Topical Studies
What the Bible says about
Boldness in Overcoming
(From Forerunner Commentary)
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Matthew 15:28
The woman receives a two-fold reward: She is commended for her great faith and receives healing for her child. Christ shows that He approves of her boldness and honors her faith, which—along with her persistence and humility—earn her blessings. She keeps knocking at the door of opportunity until it is opened. From this, we should learn a lesson about prayer. Initially, she seems to be rejected and denied access to Christ's power, but then, having seen her faith, Jesus opens His grace to her. Christ commends her for "great" faith. She takes the lowliest place, but her faith in Christ earns her His highest praise. Her faith is tested by His silence and then by His discouraging reply, but it is necessary for Him to see the strength of her faith, as well as for her to realize what it takes to follow Him. He is pleased with what He finds in her. Ultimately, the Lord sustains our faith and gives us hope to strengthen it (Psalm 138:3). Her faith was built on hope of good things to come, and what she had heard of Christ and seen of His power motivated her. Her unparalleled trust in Him proves that it is not blood lineage through Abraham that identifies his children in the faith, but faith itself. Although a Gentile by birth, she would become a spiritual Israelite through belief and conviction (Galatians 6:16). The strength of her faith is manifested in what she overcame—not physical obstacles, but mental and emotional barriers.
Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Exorcising a Syro-Phoenician (Part Two)
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Hebrews 3:2-6
Christ is greater, better, superior to Moses! Whoever the author of the book of Hebrews was, he handled this very delicately. He could have caused offense by seemingly putting Moses down, as Moses was held in high regard by the Jews. Yet, he was able to get across the fact that here was One greater than Moses in such a way that he showed that Moses, indeed, was faithful. However, he was faithful as a servant within the house of which Jesus Christ is the Builder. Notice the word "confidence" in Hebrews 3:6. In Hebrews 4:16, the exact same word is translated as "boldness" These Hebrews were no longer rejoicing, nor were they bold. Their apathy had them just lying there, taking life in. They were observers, not doers, neglecting what had been given to them. Thus, the exhortation to be bold and confident in overcoming and growing, and to rejoice in the greatness of the message that has been given. We could not have received a greater message than the one that we have been given. It is just not possible to hear any news greater than what God is preparing for His children.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Hebrews: A Message for Today
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1 Peter 2:19
The apostle Peter, who witnessed the life of Christ firsthand, had a certain approach to life in which events like Christ's resisting evil made a great impression on him. Thus his epistles, both I and II Peter, are full of advice on how to be diligent in overcoming and growing. In the three middle chapters of I Peter, he tells us how we are to resist evil, how we are to do good, and how we are not to be as the rest of the world is. Perhaps these things were tough for him to do too, which is why they made such an impression on him and thus why he passed these instructions along. It is a good thing that he did! God inspired it to be included in His Word because we need the admonition. Notice I Peter 2:19-24, where Peter speaks about submitting to masters. What does he say we are called to? Suffering! One could say we are called to be hit over the head for doing good. In reality, God's way is so antithetical to the way of Satan and this world that it is only natural that doers of good will suffer rather than be rewarded for their good works. Of this, Jesus Christ was the most extreme example—and not just on the last day of His life! He suffered every day He drew breath. Satan never stopped tempting Him for long, and His flesh never stopped trying to pull Him toward evil. Peter says that Jesus overcame these things by committing Himself to the One who really knows the quality of our character, what our hearts are really like. In that commitment was great faith that the Father, knowing Him intimately, would guard Him and help Him to the very end—that considering Him as the apple of His eye, God would be with Him even through the grave. Note, too, Christ's reaction to the evil done to Him: He did nothing like it in return. He did not return evil for evil; out of Him came no defiling sin. What did He do? He did self-sacrificial acts of goodness toward His revilers and persecutors—and not only for them, but as Peter goes on to say, He also did it for us, His brethren. Throughout His life, He consciously performed self-sacrificial acts of goodness for others. As the same apostle says in Acts 10:38, Jesus "went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil." There is our pattern to follow! He did not allow evil to get Him down or change His course—He just kept on doing good. That is how He fought it: He faced it down with the Word of God, committed Himself to His Father's will, and repaid evil with good. His method will work for us too.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Evil Is Real (Part Five)
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