Victor not Victim
Victor not Victim
Bruce Billington
Introduction
With all that is going on in the world today, it is easy to get really fearful and just want to hide under the blankets and cry out for Jesus to return. But is this not a valid response and the question also begs – is this an accurate view of reality anyway?
Just a brief study of history reveals to us that in the past two centuries, the average person has become wealthier, healthier, safer, and more informed than ever. A negative side of having access to so much information as we do today and hearing so much about all the bad things that are going on, is very taxing on us. We feel overwhelmed and powerless to make a difference.
The “good” old days were not that good!
In terms of finance, more wealth has been created in the last four decades than in all of human history before then. Two centuries ago, 8 in 10 people still lived in extreme poverty, today it’s fewer than 1 in 10.
War, disease, and natural disasters now claim fewer lives than at any point in our history. In 1800, nearly half of all children died before the age of five, but today that figure has fallen to less than 4%. Two centuries ago, 88% of the world’s population was illiterate: now only 10%. An average smartphone user in China now has more information at their fingertips than the president of the United States did in 1990.
Daily life has grown considerably more enjoyable as well. In the 19th century, people (read: mostly women) spent an average of 58 hours per week on household chores – their 21st-century counterparts have whittled this down to fewer than 18 hours.
The average European’s diet during the Middle Ages was grains, porridge, carrots, and onions all year round, with few spices and definitely no fresh fruit
Life for most of the 19th century was lived without television, film, or recorded music. Less than one century ago, most people’s homes weren’t even hooked up to a sewerage system.
Same Old, Same Old
The book of Ecclesiastes had something to say about life – way back several hundred years before Christ.
Ecclesiastes 4:1–4 – Then I looked again at all the acts of oppression which were being done under the sun. And behold I saw the tears of the oppressed and that they had no one to comfort them; and on the side of their oppressors was power, but they had no one to comfort them. So I congratulated the dead who are already dead more than the living who are still living. But better off than both of them is the one who has never existed, who has never seen the evil activity that is done under the sun. The earth has been troubled since the fall.
The writer of Ecclesiastes goes on to say
Ecclesiastes 7:10 – Do not say, “Why is it that the former days were better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.
But There is Work to Do
But it is true – there is a troubled world full of troubled people out there today and a common problem or cry is loss of hope. In regard to this the cry should be “where are the Isa 60 people?”
Isaiah 60:1–2 – Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the earth And deep darkness the peoples; But the LORD will rise upon you And His glory will appear upon you.
This says that whenever there are dark times in the world, the glory of the Lord is going to come and rise upon His people. This should make us very excited.
Psalm 110:2-3 says He stretches forth His sceptre – which is the church, His people – you and me.
Romans 8:37 – in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.
We are more than adequately commissioned and empowered to deal with whatever is happening in this current life. We are not called to huddle in a fort waiting for a rescue that is not coming – we are called to go forth into the land and bring redemption – as far as the curse is found.
Our gospel today has the power to create societies and even cultures that are based on freedom and life as found in Christ. We cannot meet this call unless we go out and address the real-world issues and bring life to them.
The enemy is not winning – he was defeated 2,000 years ago. We have a calling in Christ to achieve, and each of us only get an allocation of so many years on earth to do it.
Our salvation is not at stake here. Life is not about salvation – that is only a starting point – life is about getting to know God and achieving His purposes during our time on earth. Our rewards for the rest of eternity depend on this.
It is true that today the enemy has been able to arm his people with conviction. These are people who truly believe in abortion; drugs; wokism; taking the money from those who have worked for it and giving it to those who are too lazy to get out of bed in the morning.
The fallen world believes these things are all part of freedom and woe to anyone who opposes their view.
What Should or Can We do?
John 7:38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
Any expression we make, of the Holy Spirit, is compared to living (meaning running) water, because such expressions bring out from us the active quickening principles of spiritual life. These are essential and often, the people we are speaking to are broken cisterns that can hold no water (Jeremiah 2:13).
The comfort and hope that we can bring flows both plentifully and constantly as a river; and it will wash away or break up the mindsets of doubts and fears. A river of living water flows from a holy life that is always full because of our own walk with the Lord and our regular visits to Him as the well and source of life.
All rivers, no matter how small, run into one large lake or water source. They all contribute to the same big pool which is the Kingdom of God. So, when many individuals all make contributions of any degree a source of water is beginning to amass in the midst of the society we live in, and it begins to bring change that comes through our expression of the Kingdom of God.
What Is It We Express?
Paul has some advice here.
Whatever is true, honourable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellence and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8).
And again.
Philippians 2:3–5 – Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Both the heart and activities expressed here have a huge ability to change the world around us. We can express them in our homes and families; out in the market place; while playing sport or taking time out – they work anywhere.
This is the natural joy of walking with the Lord. It can be a sub conscious expression of power into situations that we don’t know anything about. Yet we know Jesus is at work because He is amazing at bringing about inspiring, life-giving actions in the commonplace realms of life.
What You Feed On
Of course, the opposite can happen as well.
If we focus on selfish and carnal things, we empower our fallen nature. If we murmur, complain, and focus on how unfair everything seems to be in a difficult situation, we are not helping resolve the issue. Instead, we’re actually empowering more frustration, anger, bitterness, disappointment, and injustice in our lives and those around us.
We have to make the choice to focus on the positive values of Kingdom life – then we allow and empower the love, light, and life of Jesus to fill us and flow through us.
So much of what the Apostle Paul wrote, was written from prison. He was locked up in awful conditions, probably not sure if he would live or die. Yet he wrote again and again about things like joy, rejoicing, eager expectation, the privilege of walking with Christ in hope, confidence, and peace.
How could he do this? He shared near the end of his letter to the Philippians that this is possible because of what he constantly dwelt upon – the love, hope and grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Face Reality
We find similar traits in Daniel of the Old Testament. He was besieged, captured, trafficked, persecuted, attacked, thrown to the lions, mocked and more. Yet despite being victimized in a variety of ways, Daniel refused to be a victim.
How did he do this? We are told in Daniel 1:8.
But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so, he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself.
He made a conscious choice – it says he made up his mind. He made up his mind not to be defiled by the situation that had been forced on him. He made up his mind not to partake of the things of that place and those people, because he knew they were not good for him. He also made up his mind not to be a prisoner of bitterness and offense. He exercised power over himself, even if he did not always have power over his circumstances.
He decided that God has allowed him to be put in his situation for a reason and that he was going to shine the light into the darkness. As a result, he influenced not only himself and his own disposition – he influenced the whole nation he was unwillingly placed in. Instead of being a victim, Daniel was a victor.
Neither Daniel nor Paul, let their circumstances influence how they thought about God; they let how they thought about God influence their circumstances. It says Daniel made up his mind, and we need to do the same.
Think Like A Victor not a Victim
In 1 Peter 5:8-10 Peter tells us that the devil is prowling around seeking someone to devour, but we should resist him through our faith and as a result we will be perfected, strengthened and established.
This means even his attacks provide us with the opportunity to be transformed. The only time the devil can “devour” us is if we stop believing the truth that we have the victory in Christ.
If we think of ourselves as victims, we will become victims and give the devil opportunity to devour us. This is because we have chosen to lay down our power by exchanging our overcomer’s identity in Christ for a victim identity in our current circumstances. Instead, if we choose to fill our minds with the truth that we are victorious in Christ, who has done all and won all, we will see that victory made manifest.
That brings us back to the passage in Isa 60 that we began with. We can shine because the glory of the Lord has risen upon us.
God bless you.
Bruce Billington