Christ Shares His Victory With Us

As we watch the step by step progression in Ellen White’s line of logic, we cannot fail to be impressed by first, its undeviating adherence to its course, and second, its daring. We must remember that Ellen White lived in a time when one of the two major schools of theological opinion (the Arminian-Wesleyan) was affirming that the moral law of God, the Ten Commandments, had been abolished at the cross and was therefore not binding on Christians.
The other major school of theological opinion (the Calvinistic) was arriving at the same practical result by a different method. They held that although the moral law had not been abolished, God understood that even with His assistance Christians could not successfully obey it. This, as Ellen White saw it, was simply a repetition of Satan’s greatest lie.
In the face of this formidable opposition, Ellen White unflinchingly set forth the logical result of her previous positions. She affirmed repeatedly and unmistakably that the moral law was still in force and that, by God’s grace abundantly supplied to Christians, that moral law could be perfectly obeyed.

God calls upon us to overcome as Christ overcame, that we may sit down with the Saviour in His throne. He provided us with abundant opportunities and privileges, making it possible for us to overcome. YI 513

We are to have power to overcome as He overcame. . . The Saviour came to our world to bring to every tried, tempted soul strength to overcome even as He overcame. . . Let us so live that God can make us partakers of the divine nature, enabling us to obtain victories, and to overcome as Christ overcame. 5RH 33

In Him humanity and divinity are combined, and He can accomplish for the human race all that is necessary to enable them to overcome as He overcame, and sit down with Him in His Father’s throne. 4RH 286

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Jesus says, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world . . . . Therefore the world shall not overcome you if you believe in me. It is a world that I have conquered. Because I have overcome, if you believe in me, you shall overcome, and have eternal life.” 2RH 560

He died to make it possible for us to be partakers of the divine nature. He took upon Himself humanity, that He might uplift humanity. With the golden chain of His matchless love He has bound us to the throne of God. We are to have power to overcome as He overcame. 4ST 347

Christ stepped down from His high estate as Commander in the heavenly courts; and laying aside His royal robe and kingly crown, clothed His divinity with humanity, and came to this earth, that He might dwell with us and give to men and women grace to overcome as He overcame. 4ST 460

Christ has set an exalted standard, to which men may attain by overcoming as He overcame. YI 311

Satan presents the same temptations today as he presented to Adam and to Jesus, the second Adam, Who overcame him and made it possible for man to overcome. 2ST 166

In His name, through His grace, man may be an overcomer, even as Christ was an overcomer. YI 96

The Son of God was faultless. We must aim at this perfection and overcome as He overcame, if we would have a seat at His right hand. 3T 336

If that indulgence of appetite was so strong upon the race that, in order to break its power, the divine Son of God, in behalf of man, was required to fast nearly six weeks, what a work is before the Christian in order that he may overcome even as Christ overcame! 3T 486

In short, man must overcome as Christ overcame. And then, through the victory that it is his privilege to gain by the all-powerful name of Jesus, he may become an heir of God and joint-heir with Jesus Christ. This could not be the case if Christ alone did all the overcoming. 4T 33

“To them gave He power to become the sons of God.” They are His chosen ones, joint-heirs with Christ in the great firm of heaven. They overcame as He overcame. 4ST 54

If we are indeed to overcome as Christ overcame, that we may mingle

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with the blood-washed, glorified company before the throne of God, it is of the highest importance that we become acquainted with the life of our Redeemer and deny self as did Christ. We must meet temptations and overcome obstacles, and through toil and suffering, in the name of Jesus, overcome as He overcame. 1ST 344

What amazing love has Christ manifested in coming into the world to bear our sins and infirmities, and to tread the path of suffering, that He might show us by His life of spotless merit how we should walk, and overcome as He had overcome, and that we might become reconciled to God. 1ST 102

We may have a vague, disagreeable sense of imperfection, but this will avail us nothing unless we make a decided effort to obtain the victory over sin. If we wish to cooperate with Christ, to overcome as He overcame, we must, in His strength, make the most determined resistance against self and selfishness. 3ST 367

Our efforts, our self-denial, our perseverance, must be proportionate to the infinite value of the object of which we are in pursuit. Only by overcoming as Christ overcame shall we win the crown of life. 8T 315

If they abide in Him, they can draw sap and nourishment from Him, be imbued with His Spirit, and walk even as He has walked, overcome as He has overcome, and be exalted to His own right hand. 2RH 74

Christ overcame in our behalf, and thus made it possible for us also to overcome. 1RH 300

He sacrificed His honor, His riches, His glorious home in the royal courts, and endured the fierce assaults of Satan that man might have strength to overcome as He overcame. . . By His suffering and resistance He made plain to man that perfection of character can be obtained and maintained by humanity . . . We may take courage, and believe that we shall overcome every imperfection of character. Our Redeemer has taken our nature, fought our battles, and in His name we shall conquer. Human nature may take hold of the strength of God, and be victorious. YI 438

The Saviour of the world conquered Satan in the wilderness of temptation. He overcame to show man how he may overcome. . . Satan’s power was to be contested, and he was to be overcome by Christ and also by His followers. 3T 388

The Saviour overcame to show man how he may overcome. MH 181

He has shown them how they may overcome on their own account as He overcame. 3T 380

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Christ, as our exemplar, kept His Father’s law. As He overcame, so may we. 2ST 54

The example of Christ is before us. He overcame Satan, showing us how we also may overcome. 1RH 553

(Christ) has made it possible for (those who will be obedient to Him) to perfect Christian character through His name, and to overcome on their own account as He overcame in their behalf He has given them an example in His own life, showing them how they may overcome. 3T 365

He who triumphed over the adversary of souls in the conflict of temptation, understands Satan’s power over the race, and has conquered him in our behalf. As an overcomer, He has given us the advantage of His victory, that in our efforts to resist the temptations of Satan we may unite our weakness to His strength, our worthlessness to His merits. And, sustained by His enduring might under strong temptation, we may resist in His all-powerful name, and overcome as He overcame. 3T 480

All who have a true sense of the sacrifice made by Christ in leaving His home in Heaven to come to this world that He might by His own life show man how to resist temptation, will cheerfully deny self and choose to be partakers with Christ of His sufferings . . . It is only through obedience and continual effort that we shall overcome as Christ overcame. 3T 491

. . . Christ gained a complete victory over this temptation (appetite), thus placing men and women on vantage ground, where they can overcome as He overcame . . . By the power of God, man is to firmly resist every temptation. The temptations which Christ overcame cover all the temptations that come to man. Each of these temptations marks a special crisis in the life. If man is overcome, Satan has gained the victory, and man has weakened his own power of resistance. But if the tempted one will lay hold of the strength of the Conqueror, he, too, will overcome . . . All who put their trust in God will come off more than conquerors . . . God calls upon you to do a work which through His grace you can do. 4ST 108

Light and strength will come to those who earnestly seek it in order that they may have wisdom to resist Satan, and to overcome in times of temptation. We are to overcome even as Christ overcame . . . We are dependent upon God for success in living the Christian life, and Christ’s example opens before us the path by which we may come to a never-failing source of strength, from which we may draw grace and power to resist the enemy and to come off victorious. 3ST 53

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Christ’s example shows us that our only hope of victory is in continual resistance of Satan’s attacks. He who triumphed over the adversary of souls in the conflict with temptation understands Satan’s power over the race, and has conquered in our behalf. As an overcomer, He has given us the advantage of His victory, that in our efforts to resist the temptations of Satan, we may unite our weakness to His strength, our worthlessness to His merits. And, sustained by His enduring might, under strong temptation, we may resist in His all-powerful name, and overcome as He overcame. 3ST 387

For Further Study:
2RH 367
2RH 506
4RH 308
5RH 222
5RH 253
5RH 413
2ST 232
2ST 407-8
3ST 457
AA 467
DA 24
DA 309
PP 73

Pause for a moment and look back at what we have seen thus far. Ellen White has set up a chain of logic that contains these “links”:
A. In the greatest lie that ever has been told, the apostate angel, Lucifer, challenged the justice and love of God, by accusing Him of giving a law that His created beings could not obey.
B. Christ, the Son of God, accepted this challenge and proposed to prove the accusation false by becoming a man and living in obedience to God’s holy law.
C. Christ recognized and accepted the two necessary conditions of this demonstration: that He must have no advantage over man by reason of His birth and nature, and that He must have no advantage over man by reason of a power available to Him that was not equally available to man. A failure to comply with either of these conditions would have rendered the demonstration unconvincing and invalid. Therefore, Christ came to earth in the human nature of fallen man.
D. In this fallen human nature, and with no help other than the help that is freely available to man, Christ lived a sinless life.
E. There follows by inescapable logic the breathtaking affirmation that we, through the power available to us, can also do what He has done. We can live victorious and successful Christian lives. We can overcome as He overcame.
The next 11 chapters in the series are expansions of this thought, variations on this theme, explanations of what victory really means. Ellen White apparently felt that the world was desperately in need of being convinced on this point. She crowds in argument after argument, evidence after evidence. Yet the material continues to be deeply inspirational and well worth our time and attention.

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