 All right, so we're in Psalm 62 the main verse it's a great chapter as far as Just having strength and where David's strength came from We know he went through he went through a lot of trials and tribulations throughout his life The main verse I want to look at is is number seven If you look in Psalm 62 in verse number seven it says in God is my salvation and my glory The rock of my strength the rock of my strength and my refuge is in God so Tonight I'm going to be talking about strength just having strength being strong in the Christian life You know the Christian life, it's it's not a bed of roses as as a lot of people would have you to think You know, we're gonna face trials and tribulations in our life. We're gonna go through hard times We need to have the strength to be able to get through those those things today there's an agenda to create a weak minded and a feminine man today and You know, we ought not to be that way as Christians Let's face it men are being raised to be weak today even even among Christians We need to stand up and be strong as Christians, you know men women and children It's it's not just men the Bible is a is a history book In the entire Bible speaks of men women and children who did amazing things and and had strength and adversity You know, we see Jacob Jacob was was strong physically and it is a virtue to be strong physically But the Bible is mainly talking about an inner strength So we see Jacob he was a strong man He rolled the stone from the well when it normally it took it took multiple men to lift the stone from the well He wrestled with God, you know to the point that you know, he he Forced God to bless him, you know, he said I wouldn't let go until you I won't let go until you bless me And he ended up winning that that wrestling match, you know, so we see that that Jacob was strong David he slayed the champion of The Philistines Goliath who was nine and a half feet tall, you know, so He he fought against lions and bears and I mean he just did many things and we could tell that he was a strong man You know, those are those are two men in the Bible that are that were strong And then we also we see Esther, right who stood up against the king even though Her life was on the line. She could be put to death and she she stood up and said if I perish I perish You know, so we see many instances in the Bible of Strong Christians, so tonight I'm going to be touching on the subject of strength, you know having strength in the Christian life What makes us strong? Where does that strength come from? You know and just how to become strong in the Christian life So my first point that I that I want to bring up tonight is that Tribulation makes us strong Tribulation makes us strong, you know Turn your Bible to Daniel 3 So going through tribulation is is actually a good thing. This is not a bad thing when you go through Hard times in your life So turn to Daniel 3 It's a it's a famous story in the Bible. We we go over these stories and I think sometimes we have a tendency to just read over these and not actually put ourselves in these in the shoes of these men And we actually forget that these were real people that actually went through hard times in their life if you look down it at a We'll just start in verse 14 of Daniel 3 So it says Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them is it true? Oh Shadrach Meshach and Abednego do not ye serve my Do not you do not you serve my gods nor worship the golden image which I have set up Now if you be ready That at what time you hear the sound of the corner flute harp sack, but sultry and dulcimer and all kinds of music You fall down and worship the image which I have made Well, but if you worship it not you shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? So picture this You have been basically Kidnapped from your home as a youth Shadrach Meshach and Abednego were brought into Babylon Against their will. Okay. It's hard for us to picture that but Imagine, you know, you're living your life. You're living living your life a daily life and everything's going good and then you get taken out of that comfort zone and you get Basically put into a strange place put into a place that you know, you don't know how to speak the language you just you're just trying to get by day-to-day and You know, you take a stand for God. You don't want to worship the image and so basically You have this you have this option is to worship or Be cast into a fire. Okay, and I think most Christians would Worship but in their heart serve God worship God and just say you know what? I'm just gonna go through the motions. It seems like these were the only men that that stood up at the time and You know, I don't know about you but being being burned alive isn't necessarily at the top of the list as far as ways to die for me You know, they could have easily just bowed to the image and in their heart worship God But that's not what we see. We see that they took a stand. So if you look in verse 16, it says Shadrach, Neshach, and Abednego answered and said unto the king. Oh, Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer the in this matter I love that response. They they say we're not careful to answer the word We don't care what you think We're we're just not even gonna be careful in our response You know what a what a great response that is and and that that takes strength right there to stand up to the king When it looks like nobody else was and look down at verse 17 it says if it be so our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace And he will deliver us out of the hand out of thine hand. Oh king But if not be it known unto thee oh king that we will not serve thy gods Nor worship the golden image which thou has set up. So they basically said look our God can deliver us from this tribulation Our God can get us out of this this trial, but you know what? If it's his will that I go through this situation and it's his will Then so be it, you know, and I'm willing to face that look we're we go through hard times But we're not necessarily being faced with a a furnace of fire. I doubt we ever will you know And look down at a look down at verse number 19 This is this is Nebuchadnezzar's response He says then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury in the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Neshech and Abednego Therefore he spake and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more Than it want to be heated. So basically this furnace had a limit. It was only supposed to be heated to a certain point and Nebuchadnezzar he got so angry at their response that he just he just said crank it up all the way and He commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to buy and Shadrach, Neshech and Abednego and cast them into the burning fiery furnace Then these men were bound their coats their hosin and their hats and their garments and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace Then we know that You know, this is an Old Testament appearing of the Son of God. It says there was like under one That would that was like under the Son of God that was walking with them So we saw that God stepped in and ended up saving them. So he actually You know there when they first said, you know if our God He'll be able to deliver us and he did he ended up delivering them instead of letting them die in the fire And and you know that that's it. That's that's an extreme example of tribulation. Okay, we're You know things that we face and you know, I'm not saying that when we go through something It's not a big deal to us because sometimes you're in the middle of something It feels like you're about to get thrown into a fire, you know, but this is this is a real fire with real heat You know and you're facing death, but these men stood up to it, you know They had the courage they had the strength to stand up and said, you know, we're not gonna bow down to the image Even to the point of death, you know, so Look if these men could handle being thrown into a fire We could handle a door being slammed in our face, you know, that that's those are our worst days, right? We get a door slammed in our face You know we're moving to a good church, you know, these are these are big things in people's lives You know, but look if everything just went great in your life if everything just went good in your life Wouldn't you eventually just probably be a jerk if everything just went went great for your life all the way from when you're a kid To now and everything went perfect You know going through hard times is what builds character. It's it's what it's what Makes us who we are, you know, all these things that we've been through Turn turn to Ezekiel 24 Hard times it's tribulation in our life. It's it's not a bad thing. It's not a bad thing So if you're there in Ezekiel 24 That now this is this is a bad situation Ezekiel finds himself in and I'm just gonna let's just look at verse 18 So in Ezekiel 24 verse 18 it says So I spake Unto the people in the morning and at even my wife died And I did in the morning as I was commanded this is this is something, you know that this is a horrible thing someone dies a loved one dies in your life, but we Even even despite something bad like that happening. We should still wake up in the morning and serve the Lord wake up in the in the morning and do as work were commanded, you know and and We can treat even small problems this way we go through something we can we still got tomorrow we still got another day to renew our strength and and build ourselves back up, you know and You know, he was showing that You know even even despite his wife dying we can we can still serve the Lord, you know, we might be pushed to our limit You know, but God's only gonna tempt you as far as you're able to handle He's gonna push you to that limit though. You think about it when you get strong when you're lifting weights You want to increase the weight each time you want to put a little more weight on each time It's the same thing with with going through something hard to get strong You got to push it to that limit and God's gonna push you to that limit, but it's it's for your own good It's it's to make you stronger in the long run and sometimes we're going through stuff and it's just like man I don't know I can't handle it. It's this is a You know, but the Bible says that God won't push you past that limit that you're able to handle In 1st Corinthians 10-13 it says there have no temptation taking you but it such as is to come common to man But God is faithful who will who will not suffer you to be tempted above you are able But will with temptation also make a way to escape that you may be able to bear it You know and tempted it just means to be tried You know, so he's not going to try you above that you're able to handle and sometimes you think man Well, he must think I could handle a lot, you know, so But it's good. It's good. Tribulation is good. It makes us strong. It they're they're blessings They're blessings in our life, you know, Paul rejoiced when he went through hard times Deuteronomy 4 says when thou art in tribulation and all these things are come upon thee Even in the latter days if thou turn to the Lord thy God and shall be obedient unto his voice For the Lord thy God is a merciful God. He will not forsake thee neither destroy thee nor forget The covenant of thy fathers which he swear under them. So Going through tribulation is good. It it it builds us up. It is a tool that God uses to strengthen How else is he going to strengthen us? How else is he going to make us grow strong? It's his it's his only Mechanism, it's the only tool that he has to make us stronger. It's to put you through Hard times, but it's it's for your own good. It's for our own benefit as Christians You know, look the way I look at it is is whatever has happened in my life It was just God's plan, you know, no matter what I go through As long as it's not chastisement, you know, chastisement is it's a whole different thing God puts us through through trials the Bible says think it not strange concerning the fiery trial Which is to try you as though some strange things happen, you know, it says strange meaning Don't be surprised. Don't be surprised. They would it what is going on? Why am I going through this? Don't be surprised. It's it's it's God just trying your faith You know, I'm glad that I went through Hard times otherwise, you know, I I could get I could get this attitude of not understanding what someone else is going through You know, if you're somebody that never went through anything How how can you offer advice or offer help to someone who who has right whether it's financial struggles or whatever? You know it You can you can lend your ear to somebody that's going through something at that time because you've been there you've been through it You know, so but all things work together for good to them that love God We know that so even though you're going through hard things or something's in your life that's That's pushing you, you know causing you to get stronger the tribulation in your life We know that eventually all those things they work together for good to them that love God The Bible says it is good for me that I have been afflicted That I might learn nice statues, you know, those are the times that we actually Meditate on God's word we turn to God's word when we're going through something hard You know in the tribulation also it it also causes patience, right because you're Forced to wait on God you're forced to wait you ask sometimes you're going through something and you ask God Lord deliver me out of this Lord help me and You might not get the answer right away. He might just be causing you to wait That way, you know your patience can be tried and you end up getting getting patience through that You know and you probably ask, you know, why do I have to go through hard times? You know, why does God give us tribulation? But really it's it's his it's his way of strengthening you it's his way of causing you to become stronger in the Christian life Let's take another look at a story of tribulation in the Bible turn to Genesis 38 Genesis 38 and this is the story of Joseph You know when his brothers got jealous of him because he had a colorful coat and his and Jacob was favoring him He kind of had favor on him and the brothers got jealous and End up selling him into slavery, but let's take a look at this at the story Genesis 38 in verse number three Genesis 38 In verse number three so we know the story I'll just I'll just kind of give the back a backstory on it real quick Joseph basically his brothers were jealous of him because the father favored him and They plotted to kill him but that one of the brothers said no, let's just let's just sell him into slavery Let's you know make some money off of him and so they sold him to the Egyptians and you know and then he ended up He ended up being in Potiphar's house and and going into prison all that but in Genesis 38 3 It says in his master saw that the Lord was with him and the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand and Joseph found grace in his sight and he served him and made him overseer Over his house and all that he had put into his hand so despite being sold into slavery Despite, you know all the all the hard times that he went through the Lord was with him During those hard times and then the Lord also made him to prosper in those hard times And so you know even even when we're going through something just remember the Lord the Lord with you He's there. He's gonna see you through this and you know You're gonna find grace in his sight and and he's gonna cause you to prosper even in the midst of Tribulation or a hard time and then of course we we see more of Joseph's life and just more hard times more tribulation. He was even falsely accused of lying with Potiphar's wife and Cast him to prison prison, but he kept pushing he kept trusting in God and just just kept keeping the commandments and having faith that God Would keep his life You know and and talk about nothing going right in your life, you know what I mean? You get sold into slavery you get falsely accused you end up in prison But look in verse 21 Genesis 38 It says but the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison and the Keeper of the prison committed Joseph's hand All the prisoners that were in the prison and whatsoever they did there He was the doer of it the keeper of the prison looked not To anything that was under his hand because the Lord was with him and that which he did the Lord made it to prosper So it seems like no matter where Joseph is no matter what's happening to him the Lord's with him and the Lord's keeping him the you know, so It could just be very encouraging this story right here. I believe it It's a very encouraging story for when we're going through something We're I doubt we're gonna go through what he went through but The main point of the story is that he just the Lord the Lord kept him in his hand the whole time The Lord was with him the whole time In and then we see the famous verse in Genesis 50 20 you don't have to turn there. I'll just read it for you. It says but as for you It's Joseph talking to his brothers after they reunite. He says but as for you You thought evil against me But God meant it unto good to bring to pass as it is this day to save much people alive So when you're going through tribulation when you're going through hard times just remember The Lord can use those bad times for good Right, you know, all things work together for good to them that love God So no matter what we go through we can we can we can Just realize that you know, God can cause that bad situation to turn into a good situation You know the the Lord has our lives in his hands He holds our lives in his hands and he can blow on it like dust and our whole life can can just fall apart But he also has the power to turn a bad situation into a good situation so Tribulation is a good thing going through tribulation. It's it's not a bad thing You know, we we feel like it is at the time But we need to realize the the greater scheme of things that you know, it's good that I've been afflicted, you know and We have to loosen our grip of things of this world anyways You know if you hold on too tightly and things things don't work out It could it could cause you to stumble or fall We need to loosen our grip on the things of this world and realize that you know It's in God's hands, you know, they they could take my house. They could take my car. They could take my money I'm still gonna serve the Lord and you know those things don't make me happy anyways, right? I'm not serving the Lord on the count of those things You know happy happiness doesn't come from the circumstantial situation you find yourself in that's that's not what happiness comes from It's it's not dictated by what's going on around you You know how happiness is an inner sufficiency. It's it's just having peace Knowing that that God can take you through any situation that you find yourself in You know if your happiness is wrapped up in a someone then you're only as happy as long as that Person is there if your happiness is wrapped up into something the Bible says it all these things shall pass away You know so we need to we need to realize that going through tribulation is is good for us And and we have to be content, you know, and we don't have control over the outside We have control over the inside, you know and Turn to Philippians 4 We know someone that went through tribulation Paul right Paul went through a lot of tribulation. He went through hard times But you know I find it interesting that not one time in the Bible Do you hear Paul complaining about the prison he was in he doesn't tell you how cold it was He doesn't tell you what the food was like. He never talks about those things You know, he never complained Philippians 411 You look down at verse number 11 Bible says not that I speak in respect of want for I have learned in whatsoever state I am there with to be content. I Know both how to be a based and I know how to abound Everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry both to abound Suffer need I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me so Paul was content. I mean we we know everything he went through but being in prison. He never complained about it He was content what it didn't matter if you put him in prison. It didn't matter if he was doing great or not. He was still Being strengthened through the Lord that last verse. He says I could do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me, right? So the tribulation, you know when we're at our weakest. That's when we can be made strong. You know what I mean? And so Second Corinthians 12 says therefore I take pleasure in infirmities in reproaches in necessities and persecutions In distress for Christ's sake for when I am weak then am I strong? you know so When you're at your lowest it tends to be that you bounce back and you're stronger than ever You know when you're at your lowest when you're going through something hard and you make it through that situation You come out of it stronger You know the Bible talks about being tried in a in a fiery furnace and when you come out you're You're as pure as gold. You know so these situations make us better. They make us stronger tribulation is a good thing in our life in Acts 16 if you want to turn to Acts 16 we see Paul and Silas in prison and You know they're singing and they're rejoicing they got thrown in prison. They're singing and they're rejoicing I don't know many people that that would do that today but It just shows their mindset right they're being persecuted for God and they're willing to They're happy about it. You know they take pleasure in the reproaches if you look at verse 25 Acts 16 verse 25 it says in that midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God and the prisoners heard them and Suddenly there was a great earthquake so the found so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were open and everyone's bands were loosed and of course You know they're singing praises and and eventually we know that the jailkeeper ends up getting saved and his whole house Right through this situation. So they took they took a bad. It was supposed to be a bad situation They're in prison. They're going through this tribulation and they end up getting a Man saved and his whole house. Okay, his whole family got saved out of this situation You know tribulation in our lives is what makes us stronger. It makes us content It pushes us to our limits of what we can handle and in turn it Strengthens us, you know because the next time we go through something difficult we have the experience to look back on that situation and Say, you know what the Lord delivered me then and he can do it now All right, so tribulation is not a bad thing. It's actually a good thing in our life Rejoice when you're going through it, you know, I know that's hard, but you'll come out stronger than you were going in my second point that I want to make tonight is being spiritually strong Spiritually strong, you know men should not be weak and effeminate, you know It's a virtue to be physically strong, but the Bible is constantly hammering being strong within spiritually strong You know, what does it mean to be spiritually strong turn to Deuteronomy 31 6 Deuteronomy 31 6 The Bible says be strong and of a good courage fear not nor be afraid of them for the Lord thy God He it is that doth go with thee. He will not fail thee nor forsake thee That's one of my favorite verses right there, but the Bible is talking about just just not fearing You know, don't be afraid of man. Don't be afraid of what man can do to you We need to fear God first first of all But the Bible is saying be strong and of a good courage the Bible is constantly telling us to be strong You know, we we increase our strength spiritually by having faith that our lives are in the Lord's hands and Actually believing that though, you know, not just okay We read these verses, but actually believing it believing that he has your life in his hands And he knows what's best for you in the end and he'll take care of you You know, and that will cause your worry and your fear and your anxiety whatever you're going through it'll it'll cause it to disappear when you just leave it in his hands and you just let go of the Wheel and just leave it in his hands and and continue to serve him, right? You know We need spiritual strength to fend off the spiritual attacks Right. There's a spiritual war going on whether we know it or like it It doesn't matter. We're in it and we need to have the spiritual strength to get through it Or to just deal with it turn to a vision six Ephesians six, you know, we are in this spiritual battle It's a battle one not by hands But by a spiritual strength and a spiritual means with a spiritual weapon in Ephesians six Look at verse number 11 The Bible says put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities Against powers against the rulers of darkness of this world against spiritual wickedness in high places So we're fighting a spiritual battle, you know, we see it all the time when we're out soul-winning I could think of just a time a few weeks ago where we We show up and not and not within like 10 seconds and here comes an ambulance here comes a fire truck All this stuff is going on. We're trying to give the gospel to this guy, but that distracts them, you know it we see it all the time and and it truly is a spiritual battle and It's hard to explain it unless you're you're soul-winning and you really see it. That's when you really see it So what what are those what? You know, what armor? What is this armor that he's talking about? What does it do? Look in verse number 13 the Bible says Wherefore taken to you the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand Stand therefore having your loins gird about with truth and having on the breastplate of righteousness What is the breastplate of righteousness? You know, what does it protect? It protects your heart, right? Isn't that what a breastplate does? What does the Bible say about the heart? I'll just read these verses off Psalm 66 18 says if I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me So there it is. It's talking about the heart the iniquity of the heart Jeremiah 17 9 says the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who could know it Matthew 15 says but those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart and They defile the man for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts murders adulteries fornication thefts false witness and blasphemies, you know living a righteous life It's the breastplate of righteousness, right? Living a living a righteous life will protect our heart Because even a even a Christian's heart can wax cold So what other what other piece of armor do we need? Look at look at verse number 15 The Bible says in your feet shod With the preparation of the gospel of peace So here's another important piece of armor to protect us in the spiritual war we find ourselves in Going soul winning having the love for the loss. That's what that verse is talking about This is how we you know build this army to fight this spiritual battle. We need we need more soldiers Notice how it says feet shod with the gospel of peace. What do you use your feet to do to walk? You know, it means go it means it means go ye into all the world and preach the gospel It doesn't say sit at home, and they'll come to you You know stand on a milk crate with the mega with with a megaphone, you know, it means go walk take the gospel to them So what else says above all taking the field the shield of faith Wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked So the shield of faith is is above all that's the most important important piece. It says above all So what what is what is that the shield of faith that faith is is believing god's word It's just believing it trusting it and having the confidence in god's word and his promise promises And and know that that we're on the winning side You know, we're on the winning side Imagine going to war knowing you're gonna win Imagine going to war knowing for sure without a doubt in your mind. I'm gonna win this You know, you almost would feel invincible, right? That's how we should feel That's how we should feel We're on the winning side and the bible says and take the helmet of salvation And the sword of the spirit, which is the word of god So our weapon of choice is the word of god. It's the bible So if we want to be spiritually strong, we're going to need every piece of this armor If we're missing one piece and we have a weak point and that's that's where The devil's going to attack. He's going to attack that weak point So if you're missing one piece of this armor, he's going to attack it You know strength Is courage? And fear is is weakness. You know, we fear is the opposite of strength. We need to be spiritually strong. It's we're in a spiritual fight Turn to Philippians 3 Philippians 3 You know, I I'm glad we have paul, you know, I'm glad we have paul to tell us You know, look, this is this I've already been through it And if I can do it, you can do it I'm I'm thankful for paul So Philippians 3 looking verse 10 The bible says that I may know him and the power of his resurrection And the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable unto his death If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead Not as though I had already attained either Were already perfect, but I follow after If that I may apprehend that For which also I am apprehended of christ jesus And in verse 13 says brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended But this one thing I do forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth under those things which are before In verse 14 I press toward the mark of the prize of the high calling of god and christ jesus So that that's a great verse and it's it's an encouraging verse that look things happen to us But we just got to move forward. You got to just forget about it. Just Don't dwell on it. Just move forward You know spiritual spiritual strength is is the ability to take a stand for what you believe And have fellowship in the sufferings of jesus christ You know and and the ready readiness within to be mocked and ridiculed and and slandered and beaten What you know, even all the way up into death We we need to be spiritually strong to be able to handle those things You know and and and not regarding your personal shortcomings or things that have happened in your past or Or you know things that you're going through now. We just got to keep moving forward at all costs You know if if we aren't spiritually strong how are we going to help somebody who's spiritually weak? You know one of the brothers or sisters In christ proverbs 24 5 says a wise man is strong. Yeah a man of knowledge increases strength Another another aspect in the bible that we see is we see the spirit of the lord coming upon men and women You know we see the spirit of the lord coming upon men And no the the spirit of the lord doesn't mean you're flopping around on the ground like a fish You know or running around screaming or you know the pentecostal stuff You know the spirit of the lord Comes upon men and women in the bible to do great things to strengthen them right go to um If you would please turn to isael 11 Isael 11 we're gonna we're gonna take a look at The spirit of the lord if we want to be spiritually strong You know what does that consist of? Isael 11 of course this this is a prophecy of the messiah coming Um eventually coming and it's obviously talking about jesus here In isael 11 if you're there look down at verse number 11 Isael 11 11 Where the bible says And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of jesse And a branch shall grow out of his roots And the spirit of the lord shall rest upon him The spirit of wisdom and understanding the spirit of counsel and might The spirit of knowledge And of the fear of the lord So we see the spirit of the lord consists of wisdom Understanding counsel might knowledge And the fear of god so wisdom Wisdom is is is knowledge we gain from reading god's word And and and applying that knowledge. That's what wisdom is so wisdom is is Taking information Knowing it and then applying it. That's that's what wisdom is Understanding is the second the second thing we see Understanding is being able to comprehend god's word and having the ability to use it to make you know a judgment call in a situation Counsel is is being able to give advice on a particular, you know subject or situation It's to relay knowledge to somebody else based on biblical principles Now that's what counsel is might Might is another aspect of the spirit of the lord It says have might is having the courage to stand for what you believe no matter what You know, these are all these are all things that make you stronger right might Understanding these are all going to make you spiritually stronger in the christian life Knowledge is is of course, it's it's to know the instruction from god's word And then the last one which is the most important one. It just says the fear of god Having the fear of god So having the fear of god is is to ultimately know that that god has Your life in his hands philippians forces Four six says be careful for nothing But in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving Let your requests be made known unto god and the peace of god which path Passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through christ jesus So, you know having an inner peace is is to be spiritually Strong a spirit that can't be shaken a spirit that that can't be moved by situations that you're going through You know, I I don't know about you guys, but I want to be used by god You know more than anybody who's ever lived on this earth I'll probably never realize that ambition But you know, it's it it's something that I strive But we need to be spiritually strong to achieve great things in this christian life First john two 14 says I have written unto you fathers because you have known him that is from the beginning I've written unto you young men because you are strong and the word of god Abideth in you and you have overcome the wicked one, you know, jesus christ Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world, you know What are what what's the worst that could happen to us? We die and go to heaven Right, we we worry about these things going on in our lives, but ultimately Our end is is a great end, you know, we No matter what happens in this life, of course, we want to be successful and have you know and and have good lives, but Realize that we need to be spiritually strong to get through these things We go through weak moments in our lives, but guess what we've overcome the wicked one through salvation So what's the worst that could happen, you know to be absent from the body is to be present with the lord And uh Turn turn to second timothy one seven Actually, i'm sorry turn to hebrus 11. I'll just read second timothy one seven Turn to hebrus 11 Second timothy one seven says for god hath not given us the spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound Mind, you know the the spirit being spiritually strong is not having the spirit of fear You know, but of power and of love and of a sound mind Hebrus 11 32 So hebrus 11 it's the faith chapter, you know, everybody calls it. It's the it's the faith chapter and These i'm going to read three verses here if you want to look down at verse 32 It says and what shall i what shall i have more say For the time would fail me to tell of gideon and of barric and of samson and of Jebta and david also and samuel and of the prophets Who through faith subdued kingdoms wrought righteousness obtained promises Stopped the mouth of lions quenched the violence of fire escaped the edge of the sword out of weakness Were made strong wax valiant in fight Turn to flight the armies of the alien You know, what what made these men strong what made these men strong? You know, what what made paul strong as he sat in the prison Not knowing what was going to come next not knowing Um, whether they were going to put him to death or not, you know, what made paul strong You know, what what made steven strong You know as what made him spiritually strong as he was about to get stoned You know and and he and he cried out to the lord and and basically said You know forgive them, you know as he was being stoned, you know, what what about john what made john Spiritually strong as they exiled him to the isle of patmos, you know away from family and friends um You know this world is it's full of tears and and suffering and heartache You know and unhappiness and war and riot and all these all these things But you know, we need to be spiritually strong in this christian life or we're just not going to last We need to be spiritually strong So for my my final point, so let's just recap tribulation is not a bad thing when you're going through something hard It's it's for your own good. It's it's to make us stronger. It's to make us better Okay, it's um, it might seem tough at the time that we're going through it But just realize god will see you through it And you will become stronger by the end of that and then our Second point was to be spiritually strong to not be weak to be able to get through Hard times we are at a spiritual battle and you know, we need to put on the whole armor of god That way we can handle the attacks and not just crumble and fall out of the christian life So and then for my my third and final point here Where does where does our strength come from where does our strength come from so The lord god is literally the source of our strength literally In isaia 41 10 the bible says fear thou not for i am with thee be not dismayed for i am thy god I will strengthen thee i will help thee Yay, i will uphold thee with the right hand Of my righteousness and i'm just going to read a couple verses the bible says in psalm 18 32 It is god that girded me with strength and make if my way perfect Psalm 28 7 says the lord is my strength and my shield my heart trusted in him And i am helped therefore my heart greatly rejoices And with my song i will praise him psalm 29 11 says the lord will give strength Under his people the lord will bless his people with peace Psalm 37 39 says but the salvation of the righteous is of the lord He is their strength in the time of trouble. You know god has the power to give you strength He has the power to give you strength that inner strength to keep going Even when you feel like you're at your wits ends He has that strength Even if you feel like you're all out of gas and you want to give up God can step in and give you that little boost that you need to keep pushing through We see it over and over in the bible You know the bible says the lord is my shepherd i shall not want He may give me to lie down in green pastures. He Leadeth me beside the still waters He restores my soul He leadeth me in paths of righteousness for my namesake It's constantly he he you know david obviously knew where That source of strength came from he never said i You know i Leadeth me beside still waters. That'd be weird anyways, but he says he leadeth me beside the still waters He's constantly giving credit that god is the one that that gives us strength You know and then of course surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, right? You know even when we're at our lowest times Um, even even unto death We might die the lord is there to restore our strength and to build us up that we could stand in that evil day The lord the lord is the source of our strength Isaiah 40 31 says but they that wait upon the lord Shall renew their strength they shall mount up with as wings with wings as eagles They shall run and not be weary and they shall walk and not Faint, you know sometimes we we got to wait on the lord to deliver us from whatever we're going through Um, you know if you're if you're an impatient person you might try to take those things into your own hands And that's always a bad thing It's it's not going to end well if you try to and we do that It's it's a natural tendency to just want to take something into our own hands and deal deal with it our own way But sometimes we just have to wait on the lord to see us through And just to give us that strength to get through the situation Those that wait on the lord, you know grow stronger In exercising patience and that you know god will come through And in turn our faith gets strengthened. We grow we go grow stronger in faith You know so our church it's a small group our church is a small group You know, but god can take small groups matter of fact, he does it in the bible all the time it would We'd be here for another hour Just to tell about all the stories how god takes a small group or a small man or a weak man And uses him Let's look at one instance of that turn to judges six judges six It's definitely one of my favorite stories in the bible Gideon Gideon and all the exploits that he did Let's look turn turn to judges six And look at verse 13. So god god can use a small group to do mighty works Look at judges six in verse number 13. I'll begin reading the bible says in gideon said unto him Oh, my lord if the if the lord be with us Why then is all this befalling us? And where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of saying? Did not the lord Bring us up from egypt But now the lord hath forsaken us and delivered us into the hand hands of the midianites And the lord looked upon him and said Go in this thy might That thou shalt save israel from the hand of the midianites Have not I sent thee And then look in in verse 15 and he said unto them Oh, my lord, wherewith shall I save israel behold my family is poor in manasseh And I am the least in my father's house so Right away. We see that that gideon came from humble beginnings. He's he's saying, you know, who am I? How are you going to use me? Am I not the least he comes from a poor family? You know and and he's saying i'm the least in my father's house i'm you know and and so I'm assuming he had brothers or sisters, but he considered himself the least out of out of everyone in his house and the and look at verse number You know what is that I think it's it's chapter seven Turn to chapter seven judges Turn there myself I think it's judges seven verse seven Yeah, look at look at um Look at yeah, look at verse number seven Judges chapter seven verse number seven it says in the lord said unto gideon so we're just fast forwarding So so gideon was saying i'm the least least in my father's house You know, why would you even use me? I come from a poor family, but look at judges seven in verse number seven says in the lord said unto gideon By the three hundred men that lapped Will I save you and deliver the Midianites into thine hand and let all the other people go every man unto his place So so not only is is gideon the least in his house He's he's from a poor family And you know, but the angel of the lord will not only use gideon To rise up and defeat the Midianites, but he's he's planning on doing it with only 300 people Okay, and and then obviously we know the rest of the story gideon goes on to do many great exploits with only 300 men so this is just an instance that God was able to strengthen these men supernaturally to be able to defeat the Midianites And you know do all these great works You know god uses Uses small groups to do mighty and great works so he can use us the same way and he does use us You know, we might look and say oh, this is just a small group Look at all the souls that were won last year, you know So far this year we're out knocking doors or winning people to the lord and we're a small group But don't let that discourage you because i'm here to tell you that god constantly is using small groups To do great things Psalm 147 10 says he delight if not In the strength of the horse he take pleasure He take take of not pleasure in the legs of man. You know why god uses small groups Because he wants the glory Because if we were this big massive group or gideon had this big massive army Would they really give god the glory or would they say look at what we did or look at what that massive army did God wants the glory. He doesn't delight in the legs of man He wants the glory For those mighty works and that's why he uses small groups to do great things Genesis 49 24 says but his bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands Of the mighty god of jacob You know so We're strengthened by the lord the lord is the source of our strength. He's the one that can Give you that strength when you need it to fight whatever battle is in front of you Psalm 44 3 says for they got Not the land in possession by their own sword Neither did their own arm save them right god wants all the glory. He doesn't want man Taking credit for the things that he did right Turn to uh Turn to luke 180 luke 180 So we see uh john the baptist right so he was he was regarded as the the greatest man that ever lived Ever born of a woman, you know, what what made john the baptist so strong You know, how did he get his strength? In luke 180 the bible says and the child grew and waxed strong in spirit And was in the deserts until the day of his showing unto israel You know, where did where did he get strong? He grew strong in the desert With god alone He was alone. Look sometimes Sometimes we just need to get alone Sometimes we just need to where we live in this in this society where it's just constant TV radio just you know social media all this stuff Sometimes we just need to get alone with god and that's when you're going to hit those spiritual mountaintops You know when you're alone obviously being in a group we strengthen each other as well But sometimes you just got to get alone with god like john in the desert He was alone with god and the bible says he waxed strong in spirit You know, even even jesus Matthew 117 i'll just read it the bible says and as they departed Jesus began to say unto the multitude concerning john What went ye out into the wilderness to see a reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out for to see a man clothed in soft raiment? Behold they that wear soft clothing are in king's houses. So jesus is describing john. He's obviously not a weak man You know, he's he's the way he's he's describing him is that he's kind of a rough guy. He's probably You know, i mean he's out living in the wilderness You know, he's he's alone with god. He's he's in the desert waxing strong with the lord and gaining strength Look, there's gonna be a time in your life Where you may be alone You know and and we need to have that strength from the lord when we're by ourselves as well You know, obviously we we strengthen each other But there may come a day where you're alone and you need to be able to get that strength From god and realize that god will give you that strength even when you are alone Even even jesus Went away. He went up to the mountain to pray. He he got away from the multitude Matthew 14 23 says and when he had sent the multitudes away He went up into a mountain apart to pray And when the evening was come he was there alone So We see that even getting alone is what you know, it will strengthen us with god Sometimes we just got to get by ourselves get with the bible get with the word of god get alone with it and and and read it by yourself sometimes so so in conclusion We know that tribulation is is not a bad thing after looking at the bible after looking at all these things that these men and women and children went through um We know that tribulation actually is god's mechanism to strengthen us and to build us up And it's what he uses so next time you find yourself going through something hard Don't get discouraged. Don't get upset. Just just keep pushing forward rejoice because when you come out You'll be stronger and we also know that You know putting on the whole armor of god and and being spiritually strong will help us to withstand in the christian life and and to be able to withstand the spiritual attacks that come your way and lastly We know where the source of our strength comes from it comes from the lord and God is a one that when you feel like you're all out of gas and you just can't push forward anymore Just ask god and he'll give you that strength. He is the source of the strength and so In conclusion, you know We just need to realize that this christian life. It's like I said in the beginning. It's not a bed of roses You know, none of the men in here preached a prosperity gospel Paul was telling us about all the tribulations. He went through Most of this book is just tribulation, you know, and and we know that Tribulation work with patience and patience experience and experience hope So let's pray