“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” Rom 8:31 (NASB)
Because of His Preserving Grace, nothing can stand against those of us that love and follow Him!
As believers and followers of Jesus Christ, we find ourselves often in challenging predicaments. This year alone we have seen devastating sickness, rioting and attacks on our freedoms as Americans and believers in Christ. The encouraging news is that we know we have complete confidence that God will prevail.
The struggles we have in life can come in many ways. Sometimes we put ourselves into them, other times God is testing us and our faithfulness to Him. Always, we have to be wary of our adversary, the devil, who “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1Peter 5:8)
Through all of these times we have to remember that we have been given the most powerful resource that has ever existed and that is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We have to remember several key and crucial promises He has given to us and claim them in our effort to follow His will for our lives as we battle the struggles that we’re up against.
Let’s take a quick look at what His promises are to those who love and obey Him. We’ll see that with Christ for us, nothing can stand against us.
1) God has called us His Children. (Romans 8:16). If we are believers in Jesus by faith (Romans 10:9-13), we are His children. In Romans 8:16, He says that “The Spirit Himself testifies that we are children of God”. There, He is again talking to people who are saved, and not all mankind. God cares for His children and will not leave one behind. We are not alone in our struggles.
2) Nothing can separate us from His love. (Romans 8:37-39). We read in the last part of this chapter that nothing can separate us from the love of God. “38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That means that in spite of my sinful nature and failings in life, as a believer I am forgiven and nothing can take away His love for me. I can’t earn His love, mercy or grace. It is freely given through His Son Jesus. Once we are saved, we are always saved, nothing can take us away.
3) His Spirit intercedes on our behalf praying perfectly for us. (Romans 8:26-27, 34) So many times in my life I’ve been up against situations and frustrations where I didn’t know how or what to pray. Praise be to God, He always has a perfect solution for me and that is His Spirit praying for me. God has given us the “Spirit Himself who intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words, and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”(v26-27) What a comforting fact knowing that despite ourselves Christ is interceding on our behalf.
4) He is Sovereign God and in control! (Romans 8:28) “and we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28 This is a promise that we can rely upon Him in our struggles if we are following His will. Our God is “Large and In Charge” as a preacher once said to me. He prevails above all things. Nothing can stand against Him. Since God is for me, I can rest assured that the victory has already been won and all the glory will be His. That means that your problem is His problem and He WILL prevail.
5) We can trust Him completely! (Prob 3:5-6). “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” As believers in Christ, we must trust fully what He teaches us in His word. In my life, when I’ve trusted Him completely, He has never let me down, never failed me and never left me alone.
Yes my friends, I will close with this thought:
Since God is for me, the victory has already been won. I have NO reason to fear, NO reason to worry and I’m full of His confidence if my ways are submitted to Him. He will make my path strait, He will win the victory and He will receive the glory. Thank You Jesus, Amen.
Reference Scripture: Romans 8:16, Romans 8:29-31, Proverbs 3:5-6
J Mike Wills 