Get Together – Don’t let The Enemy Rob You of Your Joy.
Joh 15:10,11 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
There is much that is going on in our culture that really concerns me. There is much going on that makes me angry. As a person that believes that life begins at conception. The Psalmist says it this way Ps 139:13 “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.” God spoke to Jeremiah about the office that He was called to even before he was formed in his mother’s womb. Jer 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” While not all of us may have a calling to be a Prophet. We all have a calling and purpose that God has ordained for our lives.
As a person that believes that marriage is between one man and one woman, and that God created us male and female. I get angry at the deception that is going on concerning the Holy institution of marriage. God made the decision on our sexuality. Ge 2:24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Ge 1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. The Hebrew term for wife here is woman ishshah, ish-shaw’. So, we know that a husband is a man. And a wife is a woman. And the husband is joined together with the wife.
I believe that we are to speak the truth in this, but we also called to speak the truth in love. One of the devices of the enemy with what is going on in our culture is to draw us into a fleshly argument with those who hold an unbiblical worldview on sexuality and marriage.
While we are to speak the truth in love. And while we can certainly have a righteous anger about these things. We must not let the forces of evil draw us into those fleshly battles that we are told in Eph 4:31 to not be a part of our witness for Jesus Christ “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.” (NKJV)
We can’t let the enemy put bitterness in our spirit. We can’t let the desire for revenge be in our spirit. As we see churches that stand for the truth on the issues that I just mentioned being firebombed and vandalized we can’t let the enemy still our joy. We are to stand for truth.
We look to Jesus Christ as our example. Remember what He told His disciples. In the verses following our opening verse He had this to say to them: Joh 15:18,19 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” Remember He was facing persecution from the religious leaders. He would also be nailed to a Roman cross. The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Ephesians from prison. So, while we are to speak the truth in love concerning some of the ungodly things that the culture would attempt to shove down our throats we are called to be different than the way the world reacts against us.
We are told in 2Co 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” We pray we fast,we encopurage one another. (NKJV) We do as Jesus told us to do in Mt 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” The Apostle Paul who faced beating, imprisonments and being run out of town had this to say concerning how we are to view those who hate us and oppose us. Ro 12:19-21 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good. (NKJV)
As we live in a culture that calls evil good and good evil may we allow the Holy Spirit to so govern our lives so that we to never compromise the truth. But by they same token may we never allow the enemy to draw us into fighting the way that the people who are under the influence of Satan fight their battles.
Now back to that joy thing that I titled this message with. Jesus who was going to be crucified was speaking to disciples who would face severe persecution and martyrdom. But He tells them that in Him their joy would be full. The Greek term for joy here is chara, khar-ah’. It means cheerfulness, calm, gladness. We can be calm. We can be cheerful because we know that He told us the following “Joh 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (NKJV)
Hell is throwing it’s most perverted and evil shots at the Blood bought Church of Jesus Christ at this time. And as we speak the truth in love we can rejoice and be of good cheer because in Jesus Christ we have overcome the world. So let us speak the truth in love. Let us pray for our enemies. By the way God loves to turn His enemies into friends. Can you imagine what God could do with some of the people that have been deceived and advocate for philosophies that go against the word and will of God should they come to repentance and be saved? So, speak the truth in love. Don’t be drawn into fleshly battles and let the joy of the Lord be your strength for such a time as this.
Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus, we ask you to help us during this time when we live in a culture that promotes so many things that go against your word, and Your will. Help us to speak the truth. Help us to speak the truth in love. And we thank You that no matter what in You our joy is full.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Love you all!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.
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