Today we will read only Galatians 2:20 and Hebrews 11:1. During the past few days, we have seen that the overcoming life is simply Christ Himself. The overcoming life is not an improvement or advancement in ourselves, and it is not a self-effort to strive to become like Christ. Victory is Christ living within us; that is, it is Christ overcoming for us. He has died for us on the cross to save us. Today He is living within us to overcome for us. During the past few days, we have seen the conditions for overcoming. The first condition is to surrender, and the second condition is to believe. We believe that the Son of God lives within us, and we believe that He is living out His victory from within us. Yesterday, we saw the meaning of surrendering. Today we will see the meaning of believing. I am afraid that many people have surrendered, but they are not victorious because they still have not believed. Therefore, we must remember that we cannot overcome if we have surrendered but have not believed. To surrender is only the negative side of the matter. We still need to believe; this is the positive side. If we surrender on the negative side and believe on the positive side, we will overcome.
There was a brother from Chefoo who once went to Shanghai. He went home to tell others that he had surrendered, but that he still had not overcome. He felt as terrible as he did before. He even lost his temper in his place of work. I told him that surrendering is not the same as overcoming, because surrendering is merely the negative aspect. Believing is equally important. He took that word, and eventually he overcame. In the last meeting, he praised God and proclaimed that for the first time, he had nothing to boast of and that everything was of God.
Brothers and sisters, please remember that the condition for victory is not merely surrendering. One does not overcome merely by surrendering. After surrendering, one must believe in a definite way. When one surrenders and then believes, he will overcome.
What was Paul’s experience? How did he overcome? First, he surrendered. He said, “I am crucified with Christ.” He had already experienced that it was “no longer I,” but he went on to say, “The life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith in the Son of God.” This means that he believed that Christ lived in him and that He loved him and gave Himself up for him.
Many people have surrendered, but they have not overcome because they have not believed. If they do not believe, nothing will work. Today I will talk about the meaning of faith, but I cannot talk about it in detail. I can speak about it only briefly. I will point out the great relationship between faith and victory.
Everything recorded in the Bible has been accomplished by God for us. God has accomplished everything for us. In our January conference of last year, we mentioned three things that God has given us: First, there is the covenant which God has given us. Second, there are the facts which He has accomplished for us. Third, there are the promises He has given us. These three things include all of God’s work for us. We spoke about these three things when we were on the subject of the new covenant. Today I will not say much about them. A promise is something God will do for us; it is something that He will do in the future. A fact is something that God has accomplished in Christ; it is something that God has done already. Today I will talk about God’s fact and His promise.
Many people do not know what God’s fact is. The Lord Jesus has died for all men on the cross; He has died for the whole world. This is God’s fact. But how many people are saved? Only those who believe are saved. Since Christ has died for the whole world, is it inconsequential whether or not a person believes? Is one saved whether or not he believes? Is it the same whether or not one believes, since Christ has died for all and since this has become God’s fact? This is the way many Christians think when they say that Christ is living within them. Christ is the Head and we are the Body. The way the Head feels, controls, manages, and takes responsibility should be the same way Christians feel, control, manage, and take responsibility. How many Christians today see that the Lord Jesus is the Head? Is it Christ who is feeling or we who are feeling? Is it Christ who is controlling or we who are controlling? Is it Christ who is managing or we who are managing? Is it Christ who is taking charge or we who are taking charge? What is our problem? The problem is that we do not have faith.
Some brothers and sisters say that they have faith in Christ being the Head, but they do not have faith in the Head taking up all the responsibilities. Many people cannot believe; they do not know what faith means. The Bible says that the Lord is the vine and we are the branches (John 15:5). It does not say that He will be our vine and we will be His branches. It does not matter whether or not we believe, He is always the vine, and we are always the branches. However, those who believe will have the experience of the juice flowing through them, and they will experience fruit in their work. The Lord’s life does not flow through those who do not believe; they have to struggle to work and to bear fruit. If we tell them that the Lord is the vine and we are the branches, they may ask why they cannot work or bear fruit. They cannot because they do not have faith. Since the Lord is the vine and we are the branches, they may respond that it does not matter whether or not one believes and that God’s fact is always God’s fact. Those who say this do not know the meaning of faith.