More Than Conquerors | Pastor Duane Sheriff

At the heart of this powerful message lies a transformative truth we often miss in our Christian walk: the radical difference between knowing ourselves after the flesh versus knowing ourselves after the Spirit. Drawing from 2 Corinthians 5:14-17, we're challenged to understand that when Christ died, we all died—our old nature, our guilt-ridden past, our shame-filled identity. The message unpacks the revolutionary concept that we are now new creations, not just in theory but in the deepest part of our being—our spirit. Many of us struggle because we've never been taught the simple truth of 1 Thessalonians 5:23: we are spirit, soul, and body. Our spirit was instantly saved and made righteous when we believed. Our soul—our mind, will, and emotions—is being saved daily through the Word. Our body will be saved when Christ returns. Understanding this distinction changes everything. We stop looking in the mirror and seeing only our flaws, weaknesses, and failures. We stop judging ourselves and others by appearance, race, denomination, or past mistakes. Instead, we begin to see what God sees: beloved children united with Christ, world-overcomers by faith, more than conquerors through Him who loved us. The tea and water illustration beautifully captures this mystery—we're not Jesus, but Christ lives in us so profoundly that we carry His life everywhere we go. This isn't arrogance; it's the gospel truth that sets us free to walk in victory rather than defeat, as victors rather than victims.