Renewed Day By Day

Introduction

I would like to begin by saying again how honored me and my family are at being here with each of you today to worship our Creator, our God who loves each and everyone of us so dearly.

My family has been blessed to know the church here in Oologah going on some 12 to 13 years now and each year we grow closer, to which we are grateful.

You should know how much we appreciate and love each of you.

This morning in bible class we began this fine Gospel Meeting by looking at what it means to be “Renewed Of The Spirit.”

We examined, from God’s perspective, what humanity looks like to him when sin enters our life.

We go from his innocent, precious, and safe child to a corrupt, filthy, and fallen child.

Thankfully, God established for all of us who have sinned and found ourselves corrupted, filthy, and separated from our God a “scheme of redemption” that would “create hope” within humanity again.

He sent his only begotten Son to suffer, die, and be resurrected as our Lord and Savior and offers all of us who have sinned and thus spiritually died (Romans 6:23) a plan to be redeemed.

For those of us who have “been renewed of the Spirit” due to our obedience to the gospel and find ourselves as a “new creation” there is nothing more exhilarating, comforting, and peaceful than to know we have been bought and adopted into the family of God.

However, it doesn’t take long as a new creation before those trails, tribulations, and downright hardships come.

It makes since really, because once we sinned and were dead spiritually Satan left us alone, but as soon as we have our sins washed away, join Jesus’ kingdom, and leave Satan’s kingdom he wants us back, that roaring lion is coming!!!

This means we can and will go from a spiritual mountain top high to a spiritual valley low while here on earth.

The Christian life is going to have many highs and lows, many ups and downs, many joys and heartaches because as a Christian we know intellectually “we have eternal life” (1 John 5:13), but as humans who are tempted while here on earth we still struggle with sin (1 John 1:7-10).

Let’s begin this study by examining a biblical illustration of this concept by looking at what took place in Matthew 17:1-20.

So in our first point we will begin by examining…

The Mountain Top

The Transfiguration.

Now before we look at Matthew 17:1-8 I want us to get some perspective on what led up to this.

Jesus, realizing it was time to start “teaching plainly” his disciples about his upcoming death, he did so (Matthew 16:21) which would have blown the apostles entire mind considering they had been taught their whole life that the Messiah was going to establish and “earthly kingdom.”

Peter is so startled by this that he actually pulled Jesus aside and condemned him for saying this (Matthew 16:22) and Jesus promptly responded with “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me...” (Matthew 16:23).

So Jesus’ apostles were on an all time low I would imagine but then Jesus takes them to this mountain.

He takes Peter, James, and John way up on this “high mountain” but leaves the rest at the bottom.

Matthew 17:1–4 NKJV

1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. 4 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

Matthew 17:5–8 NKJV

5 While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” 8 When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

Now try for a moment and put yourselves in these three Jewish men’s shoes.

Remember they had just had all this horrible and confusing news from Jesus but now they are witnessing him in his “glorified state.”

They have also just witnessed two of the most beloved “Jewish heroes” talking with Jesus in Moses and Elijah.

They are on such a spiritual high that Peter blurts out “let’s make three places of worship right now.”

The Father, understanding the emotional high Peter is on, doesn’t even condemn him he just reminds him that “this is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

Can you for a moment even imagine, this side of heaven, a more amazing thing to witness?

Here they had just seen the Messiah glorified along with two of their Jewish heroes.

If there was ever a spiritual high, these three men had it because they were on the…

Spiritual Mountain Top.

I’m sure every single Christian here has experienced a similar “spiritual high” such as some of these disciples had that day on the mountain top and probably more than one.

I’m sure each of us, if we remember it, had this when our “sins were washed away” and we came out of that watery grave and new creation.

Maybe you felt that spiritual high after a specific worship service that hit you just right or after a devotional while sitting around a campfire.

Maybe it was an answered prayer during a traumatic time.

During these times of spiritual high is when we praise God like the Psalmist mentions in Psalm 111:1-3.

Psalm 111:1–3 NKJV

1 Praise the Lord! I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. 2 The works of the Lord are great, Studied by all who have pleasure in them. 3 His work is honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever.

Summary

And as you and I know these spiritual highs can last days, weeks, months, and if fortunate even years.

But no matter how excited and zealous we get on that mountain top, at some point we will come down like Peter, James, and John did.

Because as long as we on are this earth in this physical life it will be impossible to constantly sustain that “mountain top experience.”

In other words, we will always end up back on…

The Valley Bottom

The Determined Demon.

As Jesus took his disciples back down the mountain they quickly learned how “fleeting that spiritual high” can leave.

Notice what was found as they came down off the mountain.

Mark 9:14 NKJV

14 And when He came to the disciples, He saw a great multitude around them, and scribes disputing with them.

Back to reality where the scribes are arguing with the other nine apostles but why?

Matthew 17:14–16 NKJV

14 And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.”

Now imagine the feeding frenzy this would have caused with the scribes seeing Jesus’ closest disciples not able to cast out the demon from this man’s son. There is no way they are going to miss this opportunity to make Jesus and his disciples look bad.

This of course is why Jesus quickly casts the demon out and rebukes the “unbelieving crowd” (Matthew 17:17-18).

Unfortunately though the damage had been done, the spiritual high the disciples had been on is over they are back to the…

Spiritual Valley Bottom.

No matter how excited and zealous we get on that mountain top, at some point we will come back down.

As Christians we quickly realize that our mountain top experiences cannot be eradicate here on earth…

Bouts with unbelief, doubt, sickness, stress, criticism, disappointment in others and/or ourselves.

Romans 7:15–20 NKJV

15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

Summary

The truth of the matter is, it is not on the mountain top that we have to bring our faith to bear brothers and sisters.

It’s during these valley lows that we are put to the spiritual test, where our spiritual best must ultimately come forth because it is here we fight the good fight of faith.

The mountaintops are the exception brethren not the norm.

They are great when they come but they simply cannot last nor are meant to last in this old sinful world.

Because it is in the thick of it that we learn to overcome the world by being hidden in Christ (John 16:33; Colossians 3:1-3).

That brings us to this inevitable truth…

We NEED to be…

Refreshed Continually

Every Hour Of Every Day.

Living “below” in the day-to-day world of human experience is obviously hard.

In fact, it requires a special quality, a reality check that every Christian must understand, it requires utter dependence on Jesus.

The nine disciples who could not cast out the demon could not do so because of their unbelief (Matthew 17:20) which led to their enemy pouncing upon them, arguing with them, and leaving them no doubt feeling inadequate.

Thankfully, when these times happen we don’t have to deal with these lows on our own.

As Paul wrote, inspired by God in our text…

2 Corinthians 4:7–10 NKJV

7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

2 Corinthians 4:11–14 NKJV

11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death is working in us, but life in you. 13 And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, 14 knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.

2 Corinthians 4:15–18 NKJV

15 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Notice the many different times and ways Paul declares we don’t and won’t have to go through these lows on our own; why, because “the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).

When we are “hard-pressed on every side we will not be crushed.”

When we are “perplexed, we will not despair.”

When we are persecuted, we are not forsaken.”

When we are struck down, we are not destroyed.”

Again why, because…

Romans 8:31 (NKJV)

31 …If God is for us, who can be against us?

From the time we wake up to the time we go to bed, yes Satan and his followers are going to try and pull us down.

And yes we will struggle but we will not be defeated if we do not try and fight Satan on our own but rather allow God to “renew us day after day” in the strength of his might.

Summary

There is no doubt that each and every day we will need to be renewed by our God.

But that is why we take refuge in him as the psalmist wrote in Psalm 28:8…

Psalm 28:8 NKJV

8 The Lord is their strength, And He is the saving refuge of His anointed.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, ladies and gentlemen, let me be clear…

Yes this life has it challenges and yes this life can be hard but with Christ who over came this world and its sinfulness we can find victory against sin and eventually receive the crown of life, if we allow ourselves to stay renewed day by day in the Lord.

James 1:12 NKJV

12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

Invitation

Isaiah 59:1–2 NKJV

1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.

Philippians 2:6–7 NKJV

6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.

Romans 10:17 NKJV

17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Hebrews 11:6 NKJV

6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Acts 17:30 NKJV

30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,

Matthew 10:32–33 NKJV

32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

2 Thessalonians 1:8 NKJV

8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:1–4 NKJV

1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,

Romans 6:3–5 NKJV

3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,

1 John 1:7 NKJV

7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.