IF GOD BE FOR US

"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?" (Romans 8:31b, 32).

 

During our fellowship meeting recently, a young lady requested that we sing the old hymn "Victory In Jesus" by E. M. Bartlett.  I was blessed and moved by this classic Christian hymn as I considered just how complete is this salvation that God has secured for us in Christ Jesus.  His love is so great for us that He did not withhold even His beloved Son to guarantee our victory.

 

The apostle Paul, in his letter to the Ephesian church, urges the believers to "stand against the wiles of the devil."  He expands this concept of "standing" in the sixth chapter when he says, "Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness..." (Ephesians 6:13, 14a).  We, too, often think of our Christian walk in terms of the ground that we have to take, rather than the ground that has already been taken for us, and which we now simply must defend.  Christ has already won the victory - we must stand, therefore, in the victory that He has won.  Has Jesus overcome sin?  Then we have overcome sin in Him.  Has Jesus overcome Satan?  Then we have overcome Satan in Him.  Has Jesus overcome sorrow, heartache, disappointments, betrayal, and discouragement?  Then, so have we in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Best of all, because Christ is risen from the dead, and now lives in the power of a resurrected life, so, too, can we.  "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20).  Our faith is the victory that overcomes the world.  If we are born of God, we are overcomers already if we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and that He has overcome (1 John 1:4, 5).  What we must do then is to yield our bodies to Christ and let His righteousness become a reality in our day to day walk.  If we are attached to the True Vine, then the Life that is in Him will naturally flow into us and we will bear the fruit of righteousness.

 

When Israel had come out of the wilderness and was preparing to claim the Promised Land, Balak, the king of Moab, became frightened that Israel might rise up, destroy his people, and take his land for themselves.  His plan was to enlist the help of a man by the name of Balaam, who was considered a diviner, and have him pronounce a curse on Israel in exchange for position and wealth.  Three times Balaam tried to curse the Israelites, and three times God forbade him to do so.  Finally, Balaam tells Balak that God is not a mere man that says one thing and does another.  If God has said it, will he not do it?  He tells Balak, "Behold, I have received commandment [from God] to bless: and He hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it." (Numbers 23:20).  He goes on to tell Balak several important things:

 

1.      God had not beheld iniquity or perversity in Israel;
2.      The Lord God was with Israel;
3.      The shout of a King was among them;
4.      God had delivered them from Egypt;
5.      No enchantment or divination would work against Israel; and
6.      It would be said of Israel, "What hath God wrought."

 

Do you see that God has also given commandment to bless those who are in Christ Jesus?  Do you understand that this blessing cannot be reversed or voided unless we ourselves choose to walk away from it?  The six things that were true of Israel are true of us as well.  First, God does not behold iniquity in us if we are in Christ.  Though we have sinned, when we place our sins under the blood of Christ, God no longer sees them, but sees the perfection of His dear Son.  Second, God is for us now, and not against us.  Third, there is the shout of a King among us because the King Jesus Christ has taken His place by the throne of God.  Fourth, God has delivered us from our past lives (Egypt) so that we can serve Him in newness of life.  Fifth, there is no power in Satan's arsenal that can defeat us.  No curse, no enchantment, or any dark art can have any effect on God's children as they trust in their Lord.  And finally, it will always be said of us, "What hath God wrought," because it is He Who works in us, giving us the willingness and the ability to perform the good pleasure of His will (Philippians 2:13).

 

If you are experiencing difficulty right now - some hardship, disappointment, or struggle - do not despair, God is with you.  He will never leave you or forsake you.  He is with us even through the valley of the shadow of death.  There is nothing that we can face in this life that our Savior has not already gone through and conquered for us.  Place your life in Christ and you'll find that He will shelter you from the storms that come into all our lives.  Even though Jesus was the Son of God, He still learned obedience by the things that He suffered.  Are we any better than our Lord?  Remember: if God is for us - and He is! - who or what can be against us?

 

"Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints..." (Ephesians 6:14-18).