PROVOKED TO PURPOSE

Sermon 4 2day.. 

Topic: PROVOKED TO PURPOSE
*************************
Text: 4 And whenever the time came for
Elkanah to make an offering, he would
give portions to Peninnah his wife and to
all her sons and daughters. 5 But to Hannah he would give a double portion,
for he loved Hannah, although the Lord
had closed her womb. 6 And her rival
also provoked her severely, to make her
miserable, because the Lord had closed
her womb. 1 Samuel 1:4-6 Are you being provoked by someone or
something that is causing you to be
despondent because of your season
barrenness? Has these problems led to
rejection, ostracism, hopelessness and
despair? Be not dismayed, God is about to take you out of your barren state and
cause you to become fruitful. While
Penninnah provoked Hannah, Hannah
sought the Lord at the altar. What your
Penninah's don't know is that
provocation leads to positioning and your positioning leads to promotion. God
is about to promote you to your promise.
He will open your womb of success and
cause you to give birth to purpose.
Therefore do not despise your
Penninnah's it is God's deliberate act to display his glory and to give you a story.
YOU ARE BEING PROVOKED TO PURPOSE.
IN JESUS NAME.

UNDEFEATABLE

UNDEFEATABLE? – Sunday December 6th 2015

Memorise: What should we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against

us? Romans 8:31

Read: 1st Samuel 17:45-49, 45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

46 This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

47 And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands.

48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

Bible in one year: Psalm 81-87, Hebrews 10:19-11:3

MESSAGE!

To be defeated is to be overcome by a physical, spiritual or circumstantial enemy. It could also mean failure to succeed or win in a war, contest, game or temptation. Defeat is usually accompanied with regret, sorrow, pain, shame and even death. It could also result in the loss of freedom, position, title, money and power. When Adam and Eve were defeated by Satan in the Garden of Eden, they lost their lives spiritually, lost their relationship with God, and their exalted position was gone. Out of deep regret and shame, they tried to hide themselves from the presence of the Almighty (Genesis 3:8). Defeat is such a terrible experience that it can cause the defeated to conclude that death is better than life. When Samson, the champion of Israel, was defeated, he lost everything including his confidence and will to survive; so much so that he opted to die (Judges 16:30). In defeat, Ahithophel, the great counsellor, committed suicide (2nd Samuel 17:23). I pray that you will never suffer defeat again in Jesus’ Name.

Meanwhile, defeat can be avoided by trusting in the Lord (Isaiah 26:3) and wearing the spiritual armour prescribed in the word of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). The story of Daniel and Goliath is a good example of what a Christian can do to become un-defeatable (1st Samuel 17). David took a casual walk into the camp of the Israelites to deliver some bread and cheese to his brothers and the captain of their unit. He was not a trained warrior, neither was he in anyway prepared for the battle ahead. He only happened to hear the boastings of Goliath and was challenged by his offensive statements against the Lord. David’s state of mind as he approached the battle is revealed in 1st Samuel 17:47:

“And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’S, and he will give you into our hands.”

David defeated Goliath by trusting in the Lord and by relying on the power of His word. In 1st Samuel 17:45b, David declared:

…..I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.”

In essence, David was saying: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Are you living a victorious life or wallowing in defeat? Do you want to remain undefeated? Give your life to Jesus now, trust in the Lord with all your heart and be assured that as long as God is on your side, no one can be against you.

Prayer Point

Father, please don’t let me ever suffer any kind of defeat again, in Jesus’ Name.

Reviving Focus on Jesus' Words

Our mission is to proclaim our Lord Jesus' lesson that He was the "sole teacher." (Matthew 23:8-11). He sternly told the apostles they were not to call themselves or anyone else a "teacher"! In John, Jesus explained why when He insisted that the "apostolosis not more important than the one who sent him." (John13:16.) The Greek word apostolos means either the title of Apostle or messenger or one that is sent. Here Jesus meant He was more important than any Apostle or messenger.

Even John the Baptist realized that despite knowing he himself was the greatest prophet who ever lived prior to Jesus (Matthew 11:11), yet he "must decrease" so that unfettered acceptance of Jesus' message would "increase." (John 3:30-31.)

And to treat anyone else's words, particularly from mere correspondence whose author does not claim to quote Jesus, as an authority on the same level with Jesus is to rob Jesus of the authority God gave Him: "All authority has been given me in heaven and on earth." (Matthew 28:18.) For more on this, see our article "The Jesus' Words Only Principle Explained from Numbers 12 & Deut. 18."

WATCH THAT BACKSLIDING

Memorise: The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. Proverbs 14:14

Read: John 6:66-69, Bible in one year: Judges 20-21, Matthew 28

Backsliding does not happen suddenly. It’s a process that occurs over a period of time, during which a person becomes lax in his thought life and begins to entertain from the path of light to the ways of evil from which one was once saved. There are many prodigal sons and daughters today who have forsaken their first love in the pursuit of materialism. Many workers in the vineyard of God, who started well, have allowed their spiritual fire to grow cold, thereby departing from the faith. Hebrews 10:38 says,

“Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.”

A backslider loses interest in the Lord, in the Bible, in prayer, fellowship and witnessing, and eventually turns to the world. It is like a dog returning to its vomit. You will not backslide in Jesus’ Name. The flesh will always find expression when people fail to focus on spiritual things. The flesh expression when people fail to focus on spiritual things. The flesh clouds the minds of God’s children with such things as idle past-times, sports and television, and fills their heart with junk at the expense of spiritual growth. Before you know it, backsliding would have commenced. Someone who has always been very zealous for God will then begin to miss churchmeetings when there are crucial match fixes. A sister who has been very productive in evangelism will then begin to come late to meetings because of addition to certain television soaps. As Christians who are Heaven bound, we have to be very careful. Let us keep ourselves away from danger zones as much as we can. You have to be very vigilant and sober so that the devil doesn’t drag you to Hell with little things you think do not matter (1st Peter 5:8). Those detrimental “little things” you fail to terminate may end up terminating your destiny (Song of Solomon 2:15)

Remember that even David, a man after God’s heart, fell for Bathsheba. Samson, the Lord’s anointed from the womb, lost his two eyes and was reduced to a prisoner grinding corn inside the enemy’s prison. One of my sons came to me complaining of a problem. He confessed that as every weekend drew to a close; he would get excited, looking forward to the next Monday morning because he would see his secretary again. I told him to disengage her from the job. A proverb in my native tongue says “Stay away from a snake whose head is still intact.” Whatever you can’t control will truncate your destiny. Whatever is capable of destroying your testimony must be avoided. Sometimes you need to apply wisdom and not strength (Ecclesiastes 9:18).

Action Point

Take wise, decisive action on any relationship that has the potential of destroying your testimony.

TAKE ACTION!

TAKE ACTION!

1Know That You're Forgiven
You are no longer condemned. You are forgiven! You are His child. You can make a new start every time you sin... just sincerely confess it and ask God to change you from the inside out. Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." If you have repeatedly fallen into the same sin such as pornography, lying, unforgiveness, substance abuse, gossiping, etc., then go to your pastor, a mentor, or a Christian counselor and ask for their guidance, prayer, and instruction on how to stay strong when you're tempted to sin.
2Preach the Gospel to Yourself
Memorize the following Scriptures so that you can begin relying on God’s Word and the assurance of forgiveness He offers you in Christ, rather than the self-condemnation you may be thinking and feeling.
• “And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Hebrews 10:10-14)
• “In him (Christ) we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)
• “He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:10-12) 

As Christians we will still sin.

But the truth is, we are still sinners and will always battle with sin in our lives because we are inwardly bent towards sin. That is the reason God says in His Word that we need to confess our sins and rely on His promise to cleanse us:

• "Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD' – and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” (Psalm 32:5)
• “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16)
• “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
• "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." (Romans 8:1)

These verses remind us that:

1. As Christians we will still sin.
2. Though we are commanded not to sin, there is forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
3. When we sin, there is a way to restore fellowship with God:

Confess that sin to God and to others.
Repent from the sin, asking God to change the direction of our lives.
Pray for each other; ask someone to pray for us.
Trust that God's promises are true: He has forgiven us and no longer condemns us.

Who We Still Are

Sometimes pride keeps us from admitting our sin or keeps us from forgiving ourselves when we sin as Christians. When this happens we need to tell ourselves the truth about who we still are... sinners saved by grace. Don't let pride keep you from enjoying your relationship with God and don't believe that you are now above the need for God's ongoing grace in your life.

You can begin living in God's grace and accept His ongoing, unconditional forgiveness for the sins you still battle, or the memory of past sin in your life. Realize that as a Christian, you still need to recognize and confess sin in your life. You can have grace for yourself based on God's grace and forgiveness for you when He paid the penalty for all your sins once and for all through His Son's death on the cross 2,000 years ago.

Remember that God's love “covers a multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8). We don't know our hearts very well, but God knows us and His forgiveness is complete and eternal because Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for our sins and "not for our sins only, but the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:1-2).

"How can I overcome sin in my Christian life?"

Answer: The Bible presents several different resources to aid us in our effort to overcome sin. In this lifetime, we will never be perfectly victorious over sin (1 John 1:8), but that should still be our goal. With God’s help, and by following the principles of His Word, we can progressively overcome sin and become more and more like Christ. 

The first resource the Bible mentions in our effort to overcome sin is the Holy Spirit. God has given us the Holy Spirit so we can be victorious in Christian living. God contrasts the deeds of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:16-25. In that passage we are called upon to walk in the Spirit. All believers already possess the Holy Spirit, but this passage tells us that we need to walk in the Spirit, yielding to His control. This means choosing to consistently follow the Holy Spirit's prompting in our lives rather than following the flesh.

The difference the Holy Spirit can make is demonstrated in the life of Peter, who, before being filled with the Holy Spirit, denied Jesus three times—and this after he had said he would follow Christ to the death. After being filled with the Spirit, he spoke openly and strongly to the Jews at Pentecost.

We walk in the Spirit as we try not to quench the Spirit’s promptings (as spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 5:19) and seek instead to be filled with the Spirit—that is, to be fully under the Spirit’s control (Ephesians 5:18–21). How is one filled with the Holy Spirit? If sin is what grieves the Spirit and hinders His filling, then obedience to God is how the filling of the Spirit is maintained. We should pray that we be filled with the Spirit, immerse ourselves in God’s Word (Colossians 3:16), and walk in obedience to God’s commands. This gives the Spirit freedom to work within our thoughts and actions.