Principles for maintaining a consistent walk with God
Sermon by Pastor. Alex
Joshua 14:6-14 Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, 8 but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. 9 So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.’
10 “Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! 11 I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. 12 Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”
13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. 14 So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly. 15 (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.) Then the land had rest from war.
The journey of Israel represents the journey of a believer.
In the study of Israel’s journey, the question that always comes up is – Why did God promise them that He would give them the land, fight for them, and then send them out to fight? Traditionally we say, they should have trusted God more. But there are more things there than just trusting God.
Every battle the Israelites fought they subdued something inside their hearts. Their destination was a physical one. Our destination is a spiritual one – Made perfect in Christ.
Caleb was one of the two people who saw the fulfilment of God’s original plan. He finished the race. His race was not easy and yet he finished it. Some of the challenges he faced along the way were
Caleb waited 45 years to see the fulfilment of God’s promise
We know about Abraham, when he didn’t have a son for a long time he listened to his wife and went into his servant. Every time there is a delay, your faith wanes. But Caleb for 45 years was holding on to God’s promise and was waiting for something to happen.
Caleb watched others’ fail and fall away
Amid his wait, he was seeing Israel’s wanderings. Every time they failed, every time they disobeyed, God dealt with them. That could have affected his holding onto God’s promises. There must have been frustrations, and fears about whether he would make it, whether he would see his promises fulfilled!
Caleb watched other’s fears/lack of faith
Verse 8 is the worst. His own companions put fear in the people’s hearts. Even when his fellow Israelites were afraid the fear of the Lord dominated his heart than the fear of the enemy. Fear of God is holy reverence. The thought behind it is – Whatever God says I trust in Him; I believe in Him. He is the Utmost. I believe in Him.
But Israel had this problem. They knew that God was the only God and He could do great miracles. But again, and again they followed other worthless idols. Why?
The reason is that they never found their satisfaction in God. They never found satisfaction in their relationship with God.
If they knew that “in God” they would be satisfied mentally, spiritually, and emotionally they wouldn’t have gone to other places. They were always looking for something new. Nowadays, people are looking for new revelations. Everything that needs to be said is already said. Then, what are they looking for? They won’t obey what is already revealed and instead they go looking for something else.
When we learn the fear of God, we trust Him absolutely. We know who He is and what He can do.
Each one of us is His masterpiece and He already has a design for us. So, every challenge we face in life is custom-made for us. It is designed by God to bring us to maturity; which means to complete making us in the image He has for us in His mind. It is done so we can fulfil the plan He has for us; so that we are equipped for whatever assignment and purpose He has for our lives. He has wired each one of us differently and so He needs to deal with us differently. So, every challenge that comes to us is not by accident. It comes to make us more like Jesus.
We have to face impossible situations; different kinds of giants that prevent us from moving forward. So how did Caleb face his challenges and giants? What kept him going? In the last days there is going to be darkness but God will bring us to victory. How is He going to bring us out victorious? It starts with the mind.
Numbers 14:24 But my servant Caleb has a different attitude than the others have. He has remained loyal to me, so I will bring him into the land he explored. His descendants will possess their full share of that land.
What was different about Caleb’s attitude?
Choosing faith over facts
The giants were real, the giants were stronger. Ten decided to look at the facts but two decided to operate in faith. They thought because GOD SAID SO we will overcome.
We face a lot of facts every day but we have to hold on to what God has promised, is our portion.
Psalms 139:16 You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
God knows every challenge and every struggle we are ever going to face. When we connect to Him, He will teach us to overcome every challenge and struggles we face.
John 15:5 I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing
Choosing convictions over circumstances
Convictions are a set of values we have developed based on the strong opinions we have of God. Sometimes we may feel that God is not with us but we have to have a strong conviction that he will never leave us nor forsake us.
In the story of the 12 spies, the question is – Where was the real enemy? All 12 heard God. Ten held a different opinion and two had a different opinion. Fear gripped their minds. The same thing happened to Saul and his army while facing Goliath. They had faced many battles before but they somehow became fearful when facing Goliath. Fear entered the King and it spread through the whole Army. Even though they were more than capable of taking him down it was the fear in their minds that paralyzed them from realizing their full potential.
1 Thessalonians 2:13 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe.
The word works only for those who believe.
If our convictions aren’t strong, then very likely the circumstances will overwhelm us. The depth of the word must be in us. That is why scripture memory is good because, at the right time, the Holy Spirit will remind us what we require. Then again, we have a choice to believe what He says. Like in the cartoons, there is a white Angel on your right and the devil on your left. Whoever you choose to listen, will control you.
Whichever looks greater or looks great in your mind will control you. Whoever controls your mind controls you.
Looking at the purpose rather than the pain
Giants come in the form of challenges, problems, and difficult people. All these are coming with a specific purpose in our lives. They want to deal with something in our lives. Every time God deals with us there is pain involved. Why is there pain? It is because God is trying to get rid of something in us, trying to kill something in us, trying to help us overcome something in our lives. But we have to look past the pain and look at the purpose involved.
Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
We may not understand why we are going through something but we know that God has a purpose for that pain.
James 1:2-4 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
Every time we go through trials and tribulations we must rejoice because God is building something in us. We have to develop a mentality of expecting battles. If we don’t, we are going nowhere. For e.g. Nowadays, in churches, everybody is waiting to get raptured and go to heaven. They don’t realize there are battles to fight.
Keeping your passion intact
How did Caleb stir up his passion? Because without the supply of light and life, we will go dull. Caleb must have been someone very strongly connected with God. Life means peace comes, hope comes, strength comes, everything needed comes.
Romans 12:11 Do not let your zeal subside; keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
What is the secret to stirring up spiritual fervor? Only His word and His presence. That’s one way we can measure our quiet time. When we go into the Presence of God, no matter what we are feeling, by the end of the time there must be a reversal. God must convict us of something or if we are worried, strength must come, hope and peace must come. Morning quiet time cannot become a routine.
Caleb learned the secret of stirring up his passion for God.
Psalms 119:49 Remember your promise to me; it is my only hope.
Caleb kept going over the promises God had made to him. He had consistent communication with God. He kept the fire burning within him.
Being very specific and clear about your assignment
Caleb asked Joshua for the hill country the Lord spoke about to him. He was very focused on what he was supposed to push for.
Loving the Lord with all your heart, mind, soul and strength
Caleb loved God consistently in spite of every challenge, delay, disappointment, long wait and giants. He acknowledged God’s love for him. He understood God kept him alive and strong so he can fulfil the assignment kept for him.
If God is not dealing with something in our lives, then something is wrong. There must be battles to fight because we are simply works in progress.
1 John 5:4 For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.
Everyone born of God needs to be an overcomer. The only way we become overcomers is if we practice this in our daily lives.
1. Choose faith over facts
2. Choose conviction over circumstances
3. See the purpose beyond the pain
4. Keep our passion for God intact
5. Be very specific and clear about your assignment
5. Love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength
The key diseases in the last days Church
1. Spiritual blindness
E.g. In the Laodicean church the problem was not only that they were lukewarm but also, they were blind about their spiritual condition.
Spiritual blindness means, we are hearing from God but we are not aware of our real condition. It happens because we are complacent, or have become very familiar with God, unbelief and, hardness of heart.
Any of these can cause spiritual blindness. We think we are doing well until God measures us. When God measures us it’s too late.
2. No proper grounding in the Word
It is in transition times the enemy’s greatest attacks will happen. Even in the Army, it is during the transit the enemy will lay an ambush because, once we come into the ground, we have secured the ground already. When we move to a new place, we are always vulnerable to enemy attacks. It is the same way in the spirit. When our consistency wanes, we are most vulnerable and then he will send people. The first thing he will do is to confuse you – “Did God really say you will die.”
He is actually speaking the truth but it is half-truth. He always confuses through people around you, through friends, other people. If you are not properly grounded in the Word and God’s voice you can get lost.
There is a war in our minds but the choice of victory lies in our hands, not the devil’s. God did not leave us alone to fight our battles.
We all look for promises in a tough situation but in the promises, there are strategies.
Dr. Jonathan David
Strategy is a plan that cannot fail. David sought the Lord afresh each time he faced a battle. Each time the Lord gave him a different strategy.
Let’s take a look at all the promises given to us by our Father.
We are born again to overcome the world through faith
1 John 5:4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
This is the promise of God that those who are born of God will overcome the world even by our faith. This is a promise and this promise needs to be developed as a strategy in our minds so that every time we face something we know we are called to be overcomers even in that situation. That’s why in the end the Seven churches were evaluated by – “he who overcomes.” So, the DNA is in us but we have to develop, practice and live it out rather than just quoting the scriptures.
We have to fight the good fight to keep the faith
2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
There is a fighting involved in our faith. A Good fight. What are we wrestling against? Challenges that come to overpower us or cause us to give up. When we look at Paul’s life, we see all the different challenges.
2 Corinthians 11: 23 – 33 Are they servants of Christ? I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have travelled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm. Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my feeling that weakness? Who is led astray, and I do not burn with anger? If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am. God, the Father of our Lord Jesus, who is worthy of eternal praise, knows I am not lying. When I was in Damascus, the governor under King Aretas kept guards at the city gates to catch me. I had to be lowered in a basket through a window in the city wall to escape from him.
In each of his challenges, Paul faced a decision whether to obey God or succumb to his emotions, his feelings, or his circumstances. That’s the fight.
So, if we are to define overcomers, we can say we have kept the faith and finished the race. It’s not how we start but how we finish. We have to develop this. It is not going to happen automatically.
Every time we face a challenge it takes a lot of energy, strength, and faith. Paul made a deliberate decision to trust God and follow God. That’s why he finished his race in the way he did. Whenever we face a difficult situation, we need to make these decisions.
We remain in Him to reign over all the aspects of our lives
Romans 7:14-17 So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So, I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.
Romans 5:17 – For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
Because of our connection with Christ, we have the power to reign over everything. If you go back to man and woman without sin they had dominion over all things.
Genesis 1:26, 27 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like ourselves. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So, God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them.
As we grow in maturity we will increase in our authority over things. This includes ruling over every aspect of our lives.
John 15:4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
The secret is this – we remain in Him. Unless we grow in intimacy and are consistent in our walk, we can never walk into all that God has promised for us. If we lose our connection with Him, we cannot walk into every promise given to us in Christ. Our relationship with Him has to grow in intimacy and depth.
If we just cut a plant and put it against another plant it will receive no nutrients from it but it is still part of the plant because it is just lying there. But when you cut it and graft it to the main plant then it receives nutrients. When we grow in depth and intimacy in our relationship with Jesus whatever is in Him will flow through us. He will live His life through us. Every time something dies in us His life becomes a lifestyle in us. Every time we submit our life to the Word of God, it becomes a habit in us.
When He is living His life through us whatever is in Christ will manifest because Christ has overcome everything. God wants to teach us to overcome every fear, and every weakness because Christ has no weakness.
Romans 8:19 (KJV) For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
All this will lead to us becoming like Christ which is a description of the last days’ generation – Manifest sons of God. The word sons here mean mature sons. When you become an overcomer, you have the power to prevail over everything. When you learn to reign in life you have power to govern over everything in your life. That results in a Christ-like life which is an unstoppable, indestructible life. Then John 14:30 will come true in our lives.
John 14:30 (NKJV) I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.
When the devil comes to us, he will find nothing in us. This is the strategy God has given us and we must understand it and embrace it.
We are never called to just survive our walk. According to our maturity and stature, God will give us influence.
As we discussed in the beginning, everything starts in the mind and there are two things we need to do
1. Learn to control our thoughts
2 Corinthians 10:5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
So, is it fair to say that we have the power to control our thoughts? It means the content and direction of our thoughts are in our hands. Papa always says that if a bird flies over your head nothing wrong with that but if you let the bird build a nest and lay an egg over your head then it’s your problem. Meaning why give strength to everything you hear? Why do you believe everything you hear?
The devil will never use something that doesn’t sound scriptural. If he tried to trap Jesus Himself with scripture, what about us? He will always come in a spiritual manner using scripture to try to trap us. If you don’t have a proper understanding of the word we are bound to fall. Especially now the grace message says Jesus died for every imaginable sin that we can do. Which simply means we can live however we want to. Scripturally, it is correct that Jesus has died for us but it also says that every day we need to walk in righteousness, fear, and trembling.
In the case of Eve, the devil only suggested but who looked at the fruit and decided to eat it? Eve. She decided in her mind that she was going to eat it and that it was beautiful. All the devil did was to suggest but the rest of the process was done by Eve. In the beginning itself, she simply could have rejected it by saying – “No. God said No.” Why did she carry on? That is what gave the devil the opening.
That’s why the devil always focuses on our minds. We need to filter what people say to us.
Job’s wife understood and experienced all God’s blessings in the beginning. She understood the goodness of God and the graciousness of God. But the moment trouble came she said curse God and die. Whose voice was she listening to? When we read the earlier chapters, we see the devil said the same dialogue to God. Job had to filter that voice in his turbulent state.
Peter actually knew the purpose of Christ which is why he was following him. But in Matthew 16 when Jesus said I have to go to the cross his emotions took over and he held back. He said I won’t let you go and immediately Jesus said – “Get behind me, Satan.” because He knew the source of that voice.
We’ve to tell ourselves we are who God says we are. We are not what people’s opinions say of us
Remember David when he came to Saul’s camp?
His brothers had an opinion of him that he was proud and deceitful.
1 Samuel 17:28 But when David’s oldest brother, Eliab, heard David talking to the men, he was angry. “What are you doing around here anyway?” he demanded. “What about those few sheep you’re supposed to be taking care of? I know about your pride and deceit. You just want to see the battle!”
His father had an opinion of him that he was an errand boy.
1 Samuel 17:18 And give these ten cuts of cheese to their captain. See how your brothers are getting along, and bring back a report on how they are doing.
Saul had an opinion of him that he was too young.
1 Samuel 17:33 “Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.”
Goliath had an opinion of David.
1 Samuel 17:44 “Come over here, and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and wild animals!” Goliath yelled.
So, everybody had an opinion about him. But there was something inside David that understood what his true identity was. It is because of what God had been dealing with him, he understood. So, we cannot let the words of everyone around us affect and form us. We must know who we are and what we are in Christ. Because only that is our true identity. Of course, the enemy can always inject thoughts, and we can always reject them because we don’t have to accept everything that people say about us.
2) Stop overthinking
Sometimes when we think we didn’t perform well or we made a mistake we need to get back with God first. Remember the prodigal son? Every time we get right with God there is a fresh new strength that comes in. But if we keep overthinking and overthinking and overthinking, we open up a door in the spirit for the enemy to come and inject more negative thoughts until he takes us away from God. So, we need to be careful about overthinking.
3. Set your mind on the Holy Spirit
We need to recognize when God’s voice is speaking, when our own fears are rising up, and when the devil is speaking. All these we need to be clear and recognize because every battle in life is won or lost in the mind. If we allow our minds to wander and be affected by all these things enemy can easily enslave us back to the same pattern.
The way Paul overcame his struggle in the mind is in Romans 8:5
Romans 8:5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires, but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
A good example of setting the mind on the flesh is 2 Timothy 3.
2 Timothy 3: 1-5 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
They were Christians and they loved God but they loved other things more. They never allowed the Spirit to deal with their lives. That’s why they were Christians, they were in Church and they had a form of Godliness but self was still king in their lives.
So how do we set our minds on the Spirit?
Romans 8:13 For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.
Romans 8:14 (KJV) or as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
- It talks about mature sons. The more we allow the Spirit to work in us, the more we become like Christ. Then overcoming the flesh becomes easy. We must allow the Spirit to put to death, the things of the flesh. We must make a deliberate decision that every time the Holy Spirit speaks, we have to make a decision to obey; whether we like it or not because He knows what He is doing. His main job is to form Christ in our lives.
- Things of the Spirit also talks about things of eternal value. What are we going to bring beyond our graves? We have to evaluate our lives in this way. Of all the things I do what is going to last me beyond my grave, beyond my lifetime? Identify what is only a short-term benefit. Especially, if we are in the last days and we are the last generation we need to be very specific and sharp. Whatever we build internally lasts beyond our grave.
Galatians 5:16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.
- Whatever good work we do regardless of how we live our lives we will receive rewards. But we must not forget it is how we live our lives that will be judged. Good works do not cover the way we live our lives. What we do for others is a separate thing. But in our life, we will be accountable to God when we stand alone in front of Him. Setting our mind is focusing on these things.
How do we measure whether the Spirit has more and more control over our lives?
Every time I respond to a situation – Is it my emotions that are rising first? Is it my opinions that are rising first? Am I reacting in response to the situation? Or, am I hearing the Word of God clearly, and I am adapting and aligning myself to how I should be?
In daily life every time we obey the Holy Spirit, He gains an extra yard in our lives. When this habit is continuous and consistent He gains more and more yards in our lives until we begin to think like Him, respond like Him and speak like Him. We have to give Him more space. He cannot come and just take over lives. It has to start with a decision from us.
We must believe
- We are not left alone to struggle
- Learning to overcome every trial is our choice
- Learning to govern our lives is our choice
- Learning to control our thoughts is our choice
- Learning to set our mind on things of the Spirit is our choice
Now, everybody is waiting for revival and outpouring of the Spirit. We need to understand the difference between the infilling of the Spirit, the Spirit that lives within and being full of the Spirit
The indwelling Spirit
John 14: 15-17 If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth
The Bible says when we believe in Christ the Holy Spirit begins to dwell in us.
Infilling of the Spirit
Infilling is an impartation. Jesus said, “When the Holy Spirit comes you will receive power.” Even before that, they were still operating in signs, wonders, and miracles but by this infilling, they would receive power. It’s a fresh impartation into our spirit to do something. In Acts, every time they faced some struggle and they needed boldness, impartation came, and infilling came.
Being full of the Spirit
Jesus was full of the Spirit, fully led by the Spirit. Did He receive any impartation there? No. From conception to crucifixion the Holy Spirit lived in His life. To be full of the Spirit means that much the Spirit has control over your life. How much place have you given Him, every time He deals? Our obedience should be consistent and continuous until we can say like Paul– No longer I but Christ lives in me. Somebody is doing the killing and allowing Christ to manifest.
To sum up, we are called to prevail over every trouble and govern over every aspect of our life. For this, we need to learn to control and manage our thoughts and set priority on things of the Holy Spirit. Ultimately this will result in Christ-likeness. Christ’s life will begin to manifest in us and it will be an indestructible life. This must happen in the last generation. God never wants us to remain in bondage or depression or in struggle because God created us to grow from glory to glory and strength to strength. This is the path designed for us.
Romans 8:19 (KJV) For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
This must come true in our generation. The church must grow in stature. The church must mature. The sons of God must manifest. Amen.
Rehoboth 