Rick Joyner’s Word For the Week: The Path to Victory, Part 4

A big part of our training comes by resisting the devil, so we should not run from these trials.

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 We continue with the biblical step-by-step path to victory, acknowledging that these are also step-by-step paths to maturity in Christ. We continue with the exhortations of Peter as he was the one given the keys to the kingdom, and they do provide an opening of the door. Now look at I Peter 5:5-10:

 

You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives His grace to the humble. Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him by being firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. 

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”

This exhortation begins with how we should be humble, beginning with being subject to our elders. We seek humility for the infinitely important reason that God resists the proud and gives His grace to the humble. There is no treasure in this world more valuable than God’s grace, so if we have any wisdom at all, seeking humility should be a primary devotion we have, always.

We’re told in Scripture that God hates the pride of man. In Proverbs, we’re told that pride comes before dishonor, a fall, and destruction. Is it not a form of pride to think that we can make major decisions for our life without even inquiring of God? Therefore, we can expect that any course we take or decisions we make in this arrogance will lead to troubles at best. We see in the story of King Saul that this was what brought down his kingdom and ended in his death. In contrast, the most common phrase made concerning King David is that “he inquired of the Lord.” He, therefore, was able to establish a kingdom that we are told will last forever.

Next, Peter exhorts us to be strong, to be sober and vigilant, and to resist the devil with faith. The Lord could have bound the devil immediately upon His resurrection, but He left him loose for our sake. A big part of our training comes by resisting the devil, so we should not run from these trials, but resolve that we are going to have more faith in God and resist him.

Many great books have been written on how to resist the devil, and we do not have the space here to address this as it deserves, but it is something we should accept as a calling. We should have vision and excitement about these battles because there can be no victory without a battle.

Then Peter says we should take comfort in the fact that our trials are common ones that all are going through. They’re a part of life, and they are opportunities to mature in the Lord and in our faith.

Peter ends this exhortation with the fact that the trials are going to come to an end, and the Lord will use them to  “perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.” Basic to following the King is to trust Him to use all that we go through for this high purpose. So, let us have more faith in God to lead us to victory than we do in the devil to lead us to defeat.

 

© 2021 by Rick Joyner. All rights reserved.

 

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on MorningStar Ministries

Featured Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay


Rick and Julie Joyner founded MorningStar Ministries in 1985. It is a diverse and expanding international ministry that began with the biblical mandate of Matthew 24:45-46:

“Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.”

Rick has authored more than fifty books, including The Final Quest TrilogyThere Were Two Trees in the GardenThe Path, and Army of the Dawn. He is also the Founder and Executive Director of MorningStar Ministries, a multi-faceted mission organization that includes Heritage International MinistriesMorningStar UniversityMorningStar Fellowship of Churches and Ministries. Click here to take a look at Rick’s latest Rant #ricksrants

The views and opinions expressed by Kingdom Winds Collective Members, authors, and contributors are their own and do not represent the views of Kingdom Winds LLC.

About the Author

MorningStar Ministries is a Kingdom Winds Contributor. They are a diverse and expanding international ministry founded by Rick and Julie Joyner in 1985. MorningStar's goal is to help strengthen the church by helping believers become the strongest Christians possible, and therefore true light and salt in the earth.