As A Christian; I Knew What I Must Do, But Not How To Do It!
“For what I am doing (failing by sinning), I do not understand (trying but failing), For what I will to do, that I do not practice (wants to be obedient but is failing), But what I hate, that I do (speaking of the sin in his life which he cannot get victory over)’ (Romans 7:15).
The above verse was written by the Apostle Paul before he knew the way to have victory over the sin in his daily life. The day we came to the Lord in repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus and His sacrificial death on the cross; we were born again. This wonderful day was the beginning of our spiritual journey through life. We were saved by faith, but how to walk out this life is a decision that will bring us victory daily, or frustration and defeat. I heard it said that some Christians are “miserably saved.”
We were fully sanctified when we were saved (1 Corinthians 6:11). That is our position “in Christ.” But our condition is something that the Holy Spirit will work on to bring our condition closer to our position. We are not talking about sinless perfection. That will not be the case in our lives until we receive our glorified bodies. What we are talking about is victory in our lives on a daily basis over the world, the flesh, and the devil. This is only possible as we place our faith in Christ and Him crucified. Paul came to the realization that victory is found in a Person. He said the following regarding his failure to live victoriously and where the answer is found:
“O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord (victory comes through Christ alone by what He accomplished at Calvary)” (Romans 7:24,25).
Paul realized that His faith must be placed in Christ and Him crucified which allows the Holy Spirit to work mightily in our lives to give us victory over sin. It is the only way to victory as the following verse makes clear:
“The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the Law of Sin and Death” (Romans 8:2).
We came to the Lord by faith and that is how we are to walk out our lives. We are “in Christ” and maintain our relationship with Him by faith. As we place our faith in Christ and Him crucified, the Holy Spirit will work to bring us victory in our lives over the world, the flesh, and the devil.
There was a man I heard about recently that died from a drug overdose. He had accepted the Lord and had been baptized with the Holy Spirit, but he could not get victory over drugs. Was he saved at the time of his death? Did he go to Heaven? Of course, we do not know. Only the Lord knows. However, it was obvious to all who knew him that he loved the Lord. Obviously, we all fall short of perfection. Someone else might have a problem with anger or any other sin that we cannot get victory over.
The point is that unless we anchor our faith in Christ and Him crucified and allow the Holy Spirit to work; we will not have victory in our lives. We were saved by faith, and as long as we keep our faith in Christ and His sacrificial death at Calvary; we are secure in our salvation. And as Christians, we obviously do not want to sin and we seek victory over it. Many Christians are failing in their daily walk because they are not walking by faith. We cannot gain victory in our own strength. The Christian disciplines such as reading the Bible, fasting, prayer, and attending church services are all things we should do, but they will not give us victory over the sin in our lives. If we place our faith in these things we are turning them into works, and we will not have the victory we seek in our lives. It took the Lord’s Sacrifice of His life on the Cross to take care of the sin problem.
[Faith Opens The Door For All The Lord Has For Us In This Life]
We come to the Lord by faith in His great sacrifice and we are saved. We do the same in our daily lives to overcome the sin in our lives. As the verse in Romans states: our salvation “is by faith from first to last.” And as the following verse tells us we are complete in Him:
For in Him (Christ) dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And you are complete in Him which is the Head of all principality and power” (Colossians 2:9,10).
So, just as we were saved by faith; we are also kept by faith. The Lord gained a complete victory and we need only keep our faith in Him to walk out this life as the Lord would have us do. Jesus said, “It is finished.” Once again, we need only walk out this life by faith. The way we came in (by faith), is how we stay in and walk in a way pleasing to the Lord, and it is the only place we will find the victory we so desire.
“As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him” (Colossians 2:6).
So, this man with a drug dependency, could not get victory over his addiction and died. Again, we don’t know the man’s heart, but if His faith was in Christ and Him crucified for salvation and he was trying to get victory over the drugs in his own strength, then he was fighting a losing battle. We are not His judge, but when we look at our own lives; How are we trying to overcome the sin in our lives? Are we trying to defeat sin in our own strength, or have we placed our faith in the only way to victory, that is, the victory the Lord won at the Cross? The Holy Spirit works in our lives exclusively through our faith in the finished work of Christ. He works no other way.
I know I am being somewhat repetitive here, but knowing the way to victory is of utmost importance to us as Christians. Faith in our Savior and His great sacrifice opens the door to all the blessings the Lord has for us. We cannot live this life in our own strength. It’s impossible! We must fight the good fight of (the) faith. He has done it all and provided a complete salvation for us. Our part is to believe in all the Lord has done for us. Placing our faith in anything else for victory over the sin in our lives will result in bondage as Galatians 5:1 tells us:
“Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free ( freedom to live a holy life by faith in Christ and the Cross), and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage (if we abandon faith in the Cross and go under law of any kind it will result in bondage)” (Galatians 5:1 & ESB & my notes).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
See The Sin Nature And The Ways It’s Addressed page on my website.
https://wordpress.com/page/tqministries.com/186
See the Victorious Christian Living page on my website.
https://wordpress.com/page/tqministries.com/211
Find podcasts of this article, and all the articles on this website on the “Here I Am Lord” podcast on Anchor, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Pocket Casts, and RadioPublic. Also, Here I Am, Lord is on Telegram.
Follow to receive email notifications regarding future articles
Scroll down to read past articles
Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2023
Here I Am, Lord - - tqministries.com 