Who is the Overcomer?

 

Are we worthy of God? Do we deserve His Mercy? According to the testimony of the Bible and of Jesus, none deserve His mercy or anything good from Him:

Luke 17:10 “So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’”

Matthew 5:22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

God will never owe us anything: Romans 11:35–36 “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever.”

The only thing we are entitled to is death: Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Who then is the overcomer? Not the one who has achieved moral perfection—there are none—but the one who sees his hopeless condition and believes in Jesus:

1 John 5:1–5 “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God...For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

I am an overcomer despite the accusations of my humbling sins and accusing conscience, but how?

Ephesians 2:8–9 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

I cannot even take credit for my faith because it too is not of my “own doing” but part of the free gift of God. Nor can I take credit for my good deeds by keeping His commandments and by loving others. These too are the fruits of the Spirit as Pul had confessed:

1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.

Consequently, the overcomer is not the one who believes that he has overcome all his sins but the one who knows that he hasn’t but that his sins have been forgiven:

Psalm 32:1–2 Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity…

Can I be Morally Good Enough for God?

As much as we might try to be good enough for God, we fail: 1 John 1:8–9 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

James 3:2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.

Perfection is impossible. “Only God is good“ (Mark 10:18). Therefore, we cannot put any hope in our own righteousness. Paul had despaired of his own righteousness: Philippians 3:9 “and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith”

To accept our moral imperfections and our need for the Savior is liberating. Once we realize that God accepts us the way we are, we can begin to accept ourselves. Consequently, we no longer need to wear a mask in order to impress and to live a life of self-deceit, Instead, we are enabled to bask in the love of God. Otherwise, we condemn ourselves to self-deception and its endless task of trying to prove ourselves worthy.

But isn’t Sinlessness  Possible with God’s Help?

Of course, but He has ordained that we will not experience moral perfection until Christ returns:

1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

Luke 21:27–28 “And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

We first need God’s finished work of redemption:  Romans 8:23–24 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?

Until then, we must conclude as Paul had: Romans 7:24–25 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

Jesus agreed that we must regard ourselves as unworthy: Luke 17:10 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’ ”

Paul was not different. He was vulnerable to the same temptations as we: 2 Corinthians 12:7–10 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Our strength is of the Lord, which is granted to us through neediness . We partake of His strength once our own strength fails us and we have nowhere else to turn. However, He imparts His strength according to His will and not according to our will. This understanding requires us to wait for God to act (Psalm 37:3-9).

Are We then Free from Trying to be Sinless?

Certainly not! Sin is an offense to God. It must also become an offense to us: 1 Peter 1:14–16 “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ’You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”