Before Jesus left the face of the earth, He made a strong statement to His disciples.
He said. “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In
this world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer: I have overcome the world”
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The phrase “be of good cheer” is the Greek “tharseo” which means
to exercise courage (which is the attitude of facing and dealing with difficult and
painful circumstances instead of withdrawing from them), to be bold (which means
to take risks, face danger, to become daring and fearless) and to be confident (trusting
in the Lord's ability to see you through difficult times).
Jesus wasn't merely telling
us to cheer up, put a smile on our face, and hope for the best. He was telling us
to take an active and courageous position of faith instead of passively acquiescing
to the problems that surround us.
This means that Jesus is aware of the conflicts
that we face on the earth. God is not ignorant of the warfare that we will encounter.
In fact, He refers to the devil as our adversary in 1 Peter 5:8 -
While we cannot
avoid all pain and suffering in this life, Jesus, nonetheless assures us that He
will guide us safely through any difficulty or trial we may have to undergo for His
sake. Jesus calls each of us to take courage, because He has overcome the world.
The Holy Spirit gives us a living hope in the power of the resurrection and a confident
trust in God's abiding presence. Nothing can overcome this faith and hope in Christ's
victory – no trial, suffering, temptation, or testing. The Holy Spirit gives us the
strength and courage we need to overcome adversity and to persevere in faith.
We cannot
overcome without the Holy Spirit. The question is what is the Spirit saying? What
is the witness of the Spirit? What is the word of the Spirit that is essential for
us to overcome in life? The answer is so simple and it is found in Romans 8:16. “The
Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God”.
Yes, that's how simple it is. It is the revelation that we are the children of God.
As
a child of God, you have His nature, you have His life. If you are conscious of this
and walking in this light, there is no way you would lose any of life's battles.
We are to identify or connect with Him if we are going to overcome. We are joint
heirs together with Him so that all that belongs to Him belongs to us. Overcoming
is part of our inheritance as children of God.
“No weapon that is formed against thee
shall prosper; and every tongue that shall arise against thee in judgment thou shalt
condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness
is of me, saith the Lord.” (Isaiah 54:17).
“To execute upon them (the princes of darkness)
the judgment written: this honour have all the saints. Praise ye thee Lord” (Psalm
149:9).
Jesus said in John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me
ye may have peace”. He wants us to find peace in Him. You cannot overcome if you
are overwhelmed. To overcome you must receive God's peace. A revelation of the peace
of God will put one in a position not to be disturbed by the circumstances of life,
hence enabling the individual to consistently overcome without fretting. It takes
a man of peace to win the battles of life.
Every single one of us will have to engage
with a certain amount of storm clouds in this life before we can finally depart to
be with our Lord and Savior for the rest of all eternity.
And until that day comes,
put on the whole armor of God and take on your trials and tribulations as a good
and mighty soldier of Jesus Christ.
If you are willing to take the storm clouds of
this life head on like David did with Goliath, you have no idea how many other people
you may be able to save, touch, heal, and deliver in this life – as well as increase
your own personal faith levels in the Lord and improve yourself as a true man and
true woman of God.
The rewards will eventually be enormous for those who will not
be afraid to step out onto the battlefield of life from time to time to take on the
real Goliaths of this world.
Many Blessings!!
Dr. Michael Cochran, D. Th.
Numbers 6: 24-
Be of Good Cheer
