WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.620 --> 00:00:05.639 No matter what you do in life, somebody's gonna not 2 00:00:05.700 --> 00:00:09.929 like it. There's nothing that you can do that everybody 3 00:00:10.009 --> 00:00:10.710 is going to like. 4 00:00:10.890 --> 00:00:13.970 Does everybody agree with that? You can't make everybody like you. 5 00:00:14.429 --> 00:00:17.629 So there's nothing you can do that can make everybody 6 00:00:17.670 --> 00:00:20.570 like you. So you may as well do the things 7 00:00:20.850 --> 00:00:25.070 that God likes rather than the things that other people 8 00:00:25.089 --> 00:00:28.870 like because they aren't gonna matter in eternity. If you're 9 00:00:28.910 --> 00:00:31.359 gonna suffer, if you're gonna have people who oppose you, 10 00:00:31.379 --> 00:00:33.820 if you're gonna have people's disapproval, you may as well 11 00:00:33.859 --> 00:00:36.560 have the disapproval for doing the right thing rather than 12 00:00:36.600 --> 00:00:41.340 the wrong thing. That's just logic. Because somebody's gonna disagree 13 00:00:41.380 --> 00:00:44.619 with you no matter what you do. You can't avoid disapproval. 14 00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:48.289 Now we come to the fourth step. And here, this 15 00:00:48.329 --> 00:00:52.670 is important. Recognize the source of the opposition. 16 00:00:53.130 --> 00:00:55.609 And it's Satan. It's not other people. 17 00:00:56.619 --> 00:01:01.619 It's not co-workers, it's not some other political party, it's 18 00:01:01.640 --> 00:01:04.560 not some other nation, it's not some other religion, it's 19 00:01:04.599 --> 00:01:09.239 not some competitor, it's not some person who just doesn't 20 00:01:09.359 --> 00:01:13.609 like you. The real source of the pressure you feel 21 00:01:14.310 --> 00:01:17.549 to cave in, to not have integrity, the pressure you 22 00:01:17.609 --> 00:01:20.530 feel to be quiet and to not stand up for 23 00:01:20.549 --> 00:01:23.569 what you know is the right thing, that pressure's not 24 00:01:23.629 --> 00:01:27.269 coming from other people, it's really coming from Satan. In 25 00:01:27.329 --> 00:01:31.599 Revelation chapter 12 verse 10, Satan is called, quote, the 26 00:01:31.659 --> 00:01:35.859 accuser of the Christians. That's his job. His number one 27 00:01:35.939 --> 00:01:39.099 job is to put you down. Now follow me on this. 28 00:01:40.560 --> 00:01:46.950 Satan hates God, obviously. And so he hates anything God 29 00:01:46.969 --> 00:01:50.209 has created. And what he hates most of all are 30 00:01:50.250 --> 00:01:54.560 God's children. And so Satan hates you. He doesn't just 31 00:01:54.599 --> 00:01:57.510 hate God, Satan hates you. You know, you've heard that phrase, 32 00:01:57.769 --> 00:01:59.870 God loves you and has a good plan for your life. Well, 33 00:01:59.890 --> 00:02:01.769 Satan hates you and has a bad plan for your life. 34 00:02:04.030 --> 00:02:04.870 And so he hates you. 35 00:02:05.090 --> 00:02:05.969 Now, follow me on this. 36 00:02:06.549 --> 00:02:10.620 Satan wants to hurt God, but he can't. He can't 37 00:02:10.699 --> 00:02:14.939 hurt God, but he does have access to you, and 38 00:02:14.979 --> 00:02:18.280 he can hurt you. And the quickest way to hurt 39 00:02:18.319 --> 00:02:22.759 a parent is to hurt his kids. Quickest way to 40 00:02:22.780 --> 00:02:25.080 hurt a mom's heart is to hurt her children. Quickest 41 00:02:25.120 --> 00:02:27.060 way to hurt a dad is to hurt his children. 42 00:02:27.930 --> 00:02:29.849 And so Satan can't get at God, so what's he 43 00:02:29.889 --> 00:02:31.870 wanna do? He wants to get at you. He wants 44 00:02:31.930 --> 00:02:36.770 to hurt you. And there is an unseen spiritual battle 45 00:02:36.830 --> 00:02:40.810 going all around you, and this pressure to make your 46 00:02:40.870 --> 00:02:43.729 life miserable and to make you cave in and to 47 00:02:43.770 --> 00:02:46.009 keep you from doing the right thing, it's not coming 48 00:02:46.050 --> 00:02:48.469 from other people, really. You gotta look beyond that. They're 49 00:02:48.509 --> 00:02:52.889 just pawns. They're just tools. They're just weapons. And a 50 00:02:52.909 --> 00:02:54.750 lot of times they don't even know, most of the 51 00:02:54.770 --> 00:02:57.150 time they don't even know they're being used. But the 52 00:02:57.169 --> 00:03:00.530 real issue is this spiritual warfare. Ephesians 6, 12 says this. 53 00:03:01.030 --> 00:03:06.240 We're not fighting against human beings, which is why you 54 00:03:06.259 --> 00:03:09.539 don't win this in the ballot box. We're not fighting 55 00:03:09.580 --> 00:03:13.939 against human beings, but against wicked spiritual forces. 56 00:03:14.340 --> 00:03:17.569 In the heavenly realm. Now let me explain this. 57 00:03:18.229 --> 00:03:21.689 You need to understand that Satan knows it's stupid to 58 00:03:21.729 --> 00:03:24.169 attack Jesus Christ directly. 59 00:03:24.469 --> 00:03:24.650 Why? 60 00:03:24.870 --> 00:03:26.810 Because he was the only perfect person who ever lived. 61 00:03:27.229 --> 00:03:32.120 How do you attack Jesus? I mean, the savior who 62 00:03:32.199 --> 00:03:38.300 taught love and grace and peace and joy and forgive 63 00:03:38.379 --> 00:03:41.819 other people and died, gave his life for others, how. 64 00:03:41.740 --> 00:03:42.680 Do you attack Jesus? 65 00:03:43.259 --> 00:03:46.689 So he knows rather than attacking Jesus directly, He wants 66 00:03:46.729 --> 00:03:50.490 to attack those who follow him. And today he uses 67 00:03:50.550 --> 00:03:54.379 the media, and he uses music, and he uses comedies, 68 00:03:55.000 --> 00:03:59.240 and he's doing anything he can to ridicule those who 69 00:03:59.300 --> 00:04:01.740 follow Jesus. And they say, hey, they're out of date. 70 00:04:02.740 --> 00:04:04.909 They're on the wrong side of history. They don't know 71 00:04:04.930 --> 00:04:06.069 what they're talking about. 72 00:04:06.110 --> 00:04:06.889 They're fuddy-duddies. 73 00:04:06.930 --> 00:04:08.909 They're bigots, and on and on and on. Here's what 74 00:04:08.949 --> 00:04:13.219 the Bible says you should do. 2 Timothy 2. Stay 75 00:04:13.300 --> 00:04:20.439 away from stupid and senseless arguments. These only lead to trouble. 76 00:04:21.279 --> 00:04:28.819 God's servants must never quarrel. Instead, be kind to everyone, 77 00:04:30.120 --> 00:04:34.899 including the opposition, and be patient with the opposition, and 78 00:04:35.000 --> 00:04:39.000 be humble when you correct people who oppose you. 79 00:04:40.019 --> 00:04:41.480 They've been trapped by the devil. 80 00:04:42.379 --> 00:04:46.019 And he makes them obey him, but God may help 81 00:04:46.100 --> 00:04:50.540 them escape. Now, what's he saying here? He's saying, those people, 82 00:04:50.579 --> 00:04:53.379 they're just pawns. And see, if you don't have the 83 00:04:53.399 --> 00:04:55.040 Holy Spirit in your life, you don't have God's power 84 00:04:55.060 --> 00:04:57.860 in your life, you have no defense against Satan. He 85 00:04:57.879 --> 00:04:59.879 could just whipsaw you this way and that. He can 86 00:05:00.220 --> 00:05:02.939 master your moods. He can lead you into depression. He 87 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:05.079 can do all kinds of, he can make you angry. 88 00:05:05.399 --> 00:05:08.639 You have no defense against Satan until you've got God's 89 00:05:08.680 --> 00:05:11.240 Spirit inside of you. You're not strong enough, sorry, you're 90 00:05:11.259 --> 00:05:15.209 just not. And so these people, they're just being used 91 00:05:15.329 --> 00:05:18.509 as tools. And what you need to do is recognize 92 00:05:18.569 --> 00:05:22.430 a source and treat the opposition the way Jesus did. 93 00:05:22.790 --> 00:05:26.110 How did Jesus treat those who opposed him? Even on 94 00:05:26.129 --> 00:05:29.829 the cross, he's saying, Father, forgive them. They don't know 95 00:05:29.949 --> 00:05:39.180 what they're doing. They don't know what they're doing. That's 96 00:05:39.220 --> 00:05:42.860 what it means to be Christlike. they don't know what 97 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:45.500 they're doing. These people who attack me, they don't know 98 00:05:45.540 --> 00:05:48.509 what they're doing. The people who attack you, they don't 99 00:05:48.569 --> 00:05:51.430 know what they're doing. The people who put down Jesus 100 00:05:51.470 --> 00:05:54.810 and church and Christianity, they don't know what they're doing. 101 00:05:55.899 --> 00:05:57.000 Father, forgive them. 102 00:05:58.019 --> 00:06:03.149 Now think about this. Jesus was lied to, lied about constantly. 103 00:06:03.889 --> 00:06:05.430 You can go make a list of all things they 104 00:06:05.470 --> 00:06:08.160 lied about Jesus in the Bible. They said he's a 105 00:06:08.189 --> 00:06:11.750 revolutionary here to overthrow Rome and take Pilate's place. 106 00:06:12.540 --> 00:06:16.019 Wrong. But they used that to get him to the cross. 107 00:06:16.560 --> 00:06:21.439 They said he's got a demon. 108 00:06:21.839 --> 00:06:22.300 Wrong. 109 00:06:23.420 --> 00:06:28.500 At one point they said he's a drunk and a glutton. Wrong. Wrong. 110 00:06:29.990 --> 00:06:34.550 They said, you know, he's the devil incarnate. Wrong. And 111 00:06:34.649 --> 00:06:37.490 how did Jesus respond to all those lies that were 112 00:06:37.509 --> 00:06:38.050 told about him? 113 00:06:38.129 --> 00:06:40.649 Look at the next verse, 1 Peter 2. 114 00:06:40.649 --> 00:06:45.550 When they hurled their insults at him, Jesus did not retaliate. 115 00:06:46.250 --> 00:06:51.220 When he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted 116 00:06:51.259 --> 00:06:54.500 himself to God who judges justly. 117 00:06:54.540 --> 00:06:56.220 Look at this verse on the screen. I love this 118 00:06:56.319 --> 00:06:59.689 in the message. It says this. They called him every 119 00:06:59.790 --> 00:07:02.709 name in the book, and he said nothing back. 120 00:07:03.430 --> 00:07:08.560 He suffered in silence, content to let God set things right. 121 00:07:09.860 --> 00:07:12.279 This leads us to the fifth thing you need to 122 00:07:12.339 --> 00:07:19.730 do when you're under attack. Refuse to retaliate. Refuse to retaliate. 123 00:07:21.069 --> 00:07:26.209 You are most like Jesus Christ when you don't strike 124 00:07:26.310 --> 00:07:30.829 back at somebody who's hurt you. You're most like Jesus 125 00:07:31.149 --> 00:07:35.519 when you don't attack back in somebody who has attacked 126 00:07:35.560 --> 00:07:40.620 you with a personal insult or threat or statement. 127 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:40.959 Or gossip or whatever. 128 00:07:42.180 --> 00:07:46.259 In this eighth beatitude, the last one, it says this, 129 00:07:46.300 --> 00:07:49.149 let me quote it to you again. Blessed are you 130 00:07:49.269 --> 00:07:53.449 when men shall revile you and persecute you and say 131 00:07:53.629 --> 00:07:56.370 all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. 132 00:07:56.870 --> 00:07:58.769 Rejoice and be exceeding. 133 00:07:58.430 --> 00:08:01.490 Glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so 134 00:08:01.550 --> 00:08:03.860 persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 135 00:08:04.060 --> 00:08:05.129 That's the eighth beatitude. 136 00:08:06.120 --> 00:08:10.160 And he says this, you will be insulted, that means 137 00:08:10.199 --> 00:08:12.620 people are gonna say names, they're gonna call you names, 138 00:08:12.639 --> 00:08:15.939 they're gonna give you labels. You will be insulted, he 139 00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:18.220 says that's the first thing, he says you're gonna be persecuted, 140 00:08:18.259 --> 00:08:21.319 that means you're mistreated, you may be passed over, you 141 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:22.279 may even be abused. 142 00:08:23.720 --> 00:08:25.600 And he said, and you're gonna be lied about. 143 00:08:26.250 --> 00:08:28.750 And he said, people will say all things that are 144 00:08:28.769 --> 00:08:33.529 false against you to discredit you, to dishonor you. And 145 00:08:33.570 --> 00:08:37.250 I've learned they'll even say them on TV. And he'll 146 00:08:37.289 --> 00:08:40.850 do all of these things. The world loves to find 147 00:08:40.950 --> 00:08:44.750 fault with Christians. And if they can't find anything to 148 00:08:44.809 --> 00:08:46.649 find at fault with you, you know what? They'll make 149 00:08:46.690 --> 00:08:51.860 stuff up. They'll just make it up. Now, here's what 150 00:08:51.919 --> 00:08:52.620 the Bible says. 151 00:08:53.340 --> 00:09:00.470 Romans 12. verse 17 and 18. Never pay back evil 152 00:09:01.000 --> 00:09:06.159 with more evil. If it is possible, as. 153 00:09:06.200 --> 00:09:10.259 Far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Now, 154 00:09:10.279 --> 00:09:11.940 you know what I love about the Bible? It always 155 00:09:11.980 --> 00:09:14.139 tells the truth, and what it tells there is, if 156 00:09:14.210 --> 00:09:16.009 it's possible, as far as it depends on you, live 157 00:09:16.029 --> 00:09:18.129 at peace with everyone. There's some people you just can't 158 00:09:18.149 --> 00:09:25.289 live at peace with. Don't look at them. but you 159 00:09:25.330 --> 00:09:28.889 know who they are. If it is possible, as far 160 00:09:28.929 --> 00:09:31.190 as it depends on you, you try to live at 161 00:09:31.230 --> 00:09:33.169 peace with them. Some people you just can't live at 162 00:09:33.190 --> 00:09:36.269 peace with. They're just gonna keep poking, poking, poking, poking, poking. 163 00:09:38.029 --> 00:09:40.429 And he says, and never avenge yourselves. 164 00:09:41.049 --> 00:09:44.629 Leave that to God who has said, I'll be the 165 00:09:44.690 --> 00:09:50.049 judge and I'll take care of that. Now I told 166 00:09:50.070 --> 00:09:53.009 you earlier, You don't need anybody's approval to be happy. 167 00:09:53.269 --> 00:09:55.299 Let me give you the second great truth that'll change 168 00:09:55.320 --> 00:10:00.450 your life. You need to write this down. Anytime I react, 169 00:10:00.980 --> 00:10:08.179 I give control to that person. Anytime I react to 170 00:10:08.240 --> 00:10:13.039 somebody who's poked me, I give control to that person. 171 00:10:13.279 --> 00:10:15.639 And you don't want to do that. You don't want 172 00:10:15.659 --> 00:10:16.740 to give up control. 173 00:10:17.590 --> 00:10:20.549 And so you can't control what other people do, but 174 00:10:20.610 --> 00:10:23.090 you can control your reactions. 175 00:10:30.370 --> 00:10:33.500 Thanks for joining us today. You know, we love hearing 176 00:10:33.509 --> 00:10:37.519 how Daily Hope is encouraging people. We receive messages all 177 00:10:37.559 --> 00:10:41.399 the time from listeners and viewers sharing how their faith 178 00:10:41.440 --> 00:10:45.200 has grown through our messages, devotionals and videos. 179 00:10:46.120 --> 00:10:47.580 Right now, I'd love. 180 00:10:47.360 --> 00:10:49.490 For you to hear this quick story about how Daily 181 00:10:49.549 --> 00:10:51.879 Hope is making a difference in the lives of others 182 00:10:51.980 --> 00:10:52.899 just like you. 183 00:10:54.009 --> 00:10:57.929 Daily Hope's a daily reminder of God speaking to me 184 00:10:58.429 --> 00:11:01.710 on whatever subject Pastor Rick is talking about that day, 185 00:11:01.769 --> 00:11:05.279 whether it's something that I need to do or something 186 00:11:05.299 --> 00:11:07.899 that I need to focus on or just reminders. Sometimes 187 00:11:07.919 --> 00:11:11.659 they're just reminders of God's faithfulness to me. And if 188 00:11:11.720 --> 00:11:14.929 I don't start my day that way, my day goes right. 189 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:17.210 In the dumpster. All the little things of the world 190 00:11:17.590 --> 00:11:18.379 just consume me. 191 00:11:18.980 --> 00:11:21.519 But if I started with Daily Hope and a reminder 192 00:11:21.539 --> 00:11:23.870 of where I'm a child of God and where God 193 00:11:23.899 --> 00:11:27.230 has me, then I can deal with those things. 194 00:11:27.450 --> 00:11:28.289 I'm not going. 195 00:11:28.110 --> 00:11:30.850 Into battle without the tools that I need to win 196 00:11:30.889 --> 00:11:35.269 the battle. There's times that Daily Hope just prompts me 197 00:11:35.470 --> 00:11:38.750 to read it, and then next thing I'm on the 198 00:11:38.789 --> 00:11:40.399 way to work and God's talking to me and I 199 00:11:40.440 --> 00:11:42.360 put it on my phone and listen to it going 200 00:11:42.419 --> 00:11:45.159 to work. Because sometimes you just need to hear it twice. 201 00:11:45.220 --> 00:11:47.129 You need to read it and you need to hear it. 202 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:51.080 And it just settles into me a little bit better. Inevitably, 203 00:11:51.250 --> 00:11:53.070 when I get to work, I have three guys that 204 00:11:53.110 --> 00:11:55.929 work for me and we get into these discussions and 205 00:11:56.210 --> 00:11:58.870 I keep telling them, guys, Pastor Rick was talking about 206 00:11:58.889 --> 00:12:00.850 that in Daily Hope this morning. You need to read 207 00:12:00.909 --> 00:12:02.210 Daily Hope every day. 208 00:12:03.250 --> 00:12:05.879 It needs to be part of your life every single day. 209 00:12:08.149 --> 00:12:11.470 Would you like to sign up for Pastor Rick's email devotional? 210 00:12:11.850 --> 00:12:16.860 You can just scan the QR code or go to dailyhopetv.com. 211 00:12:19.059 --> 00:12:22.179 Have you ever said, you make me so mad? You 212 00:12:22.220 --> 00:12:26.659 just then admitted who's in control. Not you, they are. 213 00:12:26.919 --> 00:12:29.919 When you say, you make me so. 214 00:12:29.820 --> 00:12:31.639 Mad, you say, I don't wanna be bad. I really 215 00:12:31.659 --> 00:12:34.200 don't wanna be mad, but you make me mad. You 216 00:12:34.240 --> 00:12:36.659 have the power to control my emotions. 217 00:12:36.820 --> 00:12:40.500 Oh, really? then you're a pretty weak person if somebody 218 00:12:40.570 --> 00:12:44.129 can make you mad. It's your choice. 219 00:12:45.049 --> 00:12:47.070 You should only get mad when you choose to get mad, 220 00:12:47.110 --> 00:12:48.789 and there are some things you should get mad about. 221 00:12:50.230 --> 00:12:51.970 One of them is not personal insults. 222 00:12:52.889 --> 00:12:55.789 You make me so mad means I'm allowing you to 223 00:12:55.850 --> 00:13:02.850 control my happiness. Anytime you react, anytime you retaliate, anytime 224 00:13:02.889 --> 00:13:06.440 you seek revenge, you've just handed control to your enemies. 225 00:13:08.399 --> 00:13:10.379 to the person who's opposing you in any area of life. 226 00:13:10.580 --> 00:13:15.360 Don't do it. George Washington Carver, that great African American 227 00:13:15.399 --> 00:13:19.809 who studied all of the uses of peanuts, he once said, 228 00:13:19.929 --> 00:13:24.710 I will never allow another man to control my life 229 00:13:25.470 --> 00:13:26.730 by making me hate him. 230 00:13:28.230 --> 00:13:30.070 Good word, good word. 231 00:13:30.070 --> 00:13:36.620 1 Peter 4.19 says this. Those who suffer according to 232 00:13:36.700 --> 00:13:42.629 God's will should commit themselves to their faithful creator and 233 00:13:42.669 --> 00:13:45.309 continue to do good. Now, there's something really important here. 234 00:13:45.590 --> 00:13:50.460 Circle the phrase according to God's will. You're not gonna 235 00:13:50.500 --> 00:13:52.620 hear this in some places, but this is what the 236 00:13:52.659 --> 00:13:59.360 Bible says. Some suffering is God's will. Those who suffer 237 00:13:59.580 --> 00:14:05.860 according to God's will, sometimes suffering is God's will. Now, 238 00:14:05.899 --> 00:14:07.919 there are people out there who say, no, God never 239 00:14:07.990 --> 00:14:10.230 wants you. God wants everybody to be a millionaire. God 240 00:14:10.259 --> 00:14:12.889 wants everybody to have a Rolls Royce. God never wants 241 00:14:12.970 --> 00:14:16.129 anybody to have cancer. God never wants any problems in 242 00:14:16.330 --> 00:14:19.730 your life. And any problem, no, the Bible says sometimes 243 00:14:19.870 --> 00:14:23.269 suffering is God's will for your life. 244 00:14:23.710 --> 00:14:23.950 Why? 245 00:14:25.070 --> 00:14:27.370 It makes you more like Jesus. It deepens your faith. 246 00:14:27.870 --> 00:14:31.129 It brings you rewards in heaven. It builds your character. 247 00:14:31.549 --> 00:14:33.820 It brings you closer to him. It teaches you to 248 00:14:33.879 --> 00:14:37.539 worry instead of worship. There's so many benefits that suffering 249 00:14:37.559 --> 00:14:40.039 can happen. You may be going through suffering right now. 250 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:43.120 And it may be God's will. Now, it may not be. 251 00:14:43.419 --> 00:14:45.139 Let me teach you something. I've never taught this to 252 00:14:45.159 --> 00:14:47.820 you before. There are three kinds of suffering in the world. 253 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:54.389 There's common, there's carnal, and there's Christian suffering. Common suffering 254 00:14:54.669 --> 00:14:57.809 is suffering that's common to everybody. Doesn't matter if you're 255 00:14:57.830 --> 00:15:00.330 a Baptist or Buddhist or Methodist or Mormon, a Jew, 256 00:15:00.850 --> 00:15:06.110 a Jehovah's Witness, a Christian, Catholic, atheist, whatever, everybody suffers 257 00:15:06.149 --> 00:15:10.429 certain things. When a hurricane comes into town, it just 258 00:15:10.450 --> 00:15:13.820 doesn't pick on Christians. It doesn't just pick on Buddhists 259 00:15:14.029 --> 00:15:18.639 or Hindus or Jews or Muslims. That's common suffering. It's 260 00:15:18.659 --> 00:15:20.159 the suffering that we have in the world that we 261 00:15:20.320 --> 00:15:22.679 all share in common with everybody. And the Bible says 262 00:15:22.779 --> 00:15:25.820 we as Christians are to help everybody in common suffering. 263 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:30.389 The second kind of suffering is carnal suffering. That's suffering 264 00:15:30.429 --> 00:15:34.259 you bring on yourself from your own sins. If I 265 00:15:34.279 --> 00:15:38.299 go out and I live a very loose, immoral life, 266 00:15:38.419 --> 00:15:41.570 and I get a STD, a sexually transmitted disease, that's 267 00:15:41.629 --> 00:15:44.789 my fault. That's not God's fault, it's not anybody else's fault, 268 00:15:44.970 --> 00:15:47.549 it's my fault. And a lot of the suffering in 269 00:15:47.590 --> 00:15:50.269 my life is because I made bad decisions, like I 270 00:15:50.409 --> 00:15:53.070 spent way more money than I made, and now I'm 271 00:15:53.169 --> 00:15:55.929 way over in debt, and now I'm going bankrupt. That's 272 00:15:55.970 --> 00:16:00.000 not God's fault, that's my fault. That's carnal suffering, it's 273 00:16:00.039 --> 00:16:02.620 suffering because of sin. But not all suffering is from sin. 274 00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:06.309 The Bible says sometimes suffering is Christian. It's not carnal, 275 00:16:06.370 --> 00:16:09.230 it's not common, it's Christian. It's suffering according to the 276 00:16:09.269 --> 00:16:11.750 will of God, because God is more interested in your 277 00:16:11.830 --> 00:16:15.350 character than your comfort. You're not taking comfort to heaven, 278 00:16:15.370 --> 00:16:17.850 but you are taking your character, and in heaven, you're 279 00:16:17.870 --> 00:16:22.470 gonna have comfort the rest of your life. Now it 280 00:16:22.509 --> 00:16:25.889 says those who suffer according to God's will should commit 281 00:16:26.029 --> 00:16:29.309 themselves to God, the faithful creator, and just keep on 282 00:16:29.350 --> 00:16:31.960 doing good. You throw this arrow at me, you throw 283 00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:33.700 that arrow at me, you throw another arrow at me. 284 00:16:33.960 --> 00:16:36.679 I'm just gonna commit myself to God and continue to 285 00:16:36.759 --> 00:16:39.590 do good. I entrusted to God, I lay it in 286 00:16:39.620 --> 00:16:42.870 his hands. You need to let God be your defender 287 00:16:43.190 --> 00:16:49.870 and not waste time defending yourself. And that takes faith. 288 00:16:50.649 --> 00:16:55.080 And when you do that, God smiles. Now, the sixth 289 00:16:55.120 --> 00:16:58.080 thing you need to do when you face opposition, and 290 00:16:58.120 --> 00:17:01.679 this is the most important one of all, This is 291 00:17:01.740 --> 00:17:05.579 what makes Christians different from everybody else on the planet, 292 00:17:05.819 --> 00:17:11.359 because nobody else does this. Number six, when I'm persecuted, 293 00:17:11.380 --> 00:17:15.309 when I'm harassed, when I'm oppressed, respond with a blessing. 294 00:17:16.920 --> 00:17:17.240 What? 295 00:17:18.829 --> 00:17:20.930 Yeah, you return good for evil. 296 00:17:21.150 --> 00:17:23.390 You not only refuse to retaliate, there are a lot 297 00:17:23.410 --> 00:17:27.269 of people who refuse to retaliate, but the Bible says 298 00:17:27.349 --> 00:17:29.970 if you're gonna be a follower of Jesus, you actually 299 00:17:30.069 --> 00:17:33.700 do good to those who do bad to you. You 300 00:17:33.920 --> 00:17:38.630 bless those who hurt you. And he says, you respond 301 00:17:39.309 --> 00:17:43.450 with a blessing. Romans 12, 21 says this. Do not become, 302 00:17:44.329 --> 00:17:50.099 do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. 303 00:17:52.319 --> 00:17:54.539 You don't make the world brighter by blowing out everybody 304 00:17:54.579 --> 00:17:55.319 else's candle. 305 00:17:57.559 --> 00:17:57.819 Okay? 306 00:17:59.829 --> 00:18:03.450 Do not become overcome evil, but overcome evil with good. 307 00:18:03.930 --> 00:18:07.509 Now Jesus gets very, very specific. And I'll just be 308 00:18:07.529 --> 00:18:09.990 honest with you. As your pastor, I hate this next verse. 309 00:18:11.650 --> 00:18:13.630 I wish this next verse was not in the Bible. 310 00:18:13.730 --> 00:18:15.680 I'm just telling you. I don't like this verse. I 311 00:18:15.720 --> 00:18:17.599 wish I could take an exacto knife and cut it 312 00:18:17.660 --> 00:18:19.160 out because it's so. 313 00:18:19.220 --> 00:18:24.740 Hard to do. But here's what Jesus said, Luke 6. 314 00:18:24.740 --> 00:18:26.140 Love your enemies. 315 00:18:26.339 --> 00:18:31.140 You gotta be kidding me. Do good to those who 316 00:18:31.180 --> 00:18:32.859 hate you. Now it's overkill. 317 00:18:34.960 --> 00:18:37.480 Bless those who hurt you. Come on. 318 00:18:39.240 --> 00:18:42.079 Bless those who hurt you. And pray for those who 319 00:18:42.140 --> 00:18:42.680 hurt you. 320 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:45.740 Come on, Lord. I mean, come on. 321 00:18:47.640 --> 00:18:50.789 And if someone slaps you on the cheek, turn the 322 00:18:50.829 --> 00:18:55.890 other cheek. I wanna be that kind of person for Jesus. 323 00:18:56.809 --> 00:19:00.819 I wanna be that courageous. I want to have that 324 00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:05.509 brave heart courage where I will not cave in to 325 00:19:05.549 --> 00:19:09.109 what's wrong no matter how much pain they throw at me. 326 00:19:10.470 --> 00:19:13.529 That I will not retaliate, but what I will do 327 00:19:13.950 --> 00:19:19.089 is respond with love. Here's an amazing thing. If you 328 00:19:19.170 --> 00:19:22.779 begin to do these six things at work or with 329 00:19:22.819 --> 00:19:26.740 somebody who doesn't like you, number one, God will be pleased. 330 00:19:26.980 --> 00:19:31.480 God's going to smile. That's my girl. That's my boy. Second, 331 00:19:31.880 --> 00:19:33.920 you're going to get blessed. It says it over. That's 332 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:37.789 the eighth beatitude. You'll be blessed. And here's an interesting thing. 333 00:19:38.269 --> 00:19:44.549 Some of those public attackers will become private seekers. I 334 00:19:44.609 --> 00:19:48.750 know this from experience. I've had people, very well-known people, 335 00:19:48.930 --> 00:19:52.589 attack me publicly. and because I refused to engage them 336 00:19:52.789 --> 00:19:55.890 but only responded with love and blessing, and I said, 337 00:19:55.930 --> 00:19:58.839 may God richly bless you in every way, that then 338 00:19:58.930 --> 00:20:02.940 quietly they would come around and start asking about, what's 339 00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:07.819 with you? How do you do that? How do you 340 00:20:07.900 --> 00:20:10.529 show love in the face This is not the normal 341 00:20:10.569 --> 00:20:15.680 response I was expecting. I just want to remind you 342 00:20:15.880 --> 00:20:21.299 that the worst persecutor of the church became the greatest apostle, Paul. 343 00:20:24.049 --> 00:20:28.269 And Nicodemus, who was a part of the Pharisees who 344 00:20:28.289 --> 00:20:30.690 were trying to put Jesus on the cross, later came 345 00:20:30.769 --> 00:20:33.009 Jesus at night and says, tell me about this born 346 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:33.539 again thing. 347 00:20:34.829 --> 00:20:38.650 And they'll come around. If you respond correctly, some of your. 348 00:20:38.650 --> 00:20:43.910 Opponents will actually become your partners if you do it correctly. 349 00:20:44.910 --> 00:20:49.799 Now let me just close with some personal questions. If 350 00:20:49.839 --> 00:20:53.319 they made it illegal to be a Christian in America 351 00:20:53.500 --> 00:20:56.849 and they threw everybody who followed Jesus in prison, would 352 00:20:56.880 --> 00:21:05.519 there be enough evidence to convict you? Would there be 353 00:21:05.579 --> 00:21:08.819 enough evidence to convict you if they made it illegal 354 00:21:08.859 --> 00:21:14.660 for being a Christian? Is there any difference in your life? 355 00:21:14.779 --> 00:21:17.579 Or are you just wimping out, keeping your head down? 356 00:21:19.619 --> 00:21:23.019 When people say insulting things about Christians and you're in 357 00:21:23.059 --> 00:21:28.309 that group, do you wimp out and say nothing? Or 358 00:21:28.329 --> 00:21:29.460 do you say, you know, I can see how you 359 00:21:29.509 --> 00:21:34.230 see it that way, but that's not always true. Do 360 00:21:34.250 --> 00:21:36.730 you just wimp out and keep quiet? Let me ask 361 00:21:36.769 --> 00:21:40.390 it this way. What is your faith costing you? When 362 00:21:40.410 --> 00:21:43.009 your brothers and sisters around the world are sometimes standing 363 00:21:43.049 --> 00:21:45.990 at the point of a firing squad for this or 364 00:21:46.029 --> 00:21:48.490 getting tortured and limbs cut off and all kinds like that, 365 00:21:49.130 --> 00:21:52.730 while it costs so much others their lives, we have 366 00:21:52.779 --> 00:21:57.119 it so easy. What is your faith costing you? Let 367 00:21:57.140 --> 00:22:01.299 me ask it this way. At what cost would you 368 00:22:01.359 --> 00:22:05.930 stay faithful to Christ? Somebody put a pistol to your head? 369 00:22:05.950 --> 00:22:09.450 You say, would you stay faithful to Christ? 370 00:22:09.750 --> 00:22:10.849 Well, yes, I would. 371 00:22:11.029 --> 00:22:14.809 Then why are you so ticked off and worried about insults? 372 00:22:15.910 --> 00:22:18.829 Why is you so worried about disapproval? That's certainly not 373 00:22:18.890 --> 00:22:22.630 as harmful as a shot in the head. If you're willing, 374 00:22:22.829 --> 00:22:26.190 you're not really willing to live. You're not ready to 375 00:22:26.250 --> 00:22:30.410 live until you know what's worth dying for. You gotta decide, 376 00:22:30.619 --> 00:22:32.599 what am I willing to lay it on the line for? 377 00:22:33.019 --> 00:22:36.339 What is more important to me than even life itself? 378 00:22:36.799 --> 00:22:39.039 What is worth buying for? Until you know that, you're 379 00:22:39.099 --> 00:22:45.400 not ready to live. Jesus paid a price for you. 380 00:22:46.259 --> 00:22:48.660 And he says there's a price to be paid for 381 00:22:48.700 --> 00:22:55.160 following him. Popularity on earth is not part of the 382 00:22:55.200 --> 00:22:59.329 guarantee of being a Christian, it's not. But reward in 383 00:22:59.390 --> 00:23:03.740 heaven is a guarantee. And it was Jim Elliot who said, 384 00:23:04.079 --> 00:23:07.220 he is no fool who gives up what he cannot 385 00:23:07.349 --> 00:23:12.390 keep for that which he cannot lose. You just gotta 386 00:23:12.410 --> 00:23:19.190 decide what's more important to you. Popularity or the smile 387 00:23:19.210 --> 00:23:22.710 of God? Now I wanna end with two statements of Jesus. 388 00:23:22.730 --> 00:23:26.539 They're here on the screen. Mark 8 verse 38 says this. 389 00:23:27.730 --> 00:23:33.160 Jesus said, if you are ashamed of me, And my commands, 390 00:23:33.460 --> 00:23:39.180 that means my commands about life, about sexuality, about finances, 391 00:23:39.900 --> 00:23:44.839 about reconciliation, about race. If you're ashamed of me and 392 00:23:44.920 --> 00:23:49.750 my commands in this godless and sinful generation, I will 393 00:23:49.769 --> 00:23:53.789 be ashamed of you when I come back in glory 394 00:23:54.450 --> 00:23:59.190 with the holy angels. He also said this in Matthew 395 00:23:59.210 --> 00:24:04.940 chapter 10. But, For those who declare publicly that they 396 00:24:05.009 --> 00:24:09.289 belong to me, I will do the same for them 397 00:24:09.750 --> 00:24:16.390 before my Father in heaven. What we need is an 398 00:24:16.569 --> 00:24:22.079 army of brave men and women risk takers. We should not, parents, 399 00:24:22.660 --> 00:24:25.559 we should not be depending on Disney to teach our 400 00:24:25.599 --> 00:24:27.079 little girls how to be brave. 401 00:24:30.970 --> 00:24:33.319