NOT OVERCOME - BUT NOT OVERCOMING
Have you ever hand a problem that was so big you just couldn’t seem to look beyone it, and so stubborn it just wouldn’t go away?
Day after day it’s like the devil is telling you how impossible it is.
You know many times Satan’s greatest weapon, his most used tactic to steal from us, is simply to get us to look his way; to focus our attention in his direction.
Peter looked at the wind and the waves. Martha looked at all the work to do.
You know one of the oldest tricks of fighting is if I can get you watching my right hand and then hit you with my left.
Satan is not only a master at deception, but also a master of distraction.
I want to talk to you today about how important it is to keep our attention on our covenant and not on how big our problem is.
In the 17th chapter of I Samuel, let’s read a few scriptures.
I’m going to basically preach or teach on whatever God wants from the whole chapter, but I feel like we should look at some scriptures specifically.
I Samuel 17:2-10 and verse 16.
Now Israel is on one mountain side and the enemy is on the other. The enemy has not overpowered them. Israel is still holding their own, but they haven’t gained any ground either.
The giant hasn’t overcome anyone yet, fear has. He is just there, always a threat.
Israel hasn’t been overcome, but they aren’t overcoming either.
Verse 16 says every morning and every evening the problem calls attention to itself.
Isn’t that the way of the devil?
As soon as you get up in the morning he reminds you of your circumstances, and before you can get to sleep at night he reminds you again.
We should be reminding him of his circumstances.
Israel and the Philistines had reached a stand off.
I believe some of us here today are in that position, and most of us have been at one time or another.
Not overcome, but not overcoming.
The Israelites were dismayed and afraid. They had lost their courage.
And in verse 24-25 we find the underlying problem.
The men of Israel said, "Have you seen this man that is come up?"
They were having trouble with their eyes and their mouth. Their eyes fixed on the problem and talking the problem and not the answer.
Where were they looking?
All the men of Israel when they saw the man were sore afraid. The enemy had their attention.
My friend, Satan is working to get your attention, to change your focus, to get your focus on the size of the problem so you will forget about the size of your God.
But God is about to send a young shepherd boy to bring a whole new perspective on the scene.
One who was sent by his Father, would bring food to his brethren, and conquer the giant.
Jesus conquered death.
Listen, Israel has been looking at the giant. They see themselves as already defeated.
Israel has become giant (problem) minded, but David is covenant minded. He sees the giant already defeated. Israel sees a giant too big to handle, David sees a target too big to miss.
David believed the promise whether his enemy be a lion, a bear, or a man.
David called the giant an uncircumcised Philistine. Circumcision was the mark of the covenant between God and Israel. David bore that mark in his flesh.
Friend, listen to me now please. Many times we are defeated because we have not given our attention to the promises and the covenant that we have with God.
Every Israelite soldier there had the same promise David had, but David was mindful of God’s promises.
Hebrews 8:6 tells us we have a better covenant then David. Our promises are sealed not in the blood of animals, but in the blood of Jesus.
Listen, one way to stay our attention on God is to talk about his victorys and to remind ourselves that no matter what giant raises up before us, our Lord has already defeated it.
David said, "The Lord delivered me out of the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear. He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine."
I have come to tell you today that if you have received the Holy Ghost, the one that is in you is greater than the one that is attacking you.
One way to shut the devil up when he is telling you all he is going to do to you is by telling him all that God’s done for you, and all he is going to do in the future.
I’ll close, but let me ask, "Is there a giant that is threatening you?"
Have you reached a standoff; where you haven’t been overcome, but you are not overcoming either?
You need to do 2 things:
1. Take your eyes off the problem, and put them on the promise.
2. Change your words from talking about defeat to talking about God victory and your victory through him.
