Hello, I'm Jill Morikone,
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and welcome to another
edition of 3ABN Worship Hour.
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I love this time together
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because we get to
open up the Word of God.
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We study together,
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and hopefully by
the grace of God,
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we learn, we grow,
we get into the Word.
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Anytime you open
up the Word of God,
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God's Word never returns void.
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I love that
about God and His Word.
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He wants to teach us
and He wants to reach us,
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no matter where we are.
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The message for
today is entitled,
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Resisting Temptation.
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Now, you might be saying,
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"Okay, I don't
think that's for me.
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That's definitely not for me,
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because I'm so
steeped in temptation.
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And I've given in so many times.
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There's no way
that I could resist."
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Or you might be saying,
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"Well, I'm a good
Christian, and I go to church.
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And I don't even think
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I could be
tempted by those things
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that I used to be tempted for."
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No matter what camp
you find yourself in,
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this message is for you.
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I think there's three categories
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of individuals specifically
that we will be addressing
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in this message
Resisting Temptation.
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The first category is
those who walk with Christ,
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but are somehow
tempted, and have fallen away.
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2 Peter talks about
this group of people.
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2 Peter 3:17,
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"You therefore, beloved,
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since you know
this beforehand..."
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He's talking to the church,
he's talking to believers,
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he's talking to people
who have accepted Christ,
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and made Him
Lord of their lives.
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"You therefore, beloved,
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since you know this beforehand,
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beware lest you also fall
from your own steadfastness,
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being led away with
the error of the wicked."
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What's he saying?
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Be warned ahead of time,
be prepared ahead of time.
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Don't take your
spirituality for granted.
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That's the first category,
those who walk with Christ,
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but still, at some point,
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when they least
expected are tempted.
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The second category is
those who resist maybe a bit,
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but then eventually given.
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I don't know if
you've ever found
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yourself in this category.
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To be honest,
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I think I've been in all
three of these categories
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at some point in my life.
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This category would be
where you resist and say,
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"Oh, no, I'm not
going to do that.
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I'm going to walk with Jesus.
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I'm going to
make those decisions
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and choices for Him."
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And yet, at some point,
you get tired of resisting,
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you get tired of struggling
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and think I'm
just going to give up.
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You know, the scripture
always, almost haunts me,
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I guess you could say.
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This is Hebrews 12:4.
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And, of course,
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it's referencing what
happened with the Lord Jesus
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in the Garden and Gethsemane.
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Hebrews 12:4, it says,
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"You have not yet
resisted to bloodshed,
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striving against sin."
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I don't know about you,
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but I have never had drops
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of blood come out on my forehead
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when I was struggling with sin.
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I've never been
like Jesus in the garden
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and lying
prostrate on the ground
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and drops of blood coming forth.
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I have never personally resisted
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unto bloodshed
striving against sin.
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Don't give up.
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The finish line is in sight.
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The third category,
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you might be over here
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in the Christian
category and say,
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"Well, I think I'm okay."
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But beware,
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because you might be
tempted and might fall.
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You might be in the
middle category, saying,
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"While I'm trying to resist,
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but I'm not sure
how long I can hang on."
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You might be in
the third category.
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These are those who are
lost in sin and addiction.
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And you say, "I've
given up resisting entirely.
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There's nothing I can do.
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I am so steeped in sin.
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I am so lost in
my own addiction."
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Ephesians 2
addresses this category.
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Ephesians 2:1, it says,
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"And you He made alive,
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who were dead in
trespasses and sins."
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Do you feel like you're
dead in trespasses and sins?
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Do you feel like
there is no hope for you?
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I want to tell you today
that there is hope in Jesus.
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Our opening
scripture before we have prayer
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and jump into the
message is James 4:7-8.
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And this talks about
resisting temptation.
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James 4:7-8, it says,
"Therefore submit to God.
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Resist the devil..."
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And what's the next
word, he might flee from you.
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No, it says,
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"Resist the devil and
he will flee from you.
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Draw near to God
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and He will draw near to you.
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Cleanse your hands, you sinners,
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and purify your
hearts, you double-minded."
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Let's pray.
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Heavenly Father,
we come before You
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in the name of Jesus,
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and we're so grateful
that You are our Savior,
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You are our Redeemer.
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Right now I ask that You would
open up our hearts and minds.
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Father, would You fill
me with Your Holy Spirit?
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Would Your Word come alive?
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And would You speak to us
and give us hope and courage
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and joy in Jesus today?
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And we thank You for
what You are going to do
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in the precious and
the holy name of Jesus.
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Amen.
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The message today
centers specifically on Joseph.
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Now I don't know if
you grew up understanding,
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knowing, reading
the Word of God at all.
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You were probably
taught as a little child,
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some of these, what
we call heroes of faith.
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Who are they?
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This would be
Daniel, this would be Joseph,
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this would be David.
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This would be some of those
other Old Testament heroes,
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maybe Abraham.
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I know as a child, I
was always fascinated
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with the story of Joseph.
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It's like a
rags to riches story.
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But not only that,
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really he started
kind of favored by his dad.
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So it's a riches to rags
when he's a slave in Egypt,
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to riches when he's elevated
and like commanded everything
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in Potiphar's house to rags
again when he was put in prison
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and falsely accused for
a crime he did not commit.
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And then it's back to
riches where he's elevated
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as the prime
minister of the land of Egypt.
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It's an amazing story.
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And he's, really
Joseph, his life, his example,
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his commitment to God,
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he's a hero in my
mind of the Old Testament.
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But if you look at his
past, you would say for Joseph,
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to have an experience like that,
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for Joseph to be able to
stand firmly for principle.
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And we're going to spend
the balance of our message
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on Genesis Chapter 39,
Joseph and Potiphar's wife.
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But for him to
stand for principle,
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for that to
happen in his life, boy,
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he must have had a
really good upbringing.
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And he must have really
followed God from his youth.
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I think everything
was perfect in his life.
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Not necessarily.
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If you read the story of Joseph,
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and you look at the dysfunction
that existed in his home,
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I have to say that I never
had a home like that growing up.
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And I don't know about you,
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your home might have
been just as dysfunctional,
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but it might not have been.
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There was a lot of
dysfunction in his home.
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Let's look at that.
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We look at Joseph's past,
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and we see the home
life that he came from.
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There was a great rivalry
that went on between Jacob,
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that's his dad,
Jacob's wives and handmaids.
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Now, to explain this, of
course, we know that Jacob,
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he fell in love with Rachel,
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and that's the
woman he wanted to marry.
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And he wanted to spend
the rest of his life with her.
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He told her daddy, I'm going
to work seven years for you.
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And then what happened?
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The dad tricked
Jacob at the wedding night
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and substituted
a different sister.
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So now he ends up with two wives
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because he had
really wanted the other one,
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so there's two wives.
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And then when they
couldn't have children,
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they gave their
handmaids to Jacob.
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So really, there's four
wives in this situation.
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Anytime you have
multiple wives in a marriage,
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I would say that's
a dysfunctional home.
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I don't know about you,
but that's quite dysfunctional.
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I remember student teaching,
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and one of the
girls there at the school,
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she struggled with her past.
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And I remember one day,
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we just sat down and we
talked about it a little bit.
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And she said, you
know, Miss Jill, she said,
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"I have three
moms and three dads."
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Now she didn't have all
three of them at the same time.
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All it means is that her parents
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had divorced and
there was, you know,
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the mom had remarried
and the dad had remarried.
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And then there was
another family when that,
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those other two
homes got too difficult.
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There was another
family that had taken her in,
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three moms and three dads.
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Well, in this
situation, Joseph growing up,
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there's like four
women in that household.
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That's dysfunction.
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We see favoritism
from Jacob toward Joseph.
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If you look at that,
Joseph was his favorite,
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maybe because he
was the son of Rachel,
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his favorite wife.
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I don't know,
but that favoritism
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in the home lead to jealousy.
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It led to hard
feelings, and it led to hatred.
00:10:09.57\00:10:12.71
In fact, we see this if
you look at Genesis Chapter 37.
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Genesis 37:4, it
says, "When his brothers,
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this would be Joseph's brothers.
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"When his brothers saw
that their father loved him
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more than all his brothers,
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they hated him and could
not speak peaceably to him."
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So if you grew up
in a home like that,
00:10:32.73\00:10:34.50
where your siblings hated you,
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where your siblings
were jealous of you,
00:10:36.90\00:10:39.37
where there was
favoritism in the home,
00:10:39.40\00:10:42.20
that's a dysfunctional home.
00:10:42.24\00:10:44.14
But it doesn't stop there.
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Joseph's
sister, Dinah was raped.
00:10:45.54\00:10:49.98
Now that in itself
is a horrific crime
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and to grow up in a
home where your sister
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has been violated like that.
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Genesis 34 tells us that
whole story of what took place.
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We won't read it all,
but Genesis 34:2, it says,
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"When Shechem the
son of Hamor the Hivite,
00:11:05.53\00:11:09.10
prince of the country,
saw her," that's Dinah,
00:11:09.13\00:11:11.73
"he took her and lay
with her, and violated her."
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Now the brothers got
really mad about this,
00:11:14.64\00:11:16.91
and they did not like that.
00:11:16.94\00:11:18.41
And they went
out and they killed
00:11:18.44\00:11:19.84
the entire town.
00:11:19.87\00:11:21.21
So these are
violent men, his brothers.
00:11:21.24\00:11:25.48
It doesn't stop there.
00:11:25.51\00:11:27.42
Joseph's oldest
brother, this would be Reuben,
00:11:27.45\00:11:31.29
he asserted dominance
00:11:31.32\00:11:33.19
and defiance
against his own father.
00:11:33.22\00:11:37.19
And he went in,
00:11:37.23\00:11:38.83
and he slept in an intimate way
00:11:38.86\00:11:43.23
with his father's handmaid
or his father's second wife,
00:11:43.26\00:11:47.54
or however you look at it.
00:11:47.57\00:11:48.90
Now we might think, okay,
that's just something of lust,
00:11:48.94\00:11:52.21
but actually, it
was a sign of dominance.
00:11:52.24\00:11:55.31
We see this later
in the Old Testament.
00:11:55.34\00:11:57.35
Remember when Absalom
tried to take the throne,
00:11:57.38\00:12:00.15
and he declared
himself king over Israel,
00:12:00.18\00:12:03.35
and he reigned in
Jerusalem and David
00:12:03.39\00:12:06.05
and the rest of the
people loyal to David
00:12:06.09\00:12:08.06
went off into the wilderness.
00:12:08.09\00:12:11.29
And so remember
what Absalom did,
00:12:11.33\00:12:13.23
he took his father's concubines
00:12:13.26\00:12:16.06
who remain behind
and decided, well,
00:12:16.10\00:12:18.90
if I sleep with them,
00:12:18.93\00:12:20.87
it will make me
the rightful king.
00:12:20.90\00:12:23.41
It's an act of defiance.
00:12:23.44\00:12:25.24
There's a lot of
dysfunction in Joseph's home.
00:12:25.27\00:12:29.54
In addition to that,
we have his brother Judah.
00:12:29.58\00:12:32.35
You find this in
Genesis Chapter 38.
00:12:32.38\00:12:34.82
His brother Judah slept
00:12:34.85\00:12:36.75
with his own daughter-in-law.
00:12:36.79\00:12:38.22
Now, of course, he didn't know
she was his daughter-in-law.
00:12:38.25\00:12:40.86
So we'll give him
that benefit of the doubt.
00:12:40.89\00:12:43.16
He thought she was a
prostitute by the road,
00:12:43.19\00:12:45.19
but it turned out to be
his own daughter-in-law.
00:12:45.23\00:12:47.80
So in his home, we see envy,
00:12:47.83\00:12:50.80
we see jealousy, we see hatred,
00:12:50.83\00:12:54.14
we see bitterness, we
see a desire for revenge,
00:12:54.17\00:12:58.11
we see a desire for power,
00:12:58.14\00:13:00.44
we see lust, we see sexual sin.
00:13:00.48\00:13:04.88
Would you say that's
a dysfunctional home?
00:13:04.91\00:13:06.78
Would you say that if
someone comes out of that,
00:13:06.82\00:13:09.58
what would we say today?
00:13:09.62\00:13:11.15
Well, they came out of
that, they're a victim,
00:13:11.19\00:13:13.39
bless their hearts.
00:13:13.42\00:13:14.76
While they came out of
that, they had a lot of pain.
00:13:14.79\00:13:17.26
I understand why they act
out the way they do today.
00:13:17.29\00:13:22.90
But we see in Joseph's
life a different story.
00:13:22.93\00:13:27.00
We see that his past
did not define his future.
00:13:27.04\00:13:32.21
We see that those experiences
that shaped his early life
00:13:32.24\00:13:37.81
did not define the
man that he became.
00:13:37.85\00:13:41.95
He sold as a slave into Egypt
00:13:41.98\00:13:45.02
by his own brothers.
00:13:45.05\00:13:48.72
His oldest brother
Reuben actually saved his life
00:13:48.76\00:13:50.83
because his brothers
would have killed him.
00:13:50.86\00:13:52.56
But Reuben saved his life
00:13:52.59\00:13:53.93
and threw him in a pit thinking,
00:13:53.96\00:13:55.83
I'll send him
home to daddy later.
00:13:55.86\00:13:57.90
But while Ruben was
away, another brother,
00:13:57.93\00:14:00.44
this would be Judah,
00:14:00.47\00:14:01.90
pulled him out of the
pit and sold him to a band
00:14:01.94\00:14:05.11
of Ishmaelite
traders heading into Egypt.
00:14:05.14\00:14:07.98
He was sold into Potiphar's home
00:14:08.01\00:14:09.81
who was the captain
00:14:09.84\00:14:11.31
of the guard in
Egypt under Pharaoh.
00:14:11.35\00:14:16.15
So before we get
to the actual lessons
00:14:16.18\00:14:20.26
that we learn
from Joseph's life,
00:14:20.29\00:14:22.39
before we unpack the takeaways
that you and I can uncover
00:14:22.42\00:14:26.53
as we seek to
resist temptation today,
00:14:26.56\00:14:29.43
as we seek to walk in
integrity and purity before God.
00:14:29.46\00:14:33.34
I think there's
two key decisions
00:14:33.37\00:14:35.17
that Joseph made.
00:14:35.20\00:14:36.87
This would be
between his childhood
00:14:36.91\00:14:39.21
and this time when he's in Egypt
00:14:39.24\00:14:41.48
that impacted
the rest of his life.
00:14:41.51\00:14:44.65
What are those
two key decisions?
00:14:44.68\00:14:46.35
He clearly went
from a favored son,
00:14:46.38\00:14:48.02
remember, he was
his daddy's favored.
00:14:48.05\00:14:49.92
He went from a
favored son to a slave.
00:14:49.95\00:14:54.16
Those two key decisions.
00:14:54.19\00:14:55.52
Decision number one,
00:14:55.56\00:14:56.89
he made a decision to
serve the God of his fathers.
00:14:56.93\00:15:00.76
We're gonna
unpack that in a moment.
00:15:00.80\00:15:02.43
Decision number two,
00:15:02.46\00:15:04.20
he discovered who
he was in that God.
00:15:04.23\00:15:07.17
In other words, he discovered
his true self-worth in God.
00:15:07.20\00:15:12.27
So let's look at
decision number one.
00:15:12.31\00:15:13.71
We don't have it
actually in the Book of Genesis.
00:15:13.74\00:15:17.55
You cannot find where Joseph,
00:15:17.58\00:15:18.91
it says, and Joseph chose
to follow the God of Abraham,
00:15:18.95\00:15:22.22
Isaac and Jacob.
00:15:22.25\00:15:23.59
It's not there.
00:15:23.62\00:15:24.95
But it clearly is
there because you can see
00:15:24.99\00:15:27.36
the outworking of
his principled life.
00:15:27.39\00:15:31.69
Now, if you read Patriarchs
00:15:31.73\00:15:33.06
and Prophets
written by Ellen White,
00:15:33.09\00:15:34.80
you clearly get a great picture.
00:15:34.83\00:15:37.80
And I want to encourage
you to read that sometime.
00:15:37.83\00:15:39.60
You get this incredible picture
of Joseph riding into Egypt
00:15:39.63\00:15:44.37
and having been sold
as a slave by his brothers
00:15:44.41\00:15:47.41
and crying out to God.
00:15:47.44\00:15:49.24
He's a young man,
maybe 17 years old,
00:15:49.28\00:15:51.65
and making this decision.
00:15:51.68\00:15:54.02
Okay.
00:15:54.05\00:15:55.58
This is a bad
lot I have in life.
00:15:55.62\00:15:58.52
The rest of my life I'm
looking at being a slave,
00:15:58.55\00:16:01.86
yet I want to follow
the God of my fathers.
00:16:01.89\00:16:05.96
The decision to follow Christ
precedes any victory over sin,
00:16:05.99\00:16:11.47
any resistance to temptation.
00:16:11.50\00:16:14.17
I wanna say that again.
00:16:14.20\00:16:15.54
The decision to follow Christ,
00:16:15.57\00:16:17.47
the decision that you
make to follow Jesus precedes
00:16:17.51\00:16:21.98
any victory over sin.
00:16:22.01\00:16:24.08
It precedes any
resistance to temptation.
00:16:24.11\00:16:28.42
If you look at Colossians 2:6.
00:16:28.45\00:16:31.65
Colossians 2:6, Paul says,
00:16:31.69\00:16:33.86
"As you therefore have received
00:16:33.89\00:16:36.56
Christ Jesus the Lord, so,"
00:16:36.59\00:16:40.06
What's that word?
00:16:40.10\00:16:41.43
"Walk in Him."
00:16:41.46\00:16:43.63
In other words,
00:16:43.67\00:16:45.00
receiving Christ takes place
before you can walk in here.
00:16:45.03\00:16:50.67
Did you catch that?
00:16:50.71\00:16:52.04
As you have received
Christ, so walk in Him.
00:16:52.07\00:16:55.14
We can't walk in Him.
00:16:55.18\00:16:56.68
We cannot experience victory.
00:16:56.71\00:16:58.98
We cannot have any
resistance over temptation
00:16:59.01\00:17:02.02
if you and I have not first made
00:17:02.05\00:17:04.49
a decision in our
hearts, I'm going to follow God.
00:17:04.52\00:17:08.26
It doesn't
matter what my past is.
00:17:08.29\00:17:10.16
It doesn't matter
what my present is.
00:17:10.19\00:17:12.83
All that matters is
that I have decided,
00:17:12.86\00:17:15.53
as it says in Joshua 24:15,
00:17:15.56\00:17:18.20
"As for me and my
house, I will serve the Lord."
00:17:18.23\00:17:24.01
That's key number one,
Joseph made a decision for God.
00:17:24.04\00:17:29.11
Key number two, he discovered
his true self worth in God.
00:17:29.14\00:17:34.42
Was he daddy's favorite
son, was that Joseph's identity?
00:17:34.45\00:17:38.75
Was he a hated brother,
was that Joseph's identity?
00:17:38.79\00:17:44.23
Was he a hated slave in Egypt,
00:17:44.26\00:17:47.66
was that Joseph's identity?
00:17:47.70\00:17:51.27
No.
00:17:51.30\00:17:52.63
In Christ, Joseph was God's son.
00:17:52.67\00:17:56.30
In Christ, you and I are sons
and daughters of God Himself.
00:17:56.34\00:18:01.64
1 John 3:1 says,
00:18:01.68\00:18:03.58
"Behold what manner of love
the Father has bestowed on us,
00:18:03.61\00:18:08.25
that we should be
called children of God!"
00:18:08.28\00:18:12.45
In Christ,
00:18:12.49\00:18:13.82
we are God's sons and daughters.
00:18:13.86\00:18:15.19
In Christ,
00:18:15.22\00:18:16.56
you and I are
adopted and set free.
00:18:16.59\00:18:19.79
Romans 8:15,
00:18:19.83\00:18:21.50
"You did not receive the
spirit of bondage again to fear,
00:18:21.53\00:18:24.63
but you received the Spirit
of adoption by whom we cry out,
00:18:24.67\00:18:28.37
'Abba, Father
or Daddy, Father.'"
00:18:28.40\00:18:31.97
In Christ,
00:18:32.01\00:18:33.34
you and I are
adopted and set free.
00:18:33.38\00:18:35.88
In Christ, you and
I are new creatures.
00:18:35.91\00:18:38.58
2 Corinthians 5:17,
00:18:38.61\00:18:42.18
"If anyone is in Christ,
he or she is a new creation,
00:18:42.22\00:18:47.16
the old things
they've passed away,
00:18:47.19\00:18:49.72
and the new
things they have come."
00:18:49.76\00:18:53.56
You see, that tells us
00:18:53.60\00:18:54.93
that our past does
not have to define us.
00:18:54.96\00:18:56.80
The mistakes that you
00:18:56.83\00:18:58.17
and I made do not
have to define us.
00:18:58.20\00:19:00.87
In Christ, we are new creatures.
00:19:00.90\00:19:04.44
In Christ, we are forgiven.
00:19:04.47\00:19:07.38
Now you might think
I'm going to 1 John 1:9,
00:19:07.41\00:19:09.78
just because I
quote it all the time
00:19:09.81\00:19:11.28
and I love that scripture.
00:19:11.31\00:19:12.78
"If we confess our sins,
00:19:12.81\00:19:14.38
He's faithful and
just to forgive us,
00:19:14.42\00:19:15.95
and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness."
00:19:15.98\00:19:18.59
But we're not going there.
00:19:18.62\00:19:19.95
I want to go to
the Old Testament.
00:19:19.99\00:19:21.62
Many times we think the God
of the Old Testament is harsh.
00:19:21.66\00:19:26.96
The God of the Old
Testament is unloving.
00:19:27.00\00:19:30.53
The God of the Old
Testament, He can't forgive me.
00:19:30.57\00:19:33.54
Yet Jesus in the New Testament
00:19:33.57\00:19:37.01
is loving and
compassionate and forgiving.
00:19:37.04\00:19:39.97
But the truth is,
00:19:40.01\00:19:41.34
the God of the Old Testament
00:19:41.38\00:19:43.04
is the same God
of the New Testament
00:19:43.08\00:19:45.61
and we see the God
of the Old Testament,
00:19:45.65\00:19:48.68
His forgiveness.
00:19:48.72\00:19:50.89
In Isaiah 43, I
love this scripture.
00:19:50.92\00:19:53.76
Isaiah 43:25, I,
God is speaking, "
00:19:53.79\00:19:57.93
I, even I,
00:19:57.96\00:19:59.69
am He who blots
out your transgressions
00:19:59.73\00:20:03.87
for My own sake,
00:20:03.90\00:20:05.37
and I will not
remember your sins."
00:20:05.40\00:20:08.77
Do you want to know
your sins are forgiven?
00:20:08.80\00:20:12.04
Go to God and say,
00:20:12.07\00:20:13.41
"Would you blot
out my transgressions?"
00:20:13.44\00:20:16.44
In Christ we are forgiven.
00:20:16.48\00:20:18.58
In Christ, we are made new.
00:20:18.61\00:20:21.48
Turn with me to Ephesians.
00:20:21.52\00:20:23.28
There's so many here, we
just got to look right here.
00:20:23.32\00:20:26.89
I love this passage.
00:20:26.92\00:20:28.49
Of course, the Book of Ephesians
00:20:28.52\00:20:29.92
is one of
Paul's prison epistles,
00:20:29.96\00:20:33.09
written while he is in prison
00:20:33.13\00:20:37.00
to the believers
in and around Ephesus.
00:20:37.03\00:20:40.70
And I don't know if
you can see my Bible here.
00:20:40.74\00:20:42.30
Can you see the yellow?
00:20:42.34\00:20:43.84
I always like to
highlight in yellow
00:20:43.87\00:20:46.11
any promise that
comes from God to me.
00:20:46.14\00:20:51.25
This passage is full
of yellow. I love that.
00:20:51.28\00:20:53.82
So Ephesians 1, this
is who we are in Christ.
00:20:53.85\00:20:56.18
If you ever doubt
who you are in Christ,
00:20:56.22\00:20:57.79
if you ever
doubt yourself worth,
00:20:57.82\00:20:59.22
if you ever doubt
your identity in Him,
00:20:59.25\00:21:02.22
just read Ephesians 1.
00:21:02.26\00:21:05.23
We're picking it up in verse 3,
00:21:05.26\00:21:06.90
"Blessed be the God and
Father of the Lord Jesus Christ,
00:21:06.93\00:21:09.63
who has blessed us with
every spiritual blessing
00:21:09.66\00:21:12.67
in the heavenly
places in Christ."
00:21:12.70\00:21:14.37
So, in Christ, what are we?
00:21:14.40\00:21:16.04
In Christ, we are blessed.
00:21:16.07\00:21:18.61
Verse 4,
00:21:18.64\00:21:19.97
"Just as He chose us
00:21:20.01\00:21:21.38
in Him before the
foundation of the world."
00:21:21.41\00:21:23.75
In Christ, we are
chosen, that we should be holy.
00:21:23.78\00:21:29.02
In Christ, we are
holy, and without blame.
00:21:29.05\00:21:33.59
"In Christ, we are
blameless before Him in love,
00:21:33.62\00:21:38.33
having predestined us."
00:21:38.36\00:21:41.46
In Christ, you
and I are predestined
00:21:41.50\00:21:44.90
to be conformed to the
image of God's dear Son.
00:21:44.93\00:21:48.10
He predestined us to what?
00:21:48.14\00:21:50.34
To adoption, as sons by
Jesus Christ to Himself.
00:21:50.37\00:21:55.14
In Christ,
00:21:55.18\00:21:56.51
we are adopted according
00:21:56.54\00:21:59.71
to the good
pleasure of His will.
00:21:59.75\00:22:01.32
"To the praise of
the glory of His grace,"
00:22:01.35\00:22:03.32
we're in verse 6,
00:22:03.35\00:22:04.79
"by which He made us
accepted in the Beloved."
00:22:04.82\00:22:08.19
In Christ, we are accepted.
00:22:08.22\00:22:09.96
Have you gone your whole life
thinking you were not worth it?
00:22:09.99\00:22:12.73
Have you gone your
whole life thinking,
00:22:12.76\00:22:14.30
you could not be accepted?
00:22:14.33\00:22:16.43
No one would ever want you.
00:22:16.46\00:22:18.33
No one would ever adopt you.
00:22:18.37\00:22:19.97
No one would ever choose you.
00:22:20.00\00:22:21.80
In Christ, you are chosen,
and accepted, and predestined,
00:22:21.84\00:22:26.44
and adopted.
00:22:26.47\00:22:28.41
Verse 7, "In Him, in Christ,
00:22:28.44\00:22:32.08
we have redemption
through His blood, in Christ,
00:22:32.11\00:22:36.32
we are redeemed,
00:22:36.35\00:22:38.12
the forgiveness
of sins, in Christ,
00:22:38.15\00:22:40.52
we are forgiven, according
to the riches of His grace,
00:22:40.56\00:22:43.36
which He made
to abound toward us
00:22:43.39\00:22:45.06
in all wisdom and prudence."
00:22:45.09\00:22:47.23
In Christ, we
have understanding.
00:22:47.26\00:22:51.70
Verse 9,
"Having made known to us
00:22:51.73\00:22:54.27
the mystery of His will,
00:22:54.30\00:22:55.87
according to His good pleasure
which He purposed in Himself,
00:22:55.90\00:22:59.57
that in the dispensation
of the fullness of the times
00:22:59.61\00:23:02.01
He might gather together
in one all things in Christ."
00:23:02.04\00:23:05.58
In Christ, you and I are united.
00:23:05.61\00:23:10.49
Verse 11, "In Him also
00:23:10.52\00:23:12.35
we have
obtained an inheritance,"
00:23:12.39\00:23:14.16
in Him we have an inheritance,
00:23:14.19\00:23:16.66
"being predestined
according to the purpose of Him
00:23:16.69\00:23:18.73
who works at all things
00:23:18.76\00:23:20.10
according to the
counsel of His will,
00:23:20.13\00:23:21.86
that we who
first trusted in Christ
00:23:21.90\00:23:24.13
should be to the
praise of His glory."
00:23:24.17\00:23:26.84
Verse 13,
00:23:26.87\00:23:28.20
"In Him you also trusted,
00:23:28.24\00:23:29.90
after you heard
the word of truth,
00:23:29.94\00:23:32.24
the gospel of your salvation,
in whom also, having believed,
00:23:32.27\00:23:36.85
you were sealed with
the Holy Spirit of promise.
00:23:36.88\00:23:41.08
In Christ, we are sealed.
00:23:41.12\00:23:45.62
With the Holy Spirit of promise,
00:23:45.65\00:23:47.02
who is the
guarantee of our inheritance
00:23:47.06\00:23:50.36
until the redemption of
the purchased possession,
00:23:50.39\00:23:52.83
to the praise of His glory."
00:23:52.86\00:23:54.20
I love that passage.
00:23:54.23\00:23:55.56
I could read that
passage every day.
00:23:55.60\00:23:57.53
Anytime I wonder, who am I,
I go back to the Word of God.
00:23:57.57\00:24:03.10
I open up Ephesians Chapter 1,
00:24:03.14\00:24:05.67
and I discover
who I am in Christ.
00:24:05.71\00:24:09.74
So Joseph made a
decision for God.
00:24:09.78\00:24:11.58
He said, "The God of
his father's would be
00:24:11.61\00:24:14.45
his God as well."
00:24:14.48\00:24:15.88
In addition to that,
00:24:15.92\00:24:17.25
he discovered
who he was in Christ.
00:24:17.29\00:24:19.85
Now we come to the temptation.
00:24:19.89\00:24:21.92
Go back to Genesis.
00:24:21.96\00:24:23.29
Genesis Chapter 39,
00:24:23.32\00:24:24.99
we're going to have
a couple of takeaways
00:24:25.03\00:24:26.36
just with Joseph's temptation.
00:24:26.39\00:24:28.96
And then we have
eight keys for you
00:24:29.00\00:24:33.07
and I dealing with temptation
00:24:33.10\00:24:34.77
because we can study the
Word of God and we can say,
00:24:34.80\00:24:36.60
"Okay, this is what
happened to Joseph."
00:24:36.64\00:24:38.07
And that's really powerful.
00:24:38.11\00:24:39.44
But if it
doesn't affect us today,
00:24:39.47\00:24:41.58
if it's not something
that we can take practically
00:24:41.61\00:24:44.61
with us now and learn how
we can overcome temptation,
00:24:44.65\00:24:49.15
to me it's worthless.
00:24:49.18\00:24:51.15
So that's why I always like
00:24:51.19\00:24:52.59
to have
something that's practical.
00:24:52.62\00:24:54.39
Eight keys that we can work
00:24:54.42\00:24:56.79
with in dealing with temptation.
00:24:56.83\00:24:58.83
But first, let's look
at Joseph's temptation.
00:24:58.86\00:25:01.03
We're in Genesis 39:1,
00:25:01.06\00:25:03.16
"Now when Joseph had
been taken down to Egypt.
00:25:03.20\00:25:06.03
And Potiphar, an
officer of Pharaoh,
00:25:06.07\00:25:08.94
captain of the guard,
an Egyptian, brought..."
00:25:08.97\00:25:12.37
Let me start that again.
00:25:12.41\00:25:13.98
"Now Joseph had
been taken down to Egypt.
00:25:14.01\00:25:17.78
And Potiphar, an
officer of Pharaoh,
00:25:17.81\00:25:20.22
captain of the
guard, an Egyptian,
00:25:20.25\00:25:22.78
bought him from the Ishmaelites
who had taken him down there."
00:25:22.82\00:25:28.62
What do I learn from that?
00:25:28.66\00:25:30.13
When all seems lost,
God is still in control.
00:25:30.16\00:25:35.33
Joseph might have sat
there and said, "Why Potiphar?
00:25:35.36\00:25:39.20
Why slavery?
00:25:39.23\00:25:40.57
Why do I have to
be sold as a slave?
00:25:40.60\00:25:42.94
Why do I have to serve Potiphar?
00:25:42.97\00:25:45.07
Why God me, Why me?
00:25:45.11\00:25:47.31
Why couldn't someone
else have been sold?"
00:25:47.34\00:25:51.01
And yet, when all seems lost,
00:25:51.05\00:25:53.05
when it seems like you
are in your Egypt experience,
00:25:53.08\00:25:57.45
and you don't
know where you can turn
00:25:57.49\00:25:59.69
and you feel like a slave
00:25:59.72\00:26:02.12
in circumstances
beyond your control,
00:26:02.16\00:26:05.13
know that God is on the throne,
00:26:05.16\00:26:07.80
and that He is still in control.
00:26:07.83\00:26:11.47
Let's read verse 2.
00:26:11.50\00:26:13.00
"The Lord was with Joseph,
and he was a successful man,
00:26:13.03\00:26:17.77
and he was in the house
of his master the Egyptian."
00:26:17.81\00:26:22.08
When you least
expect it, God intervenes.
00:26:22.11\00:26:25.61
Now, Joseph could have said,
00:26:25.65\00:26:28.58
"Well, I'm here
and I'm a slave."
00:26:28.62\00:26:31.45
But what
happened? God intervened.
00:26:31.49\00:26:33.32
The Lord was with Joseph,
00:26:33.36\00:26:35.92
and the Lord
made him successful.
00:26:35.96\00:26:39.09
As we go on, we'll see
that there was great success
00:26:39.13\00:26:42.40
that attended
the work and service
00:26:42.43\00:26:44.40
and ministry of Joseph
there in Potiphar's house.
00:26:44.43\00:26:47.34
When you least expect it,
00:26:47.37\00:26:48.70
when you feel like
you're a slave in Egypt,
00:26:48.74\00:26:50.67
God shows up and God intervenes.
00:26:50.71\00:26:54.64
Joshua 1:5, "No man,"
00:26:54.68\00:26:57.85
this is when Joshua
just enters into ministry.
00:26:57.88\00:27:00.75
And Moses, of course,
00:27:00.78\00:27:02.12
led the children of
Israel and so Joshua
00:27:02.15\00:27:03.62
was feeling unsure of himself,
00:27:03.65\00:27:06.29
just as he's taking over
the leadership of the people.
00:27:06.32\00:27:08.96
Joshua 1:5,
00:27:08.99\00:27:10.43
"No man shall be able to stand
00:27:10.46\00:27:12.36
before you all
the days of your life,
00:27:12.39\00:27:14.46
as I was with Moses,
00:27:14.50\00:27:16.87
so I will be with you.
00:27:16.90\00:27:18.80
I will not leave
you nor forsake you."
00:27:18.83\00:27:22.07
Are you alone?
00:27:22.10\00:27:23.51
God has promised
that He will not leave you
00:27:23.54\00:27:25.84
that He will not forsake you,
00:27:25.87\00:27:28.21
that in your Egypt
house, He will deliver you.
00:27:28.24\00:27:32.45
Here's another
scripture, Isaiah 41:10,"
00:27:32.48\00:27:35.78
Fear not, for I am with you,
00:27:35.82\00:27:37.69
be not dismayed,
for I am your God.
00:27:37.72\00:27:39.92
I will strengthen
you, yes, I will help you,
00:27:39.95\00:27:43.43
I will uphold you with
My righteous right hand."
00:27:43.46\00:27:47.83
Are you afraid in
your Egypt experience?
00:27:47.86\00:27:52.37
God will
strengthen and help you.
00:27:52.40\00:27:55.77
Here's another one.
00:27:55.80\00:27:57.14
This is a really
powerful scripture
00:27:57.17\00:27:58.51
that only recently
00:27:58.54\00:27:59.87
I've come to really
read and understand.
00:27:59.91\00:28:01.81
It's Jeremiah 1:19.
00:28:01.84\00:28:05.38
Jeremiah 1:19.
00:28:05.41\00:28:07.02
It says, "They
will fight against you."
00:28:07.05\00:28:09.22
Do you feel like you're
in your Egypt experience?
00:28:09.25\00:28:11.82
Do you feel like
people outside influences
00:28:11.85\00:28:15.12
are coming to fight against you?
00:28:15.16\00:28:18.06
They will fight against you.
00:28:18.09\00:28:19.63
"But they shall not
prevail against you.
00:28:19.66\00:28:23.37
For I am with you, says
the Lord, to deliver you."
00:28:23.40\00:28:27.17
Are you embattled?
00:28:27.20\00:28:28.97
Are you facing a battle of
foes from without and within,
00:28:29.00\00:28:32.44
because let's be honest,
00:28:32.47\00:28:33.88
sometimes the enemy seems
like it comes from within.
00:28:33.91\00:28:38.58
God will deliver you.
00:28:38.61\00:28:41.35
Let's go back to
Genesis Chapter 39.
00:28:41.38\00:28:43.69
We saw that when all seems lost,
00:28:43.72\00:28:45.49
and it seemed like
Joseph was stuck there in Egypt,
00:28:45.52\00:28:48.52
God was still in control.
00:28:48.56\00:28:50.33
We saw that when
he least expected it,
00:28:50.36\00:28:54.00
God intervened and
blessed him there in Egypt.
00:28:54.03\00:28:58.93
Now we're in Genesis 39:3-4.
00:28:58.97\00:29:02.74
"And his master,
that would be Potiphar,
00:29:02.77\00:29:05.04
saw that the Lord was with
him and that the Lord made all
00:29:05.07\00:29:07.98
he did to prosper in his hand.
00:29:08.01\00:29:10.71
So Joseph found
favor in his sight,
00:29:10.75\00:29:13.92
and served him.
00:29:13.95\00:29:15.38
Then he made him
overseer of his house,
00:29:15.42\00:29:17.62
and all that he had he
put under his authority."
00:29:17.65\00:29:20.12
So what happens?
00:29:20.16\00:29:21.49
Joseph comes in as
the houseboy, right?
00:29:21.52\00:29:24.23
Seventeen, eighteen years old,
00:29:24.26\00:29:25.86
and he is just
entering Potiphar's house,
00:29:25.89\00:29:28.86
but the Lord blesses
Joseph and the Lord shows up
00:29:28.90\00:29:31.33
and the Lord delivers Joseph,
00:29:31.37\00:29:32.83
and even though he is
still a slave in Egypt,
00:29:32.87\00:29:36.84
in Potiphar's house,
00:29:36.87\00:29:38.51
he is given favor in
the sight of his master
00:29:38.54\00:29:41.44
and everything Joseph touches,
00:29:41.48\00:29:43.31
everything Joseph
does, what happens?
00:29:43.35\00:29:47.42
It is prospered and it
blesses because he is obedient
00:29:47.45\00:29:51.95
and faithful to God and
God's blessing upon him.
00:29:51.99\00:29:55.79
When you faithfully serve,
00:29:55.82\00:29:58.46
God shows up and God blesses.
00:29:58.49\00:30:02.76
Proverbs 22:29,
00:30:02.80\00:30:04.93
I like this in the
King James Version.
00:30:04.97\00:30:06.70
I don't know why maybe just
because I learned it as a kid
00:30:06.74\00:30:08.87
in that version.
00:30:08.90\00:30:10.24
Proverbs 22:29,
00:30:10.27\00:30:12.34
"Seest thou a man
diligent in his business?
00:30:12.37\00:30:15.64
He shall stand before kings,
00:30:15.68\00:30:18.05
he will not
stand before mean men."
00:30:18.08\00:30:22.18
Meaning when you
faithfully serve,
00:30:22.22\00:30:24.69
God honors that.
00:30:24.72\00:30:26.22
God blesses.
00:30:26.25\00:30:27.59
Let's read
verse 5, Genesis 39:5,
00:30:27.62\00:30:31.89
"So it was, from the time
that he had made him overseer
00:30:31.93\00:30:34.76
of his house
and all that he had,
00:30:34.80\00:30:36.77
that the Lord
blessed the Egyptian's house
00:30:36.80\00:30:39.40
for Joseph's sake,
00:30:39.43\00:30:41.94
and the blessing
of the Lord was on all
00:30:41.97\00:30:43.94
that he had in the
house and in the field."
00:30:43.97\00:30:47.04
When you belong to God,
other people are affected.
00:30:47.08\00:30:52.21
You see, Potiphar
and his household,
00:30:52.25\00:30:53.82
they didn't
worshiped the true God,
00:30:53.85\00:30:55.25
they worshiped pagan idols.
00:30:55.28\00:30:57.42
They did not worshiped God
00:30:57.45\00:30:58.99
and yet God
blessed Potiphar's house.
00:30:59.02\00:31:01.56
Why?
00:31:01.59\00:31:02.92
Because Joseph honored God,
00:31:02.96\00:31:05.93
because Joseph served God.
00:31:05.96\00:31:08.90
I want to talk just a
moment about the influence
00:31:08.93\00:31:11.77
of a believing spouse.
00:31:11.80\00:31:14.17
Now, this could
extend not just for spouse,
00:31:14.20\00:31:17.01
it could extend for children,
00:31:17.04\00:31:18.37
maybe a parent who's a believer,
00:31:18.41\00:31:19.94
and the
children are unbelievers,
00:31:19.97\00:31:21.68
or it could be a
child who's an unbeliever
00:31:21.71\00:31:23.71
and a parent who's not.
00:31:23.75\00:31:25.08
It could be someone
that you're close with.
00:31:25.11\00:31:27.02
But specifically, the Word
of God addresses the influence
00:31:27.05\00:31:30.42
of believing spouse
has on another person
00:31:30.45\00:31:34.66
in that marriage, the
spouse, who is an unbeliever.
00:31:34.69\00:31:39.26
You can read
about it in 1 Peter 3:1.
00:31:39.29\00:31:41.83
And, of course, we know
this is counsel to woman.
00:31:41.86\00:31:44.07
1 Peter 3:1.
00:31:44.10\00:31:45.80
It says, "Wives, likewise,
00:31:45.83\00:31:49.20
be submissive to
your own husbands,
00:31:49.24\00:31:51.74
that even if some do
not obey the word, they,
00:31:51.77\00:31:55.98
without a word, may be won
by the conduct of their wives."
00:31:56.01\00:32:00.32
Now, you might be
saying, "Wait a minute,
00:32:00.35\00:32:01.68
I didn't even catch what
Peter was talking about there."
00:32:01.72\00:32:03.99
It just says, wives,
00:32:04.02\00:32:06.45
if we are
submissive to our husbands,
00:32:06.49\00:32:09.42
and if the husband
does not obey the Word,
00:32:09.46\00:32:11.56
if the husband does
not read the Word of God,
00:32:11.59\00:32:14.93
without a word, the wife
can influence her husband.
00:32:14.96\00:32:18.23
That means she
doesn't need to preach.
00:32:18.27\00:32:20.44
She doesn't need to nag.
00:32:20.47\00:32:21.84
She doesn't need to talk.
00:32:21.87\00:32:23.41
She needs to live.
00:32:23.44\00:32:24.81
In other words,
live a godly life,
00:32:24.84\00:32:28.24
live a life of principle,
00:32:28.28\00:32:31.01
obedience to God,
00:32:31.05\00:32:32.78
live a life of
service and that influence
00:32:32.81\00:32:37.09
has an effect on
the other spouse.
00:32:37.12\00:32:40.06
We see this also
in 1 Corinthians 7:14,
00:32:40.09\00:32:43.26
that's the whole
counsel on marriage.
00:32:43.29\00:32:45.56
But Paul talks about
when a believing spouse
00:32:45.59\00:32:48.13
is married to an
unbelieving spouse.
00:32:48.16\00:32:51.07
And in 1
Corinthians 7:14, he says,
00:32:51.10\00:32:53.64
"If the unbelieving husband
is sanctified by the wife,
00:32:53.67\00:32:58.17
and the unbelieving wife
is sanctified by the husband."
00:32:58.21\00:33:01.21
Jump down to verse 16,
00:33:01.24\00:33:03.14
"For how do you know, O wife,
00:33:03.18\00:33:05.41
whether you will
save your husband?
00:33:05.45\00:33:08.65
And how do you know, O husband,
00:33:08.68\00:33:10.89
whether you
will save your wife?"
00:33:10.92\00:33:13.36
Now, that's not saying literally
00:33:13.39\00:33:15.26
that you can save your spouse
00:33:15.29\00:33:16.73
because it's the blood of
Jesus that cleanses from sin,
00:33:16.76\00:33:18.89
and each person has their
own individual choice to make.
00:33:18.93\00:33:22.90
But what it means is
that when you belong to God,
00:33:22.93\00:33:25.30
other people in your
relationships are affected.
00:33:25.33\00:33:29.70
Let's go back to Genesis 39.
00:33:29.74\00:33:31.61
Genesis 39:6,
00:33:31.64\00:33:33.34
this is the first
half of the verse.
00:33:33.38\00:33:34.84
It says, "Thus
he," this is Potiphar,
00:33:34.88\00:33:37.58
left all that he
had in Joseph's hand,
00:33:37.61\00:33:40.18
and he did not
know what he had except
00:33:40.22\00:33:42.15
for the bread that he ate."
00:33:42.18\00:33:44.29
He trusted Joseph.
00:33:44.32\00:33:45.65
When you follow God,
other people will trust you.
00:33:45.69\00:33:50.53
Potiphar trusted Joseph
with everything that he had.
00:33:50.56\00:33:53.23
All he cared about was
when he got to the table
00:33:53.26\00:33:55.46
was the bread on the table,
00:33:55.50\00:33:56.97
and what was the food
that he was going to eat.
00:33:57.00\00:33:59.23
Now we reached the
turning point in this story,
00:33:59.27\00:34:01.50
there's trouble in paradise.
00:34:01.54\00:34:02.87
It seems like Joseph comes
from this slave and he rises,
00:34:02.90\00:34:06.54
you can say through the
ranks to being top in command
00:34:06.57\00:34:09.18
in Potiphar's house.
00:34:09.21\00:34:10.75
And he's trusted and
God is blessing his efforts.
00:34:10.78\00:34:13.78
And his master has
this incredible blessing
00:34:13.82\00:34:15.75
in the house and
the field as a result
00:34:15.78\00:34:17.95
of Joseph following God.
00:34:17.99\00:34:20.22
And now we see,
00:34:20.26\00:34:21.59
it's kind of interesting
to me this little caveat
00:34:21.62\00:34:23.73
that's just thrown in there.
00:34:23.76\00:34:25.09
This is Genesis 39,
the second half of verse 6.
00:34:25.13\00:34:27.76
It says, "Now
Joseph was handsome
00:34:27.80\00:34:30.47
in form and appearance."
00:34:30.50\00:34:31.83
Now, why in the world
would the Word of God talk
00:34:31.87\00:34:35.20
about what Joseph looks like?
00:34:35.24\00:34:36.71
If you read the Bible,
00:34:36.74\00:34:38.07
it's very rare that
we even get a picture
00:34:38.11\00:34:40.48
into what people look like.
00:34:40.51\00:34:41.88
You read about
Daniel, you read about...
00:34:41.91\00:34:45.88
I don't know
many different people,
00:34:45.91\00:34:47.78
David, and Saul, and Solomon,
00:34:47.82\00:34:51.05
and many people and
there is not a reference
00:34:51.09\00:34:53.36
to what they look like.
00:34:53.39\00:34:54.89
Although Daniel,
I was just thinking,
00:34:54.92\00:34:56.26
I referenced Daniel and
at the end of the trial,
00:34:56.29\00:34:58.39
the 10 days they were fairer
00:34:58.43\00:35:00.13
and fatter than
their companions.
00:35:00.16\00:35:01.50
So I guess that is a reference.
00:35:01.53\00:35:03.00
But many times
in the Word of God,
00:35:03.03\00:35:04.37
we don't see that reference.
00:35:04.40\00:35:05.83
So why the reference here?
00:35:05.87\00:35:07.67
1 Samuel 16:7 clearly tells
us God does not see as man sees,
00:35:07.70\00:35:13.48
for man looks at
the outward appearance,
00:35:13.51\00:35:15.04
but the Lord looks at the heart.
00:35:15.08\00:35:16.41
So the important
thing is our heart
00:35:16.44\00:35:17.78
and whether it's right with God.
00:35:17.81\00:35:19.31
So it says, Joseph was
handsome in form and appearance.
00:35:19.35\00:35:24.09
If you look at the Hebrew word,
00:35:24.12\00:35:26.86
the word for form
literally means outline form,
00:35:26.89\00:35:30.69
figure or to be
drawn or marked out.
00:35:30.73\00:35:33.36
So what they're
talking about here is Joseph,
00:35:33.40\00:35:35.83
his body physically,
00:35:35.86\00:35:37.93
you could say he
was really fit, I guess.
00:35:37.97\00:35:40.34
The appearance in Hebrew
00:35:40.37\00:35:43.04
usually means
countenance or face.
00:35:43.07\00:35:46.21
So Joseph had a
good looking face.
00:35:46.24\00:35:49.41
And I guess he had
a good looking body
00:35:49.44\00:35:51.48
to go along with that face.
00:35:51.51\00:35:53.72
It's interesting to me
as I mentioned already,
00:35:53.75\00:35:55.95
it's pretty rare
in the Word of God
00:35:55.98\00:35:57.59
for them to be explicit
00:35:57.62\00:35:58.95
about what people look like.
00:35:58.99\00:36:00.32
But Joseph's mom,
00:36:00.36\00:36:01.69
this would be Rachel
00:36:01.72\00:36:03.06
had the same
description applied to her.
00:36:03.09\00:36:05.53
In Genesis 29:17, it says,
"Leah's eyes were delicate,"
00:36:05.56\00:36:09.50
that would be Rachel's sister,
00:36:09.53\00:36:11.07
"But Rachel was beautiful
of form and appearance."
00:36:11.10\00:36:14.74
The same Hebrew words
used to describe Joseph.
00:36:14.77\00:36:18.24
In other words,
Rachel had a beautiful face,
00:36:18.27\00:36:21.01
and she had a
good looking figure.
00:36:21.04\00:36:23.61
So for whatever reason,
00:36:23.65\00:36:25.05
Joseph must look
like his mama, I guess.
00:36:25.08\00:36:27.72
And he was good looking.
00:36:27.75\00:36:31.69
And now we see Potiphar's wife
begin to cast eyes at Joseph.
00:36:31.72\00:36:37.59
We see the temptation.
00:36:37.63\00:36:38.96
Genesis 39:7,
00:36:38.99\00:36:40.53
"And it came to
pass after these things
00:36:40.56\00:36:42.20
that his master's wife
cast longing eyes on Joseph,
00:36:42.23\00:36:44.83
and said, 'Lie with me.'
00:36:44.87\00:36:47.04
But he refused and
said to his master's wife,
00:36:47.07\00:36:50.41
'Look, my master does not know
what is with me in the house,
00:36:50.44\00:36:53.88
and he has committed
all that he has to my hand.
00:36:53.91\00:36:58.61
There is no one
greater in this house than I,
00:36:58.65\00:37:01.35
nor has he kept back
anything from me but you,
00:37:01.38\00:37:06.15
because you are his wife.
00:37:06.19\00:37:08.69
How then can I do
this great wickedness,
00:37:08.72\00:37:13.23
and sin against God?"
00:37:13.26\00:37:15.00
So it was, as she
spoke to Joseph day by day,
00:37:15.03\00:37:17.67
that he did not heed her,
00:37:17.70\00:37:20.27
to lie with her
or to be with her."
00:37:20.30\00:37:22.50
Now let's stop
just a moment here.
00:37:22.54\00:37:23.87
Sometimes when Satan cannot
get us with discouragement,
00:37:23.91\00:37:28.51
he seeks to get
us with pleasure.
00:37:28.54\00:37:31.58
Remember, Joseph had
been sold as a slave.
00:37:31.61\00:37:33.95
Would that be
discouraging? Absolutely.
00:37:33.98\00:37:35.92
You were a favored son
and now you're a slave,
00:37:35.95\00:37:39.75
and you have to serve a master.
00:37:39.79\00:37:42.72
But yet, Satan could not get
Joseph through that experience.
00:37:42.76\00:37:47.30
He served his God.
00:37:47.33\00:37:49.36
He honored His God.
00:37:49.40\00:37:51.37
He was faithful to His God.
00:37:51.40\00:37:55.34
And what happened?
00:37:55.37\00:37:56.71
God blessed Joseph and Potiphar
00:37:56.74\00:38:00.71
as a result of
Joseph's faithfulness.
00:38:00.74\00:38:03.78
So Satan says,
00:38:03.81\00:38:05.15
"Well, I can't get him
with that discouragement.
00:38:05.18\00:38:06.88
So I'm going to try to
entice him with pleasure."
00:38:06.92\00:38:12.25
Now we come to the eight keys,
00:38:12.29\00:38:13.96
the eight keys for you and
I, when dealing with temptation.
00:38:13.99\00:38:18.96
Key number one, make
decisions on principle,
00:38:18.99\00:38:24.07
not by how you feel.
00:38:24.10\00:38:26.23
I'm going to say that again.
00:38:26.27\00:38:27.60
Make decisions on
principle, not by how you feel.
00:38:27.64\00:38:32.87
Did Joseph
desire Potiphar's wife?
00:38:32.91\00:38:35.21
The Word of God
does not tell us that.
00:38:35.24\00:38:37.15
If you read in that time
what the Egyptian woman wore,
00:38:37.18\00:38:43.08
I would have a
feeling that he desired her.
00:38:43.12\00:38:45.79
And she clearly came on to him.
00:38:45.82\00:38:48.69
And yet he chose
to make a decision,
00:38:48.72\00:38:51.49
not by his feelings
or desires in his heart.
00:38:51.53\00:38:57.10
He made his
decision based on principle.
00:38:57.13\00:38:59.57
James 1:14-15.
00:38:59.60\00:39:03.34
James tells us,
"But each one is tempted
00:39:03.37\00:39:05.27
when he is drawn away by
his own desires and enticed.
00:39:05.31\00:39:09.08
Then, when desire has conceived,
00:39:09.11\00:39:11.68
it gives birth to sin, and sin,
00:39:11.71\00:39:13.58
when it is
full-grown, it brings death."
00:39:13.62\00:39:17.59
I wanna be very clear
here. Temptation is not a sin.
00:39:17.62\00:39:21.09
Desire is not wrong.
It is what you do with it.
00:39:21.12\00:39:25.33
The feeling is not wrong,
but it's what you do with it.
00:39:25.36\00:39:29.03
There was an example
given once I love and it says,
00:39:29.06\00:39:31.53
you cannot stop the birds
from flying over your head.
00:39:31.57\00:39:34.67
Is that a true
statement? Absolutely.
00:39:34.70\00:39:36.30
They fly and they
do whatever they want.
00:39:36.34\00:39:38.27
However, you can stop them
00:39:38.31\00:39:39.77
from making a nest in your hair.
00:39:39.81\00:39:42.71
What does that mean?
00:39:42.74\00:39:44.08
When we have a
feeling or a desire?
00:39:44.11\00:39:47.68
Okay, that's normal.
00:39:47.72\00:39:49.78
That's natural.
That's human nature.
00:39:49.82\00:39:52.22
That's the world
of sin we live in.
00:39:52.25\00:39:54.32
But then what
do we do with that?
00:39:54.36\00:39:56.99
And James warns,
00:39:57.03\00:39:58.36
it's very clear
that it's not sin
00:39:58.39\00:39:59.73
at the beginning.
00:39:59.76\00:40:01.10
It says, each one is
tempted when he's drawn away
00:40:01.13\00:40:03.20
by his own desires and enticed.
00:40:03.23\00:40:05.30
When desire has conceived,
it gives birth to sin.
00:40:05.33\00:40:08.67
So it's when we dwell
on it, when we relish it,
00:40:08.70\00:40:13.41
when we think too much on
it, and it grows in the heart.
00:40:13.44\00:40:18.45
That's when it
gives birth to sin.
00:40:18.48\00:40:20.22
And, of course,
when sin is full grown,
00:40:20.25\00:40:22.18
it brings forth death.
00:40:22.22\00:40:24.45
Daniel 1:8, I love this verse.
00:40:24.49\00:40:26.86
Daniel's in a
foreign land, a heathen king,
00:40:26.89\00:40:30.16
many different
things that could tempt him,
00:40:30.19\00:40:33.46
coming against him.
00:40:33.50\00:40:34.83
And yet it says in Daniel 1:8,
00:40:34.86\00:40:36.36
"Daniel purposed in his heart
00:40:36.40\00:40:38.03
that he would not defile himself
00:40:38.07\00:40:40.54
with a portion of
the king's delicacies."
00:40:40.57\00:40:43.10
So Daniel made a
decision on principle,
00:40:43.14\00:40:46.24
not by the food
that seemed to look good,
00:40:46.27\00:40:49.04
not by the food that
seemed to taste good.
00:40:49.08\00:40:51.98
He made a decision
based on principle.
00:40:52.01\00:40:54.58
He purposed in his heart.
00:40:54.62\00:40:56.15
So key number one,
make decisions on principle,
00:40:56.18\00:40:59.22
not by how you feel.
00:40:59.25\00:41:00.59
Key number two,
00:41:00.62\00:41:01.96
make decisions on
how it affects God,
00:41:01.99\00:41:05.56
not yourself or other people.
00:41:05.59\00:41:08.43
You know, Joseph said,
00:41:08.46\00:41:09.80
when Potiphar's
wife came against him,
00:41:09.83\00:41:11.60
what did he say?
00:41:11.63\00:41:12.97
How can I do this great
wickedness and sin against God?
00:41:13.00\00:41:17.01
He recognized that the sin
00:41:17.04\00:41:18.47
would not really be
against himself or against her,
00:41:18.51\00:41:20.88
but it would be most, of course,
00:41:20.91\00:41:22.94
it would be that too.
00:41:22.98\00:41:24.31
But first and foremost,
it was the sin against God.
00:41:24.35\00:41:28.12
You know, when
we're facing temptation,
00:41:28.15\00:41:29.92
I know, I have
fallen into this trap.
00:41:29.95\00:41:32.49
Well, it's not
hurting anybody else.
00:41:32.52\00:41:35.32
I'm only hurting myself.
00:41:35.36\00:41:37.19
It's not impacting
the life of anybody else.
00:41:37.23\00:41:39.69
So clearly, I should
be able to do what I feel,
00:41:39.73\00:41:43.26
what I want.
00:41:43.30\00:41:46.07
But yet, it's not about that.
00:41:46.10\00:41:48.10
It's about how
does this affect God?
00:41:48.14\00:41:50.67
You know, when Eve plucked,
00:41:50.71\00:41:52.94
or took what the serpent
gave her the forbidden fruit,
00:41:52.97\00:41:55.41
and she made
that decision to eat
00:41:55.44\00:41:58.31
the forbidden fruit.
00:41:58.35\00:42:00.75
It's just one bite of an apple.
00:42:00.78\00:42:02.92
She could have said,
well, it just affects me.
00:42:02.95\00:42:04.62
But guess who it affected?
00:42:04.65\00:42:06.45
It affected the entire world.
00:42:06.49\00:42:07.92
You and I are
suffering the consequences
00:42:07.96\00:42:11.89
of one decision
that she thought,
00:42:11.93\00:42:14.63
maybe probably
won't impact other people.
00:42:14.66\00:42:16.43
This is just dealing with me.
00:42:16.46\00:42:18.47
You know, I find in
this penitential prayer
00:42:18.50\00:42:21.54
which is a
powerful prayer in Psalm 51.
00:42:21.57\00:42:24.01
There are several penitential
prayers in the Book of Psalms,
00:42:24.04\00:42:26.41
but especially
I like Chapter 51.
00:42:26.44\00:42:28.11
This is David after his sin
00:42:28.14\00:42:30.35
with Bathsheba and Uriah.
00:42:30.38\00:42:34.72
And he pours out his
soul in confession to God.
00:42:34.75\00:42:37.85
And then Psalm 51:4,
he says, "Against You,
00:42:37.89\00:42:41.42
You only have I
sinned," he's talking to God, "
00:42:41.46\00:42:44.73
and done this
evil in Your sight,
00:42:44.76\00:42:47.56
that You may be
found just when You speak,
00:42:47.60\00:42:49.46
and blameless when You judge."
00:42:49.50\00:42:51.60
Now, he could have said,
I sinned against Bathsheba
00:42:51.63\00:42:53.80
and he clearly did.
00:42:53.84\00:42:55.17
He could have said, I
sinned against her husband
00:42:55.20\00:42:56.60
by having him killed.
00:42:56.64\00:42:57.97
And he clearly did.
But what did he say?
00:42:58.01\00:43:00.48
Against You, God,
You only have I sinned.
00:43:00.51\00:43:03.78
So key number two,
00:43:03.81\00:43:05.15
make decisions on
how it affects God,
00:43:05.18\00:43:07.98
not on how you think
00:43:08.02\00:43:09.35
it might have
impact you or other people.
00:43:09.38\00:43:11.89
Key number three,
00:43:11.92\00:43:13.25
once you have
made your decision,
00:43:13.29\00:43:16.02
stick with it.
00:43:16.06\00:43:17.39
And Joseph's story
in Genesis 39, it says,
00:43:17.43\00:43:20.63
"Over and over, she
spoke to him day by day,
00:43:20.66\00:43:23.67
but he would not listen
to her or lie with her."
00:43:23.70\00:43:29.47
Luke 9:62.
00:43:29.50\00:43:32.57
Jesus speaking,
"He said to them,
00:43:32.61\00:43:34.88
'No one, having put
his hand to the plow,
00:43:34.91\00:43:38.38
and looking back is fit
for the kingdom of God."
00:43:38.41\00:43:42.68
You know, I believe when
we are facing temptation,
00:43:42.72\00:43:47.02
it's much
harder when you waffle.
00:43:47.06\00:43:49.86
I don't know if you've ever
experienced that, but I have.
00:43:49.89\00:43:54.30
Well, I really want to do
this, I probably shouldn't.
00:43:54.33\00:43:57.17
I really want to do
this, I probably shouldn't.
00:43:57.20\00:43:59.33
Ah, let me think
about it a while.
00:43:59.37\00:44:03.00
And you know,
every time I waffle,
00:44:03.04\00:44:04.67
every time I think maybe
I'll just do a little bit
00:44:04.71\00:44:09.04
or do it once, what happens?
00:44:09.08\00:44:11.68
It's easy to step over into sin
00:44:11.71\00:44:15.65
and easy to give
in to that temptation.
00:44:15.68\00:44:20.09
So once you've made a decision,
00:44:20.12\00:44:21.46
once you've made a
decision on principle,
00:44:21.49\00:44:23.83
not by how you feel.
00:44:23.86\00:44:25.33
Once you've made a
decision on how it impacts God,
00:44:25.36\00:44:28.16
not yourself and other people,
stick with that decision.
00:44:28.20\00:44:30.87
Don't say no today and
then the next day, well,
00:44:30.90\00:44:33.54
maybe today I'll say yes.
00:44:33.57\00:44:35.37
Stick with that decision.
00:44:35.40\00:44:37.87
Key number four.
00:44:37.91\00:44:39.37
This one's a critical one.
00:44:39.41\00:44:40.74
Sometimes drastic
action is required.
00:44:40.78\00:44:44.68
If we go to Joseph's
story, this is in Genesis 39,
00:44:44.71\00:44:47.65
we look at verse 11 and 12.
00:44:47.68\00:44:49.02
Remember, she had
been tempting him,
00:44:49.05\00:44:51.29
encouraging him,
and he kept saying no.
00:44:51.32\00:44:54.72
Next day, no.
00:44:54.76\00:44:56.26
Next day, no.
00:44:56.29\00:44:58.36
We'll get to verse 11.
00:44:58.39\00:44:59.73
Genesis 39:11,
00:44:59.76\00:45:01.10
"And it
happened about this time,
00:45:01.13\00:45:02.46
when Joseph went into
the house to do his work,
00:45:02.50\00:45:04.03
and none of the men
of the house were inside,
00:45:04.07\00:45:06.40
that she caught
him by his garment,
00:45:06.43\00:45:08.50
saying, 'Lie with me.'
00:45:08.54\00:45:09.87
But he left his
garment in her hand,
00:45:09.90\00:45:12.27
and fled and ran outside.'"
00:45:12.31\00:45:15.84
That word fled in Hebrew
00:45:15.88\00:45:17.28
literally means
to flee, to escape.
00:45:17.31\00:45:20.78
Joseph didn't stop to talk.
00:45:20.82\00:45:22.15
Remember before he'd
always said, no, no, no.
00:45:22.18\00:45:26.79
This time he
didn't stop to talk.
00:45:26.82\00:45:28.29
What did he do?
00:45:28.32\00:45:29.66
He fled. He
didn't reason with her.
00:45:29.69\00:45:31.56
He turned and ran.
00:45:31.59\00:45:34.26
The Book of Mark Chapter 9,
other gospels have it as well.
00:45:34.30\00:45:37.77
But the Book of the Mark
Chapter 9, we look at verse 43,
00:45:37.80\00:45:40.77
has an interesting twist.
00:45:40.80\00:45:42.40
You might when
you first read it,
00:45:42.44\00:45:43.77
you might say, well,
00:45:43.81\00:45:45.14
God's talking
about self mutilation,
00:45:45.17\00:45:46.51
but He is not if
you read the passage.
00:45:46.54\00:45:48.34
It says, Mark 9:43,
00:45:48.38\00:45:50.08
"If your hand causes
you to sin, cut it off.
00:45:50.11\00:45:53.38
It is better for
you to enter life
00:45:53.42\00:45:55.42
maimed than having two hands."
00:45:55.45\00:45:58.25
Verse 45, "If your
foot, it causes you to sin,
00:45:58.29\00:46:01.79
cut it off.
00:46:01.82\00:46:03.16
It is better for
you to enter life lame,
00:46:03.19\00:46:06.23
rather than having two feet,
00:46:06.26\00:46:09.06
rather than to
be cast into hell."
00:46:09.10\00:46:10.90
Meaning, making
decisions against God
00:46:10.93\00:46:13.87
will eventually have
eternal consequences.
00:46:13.90\00:46:16.60
Verse 47, "If your
eye causes you to sin,
00:46:16.64\00:46:20.68
pluck it out.
00:46:20.71\00:46:22.04
It is better for you to enter
00:46:22.08\00:46:23.41
the kingdom of God with one eye,
00:46:23.45\00:46:26.21
rather than having two eyes,
and being cast into hellfire."
00:46:26.25\00:46:31.52
You know, when
we work with poison,
00:46:31.55\00:46:34.29
you wouldn't just say,
00:46:34.32\00:46:35.66
"Okay, I'm gonna put a
label on it and make sure
00:46:35.69\00:46:37.69
that nobody
touches that poison box."
00:46:37.73\00:46:39.46
No, you would dispose of it.
00:46:39.49\00:46:42.10
I want to be
clear in this passage,
00:46:42.13\00:46:43.63
Jesus is not
promoting self mutilation.
00:46:43.67\00:46:45.83
He's not saying,
cut off your foot.
00:46:45.87\00:46:47.40
He's not saying,
take off your eye.
00:46:47.44\00:46:49.40
He's not saying that.
00:46:49.44\00:46:50.77
Rather, He's saying that sin,
00:46:50.81\00:46:52.77
it needs to be
dealt with quickly
00:46:52.81\00:46:55.84
at any cost.
00:46:55.88\00:46:59.41
Do not explain away sin.
00:46:59.45\00:47:01.75
Do not excuse sin.
00:47:01.78\00:47:04.85
Do not rename sin.
00:47:04.89\00:47:08.22
Do not minimize sin.
00:47:08.26\00:47:11.89
When drastic action is required,
00:47:11.93\00:47:15.23
take drastic action.
00:47:15.26\00:47:18.77
Key number five really
goes along with key number four,
00:47:18.80\00:47:21.64
which is sometimes
drastic action is required.
00:47:21.67\00:47:24.07
Key number five says, make
no provision for the flesh.
00:47:24.11\00:47:29.18
Romans 13:14, "Put on
the Lord Jesus Christ,
00:47:29.21\00:47:33.21
and make no
provision for the flesh
00:47:33.25\00:47:35.65
to fulfill its lusts."
00:47:35.68\00:47:37.29
What does that mean?
00:47:37.32\00:47:38.65
Sin needs to be
dealt with quickly yes,
00:47:38.69\00:47:40.82
but it means to
be on the offense
00:47:40.86\00:47:43.29
when it comes to sin.
00:47:43.32\00:47:44.66
Many times we're on the defense,
00:47:44.69\00:47:46.29
well, I'll wait till
something comes to me.
00:47:46.33\00:47:47.96
And then I'll indulge a while
and I'll dwell on it a while,
00:47:48.00\00:47:52.10
and I'll think a while
and then finally I may rise up
00:47:52.13\00:47:56.64
and make a decision for God.
00:47:56.67\00:47:58.47
Now, be on the
offense when it comes to sin.
00:47:58.51\00:48:02.31
If your sin is pornography,
00:48:02.34\00:48:05.15
maybe you need to cut
off the internet cable,
00:48:05.18\00:48:08.28
or cancel those
magazine subscriptions,
00:48:08.32\00:48:11.15
or toss those movies.
00:48:11.19\00:48:14.02
If your sin is gluttony,
00:48:14.06\00:48:15.62
maybe you need to
fast or cut out certain
00:48:15.66\00:48:19.73
of those foods from your diet.
00:48:19.76\00:48:22.36
If your sin is greed,
00:48:22.40\00:48:23.83
maybe God's calling
you to take a great portion
00:48:23.87\00:48:26.80
of your paycheck and
give it to someone else.
00:48:26.84\00:48:32.77
Sometimes drastic
action is required.
00:48:32.81\00:48:35.54
And it is
important not to have things
00:48:35.58\00:48:38.21
lying around in
the home, in your car,
00:48:38.25\00:48:41.58
at your place of
work that will tempt you
00:48:41.62\00:48:45.25
to come back
into that life of sin.
00:48:45.29\00:48:49.22
Philippians 4:8 says,
00:48:49.26\00:48:50.76
"Whatever is pure, holy, lovely,
00:48:50.79\00:48:53.50
think on those things."
00:48:53.53\00:48:55.03
And if you have
things in your home,
00:48:55.06\00:48:56.70
I know I have done
this in my own life,
00:48:56.73\00:49:00.47
in my own walk with Jesus,
00:49:00.50\00:49:02.37
things that were
pulling me from God,
00:49:02.40\00:49:04.47
things that I would say,
I'm a strong Christian, well,
00:49:04.51\00:49:06.47
I just won't look at that.
00:49:06.51\00:49:07.84
Well, I just won't go there.
00:49:07.88\00:49:09.21
Well, I'm just
not touching that.
00:49:09.24\00:49:10.58
And yet, in a weak moment,
00:49:10.61\00:49:11.95
it was in my home and
it was easy to go back.
00:49:11.98\00:49:14.58
So then Greg and
I prayed and said,
00:49:14.62\00:49:16.15
"No, this needs to go."
00:49:16.18\00:49:18.49
So that stumbling block,
00:49:18.52\00:49:20.86
that temptation
is no longer there.
00:49:20.89\00:49:25.19
Make no provision for the flesh.
00:49:25.23\00:49:27.36
Key number six,
00:49:27.40\00:49:29.06
accept the power
of the Holy Spirit.
00:49:29.10\00:49:31.90
I love this because we can say,
00:49:31.93\00:49:33.90
we're going to
make these decisions.
00:49:33.94\00:49:35.54
We can say, okay, we're
going to make drastic action.
00:49:35.57\00:49:37.74
But really,
00:49:37.77\00:49:39.14
we can't do any of that
without the inner working
00:49:39.17\00:49:42.84
of the Holy Spirit in
the life of the Christian.
00:49:42.88\00:49:45.95
Galatians 5:16-17, "I
say then: Walk in the Spirit,
00:49:45.98\00:49:50.49
you shall not fulfill
the lusts of the flesh.
00:49:50.52\00:49:55.42
For the flesh, it
lusts against the Spirit,
00:49:55.46\00:49:57.66
and the Spirit
against the flesh,
00:49:57.69\00:49:59.56
and these are
contrary to one another,
00:49:59.59\00:50:02.83
so that you do not do
the things that you wish."
00:50:02.86\00:50:06.03
You know, we
cannot change ourselves.
00:50:06.07\00:50:07.54
And that's very clear.
00:50:07.57\00:50:08.90
You might be saying,
"Well, I can't do those things.
00:50:08.94\00:50:10.51
I can't throw these
things out of my home.
00:50:10.54\00:50:12.34
I can't take
that drastic action.
00:50:12.37\00:50:14.18
I can't make a
decision on principle."
00:50:14.21\00:50:15.81
No, we can.
00:50:15.84\00:50:17.18
Our
righteousness is filthy rags,
00:50:17.21\00:50:21.22
our promises or desires
to do right might be there.
00:50:21.25\00:50:25.99
And that's a gift
from God in itself,
00:50:26.02\00:50:28.16
but we don't have the strength.
00:50:28.19\00:50:29.52
We don't have the willpower.
00:50:29.56\00:50:30.89
We don't have the
manpower to do any of that.
00:50:30.93\00:50:32.73
That's where the
work of the Holy Spirit
00:50:32.76\00:50:35.86
enters into our
hearts and he does the work.
00:50:35.90\00:50:39.97
When we cannot change ourselves,
00:50:40.00\00:50:42.77
we can choose whose
hand we're going to clasp,
00:50:42.80\00:50:46.84
whether it's self or the spirit.
00:50:46.88\00:50:50.01
Make a choice for him,
00:50:50.05\00:50:51.65
ask the Holy Spirit
to come into your heart,
00:50:51.68\00:50:55.12
and to give you his power.
00:50:55.15\00:50:57.29
Key number seven, utilize
the power of the Word of God.
00:50:57.32\00:51:00.79
Psalm 119:11, says,
00:51:00.82\00:51:02.99
"Your word, I've
hidden in my heart
00:51:03.02\00:51:04.76
that I might not
sin against You."
00:51:04.79\00:51:06.59
What does that mean?
00:51:06.63\00:51:07.96
The Word of God is
living and powerful
00:51:08.00\00:51:09.50
and sharper than
any two-edged sword.
00:51:09.53\00:51:11.83
It can pierce our hearts,
it shows us where the sin is,
00:51:11.87\00:51:14.47
but it doesn't leave us
there and it points us to Jesus.
00:51:14.50\00:51:17.77
The Word of God
has life giving power.
00:51:17.81\00:51:20.08
If you want your
life to be changed,
00:51:20.11\00:51:21.74
if you want to grow in grace,
00:51:21.78\00:51:23.48
open up your heart to
the work of the Holy Spirit,
00:51:23.51\00:51:26.05
because only he can change you.
00:51:26.08\00:51:27.78
But in addition, spend
time in the Word of God.
00:51:27.82\00:51:30.85
I think about Jesus
and the temptations.
00:51:30.89\00:51:33.29
Remember, 40 days without food.
00:51:33.32\00:51:34.96
I can't even imagine
40 days without food.
00:51:34.99\00:51:38.26
And Satan comes and says,
"If you are the Son of God,
00:51:38.29\00:51:41.06
turn these stones into bread."
00:51:41.10\00:51:43.50
How did Jesus
answer that temptation?
00:51:43.53\00:51:45.47
How did He do with
something that was so physically
00:51:45.50\00:51:48.24
and emotionally difficult?
00:51:48.27\00:51:50.34
He said what?
00:51:50.37\00:51:51.71
I just want to put this
in, 40 days without food.
00:51:51.74\00:51:56.04
You think that's
a hard temptation?
00:51:56.08\00:51:57.71
I can't even
imagine going through that.
00:51:57.75\00:52:00.88
And I think I've got a whole day
00:52:00.92\00:52:04.09
without chocolate.
00:52:04.12\00:52:05.45
Okay, I'm just being real here,
a whole day without chocolate.
00:52:05.49\00:52:08.69
Boy, that was hard.
00:52:08.72\00:52:10.06
He went 40 days not
without chocolate, without food.
00:52:10.09\00:52:14.20
And yet, how did He
deal with that temptation?
00:52:14.23\00:52:16.26
Matthew 4:4,
00:52:16.30\00:52:17.80
"He answered and
said, 'It is written,
00:52:17.83\00:52:19.50
man shall not
live by bread alone,
00:52:19.53\00:52:21.20
but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
00:52:21.24\00:52:23.97
Jesus answered temptation,
00:52:24.01\00:52:26.14
He handled
temptation with the Word of God.
00:52:26.17\00:52:28.38
You and I have
00:52:28.41\00:52:29.74
the same weapon in our disposal.
00:52:29.78\00:52:31.11
You and I have the
power in the Word of God
00:52:31.15\00:52:34.22
to use and apply over our lives.
00:52:34.25\00:52:36.48
Key number eight,
crucify the flesh,
00:52:36.52\00:52:38.99
and put to death
the old man of sin.
00:52:39.02\00:52:43.66
Galatians 5:24,
00:52:43.69\00:52:45.63
"And those who are
Christ's have crucified
00:52:45.66\00:52:48.06
the flesh with its
passions and desires."
00:52:48.10\00:52:51.97
So what does
that mean literally?
00:52:52.00\00:52:53.84
I think about Romans 6,
00:52:53.87\00:52:55.20
there's this whole
passage about the death
00:52:55.24\00:52:57.21
to the old way of life
and rising to newness of life.
00:52:57.24\00:53:01.34
In Romans 6:6,
it says, "Know this,
00:53:01.38\00:53:03.98
our old man must
crucified with him,
00:53:04.01\00:53:06.48
that the body of sin
might be done away with,
00:53:06.51\00:53:09.95
that you and I, we should
no longer be slaves of sin."
00:53:09.98\00:53:13.46
Verse 7,
00:53:13.49\00:53:14.82
"For he who has died
has been freed from sin."
00:53:14.86\00:53:19.69
I mean this in the most
respectful way possible.
00:53:19.73\00:53:23.50
But if you ever go to a funeral,
00:53:23.53\00:53:25.87
and you see the person
who has died in the casket,
00:53:25.90\00:53:29.77
have you ever
seen someone come up
00:53:29.80\00:53:31.44
to the body and
offer them cigarettes,
00:53:31.47\00:53:34.94
or offer them alcohol,
00:53:34.98\00:53:36.75
or tempt them
sexually or gossip about them?
00:53:36.78\00:53:40.55
Or say some nasty
things about them?
00:53:40.58\00:53:43.89
Have you ever seen
that person respond?
00:53:43.92\00:53:45.59
Have you ever seen those desires
00:53:45.62\00:53:47.66
in their heart come out?
00:53:47.69\00:53:49.62
No. Why?
00:53:49.66\00:53:50.99
Because they are dead.
00:53:51.03\00:53:52.53
Crucify the flesh
00:53:52.56\00:53:54.10
and put to death
the old man of sin.
00:53:54.13\00:53:57.03
We can't do that
in our own strength.
00:53:57.07\00:53:58.53
It is only by the
power of the indwelling,
00:53:58.57\00:54:01.60
it's the Holy Spirit that
you and I can say, okay, God,
00:54:01.64\00:54:05.37
I can't get rid of the
old man, the old woman of sin.
00:54:05.41\00:54:08.21
I can't get rid of these
fleshly appetites and desires.
00:54:08.24\00:54:11.75
But I'm opening up my heart.
00:54:11.78\00:54:13.62
And I'm giving You
permission to do that.
00:54:13.65\00:54:17.52
Our closing scripture
is 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.
00:54:17.55\00:54:23.06
When we first
read this scripture,
00:54:23.09\00:54:26.59
it might seem a little harsh.
00:54:26.63\00:54:28.90
It says, "Do you not
know that the unrighteous
00:54:28.93\00:54:32.83
will not inherit
the kingdom of God?
00:54:32.87\00:54:36.24
Do not be deceived.
00:54:36.27\00:54:38.01
Neither
fornicators nor idolaters,"
00:54:38.04\00:54:40.54
this is a list of sins,
00:54:40.58\00:54:43.04
"nor
adulterers, nor homosexuals,
00:54:43.08\00:54:46.28
nor sodomites, nor
thieves, nor covetous,
00:54:46.31\00:54:50.99
nor drunkards, nor revilers,
00:54:51.02\00:54:54.76
nor extortioners will
inherit the kingdom of God."
00:54:54.79\00:54:58.69
You might be
watching right now and say,
00:54:58.73\00:55:01.20
"Well, I'm all of those things,
00:55:01.23\00:55:02.56
or I'm one of those things,
or I'm five of those things.
00:55:02.60\00:55:06.63
Are you saying I'm
not going to go to heaven?
00:55:06.67\00:55:08.44
Are you saying that my sins,
00:55:08.47\00:55:10.11
I've tried, I've
tried to get rid of them,
00:55:10.14\00:55:12.04
I've tried to
overcome, I've tried.
00:55:12.07\00:55:14.18
There's nothing I can do.
00:55:14.21\00:55:15.74
I don't know what to do, God."
00:55:15.78\00:55:18.21
I'm so grateful
that the scripture
00:55:18.25\00:55:20.28
doesn't stop
there, that it continues.
00:55:20.32\00:55:22.55
1 Corinthians 6:11.
00:55:22.58\00:55:25.55
It says, "And
such were some of you."
00:55:25.59\00:55:28.82
To be honest,
such were all of us.
00:55:28.86\00:55:32.16
"But you were washed."
00:55:32.19\00:55:34.33
Do you want to be
washed in the blood of Jesus?
00:55:34.36\00:55:37.00
Do you want to
know that His blood
00:55:37.03\00:55:40.07
will cover your sin,
00:55:40.10\00:55:41.44
His blood will cover your
past, His blood will cover you.
00:55:41.47\00:55:46.37
"But you were
washed, you were sanctified,
00:55:46.41\00:55:50.11
you were justified
00:55:50.15\00:55:51.71
in the name of the Lord Jesus
and by the Spirit of our God."
00:55:51.75\00:55:57.42
Do you want to walk in victory?
00:55:57.45\00:55:59.89
Do you want to live
a new life in Christ?
00:55:59.92\00:56:04.69
Do you want to
experience Jesus in a new way?
00:56:04.73\00:56:10.03
Open up your heart to
the Lord Jesus and say,
00:56:10.07\00:56:12.33
"Yes, God, I want to
make a decision on principle,
00:56:12.37\00:56:15.00
not by how I feel.
00:56:15.04\00:56:17.64
Yes, God, I want
to make decisions
00:56:17.67\00:56:19.57
that will affect You.
00:56:19.61\00:56:21.74
And I'm not going to worry about
00:56:21.78\00:56:23.28
how I think it affects me.
00:56:23.31\00:56:25.38
Yes, God, once I
make a decision for You,
00:56:25.41\00:56:28.12
I want to stick
with that decision.
00:56:28.15\00:56:30.52
Yes, God, I am willing,
00:56:30.55\00:56:32.35
and I don't even
know how to say this,
00:56:32.39\00:56:33.79
because I don't
know how to do this.
00:56:33.82\00:56:35.32
But I am willing to be
made willing for you to tell me
00:56:35.36\00:56:38.99
those things in my life,
those things in my heart,
00:56:39.03\00:56:42.20
those things in my home
that are pulling me from Jesus.
00:56:42.23\00:56:47.67
God, I want to accept
the power of the Holy Spirit,
00:56:47.70\00:56:51.07
because I can't change myself.
00:56:51.11\00:56:52.57
I can't make myself better.
00:56:52.61\00:56:54.24
I can't resist sin.
00:56:54.28\00:56:55.61
I cannot resist temptation,
but God, would You come in?
00:56:55.64\00:57:00.38
Would you fill me
with Your Holy Spirit?
00:57:00.42\00:57:03.35
Would You give me Your power?
00:57:03.39\00:57:04.99
God, I want to utilize the power
00:57:05.02\00:57:06.89
of the Word of God.
00:57:06.92\00:57:08.26
Teach me how to claim
Your promises over my life.
00:57:08.29\00:57:13.29
God, I don't
know how to do this.
00:57:13.33\00:57:15.26
But I want to
crucify that old man,
00:57:15.30\00:57:17.27
that old woman of sin,
00:57:17.30\00:57:19.20
and I want to be a child of God.
00:57:19.23\00:57:21.47
Know that in
Christ, you can be forgiven,
00:57:21.50\00:57:26.21
cleansed and made whole.
00:57:26.24\00:57:28.74
In Christ, you can resist sin.
00:57:28.78\00:57:31.05