Introduction
Welcome to this edition of “My Thoughts with Dale Van De Bogart.” I want to welcome our faithful listeners and I also welcome our new listeners as well. As a reminder, all notes are in PDF, and located on our website, vdbm.org. Click on My Thoughts Video Series, scroll down on the page to choose the series, and download our notes, free of charge.
In this week’s segment, “Living Victoriously.” I will discuss ways to live a victorious life now. We will learn what living victoriously is, whether is it possible to, and what is the secret. Open your Bible to Exodus 14:1-14.
Seven Characteristics of Living Victoriously
Many of God’s children are living defeated, unsatisfying, and unsatisfactory lives. They have never entered into the experience of the following:
- A peaceful life, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You.” – Isaiah 26:3
- Overflowing life, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” – John 7:37-38
- Abundant life, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly.” – John 10:10
- Joyful life, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” – John 15:11
- Liberated life, “For he who has died has been freed from sin.” – Romans 6:7
- Triumphant life, “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” – 2 Corinthians 2:14
- Loving life, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” – 1 John 4:7
Passage Text – Exodus 14:1-14
1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
2 “Speak to the children of Israel, that they turn and camp before Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, opposite Baal Zephon; you shall camp before it by the sea.
3 For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, ‘They are bewildered by the land; the wilderness has closed them in.’
4 Then I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so that he will pursue them; and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the Lord.” And they did so.
5 Now it was told the king of Egypt that the people had fled, and the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people; and they said, “Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?”
6 So he made ready his chariot and took his people with him.
7 Also, he took six hundred choice chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt with captains over every one of them.
8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the children of Israel; and the children of Israel went out with boldness.
9 So the Egyptians pursued them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them camping by the sea beside Pi Hahiroth, before Baal Zephon.
10 And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So, they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt?
12 Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.”
13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Standstill, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.
14 The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
1. What is Meant by a Life of Victory?
Seven characteristics of such a life were just mentioned above, and many other scriptures could be cited. Let us consider the following:
- It is not a life in which it is impossible to sin, but a life in which victory over sin is possible. The first is unobtainable in this life, but the second is attainable.
- It is not an abnormal life or a life to be enjoyed by just a few of God’s children, but it is His promise for every Christian.
- It is not a life where there is no temptation, but a life where temptation is overcome. Hebrews 4:15, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
- It is not a life of outward victory only, but a life of inward and outward victory.
- It is not a fully grown life where further growth in grace is unnecessary or impossible.
The victorious life is a life of victory over sin, self, and Satan. A life of freedom from the power of sin as well as freedom from the penalty of sin. A life, according to Romans 5:10, “For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”
2. Is Such a Life Really Possible?
Two questions to ask on this topic:
- Is it God’s will that we should live a life of victory?
- Has He made provision for each and all of His children to be victorious?
If the answer is yes to both, then we sin against Him by accepting and being satisfied with anything less than His will. If it is not, then it would be a sin against Him to seek or to expect to live a victorious life.
Let me reverse the question:
- Is it God’s will we, His children, should live defeated lives?
- Is it necessary for us to be overcome by such things as temper, touchiness, untruthfulness, pride for an example?
Let the following scriptures supply the answer:
Matthew 1:21, “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
John 8: 34-36, “Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”
Romans 6:14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
Note: Romans 6:14 sums up Romans chapters 6, 7, and 8.
Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
1 Thessalonians 4:3, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality;”
2 Timothy 4:18, “And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!”
Hebrews 7:25, “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
1 John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 2:1, “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
These scriptures make it abundantly clear God desires all His children to experience a victorious Christian life.
3. What is the Secret of this Life of Victory?
The secret to living a life of victory is fourfold. Simply stated:
- Victory is not gained by human effort.
We shall be on the way to living a life of victory when we have truly learned this simple lesson. It is absolutely impossible to live this life in our own strength. 1 Samuel 2:9, “He will guard the feet of His saints, but the wicked shall be silent in darkness.”
Here is the reason for all our failure; we have tried to gain the victory over sin, self, and satan in our own strength, and we have failed every time. Remember God has excluded the work of man from every tense of salvation.
- We are not saved from the “guilt and penalty” of sin by our own works (Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:5)
- We are not saved from the “power” of sin by our own works (Romans 5:10)
- We shall not be saved from the “presence” of sin by our own works (John 14:3)
- Victory is given – it is a gift!
1 Corinthians 15:57 makes this clear, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The victorious Christian life is God’s gift, and it is offered to everyone who will receive this gift. Indeed, the victorious life which He offers to all men is the victorious life of His Son. The Lord Jesus in a human body triumphed gloriously in His life and death over sin and Satan; and now His victorious life is offered to everyone as a gift to be received. His victorious life may be reproduced in and lived out through our human bodies.
There is only one victorious life, and when you received the Lord Jesus (John 1:12), you received that life. Did you realize that? Now you must let Him live His life in you and through you.
Joshua 6:16, “And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!” The victory over Jericho was not gained by effort and striving, but by simple trust and obedience. That victory was a gift!
- Victory is gained by a choice.
It is vital to see this. As long as we are in this world we shall be faced with a choice, as Joshua faced the Children of Israel with a choice in Joshua 24:15, “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” This choice involves a definite, conscious act of the will.
Every time we are tempted to sin, if we are to experience victory, we must deliberately choose to please our Lord Jesus Christ who has already gained the victory for us. Jesus is waiting to give the victory to us, and the moment we choose Him we receive His power, and it enables us to be victorious.
Romans 6:13, “And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.”
- Victory is maintained by an attitude.
What then is the secret of continuous victory? Here it is in the following sentence:
“LET US FIX OUR EYES ON JESUS …WHO GIVES US THE VICTORY.”
The scriptural warrant for this is found in:
- Hebrews 12:2, “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” This is our part
- 1 Corinthians 15:57, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is His part, Amen!
I am Dale Van De Bogart and I fully agree on God’s Word!
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