Let us inspect THE LAURELS OF THE FIGHT. Up to now Believers have been conquerors, but the text says they have, been "more than conquerors." How is that? The word in the original is one of the Apostle Paul's strong expressions. It might be rendered, "more exceedinglyconquerors." The Vulgate, I think, has a word in it which means, "over over-comers," over and above conquering. For a Christian to be a conqueror is a great thing-how can he be more than a conqueror?
I think in many respects, first, a Christian is better than some conquerors because the power by which he overcomes is far nobler. Here is a champion just come from the Greek games. He has well-near killed his adversary in a severe boxing match, and he comes in to receive the crown. Step up to him, look at that arm, and observe the muscles and sinews. Why, the man's muscles are like steel, and you say to him, "I do not wonder that you beat and bruised your foe. If! had set up a machine made of steel that worked by a little watery vapor, it could have done the same, though nothing but mere matter
would have been at work.
"You are a stronger man and more vigorous in constitution than your foe-that is clear-but where is the particular glory about that? One machine is stronger than another. No doubt credit is to be given to you for your endurance, after a sort, but you are just one big brute beating another big brute. Dogs, and bulls, and gamecocks, and all kinds of
animals would have endured as much, and perhaps more." Now, see the Christian champion coming from the fight, having won the victory! Look at him! He has overcome human wisdom-but when I look at him, I perceive no learning nor cunning. He is a simple, unlettered person who knows that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Yet he has won the victory over profound philosophers-then he is more than a conqueror!
He has been tempted and tried in all sorts of ways, and he was not at all a crafty person. He was very weak, yet somehow he has conquered. Now this is being more than a conqueror-when weakness overcomes strength-when brute force is baffled by gentleness and love! This is victory, indeed, when the little things overcome the great things! When the base things of this world overthrow the mighty, and the things that are not bring to nothing the things that are! Yet this - is just the triumph of Divine Grace. The Christian is, viewed according to the eye of sense, weak as water. Yet faith knows him to be irresistible. According to the eye of sense he is a thing to be trampled upon, for he will not resist. And yet, in the sight of God he becomes in this very way, by his gentleness and patience, more than a conqueror!
The Christian is more than a conqueror, again, because the conqueror fights for victory-fights with some selfish motive. Even if the motive is patriotism-although from another point of view, patriotism is one of the highest of worldly virtues-yet it is only a magnificent selfishness by which one contends for one's own country instead of being subject to the far more generous cosmopolitan thought of caring for all men. But the Christian fights neither for any set of men nor for himself-in contending for the Truth of God he contends for all men, but especially for God! And in suffering for the right he suffers with no prospect of earthly gain.
He becomes more than a conqueror both by the strength with which he fights and the motives by which he is sustained-which are better than the motives and the strength which sustain other conquerors. He is more than a conqueror because he loses nothing even by the fight itself. When a battle is won, at any rate the winning side loses something. In most wars the gain seldom makes any recompense for the effusion of blood. But the Christian's faith, when tried, grows stronger! His patience, when tempted, becomes more patient! His graces are like the fabled Anteus, who, when thrown to the ground, sprang up stronger than before by touching his mother, Earth.
The Christian, by touching his God and falling down in helplessness into the arms of the Most High grows stronger by all that he is made to suffer. He is more than a conqueror because he loses nothing even by the fight, and gains wondrously by the victory. He is more than a conqueror over persecution because most conquerors have to struggle and agonize to win the conquest. But, my Brothers and Sisters, many Christians, yes, and all Christians-when their faith in Christ is strong and their love to Christ is fervent-have found it even easy to overcome suffering for the Lord. Look at Blandina, enveloped in a net, tossed upon the horns of bulls, and then made to sit in a red hot iron chair to die, and yet unconquered to the end!
What did the tormentors say to the emperor-"Oh, Emperor," said the tormentors, "We are ashamed, for these Christians mock us while they suffer your cruelties." Indeed, the tormentors often seemed to be themselves tormented they were worried to think they could not conquer timid women and children. They devoured their own hearts with
rage! Like the viper which gnaws at the file, they broke their teeth against the iron strength of Christian faith! They could not endure it because these people suffered without repining, endured without retracting, and glorified Christ in the fires without complaining!
I love to think of Christ's army of martyrs! Yes, and of all His Church marching over the battlefield, singing as they fight-never ceasing the song, never suffering a note to fall-and at the same time advancing from victory to victory chanting the sacred hallelujah while they tramp over their foes. I saw one day upon the lake of Orta, in northern Italy, on
some holy-day of the church of Rome, a number of boats coming from all quarters of the lake towards the church upon the central islet of the lake. It was singularly beautiful to hear the splash of the oars and the sound of song as the boats came up in long processions, with all the villagers in them, bearing their banners to the appointed place of meeting. As the oars splashed they kept time to the rowers, and the rowers never missed a stroke because they sang-neither was the song marred because of the splash of the oars-but on they came, singing and rowing!
And so has it been with the Church of God. That oar of obedience, and that other oar of suffering-the Church has learned to ply both of these, and to sing as she rows: "Thanks be unto God, who always makes us to triumph in every place!" Though we are made to suffer, and are made to fight, yet we are more than conquerors, because we are conquerors even while fighting! We sing even in the heat of the battle, waving high the banner and dividing the spoil even in the center of the fray. When the fight is hottest we are then the most happy! And when the strife is most stern, then most blessed! And when the battle grows most arduous, then, "calm mid the bewildering cry, confident of victory." Thus the saints have been in those respects more than conquerors.
More than conquerors I hope, this day, because they have conquered their enemies by doing them good, converting their persecutors by their patience. To use the old Protestant motto, the Church has been the anvil, and the world has been the hammer-and though the anvil has done nothing but bear the stroke, she has broken all the hammers as she will do to the world's end! All true Believers who really trust in Jesus' love, and are really fired with it, will be far more glorious than the Roman conqueror when he drove his milk-white steeds through the imperial city's streets. Then the young men and maidens, matrons and old men gathered to the windows and chimney tops and scattered flowers upon the conquering legions as they came along.
But what is this compared with the triumph which is going on even now as the great host of God's elect come streaming through the streets of the New Jerusalem? What flowers are they which angels strew in the path of the blessed! What songs are those which rise from yonder halls of Zion, jubilant with song as the saints pass along to their everlasting habitations.
www.spurgeongems.org
Sermon #751
No comments:
Post a Comment