STOP Living Life Defeated!

This was my sermon from yesterday. 

You can listen to it here.

The first portion of the sermon you'll hear one of my precious youth sharing on Jesus as a young boy, and then you'll hear me come and share what I have also summarized below:

The thing about temptation is it never goes away!

Someone may finally throw out that cake that's been taunting  you for a week, and you think phew, that temptation is done, I survived! .... But inevitably, someone will bring in cookies to the staff lounge soon enough!

Temptation goes beyond food, and has been around forever!

Satan is and always will be at work in this dark world, trying his best to slip you up, and push you away from God. (That is his purpose and ultimate goal after all.)

I want to look to Jesus' time in the wilderness with Satan. As any good football coach will tell you, the best way to prepare for a game is to study your opponent, learn their moves and trick plays, and then formulate a plan of attack with that knowledge.

From Luke we see 3 Temptation Strategies that Satan used against Jesus, and continues to try and use against us today. 

1) Satan attacks us at our weakest points. (Luke 4:1-4)
For Jesus he was appealing to his human need of food after a time of fasting.
For us, he also appeals to our human nature when we're in a weak moment. (For example, when someone has offended you, he tempts you to hold onto that anger, to lash out.)

It is human nature to be defensive, to break the rules just to get what you want when we feel we are back into a corner, to lie, to steal, to cheat  …..  but just as Jesus says, “Man shall not live on bread alone,” we too are not to live by our human needs and desires alone either – not if we want the life Jesus created for us that is.

2) Satan appeals to our earthly dreams and desires. (Luke 4:5-8)
Satan tempts us through social media, “oh look, your friends are way better mom’s than you are. They have well-behaved children, delicious home-cooked meals, and a Pinterest craft done each afternoon. – You’re such a failure!”

Maybe you’re like me and don’t necessarily care about fame, but popularity – I’m a people pleaser and Satan uses this to my demise all the time.

We all have dreams – maybe Satan tempts you with a shortcut to that promotion – even though you’d have to lie first.

And Satan saves the worst temptation for last:

3) Satan tries to make you think that God doesn't care about you. (Luke 4:9-12)

I talked about the answer to life's difficult "why's" in a previous post, Earlier Post

When you're in the middle of a really difficult time, he loves to make you think that God has abandoned you.      Here Satan whispers, “I thought God said, He had you, He loved you, He’d protect you.”

But as Jesus responds, we have to stop putting God to the test. (Let me clarify ...)

We test God all the time by measuring him through eyes of this world. Based on worldly views, He can’t heal! The proof is that people are dying, and diagnosed with new diseases every day!

He’s failed at eradicating hatred, there are wars being fought around the world, innocent people and children killed, simply because of  that hatred. God’s certainly not winning that battle.

BUT …. You see, God is not really all that concerned with this world.

In fact, He created us, not for this world, but for His!

On earth, we have breakable bodies, we live in a sinful, fallen world that will know trouble. But what Jesus promises, while we're still down on earth, is "take heart, in this world you will know trouble ... but I have overcome the world!"

In overcoming the world, we were given the most amazing gift we could possibly imagine, the gift of the Holy Spirit, dwelling and living in your heart.

He created you,

 your soul, your heart, the very core of who you are .... 

not for this world! .... 

but for His!

He sent His Holy Spirit to guide you, strengthen you, lift you up when you can't fathom taking another step. 

This is why when people are at the lowest point of their lives, looking at their wife in a hospital bed, begging her to open her eyes ... they find the strength to get up, to keep moving, to keep living.

The evidence that Jesus has overcome death, defeated Satan is in the fact that a widow wakes up, and continues living, caring for small children after her husband doesn't return home from war.

To find evidence that Jesus has defeated Satan, overcome death ... just look in the mirror! Your life has daily examples of Jesus helping you, guiding you through difficult situations, protecting you, loving you, lifting you up!

He hasn't abandoned us, He is and always will remain in our hearts, we just have to be spiritually fit enough to recognize Him.

To fully access the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we have to be in top spiritual shape .... and the only way begin is to open your  Bible!

I'm offering you a completely personalized Bible Study experience, in which I will help you jumpstart the faith life you've been wanting! We will walk through this adventure together, get over our excuses (the biggest being that you just don't have time .... no one has time, they MAKE time!)

Let me show you just how easy it is, by creating a fully customized plan that meets you where YOU are in your life, on YOUR schedule, with what works for YOU!

Simply shoot me an email to get started!
christinelekovich@gmail.com

With My Love, and HIS Blessings,
Christine