The Word of God always supposes that the Christian will want to be an overcomer and shows us that it is entirely possible for him to overcome. In this the Lord Jesus Himself is the supreme example, for He says, “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne” (Rev. 3:2121To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. (Revelation 3:21)). However, the Word of God also speaks of a Christian’s being overcome and warns of the consequences. In 2 Peter 2:19 we are told that “of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought into bondage.” In Christ we “have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear” (Rom. 8:1515For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (Romans 8:15)), but are brought into the liberty of the children of God. As such, we are to walk through this world in the liberty and power of that position.
The instruction to the believer in this world is summarized for us in Romans 12:2121Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:21), where we read, “Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Here we find the negative and positive aspects of our Christian testimony brought together, and both are necessary if we are going to display Christ in our lives. First of all, how is it that we can “be not overcome of evil”?
Overcome of Evil
In his walk through this world, the believer is constantly surrounded with evil. This evil can tempt him in different ways, but there are three prongs to the attack — the world, the flesh and the devil. The world is that system of things started by Cain and his descendants, who used their energies to make this earth as comfortable as possible in the presence of sin, but without God. This concept has never changed in principle, and the world of today is essentially the same in its outlook as it was in Cain’s day. How easily this can overcome us as Christians, for we all have that in us which responds to the world’s attractions. Since the time this world rejected the Lord Jesus, Satan is called both the god and the prince of it, and it is Satan that manipulates the world (within God’s limits) to achieve his own ends. Sadly, this includes seeking to occupy us with the world and all that is in it.
The World
In 1 John 2:1515And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; (John 2:15) we are told, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” However, the Christian must live and move in the world, for we are in the world, although not of the world. There is not only “the deceitfulness of riches” but also “the care of this world,” and both can be a snare for the believer. In fact, the care of this world is perhaps more subtle and dangerous, for a certain amount of it is necessary in connection with earning a living and looking after our affairs in an orderly way. It takes real dependence on the Lord and a walk in communion with Him for believers to “use the world,” yet not be found “disposing of it as their own” (1 Cor. 7:31 JND). How encouraging to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, “Even as I also overcame” (Rev. 3:2121To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. (Revelation 3:21)).
The Flesh
Also, we must remember that we all, even as believers, have the old sinful self — the flesh — in us. Although we are positionally dead and risen with Christ and are dead to sin, we still have an old nature in us that lusts after evil. The flesh also loves its ease, and the thought that I must constantly be on guard in this world is distasteful to the flesh. There is the tendency for Christians to be asleep instead of watching, and it is when we are asleep that we are apt to be overcome. All of this is a constant struggle, for the more we want to live for the Lord, the more the flesh asserts itself.
The Devil
Then there is the direct working of the devil from his vantage point of god and prince. He is constantly seeking to turn men away from the gospel and to rob believers of their joy in Christ. Truly “he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:4444Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8:44)). We know that he tried to get the Lord Jesus to leave the pathway of dependence and obedience when he tempted Him in the desert. The Lord answered him from Scripture and put him to silence, but all too often in ourselves there is that which he can use to overcome us. His time is running out, and his attacks in these last days are so frequent and so difficult that some dear believers simply give up and go along with the flow of evil in this world.
Compromise From Within
Finally, we must be on guard for that which comes, not so much from outside the profession of Christianity, but from within. Since the days of the apostles there has been a steady declension in the church and a giving up of many truths. The Lord has graciously granted revivals and a restoration of that which He gave at the beginning, but it requires spiritual energy to walk in it. The tendency in the great house of Christendom is to compromise, and this too can be a strong influence to cause the believer to be “overcome of evil.”
In all these things we must remember that obedience to the Lord and affection for Him will enable us to be overcomers. He has already overcome, and we can follow Him in that path. As He was superior to all His circumstances, so we can live above our circumstances rather than being controlled by them.
Overcoming Evil With Good
However, Christian testimony is to be a positive one, and this is very important! It is not enough merely to resist evil and not be overcome by it. Let us not be content to do that and simply live good, morally upright lives with a view to going to heaven at the end. God wants us to be living witnesses in the world. He wants us to live in such a way that we are not just avoiding being overcome, but rather overcoming evil with good. This involves spiritual energy above and beyond what is needed simply to resist.
When our Lord was on earth, He encountered all the evil that had built up for thousands of years since man’s fall. He saw and experienced from without all the awful effects of sin in this world, both in others and directed against Himself. Yet in all this, not only was He not overcome by it, but He overcame evil with good. When He saw men hungry, He fed them. When He saw sickness and death, He healed and gave life. When He saw men as sheep without a shepherd, He taught them. However, the supreme overcoming of evil with good was at the cross, where all the evil came together. All the awfulness of sin, all the power of Satan, all the enmity of man against Him, all the wrath of a holy God against sin — it was there to the maximum. He triumphed over it all and emerged victorious over sin, over death and over Satan.
Since Christ has gotten the victory for us, we too can overcome evil with good. It is true that God does not generally give sign gifts today such as healing, but His power is the same. There may be evil in the world and even in the great house of Christian profession, but all this does not touch the goodness of God and His grace. The believer is called to walk through this world, not only avoiding being overcome of evil, but dispensing good and blessing. This takes more spiritual energy than merely not being overcome. But God has given us everything we need to enable us to overcome evil with good. The world may be against us, but in giving up the world we enjoy the love of the Father (1 John 2:1515And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; (John 2:15)). If the flesh is still there to tempt us, we have the Spirit of God within us, so that we should not do the things that the flesh wants (Gal. 5:1717For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. (Galatians 5:17)). If Satan is active at all times, we know that “the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:88The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. (John 3:8)). The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all for us! However, we need at least three things in our Christian lives in order to appropriate this power and to be overcomers.
Three Requisites to Overcoming
First of all, we need implicit obedience. All of the failure in our lives as Christians (or even before we were saved) ultimately springs from our unbelief in the goodness that is in the heart of God. As sinners we think that we will be happier in our sins. As believers we do not follow Christ fully because we think that He cannot completely satisfy our hearts. It is not knowledge that we need the most, but obedience to that which we do know. Then, if we are obedient, we will find that “whosoever hath, to him shall be given” (Luke 8:1818Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have. (Luke 8:18)).
Second, we need real fellowship with the Lord and to have our affections drawn out to Christ. The strongest motive for a believer to overcome evil with good is a sense of the Lord’s love in his heart. Only then will our lives not be influenced so much by what we find, but they will rather be characterized by what we bring. We will not faint in the difficulties of the way, for we will be “looking unto Jesus” and considering “Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself” (Heb. 12:2323To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (Hebrews 12:23)).
Finally, we must put on the “whole armor of God” (Eph. 6:1111Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. (Ephesians 6:11)). Not one part should be missing, for the enemy well knows how to focus on our weak points. If we are going to be able to “withstand in the evil day” and “having done all, to stand” (Eph. 6:1313Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)), we must be willing to avail ourselves of that armor that God has provided to resist the many attacks on us. To “withstand in the evil day” is not to be overcome of evil, but “having done all, to stand” is to overcome evil with good. Paul brings this before us in this chapter (Eph. 6), for after having detailed the various parts of the armor which enable us to “withstand,” he asks for prayer “that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel” (Eph. 6:1919And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, (Ephesians 6:19)). Truly an overcomer! May this be our prayer today. W. J. Prost