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Walking in the Favor of the Lord
By Pastor Jerry C. Vargo - Part Three
I. Introduction.
"FAVOR is the special affection of God toward you that releases an influence on you, so that others are inclined to like you, or to cooperate with you." - Lance Wallnau
A. We have been discussing the FAVOR of the Lord. How many of you are convinced you need the FAVOR of God?
Proverbs 19:12
"The king’s anger is as dangerous as a lion’s. But his favor is as refreshing as the dew on grass."
Another version says it like this…
"The king’s anger is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like welcome rain."
B. If your walk is dry and empty…you need the touch of the Lord’s FAVOR upon your life. It is refreshing like sweet rain on a spring day.
Proverbs 16:15
"When a ruler is happy and pleased with you, it’s like refreshing rain, and you will live."
C. Look, when you have the Lord’s FAVOR in your life, you will experience times of incredible refreshing.
D. We have looked at so many different characters in the Bible who had FAVOR—I wish I had the time to really tell all of their stories:
1. Ruth found FAVOR with Boaz – A type of Christ.
2. Hannah found FAVOR with the Priest Eli – Samuel the prophet was born and 1 Samuel 2:26 says…
"And the child Samuel grew on, and increased in FAVOR both with Jehovah, and also with men."
3. Nehemiah found FAVOR with the King—accomplished the mission of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.
4. Esther found FAVOR—so much so that the King offered her up to half his kingdom.
5. King David found FAVOR—even though he often failed. His heart was after the things of God.
II. Body.
A. Therefore, there is no doubt that the Bible promotes the principle of FAVOR. It is clear—God wants to bless us with FAVOR.
B. Lance Wallnau says that FAVOR is like being dipped in honey so that the blessings of God stick to us.
C. (Share examples of God’s Favor on your life at this point of the sermon--how he recently answered a really wild prayer as an example - I shared how God blessed me with a hot tub for free after "kind-of" praying after two years).
D. How do we get this FAVOR from God? That is what I want to deal with today. Quickly, I want to reference a few passages and talk about 3 ways to get this FAVOR:
1. Prayer Brings Favor!
A. Turn to 1 Corinthians 1:3-11.
B. Do you understand what Paul was saying here? He was saying that death was certain—the attack was beyond what any human could or should endure—it was so violent and overwhelming that he had no hope of escaping death!
C. Please understand that this was something that few if any of us have ever experienced. YET, it was through the PRAYERS of many that FAVOR was extended to Paul.
D. Those PRAYERS resulted in FAVOR. What was the FAVOR? They experienced deliverance from pending danger and death. IN ADDITION, that brought great COMFORT.
E. Listen to what the Psalmist said in Psalm 119:58:
Psalm 119:58
"I entreated Thy favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to Thy word."
F. This word "entreated" is an interesting word. It means to "be rubbed or worn even to the point of being wounded."
G. In other words, the Psalmist is saying, "I want Your FAVOR so badly; I am going to rub up against you in prayer even if it wounds me."
H. The idea here is that if we really want God’s FAVOR…we have to go after it and seek Him until we find Him.
Transition: The second way to get FAVOR according to the book of Proverbs is a three-step process:
2. Listening, Watching, and Waiting brings FAVOR!
A. Go with me to Proverbs 8:32-36.
B. Note these three things in verse 34:
1. Listening – To listen is to perceive with interest and to obey.
Note: The Bible is filled with instructions to listen: 284 references to the word. However, God’s intent is that we listen with the heart to obey…that is what brings FAVOR.
2. Watching – To watch is to stay awake or to be alert. Notice it is DAILY.
Note: The NT is abundant with encouragement to be on the alert—especially in reference to the return of Christ.
3. Waiting – To wait is to stand guard, to observe, or to give heed.
C. God is saying to the Body, "Listen to me with the intent to obey, stay alert on a daily basis, and wait for Me by standing guard and giving heed to Me."
D. When we cooperate in this way…we "obtain" (produce or furnish) FAVOR from the Lord. Verse 35.
3. Teaching and Understanding produce FAVOR!
A. Turn to Proverbs 13:14-15.
B. Teaching is not enough to produce FAVOR. Do you understand that just because we are being taught this principle of FAVOR does not mean we are walking in FAVOR?
C. Teaching does not necessarily produce anything. We can easily become as James said, "Hearers of the Word but not Doers."
D. This is very important. Teaching and Knowledge must be mixed with Understanding.
E. Lance Wallnau says it works something like this:
1. Teaching (Knowledge is Imparted).
Isaiah 5:13
"My people go into exile for their lack of knowledge; and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude is parched with thirst."
2. Illumination (The Light Comes On).
3. Revelation (The Veil is Removed).
4. Transformation (Change Begins to Happen).
5. Manifestation (There is a Demonstration and FAVOR begins to Materialize).
E. Look—many of us are not experiencing FAVOR because we have not understood FAVOR. We are lacking BLESSINGS because we are lacking in knowledge.
F. Wherever you are on this scale from knowledge to manifestation keep pressing in for more.
G. FAVOR is not given all at once. It is progressive—we see this even with the Son of God:
"…Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in FAVOR with God and men."
