How to Enter In

Welcome to this weekend's In Touch Podcast with Charles Stanley and the year 2022.

Thinking about how to get the most out of the coming year? Let's begin a series that helps you embrace and live the life that wins. He talks about our being a soldier. He talks about going to war. Then when he speaks of our opposition, which is the devil, he talks about the fiery darts of the devil, those steel pointed fiery arrows that Satan shoots at us.

He talks about the snares of Satan. And so when you look at the implications of Scripture, we're in a battle, we're not in a game. It's a win or lose all the way. And when you lose in this game, you lose everything.

And when you win, you win everything. And one of the reasons we think we're winning when we're losing is because we've not been taught properly what to expect in the battle called the Christian life. And with Jesus Christ, it was a battle from before he was born until God the Father carried him home. It was a battle every inch of the way. It's going to be a battle for you, a battle for me.

In 2 Timothy chapter 2, Paul says, endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. So we're in the battle and here's the battle. On the one hand is God Almighty in all of his righteousness and goodness and mercy. On the other hand is Satan with all of his evil and wickedness. And these two forces will never come together except in in ultimate conflict.

There will never be any coexistence because God the Father is going to win. Satan is trying to win. He knows that already the battle has been fought and won. And he's a defeated foe and what he's trying to do is keep everybody out of God's camp he possibly can. And those of us who are on God's side, he's trying to do everything he can to embarrass the Christian eyes of the world, to thwart God's purpose and to destroy God's will in your life and my life. That is a battle that's going to have to be fought until Jesus calls you home. Some of you are not saved.

I'm going to tell you why a lost man can't be a winner. First of all, he's got to do everything in his own energy, in his own strength, in his own power, in his own might. What he doesn't realize is this, you're already shackled by sin. You say Satan hasn't shackled me.

Yes, he has. Satan is so clever and so deceiving and so cunning. He has you shackled and you don't even realize it. And the reason he's making no big deal out of it is simply because he's got you where he wants you.

And he doesn't want to upset you by telling you that you're one of his captured slaves, enslaved by sin, can't do any better than you're doing, even if you tried. Lost man spending his life losing. The problem is he doesn't know what he's losing. Now you say, well, how would you define a winning life? So let me tell you what a winning life is all about. Let me tell you first of all what it's not. A winning life is not sinless perfection because not a single one of us will ever be able to live up to a sinless life. So it's not sinless perfection.

But let me tell you what else it's not. The winning life is not me living the Christian life and doing my best and struggling and striving in my energy and my strength and not going to do this, going to do that. Here's a set of rules. Here's a set of principles living up to them. That is not the winning life because all of us have tried that and we failed.

But I'll tell you something else. The winning life isn't even doing my best and asking God to help me. So it isn't God helping me. It isn't me doing my best. It isn't that God helps those who help themselves.

It isn't sinless perfection. What is the life that wins? I want to give you four verses of scripture.

I want you to look them up with me. I want you to read them with me. And then I want you to tell me the one thing you see in all four of these verses that is the key and the clue to the life that wins. I mean, the life that will bring contentment. I mean, the life that will bring joy. I mean, the life that will survive satanic attacks. I mean, the life that will give victory in time of temptation, the life of contentment and peace and joy that our Lord God has provided for us and what every single one of us desire.

The life that wins. See if you can find out the common denominator in all four of these verses. Let's start with Galatians chapter two, verse 20. I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live in the flesh. I live by the faith or I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

All right. If you'll turn back now to John Chapter 15. John Chapter 15 in verses four and five.

Here is another key and a clue to the life that wins. He says in verse four, Abide in me and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself excepted abide in the vine. No more can you except you abide in me. I am the vine, ye of the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me you can do nothing.

All right. If you'll turn to Colossians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians chapter one. And if you will look in verse twenty seven, Colossians chapter one, verse twenty seven, Paul says, To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among you Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, Christ in you, which makes it possible for you to become everything God wants you to be. And then back one book, chapter one of Philippians, if you look there for a moment, chapter one, verse twenty one, For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Now, with those verses in mind, what is the clue?

What common denominator is found in all four of those verses? What is the life that wins? What do all four of those verses say about the life that wins?

What is it? Somebody Christ in you. That is the life that wins. And you see, when you receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior, Jesus Christ came into your life through the presence of the Holy Spirit. He came to dwell and to live within us and through us a life that would represent and signify and symbolize his life. That is his character, his actions, his attitude.

It is his life, not our life. You know what Paul said about himself before he realized this? He said in times past, what I didn't want to do, I found myself doing what I wanted to do. Somehow I seemingly couldn't manage to do it, he said. So I was pulled in two directions. What I wanted to do, I couldn't do what I didn't want to do.

I found myself doing. But Paul discovered the truth that it wasn't any longer Paul's life. It was Christ living within him.

Get that. It isn't our life. And I'll tell you something else. It isn't Jesus Christ up there trying to help us down here. You remember what happened to Peter, for example. While he walked with Jesus on earth, what was he doing? Man, he is quacking off Romans ears. He wanted to fight. He said, count on me when you can't count anybody else, Jesus. Impulsive Peter, always out front, you can always bet on me. And every single time what happened, he took a nose dive.

He failed every time he boasted. He said, you know, you can just do anything you want to, but we'll always be there the night he was judged. Peter's following afar off, all like the rest of them. After Pentecost, when Jesus Christ came back into this earth at Pentecost, through the power of the Holy Spirit, the same old defeated bragging Peter and his humiliation is standing before the Sanhedrin saying, you can whip us, you can beat us, you can put us in jail, but I want to tell you, the same Jesus whom you crucified by his name, this man has been healed. He is an absolutely total different man as a result of what? Before Pentecost, Jesus walked by his side.

That won't cut it. It is an eye, Paul says, it is Christ living within me and the life which I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me, gave himself for me and is living in me moment by moment, day by day. You know what Christ in us does? When Christ's life gets in you, you get on a whole higher plane of living. And until you are aware of his indwelling presence, you're going to keep struggling. And the only person who has ever lived this endless life, the only person who has ever defeated the devil every single time is Jesus Christ. The devil has defeated every single servant of God. He's defeated every single Christian. He's defeated every single lost man.

The only person that the devil's never defeated is Jesus Christ. And when Jesus Christ gets on the inside of us, what does he do? He equips us to be winners and not losers.

I want to show you how he's prepared for that. Turn to John Chapter 10 for a moment. What I'm talking about now is is to show you how the Lord how the Lord has prepared you to be a winner. That is, he wants you to win in your spiritual life. When you win in your spiritual life, you win everywhere else. You win in your home, you win in your business, you win in your relationships, you win in your personal life. When you're winning in your spiritual life, you are a winner.

And one of the reasons some folks aren't doing it about their homes, their business, their relationship is because they're losing in this vertical battle. All right, now watch. John 10, verse 10 says, Jesus said, I am come that they might have life and have it more abundantly. When Jesus Christ came, what did he come to do? Listen, he came to live within us. He says, out of your spiritual flow, rivers of living water. Now, when you've got a fast moving river, he said flowing rivers. And so the river, he says, a living water that is life and power are represented by that river. He says out of your life through your life will move what?

Life and power. He wants you, mother. He wants you, dad, whatever your occupation may be. He wants you filled with his life so that through you is moving life to others and power in the lives of the people making changes in their life. He says the abundant overflowing, ever sufficient, always sufficient life of Christ living within you. That second thing he says in Matthew 20, he says that he has come to be a ransom for many. That is, Jesus Christ came to do what? He came to do for us what no one else could do. He canceled sin in our life. He forgave us of our sins in order that we could have a relationship with God the Father. The third thing the scripture says here is this. Not only did he come to live within us that overflowing life, break the power of sin in our life, but the scripture says in Luke chapter 4, Jesus talking about his purpose for coming. He says the Spirit of the Lord is upon me and he has anointed me to preach the gospel, heal the sick, encourage the poor and bring deliverance to the captives. Jesus Christ living within us does what? Jesus Christ living within us equips us and empowers us to overcome every single temptation and heartache and burden of life. He says he came to what? To break the bonds, to unshackle us, free us, deliver us that you and I may be winners and no longer losers.

In the 14th chapter of John and the 16th chapter of John, many verses about the Holy Spirit. Jesus said in equipping us and preparing us for the life that wins. He says, if I go away, I'll send the comforter. He will be listed.

Watch this. He says, I'll be in you. I'll be with you and I'll be upon you. The Holy Spirit came and is indwelt every single believer to magnify and to live through us the life of Christ. He says the Holy Spirit will teach you what I want you to know. He will bring to your remembrance the things I want you to recall. He says he will guide you in the decisions that you make. He will empower you to do the work that God's called you to do.

Then he talks about some other things. He says, for example, he provides the power. Christ within us is our power. He says and you shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you whose ministry it is to live Christ's life through us. He said you shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you. You recall what he said to those disciples before Pentecost. He says, tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until you be endued with power. I'm sending the Holy Spirit. He will give witness of me. He will glorify me. Then he said on occasion John 14, verse 27. He says, my peace I give unto you.

Now watch this one. My peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Now let me show you something. Don't forget this. People say, Well, Lord, please send me your peace. Oh, God, you know what I need.

And they look to heaven as if God the Father or Jesus Christ is going to send them an angelic mayogram of some sort of a package of some sort down here for them to receive what they need. Now, I want you to watch this. Don't ever forget this. We never have. We cannot.

We never will. It is absolutely impossible under any condition whatsoever to ever receive anything from God except through Jesus Christ. Listen, Jesus doesn't give his peace apart from himself. You know why he says my peace I give unto you? Because Jesus Christ came to live within us, Paul said. And the life that I now live is Christ in me. Paul said Christ in me, the hope of glory, the hope of becoming everything God has made it possible for me to become.

Why is that true? Because Jesus Christ is living within me. Jesus Christ doesn't give salvation apart from himself. Jesus Christ doesn't give peace apart from himself. It is my receiving Jesus that brings me salvation. It is my receiving Jesus that brings me peace. It is my receiving Jesus that brings me power. It is my receiving Jesus that I have the right to claim and appropriate every single provision of my life. It is Christ and Christ only Christ plus nothing, not Christ up there sending it down here. It is Christ in your life and my life. He says that is our hope of glory, the hope of ever becoming anything and everything worthwhile to God. Is Christ living his life freed and liberated through you and me as a result of being surrendered to him? Well, I've said all of that to ask you one question.

How in the world do you take the first step toward winning? Has there ever been a time in your life when you ask the Lord Jesus Christ to forgive you of your sins? Has there ever been a time in your life when you got on your knees before God and humbled yourself before him and told him that you were a sinner? You didn't deserve to be saved. You were confessing your sin. You weren't worthy to be saved at all, that your righteousness is his filthy rags before Almighty God. And you're trusting in the work of Jesus Christ to save you. What he did at the cross is your only hope. And you told him, Lord Jesus Christ, I give you my life. I receive you as my salvation, you as my Lord and you as my life.

Well, he said, no, I never have done that. Then I want to tell you, my friend, you're going to lose. You're going to lose all of this life. And one of these days you can take the final step that will indicate an eternal loss.

And you don't want to do that. The first step into the life that wins is just that receiving. Listen, now watch this. Receiving Jesus Christ by faith in the confession and repentance of your sins. Receiving Jesus Christ.

Listen, what did Paul say? I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live, yet not I. It is Christ living within me and the life which I now live.

I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. The paraphrased edition, the Living Bible puts it this way in Colossians chapter two. He says, just as you trusted Christ the Savior, trust him, too, for each day's problems.

Let your roots grow down into him and drawing up nourishment from him and keep on trusting him. For when you have Christ, you have every thing. And you see, it isn't Christ up there and me down here battling out my life. You and I have the tremendous, absolutely incomparable, indescribable, joyous victory of knowing the living Lord who walked the face of this earth, who had the power to come out of the grave, who has ascended the right hand of the Father, is the same living supernatural God who is living within this mortal body he termed the temple of the living God. Christ is in you. And you know all he's asking of you and me today? Listen, he's simply saying to you and me, give me total access, give me absolute control, surrender everything, and I will live in you and through you the most exciting, anticipating, glorious, contenting, fulfilling life that you could ever dream of and much greater that you could ever describe. I want to invite you to Jesus this morning, somebody who's looking for the life that wins. Thank you for listening to How to Enter In. If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or InTouch Ministries, stop by InTouch.org. This podcast is a presentation of InTouch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.