God Will Never Give You More Than You Can Handle.

Steve Gentry

[0:00] Alright, go ahead and have a seat. Welcome to Village Church. If this is your first time here, my name is Steve [0:05] I’m one of the pastors here at Village Church and as always I’m thankful and grateful to see each and every one of you this morning [0:11] If you have your Bibles, go ahead and open them to 1st Corinthians chapter 10 [0:15] We’re gonna start in verse 13 this morning, but before we get to that [0:21] I just want to let you know about one thing that’s coming up next week [0:24] If you are newer to Village Church or if you’ve decided, you know what, this is where I want to plant some roots

[0:31] I want this to be my church home [0:33] Next Sunday morning we’re gonna offer something called Membership Matters [0:38] And we do this a few times throughout the year and what it is, it’s going to be two different Sunday mornings where the [0:44] doctrines and beliefs of Village Church are explained and expressed [0:49] And we talk about why we do things the way that we do things, why we have village groups, why we have a worship experience [0:56] on Sunday morning, why we have personal discipleship groups, why we sing the songs that we sing and why we believe what we do

[1:04] about the mission of Jesus and then also kind of the structure that we have as leaders, the structures that we have as a church [1:12] and what church membership really is [1:15] And so that starts next Sunday morning and if you want more information on that, please go to the city or go to the church website [1:23] villagechurch.cc and we’re gonna ask that you RSVP for that so that we know how many people can be a part of that [1:30] Our space is limited because of the classroom space that we have and I think it’s gonna be limited to about 15 people this time [1:36] But if you don’t make it by the cutoff, we’re gonna be doing this again as well

[1:41] It’s also gonna have a great time of Q&A that I’m going to be a part of after I’m done up here by God’s grace [1:49] I’ll get up there without injury and be able to answer any questions that you might have about the information that we’re going over [1:56] So please again, if you want to be a part of that, go either on the city or on the church website and sign up for membership matters [2:03] It’s a very important thing and I love being a part of it [2:06] But we’re in the middle of a series right now called All You Need Is Love and Other Lives I Used to Believe [2:13] And what this series is about is the different philosophies that we are often times conditioned to believe

[2:20] about the lives that we live and the culture that we happen to be at at this specific time in this specific area [2:27] and just the fact that how we define love is important, how we make decisions is important [2:36] And then last week we took a look at how it is that we are to judge one another with God’s judgment that he expresses for us in the Bible [2:44] and what discipleship actually looks like as we’re engaged by one another with discernment about the specific details about our lives [2:53] and how that can be uncomfortable, but it is actually God’s grace into our lives [2:58] so that we are not stuck in a stagnant reality of just being a follower of Jesus but never knowing how to get anywhere

[3:06] but instead through discipleship we’re engaging one another in helping one another be able to grow in our relationships with Jesus Christ [3:15] And so what that leads us into really is a thought of what does it actually look like as you’re going through life [3:23] with the different burdens and the different pains and the different visions that God gives us through his word [3:29] as to what we’re supposed to do because we’re conditioned in our lives and really in our culture [3:35] and sometimes it makes its way into the church the way that we look at discipleship [3:40] and we believe that God will not give us more than we can handle

[3:46] And this is really a phrase that’s given to us as a comfort [3:50] a phrase that’s given to us really thought of as a sage piece of advice [3:54] it’s probably a piece of advice that you’ve given to someone else [3:58] it’s probably a piece of advice that you’ve received from someone else when you’ve been going through maybe a particularly trying time in your life [4:06] and it sounds so accurate, it sounds so true [4:10] But the question that we need to deal with is, is that a biblical philosophy?

[4:15] Is that a biblical phrase? Is that true? [4:18] Does God ever tell us anywhere that he’s not going to give us more than we can handle? [4:26] The fact of the matter is, is no. [4:28] That’s never something that God promised. [4:31] That’s never something that God said is not going to happen to. [4:34] The fact of the matter is, is that throughout scripture what you actually see

[4:39] is evidence to the contrary of that statement. [4:44] It seems that God frequently in the Old and New Testament gives people more than they can handle. [4:53] He calls people to live for things that are greater than their strength or their capability [4:59] seems to be able to handle. [5:01] And so for many, this phrase has become less of a comforting phrase [5:09] and more of a reason why we don’t do hard things

[5:14] for the sake of living a balanced life. [5:21] Because at the heart of this phrase is really fear. [5:25] The heart of this phrase is really this trepidation that something’s going to come into my life [5:30] that I’m not going to have all the answers. [5:33] That something’s going to come into my life that I’m going to have to depend on a strength [5:38] that simply doesn’t come naturally to me.

[5:43] And the way that we’re conditioned in our lives and the way that we’re conditioned in our culture [5:47] is to believe that God’s never going to lay something on my plate that I’m not tough enough to handle. [5:53] And when things that do seem more complicated and more difficult to handle [5:58] then maybe our natural innate ability seems to be able to endure. [6:03] Our typical response as people is to either refuse to deal with it [6:10] or we simply proclaim that we’re not going to do more than we think our energy and our capabilities

[6:17] will allow us to do. [6:20] The reality is that God often gives us more than we can handle. [6:28] We see this through the pages of scripture over and over and over. [6:31] And the biggest problem with this phrase is that it produces a mindset [6:35] that limits what God can do in your life. [6:40] It’s a mindset that limits what you can sacrifice to follow Jesus.

[6:47] It’s a mindset that limits what you can do living on mission with Jesus and following Jesus.

[6:59] The fact of the matter is that God’s mission for your life has absolutely nothing to do with your capability.

[7:08] God’s mission for your life has everything to do with his capability [7:13] and what he is able to do. [7:17] So to start with, I want to go to what I believe and many believe is the verse [7:23] that we get the mentality that God’s not going to give us more than we can handle out of. [7:26] And I want to break that down. It’s 1 Corinthians chapter 10 starting in verse 13. [7:30] Here’s what the apostle Paul writes.

[7:32] He says, No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. [7:39] God is faithful and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability. [7:45] But with the temptation, he will also provide the way of escape that you may be able to endure it. [7:54] Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. [7:59] This past week, providentially, a pastor, John Piper, posted an article [8:04] that was about this specific phrase.

[8:08] And his advice in dealing with this type of phrase is that the truth and or the error of this phrase [8:14] depends on how you define two important words in there. [8:18] The first word that’s important how you define is you. [8:22] You’re the one that is thought that God’s not going to give you more than you can handle. [8:27] And then secondly is that term handle. [8:30] What do we mean when we say handle?

[8:34] Are we talking about handling it according to my ability or are we talking about handling it [8:40] in accordance with the ability that God gives us? [8:44] I want to tell you truth number one that I see in this text is that God will give you [8:49] what you need to depend on his grace. [8:54] God will give you what you need to depend on his grace. [8:59] Every situation that comes into or comes out of your life is meant to turn you to Jesus.

[9:11] Often our mentality in giving this type of counsel is to point people inward towards themselves. [9:18] Look into your life. Look into your heart. Look into your strength. Look into your ability. [9:23] But what we actually see is the foundation of 1 Corinthians 10 13 is not so much the focus being [9:30] your ability but the focus being the fact that the ability that God gives you is based on what he puts [9:36] into your life.

[9:40] There’s no temptation that’s ever going to come into your life that’s going to be so severe [9:45] that God has not or will not provide for you a way of escape. [9:52] So who is the one giving the provision there? Is it you? Certainly not. [9:59] The provision for escaping the temptation in this text is God.

[10:06] But then also notice that the text we like to turn it towards hard circumstances. [10:14] Let’s be honest. No one wants a difficult situation to enter their lives today. [10:20] If you do, I have some counselors I want to refer you to. [10:26] Nobody asks for difficulties in their right mind. [10:31] Nobody seeks for things to be more complicated or complex than they already are in the right mind.

[10:41] So when we say this type of phrase, I think that what we’re actually trying to say is that God will not [10:47] bring a situation into my life that’s more difficult than I have the adequate capability of dealing with. [10:54] But what this verse is actually speaking to is not difficult situations but sin.

[11:00] This text is not speaking to suffering or pain. [11:03] This text is speaking to the temptation to turn away from God and depend on your own strength [11:13] and to actually disobey him. [11:15] And the hope of this phrase is found in the reality that we don’t have to sin against God, light of Jesus Christ. [11:23] But the reality of what we try to do is we try to point this text towards, [11:29] can we endure the very hard situations that are going on right now in our lives?

[11:36] Recently in the life of our church and then in the life outside of our church, [11:40] I was in a hospital last night visiting someone who’s extremely ill and talking to what was a very large family. [11:49] I came to the realization, you know, on Saturday nights, if you have ever preached a sermon, [11:54] that’s pretty much all that you can think about. [11:57] And so I’m in the hospital applying this sermon to a very difficult situation. [12:01] And every single family member was enduring more they could handle.

[12:10] Every single family member was faced with something that they knew was a few years away, but it happened right there.

[12:21] The truth is, is that none of you know what’s around the corner. [12:25] The truth is that I have no idea what’s coming around the corner tomorrow morning. [12:29] I’ve received no special revelation. I’ve received no prophecy. [12:33] So it’s still a mystery to me as to what my future holds in the days, weeks, months to come. [12:41] But I know that there is a guarantee. [12:44] And that guarantee is, is that I’m going to face difficult situations at some point in my life.

[12:51] And I’m going to struggle to, number one, make sense of it. [12:56] And then secondly, I’m going to struggle just to deal with the pain that’s going to necessarily be involved.

[13:08] But note what he says in the scriptures in verse 13. [13:13] He says that there is no temptation that has overtaken you that is not common to man.

[13:24] What we like to do is, is that we like to pretend oftentimes, and I do the same as well, [13:29] that my situations and the things that I endure, the temptations that come my way, and the life that I’m dealing with is unique.

[13:39] It’s special.

[13:42] No one else could possibly understand what I’m going through right here. [13:48] And what texts like this do to us is they confront us with the reality that, number one, temptations common to everyone. [14:01] That sure, while your situation may be in senses different than the exact specific situation that the person next to you is dealing with, [14:10] the feelings are not necessarily unique.

[14:16] The options are not unique. [14:19] The reactions are not unique. [14:23] That we are all, every one of us, dealing with the exact same set of circumstances, [14:29] that is, that we live in a broken world. [14:34] That we live in a world that falls short of the vision of God for his future kingdom.

[14:41] That we live in a world that is acquainted with pain. [14:45] That we live in a world where there is real hurt, and there is real pain, and there is real suffering that goes on in each and every one of our lives at one level or the other, [14:57] because it’s typically subjective. [15:00] But the reality is, is that the source and the answer are the same thing.

[15:07] The source is always because we live in a broken world that’s acquainted with sin.

[15:14] The reality of sin brings death. [15:18] But then secondly, the answer is that we need to return to the source of where life is found. [15:25] That is God.

[15:27] When he speaks to ability, know and notice immediately what he follows up with, that he, God, has given you the way of escape. [15:34] You don’t have the way of escape. [15:37] The wisest person in your life does not have the way of escape. [15:42] The counselor does not have your way of escape. [15:44] The doctor does not have your way of escape. [15:45] The only source of escaping the temptation to despair away from faith in Jesus Christ is to cling tightly to who he is.

[15:57] Cling tightly to what he has promised. [16:00] Cling tightly to what he has revealed about him, about his love, and about what he says he will do for you through the cross of Jesus and through the resurrection of Jesus. [16:13] That is the answer. [16:15] Our situations are common because we all live in a broken world. [16:20] We all are in need of the love of God. [16:23] Common to man literally in this text, in the original language, means that which is characteristic to belonging to humankind.

[16:35] Are you a human? [16:37] I hope so. [16:40] Reality is that that is what he means. [16:45] Nothing has overtaken you. [16:47] You see the promise there? [16:50] Nothing is so all-enveloping in your life that you cannot find empathy with the human condition.

[17:02] Sometimes the greatest disservice that we do to ourselves is believe that our situations and our circumstances are so unique and so special, no way out. [17:15] No one can help me. [17:18] That is a lie.

[17:22] Believe truth.

[17:27] God never said that you have the option to not suffer life. [17:36] God has never said that to anyone. [17:37] God has never promised that to any of us. [17:41] Actually, he said the opposite. [17:43] Jesus oftentimes would speak to his disciples and he says, what they persecute me, they are going to persecute you. [17:48] If I suffer, you will suffer.

[17:50] The apostle Paul in the book of Philippians actually looks to the church of Philippi and he says, I want to know and be acquainted with the sufferings of Christ so that I can know him. [18:00] So there is something that takes place in the Christian life that not only acquaints you with suffering because we believe in a suffering Savior, but it helps you understand what suffering is like and it helps you deal with suffering. [18:15] There is no other faith that actually comes face to face with suffering and does not despair.

[18:22] Look at what the apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 1. [18:27] He says, we do not want you to be unaware. [18:29] Do you see the brilliant discipleship that is there? [18:31] Because most of our discipleship and trying to disciple ourselves, which is number one, a really bad idea, you are the worst discipler that you have ever met. [18:39] You need someone else.

[18:44] Paul says, I do not want you to be unaware. [18:47] We try to spend our lives being unaware, not dealing. [18:53] And this phrase is one of the coping mechanisms that we use to not deal.

[18:59] He says, brothers of the affliction we experienced in Asia, for we were so utterly burdened. [19:06] And note the next three words, beyond our strength.

[19:14] God gave the apostle Paul issues and situations that were beyond his strength.

[19:24] You really believe that you will not endure this.

[19:30] Look at how far it was beyond his strength. [19:33] He says that we spared of life itself. [19:40] Paul said, this suffering that we endured was so great. [19:45] He was certain that he was going to die. [19:49] And that word despair means and he was sort of ready because it was hurting so much.

[19:58] This is beyond my capability. [20:00] I had to spared of life itself. [20:02] I’d given up. [20:03] But then note what he says after that. [20:05] Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. [20:09] But that was to make us rely not on ourselves.

[20:15] See, we believe that the situations that God gives us into our lives is some test from God. [20:20] It’s some spiritual strongman competition because God wants to test how strong I am. [20:26] He wants to see whether or not I’m ready for his elite club of disciples.

[20:31] It’s never true in scripture.

[20:35] It’s what he did to the apostle Paul. [20:36] He brought a situation into his life so that he would stop relying on his own strength. [20:43] So that he would be acquainted with his weakness so that he would understand that he has an end to his rope. [20:50] But God has no end to his rope because God is sufficient. [20:55] God is strong. [20:56] God is able.

[20:58] God will endure. [20:59] And what he promises into our lives is when we finally come to the wise conclusion that we’re not strong enough to obey God. [21:07] We’re not strong enough to deal with sin. [21:09] We’re not strong enough to deal with the life that God has given into our lives. [21:13] And things are hurting and we’re enduring and suffering is real. [21:17] He comes in and he says, we need to rely on God who raises the dead.

[21:24] See, Paul’s hope was not even in living at that point.

[21:30] Paul’s hope was relating to God, enduring in God, going to God for his strength, going to God for his endurance. [21:37] Because even if I die, God raises the dead. [21:44] There is no lose with God.

[21:49] Sure, you might die.

[21:52] Then you’ll get back up.

[21:56] Because God has resurrection power.

[21:59] God brought Paul more trials and more suffering than he was able to.

[22:07] What that leads me to believe is another thing. [22:09] Don’t always equate pain or things going poorly with sin.

[22:17] Don’t be tempted to do that. [22:19] Sure, some suffering comes because of personal sin. [22:23] But most comes simply because we live in a sinful world. [22:28] What Paul says in verse 9 is vital.

[22:33] Even if your suffering brings you to the point of death, we will endure it. [22:40] Because Jesus rose from the dead and if we have faith in Jesus, so will we. [22:44] In John chapter 9, Jesus confronted this mentality that suffering is always equated with personal sin. [22:51] In John chapter 9, starting in verse 1, here’s what happens to Jesus. [22:56] Jesus passed by and he saw a man blind from birth. [23:01] And Jesus’ disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned?

[23:04] This man or his parents? [23:06] That he was born blind. [23:07] And Jesus answered.

[23:10] Whenever you see that in scripture, understand that Jesus is about to change things. [23:14] He’s about to change your understanding. [23:16] You’ve been thinking one way and Jesus is going to say, no, no, no, no. [23:18] You could not have been more wrong. [23:22] The disciples had a funny way of always being wrong. [23:25] It was not that this man sinned or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

[23:36] Everyone equated suffering with personal sin. [23:39] Jesus equated suffering with glory.

[23:43] That will change your perspective. [23:45] Why was he born blind? [23:48] Because God wanted to get glory out of it. [23:53] And that was Jesus’ comfort. [23:56] That was Jesus’ hope. [23:58] A family who had probably been burdening themselves their entire lives.

[24:02] What did I do wrong? [24:05] What sin caused this disability? [24:07] What sin caused this pain? [24:09] What sin caused this suffering? [24:11] And Jesus, the King of Kings, walks in and he said, oh no, it’s not because of sin. [24:15] It’s because I want you to get a taste of glory.

[24:19] Every hard situation that the follower of Jesus Christ goes through is a gift from God [24:25] so that you can taste more of his glory than you would have had without it.

[24:33] Your suffering is not a test from God to see your strength. [24:35] It is a sign from God that you need his strength and a promise from God to work his glory.

[24:46] The real issue is is that we need to believe God more than we believe this world. [24:50] We need to believe God more than we believe ourselves. [24:53] We need to believe God more than we believe our situations. [24:55] We need to believe God more than we believe our circumstances.

[25:00] God needs to be the definer. [25:01] God needs to be the Author. [25:02] God needs to be the steerer of my life. [25:06] But not just my circumstances in life. [25:09] He needs to steer the core of what I believe. [25:12] Because what I believe is the prism through which I see every one of my circumstances.

[25:19] The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Philippi in chapter 4 verses 12 through 13. [25:23] He says, I know how to be brought low. [25:25] I know how to abound. [25:27] In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of facing plenty and facing hunger, [25:32] of facing abundance and facing great need. [25:35] And then he says, I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

[25:40] The text that we normally equate to making the last shot at the buzzer

[25:47] has nothing to do with sports.

[25:51] Nothing. [25:52] Don’t feel too bad. [25:53] I wrote it on my baseball cap when I was in high school. [25:56] I was going to hit a home run for Jesus.

[26:00] But it didn’t hit that many. [26:01] So obviously I couldn’t do all things through Christ. [26:04] Struck out a few times.

[26:07] Stop looking solely for relief from pain and begin to look at every moment [26:18] through the perspective of faith.

[26:22] How is God seeking to make you more dependent on him? [26:26] This situation. [26:28] How is God seeking to draw you closer to himself in relationship through this pain?

[26:35] Apostle Paul says, I know how to live the abundant life where it seems like nothing [26:40] could go wrong. [26:41] He says, I also know how to live the life where I have a head on collision that I never [26:45] saw coming.

[26:48] Christ is the end of the situation.

[26:52] Everything is endured through Christ. [26:56] And everything is endured for Christ. [26:59] Secondly, this morning, God will always give you the ability to obey. [27:05] God will always give you the ability to obey. [27:09] Did you know, friend, that you always have the option to not sin? [27:13] I know that might be kind of mind blowing because I think some of us have conditioned

[27:18] ourselves to think that since I’m never going to be perfect, why fight it? [27:25] Just give in. [27:27] That’s not what the text actually tells us because when God’s talking about what I can [27:31] handle in this text, he’s talking about temptation. [27:35] He’s talking about sin. [27:36] He’s talking about the things that come naturally to me and the things that feel natural to

[27:41] me and he’s actually giving me hope that I can reverse that through faith in Jesus and [27:45] actually live a life in which I experience victory in obedience to Jesus. [27:52] You do not have to give in to the temptation to sin. [27:57] Some of you don’t believe this.

[28:01] You need to stop living a defeated life where sin is concerned.

[28:09] And secondly, stop using your imperfections as an excuse for your habitual sins.

[28:17] You have a great need to repent. [28:20] And 1 Corinthians 10 13 says God will give you the ability to live a life of constant [28:27] repentance, live a life in which you do not have to give in to temptations that seem [28:32] so naturally. [28:34] The promises that when God is trusted, he will give you the ability to obey him rather [28:38] than disobey him.

[28:41] But understand that the obedience in the face of temptation is difficult. [28:50] The text is not saying you are strong enough to stop sinning. [28:54] It’s not at all what the text is saying. [28:56] The opposite is true. [28:57] You’re not.

[29:00] And you probably have an entire resume years and years of sin to prove it.

[29:07] No, I do. [29:08] The reality is that he is drawing you in to understand your need. [29:17] Number one, the forgiveness that’s available in Jesus for your sin. [29:21] See, sometimes we give in to temptation because we’re so burdened with guilt and shame of [29:25] past sin that we don’t sense any sort of victory. [29:31] He comes in and he says, understand that there’s no temptation that’s overtaking you that is

[29:34] common to me. [29:36] But in God’s grace, he’s provided the gospel of Jesus Christ so that you can escape. [29:42] The first thing that many of you need to escape is the shame and guilt that’s acquainted [29:45] with past sin. [29:47] If God has forgiven you, understand that he is no longer and never will again hold [29:53] your sin over your head to barter with.

[29:57] Your suffering is not because of that.

[30:01] He wants you to be free from it. [30:04] There is no temptation in your life that is inherently stronger than your spiritual [30:11] resources. [30:12] God wants to point you to repentance and he wants to point you through that repentance [30:16] to restoration so that you can have the hope of not just being reconciled with God in [30:23] theory, but living reconciled with God so that your purposes match his purposes, so

[30:30] that your vision matches his vision, so that your life matches the life that he designed [30:36] for you to live in the gospel of Jesus Christ as well as for the gospel of Jesus Christ. [30:43] Note what the apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 8. [30:47] He says, and God is able.

[30:51] Start there.

[30:54] God is able to do what? [30:57] Frankly, to do anything. [31:00] Secondly, he says this, to make all grace abound to you. [31:06] Don’t try to over-define that.

[31:09] God is able to make all grace abound to you. [31:12] Unending grace abound to you. [31:14] Every bit of his grace abound to you. [31:16] In other words, there is no filter through which his grace has to go to only hit certain [31:21] parts of your life. [31:23] He wants you to get this vision that you are completely and utterly saturated with

[31:30] all of God’s grace at all times if you’re a follower of Jesus Christ. [31:37] Note this, so that we usually want to stop there, because then we don’t have to do anything.

[31:47] God is able. [31:49] He’s made all of his grace abound to you through the gospel of Jesus Christ so that [31:53] something can happen. [31:55] So that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good [32:01] work.

[32:03] Good works are the opposite of bad works.

[32:10] I know that’s profound. [32:12] Let it sink in. [32:13] Good works, the opposite of bad works. [32:18] In other words, the apostle Paul is saying in this text that God gave you his gospel. [32:22] He’s given you his life. [32:23] He’s given you a vision of all grace.

[32:26] He’s given you a vision of a God who is so sufficient that his sufficiency knows no bounds. [32:31] And then he says he’s going to give all of that into your life so that you can abound. [32:35] Abound is a term that simply means overflowing, more than able, completely sufficient, completely [32:43] capable, completely having what 1 Corinthians 10 13 says, ability.

[32:51] For what? [32:53] For everything that God has called you to do.

[32:57] The escape that Paul’s talking about in 1 Corinthians 10 13 is not escaping from hard [33:04] situations and difficult circumstances.

[33:08] That’s where we go wrong.

[33:12] The escape is escaping from sin.

[33:17] You escape from sin and you escape towards God. [33:21] How do you do that? [33:23] Verse 14 tells us, flee.

[33:27] Flee. [33:29] Flee. [33:29] See, the New Testament tells us, it says resist the devil. [33:33] And you can. [33:37] The problem is that we’ve believed that it means resist temptation.

[33:43] And that’s why you keep disobeying.

[33:47] Because you still have the same things in your life. [33:49] You still have the same temptations in your life. [33:51] You haven’t walked away from them. [33:54] And you’re just playing patty cake with them as if it’s a good idea, as if it’s wise to [33:59] continue with the same structure that led you to sin the last time.

[34:05] Over and over again, the apostle Paul uses the term flee. [34:08] He says, flee idolatry in 1 Corinthians 10 14. [34:11] He says, flee sexual immorality. [34:13] He tells us to flee in 2 Timothy chapter 2 verse 22. [34:17] He says, flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness. [34:21] That term youthful passions are things that prevent you from growing in maturity.

[34:29] When you were younger in your faith, you struggled with lust. [34:33] So what do you do? [34:34] You flee the things that cause lust. [34:38] When you were younger, you struggled with greed. [34:42] You struggled with wanting more money. [34:44] You struggled with wanting more fame.

[34:45] You struggled wanting more power. [34:47] You struggled with disobeying the clear standards of morality that Scripture sets in place. [34:51] And what do you do? [34:52] You flee them so that you can grow in faith. [34:55] See, in 1 Corinthians 10 14 when he says flee idolatry, what he’s saying is you flee [35:01] anything that stands between you and God.

[35:06] You flee anything that may even for a moment become more important in your life than God himself is. [35:15] That’s the way of escape.

[35:21] Flee is a very simple thing.

[35:25] It means stay as far away as possible.

[35:29] It means run.

[35:33] Put it in your path.

[35:37] Do whatever it takes. [35:40] Destroy sin in your life. [35:42] If you’re in John Owen said be killing sin or sin will surely be killing you.

[35:54] Why do you run from it?

[35:58] Because we’re programmed to be strong.

[36:03] You run from it because you understand that you’re weak. [36:08] You know that God is strong enough to make you sufficient in using your common sense [36:16] to get close to him and far away from whatever it is that tempts you to sin against him.

[36:27] Sometimes the greatest tool that God has given you is the one that you don’t tap into. [36:31] That brain that lies between fears.

[36:35] You know what tempts you. [36:39] And you sinfully continue to put it in your path.

[36:44] It is not a sin to be tempted. [36:46] But it is a sin to intentionally get tempted.

[36:51] If the scripture says to flee and you stay.

[37:00] That gaze lasts about five seconds longer than it needed to last.

[37:09] That moment in which you were tempted to despair. [37:13] You refuse to bring anyone into your life to help you. [37:19] Struggle with alcohol yet you continue to have lunch and dinner and bars.

[37:24] Struggle with pornography yet you continue to open the canteen after everyone’s in bed. [37:31] Struggling with temptation to cheat on your spouse yet you continue in that emotional relationship with that person.

[37:40] You struggle with disobedience yet you continue to walk the same path [37:45] where you know you’re going to be tempted to disobey God over and over and over and over. [37:51] That is what God is telling us in 1 Corinthians 10 13. [37:55] You need to escape from.

[38:00] Don’t put your pathway directly headed towards the sin.

[38:06] Take another road.

[38:12] Usually take that road with people that you’re in a relationship with.

[38:17] They can help you. [38:18] The greatest help that you could ever have is the help that Jesus Christ offers to the Holy Spirit in your life.

[38:27] Thirdly this morning I want you to understand that life is not about what you can do. [38:35] But what God can do. [38:38] Life is not about what you can handle but what God can do. [38:42] Interestingly enough when I woke up this morning there was no email in my inbox from the Father saying [38:49] Steve what would you like to handle today?

[38:53] You know if the day went completely as planned I had a pretty good idea what was going to go on. [38:58] But let’s be honest it rarely does.

[39:03] Because the Father is less interested in what I’m capable of handling [39:07] and more interested in what he wants to do to get himself glory.

[39:13] When you escape from sin you need to go somewhere.

[39:18] You need to escape from sin and to the mission that you’ve given you in your life. [39:23] When you escape from sin you escape toward Jesus and the purpose for which he saved you. [39:29] That’s the only option. [39:30] If that’s not the direction you end up on you didn’t escape from sin.

[39:38] You are fleeing anything that comes before God and you need to make your pursuit about Jesus and his righteousness. [39:45] So what does God want you to do? [39:48] Number one he wants you to stop managing sin and he wants you to obey Jesus. [39:53] He wants you to stop managing sin and he wants you to obey Jesus. [39:56] Sometimes we boil discipleship when we boil the Christian life down to sinning a little less today than I did yesterday. [40:03] And while that’s absolutely vital and that’s very important there’s more to the Christian life than that.

[40:09] He wants you to move from sin towards something else. [40:12] He wants you to replace your false gods with the true God. [40:15] And when you follow the true God you follow him somewhere. [40:19] You move with him somewhere. [40:21] You move with God. [40:23] When you stand still and do not move in life you are disobeying this command.

[40:30] The problem with the lie of what you can handle is that God’s not so much interested in what you can handle as he is in the mission that he’s designed specifically for your life through the gospel. [40:41] The gospel is about God’s great ability to take sinners and turn them into missionaries. [40:48] He wants us to participate with him. [40:51] Do you understand the privilege and honor that God has actually called a sinner like me to participate with him in his mission? [41:00] To actually be a partner with God in accomplishing a historic mission for all time in all circumstances?

[41:13] The life of Paul was marked with mission. [41:17] Look at what Paul says about himself in Ephesians 3 verse 7. [41:21] He says, of this gospel, now to get this gospel read Ephesians 1, 2 and the beginning of 3. [41:28] He’s talking about the gospel of Jesus. [41:30] And he says, of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me by the working of his power. [41:40] Do you see what he’s talking about?

[41:41] He’s saying that this gospel is true. [41:43] This gospel that reveals the mystery of God hidden for ages. [41:47] This gospel that redeems me out of sin. [41:49] This gospel that makes for God a people called the church. [41:53] Of that gospel I have been made a minister. [41:58] By what?

[41:59] The gift of God’s grace. [42:03] The working of his power. [42:05] In any way do you see Paul say God had a try out and I showed up and I did it right.

[42:13] No. [42:14] The antithesis of what he’s talking about. [42:16] He says that God in grace redeemed me and empowered me. [42:22] He wants to do the same friends for you. [42:26] When you flee temptation.

[42:30] When you turn to him as your way of escape. [42:32] He will give you a life of his power.

[42:37] In Ephesians chapter 3 verse 20 just a few verses down Paul gets even more specific [42:42] of the power of God. [42:43] He says now to him God who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think [42:53] according to the power at work within us. [42:55] Look at that.

[42:59] He says God is able to do more than you could even conceptualize that God can do. [43:05] Do you have struggles? [43:06] Struggle with sin? [43:08] There is probably a piece of you that says I don’t know that God can make me obedient. [43:13] To that Paul says oh he is able to do far more than you think.

[43:20] Surely God couldn’t use me to take the good news of Jesus to my neighbors. [43:25] Paul says oh you don’t know what he is capable of.

[43:31] Of course Paul would probably follow with you realize Jesus was dead right? [43:35] And then he just wasn’t. [43:39] He rose physically. [43:42] God can do some pretty amazing things.

[43:46] Personalize that. [43:47] But then note he gets even more specific. [43:51] So what does God want to use his power to work within us to do? [43:55] He says to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever amen. [44:03] This is why I truly believe the call on every one of your lives that the giftings will be different can be well done to two things.

[44:12] First making disciples. [44:14] He says Jesus Christ will be known throughout all generations. [44:20] How is he going to be known? [44:22] Because he has brought us to be messengers. [44:26] And so escape from sin to the high calling of being an ambassador of reconciliation. [44:34] Growing in faith in Jesus Christ by being made a disciple.

[44:38] And as you are becoming a disciple you go into other people’s lives for the specific purpose of discipling them. [44:45] Discipleship is this crazy thing that you cannot be made fully into a disciple until you are making other disciples.

[44:55] Jesus says come do that. [44:56] You are going to be amazed at what I am going to do when you are obedient.

[45:01] But what is the purpose of making disciples? [45:02] And that is the first thing that he says there that God gets glory out of the church. [45:09] God could do far more than Paul even considered and God used all the power in him to make disciples.

[45:18] Our limitless God. [45:22] Our omniscient all powerful God who can do anything has stewarded all of his glory into the purpose of making disciples and building his church. [45:34] That is where the glory is. [45:37] Turn from sin and embrace glory.

[45:42] God wants your life to be about what he can do rather than what you.

[45:50] The only way for that to happen though is for you to flee temptation and live his mission in play.

[46:01] Your life needs to be about making disciples and building the church of Jesus Christ or you will continuously be overcome by how unable you are to feel life.

[46:15] Everything else will fall under that. [46:18] As the band comes up I want to transition into a time of communion.

[46:24] This is your first Sunday with us. [46:25] This is something that we do every single week here at Village Church. [46:30] It is a time where we obey God.

[46:35] Drinking the cup and eating the bread. [46:37] But here is why that is significant.

[46:40] Because the bread represents the broken body of Jesus that was broken on the cross. [46:44] The cup represents his shed blood that was poured out for you. [46:47] His life for your life.

[46:51] What it represents when we partake in communion is a proclamation of your inability to save yourself. [47:01] Of your inability to handle.

[47:07] It serves then as a revelation of God’s great ability to give you absolutely everything that you need. [47:17] From saving you from your sin to giving you the ability to obey him in any and all circumstances and grow in following Jesus and being his disciple. [47:29] When we eat, when we drink, that is what we are proclaiming.

[47:35] If you are in here and you are not a follower of Jesus, the only way that you should eat or drink is if you are ready to admit that. [47:46] If you are ready to embrace faith in Jesus Christ. [47:49] If you are ready to proclaim that you are unable and he is more than able through the cross of Jesus and through the resurrection of his son.

[48:00] If you are in here this morning and you are a follower of Jesus, I invite you to come. [48:05] Proclaim your emptiness. [48:07] And then proclaim that he has filled you. [48:11] You’re ready. Come.