Knowing in Advance Who Won!

(Basketball Illustration) 

A big college basketball game would soon be played.  My team would be playing one of the best teams in the league. The game would be starting at noon, but since I worked during the day, I made sure the game was recorded so I could watch it that evening. I was really hoping not to find out the score ahead of time, so that when I watched the game I would not know who won.  Late that afternoon I was with many people but fortunately no one said a word to me about the game.  Finally, however, one person blurted out, "Did you see your team's amazing victory?"

So now I had to watch the game knowing exactly what the outcome would be; there was no element of surprise. But I learned there are some advantages to knowing who won. For example, my team started the game very poorly and early on they got behind by 12 points. It looked like they might get blown out, but I was not worried, because I knew who the winner was. In the second half my team started to fall behind again, but it didn’t bother me because I knew who the winner was. Near the end of the game it was very close and the referee made a very bad call. He called a foul on one of my team's players but the replay showed that this player cleanly blocked the shot. This officiating mistake could have cost my team the game, but I was not concerned, because I knew who the winner was. With a second left and the game tied, one of my players let go a shot which could decide the game. I wasn’t even nervous because I knew who the winner was. The shot went in. During the game a lot of things did not go in my team's favor, but that was okay. I knew that they would win.

As we go through the game of life, there are many things that can go wrong, but as believers we know that God is the winner. He’s the Victor. He has already won! The battle is the Lord’s! He’s the overcomer, and we don’t have to let our hearts be troubled because He has overcome the world (John 16:33). We know that in the end, Jesus will win.  We do not have to get upset over every little setback or disappointment. As we go through great difficulties, it’s very helpful to remember who the winner is.

The same is true with the world situation. All kinds of terrible things are happening in this world: earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, nuclear contamination, pandemics, skyrocketing prices, etc. In the midst of all of this, it’s wonderful to remember that God is the winner.  Evil will not triumph over good, but good will triumph over evil. As the Bible says in Exodus 15:1, "I will sing unto the LORD, for He hath triumphed gloriously!" In the end we know who the winner is, and that should encourage us even in our darkest hours.  We know that the final outcome will be wonderful!   "Thine, O Lord, is the. . . victory" (1 Chron. 29:11).

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