I'M IN THE FIGHT OF MY LIFE
HEBREWS 10:35
Hebrews 10:35 (DBY) Cast not away therefore your confidence, which has great recompense.
All of us have faced or are facing challenges and some of our challenges are intense. My Brothers and Sisters you need to know that challenges are not sent to knock the wind out of you and cause you not to pursue your purpose. Challenges help to define our meaning and purpose. As you encounter life, you have to realize that there is another side to suffering.
Its called Confidence or Boldness.
Boldness defined: is the quality of having a strong, vivid, or clear appearance; it involves the willingness to take risks and act innovatively; to have confidence or courage.
There are certain people in the world who live their lives BOLDLY.
Doing something big and bold — means taking risks that benefit you and can benefit society — means overcoming extraordinary hurdles.
It means attacking a challenge with all of your energy and focus, and many times remaining motivated for years to come.
Such passion and commitment can only come when you are emotionally committed with all of your heart and soul. And this level of commitment only materializes when your goal is powered by intense emotional energy.
There is nothing more powerful in your life than a cause you would willingly die for, whether it is your family or a belief you hold fundamental to your existence.
So Boldness is necessary because you don't want your life to be lived in vain. You don't want to come to the end of your life and say, "I feel empty." "It was all in vain."
We don't want to feel that way or say that. And so boldness is necessary to keep that from happening—so that our lives are not in vain.
Tell your neighbor, "Go and Live your Life BOLDLY!"
When challenges come you begin to realize that there is fight in you. I know that we wish that life would slow down.
However I have found out that life doesn’t make an appointment. Life just happens. So when it happens you have to be prepared for what’s coming.
1 Peter 5:8 says
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
When it comes to the enemy, you have to fight from a place of faith because you’re battle is not physical but it’s spiritual.
2 Corinthians 2:14 says
Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
This is a 100% guarantee from God that you will always be triumphant if you allow God to lead you.
Story has been told of a mental hospital that many years ago devised an unusual test to determine when their patients were ready to go back into the world. They brought a patient for release to a room where a water faucet was left on so that the sink overflowed and poured water all over the floor. To see how comprehensive they were they would hand the patient a mop and tell them to mop up the water. If the patient had enough sense to turn off the faucet before mopping up the water, they were ready to be released. But if, as in the case of many, the patient started mopping while the water was still flowing, they kept the patient for more observation and treatment.
As Christians, all of us face the world in which we live and are confronted with the need to do battle with the evil that dominates it. But, like the patients in the mental hospital, until we realize where the source of that evil is, we will make no real contribution. To see less evil in the world means that we must conquer the evil that is pouring forth from our own heart. That is conversion. Then, to deal with the evil around us, we need a “mop and bucket,” which is the spiritual armor that God has provided for us.
The Lord gives us to understand who and what our real enemy is. It is not the individual as much as it is the spirit in the individual. The enemy who is at the heart of the matter is satan. This is why you have to learn how to love the person and hate the spiritual influence that controls their actions.
Ephesians 6:12 says For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
We are fighting with everything that we have to hold on to what we have.
But this is more than us having the power to hold on to God, the strength of our salvation is knowing that He is also holding on to us.
He holds us while the enemy is buffeting us about, trying to destroy us and gain victory over our witness.
The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12:7 - 10 after he had a similar situation arise in his life. "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
We, therefore, must recognize that many times there is more going on than we recognize with our senses.
And while we are getting angry and upset over the condition of our lives, we can't forget that if things are going to change we have got to change them through the power of God.
Our adversary has studied us and has coordinated a plan of attack aimed at keeping you from enjoying your life in Christ.
And his scheme is so widespread that if he cannot destroy you, he'll aim his attacks towards the people closest to you and the interests that are near and dear to your heart.
Therefore, you have to fight not just for yourself, but spiritual warfare involves praying the devil off of your kids, praying him away from your spouse, taking authority over the devil on your job, defeating the enemy that's trying to take your mind.
I know that you are already saved, but your salvation was not enough to change the devil's mind about destroying you so you had better get ready for the fight of your life!!!
I KNOW THAT THE VICTORY IS ALREADY OURS, BUT WE STILL HAVE TO FIGHT!!!!!!
What Are The Weapons At Our Disposal?
I'm here to tell you today that God in all of His wisdom never would have left us down here to fight an enemy that we were not equipped to overcome. So He gave us some weapons that are for us to use against the wiles of the adversary.
First of all, we have the weapon of prayer.
This should be the first line of defense against the adversary: Prayer.
It should be the first thing that we do when trouble comes because it is what we should have been doing all the time.
The reason why some people are so weak that they cannot handle a fight is because they haven't been praying.
The Old Preachers use to say : If you don't Pray you won't stay; If you don't fast you won't last; If you don't read you won't be informed; if you don't watch you won't march.
Prayer is what strengthens us.
And if you wait until the enemy shows up to start praying, you are already at a disadvantage.
But if you know how to pray and get a prayer through, Jesus said that "whatsoever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
When the devil hears you call on the Name of Jesus, the Bible says that the demons start trembling and the enemies stronghold have to loose.....
When you call on Jesus .....Sickness and Diseases will dry up because of the authority of that name. Somebody shout "There is power in the name of Jesus"
Next, there is Fasting:
Jesus taught that there are certain spiritual enemies that we fight that will only be defeated by a combination of prayer and fasting.
Fasting kills the flesh and brings a spiritual awareness and sensitivity of the power of God in your life.
Fasting makes us more aware of spiritual things and aides us in our endeavors to be more like Jesus, as it makes us to understand what is going on in the spiritual realm around us.
Then there are the Angels:
The Bibles says in Psalms 34:7 that The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
I thank God for angels.
There are times in your life when God's angels are fighting for you and you don't even know it.
Listen, the enemy is releasing things in the heavenlies but you don't have to be worried or afraid because the angels of the Lord have gone to war on your behalf.
My mind goes back to the story of Daniel and how that he prayed to God for the space of three weeks or 21 days.
Notice that he didn't stop praying just because things had not changed, he didn't know what was happening all he knew was that his prayer was held up. Daniel was in spiritual warfare.
And while he was praying, it wasn't God that held his prayer up it was the devil.
But Michael, that warring angel, went hand to hand with the adversary and loosed Daniel's answer from the Lord.
Sometimes God has sent you the answer to your prayers and the enemy tries to hold it up, but the angels are there to assist you in your victory.
Finally, there is the weapon that the saints of old really understood and that is The Power of the Blood of Jesus.
This is one weapon that the enemy can't stand.
The blood represents the ultimate defeat.
Whenever the enemy would attack people years ago, it was common for the saints to do what they called "Plead the Blood"!
When they were rebuking the devil, they would say one of the most damaging things to the ears of the devil.....They would comfront him with the words "Satan, the Blood is against you!"
If the devil don't like what he hears, the only way he can cover his ears is to let go of what belongs to you!
To Wrestle Means "Hand To Hand" Combat
And this is the reason why to change many things, you must be willing to struggle and go to war, even if it means that you've got to sweat and get dirty in the process. To wrestle denotes hand to hand combat.
The Apostle Paul told us the other day to Fight the good fight of faith and lay hold to eternal life.
You've already won, but you still have to fight.
The devil would love to ruin you, but the power to succeed is in your hands. So this evening I encourage you to FIGHT!
Don't allow the enemy to ruin you or anyone else that you know.
Your family is worth fighting for.
Your health is worth fighting for.
Your peace of mind is worth fighting for.
Your ministry is worth fighting for.
If you have to roll up your sleeves and go hand to hand, fight for it.
Tell that drug addicted son, "I'm fighting for you!"
Tell your daughter the promiscuous one , "I'm fighting for you!"
Tell them that you've prayed too long to see them just die and go to hell.
Tell them that you've prayed too long to lose them to the streets.
Fight for them until they see the need to fight for themselves.
If one can put a thousand to flight and two can put ten thousand to flight, then sooner or later, everything around me will be covered by the power of God!
While you're fighting, remember that a thousand shall fall at thy side, ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee.
2 Timothy 2:12 says, "If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us.
Your ability to stay in the fight will get you to the next level.
This is the season for preparation.
The season following your painful predicament is practice for your promotion.
You got to stay in combat mode. Don’t become comfortable or complacent. Some people can pass the strength test, but not the endurance test.
David says in Psalm 40:1-2 I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined unto me, And heard my cry. 2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.
David gives us insight of something he encountered. This was not a physical place, it was a spiritual place.
David said he was in a dark pit, in slippery clay. When he tried to get out, he kept slipping back in it.
To keep slipping back, trying to come out, implies that David was here for a while. He was there long enough to realize that he couldn’t get himself out, so he cried out to God! He prayed to Him who could get him out and so God reached down and pulled him out of this place and did for David what he could not do himself.
God set his feet on a rock. He established his going. David implies that he was in a pit filled with darkness and despair.
He was functioning in a slippery space. He learned how to survive in the mud. He was institutionalized by his situation.
When God brought him up, He set him up on new terrain. It was a stable foundation and God had to teach David how to walk on it, reminding him that he belonged there. David had been in his situation so long, he did not know how to function in his new environment.
If I don’t’ understand how to establish how to operate on my new foundation, I live in fear that I might slip and fall. You got to learn how to walk on your new terrain when God brings you up.
You got to believe in you. God didn’t bring you up for nothing.
If you hadn’t hit rock bottom, you wouldn’t know that life had a bottom.
B. You are called to walk in confidence to the place He is about to take you
God is about to take you somewhere.
Some of you have already been sensing it in your spirit.
2 Corinthians 2:9 (NKJV) 9 For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things.
You got to be willing to fight through some things in order to get to the place you dreamed about.
“Great it is to dream the dream when you stand in youth by the starry stream, but a greater thing is to fight life through and say in the end the dream is true!” –John Osteen
God set great things in your path, but they won’t come to past, if you don’t fight for it.
You can’t just hope for the best. You got to fight through it and make great decisions.
We think through faith and we study the word in context.
Divine intervention doesn’t happen without human interaction.
You have a role in the process.
Human responsibility + divine intervention makes (=) miracles happen.
David had to fight from the pasture all the way to the Palace.
Joseph didn’t make it from the pit to palace without fighting through some things. That person around you who is looking nice, who seems to have it all together, will tell you that they had to do a lot of fighting to get where they are today.
The Significance of the Promise
There is a promise that’s guaranteed for those who learn how to endure. That promise is that you won’t have to wait long.
Hebrews 10:37 says “For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. It won’t take long.
You been hit so much, that you’ve developed an immunity to it. But your promise is on the way.
Your continuance in faith and perseverance. Serves as a step of transition to the disquisition on faith.
Daniel didn’t run from the lions in the lion’s den. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego didn’t run from the fiery furnace.
Isaiah 41:10 says Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Know that you can endure.
2 Timothy 2:3 says You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
You’ve rid yourself of fear. Now:
Faith is required on the journey towards your future.
Forgive those who hurt you
Forsake trying to impress others
Forge new and healthy relationships
Focus on what’s important
Faith it, don’t fake it
1 Corinthians 15:58 says Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.– What you are doing is not out of order.
Conclusion:
Romans 8:18 says
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
2 Corinthians 4:7 says For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.
1 Corinthians 2:9 says Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
Every attack that is coming is coming after your hope. The enemy wants your hope.
Your hope is tied to your faith.
You got to come to place where you believe in yourself.
Stop doubting where you are right now and say God I know your going to bring me out of this.
You may have made mistakes, but now that's behind you.
Romans 8:18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
While the word "glory" is often mentioned without the "sufferings" the "sufferings" are never mentioned apart from the "glory". There is glory coming in your life. Glory does not come in your life absent from a story. No story, no glory.
You wouldn’t go through it, unless God was about to blow your mind. The glory of the Lord will come over everything in your life, because you didn’t give up.
Stay in the ring and keep fighting because you are in the fight of your life!
What Was the Significance of Jesus' Transfiguration?
https://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/don_stewart_786.cfm
Even So Come Lord Jesus!
Apostle Dr Charles C Jones
1/20/2019
