Wrestling With God pt 2

Wrestling With God  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  55:03
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“We live in our ACTIONS, what we BELIEVE in our HEARTS.” — Dr. Fili Chambo

This week I had the privilege of hearing one of our General Superintendents speak… This is what He said: (above)
(repeat)
We live our lives according to what we “Believe” in our hearts.
That sounds an awful lot like the definition of FAITH we have been talking about, doesn’t it?
Faith isn’t about what we “believe” exists… Faith is about what we “Trust” our lives to.
What does your Life reveal about what you believe in your heart?!
Can I tell you this — Our Faith is not revealed in the “Good Times”!
Faith is REVEALED in our struggles… In our trials… in the difficult times…
It is in those times of hardship and struggle… when we are wrestling with God… that our faith is revealed!
And, can I tell you… That is what the world is watching!
It is our testimony… our life, lived in times of trial… that speaks of our FAITH to the world around us!
That is why Jacob’s story is so powerful!
Hosea tells us that “He struggled with the angel [with God] and overcame Him”Why?!
Because “He wept and begged for His favor.”
You see… Jacob knew that his plans were worthless! He knew that his life was a failure! He knew that he NEEDED to change… and only God could bring the change he so desperately needed…
So, clung to him… refusing to let go until God blessed him!
God is asking each and every one of us the same question He asked Jacob:
Genesis 32:27 (NRSV)
27 So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.”
Do you remember what we talked about that meaning?
It is a call to take a serious look at ourselves… to look closely at ourselves, and at our lives… to RECOGNIZE what our lives reveal about our hearts…
I want you to take a minute… Close your eyes… consider how you live your life… how you determine what course of action to take… how you view others… Where you serve and what you do…
Get that picture firmly in your mind… now… Does it reveal a strong faith in God?
God is asking us: “Are you going to continue to live up to that name?
— Are you going to continue to deceive yourself? Or will you admit the truth and let me change you?!”
Keep your eyes closed — Do you still have that picture in your head? Do you like what you see?!
Keep your eyes closed — Do you want to change? (Seriously… just raise your hand… I want to pray with you)
Now… If we are serious… if we are looking at our lives and we do not like what we see… If our desire is to see our lives changed… to see our FAITH grown… then WE HAVE TO CHANGE!
Jacob’s story gives us three MUSTS for our lives:
We MUST become desperate for God’s provision in our lives.
Jacob knew what he had done to Esau… He knew Esau’s anger toward him… He knew that he deserved the punishment for his actions…
Genesis 32:20 (NRSV)
20 and you shall say, ‘Moreover your servant Jacob is behind us.’ ” For he thought, “I may appease him with the present that goes ahead of me, and afterwards I shall see his face; perhaps he will accept me.”
And Yet, he also KNEW that God had promised to bless him and his family… Jacob knew who he was… what he deserved… and that nothing he could do would change the situation, or bring him salvation…
He needed God to deliver him… and he was desperate for God to help him.
We must become desperate in our need for God.
But let me tell you… We cannot become desperate for God’s provision until we recognize who we are!
We need to see the truth!
Our plans cannot FIX the situation… Our plans cannot CHANGE us… because OUR PLANS are what got us to where we are!!!
We need God to work in our lives!
But… the only way we are going to see it is if we are desperate for it, because desperation breeds persistence!
How often have we taken our needs to God… How often have we poured out our hearts, and then sat back and watched for a few days, a week, even a month, only to “give up” because we didn’t see God answer “in our time”?
So… We try to “fix” it ourselves…
I couldn’t count how many times I have heard someone say, “I prayed about it and God did nothing.”
Why is it that we give up so easily on getting an answer from God?
I can’t help but think that it is because we are not desperate enough!
We need to be like that father who was so desperate to see God save his son that he cried out:
Mark 9:24 (NRSV)
24 Immediately the father of the child cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
We need to get desperate about God removing our unbelief so that we can begin to “live in our actions what we believe in our hearts!”
But, that leads to the second “must” in our lives…
2. We MUST be willing to let go.
Matthew 6:33 NRSV
33 But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
We cannot do that… we cannot pursue God… if we are we are unwilling to let go…
We must let go of our problems… of our beliefs… of our abilities… of our families… of our doubts… of everything… and “Run with perseverence the road set out before us!”
Jacob sent his servants ahead of him with offerings… then he sent two companies of people and his belongings… finally he sent his family, his wives and children… everything he had left…
Jacob literally gave up everything… placing it all in God’s hands… trusting God for their care…
How willing are we to do that?! How willing are we to place even our most precious things into God’s hands… to let go of them… and trust God for their care?!
Luke 14:26 NRSV
26 “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.
Hat is a strong word… but the idea is sound…
We must be willing to let go of every aspect of our lives — our families… our unbelief… our sin… everything — if we want to see God move in our lives!
I think this is where we struggle the most.
We say we want God to change our situation… to heal our sick… to move in our church and community… to bless our families… but then we struggle to let go… to let Him guide our steps… to give Him control!
Because… If He is in control, that means that I am not!!!
How can God fix anything if we still have a hold of it?!
Just like Jacob, we have to come to the point that we hate our lives… that we hate our problems… that we hate our sin… that we hate our inability to fix it… so much that we are willing to let go of it… and to grab hold of God… and to never ever let go!
And that means that we MUST value a relationship with God more then we value a relationship with the world.
3. We MUST engage in a relationship with God.
This may sound repetitive, but to prevail in anything, we must take action.
The place where we most engage God … and unfortunately the place we seem to struggle the most… is in prayer!
Prayer is where we build our relationship with God.
There has been a teaching in the church for a long time that tells us to “pray through it.”
What that means is that when we face a problem… when the trials come… when our hearts desire change… we must “engage in a relentless pursuit of God about it.”
And that concept is nothing new!
Paul told the church in Thessolonica to “pray without ceasing.”
Nehemiah… when faced with the desperate state of the people in Jerusalem… didn’t run to the king, he ran to God… praying and fasting “for some days.”
Esther… when faced with the threat to her Jewish people in Persia… went to God in prayer and fasting before ever going to the king…
Daniel… constantly sought God in prayer and fasting for direction and answers… in fact, we are hard pressed to find him making any decisions without first seeking God!
And the list goes on…
We need to learn to be like the widow in Luke 18, who would not quit coming to the judge for justice until she received what she needed…
Now… I want you to notice something: Prayer is rarely mentioned in scripture without fasting being mentioned as well.
Why?
Because fasting illustrates our NEED for God over our need for food, media, wealth,… Fasting is giving up those desires… those habits… those obstacles to our time with God… in order to devote that time to pursuing our relationship with Him.
Jacob did not fully engage God until he was completely alone with Him.
We will not fully engage God until we intentionally get alone with Him.
Do you remember the story I told you last week — that R.W. de Haan told?
About the town that had no liquor stores… and when they finally built a night club (a bar), how the church prayed and prayed for the club to burn down…
And how after it was struck by lightning, and burned to the ground… the club owner sued the church?
What did the judge say? Do you remember?
“It’s the opinion of this church that wherever the guilt may lie, the tavern owner is the one who believes in prayer, while the church members do not!”
Do you want your prayer life to be better?
Do you want to hear God’s voice better?
Do you want to SEE where God is moving in your prayers and in your life?
Then you have GOT to get serious about seeking Him!
Get intentional about prayer!
— start a prayer journal… not just to track your prayers, but to witness them answered…
— Get alone with God intentionally… no matter what it takes…
— Give Him praise for what you are witnessing Him doing…
— Tell others about it!
What does your life say about your faith?!
“We live in our actions, what we believe in our hearts.”
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