More Than Conquerors (Romans 8:37)

Whether it’s the local mega church prosperity pastor promising that we can overcome any obstacles in life or a head coach of a football team boasting that his players will defeat their rivals, we often hear Romans 8:37 contextualized to fit modern day America. Do a quick search of this text on Google and you'll see ministries and churches slapping the first half of the verse on their URL or church building with the second half out, "...through Him who loved us." I think this sums up our poor use of this popular passage.

But let me take you back to the days when Paul wrote this letter. What were his intentions when he told the church in Rome that we are “more than conquerors?”

Here were these precious Romans that came to faith in Jesus Christ. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul knew that his readers would eventually face a horrible and painful death under the oppressive arm of the Emperor Nero. Many would burn at the stake or be mangled and torn to pieces by lions because of their confession of faith.

So what did Paul do? He encouraged his readers that God loved them with an eternal love. And because of this eternal love, their salvation is secure. Although they were to face some of the hardest circumstances a Christian can face, nothing would be able to sever the love that God has towards them. Why? Because it was God who, before the foundations of the world, chose in His sovereignty to graciously work out a divine plan of salvation for His children that would ultimately bring us into His glory. God, being the author and perfector of this divine plan, will not change His mind (Romans 8:29-30). This is why at the end of verse 30, Paul speaks of the believer already glorified (past tense).

And then in verse 31 he asks, “What then shall we say to these things?” In other words, what should be our response in the midst of suffering and in light of the everlasting and unbreakable love that God shows toward us? He then lays out his response and conclusion that despite the opposition we may receive from Satan and the world, we will be able to endure only because God is for us. We were once alienated and enemies of God as seen in Romans 1 but now he has justified us and reconciled us to Himself through the demonstration of His love on the cross. It is within this conclusion that Paul says,

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”

Notice how Paul says “in all these things” and think back to the list of “things” he wrote of in verse 35...the tribulation (outward opposition), distress (inward opposition), persecution (opposition from enemies of the gospel), famine (being utterly deprived), nakedness (poor and destitute), danger (peril), and finally, the sword (death). So in these things, and not in spite of these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And all these sufferings are nothing new to those who have faith in God. Ever since the time of David, God’s people have been led like sheep to the slaughter…and all for His sake (Romans 8:36).


Now compare Paul’s list to the list of the prosperity preacher or football coach…more than conquerors in our finances or at our jobs or more than conquerors in regards to next Sunday’s match-up. We turn this verse into a motivational cliché and use it like fortune cookie theology. Forget suffering and overcoming for His sake, it’s all about conquering petty circumstances for my sake. Tell that to our Christian brothers and sisters who are facing extreme persecution in Korea, China, and all the other countries where it is illegal to worship Christ.

American or not, there is no justification for the twisting of Scripture. When prosperity teachers, and any preachers for that matter, abuse this particular passage, they rob God of His glory in salvation and consequently rob the congregation from realizing this wonderful truth of God’s saving and loving nature. And the truth being that because God, who is the author and perfecter of our faith, loved us with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3, Philippians 1:6, Hebrews 12:12). And it is through this eternal love that while our faith is in the midst of trial and tribulation, we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus.

The Abundant Life (John 10:10)

John 10:10

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

This verse of Scripture is frequently cited by televangelists and popular preachers to support their view that a Christian should be living a life of prosperity and bountiful blessings from God...including health and material wealth.

But is Jesus merely referring to an abundant life full of material blessings?

In order to understand this particular verse, we must understand the context.

In the chapter preceding John 10:10 , Jesus, speaking to the same people, tells of the false shepherds (the Pharisees and prior spiritual leaders of Israel) who maligned and misused God’s word and thus were unable to see Jesus as the true Messiah (John 9:39-41).

In chapter 10, Jesus is using a theme of the sheep and shepherd. Though many thieves and robbers come to kill, steal, and destroy the sheep (John 10:1, 10), Christ came to give life and keep the sheep from destruction. This is why Jesus declares Himself to be the “Good Shepherd” who lays down his life for the sake of the sheep (John 10:11). And only through Him, will the sheep find pasture (John 10:7, 9). While other false teachers come with selfish intentions (Ezekiel 34:2-4) and could care less about God’s people, Christ gave His life for His sheep as a substitutionary atonement for sinners on the cross.

Nowhere in this context does this verse speak of an extended physical life or a life full of material blessings. The abundant life comes when Christ saves us, protects us, feeds us with His word and ultimately leads us into our full salvation. Christ did not lay His life down to simply give us our best life now…the price He paid was to give us something much more valuable, knowledge of the only true God (John 18:3). Simply viewing this Scripture in a shallow way that leads to a better life demeans this eternal purpose that Christ had in mind when he laid down His life for His sheep.

The Top 8 Most Misinterpreted Scriptures

I stumbled across an article on Yahoo in which the writer took the reader through 8 commonly misinterpreted songs. She explained that many of us mistakenly bring our own personal experiences into the lyrics of a song and consequently twist the author's intended meaning.

This reminded me of how we sometimes interpret the Scriptures. We approach the Bible with a subjective and “what does it mean to me” mindset that makes the Scriptures susceptible to misinterpretation. Rather then examining the data and coming to a conclusion and applying the verse appropriately, we bring our own experiences and conclusions into the text.

Understanding what the text is saying and what the author intended it to say is key in interpreting Scripture. Part of this is knowing a verse's context in its literary form. As we read, we should as ourselves, "Why is this particular passage located in a particular book? What is the context of this passage in light of the entire book?"

We must also consider the historical form of a passage, which includes geography, economy, climate, agriculture, architecture, family life, morals, and social structure of the writers, characters, and readers.

Also take into consideration the Bible's uniqueness; 66 books were written over a 1,500-year-span containing poetry, songs, historical narratives and everything in between…written by more than 40 authors ranging from judges, kings, herdsmen, and fishermen…we’re not dealing with any ordinary book but the word of truth from God Himself. My point is if we desire to read and understand the Bible for ourselves, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we must approach the Scriptures carefully and rightly handle this word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

Furthermore, the misinterpretation of Scripture can lead to all varieties of false teaching and heresy. Just turn on your television and watch any televangelist preaching and you’ll see what I mean.

With that said, I’ll be posting, in more detail, the top 8 most misinterpreted Scriptures in Christianity today (no pun intended) in the days to come. Usually when one verse of the Bible becomes popular, it typically gets taken out of context and stripped of its original meaning. You'll see it postedon calendars, mugs, and everything in between that you can find at your local Christian trinket shop. Hopefully my subsequent posts will bring some light to these verses.

And here is my list.

8. John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

7. Romans 8:37
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

6. Revelation 3:16
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of
my mouth.

5. Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the LORD,and he will give you the desires of your heart

4. Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

3. Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

2. Romans 8:28
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

1. Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

What about you? Do you have any to add?

*UPDATE: I know I haven't followed through on this post but I will dedicate more posts to each individual verse.