Participants: Floyd Bresee
Series Code: FC
Program Code: FC000365
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00:30 Hi, I'm Pastor Floyd Bresee and I've been
00:34 thinking, it seems to me there'd be a lot 00:37 more Christians, if Christians were a lot 00:40 more Christ like let's pray about it. 00:45 Lord, please speak to us today, what you 00:52 need most for us to learn that will help us 00:56 become more Christ like Christians we pray 01:01 in Jesus name. Amen. Today I want to talk 01:07 about conquerors. We all want to be 01:10 conquerors, conquering, conquerors through 01:13 Christ, let's leave our Bibles open to Romans 01:17 the 8th chapter we're going to look at the 01:18 last third of that chapter and I will be 01:21 using the new international version. 01:24 When celebrity Anna Nicole Smith died, 01:28 it fostered a huge custody battle over 01:33 her 5 month old baby Dannielynn to whom 01:37 would she belong, where would she live, 01:42 but have you stopped to thinking that you 01:44 are in the center of an even bigger custody 01:47 battle. The great controversy we call it 01:50 between Christ and Satan. Custody over, 01:54 to whom will you belong, and where will 01:57 you live for eternity. In this great controversy, 02:03 one of Satan's most deceitful and diabolically 02:07 successful tools. Is what I would like to call 02:11 the God blamer. There is nothing Satan loves 02:15 more than to hurt us and get us to blame God 02:19 for it. He loves to bring us pain and get us to 02:23 blame God for it, and he loves to bring 02:26 problems into our lives and get us to blame 02:29 God for it, and when the world is suffering 02:32 he wants us to blame God for it, and the 02:35 existence of evil he hopes we'll blame God for 02:39 it. All the miseries of life the devil would love 02:42 nothing more then for us to blame God. 02:46 One of life's most important lessons we 02:49 simply must not confuse God with life. 02:55 Our emphasis today life isn't fair, but God is. 03:03 Be very careful about acquitting those two, 03:06 life isn't fair, but God is. It's certainly true 03:12 that life isn't fair. Life continually tries to 03:16 beat us down. It's just not fair that some 03:20 grew up with abusive parents and therefore 03:23 spent a whole lifetime planning it difficult to 03:25 learn love. It's not fair that some have to grow 03:30 up in a single parent home and not understand 03:32 what a, God's home was meant to be. 03:37 It's not fair that some inherit the genes for 03:39 cancer or for Arthritis. It's not fair that 03:43 someone loses a spouse and perhaps have to 03:46 live alone all the rest of their lives. 03:50 Romans the 8th chapter in the 35 verse. 03:54 Notice that Paul is really speaking 03:57 biographically when he says in verse 35, 04:02 who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 04:06 Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or 04:10 famine or nakedness or danger or sword, 04:13 he knew exactly what he was talking about 04:15 when Paul talked about these very things, 04:19 because these were things he endured trouble 04:22 and hardship and persecution because he 04:24 was a mean man, because he was a bad 04:26 men? No, just because he was trying to help 04:29 people. Life simply is not fair. Satan sees us as 04:38 sheep to be slaughtered, notice this in 04:44 verse 36, Romans 8 and verse 36, 04:49 as it is written; "For your sake we face 04:53 death all day long; we are considered as sheep 04:58 to be slaughtered." Slaughtered, as sheep to 05:02 be slaughtered. The picture I get is of the 05:07 slaughtering house and here is the flock of 05:09 sheep in the holding pen and just out there 05:12 is death's door and the sheep are milling 05:14 around and around and around and around 05:16 until death comes and that's what life can 05:19 be like, that's the way Satan sees life. 05:25 Satan sees us as "Dead Meat" he sees us as 05:29 sheep. Sheep are presumed to be pretty 05:34 stupid and easy to fool. He sees us as 05:39 conformance, like sheep he thinks that if he 05:43 can get the world to do anything he can get 05:45 even Christians gradually to be doing it too. 05:50 You heard of the teacher who was drilling 05:52 the farm boy Billy in arithmetic and teacher 05:58 said you have 10 sheep in the pen and one 06:00 gets out, how many sheep do you have left? 06:04 And Belly said zero. Teacher said, Billy you 06:09 don't know you're arithmetic. 06:12 Billy said teacher you don't know your sheep, 06:16 if one goes they're all gone. That's the way 06:21 the devil sees us, he sees us as sheep, 06:23 as conformance, purely followers of 06:27 whatever happens to be closest by. 06:32 Oh, what a contrast. Always the devil 06:35 sees us as sheep to be slaughtered, 06:37 God sees us so very differently. 06:40 He sees us as children to be loved. 06:44 Notice the family analogy in verse 29 of 06:49 Romans 8 and now notice verse 29, 06:53 For those God foreknew He also predestined 06:57 to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, 07:00 that he might be the firstborn among many 07:02 bothers. Did you, did you see the words 07:04 there? The Son, the first born, the brothers. 07:08 God is a heavenly parent, we are His 07:11 children. Boy gets a new bat and a ball, 07:18 now don't bat your ball in the backyard 07:22 and take it up to the playing field, 07:24 but do not bat your ball in the backyard and 07:28 the boy disobeys and the ball comes through 07:30 the windows. Now what's a good parent do? 07:34 Let me tell you some things that good parent 07:36 doesn't do. A good parent doesn't stop 07:39 loving the boy and when you have goofed 07:42 and when you have disobey God doesn't 07:46 stop loving you, because God is a good parent. 07:50 A second thing, good parent doesn't do is 07:53 remove the consequences. You see a 07:55 lot of our prayers I've seen God to remove 07:57 the consequences for the mistakes and 08:00 the disobedience. A good parent does not 08:03 remove the consequences. Now some 08:07 things that a good parent does do, 08:09 he uses the experience to teach the boy 08:13 a lesson and God doesn't stop loving us 08:17 when we have done things that are wrong. 08:18 He doesn't reject us, He doesn't take away 08:21 the consequences either, but He tires to 08:26 use the difficult things in life to teach us 08:29 lessons, another thing that a good parent 08:33 does. He hurts with the child who is hurting. 08:40 And so the boy he gets a job, raking leaves 08:45 for there neighbors and he rakes and he 08:47 rakes and he works, and he works, 08:49 and he comes home with blisters. 08:52 Mother say that'll, that'll teach you right. 08:54 We told you had to pay for the window 08:56 and now see what a mess you're in. 08:58 Oh no, what's a mother do and she get 09:01 some sap and she finds some way to dress 09:04 those wounds. You see when we're hurt, 09:09 God hurts with us. Queen Victoria visited a 09:16 grieving commoner. The poor lady had lost 09:21 her baby and Victoria having had some 09:25 serious losses in her background also felt 09:28 for this grieving woman and she actually went, 09:30 went with all of her entourage to see that 09:34 mother and, and after the commotion had 09:38 quieted down and Victoria had gone. 09:41 Then there was of course all gathered 09:43 around, now what she said, what she said. 09:46 And that grieving mother said, 09:49 she said nothing, she just laid her hands over 09:53 mine and we wept together. 09:58 Now when you're hurt, God hurts too, 10:05 God hurts with you. I would like to quote 10:11 for you just two sentences from Malcolm 10:16 Muggeridge. He wrote a wonderfully thought 10:21 provoking statement and see if it means 10:25 as much to you as it is meant to me 10:28 Muggeridge said, "Contrary to what might 10:30 be expected, I look back on experiences 10:34 that at the time seemed especially desolating 10:36 and painful, with particular satisfaction." 10:40 What? Things that are desolating and painful, 10:44 satisfaction, he continues; "Indeed, 10:47 I can say with complete truthfulness that 10:50 everything I have learned in my 10:51 seventy-five years in this world, 10:53 everything that was truly, has truly 10:55 enhanced and enlightened my 10:57 experience has been through affliction and 11:01 not through happiness." And we want so much 11:04 to be spared affection. Muggeridge says, 11:08 that is the way that we learn. A scientist 11:14 was studying moths and this little moth was 11:21 trying to make its way out of the cocoon and 11:26 the hole was much too small and it was 11:30 thrashing about and it was unable to come 11:32 out and the scientist felt sorry for that poor 11:35 little moth, so he took his scissor and he 11:37 clipped off the end of the cocoon and sure 11:41 enough the moth came easily out. 11:45 But he didn't learn until later that all of 11:48 that thrashing around was what drove the 11:51 fluid from the body of the moth to the wings 11:55 and because he was let out without that 11:58 struggle, his body was always large and he 12:01 never did get wings that would fly. 12:06 You see by depriving the moth of struggle, 12:10 he had prepared that moth to fail, 12:15 by depriving that moth of struggle, 12:17 he had deprived that moth of the ability to 12:21 fly. Now don't blame God for what the devil 12:28 does, please don't confuse God with life. 12:34 Verses 33 and 34, who will bring any charge 12:39 against those whom God has chosen? 12:41 It is God who justifies. Who is he that 12:44 condemns? Christ Jesus, who died more 12:47 than that, who was raised in life, is at the 12:48 right hand of God and is also interceding 12:50 for us. Now it's a little backward logic and 12:53 Christ does not condemn, God does not 12:56 condemn He is saying and that leaves Satan, 12:59 he's, Satan is called you know the accuser. 13:03 God does not condemn, as a matter of fact 13:06 the gospel could very well be summarized in 13:09 just four words, God is for us, and when life 13:16 seem difficult and you think you're out there 13:17 on the battlefield of the great controversy 13:20 all by yourself, God is for us. We must grow 13:26 beyond a contract relationship with God to 13:31 a trusting relationship here, you're taking 13:35 on a new job and you tell your boss, 13:39 I'll work for you so long as the pay is good 13:42 and the work is not too hard, but if the pay 13:49 is not good and the work is hard I'll quit. 13:54 We have too many contract Christians who 13:56 say I'll serve God so long as he pays well, 14:00 and so long as life doesn't get too hard, 14:03 but if it doesn't pay and if life gets hard 14:07 I'll quit. We need to go beyond that kind 14:09 of a contract Christianity to a mature 14:14 trusting Christianity that says some how God 14:17 and I together can make something good 14:19 come out of even this. God is not responsible 14:25 for sin we are not just our ancestors not 14:30 just Adam and Eve, we also have chosen 14:35 self-centeredness which is simply another 14:36 term for sin, probably happened already to you 14:39 today, but couldn't or not, an omnipotent 14:43 God stop this suffering, of course he could. 14:46 He can do everything this, this self-centered 14:49 living. I want to give two answers, 14:51 first of all why doesn't God stop suffering, 14:54 number one is because his omissions limits 14:57 his omnipotence. That's his wisdom overcomes 15:02 his overwhelming power he knows that in 15:04 order to have a world of love he cannot 15:08 force obedience, his omissions, 15:12 his wisdom limits his omnipotence, 15:15 his power. Love requires the right to choose, 15:20 even when the choice is wrong. 15:23 Even when the choice means the death of his 15:26 own son and so the second reason why God 15:31 has not stopped it, please understand he's 15:33 in the process, God is going to stop suffering, 15:36 he sent his son so he could stop and he will 15:38 stop and as soon as everyone has had the 15:40 opportunity to choose the son. 15:45 Meanwhile although, although I don't believe 15:48 our loving God causes trail. I do believe that 15:53 he uses it. When I was a boy I had a 16:00 mother who loved me very much, 16:04 she loved me so much that she made a 16:07 birthday cake for me from scratch, 16:10 now you can tell that it was a long time ago. 16:13 I watched as she put in some good things, 16:17 she put in some sugar, and she put in some 16:21 butter, but then she put in some things that 16:24 were not so appetizing, she added some flour, 16:27 some raw eggs, and some baking powder. 16:33 I learned however to trust her, 16:35 because I found out that when she mixed 16:38 all of these things together just right my 16:41 birthday cake turned out just right. 16:46 God brings some good things, so the devil 16:48 brings in life, brings some bad things, 16:51 but God takes those things and he mixes 16:53 them together and we just trust His mixing 16:56 our lives will turn out right. Life isn't fair, 17:03 but God is. We conqueror life through Christ. 17:09 Our sermon title comes from verse 37, 17:14 No in all these things we are more than 17:18 conquerors through him who loved us. 17:22 We conquered through Christ, how do we 17:26 conquer through Christ? Well first of all, 17:30 we conquer through Christ by following his 17:32 example, Jesus is our example, 17:35 verse 29 please, verse 29, for those God 17:40 foreknew He also predestined to be 17:42 conformed to the likeness of His Son, 17:44 that he might be the firstborn among many 17:47 bothers. Did you get the family analogy there 17:51 again, Jesus is the firstborn, he's our big 17:55 brother, I had two of those. I had two big 18:00 brothers and I learned to watch my big 18:04 brothers, and I had trouble getting the 18:08 spoon from the bowl up to my mouth until 18:13 I learned how my brothers did it, 18:16 and I learned from my brothers and I, 18:18 one of the toughest things I ever had to do 18:20 is learn to tie shoes and I learned from my 18:22 brothers. I learned how ride a bike from my 18:24 brothers. I learned by watching my brothers 18:27 and you will learn your way through trial by 18:32 watching your big brother. Jesus is your 18:35 big brother and He surely had plenty of trial. 18:38 He was conceived out of wedlock, 18:40 the tradition church hated Him. 18:43 His own church leaders disappointed him. 18:45 The Romans crucified him, Gethsemane 18:49 of course was his toughest trial of all, 18:52 but even there he trusted, he trusted the 18:54 Father's will more than his own. 18:59 And so by following Jesus example we can 19:05 succeed, be conquerors, Jesus is our 19:09 intercessor is another way that we are 19:12 conquerors through Christ. Look at verse 34 19:17 once more, who is he that condemns? 19:21 Christ Jesus, who died more than that, 19:23 who was raised to life is at the right hand 19:25 of God and is also interceding for us. 19:30 Christ intercedes for us, He waits to forgive 19:34 us I have here a $20 bill, fairly good looking 19:39 $20 bill as $20 bills go, would you be 19:43 interested, do you see any value in this $20 19:48 bill. Well if so, what if I would kind of do 19:54 this to it, now would you see a value in my 19:59 $20 bill? Or what if I would throw it on floor 20:04 and I would stomp on it and I would put it 20:06 in the grim and all the filth and all the dirt 20:10 then would you find value in my $20 bill? 20:14 Yes, because you know what a $20 bill is 20:17 worth, and though the world has stomped 20:24 on you, though you have been ground into 20:28 the dirt of this world, Jesus still seems, 20:32 well sees values in you, whether the rest of 20:36 the world does or not. Jesus knows your 20:39 value and He waits to forgive and intercede 20:42 for you. And then Jesus love is unfailing 20:48 how do we conquerors through Christ, 20:50 through his unfailing love, verses 38 and 39, 20:56 For I am convinced that neither death nor 20:59 life, neither angels nor demons, neither the 21:01 present nor the future, nor any powers, 21:03 neither height nor depth, not any thing else 21:06 and all creation will be able to separate us 21:08 from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus 21:13 our Lord. Jesus love is unfailing. 21:16 Our text talks about the height of 21:18 prosperity or the depths of trail and 21:21 discouragement. Nothing can separate you 21:25 from the love of God, you can separate 21:27 yourself by choosing not to follow him, 21:30 but you can't make him stop loving you. 21:36 Regardless of where you've been or what 21:40 you've done or what you're going through 21:43 right now. Your heavenly Father and 21:47 your big brother love you. His love remains 21:54 constant. Little girl loved her pretty new 21:57 doll and when the family got in the car to go 22:02 to the supermarket if they had forgotten 22:04 the doll they had to go back, because she 22:06 loved her pretty doll, and when they got to 22:08 supermarket. She ought to be left in the car, 22:11 no she had go into the supermarket too, 22:13 because she loved her pretty doll, 22:15 and when the little girl go went to bed at 22:17 night she wasn't ready to sleep until she 22:20 had that pretty doll by her side. 22:23 She played and played with her pretty doll 22:25 until. In the kitchen one day, she was 22:28 playing house and she puts her baby to bed 22:33 in a cupboard she thought, but to the little 22:38 girl the oven looked an awful lot like a 22:40 cupboard and the mother turned on the 22:45 oven later on and there was a peculiar odor 22:47 and, and finally she traced it to the oven 22:52 and there it was that poor little misshapen 22:54 doll one hand was totally melded off. 22:57 The eyes were all sunken back in her head. 22:59 The body was looked all, all sunken in and 23:02 the head was misshaped. But the little 23:07 girl still loved that disfigured doll and when 23:12 they went any place. They had to take that 23:14 disfigured doll, because disfigured as 23:17 she was. She still loved that little doll and 23:23 God is that way disfigured as you maybe 23:27 He still loves you. And then in another way 23:30 we conquer through Christ, is that he turns 23:33 bad into good now we're gonna read the 23:36 text that we read very often, but notice 23:38 this text is conditional on our loving Him 23:44 enough to trust Him in all things, 23:47 its verse 28, And we know that in all 23:50 things God works for good of those who 23:53 love Him who have been called according to 23:56 His purpose. Notice those operative words 24:01 things work for good to those who love 24:03 Him who are called according to His purpose, 24:08 those who trust Him. An Athlete is training 24:15 for the Olympics under her couch. 24:19 Olympic speed skating event, and the 24:27 athlete complaints that coach I don't see 24:29 your purpose in making me start off a line 24:32 this way and the coach replies trust me and 24:39 then the athlete says, but do I have to do 24:42 all things, why couldn't I take this turn my 24:45 way and then the coach says, no trust me 24:51 and the athlete says I've been out for six 24:53 hours. I've gone around this over and over 24:56 and over and over a hundred time, 24:57 my feet are blistered and I ache all over 25:00 and the coach says, do it again, 25:04 trust me and because she trusts her coach 25:10 and because she's willing to bear the pain 25:13 she becomes an Olympic champion and if 25:17 you and I will trust the coach and be wiling 25:20 to bear with his help the pain that life brings, 25:23 we too can be conquerors. We conquer 25:28 through Christ, our example in trial our 25:32 intercessor when we fail, He loves us no 25:35 matter what we do, and if we trust Him when 25:40 things seem to go bad He will turn them 25:43 into good. Life isn't fair, but God is. 25:50 The Bible says, he will wipe every tear from 25:52 their eyes, but this is only at the end, 25:56 this is a description of the beginning of 25:58 heaven. In another words the inference is 26:00 that we're going to have some tears 26:02 between now and heaven, all are going 26:05 to have some tears until then. 26:08 And you can conquerors through Christ. 26:15 When I was just a grade schooler, 26:20 I went to school, to a small school and we 26:25 had a small playground where we chose up 26:29 and played softball almost every recess and 26:37 I always if I had the chance to be captain I 26:42 always knew whom I was going to choose 26:46 first. It was my big brother Harve, because 26:50 my big brother Harve could hit that ball over 26:53 the tallest tree way out in center field. 26:56 I knew that if I could just chose Harve I 27:00 knew that I could win. The Lord Jesus is 27:03 your big brother, you can know if you choose 27:07 him you can win. Loving Father, we thank you 27:11 for the promise we have of wining through 27:15 Jesus. We trust you to mix the good with 27:19 bad and make of us something that you want 27:22 us to be and something that the world 27:24 can use, thank you in Jesus name. Amen. 27:30 Thank you for tuning in, I pray that as you 27:34 go to back to your life you will have totally 27:38 and absolutely chosen Christ as your big 27:43 brother, put Him on your side, 27:47 because with Him you can win. 27:52 May God bless. |
Revised 2014-12-17