“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”
1 John 5:4 KJV
The word overcome means “to defeat in competition or conflict; conquer.” As children of God, we have the power to conquer the world, and that power comes through our faith. To “overcome the world” means to make good and right decisions that go against the sinful influences that pervade our society.
In John 15:19, Jesus said, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” The world is not your friend.
I John 2:15-16 says, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
These are the worldly influences that you have the power to overcome through your faith in Christ.
Your faith is only as reliable as the object in which it’s placed. In other words, if you place your faith in a person, whether that person is your spouse, your best friend, your boss, or even yourself, your faith will eventually fail because the object of your faith is flawed. Even with the best of intentions, a person is subject to error.
Notice that the verse doesn’t say, “whosoever is born of God” but it says, “whatsoever is born of God.” The whatsoever is your faith. That’s why the verse concludes with “and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” In order to defeat worldly influences in your life, you must place your faith in Christ Jesus, the Savior of the world, and Him alone. Everything else will fail you. You will fail yourself.
- God never makes mistakes.
- God’s motives are always pure.
- God’s judgments are always just.
- God’s decisions are always right.
- God always does what’s best for us.
You can safely put your faith in God. He will never fail you, and your faith in Him will help you to conquer the worldly influences in your life.