By Lamont H. Fuchs, Ed.D.
(https://preacherspurs.com)
Scripture references: Romans 8:38-39, Matthew 5:28, Matthew 13:3-9
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine, sounds conceptually lovely, but the fact is, many people don’t feel it, don’t know it, and don’t use the power God gave them through His Spirit. That power allows us to lean on Jesus and overcome temptation as He did.
We give up too easily, and we allow Satan too much sway. We need to remember the final battle has been won, and Jesus is our Victor. Live it, speak it.
Like Paul, I have battled with doing the things I don’t want to do and not doing the things I want to do. I don’t think I’m the only one, but I have, through the Grace of God, fought toe to toe with Satan over my sin, and not that I have won every time, but I have won enough to know when to start fighting. I start in my head when those evil thoughts begin to form. God’s word and the Spirit are my weapons, suitable for us all.
I have seen most of you after the invitation to this altar has been made; it looks like everyone is saved. That’s good. I’m in good company. You may not know everything about me, and I may not know everything about you, but we have eternity together to make up for that. By the way, now that we are all saved, when does eternity start? We are eternal right now. Ever think about that?
Why don’t we act like we are saved by Christ all the time? Christ saves us from sin by His grace, cleansed by His blood, right? We should be living a Kingdom life. I mean, you can’t kill a Christian – did you know that? We will never die! This earthly body will go to a grave, to dust, but I will live eternally. So, all you can do to me on this earth is change my address. Right?
What do I have to fear as a Christian? I don’t have to be tough enough – I have Christ; he’s tough enough. I’m His son, and He is my Father. Who shall I fear? I wasn’t saved to be silent. But I know a few things that not everyone is going to tell you.
First off, I’m possessed. Romans 8:38-39 says so. Many places in the Bible assure me of my Salvation, but that’s my favorite. The Holy Spirit has me, and nothing can separate me from His love and that possession. He holds on to me. NOTHING – can separate His love for me – NOTHING – Not even me.
Secondly, even though I’m saved and possessed by God, I still sin. I do! I admit it. Like Paul, I hate it when I do that, but it still happens when I’m weak, and I ask God to forgive me and help me not to sin anymore. I found a key to help me not sin. And it works.
As Jesus spoke in Galilee, Matthew 5:28, I firmly believe that if you think about doing sin, like adultery, the Lord knows your heart, and He can see your mind, and you have already sinned. My reaction to hearing that for the first time was, “That is totally not fair! I just thought about it. I didn’t do it. I just kind of had a little fantasy, and hey, no harm, no foul, I didn’t do anything.” So, follow me down this rabbit trail for a minute.
It’s all in your head. If you’ve been a Christian for a while, you’ve heard the parable of Jesus when he talked about scattering seeds on fertile ground. Preachers, teachers, and evangelists all love that parable. So let me read it to you from Matthew 13:3-9.
Consider how the devil works just like that, too.
I could even rewrite those verses about Satan. Watch.
Satan’s 13 – Behold, Satan went forth to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the Angels came and devoured them: and others fell upon places, where Jesus was the Rock and Foundation: and straightway they dissipated when the Son arose, and they were scorched because they had no root, they withered away. And others fell upon the church; and righteousness grew up and choked them: and others fell upon the wicked fertile soil in thoughtless minds, and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He that hath ears, let him hear.
