ABOVE ALL: Walking in the Victory of Jesus - Part 5: Disappointment | Pastor Pablo Morales

Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is

an international church in Bangkok, Thailand

with dozens of nationalities worshiping together.

We invite you to connect with us from wherever

you are through our website ecb .asia or our

mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed

by this week's sermon. Today we are continuing

our study. That we began in March on above all.

And this study seeks to understand what is that

Jesus accomplished for us. So that we may walk

in the freedom that he came to give us. So as

we prepare to engage on this study, let's pray

together. Lord, words can't describe. Describe

the depth of what you have done. But we want

to engage with that depth anyway. And we want

to look at your word and seek and understand.

Will you reach our hearts in the deepest parts

that no one else can reach but you? So that as

we engage with your word, our eyes will be open

to you. Use me in your power and your grace and

your strength. Thank you for the gift you give

us today of your word. We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen. At the beginning of this series, we discovered

that what Jesus came to do was to destroy the

power of Satan and the kingdom of darkness that

we humans were enslaved to. That to become a

follower of Jesus is to become free from darkness

and now to become part of the kingdom of light.

To follow Jesus is a transformation of walking

from the spiritual slavery that we were in to

the freedom that Jesus paid for. And each one

of the studies focused on a different dimension

of what Jesus did. And today I want to focus

on this word, disappointment. And I want to ask

you a very personal question. And the question

is this. Do you feel like a disappointment? Have

you felt like a disappointment? This nagging

feeling that, you know, you look at your past,

where you have been, And you feel completely

unworthy. You look at the present and it's like,

look at what you have become. And you feel so

undeserving. And all of this drains you so much

that to look at the future is just unbearable.

You don't want to even engage in thinking about

that because you feel so drained. Drained emotionally,

drained spiritually, drained physically to the

point that you just feel depressed. And this

feeling of being a disappointment is just stuck

to you. And it doesn't seem to want to go away.

That feeling is not uncommon. And it may come

and go and have different shapes. But what all

of those experiences have in common is that none

of us are from God. They are from the enemy.

And what Jesus came to do was to break the power

of the enemy to hold you captive to that. And

Jesus is inviting you to follow him and walk

in the freedom of what he accomplished for you.

And to really understand what he came to do,

we have to start today, not with the life of

Jesus, but go a little bit back to the end of

the Old Testament. The prophets that were written

before Jesus came. The last two books of the

Old Testament are Zechariah and Malachi. And

these two prophets prophesied different things.

But Zechariah specifically is where I want to

turn to. Because there is a prophecy in Zechariah.

That is describing the Messiah and what he is

going to accomplish. But it's also describing

a guy that is stuck in this place of feeling

like a disappointment. He is one of the religious

leaders. He's a priest. His name is Jeshua. And

Jeshua, the priest, is depicted like wearing

filthy clothes. And he is experiencing this spiritual

oppression where he's being accused of all the

things, all his failures, everything that he

has done. And he's in that place of just feeling

weighty and discouraged. And you can identify

with that feeling, with that moment of feeling

like defeated, like bleh. So disgusted of myself.

But what Zechariah describes is amazing. Let's

take a look at it. This is what Zechariah says.

As he turns to Joshua, he's going to come with

word from God. And he says this. Then the angel

showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before

the angel of the Lord. And there was somebody

else there. Who was that? The accuser, Satan,

was there. At the angel's right hand, making

accusations against Joshua. And the Lord said

to Satan, I, the Lord, reject your accusation,

Satan. Yes, the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem,

rebukes you. This man, Joshua, whom you are accusing,

is like a burning stick that has been snatched

from the fire. He was being consumed by this

guilt and by this shame. And if I left it there,

he will be completely consumed. But I took him

out of there. And now, Joshua's clothings are

filthy. As he stood there before the angel. So

the angel said to the other standing there. Guys

come. Take off his filthy clothes. And turning

to Jeshua he said. See Jeshua. I have taken away

your sin. And now I'm giving you these fine new

clothes. Listen to me oh Jeshua. The high priest.

And all of you are the priests. You are but symbols

of things. To come. Soon. I'm going to bring

my servant. Who? The branch. You might remember.

The title the branch of Jesse. This was a title

that was given. To the Messiah. The one to come.

And Zacharias says, soon I'm going to bring my

servant, the Messiah. And I will remove the sins

of this land in one single day. Wow. This feels

very personal. First of all. Personal because

you have a guy that is feeling the weight of

his shame and he's stuck in that place of feeling

like a disappointment to himself, to God, to

the people. And that feeling is clearly coming

from a place of spiritual oppression. There's

an accuser that is accusing him, but there's

a loving God that is coming to defend him and

stand for him. And that experience of full forgiveness,

of relief, is something that God says, this is

a picture of what is about to come. You just

wait until my servant shows up. And when he shows

up here in Jerusalem, in one single day, I will

remove the sin of this place. Just like that,

in one day. One day, my servant will come. And

Jesus did come. And when he is preparing to go

to Jerusalem, in his last trip to Jerusalem,

leading to his crucifixion, he arrives there

to Jerusalem, the same city where Zechariah had

just talked to Yeshua about this prophecy. And

now Jesus, the Messiah, the servant prophesied

by... Zechariah shows up right there in Jerusalem.

And he's going to say a few things to his apostles.

At one moment, he turns to them. And he says,

guys, the time for judging this world has come.

When Satan, the ruler of this world, will be

cast out. I came with a mission and it's about

to happen. Soon. Soon Satan the ruler of this

world will be cast out. And when I am lifted

up from the earth. I will draw everyone to myself.

I have come for a mission. And I am going to

fulfill it. And then. They go to celebrate the

Passover. He is with the apostles. The night

that he is going to be betrayed. And Judas, the

guy who is going to betray him, is partaking

of this meal. And Jesus breaks the bread and

then he gives this to Judas. And when Judas had

eaten the bread, something changed. Satan entered

into him. So now you have Judas, controlled by

Satan himself. And now Jesus turns to him and

says, hurry, do what you're going to do. So Judas,

with Satan in him, leave. They leave to entice

now the Roman soldiers to come to take Jesus

away and torture him. But before that happens,

Jesus goes to pray with his apostles to the garden.

And as he is there, he knows the time is getting

close. So he tells his friends, guys, I don't

have much more time to talk to you because the

ruler of this world approaches. Who is coming

with the soldiers in a few moments? Judas, and

who is in him? Satan. And who is the ruler of

this world? Satan. And who is going to show up

in a few minutes? The ruler of this world. He

has no power over me. Things are going to unfold

in these days, but I'm here to tell you, Satan

has no power over me. But I will do what the

father requires of me. So that the world will

know. That I love the father. Come. Let's be

going. And as they left. Then Jesus. Is confronted

by the soldiers. He's imprisoned. He becomes

tortured. And then he's crucified. What you can

see so far. Is how. The spiritual battle. And

this war that is happening. Between Jesus. The

servant that was about to come. The branch of

Jesse that was to come. To destroy the power

of Satan. And yet Satan is right there. He has

no idea what's about to come. But he is there

engaging. Trying to oppose Jesus. And lead him

to this place. Where he thinks he's going to

destroy him. And now Jesus is on the cross. And

as Jesus is on the cross. Something happens.

A series of events that happen. That depict the

epic nature and scale of what's happening. And

you have to read specifically the book of Matthew

to get just the depth of what's going on. And

all of this is happening, remember, so that the

sin of the land could be taken away in one day

so that the accuser will not be able to accuse

God's people anymore. So what happened? Let's

read Matthew. At noon, darkness fell across the

whole land until three o 'clock. At about three

o 'clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice,

Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, which means, my God,

my God. Why have you abandoned me? Some of the

bystanders misunderstood. And they thought he

was calling from prophet Elijah. One of them

ran and filled a sponge with sour wine. Holding

it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink.

But the rest said, wait, wait. Let's see whether

Elijah shows up and comes to save him. Then Jesus

shouted again and he released his spirit. Do

you realize that the very moment before Jesus

dies, there's this shouting that happens? It

doesn't tell you the details. It's just a moment.

Jesus crucified. Everything that has been said

and done. And about a second before he dies.

He goes. And silence. And at that very moment

his spirit. Enters the realm. Of the dead. Never

before. In the history of humanity. Had anyone

entered the realm of the dead. That did not deserve

to be there. For the first time. There is a human.

Who is not guilty of sin. Who gives his life

willingly to be able to infiltrate in that space.

Because he came with a mission. And the mission

was to destroy the power of Satan to accuse.

And at this moment that he accomplishes that

and he gets into that place to overcome the power

of Satan. a series of events unfolds. At that

moment, the curtain in the sanctuary of the temple

was turning to from top to bottom. In the temple

in Jerusalem, there was this place that was known

as the Holy of Holies. And once a year, the high

priest could go in there to offer The atoning

sacrifice for the sins of the people. And only

he could enter that place. And now with his death.

Jesus enters that place. And that curtain that

separated humans from God. Completely destroyed.

He is the high priest. And he is the sacrifice.

Both at once. And in one sacrifice, now he removes

the sin of the land in one day. And now the earth

shook, rocks split apart, and tombs opened. The

bodies of many godly men and women who had died

were raised from the dead. They left the cemetery

after Jesus' resurrection. They went into the

holy city of Jerusalem and appeared to many people.

What? Did I read that right? Yes. The Roman officer

and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were

The darkness. The earthquake. Hearing this Jesus

scream like that. And all of it happening at

once. And they are terrified by the earthquake.

And all that had happened. And they said. This

man was. Truly was the son of God. What did just

happen here? It's like, just to verify, I'm reading

the Bible here. Many people that are familiar

with the events of the death and resurrection

of Jesus have skipped Matthew altogether. And

it's like, what? Did I just read that? That happened

there? I never heard that before. Well, go and

read your Bible. You have homework to do. I'm

not making this up. There's a whole realm of

stuff that is happening in the spiritual realm

that we have no idea. But this is what Jesus,

the promised servant of God, who was going to

come, the branch, to remove the sins, in one

day, came to do. I remember that when I was living

in Dallas, I had to lead our ministry through

a whole process of rebranding. And that meant

to also do the whole rebranding of our website.

So we got to work with the designers and it was

not cheap. Because it was before AI, now you

can do it in 10 minutes. AI does everything for

you. At that time, you have to work with the

designers and the coders and all this stuff.

And I remember driving to San Antonio and met

with the company and had all these interviews

to make sure everything was being done right.

And that's when I became aware that a website

is very complex. One thing is what you do when

you click and the things that you see happen,

but there's the back end. And the back end of

the website is nothing compared to what you see

on the front. The back end is a bunch of coding.

Bunch of coding. Coding, coding, coding, coding.

And it's like, that's the website? Yeah, that's

the website. That's what's happening behind the

scenes. And when we talk about salvation, it's

like that. You see the website. You see the front.

Jesus is on the cross. All these things that

we read are happening. But what is the back end?

What is happening in the back end? To really

understand if I can, you have to turn to Colossians.

The Apostle Paul. Because he's going to tell

you exactly what happened at that moment. The

earthquake. The torn veil. The shouting. All

this stuff. What happened? And this is what happened.

Jesus. canceled the record of the charges against

us and took it away by nailing it on the cross.

And in this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers

and authorities and he shamed them publicly by

his victory over them on the cross. On the front

end, it looks like the one that is being defeated

is Jesus. That the one that is being shamed is

Jesus. But no, the back end tells a whole different

story. Jesus is dying because he is breaking

the power of Satan now to accuse. He is disarming

him from all... All the weapons that he could

use against you and against me. Because he is

canceling everything that was against us. He

took in one moment through his death on the cross.

The sin of the land in one day. Just like Zechariah

said. And the rulers of the kingdom of darkness.

Including the ruler of this world. Satan. Is

being defeated. When I was reading this part

of the story. I remember something that happened

to me when I was in high school. As you may remember

I was born in Santiago in Chile. I went to public

school. And when I was in high school, I went

to this all -man high school. No girls, just

guys. We had to wear the uniform, the suit, the

tie, the insignia, everything. Very formal. But

the school I went to was known to be very political.

I was born during the... Time of the dictatorship

of President Augusto Pinochet. And this high

school was known for engaging in political protests

and different things. Many of the guys graduating

from the high school ended up being political

leaders in the country later. I did not know

all of that before I got into it. I just knew

I had good academic records. So I got there because

of the academics. But one day, there was a protest

happening. And they took over the whole school.

So you cannot get into the school. And they would

burn things and destroy things. It was a mess.

Well, when I was in high school, I was, you know,

overall a good student, except twice. And I got

in trouble two times, and it went on record.

They had this book in the principal's office,

and there was one guy that we called, his role

was an inspector. It's just the guy that was

in charge of making sure that everyone behaved.

You know, all these guys, all these hormones,

you know. He walked around, you know, and anytime

there was somebody that got in trouble, oh, you

go to the office, they open the book, and they

write down what you did. The problem was that

if you got so many, then you will be suspended,

and I already got two. So I got one more suspended.

That day I went to school. I couldn't get to

class because big protests going on, big mess.

So I went back home. And then when I was able

to come back to class, I learned that these guys

had made a big mess. They had burned some furniture

and a couple of other things, including the book.

And I was so happy. I didn't care about their

political views. I just was happy that it was

no longer a record. In one day, my record was

canceled. And knowing that changes everything.

Because next time that something happens, you

know, and you're accused by the accuser, and

the accuser comes and says, I have all these

things against you. And wait until I tell everybody

about all your things. I have the book. What

would you say? It's like, please don't, please

don't. Or would you say, what book? You're just

bluffing. There's no book. Haven't you heard

the news? Jesus nailed it on the cross. And he

canceled all the accusations. Hundred times.

All of them. Once and for all. That is what Jesus

accomplished. And because he did that. He took

away all the material. That the enemy could take

against you. He has no meat. He has nothing to

blackmail you with. But Satan is like a dog.

He can bark. But cannot bite. And you fell for

it. And you've been feeling like you are in a

disappointment. And you're ashamed. And you're

this and that. And that is not what Jesus came

to save you for. There's no book. That's why,

read with me what the following verse says. Don't

let anyone condemn you. No one, especially Satan

the accuser. Your past is your past. Jesus redeemed

it. Would you let him rewrite your story? What

Jesus accomplished for us, Was so amazing. That

as you read all these things. It simply makes

you wonder. How could someone like Jesus do this?

What was so special about him? That he could

do all of this stuff. I mean this is epic. This

is major. He cancelled our debt. He disarmed.

The powers of darkness. Who is this Jesus? Well

you don't have to go far. Stay in Colossians.

And it will tell you. And that's what you read.

Word by word. The picture that unfolds. Is just.

Amazing. Let's read it. Christ. meaning Jesus,

is the visible image of the invisible God. You've

seen Jesus, you've seen God. Like Jesus told

the apostles, you've seen me, you've seen the

Father. Christ is the visible image of the invisible

God. He existed before anything was created,

even Satan, because Satan was a created being.

And he is supreme over all creation. For through

him. God created. Everything. In the heavenly

realms. And on earth. He made the things. We

can see. And the things we can't see. Such as

thrones. kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in

the unseen world. Everything was created through

him and for him. Wait. So if Satan was the ruler

of this world, and he's an angel that rebelled

against God, and Jesus created... All thrones,

kingdoms, rulers and authorities. That means

that Jesus is not an equal with Satan. Jesus

is the creator of these beings. Wow. Everything

was created through him and for him. He existed

before anything else. And he holds all creation

together. He is the glue that keeps the universe.

Christ is also the head of the church, which

is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over

all who rise from the dead. So he is first in

everything. For God, in all his fullness, was

pleased to live in Christ. And through him, God

reconciled everything. To himself. He made peace.

With everything in heaven and on earth. Through

what? By means of Christ's blood. On the cross.

The creator. Of heaven and earth. Is hanging

on that cross. The one who had created Satan

and the angels that rebelled is hanging on that

cross. And as he's on that cross and as he screams

before he dies, it's a stream of not pain but

victory. It's now the moment in which he is reconciling

everything on heaven and on earth through his

death on the cross. And the one that is being

defeated is Satan. The one that is being shamed

is Satan. And now, not only he had canceled everything

that was against us, not only he has disarmed

the powers of darkness, but now he has reconciled

us. Completely. In one moment. In one day. He

took away the sin. Completely. I like those moments

in the superhero movies. When everything is going

so bad. And the enemy is attacking everybody.

And killing everybody. And then the superhero

shows up. And he goes. And before you know it.

All the enemies are dead on the floor. You know.

Because he knows how to fight. And this was Jesus

on the cross. He went. And Satan. Got it. Defeated.

Boom. If this is what happened. Why do you keep

thinking. That God is disgusted with you. Why

do you keep thinking that somehow God is too

busy to care for you? Look at the cross. He's

not too busy. He came specifically for that mission

and mission accomplished. He loves you so much.

That because he has taken away and canceled the

record against us. You are like that Jeshua that

is standing there being accused by the enemy.

And God is standing on your side and saying,

I resist you, I rebuke you Satan. Because I have

removed the filthy clothes and giving this person

new clean clothes. The sin has been removed.

And therefore time has come for us to walk as

if that is true. The servant, the branch, the

Messiah, the creator has come. And because he

came and he accomplished what he accomplished

on our behalf. He's inviting you and me to follow

him. But to follow him not like you are a disappointment.

Not like you have to live as if you are dying.

That's why James wrote these words. And I want

to conclude this study with this. Would you read

it with me? So humble yourself before God. Resist

the devil and he will flee from you. Come close

to God. And God will come close to you. Wash

your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts,

for your loyalty is divided between God and the

world. And in this short paragraph, he addresses

three of us. Just like that. First, if you are

a follower of Jesus, And you have been going

through this season in your life in which you

feel like a disappointment. You're disappointed

with yourself. You have been disappointed with

what you have become. You're disappointed with

your past. You are just a big disappointment.

I'm here to tell you, you are under spiritual

attack. That is not the voice of the Holy Spirit.

That is the voice of the accuser. And the Word

of God says you have to resist the accuser. And

he will flee from you. But you have to do that

by standing firm on the faith. Do that. Resist

him. Come to the Lord when you are experiencing

that. And say, God, the accuser is telling me

this and this and this and this. But I refuse

that. And I'm asking you, take that from me.

Because I know who you are. And I know who I

am. Resist. The accuser. Otherwise, he's going

to bark at you and you're going to feel like

he can bite, but he can't because there's no

book. Good news. The second group that he addresses

are the ones that are yet to follow Jesus. You

are not a follower of Jesus. Jesus is not your

savior. Therefore, you only have an accuser,

but you have no one to defend you. Because the

only one that took the book away is not your

savior. And if Jesus is not your savior, James

says this, look, there's only one thing that

you need to do. Come close to God. And God will

come close to you. He loves you. He's inviting

you to experience the peace of his forgiveness.

Don't keep wasting your time in all these other

religions that are trying to tell you, if you

do this, if you do this, maybe you will be good

enough, but you do not know, so give us more

money and we'll keep trying. They are deceiving

you and duping you. Jesus is saying, come close

to me. And I'll come close to you. Would you

let me? If Jesus is not your savior. He's inviting

you today. For that to change forever. And wherever

you are today. You can tell the Lord. Lord Jesus.

I want to follow you. From now on. I'm yours.

But the third group. That he addresses. Are those

of us who are following Jesus, we are already

followers of Jesus. We're indwelled by the Spirit,

but we are not walking with the Lord. And our

hands are dirty. Yeah, there's no book, but I

have dirty hands. Because I've been engaging

in things that are contrary to who God called

me to be. They do not honor God and I've been

doing it anyway. And I feel so upset with myself

because there I am again and again. And if that

is you, James says, look, wash your hands. You

can wash them. You don't have to live with those

dirty hands. But you have to purify your heart.

For the truth is that your loyalty is divided

between God and the world and you have to make

a decision. Are you going to follow God? Or are

you going to continue playing religious? You

don't need to continue living with a divided

heart. You can come to the Lord today and say,

God, My heart's been divided between the world

and you. I'm struggling, but here I'm telling

you, in my weakness, give me a heart that fully

loves you. I don't want that anymore in my life.

That's not who I am. Would you lead me to restoration?

This is what God is inviting us to experience.

He came for us to walk in freedom and experience

life, not to be enslaved and experience death.

So I would like to invite you today to seriously

consider your walk with God and whether you are

walking in the freedom that Jesus accomplished.

For you. So I want to end. Just like I began.

With a personal question. And that question is

this. What is draining you? Because something

is draining you. And the Holy Spirit doesn't

drain you. The Holy Spirit fills you. If something

is draining you. It's not from the Lord. And

chances are. That you are being drained by the

enemy. Through all of these different things.

So that you will be compromised. And I'm here

to tell you. Turn to Jesus. He already did everything.

You just have to trust him. That's all. Let's

pray. Lord. The ruler of this world. Satan. It's

just so evil. So sneaky with his kingdom. Thank

you for rescuing us, Lord. But today we know

there's this feeling of disappointment that doesn't

go away. And today, in Jesus' name, I break it.

And I silence that voice from the enemy. In Jesus

name. Let the truth of Christ. Be loud. That

says. Canceled. Disarmed. Reconciled. Let the

voice of truth. Give us a breakthrough. That

from now on. We will walk in your freedom. In

Jesus name. Amen. You will find giving options

on our website. Remember to join us next week.

God bless you.