Introduction

Luke 10:17-20 ESV  The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”  (18)  And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  (19)  Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.  (20)  Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

• Guy’s, I am terrible with direction… like I have NO idea which way north is…
  • You ever have someone give you directions to turn north on a road, then turn east…
    • Like what does that mean… why do your instructions require a compass?
  • Anyone else here just horrible with direction? Great, all of you will understand this example. For the rest of you just humor me, ok…
• 2019 is a great time to be alive if you are bad with direction… because we have devices in our pockets that communicate with computers floating around in outerspace that give us pin point instructions on how to get from point A to B.
  • Turn left here, turn right there… in a thousand feet use the second lane from the right to take the off ramp toward Des Moines… IT’S GREAT!
• But those of you who are bad with direction, hopefully you will understand this, you ever put in an address and your GPS starts telling you were to go, and you are like.. HUH?
  • Are you SURE THAT’s RIGHT?! How does this road lead there?!
  • And you have to check to make sure you put in the right address…
• But if you are like me you trust your GPS. No matter what, I trust that GPS.
  • So you start following it, and eventually, after you taking you a really weird way, it pops you out right were you need to go… and you are like?! HUH?! THAT ROAD LEADS HERE?!
  • How did I even get here?!
• Like for example… there are at least 4 ways to get to Marion from my house…
  • You can take 1^st all the way
  • Or you can take Cottage Grove
  • Or you can take Edgewood
  • Or you can take 30 down to 151…
• Now the first five times or so I went to Marion I took first…
  • So the first time my GPS told me to take Edgewood down toward Blairsferry to get to Marion I was like “HUH?” That’s like the opposite direction…
  • Or the first time it told me to take 30 toward Elly, I was like “HUH?!” There’s no way… is there like a magic portal that spits me out in Marion…
• I am not the only one who has experienced this right?!
  • But I trust my GPS because I know I have a horrible sense of direction, and no matter how unexpected, it always gets me there.
• Y’all see the sermon in there this morning?
  • My sense of direction is horrible, but I trust my GPS and no matter how unexpected, I get the victory.
• Y’all want to talk about VICTORY this morning?
• Do you need some VICTORY in your life?
• Y’all ready for the VICTORY? Let’s go!

SHOW TITLE SLIDE

Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray Pray

Point One – Victory Comes From Obeying Jesus

Luke 10:17-19 ESV  The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”  (18)  And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  (19)  Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

• What’s happening here? If you remember from three weeks ago we preached on Luke 10:1-10 where Jesus sends out 72 of His followers to preach the gospel…

Luke 10:1 ESV  After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.

• Right, you guy’s remember this… Jesus sends out the 72, and he gives them really specific instructions. He tells them what to bring and what to leave behind, He tells them where to stay in the towns, and how long to stay, and what to say. And He sends them out to preach the Kingdom of God is near…
• Now they are returning… and look at what happens… they are surprised at how victorious they were…

Luke 10:17 ESV  The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”

• Do you hear the surprise in their voice? Like WHOA! Jesus we did what you said and EVEN THE DEMONS LISTENED.
  • Not only did we have victory in what you asked us to do, but we even had victory over the demons!
• Remember, Jesus said this about there mission in verse 3…

Luke 10:3 ESV  Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.

• Do you see this? Jesus sends out the 72 with the warning that they are going out like lambs among solves…
  • I don’t know what the 72 were expecting after hearing that warning from Jesus, but they certainly weren’t expecting this level of Victory.
• So why did Jesus give that warning? He is saying “Listen to my instructions, because if you mess this up they are going to EAT YOU ALIVE!”
• And the 72 DID listen to His instruction, and they found unexpected levels of victory!
• Y’ALL WANT THAT KIND OF VICTORY CHURCH?!
  • THEN LISTEN TO AND OBEY JESUS!
• Look, I KNOW I have a terrible sense of direction, therefore I listen to my GPS. Period.
• Some of y’all need to hear this… YOU HAVE A BAD SENSE OF SPIRITUAL DIRECTION.
  • We all do! Blame Adam and Eve for that one.
• We all have a bad sense of spiritual direction…
  • Our sense of moral direction… it’s bad…

Jeremiah 17:9 ESV  The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

• That means that our morals, our feelings… they are LIARS. They take us the wrong way. Our heart gives us bad directions… it cares about what feels good, not what about what is right! Our sense of moral direction is bad because our hearts are wicked!
  • Our sense of wisdom is BAD. They way you think you should live your life… IT’S WRONG aside from Christ’s direction.

Proverbs 14:12 ESV  There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

• Do you see that, the way that you think is right for your life… it’s end is DEATH and DESTRUCTION.
• If I could just get people to understand this our church would see so much more victory, UNEXPECTED LEVELS OF VICTORY.
  • JUST FOLLOW JESUS. He knows best. Just do what He says. Just obey Him. Just follow Him.
• He lives inside of us, He knows were stupid… so He sent us a helper. He grant’s us strength, and wisdom, and courage, and victory. BUT IT IS THROUGH HIM AND BY HIM, not through us and by us.
  • Just obey Jesus. Amen?!
• Now I am afraid that some of you heard “Obey Jesus and yourself”.
  • I didn’t say “Obey Jesus and yourself” I didn’t say “Mix your wisdom with Jesus’ wisdom” I didn’t say “Mix your morals and desires with Jesus’ instructions”.
• JUST OBEY JESUS.
• Look, I see it in some of y’alls lives, and it crushes me… because I love you! And I want the best for you! I want victory for you.
  • But I see people ignoring Jesus 6 and a half days a week.
  • I see people mixing their understanding with God’s instructions.
  • I see people who think they know better than the perfect GPS of Life.
    • AND IT BREAKS ME, because I know how that ends. It end’s in destruction.
• I see people who are so hungry for victory, and so frustrated from not finding it… but instead of listening to Jesus they turn back to their own ways and their own wisdom time and time again.
• Now listen, I am going to share some things here… and I don’t want you to mistake my examples for pride… I just want you to be as blessed as I am, ok? I want you to have the victory that Pastor Amanda and I have. Ok, no pride intended… ok?
  • Amanda and I don’t suffer from demonic attacks in our home.
  • Amanda and I don’t worry about the enemy’s schemes for our lives.
  • Amanda and I haven’t been late on a bill since we have been married.
  • Amanda and I live in an awesome house, we have two vehicles that drive well and are completely paid off.
  • Amanda and I have one of the best marriages I know of, we almost never fight, we find joy in each other, we love each other, we help each other.
  • Amanda and I have two wonderful children who I am so proud of.
• Do you want a life like that? Not worrying about bills, not fighting with your loved ones, not worrying about the constant attacks of the enemy?
  • Here is our secret… we just listen to Jesus. That’s it. We listen. We read His word. We pray when there is a hard decision…
  • AND HERE IS A BIG ONE, guys, when we are struggling to hear… we ask our spiritual leaders, and we TRUST THEM and obey them even when we don’t agree. Because if we had it all together we wouldn’t be asking them in the first place.
• If you want unexpected victory then do this…
  • Read your Bible, and do what it says.
  • Pray and listen to God, and do what He says.
  • Listen to your spiritual leaders and do what they say.
    • Please, if you need help, ask Amanda and I to help you follow the Lord.
      • BUT PLEASE DON’T ASK US FOR HELP THEN NOT DO WHAT WE SAY! What’s the point?
      • Listen church, every piece of advice I give is for YOUR GOOD!
        • All I want is for you to have a successful marriage, job, family, life… and I want you to serve God with VICTORY.
        • Therefore any advice I give is to that ends…
        • I didn’t come to Cedar Rapids to destroy people’s lives, but to bless them.
        • The only time you should not obey your spiritual leaders advice is when that advice contradicts scripture… and if I give you advice that contradicts scripture, then please tell Elder Jay or Pastor Teresa… because that needs to be dealt with!
• But seriously guy’s, it’s not complicated… obey Jesus… get victory!

Point Two – Don’t Focus on the Temporary Victory

Luke 10:20 ESV  Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” 

• Point two this morning, don’t focus on the temporary victory.
  • I know I just spent a bunch of time hyping up how to find victory in your life… but that can’t be your focus… you can’t live life focusing on that kind of victory?
  • Why? Because you are going to end up getting disappointed.
  • Understand this church… God’s ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts. That’s what Isaiah 55:8 says…

Isaiah 55:8-9 ESV  For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.  (9)  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

• That means that sometimes we don’t see the bigger picture that God sees, and we focus on the temporary and get disappointed when victory doesn’t come the way we thought it would or thought it should.
• Let me give you a real life example…
  • I missed church last week because I was returning home from my Aunt Barbies funeral.
    • My Aunt Barbie was the closest aunt I had, and the closest relative next to my mom, dad, and sisters.
    • She was kind, loving, funny, a great cook… and she loved Jesus.
    • But about 3 years ago she got diagnosed with ALS, a degenerative disorder where your muscles slowly stop working.
    • ALS is a death sentence, there is no cure, your muscles just slowly stop working until you can’t breath anymore.
  • So what do I do with this news? I obey God! Because I want the victory!
    • So we go down there and lay hands on here, praying for healing, as scripture instructs us to do.
    • We google it and find that there are a handful of people that were cured of ALS, and that all these people where Christians who prayed for it… therefore we had STRONG faith that she could and would be healed.
    • We prayed nearly every night for her by name, petitioning God for her healing.
      • Because I believe the parables of the begging neighbor and persistent widow. These parables teach us that if we are persistent in prayer that God will answer us.
      • So we prayed, and prayed, and prayed.
    • We did what God told us to do.
      • And then she died.
  • NOW WAIT A MINUTE GOD! I DID WHAT YOU ASKED! WHY WOULD YOU LET HER DIE?
    • God responds: My ways are not your ways, Christian, and my thoughts are not your thoughts.
• My Aunt Barbie LOVES JESUS. She found the victory.
• I LOVE JESUS! I have found the victory.
  • The temporary things of life, they will pass away.
  • My house, my marriage, my cars, even this thing we call CLC.
  • BUT I HAVE VICTORY ETERNAL! Amen?!

Luke 10:20 ESV  Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

• If you focus on the eternal victory, if you listen to and obey Christ while focusing on the eternal victory…
  • hear me church… if you focus on the ETERNAL VICTORY one day you are going to look back on you life and see all the unexpected victories that God has blessed you with!
  • And all the things that you might have counted as defeat, they will have bounced off you, because you know who’s you are, and who is yours!
    • If your name is written in heaven, focus on that! Rejoice, the unexpected victories will come, and one day, the expected victory on the streets of Gold will come too!

Conclusion

• Let’s conclude with this… I want some people to find some victory this morning. Amen?!
  • Christian Life Church is a church victorious, amen?!
  • Let’s get some victory!
• The first thing we need to do is help some people find that eternal victory! Would y’all bow your heads and close your eyes.

GOSPEL CALL

Prayer For Victory