5 WAYS TO FRUSTRATE FAILURE
1 Thessalonians 2:1-6a
INTRODUCTION: Failure is something we all want to avoid. No one likes to be known as a failure. No one likes to be associated with a failed anything. We all tend to look at people who have failed with a little cynicism. What’s wrong with them? They got what they deserved? Yet when we look at many of our American heroes, they “failed” first (at least in the eyes of others) before they succeeded. One who comes to mind is Abraham Lincoln.
"I do the very best I know how—the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so."
Abraham Lincoln’s life is the best example of his own words. Consider the chronology of his career:
1831. Failed in business
1832. Defeated for legislature
1833. Again failed in business
1834. Elected to legislature
1835. Sweetheart died
1836. Had nervous breakdown
1838. Defeated for speaker
1840. Defeated for elector
1843. Defeated for Congress
1846. Elected to Congress
1848. Defeated for Congress
1855. Defeated for Senate
1856. Defeated for Vice-President
1858. Defeated for Senate
1860. ELECTED PRESIDENT
—Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations
Paul, here in his letter to the Thessalonian Church gives us five ways to frustrate failure, to keep ourselves from being overwhelmed by it, and to give us a gauge by which we can judge our own spiritual success – ie: our success before God!
1. Frustrate Failure By Enlisting God’s Help
a. How many times have we
i. sought to go it alone?
ii. turned to God at the end instead of the beginning?
b. Paul takes stock of his time in Philippi
i. To the outside it looked like a failure (fruitless, empty, and ineffective)
ii. He was beaten
iii. He was imprisoned
iv. All that happened was insulting – underserved and contrary to the laws of that time
c. BUT
i. On the contrary
ii. With God’s help
iii. We will keep on sharing the gospel
iv. We will deal with the heart and not our critics
Paul declares that it is God’s help that allows them to frustrate failure and keep on sharing the gospel
Paul declares that it is God’s help that enables them to minister to the Thessalonians
Paul also says that with God’s help there is no opposition strong enough to bring him to failure
The phrase “strong opposition” has the meaning of one being exposed to the greatest dangers of life!
SO BEFORE WE GO ANY FURTHER – HOW MANY TIMES HAVE TASKS, ACTIVITIES, JOBS, AND SITUATIONS FRUSTRATED YOU AND MADE YOU THINK YOU WERE A FAILURE BECAUSE YOU SIMPLY DID NOT ENLIST GOD’S HELP?
CHURCH, ONE OF THE REASONS WE HAVE A STRUGGLE GOING OUT IN FAITH IS BECAUSE WE HAVE FORGOTTEN THE GOD FACTOR – GOD WANTS TO HELP AND GOD WILL HELP!
2. Frustrate Failure By Embracing Truth
a. So much of our failure comes from our refusal to embrace truth
b. Let me give you a for-instance
Romans 7:14-8:2 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. 1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
i. Here Paul battles with the power of his sin nature
ii. He cannot do what he wants and does what he does not want
1. Let me share how The Message interprets 7:25-8:2
Romans 7:25-8:2 (MSG) 25 The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.
1 With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud.
2 A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.
iii. The work of Christ in my life allows me to live a life of truth
1. A life that says, sin has no power over me
2. A life that says I am free from it influence
iv. The truth is that I am did to sin – and failure is when I refuse to act on the truth
SO, HOW MANY OF YOU TODAY REALLY BELIEVE THAT YOU CAN WALK OUT OF THIS CHURCH TODAY A BETTER PERSON, KNOWING THE TRUTH THAT JESUS HAS REALLY GIVEN YOU VICTORY OVER YOUR SIN NATURE.
WE BECOME FRUSTRATED WITH OUR CHRISTIANITY WHEN WE DO NOT EMBRACE THE TRUTH THAT SETS US FREE.
WE FAIL WHEN WE BELIEVE THAT WE CANNOT DO ANY BETTER FOR CHRIST, WALK ANY CLOSER TO CHRIST, ETC., ETC., ETC. WHEN THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT WE CAN BECAUSE JESUS MADE A WAY FOR US, NOT JUST OUR SALVATION, BUT OUR EVERYDAY WALK. HE NEVER LEAVES, HE NEVER FORSAKES, AND HE FREED US FROM FRUSTRATED FAILED LIVING.
3. FRUSTRATE FAILURE BY EMBODYING PURITY
a. First this starts with my thoughts. Jesus said it best,
Matthew 5:28 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Matthew 5:28 (MSG) But don’t think you’ve preserved your virtue simply by staying out of bed. Your heart can be corrupted by lust even quicker than your body. Those leering looks you think nobody notices—they also corrupt.
i. We become frustrated when our thoughts are not in the place God wants them to be because our thoughts left unchecked will find their way into our actions
ii. This is why Jesus speaks so powerfully about the connection of thoughts and sin
SO I FRUSTRATE FAILURE BY MAKING SURE MY THOUGHTS ARE IN THE PLACE THAT THEY NEED TO BE!
b. Purity continues with my actions. Again Jesus says it best
Matthew 5:23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
Matthew 5:23 (MSG) "This is how I want you to conduct yourself in these matters. If you enter your place of worship and, about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you,
i. The situation is offering in church
How deceitful the human heart is!
1) Some persons try to worship while there are bad feelings between themselves and other persons (Matthew 5:23-24).
2) Some persons try to pray with wrath in their heart (1 Tim. 2:8; Isaiah 1:15).
1 Timothy 2:8 I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
Isaiah 1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood;
3) Some persons say, "I love God" while they hate their brother (1 John 4:20).
1 John 4:20 If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
ii. The issue is that we cannot be pure before God is we have not first been pure before others
WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO BECOME TOO PURE! BY THAT I MEAN THAT WE BEGIN TO IMPRESS UPON OTHERS OUR STANDARD OF “PURITY” WHEN IN REALITY IT IS GOD THAT NEED TO IMPRESS HIS STANDARD OF PURITY ON OTHERS
JESUS WOULD SPEAK OF THE PHARISEES AS WHITE-WASHED SEPULCHERS – PURE ON THE OUTSIDE, BUT ROTTEN ON THE INSIDE.
WHERE WE BECOME FRUSTRATED IS WHEN WE STOP FOCUSING ON OUR OWN PURITY AND BEGIN ENACTING THAT SAME PURITY ON OTHERS – INSTEAD OF LETTING GOD DO IT
THEN WHEN OTHERS DO NOT FOLLOW SUIT WE ARE FRUSTRATED THINKING WE HAVE FAILED!
4. Frustrate Failure By Engaging God’s Approval
a. When Paul speaks about being approved by God he means
i. Counted worthy
ii. Put to the test
b. Approved by god to be entrusted with the gospel
c. This almost begs the question – Who is approved to be entrusted with the gospel? WE ALL ARE
i. Christ did the proving
ii. Christ provided the worth
d. One of the reasons we feel frustrated and failing in our Christianity is because we are not doing what we have been entrusted to do
e. We are doing lots of Christian things, but we are not doing what we are supposed to be doing!
Its like driving the wrong way to someplace and not knowing it. We are making great progress but not going in the right direction!
BELIEVER, IF YOU ARE NOT ABOUT THE BUSINESS OF THE GOSPEL, IT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT OTHER BUSINESS YOU ARE ABOUT, IT’S THE WRONG BUSINESS!
5. Frustrate Failure By Entertaining God’s Pleasure
a. We entertain God’s pleasure by stopping our desire to please men. We are never pleased enough. Please us once and we will expect more the next time!
i. Please people is a powerful temptation
ii. It brings immediate gratification
iii. It brings future influence
b. We please God by allowing Him to test our hearts
i. God tests our heart to see if there is any wickedness in us and drive it out
ii. Man tests our hearts to know where we draw the line
c. We please God when we use His Word for what it is, not what we want it to be
i. God’s Word is not a bully pulpit – for personal vendetta
ii. God’s Word is not a candy coating – for personal profit
d. We please God when His praise is first on our mind
SO PERHAPS WE NEED TO SPEND A SMALL AMOUNT OF TIME ASKING OURSELVES WHY WE FEEL SO FRUSTRATED IN OUR WALK WITH GOD. IS BECAUSE OF THESE AREAS PAUL DISCOVERED WHILE TRAVELING FROM PHILIPPI TO THESSALONICA?
TODAY, AS IN EVERY DAY, GOD WANTS US TO LIVE FULFILLED LIVE, NOT FRUSTRATED ONES
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