Why is it that we can become so easily rattled when something small doesn’t go as planned? “I hit four red lights and now I am going to be three minutes late to my meeting…I spilled coffee on myself and now I have a stain on my shirt…I was supposed to meet up with a friend but now they canceled.” Sometimes it’s the little things that can throw us off and take our joy.
Other times, it’s bigger things that can rob us of our joy. “I was just informed that our company is downsizing and I am getting laid off…Every day I come home to tension with my spouse because we have countless unresolved issues…I received word that I have a serious medical condition…I am completely overwhelmed with the stress and expectations that are put on me at work.”
What is trying to take your joy away from you? Recently at Abundant Life Church, we talked about how Satan is a deceiver. Jesus says in John 8:44 that Satan “is a liar and the father of lies.” Satan wants to consume us with all that overwhelms us, so that he can rob us of our joy. Feeling overwhelmed not only robs us of our joy, but it can even cause us to question God sometimes.
This is why we must know the Truth.
Romans 16:20 says, “And the God of peace will crush Satan under YOUR feet shortly.” The Devil and his evil work… his work that seems overwhelming… his work that seems like he is winning… his work that has us discouraged... will be crushed under OUR feet.
We must know this so we can have a victorious mindset as we continue to follow Jesus. This TRUTH helps us to not lose our joy.
The Apostle Paul, who wrote the book of Romans, was under constant duress. He was persecuted, he was physically beaten, he was rejected by people, he was trying to lead multiple churches, he saw people walk away from the faith, he didn’t have money stored up or any financial security. Yet Paul wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always!” (Philippians 4:6) How was it that he had so much joy?
I believe one of the reasons that Paul walked in joy was because he knew he was going to win the spiritual battle and the Devil was going to be defeated. He didn’t only hear these promises, but he experienced them, and he trusted them on a daily basis. This is why he writes in Romans 16 “Satan will be crushed soon!” Not just defeated, but crushed! He knew it was going to be an overwhelming victory!
In Romans 8, Paul writes, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” In all the struggles, in all the disappointments, in all the pain and suffering that we endure in our lives, WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH HIM (JESUS) WHO LOVED US.
The phrase in the Greek for “more than conquerors” was never used. Paul actually joined two separate Greek words together to make the word “hupernikos”. “Huper” in the Greek literally means over, above, and beyond. It means way beyond measure. The word “huper” is where we derive the English word “super.”
An example of “huper” is what happened as we were raising funds for the youth to go to Romania. As our support grew, we raised $6,500 more than what was needed. We raised “huper” the amount. It was over, above, and beyond what we needed. This allowed the team not only to go to Romania and minister to children in orphanages, but it allowed the team to buy every kid a new bicycle! That is over, above, and beyond!
The Greek word “nikos” is a word that describes someone who is an overcomer, conqueror, champion, victor, or master. It depicts someone who is an overwhelming prevailing force. When the word “nikos” is used, it shows that this person is the clear, overwhelming winner. You would NOT use this word if there was a competition and it was a close score event. But if someone ran up the score or decimated their competition, they conquered them, and they were the “nikos” (clear victor).
So if the word “nikos” describes an overwhelming victory, why did Paul make the compound word "hupernikos"? He was getting the attention of his readers and getting our attention. We are the over, above way beyond victor and winner in Christ who loves us. WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS.
Do we live our daily life in Christ knowing that we are “more than conquerors?" Do we walk in the joy and the peace that comes from knowing we are going to win? Satan constantly wants to lie to us. He wants to deceive us and rob us of the joy that we can have as believers in Christ. We are loved and forgiven by God. Nothing can separate us from that love. (Romans 8:38-39)
I encourage you today, if you are in Christ Jesus, to consider that you are “more than a conqueror”. You’re an overwhelming victor. Walk in that truth and don’t lose your joy. Apply it to everything you put your hand to. Share that truth and that joy with those around you because it’s available to all who choose to believe in Christ!
