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Empowering multimedia ministry for bold Christian living: Weekend Messages, Deep End Podcast, Deep Dive Bible Study. Tim Hatch, Lead Pastor, Waters Church, 26 years of pastoral ministry, book author.
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0:00 You are listening to Waters Church podcast. Waters Church is a multisite, multigeneration community of faith on the East Coast of America. Now for a message from our pastor.0:12 I wanna talk to you on the topic of faith under fire, how to stand strong when opposition comes. You need to be0:24 saved exactly 10 seconds to realize you will face opposition in the walk of faith. Amen, somebody. If you've ever faced opposition, raise your0:36 hand loud and proud. I got both hands up. Now Nehemiah's story is a story familiar to many bible characters0:48 and important historical figures down the eons of history. Great men and women are forged by great opposition.1:00 Hear me say that again. Great men and women of God are forged by great opposition. David is famous for defeating yeah.1:11 Goliath, a giant, a mighty warrior, experienced tactician. David takes him on and beats him. Moses took on a guy named1:24 pharaoh. Nehemiah has his opponents as well. You will have your opponents as well. I I learned something as I studied it for this text today, that the1:35 greater the opposition you face, the greater potential for a legacy you will leave behind. So some of you are facing some overwhelming odds in your life1:47 right now. Good news. There's a powerful story that God is writing in the middle of the battle. Don't give up. Press1:58 on. Great things are in front of you and greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. My bible tells me that no weapon formed against me shall prosper. Anybody2:10 believe that this morning? So if you're gonna walk with Christ, if you're going to be a person of faith, if you're gonna get involved in the movement of Jesus, embrace opposition.2:23 Forgive me for the timing of this illustration, but it was written well in advance, so I just shared anyway. They were mocked and ridiculed by their own neighbors. The local press refused to cover their experiments.2:35 Their first few attempts at success led to broken bones, broken ribs, and 1 terrible accident that cost the life of 1 of their partners in the process. When they started to advance in spite of the difficulties2:47 in oppositions, eventually, news media has picked them up, and the ever truthful New York Times wrote a piece saying that their invention would take 1 to2:58 10000000 years to actually see the light of day. Scientists and engineers believe that what they were attempting was impossible. Articles were published dismissing their idea as myth, legend, and fantasy, much like3:11 Elon Musk's desire to get to Mars. But we're not talking about Elon Musk. We're talking about something that happened a over 100 years ago. When they offered their products to the US military as a weapon to defend this3:22 country, the war department laughed them out of the building. And yet they pressed on. And in spite of the opposition, ridicule, and resentment from those around them, close to them and far3:34 from them, they pressed on. And in 19 o 8, they took off. I'm talking about the Wright brothers who invented the air ramp airplane, the air travel. And I know3:46 that we have even experienced some tragedies, our hearts go out to those who are victims or friends of those victims and family members of those victims. And it's a sad thing, but let us not forget that it is still the3:57 safest way to travel, and it happened in spite of the opposition. In what ways does God want your life to take off4:09 in spite of the opposition? And I think that this message is gonna give you some tools. The chapter opens with opposition. Nehemiah, as we talked about4:21 in the last part of the series, was divvying up the work. He had established groups to and assigned them to particular parts of the wall. The work was started. Things4:33 were moving forward. Chapter 4 verse 1, when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry. When they started building, they got4:44 opposition. When you start building, expect opposition. Notice how it describes the opposition. They were angry. They were greatly enraged, and they jeered at the Jews. And it wasn't just on ballot.4:56 This is what I've learned about opposition. Are you ready for it? Opposition has babies. They multiply. You don't just have 1 person who's out to get you. You have a person who goes and gets5:08 friends to gather an attention, to gather a little, you know, enclave against you. And this is exactly what happens in verse 2. It says, and he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria. What will5:19 these feeble what are these feeble Jews Jews Jews doing? Notice notice the next few sentences. What what's the similarity of all the sentences? They are all what? Questions. Questions,5:30 doubts, insecurity. This is what questions do. They bring doubts. They bring insecurities. They bring fear. They bring intimidation. What do they think? What do these feeble do Jews think they're doing? Ridicule. Will5:42 they restore it themselves? On in other words, do you think that they have what it takes? Will they sacrifice? You think they're actually gonna bring the this cunt this city back to its former glory? Will they finish up5:51 in a day? They're never gonna get this done. Will they revive the stones out of the rubbish once burned those ones were once burned at that in other words, ridicule, doubts, insecure, all6:03 injected into the movement that Nehemiah is a part of. And I wanna tell you something. If you're gonna walk with Christ, you gotta get used to facing opposition.6:14 Just turn your neighbor and say, face it. It's coming. If it hasn't come yet, you might not be saved. It's going to happen, and it's gonna happen from many directions,6:26 and you're gonna learn to embrace it. You're on enemy territory. This world is not our home. Some of you say, I just got done with 1 challenge and I stepped into another. What's going6:37 on? Life. Walking with Christ. The experience of faith. We have to learn to press on. Now there are 3 areas opposition6:49 comes from, and this is not in your notes, but you might wanna write them down in the margins somewhere. Number 1, the mind. How many of you will say this about yourself? You're your own worst enemy.7:01 You're your own biggest critic and biggest doubter. You're the 1 putting questions in your life. Do I have what it takes? Am I really called to this? Can I really do this job? Can I really7:13 raise these kids? I don't think I am smart enough. I didn't go to college. I don't have the degree. I don't have the experience. Do you know something? I I I've learned that your mind will play games with you at whatever7:24 stage of life you're at. When I was young in the ministry and just starting out, I used to say, I'm just too young. And now I'm getting to that point where I'm like, am I getting too7:36 old? And of course, the answer to that question is Yeah. Never. Never, friend. I love pastor, elder John in the in lane lane in the front row right here7:48 said never. Thank you for that. He's like a father to me. Never too old because God is not done with you until you die. Amen, somebody. But what what are the things that are in your mind that8:00 you keep rehearsing? Scripture says, take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, including the thoughts that you think about yourself, including how, you know, you feel8:11 insecure, intimidated. May maybe you just feel like I've I've just I failed at that marriage. I should never get married again. Stop saying these things. Stop8:23 rehearsing the the language of opposition in your own, what, mind. Yeah? There's a battle going on in8:34 here. Number 2, mouths. See, some of you gotta learn to be careful about what comes out of your mouth. Don't do the devil's talking.8:48 I am just a miserable failure. I'm sorry. What? I've read the bible many times. I never see God say about his people, you're miserable failures. I see him say, you are my9:00 chosen beloved children. You are holy and precious. You are a royal priesthood. You are a chosen nation, a holy people. You belong to God. Oh, but my9:11 mistakes. Your mistakes are washed away in the blood of Jesus Christ. When Jesus died on the cross, he didn't say, almost done. He said, it is finished.9:23 The word is in Greek. It means paid in full. You would stamp a document. When a contract was paid, you stamp it paid in full. The cross is the payment for your sins, past,9:35 present, future, and in Christ, you stand a new creation before God, and there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Be careful that9:47 you don't bring up your pasts. Cory 10 Boom said that when we are in Christ, God casts our sins into the sea of forgetfulness, and there's a sign9:59 that he posts saying no fishing allowed. Stop fishing up your old mistakes and old past sins and all that. That's from the enemy. That's under the blood. Washed away. Amen, somebody.10:11 Because you gotta get a hold of your mouth because your enemies are not gonna control their mouth. Don't do them any favors. You're gonna have people that speak against you, attack you, criticize10:23 you, doubt you. And I'll tell you, this job up here, I know it looks easy. It's tough. You get a lot of hate from this pulpit, especially10:35 somebody like me. I have no filter. I say things that other pastors won't say. Sometimes I'll say things that are politically, charged and people will interpret. Don't get political. Everything's10:47 political. God absolutely cares about our political process because the politics of this nation influence how you live in safety or insecurity. A pastor that avoids politics under the guise of10:58 spirituality is not protecting the flock. They're just appeasing the flock. And I'm not here to entertain the goats. I'm here to pastor the sheep. And sometimes the sheep need the rod11:10 and the staff. Come on, somebody. In fact, the bible says that the rod and the staff, they comfort us. Sometimes God's painful words actually are God's empowering words because it11:22 shapes us up and gets us back on the right path. So you should be thankful for a pastor without a filter who won't be afraid to say what needs to be regardless of whether the culture11:34 likes it or the politicians agree with it, we're here to tell the truth because the truth will set you free. Amen. Watch your mouth. Number 3, mystical.11:45 Mind, mouth, mystical. What I mean by mystical, and I only do that so that I can alliterate. They all start with m. I'm talking about the unseen realm. So not only can your mind be your opponent, not only can your mouth11:57 be an opponent, and other people's mouths will be an opponent, but you have to understand that there is a spiritual wickedness in the heavenly realms that you don't see that are still at work. When you turn on12:09 the news and you say, what is wrong with people? The answer is the devil is working. Evil is a thing. No amount of medication can eradicate it. No amount of education12:21 can eliminate it. Evil is a thing. And if you're ignorant to the spiritual war around you, you're a sitting duck for the enemy to confound you. You've got to12:33 understand this and embrace a battle hardened mindset that this is a fight to the death. Now I12:45 wanna help you fight the good fight. So how do we respond to opposition? 4 points and then we're done number 1. Rejoice. Rejoice. God is working through you. This is12:57 good news. And I find this to be on the mouth of Jesus and Paul and Peter and John regularly13:08 reminding God's people to rejoice in the face of adversity. Jesus said in Matthew 5 verse 11, blessed are you when13:19 others, what, revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you on Facebook, on your13:31 DMs, or in person, or they gossip about you, or they slander you, or they just mock you and make fun of rejoice and be what?13:43 Glad. Glad for your reward is great in heaven for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Understand that if you're facing opposition, it's a reason to rejoice. God is working in you. And13:54 conversely, if you're not facing opposition, maybe the devil isn't really troubled by you. Maybe you're just flowing with the stream of culture and you pose no14:06 threat. Rejoice. God is working. I wanna give you 3 reasons under this point from Nehemiah's chap. Nehemiah's moment here that hopefully help you embrace this14:18 rejoicing in the face of opposition mentality. Letter a, opposition can mean I'm accomplishing something. I wanna say can mean on purpose here. It can mean I'm accomplishing something. Opposition can mean that I'm14:30 I'm moving forward and the enemy ain't happy with it. I'm starting to succeed. James Boyce in his commentary on Nehemiah said, opposition is almost always14:42 caused by success and not failure. And the what he means by that is you don't get criticized when you fail, you get sympathized.14:54 When you start to succeed, then the opposition starts to mount. And I thought about that there is this very simple way to never face criticism in your life.15:06 Ready? Simple way to never face criticism in your life. Do nothing, accomplish nothing, have nothing, and be nothing. And everybody will be happy with you. In fact, their15:18 hearts will go out to you. And they'll give you stuff, and they'll pray for you. But watch out when you start taking steps of faith into what God has mapped out for you. I heard a story about a young pastor15:30 who was not the pastor at the time of the church at the at the time in the church, and his father tragically and unexpectedly passed away. And the church board decided to hand the reins over to this very young and15:39 inexperienced son. And he was overwhelmed with insecurities and did not know if he could take it. And he started to get phone calls because his past his father was very well known in the church movement that they were a15:49 part of. And he would get phone calls from from his father's friends, and they would say, we're praying for you. We believe in you. You're gonna do this. You can do this. You God is for you. There great things are ahead16:01 of you. And so he started to embrace that mentality. He was nurtured and and pastored by these pastors, and then something tragic started to happen. The church began to grow. And it grew faster16:12 than the churches of those pastors that were encouraging him. And it grew much bigger than those churches. And the encouragement started to16:24 turn into resentment. And the blessings started to turn into bitterness. See, this is a fact of life. If you want to call the shots, get ready to take the16:36 shots. You've got to learn that this is inevitable When you start and and I I see this even in in in in in Christian development, you know, somebody starts to embrace their their16:48 calling and they start to step out, into their, you know, purpose and they start to see some success. And before you know it, the people who encourage them along the journey, now they feel intimidated because why is it16:59 happening to you and not not me? And then there's bitterness and resentment and jealousy there, and that is just part of the process because it's a human condition problem we have here. You gotta learn to walk through17:10 it. Opposition might mean that you're accomplishing something. Thank you, Jesus. I'm getting some resistance. It must mean you're at work in my life. Now I wanna also say that17:22 opposition can mean can be good even if you're not accomplishing something. I thought about this, and this is actually maybe some of you need to hear this, but sometimes when we're not doing what God wants, we17:34 face opposition. And for that, we can rejoice. For for those of you who you've taken a few step back steps back. You you're you're feeling backslidden this17:46 morning. You you know you've gotten trapped into a sinful habit that you used to have freedom of, and you're my this message isn't for me. I I I can't rejoice in my opposition. Oh, yes. You can. The fact that you're not17:56 getting happy in that sin means that God is still working on you and not letting you go. The fact that you're getting resistance from your rebellion means that God is not in the business of letting you just wander off in18:07 your rebellion. He's got an arm that's not too short to save. Come on, somebody. And he can reach into the depths of hell and pull you back out. So either way,18:19 for God's people, opposition is a place where we can rejoice. Number b, opposition means I'm challenging the status quo. Now every organization, every18:31 church, every church, every church, every family, every marketplace, every educational system, every structure of government has a18:42 status quo. And when it's challenged, the status quo rears its ugly head and attacks the person challenging it. This was Moses' problem when he walks into18:54 Pharaoh's office and says, let my people go. And Moses and Pharaoh says, who do you think you are? I don't know the Lord. And he increases the burdens of the people instead of acquiescing to Moses' words. And then the19:06 people hearing that their burdens were increased, what do they do? They attack Moses for upsetting the apple cart. But what they didn't realize was that Moses was in the process. He was only on step 1 of the process of19:18 delivering them from 400 years of slavery. So you gotta understand something. We are, again, not of this world. We do not belong to this world. We are here to move with God, and I believe God is on the19:30 move in the world. Let's not give the devil praise for all the problems in the world. Let's give God praise for all the work he's doing in the world, the salvations that are happening in the world, the baptisms that are19:39 happening in the world, the discipleship that's happening in the world. Jesus said, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. I guess that doesn't mean that it's gonna be peaches19:51 and roses all the time. We are here to upset the apple cart. Some of you, you go into the office and they know you're a Christian and they just don't like you being there. That you20:03 come and they're like, oh, here he comes again. Mister no fun. Oh, here she comes again. Here she and and and that's the resistance that you feel. And I and may20:15 may, well, first off, maybe you're judgmental, so you need to change your approach. But maybe you're not, and you're doing the right thing, and God is blessing you, and and their offense at you is actually a sign that20:25 God is working through you. Yeah. That that's a good thing. And and and and and I I would say the worst response would be that when you tell somebody you're a Christian, they would say, really? I never knew that.20:38 That would be a little bit kind of embarrassing. Yeah? Opposition means you're upsetting the apple the status quo, and and then that and that's okay. Letter c, opposition reveals God is developing20:50 you. As Paul says in Romans chapter 5 verse 3, and I love this. He says that we rejoice in our what? In our21:01 sufferings, knowing that suffering what? Produces. It's suffering is always producing.21:15 Whatever the suffering is, sadness because you've lost someone, a relationship has failed, a business venture went belly up,21:27 or a sickness has come into your body, or you're struggling with mental and emotional issues and you're just wonder look, friend, rejoice because God21:38 is still at work through the suffering to produce something inside you. It's called endurance. It's called a resistance, ability. When you when you go to the gym,21:51 you don't go to the gym to have a picnic. You go to feel pain. Somebody say pain. Pain. And without pain? Yeah.22:04 Same is true with life. No pain, no gain. This is a gay all pain in Christ is gained through Christ. And so you you gotta22:15 walk in the joy that God is working. He's producing a stronger you. A more look at that word. Endurance imprudence and produces character.22:27 Character, the fruit of the spirit, patience, love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, self control. These are good things for you to embrace, but they22:39 don't come. This is what I hate about spiritual growth, and at the same time, I've gotta tell you about spiritual growth. Spiritual growth doesn't happen because God mystically injects it into your life. I22:50 wish I wish that there was like a heavenly syringe that that god could just, you know, suck some patience out of heaven, stick it into my heart, and just push it in.23:03 But he doesn't do that. Do you know how God develops patience in me? He puts somebody in front of me at the red light that turns green light who's on Facebook23:15 on their phone, and I have to wait for them. You know, I have to do the toot toot. Yeah. Toot toot, like, I23:27 you might be on Facebook. Toot toot. Right? That's that's progress for me because it used to be, toot. Toot. What's wrong with you?23:39 Yeah. That's god's resistance to develop patience in me. I'd rather him just inject it. It doesn't work that way. How does God develop love23:51 in you? So here here's how he develops love in you. He puts you around people who are hard to love. He24:04 he gets you married. And if that doesn't work, he gives you kids. And some of you are like, my kid is difficult. What is it? It's God's assignment24:16 to develop love in you because love kids, listen. Love is not a feeling. Love is not an emotion. Love24:28 is an action. It's a it's a skill that you can develop through the work of the holy spirit in you. Where you do nice and24:40 good things for others that don't deserve it. Yeah? How do I know this? Because the scripture says in Romans 5 that24:52 God demonstrates his love for us in this that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. When we didn't deserve it, Jesus still25:03 did it. And that is the demonstration. Somebody say demonstration. That is the demonstration of God's love. So when God wants25:15 to develop love in you, he surrounds you with people who are hard to love. So you can learn to love like God loved you. Amen. Amen. So25:27 rejoice. God is accomplishing something in you. You're upsetting the apple cart, the status quo, and he's growing you. Number 2, how do I respond25:39 to enemies in opposition? I pray. I pray. This is what Nehemiah does in chapter 4 verse 4. The enemies, Sanballat and Tobiah, who are the status quo, by the25:51 way. Sanballat is the governor of Samaria. Tobiah is the governor of the Ammonites. Let me just go back here. Sanballat is the governor of Samaria. The Samaritans were to the north. They were the half 326:03 Jews. They were the result of the, the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdoms. They took them away as captives, then they realized that the people in the land were getting eaten by lions. This is all in the, second26:14 Kings. And so they brought the, Jews back, some of the Jews back to interbreed with the pagans who had resettled in the land, and, and the lions stopped attacking because the land belongs to Israel.26:26 Amen. Anyway, they become half breed Jews, and they represent the the establishment. They represent the people who've always been there. And and they see26:37 Nehemiah coming in, and they just get intimidated. They don't like this. Nehemiah is upsetting what is. And in your life I wish I had said this earlier so the organization's26:49 message was better, let me just say it now. In your life, there's always going to be people who are threatened by your progress because your progress, they interpret as an attack against27:01 them. Embrace it. It even happens in church. When people succeed in ministry in church and you get27:13 intimidated, it's revealing your weakness. It's revealing your immaturity. 1 of the hardest verses in the27:25 bible that I have seen so many Christians not be able to do, you might not even have ever heard this verse. It's in Romans chapter 12, and it says this, rejoice with those who27:36 rejoice and weep with those who weep. Now we've got weeping with those who weep down. Oh, I'm so sorry. It's so27:48 terrible. I feel so bad. I feel let me cry with you. Let me cry with you. Let me, you know but when they are rejoicing because God or something has happened in their life that has blessed28:00 them, it's a lot harder to rejoice. And if you can't rejoice with people and their successes, it reveals your immaturity, your insecurity, and welcome to an28:11 area where you need to grow. Okay. Circling back to number 2 now. Write this down. Talk to God, not your enemies. When you're facing28:22 opposition, don't waste time debating, arguing, fussing, fighting. Paul tells28:34 Timothy, ignore people who wanna debate about words, who wanna argue about genealogies because in the an ancient world, your genealogy was so important.28:45 Ignore that. It's immaterial to what God is doing in your life. Some of you gotta start making a list of the conversations you need to stop engaging28:57 in. At work, at home, I'm no longer wasting time arguing with this person who will never change, who will never see it my29:09 stop it. Step out. Cut them off. Cut them out. I'm telling you something. You can't change some people. In fact, you can't change anybody. God can change them. You can't.29:21 But some of you you hey. This is your problem. You're a sucker for arguments and debates. You love it. I don't know why, but I think it's because you if you could you have this,29:33 like, savior complex that if I can just get them to see things my way, I will have won. I will have succeeded. Good good news for us. You can't do it. Only God can change them. So talk to God29:45 about them. Jesus said, don't give to dogs what is sacred. Don't cast your pearls before swine. Some of you are having conversation with swine. You have to identify29:56 them. It's not that they're beyond redemption. It's just that now they're just occupy there might be 5 other people that you should be conversating with and blessing in Jesus' name, but you are you are centered on that 130:07 contentious relationship that just never gets resolved. So this is what Nehemiah does, and it's kind of a funky prayer. Look at it. Verse 4. Hear, oh, our god, for we are30:18 despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. It gets worse. Verse 5. Do not cover their guilt. Do not let their sin be blotted out from your sight30:29 for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders. Now what what Nehemiah is praying here is something the bible refers to well, not it doesn't refer to it, but theologians refer to this as an30:38 imprecatory prayer. Somebody say imprecatory. Now there are a bunch of psalms. There's 150 psalms. I think there's about 15 of them that are imprecatory.30:50 What it what it means is you are calling on God to get them. There there's 1. It's in, Psalm 1 37. Let me just this is not on31:02 the screen, but let me just read the last 2 verses of Psalm 1 37. This is in the bible. Oh, daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed, blessed shall be he who repays you with what you have done to us. Blessed shall31:14 be he who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock. Bless those who kill your babies. Now why is this31:26 in the by why is this in the bible? Because it's recording the anguish of the Jewish exiles in Babylon who saw their babies' heads dashed against the rocks by the31:37 Babylonians. And what an imprecatory psalm in the Old Testament is is it's, God, you do to them what they did to us. Now in the31:49 New Testament, let's talk about how this comes through in the New Testament. The new the New Testament does not command us, and I don't even think it allows us to pray imprecatory psalms against people,32:02 or prayers against people. And the reason why is because we are under the new covenant of grace, not the old covenant of law. We get what we didn't deserve, and we32:14 also get the things that we, we also don't get the things that we did deserve. Amen? We deserve punishment for our sins. Christ took the punishment for our sins. We don't deserve heaven,32:26 but we get heaven. Yeah? That's our covenantal agreement. So we are under a better covenant, which means we pray better prayers. We don't pray that God will get them because we already know that God will get them. If32:37 they don't repent, God will get them. Jesus the Lord said, vengeance is mine. Do not repay evil for evil. I will take care of that. And by the way, you want God to take care of those who hate32:49 you and curse you. Do you know why? Because he's better at it. But you pray for your enemies. You pray that God will save them.33:02 You pray that God will help you reach them. You pray that God will lead them to Christ because the best way to overcome an enemy is to see God make them your brother.33:14 And no 1 is beyond the power of God's hand to save. Amen. So we just for your, understanding theologically. By33:26 the way, there's a great song by the country music brand, Jaren and the Long Road to Love. And I don't know I don't know if you ever heard this. It's called I'll Pray For You. And the lyrics are that he goes to church33:36 and he hears a pastor saying what I'm saying to you, pray pray for your enemies, don't curse them. And he had just had his girlfriend break up with him, so the chorus goes like this. I decided I would pray for you, and33:46 so I pray that your brakes go out running down a hill. I pray a flower pot falls from the window sill and knocks you in the head like I'd like to. I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls. I pray you're flying high33:58 when your engine stalls. I pray all your dreams never come true. Just know wherever you are, honey, I pray for you. That's not what we're supposed to do. Okay. That what Nehemiah did. It's not what we do under the new34:10 covenant. So talk to God, not your enemies. Verse 8, the they Verse 7, sorry. Nehemiah prays and things get worse. Sometimes you're gonna get sometimes you're gonna pray and it's not gonna get better. Amen.34:23 Verse 7. When Senvalat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashtodites heard that we were repairing the wall, and they came, and they were very angry. 4 groups of people are mentioned, Senvalat, look at this,34:35 Senvalat to the north, Tobiah of the Ammonites to the east, the Arabs to the south, and the Ammonites to the west. North, south, east, west, sometimes you're surrounded. And that's34:47 life. You go to work and you get grief there. Come home and get grief there. Then your body starts going wrong. Something happens in your mind. I don't know. You get it from all sides. And again, I love that song by34:58 Michael w Smith. It may look like I'm surrounded, but I'm actually surrounded by you. Sometimes though the enemy will come at you at all sides. So we have to take it up a notch. Sometimes we35:10 no. Not sometimes. Most times we have to do more than pray. So it says in verse 8, they all plotted together to come against Jerusalem and to cause confusion. By the way, the enemy operates in the economy of confusion.35:23 If you're confused about something in your life, it's because and this is so important for you to understand. If you're confused about something in your life, it's because you've listened to the enemy more than you've35:32 listened to God about that thing. If you're confused about your identity, it's because you've listened to the enemy in this world more than you've listened to God. If you're confused about what marriage35:44 is and how marriage should operate and what what each person in the marriage should do and how they should respond to the other, if there's confusion there, it's because you've listened to the world and not to God.35:57 If there's confusion about how you should respond to haters and obstacles and challenges, it's because you've listened to the world and not to some of you listen. You you listen to the world with way in ways that you36:08 don't even realize that you listen to the world. You occupy your mind with, you know, endless entertainment options. And and and I've watched this over the course of my life, and I've watched this, and you need to be36:19 aware of it. The enemy loves to confuse our children around Christianity. And the way that he does this is he does he's he injects through36:30 entertainment and songs and other mediums, endless repetition of lies that confuse your children. Lie number 1, all religions are the36:42 same. Or, you know, lie number 2, god can't exist because of evil. Or, you know, all kinds of things. And and here's the number 1 way he starts the whole process for your kids.36:54 And I tell you this parents, so that when you see it, you can cut the television off. He starts with mocking and ridicule.37:05 I mean, look on television for the last 50 years. What religion is the only religion that you are allowed to mock and ridicule?37:18 Christianity. What religious leader can you mock and ridicule, and and which 1 can't you mock and ridicule? Isn't37:30 it amazing how our institutional structures bend over backwards to appease Islam and Mohammed, but37:42 Christianity and Jesus can become a byword and a swear term? It's getting quiet in here.37:52 I'm just amazed at the amount of tolerance that Christians will have for the slander of the faith once delivered for all in their38:03 own home. Take ownership of the content that's coming into your eyes and your ears because your kids are watching you. I I say I don't38:15 want you weeping 12 years from now when your child's no longer in the faith because you let that crap come into their ears from age 5 to age38:27 18, and you didn't say anything. Come on. Say it again. Stand up and say, that's not for our house. We're cutting that show off. Jesus is not a swear word. Jesus Christ38:39 is the name by which we are saved. The name that every knee shall bow to, every tongue shall confess is Lord to the glory of God the father.38:52 It's confusion. It's confusion in the minds of our children and in some of your minds as well. But the enemy comes to confuse youShow more
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