Veroni's Views

In Romans 8.37 Paul says “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”  NLT:  “overwhelming victory is ours”.   The Greek word used here may be translated as “complete victory”.      

A conqueror is a conqueror is a conqueror, not so?  Why “More than conquerors”?  

The only reason why we can be more than conquerors, is because God is on our side – see my previous blog.

Our victory straddles two different realities:  This world and the spiritual realm.  “…because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,  made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions … And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2.4-6)

Our first victory was when we dedicated ourselves to the Lord.  By doing so we overcame the natural inclination to self-determination.  Thereafter every time we chose to obey God was a victory.  Every time we held fast to our faith even when we did not see the victory immediately, was a victory.  Right now, whatever your circumstances are, know that as you hold on to God, you are gaining the victory.  

The measure of our victory is revealed by the measure of our antagonist.  Paul outlines the sources of what we are victorious against:  “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”  (Ephesians 6.12)  

Paul’s assertion of our being more than conquerors comes after he mentions more of the sources of what we are up against: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Against whatever any of these may bring against us, we can confess that we are indeed more than conquerors.  

Our ultimate victory will be when we come to the end of our lives, and we realize that we are also victorious over death.  Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15.54-57: “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’ ‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The “already” and the “not completely yet”.   Our being victorious is typical of the Kingdom of God.  It has come, yet it is not quite fulfilled.  The consummation of the Kingdom will take place with what Paul writes about in 1 Corinthians 15.28: ” Then, when all things are under his authority, the Son will put himself under God’s authority, so that God, who gave his Son authority over all things, will be utterly supreme over everything everywhere.” (NLT)

In the same way, we will see the consummation of our own victory when Christ’s reign is finally recognized everywhere.  

Until that time, let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the “author and perfecter of our faith”, that is the one “on whom our faith depends from start to finish. (Hebrews 12.2, NLT)

Father, we thank you that we already are more than conquerors, and we look forward to that day when our victory will be consummated.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.