Sunday, October 18, 2015

John 16:28-33 comments: to overcome the world


28 ¶  I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. 29  His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30  Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God. 31  Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe? 32  Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. 33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Christ came from God into the physical world of men and women. He is leaving the world to return to the Father.

The disciples acknowledge that they believe that Christ came from God. Christ then warns them that they will abandon Him to His fate, the mission of dying for mankind’s sin and the resurrection from the dead.

Zechariah 13:7 ¶  Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.

Mark 14:27  And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.…50  And they all forsook him, and fled.

One thing that Christians are taught in this passage is that we are never alone in a trial because God is with us. We often do not draw strength from that as we should.

Hebrews 13:5  Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Christ told the Apostles of what was coming so that they would have peace and not wonder why when events unfolded. He told them this so that they would have peace and not be troubled.

John 14:1  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

Isaiah 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

Christ has overcome the world. We have the Spirit of God and Christ, the Holy Ghost, inside of us if we are believers in Christ.

1John 4:4  Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

What does it mean for the body of Christ, the church, when Christ says that He will do certain things for them that overcome as in many verses in Revelation such as 3:5 and 21:7?

Revelation 3:5  He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

Revelation 21:7  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

And here, the Bible defines what it means to overcome the world.

1John 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

The world cannot hurt you if you do not adopt its values and follow its plans, letting it define what concepts like happiness, success, and fulfillment mean in your life. The world cannot hurt you if you trust and accept God’s will for your life on a moment by moment basis as being just and good. The world, then, cannot do anything but kill your body and it cannot harm your spirit. Your soul also, that part of you that is your self-identity united with the Spirit of God that raised Christ from the dead, is safe with God for eternity.

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