Victory in Jesus

Sunday Morning  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  51:28
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What is victory? Victory can be defined as a successful ending. So what is success and how do we measure it? Jennifer Herrity wrote in 10 Tips To Become Successful and Achieve Your Life Goals that “success is a concept that's different for every person. Whether it means having a great career, a home or a family, success is something everyone strives to achieve.” Now look at this definition again “success is a concept that’s different for every person.” So, who defines success? Too often we allow people who have what the world deems success - the big house, the fancy car, the important job, the best looking partner - to determine what success is. But to some, success is to enjoy life. To others, success is seeing our children grow into productive citizens. It might be that we finally achieve a managerial position at work. Others might find success when they’re able to retire. Success is in the eye of the beholder. Now, we are able to gauge success compared to our views of what success is and when our views are met…we have become victorious in achieving success!
But…do we always feel victorious? No, there are times where “life” seems to just beat us down, make us feel defeated. It might be that we don’t think we are achieving our goals fast enough. Maybe the house we live in isn’t what we want. Maybe we would like a newer car, a more robust bank account, and we could go on and on and on. We will all face times where we do not feel victorious. In life, and in our faith.
Wait, our faith?
Yes, our faith. Has anyone here ever felt as though they just weren’t where God wanted them to be in their life? Have they ever had that nagging feeling that God just wasn’t satisfied with our efforts? Like we were not successful in our Christian walk, or in attaining the spiritual goals we should? Maybe we just don’t know where God wants us to be… Life knocks us down enough as it is, and Satan uses that (both life and spiritual shortcomings)as an opportunity to hammer us. But God. You see, we are told that we have Victory in Jesus.
Victory in Jesus is a successful ending to troublesome life. We are told in John 16:33 “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” We know that this life does not guarantee us smooth sailing. Scripture tells us that this world is ruled by the prince of darkness. This world is in contrast with Godliness. Billy Graham made this observation “The Bible teaches that worldliness is a force, a spirit, an atmosphere of the cosmos that is in opposition and in contradiction to all that is godly and Christian. Its goal is selfish pleasure, material success, and the pride of life. It is ambitious and self-centered. God is not necessarily denied; He is just ignored and forgotten.”
So how are we victorious in this life as a Christian? Romans 8:37 tells us
Romans 8:37 ESV
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Remember this song?
I heard an old, old story how a Savior came from glory, How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me; I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood’s atoning, Then I repented of my sins and won the victory.
O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever. He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood; He loved me ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him, He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.
You see, we are already victorious in Jesus Christ!

Flesh and Blood

1 Corinthians 15:50–52 ESV
50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
Our victory begins upon our profession of faith - our conversion - and we receive eternal life as our reward. So, our victory cannot be fully enjoyed in this world. In our human flesh, although we are saved, we still struggle with the sin flesh. As a result, this sinful flesh cannot attain the perfection of our victory. It is through death that we are completely changed and become incorruptible and can have the privilege of living in Heaven - the Kingdom of God. The main theme here is the human body cannot enter the Kingdom, it must be changed - corruptible to incorruptible. This isn’t just a spiritual change, a change in our thoughts and mind, but a totally remade body. Paul tells us in 2 Cor 5:8 that those who die in the Lord will be present with Him in heaven.
2 Corinthians 5:8 NKJV
8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.
But he also gives us insight into the mystery - a revelation - that will occur to all believers who are alive at the end times. We shall not all sleep. Not every believer will pass away before the return of Christ. Those who are alive will be changed. Changed from sinful mortality to perfect and immortal. This change from humanity to spiritual - in the twinkling of an eye. One commentary makes this statement - the word moment (atomos) means indivisible, that which cannot be cut. It is the word from which we get the English word atom. The idea is that the resurrection will take place so quickly that the time could not be divided into two moments - literally before we could blink our eyes. This occurs at the last trumpet - at the end of the world - when our bodies will be resurrected from death, and those alive will change also.
1 Thessalonians 4:15–17 ESV
15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
We are victorious either in death, or in life!

Perishable to Imperishable

1 Corinthians 15:53–54 ESV
53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
As stated before, this human body - the perishable - cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. As a result, the mortal must put on immortality. How are we made immortal? We are transformed into the spiritual, given a spiritual body that will never age, deteriorate, die, or decay. It will be free from sin, defilement, depravity. We will be made perfect - completely opposite of what we are now - and it is this perfected body that will be allowed into heaven, in the presence of God, and will reside with Him for eternity. We are victorious IF we have accepted Him as our personal Savior!
Notice the word "must”. There is no other way in which we can enter heaven. Just as with salvation - we can have no chance of heaven without a transformation of spirit. We cannot enter heaven without having the transformation of body - but it is this transformed body that is absolutely necessary if we are to live forever.
Luke 20:36 ESV
36 for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
Death is not to be dreaded, instead it is the key to our eternal victory!
1 Corinthians 15:55–57 ESV
55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Death holds NO VICTORY! You see, we as believers have OVERCOME THE GRAVE. We, as believers, can face death with no fear and with the assurance of our eternity.
We have overcome the sting of death. The sting comes from sin. If we remember in Genesis 2:17 it was sin that brought about the beginning of death.
Genesis 2:17 ESV
17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
You shall surely die. Death entered this world through disobedience - sin against God Almighty. We have had to suffer the consequences of that since that time and will until the end of time. Simply put, by disobeying God, Adam failed to choose life with God and death was the consequence. Death is literally the penalty of sin.
Romans 6:23 ESV
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Now, would Adam and Eve faced a physical death if they had not sinned? Who knows. However, sin caused a separation from God and death was an undesirable but necessary result of disobedience.
BUT. I love that word. But changed it all for us. But gave us an option to obtain victory by accepting the free gift offered through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 5:8 ESV
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
You see, even though we choose to disobey God still loved us so much that he offered a way for us to choose Him instead. In choosing Him, we must accept His Son, Jesus Christ, who died as a substitute for us AND our sins. And it is as simple as calling on Him.
Romans 10:13 ESV
13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
You see, conviction brings our sin to light. Light illuminates the darkness and shows our need for Christ. Confession acknowledges our sins to God. Calling admits our sins, and conversion is the result.
Romans 10:9–10 ESV
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
Victory is in Jesus.

Closing

So how do we assure ourselves of this victory?
1 John 5:4–5 ESV
4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
We are assured of our victory through faith.
Faith - a constant outlook of trust and dependence toward God.
But even with our faith, we know things will not always be easy.
Romans 5:1–5 ESV
1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Do you have that hope? Do you have that faith? Do you have victory?
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