Lion Tamers - Pt. 4

Lion Tamers

I. Introduction
The king of the jungle. Fierce. Loud. Teeth bared. Claws sharpened. Ready to pounce. Ready to destroy. Infinitely powerful. Striking fear in everyone! Lions. One of the top attractions at zoos and circuses! We don't mind watching them when they are caged up and at a safe distance. However, the truth is most of us, even though we may not have on the costume, carry a whip, or have a chair handy, are daily squaring off against lions. An issue, a sickness, a relationship, a reoccurring problem that is just as much a man eater as if it had a mane and a nerve shaking roar. So how do we tame lions? How do we handle the beast that is trying to handle us?

We have learned that Lion Tamers:
1. Need a good eye doctor. Your eyes if unguarded can cause you to have to face lions you should have avoided.
2. You will be sent lions.
3. You can find honey only when you have been hunted.
4. You don't face lions when you face lions.
5. Your life is being watched.
6. You can't wait to be attacked. Develop preemptive faith.
7. Cold days can be your best days! God does us a favor when he sends cold days! Don't battle the brrrr battle the grrrrr.

II. Text
1 Peter 5:8-9
8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.

III. Lion Taming Truths
Let me take a few moments today and wrap up Lion Tamers with a few more key and powerful Lion Taming Truths.

A. Lion Tamers must develop roar resistance.
Just because it looks like a lion and sounds like a lion doesn't mean it is a lion. He tries to intimidate us into defeat. He tries to roar us into retreat. Goliath looked tough, sounded tough and acted tough. He wasn't so tough. The devil will play you. He is like a lion. He isn't a lion. His greatest weapon is his roar.

Roar causes panic. Fear. If he can get us to be afraid he can get us to be dismayed. If we become dismayed we become dislodged! We go from "I shall not be moved" to "I shall be mauled!"

Loud is designed to drowned out the still small voice. Volume is viscous. If he can ever get you to hear him more than you hear HIM he knows he has you beat! The enemy of our soul always operates directly opposite to God.

We must develop roar resistance! In fact, we must learn to run to the roar!

The lion is already defanged, declawed, and defeated!

Hebrews 2:14 - Therefore, since the children have flesh and blood, he himself also shared the same things, so that by his death he might destroy the one who has the power of death.
(destroyed - made none effect)

1 John 3:8 - The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.
(destroy there means come unglued, can't hold together)

Colossians 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them. (Strips the authority of the enemy, exposes him for a fraud!)

So if he is destroyed, disintegrated, and dethroned then all he has left is a roar.

And so he roars with words like cancer, divorce, never, impossible, bankruptcy, divorce, death.

Stick your fingers in your ears and chant "nanananana - I can't hear you!"

If you