You might say, “I don’t feel victorious, nor do I have a track record of demonstrating victory.” The victorious life of Christ is not subject to proving his victory by your feelings, nor is he interested in your need to confirm his power by your track record. You only need to look at the Scriptures to find what is true about your relationship to Satan, sin, and the world.

The old man is not the Christian’s problem. Deception is the problem. The old man lived in self- sufficiency, but now the Christian has a choice. He can live as though he is self-sufficient, or he can live in Christ’s sufficiency. It all depends on whether he chooses to live according to the flesh (self-sufficiency), or according to the Spirit (Christ’s sufficiency). This is why abiding in Christ or the vine is so important for the believer (see Romans 8).

As a friend noted about this truth, “... your relationship to your enemies is the same relationship that Christ has to them. Look away from yourself, and evaluate what is true and what is possible by the indwelling life and power of Christ!”

To pray for victory over temptation is an affront to the finished work of Christ. To pray for more power or strength, is to minimize the gift of resurrection life we already possess. To believe that I can add to the victory Christ accomplished at Calvary is to deny his triumph and to make myself the conquering hero instead of him.

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he tells Christians he prays that the eyes of their understanding might be opened to the fact that the power which raised Christ from the dead, is now in them. Not only did God raise Christ from the dead, but he seated him at his own right hand, ....far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church (Ephesians 1:21). In the next chapter Paul again reminds us of where we reside because God has, raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6).

The passage clearly tells us that we are in Christ Jesus, in the heavenly places. Are we therefore not far above all power, principality, might, dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come? Of course, we are! As you seek to apply this truth to your understanding, take the time to meditate on the full passage, Ephesians 1:19-2:7.

Christian... do you have any problem believing that you were in Adam, and therefore what happened to Adam happened to you? No? Then why would you have a problem believing that you are spiritually in Christ and what happened to Christ happened to you?

As you set your mind on your position in Christ, are you in victory or still struggling for victory? When you face temptations, do you thank the Lord that they were conquered more than 2,000 years ago when you were in Christ at the cross? Or do you ask for more strength, power, or help, and a support group to assist you?

Most of us were taught to achieve our own victory over sin and to fight to overcome such things as lust, gluttony, lovelessness, pride, lying and many other sins. We are seldom, if ever, told to put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, unclean- ness, passion, evil desire and covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:5). Verses 8 and 9 tell us we can put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another since you have put off the old man with his deeds. If we must fight to overcome these temptations, Christ did not conquer them at the cross when we were in him. We have been taught that we need to add our self- effort to what he failed to complete in his cross, resurrection and enthronement. Yet, self-effort results in promises we will certainly fail to keep.

God has always had a plan to join us to Christ. His original plan was to join us to himself by inviting us to eat of the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. When we failed to take advantage of this plan, God brought forth his plan of joining us to Christ through his resurrected indwelling life. By our union with his life we are now made acceptable and complete—holy and without blemish. Will we now live by the invisible part of us, by faith? Or will we put our faith in the visible realm— including our emotions?

It all has to do with the finished work of Christ! Is it a plan that is sufficiently victorious? Or must we work to make ourselves more victorious every day of our life? God forbid!