2: STRONG Like Jesus

Game I want to find out who the strongest guy in here is. Arm Wrestle, Pushups, Wrestle

Demonic Phone Call

I was in my college dorm on September 7, 1991 @ 1:45am, drifting off to sleep when the phone rang. My best buddy Bill answered...”Satan is angry. You will pay. Beware the sacrifice. Beware postmortem.”

The phone call might have been a prank, but the weight of something evil had entered our room…a presence that we weren’t strong enough to take on our own. We called our buddy, a former Satanist, and asked him to come over. He sensed it too.

And had the most intense prayer time that I have ever been a part of. We prayed for God’s protection & peace.

NOTHING...and the other presence was still in the room. Guess what happened after that?

I’ll tell you later.

The disciples of Jesus were with Him several times when He had a confrontation with demons as well. The way Jesus handled it was...a little bit different than how I did on that September night.

Jesus wasn’t afraid of the demons. The demons were afraid of HIm! When He told them to get out of a person, they got out! Demons begged Jesus not to send them to the bottomless pit just yet.

The people of Jesus’ day were asking, “What kind of person is this that demons obey what He commands?”

I’ll tell you what kind of person He was. Jesus was a STUD!

Many paintings and sketches picture Jesus as a puny little man pinned to a tree with a halo on his head and a smile on His face.  That simply couldn’t be further from the truth. 

Jesus was a strong, young (early 30’s) man.  As a carpenter He would have to cut and carry wood on a daily basis.  Have you ever had to chop firewood or hand saw a bunch of lumber?

Jesus did a lot of traveling too, which meant He did A BUNCH of walking.  He was in good physical shape. Now I hope you don’t get the idea that Jesus looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger, but please understand that Jesus was definitely NOT a weakling either!  But when I speak of Jesus’ strength I am speaking of the strength of His character more than His body.

Have you ever known someone who didn’t have the strongest body but was strong in character - the kind of friend you were glad was on your side, the kind of person who would stand up to bullies to protect another, the kind of person who would choose to do right even if everybody else didn’t?

That’s who Jesus is and it is from Him that we learn about true strength.  As we study together let’s ask God to change us, rearrange us, and make us more like Him.

When I say that Jesus was a STUD I mean that He was Strong, Tender, Unique, and Dependent.

Tonight we’re going to focus on being STRONG LIKE JESUS.

Strength (Webster’s)

1. having great force or power; not weak; powerful

2. able to last; durable; tough

That’s a great description of Jesus and He wants it to become a great description of us as well - STRONG - having great force or power; able to last; durable; tough

Jesus stood against the devil.

Jesus stood against false teaching and false teachers.

Jesus stood up for those who couldn’t defend themselves.

He always spoke the truth. He was STRONG.

Jesus stood when nobody else would. When others ran Jesus stood His ground.

And since the purpose of our lives is to become more like Jesus, to be conformed into His image, that is God’s plan for you and me too - to STAND STRONG.

The Christians in Corinth, like us, were living in a sin saturated culture.

Wrong had become right and right had become wrong. Most people had numerous sexual partners and many were living a bisexual lifestyle. Their worship didn’t lead them to purity but to impurity. Men had sexual relationships with young boys. People worshiped idols they had carved with their hands. Many of the Christians in Corinth were following the culture instead of Christ. Paul has written to them about living pure in the power of the Lord Jesus, and in his closing remarks he pens these words:

1 Corinthians 16:13 (ESV)

Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

There’s more to that verse I’ll show you in a minute. But for now, let’s stick to this part.

Other translations say “Be courageous” because that is what is meant by “act like men”.  But here is what Paul is saying, “Be a man!” Step up to the plate.  Stop being a wimp!

Be Strong Earlier we saw who was the strongest physically.

One day your physical strength will fade away.

I watched an older man who had a large structure SLOWLY make his way down some steps. I guarantee you THAT GUY used to be a physical specimen of a man…but now…he is weak, frail, and careful where he steps. If you and I live that long, the same will be true of us.

Grow your muscles. Stay in physical shape. That’s good. But there’s something BETTER. Paul writes about it:

1 Timothy 4:7–8 (NET 2nd ed.)

...train yourself for godliness. For “physical exercise has some value, but godliness is valuable in every way. It holds promise for the present life and for the life to come.”

The word for train is gymnazō, where we get gymnasium - that makes sense, huh? So Paul compares being Spiritually FIT with being Physically FIT. He notes that Physical exercise has some value, but godliness is valuable in every way - with benefits in this life and the next. Paul thinks it’s good to spill some sweat in both physical & SPIRITUAL training.

Of course, if you had to decide between one or the other, it’s obvious that Spiritual Training is MOST IMPORTANT. But it’s not something that suddenly happens.

Help me out: What are some ways we can train ourselves for godliness?

Training for godliness isn’t a once in a while thing anymore than going to the gym every once in a while would make a difference.

Training for Godliness will take much time & effort too. Paul continues…

1 Timothy 4:10–11 (NET 2nd ed.)

In fact this is why we work hard and struggle, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of believers. Command and teach these things.

The word for work hard means “to grow weary”. The word translated struggle is an athletic word from Greek root 'agon' which we get our English word agonize. This gives the picture of an athlete straining and giving his best - giving his last drop of energy - to win.

This isn’t just for Timothy, a young pastor.

Timothy was to command and teach these things to the Church he was serving! THEY were to train for godliness too! And so are you - Church - Work hard and struggle - train yourself for godliness!

Are YOU training yourself for godliness? Maybe you just thought that’s something that professional Christians like pastors & teachers are to do.

Sadly, many who claim the NAME of Jesus don’t seem to do much to train in godliness. Many Christians are heavily dependent on others for spiritual growth. It’s sort of like this conversation.

Watching the Trainer, Never Training:

“Well, I just don’t know why I can’t seem to get FIT. I go to the gym every day. I listen to my trainer’s advice on eating and exercise. I watch closely as my trainer demonstrates each exercise.”

“But you aren’t seeing any results? That’s strange. After listening to your trainer, how long do YOU train each day?”

“Uhmmm…I’m not sure what you mean…I pay my weekly gym membership every month. I wear these high quality work out clothes. I even bought the training manual...with study notes. I listen to every word my trainer says...I even take notes…and go on retreats to learn how to train.”

Will your trainer’s FITness transform you? Of course not! YOU have to do the work. And…

BIG TRUTH Training for Godliness is Worth the Work

What’s the payoff?

Know the God who created you & forgave you! Know others who know Him! Enjoy life without the guilt from ungodly living. (You can try to push it away, but God has given you a conscience - part of your SOUL - that you can’t cut out) Impact others for the KINGdom. See Jesus face to face.

BIG TRUTH Training for Godliness is Worth the Work

That’s what Pistol Pete Maravich believed.

James Dobson & “Pistol” Pete:

“Pistol” Pete Maravich is an NBA legend.

He was college basketball’s all-time leading scorer averaging 44.2 points per game.

He went onto the NBA and had a Hall of Fame career, including 5 All-Star appearances & 5 seasons of averaging 24 points per game over his 10 years in the NBA.

Further, he is considered by many to be the best ball-handler of all time.

Pete became a passionate follower of Jesus in 1982. He had learned and shared that, “Money will buy you anything but happiness. It’ll pay your fare to every place but heaven.”

On January 5, 1988 - Dr. James Dobson was going to interview Pistol Pete. Dobson invited Pete to an early morning basketball game with some other men. The 40 year-old Pistol Pete moved at about 1/3 speed taught the others a thing or two. They took a break after playing 45 minutes. Dr. Dobson walked away to get some water and then turned back to see Pistol Pete having a seizure and then stopped breathing.

CPR didn’t work & Pistol Pete died in Dr. Dobson’s arms. It was later determined Pete died of a a congenital heart malformation which makes his basketball career even more incredible. Listen to what Dr. Dobson later wrote:

“During our basketball game on the morning Pete died, he was wearing a T-shirt that read, “Looking unto Jesus,” which is a reference to Hebrews 12:2. That says it all, doesn’t it? You’ll read a lot about basketball and trophies and fame in this book, and there’s no denying the remarkable achievements of one of America’s truly great basketball players. However, in the end, I believe the simple message contained on that T-shirt tells you all you need to know about Pete Maravich.”

Although his body ultimately failed, Pete Maravich was spiritually fit - he loved Jesus, ran the race, & trained himself for godliness. At 40 years old he breathed his last, on this side, and fully realized that…

BIG TRUTH Training for Godliness is Worth the Work

Do YOU believe that? Do WE believe that? Are YOU training for godliness?

If not, what needs to change? Here are some practical suggestions to get started training. You might recognize these from last week.

EAT RIGHT

Some of us are spiritually anorexic. We haven’t fed from the Scripture in so long that we can’t even swallow much spiritual food anymore. Or maybe you just eat a bunch of ‘junk food’ that keeps you from fully following Jesus with passion & truth.

If you want to get Spiritually FIT, you MUST Eat Right, every day. Further, we cut out some of what leads us away from being spiritually fit.

Feed yourself every day, (10 minute challenge) 1 chapter from a Gospel (144-10 minute segments)

Do you realize the PRIVILEGE of holding God’s words written over 2,000 years ago in your hands? You would think a document like that would be in a museum, but it often sits in our homes collecting dust! And please don’t use the “I don’t like to read” excuse. Grow UP and stop making excuses. You read social media ALL DAY LONG! These are the words of God!

Don’t substitute anything for the Scriptures. Be careful not to become dependent on another writer - use the material as a springboard into the Scripture. Don’t let it substitute for Scripture. Read the chapter surrounding the verses.

Share your insights & questions. Ask if you are interpreting correctly.

EXERCISE CONSISTENTLY

Put away sin & practice what you read. Don’t just look at the PLAYBOOK. Run the PLAY! View it as homework!

James 1:21–22 (NET 2nd ed.)

So put away all filth and evil excess and humbly welcome the message implanted within you, which is able to save your souls. But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves.

What kind of filth might that entail, fellas?

You wonder why God doesn’t seem near? It could be as simple as this - you don’t ACT like He’s near.

Some of you are seeking out pornography, pushing the Presence of God to the back burner of your minds. Then you wonder where He is. Maybe He is asking you, like He asked Adam, “Where are YOU?”

Pray throughout the day. (eyes closed/open - in a quiet/loud place)

REST & RE-ENGAGE

Jesus seems to have kicked off His mornings in prayer in a quiet place and would also use some evenings to get away and pray in a quiet place (Mark 1:35; Matt. 14:23; Luke 5:13).

Mark 1:35 (NLT)

Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.

Luke 5:16 (NLT)

But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

Of course, Jesus would re-engage rather than isolate Himself for a long period of time.

Go to bed on time to get up early & give Jesus first place. No social media until AFTER you have spent time in Scripture & Prayer.

Getting Spiritually FIT is not easy. It’s hard work, a struggle. But…

BIG TRUTH Training for Godliness is Worth the Work

Are you willing to train yourself for Godliness - to become more like Jesus? I sure hope so.

One WORD OF WARNING.

You can’t do this on your own. God doesn’t expect you to. Paul learned this tough lesson when he was being dive-bombed by a demon. It seems like there was some kind of sickness that he called a thorn in his flesh. Here’s what happened.

2 Corinthians 12:7–10 (NIV)

...in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect [full strength] in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Paul learned something that we all must learn - and this is a difficult lesson, but it’s also the lesson that will bring freedom to our lives.

I experience God’s Strength when I stop trusting my own.

CLOSER Back to my dorm room on September 7, 1991 - We prayed and read from the Bible for at least 30 minutes...NO CHANGE. The heaviness in the room was unbelievable. We were literally shaking. What we realized was that we weren’t as strong as we thought. Only when we realized that we were totally dependent on the strength of Jesus did things change. We read Psalm 86. God taught us that He wanted us to be STRONG but that our strength wasn’t enough...we needed His. And it was more than enough.

Some of you are struggling with sexual images, thoughts, or actions. Some of you use some pretty bad language. Others are using some substances that hurt you because you aren’t stepping up and living what you say you believe. Be Strong!

Some of you are trying but simply aren’t strong enough. Don’t lean on your own strength. Ask God for help. Ask God’s people for help. You weren’t designed to win without a team! Tell someone about your struggle and get it in the light.

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Small Group Discussion

1.What did you think of Jackie’s story about what happened on September 7, 1991? 2.Tell about a time that God strengthened you when your own strength was gone. 3.If you need some help, talk to a Christian friend or adult leader tonight!