Fall Forward

Intro

We’re wrapping up a series today that we’ve called, My worst enemy.

Theme verses:

Romans 7:17-20

As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

Romans 7:24-25

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

We are our own worst enemy.

Something on the inside of us bent on self destruction and undermining what God wants to do in and through up.

Seems like I keep sabotaging my own good intentions.

Sinful nature on the inside.

Thank God, we aren’t without Hope, we have Jesus. The answer is always Jesus.

We’ve been looking at Samson in the bible. He is a poster child of self destruction.

Massive potential, ability and calling but kept falling for and into the same things that have let him in a destructive direction.

Samson’s life summary:

Samson was an incredibly strong man with a dangerously weak will.

We have seen time after time his attitudes, his perspective, his pride, his lust has gotten in the way and derailed him from what God has called him to do.

At the end of our study last week his had been with a philistine woman named Delilah, he has been betrayed, he is now being captured by his enemies the philistine army..

Judges 16:21

Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison.

Our hero, the man called to be the conqueror for and deliverer of the nation of israel is not captured, head shaved, humiliated, eyes gouged out...

It would look like this is the end of the story.

Today’s sermon is dedicated to every who has walked the road of failure and it feels like its the end, unrecoverable.

I’ve walked in so much shame, Life has been far less than I know I’m created for.

Its in these moments the devil loves to step in and tell you that failure is final.

You’ll never see light again, you’ll never lead again, never be loved again, be successful again

God could never use someone like you!

We left off with an inspiring verse last week.

Judges 16:22

But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.

There was hope, it began to grow again after it all seemed lost.

Today I want to speak some hope into what feels hopeless.

I believe that your greatest victories and life can be on the backside of failure, if we learn the lessons.

Judges 16:23

Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, “Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.”

Dagon, their god… head and hands of man, body of fish.

Arent we grateful for our God!

Our God is always so bright and awesome he can’t even be comprehended.

grateful our God is awesome beyond words, not man fish god.

Judges 16:24

When the people saw him, they praised their god, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.”

Dagon didn’t do anything, samson messed up his own life.

Judges 16:25

While they were in high spirits, they shouted, “Bring out Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. When they stood him among the pillars,

Lowest moment of his life. humiliated as a stage act.

Do you feel like you are in the lowest moments of your?

Let’s look at some facts on failure and then we’ll look back at Samson to see how to respond on the other side of failure.

1. FAILURE IS A PART OF LIFE.

No one exists that won’t experience this to some degree.

Proverbs 24:16

for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.

A lot of numbers in the bible have meaning.

7 is one we see over and over agin.

7 means to be complete or full.

Righteous people will completely fall!

You will at some point fail in some way.

The only thing that differentiates the righteous from the unrighteous isn’t the falling, its the getting back up again.

(Story) missed a step going up stairs and fell.

everyone, no matter the level of coordination, will fall..

The question isn’t if you will fail, it’s what will you do when you fail.

What makes you righteous is that in the midst of that failure you turn back to God and say I’m not giving up, I repent, Life is not over, his calling is not finished.

If there is breathe in my lungs there is hope for my life. Our God is gracious and merciful!

Some is thinking yeah that great, but I’ve went too far.

What is too far for you.

Most of the people in the bible God used were redeemed from horrible decisions.

Don’t think your the exception or let the enemy tell you your failure is different.

1 Timothy 1:15-16

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.

paul says he saved me not just for me but for you, to show that there is no person he can’t touch!!

He was saul, bent on destroying the message of Jesus, oversaw the murder of the first martyr Stephen, had believer hiding in their homes afraid.

imagine the potential conversation in heaven, this guy is ruining it all!!

Let’s get that guy on our team.

Out of utter he help see change in the world for the gospel of Jesus.

Surrendered to Jesus, failure is never final.

2. THE NATURAL RESPONSE TO FAILURE IS REGRET

We feel self loathing and condemnation.

2 Cor 7:10

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Worldly sorrow is deadly guilt and shame that doesn’t lead to real repentance from God but focuses internally on how broken and messed up we are.

I cant ever, I’ll never be, look how bad I am.

or external. Plays the victim, It’s not my fault, I never asked for this, this is just how I am.

Ungodly shame and regret never sees real change.

It always just points the finger at myself or others.

3. THE GODLY RESPONSE TO FAILURE IS REPENTANCE

Very different...

2 Cor 7:10

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Godly sorry helps you to see your broken but knows it not beyond Godly repair if you will just humble yourself.

God gives grace tot he humble, but he resists the proud.

Shame and regret are blaming.

Repentance is changing, its turning.

Repentance is taking ownership

I have to own what I did, that surrounded myself with the wrong people, that made the choices.

I did it and I’m sorry.

Reality, we can’t undo sin.

Wouldn’t that be nice!!!

God want’s to turn it around.

We can’t un-sin, but we can re-pent

call upon your savior and change your direction.

Regret is looking backwards.

Repentance is moving forwards.

Phil 3:13-14

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

is past could have owned and dominated him.

He had to go and preach the gospel to families that he separated!

Repentance fixes our focus from the failure of the past to the hope of the future.

He wouldn’t have never done anything if he’d just wallowed in what he did...

4. FAILURE IS AN EVENT, NOT A PERSON.

The devil would love to shipwreck your life and faith by making you personify your failure and convince you that YOU are a failure, not that you failed.

Just because we fail doesn’t mean that’s who we are.

Your identity isn’t in what you’ve done but what has been done for you when jesus have his life to set you free.

Lam 3:19-23

I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

We have to change our thoughts and perspective.

God is more gracious than I can comprehend, he is more faithful to set free than I am to fail.

I have walked through failure, but i’m not a failure.

It’s not who I am.

I will not be held hostage by the mistakes of my past.

I will repent and I will move forward with the grace and hope of Jesus.

Just because you are down, does not mean you are out.

The devil would love to keep you down and keep you from moving forward into the life God has for you.

If samson had done that, we wouldn’t have the ending we do.

The ending where God gives him his greatest victory.

3 things to do if you’re in a place of failure.

1. PRAY FOR STRENGTH.

What got Samson where he was is he thought his strength was his own.

Judges 16:25-28

... “Put me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them.” Now the temple was crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform. Then Samson prayed to the Lord, “Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.”

Finally Samson recognized his strength didn’t come from within himself.

he recognize that it came from God.

Some of you need this prayer today, God one more time. I need you.

This is my point of turning around.

I choose to not live in the regret, I choose to seek your strength and power to turn this around.

2. PUT YOURSELF IN THE RIGHT POSITION.

Judges 16:29

Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other,

Samson is was a physical position.

Some of you it needs to be an emotional place, a financial place (cut up the cards), a relational place (delete some friends),

Technological place (you need to get rid of some of the access to tech)

Some of us need to change what were around.

Repent and then eliminate the temptations we’ve placed around ourselves.

If not, you will fail again.

Get in the right place.

Get in the right group of people.

3. POUR YOURSELF INTO WHAT MATTERS.

Give your life to the things that have eternal significance.

Judges 16:30

Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.

Nothing held back. Gave it all he had.

Greatest victory of his life after his greatest failure.

default is to pull back. Push toward

It’s not about you, it’s about God and what he wants to do in and through you.

Every breathe is a gift.

Every strength is from him.

What are you pouring your life into?

Focus on the wrong things keep us from pouring into the right ones.

Samson poured all his strength into the right place. the right pillars.

What are the God pillars that you need to start pouring your life into.

Listen to the holy spirit. He is calling you.

Stop telling yourself, I’ll do more for God someday when...

Today is the day.

What God is calling us to is harder and greater than the victory of Samson.

In his death he saw his great victory.

But you have a lot of life left to live.

Our challenge is that we die every day.

Die to ourselves.

I realize I am my worst enemy, there is sin in me, it could come back.

But I surrender it all to you.

I will die to myself and live for Christ.

Who will rescue me?

Jesus.

I decide to die to him daily.

Every day as you surrender, is power and presence will touch you.

Your failure isn’t final, Jesus is.