1 Peter 5:5-10
HOW TO GET YOUR LIFE OUT OF THE PIT
Intro:
This notice appeared in the window of a coat store in Nottingham, England: We
have been established for over 100 years and have been pleasing and displeasing
customers ever since. We have made money and lost money, suffered the effects
of coal nationalization, coal rationing, government control, and bad payers.
We have been cussed and discussed, messed about, lied to, held up, robbed, and
swindled. The only reason we stay in business is to see what happens next.
The store owner knew that life was full of difficulties.
But he was determined to survive, even if only to hope
for the best and "see what happens next."
Christ's followers have a much better reason to endure
tough times as they live for Him. The Lord has assured
us in His Word that better times are ahead. The
psalmist reminded us that in spite of the prosperity of
the wicked, the righteous will be vindicated.
Friends, there are times when we find our lives down
in the pits. It just seems like we are in the doldrums.
Sometimes it seems like we just lose our desire to go
on for God and there are times when we just want to
give up. Sometimes life just gets us down and we find
ourselves in the pits. Does that ever happen to you?
Some of you are there tonight. Life has jumped on you
with both feet and you are just about ready to throw in
the towel. Well, before you do, let me show you from
this passage How To Get Your Life Out Of The Pits.
God has a word of encouragement and instruction for
you this evening.
I. V. 5-6 SURRENDER YOUR WILL TO GOD
A. Assume The Place Of Submission - We live in
a day when men are all seeking their own way,
but the child of God who wants to please the
Lord will learn to allow God to have the place or
preeminence in his life, Col. 1:18.
B. Assume The Place Of Slavery - "Clothed with
Humility" literally means to "wear the apron of
a slave". True humility before the Lord merely
me assuming the place of a slave. (Ill. This is
what Jesus did in the Upper Room - John 13:4-16.) In other words, I have no will but His will. I
have no plan but His plan. I have ne desire but
His desire. We are called His "bondslaves."
Eph. 6:6. "Servants" = "Bondslaves"
C. Accept The Plan Of The Sovereign - If we can
learn the way of humility, then the Lord will lift us
up in His own way. As long as we seek to
promote ourselves, we will never amount to
much for the glory of God. However, when we
turn loose of our lives and willingly place
ourselves under the Lord, He will use us for His
glory!
I. Surrender Your Will to God
II. V. 7 SEND YOUR WORRY TO GOD
A. Conclusively - "Casting" - This verb refers to
the act of "throwing or casting" something. It is
in a form that refers to a one time deal. We are
told here to "once for all, throw our burdens to
Jesus!" When the worries of life press us down,
we do not have to bear them alone! Thank God,
there is One Who is stronger than we are and
Who is willing to carry our load.
B. Completely - Notice how much or our burden we
are supposed to give to the Lord. "All you
care"! He tells us to give Him everything! We
are not so much as to keep even the smallest
part of a burden to ourselves. We are told to
give it all up to Jesus!
C. Confidently - How can we do this? With the
absolute confidence that He cares for us, Heb.
4:15. When we are burdened, it touches the
heart of God and He is moved on our behalf.
Please notice that this verb is in the "Present
Tense, Active Voice and the Indicative
Mood." You may wonder what this means for
you, well Present Tense means ongoing
activity. Active Voice means the Lord
Himself is involved. Indicative Mood means
that it is a fact! Put it all together and we find
that Jesus Christ, Himself, is actively
involved in caring for us. Why the interest?
Well, He has made quiet an investment in us (Ill.
The Cross) and He will see to the needs that
arise in our lives.
I. Surrender Your Will To God
II. Send Your Worry To God
III. V. 8-9 STRENGTHEN YOUR WALK WITH GOD
(Ill. We are told that we need to be "sober and
vigilant". This means that we need to get serious
about some things, especially where the devil is
concerned. Who do you think wants to get your life
in the pits anyway? Who do you think is actively
interested in seeing you miserable? Who do you
think is working against you every day of your life?
Yet, as we strengthen our walk with the Lord, we will
see the path to victory over the devil!)
A. Be Serious About The Devil's Reality - This
verse refers to a being that most of the world
does believe in this evening. However, just in
case there is any confusion in your mind, the
devil is real! Jesus believes in him, the Bible
believes in him, God believes in him, therefore,
he must be real! Here, he is called "Adversary".
This word means, "An opponent, an enemy".
He is also called "the devil". This name means
"slanderer; or false accuser." This is the same
one who attacked the character and name of old
Job; Job 1:6-12; Job 2:1-7. He is still the same
old devil that he always was and he hates you
and wants to see you fall. The sooner we come
to realize the truth of Satan's reality, the sooner
we will see the need to strengthen our walks with
God.
B. Be Serious About The Devil's Ferocity - The
devil is compares to a "roaring lion" in this verse.
Why a lion? Well, there are some similarities
between the devil and lions.
1. Lions Are Forceful - They are 14 to 21 times
stronger than a man. Satan is far stronger
than we are as well! We cannot fight him on
our own. (Ill. Even Michael the Archangel
wouldn't fight the devil - Jude 9)
2. Lions Are Ferocious - A mature lion can
consume 30% 0f his own body weight at one
setting. They are famous as the king of
beasts and as the king of the jungle. All
those who encounter them treat them with
fear and respect. By the way, God's children
would do well to learn to respect the devil!
We do not need to fear him, but he does
have power that is far superior to our own
natural abilities. He is a ferocious foe who is
never satisfied with his conquests. He feeds
on the carcase of the fallen ones and he
rises to hunt more.
3. Lions Are Fearful - A mature lion's roar can
be heard up to 5 miles away. Lions do most
of their roaring at night. The reason they roar
in the first place is to create fear in the hearts
of those who hear them. This is just what the
devil does too! He roars to create fear in the
hearts of God's children. Why? Because
fear paralyzes faith! If the devil can get you
to listen to his roar, he can keep you from
hearing God's Word. If he can paralyze your
faith, then he can attack your life.
C. Be Serious About The Devil's Susceptibility -
The good news about the devil is that he can be
defeated by the child of God! The secret to
overcoming him and changing his roar into a
meow is to "resist" him! This word means to
"stand up against" the devil! Be steadfast in
your faith, knowing that the Lord has already
defeated the devil and that victory for the child of
God is found in the blood of the Lord Jesus
Christ, Rev. 12:9. You do not have to be a notch
on the devil's gun! Don't let him have your
honor, your family, your life, or anything else he
is after. Stand against him and see the victory!
You can resist him and you can see him
defeated in your life. Learn the truth that if you
will resist him, he will flee from you, James 4:7.
Learn that true victory comes to those who will
walk in "faith"; 1 John 5:4. Get to the place
where you have no doubts as to the truth of 1
John 4:4. To get to that place requires that
every child of God grow in the Lord and that we
strengthen our walk with Him daily through
prayer and the study of His Word!
I. Surrender Your Will To God
II. Send Your Worry To God
III. Strengthen Your Walk With God
IV. V. 10 SEE THE WORK OF GOD
(Il. One of the greatest incentives to walking in
continuous victory is to be able to see the Lord at
work all around you! Notice three thoughts:)
A. The Grace We Now Enjoy - While we journey
through those difficult days, while we fight the
devil day by day, while we face those times when
we are burdened with worries and cares, always
remember that God's grace is sufficient for you,
2 Cor. 12:9. Notice that He did not say that He
would lift every load. He did not say that He
would flatten every hill. He did not say that He
would smooth out every rough spot. However,
He did say that He would change you in the
midst of your difficulty so that you could be
successful in your walk with Him. There is grace
for every trial, for every mils and for everything
we face as we go through life! Thank God for
matchless, marvelous, priceless, boundless,
grace!
B. The Grief We Must Endure - Verse 10 makes it
plain that there will be difficulties along the road
of life from time to time. The word "suffer' bears
this out for us. Jesus Himself said it would be
so, John 16:33. Even Job knew that there
would be difficult times in our lives, Job 14:1.
God only had on Son Who did not sin, but He
has no sons that do not suffer!
Let us remember that even when live is a veil
of tears for us, that we have the Lord's promise
of His Presence, Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20; His
Provision, Phil. 4:19; His Power, Matt. 28:18;
and His Promotion, John 14:1-3. Therefore, let
us run with patience the race that is set before
us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of
our faith! Why, Because He has already ran the
race and He knows the way!
C. The Glory We Will Experience - This verse tells
us that when the suffering days are over, there
are glory days ahead! Notice what the Lord tells
His children here: He will make us perfect,
establish us, strengthen us and settle us. When
will this happen? When we leave this world, we
are going to a land where the things which
trouble us now are not allowed to enter, Rev.
21:27. A place where the trials of the way and
the tears of the way are all wipes away forever,
Rev. 21:4. A place where trials and burdens are
replaced with glory and peace, Rom. 8:18; 2
Cor. 4:17. A place where the devil cannot follow
and where the Lord is the light.
We are going to a place where troubles and
trials can no longer afflict the children of God. I
look forward to that glorious day!
Conc: Is your life in the pits this evening? If so, there is
a way out. Ask yourself the following questions and be
honest:
Am I surrendering my will to God?
Am I sending my worries to God?
Am I strengthening my walk with God?
Am I seeing the work of God?
If the answer to any of these questions is no, then I
would suggest that you come to Him tonight and get
that area of your life straightened out. There is peace
in Jesus. There is power in Jesus. You can get you life
our of the pits this evening if you will do it God's way!
(Credit for most of this outline goes to Dr. James Merritt)
