By God’s grace (goodness), believers have the power available to them to get victory over any sin. Once born again, as a believer, you do not ever need to yield to another sin. If yielding occurs – which will happen occasionally – there is no victory in that situation. The promise of victory is repeated over and over in the Bible, particularly in the New Testament.

The verse above makes it clear that the strength to have that victory does not come from the individual believer. The strength comes from “the Lord,” and it is “in the power of his might.”

According to the very next verse, God’s power is given so that you as a believer may “be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” The word “wiles” means Satan’s trickery or evil devices.

If you want to have this power for victory, some conditions need to be met first. They include:

1. You must have a sure salvation. You are not hoping you are saved – you know that you are already saved.
2. Be on praying ground. This means that your sins are confessed to God and you are not holding on to some secret sin. You not only talk to God but you are also listening to Him talk to you – in your spirit (not audibly).
3. You are seeking to obey God in your daily life and want to “seek first the kingdom of God” (Mt. 6:33). Obeying God means you are:

• a. Baptized and going to church regularly
• b. Reading your Bible daily
• c. Praying
• d. Telling others about Christ and salvation
• e. Giving to the local church.

As you learn to get victory in God’s power, you will find that Satan is not to be feared. He is smarter than you, though, so do not try to match wits with Him. When you see a temptation – call on God immediately for help and resist the evil one’s device. As you do this, you will find that God can help you “stand” firmly and not yield. Then, each time you get victory, be sure to thank God for it.

Watching children grow is a blessing

Parents love to watch their little children grow, be healthy, and get, stronger, and more mature. They expect their child to grow and eventually become a mature adult that can take care of themselves and act responsibly.

The Apostle Peter also loved to see believers grow and become stronger and stronger in the Lord. In the text verse above, he compares a human infant to a growing, young Christian. Both must have a sufficient daily diet of food for growth. The believer, however, can only get spiritual food from the Word of God, which is why strong believers need it, too.

Without a regular diet of the right kind, both types of children will only become a disappointment and their full potential will not be achieved. Though saved, without a daily feeding on the Word, the child of God will never become a mature child of God. Their spiritual growth will be stunted.

After being saved, it is God’s will that every true Christian grow strong in Christ. This means growing in your understanding of the Bible, becoming knowledgeable of how to apply and use the Word in daily life, becoming more like Christ, and eventually becoming able to teach others. It also is a key to receiving God’s blessings in your life and home.

A strong example of good feeding on the Word can be seen in the first-century Christians. Immediately after they were saved, they had an intense hunger for the Word, according to Acts 2. They enjoyed listening to the teaching and preaching of the Word every day. This resulted in fast and strong growth spiritually – and God greatly blessed the early church for it.

Believers of any age will find that learning more of the Word has a lot of benefits to offer. If you are saved, you have already discovered that “the Lord is gracious” (I Pe. 2:3). You already know that He is good and that He has shown you it is beneficial to learn more about Him. He is willing to guide, bless, and help you grow strong in Him. I also want to help you grow strong spiritually and be a blessing to you. The blessing starts with gaining more Bible knowledge.

Tomorrow, I will tell you how to get started.