and disciple, appropriates this most blessed Life from heaven, that of the Lord Jesus. It is a matter of partaking of the living bread and water, of abiding in Christ, of receiving BY FAITH that which has been given, and promised. In the measure that Christ’s life is appropriated, HIS victory over sin, the world, and Satan, will be realized, seen, and known in our lives. Christ shall be formed in us, in an ever-increasing manner. His victory, which shall be our own, will then be revealed in this world in and through us, for His glory and honor.
Dear Father, give us Your vision of how this life of faith is to be lived. Strengthen us this day to “open our mouths wide,” receiving from Thee by the Spirit, all in Christ that is needful, to live this life…overcoming the world. Grant us grace today to take our stand upon the Rock, live by Him, and for Him. Then, You shall be truly honored, and we shall be victors indeed. We thank and praise Thee for so great a salvation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad