LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil

Friday 10th July 2026

HE WHO IS IN YOU 

Scripture Reading: 1 John 4:1-6

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world._ 1 John 4:4

The Apostle John was concerned about the prevalence of false teachers in the early church. These false teachers taught doctrines that denied the reality of Christ and sought to bring the Christians into bondage. John saw those who preached such messages as promoting the spirit of the antichrist. 

The spirit of the antichrist is the spirit of the devil.

How are we to overcome this demonic onslaught against God's people? Apostle John spoke of three important realities for the Christian. When we live in these realities we will always have victory.

- You are of God.

 That means you belong to God and have God's nature. That is the first reality that we must live in. Though John called the Christians ‘little children,’ he did not mean they were small and insignificant. In Christ, even the littlest child is of God. When we are of God, size and age do not matter. God is mindful of us because we are His people.

- You have overcome.

The statement is a present perfect tense. It refers to something that has happened and continues to happen. As Christians, we overcame in Christ through His death and resurrection and continue to overcome as we abide in Him. Our victory in Christ is not something that will occur in the future. It is something which has already happened and continues to happen. That is our reality as Christians. That is how we have to see ourselves daily.

- The Greater One lives in you.

The third reality speaks to the Power at work in us as believers in Christ. Those who are in the world may appear great. Those who operate by the spirit of the antichrist may exhibit some spiritual or intellectual prowess. No matter what they may have, we must never forget that what we have in us is greater.

These are the realities that enable the believer in Christ to walk in victory over all situations in life.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, You are greater than everything I come against in life. By Your Spirit, I am an overcomer. In Jesus' name, Amen.