“I chased my enemies and caught them; I did not stop until they were conquered. I struck them down so they could not get up; they fell beneath my feet. You have armed me with strength for the battle; you have subdued my enemies under my feet. You placed my foot on their necks. I have destroyed all who hated me.”
Psalm 18:37-40 NLT
More war-like words from David’s pen start our meditations this morning. David had physical enemies in a land containing hostile nations all intent on getting the upper hand over their neighbours, and he pursued these nations until they were no longer a threat to him and to his fellow countrymen. But today, we read these verses and struggle to connect with their meaning, living as we do in largely peaceful societies. Here in the Uk there is no mention of a village conquering another, or one of the four nations prevailing over another. That is, of course, until we mention sports that tend to aggravate our tribal instincts. Football and rugby are notable for their jingoistic talk, particularly in the pubs and bars before and after the event. Other sports too have become aligned on national grounds, with athletics and racquet sports worthy of mention.
But we pilgrims have an enemy that we must conquer because it cannot be allowed to exist within our lives. An enemy that is always ready and waiting to trip us up and defeat us. An enemy that potentially lives with us. And that enemy is sin. How do we define this particular enemy? One definition of sin is “any thought, word, or action that violates God’s laws or standards and is considered wrong or immoral”. This is an all-encompassing meaning that would be in danger of driving us into depression but for one thing – Jesus. In our own strengths we are totally incapable of living a sinless life. Even the Apostle Paul expressed his personal frustration in Romans 7:24, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” And he breathed a sigh of relief with the next three verses, “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 7:25-8:2).
Jesus has already conquered our enemy, sin. It is defeated and has no further hold over us, because we ” … [keep] our eyes [fixed] on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honour beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin” (Hebrews 12:2-4).
There is no point in listing all the sins that continue to torment us and hold us back. We know what they are. We know our weak points, vulnerable to the enemy’s attacks. A quote from “gotquestions.org”, “As long as we are living in this world, our sinful nature and fleshly desire will remain with us. But we also have a new nature in Christ. This leads to a struggle between what we want to do and what we actually do, as sin continues to assault our earthly nature. This struggle is a normal part of living the Christian life”. Four verses I learnt long ago in my early Christian days can be found in Ephesians 4:21-24, “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy”. Many years ago I wrote out those verses on a small card, and kept it somewhere prominent where I could refer to it. Throughout our earthly lives we will battle with sin, but as the battles ebb and flow, we will find that we do indeed start to conquer sin more and more often. The blood of Jesus will cover all sins, and even though we will sometimes be knocked down, we get up, allow Jesus to dust us off, and move on.
The last words today from Paul, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). So, when we feel like giving up, finding the struggles almost too much to bear, we reach for our Bibles and turn to Scriptures like Romans 7 and 8, refreshing ourselves once more, as we go out to face another day in our battles to conquer sin.
Dear Lord Jesus. At Calvary You died and took onto Yourself the punishment for our sins. So today, at Your cross, we confess our sins and feel Your love and grace flow over us once more. Your forgiveness will never expire, and we are so grateful. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 