Enemies on SermonAudio

In this Remembrance Sunday sermon, Learning the Art of Patience, we consider the call of Psalm 27:14: "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart." Through the example of a soldier standing vigilant and ready, we learn that waiting upon God is not passive resignation, but courageous faith in the midst of conflict. David's experiences, together with the accounts of Israel at the Red Sea and Jehoshaphat facing his enemies, show how God strengthens His people as they trust His promises, pray, worship, and remain steadfast in His Word. The sermon applies this truth to the spiritual battles of the Church, the challenges of Christian witness in a secular age, and the personal trials of life. Ultimately, the peace for which we long is found in Christ and the triumph of His kingdom, when the nations shall learn war no more. The message concludes with a call to wait upon the Lord in faith, confidence, and courage.

Isaiah lived in dark days when his nation was filled with wicked people and Judah had been decimated by enemies. Yet the people would not repent as Isaiah preached. Our own nation parallels this sad state today. Where is our hope? It is in the Lord and i n the truth of the remnant.

In Joshua 10:1–11, we witness a powerful demonstration of God's sovereignty, faithfulness, and judgment. When five Amorite kings unite to attack Gibeon, Joshua responds to the Gibeonites' desperate appeal for help, honoring Israel's covenant despite the deception through which it was established. God reassures Joshua, commanding him not to fear and promising victory. Joshua marches through the night, but the resulting triumph belongs entirely to the Lord. God confounds the enemy and sends devastating hailstones, demonstrating that victory comes not through human strength but through divine intervention. This account teaches believers the importance of keeping their promises, trusting God's Word, and depending upon His power rather than their own abilities. Just as God sustained Israel in battle, He sustains Christians in their continuing struggle against sin through His Word and the Holy Spirit. The destruction of the Amorites also reveals God's righteous judgment against persistent rebellion and foreshadows the final judgment awaiting mankind. Joshua 10:1-11

This sermon explores the Christian mandate to refuse personal vengeance and instead respond to enemies with active blessing and kindness. Drawing from Romans 12, the message distinguishes between divine justice and human revenge, urging believers to leave judgment to God while cultivating a heart free from bitterness. The text highlights three practical responses: praying for persecutors, maintaining honorable conduct in the wider world, and serving those who cause harm. By reflecting on the cross, where God loved His enemies, the sermon argues that overcoming evil is only possible through the grace of Christ, transforming hatred into compassion and ultimately winning over adversaries through unexpected mercy.

This sermon examines the narrative of Abram's rescue of Lot in Genesis 14 to challenge a passive or overly sentimental view of Christian manhood and church culture. By contrasting Abram's tactical courage with the image of a gentle, non-confrontational faith, the message argues that Scripture presents believers as warriors who actively engage in spiritual conflict. The central theological point identifies Jesus Christ as the ultimate warrior king who subdues enemies and rescues captives, a role modeled by the early apostles through their bold witness and martyrdom. The sermon calls the congregation to embrace a 'holy violence' in spiritual warfare, urging them to rely on the Holy Spirit to overcome fear and actively pursue the lost in their communities with the gospel. Outline: 1) The City of Man Wars Against Itself 2) Abram the Warrior 3) __________ the Warrior

This message, based on Isaiah 36-37, focuses on the spiritual battle believers face against Satan's lies and intimidation, using the Assyrian king Sennacherib and his spokesman Rabshakeh as a picture of how the devil attacks God's people. The preacher describes Satan's tactics as a form of "information warfare," seeking to undermine faith by exalting human wisdom, questioning God's Word, attacking trust in God, promoting compromise, accusing the righteous, and blaspheming the Lord. In contrast, Hezekiah's response provides a model for believers: refusing to engage the enemy on his terms, humbling himself before God, seeking the Lord in prayer, listening to God's Word, courageously trusting God's promises, and bringing every burden directly before God. The sermon emphasizes that victory over the devil does not come through human arguments or strength but through complete dependence on God. Just as God miraculously defeated the Assyrian army and fulfilled His promises to Hezekiah, believers today can overcome spiritual attacks by trusting God's Word, praying fervently, walking in humility, and allowing God to fight their battles. The central lesson is that the best way to "talk back to the devil" is not with our own words, but through faith-filled dependence on the Lord, who is infinitely greater than any attack of the enemy.

Galatians 4:7-21 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. 9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? 10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. 11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain. 12 ¶ Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all. 13 Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first. 14 And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. 15 Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me. 16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? 17 ¶ They zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them. 18 But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. 19 ¶ My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you, 20 I desire to be present with you now, and to change my voice; for I stand in doubt of you. 21 ¶ Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?

The writer's reference to a faith that "quenches fire" is most certainly referring to the faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace. Their uncompromising faith demonstrates that divine deliverance often comes through trials rather than around them. Also, the writer's reference to faith that makes the weak strong is powerfully demonstrated in the story of Esther to show how God uses unlikely vessels to defeat political and military enemies. Her story emphasizes that faith is not merely a passive belief but a conduit for alien strength, enabling believers to act with courage and trust in God's sovereignty to deliver them, which in the end gives all glory to God.