For Those Under Attack

You're under attack and there's some things you need to

know about this attack. The good news is it is

not an ambush. Peter says that the devil is like

a roaring lion. That means he gives you a warning

before the warfare begins. And so sometimes we act really

surprised by things that we go through and ways that

we struggle and we come into situations that are harder

than we expected them to be, and we ask God

to do great things in our lives, but the battle begins,

and we act like we weren't warned. No, Peter said,

this lion, the devil, is not silent.

He's a roar. Come on, give me your best roar. Roar.

I've never done this before. I've done a lot of

touch your neighbors, but somebody roar at your neighbor.

Say, roar. devil's all up in your face he'll he'll.

Let you know it's coming and what you need to

know if you are under attack and i will not

have you raise your hand because perhaps the very people.

Who need this message the most would be.

The most reluctant to admit that this is for me

but he said you when you find yourself in a

season of attack that roaring lion is in your face

now i'm thinking right here peter's gonna say run Because

to me, that's the only reasonable advice when you're faced.

With the roaring lion. Hello, I don't even like.

Dogs very much. Holly's scared of rats. Can you imagine

if she saw a lion? But he doesn't say run. Instead,

he challenges us to resist. And it's a certain type

of resistance because he says. To those who are under attack,

you need to come under the mighty hand of God.

I want you to see that phrase because it touched

me so deeply in my study. I was hoping to

explain it to you for a moment today. The three

things that the hand of God represents.

This is verse six. Humble yourself.

Under the mighty hand of God, an image that would

have been familiar for a Jewish audience, for it was

with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm that God

brought his people out of Egyptian slavery.

Peter wants them to know that same hand of God.

That has been actively fulfilling his purpose throughout human history

is still reigning over your life. Humble yourself under that

mighty hand. The hand of God represents his plan. I

don't know about you, but I'm thankful that God's plan

for my life has prevailed even against my own plan

that I thought was better sometimes. How many are grateful

for the hand of God? If you're grateful for the

hand of God, just wave your hand at me. God's

hand is not like your hand. It's an invisible hand.

You can't see it, but you definitely know the effects

of it when it moves. Because after you've lived a

little while, Peter said, I saw what happens in the

hand of God, the plan of God.

I saw what happens.

See, Peter is not writing this as advice unsolicited, and

he's not writing this as advice uninformed. Peter is a

grown man now, a grown man. Christian man now. Getting

a little bolder about relaying his advice from his experiences.

And who better to tell us about the hand of

God than a man who walked with Jesus Christ in

the flesh? Who better to describe to us the function

of the hand of God than the one who saw

his face? Jesus said, if you've seen me, you've seen

the Father. Peter didn't just trace the hand of God.

He saw the face of God.

And now he.

Says to those who are under attack, up under depression,

up under disappointment, dealing with failure, hit rock bottom, don't

know what's next, freaking out, crying yourself to sleep at night,

feeling all alone. He says to every believer, you've got

the upper hand.

The hand of God is mighty. The hand of God

is strong.

The hand of God is over your life.

Prevail as purpose will come to pass. For I know

the plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans

to prosper you, not to harm you. Plans to give

you hope in a future.

And if you find yourself under attack today, you need

to know that the hand of God is guiding you,

leading you.

That same hand that split.

The sea open so his people could walk.

Right through it.

The hand of God will make a way where there

is no way. The hand of God will bring rock,

water out of a rock in a dry place. The

hand of God is over your life.

And he has a plan.

The plan of God, the hand of God represents the

plan of God. The hand of God represents the provision

of God. These all start with the letter P.

That's what I do. The provision of God.

And who better to remind a church that is under

attack or a believer who is under attack that the

hand of God is the place where bread multiplies than

the one who saw 5,000 fed.

With just a few loaves and a few fish.

Anytime you've seen a kid's snack pack from Captain D's

multiplied into a buffet, you know something about the provision

in the hand of God. And Peter was right there.

And he saw what happened when they put the bread

in Jesus' hand. And so he knew that at times

where you feel like you're in a place of lack,

that your provision is never dependent upon your own ability

to provide for yourself or your own ability to create

resources for yourself.

But anything you put in the hand of God.

will multiply. Anything you put in the hand of God

will multiply. Anything you put in the hand of.

God, it just keeps coming. It just keeps coming. Do

I have any witnesses?

You've been through some hard times in your life, but

hope kept coming. You've been in some tight places. You

felt like you were running out. You didn't feel like

you could make it to the next day, but somehow, Blakely,

strength kept coming.

Joy kept coming.

A tomorrow kept coming in spite of your past because

the hand of God is a hand of provision.

And it's a hand of protection. God has me in

his grip.

Who better to help me see that the hand of

God will protect me than the one who tried to

walk on water?

Do y'all know the Bible?

Go study this story in Matthew chapter 14 where Peter

Matthew 14 · chapter mention

got out there.

He's trying to make his way to Jesus. He's coming

toward him.

And about the time he gets there, because sometimes it's

right when you're on the verge....

That you start to sink. I never saw it before.

Can I take a moment? Okay, I'm going to take

a moment. You said I could.

In Matthew chapter 14, because I was just going to

Matthew 14 · chapter mention

mention it, but you act like you came to hear

preaching today.

I don't know what's happening.

In University City, but there's some hungry people for the

bread of life at Valentine.

It says that Peter.

In the storm got out of the boat, and when

he walked out on the water, he did pretty good.

Watch this.

He came toward Jesus. Y'all got that scripture in Matthew 14?

He came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind,

he was afraid and beginning to sink, cried out, Lord,

save me. So he cries out before he goes completely under.

So he's sinking, but he's not sunk. He's going down,

but he's not out. The lion is prowling, but he

has not prevailed.

You follow me? Watch this. This is what I never saw.

Verse 31 says, Immediately that's the word Jesus reached out

his Do it again Immediately Jesus reached out his Immediately

Jesus reached out his hand notice the construct of the

narrative Jesus is not walking toward Peter Peter is walking

toward Jesus When Jesus sees Peter falling and hears him

crying he reaches out his hand and And Peter is

close enough for Jesus to reach. The problem with some

of us isn't that we're sinking. It's that we won't

stay close enough, come on, for God to get us

in his grip. But I came to announce to that

lion today, that liar, the devil, that I'm in his

grip even when I'm going down. Even though the winds

and the waves are roaring and raging in my life,

I'm in his grip. Somebody shout, I'm in his grip.

I'm in his grip. I'm in his grip.

God's got me in his grip. He's got me in

his grip. He's got me in the hand of his protection.

He might let me suffer a little while, but he

won't let me stay there.

He is my God and I'm in his hand. Humble

yourself under him.

The mighty hand of God doesn't matter how well you

can walk on water.

It matters how close you are to his hand.

It doesn't matter about your intelligence. It matters about your surrender.

It doesn't matter about your ability. It matters about your surrender.

Humble yourself. I'm preaching to somebody. I'm preaching to somebody

so straight you can't even nod.

You're trying to hold.

Back tears, but God sent a preacher with a message.

You might as well go ahead and cry out, Lord,

save me.

I can't do this on my own. I am not

enough by myself. Humble yourself under the mighty hand.

Of God. He'll lift you up in due time. He'll

get you up. He'll lift you up in due time.

He'll let you go down low enough to know that

you need him. And bring you up high enough to

let the world know that he's with you.

Come on. Come on. Come on.

Verse 7 is what I've been trying to practice. That

I can be under attack and not anxious. Cast all

your anxiety on him.

Be careful.

You i'm trying to do that because i felt like

after code orange revival i felt like i went under

an emotional attack and i don't even know that i'm

still out of it yet.

Part of it is probably because.

Of adrenaline and physiological factors that have to do with

getting up 10 nights in a row and all of

the hosting of Trying to put up with guests for

10 nights, make them feel special.

Part of it, though, had to be spiritual. And it

was like for 10 nights, if you weren't here in

our church, you.

Know, you basically missed out on life by not coming

to Code Orange Revival. But not only did our city

go through a shaking after the revival, I went through

a shaking.

And I don't want to get up here.

And use you for a counseling appointment because I don't

want to have to pay your hourly fee or anything

like that. And I don't want you to worry about

me because I promise you I'm good. And I love

my wife and my kids. And we're good and everything

like that. Don't send me these emails. We're praying for you, Pastor.

That's not the reason I'm telling you this. And it'll

make me feel like you missed the point if you

send me an email. I don't want a card or

anything like that. Flowers, cookies, trying to get me fat

on carbohydrates because you think I'm struggling.

I don't want any of that. I don't need any

of that. I just want to tell you something.

While we were in here talking about 10 nights, 10 years,

celebrating 10 years, I felt overwhelmed about, do I have

what it.

Takes for the next 10? And it's like once you've

gone real high with.

God, as a leader, I think you feel a pressure

to go higher.

But then it's kind of hard because you feel like

maybe you've gone as high as you can go. And

maybe you feel that way as a parent, not as

a preacher. Maybe you feel that way in your business.

And I don't know who I'm preaching to, but I'm

going to open myself up here a little bit for

you today.

If it'll be helpful, because.

Anxiety attacked me and it hit me kind of hard

and I wasn't staying in the bed or anything like that.

But I didn't go get addicted to something, some.

Kind of pills or anything like that. But it was

a thing in my mind. You don't have what it takes.

I don't have what it takes. I can't do, you know, I,

as far as I can take them, I don't know

if I'm the one to do it.

And all this stuff that was going through my mind,

that's how I got over to first Peter chapter five.

Cause I know that scripture. I love that scripture. That

scripture has helped me before.

And sometimes when you are up against a fight, you

got to go back to a weapon that, you know,

I can't fight Goliath in this armor. I got to

get a slingshot.

So, so it was kind of like a, just a

well-known verse.

And I went back in there and Considered the context

of Peter who fell asleep in the garden of Gethsemane

while he was supposed to be watching Jesus back. Jesus

came over to him, gave him two wake-up calls. He

hit the snooze button three times. Are you still sleeping?

And I looked at how Peter was telling the church

to be alert, which is translated elsewhere in the New Testament,

be prayerful.

The enemy eats Christians who sleep in times of battle.

Be alert to what's going on. Realize that the birthmark

of a believer is a bullseye. The devil doesn't like

it one bit that you're moving forward in your relationship

with God.

I started taking the verse apart because the word of God.

Really is what I live by, not just what I

make my living off of. So I went into verse

seven real hard like I needed an answer. When anxiety attacks,

it'll drive you to seek God. To seek his hand.

And I was looking for him. Because he said cast

all your anxiety. While I was reading it. Since I

knew Peter wrote it. And he's a fisherman.

I wondered was he picturing like casting the nets.

From one side of the boat to the other. Just

because Jesus told him to. Sometimes anxiety in our life.

Is a result of our unwillingness to be obedient.

And when he did. Cast the net to the other side.

Maybe that's a word for somebody. He said, cast all

your anxiety on him. Do it his way.

Now we fished all night and caught nothing. Peter said,

but because you say so, I'm a cast my net

on the other side. I've been trying to do this

my way. I've been trying to handle it on my own,

but I'm a cast my net on the other side. However,

it was in verse five and six that I found

my answer. For in verse 5 he says, in the

same way you who are younger submit yourselves to your elders,

all of you clothe. Greek word, tie on.

Tie on. That's not the Greek. That's the translation of

the Greek word. Tie it on. Like a towel.

Like Jesus did. When he took on the role of

a servant. And he got a towel, a servant's towel,

and he put it around his waist. And when Peter

saw him tying on that towel, he said, no, you don't.

Tie on the towel, Jesus. You sit on the throne.

But Jesus tied on the towel.

And I wonder as Peter is telling them to clothe

themselves in humility, is he having a flashback of the

Savior who laid his riches and glory aside and made

himself nothing, found in the appearance of sinful man and

became a servant, humbling himself even to death on a

cross as he tied on the towel and washed Peter's feet.

Peter's response, no, Lord, you can't wash my feet.

Jesus said, Peter, shut up.

That's not the exact conversation, but it's the essence of it.

And he did what he came to do. The son

of man came not to be served, but to serve

and to give his life a ransom for me.

But maybe my biggest problem was the fact that I

always thought that verse seven.

Put it on the screen, please, was the instruction where

you say, cast all your cares on him because he

cares for you.

Your anxieties on him because he cares for you.

You know, you go to the word of God sometimes

and try to pluck up these little promises and try

to do stuff and just buy like that verse, that verse. But.

Back up and catch the essence of the text. Verse 6.

Humble yourself, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may

lift you up in due time.

Cast all your anxiety on him. He cares for you.

To really understand the.

Essence and profundity of the connection, you need to see

a more literal translation.

Of verses 6 and 7.

Because Peter is writing this letter in Koine Greek. In

the Greek language, as Peter is writing this letter, as

you will see demonstrated in verses six and seven, these

are not two separate sentences.

It reads like this.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so

that at the proper time he may exalt you.

Watch this comma.

What happens next is predicated on whether or not what

happens in verse six applied in Greek it is one

sentence humble yourself therefore under God's mighty hand that he

may exalt you in due time watch this casting all

your anxiety on him because he.

Cares for you.

See I've been trying to cast my anxieties and keep

my pride But the thing about it is you need

to know that the pride and the anxiety come in.

The same package.

So if you insist on doing it your way, then

expect to feel.

Like the weight of the world is on.

Your shoulders because it is. You can't just do verse

7 because you decide to.

God, take it off me. God, take it off me.

I'm so worried, God.

Make me not worried anymore. Don't you care if we perish?

That's what Peter said one time in the boat.

Don't you care that we're drowning? Don't you care?

God, you said cast all my anxieties on you. I'm

casting them.

I'm casting them. This isn't working.

See, look at the word anxiety, because I'm telling the

Lord in my prayers, I don't know if I can

do it, and I don't know if I can do it,

and I just need you to give me a sign

that I can take the church forward in the next 10.

Years, and I just need to da-da-da-da-da. Take this anxiety.

I'm casting it on you, Lord. I am casting it

on you. All of my anxiety.

And after I prayed this way for a little while,

the Lord spoke to me in my heart. Now, this

is not an out loud conversation. I don't want you

to think I'm really, really crazy. But this is the

impression that I got. The Lord said, are you done now?

Shut up, Peter.

Done now.

Look at the word anxiety. Look at how it's spelled

in English. Look at what is in the center of

the word.

Do you see it? Show them on the screen.

At the center of your anxiety, if you really trace it,

I'm not talking about a medical condition.

I'm not a pharmacist. I don't know about all that.

I'm not a neurologist. I'm saying spiritually speaking.

That the Lord told me at the center of your

anxiety is your pride. The reason that you're so anxious

is because you've got you at the center and you

can't sustain it because it's not your pride. Hey, thank

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Thanks again for watching.