Randall Caselman
Bella Vista Church of Christ
April 22, 2001 p.m.
Practicing Perseverance
Reading - Matthew 16.13-19
Everything yields to perseverance and persistence. It’s true... No matter how many times... we’ve tried to reach the goal... to cross the line... No matter how long we’ve tried... And how tired we are of trying... We must not give up... Because our goal will yield to our Perseverance. Everything yields to perseverance & persistence. Earl Nightengale put it this way... The key to success is Stick-to-it-tive-ness.
Now can this concept be useful in Christianity?
Can we in all honesty apply it to our daily walk with God?... I believe the answer is yes. Christianity is a religion of perseverance... Of keeping-on-keeping-on... Never giving up... Of faithfulness until and unto death. Don’t quit... Everything yields to PERSISTENCE.
Have you ever thought about what Jesus meant when he (speaking of his church) said... And the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it? He simply meant that Satan and all of hell won’t be able to stand up to the church. All of the devils demons... All of Satan’s power... won’t be able to overcome us individually or corporately as a church.
That is... If we persist... If we persevere in our fight against him.
You see... We don’t beat the gate down with one blow of the battering ram.
It is not the first... second... third blow of a hammer that breaks the rock.
It’s not a single turn of a wheel that wears out the bearings.
It is persistence... That which occurs over and over and over again.
What we need to understand tonight is that we individually and corporately have been promised all the power necessary to overcome Satan. Listen as I read some scriptures that assure us of this POWER...
First... The power that is at work in us is greater that the power at work in Satan...
Ephesians 3.16 & 20-21... I pray that out of His glorious riches He will strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being.. .Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us... To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 6.10-17... Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Secondly... Our power is God’s power. Listen to what Paul has to say about this power... There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in your weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
Thirdly.. God will supply the power we need
Philippians 4.13... I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.
Colossians 1.11... So that you might be strengthened with all power according to His glorious might... So that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully give thanks to the Father.
Church... No one can successfully deny that... We are given the strength and power to overcome Satan... Both individually and as churches.
You see... Satan... Hell... will not prevail against a Christian or the church who is persistent...
One that persistently has fellowship.
One that persistently prays.
One that persistently stands against every form of evil.
One that persistently reaches out to the lost of the world.
One that persistently walks by faith and not by sight.
Let’s develop each of these point for our lesson tonight.
First... We need persistence in fellowship.
Listen as I read Hebrews 3.12-13 and 10.24-25 together... See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness... Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Who could read these verses and not understand the importance of fellowship.
God created us for togetherness... One-anotherness. Scripture tells us it is not good that man should be alone. There are over one hundred one-another passages in the New Testament... WHY?... WHY? Folk... Our persistence in fellowship helps us overcome Satan.
Paul says... Evil companions corrupt good character...
Church... The opposite is also true... Good company cultivates good character.
It has been proven many times... If you took a infant... and make it live by itself, what would happen?... It would probably die... If it didn’t... It certainly would not know how to act if it grew up. You ISOLATE a Christian, and according to the verses we read from Hebrews, there will grow in that person an evil heart of deceit... unbelief... and a lack of good works.
Find me a church that is persistent in fellowship... And I’ll show you a loving... caring group of Christians... A FAMILY! I’ll show you a church built after the one in Acts 2... They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.... Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.
Remember Jesus’ statement in John 13.35... By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. Church... What demonstrates our love for one another?... Persistent fellowship!!
Most of our lack of fellowship is self-inflicted. And a Christian without contact with other Christians will eventually develop the fruits of unbelief!... And will fall away. This has been proven over and over again.
Listen to me closely church... This is why our Fun... Food... Fellowship groups are so important.
No... I am not saying that if you don’t belong to one of these groups that you will fall away. But I am saying... That the odds of you remaining faithful to God without any genuine fellowship with other Christian are nil to none.
SO... SO... FIND SOME WAY TO BE PERSISTENT IN FELLOWSHIP!!
Secondly... We can overcome Satan by being persistent in our prayer life.
The early church was a praying church... They were persistent in their praying.
In Acts 2 they continued steadfast in prayer.
In chapter 3... Peter and John were going to the Temple at the time of prayer.
In 4... They prayed after Peter and John were released from jail.
In chapter 6... The apostles asked for seven men be appointed to take care of the widows
so that they could spend more time in prayer.
The church prayed for Peter’s release from prison in chapter 12.
In 13... Paul & Barnabas were sent on their first missionary journey with prayer and fasting.
You see... Persistent prayer helps supply us with what we need... When we need it.
Let me read three scriptures that tells us about how prayer helps us overcome...
Romans 8.26-27... The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.
Ephesians 6.18... And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Colossians 1.9-12... For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.
Remember when the Allied forces arrived in Eritrea Africa. The Italian forces had blocked the harbor by sinking huge barges filled with concrete across the harbor entrance. The Allied forces cleared the harbor by taking huge gas tanks... The kind that hold hundreds of thousands of gallons... And chaining them to the barges. When the tide came in, the barges were lifted from the sucking sand and were easily towed to the open sea.
Persistent... Life changing prayer harnesses us... Ties us to a power greater than we are individually and corporately as a church.
Persistent prayer harnesses to the power of God.
Persistent prayer was a mark of the early church... And should be a mark of this church... And each of us individually... RIGHT?
Thirdly... We overcome Satan by living lives of moral purity.
I firmly believe that we individually and corporately must take a stand against evil wherever it is found...
In the church...
In the community...
At work...
Or in our nation.
This is not to be confused with getting the church into politics.... I find no New Testament example of this. Politics was not a part of Jesus’ agenda. There is no New Testament sermon on church involvement in such. It is to be understood from almost every page of our Bibles that we must stand against every form of sin... No matter where we find it... RIGHT?
Listen as I read some selected verses from Ephesians chapter 4 & 5...
Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor... Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry... Do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen... Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice...
Among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person--such a man is an idolater--has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light... Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them... Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
James tells us that Persistent moral purity... Keeping one’s self unspotted from the world is religion that God accepts.
The forces of Hell will not overcome... Will not prevail over those who are persistently sharing the Word with the lost. This is the promise of Jesus in Matthew 28... 18, 19 and 20... All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Church... How long does Jesus promise to be with us?... As long as we are reaching the lost.
SO... SO... Persistence in evangelism guarantees us that Satan will not prevail against us.
Folk... We have the answer to today’s troubled world. We have the answer to Loneliness... Depression... Insecurity.... Worry... Doubt... and Fear. We have the answer to... Drugs?... Crime?... Divorce?... Teenage Pregnancy?... And a thousand other problems.
IT IS THE GOSPEL... THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS... AND FORGIVENESS.
Living a life persistent in conforming to the image of Jesus will solve our world’s Spiritual... Moral... Social... and Political Ills. And will result in an eternal home in heaven for the participants.
Then finally tonight... Persistence in walking by faith will overcome Satan.
John tells us that... FAITH is the VICTORY that OVERCOMES the world.
You see church... Satan thrives in people who will do nothing...
Unless they have all the answers...
Unless they have the money in the bank...
Unless they can see the end from the beginning.
Folk... Christianity is a religion of faith... We walk by faith... Not by sight.
Question...
-Did the Apostles see a Jerusalem church numbering in the thousands the day before Pentecost?
-Could Paul see the end of any of his four missionary journeys at the beginning?
-Did Barnabas know Saul would not turn against him when he introduced him to the church in
Jerusalem?
-Did the early church worry about how much money they hand in the bank?
No... No... They lived by the words of Jesus from Matthew 6...25 I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28 "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' Or `What shall we drink?' Or `What shall we wear?' 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
You see... Our power to overcome Satan lies with the power of God!
Those who persistently walk by faith, absolutely frustrate the devil and defeats him at every turn.
Everything yields to persistence!!!
Become an overcomer tonight by becoming a child of God by faith, repentance and New Testament baptism... Immersion in water for the forgiveness of your sins.
Have any of us given in to the persistence of Satan?
Scripture says... Resist the devil... And he will flee from you.
Resist him now... And be free?
As we stand and sing this invitation song.
Will you come?
