To him who overcomes

“So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized.”

Acts 16: 31-33 (New King James Version)

Temptation comes in various forms… it might be the temptation to lose your temper , temptation to think or do immoral acts , temptation to give into something not of God , temptation to murmur ….

We have been called to Overcome ! When faced with temptation , what do we do ? Its like a struggle … the flesh says go ahead indulge … the Spirit says No ! Obey the Lord . A lot of us face that battle when faced with temptation. How do we overcome ? By keeping our mind set on Him and knowing to those who overcome , we will see His glory revealed.

We read here in Acts 16 from verses 16-34 that Paul and Silas drove a demon out of a girl. We read in verses 20-24 , “And they brought them to the magistrates, and said, “These men, being Jews, exceedingly trouble our city; and they teach customs which are not lawful for us being Romans, to receive or observe.” Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods. And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. Having received such a charge, he put hem into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.”

Paul and Silas were faced with a lot of temptation. Picture yourself in their position. Being accused by people , being humiliated , being beaten up with rods in public , being thrown into prison. What would you have done ? Paul and Silas could have cursed the people – but they overcame wrath and anger when wrongly accused . When humiliated in public having had their clothes torn off – they overcame the temptation of questioning God’s will and plan. When beaten by rods and thrown into prison – they overcame the temptation of following their own plans to get out of this , they overcame the temptation of giving up , they overcame !

We read in verse 25 they were praying and singing hymns to God . We have a good cozy sleep , wake up in the comforts of our homes and still yet do not pray. Its no wonder that we struggle when faced with temptation.

Paul and Silas overcame and overcame and overcame by His grace . And as we keep reading we see it led to God revealing His glory . The very foundations of the prison were shaken .. And not just that , we read that several were baptized and came into the knowledge of His saving grace !

Wow! to him who overcomes ! I love the book of Revelation , I would encourage you to read from chapters 1-3 today and understand what lies in store for those who overcome.

God Bless