Sermon Tone Analysis

One of us is in trouble!

One of the most amazing things that I have learned while studying the word of God is that the word of God gives us a glimpse into the mind of God.

I don’t make any claims to understand the mind of God, but some little crumbs of wisdom that have fallen of off his plate into my lap and I have begun to perceive that absolutely nothing takes God by surprise!

And for all of the things that we could praise God for; I praise God most because of his plan.

I praise God because he is a master planner and a master strategist.

Now that might make you shout, but it makes me shout, let me explain why.

It makes me shout to know that God has such an excellent plan because sometimes in my life it looks like all hell has broken loose, and I feel like I am a victim of what’s going to happen next week.

But the only way that it feels like that is because I don’t know what’s going to happen.

It helps me to know that I am not just waiting on some enemy to trip me up, that my life hasn’t been turned over to some demon that is pulling the strings in my life to see how much pain and suffering that I can take.

That even the enemy can only attack me with the permission of God.

Because God is in such divine authority that when men try to destroy me even though they meant it for evil God stepped in and turned things around so that it ended up being for my benefit.

I draw strength from it because according to my bible I know that the thoughts of God are not evil towards me but good so that I might have an expected end.

It helps me, especially when I know God is not planning to kill me.

Some of you are not there yet, because you're not sure was on not God has made up his mind about you.

And you keep trying to earn, God’s favor, but the reality is nobody earns God’s favor.

You just have to by faith, except the fact that God has chosen you.

He has decided to bless you.

But that doesn't mean that he won't correct you, that don’t mean that he won’t chasten you.

But it does mean that I have moved from being a slave, to being a son in his house.

So even though I might get a spanking every now and then.

I know that my daddy is not in to killing his kids.

That means that there is no plan or trick that the enemy has devised against us that God has not already made a way of escape.

When we look at the cross, we begin to understand that the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

This phrase indicates to us that from the very beginning, God had a way of the escape before Satan ever, launched his attack, God had already made a way of the escape.

Paul when he is teaching the church, says that there is no temptation you that such as is common to man, God is faithful, and will not suffer you to be tempted above that which you are able to stand.

But will with the temptation make a way of escape.

That you may be able to bear it.

This is not a situation where the enemy attacks you and then God say as, I'd better figure something out.

Why you a trying to figure out the storm there is always a way of escape that comes with the storm.

If you ever learn this and get this down in your spirit even when life gets a little crazy, before you start to faint or commit suicide; You will start looking around, for some sort of way of escape because the very fact that you have a problem is a sign of a promise.

The very fact that you have a problem is a sign that there is also a solution.

And if you don't become distracted by the problem and focus in on the solution it is only a matter of time before God will reveal unto you the solution that he had in place before the foundation of the world.

Most of us are well familiar with the work book and made into several movies "Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson, "Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is a classic novel about "Right and Wrong" "Joy and Despair" "The struggle of Good and Evil" or struggle of the natural mans vs. the Spiritual man.

Most of us are well familiar with the work book and made into several movies "Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson, "Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is a classic novel about "Right and Wrong" "Joy and Despair" "The struggle of Good and Evil" or struggle of the natural mans vs. the Spiritual man.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Mr. Stevenson was once asked, "Where did you find the model for your character of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

He said, "I found it in my nature.

He was a Christian and had learned that there is indeed inside of every child of God a BEAST.

Every saved person has a New Nature and an Old Nature.

I find that there is always a struggle with the "BEAST THAT LIVE WITHIN ME."

Dr. McGhee would say of the Old Flesh nature of man, "It's never removed and it's never improved."

If you have ever studied the 7th chapter of Romans — You know that the Apostle Paul had the same fight that you and I have.

He had to fight the BEAST THAT LIVE WITHIN.

I heard one pastor that said, "We should never let our people get into the seventh chapter of Romans — we should just encourage them to jump over the seventh chapter and right into the eighth chapter.

That sounded good to me until I found that you can't jump over the seventh chapter.

The man that fought the battle in the seventh chapter is the one that won the victory in chapter eight.

If you have lived the Christian life for very one you can identify with the Apostle Paul when he said, "I don't understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I don't do it.

Instead, I do the very thing I hate."

US So all this being true — How can we control the beast that lives within us.

Inside all of us there is at least two of us and one of us is in trouble!

Free from the Law!

2 kings

That's really a good summary of what keeping the law taught.

If you were to be righteous by keeping the Law you had to DO certain things TO BE righteous.

And do you know what?

No one could ever be righteous by keeping the law.

James "the half brother" of Jesus in his letter writes in "Whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it".

We can never be good enough or do enough to be made righteous in the eyes of God.

Many times we are like those Jewish Christians.

We have been set free from the requirements of the law by the blood of Christ.

It is not what we do that saves us, it is what Jesus has done for us.

Jesus has done all that needs to be done to make us right before God.

Nothing we will ever do will add to our salvation.

YET We too, many times, carry around the burden of believing that we have to do something to earn or to make sure we are saved.

Going to church, reading our Bible, praying to God, memorizing scripture, teaching a SS class or helping the poor is not going to save anyone.

Now it is true, that these things are the fruit a person who is saved, is supposed to bear.

BUT they can't save us ONLY the grace of God which we enter into through obedient faith in Christ can save us.

I believe one of the reasons that we have a hard time accepting this is that we live in a society that tells us that we have to do to be.

Our society tells us: "you're valuable only if you are pretty.

You are more valuable if you produce.

You are definitely more valuable if you can slam dunk a basketball, throw a touchdown pass or hit a home-run.

You are valuable if you have a DR. after your name, or star in movies, or hold a political office or have a six figure salary or drive an expensive foreign car.

Where does this value system leave the average people?

I'll tell you where in a constant struggle to be somebody or do something that society tells them to be, and they try real hard but never even have a chance AND THEY FEEL like they are not really worth all that much.

Paul in Romans seven declares our freedom.

Matt

James 2:10

We are free from the Law.

We are free from the burden of having to do to be.

Free from the frustration of the flesh!

Free from the condemnation of the flesh!

Free from the power of the flesh!

Conclusion

Controlling the beast that live within us!