How To Have Victory

Although we have been rescued and saved, and have been freed from the power of sin and Satan, we still live in a fallen world. A world in which Satan, the ruler of the world, reigns in darkness. And that is why we are tempted, and stand in danger of giving in to temptation and of sinning. The question, “How can I have victory?” is important for every follower of Christ to consider. I have some practical clues that may help you guard against temptation live a victorious life.

Prayer

Jesus teaches us in the Lord’s Prayer, “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13). And Jabez prayed, “…and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” (1 Chronicles 4:10). Realize that you’re allowed to ask not to fall into temptation at all. That is so much better than asking for victory right in the middle of temptation. God can protect you so much better than you can yourself. God can and will do this by keeping evil far from you. But He will not always do so, because He will test your love and your faith. He wants you to pass through difficulties and thereby experience growth. Therefore He will allow periods of testing and temptation to come your way. But He does not want to see you fall; rather, He wants to watch you triumph. As an encouragement, please read 1 Corinthians 10:13.

So do not succumb to the illusion that you may pass through life without temptation. Temptations will come, and you need to handle them. Here are four adverbs that describe how you should handle them.

Immediately

When you notice that you are in the middle of a temptation, you must act immediately. The longer you allow the temptation to have its effect on you, the stronger its power over you will be. The more room you allow an evil thought, the more it can develop and encourage your fantasy, and the harder it will be to withdraw this thought that has fully developed in your imagination. Let’s assume that someone has hurt you, and has shamed and offended you in class or at work. You ponder the situation and go over it in your mind again and again. You fall into self-pity and thoughts of revenge begin to mount in your heart. If you allow room for this scenario, it is obvious that you will be repaying evil with evil, and will thereby have fallen into temptation. Sometimes this call to act “immediately” means you need to flee immediately, and literally leave the room and walk away. Sometimes you will need to close your eyes or to deliberately change the view. Sometimes you will need to force your thoughts in a different direction, in order to avoid the sin to which they lead. Take a good look at the shame they could bring to the name of Christ. Then give your thoughts a new focus. 

Relentlessly

Not only do you need to act immediately, but you must also fight relentlessly to override your temptations. Jesus says in Matthew 5, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Then He says these hard, unsettling words, “If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell” (Matthew 5:27–30).

This is not a call for self-mutilation. If I look lingeringly at a woman with lust, it will not be helpful to tear out my right eye. I will still be able to lust after her just as sinfully with my left eye. The problem in this moment is not my eyes, but rather the lust in my heart that causes my eyes to wander. Lust is the root of this evil that I must grasp and relentlessly avoid.

To be relentless means you are willing to go to great lengths, that you are willing to hazard the consequences of being considered absurdly ridiculous in public, and that you are prepared to forfeit something, to lose something. It means you have to be very hard on yourself.

There are temptations no one will have a clue you are struggling with, temptations you may not have acted against immediately, and in the meantime, they have become so overpowering in your life that you no longer know how to cope with them. These temptations can lose their power when you bring the sin out into the open and tell someone about them. It is embarrassing and difficult, but you must do it, if you wish to protect yourself. 

Sustainably

By saying “sustainably” I mean to safeguard or to ensure that you consistently have victory in a certain area. Victory can be sustained. It starts with the small stuff. Continuing with the example of lust, as already mentioned, someone once told me, “It isn’t the first glance at a woman’s legs that is the problem, it’s the second glance.” How are you preventing that second look? By focusing your vision on something worthwhile in the eyes of God.

"Sustainably" includes filling our hearts with goodness, so that we won't have to work so frantically to keep out the evil. Fill your heart with God's Word. Reflect on the truly valuable things in life. Read Philippians 4:8 and write it out in your own words. Record some practical aspects of your life that apply to this passage in Philippians. Think about these things and you will have victory!

Robert Witt

Germany