Victory Series - Day Twenty-Six: Victory Redefined

In your majesty, ride out to victory, defending truth, humility, and justice.
Go forth to perform awe-inspiring deeds!

Psa. 45:4, NLT

God’s idea of victory and our human concept of it don’t always match. Personally, I would like to get victory over my thighs, the weeds in my yard, my unending need for reassurance and praise, and the misguided notion that it really is possible to do everything on my list each day. However, those things don’t seem to be God’s top priorities.

He’s not even concerned about power, land, or possessions. What God considers victory is saving human souls. He wants to rescue us from the living death of hatred, abuse, and self-destruction. He wants to heal our relationships with others. That’s why God rides out for victory with these three things in view: truth, humility, and justice.

Think how many of our problems would be solved if people would just tell the truth. Our court system wouldn’t be clogged with cases that stretch on for years. Voting would be simplified if we knew how the candidates really felt about the issues and how they would behave in office. Communication between husbands and wives would flourish, because instead of hiding problems from each other, they would honestly share and work on them together. Best of all, God’s Word would be the final authority.

Secondly, God fights for humility. The biblical definition of humility is: a realization of our sins, and desire to bring honor to God. The “great paradox” of Christianity is, “that it makes humility the avenue to glory.” (http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/eastons-bible-dictionary/Humility). Healthy self-esteem is when we can forget about ourselves, instead of assuming we’re better than others, or a waste of space on this planet. Either extreme puts us at the center of the Universe. Humility is seeing who we are in relation to God’s breathtaking splendor and putting ourselves in His hands.

The third thing God counts as victory is justice. God is for the underdog, the oppressed, the innocent, and the needy. Those are the people He fights for; He is their Defender and victorious Hero. His decisions are free from prejudice or lack of information. He is always good. It may seem at times like evil is winning, but in the end, God will triumph and right all wrongs.

While I still hope to get a few of the things under control that I first mentioned, this verse reminds me of what is most important to God. I want to follow His example and join the fight for truth, humility, and justice in my own life, and for those around me.