Fighting To Win Part 2

One reason for us to Jesus phone number for Douglas MacArthur once said, there is no substitute for victory.

Moses knew that Israel faced malachite enemies and from that conflict of old principles, victory in the battles of our everyday lives. Today more lessons from the life of Moses on fighting from the Moody Church in Chicago this is running with Dr. Erwin listserv whose clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line. Esther leads her sometimes the pressure seems unbearable that our victories seem very far away will dig your absolutely right, and we've all been there, haven't we one step forward two steps back one step forward, three steps back, but I speak to the hearts of all who are listening today.

Don't give up. Remember that God is with you. Make sure that your focus is on him that your victory in your hope is in him connect with the people of God and keep going.

You never know when the real breakthrough will take place today.

I just want us to relax.

If we are able to do that in the midst of this very rushed world want us to think together as to what happened so many years ago. As we talk about the victory that was accomplished not only on the battlefield, but also on the mountain of prayer was Moses strategy. First of all, the sword in the valet and secondly you have the rod on the hilltop in both of those work together and then thirdly another part of his strategy was the banner was the banner that really encompassed all of those strategies. It says in verse 14 then the Lord said to Moses right to this in a book as a memorial and recited to Joshua Moses was into journaling Lord told him write it down and actually what he wrote down is the book of Exodus. He is the author of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus numbers and Deuteronomy.

And so the Lord says Moses write this down and recited to Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.

And Moses built an altar and named it the Lord is my banner. The Lord is my banner.

Does this banner represent it represents the fact that Moses and Joshua were actually fighting under the direction the leadership and the strength and the name of the Lord God. They were under the flag of the Lord of hosts. This past fall when we were in Europe we were in a little country called Liechtenstein. Most people don't even know that it exists.

I didn't even know.

In fact, there are this the little country is so small, it is only 4 miles wide and 16 miles long, but incredibly beautiful right next to Switzerland and when we stopped in Liechtenstein. They showed us a huge castle on a hill that goes back to the 12th century and of the Prince of Liechtenstein the King and the Prince lived there in that castle and you can't find a way up to the castle at least very easily and certainly they got up there, you wouldn't be let into it, but they said to us that whatever the flag is flying the flag of Liechtenstein. You know that the Prince is at home is not interesting. You see, the flag represents identification and it should be that the when the world looks at us and when they see us and when they see our lives and they see Christ in hours lives that they should say that these people belong to the King of Kings the princes home. There is evidence within our lives that God is among us years ago.

The older people used to say that one of the true marks of the church is quote the manifest presence of the living God. Read the book of acts, and you find that that was on every single page. God dwelt with his people and it was the presence of God that either attracted or repelled the world there flag was clear, was a mark of identification. It was also a mark of protection. By the way, when we were looking at that flag in Liechtenstein. We could scarcely see the flag and even if we had had binoculars and could see it more clearly we would not have been able to see its insignia and there's a reason for that.

Couldn't see the design and that is because it was so incredibly calm is in order for you to know what is on a flag. You need a storm. It is the window that causes that flag to fly, and then you can see its colors and then you can see its design and that's why God sends storms because you see everybody claims to have a flag hanging on the doorpost of his life, and the question is what is on that flag, it cannot be seen on till the wind begins to blow and then it becomes clear so the flag is a sign of identification. It is also a sign of protection as Joshua and Moses marched under the banner of the Lord, figuratively speaking, they will had all the resources of deity.

They had all of the light of God that the Lord of hosts at their disposal to win against Amalek to win against the flesh and this enemy that wanted to keep them from entering the promised land. How then do we win what we went. Of course, first of all, with the sword in the Valley but my dear friend today. We cannot win with the sword in the valley until we know something about the rod on the hilltop.

The sword is beneath the rod and the rod is beneath the banner and in this way we win battles for Christ. Let me just take now. All of these concepts and boil them down so that we can apply them specifically and understand them. First of all I want to remind you that the battle that we are talking about the battle with the world the flesh and the devil. The conflict within the soul and the conflict within our culture is a battle that is for keeps. The battle that's for keeps. Amalek was not in this battle, to simply wound Israel. Amalek was in this battle to exterminate Israel and Israel therefore had to take the position of exterminating Amalek because there is no such thing as compromise in the very same way.

We cannot compromise with Satan. Every single compromise we make with sin is done with the recognition that eventually Satan is willing to give us an inch in order that he might take a foot. Interestingly, the Lord God. Many centuries later told King Saul that he was supposed exterminate also the Amalekites and he didn't do it because he said there were some people among them that we should not of killed. He kept the king and then he kept some of their animals and he disobeyed the voice of the Lord. And then when Saul tried to commit suicide and couldn't quite pull it off.

Here's an Amalekites running along and that boy ends up finishing King soul off as a reminder of the fact that sins that we do not conquer, will eventually conquer us all the opportunities that we have in life that we sometimes used to compromise actually turned against us and end up defeating us that we must never forget that. All I know that even if we are believers we must realize that the flesh can overcome us. Eventually we will be saved. Yes, because those who trust Christ as Savior are not lost eternally. But in the meantime, we may be overcome by the flesh.

We may be put on the shelf that God might not be able to use us.

The battle is for keeps. Secondly, the battle is continuous.

Notice it says I will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. That's the last part of her 16 guns. As this conflict is going to continue and I want you to know today that the conflict that you and I face, spiritually speaking is a conflict that we will have until we die.

The flesh fights against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and they are contrary the one to the other, so that we can do what we will and all of us know something of the conflict that is within our souls. But finally, and most importantly the lesson to be learned from this passage is that the victory in the Valley is really determined by the victory on the hilltop.

There's a beautiful blend in this passage of Scripture between human agency and also the divine intervention. When you stop to think of it, and Mystic would've said all that we need to do is to go to the hilltop to pray. That's what the Mystic would've done the humanist would've said all that we need to do is to find in the Valley because what possible connection. Can there be between some man praying with a rod in his hand on this hilltop and winning this battle, but interestingly, both would've been wrong.

The Lord says I want Joshua to fight in the Valley and I want Moses to pray on the hilltop in both of those were necessary in winning this war you say. Well if I begin to pray on the hilltop if I begin to intercede on the hilltop.

How much responsibility great area like my prayers cover is that something like a cellular phone that has a certain amount of limited access or a limited range.

The answer that is of course no you see when you and I are there on the hilltop. Praying when we're there we can influence all kinds of outcomes within the Valley praying on the hilltop. We can cross the ocean and we can stand with missionaries in Bosnia and Romania and Central America. Any other place in the world. We can be with them. Praying there on the hilltop we can get into apartment complexes and we can pray for children who are being abused in situations that otherwise we have no control about what we do there on the hilltop will influence all kinds of victories or defeats in the Valley.

Some of you bless your heart. Some of you women have given up your children for adoption. I remember a woman saying to me, I would give 10 years of my life if I could take my boy would be about six years old now and just spend one hour with him, but I will never see him again and you think to yourself, all of my influence in his life is over. There's no way that I can affect him. My dear friend with a rod of God in your hand is standing on the mountaintop God knows where he is in the Valley.

You don't but he knows his name and he knows where he is. You can influence the outcome of his life through prayer, because God says that the victory on the hilltop turns out to be the victory in the Valley and when we become weary on the hilltop, we become weak in the Valley. I don't need to tell you today that the evangelical churches filled with all kinds of conflicts in the Valley. We are grateful for Christian activism were grateful for all that is being done to be able to hold the line morally and spiritually as our culture begins to collapse, but we have not seen all of the victories that we would like to see accomplished and sometimes all of our activity has been very disappointing, but what is true of us as churches is true of us as a church. It is also true of us as individuals, my friend, this might explain why you had such a tough time in the Valley this week. It may explain why it is that this week. You lost. It may be that this is why you gave into that temptation why you felt that the powers of evil were so overwhelming why it is that you cried up to God and there seem to be no help and in your desperation.

You did not know where to turn. You know what your need is my need is in the need of moody churches is to learn the secrets of praying on the hilltop when the apostle Paul lists the armor of the Christian in Ephesians chapter 6, he gets to the end and then he says with all praying at all times in the spirit and that's what we need. I hope that we have a lot of people here at Moody church a lot more who pray at home consistently than we see Wednesday evening permitting.

I hope that you understand that those of us who are leaders within the Christian community.

We need people like Moses and her to come up and to hold our hands. We need those will hold up the hands of our elders and our pastoral staff in our Sunday school teachers and those were going through the Valley of defeat. What we need to do is to understand that it is the raw on the hilltop that will eventually transform the battle in the Valley you know God loves to make connections where human beings seen on the makes those invisible ones. There's another story actually in the book of numbers about the disease that came among the Israelites and they were so sick and many of them died and God said to Moses. Moses put a serpent in Ghana pulled up brass and everybody looks at the serpent is going to be healed.

I can imagine many people said you know what possible connection. Could there be between the disease that is in my body and the serpent that is on a pole. How can looking to that serpent change something within my soul and body. Yet the Bible says those who looked lived and those who refused to look died. I mentioned that because there is some of you here today who need to look to Christ and of the Bible says that as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so shall the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believe in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. You say today Pastor Luther I am so weary I don't know where I'm at in my relationship with God. I want you to see Jesus Christ today on that cross as your Savior as your Redeemer as the one who takes the initiative to reach down into your heart and to save you through faith. Would you reach out to him and remember that it is the victory of Christ on the cross and the victory of his ascension. That makes life in the Valley tolerable. You can endure tomorrow. You can take Tuesday take the rest of the week matter what because the victory is being one at higher levels. Let's pray together. Our father, we want to thank you today for the courage of Joshua and for the faithfulness of Moses and we think Lord of the need to that there is in this day and a for us to fight successfully on the hilltop. Help us to understand Lord Jesus, that through prayer and through faith, we can affect the victories that we don't even know about if we believe that I pray for those who may be here who have never received Christ as Savior never trusted them. I pray that at this moment.

They may reach out and say Lord Jesus. I look at you. I look at the cross. I look at your victory and I believe before I close this prayer I want you to talk to God what is it that you need to give him you've never received in the Savior at this moment you can look to him and be saved or what battle are you losing and how much time is spent on the hilltop you talk to the Lord, our father, we want to thank you today for your faithfulness.

We thank you that we march under the banner of the Lord God help us to go in his name with the flag clear in our commitment on debatable Jesus name we pray for my friend, this is Pastor Luther and I want to speak to your heart for just a moment because I can't help but think that there is those of you were fighting in the valley so to speak, you're forgetting the fact that behind your battle is indeed spiritual victories and defeats.

What I mean by that is that Moses discovered that it wasn't just what the armies could do.

It was what prayer could do would you look to Christ today, would you look to him and remember that he's the one who already won the victory. He is now seated at the right hand of God the father, I want to thank the many of you who support the ministry of running to win. We like to make resources available to you to help you make it all the way to the finish line is you frequently hear us say I've written a book entitled getting closer to God.

Lessons from the life of Moses for a gift of any amount.

This book can be yours. Now here's what you can do. Go to RTW offer.com RTW offer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337. I also want to emphasize that we are looking for those who are willing to stand with us in prayer because even as we learn from the experience of Moses.

This is not just a battle that we can see but a spiritual battle connect with us.

RTW offer.com or 1-888-218-9337 time now for another chance for you to ask Pastor Luther a question about the Bible or the Christian life taking extreme measures in prayer. That's the issue for Mina listens to us in Illinois. She told us this, my son has gone wild and out of control.

I'm planning to fast and pray for 40 days with one meal only for him. Please guide me as to how I should pray and how to stay disciplined help me best use this time in prayer. Thanks my dear sister. I'm so glad that you connected with us and you are asking a very good question. What do you do when your child is out of control and you want to fast for 40 days, that's fine. I do want to caution you, however, that fasting is in some kind of a technique that twists God's arm to do something.

I hope you don't look at it that way. It is true that fasting is a sign of our desperation before God. It's a sign of how we greatly desire him. We desire him above all else, but it is not some kind of a formula that we can use and get an expected result. The other question that I'd like to ask you is have you ever fasted before, have you fasted for a couple of days or a week. I think it's not wise for you to simply take up a 40 day fast unless you have some medical input so that someone can help you during that period of time. It's a very very long time to fast now. Also, when your son is wild and out of control. There may be a lot of demonic activity in his life and maybe the reason that you are fasting is that you want to make sure that you lay hold of God for your son during that period of time and of course you can do that and I encourage you to do that. But even the shorter fast I think could accomplish the same result. That being said, what I want to do is to give you some guidance as to how I think you should pray first of all I think that what you should do is to pray that God will change you, and change the heart of his father.

I don't know where you are in your relationship and where the father is in all of this. But sometimes God uses product holes to change the parents of the prodigal.

Pray for your own heart for the surrender of your own pride. God often uses prodigal children to bring us very, very low and that is when we are low that we finally really do yield to God. Second, pray for a change in his heart. You know sometimes when kids are sleeping together you find the parent say oh you have to quit this well it's not going to change the heart of the child.

It's the change of heart wrought by God that will then enable them to live righteously your son needs a heart change. Next, let sin run its course you know that the father of the prodigal was waiting for his boy. But what really brought the kid home was when he was in the pigsty it's there where he came to his senses, and I think our children come to their senses when they are in difficulty when sin has run its course. When the consequences become so great that they begin to cry up to God. Pray that that will happen soon in the life of your child that the consequences will pileup and you'll realize that he too is headed for the pigsty and must come back to his God and to his mother and be there to welcome him home. Give your child to God you know of course that you can't have any input in his life anymore. Very probably God has to do it and so I encourage you to trust God for that. And like the father of the prodigal be there when he comes home. I hope and pray he will award of wise counsel from Dr. Erwin boots are.

Thank you Dr. lutes are if you'd like to hear your question answered.

Go to our website@rtwoffer.com and click on ask Pastor lutes or or call us at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 you can write to us at the running to win 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614. Today we learn unfinished business can sometimes finish us when loops are part two of fighting to win the series of 12 messages about the life and times of Moses, a man getting closer to God.

Next time a visit to Mount Sinai and what happens when God comes for Dr. Erwin boots are, this is Dave McAllister running to win is sponsored by the new teacher