Reliance - Perplexed But Not In Despair

[00:00:00] Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart.

[00:00:06] But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling

[00:00:12] the Word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every

[00:00:17] man's conscience in the sight of God.

[00:00:20] But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds

[00:00:25] the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe lest the light of the gospel of the

[00:00:30] glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

[00:00:34] For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bond-servants

[00:00:39] for Jesus' sake.

[00:00:41] For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shown in our hearts

[00:00:46] to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

[00:00:51] For we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God

[00:00:57] and not of us.

[00:00:58] We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed.

[00:01:02] We are perplexed, but not in despair.

[00:01:05] Persecuted, but not forsaken.

[00:01:07] Struck down, but not destroyed.

[00:01:10] Always caring about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus

[00:01:14] also may be manifested in our body.

[00:01:17] For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus

[00:01:22] also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

[00:01:25] So then death is working in us, but life in you.

[00:01:29] And since we have the same spirit of faith according to what is written, I believed

[00:01:34] and therefore I spoke, we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that he who raised

[00:01:39] up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus and will present us with you.

[00:01:45] For all things are for your sakes, that grace having spread through the many may cause

[00:01:50] thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

[00:01:53] Therefore we do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing.

[00:01:58] Yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.

[00:02:01] For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more

[00:02:06] exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

[00:02:09] While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are

[00:02:12] not seen, for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are

[00:02:16] not seen are eternal.

[00:02:19] Lord thank you for your word, thank you for your promises, thank you for the hope

[00:02:23] that is in us.

[00:02:25] Thank you Jesus that you transform us from image to image and from glory to glory

[00:02:30] that you are ever renewing us through your infinite and gracious strength.

[00:02:35] Thank you for providing everything we need Lord.

[00:02:39] We look to you and we want to glorify your name, but we can only do so through your

[00:02:44] leading, through your word, through your strength, through communion with you.

[00:02:49] Jesus all glory and worship is unto you.

[00:02:52] We love you and we bless you.

[00:02:54] Redeem this time, help us to grow in our faith and to become more mature in our

[00:03:00] walk with you.

[00:03:01] Move us forward day by day, moment by moment, step by step.

[00:03:06] Bless and be with us now Lord as we seek your face and your will for this time.

[00:03:13] We bless you and we praise you in Jesus name, amen.

[00:03:18] This powerful chapter from the book of 2 Corinthians, this is chapter 4, is an

[00:03:25] exhortation and an encouragement that really strikes home to me because it

[00:03:32] speaks to the perseverance that is necessary.

[00:03:35] It speaks to the motivation that we have and it speaks to this contrast of the

[00:03:41] things that we are laying down and the things that we are picking up.

[00:03:45] And in light of all these, it is critically important to understand that

[00:03:51] the impetus, the power, the origination, the cause of this transformation

[00:03:58] is dedicated and given exclusively to God here.

[00:04:03] It is because of Jesus that we have this life that can be manifested in our body.

[00:04:10] And there's again this constant contrast from Paul between the body of death,

[00:04:17] the physical body, carnality, mortality and the spiritual things.

[00:04:23] The life of Christ, this resurrection life symbolized by baptism that will come to

[00:04:30] fruition.

[00:04:31] The promise of the resurrection is stated again here clearly because of

[00:04:38] the fruits of the gospel.

[00:04:40] And in this way it is incredibly important for us to be reminded of this,

[00:04:46] to think about the position that the disciples and the apostles were in as

[00:04:53] they went about their way in a world that was incredibly hostile to what they had

[00:04:59] to say, apart from the agency of the Holy Spirit and these powerful,

[00:05:05] supernatural transformations, this inward renewal.

[00:05:09] Paul writes that we are hard pressed on every side.

[00:05:12] We are perplexed.

[00:05:13] We are persecuted.

[00:05:14] We are struck down, but we are not crushed.

[00:05:17] We are not in despair, not forsaken, not destroyed.

[00:05:21] And that conflict, that eternal struggle is something that plays out in our lives,

[00:05:30] even if we are not in the same position as the apostle Paul.

[00:05:36] It doesn't take much for us to feel like we are hard pressed.

[00:05:40] We as people in the flesh are in circumstances in our day to day lives

[00:05:47] where it doesn't take a whole lot depending on our attitude,

[00:05:50] depending on our mindset to ruin a day, to occupy our minds.

[00:05:56] Nine out of every 10 things or 99 things out of every 100 things

[00:06:01] or 999 things out of every 1000 things could be going perfectly or just fine.

[00:06:07] But we can always fixate on that one thing that just takes over our consciousness

[00:06:15] and just affects us so disproportionately.

[00:06:19] And that's because we're not disinterested.

[00:06:22] We are not in a situation where we can step back in all circumstances

[00:06:30] and say, OK, well, let me write down a list of all of the things that are going on.

[00:06:35] Here's this thing in the grand scheme of things.

[00:06:37] It doesn't matter.

[00:06:39] We don't run those processes.

[00:06:41] But if we are to absorb the lessons that are taught in witticisms

[00:06:48] and pippy sayings like don't sweat the small stuff,

[00:06:51] you know, we have to have an understanding of why.

[00:06:54] But there is something strong built into us and part of our survival instinct

[00:07:01] and many other things where we will wait and carry more towards the negative emotion side.

[00:07:09] One negative thing will even if the objective impact is comparable

[00:07:15] to a positive thing that's happening at the same time, it won't put us in a better position.

[00:07:20] We will we will always fixate on the negative more so than the positive in our own natural selves.

[00:07:28] And this is why if you if you think about just people's own self reported happiness,

[00:07:34] let's say you compare one person who just walks down the sidewalk from point A to point B,

[00:07:38] another who walks down the sidewalk and finds a $20 bill,

[00:07:43] but then a gust of wind blows it away and they don't have it anymore.

[00:07:47] The person in the second situation is worse off mentally and psychologically

[00:07:52] than the person in the first situation, even though objectively speaking,

[00:07:56] they're in the same situation.

[00:07:57] They were at the they were at the starting point.

[00:08:00] And so the negative emotional content of losing that money was it outweighs

[00:08:08] the gain of that kind of windfall.

[00:08:11] And so what we need to understand is that if we are left to our own devices,

[00:08:19] if we are in a situation where we're in a high paced world

[00:08:25] where tons of things are happening day to day,

[00:08:28] there are always going to be things that are disappointing, bad,

[00:08:34] just negative things that can happen, particularly if we're paying attention

[00:08:38] to what's going on in the world.

[00:08:40] And our own disposition is primed to fixate on negative emotion.

[00:08:47] And so we're not going to be able to outweigh those things without specific

[00:08:54] and directed effort.

[00:08:55] However, we find ourselves with a resource.

[00:09:00] We find ourselves understanding what Paul is writing to say he's going through

[00:09:06] not just him, but those who are preaching Christ.

[00:09:09] They are going through tremendous difficulty.

[00:09:11] They are hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted

[00:09:16] and struck down, but they're not in despair and they're not forsaken

[00:09:22] and not destroyed.

[00:09:25] I want to focus on the forsaken aspect here.

[00:09:28] If we know through the working out of our own walks with God

[00:09:35] that God is with us and we know this not just propositionally from understanding

[00:09:41] the characteristics of God, but we know it personally because we see the

[00:09:46] activity of God in our lives that comes along with the peace that passes

[00:09:53] understanding, because when we understand who God is and the depth of the love

[00:09:59] that he has for us and his power and his perfect love and his perfect knowledge,

[00:10:05] then we can walk through these things.

[00:10:08] We're not going to be able to do it otherwise.

[00:10:11] But when we see negative things happening, but we know that it will be

[00:10:17] for the glory of God, so this would exclude negative consequences happening

[00:10:21] from the bad things that we do, the things that we fail to do,

[00:10:26] the basics, but when we are earnestly striving for God and we see challenges

[00:10:32] come on, we know that all things are working together for God's glory.

[00:10:38] So if we place our intention on him, if we seek first the kingdom of God,

[00:10:42] then we will have the same kind of mentality and the same kind of attitude,

[00:10:47] not just of resilience or anti fragility where we will get stronger

[00:10:52] as we come under pressure, but peace amidst that the kind of the kind of thing

[00:10:58] that these days is so desperately needed.

[00:11:02] And this is the life of Jesus and the Paul is saying maybe manifest it in our

[00:11:08] mortal flesh, we can live that life, not that we can be sinlessly perfected

[00:11:13] like Jesus because Jesus is a divine person and we are human persons.

[00:11:18] We are in a different state of affairs.

[00:11:21] So we are not God like in that sense,

[00:11:24] although we are being perfected and made more into the image of Christ.

[00:11:30] And so when we find

[00:11:34] these sort of pockets in our lives where we go through seasons where we really

[00:11:39] do feel like that life is being present, we have to earnestly

[00:11:44] persevere to work to maintain that because there is just something about the fabric

[00:11:53] of human existence that will draw us back down and will draw us away from that,

[00:11:59] that will seek to distract or dissuade or discourage.

[00:12:04] And it's up to us to deliberately every single day to make that decision to say,

[00:12:10] I am completely dependent on God for everything that I need.

[00:12:16] I know he will not forsake me.

[00:12:18] I need to seek his face.

[00:12:20] I need to seek his will.

[00:12:21] I need to do what he wants me to do.

[00:12:24] And in so doing, the power of this risen life that Jesus possesses can be

[00:12:32] given to me in some measure.

[00:12:35] And so when we are of one mind about this, when we are unified in our service

[00:12:42] of Jesus and our desire to be obedient to Christ, there can be this kind of

[00:12:49] renewal and this kind of refreshing of fellowship where rivers of water are

[00:12:56] pouring out and it's just something ineffable that everyone understands.

[00:13:01] So this is good.

[00:13:02] This is right.

[00:13:03] This is powerful.

[00:13:05] And whenever, whenever there is really good fellowship, really solid fellowship,

[00:13:11] and then you return to your routine, you understand how much or how far away

[00:13:18] these two things can often be the mandain against the secular or the sacred

[00:13:25] and the day to day routines against like special times of fellowship, whether

[00:13:29] they're at conferences or hopefully in your local church and everything else

[00:13:33] like that, and it impresses upon us or at least it should.

[00:13:38] The question that, well, why isn't that an everyday routine?

[00:13:44] Why isn't that something that should be a better and larger part of our lives?

[00:13:50] And it's a good question.

[00:13:52] We don't have to live the ways that we do.

[00:13:55] We can be changed in this regard.

[00:13:57] We have to make some deliberate choices in order to do that.

[00:14:00] But it can start.

[00:14:02] It can start at home.

[00:14:03] Imagine imagine a household where there is genuine Christ centered,

[00:14:10] uplifting, mutually encouraging iron, sharpens iron, worshipful fellowship

[00:14:16] that persists between a husband and a wife and their children, God willing.

[00:14:22] In that kind of environment, you have this Holy Spirit fellowship where two

[00:14:26] or three are gathered together and he is in the midst.

[00:14:29] And that is a purposeful part of day to day activities and it's just an ongoing

[00:14:36] normal type of thing.

[00:14:38] And I think for families in today's day and age, that is harder and harder to get.

[00:14:45] There is so much desperation for genuine community, genuine friendships.

[00:14:51] And this is particularly true for people who have, you know, they were operating

[00:14:56] in the world before, before getting saved.

[00:14:58] They have friends and colleagues and different kind of work environments and

[00:15:02] families, but it's often a mixed bag and people aren't like minded.

[00:15:06] And just, you know, how refreshing it is just to talk to some person and know

[00:15:12] that you're on the same page and you get one another as opposed to having

[00:15:16] to go through all of these machinations and calculations in your mind about

[00:15:21] what if I say this or that or the other thing and how is this going to

[00:15:24] impact stuff?

[00:15:26] There's just a release of tension when you know that you're with someone who is

[00:15:31] like minded, particularly in spiritual things, particularly in a view of this world.

[00:15:37] And so if that is the case in our homes, think about the contrast.

[00:15:42] Think about the difference.

[00:15:43] Think about the power and the capability that is at play here.

[00:15:47] If husband and wife are unified in their worship and their fellowship and

[00:15:53] they're talking about God and the things of God while they're taking care

[00:15:58] of their day to day duties and not getting sucked into all of the different

[00:16:04] frustrations that can come up, then there is power in that.

[00:16:09] Then we understand that there are challenges, but we will not be in despair

[00:16:14] because we have ongoing fellowship with the Lord and it is continually

[00:16:18] enriching and empowering and self-reinforcing in a way that points us as a picture to eternity.

[00:16:26] You know, there are certain times in life where you have an experience

[00:16:30] and you're in the Lord with other believers and there's just something

[00:16:36] that impresses upon you.

[00:16:37] This is a taste of what heaven is like and maybe that's in a particular

[00:16:43] particularly potent worship service where the Holy Spirit is present in such a powerful

[00:16:48] form, maybe that is in a time of study and reflection where there's a genuine

[00:16:56] revelation about who God is that we can see something that we didn't see before.

[00:17:01] This revealed to us an incredible truth about God that is consistent with

[00:17:06] the scriptures and it's just real.

[00:17:08] We get some insight, a word of knowledge, a word of wisdom.

[00:17:11] Maybe it's a time in prayer where we see perseverance and even if we don't see

[00:17:17] everything about the answer just yet, we know that there is victory.

[00:17:21] We know that there is transformation and we come out of that prayer changed

[00:17:26] in our attitude and in our mental approach to these things.

[00:17:30] And maybe it's in some other context.

[00:17:33] Maybe it's in the context of a conference of like-minded people talking

[00:17:38] about the same thing, but you get this taste of what what blessing comes from unity.

[00:17:45] What blessing comes from people seeking the Lord and seeking the kingdom

[00:17:50] of God together and it doesn't mean that there is that everything is always

[00:17:55] going to be smooth sailing.

[00:17:57] That's certainly not guaranteed in this life.

[00:17:59] But what is guaranteed is that there is a blessing of God that is there

[00:18:04] and that it will be active and powerful and transformative.

[00:18:09] And we can choose to place our effort into maintaining those kinds of experiences.

[00:18:17] You don't have to go chasing them elsewhere.

[00:18:21] You can find them in your own home and by all means avail yourself of them

[00:18:25] whenever they are available, but it's important for us to deliberately

[00:18:29] seek these things out if we do not.

[00:18:32] Then we're in a position to be missing out on one of these key counterbalancing

[00:18:38] forces, these key counterbalancing setups that can outweigh the sort of just deep

[00:18:45] gravity, the psychological gravity of the world that we live in and the

[00:18:49] situations we find ourselves in that can be guaranteed to be perplexed.

[00:18:55] But we're not necessarily guaranteed to be in despair.

[00:18:59] We have a refuge.

[00:19:00] We have a resource.

[00:19:01] We have a promise.

[00:19:03] We have a hope.

[00:19:04] We're not we're not going to avoid being hard pressed at every side in certain

[00:19:08] situations, but we have a protection.

[00:19:11] We have a fortress.

[00:19:12] We have a guardian so that we will not be crushed.

[00:19:15] There will be persecution.

[00:19:17] People, even people we love, people we care about are not going to agree with

[00:19:22] us, approve of approve of what we say, think, believe or do.

[00:19:27] And there are there are people who would stand in opposition and in dramatic

[00:19:34] ways, in many cases, but we have a resource.

[00:19:37] We have a high priest.

[00:19:38] We are not forsaken.

[00:19:40] We can even be struck down.

[00:19:41] Victories can be won against us in the in the natural, but we're not destroyed

[00:19:48] because ultimately our lives are in God's hands.

[00:19:51] And the Lord Jesus is alive and he, God who raised up the Lord Jesus will

[00:20:00] also raise us up with Jesus.

[00:20:03] He will raise us up.

[00:20:06] We will not die, but live and live eternally.

[00:20:10] So Paul says, do not lose heart because you understand these things.

[00:20:17] Challenges will come.

[00:20:18] Trials will come.

[00:20:19] We have a resource of infinite power, love and gratitude in the grace of God.

[00:20:27] And when we are in a state of unity where we are actively pursuing them,

[00:20:33] having other people to push you along this route is so incredibly helpful,

[00:20:39] is so incredibly valuable to maintain your trajectory.

[00:20:44] Do not lose heart.

[00:20:47] As Paul says, there's plenty to lose heart about, but we have to understand the

[00:20:51] situation. Paul says our outward man is perishing.

[00:20:55] There is no doubt about that.

[00:20:57] We are getting older slowly, but surely.

[00:21:01] But it is a good thing that our outward and carnal impulses and everything

[00:21:07] else that's associated with it perishes.

[00:21:10] These things don't lead us in the right in the right direction.

[00:21:13] But the inward man is being renewed day by day, says Paul.

[00:21:17] Well, that is that is the countervailing situation.

[00:21:22] That is a countervailing force.

[00:21:23] There is no way to avoid the outward man perishing.

[00:21:27] But whether or not our inward man is being renewed day to day,

[00:21:30] I would encourage us to check.

[00:21:32] Is your inward man being renewed day by day?

[00:21:35] Is your spirit being refreshed day by day?

[00:21:38] Are you moving forward in the Lord day by day?

[00:21:42] Are you increasingly confident in his provision?

[00:21:46] Do you feel his peace more day by day?

[00:21:49] And if you zoom out from a day by day

[00:21:52] perspective, because there are times and seasons where we feel like we're doing

[00:21:56] better or worse year by year, decade by decade, whatever time scale by

[00:22:02] whatever time scale, do you know and can you point to scenarios and situations

[00:22:08] and tendencies and trends and just a general inclination that you are being

[00:22:13] renewed day by day?

[00:22:15] Because if we are not, if we are not

[00:22:18] assenting to that and working towards it and fighting for it, then this

[00:22:25] perishing of the outward man will continue.

[00:22:28] It will continue unabated and our capacities will be eroded.

[00:22:33] And so this perspective of the temporary versus the eternal is

[00:22:38] absolutely critical.

[00:22:39] It allows Paul to describe what he is going through, which includes imprisonment

[00:22:44] and shipwreck and being physically beaten and ultimately being executed

[00:22:49] and martyred for the faith and to call it a light affliction.

[00:22:53] Well, in the light of a billion years,

[00:22:57] a few a few decades of pain is not is not much.

[00:23:01] And if you if you ask people,

[00:23:04] if you really understood the rewards, what price would you be willing to pay

[00:23:10] in order to arrive at those at those rewards?

[00:23:14] And, you know, again, we can't have the full picture, but we can trust the

[00:23:19] Word of God. We can know what Jesus has said.

[00:23:23] His promises are true and it is perfectly appropriate for us to look on

[00:23:29] what we have to face as light affliction, but it will not seem like light

[00:23:35] affliction if our inward man is not being renewed day by day.

[00:23:38] It will seem like more than we can bear.

[00:23:41] And that is the state of affairs for many people in the world.

[00:23:45] I often look around and we see the statistics about mental health

[00:23:50] and depression and anxiety and all of this.

[00:23:52] And it's no surprise.

[00:23:54] We have people walking around without the resource of Jesus,

[00:23:59] without the grace of God, without the capacity for their inward man to be renewed

[00:24:04] day by day and this the world is so increasingly toxic in the in the human

[00:24:12] sense, in terms of the propagation of negative information and things that we

[00:24:15] can latch on to that that ruin that ruin our day, that ruin our week,

[00:24:19] that ruin our hope, that steal all of these things from us.

[00:24:23] Good things that God wants us to have.

[00:24:25] The peace that passes understanding, a contentedness in our spirit,

[00:24:29] restful sleep at night, health in our bodies.

[00:24:32] All these things can be stolen from us.

[00:24:35] And if we do not have the promise of glory, if we do not have a genuine true hope,

[00:24:40] if we do not have Jesus, if someone is in that position, how could they be being renewed?

[00:24:46] It must feel like such a Sisyphean task to imagine that you can just

[00:24:53] overcome anything that is coming against you.

[00:24:56] You will lose the outward man is perishing.

[00:24:59] It doesn't matter how many mindfulness exercises you do, it doesn't matter what kind

[00:25:04] of workout and health routine you have.

[00:25:07] It doesn't matter what kind of workshops you attend, self-improvement.

[00:25:11] It doesn't matter any of those things.

[00:25:14] There has to be real, ontologically secure, genuine hope and a complete

[00:25:20] understanding and an active walking with Jesus Christ, an active presence of the

[00:25:27] ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives in order for us to be renewed day by day.

[00:25:32] And only then, only then when we are regularly and persistently seeking

[00:25:38] this renewal, then we can say that the affliction that we are under is light

[00:25:43] and is but for a moment and is part of what is working for us,

[00:25:48] it's a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

[00:25:52] And so it's one of those, it's one of those things where we read in the Bible

[00:25:57] and we say, yes, and amen, but it's easier said than done.

[00:26:00] We do not look at the things which are seen, which are temporary,

[00:26:04] but we look at the things which are not seen, which were eternal.

[00:26:07] And on its face, you'd say, well, how do you look at something that is unseen?

[00:26:12] Well, how do you?

[00:26:15] We can see the impact of the promise of eternity, of the hand of God,

[00:26:21] of the Holy Spirit all around us.

[00:26:25] We can't see the physical substance of the third person of the Trinity

[00:26:30] himself as the Holy Spirit, but we know that he is at work.

[00:26:36] When we look, we don't just perceive with our with our eyes.

[00:26:41] When the Bible says, look in this in this context, we are taking in.

[00:26:46] We are perceiving.

[00:26:47] We are understanding.

[00:26:49] It is not just physical sight.

[00:26:52] In fact, everything around us, even the even the beauty that is embedded

[00:26:57] so magnificently in the creation of God will be rolled away and burnt up.

[00:27:04] There will be a new heavens and a new earth.

[00:27:06] There will be a new creation.

[00:27:08] We are promised that and Jesus is faithful in his promises.

[00:27:13] The Word of God is faithful in what it teaches.

[00:27:16] And so when we look at the temporal things around us, whatever,

[00:27:21] whatever is causing frustration or pain or hurt or damage or discouragement

[00:27:28] or any of these things, it is one thing to just say, OK, I know

[00:27:33] and I believe that I should be quote unquote shrugging these things off.

[00:27:37] It's another to then say, OK, well, how am I going to do this?

[00:27:42] How am I successfully going to focus on the things that are eternal

[00:27:47] in such a way that it allows me to wake up every single day to face what I need

[00:27:52] to face and to end to take it on knowing that these are light afflictions.

[00:27:58] Because in many cases they are extremely challenging circumstances.

[00:28:04] Life impacting life or death, even circumstances that people find themselves in.

[00:28:10] But how can I face all of that and still say that my inward man is being renewed

[00:28:17] day by day, my spiritual life is strengthening and I am moving forward

[00:28:23] and that these things will ultimately help bring glory to the kingdom of God

[00:28:28] and that they will do good in my life and in the lives of others?

[00:28:32] Well, there is no five step process.

[00:28:36] There is no simple, simple recipe.

[00:28:40] There is no easy solution.

[00:28:42] There is no shortcut, but there is a resource, a holy, a loving, a perfect

[00:28:48] and omnipotent God who has infinite arrays of grace and strength and faith

[00:28:57] and every single spiritual resource that we need.

[00:29:01] And he earnestly wants to bestow these things upon us so that they can be used

[00:29:06] as a testimony to his glory and to his love so that others, many others would

[00:29:12] see with their eyes and would come to believe in the gospel that the Lord

[00:29:18] and the Holy Spirit would lead and equip people in the faith in mighty

[00:29:22] and miraculous and powerful ways to serve and stand as a testimony to the power

[00:29:28] of God and the earth, which is what this generation is missing so desperately.

[00:29:35] So if we have takeaways here, take away this, that this is not something

[00:29:41] that can be established in isolation or propensity towards

[00:29:46] assigning heavier weights to the negative emotion that we encounter in

[00:29:51] the negative events as opposed to the positive means that we are always going

[00:29:56] to be getting dragged down unless we make a deliberate effort to find a way

[00:30:01] to counterbalance and to overcome that.

[00:30:04] And we have to realize that the way to overcome that is not something

[00:30:09] that we can successfully do across a long term, a long span of time

[00:30:15] through our own effort and our own strength.

[00:30:17] It has to be

[00:30:18] through spiritual renewal and through walking with the Lord.

[00:30:22] And as we pursue those times of fellowship and quickening and strengthening

[00:30:28] that are so refreshing and powerful and unique and provide these tastes of heaven,

[00:30:35] our aspiration should be for that to be a constant state of affairs in our own homes.

[00:30:41] And in that situation, we will be much more readily able to say that whatever

[00:30:47] affliction is facing us, whatever thing that we are going through is a light

[00:30:52] affliction, even up to and including extremely disastrous circumstances

[00:30:59] and intense challenges and obstacles.

[00:31:02] We can say it is a light affliction.

[00:31:04] The only way that we can say that with a sincere and honest and transparent

[00:31:09] heart is if we know the Lord and we know his protection and his faithfulness

[00:31:15] and his promises and his word and what he has in store for us.

[00:31:19] And we have seen his love in our lives.

[00:31:22] We have seen answers to prayer.

[00:31:25] We have received from God the spiritual resources on an ongoing basis

[00:31:29] that are necessary to take on what God has called us to.

[00:31:33] God made you for this time.

[00:31:36] God made you for this place.

[00:31:39] And God knows that there are challenges that are in your way,

[00:31:43] things that are coming against you.

[00:31:44] He has what you need in order to move forward.

[00:31:49] He wants you to have the resources to raise up day by day and to say,

[00:31:54] despite all of this that's going on, I have something that is going to outweigh it.

[00:31:59] There is on one hand the force of our own positive emotion and all of the things

[00:32:06] that we can muster up in ourselves.

[00:32:08] There is, on the other hand, the negative things that impact us,

[00:32:12] which will inexorably outweigh the positive emotions and components that we can

[00:32:18] cultivate out of ourselves.

[00:32:20] But then there is the ultimate counterbalance to these challenges that come

[00:32:24] against us, and that is the power of God, the spirit of God, the promises

[00:32:29] that are afforded to us, the eternal things of glory, the glory in the grace

[00:32:34] and the love of our wonderful God and Savior Jesus Christ.

[00:32:38] It is only through him that we can outweigh this perishing of our outer man,

[00:32:43] the challenges that come against us and that will pale in comparison.

[00:32:48] It is so overwhelmed by the glory of God that it is not worthy of Ian Vim being

[00:32:54] compared and this is the attitude.

[00:32:56] This is the proclamations, is the preaching that you see from the Apostle

[00:33:00] Paul who went through these challenges personally.

[00:33:03] He went through this disastrous impact and people coming against him on every side

[00:33:09] and betrayal and physical beatings and shipwrecks and imprisonments.

[00:33:15] He was he was in trouble constantly.

[00:33:18] He was in peril and in distress, but he said, I have something greater.

[00:33:24] And it's not because he was able to cultivate something out of his own

[00:33:28] strength, but he received discipline and ability and giftings and encouragement

[00:33:34] and steadfastness directly from the Holy Spirit.

[00:33:38] It is only by the work of God as we seek him and seek first his kingdom

[00:33:43] and ask for these things that Jesus says you have not because you ask not.

[00:33:47] So ask for a better view of these eternal things.

[00:33:52] Ask for the strength that we need as we

[00:33:55] declare our dependence on God and we establish that resolute humility

[00:34:02] that comes from an understanding of who he is and who we are and where we are

[00:34:06] in this world, we will receive from the Lord.

[00:34:09] We will see his hand at work.

[00:34:11] We will be given strength for another day that Jesus said sufficient to each day

[00:34:15] or the evils thereof.

[00:34:17] And I say yes and amen to that.

[00:34:19] We need this resource every single day.

[00:34:22] We need God's help every single day to countervail and to counterbalance

[00:34:27] what is coming against us and brothers and sisters.

[00:34:31] God doesn't take a day off from this.

[00:34:33] He doesn't tire of it.

[00:34:34] It gives him glory.

[00:34:35] He loves to do it.

[00:34:36] He loves us and he loves to give these types of spiritual gifts to people

[00:34:42] who are earnestly seeking them to say, God, I need you in this situation.

[00:34:46] I don't need an answer, God, but I need you first and foremost.

[00:34:51] You are the answer.

[00:34:53] It doesn't matter how we get out of it.

[00:34:55] It doesn't matter how we get through it as long as I have you,

[00:34:59] as long as I know I'm not forsaken, not destroyed, I will not be in despair.

[00:35:04] I will not be crushed.

[00:35:05] I can be hard pressed as much as as much as possible.

[00:35:09] But if I have you, Lord, if I have this gospel, if I have this promise,

[00:35:14] if I have this hope, then nothing will be able to bring me into the depths of despair

[00:35:22] and destruction and brothers and sisters have this hope within you.

[00:35:26] Jesus lived the perfect life.

[00:35:30] He went to the cross.

[00:35:32] He paid the price for our sins.

[00:35:34] He rose in glory as a testament to the victory that he won over sin, death,

[00:35:40] hell and the grave, and he will raise us up on the last day with him.

[00:35:45] And we will be forever with the Lord.

[00:35:49] God, thank you that you have an answer for everything that ails us.

[00:35:55] Thank you that you will not leave us in despair or forsaken or destroyed.

[00:36:01] Thank you that you will equip us.

[00:36:03] Thank you for renewing our inward man.

[00:36:06] Thank you for moving us forward in your kingdom.

[00:36:09] Glory to your name, Jesus.

[00:36:11] We declare you are worthy of all worship and glory and power forever and ever.

[00:36:17] You are holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come.

[00:36:25] You will never not be.

[00:36:27] You will always be and you are unchanging.

[00:36:30] You are the same yesterday, today and forevermore.

[00:36:34] You are full of love for us.

[00:36:36] You are full of glory in yourself and you are full of grace in all forms and

[00:36:43] fashions. Show us your grace, Lord.

[00:36:45] Holy Spirit, walk with us.

[00:36:47] Equip us for what we need.

[00:36:49] Help us to have the right perspective on these things.

[00:36:52] Speak into the lives of people now.

[00:36:54] Strengthen families and particularly husbands and wives as they seek to have

[00:36:58] their homes be places of productive fellowship in you.

[00:37:03] Please, Lord, transform these situations, move us and place us where we need to be.

[00:37:10] God, let your will be done in our lives.

[00:37:13] That is what we want, Lord.

[00:37:15] We need you.

[00:37:16] We don't need any other program or any other approach or any other tactic.

[00:37:21] We need you, God, and we need you desperately for our families,

[00:37:26] for our friends, for our children, for our society, for our world and for the

[00:37:32] souls of those who are yet outside of you, Jesus.

[00:37:35] Bring your gospel to them.

[00:37:37] Holy Spirit, by whatever means necessary, get a hold of their hearts.

[00:37:42] We love you, Lord, and pray that you would show forth your power, your goodness

[00:37:47] and your glory in our lives for your namesake, Jesus.

[00:37:50] In your name, amen.