You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).
1 John 4:4 says, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” This scripture teaches us firstly, that we are of God, and that we have overcome “them” because He who is within us is greater than the devil’s acts against us.
I would like to show you from Scripture what this victory looks like. In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul said, “by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” Paul found a secret that each one of us should find if we are to be successful in God. When we say “greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world,” we are saying that we have all grace and all ability for whatever the situation calls for. Paul exclaims that he labored more abundantly than all the apostles. He was not boasting in himself, but his boast was in Jesus Christ and the grace of God within him. He explains that his results were the result of the One living inside. Therefore, His victory was Christ’s victory.
In 2 Corinthians 11, Paul boasts reluctantly concerning his sufferings. The purpose of his boasting is to show the believer the greatness of our God and what the infilling of His Spirit brings to us. He asks, “Are they ministers of Christ?-I speak as a fool-I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often” (2 Corinthians 11:23). He continues by showing us how the Lord delivered him from every peril. These things are written for our learning and growth.
Let’s continue exploring the life of Christ within us as we look at Galatians 2:8 in which Paul says, “for He who worked effectively in Peter […] worked effectively in me toward the gentiles.” Finally, Paul concludes that his effectiveness was according to the gift of the grace of God which worked effectively through him.
My prayer for you is that you would apprehend the greatest gift that one has ever received in the history of giving, that is, Christ in you is the hope of glory. You now have, through Christ, all things that pertain to both life and godliness.