Victory in Jesus

Imagine this with me:

You’re a boxer approaching the most important fight of your career. You know the stakes are high: you lose, you’re done. No more boxing. You prepare for weeks, months; you learn everything there is to know about your opponent. They are confident, strong, determined. They know what they want and they go for it, no matter the consequences. You also know this person stands for everything you stand against.

The day of the fight finally arrives and you lay everything on the line. You step into the ring and look towards your opponent. Time freezes and the world falls away as you look into the eyes of your rival. The wind is knocked out of you as if you have been punched and you stagger back into the corner, astonished at the sight. Desperation creeps into your soul and a cry of hopelessness escapes your mouth. There is no way you can win this.

We are all a part of an intense battle. A battle with sin. With the devil. A battle for our souls.

Satan is constantly urging me towards sin. Always trying to compromise, find “loopholes”, and convince me that it’s “not really that bad” to watch that movie or listen to that song. But one bad movie turns into two. And three and four and so on. We are to be careful to give no opportunity to the devil (Ephesians 4:27) for this very reason. If we tell ourselves something is okay, even when we know it’s sinful, it starts a pattern. We will tell ourselves it is okay every time we are presented with the opportunity and eventually, we will start to believe it is okay and we won't hesitate at all. We give the devil a foothold and before we know it, he has our entire leg.

It is usually at this point in the battle that I become exhausted and honestly a little apathetic. I think I am doing well, all the while giving in little by little, until all of a sudden I find myself lost and feeling hopeless.

You remember what is at stake and you give it your best shot. You fight tooth and nail, pushing, kicking, screaming, anything to give you the upper hand. The fight is taking its toll, but you are doing okay. Then you slip. Next thing you know you are on the ground breathless, crawling to the corner, desperate for relief. And cowering in the corner, gazing up at your opponent across the ring, you are overcome with grief, the deepest feeling of despair as reality settles in: you can’t win.

Hold on.

I implore you to just hold on.

Because your Saviour is there. Your guide, your mentor, your friend is right there beside you. And when you realize you can’t win this fight, he steps in for you. He takes your place. He took my place. And he has won. Romans 8:37 says “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”

Because of Jesus Christ, we don’t just win the battle, we conquer it. We can rest in the confidence that while we are weak and we may lose the battle, Christ is stronger and He has already won the war.

Still small in the corner you watch as He steps into the ring. You know coming in here is a sacrifice for him. Regardless of his own life and out of his immense love for you, he fights your battle. And he wins. Picking you up out of the corner he guides you to the centre where he raises your hand in victory. Because His victory is your victory.