Victory...Ours For The Taking

A key part of understanding the concept of overcoming sin through Christ is to understand that our salvation has already been gained in Christ's victory on the cross. 


An excellent study is to review the work of the great reformers and their understanding of justification by faith.  I urge you to read this great source of study for Reformation History.  Luther spent much time in study and prayer and the Spirit showed him the light that it is not of our own doing but rather faith in what Christ did for us that justifies us with God.  Think about the term "justice is served". The victory was already won at the cross but not until we reach out our hearts in faith and accept in humility that the victory is also ours, is there a completion of the justification process.


Once we understand the process, we must be willing to begin living a life of self-denial and giving our all to Christ so that the victory can become ours.  We seek to have victory IN Jesus and become partakers with Him.  We do not gain the victory but rather accept that Christ already gained the victory and offers it to each of us and we are thus united with the Victor.


We need to lay down our lives at the foot of the cross to gain the beautiful peace that comes from being reconciled with God through the victory that is ours if we are willing to accept it, grasp it, take hold, and don't look back...only looking forward to eternity with our Redeemer.

Here are a few wonderful readings from EGW that share more about this.  And of course, it does us well to spend time in Romans to understand the victory of the cross.

"Forgiveness at the Cross:   Before the cross the sinner sees his unlikeness of character to Christ. He sees the terrible consequences of transgression; he hates the sin that he has practiced, and he lays hold upon Jesus by living faith. He has judged his position of uncleanness in the light of the presence of God and the heavenly intelligences. He has measured it by the standard of the cross. He has weighed it in the balances of the sanctuary. The purity of Christ has revealed to him his own impurity in its odious colors. He turns from the defiling sin; he looks to Jesus, and lives." {TSB 108.3}

"When the Spirit of God controls mind and heart, the converted soul breaks forth into a new song; for he realizes that in his experience the promise of God has been fulfilled, that his transgression has been forgiven, his sin covered. He has exercised repentance toward God for the violation of the divine law, and faith toward Christ, who died for man’s justification. “Being justified by faith,” he has “peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1." AA 476

"Through death Christ destroyed him that had the power of death. In the very act of grasping his prey, death was vanquished, for Christ’s death brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. Never was the Son of God more beloved by His Father, the heavenly family, and by the worlds unfallen than when He humbled Himself to bear disgrace, humiliation, shame, and abuse." {12MR 410.2}

"When Christ bowed His head and died, He bore the pillars of Satan’s kingdom with Him to the earth. He vanquished Satan in our human nature. The nature by which the enemy was overcome is the same nature over which in Eden he obtained an easy victory. He sustained a humiliating defeat. He was overcome by the human nature of Christ. The power of the Saviour’s Godhead was hidden. He must overcome in human nature, relying upon God for His power. This is the privilege of all who accept Jesus Christ. In proportion to their faith will be their victory." {12MR 410.3}

Tithing Blessings

My small Bible study group is currently reading Patriarchs and Prophets and our chapter last week was about tithe.  One of the young women asked just what tithe blessings are.  My dad is a true believer and participant in tithing.  He had a pickup truck that got well over 400,000 miles and he never even overhauled the engine.  His batteries last years and years even though here in the desert most of us are lucky if a battery lasts 2 years.  You might not think about these as tithe blessings but what else can they be, just think how much money a truck with 400,000 miles that never needed any major mechanical work saved my dad.

She then asked about tithing when you do not have an income and your spouse is a non-believer and the spouse earns all the household income.  I know that lady gives her time, from the heart, to help the women's ministry group and I asked her about that.  She responded that she often finds she seems to accomplish so much it is as if she has a 28 or 30 hour day.  I replied that perhaps God is blessing her tithing of her time which is what she has to give back to God, despite not having a monetary income to tithe on.

In the past week, I have tried to be more mindful of the blessings of tithing.  I am self-employed and needless to say, this economy has been very rough on my checkbook.  I had a misunderstanding with a company about the date a payment was going to be deducted from my checking and discovered that I had about $100 in bank fees because I hadn't transferred money over to cover the payment since I didn't think it was going to be deducted yet.  I went to the bank to make the deposit needed to cover the payment and was just chatting with the bank manager while he made the deposit for me.  Then without me asking, he offered to reverse the fees even though it wasn't the bank's error...a tithing blessing.  And God blessed a bit further because it turned out the man was looking for someone to help with his taxes and so I got a bonus tithing blessing of a new client.  

God is just amazing.  We just have to stop long enough to realize that He does it in the little things all the time, we can't just wait for the huge miracle to realize His goodness in our lives.

My Adventure

Did you ever take off on an adventure, perhaps as a kid you got on your bike and rode into the woods near your home.  Off you went to find woodland creatures, a stream to play in, a place to picnic. Children in particular look forward to adventures and so it should be when we sit down with God and His word if we are God's children.


This is an important point.  How we view our study indicates where our heart really is.  Think about falling in love.  When you meet someone that sparks your interest and they feel the same way, you are excited to see them and spend time with them.  Think about how many times the church is referred to as the bride of Christ.  Successful marriages exist because both people are involved with growing closer together.  


Remember that your heart must desire a relationship with Christ.  Simply reading the Bible, going to church, being a Seventh-Day Adventist; these don't equal salvation.  Accepting Christ with all my heart, that is the adventure of a life time...an eternal life time.


Have you been on a good adventure lately???