Fight & Follow

Galatians 5:16-26

“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.”

As Christians we are called to live a life that is different than that of the world, but what does that mean? The phrase “different than the world” can sound so judgmental and make us sound like we are trying to be better than everybody else, but that’s not the case. We are all naturally sinful people. From the day we were born we have always wanted to follow our natural desires. When we were hungry we cried for food, when we wanted a toy we took it even if someone else was playing with it. We naturally want what we want, and as we get older those desires don't change. We want what we want when we want it and that has and can get us in trouble. As Christians God has called us out of the darkness of our sinful nature to follow Him, and He will give us everything that we will need.  

When we became Christians we got a lot of help when it comes to fighting against our natural sinful desires. In Luke 14:16-17 Jesus says, “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.” We have all the power we need to fight the sin that we may constantly deal with, but how do we do that?

Defeating the sinful desires that we face isn't easy. Many times we fool ourselves thinking we can fight it off using pure willpower. We say in our minds that we can fight whatever that habit is, but when we do that we fight in our own strength instead of partnering with the amazing power of the Holy Spirit. We also can over spiritualize the situation at times and sit back praying that God will just take it away. Yes God can move suddenly and dry up some things in our lives, but we also have to understand that He can and will also bless a process. If we aren't willing to partner with the power of the Holy Spirit that’s inside of us I fear that we will never see the transformation and freedom that we seek.

The scripture makes it clear that following our sinful desires leads to all kinds of sinful acts (Galatians 5:19-21). Some may say that some of the sins are not as bad as the others, but that's just not true. Whether we deal with sexual sins or envy we cant allow either to run our life. All sin is a big deal and can do major damage in our live if we don't allow ourselves to be guided by the Holy Spirit in every part of our lives.

There are three tips I see in this scripture that will help us fight against our sinful nature and bad habits and live a life where we follow the Holy Spirit's lead. So how do we Fight and Follow?

1.     Realize It

    If we are going to fight against our sinful nature and follow the Holy Spirit we must first REALIZE that we are in a spiritual war and that we need some help.

    Have you ever been watching football and see the quarterback drop back to throw? As he locks in on the wide receiver on his left you see a big 300-pound lineman come on his right and lay him out? The quarterback was so focused on trying to make the big play that he didn't realize that he was about to get sacked. Sometimes that’s how our fight against our sinful nature can be. We can be so focused on the big plays, like perfect church attendance and other things that make us look good on the outside, but we forget the Devil is waiting to lay us out. 1 Peter 5:8 Tells us to, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. If we are going to follow the Holy Spirit we must first realize that we are in a battle and are in desperate need of a helping hand.

    Galatians 5:16-17 “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” We are all in a constant spiritual battle. Our sinful nature constantly fights against the Holy Spirit and if we are not aware that we are in that battle and that we have all the help we will ever need, then we will never experience the freedom and victory that we so desperately want.

2.     Identify It

    Being honest about where we are spiritually is the first step in fighting against our sinful nature and following the Holy Spirit's guide.

Have you ever watched a scene from one of those cop shows where a witness stands behind a mirrored glass window and has to choose from a group of people and identify which person they think is the perpetrator?  It seems like a lot of pressure to pick the person who may have hurt them or someone they love, but it's necessary in order to help the investigator identify the right person and put them away.

Most of us have bad sinful habits in our life that need to be identified and taken out of our life. 

    Too many times we go on through our life allowing our sinful habits to hurt and control our lives. The Holy Spirit gives us the power we need to fight against any sinful habit or problem that we may face, but we have to call it out first. When we expose our sin it starts to take away its power. I've heard it explained like this; Sin is like mold that grows best in cold, dark and hidden places like on the bottom of a rock, but when we turn that rock over and expose that mold to the sun it starts to die. When we identify and call out the mess of habitual sin in our life we not only expose it to others but to the SON who starts to kill that sin in our life.

    In Galatians 5:19-21 it is made clear what following our sinful desires can lead to. “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”

    I love this list because it calls out all types of sin and brings them all up to the same level. Too many times we minimize our sin because it's not as "big" as someone else's. Paul makes it clear here that sin is sin and if we are going to fight against it and follow the Holy Spirit then we can not allow our sinful desires to take lead.

If we want to start fighting the sin in our life and start following the Holy Spirit we must first be real about where we are Spiritually. Like the witness behind the mirrored glass we have to point out the sin we struggle with so that we can begin the process of getting rid of it. No matter if we consider our sinful habits "big" or "small" we have to get serious about identifying it, so that it can be cut out of our life.

3.     Fill it

As we start to identify the mess of our sinful nature and start to follow the Holy Spirit more we will start to be filled with the FRUIT of the Holy Spirit as a result.

We are all vessels. A vessel is made to hold stuff. Whether it's a bowl that holds crisp fruit or a cup that holds fresh cool water a vessels purpose is to be filled with something. If a bowl or cup isn't being used to hold something then it really doesn't have much of a purpose. We are all spiritual vessels, but unlike a cup or a bowl that spends most of its time in a cabinet not being used we are constantly being filled with something. Whether good or bad we are being filled, that's what we are made for. So if we are constantly being filled, then what are we being filled with? Naturally our sinful nature wants to fill us up. It's our job to make sure that we get filled with the characteristics of the Holy Spirit and not allow our sinful nature to take over our lives.

Galatians 5:22-23 says  “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

    This scripture points out the traits that the Holy Spirit will produce in us if we make the choice to follow it as we go through it. None of these traits come naturally to us and will take much intentionality and effort. We also must walk with humility when these traits start to become evident in our lives remembering that we are no better than anyone else and that God is doing the work in us.

    The Holy Spirit gives us the tools to fight against the sinful desires we face, but we have to make room for them. When it comes to being filled with the characteristics of the Holy Spirit we have to make sure that we are also allowing God to clean us of the stuff that may get in the way of the Holy Spirit flowing through us. Which brings us to our last point.

4.     Kill It

    If we are to be filled then parts of us must be killed. If we want to follow the Holy Spirit we have to identify the mess that's in us and get rid of it. Being filled with selfish desires and sinful habits leaves little room for the Holy Spirit to flow freely in our life.

I saw a news report of a woman who was fascinated with rats. She was so fascinated with rats that she had them as pets. She intended to only have rats of the same gender, but accidentally got two rats of opposite gender. Pretty soon rats had taken over her house, but the strange thing about it was that she didn't seem to be too bothered about it.

    Sin can be like that. We take it in because it seems cute and fun, but then we find ourselves with a sin infestation. In almost every corner of our life the sin has taken over, and if we aren't careful we can become comfortable with the sin in our life and not realize how much of a problem it is and not be aware of the damage it is causing in our life.

    The Bible makes its clear about what we should do with the sin in our life. Galatians 5:24-25 says, "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives."

    We can't be like the lady in the news report and become ok with sin taking over our life. We have to daily kill our selfish sinful desires in order to allow ourselves to be filled with the ways of the Holy Spirit. God wants us to be filled with love, joy, peace and all the other characteristics of the Holy Spirit, but that can only fully happen when we daily kill the lust, greed, jealousy and other sinful ways that are presently filling us up.

    So how do you Kill It? You kill those sinful desires daily, by intentionally praying to God each day and handing them over to Him saying something like, "Lord I give ________ (call out your sin) over to you today. It no longer has control over me, and I ask that you fill me with your Holy Spirit so that I may honor you in every way today." It's an exercise that we should do everyday and when we do we will start to see the power of the Holy Spirit guiding us in every area of our life. For some of us this may be a prayer that we pray not only daily, but multiple times a day. The point of doing this is to help us be aware that we can not beat our sinful desires on our own and that we should call on and depend on God to free us from the chains of our sins and fully trust that He is the only way we can truly break free.

Fighting against our sinful nature and following the Holy Spirit is not an easy thing at all, but if we are going to fully experience all that God has for us we have to make it a priority. For some getting others to help you may be a part of the process of you becoming free from the sinful desires that have taken over your life. Whether it be professional help or just simply having a spiritually mature friend help you out get the help that you need so that you can fight and follow.

A Greater Later (Genesis 25:27-34)

Genesis 25:27-34

Is what you want NOW worth giving up what you will get or plan for LATER? So many times we sacrifice our LATER for what we want NOW. We don't want to eat healthy NOW, so we gain weight LATER. We don't feel like working out NOW, so we become unhealthy LATER. We want to have sex NOW, so we bring extra emotional baggage into our relationships/marriage LATER. We want to look at pornography NOW, so we sacrifice our spiritual freedom LATER. We want to buy the new “whatever” NOW, so we forfeit our financial freedom LATER. We all have a NOW that is presently killing our LATER. We know we want to be GREATER LATER, but our appetite for NOW keeps getting in the way. 

In Genesis 25:27-34 we find ourselves having a front row seat to one of the worst NOW decisions. In the story Esau comes home from a long hunting trip literally starving. At the end of this encounter with his brother Jacob Esau ends up giving up his birth right for a bowl of stew....A BOWL OF STEW! The birthright was a special privilege that the oldest son had in the family. In addition to getting extra portions of the family inheritance the oldest son would become the leader of the family. In the heat of the moment Esau passed up a GREATER LATER for an immediate pleasure. 

How does it make sense for Esau to give all that up for one moment of satisfaction? When reading this scripture in the past I usually give Jacob a hard time for being so conniving to his brother and taking advantage of him, but what if Esau wasn't as much of a victim as we make him out to be? At the end of the day Esau was his own person, and was responsible for what happened. There had to be something Esau could have done to not put himself in a situation like this. Maybe he could have packed more food for the trip or maybe he could have come home sooner. I am not sure of all the details, but I know Esau could have planned better. 

Just like Esau we sometimes fine ourselves in a situation where we allow our hunger for NOW forfeit our GREATER LATER. So how can we minimize the chances of this happening? 

Evaluate your Now

As we wrap up the first month of 2017 its not to late to take a couple steps back and ask these questions: Is what I’m doing NOW causing me to forfeit my GREATER LATER? Are the choices you are making relationally, sexually, habitually, financially, emotionally and spiritually helping you towards building a GREATER LATER or are they destroying it? We all know the answer, so lets be honest with ourselves and work on doing less of what destroys and more of what builds. Esau didn't take the time to do this. Lets not make the same mistake. 

Plan for Your Later

My mentor tells me this quote from Benjamin Franklin all the time; “Failing to plan is planning to fail." This statement is so true. If we don't plan for our GREATER LATER then its not going to happen. Nobody accidentally becomes great they plan for it. Planning and hard work are the main ingredients for success there is no other way around it. We have to plan to lose weight, get out of debt, have a better relationship/marriage, stop looking at pornography, stop sleeping around, and eat better. Whatever it is that will make your later greater plan to do more of that and less of what will forfeit it. 

Get the Help You Need

As we move towards our greater later we have to keep in mind that we will need some help. No matter what level you are at or what you want to stop doing, we will all need at least a little help. Some of us may just need someone to hold us accountable to better habits. Some may need to seek professional help. Whatever you need to do to have a greater later DO IT! Do not allow embarrassment, fear or shame keep you from the greater later God has for you. GO GET YOUR GREATER LATER!!! 

Keep Waiting

For the last month or so God has really been dealing with me on this idea of waiting on Him. On one of my last blog post from November we talked about 4 things that we have to do while we wait on God (check out Why Wait on God below). In that post we talked about Joseph and how God showed him a great vision. God showed Joseph a great vision for his life, but Joseph had to wait on God. While Joseph was waiting he went through a lot of hard times (Genesis 38-41). But it was in those hard times that Joseph got everything that he needed to one day lead in Egypt.

As I continued to study about Joseph I went back in the scriptures and realized that his grandmother Rebekah didn't share the same type of patience (Genesis 27). In Genesis 25:23 Rebekah was told by God that her youngest son Jacob, Joseph’s father, would be greater than Esau, Jacob’s twin brother. In Genesis 27 Rebekah overhears a conversation Isaac, Joseph’s grandfather, was having with Esau about giving him the blessing he had the rights to as the oldest son. Rebekah then comes up with a plan for Jacob to steal that blessing from Esau. When I’ve read this story in the past, Genesis 25-27, I always gave Jacob a hard time for being so sneaky and conniving towards his brother, but I had never stopped to think about how much of that situation was crafted by Rebekah.  Rebekah took what God had promised her and tried to make it happen herself.

This story took me back to my original thought of waiting on God. How many times have we tried to make things happen on our own? Yes, God may have shown us that we were going to get a new job, be in a better relationship, and have better things for our life, but we cheat, steal or connive our way to the top. That's not the way God works. He wants us to wait, be patient and not try to force his will to happen. Yes our way may work, we may even get what we wanted, but it will never be as blessed as it could have been if we would have just waited on God to do it even better.

God's timing is so important for us. If we have been promised something from God then we can’t give up on waiting because it's not happening the way we want it to. Keep fighting to honor God at that job you may hate, keep fighting for that relationship that God said would get better, keep praying for your child who just can't seem to get it together. God says that His ways are perfect and better than we could ever think or imagine (Isaiah 55:8). Trust that his plan is so much better than yours and pray for the strength that you need to hold on until your promise comes. KEEP WAITING!

Fighting Shape Part 3

Round 3 is here! Check out the last part to my sermon "Staying in Fighting Shape" were we talk about another way we can fight against the lies this world tells us about Lust, Pornography & Fornication/Adultery.

Fighting Shape Part 2

The fight for purity continues! Check out this 2nd part to my sermon "Staying in Fighting Shape" were we talk about 3 ways we can fight against the lies this world tells us about Lust, Pornography & Fornication/Adultery. 

Fighting Shape Part 1

On one of my blog post we talked about the "3 Lies About Sex" (Lust, Pornography & Fornication & Adultery). In this video I talk about one way we can fight against those lies!

Why Wait on God?

The title of this post may raise a few eyebrows at first gaze. When the question of “why wait on God” is asked it can make us feel a little uncomfortable. The question, out of context, sounds like we are saying something like, “I don't need God” or “God is taking too long”, but that’s not what I am saying. Today I want to focus on why it is important for we as Christ followers to WAIT ON GOD.

In a culture where we get everything now we sometimes forget that God doesn't function like we do. We may pray for God to speed things up or make things happen now, but God knows the perfect plan He has for us and will not rush them. So what do we do as we wait on God?
In Genesis 38-41 we find a part of the story of Joseph. Joseph was a young man of God who had been shown a vision by God that we would one day be a great leader (Gen. 37:5-11), but due to jealousy, after hearing Joseph’s dreams, his brothers sold him into slavery. While being a slave he was lied on and thrown into prison, and only after all of the hardship he went through was he ready to be the great leader God showed him he was going to be. (Read chapters 37-41 for the full story.)

So what can we learn about waiting on God from Josephs story?

Expect Opposition

As Christ followers we have to understand that we will always face some type of opposition. We are the main targets for the Devil. He knows that God has a great plan for us, and he is going to try and do all that he can to stop it. Why? Because he knows that if we ever get to where God wants us to be that it will not be good for him. So while we wait on God we have to expect that the Devil will attack us, but we have to be ready.

Be Ready to Fight

Joseph had to fight while he waited. He went from being thrown into a hole by his brothers, to being sold into slavery, being lied on then thrown in jail. Joseph had to fight one of the greatest battles, the battle in his mind. The feeling of betrayal and the temptation to lose hope were all realities for Joseph, but he continued to fight and he never gave up. With the truth of the Word and our relationship with God we can fight against whatever the Devil brings our way. KEEP FIGHTING!

Trust your Placement

You may not like where you are right now; your job, marital status, sickness, family issues or whatever you may be facing, but you have to understand that God has you right were you need to be. I’m sure Joseph didn't like being at the bottom of a hole, a slave, being lied on, or being thrown in jail. But as we read the story we see that God placed him in each of those places in order for him to gain the wisdom, influence and muscle that he needed to one day lead in one of the most powerful places in that time. Don't fight your placement. Understand that God has you there for a purpose.

Work Hard Where You Are

While you are trusting that God has you where you are right now you have to work hard. Joseph did exactly that. Everywhere he went he was the hardest worker. He worked so hard as a slave and as a prisoner that he became a leader in both places (Gen. 38:2-6; Gen. 39:21-23). Yes you may hate your job, but be the hardest working person there. Yes you may hate that you are single, but work hard to become the woman or man of God that God is calling you to be. Yes you may not be the smartest person in your class, but let it be known through your actions that you will outwork everyone else. Its in those times where you will get all that you need to succeed at the next level and you will be an godly example for those watching you.

While we wait on God we have to understand that it’s so much bigger than us. Joseph went through all that he went through in order to save multiple nations (Gen. 41). God used what the Devil meant for Joseph’s bad and made it into Joseph’s great. Yes your pain is real and it hurts right now, but you have to keep going. Your family, city, state and generations to come are waiting on God to do something great through you. You cannot give up. Keep fighting and keep working hard. God has something great for you.