Victorious Life

Listening to some preachers, especially televangelists, talk about the victorious Christian life, one gets the picture that faithful Christians will be healthy, wealthy and wise. Some teach that if you lack anything or want something, all you've got to do is "name it and claim it" and it's yours. 

Why then did the prophets have such difficult lives?  Why did the apostles become identified as "fools for Christ" (1 Cor 4:10)?  Why did Jesus suffer?  

When the Psalmist wrote, "The Lord is my stronghold of whom shall I be afraid" (Ps 27:1), why was he needing a stronghold?  Why does James teach that difficulties serve to mature our faith (cf. Jas  1:2-4)? 

The truth?  We will be victorious in heaven and God will see us through difficult times in the meanwhile, but the Lord doesn't promise a carefree life to the faithful - quite the opposite, disciples are called to a life that includes sacrifice (cf Lk 14:33).  

The apostle Paul didn't say he had found the path of joy-filled circumstances, he said that he had "learned the secret of being content in all circumstances..." (Phil 4:12).  The victory was being remade in Christ (Phil 4:13), not In having it made. Jus' Sayn.

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