Podcast: Courage to do the Word of God

 

 

 

 

Joshua 1:7   Only be thou strong and very courageous

Be strong in the LORD ... in the Word brought to you by the Holy Spirit.

You must not try to be strong in your own self or in your will power but in that specific word given you by God through HIS Spirit.

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We must not turn to the right nor to the left from that Word God has spoken to us by HIS Spirit.

The devil tried to persuade Eve that God hadn't really spoken those instructions to Adam.

Genesis 3:1-5    Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 

(Did God really say that?  Surely not.  You must have misunderstood.) 

And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:  But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 

(Eve added to the Word of God when she said they could not "touch" that tree.  God didn't say that.  Inwardly we can never stand if we add to the Word of God on something for we know we added that and it causes the instruction to be polluted to the point we get to where we really aren't sure.  When we add to what God said, it becomes like leaven, working through the entire word.) 

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

(The devil will always try to stop us from believing what God says.  Thoughts will be brought to try to stop us.) 

For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 

(Thoughts come to try to explain away what God said and to try to get us not to go that way.)

 

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When God tells me to do something, I try to do it quickly for I know the longer I wait the more opportunity I will have not to do that which God has said.

The devil will try to snatch the Word God has given me out of my heart and cause me to wonder, "Did God really tell me to do that?"

Then my own flesh will try to reason away the Word given me by God.

Then people watching me will try to get me to go another direction.

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When I was a new Christian in 1975, I had a major test.

A woman had taken me to court concerning my business which I owned at that time.

A word, which I believed to be from God, came to me:  "Don't testify."

I told my lawyer he might not want to represent me for I believed God had told me "Don't testify" in this court case.  (Lawyer said he would represent me even if I didn't testify.)

A woman who worked for me became angry when she heard I was not going to testify.

She had witnessed the situation and planned to testify.  When I was not going to testify, she felt the burden was on her.

I said to her, "What can I do?  I believe God has said to me 'Don't testify.' "

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The man I was dating at this time tried to get me to testify.  

He said:  "Joan, you aren't doing this girl any favors by not testifying."

I replied:  "I'm not try to do her any favors.  I'm just trying to obey God.  I believe God has told me 'Don't testify.' "

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At the court trial the judge was very shocked when he learned I would not be testifying.

During the trial, my lawyer said to me, "Flo's testimony did not go as well as I thought it would.  If you would testify, I know we would win."

I replied:  "I'll see."

I left the courtroom and went to rest room and began praying:  "What do YOU want me to do."

Immediately I heard, "Don't testify."

I returned to courtroom and shook my head "No".

After all this, I had a down moment and I said to God:  "I hope YOU know what we're doing.  We're going to lose this case."

But we didn't lose the case.  We won.  The judge ruled in my favor and I was acquitted.

Even when all on your own team are against you, you have to be strong enough in that which you believe God has said to you that you hold fast to that word.

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Mark 4:1-8    And HE began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto HIM a great multitude, so that HE entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land.  And HE taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in His doctrine,

Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:

And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.

And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:  But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.

And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.

And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.

13-20   The sower soweth the word.  

And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. 

(Remember how Satan came to Eve:  "Has God really said that?  That's not so."  Satan comes today to us with his thoughts to try to cause us to doubt.)

And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;  And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.

(At first when the word comes, they are glad ... but when people begin to scoff at them because of the word or persecute them in other ways, then they are offended and turn from the word God has given them and go in the way of the flesh and devils.)

And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.

(They received the word and did the word ... bringing forth fruit from that word given them.)

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A man came to me saying he was a pastor.  

He heard what I taught concerning preachers calling themselves "Reverend," exalting themselves above the apostles of the Bible and exalting themselves above the Word of God for no man in the Bible calls himself "Reverend."

This man, 48-years-old, had lived on church property for 30 years.

When he shared this word with his church group, according to his report, the church people became very angry and called him a false teacher and put him out of the church group ... and told him to vacate church property within that week.

He had no income, no money saved, no place to live.

He was married and had a young child.

My concern over him is I didn't think he had a solid basis on how to follow God, which we need in the storms of this present life.

We sent him a laptop computer which was not being used so he could get the teaching on our blog.  

I counseled him to get a secular job as Paul did and preach in his spare time.

I sent him teaching concerning following God by HIS Spirit.

After that I heard no more from him.  I felt by his sudden silence he turned from the teaching I had done which he said he believed.

It is so important to know about the Holy Spirit and how HE leads us and to meditate on those scriptures given us by the Holy Spirit of God that we can be strong enough and have enough courage to hold onto the direction of God.

We build a deep root system in God when we keep the word of God given by the Spirit of God before us day and night, thinking on that instruction ... until we can do that instruction.

This is the power of God for us.

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Joshua 1:7-9    Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Have not I commanded thee? 

(Isn't it God who commanded us by this word given to us?)

Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

(If God has told us to do this, God will uphold us.  What human is stronger than God?)

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