1 00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:03,280 Hey, y'all can be seated, unless you're on the care team, then it 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:05,560 would be awkward because you're in the aisles. 3 00:00:06,320 --> 00:00:07,920 But you can come forward to the baskets. 4 00:00:08,720 --> 00:00:11,080 And honestly, you could just start passing the baskets. 5 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:14,880 I just did a prayer. But I'm really grateful for a 6 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:17,400 church that always gives, is always generous. 7 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:20,600 And it is interesting that the Scripture is full of things like 8 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:22,960 everybody should decide in their heart what they should give and 9 00:00:22,960 --> 00:00:25,560 things like this. So the heart is central in in 10 00:00:25,560 --> 00:00:27,920 ancient Jewish thought, the heart was the center of 11 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:30,200 everything. It was your will, your emotions, 12 00:00:30,200 --> 00:00:32,400 it was your purpose. It was all of this. 13 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:36,240 And so when they write, you should decide in your heart, it 14 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:38,640 is very much a soul issue when it comes to that. 15 00:00:39,760 --> 00:00:41,600 And that just being said, I mean, I've seen some people with 16 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:43,200 really great souls. Thanks, Dennis. 17 00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:49,000 I often say this, but I want to say it frequently. 18 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:52,480 And here's why. This is a unique area to have a 19 00:00:52,480 --> 00:00:54,640 church. We're in a military community. 20 00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:56,360 Some of y'all are here for a couple years. 21 00:00:56,680 --> 00:00:59,280 Some of you get connected and you got a couple months left, 22 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:02,120 right. And so we constantly have to put 23 00:01:02,120 --> 00:01:04,360 this out here. It's a very unique place to have 24 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:07,480 a church because it has a little bit more turnover than others. 25 00:01:07,480 --> 00:01:10,840 But I frequently see you, not just, I mean give to church 26 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:13,000 finances and help us accomplish what we're doing as an 27 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:17,160 organization, as a church body. I am always seeing you guys look 28 00:01:17,160 --> 00:01:20,120 out for each other. I'm always seeing you look out 29 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:22,680 and, and take care of people that are hungry or provide meals 30 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:25,040 or when you see a need, a lot of times you'll bring them here to 31 00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:26,960 us and say, hey, did you know that this was a problem? 32 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:28,800 You know, and they could really use something. 33 00:01:29,200 --> 00:01:32,080 It is the heart of community. And just in church in general, 34 00:01:32,080 --> 00:01:34,760 this is hard to build, but especially when there happens to 35 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:36,720 be turnover. And so the only way that this 36 00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:38,960 really happens is when you all take it to heart and you 37 00:01:38,960 --> 00:01:41,360 absolutely do. So I just want to thank you for 38 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:43,960 being generous people with your time and with your focus and for 39 00:01:43,960 --> 00:01:46,640 being attentive to the needs of the men and women around you 40 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:49,880 because that's part of what makes liberty so special. 41 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:53,560 Well, we're going to talk about spiritual warfare. 42 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:56,720 You can turn to Daniel 10. Haven't preached from Daniel in 43 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,440 a hot minute. Daniel's interesting. 44 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:01,720 If you've ever paid attention as you go through Daniel, half of 45 00:02:01,720 --> 00:02:05,320 it reads very historically and half of it you read it and say, 46 00:02:05,720 --> 00:02:09,600 this is like a fever dream. It's very prophetic. 47 00:02:09,600 --> 00:02:11,760 There are things that are literal and there's things that 48 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:14,400 are not literal, but we're just going to be reading a couple 49 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:19,120 verses and you know, spiritual warfare, as you talk about the 50 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,280 subject of battling against darkness and demonic 51 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:24,560 principalities and things like that, it can make people 52 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:26,800 uncomfortable. Today's not so much about 53 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:28,600 casting demons out and things like that. 54 00:02:28,600 --> 00:02:31,720 It's how spiritual warfare ties into this concept of unity. 55 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:35,000 But I do understand that the subject of demons can make 56 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:37,600 people uncomfortable. So before we get to that, I 57 00:02:37,600 --> 00:02:38,840 thought I would talk about aliens. 58 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:43,960 Well, hey, I mean, it's been in the news, right? 59 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:46,600 So here's the deal. There has been a lot of 60 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:52,800 conversation about UFO files, government disclosures, UA, PS. 61 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:55,720 Is that what it is now? Unidentified aerial phenomenon, 62 00:02:57,200 --> 00:02:59,360 whatever they want to call it now, theories connected to them. 63 00:02:59,360 --> 00:03:02,440 I feel like every few years this circles back and becomes bigger, 64 00:03:03,160 --> 00:03:05,520 except this is the first time that governments have openly 65 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:07,880 released documents and major news outlets have covered it. 66 00:03:08,160 --> 00:03:09,880 And it really says something about the state of the world, 67 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:12,560 doesn't it, That that's not even like the biggest news story. 68 00:03:13,520 --> 00:03:15,880 We're all so stressed out over other things that are happening 69 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:17,720 in the world. And locally we're like, oh, 70 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:25,200 aliens too, Why not? For me, I have always found this 71 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:28,920 world of aliens or whatever fascinating and also a little 72 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:31,560 terrifying. When I was younger, I used to 73 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:34,960 repeatedly check out this old book from my elementary school 74 00:03:34,960 --> 00:03:37,880 library that probably should not have been there, but it talked 75 00:03:37,880 --> 00:03:41,320 about alien abductions and first hand accounts and things and it 76 00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:44,640 talked about the Men in black and not the ones that you all 77 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:46,720 love. Not not not the movie that made 78 00:03:46,720 --> 00:03:49,480 it kind of weird but really entertaining. 79 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:53,520 The original, like Legend of Men in Black was actually aliens 80 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:55,840 that were disguised as people and they would come and abduct 81 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:57,760 you and then do terrible things to make you keep your mouth 82 00:03:57,760 --> 00:03:59,680 shut. And for some reason I could not 83 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,240 help but keep checking this book out and reading it over and over 84 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:04,320 again. And this was really detrimental 85 00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:09,080 to my mental health because because I lived on the top floor 86 00:04:09,080 --> 00:04:12,680 of our two-story home and I had this giant window up there. 87 00:04:12,680 --> 00:04:15,600 It was meant to be like, like a, like a guest room if you were to 88 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:17,399 have somebody visit. So it's like this giant 89 00:04:17,399 --> 00:04:20,600 triangular window. And without telling my mom why, 90 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,040 it's like, can we move my, my bed to the other side, like away 91 00:04:24,040 --> 00:04:26,240 from the window? I don't know what I expected, 92 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:29,360 but I was scared, right? But I couldn't stop from reading 93 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:31,280 it. You ever find yourself 94 00:04:31,280 --> 00:04:33,520 fascinated with something that you know is not good for you, 95 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:36,280 but you can't tear your eyes or your attention off of it? 96 00:04:36,280 --> 00:04:38,600 I feel like I have a word from the Lord. 97 00:04:38,840 --> 00:04:40,880 Stop it. Stop doing that. 98 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:42,920 Why would you do that to yourself? 99 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:47,920 OK, That's what I did, though. And as I continued to look 100 00:04:47,920 --> 00:04:49,800 through it, I started to feel a little more confident. 101 00:04:49,800 --> 00:04:53,240 And then I remember I was invited to watch a movie with my 102 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:55,600 mom and stepdad. And it was a movie called Fire 103 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,120 in the Sky. I, I see some of you remember 104 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:00,520 this. I was like, I can handle it. 105 00:05:00,520 --> 00:05:02,840 And I had this really nice beautiful like crocheted blanket 106 00:05:02,840 --> 00:05:04,520 that I was holding because I was a kid and I was warm. 107 00:05:05,040 --> 00:05:07,720 And then I started, it got higher and higher and before you 108 00:05:07,720 --> 00:05:09,040 know it, it was just over my head. 109 00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:11,600 But I would like peek through the little, the little holes 110 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:15,320 until I got scared again. Here's why it's so scary. 111 00:05:16,520 --> 00:05:18,320 You don't understand it, you don't get it. 112 00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:20,480 This is why one of the number one things people, not just 113 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:22,360 children, but especially children get scared of, it's the 114 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:24,120 darkness. And you're not really scared of 115 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:25,240 the darkness. You're scared of what the 116 00:05:25,240 --> 00:05:30,600 darkness conceals and so nobody goes ow darkness that hurt when 117 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:32,800 the lights go off, you're afraid you might trip. 118 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:35,360 There could be something coming near you and you wouldn't know 119 00:05:35,360 --> 00:05:36,920 it. You feel unsafe. 120 00:05:36,920 --> 00:05:39,280 You lose the sense of control of your surroundings. 121 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:42,200 So darkness scares you. Anytime you don't understand 122 00:05:42,200 --> 00:05:47,760 something, it scares you. So some of you have probably 123 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:49,800 heard all kinds of opinions floating around in Christian 124 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:51,440 circles about it. There are some people that 125 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:54,640 immediately say if there are aliens then they must be demons 126 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:57,200 because the Bible doesn't specifically talk about 127 00:05:57,200 --> 00:06:00,440 extraterrestrial life. Other people are just completely 128 00:06:00,440 --> 00:06:02,640 open to the idea that there could be forms of life that we 129 00:06:02,640 --> 00:06:04,960 don't fully understand, that God created somewhere else. 130 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:07,240 And governments have hidden certain things from the public 131 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:09,400 for a very long time. I think the only thing both 132 00:06:09,400 --> 00:06:11,560 sides can agree on is that governments hide things from us 133 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:15,560 for a very long time. And I'm not really here to give 134 00:06:15,560 --> 00:06:17,400 you an answer. I know some people really want 135 00:06:17,400 --> 00:06:19,360 that. But personally, I think God is 136 00:06:19,360 --> 00:06:22,480 big enough that we should be careful about acting overly 137 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:25,280 confident where scripture itself is not very explicit. 138 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:29,280 If God wanted to create life elsewhere, who here would say 139 00:06:29,280 --> 00:06:30,800 that He's not allowed to and he can't. 140 00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:34,520 Now, that being said, at the same time, scripture does make 141 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:37,280 it very clear that there are unseen spiritual realities that 142 00:06:37,280 --> 00:06:39,960 surround us that most people don't think about very often. 143 00:06:40,080 --> 00:06:43,560 Angels and demons, principalities, spiritual 144 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:45,600 warfare. Every time the good guys show 145 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:47,080 up. Every time angels of the Lord 146 00:06:47,080 --> 00:06:49,600 show up, what is the immediate reaction? 147 00:06:49,680 --> 00:06:51,560 They fell to the ground and they were terrified. 148 00:06:52,200 --> 00:06:55,560 So there are things that that exist on a different plane that 149 00:06:55,560 --> 00:06:58,680 we don't understand. So before I give you some sort 150 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:01,800 of half cocked theology and say here's what they all are, I 151 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:04,600 would just like to present to you humbly the idea I don't 152 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:08,360 know. But you know who I do know is 153 00:07:08,360 --> 00:07:10,520 the Lord? Nobody could ever talk me out of 154 00:07:10,520 --> 00:07:12,720 knowing the Lord because I've worked hard enough to make sure 155 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:13,960 that I have a relationship with Him. 156 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:16,280 When I first came to the Lord, it was through a position of 157 00:07:16,440 --> 00:07:18,640 emotional. I was trying to find a 158 00:07:18,640 --> 00:07:20,360 connection to something spiritual. 159 00:07:20,360 --> 00:07:22,040 I always felt like God was there. 160 00:07:22,040 --> 00:07:24,200 I just wanted to know and I wanted to build a relationship 161 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:25,760 with Him. And for some people that's not 162 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:27,800 your story. Some of you, it was logical and 163 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:29,960 it was mental 1st and you got convinced maybe through 164 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:32,480 apologetics or somebody made a case for the gospel and you were 165 00:07:32,480 --> 00:07:34,120 convinced. That's great too. 166 00:07:34,400 --> 00:07:36,720 What I'm telling you is don't stay in your logic zone. 167 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:39,960 Open up that heart, let the Lord tap into it. 168 00:07:39,960 --> 00:07:42,760 Try to connect to Him. You could not have a viable long 169 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,080 term sustainable relationship with anybody without there being 170 00:07:45,080 --> 00:07:47,800 emotion. But at the same time, if you 171 00:07:47,800 --> 00:07:50,520 don't also take care of the like the functional things that it 172 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:53,480 takes for a relationship, your relationship, no matter how much 173 00:07:53,480 --> 00:07:54,600 you love them, is going to falter. 174 00:07:55,520 --> 00:08:02,040 So are they demons masquerading or are they other life forms 175 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:05,640 that we don't know? Scripture just doesn't tell us. 176 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:08,800 I will tell you this, that in ancient Jewish tradition, there 177 00:08:08,800 --> 00:08:12,880 was a lot of belief around fallen angels, not just in the 178 00:08:12,880 --> 00:08:15,480 Scriptures that you know we're tapping into today, but also in 179 00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:17,920 extra biblical resources like First Enoch. 180 00:08:18,280 --> 00:08:20,680 Not in the Bible, want to be really clear, but it is quoted a 181 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:22,000 couple times throughout Scripture. 182 00:08:22,280 --> 00:08:24,040 They would have believed some of these things. 183 00:08:24,840 --> 00:08:26,840 And here's what I do want you to know, even though this is not 184 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:29,520 laid out in Scripture. Their belief was this, that 185 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:33,600 there were specific fallen angels that handed to people 186 00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:38,120 what was described as forbidden knowledge in in other words, 187 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:41,559 given to humanity was different information about our power and 188 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:44,640 how to build better weapons and how to manipulate each other and 189 00:08:44,640 --> 00:08:48,720 how to destroy things faster than human character could 190 00:08:48,720 --> 00:08:52,800 possibly responsibly carry it. And so in other words, according 191 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:56,040 to their tradition, human beings received things that helped us 192 00:08:56,040 --> 00:08:58,560 advance, but not really things that helped us thrive or become 193 00:08:58,560 --> 00:09:00,040 holy. OK. 194 00:09:00,880 --> 00:09:03,160 And you know, what's sad about that to me is that pattern has 195 00:09:03,160 --> 00:09:06,520 never really stopped. Humanity is brilliant at 196 00:09:06,520 --> 00:09:08,520 discovering things. We really are. 197 00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:10,480 We're just terrible at stewarding them. 198 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:14,560 And that's why we split atoms just so we can build bombs. 199 00:09:15,280 --> 00:09:17,680 And we invent communication technology and we use it to 200 00:09:17,680 --> 00:09:20,960 destroy each other emotionally. And we create tools that are 201 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:23,360 meant to connect humanity. And it somehow makes us more 202 00:09:23,360 --> 00:09:26,320 isolated than ever before. But this is what happens anytime 203 00:09:26,320 --> 00:09:29,840 knowledge outruns wisdom. So if you are wanting to dive 204 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:31,200 into the government files, go for it. 205 00:09:31,200 --> 00:09:32,560 I'm not here to tell you to avoid it. 206 00:09:33,040 --> 00:09:35,680 I'm just telling you, don't let your knowledge of a situation 207 00:09:35,680 --> 00:09:38,360 outrun the wisdom of should you know it and what should you do 208 00:09:38,360 --> 00:09:40,720 with it? If you want to be informed, go 209 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:43,240 for it, read about it. If you want to look into other 210 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:46,520 things, go for it. Be wise and you may say, well, 211 00:09:46,520 --> 00:09:48,160 how do I know if too much is too much? 212 00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:53,080 Get to know the Lord. There are some things that 213 00:09:53,080 --> 00:09:55,560 you're meant to know, but you're not meant to know until the Lord 214 00:09:55,560 --> 00:09:56,960 says you're ready. And you know how I know this? 215 00:09:56,960 --> 00:10:00,440 Because the Lord calls Himself our Father. 216 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:03,840 I'm not a perfect dad, but I'll tell you this, I love being a 217 00:10:03,840 --> 00:10:07,360 dad and I love my kids enough to know that it is my job to teach 218 00:10:07,360 --> 00:10:08,960 them some hard things about life. 219 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:11,960 And it is also my job when I recognize that they are not 220 00:10:11,960 --> 00:10:15,400 ready for some things to not tell them until they are ready 221 00:10:15,400 --> 00:10:17,520 to carry it. So I'll trust my father. 222 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:20,000 So if you want to dive into that stuff, go for it. 223 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:21,560 I would just tell you to be wise. 224 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:26,000 Now that being said, by the time we get to this point in Daniel's 225 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:28,640 life in Daniel chapter 10, we'll start in verse 10 as well. 226 00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:30,240 Just to give you a little context. 227 00:10:30,920 --> 00:10:32,880 The people of Israel are living under foreign rule. 228 00:10:32,880 --> 00:10:35,240 And Daniel himself is an older man at this point. 229 00:10:35,240 --> 00:10:38,280 He has spent decades serving inside Pagan kingdoms and 230 00:10:38,280 --> 00:10:41,440 governments that are far from home, that are not God honoring, 231 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:44,880 but he's remained faithful to God through his exile and all 232 00:10:44,880 --> 00:10:47,640 sorts of political drama and spiritual opposition. 233 00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:50,480 And in chapter 10, something shifts because he's entering a 234 00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:53,720 season of mourning and prayer and he's fasting along the banks 235 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:57,280 of the Tigris River, and he's searching for information on 236 00:10:57,280 --> 00:10:59,160 what is coming in the future from the Lord. 237 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:01,800 And what happens next is one of the most unusual. 238 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:04,840 But also, I think you'll see this revealing encounters about 239 00:11:04,840 --> 00:11:06,400 spiritual warfare in the Old Testament. 240 00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:11,320 In verse 10, it says, just then a hand touched me and lifted me, 241 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:13,480 still trembling to my hands and knees. 242 00:11:14,240 --> 00:11:19,920 And the man said to me, Daniel, you are very precious to God, so 243 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:21,720 listen carefully to what I have to say to you. 244 00:11:22,360 --> 00:11:24,000 Oh, that's already amazing. How many of y'all would love to 245 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:27,800 hear that from an Angel? Oh man, he says, stand up, for 246 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:30,720 I've been sent to you. When he said this to me, I stood 247 00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:34,280 up, still trembling. And then he said, do not be 248 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:35,240 afraid. Daniel. 249 00:11:35,760 --> 00:11:38,600 Since the day you began to pray for understanding and to humble 250 00:11:38,600 --> 00:11:42,080 yourself before your God, your request has been heard in 251 00:11:42,080 --> 00:11:43,840 heaven. I'd like to pause there for a 252 00:11:43,840 --> 00:11:46,440 moment. From the day you begin to ask 253 00:11:46,440 --> 00:11:48,880 God for understanding, when you ask Him with the right heart, 254 00:11:49,840 --> 00:11:54,320 your request is heard in heaven. God's ears are not far from your 255 00:11:54,320 --> 00:11:56,720 lips. When you pray to Him, you may 256 00:11:56,720 --> 00:12:00,400 not feel like He hears you right away, and that takes time and it 257 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:03,400 takes patience. He always hears your prayers. 258 00:12:04,160 --> 00:12:05,680 You may say, well, I've been praying for a long time. 259 00:12:05,680 --> 00:12:08,040 What happened? I'm glad you asked. 260 00:12:08,960 --> 00:12:14,680 Listen to this verse 13. But for 21 days, the spirit 261 00:12:14,680 --> 00:12:17,920 Prince of the Kingdom of Persia blocked my way. 262 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:22,640 And then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me and 263 00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:25,480 I left him there with the spirit Prince of the Kingdom of Persia. 264 00:12:26,280 --> 00:12:28,960 Now I'm here to explain what will happen to your people in 265 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:32,200 the future, for this vision concerns a time yet to come. 266 00:12:33,200 --> 00:12:35,640 Listen, God is omniscient. He's omnipresent. 267 00:12:36,040 --> 00:12:38,600 He's omnipotent. Omni means all. 268 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:40,720 He's all powerful, all knowing, all present. 269 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:42,880 He can do anything at any time, anywhere he decides to. 270 00:12:42,880 --> 00:12:46,320 And not only does he choose to use us fallen human beings that 271 00:12:46,320 --> 00:12:48,440 are made in his image, he chooses to use other created 272 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:51,800 spiritual beings as well. And he chooses to use angels. 273 00:12:51,800 --> 00:12:53,600 What you see right here, First of all, I think it was 274 00:12:53,600 --> 00:12:54,840 interesting. The first time it clicked, I 275 00:12:54,840 --> 00:12:57,840 went, hey, there's video games called the Prince of Persia. 276 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:01,520 It's just interesting how many terms get worked into society. 277 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:06,000 And we don't even know it, but this angelic messenger comes 278 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:09,040 here and says, hey, the second you prayed to God, he heard you. 279 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:11,840 And I was on my way. But I got delayed by a 280 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:15,840 principality, right, this powerful regional governor of 281 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:19,440 darkness, and I got held up and he basically says I was there 282 00:13:19,440 --> 00:13:22,400 for three weeks, for 21 days, he said, until Michael the 283 00:13:22,400 --> 00:13:24,440 Archangel came and I left the battle in his hands. 284 00:13:24,440 --> 00:13:27,120 He finally took over the battle so I could get to you and give 285 00:13:27,120 --> 00:13:30,440 you this message. So if you are waiting on a 286 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:32,520 message from the Lord, keep waiting. 287 00:13:33,400 --> 00:13:35,880 Don't give up. Why would you ever give up? 288 00:13:36,200 --> 00:13:38,240 How many of y'all have a life that's changed because somebody 289 00:13:38,240 --> 00:13:41,280 refused to give up on praying for you, encouraging you, 290 00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:43,360 pouring into you, believed in you when you couldn't believe in 291 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:47,560 yourself. Don't stop believing Journey was 292 00:13:47,560 --> 00:13:53,680 right. There are moments where your 293 00:13:53,680 --> 00:13:57,520 visible struggles have invisible realities attached to them and 294 00:13:57,520 --> 00:13:59,000 you start to talk yourself out of it. 295 00:13:59,920 --> 00:14:01,800 Well, maybe there's not spiritual warfare. 296 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:04,720 Maybe the problem is me. Maybe I'm just an awful person. 297 00:14:05,560 --> 00:14:08,440 But Daniel realized that not everything happening around you 298 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:12,120 is only happening around you. So you may look around and say, 299 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:14,440 well, my family is falling apart and they don't get along. 300 00:14:14,880 --> 00:14:16,840 OK, that's a problem and it's happening around you. 301 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:18,680 It's not only happening around you. 302 00:14:18,680 --> 00:14:20,840 There's also things happening that you can't see. 303 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:23,000 You may look around and say in the workplace, they don't get 304 00:14:23,000 --> 00:14:24,080 it. They don't understand this is an 305 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:26,320 awful place. It's not only happening there. 306 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:30,240 Nothing is as surface as it seems. 307 00:14:31,040 --> 00:14:34,760 Not one thing in your life. Now, all of that being said, 308 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:36,880 while Daniel is praying and grieving and trying to 309 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:39,640 understand what God is doing, Scripture pulls the curtain back 310 00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:42,120 for a moment and shows us that spiritual forces are at work 311 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:45,200 beyond what we can see. And that's an uncomfortable 312 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:47,600 thought for a lot of people in a modern culture because we like 313 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:49,400 explanations that we can control. 314 00:14:49,840 --> 00:14:51,760 We like problems that fit into categories. 315 00:14:51,760 --> 00:14:54,000 Well, when you struggle with this, pray this when this is a 316 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:56,760 problem in your life, annoying it with oil and then move on, 317 00:14:56,840 --> 00:14:59,440 you know, or something. We, we want to know exactly what 318 00:14:59,440 --> 00:15:00,840 to do. But that's also our control 319 00:15:00,840 --> 00:15:02,240 issues. Because this is a form of 320 00:15:02,240 --> 00:15:03,800 darkness. We don't understand it. 321 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:06,600 It's a mystery. And because it's a mystery, 322 00:15:06,600 --> 00:15:08,920 we're afraid of it. You're not meant to understand 323 00:15:08,920 --> 00:15:11,800 everything of the mystery. You know why faith does not 324 00:15:11,800 --> 00:15:16,200 require understanding? It's not faith, it's just 325 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:18,600 understanding. At that point, nobody's going to 326 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:22,760 be a master of the mystical arts and Christianity, but you can 327 00:15:22,760 --> 00:15:26,000 know more about it. By the way, have you noticed 328 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:28,240 that we live in a culture that's obsessed with identifying 329 00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:33,640 enemies politically, socially, relationally? 330 00:15:34,400 --> 00:15:38,360 Everybody's angry at somebody. Everybody's blaming somebody for 331 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:40,560 something. Everybody feels like they're 332 00:15:40,560 --> 00:15:43,160 fighting all the time. And what often happens is people 333 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:45,480 get so consumed with fighting visible people that they 334 00:15:45,480 --> 00:15:48,840 completely lose sight of the invisible enemy who's actually 335 00:15:48,840 --> 00:15:50,800 influencing the destruction behind it all. 336 00:15:51,720 --> 00:15:54,160 And that is one of the enemy's greatest strategies. 337 00:15:54,240 --> 00:15:57,200 It always has been. And while we're not unaware of 338 00:15:57,200 --> 00:16:00,080 his schemes, that's what the scripture promises us, we still 339 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:01,800 fall prey to his schemes all the time. 340 00:16:02,720 --> 00:16:04,840 If he can keep believers distracted and fighting each 341 00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:07,040 other, they'll never fully engage in the actual war that's 342 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:10,200 happening around them. Even churches fall into this all 343 00:16:10,200 --> 00:16:12,080 the time. Think about this. 344 00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:15,360 What kind of things do churches divide over People fight over 345 00:16:15,360 --> 00:16:21,080 personalities, preferences, worship styles, politics, 346 00:16:22,280 --> 00:16:26,040 different methods, generational differences we divide over 347 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:30,640 social media opinions. It's real solid communication 348 00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:33,520 styles, leadership decisions. Meanwhile, darkness keeps 349 00:16:33,520 --> 00:16:36,680 destroying marriages and isolating people and confusing 350 00:16:36,680 --> 00:16:39,640 their identities. It keeps feeding our addictions 351 00:16:39,640 --> 00:16:41,840 and crushing our hope and attacking our minds and pulling 352 00:16:41,840 --> 00:16:44,200 people away from God. And we're arguing over people 353 00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:46,040 because they said something on Facebook and it hurt our 354 00:16:46,040 --> 00:16:49,880 feelings. We have a priority issue, 355 00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:53,160 Christians, And I'm not saying that when somebody hurts your 356 00:16:53,160 --> 00:16:55,160 feelings, it doesn't matter. It does. 357 00:16:55,520 --> 00:16:57,520 You matter. So do they. 358 00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:02,160 What I'm saying is, if the Kingdom of God is this level of 359 00:17:02,160 --> 00:17:07,800 importance, where would you place your individual offence? 360 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:12,119 Right here, down here. Where would you place it? 361 00:17:12,119 --> 00:17:18,520 Hey, I got like real quiet here. OK, let's talk about it today. 362 00:17:19,119 --> 00:17:22,359 Because if we misidentify the enemy, we misdirect all our 363 00:17:22,359 --> 00:17:25,359 energy, and if we spend all our strength attacking flesh and 364 00:17:25,359 --> 00:17:28,119 blood, we have very little left for actual spiritual battles 365 00:17:28,119 --> 00:17:30,320 because we're worn out and we're exhausted from all of our 366 00:17:30,320 --> 00:17:33,240 interpersonal entanglements. The first thing that we need to 367 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:35,920 wrap our heads around today is we do not fight against flesh 368 00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:39,040 and blood. One of the most dangerous things 369 00:17:39,040 --> 00:17:41,880 that can happen in spiritual warfare is misidentifying the 370 00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:43,840 enemy. So you can turn to Ephesians 6 371 00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:46,080 if you'd like. But when you start seeing people 372 00:17:46,080 --> 00:17:48,320 as your primary enemy, everything changes. 373 00:17:50,080 --> 00:17:52,000 I'm challenging you today to look at your own life. 374 00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:53,440 OK? This is not one of those 375 00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:56,080 messages to be like, man, this makes me think of Uncle John, 376 00:17:56,080 --> 00:17:59,480 you know, or whatever. Like, no, let this let this make 377 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:02,440 you think about you the way that I let it think about me. 378 00:18:04,040 --> 00:18:05,360 We have to look at our own life here. 379 00:18:05,360 --> 00:18:07,880 This is where conversations become battles that we replay. 380 00:18:07,880 --> 00:18:10,680 Disagreements become threats. It's how they feel to us. 381 00:18:10,960 --> 00:18:13,000 This is where all of our differences become active 382 00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:16,600 divisions between each other. And before long we'll find that 383 00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:18,640 there are believers who were supposed to be standing shoulder 384 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:21,160 to shoulder against darkness, but they've turned their energy 385 00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:24,160 towards each other instead. In Ephesians chapter 6, starting 386 00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:28,120 in verse 10, it says this a final word. 387 00:18:28,720 --> 00:18:30,960 Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. 388 00:18:31,360 --> 00:18:34,760 Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand 389 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:37,080 firm against all strategies of the devil. 390 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:41,920 For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but 391 00:18:41,920 --> 00:18:45,200 against evil rulers and authorities in the unseen world, 392 00:18:45,600 --> 00:18:48,400 against mighty powers in this Dark World, and against evil 393 00:18:48,400 --> 00:18:51,600 spirits in the heavenly places. I'm not going through the armor 394 00:18:51,600 --> 00:18:53,440 of faith today. That's a message for another 395 00:18:53,440 --> 00:18:55,920 day. But listen to this. 396 00:18:56,440 --> 00:18:58,400 Put on all of God's armor. Why? 397 00:18:58,720 --> 00:19:02,160 So that you'll be able to stand firm against all strategies of 398 00:19:02,200 --> 00:19:04,360 the devil. He identifies who our enemy 399 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:07,720 actually is right here. That phrase, flesh and blood 400 00:19:08,000 --> 00:19:09,880 matters so much more than you think. 401 00:19:10,160 --> 00:19:12,440 Because Paul's reminding believers that people are not 402 00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:15,200 the ultimate enemy. I mean, this whole faith, 403 00:19:15,200 --> 00:19:18,400 Christianity, is centered around a man who was God in the flesh 404 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:21,760 but crucified by people made out of flesh and blood. 405 00:19:22,440 --> 00:19:25,400 But even Jesus didn't consider them to be the primary enemy. 406 00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:30,600 But for us, well, they cut me off when I talked, so they don't 407 00:19:30,600 --> 00:19:32,560 care about what I have to say. So I'm done with them. 408 00:19:33,760 --> 00:19:36,200 Way to go, God's little special soldier. 409 00:19:37,520 --> 00:19:40,000 There are spiritual realities underneath so many of the 410 00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:41,600 visible problems that we experience. 411 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:45,400 And the enemy loves to operate through division and confusion 412 00:19:45,600 --> 00:19:48,680 and jealousy and insecurity and pride. 413 00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:51,480 And here's some words you don't hear much when we go through 414 00:19:51,480 --> 00:19:55,160 spiritual warfare. Suspicion, misunderstanding, 415 00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:57,760 because those things slowly break apart the team that's 416 00:19:57,760 --> 00:19:59,680 supposed to be fighting unified against the enemy. 417 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:04,320 And the problem is, most of the time we have a genuine reason 418 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:05,600 why we feel the way that we feel. 419 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:09,360 So here's the problem, we have a genuine reason to be offended, 420 00:20:09,360 --> 00:20:13,280 but we're called to live a life that is unoffendable, but we're 421 00:20:13,280 --> 00:20:15,920 justified in our offence, so we feel comfortable over here. 422 00:20:16,560 --> 00:20:17,720 Well, you don't know what it was like. 423 00:20:17,720 --> 00:20:19,240 You weren't there. You didn't hear what I heard. 424 00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:20,840 You didn't experience it like I did. 425 00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:24,000 You don't understand it. Jesus understands it. 426 00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:27,920 The scary thing is, and I want you to hear this because this is 427 00:20:27,920 --> 00:20:29,800 the best church I know of. I know I'm probably a little 428 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:32,560 biased, but man, I love you all. I love this church. 429 00:20:34,200 --> 00:20:36,680 The more gifted a church becomes, the more opportunities 430 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:38,720 there are for this kind of problem to happen. 431 00:20:39,440 --> 00:20:41,680 And this is because if people are not spiritually mature 432 00:20:41,680 --> 00:20:45,040 enough to handle their differences correctly, then your 433 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:48,000 gifts come into conflict with their gifts, and they're 434 00:20:48,000 --> 00:20:49,800 operating on their assignment from God. 435 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:51,960 But because you don't see them operating on your assignment 436 00:20:51,960 --> 00:20:54,520 from God, you assume that they are wandering off and doing 437 00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:57,360 their own thing. People who are naturally 438 00:20:57,360 --> 00:21:01,280 discerning, I'll give you examples, can recognize problems 439 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:03,960 very quickly. Why do you think God would give 440 00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:05,800 you the ability to recognize a problem? 441 00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:11,600 It's not a trick question to solve it, right? 442 00:21:13,400 --> 00:21:17,960 Even Vanilla Ice knew that. If he gives you the ability to 443 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:20,000 recognize a problem, it's so you can solve it. 444 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:23,400 But how many times have we seen or participated in a situation 445 00:21:23,400 --> 00:21:25,640 where we're like, I see a problem with that person. 446 00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:29,480 Hey, they're not who they seem to be, are they? 447 00:21:29,840 --> 00:21:33,240 Let's talk about this person. See, I was right about them, and 448 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:35,160 it feels good because we feel wise. 449 00:21:35,160 --> 00:21:37,800 We feel intelligent. Why would God whisper some 450 00:21:37,800 --> 00:21:40,880 gossip about somebody else to you just so you could feel 451 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:44,160 better about yourself? If God gives you a discerning 452 00:21:44,160 --> 00:21:46,640 heart, it's so that you can solve a problem. 453 00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:49,880 Solving a problem is harder than talking about a problem. 454 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:55,160 People who see discernment, they can start to see danger 455 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:57,000 everywhere if they never solve problems. 456 00:21:57,000 --> 00:21:59,160 And before you know it, you assume that's why you have this 457 00:21:59,160 --> 00:22:00,600 gift. Don't play with me. 458 00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:02,840 I've got discernment. I know if you're off sometimes 459 00:22:02,840 --> 00:22:04,960 when you have a check in your spirit, it doesn't mean that you 460 00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:08,120 run away from that person. It just means God says have your 461 00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:10,520 guard up. Go there because this is heavy 462 00:22:10,520 --> 00:22:14,880 work and I'm calling you to it. Use that discernment in the way 463 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,440 that God wants you to. Don't just receive His gift, use 464 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:20,400 it in the manner He intended. How about people that are driven 465 00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:22,240 towards truth? People who love the scripture 466 00:22:22,240 --> 00:22:25,720 they love to really like, dive in and drill down to the core 467 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:28,200 meaning of it. They get frustrated when they 468 00:22:28,200 --> 00:22:30,760 feel like somebody is compromised or shallow in their 469 00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:33,000 understanding. How about people that are really 470 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:35,040 compassionate? Have good hearts for those that 471 00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:37,480 are struggling, The spiritual knuckleheads. 472 00:22:38,320 --> 00:22:41,320 Compassionate people get wounded easily when others seem harsh or 473 00:22:41,320 --> 00:22:43,920 uncaring. And then leaders who carry 474 00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:46,160 vision, they get impatient sometimes when people are moving 475 00:22:46,160 --> 00:22:48,320 slowly because they can see a vision. 476 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:50,480 But here's the thing, God gave you a vision of what's over 477 00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:51,640 there. He didn't give it to them. 478 00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:54,200 Why are you mad at them for not chasing something they can't 479 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:55,560 see? Communicate it. 480 00:22:57,160 --> 00:23:00,240 This is what happens when we all take our own gifts and we don't 481 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:02,440 take other people's gifts into account. 482 00:23:03,560 --> 00:23:06,040 Evangelistic people become burdened by what they see as a 483 00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:08,360 lack of caring about people outside the church. 484 00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:12,440 And pastoral people tend to feel relational issues so much more 485 00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:15,280 deeply than other people because they care about people. 486 00:23:15,760 --> 00:23:17,640 And not one of these things that I've talked to you about is 487 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:20,120 sinful. They're all important, and 488 00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:22,000 they're often connected to genuine giftings and 489 00:23:22,000 --> 00:23:24,640 responsibilities. The problem is that your enemy, 490 00:23:24,640 --> 00:23:27,440 and my enemy knows exactly how to exploit these weaknesses 491 00:23:27,440 --> 00:23:29,920 surrounding our strengths. He will always attack you at 492 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:32,720 your greatest weakness, yes, but the other place he always 493 00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:35,200 attacks you is your greatest strength because he wants to 494 00:23:35,200 --> 00:23:36,880 take away your ability to build the Kingdom. 495 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:39,840 So instead of gifts complimenting each other, people 496 00:23:39,840 --> 00:23:42,480 start clashing. One person thinks nobody cares 497 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:45,400 enough, another thinks nobody has enough wisdom, another 498 00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:47,880 thinks nobody here is willing to be bold enough and say the hard 499 00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:49,880 things. Another person says nobody here 500 00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:51,920 cares enough and is compassionate enough for people. 501 00:23:52,480 --> 00:23:54,360 And then somebody else says, well, nobody understands what 502 00:23:54,360 --> 00:23:56,520 really matters. But eventually, you know, what 503 00:23:56,520 --> 00:23:58,960 all of these comments do, they play us right into the devil's 504 00:23:58,960 --> 00:24:01,880 hands because now everybody starts to defend their own 505 00:24:01,880 --> 00:24:04,160 assignment and their own worldview that was given to them 506 00:24:04,160 --> 00:24:07,360 by the Lord instead of defending the unity of the church that 507 00:24:07,400 --> 00:24:11,240 Jesus died to build in James chapter 3. 508 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:13,880 We'll read this in a moment. We're going to learn about true 509 00:24:13,880 --> 00:24:17,080 wisdom, and it comes from God. It's amazing how many of us are 510 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:19,040 spiritual. We love the Lord, we're going to 511 00:24:19,040 --> 00:24:22,280 heaven, but our wisdom that we apply to spiritual matters is 512 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:25,920 earthly wisdom. A lot of us, and by the way, I'm 513 00:24:25,920 --> 00:24:27,880 a fan of therapy. I need to get back into it. 514 00:24:28,160 --> 00:24:29,560 Jesus in therapy, but in that order. 515 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:34,120 A lot of us will take therapeutic concepts and we'll 516 00:24:34,120 --> 00:24:37,800 apply it to spiritual realities and they don't mesh right. 517 00:24:37,800 --> 00:24:39,680 The mind is the mind, but the soul is the soul. 518 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:42,080 And they are connected, but they are not identical. 519 00:24:42,080 --> 00:24:43,560 And we have to be very careful with this. 520 00:24:44,120 --> 00:24:46,640 A lot of churches end up wounded by the very people that were 521 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,480 meant to help strengthen them. And the people aren't evil. 522 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:51,600 They're just all focused on what God has given them. 523 00:24:51,600 --> 00:24:55,400 So in James chapter 3, starting in verse 13, listen to this. 524 00:24:55,400 --> 00:24:59,080 James is known for being blunt and he needed to be because out 525 00:24:59,080 --> 00:25:01,080 of all the nicknames you read in the Scripture, they called him 526 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:02,840 old camel knees. That doesn't even sound like the 527 00:25:02,840 --> 00:25:05,920 best. The best compliment, right? 528 00:25:06,080 --> 00:25:08,080 That's the best nickname. They're like James and John, 529 00:25:08,080 --> 00:25:10,240 sons of Thunder. Oh, I want a nickname. 530 00:25:10,360 --> 00:25:11,240 All right. Camel knees. 531 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:15,600 Anyway, he's blunt. Listen to him. 532 00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:19,600 He says if you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it 533 00:25:20,560 --> 00:25:23,480 by living an honorable life. That's very challenging, isn't 534 00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:26,920 it? Doing good works with the 535 00:25:26,920 --> 00:25:30,400 humility that comes from wisdom. And he says, but if you are 536 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,440 bitterly jealous and if there is selfish ambition in your heart, 537 00:25:33,760 --> 00:25:35,880 don't cover up truth with boasting and lying. 538 00:25:36,080 --> 00:25:37,080 You know what he's saying right here? 539 00:25:37,080 --> 00:25:40,720 He's saying just because you are gifted in an area, don't cover 540 00:25:40,720 --> 00:25:43,840 up these areas that are ugly just because you're good at 541 00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:45,240 something God has called you to do. 542 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:50,960 He says jealousy and selfishness are not God's kind of wisdom. 543 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:54,080 Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and he says 544 00:25:54,080 --> 00:25:57,280 demonic. He says wherever there's 545 00:25:57,280 --> 00:26:00,040 jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and 546 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:03,600 evil of every kind. But he says the wisdom from 547 00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:06,320 above is first of all pure. It's also peace loving. 548 00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:09,200 It's gentle at all times and it's willing to yield to others. 549 00:26:09,600 --> 00:26:12,160 How many of y'all struggle to yield to others? 550 00:26:12,720 --> 00:26:14,000 Well, if they're right, I'll do it. 551 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:19,000 That's, that's not what it says. It's full of mercy in the fruit 552 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:21,880 of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is 553 00:26:21,880 --> 00:26:24,720 always sincere. And those who are peacemakers 554 00:26:24,760 --> 00:26:28,200 will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. 555 00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:33,880 James is saying that not every kind of passion or conviction is 556 00:26:33,880 --> 00:26:37,880 coming from the Spirit of God. Just because it feels strong and 557 00:26:37,880 --> 00:26:39,880 you may feel something very strongly in your heart. 558 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:43,640 I'm glad you do. How you use it, how you 559 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:46,680 communicate it matters. There are things that look 560 00:26:46,680 --> 00:26:49,520 spiritual on the surface, and they're actually driven by 561 00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:52,840 selfish ambition, jealousy, pride, and disorder. 562 00:26:52,840 --> 00:26:57,240 And James calls that demonic. Don't tell me that this is not 563 00:26:57,240 --> 00:26:59,560 spiritual warfare in the realm of unity. 564 00:27:00,560 --> 00:27:02,920 This should make all of us pause for a moment, because every 565 00:27:02,920 --> 00:27:05,040 single one of us, from this pulpit all the way to whoever's 566 00:27:05,040 --> 00:27:07,880 watching on our live stream at home, we've all struggled with 567 00:27:07,880 --> 00:27:09,400 this, if we're not struggling with it right now. 568 00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:13,960 Sometimes people imagine demonic activity as only extreme 569 00:27:13,960 --> 00:27:18,120 manifestations or terrifying moments where all of a sudden 570 00:27:18,120 --> 00:27:21,640 their their voice changes. You watch too many movies, and 571 00:27:21,640 --> 00:27:24,080 by the way, those are real. I've been there. 572 00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:26,840 Don't ever let somebody convince you that they're not real, 573 00:27:26,840 --> 00:27:30,480 because they are. But if you think that's the only 574 00:27:30,480 --> 00:27:33,600 demonic manifestation amongst people, then you're going to see 575 00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:35,920 all sorts of demonic manifestations and just call 576 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:40,080 them personality quirks. He wants you deceived. 577 00:27:41,280 --> 00:27:43,400 The enemy doesn't always need to destroy a church through a 578 00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:46,040 scandal or through persecution. Sometimes he just keeps 579 00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:48,840 believers irritated with each other long enough that unity 580 00:27:48,840 --> 00:27:51,520 erodes from within. You know what's cool for him? 581 00:27:52,040 --> 00:27:53,560 Then you get to do his work for him. 582 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:56,840 It doesn't sound good when I word it like that, does it? 583 00:27:58,080 --> 00:28:01,360 Spiritual maturity is not just learning how to stand against 584 00:28:01,360 --> 00:28:03,120 demons. It's learning how to see people 585 00:28:03,120 --> 00:28:06,600 correctly while you take a stand against the demonic forces of 586 00:28:06,600 --> 00:28:09,480 darkness. The person sitting next to you 587 00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:12,520 might frustrate you sometimes, might disagree with you 588 00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:15,320 sometimes, might even wound you sometimes. 589 00:28:16,400 --> 00:28:17,720 But I really need you to hear me on this. 590 00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:20,920 If they belong to Jesus, they are not your true enemy. 591 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:24,840 The enemy would love nothing more than to have a church full 592 00:28:24,840 --> 00:28:28,160 of gifted people spend all of their strength, all of their 593 00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:32,080 God-given abilities and tools to fight each other while he 594 00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:37,680 doesn't even have to touch you. So a few weeks back, I started 595 00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:40,080 having this strange pain right around my side, like right here, 596 00:28:40,080 --> 00:28:41,720 like under the rib cage, like area. 597 00:28:41,720 --> 00:28:43,520 And I talked to like some people that I know that are more 598 00:28:43,520 --> 00:28:45,400 medically minded. And it was honestly the kind of 599 00:28:45,400 --> 00:28:47,440 pain like I could not figure out what it was. 600 00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:49,880 I didn't know if it was a stomach thing or if it was like 601 00:28:49,880 --> 00:28:51,480 a muscle thing. And eventually I said, you know 602 00:28:51,480 --> 00:28:52,400 what, I think it's a stomach thing. 603 00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:54,360 And maybe it's because I drink black coffee first thing in the 604 00:28:54,360 --> 00:28:56,480 morning. WebMD taught me that I don't 605 00:28:56,480 --> 00:28:58,880 need medical school. I I already know what's what, 606 00:28:58,880 --> 00:29:02,760 right? So, so I started this regiment 607 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:05,680 of like Prilosec, you know, so I take it in the morning and now I 608 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:07,560 should be able to have coffee and tacos and not worry about 609 00:29:07,560 --> 00:29:08,320 it. Didn't fix it. 610 00:29:09,160 --> 00:29:10,960 And then normally I'd feel it the most in the morning. 611 00:29:10,960 --> 00:29:12,880 And that's why I thought it had to do with my stomach. 612 00:29:12,880 --> 00:29:15,320 And then, and then we go off 2 weeks ago and we're on this, 613 00:29:15,320 --> 00:29:17,800 this road trip in the van and it's not really going away, but 614 00:29:17,800 --> 00:29:21,120 I'm like pushing through and I'm just doing what I can do. 615 00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:25,440 And I come to the decision. I think it's muscular because I 616 00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:28,200 have found that when I when I'm sitting, if I turn sideways, 617 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:31,640 like it hurts. So I'm like, OK, well, I think 618 00:29:31,640 --> 00:29:33,160 that's what it is. Then I need to take it easy. 619 00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:35,480 But even at that, I had to have somebody who loves me like yell 620 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:37,120 at me to stop me from walking on a treadmill. 621 00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:41,320 And then and then when I finally come to realize, I think it is 622 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:42,680 something muscular. But it's interesting. 623 00:29:42,680 --> 00:29:45,080 Yesterday I played pickleball. By the way, who was there at 624 00:29:45,080 --> 00:29:46,160 pickleball yesterday? Come on. 625 00:29:46,160 --> 00:29:48,320 That was fun. Like we had a ton of people out 626 00:29:48,320 --> 00:29:51,640 there. Didn't hurt at all, didn't hurt 627 00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:53,360 at all. And what I realized just as 628 00:29:53,360 --> 00:29:56,680 recent as yesterday was this. I got in the car and halfway 629 00:29:56,680 --> 00:30:01,320 home started to hurt. It's connected to when I sit and 630 00:30:01,320 --> 00:30:04,120 here's why. Whenever you sit, your body, 631 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:07,560 whether you mean to or not, achieves less, less positive 632 00:30:07,560 --> 00:30:11,400 posture, right? Your body kind of goes into like 633 00:30:11,440 --> 00:30:13,040 AC shape. You slump a little bit, even if 634 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:15,080 you don't know it. So that's why all that week 635 00:30:15,080 --> 00:30:18,320 while I'm riding in a van, it's hurting worse whenever I sit 636 00:30:18,320 --> 00:30:20,800 down and I twist like I feel it. But when I'm walking, when I'm 637 00:30:20,800 --> 00:30:21,920 standing, I don't feel it at all. 638 00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:24,720 But this little pain that's been right here and I've still got 639 00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:25,800 it, but it's almost gone. It's fine. 640 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:29,560 God said he'll take care of it. So this little pain that's here 641 00:30:29,840 --> 00:30:33,960 has changed how I live my life. Because of this little pain 642 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:37,320 here, I stopped walking. The way that I walk, I stand up 643 00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:39,480 differently. I won't do certain things. 644 00:30:40,560 --> 00:30:42,560 You know, I've asked Cassie, Hey, hey, would you pick that up 645 00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:44,360 just in case because I don't know what's going on. 646 00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:46,400 And here's the thing. Here's what I want you to to 647 00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:49,080 understand. One of the ways that Jesus 648 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:53,840 describes us as his church is what the what of Christ, the 649 00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:55,440 bride. But we are also his. 650 00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:58,880 We're his body. What happens when this one 651 00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:02,880 little small part is wounded? Well, you know what the rest of 652 00:31:02,880 --> 00:31:04,480 the body does? It compensates for it. 653 00:31:04,880 --> 00:31:06,760 I stand up differently. I alter it. 654 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:09,800 I don't use it in the same way so that it can heal and be 655 00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:12,680 properly restored to how it operates in the body. 656 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:16,000 Unfortunately, what we do all too often is we see somebody, 657 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:19,960 even somebody who is wrong. Let's just assume that you are 658 00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:23,200 God's little Angel and you are correct and they're wrong and 659 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:26,400 you see them misusing their gift and you say I'm done with them 660 00:31:26,400 --> 00:31:27,960 because they're not doing it the right way. 661 00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:31,480 So you've just performed A dissection and you're going to 662 00:31:31,480 --> 00:31:34,040 remove them from the body and cast them out and say they have 663 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:36,920 no use in the body anymore. I'm going to tell you what, I'm 664 00:31:36,920 --> 00:31:41,320 glad you're not my doctor. All too often in the body of 665 00:31:41,320 --> 00:31:44,640 Christ we say you're not operating the right way, so get 666 00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:47,600 away from me. That's not the way that the body 667 00:31:47,640 --> 00:31:49,240 of Christ is supposed to operate. 668 00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:52,520 It's just a small muscle and it's wounded and it won't be 669 00:31:52,520 --> 00:31:55,520 like that forever, but the rest of the body is going to make 670 00:31:55,520 --> 00:31:58,720 sure that it heals. That is your job. 671 00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:02,720 That's my job is when we see somebody who belongs to Jesus, 672 00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:05,520 somebody who is our brother and our sister and they're wounded. 673 00:32:05,600 --> 00:32:09,040 Our job is to help restore them so that not only can they be 674 00:32:09,040 --> 00:32:11,680 fulfilled in what God has called them to do, but we can all be 675 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:14,360 better fulfilled in what God has called all of us to do. 676 00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:16,040 And who gets the glory when we do that? 677 00:32:17,680 --> 00:32:20,680 It's AVBS answer. Come on, guys, Jesus, there we 678 00:32:20,680 --> 00:32:24,400 go. All right, that is exactly what 679 00:32:24,400 --> 00:32:26,480 we're supposed to do. Healthy bodies don't attack 680 00:32:26,480 --> 00:32:28,560 injured parts. It's just not the way it works. 681 00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:30,600 Could you imagine your shoulder being injured and the rest of 682 00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:33,320 your body decided to shame it for not functioning correctly? 683 00:32:33,880 --> 00:32:36,560 Sounds ridiculous when you put it that way until you have felt 684 00:32:36,560 --> 00:32:38,360 like that wounded shoulder in the body of Christ. 685 00:32:39,760 --> 00:32:41,640 So how do we actually stop fighting flesh and blood? 686 00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:44,480 Well, I've been present for spiritual warfare. 687 00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:46,080 That was scary. And deliverance. 688 00:32:46,080 --> 00:32:50,040 And that's a different sermon. But how about this? 689 00:32:50,040 --> 00:32:52,680 Somebody says something the wrong way or somebody overlooks 690 00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:55,040 you, or somebody frustrates you or embarrasses you. 691 00:32:55,040 --> 00:32:58,160 Somebody hurts your feelings, challenges your ideas, maybe 692 00:32:58,160 --> 00:33:00,160 handles situations different than you would have. 693 00:33:00,160 --> 00:33:02,720 And you get offended and you start to realize there's 694 00:33:02,720 --> 00:33:03,840 something spiritual at hand here. 695 00:33:03,840 --> 00:33:05,440 How do you do this? I think one of the first things 696 00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:07,560 you have to do is stop taking everything so personally. 697 00:33:08,040 --> 00:33:11,520 And before, before you say, how are you doing with that, Pastor 698 00:33:11,520 --> 00:33:13,520 Blake? I'm not up here preaching 699 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:17,200 everything I've mastered, OK? It's hard not to take things 700 00:33:17,200 --> 00:33:19,880 personally. I'm made of flesh and blood. 701 00:33:20,600 --> 00:33:24,280 So the important thing to remember is not everything is 702 00:33:24,280 --> 00:33:28,520 personally connected to you, even if people do think that it 703 00:33:28,520 --> 00:33:30,640 has to do with you. We're all informed by our 704 00:33:30,800 --> 00:33:33,760 baggage, by unresolved wounds that we've not fully healed. 705 00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:36,600 Same for them. You can't take it personally 706 00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:40,240 because if they've got a weak area, the devil is absolutely 707 00:33:40,240 --> 00:33:42,920 poking and prodding at it, and they're going to react and 708 00:33:42,920 --> 00:33:44,840 they're going to act out. And you do the same thing with 709 00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:48,720 other people. Since we do that, we can't take 710 00:33:48,720 --> 00:33:51,400 it personally. I can't assume that if my wife 711 00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:54,440 and I get into a disagreement that she's wrong and I'm right. 712 00:33:54,680 --> 00:33:55,760 At least that's what she's told me. 713 00:33:55,760 --> 00:33:59,320 I can't assume that. No, I can't assume that. 714 00:33:59,320 --> 00:34:02,160 What I have to assume is God has blessed our union and wants us 715 00:34:02,160 --> 00:34:04,560 to be 1 flesh and wants us to be more united than any other 716 00:34:04,560 --> 00:34:07,280 relationship I've got. So even if I'm frustrated and 717 00:34:07,280 --> 00:34:10,239 don't understand her, I have to do the hard work to make sure 718 00:34:10,239 --> 00:34:12,760 that we are both being peacemakers so that we can stay 719 00:34:12,760 --> 00:34:15,239 unified. It matters for both of us. 720 00:34:15,239 --> 00:34:18,239 It matters for our kids, it matters for our friends, for our 721 00:34:18,239 --> 00:34:20,719 family, it matters for our witness, and it matters for the 722 00:34:20,719 --> 00:34:25,960 body at large. Sometimes I just think we're 723 00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:27,880 reacting purely to what somebody else did. 724 00:34:28,120 --> 00:34:30,239 But spiritual maturity here does require spiritual 725 00:34:30,239 --> 00:34:32,600 self-awareness. You can't take it personally. 726 00:34:33,159 --> 00:34:36,239 If you take it personally, you will be perpetually offended and 727 00:34:36,239 --> 00:34:38,280 perpetually wounded. And that is no way for a 728 00:34:38,280 --> 00:34:41,960 Christian to live. If you are struggling in that 729 00:34:41,960 --> 00:34:45,400 area, take some time to just sit down and ask yourself why it 730 00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:49,440 affected you so heavily. Don't feel bad that it did. 731 00:34:50,040 --> 00:34:53,719 Just ask yourself, ask the Lord, what is this emotion telling me? 732 00:34:53,719 --> 00:34:55,840 What is this information communicating to me? 733 00:34:57,280 --> 00:35:00,440 I would just also say this. You have to learn to have real 734 00:35:00,440 --> 00:35:02,680 conversations instead of imaginary ones. 735 00:35:03,240 --> 00:35:05,720 How many of y'all are good at imaginary conversations? 736 00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:09,000 Tell the truth before you. Maybe you're like, well, I do 737 00:35:09,000 --> 00:35:11,480 have my conversations. I bet you do after you've run it 738 00:35:11,480 --> 00:35:14,840 through your head 15 times and then they're going to say this. 739 00:35:14,840 --> 00:35:16,680 And if they say that, then I'm going to say this. 740 00:35:18,640 --> 00:35:20,560 We're real good at the imaginary conversations. 741 00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:22,720 Could you imagine if you took all that energy and you just sat 742 00:35:22,720 --> 00:35:25,040 down into an unknown conversation and you just had 743 00:35:25,040 --> 00:35:26,840 it? Well, I need to be prepared in 744 00:35:26,840 --> 00:35:30,040 case they say no, you don't. You do not need to be prepared 745 00:35:30,040 --> 00:35:32,960 for what they say. You need to be honest and you 746 00:35:32,960 --> 00:35:35,160 need to give them the grace to be honest as well. 747 00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:37,520 If something wounded you, sit down and talk to them and have a 748 00:35:37,520 --> 00:35:40,280 real conversation. That is what we say here, right? 749 00:35:40,280 --> 00:35:44,920 Conflict means conversation. But I'm telling you this, the 750 00:35:44,920 --> 00:35:47,120 longer that you wait to have that conversation, the more 751 00:35:47,120 --> 00:35:48,640 distorted the picture will get in your mind. 752 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:52,480 And I mean this because nobody has a perfect memory. 753 00:35:52,960 --> 00:35:56,280 So the longer you wait to have a talk, eventually you're going to 754 00:35:56,280 --> 00:35:58,440 talk about something. And that's not even really how 755 00:35:58,440 --> 00:36:00,520 it happened. And now you're going to get into 756 00:36:00,520 --> 00:36:03,040 a secondary argument about the first argument because you're 757 00:36:03,040 --> 00:36:04,360 going to say, well, you said blah, blah, blah. 758 00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:06,720 And they're going to say that was 8 months ago. 759 00:36:07,000 --> 00:36:09,560 That's not what I said. Well, I remember it really well. 760 00:36:10,040 --> 00:36:11,920 You might have been thinking about it for a long time, but 761 00:36:12,160 --> 00:36:15,720 our minds fill in the gaps. They just fill in the gaps 762 00:36:15,720 --> 00:36:17,240 sometimes. You know what? 763 00:36:17,240 --> 00:36:20,040 We'll alleviate that problem as soon as something bothers you. 764 00:36:20,960 --> 00:36:23,560 Hey, that kind of bothered me. And it doesn't have to be a big 765 00:36:23,560 --> 00:36:25,000 fight, doesn't have to be a big thing. 766 00:36:25,000 --> 00:36:27,480 But just so you know, because I assume you care about me, this 767 00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:29,800 bothered me. And then you just handle it and 768 00:36:29,800 --> 00:36:33,280 you move on. I'm just telling you, healthy 769 00:36:33,280 --> 00:36:36,160 unity, it requires curiosity. I was talking about this with a 770 00:36:36,160 --> 00:36:38,360 friend over the weekend. But curiosity is something that 771 00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:41,200 so many Christians lack. We might get curious about God, 772 00:36:41,200 --> 00:36:43,280 curious about the Scriptures. We're not curious about why 773 00:36:43,280 --> 00:36:45,520 somebody voted the way that they voted. 774 00:36:45,520 --> 00:36:47,960 We're not curious about why somebody isn't offended over 775 00:36:47,960 --> 00:36:49,400 something that clearly offends us. 776 00:36:49,400 --> 00:36:52,240 And we're not curious about why they think or operate 777 00:36:52,240 --> 00:36:53,880 differently. And it is such a shame. 778 00:36:54,600 --> 00:36:57,600 I'm just telling you, people are fascinating most of the time, in 779 00:36:57,600 --> 00:37:01,400 a good way. Most of the time people are 780 00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:04,360 fascinating. So get curious, ask them what is 781 00:37:04,360 --> 00:37:06,280 it that made that so important to you? 782 00:37:06,280 --> 00:37:07,400 You'll learn something about them. 783 00:37:07,400 --> 00:37:09,280 And the the last thing I would say is you have to really 784 00:37:09,280 --> 00:37:10,720 remember what is actually at stake. 785 00:37:11,480 --> 00:37:14,480 The enemy loves division because it it weakens our effectiveness. 786 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:17,560 A divided church will never disciple people well. 787 00:37:18,360 --> 00:37:21,120 A divided marriage will struggle to model Christ. 788 00:37:21,720 --> 00:37:24,200 A divided family struggles to create peace, Doesn't it? 789 00:37:25,440 --> 00:37:27,920 A divided ministry burns through energy that could have been used 790 00:37:27,920 --> 00:37:29,360 for the Great Commission of Jesus. 791 00:37:30,720 --> 00:37:34,040 God doesn't expect you to be identical, but He does expect 792 00:37:34,040 --> 00:37:38,120 you to mature enough to learn to recognize people are standing on 793 00:37:38,120 --> 00:37:40,640 the same side, even if they approach things a little 794 00:37:40,640 --> 00:37:43,440 differently. It would go a lot better if 795 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:45,680 Christians could memorize this sentence and remember it when 796 00:37:45,680 --> 00:37:46,800 they feel offended. And it's this. 797 00:37:47,240 --> 00:37:51,200 That person is not my enemy. Start your thought process with 798 00:37:51,200 --> 00:37:52,640 that. God, I'm going to come to you 799 00:37:52,640 --> 00:37:54,040 with some offence, but I'm starting with this. 800 00:37:54,040 --> 00:37:56,360 I recognise that person is not my enemy. 801 00:37:58,040 --> 00:38:00,520 OK, Well, if you're going to learn to stop fighting people, 802 00:38:00,520 --> 00:38:03,200 you have to learn to fight what is actually fighting against 803 00:38:03,200 --> 00:38:04,840 you. And this is so important. 804 00:38:05,720 --> 00:38:07,640 We'll be in 2nd Corinthians 10 in a moment. 805 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:10,240 But one of the dangers in a message like what we're 806 00:38:10,240 --> 00:38:13,160 preaching today is you might here don't fight flesh and blood 807 00:38:13,160 --> 00:38:16,240 and accidentally feel like you need to be somebody who never 808 00:38:16,240 --> 00:38:17,800 brings up something that bothers you. 809 00:38:18,840 --> 00:38:21,000 You have to be negligent in your own spiritual warfare or 810 00:38:21,000 --> 00:38:22,040 whatever. Almost like the goal of 811 00:38:22,040 --> 00:38:24,680 Christianity is to avoid conflict altogether and avoid 812 00:38:24,680 --> 00:38:26,040 problems. That's not the case. 813 00:38:27,120 --> 00:38:28,560 The Bible never says there is no fight. 814 00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:30,560 It says we have to learn to fight the right fight. 815 00:38:31,120 --> 00:38:34,240 And the truth is every single person in this room or on the 816 00:38:34,240 --> 00:38:36,840 live stream is all fighting something, whether other people 817 00:38:36,840 --> 00:38:40,400 see it or don't. Some people are fighting fear 818 00:38:40,680 --> 00:38:42,640 constantly. They wake up afraid of things, 819 00:38:42,640 --> 00:38:44,960 and maybe they get a little more calm midday, but the fear comes 820 00:38:44,960 --> 00:38:46,760 back. It's constantly there. 821 00:38:46,760 --> 00:38:48,360 Some people are fighting discouragement. 822 00:38:48,680 --> 00:38:51,720 Others are fighting temptation and confusion or bitterness. 823 00:38:52,120 --> 00:38:54,520 People fight insecurities and anxiety. 824 00:38:54,760 --> 00:38:57,680 Some people fight lies that they know mentally are not true, but 825 00:38:57,680 --> 00:38:59,360 they believe them with everything they've got in their 826 00:38:59,360 --> 00:39:02,760 heart and they feel like two different people because of it. 827 00:39:03,240 --> 00:39:05,760 So we we tend to assume that our battles are the same battles 828 00:39:05,760 --> 00:39:08,200 that others have. And if I were them, I would fill 829 00:39:08,200 --> 00:39:10,960 in the blank. But that's normally because our 830 00:39:10,960 --> 00:39:12,840 intense battles are not visible ones. 831 00:39:12,960 --> 00:39:15,120 So it's easy to assume that other people have the same 832 00:39:15,120 --> 00:39:17,280 battle because they can't see yours. 833 00:39:17,680 --> 00:39:19,680 But you just assumed that we all have the same one. 834 00:39:19,880 --> 00:39:22,960 We don't. Whatever their battles are, they 835 00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:25,600 need to be fighting the things that are attacking them, not the 836 00:39:25,600 --> 00:39:29,760 things that are attacking you. Listen to what Paul says in 2nd 837 00:39:29,760 --> 00:39:31,680 Corinthians 10, just verses 3 through 5. 838 00:39:31,680 --> 00:39:35,960 He says we are human, but we don't wage war as humans do. 839 00:39:36,680 --> 00:39:40,360 We use God's mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down 840 00:39:40,360 --> 00:39:42,840 the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false 841 00:39:42,840 --> 00:39:45,840 arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle 842 00:39:45,840 --> 00:39:47,480 that keeps people from knowing God. 843 00:39:48,040 --> 00:39:50,400 We capture their rebellious thoughts and we teach them to 844 00:39:50,400 --> 00:39:54,120 obey Christ. I love so much about this, this 845 00:39:54,120 --> 00:39:56,080 passage of Scripture. But one of the things I love 846 00:39:56,080 --> 00:40:00,200 first and foremost is, first of all, he says we are humans. 847 00:40:00,200 --> 00:40:03,040 How many of you all heard farmers in your OK? 848 00:40:03,040 --> 00:40:04,440 I knew somebody did OK. Yeah. 849 00:40:04,800 --> 00:40:06,920 Well, we're not all so, but we're humans. 850 00:40:07,760 --> 00:40:10,600 You have permission to be human. You have permission to fail, you 851 00:40:10,600 --> 00:40:12,680 have permission to have insecurity, whatever. 852 00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:17,120 So we're humans, but we don't fight through human methods. 853 00:40:18,200 --> 00:40:20,320 So he says, don't worry, it's OK, you're just made of flesh 854 00:40:20,320 --> 00:40:22,760 and blood, but you are given a much better arsenal. 855 00:40:23,000 --> 00:40:25,240 And what's interesting, if you notice he says we use God's 856 00:40:25,240 --> 00:40:28,240 mighty weapons to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning. 857 00:40:28,240 --> 00:40:30,440 And for most of us, we would say, well, I'll use God's mighty 858 00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:33,400 weapons for spiritual things, and I'll use my logic and reason 859 00:40:33,400 --> 00:40:35,160 and earthly things for earthly arguments. 860 00:40:36,040 --> 00:40:38,440 Not in Paul's eyes. He says you will use God's 861 00:40:38,440 --> 00:40:41,200 mighty methods for all of your warfare. 862 00:40:41,760 --> 00:40:43,560 Why? Because again, those people are 863 00:40:43,560 --> 00:40:47,240 not your enemy. So you have to use a spiritual 864 00:40:47,240 --> 00:40:49,600 method because if you use a human method, it stops when it 865 00:40:49,600 --> 00:40:52,000 hits the person. If you use a spiritual method to 866 00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:53,880 combat an issue with a person, that goes right through the 867 00:40:53,880 --> 00:40:55,520 person into the source of the problem. 868 00:40:56,360 --> 00:40:57,720 That's what we have to learn to do. 869 00:40:58,800 --> 00:41:02,120 And I love that Paul says this because, you know, we don't have 870 00:41:02,120 --> 00:41:03,440 to pretend that the battle's not real. 871 00:41:03,440 --> 00:41:05,080 We just can't use it with the same weapons. 872 00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:07,680 And an uneducated view of this would say, well, what are 873 00:41:07,680 --> 00:41:10,240 worldly weapons? They're swords or Shields or or 874 00:41:10,240 --> 00:41:12,240 Spears. But sometimes I'm just telling 875 00:41:12,240 --> 00:41:14,640 you that worldly weapons look a lot more subtle than that. 876 00:41:14,880 --> 00:41:17,440 Sometimes they look like manipulation or side 877 00:41:17,440 --> 00:41:19,680 conversations. Sometimes they look like 878 00:41:19,680 --> 00:41:22,000 humiliating somebody so they'll never say that again. 879 00:41:22,360 --> 00:41:24,720 Sometimes worldly weapons to get back at somebody. 880 00:41:24,720 --> 00:41:26,840 They look like gossip or sarcasm. 881 00:41:27,960 --> 00:41:30,280 Sometimes it looks like defensiveness or tearing down 882 00:41:30,280 --> 00:41:33,280 people to protect our own image. Trying to win arguments instead 883 00:41:33,280 --> 00:41:36,960 of winning people. The world teaches people to 884 00:41:36,960 --> 00:41:39,840 fight for dominance and attention and control and 885 00:41:39,840 --> 00:41:42,960 personal victory. The world has trained people to 886 00:41:42,960 --> 00:41:46,720 fight for almost everything with outrage and anger. 887 00:41:47,600 --> 00:41:49,880 But did you notice where Paul says that a lot of this warfare 888 00:41:49,880 --> 00:41:52,200 actually happens? He says it's in arguments, 889 00:41:52,600 --> 00:41:55,520 thoughts, and ways of thinking that rise against the knowledge 890 00:41:55,520 --> 00:41:58,560 of God. Sometimes spiritual warfare 891 00:41:59,120 --> 00:42:01,760 might look more like refusing to let offence harden your heart. 892 00:42:02,720 --> 00:42:05,120 Sometimes it might look like continuing to worship when you 893 00:42:05,120 --> 00:42:06,960 don't really feel like it because your emotions are all 894 00:42:06,960 --> 00:42:10,160 collapsing inside of you. Sometimes it looks like 895 00:42:10,160 --> 00:42:12,160 remaining faithful when discouragement is telling you 896 00:42:12,160 --> 00:42:14,600 that you're not making a difference, but you are. 897 00:42:15,960 --> 00:42:18,000 One of the biggest mistakes that believers make is trying to 898 00:42:18,000 --> 00:42:22,240 solve spiritual problems with fleshly reactions, Try to 899 00:42:22,240 --> 00:42:25,040 pressure other people into transformation, or argue people 900 00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:26,560 into peace. Isn't that ridiculous? 901 00:42:28,200 --> 00:42:30,560 The power of Christ compels you. You will be at peace. 902 00:42:32,840 --> 00:42:35,040 Sometimes we try to control their lives or outcomes. 903 00:42:35,040 --> 00:42:37,280 Instead of trusting God to work in people the same way He's 904 00:42:37,280 --> 00:42:39,000 worked in you, you're a people too. 905 00:42:40,000 --> 00:42:41,800 Exodus 17 has a really cool thing. 906 00:42:41,800 --> 00:42:44,160 I've used it as an illustration before, but I'm not going to do 907 00:42:44,160 --> 00:42:47,280 that today and act it out. But here we're back in the days 908 00:42:47,280 --> 00:42:49,200 of Exodus, and here's what we have. 909 00:42:49,480 --> 00:42:52,760 While people of Israel were still at Rifidim, the warriors 910 00:42:52,760 --> 00:42:55,440 of Amalek attacked them, so Moses commanded Joshua. 911 00:42:55,440 --> 00:42:58,480 Choose some men to go out and fight against the army of Amalek 912 00:42:58,800 --> 00:43:02,160 for us tomorrow I'll stand at the top of the hill holding the 913 00:43:02,160 --> 00:43:04,760 staff of God in my hand. I want you to imagine you go to 914 00:43:04,760 --> 00:43:09,400 work tomorrow and your boss says I got 8 hours of carrying boxes 915 00:43:09,400 --> 00:43:12,240 that I need you to do tomorrow. And if you need me, I'll be in 916 00:43:12,240 --> 00:43:18,840 the HR office holding a stick. What do you think? 917 00:43:19,640 --> 00:43:25,200 All right, so Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought 918 00:43:25,200 --> 00:43:28,480 the enemy of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and her 919 00:43:28,480 --> 00:43:29,920 climbed to the top of a nearby hill. 920 00:43:29,920 --> 00:43:31,920 As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the 921 00:43:31,920 --> 00:43:34,400 Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his 922 00:43:34,400 --> 00:43:36,640 hand, the Malachites gained the advantage. 923 00:43:37,080 --> 00:43:40,440 Moses's arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold 924 00:43:40,440 --> 00:43:44,560 them up, so Aaron and her found a stone for him to sit on, and 925 00:43:44,560 --> 00:43:48,000 then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands so 926 00:43:48,000 --> 00:43:50,000 his hands felt steady until sunset. 927 00:43:50,000 --> 00:43:52,520 And as a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek 928 00:43:52,560 --> 00:43:55,720 in battle. I never thought about this part 929 00:43:55,720 --> 00:43:57,160 and I've taught this several times before. 930 00:43:57,160 --> 00:44:00,560 I never thought about this part of it until this message though. 931 00:44:01,040 --> 00:44:03,960 Could you imagine if there was dissension at the beginning if 932 00:44:03,960 --> 00:44:06,280 Joshua said, I can't believe that you're going to go sit on 933 00:44:06,280 --> 00:44:08,120 this hill? Look, I get that you're kind of 934 00:44:08,120 --> 00:44:11,160 old, but it's all hands on deck. We've got to all be battling. 935 00:44:11,160 --> 00:44:13,760 Could you imagine if he shamed Moses out of doing what God 936 00:44:13,760 --> 00:44:16,600 called him to do? So Moses was down on the ground. 937 00:44:16,600 --> 00:44:18,080 What happened? Every time that staff of the 938 00:44:18,080 --> 00:44:20,800 Lord was lowered, they were losing. 939 00:44:20,800 --> 00:44:24,080 It would have been a short fight because that staff of God would 940 00:44:24,080 --> 00:44:26,520 have never even raised up one time to see that they could be 941 00:44:26,520 --> 00:44:31,280 victorious against the odds. But because Joshua was content 942 00:44:31,280 --> 00:44:34,400 to be leading the troops, because the troops were content 943 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,440 to be the troops, because Aaron and her were not upset that they 944 00:44:38,440 --> 00:44:40,640 were like holding his hands. Well, what did you do in the 945 00:44:40,640 --> 00:44:41,960 battle? I killed 30 guys. 946 00:44:41,960 --> 00:44:44,280 What did you do? I held Moses his hand. 947 00:44:45,800 --> 00:44:48,360 He needed some support, and I was there. 948 00:44:49,520 --> 00:44:52,840 Moses is there holding a stick, and he's watching it. 949 00:44:52,960 --> 00:44:55,880 You ever put yourself in Moses's mind and wonder how much stress 950 00:44:55,880 --> 00:44:58,600 that must have been for him, knowing the pressure, that if he 951 00:44:58,600 --> 00:45:02,600 lowered his arms that people would die? 952 00:45:04,800 --> 00:45:08,120 But what is he holding up? The staff of God? 953 00:45:08,440 --> 00:45:11,760 When the battle was done, it was clear who caused the victory, 954 00:45:12,160 --> 00:45:18,560 and it was not Moses's arms, it was the Lord, and he was on full 955 00:45:18,560 --> 00:45:21,120 display, high and lifted up just like we sing. 956 00:45:22,120 --> 00:45:24,320 Everybody involved in that story is engaged in the battle. 957 00:45:24,600 --> 00:45:26,800 They're just not all fighting the same way. 958 00:45:26,800 --> 00:45:28,960 But they're all fighting the same enemy, aren't they? 959 00:45:30,280 --> 00:45:32,160 That's one of the clearest signs of spiritual maturity. 960 00:45:32,160 --> 00:45:35,360 Mature believers stop demanding that everybody fights exactly 961 00:45:35,360 --> 00:45:37,800 the same way, and they start recognizing God uses different 962 00:45:37,800 --> 00:45:40,560 people in different ways to strengthen the whole body as a 963 00:45:40,560 --> 00:45:43,560 whole. So that being said, had a good 964 00:45:43,560 --> 00:45:49,000 chat with a a friend recently here in Havelock Cherry Point. 965 00:45:49,000 --> 00:45:52,000 We all know that military rivalry is a real thing. 966 00:45:52,280 --> 00:45:57,160 Marines, am I right? OK, I have heard that sometimes 967 00:45:57,160 --> 00:45:58,720 Marines make jokes about the Army. 968 00:46:06,520 --> 00:46:08,640 I heard that sometimes there's jokes that are said about the 969 00:46:08,640 --> 00:46:12,840 Coast Guard. Everybody jokes about the Air 970 00:46:12,840 --> 00:46:15,720 Force. I've heard that they are called 971 00:46:15,720 --> 00:46:20,000 the chair force. I have heard Marines be called 972 00:46:20,000 --> 00:46:24,000 Cran Eaters. And when they're reminded that 973 00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:26,160 they're a department of the Navy, they make sure to clarify 974 00:46:26,160 --> 00:46:31,120 they're the men's department. Here's the thing, honestly, half 975 00:46:31,120 --> 00:46:33,400 the jokes that you hear when it comes to military branches, 976 00:46:33,400 --> 00:46:36,440 they're so normal, barely. They're barely noticed. 977 00:46:36,440 --> 00:46:38,880 I mean, they're not offensive to the people that actually serve 978 00:46:38,880 --> 00:46:41,160 in the branches. This is a rivalry and it's all 979 00:46:41,160 --> 00:46:42,920 part of the tradition. It's part of pride in your 980 00:46:42,920 --> 00:46:46,880 branch and your assignment. But even the military academies 981 00:46:46,880 --> 00:46:49,080 build entire traditions around how many of y'all love the Army 982 00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:52,920 Navy game? But let me ask you something, 983 00:46:53,240 --> 00:46:58,440 what when actual war breaks out, does that change real fast? 984 00:47:00,040 --> 00:47:02,200 I'm just telling you, if y'all go to war against China or 985 00:47:02,200 --> 00:47:04,880 something, I'm guessing you're like, I love the Air Force, 986 00:47:05,600 --> 00:47:08,960 they're my buddies. Like, I need them up top right? 987 00:47:09,120 --> 00:47:12,560 We need each other. So in real combat situations, 988 00:47:12,760 --> 00:47:15,960 nobody's arguing with each other over this rivalry because there 989 00:47:15,960 --> 00:47:18,520 is a greater enemy out there. Does this make sense? 990 00:47:19,000 --> 00:47:21,360 So here we can be a little sarcastic, we can have 991 00:47:21,360 --> 00:47:23,600 disagreements, we can say, well, that person's not my cup of tea, 992 00:47:23,600 --> 00:47:25,080 but you know what? I'd have their back in war 993 00:47:25,080 --> 00:47:28,000 against the devil. I mean, that's really the way 994 00:47:28,000 --> 00:47:31,040 it's supposed to be. War always clarifies your 995 00:47:31,040 --> 00:47:33,480 priorities. And the church needs that same 996 00:47:33,480 --> 00:47:36,320 clarity again, spiritually speaking. 997 00:47:36,320 --> 00:47:38,840 A lot of believers spend a lot of amount of energy criticizing 998 00:47:38,840 --> 00:47:41,440 other Christians who approach things differently or branches 999 00:47:41,440 --> 00:47:46,000 of Christianity denominations. But even inside of a church, 1 1000 00:47:46,000 --> 00:47:48,400 believer might emphasize prayer and another one's bigger on 1001 00:47:48,400 --> 00:47:51,040 evangelism, and another one really likes Bible study, and 1002 00:47:51,040 --> 00:47:53,400 another one really likes counseling and compassionate 1003 00:47:53,400 --> 00:47:55,080 things. And another one is like, we need 1004 00:47:55,080 --> 00:47:58,360 to be decisive and move forward. And they're all right, they're 1005 00:47:58,360 --> 00:48:01,080 all correct, but they're just not working together. 1006 00:48:01,960 --> 00:48:04,400 Meanwhile, the enemy keeps advancing and he's untouched. 1007 00:48:04,400 --> 00:48:07,360 So how do we fight what's actually fighting us instead of 1008 00:48:07,360 --> 00:48:10,040 fighting each other? Well, the first thing is to find 1009 00:48:10,040 --> 00:48:12,720 out exactly how God uniquely wired and gifted you. 1010 00:48:12,720 --> 00:48:17,120 I want you to think about this. If God gave you a gift and you 1011 00:48:17,120 --> 00:48:19,120 don't know what it is, how would you use it? 1012 00:48:21,680 --> 00:48:23,840 You can't. For those of you that are in the 1013 00:48:23,840 --> 00:48:27,040 Next Steps class today, which by the way, if you haven't signed 1014 00:48:27,040 --> 00:48:29,520 up for it, make it a problem for us, right? 1015 00:48:29,520 --> 00:48:31,160 Just show up for Next Steps anyway. 1016 00:48:31,680 --> 00:48:32,920 We'll figure out how to get more food. 1017 00:48:32,960 --> 00:48:35,440 If you want to be a member here, we would love to talk with you 1018 00:48:35,440 --> 00:48:36,960 about it. Being a member just means you 1019 00:48:36,960 --> 00:48:39,240 understand what we believe and we help, you know, guide you on 1020 00:48:39,240 --> 00:48:40,600 that path. But one of the things we give 1021 00:48:40,600 --> 00:48:43,000 you is that spiritual gift test that has to do with fivefold 1022 00:48:43,320 --> 00:48:47,040 ministry from Ephesians 4. If you're gifted as an apostle 1023 00:48:47,040 --> 00:48:50,320 or prophet or evangelist or pastor or teacher in, in the 1024 00:48:50,320 --> 00:48:53,880 realm of, of, of the Kingdom of God, how will you ever grow in 1025 00:48:53,880 --> 00:48:55,760 that gift if you don't even have a name for it? 1026 00:48:55,760 --> 00:48:57,200 You don't even know how to look for it. 1027 00:48:58,440 --> 00:48:59,880 The Bible never says there is no fight. 1028 00:48:59,880 --> 00:49:01,360 It does say you have to learn to fight the right thing. 1029 00:49:01,360 --> 00:49:04,960 Can we go to the next slide? You need to figure out your your 1030 00:49:04,960 --> 00:49:08,120 spiritual gift because that is your responsibility. 1031 00:49:08,920 --> 00:49:10,720 God already gave you the gift. He gave you the tool. 1032 00:49:10,720 --> 00:49:12,960 Could you imagine those of you who went to boot camp, could you 1033 00:49:12,960 --> 00:49:15,600 imagine they gave you a weapon and you never fired it? 1034 00:49:16,680 --> 00:49:19,280 You never worked on your aim. Are you going to work on aiming 1035 00:49:19,280 --> 00:49:20,960 that weapon now? I'll figure it out when I get to 1036 00:49:20,960 --> 00:49:23,440 war. How's it going to go? 1037 00:49:25,160 --> 00:49:26,720 Guess who has been working on their aim? 1038 00:49:27,840 --> 00:49:31,960 The enemy. It's the enemy training that 1039 00:49:31,960 --> 00:49:33,360 gifting. Don't be an amateur when it 1040 00:49:33,360 --> 00:49:36,160 comes to it. So we have that gift, that 1041 00:49:36,160 --> 00:49:38,040 gifting test. It's just a tool to try to get 1042 00:49:38,040 --> 00:49:40,240 you there. It's up to you to decide if it's 1043 00:49:40,240 --> 00:49:41,840 correct. It's just a paper assessment 1044 00:49:41,840 --> 00:49:44,360 that we put a lot of prayer into or whatever, but it's up to you 1045 00:49:44,600 --> 00:49:46,240 to find out from the Lord how you're gifted. 1046 00:49:46,800 --> 00:49:49,040 After that, you've got to learn how to use it well because it's 1047 00:49:49,040 --> 00:49:52,360 a responsibility thing. Steward your gift responsibility 1048 00:49:52,640 --> 00:49:55,120 responsibly. Spiritual maturity is not just 1049 00:49:55,120 --> 00:49:58,080 deciding that you found your gift and then you get to brag 1050 00:49:58,080 --> 00:50:00,400 about it like it's your Hogwarts house or whatever. 1051 00:50:00,400 --> 00:50:02,440 Like, I'm an apostle. I took this test. 1052 00:50:02,760 --> 00:50:04,440 Show me some respect. I'm an apostle. 1053 00:50:04,960 --> 00:50:09,200 No, Do something Apostolic. Are you a prophet? 1054 00:50:09,200 --> 00:50:11,800 Do something prophetic. Some of you right now we're 1055 00:50:11,800 --> 00:50:13,600 like, what are those? Take the test, we'll talk. 1056 00:50:13,600 --> 00:50:16,920 OK. One of the healthiest signs of 1057 00:50:16,920 --> 00:50:19,160 maturity, by the way, is learning how to protect people 1058 00:50:19,160 --> 00:50:22,200 who are gifted differently from you instead of attacking them. 1059 00:50:22,680 --> 00:50:25,240 And that's hard because those different gifts naturally rub 1060 00:50:25,240 --> 00:50:27,640 against each other because they hold each other accountable. 1061 00:50:28,240 --> 00:50:31,320 Visionary people can feel overwhelming to cautious people, 1062 00:50:31,320 --> 00:50:33,720 but we need them both. Another part of spiritual 1063 00:50:33,720 --> 00:50:35,640 warfare is protecting the fellowship itself. 1064 00:50:35,640 --> 00:50:37,720 It's part of why I love the membership classes and next 1065 00:50:37,720 --> 00:50:39,840 steps. Because the enemy really loves 1066 00:50:39,840 --> 00:50:43,400 isolation. An isolated believer becomes a 1067 00:50:43,400 --> 00:50:48,520 vulnerable believer every time. I would just want you to know I 1068 00:50:48,520 --> 00:50:50,880 didn't say sometimes. An isolated believer always 1069 00:50:50,880 --> 00:50:52,880 becomes a vulnerable believer. It wasn't that long ago we 1070 00:50:52,880 --> 00:50:55,960 talked about John the Baptist, who's saying Jesus is so great, 1071 00:50:55,960 --> 00:50:57,480 I'm not even fit to tie his sandals. 1072 00:50:57,480 --> 00:50:59,880 And then he ends up in jail and he's like, go ask Jesus if he's 1073 00:50:59,880 --> 00:51:01,080 really the one we're waiting for. 1074 00:51:01,480 --> 00:51:04,560 He's isolated. Anytime you're isolated, you're 1075 00:51:04,560 --> 00:51:06,680 vulnerable. It doesn't mean that God's not 1076 00:51:06,680 --> 00:51:08,520 with you. It means you're more vulnerable. 1077 00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:12,160 And here's the thing, Scripture is constantly pushing people 1078 00:51:12,160 --> 00:51:15,160 towards gathering and not neglecting getting together with 1079 00:51:15,160 --> 00:51:17,400 other believers and praying for one another and staying 1080 00:51:17,400 --> 00:51:20,040 connected to the body. Because the world constantly 1081 00:51:20,040 --> 00:51:23,360 trains people to cut people off quickly, to live independently, 1082 00:51:23,360 --> 00:51:25,560 and to curate relationships around what is convenient. 1083 00:51:25,560 --> 00:51:26,920 If you don't like it, they're toxic. 1084 00:51:27,040 --> 00:51:29,480 Cut them out. Sometimes people are toxic, and 1085 00:51:29,480 --> 00:51:32,440 sometimes you're the toxic one because you're cutting everybody 1086 00:51:32,440 --> 00:51:35,520 off. The world separates people from 1087 00:51:35,520 --> 00:51:37,840 one another. We are the church. 1088 00:51:37,880 --> 00:51:41,480 We fight for connection, we fight for reconciliation. 1089 00:51:41,800 --> 00:51:44,920 We fight to preserve unity before it turns into separation. 1090 00:51:44,920 --> 00:51:48,920 And when it is impossible, we grieve it because we understand 1091 00:51:48,920 --> 00:51:51,320 how beautiful it is. And I know that it's not always 1092 00:51:51,320 --> 00:51:54,360 possible, and I know that's a sensitive area, but I'm saying 1093 00:51:54,360 --> 00:51:57,640 we are the ones that try and we are the ones that grieve because 1094 00:51:57,640 --> 00:52:01,320 we care. Finally, we have to become 1095 00:52:01,320 --> 00:52:03,680 people who are spiritually alert instead of spiritually 1096 00:52:03,680 --> 00:52:06,560 distracted. How many of y'all have more than 1097 00:52:06,560 --> 00:52:08,760 10 apps on your phone that are used for distraction? 1098 00:52:10,280 --> 00:52:13,160 I'm with you. Like once a year I go to clear 1099 00:52:13,160 --> 00:52:15,720 out apps on my phone and I am embarrassed to tell you how many 1100 00:52:15,720 --> 00:52:17,400 times I'm like, I don't even know what that app does. 1101 00:52:17,960 --> 00:52:20,680 I was scrolling at one point and it sounded good and I said that 1102 00:52:20,680 --> 00:52:22,640 sounds like something I would need and I downloaded it and 1103 00:52:22,640 --> 00:52:25,640 never opened it. We have so many ways to be 1104 00:52:25,640 --> 00:52:27,440 distracted, and it's not just on our phone. 1105 00:52:28,040 --> 00:52:29,960 One of the enemy's greatest strategies is not always 1106 00:52:29,960 --> 00:52:31,880 destruction through obvious pieces of evil. 1107 00:52:31,880 --> 00:52:34,560 It's just distracting you because if you are endlessly 1108 00:52:34,560 --> 00:52:39,240 consumed with the news reports and outrage and politics and 1109 00:52:39,240 --> 00:52:42,520 offense and entertainment or whatever the new kissing show is 1110 00:52:42,520 --> 00:52:46,600 on Netflix, social media battles and constant noise, your 1111 00:52:46,600 --> 00:52:50,000 spiritual life will go silent. And when it does, I'm just 1112 00:52:50,000 --> 00:52:52,360 telling you, with all the love I have in my heart, you do not 1113 00:52:52,360 --> 00:52:54,760 have anybody to blame except for you, because you stewarded your 1114 00:52:54,760 --> 00:52:58,040 time unwisely. But if you have, you can change 1115 00:52:58,040 --> 00:53:01,240 it. By the way, I watched Netflix 1116 00:53:01,240 --> 00:53:02,800 last night. I'm not against streaming 1117 00:53:02,800 --> 00:53:05,280 services. Use everything in its right 1118 00:53:05,280 --> 00:53:08,000 category, OK? Fighting the right fight 1119 00:53:08,000 --> 00:53:10,920 requires intentionality. You have got to guard your mind 1120 00:53:11,160 --> 00:53:13,640 and you have got to guard your heart, and you've got to stay 1121 00:53:13,640 --> 00:53:16,640 connected to scripture and in prayer, and you have to stay 1122 00:53:16,640 --> 00:53:18,000 connected to other believers too. 1123 00:53:18,920 --> 00:53:22,320 Spiritually mature people know something that immature 1124 00:53:22,320 --> 00:53:25,240 believers miss. Not every battle deserves your 1125 00:53:25,240 --> 00:53:28,080 energy. How will you know the difference 1126 00:53:28,080 --> 00:53:30,080 unless you stay connected with those that you battle with? 1127 00:53:31,400 --> 00:53:34,400 As I wrap up the series, it's been a month and a half long 1128 00:53:34,400 --> 00:53:36,640 series, I just want you to know one of the biggest things that I 1129 00:53:36,640 --> 00:53:39,360 hope you walk away understanding is that unity, just like we said 1130 00:53:39,360 --> 00:53:42,000 last week with forgiveness, it is not natural. 1131 00:53:43,080 --> 00:53:44,600 As a kid, it is. Isn't that sad? 1132 00:53:45,400 --> 00:53:48,840 As a kid, we're like, man, they hurt my feelings and I hope that 1133 00:53:48,840 --> 00:53:50,720 we're OK and I hope we'll be best friends forever. 1134 00:53:51,360 --> 00:53:57,120 And then as adults, we have to work really hard for it has to 1135 00:53:57,120 --> 00:53:59,640 be built intentionally. Every single week of this series 1136 00:53:59,640 --> 00:54:01,600 has pointed us back to that reality in different ways. 1137 00:54:01,600 --> 00:54:04,680 We've talked about identity, we've talked about honour and 1138 00:54:04,680 --> 00:54:07,240 humility and forgiveness, and now we talk about spiritual 1139 00:54:07,240 --> 00:54:09,280 warfare. And underneath every one of 1140 00:54:09,280 --> 00:54:11,120 those topics was the very same truth. 1141 00:54:11,360 --> 00:54:14,480 Healthy unity only happens when you consistently choose 1142 00:54:14,480 --> 00:54:18,520 something bigger than yourself. We all need to hear this because 1143 00:54:18,520 --> 00:54:21,440 the world is already so divided. People are already suspicious 1144 00:54:21,440 --> 00:54:25,720 and they're angry, and everybody is so defensive, but the church 1145 00:54:25,720 --> 00:54:27,600 was never meant to mirror what the world looks like. 1146 00:54:29,960 --> 00:54:32,400 It's not that Christians never disagree or struggle or hurt 1147 00:54:32,400 --> 00:54:33,680 each other. It's just because the people of 1148 00:54:33,680 --> 00:54:35,560 God are meant to handle conflict differently. 1149 00:54:35,920 --> 00:54:39,240 And in John chapter 17, we started this whole Series A 1150 00:54:39,240 --> 00:54:42,080 month and a half ago with these words from Jesus, and we're 1151 00:54:42,080 --> 00:54:44,680 going to finish with these words from Jesus right now. 1152 00:54:49,200 --> 00:54:52,360 This is Jesus's prayer. I'm praying not only for these 1153 00:54:52,360 --> 00:54:56,280 disciples, but also for all who will ever believe in me through 1154 00:54:56,280 --> 00:55:00,320 their message, Jesus said. I pray that they will all be 1155 00:55:00,320 --> 00:55:04,880 one, just as you and I are one as you are in me, Father, and I 1156 00:55:04,880 --> 00:55:08,000 am in You and may they be in us so that the world will believe 1157 00:55:08,000 --> 00:55:10,720 you sent me. He says I have given them the 1158 00:55:10,720 --> 00:55:14,120 glory you gave me so that they may be one as we are one. 1159 00:55:14,320 --> 00:55:15,400 You know what I read right there. 1160 00:55:15,560 --> 00:55:19,360 You and I already have what it takes to be united and unified 1161 00:55:19,360 --> 00:55:21,280 because we have His glory within us. 1162 00:55:21,520 --> 00:55:25,080 We have the ability to do this. Now whether or not we want to do 1163 00:55:25,080 --> 00:55:28,200 it is another story. Verse 23. 1164 00:55:28,600 --> 00:55:32,960 I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect 1165 00:55:32,960 --> 00:55:36,400 unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you 1166 00:55:36,400 --> 00:55:37,720 love them as much as you love me. 1167 00:55:37,720 --> 00:55:39,600 Do you remember what I challenged you with on that 1168 00:55:39,600 --> 00:55:42,400 first Sunday? Out of all the prayers that we 1169 00:55:42,400 --> 00:55:45,000 submit to the Lord and all the prayers that we asked Jesus to 1170 00:55:45,000 --> 00:55:47,960 answer, this was his prayer request to the Father. 1171 00:55:48,320 --> 00:55:51,440 This is the one opportunity you and I have to answer Jesus's 1172 00:55:51,440 --> 00:55:54,520 prayer. He said, Father, let them be 1173 00:55:54,520 --> 00:55:56,240 one. Let them be unified. 1174 00:55:56,480 --> 00:55:59,760 Let them understand that they can be as united as you and I 1175 00:55:59,760 --> 00:56:02,440 are. And to be honest, it's hard for 1176 00:56:02,440 --> 00:56:05,400 me to see how we can be as united as Jesus and the Father 1177 00:56:05,400 --> 00:56:07,920 are. But also, I'm one of those guys 1178 00:56:07,920 --> 00:56:10,160 that stood up here and had my pastor tell me on my wedding day 1179 00:56:10,160 --> 00:56:12,800 that I am to love my wife like Jesus loves the church. 1180 00:56:12,800 --> 00:56:15,760 And I'm still working on that. I love her a lot, but that's a 1181 00:56:15,760 --> 00:56:18,520 tall order. It's not impossible. 1182 00:56:19,880 --> 00:56:23,160 I know it feels impossible, but only if you're using a human 1183 00:56:23,160 --> 00:56:26,840 method of thinking about it. It's possible the thing you're 1184 00:56:26,840 --> 00:56:29,960 struggling with can be overcome, but not by yourself and not 1185 00:56:29,960 --> 00:56:33,400 through human methods. The thing that your brother is 1186 00:56:33,400 --> 00:56:35,520 struggling with, it can be overcome, but he's probably 1187 00:56:35,520 --> 00:56:38,560 going to need you. And yeah, the person that annoys 1188 00:56:38,560 --> 00:56:41,640 you the most of this church, even if he's up here preaching 1189 00:56:41,640 --> 00:56:48,520 right now, he or she needs you to help overcome their problems 1190 00:56:48,520 --> 00:56:51,200 too. It's the only way because it's 1191 00:56:51,200 --> 00:56:53,560 the way that Jesus laid out for us. 1192 00:56:54,560 --> 00:56:56,760 Would you all stand up for a moment while I say for a moment, 1193 00:56:56,760 --> 00:56:58,600 we're going to sing at the end of this, But I have a challenge 1194 00:56:58,600 --> 00:57:00,240 for you and I want you to take this seriously. 1195 00:57:03,000 --> 00:57:06,960 I want to ask you this, first of all, would the world recognize 1196 00:57:06,960 --> 00:57:10,520 Jesus if they looked at the way that you handle your problems 1197 00:57:10,520 --> 00:57:14,760 with other believers? Would they recognize Jesus in 1198 00:57:14,760 --> 00:57:17,200 your problem solving methods when you struggle with another 1199 00:57:17,200 --> 00:57:18,800 believer? You don't have to answer it. 1200 00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:22,040 It's the warfare against darkness itself we're talking 1201 00:57:22,040 --> 00:57:23,880 about today. Here's the challenge that I have 1202 00:57:23,880 --> 00:57:25,440 for every single person. I'm going to ask for a show of 1203 00:57:25,440 --> 00:57:26,680 hands. If you're willing to do this 1204 00:57:28,440 --> 00:57:30,920 this week, I want you to intentionally encourage and 1205 00:57:30,920 --> 00:57:33,800 strengthen 1 believer who is different from you. 1206 00:57:34,640 --> 00:57:37,520 I mean, very different from you. I want you to go out of your way 1207 00:57:37,520 --> 00:57:40,240 and you're like, well, my best friend's pretty different. 1208 00:57:40,240 --> 00:57:42,440 Nope, they're off the list. Nobody. 1209 00:57:42,440 --> 00:57:44,640 That's easy. Somebody you barely talk to 1210 00:57:44,640 --> 00:57:45,840 somebody. Maybe you don't even know their 1211 00:57:45,840 --> 00:57:47,480 name. Maybe their worship inspires 1212 00:57:47,480 --> 00:57:49,000 you. Maybe you've heard that they 1213 00:57:49,000 --> 00:57:50,240 make a difference in people's lives. 1214 00:57:50,240 --> 00:57:53,520 I want you to go out of your way to encourage someone who's 1215 00:57:53,520 --> 00:57:55,960 different from you. More than that, I just want to 1216 00:57:55,960 --> 00:57:57,840 know by a show of hands who's willing to commit to doing that 1217 00:57:57,840 --> 00:58:00,800 this week. Now look around anybody you see 1218 00:58:00,800 --> 00:58:03,520 with their hand up, and if you know them, get them this week. 1219 00:58:05,000 --> 00:58:06,400 Holy peer pressure. OK? 1220 00:58:06,960 --> 00:58:09,840 And I say that because starting next week, we're going to go 1221 00:58:09,840 --> 00:58:12,200 through some lessons where we're going to talk about how to make 1222 00:58:12,200 --> 00:58:14,520 our lives what God would call holy. 1223 00:58:15,080 --> 00:58:16,640 He's called you and I to be set apart. 1224 00:58:16,640 --> 00:58:17,920 Our marriages should look different. 1225 00:58:17,920 --> 00:58:19,280 Our relationship should look different. 1226 00:58:19,280 --> 00:58:20,560 Our friendship should look different. 1227 00:58:20,800 --> 00:58:23,280 And there is a way to introduce holiness into our lives. 1228 00:58:23,280 --> 00:58:24,720 And we're going to start on that journey. 1229 00:58:24,720 --> 00:58:27,240 But I'm just telling you, it's heavy, and we can't do it alone. 1230 00:58:27,240 --> 00:58:28,760 So are you all committed to doing it together? 1231 00:58:30,200 --> 00:58:31,920 Yeah. I'm going to say I'm sorry to my 1232 00:58:31,920 --> 00:58:33,400 brother. What are you committed to doing 1233 00:58:33,400 --> 00:58:34,800 this together? Can we do this? 1234 00:58:34,800 --> 00:58:36,880 All right, let's worship. Let's end this morning and 1235 00:58:36,880 --> 00:58:37,680 worship to the Lord.