More Than Conquerors

Title: More than Conquerors!!

Scripture: Romans 8:31-39

(Romans 8:31-39)

31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Introduction:

What hits you read this portion of scripture? More than once, when reading this portion of scripture, I’ve been reminded of the athletic team that had no choice but to put all of its support behind one big player. From the little league to the pro teams, you can usually see one here or there that has no other talent than that one person.

You can see it in that small high school or little league basketball team. They have that one big tall guy that scores all the points. You can see it in the children’s soccer league. They have that one good dribbler that they all depend on. He’s the one that gets the ball and takes it the entire length of the field to score.

We all know that those guys are always going to get the ball. And, they do. They get the ball, but, the other team just can’t do anything about it. Those guys always get the ball, and come through for the team. They score all the points.

But, it’s not only in sports, is it? You see it in life, too. You see it going on in the churches, in the schools, in the companies. The story is the same, if it wasn’t for that one person doing something heroic, the house would have burned. If it had not been for this one person stepping in at just the right moment and catching an error, the company would have gone bankrupt. If it wasn’t for that one stop they had made while they were on the way, they would have been in a traffic accident.

We’ve all seen it. We watch TV and movies and love to see that person or group come rushing in at the end and save the day. We’ll see the soldiers on their horses riding over the hill at just the right time to save the day and chase the enemy away. We see the plane come over the horizon, just at the right time to respond to the final, big attack of the enemy. We see the shadow of the big brother appear behind his little brother just in time to scare the bully away. It’s been the classic plot for years and people never get tired of it. At just the right time, the hero appears and responds to the evil at hand.

In Romans, chapter 5, it says that at just the right time, while man was still powerless to do anything, the star player came into the game. Jesus went to the cross on behalf of you and I.

Our scripture reading continues in that frame of mind. In our scripture today, we are presented with some interesting facts:

I. My Shield

II. My Portion

III. My Defense

III. My Position

Conclusion: My Everything

I. My Shield

31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.

In almost every ‘good guy/bad guy’ movie the enemy puts up an obstacle that must be overcome for the good guys to win. There is always a hindrance to the success of the mission or the goal. Many times we see it as a shield. The shield or barrier around the enemy must be penetrated before anything can be done, before the mission can be accomplished.

I am sure it’s the other way around as well. We have hindrances or obstacles that are in the way of the devil. Satan knows what those obstacles are. Satan knows what those hindrances to him are, and he is constantly adjusting his plan to infiltrate our defenses.