Disrupted Disciples

AVOID USING GUILT LANGUAGE! KEEP IT UPLIFTING

2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I fear that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your minds may be seduced from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

But [now] I am fearful, lest that even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, so your minds may be corrupted and seduced from wholehearted and sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3 (AMP)

Intro

There is an ideology going around that “as long as I love God and go to church that will keep me from being in a bad place with God.”

God does not worry or fear, yet God is focused on your ability to stay on the path of becoming MORE like Jesus.

The reason so many PEOPLE fall away is because of their root system.

Some have shallow roots that is why many fall away so quickly. They never have received the word or allowed it to blossom into something beautiful.

Some have rocky roots. That means that they are so preoccupied by the things of the world that they cannot develop roots to grow into a faithful follower.

Some have thorny roots. They develop roots, but have never allow themselves to be mentored nor taught and become choked by the trials of life.

Few, that have a deep root system. They allow their roots to settle deep into the roots of God’s word and presence that they begin to blossom into strong disciples of Christ.

I began to think. What would the devil do to keep someone from being a faithful disciple.

It is the devils job to “corrupt and seduce you away from a sincere and pure devotion to God.

THE DEVIL WANTS TO:

Distract You From What Matters Most

Luke 10:38–42 “While they were traveling, he entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, and she came up and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to serve alone? So tell her to give me a hand.” The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.”

THE DEVIL DOESN’T HAVE TO MAKE YOU SINFUL, HE JUST HAS TO MAKE YOU DISTRACTED.

Mark 4:19 “but the worries of this age, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”

Distraction is getting you to look one direction and missing what is going on somewhere else.

Magician - slight of hand

A. He will replace your devotion with distraction.

B. Fill your life with “urgent” things instead of eternal things.

How does this effect you as a Christian?

Isolate You From Other Believers

Hebrews 10:24–25 “And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.”

A. You need others in order to grow and stay on track.

Runners will run in groups to develop a pace.

The devil knows that if he can get you isolated away from the pack he can attack you and take you out!

Isolation is where discouragement grows and discipleship dies.

A. Convince you that you don’t need the church.

B. Separate you from others who will sharpen your faith.

Convince you that you have already arrived.

The biggest deception of Satan is to convince someone that they have matured into a place where they don’t need anyone.

The moment you stop growing is the moment you become vulnerable.

Philippians 3:12–14 “Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.”

Yesterdays blessings are not enough to sustain you for today’s battles.

Even Paul the apostle knew that he had not yet arrived.

The author of 2/3 of the New Testament and established the much of the doctrine we stand on said, “I have not reached my goal.

You cannot be happy with where you are. You must decide that you can still go deeper with God.

THE DEVIL WILL CONVINCE YOU TO BE

A. Satisfied with yesterday’s victories.

Paul was refusing to live on what God had already done.

He kept reaching forward to what was ahead.

Yesterday’s victories are great! Tomorrow’s victories are better. Yesterday’s miracles are great! Tomorrows Miracles are better. Keep striving for what is ahead.

B. Replace Hunger with Complacency.

The devil wants to deceive you into standing comfortable.

Imagine had Jesus not gone to the cross.

Imagine had he chose to stay comfortable.

Hunger is what keeps us searching for more. Appetite is what keeps us pressing for more.

HOW BAD DO YOU WANT TO DRAW CLOSER TO GOD?

Keep You Entertained Instead of Spiritually Engaged

Ezekiel 33:31–32 “So my people come to you in crowds, sit in front of you, and hear your words, but they don’t obey them. Their mouths go on passionately, but their hearts pursue dishonest profit. Yes, to them you are like a singer of passionate songs who has a beautiful voice and plays skillfully on an instrument. They hear your words, but they don’t obey them.”

These people gave the appearance of following God, but they loved their money more.

The people were coming to hear Ezekiel in order to be entertained. They listened to the message from the Lord but had no intention of putting into practice.

A lot of people think of Church as entertainment. The like the music, the atmosphere, the people and the activities, but don’t take the sermon to heart.

That means they are apathetic (lukewarm) toward serving the Lord.

The enemy loves spectators because spectators never change the game.

The devil wants you to

A. Consume Sermons

2 Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear.”

What bible teachers are you listening to?

Do they tell you want you want to hear or are they confronting your sin?

Are they challenging you to grow as a follower of Christ?

B. Never become the Sermon.

Its one thing to hear a sermon. Our vision here at __________ is for you to become the sermon.

We must become more like Christ so that others will want Jesus.

You must ask yourself. Am I just consuming truth or being transformed by it.

Never help someone else follow Jesus

Matthew 28:19–20 “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Jesus commanded his disciples to go make disciples.

This is how the world changes. When we begin to bring others to Jesus.

The devil wants to disrupt the process of disciple making.

The devil doesn’t just want todisrupt your growth. He wants to disrupt your influence.

How does he do this? He convinces you to:

A. Keep your faith private.

Two out of every three people are open to talking about Jesus with a friend. The problem may not be that they do not want to hear—the problem may be that we never speak.

Sharing your faith is expressing “Why you trust Jesus over all else.”

Sharing your faith is helping others to place their trust in Jesus above all else.

To keep it private is like having a cure for a disease and watching your family and friends die.

B. Convince you that someone else will do it.

We are so deceived that the devil wants you to pawn off your heavenly duties on someone else.

1 Peter 4:10 “Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.”

God didn’t give you a gift merely for your benefit. He entrusted it to you for the benefit of others.

The question is not what can others do for me, but what can I do to serve others.

Those who look for someone to serve that have a consumer mentality. Jesus wants us to have a servant mentality.

Galatians 5:13 “For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.”

WE should always be looking for how we can serve others.

We should be serving in our community.

We should be serving in our church.

We should be serving in our homes.

It is through our serving that we demonstrate the love of Christ.

The devil knows this and that is why he tries to get us to stop. “Awww I’m gonna let someone else get this.”

CONCLUSION