Bible Study
To live victoriously is to always overcome, to always conquer, to always prevail, to always triumph, to win all the time. The only requirement for living victoriously is to be born of God, and the way to live victoriously is through faith
“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.“
I John 5:4 NKJV
Therefore faith is central to experiencing Victorious Christian Living. However, faith doesn’t work alone. Faith is activated through words (Mark 11:24) powered by love (James 2:26 NKJV) and anchored by hope (Hebrews 6:19, Hebrews 11:1).
The 3 Essential Elements for Victorious Christian Living in this study are; faith, love and hope.
Remember you can access previous parts of this study as follows; Part 1: Study Background. Part 2: The Scope of the Christian Victory. Part 3: How Christians Gained Victory. Part 4: How Faith, Love and Hope Mix Together for Victorious Christian Living. Part 5: Victory Through Love: The Nature of God’s Love. Part 6: Victory Through Love: Characteristics of God Kind of Love.
Today we look at Winning Through Love.
Victory Through Love: Winning through love.
“Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.”
I Corinthians 13:8 NKJV
In the context of what is being communicated in 1 Corinthians 13, “love never fails” would mean that; even if prophecies, tongues, knowledge ceases or fades (eventually), love will never fade or cease. And that is understandable when we remember that agape is an intrinsic nature of God and of all His children.
“….. for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
I John 4:7-8 NKJV
God is eternal, the Spirit of God within us from where God’s love permeated our spirits at the new birth is eternal. Love is eternal.
Another way to understand “love never fails” is that love always wins, love always achieves its purpose. And I tell you, you can take that to the bank because Love Always Wins. God knew so.
According to Jesus, everything about the Law and the Prophets hinges on love….the love of God and the love of man as summarised in the 2 New Testament Great commandments….
“Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:37-40 NKJV
The Pharisees were the strictest sect of Jewish teachers. They had good knowledge of the law and the workings of the prophets but seldom truly lived by these themselves. So what Jesus was really saying to them in Matthew 22:37-40 was, you know the law, you know the prophets but I tell you, of everything you think you know, the ‘love commandment’ supersedes them all….learn to truly love! That’s an amazing display of wisdom by Jesus because the person (a lawyer) who actually asked the question of the greatest commandment didn’t really seek to know, his intention was simply to trick Jesus into speaking blasphemously.
You know what else I find very amazing?….. how people respond to love. True love changes people for the better.
God recognized the power of love in transforming people, little wonder He chose the love strategy in winning humanity back to Himself…
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16 NKJV
God expressed His love towards man by giving His son.
Let me just point out at this point that many times people confuse giving with loving. Giving is not (always) love, yes giving is an expression of love but it can also be many other things. I’ll discuss this in more detail in Part 10 of this study, join me.
So, How Exactly Can We Win Through Love?
Below I discuss 4 applications of Winning Through Love.
1. In Winning People Over
“Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.“
Romans 13:8 NKJV
According to Romans 13:8, love is a debt we owe every man. And every man really do mean every man without exception. You know, it is a lot easier to reciprocate love when you feel loved. But sometimes we encounter people who are not so nice and who ordinarily should fit into an ‘unlovable’ group, but God said to love every man.
Jesus identified 4 groups of possible enemies in Matthew 5: 43-48. These are people we would ordinarily not want to love…
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
Matthew 5:43-48 NKJV
People who spitefully use us. Those who curse us. Those who hate us. Those who persecute us. Jesus said to love them all. So Jesus is saying; have no (human) enemies. And like I often say, a Christian has only one enemy and that is the devil.
Brethren, the love of God is unconditional and selfless and that is exactly how we are to love because we are sons of God. Amen!
People who spitefully use us
People who spitefully use someone include those who enjoy benefits from that person (they are blessed by this person), but they refuse to acknowledge or appreciate anything good about that person. I think this is some form of bondage.
I once heard a man say of his wife that she cooks really good but he can never tell her so otherwise she’ll become too full of herself. According to this man, he needs his wife to stay humble!
I think that this man is just at another end of pride. Because a superiority complex is just at another end of the spectrum of pride, just opposite to an inferiority complex (selah).
Let me just say that humility is one of the most misrepresented and misunderstood principles in the Bible. Humility have sometimes been used as a manipulative tool and that is wrong. Some Christian wives have become subjugated to slavery based on wrong teachings on humility likewise some members of the body of Christ have become emasculated to the point that they lack any conviction of personally standing on and benefitting from their identity, rights and privileges in Christ because of wrong teachings on humility. Humility is simply the fear of the Lord, expressed as total submission to His Word and as love for other people (selah). Any teachings on humility and submission contrary to the Word of God is either an error, a selfish drive or a false doctrine. Truth is; when rightly applied, the Bible provides an excellent balance on humility, as it applies to God and fellow men. That’s where to look. Amen!
So if you have a boss, superior or anyone who benefits from you in one way or the other and yet pretends that you have nothing worthy of note, do not yield to the temptation to hate them, Jesus says to love them. How? By living out the characteristics of love discussed in Part 6. Amen!
People who are stingy with praise are many times dealing with a complex themselves. Secondly they may not have truly and totally understood their own giftings and talents. They may be dealing with personal inadequacies. Truth is, there is a place and portion for everyone in the Body of Christ. Even for people who are still in the world, they were made for a purpose. When people find their place and are settled in it, they are more likely to also recognize the place and portion of others and therefore give thanks for them as should.
As you read this, hopefully you’re the kind of Christian who has no challenge giving appreciation, commendation and affirmation where it’s deserved.
Let us be true sons of our Father in Heaven, by loving as God loves.
We will never win people who spitefully use us over to Christ if we respond outside of the love of God. And even in the Body of Christ, we will never successfully help people change for the better outside the love of God.
Please join me next time as we continue to learn to win through love.
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Blessings & Love Always
