π GOD IS GREATER THAN EVERYTHING YOU FACE
βWHAT YOU FACE IS REALβBUT GOD IS GREATER STILL.β
Key Text: Romans 8:31 KJV
βWhat shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?β
π° INTRODUCTION
Being saved does not mean we suddenly become exempt from trouble. Paul never preached a Christianity where believers would always be healthy, wealthy, comfortable, and problem-free.
In fact, Paul experienced weakness, persecution, rejection, imprisonment, loss, sorrow, and even... moreπ GOD IS GREATER THAN EVERYTHING YOU FACE
βWHAT YOU FACE IS REALβBUT GOD IS GREATER STILL.β
Key Text: Romans 8:31 KJV
βWhat shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?β
π° INTRODUCTION
Being saved does not mean we suddenly become exempt from trouble. Paul never preached a Christianity where believers would always be healthy, wealthy, comfortable, and problem-free.
In fact, Paul experienced weakness, persecution, rejection, imprisonment, loss, sorrow, and eventually death.
π 2 Corinthians 4:8β9 β βWe are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despairβ¦β
The great truth is not:
βI will never have problems.β
The great truth is:
βMy problems will never be greater than the grace of God that is sufficient for me.β
From a Dispensational perspective, we must also rightly divide the promises of Scripture. We should not automatically take every covenant promise given to Israel and apply it directly to the Body of Christ.
For example, Jeremiah 29:11 belongs historically to Israel and Judah's promised restoration after captivity. Our direct doctrinal hope today is found especially in Paul's epistles.
And what does Paul tell us?
π Romans 8:37
βNay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.β
Notice: Paul did not say we escape all these things.
He said we conquer in all these things.
That gives us our five truths.
1οΈβ£ GOD IS GREATER THAN YOUR PAST
His Grace Gives You a New Position
π 2 Corinthians 5:17
βTherefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creatureβ¦β
Your past may explain some of your scars, but for the saved believer it does not determine your standing before God.
A. PARDONED FROM YOUR SINS
π Colossians 1:14
βIn whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.β
The answer to your sinful past is not pretending it never happened.
The answer is redemption through Christ.
Your forgiveness rests upon Christ's finished crossworkβnot your ability to compensate for everything you did wrong.
π Ephesians 1:7
B. PLACED INTO CHRIST
π 1 Corinthians 12:13
The moment a person believes the Gospel, the Spirit identifies that believer with Christ and His Body.
Your spiritual identity is no longer fundamentally:
βWho I used to be.β
It is:
βWHO I AM IN CHRIST.β
π Romans 6:3β4; Galatians 3:27
C. POSITIONED IN GRACE
π Romans 5:1β2
βTherefore being justified by faith, we have peace with Godβ¦β
We do not stand before God on the shifting ground of human performance.
We have:
justification,
peace with God,
and access into grace.
Your past says, βCondemned.β
Grace says:
π Romans 8:1
βThere is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesusβ¦β
π PREACHING TRUTH:
YOUR PAST MAY BE PART OF YOUR TESTIMONY, BUT IT IS NOT YOUR IDENTITY. YOUR IDENTITY IS IN CHRIST.
2οΈβ£ GOD IS GREATER THAN YOUR PROBLEMS
His Grace Is Sufficient in Weakness
π 2 Corinthians 12:9
βMy grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.β
One of the greatest lessons Paul learned was that God does not always remove the problem.
Sometimes God supplies grace through the problem.
A. PRESSURE CANNOT DESTROY YOU
π 2 Corinthians 4:8
βWe are troubled on every side, yet not distressedβ¦β
The believer can experience tremendous pressure without surrendering to despair.
Why?
Because circumstances are not the source of our eternal security.
Christ is.
B. PAIN CAN DEVELOP YOU
π Romans 5:3β4
ββ¦tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope.β
Grace does not promise that every painful experience will immediately disappear.
But God can use suffering to produce:
patience,
experience,
and hope.
The furnace may be uncomfortable, but God can use it to mature the believer.
C. POWER APPEARS IN WEAKNESS
π 2 Corinthians 12:9β10
Paul learned:
ββ¦when I am weak, then am I strong.β
Christian strength is not pretending:
βI can handle everything.β
It is recognizing:
βCHRIST'S GRACE IS SUFFICIENT WHEN MY STRENGTH IS NOT.β
π PREACHING TRUTH:
Sometimes God changes the situation.
Sometimes God changes us while we are in the situation.
3οΈβ£ GOD IS GREATER THAN YOUR PROVISION
His Grace Supplies What We Need to Serve
π Philippians 4:19
βBut my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.β
This verse should not be turned into a prosperity-gospel promise that Christians will always become financially prosperous.
Its context includes sacrificial giving and Paul's contentment.
π Philippians 4:11β18
A. LEARN CONTENTMENT
π Philippians 4:11
ββ¦I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.β
Paul knew both abundance and lack.
Christian contentment does not mean:
βI possess everything I want.β
It means:
βChrist remains sufficient whether I have much or little.β
B. LEAN ON CHRIST
π Philippians 4:13
βI can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.β
This verse is not primarily:
βI can accomplish any dream I imagine.β
In context, Paul is saying he can endure abundance and abasement, fullness and hunger, through Christ's strengthening.
That is far more powerful than motivational thinking.
C. LOOK TO GOD'S SUPPLY
π Philippians 4:19
God knows what His children need.
We therefore work responsibly, give generously, pray faithfully, and trust God rather than allowing material circumstances to become our master.
π Ephesians 4:28
π PREACHING TRUTH:
GOD NEVER PROMISED TO SATISFY EVERY GREED, BUT HE IS FAITHFUL IN EVERY NEED.
4οΈβ£ GOD IS GREATER THAN YOUR PERPLEXITY
His Peace Guards the Believer's Heart and Mind
π Philippians 4:6β7
Life brings:
fear,
anxiety,
uncertainty,
questions,
disappointments,
and situations we cannot understand.
Paul himself said:
π 2 Corinthians 4:8
ββ¦we are perplexed, but not in despair.β
Being perplexed is not the same as being abandoned.
A. PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING
π Philippians 4:6
βBe careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.β
Prayer does not mean commanding God to arrange circumstances according to our wishes.
Prayer brings our concerns before Him with thanksgiving.
B. PONDER THE RIGHT THINGS
π Philippians 4:8
Paul tells believers what should occupy their minds:
things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report.
What continually enters your mind will influence how you face your problems.
Don't feed fear all day and wonder why peace disappears.
FILL YOUR MIND WITH SOUND DOCTRINE.
C. POSSESS GOD'S PEACE
π Philippians 4:7
βAnd the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.β
Notice the distinction:
π Romans 5:1 β Peace WITH God comes through justification.
π Philippians 4:7 β Peace OF God guards the believer through life's difficulties.
One concerns our standing.
The other concerns our state of mind.
π PREACHING TRUTH:
YOU MAY NOT UNDERSTAND EVERYTHING GOD ALLOWS, BUT YOU CAN REST IN EVERYTHING GOD HAS REVEALED.
5οΈβ£ GOD IS GREATER THAN YOUR PROSPECTS
Your Eternal Future Is Secure in Christ
π Romans 8:38β39
ββ¦neither death, nor lifeβ¦ nor things present, nor things to comeβ¦ shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.β
The believer's ultimate hope is not that tomorrow on earth will necessarily be easier.
Our hope is much greater.
Our destiny is in Christ.
A. SEALED FOR THE FUTURE
π Ephesians 1:13β14
After hearing and believing the Gospel of salvation, believers are:
ββ¦sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.β
The Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance.
Our security rests in God's work, not our ability to keep ourselves saved.
π Ephesians 4:30
B. SCHEDULED FOR GLORY
π Philippians 3:20β21
Our conversationβcitizenshipβis in heaven, and we await the Saviour who will transform our vile body.
For the Body of Christ, our blessed expectation is not earthly prosperity.
It is a heavenly destiny.
π Colossians 3:1β4
C. SURE OF THE RAPTURE
π 1 Thessalonians 4:16β17
ββ¦the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with themβ¦β
The Dispensation of Grace will not continue forever.
Christ will catch away His Body.
π 1 Corinthians 15:51β52
βBehold, I shew you a mysteryβ¦β
Our ultimate answer to sickness, aging, suffering, and death is resurrection and transformation.
π PREACHING TRUTH:
YOUR PRESENT TROUBLE IS TEMPORARY; YOUR POSITION IN CHRIST IS ETERNAL.
π CONCLUSION
WHAT YOU FACE IS REALβBUT GOD IS GREATER STILL
Paul never denied reality.
He experienced:
trouble β but not defeat.
perplexity β but not despair.
persecution β but not abandonment.
weakness β but sufficient grace.
sorrow β but eternal hope.
π 2 Corinthians 4:17
βFor our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.β
Our confidence is not:
βNothing bad will happen to me.β
Our confidence is:
βNOTHING THAT HAPPENS TO ME CAN SEPARATE ME FROM CHRIST.β
π Romans 8:35β39
Your past is not greater than His forgiveness.
Your problems are not greater than His grace.
Your needs are not greater than His provision.
Your fears are not greater than His peace.
Your future is not greater than His purpose.
βοΈ GOD IS GREATER.
π£ CALL TO ACTION β THREE T's
1. TRUST CHRIST FOR SALVATION
π 1 Corinthians 15:1β4
Your greatest problem is not financial, emotional, or physical.
It is sin.
Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again.
π Ephesians 2:8β9
Stop trusting religion, rituals, water baptism, church membership, law-keeping, or personal goodness to save you.
TRUST CHRIST'S FINISHED CROSSWORK.
2. THINK ACCORDING TO TRUTH
π Romans 12:2
Don't interpret God through your circumstances.
Interpret your circumstances through God's rightly divided Word.
π 2 Timothy 2:15
Know what God said to Israel, what He said concerning prophecy, and what the risen Christ revealed through Paul concerning the Body of Christ and the Mystery.
Sound doctrine stabilizes the believer.
3. THANK GOD THROUGH TROUBLE
π 1 Thessalonians 5:18
βIn every thing give thanksβ¦β
Notice Paul says in everything, not that every painful circumstance is itself good.
Thanksgiving says:
βMy circumstances may change, but my position in Christ does not.β
π‘ FINAL THOUGHTS β REMEMBER THE FIVE P's
1οΈβ£ PAST β His redemption is greater than your history.
π Colossians 1:14
2οΈβ£ PROBLEMS β His grace is greater than your weakness.
π 2 Corinthians 12:9
3οΈβ£ PROVISION β His sufficiency is greater than your need.
π Philippians 4:11β19
4οΈβ£ PERPLEXITY β His peace is greater than your anxiety.
π Philippians 4:6β7
5οΈβ£ PROSPECTS β His promise in Christ is greater than your uncertainty.
π Romans 8:38β39; Ephesians 1:13β14
π₯ REMEMBER:
WHEN YOUR PAST ACCUSES YOU β REMEMBER YOUR REDEMPTION.
WHEN YOUR WEAKNESS DISCOURAGES YOU β REMEMBER HIS GRACE.
WHEN YOUR NEEDS CONCERN YOU β REMEMBER HIS SUFFICIENCY.
WHEN YOUR MIND TROUBLES YOU β REMEMBER HIS PEACE.
WHEN YOUR FUTURE FRIGHTENS YOU β REMEMBER YOUR POSITION IN CHRIST.
βοΈ THE PROBLEM MAY BE GREAT.
π THE PRESSURE MAY BE HEAVY.
π THE PAIN MAY BE REAL.
π BUT GOD IS GREATER STILL!
Romans 8:37 KJV
βNay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.β
βοΈβοΈβ Lady Dinah Scivoletti β βοΈπβοΈ
βοΈβοΈβ Turco, Joan of Arc Priory β βοΈπβοΈ
βοΈβοΈβ β Act and God will Act (Actus et Deus Act)β β βοΈπβοΈ