Overcoming Evil with Good

Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham later in the program will tell you how you can get a copy of Dr. Graham's brand-new book night. First, here's his message overcoming evil like your Bibles and turn to the 12th chapter of Romans verse 14 says bless those who persecute you. Bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep, live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty but associate with the lowly.

Never be wise in euro side of the word where to walk in honor and humility before all and then in verse 17 repay no one evil for evil. We live in a get even world. But God sets repay no one for evil but give thought to do what is honorable in the side of all think about what is honorable if possible. As far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all in verse 19 Key verse beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed, if he is thirsty, give him something to drink for. By doing so you will heap burning coals on his head. That is, it will be a strike to his conscience but then verse 21 do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

The Christian is always a victor and never a victim. We are over comers. We are more than conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ. We overcome evil and we live in an evil world, Satan and all the hordes of hell are in attack mode and we know that there's so much hate and so much anger and so much violence and so much division, political, cultural, racial, and all the rest. And then there's the personal side, in which so many people are facing personal challenges and even resistance and persecution. Then if you have ever been betrayed. If you have ever been broken or hurt or wound. If you have ever experienced pain and suffering at the hand of someone else in your life, then this message is for you is for all of us because we overcome evil with good light penetrates the darkness the darkness cannot overcome the light that's the message of the gospel that even in the darkness of sin in the hate of humanity the light of Jesus Christ has come in when Jesus came Road into that city, offering himself as King to be rejected his king to die on the cross for our sins to rise again on the third day that was like penetrating destroying the darkness that was good. Overcoming evil. The message of Jesus Christ across the resurrection is the message ultimately of forgiveness we all have a sin problem and that sin separates us from God. It is a debt that we owe that we cannot pay it is disobedience to God's defilement in the presence of God, who is a purer eyes than to behold iniquity to even look at iniquity, but God in his holy love said his son.

He came on a mission of reconciliation, to forgive us of our sin and the way that he did that he was not cheap. It is costly. Forgiveness is costly. Don't forget that it will cost you something to forgive it cost Jesus his life, his blood poured out at Calvary in order to forgive us, in order to change our lives. So we remember the cross. The first words that Jesus spoke from the cross were these words and he spoke them again and again. Apparently, as is recorded in the language of the New Testament. Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. Father forgive them father forgive them heap Ray for his enemies.

He died for his enemies, and we are all born with our backs towards God.

We are all estranged from God.

We chose rebellion and sin, we have become the enemies of God and yet God has made peace with us if you don't have peace in your heart if there is strife and chaotic lifestyle in you then – because you don't know the peace of God in your life and that's because our sin has broken that piece with Jesus came on a narrative piece that he died on the cross of the prey. Father forgive them.

When Jesus was in the garden preparing for his his death on the cross praying drops of blood. The betrayer came Judas, one of his own is especially hurtful is that when we are betrayed and hurt by someone that should love us someone hurts us, that we know and care about very deeply. Judas was one of the beloved disciples of Jesus and yet he betrayed him and Simon Peter the fisherman took a sword that he had somehow brought with him and he started slashing away as the as the Sanhedrin guard came to arrest Jesus he's cut off the ears of one of the soldiers and he wasn't trying to cut off his ear is trying to cut off his head. He was a fisherman. The bad swordsman just missed and you remember what happened. Jesus healed the man's head is easier and then he spoke very straightforwardly to Simon Peter, NOS.

We said you live by the sword, you die by the sword, he said, don't you know that I could say the word, and my father in heaven would send 10,000s and tens of thousands of angels to deliver me but it wasn't the nails of the persecutors of the killers of Jesus that kept them on the cross. It was love that kept him on the cross. He didn't say any he said father forgive them. I mean, he could've said judge them. He could've said destroy them. But he said father forgive their ignorant of what they did with those words, we are reminded that our ignorance of our own sin brought us to a judgment. But Jesus took our judgment and our sin on the cross, the debt that we out that we could not pay any died for you and me. Forgiveness is what Christ is all about forgiveness is about what the cross is all about and the reason for our hope.

Now Jesus practiced what he preached always. Jesus said in Matthew 544. The sermon on the Mount, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, and of course Paul is picking up on the same passage in Romans 12. Bless those who curse you speak well of those who speak evil of you, love your enemies, do good to those who hurt you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you. This is an impossible thing incident. Peter wanted to know. Actually, Peter thought he had it figured out. He said, Lord, how often should we forgive our brother, thinking he was being magnanimous.

He said seven times and Jesus said no. 7×77 is a perfect number is talking about infinity. There just just keep forgiving God is doing this eternally for us and we do need to remember that no person is beyond the love and the mercy and the forgiveness of God, not one. If Jesus could pray for his accusers and her attackers. It reminds us that there is no person in our lives. No person that we know who is beyond the love and the grace and we ought to keep praying for people who need the Lord.

We ought to love lost people.

No person is so far away that they are hopeless there people we know. You know, I know that need to know Jesus and we can give up on. We keep praying God father forgive them, bring them to grace and forgiveness and cleansing, and it was at the cross that our sins were forgiven and by the resurrection that we are raised to a new life. The question is have you been forgive. Have you come to the place in your life where you repented of your sin, which means to turn from your sin and then to trust in Christ.

Christ the length of the same if you come to the cross and because of the resurrection believe that Jesus is alive. Have you trusted him. Have you been forgiven.

You can, you must be today are you listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham in today's message overcoming evil with good.

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Give a gift online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotion our website again is Jack Graham.Margie. Now let's get back to today's message overcoming evil with good. If you are forgive are you a forgiving person because what Jesus taught us, and what Romans 12 here is saying to us in a variety of ways. Each sentence that we have that we ran earlier about our relationship with others and how we are to treat people and and that we are to walk among the lowly and not just among those who are prideful and arrogant that we are we are to live honorably and bless those who curse us and love those who hate us and so the key passage that we stop the note was give space to the grace of God. Scripture says in Paul is quoting the Old Testament here as well as giving us New Testament, truth, vengeance is mine says the Lord.

In other words, you can trust God to bring justice in your situation you can believe in a God who will get it all right and make it all right. So the question is have you forgiven those who have wronged you, who have hurt you, betrayed you. Ephesians 432.

The kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even even as God in Christ forgave you. Are you forgiving as you have been forgiven so many people live with resentment, revenge on their minds full of hatred and anger, hostility, bitterness and even rage. I want to give you a warning on forgiveness is hazardous to your health and well-being not only to your spirit. But your soul your mind, your body. Someone said unforgiveness is like pouring a cup of poison for your enemy and drinking it yourself. Modern medicine has made a clearly between toxic emotions such as anger and hostility and rage and bitterness and unforgiveness in particular have made the connection between that and physical and emotional health and damage to our physical and emotional health. This damage includes cardiac problems, high blood pressure, stroke, emotional problems such as depression and anxiety and even cancer. But it's also been noted that if unforgiveness causes these problems then forgiveness. When we forgive that these conditions can even be reverse we can be healed. Body soul and spirit, the well-known renowned Mayo Clinic has correlated acts of forgiveness with positive healthy outcomes in your life there. Studies show and I quote letting go of bitterness leads to lower blood pressure, fewer stress-related illnesses, healthier relationships and reduced risk of alcohol or drug so if there is unforgiveness, which really is unrepented of sin in our own life. What did Jesus say when he taught us to pray, forgive us our debts. Sin is a bit forgive aside that as we forgive those are debtors who are our debtors. Jesus said you want my forgiveness. Pray for and asked for but not without the willingness to forgive others so I can forgive that person.

I just can't do it. I won't do it, then don't expect the forgiveness of God, not in terms of your eternal salvation. If you're Christian, but if you are a believer you have an unforgiving, unrelenting spirit in your life toward someone else, you're cutting yourself off the Bible sent from God. The Bible says he who regards iniquity in his heart.

God will not hearing you want God to answer your prayer and forgive others.

You want God to forgive you and forgive others there's there's a correlation and you can't live your life always uptight and stressed out and angry, and vengeful, and when it comes to holding onto our past pains, our problems are, and certainly resentments in the past. If you keep holding on to that stuff is only going to break you down. I was to set you free with the freedom that only he can give us the freedom of forgiveness and that's what this passage is teaching us.

Hebrews 1215 says look carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up causes trouble and by this many become defiled, so bitterness I find bitterness as anger turned inward. Bitterness is the root rage anger on the outside. The fruit and many people are bitter because they been betrayed her heart and they can't let go. So bitterness is is within an Scripture says you gotta let go of that because it causes not only destructiveness in your life but to file. I know people because they are better angry God anger someone else that they've they've fallen asleep and all kinds of other sins defiling sins in their life because they're so angry about something that happened in their lives. That's that's bitterness and it will defile you, it will destroy you and embittered was resentful with vengeful spirit dishonors God and grieves the Holy Spirit. You're a Christian, you don't want to grieve the Holy Spirit yet. Ephesians chapter 4 verse 30 says and this is the new living translation and do not bring sorrow or greed to God's grief to God's Holy Spirit, by the way you live. Remember he has identified you as his all your godchild guaranteeing you that you will be saved on the day of redemption you glad your say course you are so Lot verse 31 get read of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words and slander as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, the kind in each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Here it is again. Have you been forgiven and if you have been forgiven. Are you a forgiving person because forgiven people forgive others so many people walking around angry and mad and agitated all the time and some Christians. They just stay mad all the time about something and they're mad that you're not mad about what they're mad about this, a perpetual state of being ticked off. Irritated, agitated, critical, cynical, carnal, binding fall and when one problem is resolved. They're looking for the next problem on the next person to hate on their always offended about something you know most of our offenses are not major crimes but their common ordinary variety offenses that we take on and refuse to let go and you ever notice that bitter, angry people are always running their mouse because they're unhappy. They want you to be unhappy because there angry. They want you to be angry but can't keep their thoughts to themselves. They spread the venom in the poison. That's why in verse 18 it says as much as is possible. Be at peace with all people.

Some people are impossible but you gotta keep trying this much is it possible now. I'm not a compromised proof there's some things I will never compromise to be at peace not compromise the word of God just to get along all not compromise true just to get along and neither should you. But as much as is possible. Some people are impossible. They're not lovable. Love them anyway, bless them that curse you love those who hate you keep on loving it doesn't mean forgiveness does not mean that you endorse bad behavior or approve sinful behavior, but it means that like Christ, you give your life to God, surrender your will to his will and let God take care of the rest. Because when you do you will be on the pathway to freedom.

I'm not saying it all happens overnight can be a process things we have to work through in our lives.

But if you will get on the pathway you will find the freedom of forgiveness and you will set a prisoner free and guess what the prisoner is you that is set free with God's grace and the Holy Spirit's help, yes you can forgive. You said I just can't do. Yes, you, you have the supernatural work of God spirit in you not only yes you can but yes, you must if you want to live in victory in your life. Overcoming evil with cut.

Maybe you been hurt in some way and you need to forgive and then move forward on a mission for Christ to do something good in the name of God, overcoming good let your pain overcoming listening to PowerPoint attack and in today's message overcoming evil with good. Chances are you faced your share of crisis. Maybe you're even in the fight of your life right now. Or maybe you're simply feeling exhausted by the busyness of life and sent to spiritual strength. Whatever you're facing. We want to help fan the flame of faith in your life by sending you Dr. Graham's new respect for ignite this personal account of how God led Dr. Graham through his own crisis will help me focus on God during difficult season.

See you can experience fresh passion and joy in Jesus and will send you a copy as stinks for a gift today. This is the last week of this offer to come today: 800-795-4627 that's one 800-7956 27 can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. And don't forget to visit Jack Graham.org you can shop the store give a gift online or sign up with Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional our website again is Jack Graham.Margie Pastor what is your PowerPoint for today. If you're looking guide you and help you grow in your faith, then please visit Jack Graham.org my entire sermon library as they are completely free because I want you to be able to find the help you need at any time. Just visit Jack Graham.org and go to the sermon library tab to listen to any message I've ever given for no cost at all. You can also listen to PowerPoint radio broadcast watch PowerPoint TV, read articles and stories of from other listeners and much more. We collected pretty much every message I've ever given or article I've ever written. And if you're not looking to stream these messages.

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