Death Comes Before Victory.

There is no way to experience victory without death, your victory is in death. Three times Satan offered Jesus a way out, he offered him a cross-less life, first in Matthew 4:8, he showed Jesus all the Kingdoms of the world and their glory, and said to him; “I will give you all this, if you bow down and worship me.” The second time, was in Matthew 16:22, Jesus said he was going to die, but Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying; “Never Lord, it shall not be you.” Of course Peter said this out of love, but most times it is human love that stops many from walking with the Lord.

In Christianity we are called to live above human love, we operate by agape which is far superior to human love. So a friendly advice from somebody close to you is not what you need, you don’t need a human advice, you need a Holy Ghost advice. The Third time that Satan offered Jesus another deal was when he was hanging on the cross (Matthew 27:40), people hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and said, look at you, you cannot even save yourself, if you are the Son of God, come down from that cross.

If he offered Jesus a cross-less life, he will do the same to us. Luke 9:23 says; If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. Satan knows that when you hang on that cross and stay on that cross you defeat all the powers of hell. He knows that it is by death that you can destroy him, and this death means crucifying everything that is of the flesh, until there is nothing left of you and only the things of heaven remain. You must so do die to yourself, that the life which you live becomes his life, it becomes him living through you, you no longer live for yourself, but for Christ. When you come to this point, you will speak like Paul and say; I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for m (Galatians 2:20).