Sadness Part 2 Failure
Notes
Transcript
Sadness is defined as
Sadness: heaviness of heart brought about through disappointment, disillusionment, failure or sin.
Last week, we looked at Sadness brought about through disappointment.
I want to give you a practical thing you can do to battle sadness. Look at these proverbs
25 Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down, but a good word cheers it up.
30 Bright eyes cheer the heart; good news strengthens the bones.
22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.
You may need to start searching for good news. You might also need to get you a good friend who is willing to give you a good word. A joyful heart is good medicine.
It might also do you some good to find a friend that has joy in their life and hang out with them a little bit. This may be hard to do given the current times. I am sure all of have some people that are always cheery and they drive you crazy. It is time to start appreciating those people and striving to recognize the truth of these Proverbs.
This week is a week that I battled with the Lord on. Today we look at Sadness part 2 FAILURE.
I battled with the Lord because to be honest this is the biggest mental battle for me. When Satan starts throwing darts at me, he loads up his bow with failure bullets and starts firing them at my mind. They hit and say you are a failure, everything you set out to do is a failure, As a pastor and teacher, fail, As a husband fail, as a father fail, as a coach fail.
If your grade card comes out, then it is FFFFFF.
So I battled the Lord and said I know you are wanting to deliver someone from this so I will teach on it, but then it got a little personal.
I love the old quote that says
The Devils greatest tool is to make you believe that he does not exist
I can guarantee because of God’s word that Satan is a liar. He desires to kill, steal, and destroy. He desires nothing more than to bring you to ruin. The enemy wants to attack. Some of the greatest attacks are against the mind and how you think about yourself.
The way we battle these attacks is to confront the lies of Satan with the truth of God’s word
This is what this whole series since Easter has been about.
The lie of loneliness confronted with the truth about God taking you by His Righteous right hand. Last week, the Lie of Sadness through disappointment with recognizing that God’s plans are higher than our ways and His thoughts are greater than our thoughts.
8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things.
We must replace the lies of the enemy with the truth of the word of God.
Sadness
That is
Heaviness of heart brought about through FAILURE.
Failure: lack of success/nonperformance of something due, required or expected.
When I look back in life, one of the biggest moments of failure was when I was 15 years old and I got mad at my mom.
I took off down the street. I went into the woods and climbed a tree to hide from my mother. It was not long and she started looking for me. I could see the rode from the tree I was in. I watched as she drove around the block several times with the window down. She then started to hollar my name and I could hear the panic in her voice. She was worried.
I finally felt guilt and came down out of the tree. I went home and as I walked in the drive way and looked at my moms face, I realized how bad I had hurt her. She was broken.
My mind immediately shifted and I thought to myself. I am a failure. I am a failure as son and I should never hurt my mother in this way. I am of no success to my mother.
C.S. Lewis
Feelings come and go and when they come a good use can be made of them: they can not be our regular Spiritual diet.
Feelings can be used for good, but feelings must not be the only thing that leads our Spiritual development.
I have experienced a lot of things that have not felt right but they were for my benefit.
Can you imagine the feeling of Peter Luke 22
31 “Simon, Simon, look out! Satan has asked to sift you like wheat.
32 But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
33 “Lord,” he told Him, “I’m ready to go with You both to prison and to death!”
34 “I tell you, Peter,” He said, “the rooster will not crow today until you deny three times that you know Me!”
One of the greatest failures in all time that I know we can learn from is Peter.
Jesus says to him I have prayed for you that your faith may not FAIL.
Peter’s response is LORD, I’M READY TO GO WITH YOU BOTH TO PRISON AND TO DEATH!
The opposite of Failure is Success.
Peter says I will succeed and Lord I will follow you anywhere. I will follow you to prison and to death. I am ready Lord. Let’s Go!
You know what happens in verse 60
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed.
61 Then the Lord turned and looked at Peter. So Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.”
62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.
Can you imagine the feeling of failure that Peter felt the moment the rooster crowed?
I am sure this feeling continued to haunt Peter for several days. You told Jesus you would go to death for him and you denied him.
Peter you are a failure.
It is interesting as I started to study this topic of failure in scripture. My Bible software helps with a sermon starter guide and it list some of the ways or examples of how we fail God. Listen to the many different ways we fail.
Failing to abide in him
3 All have turned away; all alike have become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one.
Failing to believe in him
Failing to fear him
Failing to honor him
Failing to love him
4 But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first.
Failing to obey him
Failing to remember him
Failing to seek him
2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is wise, one who seeks God.
3 All have turned away; all alike have become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one.
Failing to serve him
Failing to trust him
The thought alone of the many different ways you can fail the Lord is a depressing thought.
The more I studied this topic of being a failure the more I realized that this indeed is true of who we are before we meet Christ.
Scripture Says in Romans
23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Paul expressed this same mindset and realization in Romans 7
18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it.
19 For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do.
20 Now if I do what I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but it is the sin that lives in me.
21 So I discover this principle: When I want to do what is good, evil is with me.
22 For in my inner self I joyfully agree with God’s law.
23 But I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and taking me prisoner to the law of sin in the parts of my body.
24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this dying body?
25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh, to the law of sin.
When the enemy is throwing fiery darts, it is essential the we confront the lies with truth.
Truth:
In our flesh, we are failures.
Without Christ we are failures
This is not the end of the truth though.
Luke 15
11 He also said: “A man had two sons.
12 The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate I have coming to me.’ So he distributed the assets to them.
13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered together all he had and traveled to a distant country, where he squandered his estate in foolish living.
We don’t know this but the thought occured to me, I wonder if the younger son really meant to squander all of His share of the estate in foolish living.
That is he does not set out with the intention to fail
I would say that our goal is never failure, but success. We set out to succeed. We set out to make others proud of us or even set out to make the Lord Himself proud of us.
The intent is not always or hardly ever failure.
In the flesh, it becomes the result.
Why?
We know for sure that where the younger son finished was surely not his intent.
15 Then he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs.
16 He longed to eat his fill from the carob pods the pigs were eating, but no one would give him any.
In all aspects, when he is begging for pigs food and no one would give him any he has failed.
18 I’ll get up, go to my father, and say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight.
19 I’m no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired hands.’
20 So he got up and went to his father. But while the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him.
21 The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I’m no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father told his slaves, ‘Quick! Bring out the best robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
23 Then bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let’s celebrate with a feast,
24 because this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ So they began to celebrate.
The best robe was a sign of postion
The ring, especially if, as man hold, a signet ring is meant. Those of you who have been here for Sunday School you know that the King took the signet ring from Haman and gave it to Mordecai signifying authority and ownership.
The son went barefoot. Being barefoot was only fitting for a slave. The shoes marked him out to be a free man!
The fatted calf was a carefully looked after animal for a special occasion. This son coming home was the special occasion.
Father’s absolute joy in the saying that this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!
Something is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. If you are car person, then you are familiar with Kelly Blue Book. Kelly Blue book gives you an estimated value of what your car is worth. Likewise, Zillow will tell you what your house is possibly worth.
It does not matter what Kelly Blue book or Zillow says when it comes down to it. Your car or your house is only worth what someone is willing pay for it.
What is your worth?
Is my worth tied up in my failure or my success
Let me share with you what you are worth
16 “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
You are worth the God of the universe to send His one and only Son.
Jesus came, God in Flesh came and took up residence among us.
Jesus gave His life. He was spat upon, He was stripped of his clothes, he was beaten.
A crown of thorns was placed up on his head
Nails were drivin into his hands and His feet.
A spear pierced his side
Jesus gave his life for you and I.
23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
24 They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed.
26 God presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.
v24 Justify a legal term to declare righteous
Stop trying to justify your sin or someone admits to wrong we often try and justify it for them. That is we try to declare them righteous.
They are justified freely by His grace
Redemption that is in Christ Jesus
The death of Christ on the cross of Calvary was the price of payment for human sin which secured release from the bondage of Satan and sin for every person who trusts God’s promise of forgiveness and salvation.
v.25 Propitiation
This noun is used elsewhere in the New Testament only in Hebrews 9:5 for the mercy seat (NIV, “the place of atonement”) of the tabernacle’s ark of the covenant. There a goat’s blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement to cover (atone) Israel’s sins (Lev. 16:15), and satisfy God for another year. Jesus’ death is the final sacrifice which completely satisfied God’s demands against sinful people, thus averting His wrath from those who believe.
Satan desires for us to remain in the lie that we are nothing more than a failure. He wants us to stay in Sadness.
God the Father meets the lie of the enemy and says not yet Satan
He sends Jesus to die for you and I.
It’s the picture of the Father anticipating the son coming home. Seeing him in the distance and running after the lost son.
Taking the son and restoring him.
Through Jesus we have been justified by the favor of God on our lives.
It is time for us to confront the lies of the enemy with the truth of God. The truth is we failed but Jesus counted us worthy enough to come and die for us.
There are so many scriptures that speak of our worth. Scripture says that every hair on your head is numbered.
God says you are worth the death of His son. To God you are not a failure. To God you are a success.