We All Struggle From Time To Time

We All Struggle From Time To Time ()

As the modern church continues to develop, we are challenged by a fundamental factor that directly impacts our ability to walk into our purpose.

That factor is our ability to respond to God’s initiatives and claims on the choices that we make.

When God gives us a command or initiative, we must realize that a response to God is unavoidable.

Whatever God commands concerning your life, your purpose, your assignment, a response is unavoidable, because of the many ways in which, we can respond.

We can ignore - We can resist - We can reject God’s initiatives, or We can respond in a very positive obedience.

Now, Despite perception and despite the modern-day philosophy of many preachers

“God’s commands are Not burdensome” (p) (Thought I might get a Amen there)

If we can just be honest this afternoon, following the commands of the Lord are consistently beneficial…

Why, Because Obedience to God always results in Divine Blessings..

In fact, it can be stated categorically that, “ In the long run, dis-obedience to God always produces more pain, than obedience” …

I know this seems ironic, because the reason we usually dis-obey God is because we think obedience will be more painful than actually following God (expound)

· We think that obedience to God will be more painful than following our own desires

That’s why we must keep in the forefront of our minds “Who we are, and more importantly, who’s we are”

Why, because if God is loving (and He is), then what He ask us to do is always best for us!

If God is sovereign (And He is) then He orders our circumstance to work in our favor

With all this in mind: My Thesis statement today is “Obedience is not burdensome, if we are committed to the truth of God’s goodness, and sovereign purpose.”

Question: Have you ever regretted obedience to God?

Have you ever prospered in dis-obedience to God?

(Our ancestors knew this all too well about obedience to God) (expound)

· In spite of the obstacles

· In spite of the difficulties

· In spite of the nay-sayers

· In spite of in-equality

But their determination to “Hold unto God’s unchanging hand was their battle cry!

And if we are going to survive #45 we’d better understand that obedience to God is critical!

Jesus faced that reality in the Garden of Gethsemane:

· He’s a day from going through the most challenging reality He had ever had to face

This scripture displays the ultimate statement of obedience:

· What Jesus wanted at this moment, was not in line with what God wanted

· Jesus was fully aware that what He was about to go through was going to be painful

· Jesus understood that to do His father’s will was going to lead Him to an agonizing death, and separation for God…

· Jesus demonstrates that when it comes to fully submitting to God’s will and way, there are sometimes when it will become a struggle..

I didn’t come to take to the super saints, I came to talk to those who can admit they still have some areas where they are struggling to do God’s will?

So the question becomes: How do you handle when obeying God cost you your desires?

How do you handle when doing what God says cost you what you want?

· It’s going to cost Jesus His life

· It’s going to make Jesus look like a loser to those who were around the cross

· It’s going to make Him look like everything He taught was a lie

How do you remain obedient to God when that obedience is going to make you look silly?

You must develop the “Gethsemane Mindset”

There’s a book by Vernon Grounds called “Radical Commitment”

Grounds states, “The gethsemane mindset is the attitude of trustful surrender demonstrated by Jesus as he prayed in the garden and surrendered to the will of the father.”

It is: The renunciation of your own human feelings, human desires, human hopes, human dreams, human ambitions so that God’s purpose may be accomplished in and through your life

It is: To set your mind on doing the will of God, and obeying Him, even though obedience involves denying yourself and surrendering anything that would interfere with the fulfillment of God’s purpose in your life…

This isn’t always easy cause if Jesus struggled with doing the right thing (p), then who are we to think that there won’t be times where God’s going to have to help us…

· I don’t care how anointed you are

· I don’t care how many scriptures you read

· I don’t care how many books you read

There will come a moment in your life where you and I are going to struggle! (Expound)

· I fussed with HS about this sermon

· He said: That’s not reality

How do I deal with the times in my Life, when I struggle?

1. Don’t give a public face to a private fight

a. Some struggles are not to be seen by everybody.

b. If you’re going to be a believer, you got to know how to put on the right face, at the right time, in the right place.

c. Everybody doesn’t need to know what you’re dealing with…

d. Everybody can’t handle what you’re struggling with based on their perception of who you are…

e. Some people aren’t mature enough to separate your anointing from your humanity…

f. You must be mature enough to know what you can’t show them

I’m not suggesting that you not be transparent before people, but I am suggesting is that we need to be discerning as to how and when to be transparent , ad to whom you can be transparent…

Note: You can’t bleed your pain all over everybody…

a. Social media has become a pulpit where we tell everybody how we feel…

b. We must stop giving minority people -majority platforms…

c. We must learn to stop giving minority problems -majority stages..

Look at the text, this is where I’m getting this from; (verse 39)

This scene happens right after they had partaken of Communion (Verse 26)

· While their at communion, listen to his words…(26- 28)

1. At the table he’s speaking confident and certain…(expound)

2. But in the garden that attitude is gone…

My struggle with this transition in the text had me asking Holy Spirit, “Was Jesus being phony?”

Holy Spirit said, “No you just need to know how to act at the table (you missed it)

· Jesus wasn’t being phony, he just knew who was at the table

· At the table He had a job to do, and he couldn’t do his job and let them see his pain…

Our Job as Christians is to know how to act at the table…

What’s the table: You job, your house, your friendship circle,

You might be in pain but while you at the table you got to know how to act…

There are people looking at how you conduct yourself…(expound)

· Judas is at the table (expound)

· Peter is at the table (expound)

You got to remind yourself that “He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”

· I may be down, but I won’t show it at the table

· My body may be racked with pain, but I can’t show it at the table..

Devil you should have killed me at the table, cause when I get to the garden…

· I can unleash all my pain

As a Pastor I can’t show things at the table: But when I get to the garden…

Always remember when you at the table, that God has a garden experience waiting…

· There are somethings that should just be between you and God..

· Something you can’t tell nobody, you got to hold it til you get to the garden..

1. You got to know how to act at the table

When you get to the garden, you got to know who to take with you!

· Everybody in your crew, don’t need to be in your count…

· You got to know who to take, and even some of them can’t go in with you..

· Even the folk that walk with you aren’t mature enough to he you cries..

2. Private prayer can lead to public praise in the midst of your painful problem

Has anybody ever when to the Lord in prayer by yourself, and by the time you got through, you were singing. “I got a feeling ,everything’s going to be alright!”

· I don’t what’s about to happen but I got a feeling

· I know they said no, But I got a feeling

· I ain’t heard anything yet, but I got a feeling

· I’m still taking the medicine, but I got a feeling

Private prayer, leads to public praise…

The elder used to say: Have a little talk with Jesus

3. Just because it possible, doesn’t mean it beneficial (V39)

Jesus gets to the garden and unloads His struggle, and after He does, He say nevertheless,…

· We must understand it is possible, but it may not be beneficial

· Doesn’t the bible say “All things are possible”

Note: Jesus doesn’t change His position because it’s not possible (p) He changes his position because everything that’s possible is not beneficial..

· Just because it can happen doesn’t mean it should happen…

· Just because God can do it, doesn’t me He needs to do it…

We must be mature enough to not lean on what’s possible, but what is beneficial…

It’s possible for this bitter cups to pass, but it’s more beneficial for your will to be done…

It’s possible, but God’s way is more beneficial

We don’t weigh with what’s possible, we weigh what’s beneficial

And what’s beneficial is that I stick with what God want’s…

Whatever I do, I do it because that’s God wants…(expound)

· I love my enemies

· I sacrifice my desires

· I wake up every day with Joy

· Every day I give Him thanks

· I praise Him in season and out of season

You can only accomplish this when God is the most important person in your life…

· Because the most important person in your life has the most influence…

· If someone else has priority, you will always find difficulty following God

· No choosing God’s will would have been beneficial to many people in Jesus life (his mother, the disciples) they would have been happy

· But to do God’s will means I sacrifice what would make others happy to be in His will….

4. I must be able to move forward knowing what I face, But also, who I have

You must appropriate the power of God, to face certain things in Life..

· If I can love people I know are trying to kill me…