Introduction 

Earlier this week, I talked with a middle- aged man who told me about a young man he knew. This young man endured near failure to pursue his passion for building a brewery for his own beer. He overcame a troublesome partner and the near loss of his investments to succeed with his brewery and a few restaurants. I exclaimed, “This is the kind of person God wants to give ten cities… even though he is not a follower of King Jesus.” This raised for me the question: Does God want people who conquer and become powerful or does He want weak, powerless people as Bible stories show? To conquer or not to conquer, that is the question.

Jesus Values Weak, Powerless People 

While He was on Earth, God’s Anointed One spent time with sinners, with despised people, with those who were weak (Matthew 19:14). He told Paul that He helped those who relied on His favor (2 Corinthians 12:9).

King Jesus did not spread His Kingdom by military might as the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans did. He used simple people, led and empowered by Holy Spirit, to overcome the Roman Empire. All those empires are gone. His Kingdom remains and continues to increase (Isaiah 9:7). It is built and grown through the lives and work of simple people who trust and obey him.

And Yet, God Wants Overcomers

Several verses in Revelation promise Eden benefits to those who conquer. “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”

• 2:7, 17, 26
• 3:5, 12, 21
• 12:11
• 21:7

Jesus promises great authority to those who succeed with the resources He gives them. He told the same parable in different versions (Matthew 25, Luke 19) of servants who doubled the weights of money left with them. These successful servants were rewarded with authority over cities. In effect, the Master made them kings because they overcame the obstacles to success in the marketplace. The servant who merely hid and returned the money left with him Jesus called “wicked, lazy”. His punishment was weeping and gnashing of teeth.

To Conquer or Not To Conquer, That Is the Question

So, does God want the weak and meek or does He want those who overcome and become powerful? This brings up my favorite answer to such this- or-that questions: Yes!

People who live and succeed apart from God learn from “…that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray…” (Revelation 12:9) how to steal from, kill, and destroy the lives of those who are weaker than themselves. Jesus ignored these powerful leaders and rulers. He believed the words of Psalm 37. He went to the weak, the despised, the diseased, who would believe in Him.

As these weak ones trusted and obeyed Him, they overcame their weaknesses. They left behind their hindering burdens and the sins that kept them from moving forward (Hebrews 12:1). They overcame obstacles to success by the power of Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4:6). They became powerful enough to conquer the principalities and powers that hinder the growth of His Kingdom (Revelation 12:9). They earned positions of authority over cities. They replaced the principalities and powers that used to rule over those localities. They will “…shine among them like stars in the sky.” (Daniel 12:3, Philippians 2:15).

Working together in ecclesia, His people will overcome the Gates of Hades (Matthew 16:18). He gave His chosen colonial leaders (apostles) the authority to tread on snakes and scorpions without harm to them (Luke 10:19).