Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
Romans 8:37 NKJV
Being a conqueror means that a person has won a victory in battle or has overcome an adversary (enemy). If this is what it means to be a conqueror, what then does it then mean to be “more than a conqueror”?
I once listened to a teaching by Derek Prince, where he said that he believes “to be more than a conqueror” means that you come out of the battle with more than what you went in with. In other words, you come out of the battle with both the victory as well as with spoil or plunder. I have earnestly prayed about this to ask the Lord if this understanding is correct, and through many confirmations by personal experience, I believe that the revelation given to him was spot on.
Many times in the Old Testament, God instructed His people to go into battle because He made it known them that He had given them victory over their enemies. In certain cases, the Lord also instructed His people to bring back the spoil or plunder from the enemy’s camp. This spoil was then used to build and maintain the house (temple) of the Lord.
Some of the spoils won in battles they dedicated to maintain the house of the LORD.
1 Chronicles 26:27 NKJV
And indeed, when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them, and spoke to them, saying, “Return with much riches to your tents, with very much livestock (cattle), with silver, with gold, with bronze, with iron, and with very much clothing. Divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren.”
Joshua 22:7-8 NKJV
It is important for us to understand that many stories from the Old Testament act as ‘types and shadows’, which are beneficial for our learning and instruction. Many physical things have a spiritual connotation or a hidden spiritual meaning. When we understand these hidden meanings, it helps us better understand the message God wants to give us.
For example:
We understand that God no longer resides in a man-made temple. We know that God instructed the Israelites to build Him a physical temple, but this physical temple was a foreshadowing of what was to come. Acts 17:24 says, “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.”
Our bodies are now the temple or house of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 6:19 says, “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God.” Therefore, when we read in Scripture about a tabernacle, house, temple or tent, the hidden spiritual meaning is a reference to our bodies.
Just as God instructed the people in the Old Testament to use the spoil won in battle to maintain His temple, we can be sure that God uses the spoil we win in our battles to build us up with things like faith, hope, spiritual strength, praise, a Godly nature, etc. I would like to show this to you in greater detail:
Spoil or plunder won in battle (Joshua 22:8):
- Coming out of the battle with silver = salvation, or the hope of salvation (health, rescue, save, deliver, etc.)
Silver in the bible almost always represents salvation. We know that we can add absolutely nothing to our salvation, because Jesus is the only Savior of the world. However, when I was thinking about this “type of spoil”, I believe that the Holy Spirit reminded me of the helmet of the HOPE of salvation mentioned in Ephesians 6:17. I believe God was helping me understand that in this case, the spoil won in battle is actually the hope of salvation, or to put it simply – hope. This has been absolutely true in my experience on many occasions.
Hope is a confident expectation for good, based upon God’s unchanging word as well as His promises to us. Many of the battles I have faced over the last few years have greatly tested my hope. But, with each battle, God in His lovingkindness and faithfulness not only reminds me of His promises, but He also sends me confirmation of His promises which greatly strengthens my hope in Him to fulfill each and every promise. Thank You Lord!
This is an example of how we come out of the battle with spoil. The battle may test our hope in God’s promises, but when He sends us fresh confirmation of His promises, we come out of the battle with more hope than what we went in with. We come out with strengthened hope.
There also may be times where we go into a battle without hope. Examples could include things like hope for the salvation of a loved one, or hope for physical healing, or the hope to overcome an ongoing spiritual battle, etc. Without hope, it is very difficult to persevere through a spiritual battle – but this is usually when God helps us by making us a promise. This promise gives us the hope we need to endure. This hope not only allows us to win the battle (to be a conqueror), but to come out of the battle with spoil.
- Coming out of the battle with gold = faith, or a Godly nature
Gold in the bible almost always represents either faith or a Godly nature. We may go into a battle without faith, but God will give us the faith we need, so that we can come out of the battle with faith, or with more faith than what we had going in.
Faith
There was a time in my life a few years ago where my faith failed due to the ongoing spiritual battle I was in. But God in His mercy, brought me across the Scripture from Romans 10:17 which says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” I was then led by the Holy Spirit to start memorizing Scripture, and every day as I memorized new Scriptures, the Lord showed me a picture in my mind of a little plant growing. I knew this meant that my faith was growing and being strengthened. He also showed me that I needed to choose to believe His word, regardless of what the spiritual battle looked like, because faith and sight are opposites. In this case, I came out of the battle with faith and also a spiritual sword (the sword of the Spirit). Thank You Jesus!
I would like to leave you with a message of encouragement. If you are struggling for faith – take heart, God gives us faith through His word. This can either come to us while reading His written Word, or through His still small voice. You may find that a Scripture just seems to stand out while reading His word, or you may hear Him speak to you. God has many ways of speaking to His children, and He will speak to you in a way that He knows you will understand. If you ask Him for faith, know that He will give it to you. When we choose to believe His word, we receive faith, and that is how we come out of the battle with spoil.
Part 2 of this message will include the following:
- Coming out of the battle with Gold (a Godly nature)
- Clothing
Part 3 will include:
- Bronze
- Iron
- Cattle
May your faith and hope be strengthened by the Lord in Jesus’ precious name.
Until next time – goodbye.