Title: Faith is Fighting/Philippians 4:10-13
Content Faith is fighting spirit / Philippians 4:10-13
1. A blessing can be a disaster, and a disaster can be a blessing:
He said that the land of Canaan, which God had promised to give to the Israelites, was “a land flowing with milk and honey.” Imagine a land flowing with milk and honey, where water and sunlight are plentiful, and the soil is fertile, so the fields are full of grains, and you can eat as many fruits as you stretch out your hands without making an effort to farm. I also think of a land where sheep and cattle grow on their own in a vast pasture, where they can get beef, lamb and milk very easily. It is also imagined as a land where things that are good for the body, such as honey, are scattered all over the earth. Because it is a land like this, there is no need to suffer or worry. All I have to do is sleep, wake up, eat delicious food, play, sing and dance.
However, the Promised Land of Canaan, where the Israelites had a difficult time living in the wilderness and finally crossed the Jordan River, was not like that. It was a land with endless threats to life from existing forces from the time of entry. It was a land that had to suffer from water shortage because it was difficult to survive and there was always a shortage of water. The promised land that God intended to give to the Israelites, a land flowing with milk and honey, has always been a land that inspires their fighting spirit in life. The land that arouses the fighting spirit of life, not the land that kills the fighting spirit due to abundance, is a land flowing with milk and honey in the true sense.
No matter how much we enjoy right now, if it robs us of the fighting spirit of life, it is a disaster, not a blessing. On the other hand, even if it is difficult now and the future is not yet clear, if you are full of fighting spirit in life, it is a blessing. Fighting is the fighting spirit, that is, the conviction that you can overcome this difficulty by fighting it. God inspires in us the fighting spirit to fight and overcome our immediate problems. This is a real blessing. The fighting spirit that God gives to our hearts itself is a blessing.
2. Paul's fighting spirit:
Although Paul was in a difficult and difficult situation, the reason he was full of fighting for life was his faith in the risen Lord. The confidence of faith in the Lord filled Paul with the fighting spirit that he could overcome today and win. First, through faith in the Lord, Paul was convinced that no matter how difficult the present situation was, his situation was under the grace of God. It was not that we were overwhelmed by difficulties in the present situation, but that we saw the grace of the Lord in the present situation. He saw the good that the Lord would do for Paul through the present situation. Because of this belief, Paul accepted the situation he was going through with absolute positive (11).
3. How can you have fighting spirit?
First, if we hold onto the word of God's promise, God will make our fighting spirit well up in us. When people think that they have something to hold on to, they do not hold onto the word of God's promise, but tend to hold onto what they can see. In many cases, there is nothing to hold on to, so we hold on to God's promises. But, miraculously, if we hold onto the word of God's promise, we experience the fighting spirit that God gives to our hearts.
Second, when we pray, fighting spirit arises within us. When we cry out to God, fighting spirit arises within us. When we do not pray, we have all kinds of negative thoughts, but when we cry out and pray to God, the faith and fighting spirit that we have to face off with what we are facing arises within us. It is a blessing from God. Jacob, who prayed at the Jabbok River, and Paul, who was in a dark and stuffy prison, cried out and prayed and overcame their own circumstances. As he prayed, the Holy Spirit filled Paul's heart with the determination to be able to handle this difficulty. Crying prayers fill us with the burning fighting spirit that can overcome the difficulties we face today. When we cry out to God and pray, God blesses us with fighting spirit springing up in our hearts.
◎ What was the hardship that brought you the fighting spirit of life? Conversely, what were the things that made you sluggish and spiritually comfy?
◎ Do I have the fighting spirit that I can overcome today's difficult situations with faith in the Lord like Paul did? Let's confess with faith that our tribulations are transformed into blessings with the power to receive the power of the Lord through faith and pray for victory through a life of fighting spirit.
◎ Let's share the fighting spirit of faith that the Lord has given me in the Word or in prayer.