Sermon Central
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In The Dark- Part Two
Contributed by Joe Rowland on Oct 19, 2009 (message contributor)
Summary: I dreamed that I was in the dark. I had a feeling of hopelessness. I was afraid. All of a sudden, God’s presence came upon me. I started to shout, “Jesus”. I no longer felt hopeless. I was not afraid to be in the dark. I knew that God was with me.
In The Dark- Part Two
1 When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
2 And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,
3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;
4 For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.
I have entitled this today: “In the Dark”- Part Two
The Lord had promised to be with Israel in time of war, that is if the cause of Israel was right.
Even though the promise was addressed to a nation, it holds true for modern believers as well.
It also regards to spiritual warfare, this is a warfare that all Christians must engage in which we can win through Christ.
If we are to win, then we must win through God’s prescribed order, that order is Christ; Christ is the source of all things that come from God.
The cross is the means by which it is given to us.
This means is that we make the cross the object of our faith, and not allow it to be moved anywhere else.
When this is done, the Holy Spirit who works within the finished work of Christ will work on our behalf, guaranteeing victory within our lives.
This is how we, as believers in Christ, will have victory in our lives.
Last week we used this portion of Scripture:
1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
Abram was not to fear because God was his shield, and exceedingly great reward.
2 And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,
The priest being used instead of a millitary commander shows that the battle was more spiritual than anything else.
With the child of God, in one way or the other, everything is spiritual.
3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;
Remember in 1 Kings Chapter 18, when Elijah called fire down from heaven?
He was on the brink of a great victory over the Prophets of Bael.
After his great victory, Elijah was discouraged and on the run for his life.
When we have been on the mountain of God, sometimes it seems the next thing we go through is a valley.
Elijah, even after a great victory for God, was then in a place of darkness in his walk with God.
1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.
2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
Elijah was at a place of darkness in His walk.
I have entitled this today: “In The Dark”- Part two
I have entitled this today: “In The Dark”
8-17-04
I dreamed that I was in the dark. I had a feeling of hopelessness. I was afraid. All of a sudden, God’s presence came upon me. I started to shout, “Jesus”. I no longer felt hopeless. I was not afraid to be in the dark. I knew that no matter what, God was with me. I woke up and the presence of God was all around the room.
Interpretation
Sometimes we are in the dark, and we feel hopeless.
Sometimes if we are honest, we are even afraid of situations that arise in our lives.
In the dream, I was afraid. All of a sudden, God’s presence came upon me. I started to shout, “Jesus”. I no longer felt hopeless.
I was no longer afraid to be in the dark.
I knew that no matter what, God was with me. I woke up and the presence of God was all around the room.
