When Opposition Comes (cont'd)

I'm going through the valley of the shadow of death. I'm not camping out, not buying real estate in the valley. I am going through it.

I'm on the move. And I came to tell somebody, opposition sometimes comes in multiplication, but you got to know that God is going to get you out of it. Why?

Because your story can't end in defeat. You are a child of God. You can listen online on demand. That's PastorPaul.net.

And you can also listen or subscribe to the Destined for Victory Podcast at Spotify, at Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Now, here's Pastor Paul with today's message, When Opposition Comes. I grew up in different days. So y'all go on and do that. Christmas time, you just load them all up, no matter how they mind you, what you say.

You just go on and give them everything, all the expensive shoes, all the, you go right on. I grew up in different days. I grew up in days where you could come with your Christmas list all you want. But all year long, there had been lists on the refrigerator. I need some refrigerator children. There had been lists on the refrigerator all year long. These are your chores.

This is what you're supposed to do. And see, we grew up around some cold-blooded folks. See, now, y'all believe in fairness and all that. We grew up around folk who, when you come with your list, you've been ignored. They say, I've had a list on the refrigerator every week, what things you were supposed to do. And you, every now and then you did it, but most of the time you didn't.

Now you come with your own list. There's a problem with that. They didn't reward your disobedience back in the day. They would preach you a message that was your Christmas present, preach you a sermon. I know that's abuse now. That's emotional abuse. You're robbing them of their sins. You know, I just grew up in different days, so I just lamented and I'd work it out and preach it sometime, then I'd get back to the message.

But I just started scratching and I'm not even itching. I see these people. Now you've got children getting trophies and they didn't win anything.

Y'all got to help me. What you get a trophy for? Now, okay, if it's participation, okay, got it. Everybody participated, great.

But that should be different than the winners. Participation, that's a nice little thing with a little cup on it. And I won. I get the big thing. I got to hold two hands. That's what I like. Thank you.

I got some help down here. God is not into everybody get the same thing. The Bible is real clear. If you do what I told you to do, here are the blessings that come with obedience. And if you don't do them, don't expect the blessing of the obedient. Amen. And so you got to understand when opposition comes against you, you have to be prepared to deal with the fact that it might be hard for a season. A night can be a whole season.

Night can be years sometimes. But what does God do? He gives you grace to get through it. Some of y'all can't testify right now that I'm out of my trouble, but you can testify.

But I got grace. Oh, God has given me grace and I'm going on through. I'm going through the valley of the shadow of death.

I'm not camping out, not buying real estate in the valley. I am going through it. I'm on the move. And I know that I'm going to a prepared table. And I came to tell somebody opposition sometimes comes in multiplication, but you got to know that God is going to get you out of it. Why? Because your story can't end in defeat. You are a child of God. Your story is going to end in victory.

Somebody needs to grab that word and just tell it to yourself. I'll know when it's over because I will have won. I will have won. I am not going to be defeated. And so the word of the Lord to them was by this time tomorrow, this will all be taken care of. Your tomorrow is coming.

It's not necessarily a 24 hour event, but it is a reality. God's going to bring you through. One more point and I'll let you go. Number three, sometimes opposition comes from people you've only been good to. I came to tell somebody who is trying to figure out how people I took good care of are treating me like I'm garbage.

Like, in fact, sometimes they'll treat you like you did something wrong. And if you don't think this is a Bible based point, I dare you to read the story of David. David did nothing but serve Saul well. In fact, he started serving Saul before he was in his service. His father sent him out to the battle line to bring supplies for his brothers who were in the army.

David was too young to be in the army. He went out there with supplies and while he gives them to his brothers, he looks out and he sees this giant named Goliath standing out there defying the army of the Lord. Cussing and swearing, he's cussing God out and all of these people. And David is standing there, he's giving them his supplies, and now he's just standing there looking at Goliath, listening to him, and then look at these folk over here. A whole army of them, all of them scared, all of them scared.

You know, sometimes ignorance is when you get the most truth because you don't know enough to let fear grab you. And David said, wait, he just cussed God and he just calls all of y'all's mamas something. And none of y'all are moving. He's like, I don't understand this. His brother had to be like, just shut up, go back home.

Don't you have some sheet to take care of? But he's standing there saying, no, no. And he was so troubled by it. He said to the king, to Saul, tell you what, I need to go out there and fight that giant.

Now in the natural, that's just dumb. But how many know when you're walking in the spirit, when you're listening to God and not listening to your feelings, not listening to people, not listening to conventional wisdom? Sometimes the God will say something that sounds dumb to you, but because it came out of the mouth of God, it is full of wisdom and power. And he said to the king, I need to go fight. And the king said, no, you're too young. I can't send you out there. You're not even a warrior. He said, no, no, I need to go. I can take care of this giant because of the God we serve. He said, furthermore, you need to let me go because none of your army gonna go.

It's not like you have a choice. And Saul figured out, you know, he got a point. And he tried to give him his armor. You got to learn from this part too. He put on the king's armor.

He said, no, no, I can't go with this. This is your armor. This is not mine. You got to learn to fight in what God gives you. You got to learn to stop trying to be somebody you're not.

Some of y'all haven't gone further in your life to this point because you're busy trying to imitate instead of be an originator of that which God wants to do through and in your life. Just cause you never saw it before doesn't mean it can't be done. It just means you're gonna be the first person you know who did it. And David said, I'm going, but I'm going with what I'm used to. I'm going with my slingshot. Now that sounds real sophisticated, but in his day, it was probably more like a rag and a rock.

Just wind it up and let it go. Could have been some little nice, real simple sling, but it could have been a rag and a rock, whatever it was. He said, this is the way God uses me. He said, let me give you my track record.

I was taking care of my daddy's sheep and a bear came after the sheep killed it. He says, I ain't worried about no giant. He's just the next on the list. You know, he had that kind of ignorance. He too stupid to not have faith.

I love that. I'm trying to ask God, Lord, let me have a faith that sometimes looks like reckless abandon, but I'm doing this. Listen to what he said. He said that Goliath, I'm a kill you and I'm doing it in the name of the God.

You just got through cussing. You going to meet who that God is because he getting ready to take you out and he going to use a little boy to do it. Because Goliath got us all these are y'all didn't send this, please. I don't believe what y'all just did.

This is insulting and he cuts some more and David said, I'm going to take your head off your shoulders. That's faith. Y'all got to quit walking in fear because faith has a language that you wouldn't believe, but when you walk by faith, when you're rooted in believing God, God has a way of showing up. And you know the story. He killed Goliath.

Now I say that just to tell you from there. He goes into the king service and he ministers to the king. I love the fact that God didn't make David the king of Israel until he was a servant of the king of Israel. I love that about God. God takes us the right route to promotion.

Some of y'all are sweating where you are now. Some of you all do the work and your supervisor gets the credit, but don't sweat it because God is seeing what you're doing. You see the Lord sees you said, I don't believe these people see I'm going to take a stand. That's fine. You know, if it's just this issue and you feel like you should take a stand, that's fine. But I just came to tell you there are times when God says, no, this isn't your battle. You just keep being faithful. I've got this battle.

I got this one covered. And so what does David do? He serves the king and because of the anointing on his life, then he becomes a warrior for the king and all of that. And eventually the anointing on David got recognized by the other people. So one time he's coming back from a battle and the young women watching them come back from the battle starts singing a song they made up. Saul has killed his thousands, but David his tens of thousands. So like, huh? Y'all singing about him and I'm the king and you compare and I only killed thousands and he killing tens of thousands.

Oh, no, that won't fly. And a spirit of jealousy and envy got a hold of that man and refused to let him go. He set his eyes on the young man who had served him well when he was overtaken by an evil spirit and would be in all kinds of torment. David would grab his heart and began to strum and minister in music and sing the songs of the Lord and calm the king down.

And for all that, it got to the place where the king said, I got to kill it. Up next, the rest of today's Destined for Victory message with Pastor Paul Shepherd. We want to thank all of you whose prayers and financial support helped Pastor Paul share the gospel all over the world. Your donations do make a difference. So as God leads, prayerfully consider making a generous gift to Destined for Victory today.

Of all the weapons of mass destruction out there, the human tongue might be the most deadly of all. Here's Pastor Paul with a second half of today's message when opposition comes. You know, there are some people who would rather see you dead than to give you what you do. And if they can't kill you physically, they'll kill your influence. You ever had your influence killed on a job? You ever had somebody talk against you?

And they grin when they're with you. But in the other meetings, they're talking against you. And the fact of the matter is, you've got to learn to give that to God because you serve him. And so here's the king trying to kill him. And to the point where eventually David is on the run.

He's a fugitive from a man he did no wrong to. So I came with a word for those of you who are finding that opposition is coming from people you've been nothing but good to. Don't sweat it. Okay, I'll put it in commandments language. Thou shalt not sweat it.

Because God is watching you. And it got to the place where there were times when David could have killed Saul. You ever read it? Read 1 Samuel. David could have killed Saul on two different occasions. Saul's armor bearers, his secret service, sleep on the job.

David could have walked right up and killed him both times. Look at the man's nobility. He said, I dare not touch the Lord's anointed. What does he mean the Lord? He's not acting anointed. No, he was anointed to be king. Even though he's acting like the devil.

And I have to respect the anointing. And he said, I won't touch him. And when Saul found out he could have been killed because David told him, you know, I could have killed you, right? And at first Saul would be, oh, bless you, my son. Oh, I've been so horrible to you.

Oh, please, please, please. Before too long, I'm going to kill him. God took him through all of that. Only to get to the place where he had to actually, for a time, David had to work for the Philistines.

You'll read about it in 1 Samuel beginning at chapter 27. He aligns himself with the Philistines and tells them, now, I'm not coming against Israel with you all. But if you fight any of your other enemies, I'll help you.

All you have to do is give me refuge. And King Achish, read it when you get a chance, gave him a place in Ziklag, said, I'll give that to you and your men. All you have to do is fight with us against our other enemies besides Israel. Did that for a while and then some of the Philistine princes said, wait a minute, we don't like him being on our side.

Because it's the only mad time he's going to turn on us and he's going to kill us. And they force Achish to force David out. So by the time you get to 1 Samuel 29, Achish is saying, man, you've got to go.

Appreciate all you've done, but you're out of here. Peace, deuces. It's right in your Bible, right in your Bible. So 1 Samuel chapter 30, David and his 600 men come back to Ziklag, which they've been given. And they get back to find their wives and children have been carted off, the city has been burned, their supplies, their stuff has been taken, and their families have been taken.

Now here's why I'm bringing this up. You've got to understand that the enemy can become close to you when circumstances go wrong. His 600 men who were his warriors, his fighters, they came back and along with David, they all have lost their kids and their wives, they're all crying. The Bible says there in 1 Samuel 30, they cried so hard until they had no more strength to cry. They cried themselves literally out of strength. But when you get to that place of being that depleted emotionally, you have to be careful, because that's when the raw stuff comes to the surface. Now David lost everything that you all lost.

But when they got through crying, they said, well, you know what, this is David's fault. He's the one to have us out here fighting all these people. We could have stayed here protecting our family if it wasn't for him.

Let's kill him. Have you ever had people who love you, trying to take you out? He said it's bad enough that the Philistines don't trust us, at least I get that.

But now the people I've been fighting the wars with, they're talking about killing me. And David is, I mean, talk about at the point of utter despair, his feelings could have easily had him there. But I want you to see one verse, and then I'm done, verse 6 of 1 Samuel 30. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. He strengthened him, what does that even mean? That means that I can't find strength in y'all. I can't find strength in my circumstance, my wives and kids are gone.

There is nothing that'll strengthen me that I can look around and see. But my God is faithful and he is available for me and he strengthened himself in the Lord. That's what Ephesians 6 says, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. When you can't find strength anywhere else, find it in the Lord.

How do I strengthen myself in the Lord? I pray in the Holy Spirit. I pray until I remind myself of the goodness of God. I pray until I remind myself of the promises of God. I pray until I remember who God is. My circumstances aren't very good, but my God is a good God. He's a good, good Father, that's who he is.

I'm loved by him, that's who I am. You got to tell yourself that when you're going through hell. Anybody ever gone through hell? I'm talking about a hellish experience. I'm talking about there have been times I've walked through hell with gasoline drawers.

Come on, I'm not by myself. Sometimes it's like this can't get worse. Oh, but even when you're going through hell, you got to know there is a God who, if it wasn't for him, I would have been taken out by now. But because of my God, I'm still standing. Sometimes the one thing you have to do is tell yourself and tell the devil, I'm still standing. I know you want me to be cussing God by now, but you see, I'm still here, don't you?

I'm not going anywhere. My God is going to get me through this. And he strengthened his hands in the Lord. And because he strengthened his hands in the Lord, God was able to say, all right, tell you what I'm going to do. He asked the Lord, should we pursue the enemy?

The Amalekites came and took our wives and kids. What are we supposed to do? Should we pursue? I'm glad he asked God. He didn't just pursue in flesh. He said, I want to see what God wants to do about this. And the Lord said, pursue. And they took off. He told those folks who were trying to kill him, tell you what, if you won't see your wife and your kids again, you better come with me and quit talking about killing me because I got the anointing on my life and you follow me.

We all going to get a recovery. And they quit talking about killing him and got back in sync. And they went and pursued. And look at what the Bible says. First, Samuel 30 says, and they recovered all.

Why? Because God was with them. And if God be with you, he is more than whoever is against you. If God is with you, he's more than the circumstances coming against you. He's more than the enemies coming against you. He's more than the stuff that's trying to hinder you.

God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or even imagine. And he's going to give you the victory if you'll strengthen yourself in the Lord. If you are a follower of Christ, opposition will come. But if you strengthen yourself in God, if you walk by faith, as he's told you, he will take you through the problem and into the promise. In Christ, you are destined for victory. If you need prayer today, if you're facing a challenge that seems impossible to overcome, the Destined for Victory ministry team would like to join you in prayer. From the homepage at pastorpaul.net, use the contact feature to let us know how we can pray for you. And while you're there, be sure to ask for Pastor Paul's monthly letter of encouragement, yours at no cost or obligation.

And here's something else for you. In appreciation of your generous gift today, Pastor Paul will send you his booklet, Trusting God in Scary Times. When the Lord told Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away from the family home, what followed, as you know, was a great deal of uncertainty and angst.

God had promised Abraham that he'd make a nation out of his firstborn son, but circumstantially, it looked pretty bleak. You may have times in your life when fear, instead of faith, tries to take the wheel. In this helpful resource, Pastor Paul walks you through Genesis chapter 21 and shows you how to rely on the faithfulness of God in the darkest of moments. That's Trusting God in Scary Times, our gift to you this month by request for your generous gift to Destined for Victory.

You can do that over the phone by calling 855-339-5500 or online at pastorpaul.net. There you can make a safe and secure donation. And you can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, California 94538.

Again, that address is Destined for Victory, Box 1767, Fremont, California 94538. I came to speak to folk who feel like life has dealt you a raw deal. I came to talk to people who feel like, I don't know why other people are having it good. I don't know how this happened to me. I must be cursed.

I must be something wrong with me. I came to tell you the Bible isn't just for the up and in. The Bible is for the down and out. That's next time in Pastor Paul Shepherd's message, Pay It Forward. But until then remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.