But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. 1 John 4:6
We have spent a lot of time talking about angels and demons this week. We see that angels and demons are certainly a reality as we study the Bible. Thinking about the destruction that demons and Satan bring about can feel overwhelming, but God is not overwhelmed, and He does not want us to feel overwhelmed. The truth is, He is superior in power. After all, He is God, and He has already overcome Satan and his demons. Because of this, we can have peace and hope.
We find encouragement about Christ’s power and victory in 1 John 4. John tells his readers in this chapter, “You belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world” (verse 6). This verse brings great comfort. Satan and the demons bring hardship and destruction in the world, but God is and will forever be victorious. 1 John 4:6 tells us that the Holy Spirit who lives in us if we have placed our faith in Him is greater than any evil forces in the world brought about by angels and demons.
Life is certainly difficult. The longer we live, the more we can expect to experience obstacles and hardships that come straight from the enemy. If we focus on these things for too long, discouragement can quickly set in. However, scripture teaches us that there is hope. Even in the darkest times, you can have confidence that you have the ultimate victory because you are in Christ, who remains victorious over everything. May you find great hope in the Holy Spirit in you who is greater than the enemy who is in the world.
We can rest in God’s peace and power because He has overcome the enemy. You get to live in victory because of this. Even death, which is the ultimate enemy, results in victory for followers of Christ. Make plans to celebrate this victory with us at church this weekend, and bring a friend! We can’t wait to see you there!
1 John 4:1-6 (NLT)
Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God. But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.
But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. Those people belong to this world, so they speak from the world’s viewpoint, and the world listens to them. But we belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. If they do not belong to God, they do not listen to us. That is how we know if someone has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception.
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