Weak Moments Made Strong

 

(A very sobering but yet encouraging message)

I Cor. 4: 10 “We are fools for Christ’s sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak but ye are strong; …”

Most of us can look at our family history and see different weak areas of their body.

Somehow the genes in the family tree are passed down and maybe you have weak knees, or weak a heart or your family doesn’t handle stress very well and you are emotionally weak.        -We all have physical weak areas that we must admit to and take care of that certain area as you get older.

A few years ago, I had a man in my office and his heart was heavy about the bad choices his adult children made and how they acted under pressure. He was blaming himself until I pointed out the if he looked at his wife’s side of the family that for the last 4 generations, there was an emotional weakness passed down from great-grandmother thru grandmother, his wife and then his kids. It wasn’t his fault but it was just a weak area that he had to deal with.

I believe most of us here tonight know our weak points.

Are there things that we constantly seem to battle?

Do you act or respond a certain way that you are ashamed of after we are tempted?

We know the areas of our life that always seem have a “little crack” open for the devil to come in and bother us.

-like a crack under the door, the cold winter air blows under it robbing us of heat.

We all have weak areas, weak moments that crop up on us.

Those little weak moments that seems to ruin my day!

I wanted God to fill up the cracks in my life that the Devil always seemed to sneak in and tempt me or get me upset.

-something someone said or did

-something I say or a situation I was involved in.

A few years ago, I started praying the prayer:

“God, make my weak points, my strong points”

I began to realize that as long as I am in this flesh, I am going to need Gods help.

I’m going to have to trust him and lean upon him each and every day.

Joel 3:10 “..let the weak say, I am strong”

I Cor. 4:10 (says we are made weak so God can make us strong)

II Cor.  12:10 “…for Christ’s sake, for when I am weak, then am I strong”

13:9   “For we are glad when we are weak and ye are strong..”

Heb.  11 describes to us the heroes of faith that in their times of “weakness, they were made strong”

Read 1:32-12:2b

I don’t know what your weak points are tonight but you do!

But I do know a God that can and will make those into strong points of you allow him.

After God has helped you, you can tell someone that’s going thru a problem.,

“I understand, I went thru the same thing, I know exactly what you’re feeling but God delivered me”

Heb. 12: 12-17 (read)

 

It’s hard to believe the story of Esau, that he would sell out the blessings of God in his life for one piece, one small morsel of meat but it happened in a weak moment!!!

 

Ask God to:

1)Make our weak points = strong!

2)Heal those here tonight, that are living under guilt and condemnation for things they did in times of weakness and that God will bring healing tonight.

Isaac and Rebecca had two boys, Esau and Jacob.

They were like most children, they were completely opposite from one another.

They were brought up in the same home, the same parent, same environment but their personalities and desires were completely different.

Jacob loved to be around his mother and work in the home. He was a home-body!

Jacob wasn’t very athletic but enjoyed working more with is mind than his hands.

Esau was rough and adventurous. He lived in the field hunting and gathering food.

He was like the modern sports jock! A hearty, active sort of fellow.

Esau had been out all day hunting and had been successful.

As he walked into their home camp, he carried a large antelope over his shoulder.

However, the long day had taken its toll on his physical strength and whether he had hypoglycemia or what, but he was weary and faint. He was craving food!

And there was his brother Jacob, cooking over the fire and the sweet smell of potage reached Esau and only made his hunger increase.

“Hey, brother, I’m really hungry , how about some food?”

The crafty Jacob saw his opportunity to take advantage of an older brother that was always getting the rewards, and recognition and told him, he would give him some food if he would exchange his spiritual birthright for a piece of meat.

In OT, the older brother automatically received the “birthright in the family”.

It included favors, double amount of food, his opinion was considered more than the younger, the things of God were made more available to him, his family was blessed by God more than the others just because he had the “birthright”.

 

The birthright had some responsibilities that Esau didn’t like.

It required the person to be an example for others to follow,

-they had to sacrifice and give more than anyone else.

-the pressure to please God was more upon them as the head of the   family!

Jacob didn’t like these responsibilities. In fact, the Bible says “He despised his birthright”

In a Pastor’s home there are added pressures that aren’t like other homes in the church.

I remember when Nathan was a young boy, he didn’t like these added pressures and he was complaining to his older brother. Matt told him “It was just too bad, he was born in a pastor’s family, he was a leader whether he liked it or not because he was the pastor’s son”

Esau didn’t like those pressures but Jacob craved them.

If I can say it this way, “Esau didn’t like being a leader but Jacob wanted to”

 

As sly as Jacob was, he still valued the things of God in his life.

His brother Esau took the presence and blessing of God for granted and really didn’t care about the Lord.

-so when the chance to satisfy his physical weakness in exchange for   the blessings and presence of God in his life, he gladly gave it up to    his brother.

In a weak moment, he gave up the presence and blessing of God in his life.

This story reveals to us the danger if a mans weak moments and warns us how much can be lost in a single moment, never to be recovered gain if we aren’t careful.

(Read Again) Heb. 12:17 Some folks have misunderstood this verse by thinking that God would not allow Esau a chance to repent even though he cried rivers of tears.

*What this means is that Esau was remorseful after he realized what he had done and carefully sought to get it back from Jacob.

*He begged, he cried, he asked Jacob to give it back but he never could convince him to do it. He found no repentance from Jacob.

A mans spiritual strength is just as strong as his weakest area.

How good is your walk with God if the Devil can come in and out an open door of your life any time he wants to?

 

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link!

General Rosecrans received a mistaken report that there was a gap between two of his divisions in the center of his line.

-he sent Gen. Wood to go help Gen. Reynolds and to close the gap

Problem: The report wasn’t true and when Gen. Woods withdrew his troops to go help Gen. Reynolds, it created a gap, a weakness in the line and Gen. Longstreet immediately smashed thru the Union line with his Confederate solders as won the battle.

The Northern Army, the Union was only as strong as its weakest area in the line.

The battle in a man’s life is only as strong as the weakest place in his life.

The Devil knows our weak area and it’s in those areas that he sends most of his attacks.

Satan didn’t come and tempt the Lord in the wilderness to turn the stones into bread on the 1^st day but he waited until the 40^th day, when he was hungry.

Jacob didn’t attempt to barter for the “birthright” after Esau had just eaten a big breakfast but he planned it for when Esau was feeling hunger pains.

The devil will come to you when you are lonely, feel discouraged and had a bad day.

He’ll come when the finances aren’t good or when your body is sick.

He won’t usually bother you when you’re sitting in church worshipping the Lord but he’ll wait for you to come home from work, tired and missing church, sitting at home feeling sorry for yourself.   That’s when he talks to you the most!!!

–he waits for those weak moments to capture your thoughts and emotions.

But I believe in our weak times, God can be just as real to us.

Bible says “Jesus was tempted in all points just as we are”

And since we have his Spirit in us, we can choose to listen to the Lord voice over the Devil voice and say just like Jesus did:

“Get thee hence Satan, for it is written Thou shat worship the Lord thy

God and him only shalt thou serve”

1)A weak moment can be a bodily appetite or/or passion.

Esau sold out to his passion of hunger. That food smelled so good.

How many times have we been tempted to sin to satisfy bodily pleasures.

How many times did we ignore our future by only looking at the immediate.

-then afterwards, fall on our face to God asking for forgiveness but the harm had already been done for an eternity.  He may forgive you but the scares last forever!

The Apostle Paul said that “he kept his body under subjection lest having preached to others, he himself should become a castaway”

O the harm that is caused for generations, when after we have testified and preached to others about salvation and then we go out and fail God and act like the world.

I’ve had people stand doubled over in my office in physical pain after they have sinned.

They have cried and begged God for forgiveness but its harder to forgive themselves.

-their children’s lives have been changed forever

-earthly ministries have been lost in a weak moment

2)Another weak moment is when a mans greed or pride is excited.

In the moment of fear of loosing some money, he will cheat or tell a lie to recover his losses.

-he will break his word and persuade others to compromise their integrity.

A few years ago, when I worked for the John Hancock Insurance Company. I had sold a policy in which my profit on the policy was nearly $1,000. It was my biggest and easiest sell I had ever made. This came in a time in my life when my family was living in poverty. I think I made only $5,000 that year.

-Insurance salesmen were required to personally deliver the policy to their clients but if there had been a change in their health since they took out the policy and it was delivered into their hands, it canceled the policy.

-I walked into this home and had the policy in hand, knowing it was a $1,000 handoff when I noticed she looked a little weak. I was told they had just had a heart attack the week before and there had been damage done to their heart.

-I was tempted in a weak financial moment in my life to just ignore the rules, hand them the policy and walk out the door and no one would ever known but I would have and I have to live with myself!

A pure heart is one of the most valuable things you can have in this life!!!

Ps.24:3-5 (read)

The desire to please God and the need of having a pure heart keeps us from gossiping, slandering and fault finding.

The devil comes along right after someone else in the office has gotten the raise or someone has gotten the promotion that you wanted and he will whisper lies to you to spread around.  -he attacks during the weak moments but that’s when you need to

respond: “Satan get thee behind me, I’m gong to worship the Lord anyway”

 

            3)Another weak moment is in a time of fear!

When the Apostle Peter stood in the Garden with the Lord but was surrounded by Romans soldiers with swords and spears he became fearful.

Peter out of fear, drew out his own sword and cut off the ear of a nearby man.

After Jesus was arrested, out of fear, Peter sat around a campfire and he denied ever knowing the Lord.

Am I talking to anyone yet tonight?

I don’t know your weak areas but you do!

And I want you to start praying;

“God make my weak areas, my strong areas”

“Fill up the gap in those weak areas of my life.”

“God, close the back door of my emotions that the devil keeps sneaking thru”

“Lord turn my fears into faith”

“Give me a passion for honesty, for unity and for righteousness”

Mark  8:36 “For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Closing:

The next time the Devil comes along in a weak moment and he whispers to you another plan besides God plan,  Quote Bible: “Submit yourselves there fore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you”

We are the children of God, we are not Satan’s kids.

When I have a problem, a care, a situation, I can always take it to the Lord.

When I am weak then its just another opportunity for God to make me strong!!!

Open up this altar right now for us all to find a place to pray for:  “Our weak areas to be made strong!”