Article Display
Email  |  My Account  |  Donate
It's usually not the great revelations you haven't heard yet that are causing you to be defeated in certain areas of your life. It's failing to live by the things you know.
It's easy to get lazy about spiritual things. Have you ever noticed that? It's easy to get so preoccupied with the day-to-day business of life that you let the truths you've received from God slip away. You don't have to jump into some kind of major sin to lose ground spiritually. You don't even have to get rebellious. All you have to do is nothing! It's easy. It is also dangerous.

The truth is, it's usually not the great revelations you haven't heard yet that are causing you to be defeated in certain areas of your life. It's failing to live by the things you know.

If you want to live in victory, you have to keep yourself spiritually active. You have to keep feeding your spirit with the Word of God. You have to continually be filled with the Holy Spirit. That's right, continually filled. It's not enough to get baptized in the Holy Spirit once and expect that one experience to keep you on fire for Jesus the rest of your life.

That's why in Ephesians 5:18, the Apostle Paul says, "Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit." In the Greek, that phrase says literally "be being filled with the Holy Spirit." Be filled. Keep yourself overflowing. Sounds like a tall order, doesn't it?

It is, but in the book of 2 Timothy, Paul tells us how we can accomplish it. He outlines some very important steps that will keep us moving forward in the overcoming power of God:

1) Be strong in grace. First of all, Paul instructs us to "be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 2:1). What is grace and what does it do? Titus 2 tells us, "For the grace of God that brings salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness, and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world" (Titus 2:11-12).

Grace teaches us how to live in freedom in this world. Whenever the Spirit of God corrects you, whenever He points out a mistake you're making or speaks to you about something you're doing that is grieving Him, don't be mad. Be glad! It's the grace of God teaching you something to make your life better.

Grow strong in that grace by spending time every day in prayer. Live each day expecting the Spirit of God to counsel and instruct you about the things in your life - big and small. Every morning of your life spend time praying in the Spirit, talking to the Father and reminding yourself that the Holy Ghost is inside you, constantly teaching and guiding you. Become strong in the grace of God.

2) Endure hardness. Next, Paul says, "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ" (2 Tim. 2:3). In other words, get tough. Tests and trials will come your way in this life. Don't falter and quit when they do. Don't put down your shield of faith. Instead, when the enemy puts pressure on you, get more aggressive with your faith than ever. Do more - not less. Spend more time in prayer, more time in the Word. Speak twice as many words of victory! When hardship comes, endure it. Stand on your faith. And refuse to let the devil talk you out of believing God's Word.

3) Don't get entangled. "No man that wars entangles himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier" (2 Tim. 2:4). You and I have been called to live the high life in Christ Jesus, not to be tied down to this natural realm. But all too often we allow ourselves to become entangled in the temporary affairs of this world instead. We allow those entanglements to drag us into defeat. Don't let that happen to you. Simplify your life. If you don't have time for God, make time. Don't let your career, your family or anything else keep you from going on with God.

4) Remember the Resurrection. "Constantly keep in mind Jesus Christ, the Messiah, risen from the dead" (2 Tim. 2:8, AMP). When the devil starts telling you that you're defeated, turn the tables on him and say, "You've got that wrong, devil. I'm not defeated, you're defeated. My faith is in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ." Satan can't whip you if you keep in mind that Christ Jesus is risen from the dead. So, never let yourself lose sight of Him. If you'll do that, the devil will never get the best of you.

5) Study the Word. "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:15). Never quit studying God's Word. Whenever you stop growing in spiritual revelation, you begin to lose what you've already received. It dwindles away on the inside of you. Continual study of the Word of God will enable you to do that. It will keep you steady and consistent in your walk with God because it will constantly feed your faith and keep you strong.

6) Avoid arguments. "Avoid all empty (vain, useless, idle) talk, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness" (2 Tim. 2:16, AMP). Here Paul specifically cites the case of two men arguing over the Resurrection. Those kinds of useless arguments actually undermine faith, and Paul warns us to stay away from them. Don't get into conflicts with other believers over doctrine. Instead, fellowship with them over the fact that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and is Lord of the universe. If you can't agree on anything else, rejoice in that. Don't argue with people. Just love them.

7) Fellowship with the faithful. "Shun youthful lusts and flee from them, and aim at and pursue righteousness... faith, love, peace... in fellowship with all who call upon the Lord out of a pure heart" (2 Tim. 2:22, AMP). If you want to live in victory, you need to fellowship with people who know God. Don't try to fellowship with the world and live like an overcomer, it won't work. We get strength from one another. We also get weakness from one another. If you want to grow strong, find someone who is stronger in the Lord than you are and fellowship with them. They'll bring you up. Fellowship with people who are strong and walk in power, who preach God's Word and get results when they pray. You'll end up living on a much higher plane.

8) Keep on keeping on. "But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them" (2 Tim. 3:14). The only way the devil can actually defeat you is by convincing you to quit. So, don't let him do it. When Satan comes to knock you down and steal your hope and faith in the Word of God, don't let them go. Hang on. Continue to do the things you know to do. Keep on keeping on!

Remember this: All it takes to lose your grip on the power of God is to get lazy in spiritual things. You don't have to do anything dramatic - all you have to do is nothing. So beware of taking it easy in the days ahead. Now is not the time to be a spiritual couch potato. It's time to move onward and upward in the overcoming power of God!

Excerpt permission granted by
Eagle Mountain International Church, Inc.
aka:  Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Author Biography

Gloria Copeland
Web site: Kenneth Copeland Ministries
 
For the last 50 years Kenneth and Gloria Copeland have been passionately teaching Christians all over the world how to apply the principles of faith found in God's WORD to their lives.
Read more...

About Us

The online ministry of cfaith has been helping people discover faith, friends and freedom in the Word since 2000. Cfaith provides a unique and comprehensive collection of faith-building resources for the worldwide faith community.

At cfaith, you can strengthen your faith and deepen your understanding of the Word of God by digging into the vast collection of teaching articles, streaming audio and video messages, and daily devotionals. No other website offers such a unique and extensive collection of spiritual-growth resources aimed at helping you grow in your knowledge of the Word.

Read More...

 

 

Support Us

Why support cfaith?


(All contributions are 100% tax deductible)


SUPPORT CFAITH WITH ONE CLICK!

For every Internet search you make using
goodsearch, cfaith will receive one penny!

GS Logo 250x38

Contact Us

Business Hours:


Monday—Friday: 9 a.m.—5 p.m. CST
Saturday & Sunday: Closed

Phone:

(763) 488-7800 or (800) 748-8107

Mailing Address: 

CFAITH.com
9201 75th Avenue North
Brooklyn Park, MN 55428

 

Login Form

Please ignore the “Secret Key” field; it is not needed to log in to cfaith.

Login Change Article

Spring360x442
You need to enable user registration from User Manager/Options in the backend of Joomla before this module will activate.