Church 10/02/2021
Offertory scripture:
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord . For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Jeremiah%2017:7-8&version=NKJV
Sermon message:
Thesis: Don’t let the thief rob you
We have an adversary.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
1 Peter 5:8 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Peter%205:8&version=NKJV
In fact, our adversary is a thief.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
John 10:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=John%2010:10&version=NKJV
But you don’t have to let Satan steal from you or from your blessings. We can resist him.
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
James 4:7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=James%204:7&version=NKJV
Resist Satan, because he wants to steal from you.
Receive from God, because He wants to bless you.
The good news: you can get it back. Not only so, but you can get it back even more than what you lost. Even sevenfold.
Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; He may have to give up all the substance of his house.
Proverbs 6:31 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Proverbs%206:31&version=NKJV
You have the spirit of God; therefore you are a match for the devil.
For with God nothing will be impossible.”
Luke 1:37 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Luke%201:37&version=NKJV
We can stop Satan from stealing from us. We can also stop him from the habit of trying to steal from us.
First thing Satan wants to steal from you: unity. Family, country, church, marriage, workplace, etc. United we stand; divided we fall.
The importance of unity in a church cannot be overstated.
The importance of unity in a family cannot be overstated.
And so on.
Where there is unity, there are blessings. God blesses unity. Not only so, He commands His blessings on unity.
You must work for unity.
Even if Satan has stolen from you before, you can break him of the habit.
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing— Life forevermore.
Psalm 133:1-3 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%20133:1-3&version=NKJV
Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ecclesiastes%204:9-12&version=NKJV
Just so you know, you don’t have to always be perfect. We sometimes fall. We have to lift each other up when we fall.
And when 2 or more are gathered together in Jesus’ name, He will bless them.
Second thing Satan wants to steal from you: your joy. So that he can depress you and take away your sense of well-being. This is to deplete your strength.
The Bible explains: there is strength in joy.
Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Nehemiah 8:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Nehemiah%208:10&version=NKJV
The joy of the Lord is our strength. Satan wants to steal our joy because he wants to steal our strength. Joy is a spiritual force. Joy is better than happiness because joy doesn’t depend on happenings; it depends on God no matter what.
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
James 1:2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=James%201:2&version=NKJV
You have peace knowing that God is with you and fighting for you. That’s what joy is. It endures through trials.
People can be joy-stealers. Identify who they are. Get rid of the joy-stealers.
Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
Psalm 1:1 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%201:1&version=NKJV
Satan hates joy because he has never had joy and never will. Resist him. Submit to God. You have the Spirit of God in you. You have the fruits of the Spirit in you. You have joy in you.
To get your joy back—God can and will help you. He WILL help you.
Praise God. Laugh at the devil.
The third thing Satan wants to steal from you: Generosity.
God is very generous.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
John 10:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=John%2010:10&version=NKJV
God has life to the full for you. God is very generous. But Satan steals. He wants to steal the spirit of generosity.
Generosity is a quality of God. Generosity is a way of seeing things, thinking about things, and doing life.
The Bible says a lot about of the spirit of generosity. God blesses richly those who are generous to others.
There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty.
Proverbs 11:24 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Proverbs%2011:24&version=NKJV
God wants your world big; Satan wants your world small.
Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality.
2 Corinthians 8:1-2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=2%20Corinthians%208:1-2&version=NKJV
Joy and generosity go hand in hand. It’s just something that tends to happen.
The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.
Proverbs 11:25 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Proverbs%2011:25&version=NKJV
Satan doesn’t want you to be generous in your life or in the church. But we have the spirit of God in us. Live generously and live in generosity.