[0:00] Well, it's a blessing to be here with you again. My wife and I always enjoy coming and fellowshipping with this congregation. It's a joy for us and always appreciate the love and just the fellowship and friendship that we experience as we come here.
[0:22] I'll title the message this evening, In All These Things. In All These Things. What do you think about when you think about all these things? All these things.
[0:39] Brother Dan? You made it, right? All these things. We're going to be thinking especially about challenges, trials, and difficulties.
[0:58] You know, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, all these things came upon the world.
[1:08] Sorrow challenges. So much so that Jesus made a statement.
[1:21] In the world you will have tribulation. Now he ends it by saying, but be of good cheer because I will become the world. First song we sang this evening talked about victory in Jesus.
[1:35] And I was thinking, I hope by Sunday afternoon that the Lord continues to allow us to gather in his name, that we will be shouting that.
[1:50] Victory in Jesus. Amen? Amen? And I trust that we will see that what the Bible promises in the midst of all these things.
[2:03] Yes? In the midst of all these things. John also made a statement there. Again, he led out with that song. He made a statement, In the midst of turmoil, God often works.
[2:21] Amen? In the midst of turmoil. So, I'd like to encourage us to rejoice in the Lord always.
[2:33] To serve the Lord with gladness. And I hope by Sunday afternoon we can be shouting his praises more than ever.
[2:45] Again, Jesus said, In the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer because I have overcome the world. Let's pray one more time. Father, I just ask you in Jesus' name for the anointing of your Holy Spirit, Lord, that you would anoint us this evening with fresh oil.
[3:00] Why don't we just raise our hands to the heavens and just look to the Holy Spirit. Look to the anointing. Look to the spirit of God, the person of Jesus Christ.
[3:13] For his counsel over us. His voice to be heard. For his strength to come into our hearts. For us to have understanding in our greater way.
[3:25] In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. I wasn't sure if I was going to let you in at the beginning or the end of where I'm getting my phrase from.
[3:40] But I decided, well, let me bring it out right here at the beginning. It's such an encouragement, I hope. As we, I'm expecting right now, I'll be building my three messages.
[3:54] I've been asked to share Sunday morning and Sunday afternoon. And including tonight, they'll all be taken from these portion of scriptures. The portion of scriptures is in Romans chapter 8.
[4:08] You don't have to turn to that. But it says, it talks about tribulation. It talks about distress. This is talking to the believers.
[4:19] It talks about persecution. Persecution. You think about distress. That's a pretty heavy word, is it not? When you're distressed.
[4:31] Has anybody ever felt distress? Tribulation? It's talking about famine. Leggness.
[4:42] Pearl. Sword. As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long. Nay, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay.
[4:54] Then it says, nay, in all these things. Can you say amen tonight? In all these things. I asked you the question earlier.
[5:05] What do you think about when you think about all these things? Tonight, when we think about all these things, we're going to be thinking about challenges, distress, and discouragement, and weariness.
[5:19] But here it says, in all these things. We are. In all these things.
[5:30] Can you say praise the Lord, brother? We are more than conquerors in all these things. Through him that loved us. And so Sunday morning, I'll probably be preaching about through him that loved us.
[5:47] And Sunday afternoon, being more than conquerors. But this evening, we're talking about all these things. Yes?
[5:58] And then it says, I am persuaded. Continue reading there in Romans 8. I am persuaded. It's talking about all these things. It's that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
[6:31] When we think about all these things, I don't know how well I have my sermon broken down tonight with real clear aspects, but I do think there's some things here that we're going to grasp tonight.
[6:52] And one of those things is, when we think about the book of Revelation, what are some of the aspects that we can grasp in the midst of all these things?
[7:07] And when I'm talking about all these things, again, I'm thinking about challenges. Has anybody ever faced any challenges? Those are things, right?
[7:21] Those are things that we go through. Again, Adam, Eve, they disobeyed God. And all these things came upon the earth.
[7:32] So much so that the Bible says, the whole creation is groaning in travail. Paul said, it was as if we had the sentence of death upon us.
[7:45] And these are some of those things that, what can come out of these things? And he said, so that it was like God allowed these things to come upon us so that we don't trust in ourselves, but in God that raises the dead.
[8:04] So, again, some of the aspect of tonight's message is, when all these things come upon us, or we're dealing with all these things, what can happen in our lives in a positive way?
[8:19] Do we just give in? Remember where we're going with in these series of messages, if we would call that. In all these things, we are what? More than conquerors.
[8:33] Okay? In all these things. But again, one of my first points is, when you think about the last book of the Bible, you can see all these things, yes, in the last book of the Bible.
[8:45] It's quite intense. The devil knows he has a short time. And you see all these things. But what happens in the midst of all these things?
[8:58] There's the revelation of Jesus Christ. Can you say amen? So, I want us to grasp tonight that all these things will come upon us.
[9:11] Jesus said that. In the world, you will have all these things. He said you'll have tribulation. Another place, I think I might have it in my notes, but he says something about, I have told you these things.
[9:25] Do not be offended. I told you these things, so that you will not be offended. These things have I spoken unto you, that you should not be offended.
[9:37] They shall put you out of the synagogues. Yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he does God his service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father nor me.
[9:50] But these things have I told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. These things will they do unto you.
[10:00] So, Jesus is not hiding it from us that these things are going to come upon you. In fact, he's saying, I've told you these things so that you're not offended or so you're not surprised or so you don't give up when these things happen.
[10:20] So, it's good for us to realize, as a people, that these things are going to come upon us.
[10:32] Now, again, I'm going to jump ahead a couple times tonight maybe, but in all these things, we are more than conquerors. Yes? So, even tonight, even though tonight may be a little bit like a reality shock, that these things are going to continue.
[10:49] It's not like, like maybe we think sometimes, it's like, if I could just become a man of God enough or a woman of God enough and have enough of faith, I wouldn't have to deal with all these things.
[11:01] Yes? It's not a reality. And so, tonight, I might give you a reality check that, hey, wake up, you're just dreaming if you think that's going to happen. It's not what the Bible promises us, that we come to a place where, now, again, it does promise us that in all these things, we are more than conquerors.
[11:24] But when I think about the book of Revelations, I see all these things unfolding, intensity. But in the midst of that, there is the revelation of Jesus Christ.
[11:39] So that's one of the things we can expect that as all these things come upon the earth, as the devil knows he has a short time and as the last book of the Bible unfolds, there will be the revelation of Jesus Christ.
[11:56] And what does that mean? Just that people are going to have dreams of Jesus? Just like they're going to have visions of... No. When you read the book of Revelations, the revelation of Jesus Christ, mostly that's going to be revealed that in the midst of all these things, he is king of kings and he is lord of lords.
[12:15] That, I believe, is the revelation of Jesus Christ. That's what the book of Revelations is about. This is the revelation of Jesus Christ. You look in the Old Testament, in the midst of plagues, in the midst of, I think that was Pharaoh's situation and various other places, in the midst of that, the Lord himself says, I am the Lord.
[12:40] Yes? I am the Lord. And I think that's what's going to be revealed as the book of Revelations unfolds. It's going to be revealed that he is the Lord.
[12:52] And he will not be defeated. And so you can apply that to your personal life that in the midst of all these things, if God is for you, who can be against you?
[13:04] If God is in you, who can prevail? What can prevail against you? Or how can you be defeated? So again, I think with excitement, we can expect the revelation of Jesus Christ as all these things come upon the earth.
[13:27] And with the revelation of Jesus Christ, what transpires in our life? From my understanding, the revelation of Jesus Christ, Peter said a little bit like this, not quite word for word the way I'm going to say it, but he says, grace and peace be multiplied unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
[13:58] I think it might say through the knowledge of Jesus Christ, but one place I think it talks also about the revelation of Jesus Christ. But clearly, Peter gives us that assurance that the more revelation we have of Jesus Christ, the more grace and peace is multiplied unto us.
[14:22] So what's going to happen as all these things unfold and there is the revelation of Jesus Christ? We can expect we're going to have more grace and more peace than we've ever had before.
[14:32] And it may baffle humanity's minds that how can these people have such peace and such grace when the darkness is covering the earth and gross darkness is covering the people, but it will be because we have the revelation of Jesus Christ in all these things.
[14:50] what is your perspective when all these things come upon you personally? For Joe, it may be one thing.
[15:01] For John, it may be another thing. But you can say that, oh, these things have come upon me. It could just be a flat tire when you're trying to get somewhere, but it's like, oh, here, we were reminded that these things will come, right?
[15:14] And I don't think we should, like, expect them to come, but it's just a reality that as long as we live in this world, we will, in the world, you will have, what did I say?
[15:29] In the world, you shall have tribulation, right? It's a reality that, but Paul says it this way, and I think the way he begins it is important.
[15:44] He says, I have learned whatever condition I am to be content. It's like something we can learn by experience when we walk with God is we look back and we say, I went through a trial once before, and we saw God's faithfulness, and we're like, why didn't I just have peace the whole time?
[16:10] Because I can trust God. And so Paul, he analyzed that. The same man that, you know, had a thorn in the flesh, and then he asked the Lord three times, let it be taken from him, and the Lord said, my grace is sufficient for you.
[16:27] And so he came to the place where he said, I'm going to glory in my infirmities because I realized that when my trials, when these trials, when these infirmities come upon me, and when I become weak, then his strength is perfected in my weakness.
[16:43] So it's good for us to get the full advantage out of all these things rather than getting bitter or rejecting or looking for a way out all the time of the things that we can learn from.
[16:59] So Paul says, I have learned in whatever condition I am to be content. I know how, both how to be abased, to be brought low, and I know how to abound.
[17:13] Everywhere and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
[17:32] So if you don't remember anything else tonight, remember the phrase all things. We're more than conquerors in all these things.
[17:43] And again, what we just repeated or just verbalized is I can do all things through Christ. who gives me strength.
[17:54] And again, Paul says, I have learned this to be content in whatever condition I am. And again, as I mentioned, in all these things, Paul came to the place where I will glory in my infirmities.
[18:16] Romans again, I think it says, the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us. Tonight, we're talking about suffering. We're talking about all these things.
[18:30] Yes? And we're letting that kind of weight come upon us that we're not digging our heads in the sand and saying, no, these things don't come upon Christians.
[18:46] We're saying, no, we're being realistic and saying, no, it's true. I get sad sometimes. Sometimes I'm a little distressed. Sometimes I get out of bed in the morning and I'm wondering about how I'm going to pay my bills or how am I going to do this or how am I going to deal with this person that's, you know, giving me a hard time.
[19:06] And we're letting that be upon our hearts tonight with the realization that we're coming to the place more and more that in all these things we are more than conquerors.
[19:24] Yes? In all these things we are more than conquerors. It's good for us to realize that all these things can come upon us.
[19:37] And you look at the life of Paul and wow, what a, in weariness and fastings and persecutions and pearls among false brothers and three times I was beaten 39 times and you look at the life of a man of God and you look at all those things that came upon him and yet he says we are more than conquerors in all these things.
[20:07] Yes? So he was not making that statement as a man that never went through all those things. Yes? He wasn't making it lightly just like okay, well he, you know, was a guy that lived in a mansion and, you know, had a life of luxury.
[20:30] you know, he was, he was a man that was talking about that went through intense trials, intense challenges. We are more than conquerors.
[20:45] You know, we can look at various situations. You look at, you know, Laverne and Rosa, the challenges they went through. But then you look at more than conquerors.
[20:58] Yes? And all these things distressed, you know, facing even great distress. And, and, and Paul said, you know, it was like the sentence of death was upon me.
[21:16] But he realized that there was a purpose in it so that he would not trust in himself but in God which raises the dead. And that's when we begin to learn to be content and to fight our way through those things, we can actually use all those things as a ladder to climb higher in God.
[21:44] I hope you get that. Today we were watching from James' house those eagles and they say that, they say an eagle will at times wait for a storm to come and then fly, I think, right into the eye of the storm and, and with his wings out will use that storm to just cause him to soar up.
[22:08] And when we learn, I believe that all these things are coming upon me and I'm going to be more than a conqueror in the midst of all these things and that's what's going to make me a man of God.
[22:22] That's what's going to make me a woman of God. All these things that may defeat other people. All these things that cause other people to be overwhelmed and defeated but I have the spirit of God inside of me and it's actually these things that make me go deeper in God.
[22:41] That make me more humble, make me more broken, make me more dependent upon God. I'd like to say this. One thing for sure that we should say in the midst of all these things we're going to live for the glory of God.
[22:56] I like Jesus' statement. He said, I have glorified you on the earth. I have finished the work that you gave me to do. I'm emphasizing the fact that he said on the earth.
[23:09] On the earth. I have glorified you. He wasn't talking about glorifying God in a place where everything was perfect. On the earth, he says. Yes? Someday we'll bring glory to God in eternity.
[23:24] But this is talking about on the earth where all these things are pressing in upon us. What are all these things? We read it in Romans 8, right? All these things.
[23:37] You as a young man, you'll face challenges if you don't want to compromise the word of God and you want to continue to say, I don't, you know, if everybody else doesn't follow him, I have decided to follow Jesus.
[23:50] You'll face some challenges in life. All that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But it's good for you as a young man to say, you know, in all these things I'm going to be more than a conqueror.
[24:03] I'm not going to try to avoid all these things. I'm just going to purpose in my heart I will live for the glory of God. I have glorified thee on the earth. Again, the sufferings of this present time.
[24:19] But in all things, approving yourselves as the ministers of God in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distress, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in all things.
[24:34] When the Bible talks about in all these things we're more than conquerors. I hope you get the message. It's talking about challenges, it's talking about difficulties in all these things.
[24:48] It's not saying you avoid these things, it's saying in all these things. Again, Paul says those people say they're men of God, not his exact word, but he's saying, okay, if they claim to have the grace of God, I more, in labors, more abundance, he doesn't talk about his miracles when he's talking about his evidence of being a man of God.
[25:20] He talks about his stripes and prisons are more frequent in deaths often. Of the Jews, five times received I forty stripes except one.
[25:32] Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck. A night and a day I've been in the deep. In journeyings often, in pearls of water, pearls of robbers, in pearls by my own countrymen, in pearls by the heathen, in pearls in the city, in pearls in the wilderness, in pearls in the sea, in pearls among false brethren, in weariness, in painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger, in thirst, in fastings often, in cold, in a nakedness.
[25:59] Sometimes we like to avoid thinking of all these things. But it's good for us tonight to say that, you know, it's okay if all these things come upon us.
[26:13] We will trust the Lord. We will live for his glory. And we will be more than conquerors. Yes? By his grace.
[26:24] We will be more than conquerors. In all these things, we are more than conquerors. Through him that loved us. I remember some time ago and I put it in my journal.
[26:41] And I was thinking about I didn't have this phrase in my mind at that time. But I was thinking about all these things that have come upon the earth since the curse was brought by the disobedience of Adam.
[27:00] And I was just thinking about humanity. I was thinking about places like Pakistan where the brick laborers and the brick laborers are, they make bricks and it's hand labor and it's still being done that way.
[27:19] It's like done by hand, it's in the hot sun getting paid, you know, I don't know if they get two dollars a day or what they get paid but extremely small amount and it's like what a these are humans that are working day after day and never getting ahead in life and that's just one small part of the distress that humanity is under.
[27:50] It's good for us to think about that. All the things that humanity has to face and we might sit here tonight and say well it's not all that bad.
[28:07] Well, we live in America. We may be a small percentage of the intensity of what people are going through and who knows about what's going to happen in our lives.
[28:18] And some of us have gone through very painful things and we may have money in the bank but those things can still be extremely painful when we go through various situations. It could be health, it could be marriage situations, it could be church situations.
[28:33] Those things are real. Okay? But in many ways, I mean, I was telling my wife recently that it'd be good for us to at least look a little bit on the internet of Gaza, of the destroyed homes.
[28:49] You know, it's like we can kind of not be aware but when you look at, you look at Gaza over there that's being bombed, it's just, it's good to look at some of those pictures and see those buildings just totally destroyed and realize there's people, human beings like you and I living in those cities and just total destruction.
[29:13] And it's good for us to realize that the whole creation is groaning and travail but in all these things we will be more than conquerors. Yes?
[29:25] Regardless of what comes to America, I want you to have the confidence regardless of all these things, how intense they get, we, through the power of Jesus Christ, we will be more than conquerors.
[29:40] Again, when I was thinking about all the despair in the whole world, I was thinking of men of God who go through intense situations.
[30:02] I was thinking of people that despair even to the point of taking their lives. all these things come upon humanity.
[30:16] Matthew Henry says, our condition has become miserable. Our whole life is spent in labor and our time filled up with continual toil. Going back to Adam and Eve, since God has cursed the ground, it is as much as some can do with the utmost care and pain to secure a hard livelihood from it.
[30:41] All these things have come upon the earth and the impossibility of finding happiness under the sun apart from God.
[30:54] All these things have come upon the earth. All these things have come upon humanity. And really, it's impossible to find true happiness apart from God because of all these things.
[31:10] So don't even try. Don't even try to find fulfillment in the American dream. I'll say this, that in many ways I think the American dream is over.
[31:22] But even when it was at its finest, what fulfillment was there in the American dream? Yes? And that's why it's foolish for the church to say, let's make America great again.
[31:35] We should rather be saying, let's make the church great again. Say amen? What fulfillment is it in just making America great again? As much as we pray God have mercy on us and we're not looking for, we're not longing for the judgments to come to America even though we may righteously say, God, let it be so.
[32:01] But it could become very intense for us. So what do we do in all these things? I was thinking of the verse, I think it's in Isaiah someplace, where it says, He that walks in darkness and has no light.
[32:23] Has anybody ever been there, done that? I apologize a little bit because I keep bringing up Laverne's name, but he stayed at our house and we got to love him like a son.
[32:34] But I remember and I think I told you this before, he made a statement that I think it was the time he was leaving Michigan. He didn't, couldn't see more than one step ahead of him. And that's what it talks about in Isaiah where it says, He that walks in darkness and has no light, let him stay upon his God.
[32:55] Just stay upon God. Can you say amen? He that walks in darkness and has no light, it says, let him stay upon his God.
[33:05] So my encouragement to you tonight is you may be experiencing all these things or at least some of these things, but my encouragement is to stay upon God.
[33:22] And again, I touched a little bit, Jesus said, I have glorified thee on the earth, on the earth. I'm going to read this portion.
[33:35] McIntosh is his name, C.H. McIntosh. In our trials, our difficulties, our sorrows, if instant relief is not, doesn't come right away, we have to remember that perhaps there is a deep reason connected with the glory of God why the desired relief is withheld.
[34:01] In seasons of pressure, we're apt to think only of one thing which is relief. But there is very much more than this to be considered.
[34:14] We should think of the glory of God. And I don't know if it's him that talks about it or not, but somebody talks about when Mary and Martha's brother, Lazarus, was sick nigh unto death and they sent for Jesus and perhaps, well not perhaps, they were very puzzled.
[34:36] Jesus, if you would have been here or if you would have came, our brother would not have died. Sometimes we feel that way. It's Jesus, why did you let this happen? But if you read that carefully, you'll see Jesus wanted God to be glorified.
[34:52] He said, this sickness is not unto death, but that God might be glorified. I don't know if I have the words correct or not, but sometimes there's a reason that we're going through our distress.
[35:04] Sometimes there's a reason that we're going through our agony. Sometimes there's a reason that all these things, God allows all these things in the life of Job. You know, you have to realize sometimes you can't grasp the depths of God's wisdom or God's ways.
[35:24] Who would have ever, you know, looked at Job and seeing what Job went through, who would have ever, without now having the Bible and having the whole picture, who would have ever perceived that this was the very man that God is saying, there's none like him in all the earth that is as righteous as he is.
[35:50] We would have probably all had different thoughts about Job, other than that he is the most righteous man on all the earth. Because who would have ever thought that God would allow the most righteous man on all the earth, and God himself is saying that to the devil, that there's none like him in all the earth, and now he's going through all these situations, all these things came upon him.
[36:14] My encouragement to you is, don't despair when all these things come upon you. Just say, I'm going to be more than a conqueror by my faith in Jesus Christ.
[36:25] Don't think it's strange when you walk through various trials and difficult situations, but embrace those situations and say, I will be like Apostle Paul, that I'm going to glory in my infirmities, because when I realize that when I am weak, then the power of Christ is resting upon me.
[36:48] And so I'm not going to avoid the cross. In the Song of Solomon, it says, let the north winds blow and come, thou south winds.
[37:01] And it's a good statement for us to make. God, in my trials, the north winds, you know, today, I don't know if it's north winds here in Montana, but it's cold, it's bitter, you know, the south winds, it's nice and warm, at least that's how it is in most of the U.S., I think.
[37:16] And so we need both of those elements to produce godly character in us. We don't always want the north winds to blow, we say, God, bring some of the south winds, and that's what Song of Solomon says, let the north winds come, thou south winds.
[37:30] so it's good for us to say, God, it's okay if you allow all these things to come upon me. Just don't let me lose my faith.
[37:46] And so again, we're looking at giving God glory. I have glorified thee on the earth. To me, Moses is one of the greatest examples of a man who is willing to suffer so that God could be glorified.
[38:03] Here was a man that was leading a large group of people, and they were all giving him problems, at least most of them were complaining, murmuring, and despising him.
[38:15] And now God says to this man, step aside, I'm going to destroy these people, and I'm going to make a great nation out of you. Moses said, your name would not be glorified if you would do that.
[38:28] To me, it's an amazing revelation of a man who is willing to put God's glory first before his own vindication.
[38:41] And it's good for us all to embrace, God, there's one thing that I want, more than my prosperity, more than my blessing, more than my vindication, I want your name to be glorified.
[38:54] So that we can say like Jesus, on the earth, in the midst of all these things, I brought glory to your name. And more important to us than being delivered from all these things, more important to us is that his name would be glorified.
[39:11] Yes? That's more important, should be more important to all of us. God, most important is not my prosperity, most important is not my benefit or the pleasure of my heart, what does it say, something about they live for the pleasure of their souls, most important is not the pleasure of my soul, but that your name would be glorified.
[39:41] And if that means I'm not vindicated right away, if that means I'm not brought out of this difficulty right away, but your name is glorified, and again, Moses said, when God said he's going to destroy the people, Moses talked to God in such a way that God repented of the evil, God changed his mind of what he was going to do because Moses reminded him that your name will be dishonored if you do that.
[40:15] Jesus said something about he that speaks of his own glory, he that speaks of his own glory, glory, it's clear that the one that speaks of his own glory is not righteous, but he that seeks the glory of him that sent him, there is no unrighteousness in that person.
[40:37] That's an amazing statement. If we could come to the place where we're seeking the glory of the one that sent us, there is no unrighteousness in that person.
[40:48] But if we're seeking our own glory, seeking our own honor, glory, and again, my point is, are we willing to go through difficulties if that means God would be glorified?
[41:02] My thought is again, the book of Revelations, perhaps it can be most fully embraced and best understood, the book of Revelation.
[41:15] Perhaps it can be best understood understood and more fully embraced if we embrace that God would be glorified.
[41:26] Because it is the revelation of Jesus Christ that is going to take place in the book of Revelations. When we see that the book of Revelations, as it is unfolding, the ultimate purpose is for God to be glorified.
[41:43] I read this years back and it often came back to me. It says, we often make the mistake of putting our faith in an outcome rather than in the Lord.
[41:57] This has our hearts set on a thing rather than on Him. I'll break that down a little bit. Many times when we pray, we have our hearts set on a certain outcome rather than what we're looking for is God.
[42:20] And we're expecting an outcome but we're not trying to control the outcome. And if the outcome is different than what we were looking for, we're okay with that as long as God is glorified.
[42:38] So this person is saying the mistake is when we put our faith in an outcome rather than in the Lord. If we trust in the Lord, we also need to trust Him that the outcome of a matter will be what best advances His cause, what will be His triumph and not just ours.
[43:00] In many cases, the greatest triumph would be the growth of our faith which we are told in James is more valuable than gold. In all these things, if we can trust God in all these things, another thing that will happen is our enemies will be defeated if we trust God.
[43:24] You know, God confounds the enemy. The Bible says one place that if the prince of this world would have known the outcome, I'm kind of adding my own words, but it's clearly saying if they would have known the outcome when the Lord is crucified, they would not have crucified the prince of glory.
[43:49] Yes? The enemy, when he's, if he would know the outcome of putting Job through that situation, if he would know that Rose is going to become a woman of God because he wouldn't have ever put you through that situation.
[44:11] If he would see, and again, this is depending on if you respond correctly or not, if you become an overcomer or not. I like this one, I read this one recently.
[44:24] it's very interesting to look at the old front piece in the Wycliffe's Bible.
[44:35] It's evidently the old original, or I don't know if it was the original, but the Wycliffe's Bible had a, must have been a picture. I envisioned this, you know, maybe back in the 1600s or 1700s, I didn't study this, but it says there were there was a group of figures are gathered around the fire, which is bursting through the open pages of a holy Bible.
[45:02] Okay, so get the picture with me. There's a group of figures are gathered around a fire, and this fire is bursting forth through the open pages of a holy Bible.
[45:16] Fire is coming out. Their countenance, their countenances, their looks on their faces of these figures all wear a look of consternation.
[45:35] And with one consent, they are gathered around the fire, doing what? Trying to blow it out. Okay, this must have been a picture on one of the Bible.
[45:47] There's fire coming out of a book, the Holy Bible, and they're all gathered around there trying to blow it out. This can happen in your life.
[46:01] What happens here? Oh, there are bishops and archbishops of the Church of Rome, the Catholic Church, are involved in this, trying to blow out this fire.
[46:14] there. It would have been back in the time when the Catholic Church was opposing. The bishops, archbishops of the Church of Rome, and the devil at the head of the crowd, all blowing lustily with swollen cheeks, and strained countenances, blowing.
[46:37] blowing. But lo, the more they blow, the more it burns. Until at last, until at last the fierce blaze leaps up so high and so far and wide that they're obliged to shrink back.
[46:54] And even Satan himself, though used to such an atmosphere, used to such an atmosphere, is glad to escape from its consuming flame, so let us overcome, and more than overcome, our spiritual foes.
[47:08] Can you say amen? Let's overcome all these things. Yes? Let's not be dismayed by all these things.
[47:21] But let's overcome. I'm going to close here shortly, a couple more things.
[47:33] I heard this one recently. It was a devotional. I don't know if Alan Miller put it on the WhatsApp ministry team group, or I think it was more just local there.
[47:46] But I think it was Austin Sparks, I think, that had the devotional. And to me it was a good reminder. It said something like this, that to walk on water is easier, and then of course I'll expound on this.
[48:07] Walking on water is easier than walking on dry ground. Yes? Walking on dry ground, his emphasis was just the daily grind of life.
[48:22] Yes? I'm not quoting it quite word for word. I don't know if he said it's easier, but basically it's more difficult to walk on dry ground than it is walking on water.
[48:36] Oh, the excitement of walking on water, but the excitement of walking on dry ground and day after day and the pressures that come in and all these things that come upon us.
[48:49] So walk on dry ground. Would to God that somebody would be tonight as, by the grace of God I will walk on dry ground. And I hope to someday walk on water too because it'll probably be needed.
[49:01] Yes? But first of all, I'm going to walk on dry ground. To me it was such a challenge. I've always desired to be that man who's walking on water and, you know, I still desire those things.
[49:18] But walking on dry ground, Lord let me be faithful. the book of Acts I think says through much tribulation you'll enter the kingdom.
[49:33] Just a reminder tonight, don't put your head in the sand and think you're going to avoid all these things. Just prepare yourself how you're going to be more than a conqueror in the midst of all these things. That's my purpose tonight is that you're going to say yes, all these things I'm going to be more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ.
[49:58] Jesus said many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all. This person says this, and I don't know who, I'm quoting somebody else.
[50:13] The gospel is so arranged and the gift of God so great that you may take the very enemies that fight you and the forces that are arrayed against you and make them steps up to the very gates of heaven and into the presence of God.
[50:29] Amen? The gospel does this. It's so great. The gift of God is so great that you can take the very enemies that are fighting against you, the forces that are arrayed against you, and make them steps up to the very gates of heaven into the presence of God.
[50:53] All these things come upon you and they carry you up into greater things of God. Yes? Does the Bible support that?
[51:04] Absolutely. Paul, when he was somewhat boasting, he was boasting about his imprisonments and his distress and his challenges, his fastings, his weariness, evidence that I've walked with God.
[51:23] I've been a soldier. I may have said this before already, but a soldier, you know, one of the things I think a soldier that was, you know, he might roll up his sleeve and show you, look, I got some scars here to prove that I was a soldier.
[51:38] You know, if you don't have any scars, you probably never were in the forefront of the battle. It seems like Paul was able to say, look, I've got some evidence that I've been a man of God.
[51:50] I've got some evidence that I'm a woman of God. The challenges I've gone through prove that I've been fighting against the devil. If you don't have any, all these things coming upon you, then how much are you in the battle?
[52:05] How much are you fighting for Jesus Christ? Yes? So this is talking about, these things make you higher in God.
[52:17] Like the eagle who sits on a crag there in the rocks and watches the sky and is filling with blackness and the forked lightnings are playing up and down and he is sitting perfectly still and turning one eye and then the other toward the storm.
[52:34] But he never moves until he begins to feel the burst of the breeze and knows that the hurricane has struck him and with a scream he swings his breast to the storm.
[52:45] And uses the storm to go up to the sky and away he goes born upward upon it. That is what God wants of every one of his children to be more than conqueror.
[52:58] Turning the storm cloud into a chariot. You know when one army is more than conqueror it is likely to drive the other from the field to get all the ammunition, the food and the supplies and to take possession of the whole.
[53:11] This is just what this means to be more than a conqueror. There are spoils that can be taken and we use them to go higher in God.
[53:27] I want to give you this encouragement. If you have all these things coming upon you, what does the Bible say? You can come boldly before the throne of grace to find help in your time of need.
[53:39] If you are sitting here this evening and you say, well some of these things have been coming upon me, I would just like to say come boldly before the throne of grace to find help in your time of need.
[53:53] This is an invitation from our glorious Father in heaven. Come boldly before his throne of grace with confidence, with assurance.
[54:06] Boldly means confidence. Come with confidence. Come with full assurance. Before you go to bed tonight, you can kneel down and say, God, some of these things have come upon me.
[54:18] And maybe you, with the awareness that what's coming upon you in the future, you may realize from the Spirit of God tonight that there's some really intense things going to come against you in the future that God will allow.
[54:32] And God told Apostle Paul when he first came into the kingdom about the, tell him, who was it that was supposed to tell Paul, tell him of all the great things that he's going to suffer. Yes?
[54:44] What if God would say to somebody tonight, you're going to suffer a lot of difficult things. And you say tonight, God, I'm going to boldly come before you and say, make me more than a conqueror in the midst of all these things that are going to come against me.
[54:59] And let them make me a man of God. Let them make me a woman of God. Let the challenges that come against this church make us a mighty army for God.
[55:10] And rather than defeating us, we will see that we are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ. And others, they had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, moreover of bonds and imprisonments.
[55:27] They were stoned. All these things we're talking about. They were sawn asunder. They were tempted. They were slain with the sword. They were wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, and tormented, of whom the world was not worthy.
[55:43] They wandered in deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth. And these all having obtained a good report through faith. I'm going to ask you to stand to your feet.
[55:55] Tonight we're thinking about trouble, hardship, suffering, persecution, neganess, danger, sword, we're talking about suffering tonight.
[56:10] But then we're saying, as the Amplified says, I have strength for all things. King James says, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
[56:24] May there be somebody tonight that says, I have strength for all things. In Christ who empowers me, I am ready for anything and equal to anything through him who infuses inner strength into me.
[56:38] I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency. Amplified Bible. Can you say that tonight? I have strength for all things through Jesus Christ.
[56:51] I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Again, the Bible says, Who shall separate us from the love of God?
[57:08] Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or pearl or sword? As it is written, for your sake, we are killed all the day long.
[57:19] We are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things, yes, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. And I am persuaded that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities or powers nor things present nor things to come, hallelujah, nothing that's currently in my life or nothing that's going to come in my life, nothing, yes?
[57:50] No principalities, no powers, nothing that I'm going to face in the future. I am persuaded, I am convinced that nothing, no height, no depth, any other creature shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.
[58:12] Can somebody shout tonight, victory in Jesus? Hallelujah. Hallelujah. We are, brother John, more than conquerors in all these things.
[58:25] Not without all these things. Not like because we're in eternity and we don't have to face these. No, in all these things, we are more than conquerors.
[58:38] God, I pray tonight that somebody here tonight would grab a hold of Jesus by faith and say, yes, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
[58:57] And it's that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that will cause you to be more than a conqueror. It's that faith, hallelujah.
[59:09] I want you to think about it tonight as we're praying that with God, nothing is impossible. And that's why those who believe nothing is impossible. Both of them are Bible verses.
[59:23] Because when you believe, you're tapping into the God that nothing is impossible with Him. And it's not your faith, but it's your faith in that God that causes you to be victorious.
[59:37] So tonight I say, have faith in God. You are tonight, in Jesus Christ, more than a conqueror.
[59:50] You are victorious in Him. And nothing, none of these things will be able to defeat you.
[60:01] Raise your hands with me if you could. and believe that the one inside you is greater than he that is in the world. And, I'll close with these words.
[60:17] In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, because He has overcome the world. In His name, Amen.