Daily Reflection

Dare I acknowledge that this talk of “overcoming” the world, heightened by the subsequent description of this as a victory, may make polite mainstream Protestant ears such as mine slightly uneasy? And, to be fair, there are Christian circles that might be tempted to draw on this text to bolster the sort of “prosperity theology” that can make the wrong kinds of promises—promises that often lead into any number of dead ends. It’s important then to remember that the faith that overcomes the world is faith in Jesus, God’s “sign of contradiction,” who forges (and invites us to participate in) a new creation—a peaceable Kingdom—in which genuine shalom will flourish for all eternity. And that’s indeed a victory worthy of endless celebration!