We Shall Overcome

“In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,  for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.  Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God (1 John 5:3-5).” One of the songs that motivated and encouraged people during the Civil Rights struggle was, “We Shall Overcome.”  One of the song’s stanzas says, “The Lord will see us through, The Lord will see us through, The Lord will see us through someday; Oh, deep in my heart, I do believe, We shall overcome someday.” Despite the many strides that have been made since the death of Martin Luther King, Jr., many people still hope that they will “overcome someday,” although no one can detail when that day will come or what it will even look like. Well, I am here to tell you that “someday” has already come and passed, but not as far as Civil Rights are concerned. The issue of equality among men is something that in many ways is relative because the definition of equality is fluid. However, in God’s eyes we are all equal; all equally guilty of sin and falling short of God’s standard. Yet, when Jesus Christ died on the cross, He overcame sin for us by taking the penalty of death we all deserve. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, the life of God comes to indwell you and resurrects your spirit from the dead. The sin that once separated you from God is no longer an issue.  For many Christians and perhaps for many people in general, they spend their entire lives trying to “overcome” in various ways. 

Religious people try to overcome sin believing that it is was God requires of them to be accepted. For those who are not necessarily religious, they can spend their lives trying to overcome their own faults and shortcomings in an effort to become better people. What they don’t realize is that those faults and shortcomings are the byproducts of sin. With the Civil Rights struggle there never seems to be an end to the struggle as inequalities, real and perceived, are constantly being added to the “fight” that need to be overcome. So it is when it comes to the struggle with sin and with our faults and shortcomings. If we are honest, for every sin, shortcoming or fault we feel we’ve overcome, there are two more to add to the list. It is an endless fight that will never be won. The struggle for Civil Rights will never end because you can’t change hearts with laws. At best you can only change their behavior. With the struggle with sin, the laws we come up with will never keep us from sinning; the laws only reveal more sin to overcome. No matter how many disciplines one subjects themselves to or good habits they develop, there will always be a flaw that needs addressing. However, when a person comes to faith in Jesus Christ, they have overcome the barrier that separated them from God. And as they get to know their God and begin receiving His love and acceptance He has for them, you will share the Gospel with others. For those who accept Jesus and experience the change of heart only He can initiate, all those earthly struggles we try to overcome will pale in comparison to knowing and sharing your God. You have overcome in Christ. I can truly sing that “deep in my heart,” I have overcome the world because Jesus Christ is my savior.