Gainz Part 1

Gym fails are hilarious. On the one hand, you can’t help but laugh at their misfortune, but on the other hand, you can at least admire them for trying to make some gains!

If you’re not familiar with the word gains, this is what it means: when someone has visible muscle growth as a result of lifting weights.

If you see someone whose arms are busting out of his or her shirt but those arms used to look like two little twigs, you could say, “Look at those gains!”

Now, most people understand how to build muscle and be physically strong. It pretty much boils down to eating the right foods and exercising. You know that if you took advantage of the McDonald's all-day breakfast and ate McDonald's breakfast all day, every day, while binge-watching Pretty Little Liars, you wouldn’t be surprised if you weren’t the pinnacle of fitness. And you wouldn’t be surprised because you understand how to be physically strong.

But what a lot of us don’t understand is how to get spiritually strong. How do we build spiritual muscle? How do we make gains in our faith?

Scripture

One of the major players in the Bible, a guy by the name of Paul, was writing to a younger man who he was mentoring, named Timothy, and he told him this:

Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come. (1 Timothy 4:8 NLT).

Story 2

In the 1970s Arnold Schwarzenegger was named “Mr. Olympia” seven times! Essentially, that award goes to the guy with the most serious gains, and Arnold was that guy. Fast-forward 40 years, and Arnold isn’t winning those titles and competitions anymore. Over time, muscles fade, bones weaken, and a little extra weight collects around the midsection.

Physical training is good, but it’s temporary. Paul says that spiritual training is better than physical training because it is not only good for now but also for eternity.

But how do you make spiritual gains? How do you become the Mr./Ms. Olympia of the faith? How do you get spiritually strong?

Scripture

There is this story found in the Bible that we’re going to look at over the next few weeks that I think can help answer this question for us.

Before we read it, I want to give you a little background to help us understand what's going on. Have you ever started watching a movie you haven’t seen before, but that movie had already started? If you have, you have questions like: “Who’s that?” and “Why are they there?” and “What’s that thing on his face?” You had no context for what was going on and no clue how to interpret what was happening.

So let me get you up to speed. Here is what’s happening in the Bible passage we’re going to look at:

Matthew, who was one of Jesus' best friends, records this biography of Jesus' life that we call "Matthew," which is weird because it's all about Jesus. That'd be like me writing a biography about President Trump and calling it [insert your name here].

Matthew begins his book by explaining Jesus’ extended family situation (like great, great, great-grandpa type stuff). Next, Matthew records the circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth (think Christmas story). Then, Matthew skips over 30 years of Jesus’ life and records the story of Jesus’ baptism. Before Jesus started His ministry, before He healed anyone, before He had cast out any demon, before He walked on water, Matthew wrote about Jesus’ baptism.

Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John, and we find out that “The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God’s Spirit – it looked like a dove – descending and landing on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.” (Matthew 3:16-17 MSG).

The story that immediately follows Jesus’ baptism is where we’re going to hang out for the next few weeks. The story is called "The Temptation of Jesus." We’re going to read it through and then come back and find out how it’s going to help us make spiritual gains.

1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights; he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread."

4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. (Matthew 4:1-11 NIV).

I'm sure there are some of you in this room who are wondering how this passage can teach us about making spiritual gains. Because in one sense, this story doesn't relate to you or me in any way!

My guess is that after your baptism God didn't drive you into the barren desert to battle Satan. Instead, someone drove you to Chick-Fil-A. So, on the one hand, this story seems out of touch. But on the other hand, it hits home because temptation is something that every person faces. It doesn't matter what gender, religion, or nationality you are; temptation is a universal human experience. In fact, the Bible says that:

13 No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 MSG).

You need to know that you're not alone in the temptation that you battle with. But you also need to know that you can win against temptation. Maybe you’re so used to giving into temptation that you’ve decided that it’s not even worth fighting anymore. But this is why looking into the story of Jesus’ temptation is so important because Jesus fought and won! And the things that Jesus used to win against temptation we can learn and use in our fight as well.

So, let’s dig in and find out what those things are that allowed Jesus to flex His spiritual muscle and beat temptation.

We’re going to look particularly at verses 1-4 today.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. (Matthew 4:1 NIV)

God not only allowed but also led Jesus to a place where He would be tempted. Notice that God didn't tempt Jesus, but He did allow Jesus to be tested. And God allows you and me to be tested as well. But it's not to see if we will pass or fail. God isn't sitting in heaven with a giant scorecard grading us. Instead, God's testing makes us stronger. Think about it this way: to produce muscle growth, to get stronger, you have to apply a load of stress greater than what your muscles had previously adapted to. How do you do this? Lift heavy things!

Likewise, to make spiritual gains, God allows you to go through things that are hard, that are stressful, and that stretch you in order to grow you. God tests you to move you forward; Satan tempts you to set you back.

Every temptation you face is an invitation to grow in your faith. Now don't go seeking out temptation so that you can grow; that would be seriously unwise. Jesus didn't seek out temptation, but He finds himself being led by God into a challenging place that would put His character to the test, and in times like that, it's an opportunity to grow your spiritual muscle.

After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” (Matthew 4:2-3 NIV)

When the Bible says that Jesus was fasting, it means that He was not eating. In other words, Jesus didn't eat for 40 days and 40 nights. I love how the Bible casually mentions, "and he was hungry." Probably the most obvious statement in the whole book! If I were in this story instead of Jesus, it would read: after fasting for 40-minutes, he was hungry!

But it's in this state of intense hunger and weakness that the devil tempts Jesus with the very thing He's weak for: food. And so often that’s exactly how the devil works. He attacks you at moments of weakness because it’s so much easier for him to win under those circumstances.

He attacks you when you are alone in your bedroom when you know no one is watching.

He attacks you when you've just been dumped and you feel low.

He attacks you when you've just had a fight with your mom and you're angry.

The devil attacks you when you’re weak because it’s easier for him to win under those circumstances. The devil doesn’t fight fairly. The Bible says that the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8 NIV). Satan has no problem taking advantage of you when you’re weak.

Jesus is physically weak at this moment but still manages to do some heavy lifting. He's been warming up for this for forty days! Jesus replies to Satan: Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4 NIV).

Essentially Jesus is saying: “Yes, I’m hungry. Yes, food gives my physical body energy, but what’s most important is that my soul is nourished. And that nourishment comes from God through His Word.”

When Jesus says this, He is quoting a verse from the Old Testament (Deut. 8:3). To fight off the attack of the devil Jesus quotes the Bible.

Notice that Jesus wasn't flipping through the pages of His Bible trying to find a verse to use against the devil. He didn't open his phone and Google a great Bible comeback. Instead, Jesus had God's Word hidden in His heart. He had it memorized.

APPLICATION

If you want to make gains, if you want to fight against and stand up under temptation, you need to do as Jesus did and know God's word by heart, which sounds crazy hard and time-consuming, but muscle isn't built quickly! Both physical and spiritual strength are built over time through consistency.

And here is why this is so important: you don’t always know when, where, or how Satan is going to tempt you. The devil is not going to wait for you to Google what the Bible says about gossip, anger, or lust. When temptation comes, you’ll lose if you’re not prepared. You can’t hide from temptation. But you can be ready for it.

And you ready yourself for battle through committing the Word of God to your heart and memory.

I often drink too much soda before I go to bed. So, every night at 2:00 a.m., like clockwork, I have to pee. My wife would kill me if I turned on a light to guide my path to the bathroom.

So, I’ve committed the path to memory. I know where the table is. I know where my dresser is. I know where the dog lies down. I can navigate the darkness because I’ve memorized the way.

You can navigate the darkness in life, too, but you need to have the Word of God committed to memory.

For example:

When Satan tempts you to question your worth, you can say, “I am God’s masterpiece” (Ephesians 2:10).

When temptation is barreling down on you and you feel like you have no choice but to give in, you can say, “God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand.” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

When you're tempted to lie, cheat, or steal to get ahead, in your heart, you can say, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).

If you want to be strong like Jesus when facing temptation, you must do what Jesus did. You develop spiritual muscle by not just reading but knowing the Word of God.

Conclusion

I don’t know where everyone is spiritually in this room tonight, but my guess is that many of you want to make spiritual gains in your lives.

I want you to imagine a future for yourself, a future where:

You don’t live defeated.

You don’t do things that hurt yourself.

You don’t do things that make you hate yourself.

You don’t do things that hurt others.

But instead, you walk in victory, strength, and freedom. Jesus has made this type of future available to you. But an essential part of getting there is being able to determine what is true about you, true about life, and true about God. This is found in committing the Word of God to your heart and mind.