More Than a Conqueror

"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." — Romans 8:38-39

Today we're going to hang out in Romans 8. This has got to be one of the best and boldest writings that Paul ever did. In this letter to his friends and to us, he says, "I am persuaded." This is not a guess. This is not a feeling. He is writing down that… he is convinced of something. He's locked in. Established. And connected to God.

In the next several minutes:

• Let’s learn more about being persuaded just like Paul. 

• We’ll go through a few more verses here in Romans 8.

• We’ll research a couple Greek words.

• Hear what Jesus said about being persuaded. 

• Then, we'll get practical and apply verses to our lives.

So, what does it look like to be fully persuaded… persuaded that nothing can separate us… from the love of God… especially when life (work, school, friends, family, your phone) feels like they’re trying to separate you… from just about everything?

One verse back… verse 37… Paul uses a phrase — "more than conquerors.” Look at verse 37, “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” 

We're going to take a closer look at this, because that phrase (more than conquerors) describes every son and daughter of God here in this fellowship.

Let's begin. Ready? 

Romans 8

We're in Romans, Chapter 8. In the first eight chapters of Romans, Paul describes the good news of God's grace. He explains sin, righteousness, justification, sanctification. Then, in chapter 8, he opens in verse 1 with "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.” And from here, he builds and builds… and over the next thirty verses he covers ‘no condemnation, sonship, and all things working together for good’ — then he hits verse 31, and Paul shifts gears. He starts asking questions.

Romans 8:31-39

Let's go to Romans 8:31 — "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?"

That's the opening line right here. After everything Paul just said about who we are in Christ, what's left to say? "What shall we then say?" If God is on our side, the game is already decided. We won. It doesn't matter who lines up on the other side. We're on the field (of life) and we're already the champions. Our competition is already defeated… before we even walk onto the playing field. "Who can be against us?"

Romans 8:32 — "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?"

Paul argues a point here. If God already gave us His own Son — the greatest gift ever — He's not going to start holding out on the small stuff. God gives freely. To us. All things.

Romans 8:33 — "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth."

This is legal language here. Back then, people lived under the Law. So, here’s some courtroom language going on. Paul is saying… Who's going to file a complaint against you? Don't worry. The Judge Himself, God, already declared you righteous. Case closed.

Romans 8:34 — "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."

Who's going to condemn you? Christ died for us, rose for us, sits at the right hand of God for us, and is interceding for us right now. You've got the best defense attorney in the universe — and He works for free. You don't have to pay him.

Romans 8:35 — "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?"

Now here… he starts listing the real enemies. Tribulation. Distress. Persecution. Famine. Nakedness. Peril. Sword. Seven hard things. Paul is not saying that life is easy. He's saying… NONE of these, even at their worst, can pry you loose. No thing can separate you from love.

Romans 8:36 — "As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter."

Paul is quoting Psalm 44:22 here. Life's filled with challenges. This is not new to any of us, right? But watch… in the next verse. 

Romans 8:37 — "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."

"Nay" — meaning "NO!" In all these things — IN ALL – not after them, not on the other side of them, BUT right in the middle of them — we are more than conquerors. Next two verses…

Romans 8:38-39 — (38) "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

This is the conclusion. "I am persuaded." Paul takes a list — ten things, covering every corner of the universe — and says not one of them, not even all of them put together, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Greek Deep Dive #1 — "Persuaded"

Now, let's look at that word "persuaded" in verse 38. "For I am persuaded,...” The Greek is peithō — Strong's G3982. It means to be convinced, to be won over, to have confidence in something. Persuaded. 

But here's what makes this verse cool. The form Paul uses is pepeismai — it's a verb, in the perfect passive tense. blueletterbible.org

And the perfect tense in Greek means "a completed action with ongoing results." A completed action with ongoing results.

In plain English, Paul is saying: "I was persuaded, and I'm still persuaded. The case was closed for me a long time ago, and the verdict still stands."

That's what we want, too. And it’s not “my believing”… that I have to re-energize… every Wednesday night or Sunday morning. It’s a settled persuasion… that holds the ground… it's already gained. It’s like my Steelers football team going down the field… without any penalties that take them backwards. 

That’s persuaded. “For I am persuaded.”

Greek Deep Dive #2 — "More Than Conquerors"

Now back up to verse 37 — “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." More than conquerors in Greek is actually just one word: hupernikaō — Strong's G5245.

It’s made of two pieces:

• Hyper — over, above, beyond

• Nikaō — to conquer, to win, to be victorious

Put them together, you get "to over-conquer." To win beyond winning. Paul actually coined this word — hupernikaō shows up exactly one time in the entire New Testament, right here.

He needed a word big enough to describe what believers are, and the regular word for "conqueror" wasn't big enough, so he stuck another word with it.

Instead of just being a winner - it's an over-winner. More than a conqueror.

And not by our own strength — but instead…"through him that loved us" — “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." That's power. Over-conquering power. 

Turn to Mark 11.

What Jesus Said

Jesus said the same thing in Mark 11:22-23: "Have faith (pistis, believing with confidence) in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith."

Look at that phrase — "shall not doubt in his heart." That's being persuaded and grounded and confident in your heart. No wavering. Convinced. Jesus is saying that the difference between a mountain that moves… and a mountain that doesn't move… comes right from the heart. I’m either persuaded, or I’m not.

That's the same “settled state” Paul is describing in Romans 8:38 where he said, "For I am persuaded.” Jesus said it. Paul lived it.

Real Life — What Does This Look Like?

So what does this look like in our real lives? I’ll give you two scenarios. 

Many years ago, I used to build homes. We used a lot of fasteners. Nails. Screws. Bolts. Every one of those can come loose and back out. You can pull a nail. You can back out a screw. You can unbolt a bolt. But a weld is different. A weld is when you melt and join two pieces of metal permanently together. A weld fuses two pieces of metal into one. It's impossible to take a weld apart. A great weld never comes loose.

So, we… as believers… are not bolted… to the love of God. You are not nailed together. We are welded. Welded together. This helps me understand that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Nothing on Paul's list can tear us apart.

The Steelers Quarterback

Picture a Steelers quarterback walking out of the tunnel for kickoff. Before his shoes even hit the field, he's already won the game in his head and in his heart. He's not hoping to win — he's persuaded he is already a winner. The team across from him? In his mind, they're already defeated. He doesn't see eleven guys with a chance to stop him — he sees obstacles that are about to move out of his way. He's got so much conviction… behind him… there’s so much inertia… that even a mountain in his path has to move.

That's pepeismai. That's hupernikaō. That's a person who has settled the outcome of the game before it even begins.

Paul wrote that. "I am persuaded" — not "I'm hoping," not "I think," not "on a good day, I believe." The winning score is already on the board. All we got to do is step onto the field.

Summary

Here's where we've been:

• Paul has a bunch of questions in Romans 8 — if God is for us, who is against us? Who can charge us? Who can condemn us?

• He lists seven hard things and says none of them can separate us from the love of Christ.

• He says we are hupernikaō — over-conquerors.

• He says he is peithō, persuaded — a settled, ongoing conviction.

• His list of ten things in verses 38-39 covers everything in heaven, earth, and the spirit realm.

• Jesus said the same thing in Mark 11 — "shall not doubt in his heart."

Encouragement

The love of God for you in Christ Jesus is not based on how good of a person you are. Or your work performance this week. It is not based on whether you had a good day or a bad day. It isn't even based on how you feel about your situation. 

It's based on the finished work of Jesus Christ — who died, rose, and sits right now… at the right hand of God… for you and me.

Paul wasn't writing this from a beach in Bermuda. He was a man who had been beaten, jailed, shipwrecked, and run out of town more times than he could count. When he says "tribulation, distress, persecution," he's not reading off a list — he's writing from his own life experiences. And his conclusion was: none of it could separate him from the love of God.

If it didn't separate Paul, it isn't going to separate you. You are welded in. And you are over-conquerors.

Do the Word

Don't try to earn what's already ours. The love of God for you was settled at the cross and confirmed at the resurrection. You don't have to work for God's love or pay for it either. You don't have to be good enough for God to love you unconditionally, even when you mess up once in a while.

Live like an over-conqueror. Hupernikaō is like walking out in your world… with the winning score already on the board. The result of the game has already been determined. You're just living it out… boldly with confidence.

Nothing — and Paul means nothing — shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

You are God's best. Amen?