Destined for Victory

Paul Sheppard: Now let me help you understand the Christian race. There are a couple of things you need to know. First of all, we're not running against each other. Really important to know that. The church has got to get out of the competition business. I'm not in competition with you. I'm not running the race against you, hoping to win while you lose.

Guest (Male): The Christian life is a race, but it's not the kind of race you might think. Hello and welcome to Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Sheppard. Well, God has called you to do certain things, you and no one else. So think of the Christian race like this. In a way, you're competing against yourself, against your own potential in Christ.

Today, we'll help you understand how to run that race in order that you might win. But before we get started, let me remind you to visit our website, pastorpaul.net. That's where you can listen to any of our recent messages on demand, including today's, and you'll find details about how to subscribe to our podcast. That's pastorpaul.net. Now let's listen to Pastor Paul's Destined for Victory message, Living by the JOY Principle.

Paul Sheppard: Now here are the three components of the principle. Determine that as you live your life, J, Jesus will be glorified, O, others will be edified, and Y, you will be sanctified. Determine that as you live your life, J, Jesus will be glorified, O, others will be edified, and Y, you will be sanctified.

Now we looked at the earlier verses in chapter nine, and we saw that much of what the apostle Paul teaches us, in fact, we started in chapter eight. We saw in eight and the earlier part of nine that Paul made the case very clearly that if you want to really please the Lord, you want to make sure that Jesus is central in your thinking as you live your life.

And then he went on to say, not only do you want to make sure that Jesus is glorified, but be sensitive to the needs of your brothers and sisters. And that's where we examined the section where Paul talked about the food that had been sacrificed to idols. There were some believers who thought there's no big deal, it's good food, it's a good price, I'll just eat it.

But others had come out of a background of idol worship, and for them it was nothing short of trauma to have to deal with seeing brothers and sisters eat food that had been offered to idols, and it was destroying the faith of some of them. And therefore, Paul said be sensitive and don't use your freedom in Christ to destroy the faith of others.

So you want to make sure Jesus is being glorified and that others are being edified. Now I want to spend some time looking at the third component of the principle, which is you will be sanctified. You will be sanctified. Now sanctified isn't a common word, it's not in our everyday vocabulary. So I want to make sure everyone understands what sanctified means.

Paul doesn't use the actual word in this context of chapters eight through ten, but the concept is clearly there. And so I want you to be familiar with it, and you will run into the word sanctified or sanctification as you study through the New Testament. What does the word mean? I often say that most of us know more about it than we think we know.

How many of you grew up in a home that had sanctified dishes? Let me see your hand. Some hands. Next question, how many of you grew up in a home that had China put up in a closet? Let me see your hand. Many more hands. I told you you knew more about sanctification than you thought you knew. Your mama's China was sanctified.

What does sanctified mean? It means cleansed and set apart for special use. Cleansed and set apart for special use. Not common, not ordinary, not everyday, not you see it all the time, special use. When we came home from school and saw the table set with China, we knew somebody important was in town.

We knew that something special was going to happen at that table. My mama had killed the fatted calf, to use the term from Luke 15. And we were about to feast. We’d get excited. We run upstairs, "Who's here?" because this was something not ordinary. And so those were dishes that were set apart for exclusive, for special use.

You didn't just come home and want to make a sandwich after school and reach in your mama's China cabinet. I hear the moaning and groaning. Just the thought traumatizes some folks. It never even dawned on us to touch your mother's China. She would have thought you lost your natural mind.

You didn't touch that, that was hers to decide when that came out. The husband didn't even fool with the wife's China. Special use. Special use. Sanctified means cleansed and set apart for special use. Not common, not ordinary. Now look at how Paul kind of makes the case without using the word.

He talks about the fact that if we're going to truly please God, we must not only glorify Christ and edify others, but we need to live sanctified lives. He says that sanctification, although he doesn't use the term here, is very much part of what it takes to live the life that God will be pleased with.

And so he's going to give us here an analogy in verses 24 through 27 of 1 Corinthians 9. Look at what he says. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Let me make some points about this business of being sanctified based on the way Paul rolls it out here in chapter nine and into chapter ten.

First point is decide that as you run the Christian race, you will win it. Decide that as you run the Christian race, you will win it. Paul says, now think about a race. In a race many people run, but only one is crowned the winner. Now he's harkening back to the ancient games, just like we have Olympic Games in our day, modern Olympics, there were ancient Olympics with various events.

And as is the case now, was the case then, which is that there is only one gold medalist, there is only one person crowned the winner. And Paul says, many people run, but only one gets the prize. Run in such a way as to win the prize. Decide that as you run your Christian race, you will win it.

Now let me help you understand the Christian race. There are a couple of things you need to know. First of all, we're not running against each other. Really important to know that. The church has got to get out of the competition business. I'm not in competition with you. I'm not running the race against you, hoping to win while you lose.

We are not running against one another. We are in individual races. And so as I run my race, you ought to be on the sidelines of my life cheering me and encouraging me on. As you run your race, your brothers and sisters ought to be on the sideline cheering you and encouraging you on. We're the ones yelling when you come by, "Go ahead, you're doing good, keep it up, pick up your pace," encouraging one another because we're not running against each other.

Christians, get out of the competition business. You're not competing with somebody else. If they're running at a faster pace, pray for them and run your race. Because you're not in competition with them. "Oh, they're growing faster than me. Oh, they're doing more ministry than me. Oh, God is speaking to them more than he's speaking to me." No, no, don't worry about what somebody else is doing.

Encourage them, pray for them, but run your race. We're not in competition. Churches have got to get out of competition with each other. Not competing with other churches in town. I have no interest in growing at the expense of another church. We want to save souls and change lives and pray for what God is doing in the kingdom, because the kingdom is bigger than any one church.

So we've got to be on the same team, we've got to be partners in this and not competitors in this. If another church, God is using them, they're growing faster, they're winning more people, then those are folk I don't have to worry about winning. So praise God for what he's doing over there.

Time out for criticizing other churches and that sort of thing. We've got to make up in our minds that we are on the same team and that we all have the same Great Commission to fulfill. So get out of the business of competing with other ministries, other organizations that are doing the work of God. If they're doing it better than you, go over there and learn how to do it better, and then go back and do what God has called you to do.

Guest (Male): Still ahead, the second half of today's Destined for Victory message, featuring the teaching ministry of Pastor Paul Sheppard. Do you want to listen to Destined for Victory on your schedule? All you need to do is download our free mobile app and listen to these messages wherever you go. Search Destined for Victory at the App Store today.

And for more details or how to find out how to listen and subscribe to our podcast, visit pastorpaul.net. Well, to get the kind of joy that only God can give, a good place to start is by choosing not to compete against your brothers and sisters in Christ, but to press on towards your own high calling in him. For more about that, here's the rest of today's Destined for Victory message, Living by the JOY Principle.

Paul Sheppard: I don't understand folk getting jealous when somebody else is more anointed, used in a greater way than you. Every time I see somebody who's more anointed, I try to get close to them. Because my daddy taught me years ago, when you see somebody with the anointing on them, get close to them, so when their cup runs over some drops will fall on you.

When I hear preachers and I just say, boy, how did they expound the word like that? Oh, Lord, I wish you would bless me to be able to do that. I pray, I seek the Lord. It causes me to want to get closer to God and want to be more available to him. I don't get mad, roll my eyes, suck my teeth.

I don't talk about other churches. God blessing them, praise God. I'm not going to run my mouth, "They probably growing so fast because they watered down the message. See, I'm preaching the truth." Don't need to go in there. You don't have to water down the message in order to see God save souls and change lives.

So we've got to get out of competition with other believers and with other churches. We are running our own race. Everyone is in your own race. God put you in your lane, gives you your assignment, and every one of us can and must win our own Christian race. I'm not running against you.

Let me help you, you're not even running against the devil. I know this little course, I remember going to churches, various visiting various churches growing up, and some of those churches that would have devotional service, where you'd get up, the early part of the service they called it devotional service and you would testify.

And typically in a lot of those churches you'd get up and sing a chorus before you gave your testimony. And one of the choruses I remember hearing, we didn't sing it at our home church, but I heard it in other places, where they'd sing, "I beat the devil running and I'm so glad. Beat the devil running and I'm so glad. Beat the devil running and I'm so glad, the world can't do me no harm."

Now that's a nice little catchy chorus, but the theology is problematic. Because I'm not running against the devil. He's not in my race. The devil is already defeated. He's already disqualified. He knows where he's going. Y'all got to understand, get your theology straight. Get into this book and get your theology straight.

The devil is a defeated enemy. Jesus stripped him of his authority on Calvary. Him and all of his demons are defeated. They have no victory whatsoever coming toward them. They are all sentenced and awaiting the execution of their sentence. The day is coming when death and hell shall be cast into the lake of fire, the Bible says.

And the enemy knows that's where he's going to spend eternity. Y'all got to get it straight. He's not there now. He's not hanging out in hell having a good time. Hell will be no more fun for the devil than for anybody else. He is roaming the earth. He knows where he's going, he's just trying to drum up company.

You got to get it straight. We're not running against the devil. He's defeated. He's on the sideline of your life. That's why we got to cheer one another because he's on the sideline of our life trying to trip us up. Trying to get us to run out of our lane. Trying to get us to miss what God has for us.

The devil is somebody defeated who doesn't want you to win. That's all he is. Get your theology straight. This isn't Star Wars, he's not on the dark side of the force and you're on the light side, and there's this epic struggle as to who's going to win. When you know who you are and whose you are, you can tell the devil where to go.

Tell him where to go and draw him a map so he won't get lost. Now you do have to pay attention to him. The Bible says don't be ignorant concerning his devices. Be sober and vigilant because he is as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. But when you know who you are and whose you are and you operate in the grace and power of the Lord, you don't have to worry about him.

When he shows up you say, oh please. In Jesus' name, be gone. Be sober, be vigilant, be armed with the armor of the Lord, but don't be preoccupied, don't have a devil-demon fixation. Because they're not your big problem. Your big problem is learning to follow God, listen to his instructions, do what he says.

If you'll follow God's plan for your race, you will win it. If you're in it, you might as well be in it to win it. Don't enter the race just to say, "You know, I had a track meet. I made the team." That's not good enough. What you gonna do when you get on the track? What you gonna do come meet day?

It's time to win your race. And I want to encourage you that you must make up in your mind that you are going to be a winner, not just a participant, but a winner. I don't understand folk who don't want to win whatever it is they're in. I just don't get it. You've heard me talk about it before, whether it's a board game or card game or whatever, if I'm in it, I sit down to win.

I don't sit down to merely play, I sit down to win. There's gonna be a problem if I don't win. I don't get people who play just for the fun. You're playing Monopoly or something and they laugh while you taking all their houses and land. I don't understand that. How can you laugh during that time? That's not a fun time.

I don't get it, for some people, "Oh, I'm just completely wiped out." No, no, you're at the wrong table. I want those folk for whom this is life and death. That's my table. The folk who are just this far from fighting. Listen, whether you're that way about games and sports in the natural, all of us ought to agree that in the spiritual, when you're in it, you better be in it to win it.

Listen, when you were in the world, you got the most that the world had to offer you. Come on somebody. If you were in the world, many of y'all might have been casual sinners, but some of y'all I can tell by looking at you. Tell by looking at you that when you were in sin, you were a buck wild sinner.

You did everything there was to do. You were trying to invent new ways to sin. Come on, come on. All right, y'all going to make me go there. Let me find a few honest folk who say, "Yes pastor, when I was in sin, I was a sure enough do it all sinner." Thank you for some honesty.

And we're in the kingdom of God now. We've been translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. And let me tell you something, God is looking for some sold out, radical believers who will follow him anywhere he leads us, who will do anything he tells us to do, who will follow the Lord exactly and precisely.

Who won't try to go to the left or the right but will stay on the course God has us on. God's looking for some sold out, out of the closet believers who say for Christ I live and for Christ I will die. I'm not straddling the fence. God looking for folk who say I'm not going to straddle the fence.

One foot in the world, one foot in the church. Little bit of holiness but not a whole lot. Little bit of righteousness but not a whole lot. Little bit of obedience but not a whole lot. God's looking for some folk who are all the way on the Lord's side. A fence straggler is living the worst of all the possibilities.

It's the worst of all the possibilities. In fact, in Revelation chapter three, one of the rebukes to one of the churches there was you are neither cold nor hot. You're lukewarm. Didn't he say so to the church at Laodicea? And he said, I wish you were hot or cold. I'd rather you pick an extreme than be lukewarm because lukewarm is just enough to make everybody sick.

Be all the way on one side or all the way on the other. If you're going to hell, go first class. Don't fool around and go to hell from the church. What kind of sense does that make? If you're going to hell, go first class. But if you're going to heaven, and thank God by his grace we're on our way to heaven, then you might as well go experiencing the best and the most that God has for us.

And that's by living the life, running the race that he has set before us. Looking to Jesus, the writer to the Hebrews says, who is the author and the finisher of our faith. And so you want to make up in your mind, decide since you're in the race, you are in it to win it. You are going to do what God has called you to do.

You're going to be one of those believers who will do everything the Lord has given him or her to do. Decide, make up in your mind that you are going to win your race. That's the first aspect of what he teaches us here about living this life that is set apart. Decide that you'll win.

Number two, discipline your mind and body. Discipline your mind and body. See, the decision is one thing, but it is the discipline that backs up the decision. You can decide many things, but if you don't couple the decision with discipline, you'll never reach your goal. How many know that that's true?

How many of ever decided like I did recently you're going to lose some weight? And you made the decision, but I had many times, I've had many times over the course of my adult life where I decided I would, I threatened to lose weight. But there were many false starts, many take a quick crack at it and then it goes away because I've learned, many of you have learned in this area and many other areas that you can't just make a decision, you have to couple it with discipline.

Let me give you a soundbite. Determination without discipline is dreaming. Determination without discipline is dreaming. That's true for sports, that's true for academics, that's true for anything you pursue. You can determine all you want, but if you don't develop the discipline, you're just dreaming. You might as well just be laying in bed just thinking fanciful thoughts because you must couple discipline with any decision you make.

Guest (Male): That was a great comment, wasn't it? Determination without discipline is dreaming. You know, the Christian race you're running is not only important for you, it's important for everyone around you. Allow God to make you the best that you can be, and you may make a positive noise on earth that echoes into eternity.

You know, the last thing Jesus told us to do was to go out and make disciples of all nations, and to get that job done, it takes all of us working together. So right now during the busy summer months when donations to the ministry tend to decline, we're asking all of our listening friends and partners to prayerfully consider making a generous donation to Destined for Victory.

And when you do, we'd love to send you our latest booklet, More Than Conquerors, as our way of saying thank you. You know, the Christian life is a victorious life and it doesn't happen by accident. It's your birthright purchased by the Lord Jesus Christ. And yet so many believers live in defeat, selling their birthright for things worth far less.

In More Than Conquerors, Pastor Paul uses the unlikely story of Gideon to outline the path from defeat to victory. So if you want to understand how to take on a victor's identity and tear down the idols competing for your heart, you want to reserve your copy of this outstanding resource today. It's called More Than Conquerors and it's yours this month for your generous donation to Destined for Victory.

You can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-5500. Or visit pastorpaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, post office box 1767, Fremont, California 94538.

God has called us to be winners, and that means since we're competing for a crown that will last forever, we must make up in our minds, "God, I'm not just going to say I'll be a winner, but I will do what it takes to win the Christian race." And that's next time in our continuing message, Living by the JOY Principle. Until then, remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.