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Overcoming In Christ
What it is.   How to do it.  Why it is Necessary.
by David A. DePra
     The Greek word commonly translated "overcome" in the Bible
carries no surprising meaning. It simply means "to win a victory;"
"to stand victorious over an enemy." It pretty much means the
same thing that the English word "overcome" means.
     But having established that, what IS "overcoming" in the
Biblical sense? How does a Christian overcome? And WHY
must we overcome?
 
Defining "Overcoming"
 
     To "overcome," in the Biblical sense, means to live in the
victory of Jesus Christ. It means to live in victory OVER the old
nature, and to live in victory UNDER the new nature. To
overcome in Christ, I must appropriate, in practical living, the
victory purchased by Jesus through His Redemption.
     Never confuse "overcoming" with "being saved." I am saved,
all at once, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. But once I am
saved, I must then "work out my salvation." I must, through a
series of life-long choices, allow the redemption which saves
me, to grow to possess me. I must become a personification of
grace in my practical living.
     Overcoming, by definition, involves warfare. I must stand in
the victory of Jesus Christ, refusing the old, and yielding to the
new. I must do this, for God will not do this for me. "He that
overcomes" is a qualifying mark given to those who are to reign
and rule with Jesus Christ.
 
A Victory Secured
 
     There is a primary reason why Christians fail to overcome, and
fail to experience what Jesus Christ has won for them. That
reason is unbelief. But not many of us actually sit down and
decide to doubt God. Our unbelief is usually more indirect. At
the root of it is often one basic error: We don't believe the
victory of Jesus Christ is finished for us. We still think we must
win the victory.
     As long as I think I must "win the victory" in order to overcome,
I will not get far with God. Instead, I will be mired in confusion,
guilt, and condemnation -- all enemies of the Truth. I could
come to be governed by these enemies, and end up totally
deceived. But no. The Bible reveals that I must never try to
overcome SO THAT I might enter into the victory of Jesus Christ.
It reveals that I can overcome BECAUSE His victory is already
secure.
     Do you see the big difference? Many of us try to overcome so
that we can experience Christ's victory. The Truth states that
Christ's finished victory is the very means by which we must
overcome.
     This is foundational Christianity. It is not a "side-issue," or a
doctrinal distinction. It is a Truth, which, for two thousand years,
has been misrepresented, denied, and buried beneath an
avalanche of legalism and religion.
     It is vital that Christians get it settled once and for all: The
victory of Jesus Christ is finished. Our warfare is never to WIN
ground; to WIN the victory. It is not. Our warfare is to HOLD
ground. We already possess the victory in Jesus Christ.
 
Faith is Not Passive
 
     When God talks about "he that overcometh," He is talking
about someone who believes that the victory over the enemy is
already finished by Jesus Christ. He is talking about someone
who, because of this faith, has obeyed God, and has taken
possession of areas of his life that were formerly occupied and
controlled by the old nature.
     If we are to overcome, we MUST operate from victory; from
the position of the finished victory of Jesus Christ. We must
stand by faith in this finished victory at all costs. But how do we
do that, practically speaking? Do we "just stand" there,
passively reciting Bible verses about victory?
     To stand by faith in Christ's finished victory "sounds" passive.
'To "rest" in the finished work of Christ "sounds" even more
passive. But real faith is never passive. Real faith is never void of
works. Indeed, Godly faith involves many choices and many
works. It is a lifelong warfare, journey, and process -- achieved
by much obedience.
     Faith is not passive. It is primary a stand. But AS we stand
we obey. We "work out our salvation," and "we work out our
stand." Standing by faith will cost us everything of the flesh, yet
result in our possessing all things in Jesus Christ.
 
A Balance
 
     Once we realize that faith is not passive, however, it is quite
possible that we could go to the opposite extreme. In other
words, if faith is active, well, then let's launch out in faith! If we
ARE responsible for overcoming, then let's work ourselves up
into a lifelong complex over it! Let us constantly fret and worry
about whether we are overcoming and growing.
     Many Christians have done just that. They have created a
kind of LEGALISM out of spiritual growth and overcoming. They
have turned overcoming into something they must do in order to
win a full eternal reward. They have made it a contest they must
win if they are going to qualify for what God has for them in the
eternal ages. And in doing so, they have made themselves into
defeated wrecks.
     There is obviously a perfect balance in all of this. But that
balance cannot be learned from a book, or even by merely
studying the Bible. It is learned by falling into the hands of the
living God. If we will do that, we will find that it is possible to
overcome the enemy, and to take possession of our inheritance
in Jesus Christ -- and to do it all by STANDING and RESTING.
We will learn to overcome by faith in the finished work of Jesus
Christ.
 
The Promised Land
 
      The most complete example of how to enter and possess the
victory of Jesus Christ is found in the Old Testament. God's
promise to Israel of the promised land, and their struggle to enter
and take possession, is a picture of the believer's relationship to
the victory of Jesus Christ.
     If we turn to Numbers 13, we find Israel encamped on the
outskirts of the promised land. After 430 years of captivity, and
after their journey out of captivity from Egypt, they had now come
to the place where God had promised to bring them. They were
free. They had arrived. It almost seemed too good to be true.
It is important to gain a perspective here. We need to try to
put ourselves in Israel's place. Here we have a people who had
never known anything but slavery. Not one of them had ever
been free. Freedom, the possession of their own land, and the
responsibilities before God which came with it, were all new to
them. They could hardly know how to act.
     Here we find the first parallel to our Christian freedom. The
children of Israel typify us -- after we have been set free from
sin and flesh -- but before we have really done any "working
out" of that victory.
     As Christians, we are set free by the Redemption of Jesus
Christ. It is a one-time event which translates us from the realm
of darkness into the light. At that point, we are free -- in fact
and in reality. Every enemy of God has been utterly and
completely defeated in our lives. There is nothing we must do,
nor can do, to make it more true. And there is nothing anyone
can do to take it away from us. But none of this means we have
manifested a thing. Indeed, we probably know almost nothing
about what our freedom means. We are like Israel, free indeed,
but equipped only with the experience and knowledge of being a
slave. We, as Israel was at that point, are merely encamped on
the outskirts of the promised land. Yes, everything God has given
us in Jesus Christ is ours, free of charge, solely by grace. But we
have yet to "set our foot" on any of this "land." We have yet to live
in the place where God has brought us.
     It is at this point that God says to us, "Go spy out the land."
(see Numbers 13:1) He is saying, "I am going to begin to give
you a glimpse of what I have prepared for you." And He does
give us a glimpse. We begin to see the tremendous riches in
Christ Jesus. Perhaps we even eat some of the grapes of Eshcol
(see Num. 13:24), that is, perhaps God's gives us a taste of what
is in store for us without yet requiring that we overcome anything.
And then, when He is done, He says, "Now go up and actually
take possession. I have given it to you. Believe and receive it."
That sounds great. Israel thought it was wonderful. They
thought it was wonderful, that is, until they actually spied out the
land. The spies actually saw exactly what God had promised.
The land flowed with milk and honey. (Num. 13:27) But they
also saw much more -- things which Israel had not expected.
They saw strong enemies, walled cities, and giants.
     How disheartening this must have been! God had led them
out of Egypt to bring them to this? Israel felt betrayed. In fact,
they said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they
are stronger than we...Would God that we had died in the land of
Egypt! Or would God that we had died in the wilderness!" And
then they added, "Let us make a captain and let us return to
Epypt."
     Have you ever felt as if God has promised you freedom, only
to face you with walled cities? Have you ever rejoiced in the way
God has overturned one enemy, only to find yourself facing
another enemy? Have you ever felt as if God has betrayed you
by allowing you to think things would get better, only to find that
they are getting worse? I am not speaking here of circumstances
or trials on the outside of you. I am speaking of what is on the
INSIDE of you. Your spiritual condition. Many Christians have
faced such "inhabitants" of their "promised land" in Christ. They
find enemies in there which they never expected to find.
     Spying out the land and finding they it is occupied by these
strange tribes is not an indication that something is wrong. No. It
is an indication that everything is right. God has brought you to
this land, and has shown you what needs to be overcome. He
has already sealed the victory for you in His Son. But He
does require that you go in and take possession of the land, and
drive out the enemy.
 
The Choice
 
     As Israel heard the news brought back by the spies, they
found themselves at a pivotal point of choice before God. They
were hearing facts which seemed to contradict everything they
had expected. The choice before them was perfectly clear: They
would choose to believe God despite the facts, or they would
choose to believe the facts despite God. And then, depending
upon what they believed, they would act.
     This is the choice we alway have as well. We must choose to
believe God, or believe those things which seem to contradict
Him. It is a continual, progressive, life-long choice.
     Our "promised land" is life in Jesus Christ. It is where we are
brought to live by God once He delivers us from Egypt. God tells
us the same thing He told Israel regarding this "land." He says,
"All of this do I give to you free of charge. There is nothing you
need to do to qualify for it. It has been bought and paid for by
My Son. Now go in and take possession of what I have given
you." But then we meet the walled cities and the obsticles. We
are faced with contradiction to what God has said. And we meet
the biggest enemy of all: OURSELVES. All of these things seem
to be "proof" that our redemption isn't real, or that Christianity is
only a man-made religion. How could this be happening
otherwise? And how will we ever overcome it? What has our
faith in God got us?
     Each Christian will find MUCH of the old creaton inhabiting
"the promised land." We will find that the promised land is where
we BEGIN to encounter enemies, not where we escape them.
And it is at this point, as it was with Israel, that we must choose.
Will we believe God and risk everything on His faithfulness? Or
will we shrink back, almost wishing we had never left Egypt? Will
we say, "This is too hard. I'm not willing to pay the price."?
 
Born in Slavery
 
     Why is Christianity so hard? Why, if the victory is already won,
and there is nothing we need to do, is it so hard for us to enter
in and take possession of it? Why must we suffer so much, and
go through so many tribulations to enter the kingdom of God?
     There is no contradiction here. Our inheritance; our "promised
land" is forever ours. We actually have a title-deed to Christ's
inheritance in our hand. It is signed, sealed, and delivered by
the Blood of the Saviour. Nothing can alter these facts. But
there is a problem. It is not a problem which contradicts the
Truth. It is one which is solved by the Truth. That problem is US.
We possess our inheritance, but our inheritance does not yet
possess us. We are not yet fit for it. We don't know how to value
it, grasp it, live in it, or take possession of it. That's because
all we know how to do is be a SLAVE.
     Imagine something here. Imagine being someone who
was born in slavery, and has spent his entire life in bondage.
Then imagine being set free, all at once, and being handed, free
of charge, a tremendous inheritance. Would they know what to
do with it? Would they have the slightest idea about how to live
as a free person. No. In large part, they would probably
continue living like a slave, despite the fact they were free. They
might even, through ignorance, squander their inheritance.
     We have come out of slavery in Jesus Christ. And we have
inherited eternal riches in Jesus Christ. But slavery isn't yet out
of us! The only habits, patterns of the flesh, and way of life
that we know how to practice is that of a slave. We have no
other experience to call upon. At that point, we haven't yet lived
a single day in the promised land which God has given us.
     Can you see the problem? Can you see how we can be free,
but nevertheless continue to live like we are a slave? Sure.
Freed slaves have actually done this in this physical world. And
everyone of us do it despite being set free in Jesus Christ.
     God has found us and saved us into His kingdom. But He did
not find us standing on neutral ground. No. He found us in
slavery. He found us in a condition completely contrary to the
new birth. Therefore, it is correct to say that, yes, God has saved
us INTO His kingdom, but He has also saved us OUT OF the
kingdom of darkness. And as long as we are living in this body,
we are going to experience the conflicts of that transition.
     The reason Christianity seems so hard, and the reason we
must enter the kingdom of God through many tribulations, is not
because God sat down one day and arbitrarily designed it to be
so. No. Rather, it is because of our starting point. When we are
saved, we are already in sin. We are already in bondage. God
must save us OUT of this terrible condition. The Christian walk
is therefore a two-fold experience. It is a walk IN Jesus Christ.
But it is also a walk OUT OF the old creation. And because the
two are in conflict with each other, there are great difficulties.
     Make no mistake. A Christian is a battleground. WE are the
place where two realms clash. Spiritually, we have been saved
and translated into the kingdom of God. But we still live in the
flesh, in a natural world. And then to top it all off, God tells us
that we must allow the Spirit of God to take possession of the
flesh. Thus, we have the tribulations, the difficulties, and if we
will believe and obey, the ultimate manifestation of Jesus'
victory.
 
The Seven Tribes
 
     The inhabitants of Canaan were standing between Israel and
their actual possession of the promised land. It was therefore
these seven tribes of Canaan that Israel had to overcome. So too
must we face the inhabitants of "our Canaan." These we must
overcome if we are to live in our inheritance as free individuals.
     Exactly who were the inhabitants of Canaan? Well, Joshua
tells us that seven tribes inhabited this land. This number seven
is significant. Seven is the number of spiritual perfection, and is
often used to describe some facet of God. But if seven is the
number used here to describe the enemies of God, we can be
sure that we are talking about something which is quite "perfect"
in it's opposition to God.
     Don't think of "seven" as an amount. Think of it as a
characteristic mark. In other words, "seven tribes" doesn't focus
on the number of tribes as much as it accents the spiritual
character of those tribes. Israel did face seven literal tribes in the
physical type of this Truth. But that doesn't mean we have
seven, and only seven, spiritual enemies to contend with. It
simply means our enemies are spiritually perfect in their
opposition towards God.
     So here is the setting: Seven tribes are living in the land.
They are the peoples who previously OWNED this property.
They are, however, displaced owners. They don't own the land
anymore. Israel owns it, through God. But there's a problem.
These tribes have no intention of evicting this land. They
continue to live in Canaan. They must be forced out.
For US, the inhabitants of "our land" is everything which
previously owned and governed us -- before we were born
again to a new inheritance in Christ. Our "seven tribes" consist of
every spiritual obsticle left over from our old nature -- now
standing between us and our actual experience of what Jesus
Christ has won. And just as the physical seven tribes had no
intention of leaving, so it is with our "tribes." They aren't going to
leave without a fight. We must "drive them out."
 
Two "Men"
 
     Perhaps a good way to illustrate this is to use the spiritual
picture Paul uses in the epistles of TWO MEN -- the "old man in
Adam," and the "new man in Christ." The "new man in Christ" is
us, perched on the edge of the promised land. We expect to go
in there and live in our inheritance. But living in our inheritance is
"the old man in Adam." Despite the fact that he has been put to
death in Christ, and has been disinherited and legally evicted, he
doesn't seem to get the message. He seems to live on, almost
like it is "business as usual."
     Many Christians become discouraged once they realize that
our "old man" is still in the land. In fact, some begin to doubt as
to whether they are really saved, or as to whether Christianity is
real at all. So they end up refusing to enter the land, just as
Israel refused. Or they make "friends" with the inhabitant -- the
old man in Adam. They settled down beside him, and accept
him as a brother. They make a covenant with what God says
must be DRIVEN OUT.
     God is not unfaithful. If He left the inhabitants in the land for
Israel to drive out, we can be sure that it was for a good reason
-- a reason that would be for Israel's ultimate good. Again, it is
the same with us. God does not go in and "drive out" the
inhabitants of "our land." No. He wants us to have a part in
doing that. He knows that to do so will require a complete
surrender and reliance upon Him, and it will result in the building
of the righteous character He desires.
 
Obedience
 
     Why must we overcome? Why doesn't God change us all at
once when we are saved? Why must WE drive out the "tribes"
dwelling in "our land?"
     Picture this: You are an unsaved sinner. All your life, whether
it be many years or a few years, you have lived for yourself. It is
your nature to do so. You have no reference point for living
under any other motivation. You are governed by fear, pride,
and whatever feels good. In fact, you are so governed by these
things that you don't even know it. To you, it is normal. Every
fiber of your being is geared to the physical and carnal. You
have, in fact, spent your entire life yielding again and again to
your old nature in Adam. You have chosen to do so without even
thinking about it.
     One day, however, God begins a work. He eventually draws
you to Jesus Christ. Somehow, and someway, God makes you
aware of your need. Of course, at this point, God can only barely
scratch the surface. But it is enough for you to accept Christ and
become saved.
     Now pretend this happens: The morning after you accept
Christ, you wake up. You are a completely changed person.
You couldn't sin if you wanted to. Pride? What pride? There is
not an ounce of it in you. Nothing anyone does bothers you.
You react to everything in perfect love. All fear, condemnation,
unbelief, and lust are gone. They don't even exist in your being.
And as far as living for yourself, well, that's impossible. You live
only for God. Everything you do, think, and say, is unto the glory
of God. Indeed, about the only thing left for you to accomplish,
is to climb to the top of a mountain somewhere and become
transfigured like Jesus.
     Of course this is nonsense. What is described above is
impossible. Despite the fact that we are brand new creations in
Christ, the next morning we aren't necessarily going to begin
acting like it. In fact, once the "glow" and excitement of our
salvation experience wears off, we may find that our old nature
seems stronger than ever. Why do things work like that?
     Well, imagine if the above scenerio were true. Imagine if a
person did change that much overnight. What would have to
happen to us for this to be possible?
     Well, first, God would have to erase from us every shred of
bad moral character. He'd have to, because the only way such a
change is possible is if all of our old character was erased. Then
God would have to replace the old character by immediately
materializing new, Godly character. God would have to do all of
this in a second for change to be possible that quickly.
     This is clearly impossible. The definition of character, whether
it be good or bad, is based upon the fact that it is a product of
choice. So, by definition, God cannot erase or create character.
He can only set us free to make the choices necessary to create
righteous character.
     Making these kinds of choices takes time and experience. It
requires a transition from the old to the new. It requires that I
slowly replace the old with the new through a process of
overcoming; through a process of choice. The fact is, if God
erased all the bad stuff of flesh at the moment we are saved, we
would be creatures completely void of ALL character -- for we
haven't had time to develope any NEW character. And creatures
void of ALL character aren't human beings.
     Human beings are MORAL creatures. Consequently, we
cannot exist void of all character. There is no such condition
possible. Therefore God must allow the old character which we
created through choice to remain, because at the moment of
salvation we have not had time or opportunity to replace it with
new, righteous character.
     God cannot "drive out" the "inhabitants" of "our land" for us.
He cannot. God HAS already won the victory over them. He
HAS promised to work in us both to will and to do. And He HAS
guaranteed us complete victory. But He does require that WE
believe and obey. Then, and only then, can we break free of the
old patterns which He has shattered, and begin to grow in the
new creation.
     Paul tells us this in Romans. He says, "For as you have
yielded your members as servants to uncleanness, to iniquity
unto iniquity, even so now yield your members servants of
righteousness unto holiness." WE must choose to believe and
obey God. We must choose to drive out Adam, and live in Jesus
Christ.
 
Following the Ark
 
     God will not overcome for us. He has already won the victory.
He works in us both to will and to do. And He even shows us the
Truth. But WE must believe and obey. We must overcome.
Now on to HOW God expects us to do this overcoming.
     Again we can turn to the example of Israel. God would not go in
ahead of them and drive out the inhabitants. In fact, 40 years
later, under Joshua, He told them WHY. He said, "And the Lord
God will put out those nations before thee by little and little. You
may not consume them all at once, lest the beasts of the field
increase upon thee." (Deut. 7:22)
     Note the physical reason God gave. He was saying, "If I drive
out all of these tribes at once, there will be nothing to fill up the
void. Then all of the beasts of the land will have free reign, for
you aren't ready to take this land over all at once. The beasts will
become an even bigger problem."
     Again we see why God cannot change us in an instant: There
would be nothing to fill in the void. If we were instantaneously
void of all character, we might be free of the bad, but we'd still
have nothing to replace it. God is telling us that such a condition
would leave us open to "the beasts of the field." In other words,
there would be no restraint in us. We'd fall into a worse condition.
     So God leads us into our land little by little. He causes us to
confront the enemy one step at a time. This will give us the
opportunity to slowly grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus
Christ. It will enable us to overcome the enemy and gradually
replace "him" with the righteous character of the Son of God.
God illustrated this to Israel in Joshua 3. He said:
 
When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and
the priests the Levites bearing it, then you shall remove from your
place, and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you
and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Come not near
unto it, so that you may know the way by which you must go.
for you have not passed this way before. (Josh. 3:3-4)
 
     Here we see the procedure God uses in our journey with Him.
We are NOT to launch out and take the initiative in spiritual
warfare. We are NOT to think that we can attack our inward
problems and emerge victorious. We cannot. We have no
concept of the enemy we are dealing with. We have no grasp
of what really "makes us tick," or of what is needed to
overcome. Only God knows these things. Consequently, we
must simply follow the presence of God, facing the enemy which
He brings us to face. Then our victory in that area is certain.
     There is a common reason why Christians get out from behind
the ark, and begin taking the initiative against the enemy. That
reason is unbelief. Unbelief? How so? Well, it goes back once
again to the fact that we are not operating from the position of
victory.  Many Christians feel condemned because of their
unresolved spiritual problems. They allow the presence of
the enemy "in the land" to convince them that they are not right
with God. So they try to set themselves free. But God has already
told us that there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. He has
already told us that our enemy has been defeated. Sure, we
may not have yet been brought to the place where we able to
actually drive out this enemy. But that doesn't change the fact
that in Christ we ARE victorious. So God says, "Stand fast by
faith. Rest in Me. Follow the ark. Do not allow the presence of
the enemy to convince you that you are defeated. Believe Me
and eventually you will see this enemy banished from the land."
 
Spiritual Warfare
 
     We are given the land. It is a finished victory. But we must
then follow God into our land and take possession of it. We
cannot choose our own path, but must follow the one He takes
ahead of us. And as we do, we will encounter those whom we
must drive out. But HOW do we drive them out? HOW does this
actually happen?
     First, we must again make sure we understand our position. It
is vital to repeat this, for if we don't get this straight, nothing else
is going to work. Our position is one of victory. We aren't going
into the land to try to defeat the enemy. No. We are going in to
evict a already defeated enemy. God says, "I have already
decided the outcome of this warfare. You cannot lose if you
believe and obey Me."
     So we go in and face our enemy. We face our sin and our
patterns of the flesh. There is no need for us to turn in upon
ourselves and try to root these out, for remember, God is ahead
of us, leading us to whatever enemy, or facet of the flesh, He
wants us to drive out. And as we come to the place where our
enemy dwells, we are to take possession of it.
     Ok. This is the critical question, isn't it? Exactly how do we
take possession of it?
     God told Joshua. He said, "Every place that the sole of your
foot shall tred upon, that I have given you, as I said unto Moses."
In other words, we take possession by walking into that place
and STANDING on it. We STAND there by the authority of the
victory of Jesus Christ. That victory is ours. Every place the
spiritual soles of our feet tred -- and remember, we are being
led there by God -- is ours in Jesus Christ.
     Again we see that there is nothing we need to do to WIN the
victory. No. We are to STAND in His finished victory. This must
be the foundation of our faith and the position from which we
operate as we explore our new life in Christ.
     Now comes the hard part. Just STANDING by faith doesn't
drive out the enemy, does it? Nope. It sure doesn't. Despite
the fact that we stand in the victory of Christ, and there is nothing
which can move us if we continue to stand by faith, it is
nevertheless a fact that this, in and of itself, doesn't banish the
enemy. We must add to our faith WORKS.
     Here we see that we cannot live by faith without works. Faith
must be our foundation. But real faith will ALWAYS result in
works. Always. Faith without works is dead. That's because
faith without works accomplishes nothing. It is not real faith at
all.
     Faith without works is equal to saying that I believe and
receive all that Christ has done, and intend to take possession of
it, but refuse to make any choice along that line. As I confront
patterns of sin and the flesh, I just stand there "in faith," making
grand proclamations, but never actually translate my faith into
obedience. The result is a religious spirit. It is a person who
says they believe, but will not put their faith into action. It
eventually results in compromise with sin and the flesh.
     We see how we are to take possession of the land and drive
out the enemy in Romans 6. Paul rehearses to us the Truth of
the finished victory of Christ in verses 1 through 11. He then
says, "THEREFORE -- because of that victory -- let not sin
reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts
thereof." In other words, STOP obeying lust. STOP obeying
the flesh. Instead, obey GOD.
     "Lusts," in scripture, refers to owning yourself; to allowing flesh
to govern your choices. It goes far beyond "sex." And God tells
us that these "lusts" no longer have any power over us. We CAN
refuse them; "drive them out."
     But how do we "drive them out?" Not by turning and attacking
them. No. We drive them out by obeying God. In other words,
we defeat the wrong, not by attacking the wrong, but by doing
right.
     Paul writes, "Let not sin reign." He then says HOW. He says,
"Do not yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness.
But yield yourselves to God." (Rom. 6:13)
     I "drive out" the enemy by reckoning him to be exactly as God
says he is: Dead. Defeated. And if I really believe this is so,
and that my victory in Christ is assured, I will then obey
God by yielding to the Truth. I will refuse to yield myself to the
old, DEAD nature, and begin yielding myself to the new nature
in Jesus Christ.
     This is never easy at first. We are trained otherwise. Habits of
thought and patterns of the flesh are easy to follow. It will cost
me suffering and turmoil to resist my former master. And I will
have many failures. At times, it may seem as if I will never
be able to experience the victory of Jesus Christ.
     But it is right here that the battle is won or lost. The primary
objective of the enemy is to get me to look at my own failures
and lose faith. Indeed, deception and unbelief are the ONLY
weapons the enemy has at his disposal. I must therefore believe.
I must base my confidence before God, not upon my works, but
upon His finished work. Then no matter how much I fail, and no
matter how convincing the lies of the enemy may seem, my
victory is as certain as the Redemption upon which is is built.
 
The Weapons
 
     There are the weapons of the enemy, and there are the
weapons of our warfare. Both are revealed in the Bible. First,
what is the chief weapon of the enemy?
     As mentioned, the enemy has only ONE weapon. Do you know
what it is? It is a weapon, which, if used successfully, will be
effective enough to keep us from our inheritance. That weapon
is DECEPTION.
     This makes sense. We are afterall, talking here about a
defeated enemy. There is no possibility that the victory of Christ
can be reversed, reduced, or aborted. Therefore, the only
weapon left in the arsenal of the enemy is to try to convince us
that this victory is NOT finished. Indeed, if the enemy can get us
to try to win the victory, instead of standing in Christ's victory, he
will achieve his goals. We will be occupied forever with trying to
win a victory over a defeated enemy, and never find the freedom
purchased through that victory.
     So the sole weapon of the enemy is unbelief. Deception. But
if that's the case, then it tells us what the chief weapon of our
warfare is: Faith.
     So it is. Paul tells us:
 
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.
For the weapons of our warfare are not coarnal, but mighty
through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Casting down
imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the
knowledge of God, bringing into captivity every thought to the
obedience of Christ. (II Cor. 10:3-5)
 
     These strongholds, imaginations, and "high things" are what
are encamped in our "land," just as surely as were the seven
tribes encamped in Canaan land. We are to "pull down"
these strongholds, imaginations, and every high thing which
exalts itself against the Truth about God.
     We must do this by faith. We must refuse to be moved by
these lies about God. We must refuse to be moved by all of
the contradiction to the Truth which the enemy brings to us. Faith
is our weapon.
     Every Christian will face these enemies. There will be times
when you will face such terrible moods and feelings that they
seem almost like walled strongholds which you cannot
overcome. They will be accompanied by "imaginations," that is,
fear and thoughts which make you feel like you cannot reach
God, or make you feel like there is no hope for victory. These
exalt themselves against the true knowledge of God in Christ
Jesus. And they can be so terribly strong and convincing; so
much a part of you, that you may think yourself foolish not to
accept them as the real Truth.
     God says, "Don't argue with these lies. That is not the level
of your warfare. Instead, stand by faith against them. Refuse to
be moved by them regardless of how strong they seem."
     We must stand in faith against these enemies. But that alone
will not pull down strongholds or cast down anything. We must
not be passive. We must be pro-active, as was Israel in driving
out the tribes in Canaan. How? By, yes, refusing to be moved
by the lies of the enemy, but also by speaking the Truth in our
hearts. We can proclaim to ourselves the real Truth about God.
And then we can obey in whatever issue is before us. If we do
this, nothing can defeat us.
     "Speaking the Truth" is our hearts is more than a pep-talk. It
is not positive confession or brainwashing. It is simply stating, in
the midst of confusion and spiritual warfare, what is the Truth. It
clears the air and solidfies our stand in faith.
     God inhabits the praises of His people. And when we speak
the Truth in our hearts about God, we ARE praising Him --
even if we don't say the exact words, "Praise the Lord."
Remember how God destroyed Jericho. Israel never had to lift a
and honored and praised the Lord. They spoke the Truth. They
obeyed. The enemy fell.
 
The Results of Overcoming
 
     Overcoming in Christ never makes us into super-Christians.
No. In fact, we will never overcome anything in Christ until we
are reduced to nothing. It is only then that we STOP trying to use
religious flesh to fight the war, and begin standing by faith in
what Christ has done.
     This becomes clear when we remember that overcoming is
not an exterior thing. It is an interior thing. WE are the primary
battleground. The issues "out here" which may be involved are
merely vehicles in this great play. The real spiritual warfare is all
about US.
     The kingdom of God is a place where you must die to live.
You must lose your life to find it. You must become as a child in
order to be spiritually mature. It is a place where you must
become poor to become rich, and must surrender in order to
overcome. It is an arena where victory is only realized when you
stop fighting. The key to overcoming in Christ is therefore
simple: I must allow Christ to overcome me. I cannot reign and
rule with Christ "in the land" unless Christ is first reigning and
ruling over me.
     The results of overcoming in Christ are that we reign and rule
with Him. Not over some poor, less fortunate people. Not over
the "less spiritual." But over everything than used to reign and
rule over us. Reigning and ruling is symbolic of the freedom to
worship and experience God simply because I want to, and
because He deserves it. It is symbolic of our priviledge of
being joint-heirs with Christ.
 
Faith Equals Obedience
 
     So we have this conclusion:    I overcome in Christ when I
stand in the Truth of His victory against all that would contradict it
-- and I continue to do this until His victory actually becomes
practiced and made manifest in me. In other words, I must
BELIEVE. And then, because I believe, I must OBEY.
     That is a simple formula: Believe and obey. It is one which
every Christian has heard over and over again. But many of us
are obviously not hearing it, for there seems to be a shortage
of overcoming today.
     Christians today have become convinced that overcoming
has to do only with external issues. We say we must overcome
unbelief by preaching the gospel, etc. But notice what has
happened through this error: We have a church which goes out
with the message of Christ, but which is itself spiritually anemic.
We witness Christ to others, but have little witness of Him within.
There is no worse witness than one who speaks the Truth, but
who does not live it. This has brought reproach upon the name
of Jesus Christ for two-thousand years.
     The only solution is to realize the Truth in what the apostle
Paul said to the Corinthians:
 
For judgment must BEGIN with the household of God.
 
     The message is clear: If I want to be a vessel for God, I must
allow Him to deal with ME first. I must believe and obey. I must
overcome. Then I can talk about it to others from experience.
I cannot become a real witness for Christ by merely
possessing a message. I become a real witness of Christ when
the message possesses me. Practically speaking, this means I
must do more than tell others to believe and obey. I -- first
and foremost -- must believe and obey. I must overcome.
Then the gospel I preach will not be preached in the wisdom of
words, but in the victory of Jesus Christ.

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