Learning What’s Worth Fighting For!
1Corinthians 6:12
DATE: 13 July, 2008 AM
PLACE: BBC Ballincollig
I.
Introduction (1Tim
6:11-12)
A.
The theme this month is
Bow the Knee Defiantly – The need for Resistance in our Worship! Not
against GOD, but against things that interfere between us and God!
B.
What do I mean by that? That
in order to worship the Lord Jesus, I must not allow anything, not ANYTHING to
come between me and doing His will. In order to yield to God, I must stand firm
against sin – amen!
C.
Example of Jesus against the
devil’s pressures and temptations (Luke 4:5-8).
D.
Maybe it doesn’t matter to
you, but it sure matters to God how easily things become more important to us
that He is in our lives. Doesn’t it amaze you how quickly we just go back to our
“old routines” right after church?
E.
At some point, a Christian
must not only bend the knee towards the Lord Jesus Christ, but also make a stand
against enslaving sin that seeks to control their lives!
F.
This morning, I want to start
a fight! I want to start a fight against the things that creep into our hearts
and minds, and defile us! And by the way, I want to win!
II.
Background
(Ephesians 6:13)
A.
The Meaning of
1.
A willingness to fight
2.
A casting aside what used to
control you
3.
Getting angry enough to win
against your sworn enemy
4.
A bravery towards your enemy
5.
A resistance to being
conquered
B.
There are some things are
worth fighting for.
C.
Example of Winston Churchill
1.
Winston Churchill spent the
better part of the 1930’s warning about the rise of Nazi Germany. Year after
year in Parliament he gave speeches attacking the government for not taking the
threat seriously. They didn’t, and well over 40 million people lost their lives
in the Second World War.
2.
The great failure of British
diplomacy in the late 1930’s was not taking Hitler seriously enough. Prime
Minister Neville Chamberlain famously came home from the
3.
By 1940 Chamberlain had
resigned and was replaced by Winston Churchill. In his first speech to
Parliament upon appointment Churchill spoke these famous words:
.... You ask,
What is our policy? I will say; "It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with
all our might and with all the strength that God can give us: to wage war
against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark lamentable catalogue of
human crime. That is our policy." You ask, What is our aim? I can answer with
one word: Victory - victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror,
victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no
survival.
D.
Some things are worth fighting
for. Some things are worth fighting for because the consequences of not doing so
are terrible. And so we fight.
III.
Message
A.
Fight For Control (Luke 6:46;
Gen 32:24-28)
1.
Instead of fighting to BE in
control… (oh THAT is the norm today)…
2.
The fight is for you to YIELD
control!
3.
Example of Jacob
- Jacob was a hustler !
a.
He was only interested in fast
bucks, and pretty women! He only had time for God if he was blessing him. Lived
70 years as a stubborn, selfish, hurtful man towards the world around him – only
out for what he could get… and he was good at it too!
b.
But one night, late at night,
he lay alone in a tent, with his family at risk of being killed, and with his
own life in danger of being struck down by his own bitter brother, Jacob finally
began to wrestle in the fight of his life – a fight for who would be in charge
of his decisions, his plans, his attitudes, his possessions, his will!
c.
And that night, the Lord Jesus
won! Not by brute force (even though Jesus can beat anybody with both arms tied
behind his back)! But by Jacob deciding to yield!
4.
You need to fight your worst
enemy – fight
yourself for the right of Jesus
Christ to govern, control, and dictate your life from today onward!
a.
Where you go
b.
What you say
c.
What you drink
d.
What you wear
e.
Length of hair
f.
The world tells us all these
things – it’s about time we listen to God’s word and let HIM decide once again
what is right and wrong!
5.
Hey! Jesus earned that right,
but rarely do believers yield total control over to Him (Philp 2:9-11)!!!
6.
God is asking us to resist the
7.
When you do…
a.
You begin to live by faith
instead of only by sight – that’s so pleasing to God
b.
You begin to enjoy the
surprises of how God works all things together for good
8.
When you don’t…
a.
You see only failures, and
disappointments
b.
You carry regrets and grief’s
and sorrows
9.
Hey! There are some things
worth fighting for, and the FIRST thing to fight for, is for Jesus to be in
charge – to be in control – to be Lord of your life!!!
B.
Fight for a Good Conscience
(1Tim 1:19)
1.
Oh the blessing of a clean and
good conscience! We call it
2.
What is your conscience?
a.
All the things you think
about, are in your conscience
b.
All the things you worry about
are in your conscience
c.
What you allow or decide is
from your conscience
d.
Your conscience is what God
moves and pulls upon. The more sensitive, the easier to hear God’s still small
voice. The more defiled, means it is harder to get anything from your Bible
reading, or even from church (that’s why so many churches have LOUD drums, and
Rock Music, and a heavy emphasis on entertainment… burned out consciences)!
e.
And oh how important that our
conscience be working well! Not clogged up, and malfunctioning!
3.
What affects, and ruins our
conscience:
a.
Our Past does – the hurts we
have felt, and the hurts we have done. The apostle
b.
Our Looseness
1)
When people are lazy… it burns
out their conscience.
2)
When someone just lives for
video games and entertainment… it burns out their conscience.
3)
When people listen to, and
watch constant filth and sin portrayed on TV and in music… what do you think it
does to their conscience? It certainly does NOT strengthen it, except AGAINST
GOD!
4)
How much sin and laziness do
you allow yourself? The more sin you allow, the less conscious you will be of
God! Period!
c.
Our Bitterness (Heb 12:15) –
unresolved revenge
1)
Frustration
2)
Anger
3)
Revenge
4)
Bitterness
5)
Burned out conscience
4.
What’s it like to have a
defiled conscience?
a.
Unable to sleep, or rest
b.
In bondage to fear
c.
Overwhelming guilt and shame
d.
Unable to serve and bless and
live – just want to die!
5.
Oh to fight to retain a clean
conscience, or to fight to get it back!
a.
Through the cleansing power of
just reading and meditating on Scripture (John 15:3)
b.
Through humbling yourself and
being honest, totally, and completely honest (Luke 15:21)
c.
Through believing in the
cleansing power of the blood of Jesus Christ (Heb 9:13,14)
6.
A good conscience is worth
fighting for! Would you agree!
C.
Fight for a Soft Heart (Exodus
8:19; Pr 29:1) I think this is more
important than 99% of you will admit
1.
Oh how hard the heart can get
2.
It is just SO easy to let our
hearts get harder and harder
3.
It takes a fighter to keep
their heart soft
4.
Let’s listen to God’s concern
about hard hearts
a.
Job 9:4
“[God] is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened
himself against him, and hath prospered?”
b.
Zec 7:11,12
“But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped
their ears, that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant
stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath
sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the
LORD of hosts.”
c.
Jer 5:3
“O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but
they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive
correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to
return.”
d.
Luke 13:34
“O
5.
We need constant reminding
about this (Heb 3:13)
a.
Force yourself to say, “I’m
sorry, please forgive me!”
b.
Force yourself to go ahead and
forgive people and SAY “You’re forgiven!”
c.
Force yourself to get on your
knees and pray blessings upon your enemies, and those who hurt you (Matthew
5:44)
d.
Fight the
6.
Keep your heart soft, and
sensitive to the gentle breeze of God’s holy Spirit, and the simple push of
God’s commands
7.
Stay able to feel, and able to
love, and able to respond to simple things
IV.
Conclusion/Application
A.
This morning, I wanted to
start a fight! I want to start a fight against the things that creep into our
hearts and minds, and ruin us! And, I want to win!
B.
I believe that there are some
things are worth fighting for, because the consequences of not doing so are
terrible and so wrong. And so we fight.
C.
Please, start a fight…
1.
For Who’s going to be in Control
2.
For a Good Conscience
3.
For a Soft Heart
D.
This is not the kind of fight
you might expect, but it is the most necessary fight to be in today!
E.
There is more next week…
1.
Fight for a Clean Life (1Cor
6:15-20; 3:16-18)
2.
Fight for a Godly Home
(Nehemiah 4:12)
3.
Fight for a Lost Soul (2Tim
2:4; 23-26)
F.
Don’t miss a single meeting!
Craig Ledbetter | Pastor |