Standing Strong In Christ Jesus Our Lord

Dr. Moses Lee
08-04-2018

The Lord is with us. We are not alone.

If we cannot face the challenges ahead of us, how will the people who do not know God?

You have a blessed role to play. 

Take people by the hand and say, "Come, follow me as I follow Christ."

The Lord has something for us to do.

What He has blessed us, we have to bless others.

Be the light and salt and strength and encourager to others.

We hear about the end times and all the doom and gloom.

What are you doing in the meantime? Are you maturing in your spiritual development from one stage to another?

Matthew 7:24-27 New King James Version (NKJV)
Build on the Rock
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. *And great was its fall.”

The stability of the house is dependent on the foundation.

The rock of our salvation is Jesus Christ.

God does not work with foolish people.

Do not take our spiritual formation lightly--that it is not just a Sunday thing.

The lazy man did not take heed. When trials and challenges come, he falls away. Great was the fall.

Enemies to the soul:
1) The flesh
2) The devil
3) Attractions and their power over us

Don't be against those who are rich who have earned their wealth righteously. 

God knows and God will surely bless them.

The devil wanted to destroy the church of Christ but he could not do it.

Genesis 3:15 New King James Version (NKJV)
15 And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”

In the fullness of time when Christ came to carry your sin and mine, the devil laughed all the way to Calvary. But three days later Christ arose. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God. He reigns. He is here right now to strengthen your faith in Him and stand strong and tall in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The devil brings in all kinds of strives and struggles, and especially offences.

Luke 17:1 New King James Version (NKJV)
Jesus Warns of Offenses
17 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!

Jill Briscoe had a misunderstanding with a woman in the church. And she faced rejection. God told her that "Each of us is solely responsible for the right attitude that we take in our heart before God and before men."

Be willing to one another in reverance of God. Be willing to admit our own shortcoming and sin. Let him who has no sin cast the first stone.

We come in to church with all our sins and bitterness and unforgiveness.

Watch and pray. Watch out for the termites that eat away at our foundation.

Take a good look at our own heart. No one sinner is better than another sinner.

The devil comes subtly to cause division and destruction in the church.

Serendipity = happy chance discovery

King Solomon was born in the palace. He had never been a shepherd but his father, King David, was. He wrote 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 poems. He was powerful.

He started well but he did not end well. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines.

He pursued the woman and promised her all the gold and all the attractions of the world. But she was strong and stood steadfast. She resisted with the strength of her character. She represented Jesus Christ, the bridegroom.

How then shall we live?

Ephesians 4:1-2 New Living Translation (NLT)
Unity in the Body
4 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

Despite our struggles, Christ knows it all.

In the meantime, build up your most holy faith in Jesus Christ. Strengthen it in the Word of God and the Spirit of God.

If you had read Ephesians 1-3, how can you be proud an conceited that I have it all?

John the baptist said, "A man can only receive what is given to him from above."

Colossians 1:17 New King James Version (NKJV)
17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

If we react wrongly, we do more harm to ourselves.

It is better to suffer wrong than to do wrong.

Ephesians 4:3-4 New Living Translation (NLT)
3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

Keep the unity as a united family of God.

The relationship is to build up now. Otherwise when troubled times come, it is too late.

We have the same Father in heaven.

We all have the same Spirit and the same glorious future.

1 John 4:4 New King James Version (NKJV)
4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

When the storm comes, what then?

No weapon formed against you shall prosper because God is our defender.

The enemy himself will drown in the flood.

The willingness to suffer for Christ's sake. It is not necessarily the suffering itself. 

Missionary Francois Vosloo: "We (both my wife and I) died before we came."

Quote from China pastor: "The seed of the church is the blood of the martyrs."

The devil is a created and a defeated being. And he will be cast into the lake of fire for a thousand years.

Philippians 1:21 New King James Version (NKJV)
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

We live or die is Jesus Christ.

The willingness to suffer is a free choice. It is for you and you alone to make.

Jesus Himself laid down His life for you and I voluntarily.

A Morrocan asked, "Is Jesus Christ worthy to die?"

He found his answer: "If Christ is worthy to die for, then He is not worthy to live for. We have a gospel of infinite value to share with the world. What is more precious than your salvation and mine?"

Christ in us the hope of glory. Walk worthy in unity. Be willing to suffer for Christ's sake.