If you click through enough sermons you will find this same 3 point outline used -- I stole it, cause it preaches. Everything else is orginal and mine. I have the powerpoint that I am willing to send for free via email - just email me with the sermon title in the title line and I will send it to you.
James 4:1-10
“A Victorious Life”
“Submitting to God is the key to living a victorious life.”
Sunday Morning Sermon
09.30.07
Intro:
Youtube.com – “Chariots of fire Liddell’s final race 400m” – 4:35 – This video is a little long, but very good, it would be good to read up on the story of the movie or watch the movie too to give information as an intro
(Start with title and text)
Did you catch the line – “Jennie…I believe God made me for a purpose, and he also made me fast, and when I run, I feel his pleasure.”
He won the last race – Based on real life events the main character in the movie refused to run in another race he qualified for because it was on a Sunday, and that would conflict with his Christian values. Instead he prepares for the 400 meter race – the third race that day, which he shouldn’t have won – but he did. He saw his running as a way to glorify God.
He saw running and winning as a way to honor God and live out his purpose in life.
People like me – we like stories like that. I was never good at any sports. I would trip over the lines on the basketball court. Always picked last – always in left field on the baseball team – which isn’t bad, but I was like 3rd string left fielder. I love the rocky movies – because he’s not supposed to win – and he does. Give me any sports movie where the bad news bears pull themselves together – they have more heart than talent and they win – and I’ll cry every time.
Discussion:
I think God is the same way. Only God almighty could see something beautiful in us. Only God almighty could see something worthy in us. The Bible says that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. If God can’t be near sin – and we were the ones diving into it – he died for us, while we didn’t care, and didn’t want to be cleansed. He paid the highest gift and the highest sacrifice for someone he couldn’t embrace.
Listen – he doesn’t call us to be losers. He didn’t give his one and only son, so that we would be losers in this life, so that we could go through life without purpose without hope or without direction. He wants more than anything for you and me to know his good, pleasing and perfect will. A victorious life is something God wants for you! He wants that for me! He didn’t create you to be a 3rd stringer in life. He wants us to have victory over our sin, victory over our doubts, our struggles, our pain, even sickness.
James is going to speak on this victorious life that we have in Christ Jesus. He’s going to give us 3 ways to grab this victorious life and make it ours. The key to living and having this victorious Christian life is submitting to God – that’s the root that’s the base – you can’t do anything of the three things without first submitting your life to Christ.
If you have your Bibles with you turn with me to (Advance)
James 4:1-10 (Read)
(Advance)
I. Pray according to God’s will (1-3)
What’s the rule we have in the south – “you can say anything bad about someone as long as you say” – “bless their heart” Afterwards. We do that with our prayer life too – we look for loop holes.
“Lord, I really want the bright yellow hummer…but you know, let your will be done.”
We read verses (out of context by the way) like the mustard seed faith – we can move mountains as long as we have a small amount of faith. Nothing will be impossible for you. Let me read it…(Advance)
Matthew 17:20 (NIV) – He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ’Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
a. We apply that to our lives
i. Small Faith = Nothing impossible
So we don’t work at our faith – we don’t build on our faith – we don’t add to our faith – but we expect the impossible. We expect our small, do nothing faith to be honored by God – and when it’s not
b. We fight
i. We argue – we might even blame God
ii. External fighting is often the result of the internal battle.
iii. We want things that we don’t get
iv. We stop asking God – and when we do ask our motives are wrong --
The sad thing is – I’ve just described some of your prayer lives. I’ve just described the reason you think God hates you. I’ve just described your frustration with the Christian life and the prayer life that you don’t embrace.
You were not meant to go through life – with a dry prayer life. You were not meant to go through your Christian life frustrated.
c. If you want to pray according to God’s will
d. If you want victory in your prayer life
i. You have to know his will – it’s a process where:
ii. His desires appear – and your desires disappear
If you still have your Bibles open to Matthew 17 – the father comes to Jesus – He’s not asking for yellow hummers, or good grades or a certain person to like him – his son is having seizures and was suffering greatly. The dad says that he often falls into the fire or into the water. This is serious stuff. He goes to Jesus, and knelt before him.
e. Prayer is honestly talking to GOD.
i. Have faith that what you are asking for will be done.
1. If it lines up with God’s will, it will be done.
2. But it’s his timing and his purpose
ii. God, I have this son and he’s suffering….please have mercy on my son…
For you it might be something else – but it’s honestly talking to God, just you and him. I’ve heard people say that they don’t know how to pray – Ask God to show you, through prayer. He will honor your desire to learn to communicate. When you see something happen – when you see healing take place when you see growth take place – give God the glory and he will give you the victory. You want a victorious Christian life – pray according to the will of God. (Advance)
II. Love God more than the world (4-5)
a. Friendship with the world
i. Is not possible for the Christian – Jesus said (Advance)
Luke 21:17 (NIV) – All men will hate you because of me.
Do you know why the world will hate you? Because of Jesus. If you honestly stand for the things of Christ, and without going beyond the word, stand for the truth of scripture – it will contradict and conflict with the ways of this world.
b. You will have to make a choice
Do I love the things of God and his calling on my life more than I love the pleasures and quick fixes in this world? Do I know the word of God enough to apply it to my life in situations that will make me grow?
c. Loving God is a movement towards God
i. It’s a movement away from friendship with the world
ii. It’s even acknowledging the world – and seeing the possible traps – understanding yourself
Understand the possible weaknesses that you have. A chain is only as strong as the weakest link, because that’s where it’s going to break. Figure out where your weak link is, and get it straight. If you struggle with something – stay away from it. If someone is participating in sin with you – stay away from them. You will not have a victorious Christian life with one hand embracing the world.
It’s a choice – Do I love God more than I love the world?
d. Yes. Is the quick answer
i. It’s determined more by your actions
You want a victorious Christian life? Love God more than the things of this world. Love God more than your addictions and habits. Love God more than your personal preferences and voiced opinions. Love God more than you love a small church. We could read endless verses about God’s love for us – Why don’t we determine this morning – above everything else – that we are going to love God. (Advance)
Hebrews 12:1 (New Century Version) – We are surrounded by a great cloud of people whose lives tell us what faith means. So let us run the race that is before us and never give up. We should remove from our lives anything that would get in the way and the sin that so easily holds us back.
Our sin is the result of not trusting God. Why do you sin, because you don’t believe God can do whatever it is you think you need. It’s the same for all of us. Sometimes we think of our sin as a movement forward – God will somehow bless the sin in your life (which is opposite of the truth). Somehow God is OK with the sin in your life (which is the opposite of the truth).
We should do what Paul tells the Hebrew Christians and identify and remove the sin that holds us back. Church, it’s holding you back from living that victorious Christian life. It’s holding you back from having a victorious prayer life. (Advance)
James 4:5 (NIV) – Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely?
e. You have a spirit living in you
Created by God – to desire the things of God. Little children – love Jesus, it’s that spirit. We grow up and get accustomed to the world, we have to make choices – and the spirit living inside us – says GOD IS THE ONLY CHOICE. When we do things against that spirit – it pulls us back, because our spirit knows our creator, and knows that our purpose is to do his will.
Your life…my life – we were created to have a victorious Christian life. We were created to have Jesus standing with us – as our protector, and mediator. Maybe a good question this morning – how is that even possible, if we show apathy towards his word, his church, or his calling on our lives. Here’s the third way (Advance)
III. Humble yourself before God (6-10)
Humility is always the proper posture before God and others. The Christian life starts with humility – the opposite of pride.
James says – (Advance) God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
a. People who are humble – are movable
b. People who are prideful – are not movable
Hard and soft clay – that’s all it is. God can’t mold and shape your life if you are prideful. If you humble yourself before God, it’ll look something like: “Lord, I can’t do this on my own.” “I can’t heal on my own.” “I can’t have victory over this struggle or this temptation on my own.” “I can’t forgive on my own.” – God reaches out and he helps, and he heals and he gives victory, and he applies forgiveness – he does that because of your heart condition.
The verse that James quotes is from Proverbs – it says God opposes the proud. I don’t know about you – but I don’t want God opposing me. That’s not where I want to be, it’s not where you want to be either – I promise.
James gives us: (Advance)
c. 2 Ways to humble ourselves before God. (Advance)
i. Resist the devil – and he will flee
This goes back to understanding yourself – resisting temptation, physically moving yourself away, turning off the computer – however and whatever you struggle with – move yourself away. It’s good to know scripture. Jesus resisted the devil through scripture. It would do you well to at least know where to find verses that keep your pure. (Advance)
ii. Come near to God – and he will come near to you
I resist the devil and he goes away – that’s a promise. I bring myself near to God – Hebrews says that I can approach the throne of grace with confidence. God brings himself near to me. He wants to be near you, because it means that you’ve rejected the world. (Advance)
d. Result of humility before God (Advance)
i. Correct approach to our sin (Advance)
James 4:8b-9 (NIV) …Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.
Before I acknowledge God in my life – I had sin in my life. Some of the sin bothered me, and some of it – I was proud of. After I became a Christian all of my sin bothered me, and I am proud of none of it. James is describing the process where a person is in sin – without God, and they are laughing about their sin – they are having parties to invite sin in – sin is something celebrated, and even branded on T-shirts.
The person comes to Jesus – purify your hearts and wash your hands – that’s Old Testament talk. They have this new life in Christ, but still have this sin, and they rise up and instead of inviting it in and holding parties so it increases – they become disgusted by it. It goes literally from “Party on wayne, to OH, MY LORD, What have I done.” This is all about submission, and all about humility – without those two – you could justify your sin, you could blame God or give him credit for your sin, you could even say that he’s going to honor your sin – Church, hear this – he is not the blame for your sin, he doesn’t want the credit, and he will NEVER honor your sin.
I go out and rob a bank and walk away with 3,000 dollars – that money is not a blessing from God. He doesn’t have anything to do with my sin. My pride will give him all the credit – my humility will approach the situation with the understanding of his absence.
We can’t move forward and have victory in our lives with the absence of God. When we jump into sin – regardless of how big or small or private it is – God jumps out of the picture – because he can’t be where sin is.
Conclusion:
Winning a race that you are not supposed to win is excellent. Knowing the grace of God and the power that allows you to run – priceless. Church, your ability to succeed and have victory in your Christian life is dependent on your submission to God. I could talk another 30 minutes on what it means to submit and all those other things. But it really comes down to just doing it. Acknowledging in your life – that a Victorious Christian life is where you want to be – and taking steps to make that possible.
There are a gazillion things in this life that beg for your attention – that cry out for your time – there’s only one God. He’s not begging. He didn’t even just speak his love – he demonstrated his love. Only it wasn’t a normal kind of love, because it required the giving of his one and only son. It required the greatest and highest possible sacrifice – listen, that’s how much he loves you and me. That’s how much he wants you to walk with him daily and read his word daily, and reject the junk in your life – daily.
Are you ready this morning to have that victory in your life? Are you ready to pray and step back knowing that something is going to happen?
Let’s pray.
