Defending Truth even with consequences. Here's Dr. Michael Youssef beginning Leading the Way audio. Have you ever stood for the truth? Have you ever been faithful to God and faithful to God's word and then you found yourself?
being undermined by even some Christians. And the Lord has a word for you. that he loves you. He wants you to stand firm. and never give up.
Never. Never, never give up. Growing up in Egypt, Dr. Youssef is familiar with opposition to Christianity. He understands what's at stake when taking a stand for truth.
And next, on Leading the Way Audio, doctor Youssef guides you into the Book of Acts, where you'll glean biblical insight into how to courageously stand for Christ in your home, your workplace, your neighborhood, and your community.
Now before the teaching begins, make a note of this special website. ltw dot org slash jesus It's a place to explore faith questions by connecting with a compassionate leading the way pastor or counselor. Ltw.
Now though, Dr. Michael Youssef with his message. Hang in there, you are not alone. If you are A person who is prone to discouragement of fear. I want you to stay tuned because The Lord has a word for you today.
In fact, the Oxford Dictionary defined intimidation this way. It says to inspire with fear In order To influence change. Let me repeat this. to inspire With fear. In order to influence change.
The Bible said that the spirit of fear is not of God. And if the spirit of fear is not of God, then it is of Satan. It's one of satanic spirits, one of satanic demons. I want you to listen very carefully, please. Because this affects every one of our lives, every one of us.
When you allow the spirit of fear to take hold of you. You are opening yourself up. Two Satan's banging on his empty kerosene cans to get to you. If you allow Satan's bluffing to to intimidate you. You will surrender your rightful victory that God has given you.
When you open yourself up to Satan's hooting and scaring you, you are giving up the very power that God intended for you to have as His child. When you allow and open yourself up to Satan's con job, because that's all it is, then you will be retreating. And you're giving up territories that is rightfully your inheritance by believing and submitting to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now I want to tell you brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps no one understood the spirit of fear. Like the Apostle Paul. In fact, he writes to Timothy and he says, God has not given us a spirit of fear. And he definitely make it clear that the spirit of fear is an evil spirit.
It's not of God. No one knows about fear like the Apostle Paul. You say, Are you talking about the same Apostle Paul that wrote third of the New Testament? Are you talking about the great Apostle Paul who allowed himself to be stoned? The great Apostle Paul who got beaten nearly to death?
Are you talking about the same Apostle Paul who was singing songs of praise when he was in the stock, in the prison in Philippi? Are you talking about that Paul? Yes. That Paul. Acts 18.
tells us that he was afraid, lonely, and discouraged. Turn with me, please, if you haven't already, to Acts chapter 18, the first 17 verses.
So how do you know that he really was afraid? Look at verse 9. The Lord appeared to him in person. And he says, Don't be afraid, Paul. Let me tell you something.
God is not going to waste words of telling Paul not to be afraid if he was not afraid. Not only that, but in 1st Corinthians chapter 2, verses 2 and 3, he tells them that he said, I came to you in fear and trembling. That was a frightening time in Paul's life. Acts 18. You see, the Apostle Paul He came from Athens to Corinth.
What he has done, he got out of the frying pan into the fire. I mean he left one city That was full of intellectual and philosophical pride to a city that was full of pride. for their immorality. I mean, that was not a vacation for the Apostle Paul. That was a tough assignment.
But God sent him there. Let me tell you a couple of things about Corinth. Corinth was one of the great commercial centers of the Roman Empire, certainly the greatest commercial center of Greece. Corinth was the political center of Greece. Corinth also was the center of wickedness.
It was the center of immorality. You know, back then when you called somebody a Corinthian, you were basically saying you are the most vile, degenerate, depraved person I've ever met. That's how you could describe a Corinthian back then. Corinth was also the center of pagan worship. There stood on the hills of the city The temple of Venus that was known as Ephrodite to the Greeks and then was known as Ashtaroth to the Phoenicians.
And there on that temple was filled with one thousand priestesses or Temple prostitutes.
Now you understand. The fear. That gripped the Apostle Paul when he landed into this city.
Now you understand why he wrote to the Corinthians and said to them, I want to see nothing among you but Christ and him crucified. You can understand why he wrote to the Corinthians saying to them, Do not be deceived. Neither the immoral nor the idolaters nor the idulterers nor the homosexuals nor the thieves nor the greedy nor the drunkards nor the revelers nor the robbers will inherit the kingdom of God. And then comes the great declaration of victory there in chapter 6 of 1st Corinthians and he says, and such Wha Some of you Not are some of you Whirr! in the past.
Some of you. Today we tolerate sin in the church and we don't mind sinners coming into the church and becoming members and active in the church of Jesus Christ. Listen, do not be deceived. A habitual sinner will not inherit the kingdom of God. And only Jesus Christ and his blood shed on Calvary can release you.
and free you from sin. But if you're a believer and habitually living in sin, you are mocking the power of God on the cross of Calvary. Because he promised to give you power and give us power over sin. And such were some of you. I want to share some good news with you today.
In the times of fears. God does not leave you alone. In the times of discouragement, God does not abandon you. In the times of loneliness, God is there in a very special Way. revealing himself To you.
Look at the book of Acts again, chapter 18, verses 1 to 17. There I want to share with you four things. That God did in order to encourage his faithful servant Paul. First, he provided him with godly friends. Look at verses two to five.
Of chapter 18 of the book of Acts. He provided him with godly friends. Secondly, God blessed him with fruit for his labor. Verses five to eight. Thirdly, God fellowshipped with him personally in a very special way.
Verses 9 to 11. And then fourthly, you're going to see that God caused the frustration of the enemy's plan. And verses twelve to seventeen. In times of fear, in times of discouragement, the faithful child of God, the faithful son and daughter of God. Is not alone, never alone.
Look at this verses 2 to 3 in the book of Acts. I want you to listen carefully. There is one thing. that you must never do in times of fear, and that is to lock yourself up. The one thing you must never do is lock yourself up in the times of discouragement.
There is one thing that you must never do in the times of discouragement and that is to isolate yourself. The one thing you must never do in the times of uncertainty is cut yourself out of Christian fellowship. God provided the Apostle Paul with a godly couple. A wonderful couple. Who love the Lord?
to be his friends, to be his companions. Aquila and Priscilla. We're God's gift to Paul's burden of responsibility. Achilla and Priscilla were God's gift to Paul's formidable task. Akilah and Priscilla were God's provision of companionship, provision of Friendship, provision of fellowship, provision of encouragement, provision of love to his faithful servant, the Apostle Paul.
If the great Apostle Paul needed someone to walk with him in the times of discouragement and fear, you and I. Did it? They can. But listen. These were not ordinary friends.
We use the word loosely these days. These were not a fair weather friends. They were not opportunistic friends. They were not hangers-on. These were not superficial friends.
These were incredible friends. And I want to tell you where and how you know that. In the book of Romans, chapter 16, verses 3 and 4, Paul tells us that they were ready to give up their lives for the Apostle Paul.
So you understand what kind of friends they are. They risked Their own lives for the Apostle Paul. Achilla and Priscilla came to Corinth from Rome because the emperor at that time, Emperor Claudius, He made a declaration that all Jews, whether they're Christian Jews or not, have to leave the city of Rome. And they ended up in Corinth just by accident. Just by accident.
And it happened to be around the same time that Paul was there. Don't you like those coincidences? And just to make it even more coincidental. They had the same trade that Paul grew up as a young boy learning: the trade of making tents out of goat's skin. Just coincidence.
Rabbis believed that every rabbi must have a trade, must learn a trade, and Paul's trade was to make tents out of a skin of goats. The God of all comfort, myth, The needs of his discouraged servant. Not only by giving him new friends who are ready to risk their lives for him, but he sent his old friends, Silas. And Timothy. from Macedonia.
They came to be with the Apostle Paul. And obviously, they came with a gift from the Macedonians so that it freed the Apostle Paul up. to preach the gospel. Full time rather than working on tents in the morning and preaching the gospel at night. I want you to listen very carefully, please.
When you are faithful, this is a conditional clause now. When you are faithful with God, God will minister to you in your times of discouragements. When your desire To honor God in your life, God will provide for your every need. When your life's goal is to serve the living God and to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, God will always, not sometimes or on occasionally, always will send a godly friend to minister to you. God not only provides the Apostle Paul with two godly friends.
walk with him But secondly, God bless the Apostle Paul. with fruit for his labor. I think none of us If you are made of flesh and blood, Would not get discouraged when you work long and hard and you don't see fruit for your labor. I think that's just a natural thing for all of us. And Paul worked long and hard in Corinth.
He spent hours in these synagogues. persuading and arguing with his fellow Jews understand that the Lord Jesus Christ Who appeared to him on the road to Damascus, the one who lived in Jerusalem and around Nazareth, the one who was crucified and rose again, is nothing but short of their Messiah. He is the Messiah that the generations of Jews have looked forward to. And he was persuading them, he was arguing with them, and he was talking, he was proving to them from scripture, he was giving them evidence and proof. And he was thoroughly exhausted.
And it appeared Now I want you to mentally put a circle around the word appeared that there were no fruits. for his labour. He worked long and hard and got tired. And it appeared that nothing is happening. I'm going to tell you why I'm saying it appeared.
in the light of verse 8. of Acts 18. But once the Apostle Paul recognized in the words of Jesus that he's been throwing pearls before swines, he got up and he shook the dust. off his clothes, and he shook the dust off his feet. That's a very dramatic Jewish way of rejection.
It's a very dramatic Jewish way of saying. That your blood is on your hand. This is a very dramatic way because the Jews themselves, when they were visiting Gentile lands, when they came back, they got rid of all the speck because they did not want any of the Gentile dust to stick to them. That's why they shook their clothes and they shook their feet, their sandals. And that's what Paul is doing with his fellow Jews in the synagogue, as if to say that your rejection of the Messiah is such a blasphemy that I want nothing of it to stick to me.
He said, Your blood is on your own head. I'm clear. In other words, they're fully responsible for the rejection. of their Messiah. Paul did his job.
Paul was faithful in delivering the message. But they are now responsible for their rejection. But you see, God wants to encourage his servant. You see, sometimes we think God is more interested in the ministry than he's interested in the minister. That's not true.
God is more concerned about his minister than he's concerned about the ministry. Because there can be no faithful ministry without a faithful minister. And that is why God is more concerned with ministers. was his servants. Your life, your walk.
Your righteousness, your holiness. That's what God is concerned with. And God is so concerned with all the details of his faithful servant, the Apostle Paul.
So much so he knew that a fruit for his labor is going to encourage him.
So, here's what the Bible said: look at verse 8. Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household. I told you that his efforts appeared. as if it was fruitless. It appeared, but that's not so.
In fact, the conversion of the leader of the synagogue created such a havoc, created such a turmoil among the Jewish community in Corinth that they wanted. The Apostle Paul to be silenced and gagged. But for the encouragement of Paul, God gave him. This man and his family. To come to Christ.
So, God not only sends faithful friends, not only gives fruit for our labor. But thirdly, God personally fellowships with you in the times of fear and discouragement. God wanted to encourage his servant Paul at the highest level. God wanted to encourage his servant Paul at the most perfect. personal level.
Possible.
So the Lord Jesus personally comes to him in a vision. And he said to him, Verse nine, The Lord said to Paul, do not be afraid any longer. But go on speaking and don't be silent. Don't you love the Lord? When he ministers to you, in this very special way.
If Paul was struggling in his mind, trying to figure out has he really come here according to the will of God? Is that really the right place for him to be? Should he really stay or should he go? And most of us have been in situations in life when we did not know which way to go. And here the Lord Jesus, in his most gracious way, appears to Paul and tells him, Don't be afraid.
Go on speaking. I'm with you. No man will attack you or harm you. There are many people in this city. There ought to be one for May.
Let me ask you this. Have you ever stood? for the truth. Have you ever stood for the gospel? And you were attacked.
For your faithfulness. Even some of your family members. Have you ever been there? Have you ever stood for the truth? Have you ever been faithful to God and faithful to God's word and then you found yourself?
being undermined by even some Christians. Have you ever been there? Then you will understand the incredible joy, that bomb of Gilead that came upon the Apostle Paul's heart. in this moment. Have you ever been in the point of saying, What in the world I'm doing?
What is this all about? Why am I doing this? Why am I standing against the tide? Won't I just give in? Have you ever been there?
And the Lord has a word for you. that he loves you. And he wants you to stand firm. and never give up. Never.
Never, never give up. God not only provides you godly friends in times of fear and discouragement. God not only gives you fruit for your labor. God not only fellowships with you personally. But fourthly, God.
frustrates The enemy. He frustrates the enemy on your behalf. Paul's opponents Try to intimidate him. They tried to silence him. They tried to keep him quiet.
They tried to stop him from preaching. But when all of that did not work, finally, they dragged him into court and they said, well, we take him to court and then we get the Roman proconsul. He's got to shut him up.
So they take him to court. At that time, The authority vested in the proconsul, a man by the name of Gallio. By the way, You can always Check scripture with history, you're going to find it with absolute accuracy. In fact, history tells us that Gallio was the brother of the famous philosopher Seneca, and Seneca was a tutor for young Nero. In fact, Seneca wrote very admiringly of his brother Gelia, whom he admired his sense of fairness.
The Jews were hoping that Galia would rule against the preaching of the gospel. And thus Setting a precedent. Throughout the Roman Empire, All they wanted is a piece of paper signed by the proconsul and they would go to every city in the Roman Empire and they say, hey, we have a ruling from the proconsul. Shut them up, shut them up, shut them up. And if that had happened, you and I would not be here today.
Now my friend, I want to tell you. When you are faithful to God, even your enemies Are going to be on your side. And so here Instead of having a landmark decision in order to use it for the rest of the Roman Empire, what did the proconsul do? Paul was about to open his mouth. And they shut him by.
He said, no, no, no, no, you don't understand. I'm going to give you my summary judgment. Case dismissed. Yeah. God frustrates the enemy's plan.
When you are faithful to God, your enemy's plans will be frustrated. When you are faithful to God, God promised never to leave you nor forsake you. When you are faithful to God, no one can harm you. No one can touch you. No one can frustrate the plan of God for your life.
No one can derail you. No one can detract you. The youth grow weary and tired. Vigorous young men stumble badly. Yet those who wait for the Lord will grow new strength.
They will mount up with eagles' wings. They will run and not get tired. They will walk and not be weary. Thank you for making time in your day for Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading the Way Audio.
You can listen to this message again, or you can share it with friends and family by going to ltw.org. That is also where you can listen and engage with other content from doctor Youssef and the Leading the Way team, including candid conversations with doctor Jonathan Youssef. Jonathan, who is pastored in Australia and currently in Atlanta, invites intriguing and trusted people of deep faith into discussions relevant to current culture, and the priority is seeing life through the lens of God's Word. Again it's called Candid Conversations with Dr. Jonathan Youssef.
In an age of increased skepticism, doubt, and misinformation, how do we equip our children and grandchildren to discern what is true and why? How do we navigate a world that feels like it's spinning out of control? Leading the Way, launch Candid Conversations, a podcast designed to address the complex issues of our day with biblical truth. Candid Conversations is a weekly podcast featuring Jonathan Youssef and special guests. With topics ranging from theology to relationships to mental health, the Candid Podcast is helping listeners discern biblical truth amid the noise of this world.
With listeners in over 130 countries, Candid Conversations is resonating with listeners worldwide. In fact, it's already in the top 1% of podcasts globally. Join the conversation. Check out Candid Conversations with Jonathan Youssef on your preferred podcast platform today or at ltw.org/slash candid. Learn more at ltw.
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Well, that's it for today. Do plan to join Dr. Michael Youssef right here next time for another Leading the Way. when he passionately proclaims uncompromising truth. This program is brought to you by Leading the Way with Dr.
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