Some songs stay with us for years, not just because of their melody but because of the truth they carry.
One of those songs for me is the classic hymn Victory in Jesus. Even if you have never sung it, the words have a way of lifting the heart:
“O victory in Jesus, my Savior forever!
He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood;
He loved me ‘ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him.
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.”
These are not just nostalgic lyrics. They tell the story of what it means to belong to Christ. They proclaim that victory is not a distant dream for some far-off day. It is a present reality for those who are in Him. The Holy Spirit says, “Thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession” (2 Corinthians 2:14, NIV). The Message gives it modern imagery: “God leads us from place to place in one perpetual victory parade.”
In this single verse, God gives us a picture worth holding on to: Jesus is the victorious King, leading His people in a never-ending victory parade. That victory is complete, yet we are still living it out in our everyday walk.
In this message, we will walk through four great movements of this victory:
- Victory in His Life
- Victory in His Death
- Victory in His Church
- Victory in His Return
Each is a reminder that because Jesus won, we win too.
1. Victory in Jesus’ Life – Servanthood, Compassion, and Discipleship
When the Son of God came to earth, He could have come in royal robes, seated on a golden throne, surrounded by guards and trumpets. Instead, He came as a servant.
Isaiah had foretold it hundreds of years earlier: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight” (Isaiah 42:1). Paul tells us that He “made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant” (Philippians 2:7). Jesus Himself said, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve” (Mark 10:45).
Think about that for a moment. The Creator of the universe bent down to wash dusty feet. He fed the hungry. He healed the sick. He took time for people others ignored. There is not one recorded moment in Scripture of Jesus using His power for selfish gain. Every act was for the good of others.
And that servanthood was wrapped in deep compassion. When He saw the crowds, “He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). When a leper begged for healing, He reached out and touched him (Mark 1:40-41). When He met a widow whose only son had died, He raised the boy to life and returned him to his mother (Luke 7:11-15).
This is more than kindness. It is love in action. And it is the pattern for our lives. Victory in Jesus’ life means we take on His heart for service, His readiness to meet needs, and His willingness to be inconvenienced for the sake of others.
It also means following His example as disciples. He called fishermen to fish for people. He invited a tax collector to leave his booth and follow Him. And He still says today, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
Victory here is not about avoiding struggle. It’s about faithfulness through it.
2. Victory in Jesus’ Death – Life Raised, Records Cleared, Enemies Defeated
The Bible describes our condition before Christ in stark terms: “You were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). Spiritually speaking, we were lifeless. No amount of self-improvement or moral effort could change that. But in His death and resurrection, Jesus gave us new life.
He also wiped our record clean. Colossians 2:14 says He “canceled the record of debt that stood against us.” Imagine a courtroom where the judge takes your long list of offenses, stamps “paid in full” across it, and then shreds it. That is what God has done through the cross. He forgives, and He chooses not to remember (Hebrews 8:12).
It’s not that He cannot remember them. However, the Word of God clearly means this: when God forgets our sins, it means there will be no future punishment for what He has already forgiven.
Finally, His death was a victory over the spiritual powers that opposed us. Paul writes that He “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame” (Colossians 2:15). The enemy still whispers lies and stirs up trouble, but the decisive battle is already over. The victory has been won.
Because of that, we do not fight for victory. We fight from it.
3. Victory in Jesus’ Church – Foundation, Fellowship, and Function
Some people think of church as a building, an event, or a brand. But the Bible calls it the ekklesia—the called-out people of God. It is not just a place you go, but the people you belong to.
Jesus promised, “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:18). The foundation is set. Ephesians 2:20 says we are “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.”
Victory grows as we live in fellowship. The Christian life was never meant to be lived alone. Chuck Colson once wrote, “Many Christians have been infected with the most virulent virus of modern American life… radical individualism. They concentrate on personal obedience to Christ as if all that matters is “Jesus and me,” but in doing so miss the point altogether. For Christianity is not a solitary belief system.” We need one another. We worship together, encourage each other, and work side by side for the sake of the Gospel.
The Church also functions with authority. Jesus has given His people the keys of His Kingdom (Matthew 16:19). That means we are entrusted with the Gospel, empowered to make disciples, and called to live under His lordship in every area of life.
Even in persecution, this victory holds. Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand spent 14 years in prison for preaching Christ, much of it in solitary confinement. Yet he later testified that prison walls could not separate him from the fellowship of Christ’s Church or from the victory that is ours in Him.
4. Victory in Jesus’ Return – His Coming, His Armies, His Authority
One day, the victory we live by faith will be visible to every eye. Revelation 19 describes Jesus riding on a white horse, His eyes like flames of fire, His robe dipped in blood, His name declared as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
He will come with the armies of heaven—angels and the redeemed from every age—clothed in white and riding in triumph (Jude 14-15). This is not a battle whose outcome is in doubt. It is the final display of a victory already secured.
He will also come with full authority. The sword from His mouth is His Word. This is the same Word that spoke creation into being, calmed storms, healed the sick, and brought peace to the troubled. In that day, it will bring every enemy to their knees.
For believers, the call is readiness. Jesus told the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13) to remind us that when the bridegroom comes, there will be no time to get prepared. The preparation must happen now. Living ready means walking with Him daily, obeying His Word, and keeping our hearts fixed on His coming.
Living in the Full Sweep of His Victory
From His humble birth to His glorious return, Jesus’ life is the story of victory over sin, death, and every power that opposes God’s people.
His servanthood shows us how to live.
His death and resurrection free us from sin’s penalty and power.
His Church gives us a family to march with.
His return guarantees that the best is yet to come.
The question is not whether His victory is real. It is. The question is whether we are living like it. Are we serving as He served, walking in His freedom, standing with His people, and keeping watch for His coming?
The parade has already started. Every step we take with Him is another step in the victory procession.
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