“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
1 Corinthians 15:57-58 [KJV]
Tumbling tower game
Last week, I was playing a game with some family members. On the table was a tower built from wooden blocks, and we each took turns removing a piece, trying our best not to topple the tower. But three games in a row, as I tried to wriggle a block free, that tower came crashing down.
It’s not just wooden blocks that come crashing down. Sometimes our sin causes our Christian lives to come crashing down. Even if we desire to please God, and try hard to live righteously, we fail over and over to live up to God’s standards. Instead of rejoicing in victory, we’re left with a pile of broken hopes, guilt and an ongoing struggle to find freedom from “the sin which doth so easily beset us” (Hebrews 12:1). To use another games allegory, sometimes we feel like a yo-yo swinging between victory and defeat, and between hope and despair. The apostle Paul was a mighty preacher and a mature Christian, who testified that even he had experienced this conflict; “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do” (Romans 7:19). However, he could now declare, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” and exhort us to stedfast and unmoveable (1 Corinthians 15:57) rather than swinging yo-yos.
Christians are called to live victorious lives distinct from the evil lifestyles of people of the world who are controlled by Satan. The Bible says, “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1b-2). We know too, that Jesus defeated sin, death and Satan, through dying on the cross and rising again. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). In the past, there was a specific moment when we each had to personally accept Christ as our Lord and Saviour (Romans 10:9), and in the future those in the Lamb’s book of Life will have eternity to live in complete freedom from sin (Revelation 21:27).
But what about the present? Maybe you are reading this, thinking, “I’m a Christian. I understand that God commands us to not sin, and I truly don’t want to sin, but it keeps happening!” How do Christians achieve daily victory over temptation and our own sinful habits and desires?
Firstly, we need to understand that we cannot, and never have been able to, save ourselves. 1 Corinthians 15:57 declares, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” ‘Don’t do this, do that’ check box systems appeal to our flesh, because they make us feel that we are in control. But only Jesus Christ can keep us from sinning. Just as we became Christians by faith in Jesus Christ’s work on the cross, we live by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7) in His provision of victory.
The more we know Christ, the more His power can work in and through us, guiding our paths and keeping us from sin. Take a step back from focusing on the specific sins that are tripping you up and focus instead on God–not what He can do for you, but rather who He is. May Philippians 3:10 be your prayer; “That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death.” How can you know God in a deeper way? The Bible is God’s Word: read it, study it, memorise it and think on it regularly. If you read a passage from the Bible each day, and attend a church where you hear good sermons explaining Biblical passages, then you’ll find yourself understanding more and more about who God is. The church of God are people who know God; meet with them, ask them what they know about God, and share your discoveries about God with them too. Talk to God in prayer–we all know that having a conversation with someone is a good way to get to know them better. These solid foundations of Bible reading, fellowship and prayer will help keep you “stedfast, unmoveable” (1 Corinthians 15:58), regardless of temptations that come your way.
Confess known sin. If you have repented of doing wrong and confessed that sin to the Lord, you can be 100% confident that God has forgiven you for it. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). “If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” (1 John 2:1b-2). We don’t have to confess over and over the same sin, beg for or earn God’s forgiveness, because Jesus gave His life freely for all our sins, past, present and future.
Honestly evaluate what led you to committing that sin. For example, perhaps you committed the sin of being angry with someone. But why were you angry? Were you angry because they questioned your competence? Yes, you might have an anger problem, but the deeper root cause might be pride. After all, all sin we commit can be traced back to three categories: “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:16). Once we pinpoint the true cause, there is much power in praying specific prayers, such as, Lord, create a humble spirit in me, help me depend on you for victory.
Abound “in the work of the Lord forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). As we seek to know Christ and focus on serving Him, the hold sin has over our lives grows weaker. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives that is the opposite of the sins that we would naturally commit. Galatians 5:22-23 is not a list of nice characteristics we should strive for, but a list of the fruit produced in a life surrendered to, and empowered by, the Holy Spirit; “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” By God’s grace, we can grow daily more and more like Christ, focused on Christ HImself and serving Him.
While that battle between flesh and spirit will remain with us until the day Christ takes us to be with Him, we can know the joy of overcoming sin in our lives. And, with the apostle Paul, we can gratefully say, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).
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