The Winning Advantage (Jeremiah 31:35)
35 Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The Lord of hosts is his name:
Jeremiah 31:35 (King James Version)
The crowd roared as the star player walked into view; in their minds the crowd had the winning advantage. The best player who had all the moves, who was the strongest, the fastest, the team player who brought everyone together had come to handle business!
This player was the one they were all waiting for, the atmosphere was electric, you see that the crowd were certain that the best player of the entire game was on their side! Victory was a sure thing, victory was certain.
I could be describing any sports game in the world, and in a small way this could serve as a metaphor to describe the sense of victory that the people of God feel when God demonstrates His presence in the midst of a battle.
But what happens when God’s presence is not demonstrated by an obvious show of outward power? When we can’t seem to find Him; no word of knowledge, no prophesy, no dreams, no visions; the normal comfort experienced from a sermon is far fleeting and the pain is ever-present trying to convince us that we have failed because we have faith, but not so! In Jesus Name!
There is no failure of our faith, we have faith in spite of our failures. There is just one thing that our hardships and distress need to remember, and that is the victory of the cross! The sacrifice of the life of Christ Jesus as a payment for our sins, only to resurrect from the grave on the third day. This is an eternal bounce back, clap back and come back all rolled into one.
The victory is not just for when we go home to glory when this life is over no, the victory of the cross is for our lives here on earth as well.
The power of the resurrection has been given by God to His people. Just when everyone thinks it’s all over and we find ourselves at the lowest point and all hell has broken loose (as they say).
That’s when there is an authentic surrender within our soul and God steps in, then Pow! Resurrection Power! We rise again, that power is within us, that’s us, the people of God! The victory of the cross is sewn into the fabric of our being, our lives, our death, and our resurrection.
Because of the of the victory of the cross we always win even if it takes a while. If we go down, we get back up because that is the principle of the victory of the cross! Don’t count us out no, not yet, because of the victory of the cross of Jesus Christ!
The Creator who knows the end from the beginning has included us in His eternal plans. Every time we look at nature; the sun, the moon, the stars, the sea, we are reminded that we have a great and wonderful Creator who can do all things including giving you the winning advantage over your battles. He is the Lord of Hosts, mighty in battle!
God’s creativity, the victory of the cross and the power of the resurrection is on the inside of you. In times past the presence of God dwelt in the Ark of the Covenant but now the presence of God dwells in us! Outwardly we may look like we are being defeated but inwardly the Spirit of the Lord is stirring up resurrection power. It’s not over God still has the final say.
The enemy of your soul dreads the God that lives inside of you, I am reminded of 1 Samuel 4:5-8:
5 When the ark of the Lord’s covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook. 6 Hearing the uproar, the Philistines asked, “What’s all this shouting in the Hebrew camp?”
When they learned that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp, 7 the Philistines were afraid. “A god has come into the camp,” they said. “Oh no! Nothing like this has happened before. 8 We’re doomed! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? They are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness.
In this account we see that the enemy shook with terror, the Philistine army couldn’t comprehend that the Almighty God was not a small god amongst many, they underestimated His Sovereignty, but they feared Him all the same.
You and I carry the Spirit of God within us therefore we are not defeated when we remain with Him. This is why satan tries so hard to separate us from God, however we know that nothing shall separate us from the love of God. (Romans 8:38-39)
Remember that we are on God’s side, we have the winning advantage no matter what! Even in our lowest times, God’s strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).
This week be empowered by the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus to speak over your own self and your family. Speak the strength of God in the power of His might, speak the peace of God that surpasses all understanding to guard your hearts and minds in Jesus’ Name. Speak the grace of God that is sufficient for you, speak resurrection power, and let the victory of the cross manifest in your life as we continue to press on and stand in Jesus’ Name.
This is God’s word spoken in love. Remember The LORD our God, He is good and His mercies endure forever. May the blessings of the LORD overtake you and come upon you and His love surround you, for His glory. Have a blessed week. In Jesus Name.