1 00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:19,560 So I'm going to jump right into it today. 2 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:22,520 I'm going to be talking about Whispers in the wilderness. 3 00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:28,200 Whispers in the wilderness and we're going to start in Luke 41. 4 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:30,320 I'm going to read a chunk and then we're going to kind of jump 5 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:32,040 back into some stuff. But I want to read it and kind 6 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:35,120 of set precedent first and then we'll kind of go through it. 7 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:41,320 So Luke 41 says Now Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned 8 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:46,000 from the Jordan and was being LED around by the Spirit in the 9 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:48,960 wilderness for 40 days, being tempted by the devil. 10 00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:51,480 And he ate nothing during those days. 11 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:53,840 And when they had finished, he was hungry. 12 00:00:54,320 --> 00:00:57,000 And the devil said to him, If you are the Son of God, tell 13 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:00,360 this stone to become bread. And Jesus answered him, it is 14 00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:02,960 written, Man shall not live on bread alone. 15 00:01:03,400 --> 00:01:07,040 And he led him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in 16 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:09,840 a moment of time. And the devil said to him, I 17 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:13,320 will give you all this dominion and its glory, for it has been 18 00:01:13,320 --> 00:01:17,000 handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 19 00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:22,080 Therefore if you worship before me, it shall all be yours. 20 00:01:22,320 --> 00:01:25,160 And Jesus answered and said to him, It is written, You shall 21 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,720 not worship the Lord. It is written, you shall worship 22 00:01:28,720 --> 00:01:31,520 the Lord your God and serve him only. 23 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:35,000 And he led him to Jerusalem, and had him stand on the pinnacle of 24 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:37,880 the temple, and said to him, If you are the Son of God, throw 25 00:01:37,880 --> 00:01:40,760 yourself down from here. For it is written, He will 26 00:01:40,760 --> 00:01:45,240 command his angels concerning you to guard you on their hands. 27 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:47,800 They will bear you up, least you strike your foot against a 28 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:49,400 stone. And Jesus answered and said to 29 00:01:49,400 --> 00:01:53,600 him, It is said, You shall not put the Lord your God to test. 30 00:01:53,880 --> 00:01:57,120 And when the devil had finished every temptation, he left him 31 00:01:57,800 --> 00:02:01,520 until an opportune time. And Jesus returned to Galilee in 32 00:02:01,520 --> 00:02:06,760 the power of the Spirit and news about him spread through all the 33 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:10,039 surrounding district. And he was teaching in their 34 00:02:10,039 --> 00:02:17,120 synagogues, being glorified by all to set a little story and 35 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:19,640 what we're going here. Obviously Jesus got baptized and 36 00:02:19,640 --> 00:02:22,240 then right after he got baptized, being full of the 37 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:27,680 Spirit was then LED into the wilderness by the Spirit to be 38 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:30,000 tempted, right? So Jesus didn't get baptized and 39 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,480 then run straight into ministry. He got baptized and then was led 40 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:38,600 into the wilderness to fast and then ultimately be tempted, 41 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:40,440 right? So every destiny begins with a 42 00:02:40,440 --> 00:02:42,840 test. Before Jesus ever preached A 43 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:46,120 sermon, healed the sick, walked on water, or did all those 44 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:51,400 amazing things he did, he spent time in the wilderness growing 45 00:02:51,640 --> 00:02:55,280 in his relationship with God, right? 46 00:02:55,760 --> 00:03:00,360 And what we have throughout this passage is 3 real layers of 47 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:02,400 temptation that I want to go over today. 48 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:07,240 Because the same 3 layers of temptation that Satan tried on 49 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:11,680 Jesus are the same three things he uses against us all the time, 50 00:03:12,400 --> 00:03:15,320 right? And so the first one was 51 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:19,840 cravings, right? It was the test of the flesh, 52 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:25,080 his desires, right? He had been walking around and 53 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:28,560 and fasting for 40 days in the wilderness. 54 00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:33,200 And the first thing Satan does is say, hey, why don't you turn 55 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:38,240 these rocks into bread, right? The very first temptation was to 56 00:03:38,240 --> 00:03:43,160 just get you to fall for the most simplest of desires. 57 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,760 Jesus was hungry, right? The most natural craving you can 58 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:50,040 have is being hungry, right? Most of you right now are 59 00:03:50,040 --> 00:03:53,480 probably on the verge of getting hungry, right? 60 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:57,160 You woke up, you got ready, you ate some breakfast, then you got 61 00:03:57,160 --> 00:03:59,320 here and there's prayer, there's worship, there's all this stuff. 62 00:03:59,480 --> 00:04:03,800 It's 1117 and we're thinking, man, I got about 45 minutes 63 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:08,000 until I really start needing some food, you know? 64 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:11,600 And so we have the most natural desire is wanting food. 65 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:13,560 For those of you who know that I've been running, I started 66 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:15,120 running a lot. It's something I've really been 67 00:04:15,120 --> 00:04:16,760 enjoying. But through that, it kind of 68 00:04:16,760 --> 00:04:19,480 like changed my metabolism. And so now I've realized, like, 69 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:22,360 when I'm hungry, I need food like quick. 70 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:24,800 Like there's no like real waiting. 71 00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:28,560 It's like when it hits, it hits and I start to feel like my 72 00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:30,200 stomach starts falling. I mean, I felt start to feel 73 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:31,920 faintish. I'm like, I need to get food in 74 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:34,320 right now. I don't have time to wait for 75 00:04:34,320 --> 00:04:36,000 anything. Matter of fact, one day I went 76 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:38,920 and worked out and then did a run and then went to my sister's 77 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:41,680 house to have breakfast and she started cooking the pancakes. 78 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:44,480 And I was like, man, I can't wait for these pancakes to get 79 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:46,680 done. The amount after we feed the 80 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:49,880 kids and they get all cooked and all that kind of, I'm talking 45 81 00:04:49,880 --> 00:04:52,120 minutes before I eat like I'm going to have to do something. 82 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:54,520 I had to go grab a protein shake and just go ahead and down it 83 00:04:54,520 --> 00:04:57,280 cuz I'm like, I need something now, right? 84 00:04:57,280 --> 00:05:00,080 But the first temptation Jesus was dealt with was the most 85 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:03,240 natural one. It was his hunger, it was his 86 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:05,560 appetite. It was something he craved 87 00:05:05,560 --> 00:05:08,080 after. It was a flesh test. 88 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:12,520 And if you let your desires Dr. you, right? 89 00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:16,000 Will you let your desires Dr. you or will you let God's Word 90 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:19,360 sustain you right? We have to ask the question, 91 00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:22,960 will we let our desires drive us or do we let God's Word sustain 92 00:05:22,960 --> 00:05:26,320 us? And if we're not careful, then 93 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:30,040 we can just fall into this craving mentality. 94 00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:34,720 I need something now, therefore I grab what I need now. 95 00:05:34,880 --> 00:05:37,040 The flesh is all about the instant. 96 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:41,640 It's about responding instantaneously, right? 97 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:44,040 It's all about what I need in this moment to help me right 98 00:05:44,040 --> 00:05:46,360 now. This is where we get ourselves 99 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:50,240 in the most trouble because we're presented with a problem 100 00:05:50,520 --> 00:05:54,480 and we try to solve it quickly, not just solve it the way God 101 00:05:54,480 --> 00:05:58,680 needs us to. We jump into I can take care of 102 00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:04,680 this when maybe God needs you to do it a certain way, right? 103 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:07,920 So are we led by the our desires or do we let the God's word 104 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:11,440 sustain us, right. So during this temptation, one 105 00:06:11,440 --> 00:06:13,840 thing I do want to cover real quick is obviously Satan was 106 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:16,840 present himself with Jesus, right? 107 00:06:16,840 --> 00:06:19,160 Satan was there, this temptation was there. 108 00:06:19,160 --> 00:06:23,400 But Satan is not omnipresent, right? 109 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:25,960 So when we talk about this number one thing of cravings in 110 00:06:25,960 --> 00:06:28,600 our flesh, a lot of times if we're not careful, we try to 111 00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:33,080 over spiritualize what is just a flesh battle and we act like, 112 00:06:33,080 --> 00:06:37,840 oh, Satan's attacking me. No, your fallen state is 113 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:43,480 attacking you, right? Your flesh is trying to get you 114 00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:46,200 to do something. Satan himself isn't whispering 115 00:06:46,200 --> 00:06:50,240 in your ear, right? He, we, we, if we're not 116 00:06:50,240 --> 00:06:53,960 careful, we make Satan way more powerful than he is. 117 00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:59,480 We start to try to take the attributes of God and apply them 118 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,680 to Satan. That's not how that works at 119 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:06,160 all, right? So our flesh battles that we 120 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:09,680 deal with are our battles to deal with. 121 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:13,680 This is why, like in James 114, it says, but each one is tempted 122 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:18,640 when he's carried away by his own lusts, right? 123 00:07:18,640 --> 00:07:21,720 You're tempted by your own lust, you're tempted by your own 124 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:26,280 desires, by your own cravings. And This is why we have to be 125 00:07:26,280 --> 00:07:29,560 able to conquer our cravings, our self, right? 126 00:07:29,560 --> 00:07:32,760 In Galatians, it lets us know that the flesh sets itself 127 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:37,000 against the spirit. It doesn't want the things of 128 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,200 God. Those are natural things that 129 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:44,000 occur in your body as a state of the fall, not Satan just being 130 00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:48,320 there whispering at you. And I need you to understand 131 00:07:48,320 --> 00:07:53,200 that because if we try to pin this on Satan, then we try to 132 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:56,320 make we eliminate ourself from the equation like, well, it's 133 00:07:56,320 --> 00:08:00,840 just because I'm just no, you have the ability to overcome 134 00:08:00,840 --> 00:08:03,800 your cravings. You have the ability to overcome 135 00:08:03,800 --> 00:08:06,400 your flesh. You have the ability to walk by 136 00:08:06,400 --> 00:08:09,880 the spirit just like you say, No, I don't need this now. 137 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:15,080 I will let the word continues to sustain me through this moment. 138 00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:20,440 I think it's very interesting that this was the first Test 139 00:08:20,440 --> 00:08:24,920 from Satan because he knew if I can just get him to eat right 140 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:28,800 now, he will automatically be easier to deal with later. 141 00:08:29,120 --> 00:08:33,840 If I can get him to fold in his own flesh, there's no way I'll 142 00:08:33,840 --> 00:08:35,520 need to mess with any of the other callings. 143 00:08:37,080 --> 00:08:39,600 There's no way I'll have to go into anything else because if he 144 00:08:39,600 --> 00:08:44,600 can't manage his flesh, he can't manage the rest, right? 145 00:08:44,600 --> 00:08:48,600 Until you learn to manage your flesh, you'll never step into 146 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:52,040 everything God has for you. You'll never step into the 147 00:08:52,040 --> 00:08:55,360 fullness of God. First Corinthians 927 says, But 148 00:08:55,360 --> 00:09:01,000 I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that after I have 149 00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:07,240 preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. 150 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:12,400 If you can't master your cravings, your cravings will 151 00:09:12,400 --> 00:09:16,960 master you. If you cannot master your 152 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:20,120 cravings, then your cravings will master you. 153 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:25,600 What you spend your time feeding is what will fill you. 154 00:09:27,320 --> 00:09:32,120 And if I continue to feed my flesh, the spirit cannot take 155 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:37,360 place in my life. It cannot fill space that I 156 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:43,120 don't make available for it. And if I keep myself full of 157 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:45,960 everything the world's going on and all my problems and I just 158 00:09:45,960 --> 00:09:50,240 kind of try to take my flesh and say, well, that's just, you 159 00:09:50,240 --> 00:09:51,600 know, that's just my personality. 160 00:09:55,120 --> 00:09:57,880 No, your personality of being born again is the fruits of the 161 00:09:57,880 --> 00:10:02,200 spirit, right? This is why it says, hey, become 162 00:10:02,200 --> 00:10:06,360 born again and made new. It's saying, yeah, you might 163 00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:09,760 have had that personality, but once you accepted Christ, you've 164 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:12,920 entered into the ability to walk in every fruit I've given you 165 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:15,360 and have the personality that's in the Word. 166 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:21,080 So your flesh can no longer control you if you don't allow 167 00:10:21,080 --> 00:10:25,360 it to. But the more I feed to it, the 168 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:27,720 stronger the craving for it becomes. 169 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:32,520 When I was in high school, I used to drink Mountain Dew like 170 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:35,640 every day, like multiple times a day, like all the time. 171 00:10:35,640 --> 00:10:39,640 I had one in my back pocket, so much so that some of my teachers 172 00:10:39,640 --> 00:10:42,360 would buy them for me and set them on my desk before I showed 173 00:10:42,360 --> 00:10:44,960 up so that I wouldn't leave their class, right? 174 00:10:44,960 --> 00:10:48,520 Like it was like I drank a lot of soda, just like a ton. 175 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:51,720 And then, you know, I got married and my wife was awesome. 176 00:10:51,720 --> 00:10:53,280 And she did like the awesome wife thing, which she's like, 177 00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:54,680 I'm going to make her home cooked meals. 178 00:10:54,680 --> 00:10:55,880 I'm going to have all this nice stuff. 179 00:10:55,880 --> 00:10:58,040 And then like, I went to a pool party one day and I saw myself 180 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:02,560 and I was like, I got to make some life changes like country 181 00:11:02,560 --> 00:11:05,360 fried steak, gravy, mashed potatoes, fried okra is 182 00:11:05,360 --> 00:11:08,600 definitely sustaining me maybe a little too well, right? 183 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:11,320 And so it's like I got to make some changes here. 184 00:11:11,520 --> 00:11:13,600 And so one of the first things I did was like, I'm going to cut 185 00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:15,680 out soda so that I'm not drinking calories. 186 00:11:15,680 --> 00:11:17,360 And so there was these drinks. They're still around. 187 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:18,600 They're called like Zebias, right? 188 00:11:18,600 --> 00:11:23,040 Has anyone had a Zebia before? They have a very distinct taste 189 00:11:24,040 --> 00:11:26,400 and it's like 1. Like the first one you try is 190 00:11:26,400 --> 00:11:27,600 disgusting. I don't drink them anymore 191 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,280 anyways, I just drink water. But the first one you try is 192 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:32,120 gross. It should, it's not good. 193 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:36,280 But once you make it through like a whole case, you're kind 194 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:39,880 of like this ain't too bad. Well, this is fine and then 195 00:11:39,880 --> 00:11:42,480 you're like used to it. But the minute you drink a 196 00:11:42,480 --> 00:11:47,480 normal soda after that, you realize like this is garbage. 197 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:54,320 Why am I drinking this right? So if you allow yourself to just 198 00:11:54,320 --> 00:11:57,800 become accustomed to something, then your body will want it. 199 00:11:58,000 --> 00:12:01,720 Meaning my flesh wants the things of the flesh, my spirit 200 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:05,040 wants the things of the spirit. The more I feed one side or the 201 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:08,160 other, the more my body will continue to align with one or 202 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:11,760 the other. And the minute I try to step 203 00:12:11,760 --> 00:12:14,800 back into the things of the flesh, your desire then comes 204 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:21,320 back even stronger, because you know better, right? 205 00:12:21,320 --> 00:12:25,520 So we have to master our cravings and not let them master 206 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:30,000 us. If you can't starve the craving, 207 00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:33,000 the craving will starve your calling. 208 00:12:35,560 --> 00:12:39,440 If you cannot starve the craving, then the craving will 209 00:12:39,440 --> 00:12:43,840 starve your calling. Philippians 317 says Brethren, 210 00:12:44,560 --> 00:12:49,000 join in following my example and observe those who walk according 211 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:52,680 to the pattern you have in us for many walk, of whom I often 212 00:12:52,680 --> 00:12:57,320 told you and now tell you, even weeping, that they are enemies 213 00:12:57,320 --> 00:13:04,920 of the cross of the of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose 214 00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:11,160 God is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set 215 00:13:11,520 --> 00:13:19,160 their minds on earthly things. When we allow our minds to be 216 00:13:19,160 --> 00:13:23,240 set on earthly things and we allow our cravings to dictate 217 00:13:23,240 --> 00:13:29,120 everything we do, we become an enemy to Christ because you 218 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:33,600 cannot walk out all of the things of Christ while trying to 219 00:13:33,600 --> 00:13:43,040 take the path of the world. You can't do it and This is why 220 00:13:43,040 --> 00:13:48,400 it was the first temptation because it's the one everyone 221 00:13:48,400 --> 00:13:51,920 deals with right out the gate. The very first thing you'll do 222 00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:54,680 is you'll get born again. You'll accept Jesus into your 223 00:13:54,680 --> 00:13:57,080 life. I confess with my mouth and I 224 00:13:57,080 --> 00:13:59,840 believe in my heart that He is Lord. 225 00:13:59,840 --> 00:14:01,600 Lord means supreme and authority. 226 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:07,960 Lord means I am now saying I will do your way and your way 227 00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:11,160 only. See, when I called the youth 228 00:14:11,160 --> 00:14:14,680 down to get born again, I don't just say confess with your 229 00:14:14,680 --> 00:14:15,800 mouth. Believe in your heart that he's 230 00:14:15,800 --> 00:14:17,520 Lord. I explain what Lord is because I 231 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:21,880 think that's the the key that so many people missed in salvation 232 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,040 was they're like, well, I did confess and I do believe. 233 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,800 But then we didn't adapt the mindset that no, now I have to 234 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:31,680 change the way I think about everything and apply the word in 235 00:14:31,680 --> 00:14:33,960 my life daily and walk that out daily. 236 00:14:33,960 --> 00:14:38,120 Because if I don't think he can't be Lord because Lord means 237 00:14:38,120 --> 00:14:39,640 he rules and reigns over my life. 238 00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:42,840 It's not my life, it's his life, and I'm just doing the things 239 00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:49,400 he's told me to do right? And so those paths don't cross 240 00:14:49,600 --> 00:14:52,640 the world my way never crosses into. 241 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:58,360 He's still Lord. You can either make Him Lord and 242 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:02,400 follow His Word, or you can try to continually do things on your 243 00:15:02,400 --> 00:15:09,640 own, on your own path. And what feeds your flesh can 244 00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:15,240 starve your faith. What feeds your flesh will 245 00:15:15,240 --> 00:15:18,560 starve your faith. And when we get into the 246 00:15:18,560 --> 00:15:22,440 mentality of problem arises, I can solve it. 247 00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:29,840 I've eliminated needing faith in my life because if I'm always 248 00:15:29,840 --> 00:15:33,240 the one trying to take care of situations myself, where's the 249 00:15:33,240 --> 00:15:35,720 faith? The Bible tells us to go from 250 00:15:35,720 --> 00:15:38,440 faith to faith. When I'm talking to young adults 251 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:40,960 and people, they ask me like yo, I'm trying to decide what's next 252 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:43,640 in my life and say, OK, what are you believing God for in that 253 00:15:43,640 --> 00:15:45,720 direction? Well, what do you mean God is 254 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:48,520 not going to call you to something that won't require 255 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:51,680 faith to achieve it. Because we are to go from faith 256 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:55,360 to faith, which means I'm always looking for my next step to 257 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:58,000 require more God than the last step. 258 00:15:59,200 --> 00:16:02,720 Because God's not building me up to accomplish things on my own. 259 00:16:02,720 --> 00:16:05,720 He's building me up to trust Him so that when the next step 260 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:11,600 comes, I trust him even more. That's faith to faith. 261 00:16:12,440 --> 00:16:15,480 But if I'm always feeding my flesh, then I'm eliminating 262 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:20,760 opportunities to feed my faith. Often times we think when a 263 00:16:20,760 --> 00:16:23,280 trial situations or a bump comes, we're like, oh man, this 264 00:16:23,280 --> 00:16:25,320 stinks. When the truth is, no, this is 265 00:16:25,320 --> 00:16:29,520 your chance to enact your faith. This isn't a problem. 266 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:33,080 This is an opportunity for you to grow in the things of God, 267 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:38,120 for you to look back and say, look how God was faithful so 268 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:40,160 that when the next situation arises, we look back and go, 269 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:44,320 look how God was faithful and we continue to grow and grow. 270 00:16:44,320 --> 00:16:48,480 And if we don't conquer this, if we don't conquer our cravings, 271 00:16:48,480 --> 00:16:52,880 we'll never step into Our Calling, which is why the second 272 00:16:52,880 --> 00:16:58,480 temptation is callings. It was the test of purpose. 273 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:03,680 The first temptation was cravings, the second was 274 00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:08,240 callings and Luke 4/6. He says, I will give you all 275 00:17:08,240 --> 00:17:11,960 this dominion. If you worship before me, it 276 00:17:11,960 --> 00:17:17,800 shall be yours. Satan offered Jesus a chance at 277 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:21,880 the crown without the cost of the cross. 278 00:17:24,319 --> 00:17:29,440 Satan said, hey, you were sent here by God to, to get all, to 279 00:17:29,440 --> 00:17:31,160 become king, to get all this dominion back. 280 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:33,280 I can give that to you now. Just worship me. 281 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:40,840 Hear me out. Satan's second temptation was so 282 00:17:40,840 --> 00:17:45,200 that Jesus could fulfill the thing he was sent to do. 283 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:53,160 The second temptation was, hey, God called you to do this. 284 00:17:53,160 --> 00:17:57,000 I can give it to you. I can make this happen. 285 00:17:58,280 --> 00:18:02,680 It was to to achieve your calling through your own means. 286 00:18:03,960 --> 00:18:07,440 It was authority without obedience. 287 00:18:09,040 --> 00:18:11,600 It was purpose without the process. 288 00:18:15,120 --> 00:18:20,680 And This is why we get people who who can walk in the gifts on 289 00:18:20,680 --> 00:18:24,840 the wrong path because the gifts and callings are not to be taken 290 00:18:24,840 --> 00:18:27,160 away. Meaning God has provided you 291 00:18:27,160 --> 00:18:29,400 with things to accomplish to do. He's give, you give. 292 00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:32,160 This is why he got so many secular music artists who 293 00:18:32,160 --> 00:18:35,200 started in the church. Then they started singing on 294 00:18:35,200 --> 00:18:37,760 their own. They didn't all of a sudden 295 00:18:37,760 --> 00:18:40,200 start sounding bad just because they're no longer singing for 296 00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:42,920 the church. No, God gave them a gift. 297 00:18:43,360 --> 00:18:46,280 They then chose to carve out their own path. 298 00:18:51,800 --> 00:18:55,800 And if we're not careful, we can conquer our cravings. 299 00:18:55,960 --> 00:18:58,680 And then God's like, I'm ready to appoint you to something. 300 00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:02,760 And then we go and try to find our own way to get that 301 00:19:02,760 --> 00:19:08,600 appointment. Well, I mean, man, if I take 302 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:11,000 this job, I'll be able to make more money. 303 00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:13,560 I'll be able to make my own hours and then I can sow more 304 00:19:13,560 --> 00:19:15,960 than ever. And the next thing you know, 305 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:18,160 you're working so much to keep up with something. 306 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:20,320 It's pulled you out of the church because there's the 307 00:19:20,320 --> 00:19:22,360 thing. Satan has no problem giving you 308 00:19:22,360 --> 00:19:24,120 something that doesn't advance the Kingdom. 309 00:19:25,400 --> 00:19:27,480 This is why we get to the situation in the Bible where it 310 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:29,160 says, Lord, Lord, didn't I call out your name? 311 00:19:29,160 --> 00:19:30,280 Why? Because they were under the 312 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:32,760 impression I was doing something for you. 313 00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:36,760 But God says you did something in my name on your path. 314 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:49,640 You tried to operate in your destiny yourself, and Satan has 315 00:19:49,640 --> 00:19:54,600 no problem paving a path that looks glorious, that looks 316 00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:57,480 amazing, that makes it look like you're doing anything, and he 317 00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:02,120 doesn't even mind if you give credit to God as long as it's 318 00:20:02,120 --> 00:20:04,280 not actually advancing his Kingdom. 319 00:20:08,880 --> 00:20:12,280 Because often times the ones who do that think they're giving 320 00:20:12,280 --> 00:20:15,360 glory to God, but the truth is they're giving a fake 321 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:18,200 representation of what Christianity should be in the 322 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:23,200 1st place and you're leading people astray thinking you can 323 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:26,360 do whatever you want and still make him Lord. 324 00:20:27,440 --> 00:20:31,480 No, Christ has a standard to obtain to and to live by. 325 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:37,960 And if you try to accomplish your calling without walking in 326 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:44,600 the standard, you'll fall away. But falling away, oftentimes I 327 00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:47,320 think we think in our minds that that means, well, you're going 328 00:20:47,320 --> 00:20:49,440 to look at someone's life and be like, look how rough their life 329 00:20:49,440 --> 00:20:52,400 got. Look how rough their life is now 330 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:55,960 once they left the church. That's not a representation of 331 00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:59,160 just going out. Because in the end, like we've 332 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:04,960 said, there's so many successful people not in the church because 333 00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:07,520 they're not doing anything. Therefore they're not a problem, 334 00:21:10,960 --> 00:21:11,560 right? We don't. 335 00:21:11,800 --> 00:21:15,160 When you set out to to make waves, if you're wanting to 336 00:21:15,160 --> 00:21:17,920 break up, something's working. You don't go around picking off 337 00:21:17,920 --> 00:21:19,840 the ones that aren't actually doing anything, right? 338 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:24,040 You let them continue to do whatever they want. 339 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:30,520 They're not a problem anyways. You go after the ones making the 340 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:34,360 most impact, you go after the stuff that's going to affect you 341 00:21:34,360 --> 00:21:37,280 the most, and let the little things work themselves out on 342 00:21:37,280 --> 00:21:40,400 their own. So if you aren't careful, you 343 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:43,000 can start to walk in the gifts and callings God placed in your 344 00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:50,000 path on a path he didn't pay for you right? 345 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:52,280 That's why you got people who can be talented but toxic. 346 00:21:54,960 --> 00:22:01,200 They can be called but compromised because you've got 347 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:05,240 gifts, you've got abilities, but then you don't live the 348 00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:12,440 standard, so your life can't produce anything of the Spirit 349 00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:14,640 because there's no spirit in it to produce. 350 00:22:18,280 --> 00:22:24,960 Proverbs 131412 says there is a way which seems right to man, 351 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:32,880 but its end is the way of death. There's a way that seems right 352 00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:38,160 to a man, but it's end is the way to death. 353 00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:42,520 This scripture is great because I feel like this does speak to 354 00:22:42,520 --> 00:22:46,600 all men because most most men are problem solvers. 355 00:22:47,120 --> 00:22:50,200 Most men do want to try to take care of things pretty quickly, 356 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:54,280 and we can always find a way that seems right to us pretty 357 00:22:54,280 --> 00:22:57,440 fast. But the question is, do we step 358 00:22:57,440 --> 00:23:00,880 back and say, is this the path that God actually wants me to 359 00:23:00,880 --> 00:23:03,080 take? Right? 360 00:23:03,080 --> 00:23:06,880 Because when we try to take shortcuts to just get something 361 00:23:06,880 --> 00:23:09,280 done, that's when we end up making them way worse in the 362 00:23:09,280 --> 00:23:12,720 end. You know, a lot of times we get 363 00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:14,440 rushed and we're like, man, I got to take care of this. 364 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:17,760 So we try to do something quick, but then we create a way bigger 365 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:19,680 mess on the back end that has to be cleaned up later. 366 00:23:19,680 --> 00:23:23,560 But because we're not cleaning up it now, it seems like we're 367 00:23:23,560 --> 00:23:26,600 OK. And then when we get to the new 368 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:29,320 problem, we don't always associate it back to the fact 369 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:31,720 that we shortcutted the problem. We think, oh, this is a new 370 00:23:31,720 --> 00:23:35,360 problem now. This is the consequences to the 371 00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:40,360 shortcut, right? And a lot of times a shortcut to 372 00:23:40,360 --> 00:23:44,400 like your calling is just a long road to compromise. 373 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:49,480 And the more shortcuts you try to take in what God's place in 374 00:23:49,480 --> 00:23:53,360 you, eventually you just find a life of compromise. 375 00:23:56,680 --> 00:24:01,280 You start to allow little things that you would have never at one 376 00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:05,120 point, all of a sudden they're OK. 377 00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:08,560 That's how justifying things works. 378 00:24:09,120 --> 00:24:11,840 Little by little, we let things creep in. 379 00:24:12,200 --> 00:24:14,560 And if we aren't careful, they'll ultimately cost us Our 380 00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:19,320 Calling. John 1010 says the thief comes 381 00:24:19,320 --> 00:24:22,400 only to steal and kill and destroy. 382 00:24:22,480 --> 00:24:27,760 I came that they may have a life and have it abundantly right. 383 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:32,520 So the enemy will offer you the world if it costs you your 384 00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:36,720 worship. Satan's second temptation, man 385 00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:41,160 was I'll give you everything God placed on your heart. 386 00:24:42,400 --> 00:24:45,800 Just worship me. Just do it my way. 387 00:24:47,680 --> 00:24:50,560 Now, when we read that, we think, oh, I would obviously not 388 00:24:50,560 --> 00:24:53,120 do that. Like, I mean, we're all like, we 389 00:24:53,120 --> 00:24:55,440 all can read this thing. Like I would obviously not do 390 00:24:55,440 --> 00:24:58,280 that. It's obviously never presented 391 00:24:58,280 --> 00:25:00,040 like that. We're reading the story of the 392 00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:02,080 temptation of Jesus with Satan there. 393 00:25:02,240 --> 00:25:04,320 That's not how your life is going to play out. 394 00:25:04,400 --> 00:25:08,040 Your life is going to play out with I feel that I have a gift. 395 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:10,920 I want my gift to be used. That church isn't using my gift 396 00:25:10,920 --> 00:25:13,360 right now, but this place will. And so they obviously are the 397 00:25:13,360 --> 00:25:22,240 place I need to be. Right, Well, this place values 398 00:25:22,240 --> 00:25:27,480 my gift more so clearly they're the ones that I should be giving 399 00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:40,680 it to. OK, say law, right? 400 00:25:40,680 --> 00:25:44,800 Those are those little things that we with our flesh and 401 00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:47,920 ourselves here, not Satan sitting up there going you 402 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:56,520 should leave that the church. But if we're being honest, half 403 00:25:56,520 --> 00:25:58,400 the time it really is that obvious. 404 00:26:00,280 --> 00:26:04,840 We've just let so many little things go by that we miss how 405 00:26:04,840 --> 00:26:08,080 obvious it truly is. And then someone comes here and 406 00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:10,520 like, man, that's so obviously not the calling for you. 407 00:26:10,520 --> 00:26:12,360 And you're like, oh, you don't know me. 408 00:26:17,440 --> 00:26:22,880 Right, if we're not careful and we don't fully walk in the 409 00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:27,240 things God's called us into and we don't stand firm in the 410 00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:30,800 calling of God and firm in the calling that's placed on our 411 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:36,360 life and realize easy doesn't equal like the right path. 412 00:26:40,040 --> 00:26:46,040 No, the right path will always require faith, which means the 413 00:26:46,040 --> 00:26:50,320 right path will always have a level of unknown. 414 00:26:52,200 --> 00:26:55,400 Because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. 415 00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:58,920 Faith is the substance of things what hope for the evidence of 416 00:26:58,920 --> 00:27:05,000 things not. Which means it's when I don't 417 00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:10,040 see the outcome of something that my faith is now enacted to 418 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:14,880 work. I don't see the path, but I have 419 00:27:14,880 --> 00:27:18,840 to trust it's there. I'm sorry. 420 00:27:19,800 --> 00:27:25,800 My wife, I love her, has the worst night vision in the entire 421 00:27:25,800 --> 00:27:32,440 world. Like I'm talking we we get in 422 00:27:32,440 --> 00:27:34,560 bed, I cut off the light, I get in bed, she goes and does 423 00:27:34,560 --> 00:27:35,680 something. She'd come back and she opens 424 00:27:35,680 --> 00:27:38,400 the door and she's just like, where is everything? 425 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:40,840 I can't see? And here's I can see perfectly 426 00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:43,040 fine. So from her perspective, pitch 427 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:48,200 black from my perspective, you got like these baby steps of 428 00:27:48,200 --> 00:27:53,240 like, I'm completely lost. But I always kind of in my mom, 429 00:27:53,240 --> 00:28:00,680 like you've walked from that door to the bed every night for 430 00:28:00,680 --> 00:28:06,080 years. How do we not just like, we just 431 00:28:06,080 --> 00:28:10,480 walk like like I, I don't really honestly think about it at night 432 00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:12,040 in the house. I just walk. 433 00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:16,120 And it would be if something was not where it was supposed to be, 434 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:21,800 that would catch me off guard. My faith in God becomes so 435 00:28:21,800 --> 00:28:25,600 strong that like, hey, I don't have to see the direct path. 436 00:28:25,880 --> 00:28:29,920 I trust that you'll keep it clear and make it plain as I'm 437 00:28:29,920 --> 00:28:35,880 walking and if I hit something that shouldn't be there, then 438 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:40,720 I've got to assess. Did I misstep or is this just 439 00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:43,440 another battle for me to overcome to strengthen my 440 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:50,360 placement? Faith is through the unknown. 441 00:28:51,440 --> 00:28:55,080 Your calling should take you into the unknown. 442 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:03,560 We always like to read these amazing historical accounts in 443 00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:05,840 the Bible and then a lot of times we try to apply and well, 444 00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:07,960 how would I do this? And you're like, well, Moses was 445 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:11,040 called and he just left and had, but Moses had a direction, but 446 00:29:11,040 --> 00:29:14,480 he did just leave, right? And then we look at like all the 447 00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:16,400 disciples were like, man to walk with Jesus. 448 00:29:16,600 --> 00:29:19,520 Those guys left everything and then walked with them. 449 00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:25,520 No promise of salary, no 40 hours of vacation, no health 450 00:29:25,520 --> 00:29:30,040 care, no anything but a word and a calling. 451 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:34,520 All I need is a word and a calling. 452 00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:43,000 And Jesus responded to all these temptations with a word because 453 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:45,440 he knew his calling. He said no. 454 00:29:45,440 --> 00:29:48,800 I know that that's exactly what I'm here for, but I also know 455 00:29:48,800 --> 00:29:50,880 that's not how I'm supposed to obtain it. 456 00:29:58,560 --> 00:30:02,880 And if Satan can't confuse your calling, then he'll attack your 457 00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:07,320 convictions. The third temptation was 458 00:30:07,320 --> 00:30:11,880 convictions. The third temptation was a test 459 00:30:11,880 --> 00:30:19,040 of belief, a test of his theology, A test of do you truly 460 00:30:19,040 --> 00:30:26,320 believe God's character? Do you truly believe God will do 461 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:29,880 what he says he will do? It was no longer about appetite 462 00:30:29,880 --> 00:30:33,960 or ambition. It was about do you trust God at 463 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:39,880 his word? And we see that Satan twists the 464 00:30:39,880 --> 00:30:47,120 Bible itself. He says, for it is written, you 465 00:30:47,120 --> 00:30:49,320 know, if you throw yourself down, they'll pick you up 466 00:30:50,120 --> 00:30:55,680 quoting Scripture. This is why we have to be 467 00:30:55,680 --> 00:31:03,960 studiers of the word rightly dividing, because we can give 468 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:09,040 flowery scriptures to try to convince something of something. 469 00:31:09,040 --> 00:31:10,600 You can. Well, I can, I can, you know. 470 00:31:10,600 --> 00:31:14,040 Well, God said, you know, he works a mysterious way like, no, 471 00:31:14,040 --> 00:31:16,680 he works exactly like his word says he'll work. 472 00:31:18,480 --> 00:31:21,240 There's nothing mysterious about it but you. 473 00:31:21,320 --> 00:31:23,240 But you said faith is going into the unknown. 474 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:27,400 Yeah, that's not mysterious because God called me there and 475 00:31:27,400 --> 00:31:30,160 I know when I believe it, He will reveal what is to come, 476 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:36,480 right? We have to understand the Word 477 00:31:36,800 --> 00:31:40,400 so much that when we hear it presented wrongly, we can go. 478 00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:46,080 That's not it. This is why some of you haven't 479 00:31:46,080 --> 00:31:48,000 heard sermons before. And then something hits you and 480 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:50,120 kind of like that just feels a little wrong. 481 00:31:50,160 --> 00:31:52,720 Like just feels a little wrong. And maybe you can't perfectly 482 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:54,840 place me like that just seems just a little. 483 00:31:55,240 --> 00:31:57,440 That's your spirit saying, hey, you should probably study this 484 00:31:57,440 --> 00:32:00,200 out more. This is why I love that Apostle 485 00:32:00,200 --> 00:32:02,720 Earl says, don't take anything we say at face value. 486 00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:08,760 Study it for yourself. It is our job to present a word. 487 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:13,160 It is your job to study it out and then apply it to your life. 488 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:18,480 You are not obligated to believe anything about my message today, 489 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:21,720 but you are obligated to go home, look at this scripture 490 00:32:21,720 --> 00:32:26,760 again and say man does this line up because if it does then I 491 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:34,400 should probably apply it. This is a church that believes 492 00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:37,640 in the studying of the word for yourself. 493 00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:41,240 This is not a church where we just want to get up here and 494 00:32:41,240 --> 00:32:43,600 just throw things at you and say don't challenge me. 495 00:32:43,760 --> 00:32:46,640 No, you think you got something, You can schedule a meeting. 496 00:32:46,640 --> 00:32:48,760 We can talk about it. We can go through Scripture 497 00:32:48,760 --> 00:32:51,800 together, but bring Scripture because I'm not about opinions, 498 00:32:51,800 --> 00:32:57,440 I'm about Word. If you want to have Word 499 00:32:57,440 --> 00:33:02,560 conversations, we can have Word conversations, but let's bring 500 00:33:02,560 --> 00:33:04,760 the Word and then we'll rightly divide it. 501 00:33:08,280 --> 00:33:12,240 Faith doesn't demand proof. It demonstrates obedience. 502 00:33:16,400 --> 00:33:20,160 Your convictions should demonstrate through obedience. 503 00:33:21,040 --> 00:33:25,240 I believe God at His Word so much that I will do exactly what 504 00:33:25,240 --> 00:33:30,440 He says every time, because I believe the rewards and I 505 00:33:30,440 --> 00:33:32,160 believe what happens when I don't. 506 00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:38,440 Because I am firmly persuaded that if I do the Word, it will 507 00:33:38,440 --> 00:33:41,920 work in my life. I'm firmly persuaded that God's 508 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:44,440 Word works always. And if something is not adding 509 00:33:44,440 --> 00:33:48,480 up in my life, then I've gotten off somewhere and I'm going to 510 00:33:48,480 --> 00:33:58,440 figure it out, James, 16, says. But he must ask in faith, 511 00:33:58,440 --> 00:34:03,640 doubting nothing. For the one who doubts is like 512 00:34:03,640 --> 00:34:09,400 the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 513 00:34:12,280 --> 00:34:17,560 We need to come to a place in our belief in the word that we 514 00:34:17,560 --> 00:34:22,639 stand on it without doubt. Now this doesn't mean that there 515 00:34:22,639 --> 00:34:25,239 might be opportunities to doubt that arise. 516 00:34:25,239 --> 00:34:27,000 And it might not mean that you might not have a thought that 517 00:34:27,000 --> 00:34:28,159 goes, hey, this isn't going to work. 518 00:34:28,159 --> 00:34:29,280 And you go, no, what? No. 519 00:34:29,280 --> 00:34:32,639 And we cast them down. No one's saying that that 520 00:34:32,639 --> 00:34:35,320 doesn't mean something won't try to attack you. 521 00:34:35,320 --> 00:34:38,800 At every level, no matter how strong your word, faith and walk 522 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:42,239 is, things will present themselves that seem contrary to 523 00:34:42,239 --> 00:34:44,880 the word. But your conviction is tested 524 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:48,199 when you're walking through something that seems contrary to 525 00:34:48,199 --> 00:34:52,760 the word. Because do I believe it even 526 00:34:52,760 --> 00:34:55,239 though I'm not seeing it walked out right now? 527 00:34:59,160 --> 00:35:01,680 My true convictions are tested in that moment. 528 00:35:02,120 --> 00:35:04,760 And my faith isn't proven by miracles. 529 00:35:04,760 --> 00:35:11,520 It's proven by my obedience. It's proven through my obedience 530 00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:17,480 to continue to walk and apply and do the Word no matter what 531 00:35:17,480 --> 00:35:19,760 the situation around me looks like. 532 00:35:21,440 --> 00:35:24,800 Throughout all three of these temptations, Jesus could have 533 00:35:24,800 --> 00:35:29,120 found a different way out. He could have done something 534 00:35:29,120 --> 00:35:36,360 else. He could have folded to his 535 00:35:36,360 --> 00:35:38,680 cravings. He could have been tempted by 536 00:35:38,680 --> 00:35:42,760 his calling. But he knew the Word won't be 537 00:35:42,760 --> 00:35:48,840 with me in that solution. The Word is only with me in the 538 00:35:48,840 --> 00:35:56,600 path God placed for me. The Word is only with me in the 539 00:35:56,600 --> 00:36:01,080 path God place for me. Hebrews 11/1 says now faith is 540 00:36:01,080 --> 00:36:06,440 the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things 541 00:36:06,840 --> 00:36:11,480 not seem so. Conviction is trusting God when 542 00:36:11,480 --> 00:36:17,080 proof is absent, right? So if the devil can't take your 543 00:36:17,080 --> 00:36:18,920 calling, he'll try to shake your convictions. 544 00:36:20,560 --> 00:36:22,720 Once he realizes, no, this guy knows what he's placed to do, 545 00:36:22,720 --> 00:36:24,840 he'll try to say, do you really believe what you say you 546 00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:26,840 believe? Are you really going to walk in 547 00:36:26,840 --> 00:36:29,160 what you say? You'll you'll walk in because 548 00:36:29,360 --> 00:36:30,920 you can be walking in your calling. 549 00:36:30,920 --> 00:36:32,280 You can be putting down your cravings. 550 00:36:32,280 --> 00:36:34,560 And then situations can arrive that you're like one of my like, 551 00:36:34,560 --> 00:36:37,440 what's going on? Why is have I stepped off? 552 00:36:37,440 --> 00:36:42,000 No, this is just another moment to increase your faith to 553 00:36:42,000 --> 00:36:44,360 prepare yourself for more things to come. 554 00:36:44,640 --> 00:36:48,120 A battle presented does not always mean you've done 555 00:36:48,120 --> 00:36:53,920 something wrong, right? This is why we can't make 556 00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:59,720 everything about personal Satan. Because just because there's a 557 00:36:59,720 --> 00:37:03,120 bump in the road doesn't mean the devil placed it there. 558 00:37:03,240 --> 00:37:05,240 Some roads are just a little bumpy. 559 00:37:11,320 --> 00:37:13,840 And the more we learn to deal with them and handle them, the 560 00:37:13,840 --> 00:37:17,840 more we grow in our faith, the more faith is then required for 561 00:37:17,840 --> 00:37:20,200 us in the next season. Which means I'm always knowing, 562 00:37:20,320 --> 00:37:23,560 hey, if I want this come, if I really want to do things for 563 00:37:23,560 --> 00:37:28,720 God, the minute I do, that next phase that comes is going to 564 00:37:28,720 --> 00:37:34,880 require even more. And so you want to add a lot of 565 00:37:34,880 --> 00:37:37,120 times I think we were like, oh man, I'm just ready for the next 566 00:37:37,120 --> 00:37:39,360 season. If it's truly the next time 567 00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:41,560 you're getting into, if it's truly the next phase you're 568 00:37:41,560 --> 00:37:44,480 walking into, make sure you are ready. 569 00:37:46,840 --> 00:37:49,640 Because if you thought the last one was hard and you're hoping 570 00:37:49,640 --> 00:37:52,160 to get to the next one just so, it'll be easy. 571 00:37:59,200 --> 00:38:01,640 No, what makes it easy. What makes it easy is my 572 00:38:01,640 --> 00:38:05,040 conviction, knowing that I don't really care what's presented. 573 00:38:05,200 --> 00:38:07,160 I know God's going to take care of it anyways. 574 00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:13,240 It's not the lack of battle that makes it easier, it's the 575 00:38:13,240 --> 00:38:16,280 strength and the fullness of power you begin to walk in of 576 00:38:16,280 --> 00:38:26,200 the Spirit that makes it easier. This is why I want to look at 577 00:38:26,200 --> 00:38:28,280 this one thing that I thought was really great when I was 578 00:38:28,280 --> 00:38:34,480 reading it and Luke 4/1 Jesus was baptized and it says Jesus 579 00:38:34,840 --> 00:38:40,040 full of the Spirit was led by the Spirit to be tempted. 580 00:38:40,400 --> 00:38:44,360 He goes through the temptations, He conquers everything and it 581 00:38:44,360 --> 00:38:49,320 ends in Luke 414. By saying Jesus then return in 582 00:38:49,320 --> 00:38:59,240 the power of the Spirit, He went from full of the Spirit to being 583 00:38:59,240 --> 00:39:04,600 in the power of the Spirit. So power comes after fullness, 584 00:39:05,960 --> 00:39:15,520 but only through faithfulness. Power comes after fullness, but 585 00:39:15,520 --> 00:39:23,800 only through faithfulness. What I love about these kind of 586 00:39:23,800 --> 00:39:27,960 passages that were placed is they become easy check markers 587 00:39:27,960 --> 00:39:32,680 in our life. We can assess our self and see 588 00:39:32,680 --> 00:39:34,080 where we at. Maybe some people are like man 589 00:39:34,360 --> 00:39:36,400 I've been born again. I'm trying to figure out what's 590 00:39:36,400 --> 00:39:39,680 my next step and what is God now that I'm boring him, what am I 591 00:39:39,680 --> 00:39:42,120 supposed to be doing? So if we don't like man, I just 592 00:39:42,120 --> 00:39:45,320 don't feel like I know yet. So then ask myself, am I dealing 593 00:39:45,320 --> 00:39:50,080 with all my cravings properly? Have I put down the flesh enough 594 00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:53,280 that I'm ready to step into something? 595 00:39:53,600 --> 00:39:56,640 Or am I still in this season of needing to put my flesh 596 00:39:56,640 --> 00:40:00,960 underneath me so that when I step into what God's placed me 597 00:40:00,960 --> 00:40:07,800 to, this won't become an issue? We can check and see what's 598 00:40:07,800 --> 00:40:09,960 going on. Maybe I'm not where I want to be 599 00:40:09,960 --> 00:40:12,480 because I'm just not putting down everything I need to. 600 00:40:12,680 --> 00:40:14,760 Or maybe I've put down everything and I'm starting to 601 00:40:14,760 --> 00:40:17,560 do good and I'm starting to walk in this thing and I'm winning 602 00:40:17,560 --> 00:40:19,960 way more than I'm losing. And now God's called me to 603 00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:22,280 something and I'm walking in it. But now I've got so many 604 00:40:22,280 --> 00:40:28,600 opportunities that look good. Now I've got so many options in 605 00:40:28,600 --> 00:40:30,480 front of me. Which one is the right one? 606 00:40:32,840 --> 00:40:35,120 This one pays more. This one works at a great 607 00:40:35,120 --> 00:40:36,680 church, but it's going to pull me to a different state. 608 00:40:36,680 --> 00:40:39,480 This one does whatever this one does and we can start listening. 609 00:40:39,640 --> 00:40:43,480 OK, so then do any of them require me to be in faith once I 610 00:40:43,480 --> 00:40:49,640 get them? Or am I just looking for the one 611 00:40:49,640 --> 00:40:55,600 that sets me up the best? Now don't get me wrong, God 612 00:40:55,600 --> 00:40:59,240 wants to bless your life and God will bless your life, but that 613 00:40:59,240 --> 00:41:01,800 doesn't mean you won't still be walking in faith. 614 00:41:04,760 --> 00:41:07,800 It's our faithfulness and our faith walk that brings the 615 00:41:07,800 --> 00:41:13,200 blessings. I, I love what I do. 616 00:41:13,200 --> 00:41:16,400 I, I love working in creative. I love being a part of the 617 00:41:16,400 --> 00:41:18,160 ministry here. I love all these things. 618 00:41:18,160 --> 00:41:21,320 And before I married my wife, I was, you know, at that same 619 00:41:21,320 --> 00:41:22,800 place was like, you know, what's going to be next? 620 00:41:22,800 --> 00:41:25,480 And I kind of, you know, toyed around like joining the Air 621 00:41:25,480 --> 00:41:26,760 Force or the Coast Guard or something. 622 00:41:26,760 --> 00:41:29,800 But like the like, the dream goal was like, man, what if I 623 00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:32,720 could like be a photographer for National Geographic and like 624 00:41:32,720 --> 00:41:36,800 travel the world and take photos of just like the whole world and 625 00:41:36,800 --> 00:41:39,360 all this beauty and all this, like this would just be like 626 00:41:39,480 --> 00:41:41,800 prime right to be paid to travel. 627 00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:44,720 And I remember ultimately I heard a call to ministry. 628 00:41:44,720 --> 00:41:46,120 And so I just was like, you know, this is a path. 629 00:41:46,120 --> 00:41:47,560 And this is what we went down and we went. 630 00:41:47,640 --> 00:41:51,240 We did. And then one day me and my wife 631 00:41:51,240 --> 00:41:52,560 went on our big anniversary trip. 632 00:41:52,560 --> 00:41:54,160 It was awesome. We went to Ireland and I'm 633 00:41:54,160 --> 00:41:56,440 sitting there and I'm taking a bunch of pictures and I'm 634 00:41:56,440 --> 00:41:59,200 posting stuff on my Instagram and somebody reaches out to me 635 00:41:59,200 --> 00:42:01,240 and they're like, hey, saw your photos. 636 00:42:01,240 --> 00:42:03,240 I love them. Could we buy some? 637 00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:06,920 And so I was like, sure. So I just sent every good photo 638 00:42:06,920 --> 00:42:09,560 I thought I had. They bought every single one of 639 00:42:09,560 --> 00:42:12,880 them. So much so that it paid for our 640 00:42:12,880 --> 00:42:17,720 entire trip. And I remember vividly for 641 00:42:17,720 --> 00:42:22,400 myself, I'm sitting at the cliffs of mower. 642 00:42:22,600 --> 00:42:24,960 I'm walking down this path, which end up being way longer 643 00:42:24,960 --> 00:42:26,120 than I thought. And I felt bad because my wife 644 00:42:26,120 --> 00:42:27,680 was like, yeah, go finish it. And I was like, yeah, it looks 645 00:42:27,680 --> 00:42:32,560 like it's like 2 miles. It was like 7 wasn't even close. 646 00:42:33,160 --> 00:42:35,320 And I but I was like, I'm, you know, I didn't really realize 647 00:42:35,320 --> 00:42:37,000 that till about 3 1/2. And I was like, well, I got to 648 00:42:37,000 --> 00:42:38,320 finish. Like I'm going to, got to make 649 00:42:38,320 --> 00:42:41,680 it to the end. So I'm walking and I'm chewing 650 00:42:41,680 --> 00:42:44,400 on this thing. And I just sold those photos and 651 00:42:44,400 --> 00:42:46,480 they sent me like a PayPal and I'm just like kind of walking 652 00:42:46,920 --> 00:42:49,840 and God just kind of remind me said, hey, you follow my path, 653 00:42:50,760 --> 00:42:55,320 I'll cover the rest. And in this moment of thinking, 654 00:42:55,320 --> 00:42:57,120 how cool would it be to be paid to travel? 655 00:42:57,120 --> 00:42:59,760 I realize I just got paid to be here. 656 00:43:02,560 --> 00:43:06,480 Like I'm actually going to walk out of this trip with more money 657 00:43:06,480 --> 00:43:09,760 than I put into it. I somehow managed to make a 658 00:43:09,760 --> 00:43:16,440 great 12 year anniversary investment, but it was through 659 00:43:16,760 --> 00:43:20,800 just walking out those things in a, in a, a path I didn't even 660 00:43:20,800 --> 00:43:22,360 consider anymore. I've gotten to travel with a 661 00:43:22,360 --> 00:43:23,840 church I love going to missions I love taking. 662 00:43:23,840 --> 00:43:25,320 I've always taken that in consideration. 663 00:43:25,320 --> 00:43:27,520 Man, God's given me the ability to do photography around the 664 00:43:27,520 --> 00:43:30,640 world for the church to continue to show you guys what all we're 665 00:43:30,640 --> 00:43:33,400 doing here, which is all great, but there's still a whole nother 666 00:43:33,400 --> 00:43:36,200 level when it just becomes this whole personal side thing. 667 00:43:37,120 --> 00:43:40,600 But now I realize, like since then, I've gone on multiple 668 00:43:40,600 --> 00:43:47,080 trips that have sold photos from continually and it's just got to 669 00:43:47,080 --> 00:43:50,120 be like, hey, this wasn't what I called you to do, but it was a 670 00:43:50,120 --> 00:43:52,040 desire in your heart. It's something you love. 671 00:43:52,200 --> 00:43:55,240 And I'll continue to provide for you and be faithful for you as 672 00:43:55,240 --> 00:44:00,680 long as you're faithful for me. You do my word, I'll take care 673 00:44:00,680 --> 00:44:03,320 of these things. Those of you who know me, no, I 674 00:44:03,320 --> 00:44:05,480 don't. I'm not gone a whole lot. 675 00:44:05,480 --> 00:44:08,520 I really work. I mean, I, I end at US HR. 676 00:44:08,520 --> 00:44:11,160 I end every year with plenty of vacation left in the bank 677 00:44:11,160 --> 00:44:14,200 because I just, I love being here And when I'm gone, half the 678 00:44:14,200 --> 00:44:17,320 time I'm like, I'm ready to get back. 12 days was a lot. 679 00:44:17,720 --> 00:44:19,640 Now I love my kids. I miss my kids, but I was like, 680 00:44:19,640 --> 00:44:21,240 I'm ready to get back to some purpose. 681 00:44:22,640 --> 00:44:24,840 I'm ready to get back to what God placed me for. 682 00:44:24,960 --> 00:44:28,880 I'm ready to start completing serving my vision, right? 683 00:44:28,880 --> 00:44:30,760 And so when we walk in the things of God, man, he'll 684 00:44:30,760 --> 00:44:33,600 continue to bless the path he placed in front of you. 685 00:44:33,600 --> 00:44:37,280 So there's plenty of blessings. And so Jesus entered full, but 686 00:44:37,280 --> 00:44:42,000 then left in the power. And it wasn't until after this 687 00:44:42,000 --> 00:44:45,720 wilderness testing and this proving of faithfulness that 688 00:44:45,720 --> 00:44:48,720 ultimately Jesus ministry came to life. 689 00:44:48,720 --> 00:44:52,720 It didn't begin at the baptism. It began after the testing. 690 00:44:58,800 --> 00:45:04,400 So victory there proved his character, his obedience, and 691 00:45:04,400 --> 00:45:08,960 his readiness. It proved his character, his 692 00:45:08,960 --> 00:45:16,680 obedience and his readiness. It wasn't wasted time, but it 693 00:45:16,680 --> 00:45:22,280 was time where the Holy Spirit was able to refine Him and 694 00:45:22,280 --> 00:45:26,840 continue to show through Him and be with Him, then ultimately 695 00:45:26,840 --> 00:45:29,720 allow Him to walk in the full power of Him. 696 00:45:31,840 --> 00:45:36,320 If we feel like we're lacking power in our lives, we have to 697 00:45:36,320 --> 00:45:41,400 ask ourselves, am I conquering my wilderness tests? 698 00:45:43,200 --> 00:45:45,280 Am I having wilderness victories? 699 00:45:46,920 --> 00:45:50,880 Have I presented my life as a living sacrifice? 700 00:45:51,440 --> 00:45:55,720 Have I walked faithfully through everything He's called me to? 701 00:45:56,480 --> 00:46:02,280 Jesus resisted every shortcut and in every single situation 702 00:46:02,520 --> 00:46:07,480 just said no, I'm going to stand on the word. 703 00:46:09,680 --> 00:46:13,480 Your Christian walk isn't supposed to be about easy. 704 00:46:15,640 --> 00:46:20,240 It's not supposed to be about easy, but the reward of the 705 00:46:20,240 --> 00:46:27,240 victory is the power of the Spirit, and the reward of 706 00:46:27,240 --> 00:46:31,000 walking in the power of the Spirit is worth any battle. 707 00:46:31,000 --> 00:46:35,920 You can go through anything that's faced in front of you. 708 00:46:35,920 --> 00:46:38,920 Man, when you overcome those things and step fully into what 709 00:46:38,920 --> 00:46:41,320 God's place on your life and you have the power flowing with you 710 00:46:41,320 --> 00:46:43,560 and you're able to continue to walk out those things, you 711 00:46:43,560 --> 00:46:46,040 realize everything else really doesn't matter. 712 00:46:47,800 --> 00:46:52,000 I just want to be in the fullness and the power of God in 713 00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:53,760 every step and direction of my life. 714 00:46:54,480 --> 00:46:57,920 I just want to walk in everything God has for me and do 715 00:46:57,920 --> 00:47:01,640 everything God's called me to and continue to be exactly where 716 00:47:01,640 --> 00:47:05,680 He's placed me because trials will come. 717 00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:09,560 But you have the one who's overcome everything living 718 00:47:09,680 --> 00:47:14,680 inside of you in every situation. 719 00:47:15,560 --> 00:47:19,640 These are three temptations, cravings, callings, convictions 720 00:47:20,240 --> 00:47:23,680 that everyone's going to face, everyone's going to go through, 721 00:47:23,960 --> 00:47:29,400 everyone's going to deal with. But when those moments come, we 722 00:47:29,400 --> 00:47:32,920 allow the Holy Spirit to continue to refine. 723 00:47:33,720 --> 00:47:37,240 And the refining process isn't just once. 724 00:47:40,480 --> 00:47:42,560 This doesn't just happen once because you're going to be 725 00:47:42,560 --> 00:47:46,760 refined to get to a level and then to get to the next one. 726 00:47:47,200 --> 00:47:53,080 There becomes more refining. But after every time I step into 727 00:47:53,080 --> 00:47:57,160 what God's called and I continue to let go more of me to have 728 00:47:57,160 --> 00:48:00,320 more of him, I'll continue to walk even more in the power He's 729 00:48:00,320 --> 00:48:02,920 placed and I'll continue to have everything God's called me. 730 00:48:02,920 --> 00:48:05,800 If we truly want to say, well, greater is he that's in me than 731 00:48:05,800 --> 00:48:07,840 me, you know, or he's greater than I. 732 00:48:08,000 --> 00:48:11,160 And all these kind of lovely Christian cliches we love to 733 00:48:11,160 --> 00:48:13,400 say. They all require me letting go 734 00:48:13,400 --> 00:48:19,040 more of me. This concept we have like, well, 735 00:48:19,040 --> 00:48:21,520 you know, this is what makes me unique. 736 00:48:21,680 --> 00:48:24,400 You are unique in what God has called you to do. 737 00:48:26,280 --> 00:48:28,840 You are not unique in the fact that you should be walking in 738 00:48:28,840 --> 00:48:32,920 something the Word hasn't said to walk in and that it's just OK 739 00:48:32,920 --> 00:48:36,720 for you. Well, it's just OK for me to do 740 00:48:36,720 --> 00:48:38,640 this. No, it's not. 741 00:48:40,200 --> 00:48:43,320 The Word has a standard. That is the standard we walk in 742 00:48:44,280 --> 00:48:47,040 now. It may be OK at the phase you're 743 00:48:47,040 --> 00:48:52,200 at, but eventually you'll find if I want to get here, what I 744 00:48:52,200 --> 00:48:55,640 thought was once OK can no longer be OK. 745 00:48:56,840 --> 00:49:00,600 What I once did and was acceptable is no longer 746 00:49:00,600 --> 00:49:04,080 acceptable. I let my younger kids do a 747 00:49:04,080 --> 00:49:08,240 little bit more than I let my older kids do because I'm still 748 00:49:08,240 --> 00:49:12,560 training and developing. But there becomes a time where 749 00:49:12,560 --> 00:49:15,440 what you're doing is no longer OK. 750 00:49:16,680 --> 00:49:19,240 And my daughter's can't look at me like, well, but, but I used 751 00:49:19,240 --> 00:49:23,800 to do it, but she gets to do it. But she's still learning. 752 00:49:24,920 --> 00:49:28,520 And when you were her age, it was there, but now it's not. 753 00:49:28,720 --> 00:49:31,800 And in my walk with Christ, I'm going to get to the next place 754 00:49:31,960 --> 00:49:35,000 and the next place, which means I'm going to look less and less 755 00:49:35,000 --> 00:49:37,680 like the chase you knew. And I'm going to look more and 756 00:49:37,680 --> 00:49:39,840 more like what God's fully placed me to be.