Hang in There – You Are Not Alone

Dr. Michael you set challenging you to stand for the truth even when it seems to backfire, and death is leading the way audio ever start for the truth of your faithful to God and faithful to God's word and found yourself being undermined by even some Christians will has a word for you that he loves you and wants you to stand firm and never never never give up. Dr. Yousef Gula culture opposed to Christianity understands what's at stake when a person takes a stand for Christ today on leading the way audio Dr. you sent guide you to the words found in the book of acts words that will give you courage to stand up for Christ in your workplace in your neighborhood and in your home.

It's a challenge to never give up now before the teaching began to make a note of the special website it's LT W.org/Jesus. This is a place to explore some of your faith questions and to reach out to a compassionate, leading the way. Team member once again LTW.org/Jesus now Dr. Yousef with his message. Hang in there.

You are not alone. If you are a person who is prone to discouragement of fear. I want to stay tuned because the Lord has a word for you to. In fact, the Oxford dictionary defines intimidation. This way service to inspire with fear to influence change repeaters to inspire with fear influence change the Bible so that the spirit of fear is not of God and of the spirit of fear is not of goblins of Satan as well as atomic spirits. Most of that agreement. I wanted to listen very carefully place because this affects everyone of our lives. Every one of us. When you allow the spirit of fear to take hold of you. You are opening yourself up to Satan's banging on his because he intends to get you if you allow Satan's blessing to intimidate you.

You will surrender your rightful victory that God has given you when you open yourself up to savings and scaring you. You are giving up the very power that God intended for you to have his job. When you allow open yourself up to Satan's calm job because that's all it is will be excreting and giving up territories. That is right for your inheritance by believing and submitting to the Lord Jesus Christ know that I have brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps no one understood the spirit of fear, like the apostle Paul writes to Timothy and he says God has not given us a spirit of fear and make it clear that the spirit of fear is an evil spirit is not of God. No one knows about fear, like the apostle Paul said are you talking about the same apostle Paul wrote third of the New Testament are you talking about the great apostle Paul who allows himself to be strong, the great apostle Paul got beaten nearly to death about the same apostle Paul was singing songs of praise when he was in the spot in the prison in Philippi.

Are you talking about Paul that Paul asked 18 tells us that he was afraid, lonely and discouraged with me. Please, if you haven't already to acts chapter 18 the first 17 versus so how do you know that he really was afraid. Look at verse nine the Lord appeared to him in person and he says don't be afraid. Paul is something God is not going to waste words of telling Paul not to be afraid.

He was not afraid in first Corinthians chapter 2 verses two and three that is that I came to you in fear and tripling that was a frightening time in Paul's life. Acts 18 see the apostle Paul.

He came from Athens to Carl's 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 ethical pride to a city that was provided for the morality I mean there was no occasion for the apostle Paul.

That was a tough assignment but don't September things about Corinth, was one of the great commercial centers of the Roman Empire. The greatest commercial center of Greece. Corinth was the political center of Greece, Corinth was the center of wickedness was the center of immorality in a bag and then when you called somebody a Corinthian you're basically saying you are the most vile degenerate depraved person I've ever met. That's how you could describe a Corinthian bagman was also the center of pagan worship.

There stood on the hills of the city, the Temple of Venus that was known as Aphrodite to the Greeks and then was known as a pastor off to the Phoenician and there on the temple was filled with 1000 priestesses or temple prostitutes.

Now you understand the fear that the apostle Paul when he landed into the city. Now you understand why he wrote to the Corinthians, and sent to them. I want to see nothing among you but Christ and him crucified. You can understand what he wrote to the Corinthian say, do not be deceived.

Neither the immoral nor idolaters nor the idolaters nor the homosexuals nor the thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor the revelers nor the robbers.

The kingdom of God and then comes the great declaration of victory there in chapter 6 of first Corinthians, and he says, and such were some of you not are some of you were in the past some of you today would tolerate sin in the church.

We don't mind sinners coming into the church in becoming members in active in the church of Jesus Christ. Listen, do not be deceived habitual center would not inherit the kingdom of God and only Jesus Christ and his bloodshed on Calvary can release you and free you from sin. But if you're a believer and habitually living in sin you are marking 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 want to share some good news with you today in the times of fear 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 that I want to share with you for things that God did in order to encourage his faithful servant, Paul. First he provided him with godly friends with verses 2 to 5 of chapter 18 of the book of acts provided him with godly friends. Secondly, God blessed him with food for his labor. Verses 5 to 8 firmly God fellowship with him personally in a very special way.

Verses 9 to 11 and then forcefully going to see that God caused the frustration of the enemy's plan verses 12 to 17 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 verse is to destroy the book of acts wanted 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 wonderful couple who love the Lord to be his friends to be his companions and Priscilla were God's gift to Paul's burden of responsibility, and Priscilla were God's gift to Paul's formidable task and Priscilla were God's provision of companionship provision of friendship provision of fellowship. Provision of encouragement provision of love is faithful servant. Apostle Paul, the great apostle Paul needed someone to walk with him in the times of discouragement, and fear you and I dated, but was these were not ordinary friends. We use the word loosely these days. This will not play fair weather friends that 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 three and four Paul tells us that there were many to give up Delhi for the apostle Paul so you understand what kind of friends they are the rest their own lives for the apostle Paul and Priscilla came Corinth from Rome because the Emperor at that time in prayer for this he made a declaration that all Jews within the Christian Jews and are not have to leave the city of Rome and ended up in Corinth just by accident just by accident happen to be around the same time that Paul was there but 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 things out of goatskin just coincidence rabbis believe that every rabbi must have a trade must learn a trade and Paul's trade was to make tense under the skin of goats, the God of all comfort. Man needs of his discouraged servant, not only by giving him new friends ready to risk their lives for him, but he sent his old friends Silas and Timothy from Macedonia became to be with the apostle Paul and obviously they came with a gift from the Macedonians so that it freed the apostle Paul to preach the gospel full-time. Rather than working on tenths in the morning and preaching the gospel at night. I wanted to listen very carefully place when you are faithful. This is a conditional clause now where you are faithful with God. God will minister to you and your times of discouragement when your desire God in your life. God will provide for your every need.

When you're lives. Goal is to serve the living God, and by the Lord Jesus Christ. God will always not sometimes occasionally all lawyers will send a godly friend minister to you.not only provide the apostle Paul was to godly friends to walk with him. But secondly, God bless 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 food for your labor. I think this just a natural thing for all of us. And Paul worked long and hard in Carl's he spent hours in the synagogues, persuading and arguing with his fellow Jews to 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 is the Messiah that the generations of Jews looked forward to, and he was persuading him. He was arguing with them and he was talking. He is proving to them from Scripture giving them evidence and proof. And he was thoroughly exhausted, and it appeared I wanted to mentally put a circle around the word appeared that there were no fruit for his labor.

He worked long and hard and got tired and it appeared that nothing is happening when I tell you what I am saying. The light of verse eight of acts 18 but once the apostle Paul recognized in the words of Jesus that he's been throwing pearls before swine's. 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 is 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 come back the third of all the suspect because they did not want any of the Gentile best to stick to them as well. They shook their clothes on the ship their feet. The samples 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 blessed limit that I want nothing of it distinctively said your blood is on your own head on clear. In other words there fully responsible for the rejection of the Messiah. Paul that his job. Paul was faithful in delivering the message but they are now responsible for the rejection. But, you see, God wants to encourage a servant. She sometimes we think God is more interested in a ministry that is interested in the minister. That's not true. God is more concerned about his minister that is 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 the life you walk in righteousness and holiness is what God is concerned with God is so concerned with all the details of his faithful servant. The apostle Paul. So much so he knew that accrued for his labor is going encourage him so here's what the Bible says in verse eight Christmas, 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.

But that's not so.

In fact, the conversion of the leader of the synagogue, created such a having created such a turmoil among the Jewish community in Corinth that they wanted the apostle Paul to be silenced and gained but for the encouragement of Paul.

God gave this man and his family come to Christ. So God not only sends faithful friends not only gives food for labor but fervently 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 her servant Paul at the most personal level possible, so the Lord Jesus personally comes to him in a vision and he said to him, verse nine was that the Paul not be afraid in a longer, but on speaking and don't be silent than to love the Lord when he ministers to you in this very special way. If Paul was struggling in his mind trying to figure out as he really come here according to the will of God is that really the right place for him to be truly real estate or should he go and most of us have been in situations in life and we did not know which way to go and hear the Lord Jesus in his most gracious way appears to Paul and tells him, don't be afraid on speaking with you. No man will attack you harm you that many people in the city. There ought to be one for me asking this of you ever stood for the truth. Olivia stood for the gospel in your attacked for your faithfulness. Even some of your family members have you been there. Have you ever stood for the truth.

Have you been faithful to God and faithful to God's word and then you found yourself being undermined by even some Christians have never been there and you will understand the incredible joy the balm of Gilead that came upon the apostle Paul's Park in this moment have you been in the point of saying what in the world on doing what is this all about, why am I doing this. Why am I standing against the tide will I just give man I've ever been there is a word for you that he loves you he wants you to stand firm and never give up. Never, never, never give up. God not only provide your godly friends in times of fear and discouragement.

God not only gives you food for your labor. God not only fellowships with you personally, but falsely God frustrates the enemy. He frustrates the enemy on your behalf. Opponents tried to intimidate him. They tried to silence him. They tried to keep them quiet. They try to stop her from preaching, but when all of that did not work. Finally, they dragged him into court and this it will taken to court and then we get the Roman proconsul he's got to shut them up so that they can.

The court at that time. The authority vested in the proconsul. A man by the name of W by the way, you can always check Scripture with history to find it absolute accuracy.

In fact, history tells us that Dalia was the brother of the famous philosopher Seneca and Seneca was a tutor for young Nero infects Seneca roared very admiringly of his brother Galya, whom he admired since a friend. The Jews were hoping that Galya would rule against the preaching of the gospel in verse setting a precedent throughout the Roman Empire only wanted as a piece of paper signed by the proconsul and they will go to every city in the Roman Empire and this I hate we have a ruling from the proconsul shut them up, shut them up, shut them up and that had happened. You and I would not be here today. My friend only tell you when you are faithful to God even your enemies again 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 whether the proconsul Paul was about to open his mouth.

I misread you don't understand. I'm going to give you my summary judgment case dismissed. God frustrates his plan when you are faithful to God your enemies. Plans will be frustrated when you are faithful to God. God promised never to leave you nor forsake you when you're 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 be attractive that you grow weary and tired that this young man stumbled badly. Yet those who wait for the Lord will grow new string they will mount up with Eagles wing may not get tired. This is leading the way.

Dr. Michael you Seth will be back again next time to continue his series called looking up when lights got you down in this reminder if you want to know how to get started in a relationship with Christ. Start by visiting the special website. It's old TW.org/GSS. This is where you can fill out a short contact form and speak with a leading the way. Pastor or you can look through a lot of great frequently asked questions. It's all right. Therefore, you make your new listener, you might not know that leading the way his touch lives worldwide for more than 30 years now her today is just a small part of the global ministry outreach. For example, did you know that Dr. USF also operates and programs content for 24 seven satellite television channel.

It's called the kingdom sat thinking that Peter's powerful Bible teaching geared toward audiences primarily in the Middle East and other areas of the world which Arabic is the primary language as we've seen heightened levels in recent years, the entire world is media driven individuals and families are ways to deepen their understanding of God and how God relates to the challenges of their daily lives into initiatives like vision 2025. Dr. USF is been able to expand the content and the outreach of the kingdom sat in powerful ways meeting people right where they are to take time to learn about how you can stand with Dr. USF in passionately proclaiming uncompromising truth when you go to LTW.org LTW.Ford, where you can speak to a ministry representative, 866-626-3568 666-264-3569 behalf of Dr. Michael you set invited to join him again next time right here, leading the way.

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