Christ, the Overcomer of the World

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John 16:33

These things I have spoken to you, that in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer…

The Lord Jesus must be more than man from the tone which He assumed. There is a great deal of presumption, pride, egotism, in this man if He be nothing more than a man. 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 monarchs captive. But who is this that speaketh in this wise? It is a Galilean, who wears a peasant's garment. He is about to be betrayed by His own base follower. He is casting an eye to His Cross with all its shame. And yet He saith, "I have overcome the world."

I. WHAT IS THIS WORLD WHICH HE IS REFERRING TO? The world here meant is that which "lieth in the wicked one." The invisible embodiment of that spirit of evil, and which now worketh in the children of disobedience; the human form of the same evil force with which our Lord contended when He overcame the devil. The devil is the god of this world, and its prince. It is the opposite of the Church, "Ye are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." Hence it is called "this present evil world," while the kingdom of grace is spoken of as "the world to come." "The world" includes —

1. The ungodly themselves.

2. Certain customs, fashions, maxims, forces, principles, desires, governments. Jesus says, "My kingdom is not of this world;" and Paul says, "Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed."

3. The present constitution and arrangement of all things in this fallen state, for everything has come under vanity by reason of sin.

4. It is a thing out of which tribulation will be sure to come to us. It may come in the form of temporal trial, of temptation, or persecution. We are sojourners in an enemy's country.

II. HOW HAS CHRIST OVERCOME THE WORLD?

1. In His life. Those thirty years of which we know so little were a wonderful preparation for His conflict. In the patience which made Him bide His time we see the dawn of the victory. When He appears upon the scene of public action, He overcomes the world —

(1) By remaining always faithful to His testimony. He never modified it. He was no guarder of truth. He allowed truth to fight her own battles in her own way. His speech was confident, for He knew that truth would conquer in the long run.

(2) By His calmness.

(a) When the world smiled. Our Lord was popular to a very high degree at certain times, but He never lost His self-possession. He leaves acclamations to refresh Himself by prayer. He communed with God, and so lived above the praises of men.

(b) When the world frowned. If calumnies were heaped upon Him, He went on as calmly as if they had not abused Him. Point me to an impatient word — there is not even a tradition Of an angry look at any offence rendered to Himself.

(3) By the unselfishness of His aims. With whatever evil the most spiteful infidels have ever charged our Lord, they have never accused Him of avarice.

(4) By never stooping to use its power. He might have gathered a troop about Him, and His heroic example, together with His miraculous power, must soon have swept away the Roman empire, and converted the Jew.

(5) By His fearlessness of the world's elite, for many a man who have braved the frowns of the multitude cannot bear the criticism of the few. But Christ meets the Pharisee, and pays no honour to His phylactery; He confronts the Sadducee and yields not to his cold philosophy; and He braves also the Herodian, who is the worldly politican, and He gives him an unanswerable reply.

(6) By the constancy of His love. He loved the most unlovely men.

2. Christ by His death overcame the world, because —

(1) By a wondrous act of self-sacrifice, He smote to the heart the principles of selfishness, which is the very soul and life-blood of the world.

(2) By redeeming man He lifted him up from the power which the world exercises over him.

(3) By reconciling men unto God through His great atonement; also He has removed them from the despair which else had kept them down in sin, and made them the willing slaves of the world.

3. 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 hath dominion over it.

4. He has overcome the world by the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus has set up a rival kingdom now: a kingdom of love and righteousness; already the world feels its power by the Spirit. Every year the name of Jesus brings more light to this poor world.

III. WHAT CHEER IS THERE HERE FOR US? Why —

1. That if Christ 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.

2. Besides, He overcame the world when nobody else had overcome it. Now if our great Samson did tear this young lion, and fling it down as a vanquished thing, now it is an old lion, we, having the Lord's life and power in us, will overcome it too.

3. 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.

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