More Than Conquerors

“In all things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us” - Romans 8:37

If we truly believe that through Jesus, we can conqueror death, what does that mean for our lives? Well, a lot really!

I want to encourage you, in the midst of whatever life throws at you, or whatever you get yourself into, you can conqueror anything with God. I want to explore how it's not what we experience in life, but how we respond that really matters.

Conqueror vs coward

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

- Romans 12:2

We are called to use the wisdom that God gives us to choose for ourselves what is good/bad (outside of sin that is called out in the Bible), however, I think there is a key distinction between being discerning and being avoidant.

An example that Christians tend to use when it comes to discernment is entertainment. For myself and others I know, we wouldn't watch a horror film. Not because we couldn't bear it (albeit i'd probably have my eyes closed, lol), but mainly because the Bible teaches us that our earthly struggle is “against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12). This can be the same when it comes to provocative content, if it leads us towards temptation, it's wise to not engage with it.

However, I know friends who decide not to watch films with suffering in them, because they want to avoid the emotion and challenges that this brings up for them. They avoid facing being sad, fearful or hurt. The Bible teaches us that there is a time for everything in this life, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

Facing sadness isn't bad, pain isn't bad. Contrary to what you might think, the Bible actually tells us that it is healthy!

Sorrow is better than laughter sad face is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. - Ecclesiastes 7:3-4

In biology, pain alerts us that there is a threat in our body. It's a no-brainer when it comes to our physical health - once we know there is a threat, we deal with it. We should be acutely aware of dealing with things that trigger emotional pain too. If our reaction to sadness, fear, anger, hurt, is to shut out the triggers, we haven't overcome them, in fact, evil has won.

If we do not face these emotions, then evil has won.

Even on restful days, perhaps you observe the Sabbath, this is a day each week to rest and delight, but even on this day we aren't called to ignore pain. I've been reading a book on Sabbath by Dan Allender, and he talks about joy being chosen in the midst of heartache and confusion. He says: "Death has been the inevitable frame for joy. Sabbath is not an escape from death. Instead. Sabbath is a promise that death doesn't win."

Entering the battle

I was on a hike a few weeks ago with some friends, and some of the guys saw the big hill we were going to climb and decided to start racing up the side of it, rather than following the more gradual, paved ascent that our map suggested. I asked the rest of the group which way they wanted to go, and to my surprise, a lady with us said "we can do that too!" So we began scaling this big hill, with an incline that felt almost vertical! I noticed that this lady kept stopping and I asked whether she was ok. She explained to me that she is terrified of heights, but when she felt overwhelmed with fear, she would stop, take a breath and then keep going. I found this remarkable. Despite the crippling fear, she chose to persist, the hard way up.

Once we had finished, I was asking her about her fear, and whether it's ever stopped her doing things, and she said "I will always do things, I will just be scared doing them." This really challenged me, I often don't step out because of fear, or avoid things all together, I can be such a coward!

We are called to live in this world, but not of this world. This doesn't mean living isolated from pain and suffering, but living differently within it.

Jesus himself was 'a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering'. - Isaiah 53:3

He spent a lot of his time with sinners, and those who he KNEW would betray him. The time spent with those people was full of feasting and celebration, despite the hurt and perhaps judgement he must have felt. Moreover, Jesus still chose to die on the cross for us, even after his own disciples disowned him. He died for the very people who rejected him. If we are called to live the way Jesus did, is it not important to consider reviewing your own heart when it comes to your enemies?

How would you respond if you were faced with your fear, like the hill? What about your own death? Is this something you've considered? If you were persecuted for your faith, would you remain loyal to God? Would you be willing to lay down your own life for your enemies?

Conquering

Overcoming difficulties involves working on yourself, and eventually finding peace.

A huge part of overcoming is deciding to forgive. I know A LOT of people who find forgiveness very hard. I hear people say "I've forgiven them, but I couldn't be in the same room as them."

I honestly believe that we miss the true meaning of Biblical, Jesus-level forgiveness. Just because you can block out the thought of someone, or what happened doesn't affect you anymore, doesn't mean you've forgiven them.

Satan is not daft. He KNOWS that forgiveness is hard. It's his strongest tool when it comes to creating division!

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?" - Matt 5:43-47

This is SO important. We are called to forgive Jesus's way, not the worldly way. We aren't just taught to accept that we have been wronged, but to love that person, to greet them, to be in unity with them.

The Bible says that "even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me... you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies." - Psalm 23:4-5

Even though David walked through the darkest valley, he did not fear evil BECAUSE God was with him. He knew he would be presented with his enemies, and the verse talks about God preparing a table for them together, presumably to sit and break bread together. It may feel like we can't face our darkest valleys, but we can, if we trust that God is with us.

It's not easy to be humble when you're trying to forgive someone - it's easy to become absorbed in being the victim, or avoid it all together. However, it is a sin to hold onto unforgiveness, and it's very unhealthy for our own souls:

“Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die" - Marianne Williamson

I've found this difficult in my own life before, especially without an apology. But humility doesn't wait for an apology. I found this quote helpful from the Celtic Daily Prayer book:

'One of the Elders was asked: 'What is humility?'

He answered: 'If you forgive a brother who has injured you before he himself asks pardon.'

A brother asked another of the Elders: 'What is humility?'

The Elder answered: 'To do good to those who do evil to you.'

The Ultimate Conqueror

Ultimately, as Christians, we are preparing to one day meet together in unity, with our dearest friends and our greatest enemies. This is our blessing, it's our salvation!

The point is, we if we are not willing to do the work on ourselves, so that we can look evil in the eyes and feel peace, we haven't overcome it, it has overcome us.

In our struggles, we should sit with the difficult emotions, let them wash over us like flowing water, and in spending time wrestling with these things with God, come to a point where death loses it's sting. "O death, where is your sting?" (1 Cor. 15:55).

The Sabbath is a perfect time for this, making space to sit and tune into our emotions, which perhaps we have chosen to avoid during the busyness of life. Maybe set yourself a challenge, instead of desensitising, make space for half an hour this week to set aside the distractions and sensitise yourself to the battles in your life. Do you have broken relationships in need of forgiveness? Is there pain you need to heal from? Does death trouble you? What do you need to conquer, with God's help?

The good news is, God is the ultimate conqueror. Jesus chose to come to earth to overcome sin and death. He chose to suffer the worst physical and mental trauma known to mankind, he gets it, and He is in this with you. "The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” -Deut. 31:8

In this life, our hope is in Jesus. Through him who strengthens us, we can do all things (Phil 4:13). Take this as your encouragement, soak it up! Next time you're faced with a challenge, physical, mental, relational, don't run from it, look it dead set in the eyes and conquer it!!