For nearly 40 years, ABC aired a show called the Wide World of Sports.  It always began with Jim McKay referring to “the thrill of victory…and the agony of defeat…”   Defeat can, indeed, be agonizing, while victory is almost always thrilling. The good news for Christians is that while life has a way of putting obstacles in our path, nothing can stop us from being victorious, except, maybe, ourselves.  If we are faithful to God, we are more than conquerors in Christ (ver. 37).  Paul gives us four reasons that we can know this.

First, because God is with us (ver. 31).  Our strength to defeat the devil in everyday life comes from God.  His power works in us (Ephesians 3:20).  Paul put his trust, not in himself, but in Jesus.  He said, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).  Paul knew that with God on his side, he could not be defeated.  How do we know that God is with us?  We know because He sacrificed His Son (ver. 32).  God watched as His Son was tortured on a cross.  He could have stopped it at any time, but instead, He let Him suffer.  The crucifixion of Christ powerfully proves that God is with us.

Second, because we have been justified (ver. 33).  The word justify means to be acquitted, and just like in a human court of law, when one is acquitted of sins in heaven’s court, he can never be charged again for those sins.  In other words, once God forgives us, we never have to worry about those sins again because He remembers them no more.

Hebrews 8:12 (ESV)
¹²  For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Hebrews 10:16-17 (ESV)
¹⁶  “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,” ¹⁷  then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”

What kind of sins have you committed in the past?  How did you live your life before you learned about Jesus and obeyed the gospel?  It does not matter!  You are now a new creature in Christ, and you stand before God as if you never committed those sins.  You are victorious in Christ because your sins have been washed away by His blood (Revelation 1:5).

Third, because Jesus continues to make intercession for us (ver. 34).  The work of Christ did not stop on the cross.  He has now become our advocate (1 John 2:1-2).  He now lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25).  So, when we go before God to plead for the forgiveness of sins, we know that we are not going before God alone.  Our advocate is standing by our side, pleading for us.  And guess what?  Jesus has never lost a case.  He is unbeatable and undefeatable, and as long as He is working on our behalf, we are undefeatable as well.

Fourth, we have the unchanging love of God in our lives (vers 35-39), and nothing can separate us from it.  God loved us when we were sinners, so we can be sure that He still loves us now.  And, by the power of that love, we can overcome every trial that life throws at us.  At the end of every day, no matter what we had to endure, when we lay our heads down upon our pillows at night, we know that God loves us, and we are still more than conquerors.

Aren’t you glad you have victory in Christ?  If so, act like it!

As you wind down for the night, think about these things