Victory Is Where We Live

I don’t have any notes tonight because I’m going to read a little bit. There are many in the Body of Christ who, when they pray and nothing happens, they say to themselves “I just want to see a little success. I want to see something positive happen.”

That is not what God is after. God is not after success in our lives. Did you hear me? God is not after success. He is after victory!

He is not after success ladies and gentlemen. You are passed that. When you got born again, you got past success. You went into the land called victory!

Say it with me: “Victory is where I live.”

As I was listening to a message by another minister, the Lord dropped into me this message that I’m going to share with you tonight.

We’re going to be in John 11 tonight. I’m going to read this word to you first and then we’ll go to John 11.

“There is a difference between walking in a level of success and walking in victory.”

Now I’m going to be honest with you. When the Lord started giving me this, I’m thinking you have got to help me see this Lord. So He gave the whole thing to me and then I said okay, let’s go back to the dictionary. Let’s see what the word “success” means and what the word “victory” means.

“There’s a difference between walking in a level of success and walking in a level of victory.”

In the dictionary the word “success” is “a degree or measure of succeeding; favorable or desirable outcome, also: the attainment of wealth, favor or eminence.”

Success is a “measure” of something. It is not necessarily the whole thing. You can have partial success depending on what you are measuring. Who does the measuring of that something? The person who is seeking the success. We often determine success based on what happens in our lives.

Listen to the definition of victory: “The overcoming of an enemy or antagonist; achievement of mastery or success in a struggle or endeavor against odds or difficulties.”

Can I say “victory is where we live”?

“There’s a difference between walking in success and walking in victory. But sadly many in my churchy don’t know the difference. They’re like little children who taste success and think that they have received an answer to prayer. But victory is more than receiving an answer to prayer. Victory for My children is a lifestyle. (Victory is where we live!) Victory is all that they know. Anything less than victory is a foreign concept to my children.”

Sadly we all know that victory is a foreign concept to the Body of Christ. My heart cries when I make that statement. Victory is not something the Body of Christ is accustomed to. But when you were born again ladies and gentlemen, when God’s life and nature replaced that old sin nature, victory took up residence in you right then and there. It’s already in you. You have to bring it out.

“But you have been conditioned to accept success rather than victory. You have been conditioned to believe that success is what I am after in the kingdom of God. I am not after success. Success is not going to win souls. Success is not going to be, using a term familiar to you, success is not a “game-changer” in the kingdom of God.”

“Victory, complete and total annihilation of the things of this world in your life, is the “game-changer” that Satan fears.”

Right now, when he sees many of us in the Body of Christ he doesn’t see a threat. He doesn’t see people he has to be concerned about.

I may have mentioned this before. The NFL Network has a program called “A Football Life.” This particular episode was about a running back named Christian Okoye who played for the Kansas City Chiefs in the late 80s and early 90s. Christian Okoye was not your typical running back. He was 6’2 or 6’3 and weighed 265 pounds. He ran a 4.3 one hundred. He was big and fast.

One of the guys doing the interview was a defensive lineman for the then-Oakland Raiders. He said that when Christian Okoye was running toward him he made a half-hearted attempt at trying to tackle him. So when the interview asked him why he said “I made a business decision.” In other words, he didn’t want to injure himself trying to tackle Okoye.

The Body of Christ is not forcing Satan to make a business decision, something we’re not doing right now. He needs to say “No, I’m not dealing with Tabitha today. I’m not dealing with Stephen today. I’ll find someone else.” When he does that, he is making a business decision.