Christ the Overcomer of the World

A SERMON DELIVERED ON LORD'S DAY MORNING, DECEMBER 3, 1876,

BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE NEWINGTON.

"Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33.

WHEN these words were spoken, our Savior was about to leave His
disciples to go to His death for their sakes. His great anxiety was
that they might not be too much cast down by the trials which would
come upon them. He desired to prepare their minds for the heavy sorrows
which awaited them, while the powers of darkness and the men of the
world worked their will upon Him. Now observe, Beloved, that our Lord
Jesus, in whom dwells infinite wisdom, knew all the secret springs of
comfort and all the hallowed sources of consolation in Heaven and under
Heaven, and yet in order to console His disciples He spoke not of
heavenly mysteries nor of secrets hidden in the breast of God, but He
spoke concerning Himself.

Does He not teach us, then, that there is no balm for the heart like
Himself, no consolation of Israel comparable to His Person and His
work? If even such a Divine Barnabas, such a first-born Son of
consolation as the Lord, Himself, must point to what He, Himself, has
done, so He can make His followers be of good cheer, then how wise it
must be in ministers to preach much of Jesus by way of encouragement to
the Lord's afflicted and how prudent it is for mourners to look to Him
for the comfort they need. "Be of good cheer," He said, "f–something
about Himself–"/ have overcome the world."

So then, Beloved, in all times of depression of spirit hasten away to
the Lord Jesus Christ! Whenever the cares of this life burden you and
your way seems hard for your weary feet, fly to your Lord! There may be
other sources of consolation, but they will not, at all times, serve
your turn. But in Him there dwells such a fullness of comfort that
whether it is in summer or in winter, the streams of comfort are always
flowing! In your high estate or in your low estate and from whatever
quarter your trouble may arise, you can resort at once to Him and you
shall find that He strengthens the hands that hang down and confirms
the feeble knees.

A further remark suggests itself that the Lord Jesus must be more than
man from the tone which He assumed. There are certain persons who deny
the Godhead of our Lord and yet think well of Jesus as a man. Indeed,
they have uttered many highly complimentary things with regard to His
Character. But I wonder why it does not strike them that there is a
great deal of assumption, presumption, pride, egotism and all that
style of folly in this Man if He is nothing more than a man! For what
good man whom you would wish to imitate would say to others, "Be of
good cheer: I have overcome the world"? This is altogether too much for
a mere man to say!

The Lord Jesus Christ frequently spoke about Himself, and about what He
had done, and commended Himself to His disciples as one could never
have done who was only a man and of a lowly mind. The Lord was
certainly meek and lowly in heart, but no man of that character would
have told others so. There is an inconsistency here which none can
account for but those who believe Him to be the Son of God! Understand
Him to be Divine–put Him in His true position as speaking down out of
the excellency of His Deity to His disciples–and then you can
comprehend His so speaking, Yes, it becomes infinitely seemly and
beautiful!

Deny His Godhead and I, for one, am quite unable to understand how the
words before us, and others like them, could ever have fallen from His
lips–for none will dare to say that He was boastful! Blessed are You,
O, Son of Man, You are also Son of God and, therefore, you not only
speak to us with the sympathizing tenderness of a brother man, but with
the majestic authority of the Only-Begotten of the Father! Divinely
condescending are Your words, "I have overcome the world."

If you look at this claim of Jesus without the eyes of faith, does it
not wear an extraordinary appearance? How could the betrayed Man of
Nazareth say, "I have overcome the world"? We can imagine Napoleon
speaking thus when he had

crushed the nations beneath his feet and shaped the map of Europe to
his will. We can imagine Alexander speaking thus when he had rifled the
palaces of Persia and led her ancient monarchs captive. But who is this
that speaks this way? It is a Galilean who wears a peasant's garment
and consorts with the poor and the fallen! He has neither wealth nor
worldly rank nor honor among men and yet speaks of having overcome the
world!

He is about to be betrayed by His own base follower into the hands of
His enemies and to be led out to judgment and to death, and yet He
says, "I have overcome the world." He is casting an eye to His Cross
with all its shame and to the death which ensued from it, and yet He
says, "I have overcome the world." He had not where to lay His head. He
had not a disciple that would stand up for Him, for He had just said,
"You shall be scattered, every man to His own, and shall leave Me
alone." He was to be charged with blasphemy and sedition and brought
before the judge–and find no man to declare His generation. He was to
be given up to brutal soldiers to be mocked and despitefully used and
spat upon!

His hands and feet were to be nailed to the Cross that He might die a
felon's death–and yet He said, "I have overcome the world." How
marvelous and yet how true! He spoke not after the manner of the flesh
nor after the sight of the eyes. We must use faith's optics here and
look within the veil–then we shall see not only the despised bodily
Person of the Son of Man, but the indwelling, noble, all-conquering
Soul which transformed shame into honor and death into glory!

May God the Holy Spirit enable us to look through the external to the
internal and see how marvelously the ignominious death was the rough
garment which concealed the matchless victory from the purblind eyes of
carnal man! During the last two Sabbath mornings I have spoken of our
Lord Jesus Christ–first, as the end of the Law and, secondly, as the
conqueror over the old serpent. Now we come to speak of Him as the
Overcomer of the world–addressing His disciples He said, "Be of good
cheer; I have overcome the world." Now, what is this world that He
speaks about? And how has He overcome it? And what good cheer is there
in the fact for us?

I. WHAT IS THIS WORLD TO WHICH HE IS REFERRING? I scarcely know a word
which is used with so many senses as this word, "world." If you will
turn to your Bibles you will find the word, "world," used in widely
different ways, for there is a world which Christ made, "He was in the
world and the world was made by Him"–that is, the physical world.
There is a world which God so loved that He gave His only-begotten Son
that whoever believes in Him might not perish. There are several forms
of this favorable use.

Then there is a world, the world here meant, which "lies in the Wicked
One"–a world which knows not Christ but which is ever more opposed to
Him–a world for which He says that He does not pray and a world which
He would not have us love–"Love not the world, neither the things
which are in the world." Without going into these various meanings and
shades of meaning, which are very abundant, let us just say that we
scarcely know how to define what is meant here in so many words, though
we know well enough what is meant. Scripture does not give us
definitions, but uses language in a popular manner, since it speaks to
common people.

"The world" is very much the equivalent of the "seed of the serpent,"
of which we spoke last Sunday. The world here means the visible
embodiment of that spirit of evil which was in the serpent and which
now works in the children of disobedience. It is the human form of the
same evil force with which our Lord contended when He overcame the
devil. It means the power of evil in the unregenerate mass of mankind,
the energy and power of sin as it dwells in that portion of the world
which abides in death and lies in the Wicked One. The devil is the god
of this world and the prince of this world and, therefore, he who is
the friend of this world is the enemy of God!

The world is the opposite of the Church. There is a Church which Christ
has redeemed and chosen out of the world and separated unto Himself
from among men. And of these as renewed by the power of Divine Grace,
He says, "You are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." And
again, "Because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of
the world, therefore the world hates you." Now, the rest of mankind not
comprehended among the chosen, the redeemed, the called, the saved, are
called the world. Of these our Lord said, "O, righteous Father, the
world has not known You." And John said, "The world knows us not
because it knew Him not."

This is the power which displays a deadly enmity against Christ and
against His chosen–therefore it is called, "this present evil world,"
while the kingdom of Grace is spoken of as, "the world to come." This
is the world of which it is said, "He that is born of God overcomes the
world." You will see that "the world" includes the ungodly themselves,
as well as the force of evil in them. But it marks them out not as
creatures nor even as men who have sinned, but as unregen-

erate, carnal and rebellious and, therefore, as the living embodiments
of an evil power which works against God–and so we read of "the world
of the ungodly."

Perhaps I ought to add that there has grown up out of the existence of
unconverted men and the prevalence of sin in them, certain customs,
fashions, maxims, rules, modes, manners, forces–all of which go to
make up what is called, "the world," and there are also certain
principles, desires, lusts, governments and powers which also make up a
part of the evil thing called, "the world." Jesus says, "My kingdom is
not of this world." James speaks of keeping ourselves "unspotted from
the world." John says, "the world passes away and the lust thereof."
And Paul says, "not conformed to this world, but be you transformed."

Moreover, I may say that the present constitution and arrangement of
all things in this fallen state may be comprehended in the term,
"world," for everything has come under vanity by reason of sin and
things are not, today, according to the original plan of the Most High
as designed for man in His innocence. Behold there are trials and
troubles springing out of our very existence in this life of which it
is said, "in the world you shall have tribulation." To many a child of
God there have befallen hunger and disease and suffering–and
unkindness and various forms of evil which belong not to the world to
come, nor to the kingdom which Christ has set up–but which come to
them because they are in this present evil world which has become so
because the race of men have fallen under the curse and consequence of
sin.

Now the world is all these matters put together–this great
conglomeration of mischief among men, this evil which dwells here and
there and everywhere men are scattered–this is the thing which we call
the world. Every one of us know what it is better than we can tell to
anybody else and, perhaps, while I am explaining, I am rather confusing
than expounding. You know just what the world is to some of you–it is
not more than your own little family, as to outward form, but much more
as to influence. Your actual world may be confined to your own house,
but the same principles enter into the domestic circle which pervade
kingdoms and states.

To others the world takes a wide sweep as they necessarily meet with
ungodly men in business and this we must do unless we are to go
altogether out of the world, which is no part of our Lord's plan, for
He says, "I pray not that You should take them out of the world." To
some who look at the whole mass of mankind and are called,
thoughtfully, to consider them all because they have to be God's
messengers to them, the tendencies and outgoings of the human mind
towards that which is evil, and the spirit of men's actions as done
against God in all nations and ages–all these go to make up to them,
"the world."

But be it what it may, it is a thing out of which tribulation will be
sure to come to us. Christ tells us so. It may come in the form of
temporal trial of some shape or other. It may come in the form of
temptation which will alight upon us from our fellow men. It may come
in the form of persecution to a greater or less extent according to our
position, but it will come! "In the world you shall have tribulation."
We are sojourners in an enemy's country and the people of the land
where we tarry are not our friends and will not help us on our
pilgrimage to Heaven. All spiritual men in the world are our friends,
but then, like ourselves, they are in the world but they are not of it.
From the kingdom of this world of which Satan is lord we must expect
fierce opposition against which we must contend even unto victory if we
are to enter into everlasting rest.

II. Now this brings me to the more interesting topic in the second
place, of HOW HAS CHRIST OVERCOME THE WORLD? And we answer, first He
did so in His life, then in His death, and then in His rising and His
reigning. First, Christ overcame the world in His life. This is a
wonderful study, the overcoming of the world in the life of Christ! I
reckon that those first 30 years of which we know so little were a
wonderful preparation for His conflict with the world and that though
only in the carpenter's shop, obscure and unknown to the great outside
world, yet in fact He was not merely preparing for the battle, but He
was, then, beginning to overcome it.

In the patience which made Him bide His time we see the dawn of the
victory. When we are intent upon doing good and we see mischief and sin
triumphant everywhere, we are eager to begin. But suppose it were not
the great Father's will that we should be immediately engaged in the
fray? How strongly would the world, then, tempt us to go forward before
our time? A transgression of discipline may be caused by too much zeal
and this as much breaks through the law of obedience as dullness or
sloth would do!

The Roman soldier was accounted guilty who, when the army was left with
the orders that no man should strike a blow in the leader's absence,
nevertheless stepped forward and slew a Gaul. The act was one of valor,
but it was contrary

to military discipline and might have had most baleful results–and so
it was condemned. Thus is it, sometimes, with us. Before we are ready,
before we have received our commission, we are in a hurry to step
forward and smite the foe. That temptation must have come to Christ
from the world–many a time–as He heard what was going on in the reign
of error and hypocrisy. His benevolent impulses might have suggested to
Him to be up and doing, had it not been that He was incapable of wrong
desires.

Doubtless He was willing to be healing the sick. Was not the land full
of sufferers? He would gladly be saving souls–were they not going down
to the Pit by thousands? He would gladly have confuted error, for
falsehood was doing deadly work–but His hour was not yet come. Our
Lord and Master had nothing to say till His Father bade Him speak. We
know He was under a strong impulse to be at work, for when He went up
to the temple, He said, "Know you not that I must be about My Father's
business?" That utterance revealed the fire that burned within His soul
and yet He was not preaching nor healing, nor disputing, but still
remained in obscurity all those 30 years because God would have it so.

When the Lord would have us quiet, we are doing His will best by being
quiet. But yet to be still and calm for so long a time was a wonderful
instance of how all His surroundings could not master Him–not even
when they seemed to work with His philanthropy–He still remained
obedient to God and thus proved Himself the Overcomer of the world.
When He appears upon the scene of public action you know how He
overcomes the world in many ways. First, by remaining always faithful
to His testimony. He never modified it, not even by so much as a
solitary word to please the sons of men. From the first day in which He
began to preach, even to the closing sentence which He uttered, it was
all the Truth of God and nothing but the Truth of God!

It was the Truth of God uncolored by prevailing sentiment, untainted by
popular error. He did not, after the manner of the Jesuit, disguise His
doctrine by so shaping it that men would hardly know but what it was
the very error in which they had been brought up! Jesus came out with
plain speaking and set Himself in opposition to all the powers which
ruled the thought and creed of the age. He was no guarder of Truth. He
allowed Truth to fight her own battles in her own way. And you know how
she bares her breast to her antagonist's darts and finds in her own
immutable, immortal, and invulnerable life her shield and her spear.
His speech was confident, for He knew that Truth would conquer in the
long run and, therefore, He gave forth His doctrine without respect to
the age or its prejudices.

I do not think that you can say that of anybody else's ministry, not
even of the best and bravest of His servants. We can see, in looking at
Luther, great and glorious Luther, how Romanism tinged all that he did,
more or less. And the darkness of the age cast some gloom, even over
the serene and steadfast soul of Calvin. Of each one of the Reformers
we must say the same–bright stars as all of these were–yet they kept
not themselves untarnished by the sphere in which they shone. Every man
is more or less affected by his age and we are obliged, as we read
history, to make continual allowances, for we all admit that it would
not be fair to judge the men of former times by the standard of the
19th Century.

But, Sirs, you may test Christ Jesus, if you will, by the 19th Century
light, if light it is! You may judge Him by any century, yes, you may
try Him by the bright light of the Throne of God! His teaching is pure
Truth of God without any mixture. It will stand the test of time and of
eternity! His teaching was not affected by the fact of His being born a
Jew, nor by the prevalence of the Rabbinical traditions, nor by the
growth of the Greek philosophy, nor by any other of the peculiar
influences which were then abroad. His teaching was in the world, but
it was not of it, nor tinged by it! It was the Truth of God as He had
received it from the Father–and the world could not make Him add to
it, or take from it, or change it in the least degree and,
therefore–in this respect He overcame the world.

Observe Him, next, in the deep calm which pervaded His spirit at times
when He received the approbation of men. Our Lord was popular to a very
high degree at certain times. How the people thronged around Him as His
benevolent hands scattered healing on all sides! How they approved of
Him when He fed them! But how clearly He saw through that selfish
approbation and said, "You seek Me because of the loaves and fishes."
He never lost His self-possession. You never find Him elated by the
multitudes following Him. There is not an expression that He ever used
which even contains a suspicion of self-glorification.

Amid their hosannas His mind is quietly reposing in God. He leaves
their acclamations and applause to refresh Himself by prayer upon the
cold mountains, in the midnight air. He communed with God and so lived
above the praises of men. He walked among them holy, harmless,
undefiled and separate from sinners–even when they would have taken

Him by force and made Him a king! Once He rides in triumph, as He might
often have done if He had pleased, but then it was in such humble style
that His pomp was far other than that of kings! It was a manifestation
of lowliness rather than a display of majesty. Amid the willing
hosannas of little children and of those whom He had blessed, He rides
along, but you can see that He indulges none of the thoughts of a
worldly conqueror, none of the proud ideas of the warrior who returns
from the battle stained with blood.

No, He is still as meek and as gentle and as kindly as ever He was! His
triumph has not a grain of self-exaltation in it. He had overcome the
world. What could the world give Him, Brothers and Sisters? An imperial
Nature like His, in which the Manhood held such close communion with
Deity is not readily to be imagined! What was there, here below, to
cause pride in Him? If the trumpet of fame had sounded out its loudest
note, what could it have been compared with the songs of cherubim and
seraphim to which His ear had been accustomed throughout all ages? No,
allied with His Deity, His Manhood was superior to all the arts of
flattery and to all the honors which mankind could offer Him. He
overcame the world.

He was the same when the world tried the other plan upon Him. It
frowned at Him but He was still calm. He had scarcely commenced to
preach before they would have cast Him headlong from the brow of the
hill! Do you not expect, as they are hurrying Him to the precipice, to
see Him turn round upon them and denounce them at least with burning
words such as Elijah used? But no, He speaks not an angry word! He
slips away and is gone out of their midst. In the synagogue they often
gnashed their teeth at Him in their malice, but if ever He was moved to
indignation it was not because of anything directed against Himself. He
always bore all and scarcely ever spoke a word by way of reply to
merely personal attacks.

If calumnies were heaped upon Him, He went on as calmly as if they had
not abused Him, nor desired to slay Him. When He is brought before His
judges, what a difference there is between the Master and His servant,
Paul. He is smitten, but He does not say like Paul, "God shall smite
you, you white-washed wall!" No, but like a lamb before her shearers,
He is dumb and opens not His mouth. If they could have made Him angry,
they would have overcome Him–but He was still loving. He was gentle,
quiet, patient–however much they provoked Him. Point me to an
impatient word–there is not even a tradition of an angry look that He
gave on account of any offense rendered to Himself.

They could not drive Him from His purposes of love, nor could they make
Him say anything or do anything that was contrary to perfect love! He
calls down no fire from Heaven–no she bears come out of the woods to
devour those who have mocked Him. No, He can say, "I have overcome the
world," for whether it smiles or whether it frowns, in the perfect
peace and quiet of His spirit, in the delicious calm of communion with
God, the Man of Sorrows holds on His conquering way! His victory will
be seen in another form. He overcame the world as to the unselfishness
of His aims. When men find themselves in a world like this they
generally say, "What is our market? What can we make out of it?"

This is how they are trained from childhood. "Boy, you have to fight
your own way! Mind you look to your own interests and rise in the
world." The book which is commended to the young man shows him how to
make the best use of all things for himself. He must take care of,
"Number One," and mind the main chance. The boy is told by his wise
instructors, "you must look to yourself or nobody else will look to
you. And whatever you may do for others, be doubly sure to guard your
own interests."

That is the world's prudence, the essence of all her politics, the
basis of her political economy–every man and every nation must take
care of themselves. If you wish for any other politics or economics you
will be considered to be foolish theorists and probably a little
touched in the head! Self is the man! The world's law of
self-preservation is the sovereign rule and nothing can go on rightly
if you interfere with the gospel of selfishness–so the commercial and
political Solomons assure us.

Now, look at the Lord Jesus Christ when He was in the world and you
will learn nothing of such principles except their condemnation! The
world could not overcome Him by leading Him into a selfish mode of
action. Did it ever enter into His soul, even for a moment, what He
could do for Himself? There were riches, but He had not where to lay
His head. The little store He had, He committed to the trust of
Judas–and as long as there were any poor in the land they were sure to
share in what was in the bag. He set so little account by estate, stock
and funds that no mention is made of such things by either of His four
biographers! He had wholly and altogether risen above the world in that
respect, for

with whatever evil the most spiteful infidels have ever charged our
Lord, they have never, to my knowledge, accused Him of avarice, greed,
or selfishness in any form. He had overcome the world.

Then, again, the Master overcame the world in that He did not stoop to
use its power. He did not use that form of power which is peculiar to
the world even for unselfish purposes. I can conceive a man, even apart
from the Spirit of God, rising superior to riches and desiring only the
promotion of some great principle which has possessed his heart. But
you will usually notice that when men have done so, they have been
ready to promote good by evil, or at least they have judged that great
principles might be pushed on by force of arms, or bribes, or policy.
Mahomet had grasped a grand truth when he said, "There is no God but
God."

The unity of the Godhead is a truth of the utmost value–but then here
comes the means to be used for the propagation of this grand truth–the
scimitar! "Off with the infidels' heads! If they have false gods, or
will not acknowledge the unity of the Godhead, they are not fit to
live." Can you imagine our Lord Jesus Christ doing this? Why, then the
world would have conquered Him. But He conquered the world in that He
would not employ, in the slightest degree, this form of power. He might
have gathered troops about Him–and His heroic example, together with
His miraculous powers– must soon have swept away the Roman empire and
converted the Jew!

And then across Europe and Asia and Africa His victorious legions might
have gone trampling down all manner of evil. And with the Cross for His
banner and the sword for His weapon, the idols would have fallen and
the whole world must have been made to bow at His feet! But no, when
Peter takes out the sword, He says, "Put up your sword into its sheath.
They that take the sword shall perish with the sword." Well did He say,
"My kingdom is not of this world, else would My servants fight." And He
might, if He had pleased, have allied His Church with the State, as His
mistaken friends have done in these degenerate times–and then there
might have been penal laws against those who dared dis-sent–and there
might have been forced contributions for the support of His Church and
such like things.

You have read, I dare say, of such things being done, but not in the
Gospels, nor in the Acts of the Apostles! These things are done by
those who forget the Christ of God, for He uses no instrument but love,
no sword but the Truth, no power but the Eternal Spirit and, in the
very fact that He put all the worldly forces aside, He overcame the
world! So, Brothers and Sisters, He overcame the world by His
fearlessness of the world's elite, for many a man who has braved the
frowns of the multitude cannot bear the criticism of the few who think
they have monopolized all wisdom!

But Christ meets the Pharisee and pays no honor to his phylactery. He
confronts the Sadducee and yields not to his cold philosophy. Neither
does He conceal the difficulties of the faith to escape his sneer. And
He braves, also, the Herodian, who is the worldly politician, and He
gives him an unanswerable reply. He is the same before them all! He is
Master in all positions, overcoming the world's wisdom and supposed
intelligence by His own simple testimony to the Truth of God! And He
overcame the world in His life, best of all, by the constancy of His
love. He loved the most unlovely men. He loved those who hated Him. He
loved those who despised Him.

You and I are readily turned aside from loving when we receive
ungrateful treatment and thus we are conquered by the world. But He
kept to His great objective–"He saved others, Himself He could not
save." And He died with this prayer on His lips, "Father, forgive them,
for they know not what they do." Not soured in the least, blessed
Savior, You are, at the last, just as tender as at the first! We have
seen fine spirits, full of generosity, who have had to deal with a
crooked and perverse generation until they have, at last, grown hard
and cold. Nero, who weeps when he signs the first death warrant of a
criminal, at last comes to gloat in the blood of his subjects! Thus do
sweet flowers wither into noxious corruption. As for You, precious
Savior, You are always fragrant with love! No spot comes upon Your
lovely Character, though You traverse a miry road. You are as kind to
men at Your departure as You were at Your coming, for You have overcome
the world!

I can only say on the next point that Christ, by His death, overcame
the world because, by a wondrous act of self-sacrifice, the Son of God
smote to the heart the principle of selfishness which is the very soul
and lifeblood of the world. There, too, by redeeming fallen man, He
lifted man up from the power which the world exercises over him, for He
taught men that they are redeemed, that they are no longer their own
but bought with a price, and thus redemption became the note of liberty
from the bondage of self-love and the hammer which breaks the fetters
of the world and its lusts. By reconciling men unto God through His
great Atonement, He also has removed them from the despair which
otherwise had kept them down in sin and made them the willing slaves of
the world. Now are they pardoned, and, being justified, they

are made to be the friends of God! And being the friends of God they
become enemies to God's enemies and are separated from the world–and
so the world, by Christ's death, is overcome.

But chiefly has He overcome by His rising and His reigning, for when He
rose He bruised the serpent's head and that serpent is the Prince of
this world and has dominion over it. Christ has conquered the world's
Prince and led him in chains–and now has Christ assumed the
Sovereignty over all things here below. God has put all things under
His feet. At His belt are the keys of Providence. He rules among the
multitude and in the council chambers of kings. As Joseph governed
Egypt for the good of Israel, so does Jehovah Jesus govern all things
for the good of His people. Now the world can go no further in
persecuting His people than He permits!

Not a martyr can burn, nor a confessor be imprisoned without the permit
of Jesus Christ who is the Lord of all! The government is upon His
shoulders and His kingdom rules over all. Brothers and Sisters, this is
a great joy to us, to think of the reigning power of Christ as having
overcome the world! There is yet this other thought that He has
overcome the world by the gift of the Holy Spirit. That gift was
practically the world's conquest. Jesus has set up a rival kingdom
now–a kingdom of love and righteousness! Already the world feels its
power by the Spirit. I do not believe that there is a dark place in the
center of Africa which is not, to some extent, improved by the
influence of Christianity. Even the wilderness rejoices and is glad for
Him.

No barbarous power dares to do what once it did, or if it does, there
is such a clamor raised against its cruelty that very soon it has to
say peccavi, and confess its faults. This moment the stone cut out of
the mountain without hands has begun to smite old Dagon! It is breaking
his head and breaking his hands. And the very stump of him shall yet be
dashed in pieces! There is no power in this world so vital, so potent
as the power of Christ at this day! I say nothing just now of heavenly
or spiritual things. I speak only of temporal and moral
influences–even in these, the Cross is to the front! He of whom
Voltaire said that He lived in the twilight of His day, is going from
strength to strength!

It was true it was the twilight, but it was the twilight of the morning
and the full noon is coming! Every year the name of Jesus brings more
light to this poor world! Every year hastens on the time when the Cross
which is the lighthouse of humanity–the world's lighthouse amid the
storm–shall shine forth more and more brightly over the troubled
waters till the great calm shall come! The words shall become more and
more universally true, "I, if I am lifted up, will draw all men unto
Me." Thus has He overcome the world.

III. Now, lastly, WHAT CHEER IS THERE HERE FOR US? Why, first, that if
the Man, Christ Jesus, has overcome the world at its worst, we, who are
in Him, shall overcome the world, too, through the same power which
dwelt in Him! He has put His life into His people! He has given His
Spirit to dwell in them and they shall be more than conquerors! He
overcame the world when it attacked Him in the worst possible shape,
for He was poorer than any of you! He was more sick and sad than any of
you! He was more despised and persecuted than any of you! And He was
deprived of certain Divine consolations which God has promised never to
take away from His saints–and yet, with all possible
disadvantages–Christ overcame the world! Therefore be assured we shall
conquer, also, in His strength.

Besides, He overcame the world when nobody else had overcome it. It was
as it were a young lion which had never been defeated in fight. It
roared upon Him out of the thicket and leaped upon Him in the fullness
of its strength. Now, if our greater Samson did tear this young lion as
though it were a kid, and fling it down as a vanquished thing, you may
depend upon it that now it is an old lion–and gray and covered with
the wounds which He gave it of old–we, having the Lord's life and
power in us, will overcome it, too! Blessed be His name! What good
cheer there is in His victory. He does as good as say to us, "I have
overcome the world, and you, in whom I dwell, who are clothed with My
Spirit, must overcome it, too."

But then, next, remember He overcame the world as our Head and
Representative, and it may truly be said that if the members do not
overcome, then the head has not perfectly gained the victory. If it
were possible for the members to be defeated, why then, the head,
itself, could not claim a complete victory, since it is one with the
members. So Jesus Christ, our Covenant Head and Representative, in
whose loins lay all the spiritual seed, conquered the world for us and
we conquered the world in Him! He is our Adam and what was done by Him
was actually done for us and virtually done by us! Have courage then,
for you must conquer! It must happen to you as unto your Head–where
the Head is, shall the members be–and as the Head is, so must the
members be!

And now, Brothers and Sisters, I ask you whether you have not found it
so? Is it not true, at this moment, that the world is overcome in you?
Does self govern you? Are you working to acquire wealth for your own
aggrandizement? Are you living to win honor and fame among men? Are you
afraid of men's frowns? Are you the slave of popular opinion? Do you do
things because it is the custom to do them? Are you the slaves of
fashion? If you are, you know nothing about this victory! But if you
are true Christians, I know what you say–"Lord, I am Your servant. You
have loosed my bonds. From now on the world has no dominion over me and
though it tempts me, and frightens me, and flatters me, yet still I
rise superior to it by the power of Your Spirit, for the love of Christ
constrains me, and I live not unto myself and unto things that are
seen, but unto Christ and to things invisible."

If it is so, who has done this for you? Who but Christ the Overcomer,
who is formed in you the Hope of Glory? Be of good cheer, for you have
overcome the world by virtue of His dwelling in you! So, Brothers and
Sisters, let us go back to the world and its tribulations without fear!
Its trials cannot hurt us! In the process we shall get good, as the
wheat does out of the threshing. Let us go forth to combat the world,
for it cannot overcome us! There was never a man, yet, with the life of
God in his soul, whom the whole world could subdue! No, all the world
and Hell together cannot conquer the smallest babe in the family of the
Lord Jesus Christ!

Lo, you are harnessed with salvation! You are covered with Omnipotence!
Your heads are covered with the protection of the Atonement, and
Christ, Himself, the Son of God, is your Captain! Take up your battle
cry with courage and fear not, for more is He that is for you than all
they that are against you! It is said of the glorified saints, "They
overcame through the blood of the Lamb," "and this is the victory which
overcomes the world, even our faith." Be steadfast even to the end, for
you shall be more than conquerors through Him that has loved you. Amen.

PORTION OF SCRIPTURE READ BEFORE SERMON–John 16:1-33. HYMNS FROM "OUR
OWN HYMN BOOK"–326, 633, 739.
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Christ the Maker of All Things New