Focus: Conquering Faith (Pt.1)

Text: 1Jh.5:4

"For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith."

Only those born of God conquer the world, and with the weapon of faith in their hands, victory is inevitable. Paul describes faith as a shield that wards off the fiery darts of the enemy. Faith as a defensive weapon protects the one who puts it on. The believer subdues kingdoms by means of his faith. He triumphs over trials and temptations by his faith.

Faith is a winning tool in the hands of the believer in Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ says to each of the seven churches in the book of Revelation, "He who overcomes…" The believer overcomes in this life by having faith in God and being faithful to Christ.

John tells us that those born of God overcome the WORLD by faith. The implication of this is that the world is the enemy of the believer in Christ. The world is not the believer's friend. The world is opposed to all that the believer in Jesus Christ stands for. The believer by his faith understands what his enemy is. 

Indeed, faith knows - it is the divine faculty by which the believer comprehends his environment and acknowledges potential enemies and dangers.

By faith he who is born of God receives the divine capacity for:

*Foresight

- by the lens of faith the believer sees ahead. He believes in what God has revealed in His Word and by the Spirit about this world and the world to come. In this present life he is already having a foretaste of the powers of the world to come.

*Alertness

- by the sixth or spiritual sense of faith the believer becomes spiritually sensitive to everything that goes on around him. His spiritual antenna picks up things very quickly. The believer is spiritually alive and aware, and mentally alert.

*Intelligence/insight

- by faith the believer in Christ gains divine intelligence and insight into the workings of this world. He is guided by the intelligence of the Spirit, and by the Word of God he receives insight. By faith he sees beyond the surface and understands the true import or meaning of things. He knows that things are not always as they seem. He sees what lies beneath the surface.

*Truth

- the believer is connected to the God of truth, to the Spirit of truth, to Christ who is the truth, and to the Scripture of truth. He believes in the truth of God, which is the highest and ultimate reality in the universe. The believer has access to God's truth, and by knowing the truth, he is liberated from bondage. His faith is informed by theology, not human logic.

*Hindsight

- the believer's faith exposes him to divine history as recorded in the Scriptures. He knows both the past and the future, and things in between. He looks back, looks within, and looks forward. He sees things from God's vantage point.

This is the faith that overcomes the world. It sees the things that are as they are meant to be. It understands the huge difference between the passing and the lasting. It knows what is wrong and what is right from God's own perspective. It is rooted in God's reality. It is a piece of armor that guarantees victory over the world.

The believer is saved by faith, relates with God by faith, loves by faith, lives by faith, testifies by faith, worships by faith, walks and works by faith, wins by faith, and longs for God's eternity by faith.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter