IN DEPTH: MORE THAN CONQUERORS

-IN DEPTH-

MORE THAN CONQUERERS

An introduction and overview of the first series of this blog.

I have been feeling in my heart lately that there are a lot of teens who oftentimes feel overwhelmed. Whether it may be school, work, friends, family, or whatever, life can take its toll on a Christian if you don’t have the right tools to fight back. And so I felt God place it on my heart to start this series, to give encouragement and let you know what the bible says about what/where Jesus has called us to, and what God can do for you.

My inspiration for this series comes from Romans 8:28-39, which is as follows:

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“(28) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (29) For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (30) And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

(31) What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? (32) He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (33) Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. (34) Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. (35) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? (36) As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;  we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”(37) No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (38) For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, (39) 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.”

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And this really is such a powerful passage of scripture… or in “teen language:” DUDE, THIS IS AWESOME!!! It says so much in such a short amount of words, and so I will attempt to explain here what this is talking about.

The first section is basically saying three things.

First, it says that He has a plan and a purpose for your life. He knew before you were born what he wants you to do. Granted, not all of us are called to be pastors. Not all of us are called to be doctors. Not all of us are called to be soldiers. God has a specific plan and purpose for each person according to what He knows they are capable of, the desires of their heart, their talents and abilities, etc.

Secondly, in verses 29, God is saying to us that He knew you before you were born, and that he predestined (or predetermined) you to be “conformed to the likeness of his Son.” This means that before you were born, God decided and established what He wants for you to do with your life, where He wants you to go, and what things that He has waiting in store for you. How awesome is that? God already has it all laid out—preplanned, if you will—for you! All you have to do is listen to God, find out what He wants you to do, and follow it!

Thirdly, verse 30 says that “those he predestined, he also called…” Did you know that God has called you to do great and awesome things with your life? “Those he called, he also justified…” If you are following God’s calling on your life and doing what He wants you to do, God will justify your cause. “Those he justified, he also glorified.” If you follow God’s plan for your life, God will glorify you. Whether it be in terms of money, or recognition, or whatever, He will bring you up.

Paul says in verse 31 that if God is on our side, nobody can come against us.

Now, how cool is that? Think about it. If you have God on your side, who can be against you? Because if you have him on your side, he’s basically saying that anyone who wants to mess with you is going to have to mess with him. And who can mess with God? (nobody) The bible even says that no man can look at God and live. So if God is backing you up, then how can anybody come against you and pull you down? If you have your sights locked in on God, if you stand firm on His promises, the bible says that God will deliver you from your trials. Given, it may not always be instant, and often times God will test you, to prove your faith, or your obedience, or your dedication. But in the end, the reward for trusting God and staying close to Him is always going to be greater than anything else. And remember this: God is always on your side, and will never let anything happen to you that you can’t handle through Him. The question you have to ask yourself is this: Am I on God’s side? (I’ll get into that in a future post)

How do we know that God is on our side? Well, the following verse (32) says here that God didn’t even spare his own son, but gave him up for us.

How amazing is that? When you think about it, what have we done to warrant God’s love and forgiveness? When you look at what the world was then compared to what it is now, we’re still the same group of liars, murderers, prostitutes, villains, gluttons, backstabbers, and cowards that we were two thousand years ago. What does that say about God’s love for us? The very fact that He didn’t wipe us off the earth once and for all yet shows how much He loves us. Each day we are alive is a gift from God, a token of His love.

The next three verses I will group together in one, for sake of a more simplified approach to it.

“Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Jesus Christ, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, or sword?”

Take a look at that first sentence there. Who will bring any accusation against someone that God has chosen? Who can say that you’re doing wrong if you’re doing what God wants you to do? Who can judge you if you’re walking in the will of God? Then, moving on, it says that “It is God who justifies.” God will always be standing under you if you are walking the path that He wants you to walk. God will always justify your cause when the world pushes you away and accuses you of doing wrong, so long as you are doing what God has told you to do. And who will justly condemn you if you are doing God’s will? Granted, people will condemn you for following Christ in certain circumstances, and I have come to experience this a few times. It’s not fun, but I just remember that I’m only doing what God has told me to do. I press through, keeping my sights locked in on Him, always reminding myself of His promises, and in the end God always pulls me though, bringing me that much closer to Him and that much further from the world’s lies.

The next verse here says that Jesus is praying for you, pleading for you. He cares about you so much that He is praying for YOU. Pretty cool, huh? Jesus loves you and cares about you so much that he is praying for you. Going on it says, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ?” Think about that. God’s love is greater than any human mind could ever wrap itself around. So how could any human mind even begin to come up with a way of separating you from that love? After all, everything the world can throw at you is a result of human intellect. And so if the things of the world came as a result of the human mind, how could it be greater than God’s love as to separate you from that connection? Simple yet complicated, I know.

Verse 36 says, “For your sake we face death all day long. We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” This verse is referring to Psalm 44, where David is pleading with God to come to the aid of his army. Go ahead and read that chapter. It may help you understand this verse a bit better. But this verse also applies to us today. In many countries around the world, Christians are actually hunted down and killed, just for being Christians. And here in America, many Christians (especially teenagers) are oftentimes rejected by the world, by their peers, because we live to a higher standard and the world does not understand it. What the world does not understand they pass off as being wrong, and since the world does not understand why Christians choose to live to a higher standard, why we don’t conform to their ways, they spit us out.

Then, in the next verse (yes this is where I got the name for this series) it says “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” And this is referring to verse 35, where it says “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” and then lists the possibilities…… Did you know that God wants you to be a mighty conqueror? Through our faith, we are called to win battles and be victorious in everything that we do. And this is so important that you understand this, because this will be the topic of this entire series, is how we are called to be victorious conquerors through Christ.

Then verses 38 and 39 wrap it up with, “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, no anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is ours in Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Remember that. NOTHING can separate us from God’s love. Nothing at all. Nothing can stop us from being victorious through Christ, because He is greater than all things this world can throw at us.

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