If you’ve ever been stung by a bee, you know it can be quite painful. Most people have no reaction to a bee sting other than the pain, but for some people, that sting can cause major problems. Due to an allergy that these people have to the venom, that painful sting can cause illness and even lead to death. When that happens, you could say that the bee has had victory over the person it stung.
Sin can be just like a bee sting. It can be painful and lead to problems in our lives, problems that can manifest themselves in things like depression, broken relationships, physical illness, and even death. Sin is Satan’s victory over us, and that victory started in the Garden of Eden when Satan deceived Adam and Eve into disobeying God. That disobedience led to sin and death. Scripture tells us that sin is the sting of death (1 Corinthians 15:56). But because of God’s grace, mercy, and love for us, which were shown by Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross, the sting of sin and death no longer has a hold on us.
When a honey bee stings someone, the bee’s barbed stinger gets caught in the person’s skin, and when the bee pulls away, the stinger and part of the bee’s abdomen break off, resulting in the death of the bee. So, you could say that the bee’s victory over that person is short-lived. This is true of Satan’s victory over us. Satan’s victory in the Garden and His seeming victory in the death of Jesus were short-lived. When Jesus rose from the grave, Satan’s victory, the victory of sin and death, was reversed. In 1 Corinthians 15:55, Paul wrote, “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
The victory no longer belongs to Satan, it no longer belongs to sin and death. The victory belongs to us! It was a victory that has been given to us through Jesus Christ. We can claim that victory over sin and death when we choose to turn from sin, to believe that Jesus died for us and was raised from the dead, to confess Him as Lord, and to follow Him all the days of our lives.
A Worshiper's Journal 