Lessons from the Battlefield, Part 3

God will never let you get into an impossible situation. The only way God's and said all right you can handle because there is no way Kate is not good news hello and welcome to this Thursday edition of Destin for victory with pastor Paul Shepherd, Senior Pastor destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California. If you're struggling with temptation today. If it seems impossible to resist or overcome. Remember God's promise to you in first Corinthians 10 verse 13 no temptation has taken you except what is common to man and God is faithful will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. When you are tempted, you will also provide a way out. Coming up next some wisdom from Pastor Paul that will help shed a little light on this passage, so stay with us now or stop by Pastor Paul.net any time to hear today's message or any recent Destin for Victor message on demand.

Again, go to pastor Paul.net you can also subscribe to the podcast Google podcast or wherever you get programs must join Pastor Paul. Now, as he shares today's Destin for Victor message lessons from the battlefield.

First Samuel chapter 17. Let me get everyone caught up. We are currently learning lessons from the life of David, the great King of God's people in the Old Testament and were learning now. From his early life. Some important lessons. The story of his life is not in the Bible just to give us good historical information but we are doing this because it gives us practical lessons that can be applied to our own lives now. We began this part of our study of David's life by learning lessons from the past year and now we are learning lessons from the battlefield where in his first Samuel 17, the people of God, find that the Philistines have gathered their forces together to war against the people of God. What we covered so far.

Number one that challenges and conflicts are inevitable just as sure as the Philistines gathered against Israel sold.

There are enemies in your life and mind that gather against God's best in our lives.

We talked about the fact that we have a spiritual enemy the devil and his demons are spiritual enemy and it doesn't matter how you want to think how rationally you want to believe how you want to believe that everything that's real is in the sensory world. I'm here to tell you that there are spiritual forces that we cannot see that are every bit as real as what you do see the Bible says when I'm wrestling against flesh and blood were wrestling against principalities and powers against rumors of darkness, against spiritual wickedness in high places. What that means is the devil and demons are real and they are warring against God's purpose for the lives of the people of God but not only did we discussed the reality of spiritual warfare. We discussed the fact that we have an enemy that's in me that you have to deal with your own fleshly desires that want to uphold God's plan and purpose for your life and how many know you can't blame everything on the devil there something you want to point a finger will find yourself a mirror and say that problem right there because every now and then we have to wrestle ourselves under submission to the will of God. And so there are conflicts and challenges that are going to be inevitable when you walk with God. Secondly, we learned that we must become familiar with the enemy and I want to pick it up on that point, we must become familiar with the enemy.

Paul said in second Corinthians 211. We are not ignorant concerning Satan's devices and he was able to make that as an emphatic true statement about his own life. But the fact is, all of us need to be able to eventually say that same thing that we are not ignorant concerning the devil devices you want to know what the enemy is trying to pull in your life and we talked about the fact that he is always lying to us so we have to watch the voices you listen to because the enemy is always going to oppose the truth of God when he is alive. He is a liar. Jesus said in John 844.

The devil is a liar and the father of lies. He is the inventor of lies. God is a God of truth, the devil is full of lies. He's a liar also said that he is a deceiver. The enemy loves to deceive and in Genesis 3 we see the first and most deadly deception of Eve you know that story, I don't have time to recount it but you know that the reason we are in sin and in need of a Savior is because in the beginning mankind was deceived by the enemy where the enemy took a statement of God and turned it into a question and said half God said that you should need a mystery that the that you do, you will die, and then he stripped with his deception and he began to sell a bag of goods that he bought into it all week. Neil Adam bought it with her, don't get mad at me by herself. Now she had company. The Bible says she ate the fruit and then she gave to her husband who was with her all weekend that a) the baby and he ate with her. She was deceived and as a result we were plunged into this fallen state that the world has been and ever since, but thank God for Jesus, who was the second Adam, and he came to make right what was made wrong and then we saw that the enemy loves to tempt you at moments of weakness moments of weakness. The enemy love moments of weakness and in the last message we talked about the fact that you must become aware of your week moments and do your best to be careful. The Bible calls it in one place, walk circumspectly Paul said any reasons why what that means is carefully don't be careless. Don't just be presumptuous as you want. Those of you who have been in icy environments. In the wintertime you know what walking circumspectly is what you walk on ice bounded out the door when is ice. You gotta be careful you got have sure footing is okay okay alright, I'm all right carefully and the Bible says that all the be the walk of the child of God. Be sure what it because the enemy love to catch you at moments of weakness moments of weakness. He loves to play on weakness and I ended the last message talking about the fact that you gotta be watchful in your moments of weakness because whatever your besetting sins are whatever the weakness of the moment would dictate. That's what the enemy is going to send along if you are single, trying to live right with your married person whose fuss and fight with your spouse and shutting up shop to express your anger you. But you know what I'm talking about and that kind of stuff is going on.

You gotta be careful because whether you're single or married.

The enemy would love the moment of weakness and flung somebody in your life who really rings your bell float your boat get your attention. Now somebody comes in on you and do a thing for you to send somebody take a shot to shot you never know that you try so they freely take a shot at how you know what kind of response they get. What is on you and your responses. Please send them you can send because it makes you start right on the spot. No matter what you are demanding where you are and they come in you. So, Lord Jesus, my Savior, God help me right now, Lord, if you have struggled with addictions in your life.

You gotta watch your moments of weakness because the enemy will bring to your mind, feelings of getting lost in being a high and so he will introduce that thought. The key time weakness drywall carefully can just hang out anywhere because you gotta watch moments of weakness. You have got to be careful in other words in your life so that you can become familiar with the enemies devices and again when not just talking about the enemy in terms of Satan. But you gotta become aware of your own stuff. I want to encourage you to not be in denial about your own stuff. You gotta learn who you are, you learn your strengths and weaknesses. You gotta learn your idiosyncrasies when you're battles and you got to help. What's going to happen in your life.

You can't just live any old kind of way but you're going to have to be a fool as you live your life because God knows what he is up to in your life and so you must plot you must plan, you must strategize so as to be able to escape the snares that your flesh will draw you into and that the enemy will try to take advantage of, and in fact the Bible says that the reason Jesus was in all points tempted as we are, so that he would teach us and show us that there is a way of escape, the reason why Jesus was tempted and everything because he created the way of escape. When Jesus lived on their peoples and all points tempted but the Bible says, yet without sin and what he did by going through this temptation. He made sure that was a way of escape, so that all of us could get out all the traps that were set for us by the enemies of God's will in our lives.

There is a way of escape.

Chapter 10 verse 13 very important for you to understand this truth.

Here's what it says there have no temptation taken you but such as is common to man. Stay with us the second half of Pastor Paul Shepard's message is coming right up. We want to thank all of you who support destined for Victor with your prayers and financial support, gifts that help Pastor Paul share the joy the gospel message with a growing audience destined for victory is supported entirely by friends like you in the summer when donations to the ministry often decline your support is very much needed. So please prayerfully consider making your best gift destined for victory today.

You can give online safely and securely on her website. Pastor Paul.net or give us a call 855-339-5500 numbers 855-339-5500 now from the early life of King David.

Let's rejoin Pastor Paul Shepard for the rest of today's message lessons from the battlefield, said God is faithful will not allow you to be tempted above that which you can stand but will the temptation create all way up escape, that you might be able to bury. Now let's dissect that there is wonderful information bear.

First of all Paul tells us what you're going through is not unique to you and some of us when we get in the pickup things we start telling God how know why fact of the matter is what you're going through is common to man.

It is common to man to be tempted. Which means to be enticed toward evil is common to man, and so the Bible says your temptation. There are others who have escaped before you don't feel like you are in an impossible situation, God will never let you get into an impossible situation. The only way God looked at it first and said all right you can handle it because there is a way of escape is not good news that let me sway the building. We sit in any public building you go in the only way the owners and the occupiers of that building got an occupancy permit was there had to be groups of escape. In the event of trouble. The fire department would not have allowed us to occupy this property in its trouble public facilities on feel it was know that there are ways escape they want just let you show up and put yourself in a position where fire hit Florida earthquake hit you have no way out. They would be unjust to allow you to occupy such a dangerous facility and so what they do is they make sure that you have planned roots of escape and that they are posted throughout the facility. Let me tell you it is in the natural so what is in the spiritual and Jesus says to you, whenever temptation comes your way, don't worry about it because I went ahead of you to make sure that was the way of escape. Now let's get real practical. Sometimes your way of escape is to get in the wind.

Sometimes a way of escape is one always a cute way of escape. Strong acting way of a stable self-insured Lord way of escape sundown. The only way you get out is you have to. I know you don't want you to believe that but it just happens to be the truth. The Bible says talk about your escape routes that all listed in the Scripture and one of the rooms given you in your Bible is wrong. We see it by precept and by example. Paul told his spiritual son Timothy.

He said he the passions of your you young man. There a lot of passion to try to bring you down. He said you got to learn some gotta get out of temptations neighborhood you don't sightsee and temptations neighborhood hangout and temptations neighborhood got along so that you can do the will of God. They got the example of Joseph. The Bible said that on that one occasion mentioned in Genesis 39, since the pot of her eyes set on that young man that I want him for myself. She was trying to seduce him and he kept on turning her down. But one day she was really feeling it. As she grabbed him. Bible says she grabbed his coat and she said you are going to bed with me right now, and the Bible tells us that Joseph out of his skull in order to maintain his integrity. If you don't have that kind of determination you would just say well I may not been to G.I. Michael now no no no no Joseph understood long before Paul said sleep was a man of destiny called according to God's purpose. He knew he was pursuing a dream… And he didn't see since the power in the dream which meant he knew that he got a get away from this woman. So what is the Bible says it is cold in order to maintain his integrity tell you something. When you're in the grips of one of those moments of weakness.

You got to run. You have got to run away. You also gotta know your self. One of the best ways to fight all those moments of temptation in the be successful in your battle with. Gotta know yourself not only know your ways out, but you have to understand yourself. Don't me and about your own stuff you ever met anybody in denial is not a pretty sight. Don't be in denial allow denial to remain on River in northern Africa, but don't you be in denial because denial will only lead you away from God's best for your life. You gotta get in touch with your besetting sins. What what are your tendencies under certain conditions. What are the things that lobby hard to bring you down. You gotta know yourself, you got understand and remember. Now God's will in your life and not just the Big Ten line stealing, adultery and all that sort of thing.

Murder hatred is not just the big thing. Sometimes it is the little foxes, that spoil the vine of God's purpose in your life. God is after a lot of things in your life.

Once the cleanup greed out of our impulsiveness out of our lives.

One of the fruit of the spirit is temperance.

That means the ability to stay on the control. The ability to temper things the ability to regulate your life to treat your life to set up thermostat in your life, rather than the monitor just reflects the temperature around it that sets the temperature and causes everything else to respond to it. And temperance is that God cultivated fruit that will allow us to live that balanced temper life so that you are not controlled by impulses and compulsiveness, and that's one of the things God wants to develop it and you got to know yourself.

You gotta know you know I just have a difficult time living in self-control manifest in different ways.

For some of us to manifest in your inability to regulate your spending money. And you gotta know about yourself. You got to know some of us can handle in our current state showing up at them all is downright dangerous for some of us because we have not yet allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate the fruit of self control and you show up and you know you going tomorrow and you can handle it there too many sale sign will be honest with yourself. Now some know how to go to the mall.

They know I had a timeline they're going.

They know what store they going to go to look for the item they know the one thing they went to get, and they go in the store that I don't take it to the counter pay for and will all but there are some of us when we go in.

It's a ball of confusion going there and the signs began to call you say no and you find yourself drawn and you didn't go back so we get real. When you don't know yet what you're going to get Pokémon to be honest I don't know I'll see what I get it now that you know what I come out with about yourself that over to God and say Lord I want to be in the center of your will and since my finances are your resources. I want to use them in a way that glorifies you know that about yourself you can handle the sale and you sure can handle a clearance sale and some see that side clearance. Everything must all you can do everything must go to your house to somebody that problem of everything must go is really not my issue. God bless you always unload your inventory but is not my problem. I don't feel obligated to help you and so you gotta learn what's going on inside of you.

If you have tendencies toward unforgiveness and bitterness and resentment.

If you hold a grudge can hardly let anything go is still very much alive right now. Just like it was years ago. Moments ago is still a lot right now is all I'm dealt with in some way or another about yourself no ability to be a standard that you yourself don't live know those things about yourself, you know, as believers in Christ we have access to the only cure for what ails us his love and mercy toward us is power within us, give us the authority to live victorious lives on earth as we anxiously await eternal life in heaven. The world does not have this power were so many people who need the saving grace of Christ. So many souls need to be rescued and pastor Paul's primary focus through his radio program is to lead as many people into that knowledge as he can and you can help by becoming a destined for victory partner is our way of saying thanks for your partnership will send you if you thank you gifts including one of pastor Paul's most popular CDs.

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The first is his book why God created dance. The second is as audio CD attribute to my dad. Thanks for all you're doing to help keep destined for victory on the air all the soldiers of Israel saw Goliath with their own eyes, but only one of them had vision is Pastor Paul tell you something you got to understand that we are called to live not by our site, but by faith in you gotta see your enemies through the eyes of faith. When you look at a very different view. That's tomorrow and pastor Paul Shepard's message lessons from the battlefield until then, remember he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion in Christ, you are destined for victory