Faith that Overcomes
Faith is the victory that overcomes the world. We need some victory in our lives and in our churches, and we have that in Jesus Christ. Sometimes, we Christians get to looking a bit defeated, but we aren’t. We have the Holy Spirit within us bearing witness to the fact that by faith in Christ Jesus we are on the winning side. We can get down at times, especially when our focus gets on the wrong things, but we don’t need to stay down. We can be strong in the grace of Christ Jesus, knowing by the surety of faith that we have wonderful victory. We are not defeated. God is already victorious.
1 John 5:4-6
4. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
5. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?
6. This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
His Commandments Are Not Grievous
God’s commandments are not grievous when you understand how much He loves you and you learn to love Him more. People are willing to put up with many rules if they enjoy something. Professional sports are riddled with rules that fans love when applied to the opposing teams, yet they say Christianity is too rigid, though we basically have only two rules to worry about: Love God and Love your neighbor. The truth is that God’s commandments are not grievous. Those who are born of God and who desire to draw closer to Him can easily understand this.
1 John 5:1-3
1. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.
2. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
3. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
No Fear in Love
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casteth out fear. Fear pervades our society. Some people use fear to try to bring you into their way of thinking. We have seen people make some terrible decisions and do some crazy things in the name of fear. Manmade religions historically have used fear to force people into their system of belief. The world over the ages have tried to bully the Christian into submission by fear. But God’s way for us is a love that casts out fear.
1 John 4:16-19
16. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
17. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
18. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
19. We love him, because he first loved us.
The Testimony of God's Love in Us
Though no one has physically seen God with the eyes, we see the effects of God all around us. We, as Christians, see His hand at work, and we see His heart loving us. But the world does not see this as clearly as we do. It is upon us who are born-again Christians to testify of the Father by showing His love to others. They may not see God directly with their own eyes, but they sure better see God when they look at our lives.
1 John 4:12-16
12. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
13. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
14. And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
15. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
16. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Do You Know God? Prove It!
Do you know God? If you did, then you would love others in the way that He loves you. Love is of God: therefore, if you don’t know how to love as God loves then you don’t know Him. You really can’t define love without first knowing God, and you certainly can’t show true love without a personal relationship with Him. It’s like a person who thinks that a fast-food burger is the greatest food out there, but only because they have never been introduced to good, quality food. You might exercise something that you call love, but until you know the love of God, you haven’t even tasted of what love truly is.
1 John 4:7-11
7. Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
8. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
9. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
10. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
11. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
God Is Greater
God is greater! There is nothing in this world or universe greater than God in any sense of thought. God is more powerful, more righteous, wiser, stronger—He is preeminent to all. There is nothing that surpasses God in greatness and goodness. Satan is strong, and the influence of the world is powerful, but we can overcome these “because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
1 John 4:4-6
4. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
5. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
6. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
Try the Spirits
We have all been warned, don’t believe everything you read on the internet. Truly, the warning should go beyond this as 1 John 4 does when it reads, “believe not every spirit.” There is a belief system out there for anything that your heart desires to believe. There is a wide road that contains many lanes of various types of deception that are all leading to destruction. But there is only one way of truth, Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the life, and He is the only way to the Father. We must put to the test those things we hear, even if your instinct is to believe it, to be sure that we only follow the spirit of truth as we learn from God’s Word.
1 John 4:1-3
1. Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
2. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
3. And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
God Is Greater Than Our Heart
Have you ever found yourself under the weight of doubt, even as a born-again Christian? Have you ever found yourself in the gloom that comes from a lack of assurance? Sometimes, a person who is a child of God goes through a season when they don’t feel saved. But I’m thankful to read in the Bible that God is greater than our heart. If we would just give God our whole heart, He can turn it toward Him so that we can have the confidence that we need to follow Him closely.
1 John 3:20-22
20. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
21. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
22. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
Love Is More Than a Word
Are you willing to put your life on the line for someone you love? Our very perception of the love of God toward us is the fact that Jesus laid His life down for us, and so we ought to lay our life down for the brethren. It’s difficult to know for sure what we would do until the situation actually arises, but here is a good test: are you willing to lay down this world’s goods for the need of someone else? If we can’t even give of the stuff we have out of compassion for another, how can we seriously expect to lay down our life for others?
1 John 3:16-19
16. Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
17. But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
18. My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
19. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
Behold, What Manner of Love
No love compares to the love bestowed upon us by God our Father. It is a joy unspeakable and full of glory. God’s love, so greatly illustrated in the act of giving His only begotten Son Jesus Christ as the payment of the wages of our sin, has given us a position far beyond mere created-ones, servants, worshipers, and even friends. We have been given the positions, as born-again believers in Christ, of sons and daughters. We are sons and daughters of the one true God, our Heavenly Father.
1 John 3:1-6
1. Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
4. Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
5. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
From Us But Not Of Us
The thing about false teachers is that they have a certain sound and a certain alure that is attractive to the flesh and to our reasoning, and they carry a certain ability to draw people behind them. But they lead people to their own detriment and destruction because they are leading away from Christ. It is vital to us that we understand that in these days there are many antichrists who desire to lead us away from the truth of God. We must be equipped to recognize and avoid the danger. The Bible says that “a prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.”
1 John 2:18-23
"Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also."
It Is the Last Time
Signs all around us clearly point to the Bible truth that we are in the last times. Just look at the crazy events and the spirit of the day as well as the many false teachers that rise up. Now is the time to act. We must make sure that we are ready and that we tell others how to be ready for eternity to come. Where will you be after this life? Where will others you know spend eternity? Now is the only time we have to prepare.
Part One of a study of 1 John 2:18-20.
“Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.”
Love Not the World
You either love God or you love the world, but you cannot love both. Matthew 6 tells us that “no man can serve two masters: for he will hate the one, and love the other” Did you notice that love and serving are brought together in that verse? You serve the master that you love. That verse concludes, “ye cannot serve God and mammon.” If you think you can love the things of this world AND truly love God, you are deceiving yourself.
A study of 1 John 2:15-17, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 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. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
1 John 2:1-6 — Know that You Know
Do you know that you know God? Do you have the assurance that comes with walking in the light of Jesus? A true Christian will desire to keep God’s commandments. If you don’t have that desire, you ought to ask God to search your heart and reveal your true condition. Keeping God’s Word assures us that we are in Him.
Walk in the Light
We continue in the book of 1 John, finishing chapter 1. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. Unfortunately, we don’t always walk in that light. We are lying to ourselves if we think that we have no sin. But I am happy to report that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
That Your Joy May Be Full
This second episode is the start of a study out of the great book of 1 John. God does not intend for you to live a joyless, defeated life. 1 John 1:4 states, “And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.” We should have a joy so full and complete that it becomes a burning desire to share the source of that joy with others. This is the joy of the salvation given to us by Jesus Christ.
Be Strong in the Grace Introduction Episode
Click the link below to listen to the latest episode of Pastor’s Podcast, Be Strong in the Grace. This first episode is an introduction to the purpose behind this devotional series from 2 Timothy 2:1-2. It is so very important that we take the things we learn from God’s Word and faithfully pass those truths to the next generation who can teach others also.
Five Day Bible Reading Schedule
It is very late in the year to be making this recommendation, but I’ll look to post the 2024 version as soon as I can.
Christians, we need to be reading God’s Word often and with fervor, as if our life depends on it and as if it is our greatest joy. It is good to read the Bible through at least once a year, but that is a daunting task for many. Reading and studying God’s Word is not something that happens by chance; we must purpose and plan to accomplish this. It is good to approach our Bible reading in an organized fashion. One of my favorite methods to read through the Bible in a year is the five day a week method. It only adds a little extra each day, but it gives you some room that if you accidentally miss a day or part of a day’s reading. Didn’t get as far as you needed to on a particular day? There are two days extra to help make up for it. Now I don’t advocate ONLY reading five days a week (7 days a week is best), but you can use the extra two days if you have them to review some of what you read in the week and focus on some favorite passages. I also like to include a bit of Proverbs each day.
Can Faith Save Him?
James 2:14-18, “What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.”
“What doth it profit, my brethren…”
Christians ought to profit others. We need a focus on the benefits of the people around us over our own comforts. It would do the testimony of Christ and His church well if we would put ourselves aside more often and consider the cause of others. What would benefit my neighbor? What needs do others have around me? How can I be a blessing?
“…though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?”
The focus here in James 2 is actionable faith that benefits others. We learned in James 1 that we are not to be hearers of the Word only but doers. Chapter 2 continues that line of thinking: we are not only to speak of having faith, but we are to show our faith by our works. In fact, in a practical reality and as stated in a coming verse, faith without works is dead.
Many have been stunned by the last question of verse 14, “Can faith save him?” Faith is absolutely necessary for salvation. We have to place our faith in Jesus and ask Him for salvation. Ephesians 2:8, a foundational verse, teaches us, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” We have freewill to place our faith in Christ, and we are saved by the grace of God through that faith.
But “can faith save him?” the verse asks with such rhetoric that we know the answer is, “no.” How can this be? First, remember the context established in verses prior of not showing respect of persons against the poor. In other words, can your faith save the poor or those in need? Let us leave this point for the moment, as the next verses address this well. Second, the passage is not discussing the salvation of the souls of the poor but the physical saving from a person’s need. Is your faith alone enough to physically save a person in need? One might say that if I can trust God for my needs, then I can trust God for the needs of others. True, but let us see the example given in Scripture.
“If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?”
Let’s understand the example. We are dealing with a Christian who is confronted in some way with the need of the poor, a scenario not at all unfamiliar to us. The Christian understands the legitimate need and owns the means to be able to fill that need. But this Christian is “super-spiritual.” In fact, he is so spiritual that instead of just filling the need, he piously states, “Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled,” as if to say, “I have faith that your needs will be filled.” But this Christian does nothing personally to fill that need; he only states his “faith” that the need will be met. What did that statement “by faith” profit? Was it even really faith?
We have to wonder why the Christian didn’t just fill the need right then and right there. It is evident that he could have: “notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body.” The Christian had the means but withheld. Why?
Perhaps he didn’t want to do without for himself. Sometimes, we Christians are more interested in having a storehouse built up for ourselves and our eventualities than we are in meeting the immediate needs of others. “If I give this, then what happens if I need it?” If that is the case, then where is the actual faith? It is easier to say that I have faith that God will supply your need than to give what is in my possession to take care of your need and trust that God will supply my need. Truthfully, however, our faith is dead if we won’t give because we are keeping for ourselves.
It is also possible that this Christian was using faith to mask his lack of love and compassion for the poor. The words of faith are easy to utter and can be given insincerely in a situation such as this. If this is the reason, then this is not a show of real faith but a lack of Godly love for others. The mouth here says, “I know by faith your need will be met,” but the heart is saying, “Yes, but not met by me. You can’t have what is mine.” We could find ourselves with this heart if we value ourselves more than others or if we value the things of this world more than others. Either way, the truth of the matter is that we value something over God. How then could we expect to express true faith? Our faith, again, is dead if we can’t even find the love to help the needs of others.
“I will shew thee my faith by my works.”
We once again find ourselves faced with the truth that words are cheap. If you really want to show the love of God and if you really want to exercise faith, you must but works to it. Work out of your faith.
What does working out of your faith look like? If the Christian in the example had done the right thing, it might have looked like this: “God has given to me so that I can help in your time of need. I know that when I give to you God will take care of my need as well.” That’s what real faith looks like, giving and working by faith that God will take care of you as you take care of others. Then we are able to show Jesus Christ to others by the faith that they will see in us.
We need living faith, but we are prone to (in our flesh) trying to exercise dead faith. How can we tell if our faith is alive or dead? Verse 17, “faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” You can try to show me that you have faith without works, but you can only show me you have faith by your works.
That Worthy Name
James 2:5-10, “Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.”
“Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith?”
Let’s be honest: we don’t always choose well. We don’t always choose as God has chosen. As the previous verses of James 2 describe, sometimes we show partiality to the man with the “gold ring, in goodly apparel.” We sometimes “have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing,” and we give preference to them. Meanwhile, we tend to give less priority to the poor, saying something like, “Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool.” Maybe we take a more modern approach and say, “you need to get back into line” or “we will deal with you later.” Maybe we won’t say it from the mouth, but we do in our heart with our actions reflecting such.
But we are not choosing well, because we are not choosing as God has chosen. You see, what some are doing is targeting groups that they think will be a greater financial benefit to the church and leaving out groups that won’t be able to give as well. It is a cold-hearted, pragmatic outlook on God’s house and the body of Christ. It is a corporate approach, but it is not a Godly approach. A pragmatic analysis would naturally conclude that if you want more money for more programs then you favor and attempt to attract people with more money to fill the coffers. To be clear, there are religions that practice this. They figure that having more funds means that they can afford more programs, and then they can afford to reach the poor in some way. This is not the approach for God’s people. After all, “hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?”
“But ye have despised the poor.”
This is a stunning indictment. Can this be true of us? Do we despise the poor? But we have charity events, soup kitchens, bill-paying programs, etc. We can’t possibly despise the poor.
Programs can be good, but that doesn’t mean we have the right heart in this matter. Despising the poor comes from having respect of persons. Who gets the best treatment? Are you more afraid of losing a rich person from the congregation than a poor person? Do you feel more confident of your financial position by reaching out to the wealthy? Do you give preference to this person of affluence?
We should consider this: who builds the church? Is the church built on the riches of man or the care of our Lord? Is the church sustained by the wealth of benefactors or the power of Jesus Christ. Jesus promised, “upon this rock [referring to Himself] I will build my church.” We, as the body of Christ, are built on the Rock that is Jesus. He is the Builder, and He is the Sustainer. Speaking of the church, we truly can echo Zechariah 4:6 which declares, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.”
Because Jesus builds the church and because God has chosen the poor of this world rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, then we ought not have respect of persons in this matter. Not that we should despise the rich either, but we should realize that all need to be saved and all are saved the same way, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. The rich will struggle more with this because they tend to trust in their riches. They must become poor in spirit in order to become rich in faith.
“Do not rich men oppress you…do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?”
We should take a moment to understand the “rich” in this passage. Merely having wealth is not being vilified in these verses. God does bless some believers with more means than others so that they can use those means for His honor and glory. God gives in more abundance to some so that they can be a blessing to others. Though these people have wealth, they understand what it is to be humble or “poor in spirit,” and they desire to be used of God as much as anyone. But some (and truly the tendency may be such) have developed the love of money, which is the root of all evil. They are a greedy bunch that place their faith in their riches, and use their wealth to obtain power for their own glory. These are the ones who “oppress you” and “draw you before the judgment seats.” These are they who use their power and influence to hinder the work of God. They file lawsuits, abuse their power, and attempt to pass laws to hinder the work of God.
Herein lies the irony of showing partiality to the rich: aren’t they the ones that tend to cause us the most trouble? Aren’t they the ones who “oppress you”? Aren’t they the ones that “draw you before the judgment seats”? Aren’t they the ones who “blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called”? Why are we showing respect of persons toward them?
“That worthy name by the which ye are called.”
Do you consider that worthy name by the which ye are called? We are called “Christians,” named after Jesus Christ. We represent Him in all that we do. Our actions show a picture to the world of Jesus Christ. Here, these rich men who abuse their power and trust their wealth are also shown to blaspheme that name, but do we not the same when we show that respect of persons? Did Christ show that kind of partiality? Christ died for sinners—all sinners, rich or poor. We blaspheme the name of Christ when we show a false picture of Him to the world by our actions. Verse 9 plainly teaches, “But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.” You might think that you are a good person and you do all this good, but if you have transgressed the law even in this one area then you are just that, a transgressor of the law.
We need to accurately and wholly represent that worthy name—the name of Christ. And if the Lord is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance,” and if He says “that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life,” then we ourselves ought never show respect of persons. Can you imagine if Jesus had shown respect of persons? None of us would make the cut.