Looking to Jesus for Faith That Leads to Life — Santosh Poonen

Faith That Overcomes the World

I hope there's a spirit of faith that you have or if you don't have that you're longing for this morning. The only way we can overcome the world is by faith. It's not by knowledge, it's not by doctrine, it's not by attending RLCF.

When you face trials in life, the only way you will overcome is by faith. You know that verse maybe we can start there in 1st John chapter 4. John wrote these words after many years of walking with Jesus physically and then walking with Jesus spiritually even longer.

About 60 years he walked with Jesus in absentia as the term that means absent from the Lord. Paul talked about being absent from the Lord. Right now we are absent from the Lord. We'd rather be with him but we can still be with him in spirit.

John is a good example of somebody who was present with the Lord physically for just three and a half years and then while he was physically absent from the Lord he still walked with the Lord for 60 years.

Absent in body but present in spirit and it's wonderful that he's an example for us and he says 1st John chapter 5 verse 4 whatever is born of God. There's a lot of people in Christendom who say they are born again but here's the Bible saying here's how you know that you're born again.

Yes it comes through the Spirit of Christ within us. The Holy Spirit cries out within us. Daddy in heaven but there are also some proofs that you're born again and it's good for us to examine ourselves.

Paul told the church in Corinth examine yourself if you're off the faith. Test if you're really born again and one of the proofs of that is 1st John 5 verse 4 whatever is born of God overcomes the world.

You know John told us earlier if a few the previous page in my Bible at least 1st John 2 whatever is of the world is the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life and it's not out there it's in your flesh the lust of the eyes the lust of the flesh the boastful pride of life it's easy to see it in people who don't know Christ but what matters is do you see it in yourself do I see it in myself and if I'm born of God there is an overcoming of this lust of the eyes and lust of the flesh and maybe I can just quickly explain what I believe that is.

The Lust of the Eyes and the Lust of the Flesh

The lust of the eyes is the desire to have what you see. If somebody has something else and you don't have it you want that too if somebody has a better car or a bigger house or a nicer job or earthly circumstances health that you don't have there's something that you see around you that you lack and you desire it secretly.

You may never say it but in your heart it's in the eye. You know the eye never speaks. And if you're lusting with your eyes what I mean by that is not sexual lust but the desire the eyes could quietly be taking in this desire for what's in the world nobody knows it is.

You have no idea what I'm looking at right now you kind of do. But if my eyes were closed let's say and in my with my eyes I'm desiring something that I've seen that I and I'm overcome by that and my thoughts are preoccupied with wanting this and wanting that.

Why haven't you answered this prayer. Or why haven't you given me that. That's the lust of the eyes. The lust of the flesh is the desire to please oneself. Includes sexual lust. But other pleasures. A pleasure.

A desire for good food all the time. Desire to constantly be going out to eat nice food because you don't like the food that mom cooks at home or other things like that play sexual pleasure. Things that's a comfort ease sleeping in too much when you should be waking up in time to spend a little bit of time with God's Word.

Going to bed at a good time. Being careful with what you watch. If you have a television or you watch movies being careful with what you watch. That's things that please your self. And then the boastful pride of life.

The desire to exalt oneself to think. What is the boastful pride of life. You know you could set different standards for pride. And I find in myself at least I think of pride as oh I'm boasting or I walk around with a swagger or I talk boastfully.

That's easy to see. But you know that even one millimeter of thinking I am something one millimeter of thinking of myself as something is boastful pride of life. And if I don't have a radical attitude of being absolutely nothing being an absolute nobody in this church or in any circumstance in your home husbands how do you know whether you have the boastful pride of life.

Do you think that you're better than your wife or your children in any way. I'm not saying more spiritual or more mature or that you have to correct them and discipline them all those things. Yes. But you think that you're more important than that.

Then you have the boastful pride of life. Are your comforts and your needs more important than that of your wife or your children in the church. Are you more important than even one person in this church because you know that they are backslidden or they're not as wholehearted or something else.

You think that you're a little bit more important than them. You have the boastful pride of life. And Jesus had zero pride in him. If I have 1 pride in me or 0 .00001 pride in me I have the boastful pride of life.

So having described all of that we read in 1st John 5 verse 4 if you're born of God you overcome this. This desire to have everything you see this wanting to please yourself and this desire to think of yourself as even a little bit not nothing and overcomes the world.

And this is the victory that has overcome the world. Our faith. Our faith overcomes the world. That is why faith is so important. I see that there are two reasons why Christians fall off the rails in their Christian life.

Falling Away Through a Form Without Power

I'd like you to turn with me to first Timothy chapter 1. And by falling off the rails it could be that you walk away from your faith altogether. I know people personally who once upon a time were walking with Jesus and today are not.

I hope it won't stay that way. I don't know whether what their eternal destiny will be. I hope that they will turn. I hope they will repent. There is still time to repent as long as they are alive. But there were people who walked with Jesus who are not in his presence today and will never be.

Judas Iscariot is an example of that. There are many others like that. How is one get off the rails. And like I said getting off the rails could be something obvious like that. But it could be that you have the form of godliness but you don't have the power we read about that in 2nd Timothy 3.

It could be that you completely renounce Christianity. But what could be less obvious is that you still call yourself a Christian. You still go to a church instead of just staying home. Or you haven't taken up some other religion.

You still call yourself a Christian. You'll still read the Bible. You still pray in the name of Jesus. But all of that form is there. The words are there. But you don't have the power I would say to such a person you've fallen off the rails.

You've gone off track in your Christian life. And I don't know what the eternal destiny of such a person is if you have the form of godliness but don't have its power. Read 2nd Timothy chapter 3 and see the warning there.

But I see that the reason why people fall off the rails for example is clearly stated here in 1st Timothy chapter 1. And Paul actually gives examples of two people who I believe were close co-workers of his.

Do you know that it's possible to have been a close co-worker of the mighty Apostle Paul himself and yet fall off the rails and probably end up in hell. I have a feeling Hymenaeus and Alexander mentioned in verse 20 are in hell today.

I have a feeling I can't say that with confidence but they were co-workers of Paul. They walked with him for some period of time but something happened and they got off the rails and Paul actually handed them off to Satan.

Now what Paul did was didn't say okay you're gonna go to hell. Paul didn't have that authority. Only God has that authority. But what Paul did was he handed them over to Satan. What authority he had to do that.

To hand even two of his co-workers off to Satan so that they wouldn't blaspheme. It says they will be taught not to blaspheme. In other words I believe Paul said Lord let Satan do something in their life that will be so serious so dramatic traumatic even perhaps maybe a sickness or some serious catastrophe that they will realize I should not have blasphemed.

But I wonder if despite that their heart was hardened and they continued to blaspheme and in rebellion they turned against God and continued to blaspheme and ended up in hell. We don't read that they were.

I mean you read about. I think it's the same Alexander later on who caused Paul much harm he says. And so anyway this sermon is not about Hymenaeus and Alexander. It's for us. How did they end up that way.

I imagine that when Paul went and traveled somewhere and spoke for multiple meetings he said Hymenaeus why don't you take one of the sessions speak about 15 -20 minutes before I get up and speak. And these people sitting there listening thought of Hymenaeus as a godly man because he was there with Paul and Alexander.

Another meeting these co-workers of Paul and Paul said handed them over to Satan. What happened to these two is a warning for all of us. Because if it could happen in Paul's own ministry which I think is perhaps the purest ministry that has ever existed in church history Paul's himself I think it was the purest ministry.

And if it could happen there certainly could happen in our midst. And he says that it happened because they didn't keep verse 19 faith and a good conscience. Faith and a good conscience. If you don't keep faith and a good conscience you will go off the rails.

Keeping a Good Conscience and Living by Faith

First of all what does it mean to have a good conscience. What does it mean to have a good conscience. I think of it like rails. You know you look at trains that run they need power but they also need rails.

Rails are what. Ensure that the that the train doesn't fall off into the mud. There was a train derailment just a couple days ago here in Loveland and they had you know they shut down the whole street and all that it's possible for trains to go off the rails.

And that's happens when you stop listening to the voice of God every day. I want to lay a simple exhortation for all of us dear brothers and sisters if even one day goes by that you have not listened consciously to the voice of the Holy Spirit your trains going to get derailed that day.

I have a feeling now it may be the next day or something. But God may be merciful and doesn't allow your train to get derailed that day you'll allow it to go off for a little while. You know I think about what it might be for derailed trains like when they derail maybe they can still kind of stay upright for a little bit but the longer they stay off those rails eventually they're just going to collapse and fall off.

And if there are passengers on the train it's pretty serious. It's probably going to be injury and death. And if dear husbands as heads of your homes if one day goes by that you haven't consciously sought to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit in your conscience I fear for your life and the life of your wife and your children that day think about it seriously.

Make a conscious effort. Say Lord I want you to speak to me today. I want you to keep me on the rails. I want to check and ensure. And if you've been going for some time if you're going faster if you've been running after Jesus more wholeheartedly as we're seeking to do in this church then that the danger is even more.

The consequences are even more. If you get derailed when the trains go through Loveland they go through very slowly. So from my understanding when it got derailed it's sort of tilted a little bit because it's just slowly going through life.

But if it was a fast train going at a high speed and got derailed it would have been disaster. That happens sometimes fast trains get derailed a lot of people die. I think about that it's more dangerous to not keep a good conscience at a church like this where we're seeking to pursue Jesus we want nothing of this world we're running a hard after him.

And if then I don't keep a good conscience then if I go by without listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit even one day it's dangerous. So keep good conscience listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit every day.

It's true for all of us not just men but for all of us and the other is faith. I think of faith like power. You know faith. Faith itself is not power but it results in power. Faith is the victory that overcomes our world.

You can think about that faith is authority it's power. It's the ability to overcome the world. So in a sense it's power. And so let's say you have a good conscience and you're keeping making sure your conscience clear.

But your train is just sitting there at the station. Everybody's boarded. You've got your wife and your children. Everybody's nice and good. You're coming to the church meetings you've got a good job and all that.

But the train hasn't gone anywhere. The clock is ticking and you have a destination. God wants you to get somewhere by the end of your life. He wants you to be conformed into the image of Jesus by the end of your life.

It's time for you to start moving. It's time for the train to leave the station and not like Paul's like the writer of Hebrews says to lay again the elementary principles of washings and dead works repentance from dead works Hebrews 6.

It's time for us to go on to more mature things. Some of you dear brothers I want to say it plainly. Some of you who have been sitting in this church I don't say this by the way I'm not pointing a finger should have God's Word on your tongues.

You should have a prophetic word on your tongues when we open the time of sharing here. And you say I don't know I don't have anything. It's okay if you're starting out. But if you've been here in a member of this church and I'm not talking about just saying something.

Oh I thank God for what I heard I'm talking about coming to this meeting. Lord I have a responsibility to edify my wife and to edify my children first of all at home. And I want to tell you it as an exhortation.

If you struggle with knowing what to share here start at home. I hope there's no nervousness. You maybe are a little bit nervous about sharing here. But you certainly shouldn't be nervous about sharing at home right.

Encourage your wife. Encourage your children wives encourage your husbands with a word at home. And you do that six days Monday through Saturday your heart will be overflowing with words of encouragement to share with somebody else because you practiced it for six days what's it to do it one more day with others who are part of God's family.

Desiring Spiritual Gifts

So take it seriously to move on to grow. Take it seriously to ask God to give you spiritual gifts. You know first Corinthians 14 let's turn there for a moment says that we should earnestly desire spiritual gifts.

Now it it only says one gift that you're specifically told to desire and that's the gift of prophecy. And that's why I said some of us who are in this church who've been here for some time who don't have the gift of prophecy.

It's a gift for every one of us brothers sisters and even children. Read Acts chapter 2. The children memorized it a few weeks ago. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. And I hope you've been praying as I have been praying that our children also will prophesy and I see them from time to time prophesying.

And I hope they'll continue to do that. And it will be more than just saying their memory verse. It'll be living it out and having something to say about their memory verse even something that will encourage us or coming back like they do from the Sunday school class and saying this is what I learned in that Sunday school class and in prophesying and encouraging us through that pursue love.

1st Corinthians 14 verse 1. Yet Santosh desire earnestly spiritual gifts. But especially that you may prophesy if you're in the habit of underlying it in your Bible or some other way of marking this verse in your Bible please do so today put it in your phone or something like that.

Say this is a verse I want to seek the Lord for today Lord I haven't been pursuing it. You know I've thought about it like this that I ought to look at the world and see how they're pursuing money. There's not a single person in the world who's not pursuing money whether they're homeless well or or don't have jobs or poor or rich.

Every single one of them is pursuing money. That's the characteristic of the kingdom of this world. Riches wealth money. That's what they're pursuing. And when I look at somebody who's when I read about these rich people and how they've come up with some other new invention or you read you know Forbes magazine of how these people became millionaires and billionaires how they scheme the planet things they did along the way because they were pursuing money.

I ought to look for wherever the word pursue comes in the Bible and do the same thing. Pursue love. Pursue love chase after it run after it pursue peace with all men and the sanctification without which no one will see God.

And he goes on to say desire earnestly desire. I let me put the word lust there. Usually you think about lust because that's the word that the old English used for example in Romans 8. The spirit lusts after the flesh.

The flesh lusts after the spirit. What does it mean. It's there's an there's a desire. I don't want you to take Santosh. The flesh says I want Santosh. The spirit says no I want him. You know that's the conflict going on in your body.

The the the the flesh is saying I want to take all of Santosh with me to hell. And the spirit saying no I want to take him with me to Jesus. He belongs to Christ. This is that lust. This desire this war.

That's the word used there. And think about first Corinthians 14. Let me start. Especially with us men. You know how sexual lust is such a pervasive heavy battle for men. The desire to look with our eyes to please ourselves sexually.

Think about using that same desire the way you used to desire to please yourself. And that desire for sex was there. Desire spiritual gifts. Earnestly desire spiritual gifts. Say Lord now he doesn't tell us what it is.

It could be different ones. But if you find that you don't know what your spiritual gift is are you content. Because sometimes I talk to people and brothers especially speak to us here because let it start with us right.

I've had people say I don't know what my gift is in the church. I don't know I just come and I part of the church and all that. But I don't know what my gift is. So I think to such a person. I say why are you asking me.

The Bible says desire that means go to God. Say Lord I don't know what my gift is. And you said desired. What is the gift that you want me to have that I can bless others with. I don't want it to be prominent.

I don't want it to be big and thing that even people see. Let it be something secret. But Lord give me spirit. The spiritual gifts you want me to have. Most people in charismatic circles for example are desiring tongues.

I don't know if the Lord lays it on your heart to desire to speak in tongues by all means do so. Paul did godly men through the and women through the years. Have I believe very much in that gift. If the Lord lays it on your heart to desire the gift of tongues do so.

I'm not here to tell you what that gift is but desire earnestly spiritual gifts. It's a clear command sisters for you to children for you to desire at a young age. Think about it. If you've given your life to Jesus the Holy Spirit dwells within you.

You can start praying Lord. I don't. I know that all these the older people in the church may not be taking it seriously but I want to. I'm only 11 years old and you I've asked you to come to my heart.

Your spirit dwells within me. Lord fill me with your Holy Spirit. Give me power. First of all give me your life. But also give me spiritual gifts. And especially the latter part of verse 1 that you may prophesy.

Finding Faith by Remaining Near Jesus

So it's going back to faith. Faith is that power that moving as it were faith causes us to move. And how do we get faith. You know I think of example. I was just thinking about this morning and I wrote down.

I wanted to speak on it very briefly. Mark chapter 8. If you'll turn there with me there were 13 men in a boat and I wonder which one of them is your example. One of them is in hell today. Judas Iscariot.

He walked with Jesus saw Jesus experienced miracles saw the life of Christ right in front of him. I mean the life of Christ couldn't get more pure than in Jesus himself. He was the perfection of godliness and the divine nature.

And yet there was somebody close to him who spent three and a half years right there seeing it and was offended and is in hell today. That's one. There's 12 more. Remember I said there's 13 men in a boat.

We identified one. None of us has said Judas Iscariot as our example. But then there's 12 other men and of those 12 11 are in the presence of the Lord. Today they're in heaven. But in this situation here in this boat there was something that distinguished them in a way that they're not my example.

Peter is not my example. James is not my example. In Mark chapter 8. There are other things that I can follow from Peter from his life and from his writings. There are other examples I can follow from John and from his life and his writings.

But there's one example that I follow foremost and that's Jesus himself. It says that you know the story right. The 13 of them were in a boat and the storm came. And what does it mean to have faith. See the it's possible to be in the presence of Jesus and not have faith.

That was true about the other 12. The 12 disciples they were with Jesus. They were in the presence of somebody who had faith but didn't have faith. Do you do you believe that Jesus had to have faith. Of course he did because he was like us in all things.

What was faithful Jesus. It was depending on his father for all things the son can do nothing on his own initiative but except as he sees the father doing this is faith manifest in Jesus. Jesus set us an example of faith as well.

Jesus wouldn't ask us to have faith if he himself hadn't shown. This is how you can have faith. So when I see okay mark 4 verse 38 this is a word I was singing here this morning as we were singing and I got this picture of Jesus in the boat.

I remembered this verse. It says Jesus by himself. Jesus himself was in the stern asleep on the pillow on the cushion. And I just got this picture of what would have rejoiced Jesus heart so much when Jesus said hey I'm gonna go lay down on over there and the bottom of the back of the boat and here's a pillow.

I think Jesus would have loved it if John also or somebody said hey Jesus are you gonna go take a nap. I'll go to as well. I just want to be where you are. Why am I in this boat in the first place. It's not because I like boat rides.

It's not because I like fishing. It's because I want to be where you are. And if Jesus went to the back of the boat what should any one of us have done. Say Lord I'm gonna find the place where you are.

You know what would have happened. Let's say Matthew had said Lord Jesus you're gonna go. You grabbed a cushion. You're gonna go lay down. I'm gonna do the same. I think Matthew would have been the other person also who in the midst of the storm was fast asleep.

He had found faith like Jesus himself had found. And today you and I are in a boat and we could say Lord still the storm still the storm calm the storm calm the storm. And I'm waiting for Jesus to calm the storm.

And then while I'm waiting for him to calm the storm it's just chaos. What do you think it was like in that boat 13 men 12 of them in a panic over what's gonna happen. And one fast asleep. And I asked us today.

There's a question the Holy Spirit's been asking me all morning. Who is your example. Where are you going to be today. Are you gonna say Lord Jesus. I see that the storm is not stilled. But I'm gonna go find a place where you are.

And I'm going to find faith. We're talking about faith here. I want faith Lord Jesus. And as you're falling asleep and I'm and I somehow I'm not quite where you are. Imagine again I want you to think about a hypothetical situation that's true for us today that Matthew let's use him as an example.

He sees Jesus slowly slipping away grabbing a pillow and he goes to the back of the boat and Matthew says hey what's Jesus doing. Let me just do that. He called me to follow him. Let me just do what he's doing.

I'm gonna grab a pillow as well. And he lays down in the back and I go there put my head on the pillow lay next to him and I imagine a conversation here with Jesus tells Matthew hey Matthew you know what.

There's a storm coming can you see. It's starting to rock a little bit. It's gonna get worse. But stay with me. I'm right here. There's a plan for your life that the father has written out every day of your life is written out.

This is the safe place. You're with me. Matthew let's just hold hands together while it starts to get rockier. What a different story would have been for Matthew if he had found the place at the back of the boat where Jesus was.

Okay. These things are written for our instruction. None of them found that place. But today what will you and I do when Jesus closes up time and says hey. I told you the story in Mark 4 and I told it to you three times in Matthew 8 Mark 4 and I think Luke 6 or Luke 8 also three times I told you the same story.

What did you do with it. Do you. Were you satisfied to just be in the boat near Jesus waiting for him to calm the storm. Or did you say Lord you showed me where you were. I didn't want to see where Peter was or where Matthew was where Thomas was.

I wanted to see where you were. You were in the back of the boat fast asleep. I want that now and I'm saying Lord in the storms of my life today coming this week coming this month the rest of this year and the years to come.

I don't want to spend all my time praying for the storm to be stilled. I believe he will in his time. And I will pray for the storm to be stilled. But I want to do it from the back of the boat with my head on a pillow holding Jesus hands.

Let's go forward into this week that way brothers and sisters at the back of the boat with my head on a pillow holding Jesus hand because he's there. What a difference. Hebrews chapter 11 were told about faith.

But the faith of the Old Covenant people was quite different from the faith of the New Covenant. And that's the essence. A lot of Christians know Hebrews chapter 11 and know the stories and some I've heard of even memorized Hebrews chapter 11.

I tell you my dear brothers and sisters don't memorize Hebrews chapter 11. Memorize Hebrews chapters 12 verses 1 through 3. That's more important. That's for us. And start with Hebrews 11 verse 39. If you want to memorize something in the book of Hebrews memorize Hebrews 11 verse 39 onwards.

It's good to know what Samson did and David did and Jephthah and Gideon and Abraham and Sarah and Jacob and Joseph and Moses and Joshua. Good to know that. But what should we experience the faith of the New Covenant.

Hebrews 11 verse 39 says all these having gained approval through their faith. Yes God was gave approval. That's good. Good for you Joseph. Good for you Jacob. Good for you Moses. Good for you Abraham.

All of that gained approval. But there was a but at the end of that statement God would say welcome Abraham. But I've got something better for Santos. Do you know that did not receive what was promised Hebrews 11 verse 39 because God had provided a better faith you can say for Santos for you.

Put your name there. God had provided a better faith for Santos for you and I under the New Covenant than what Abraham Moses all those people in the Old Covenant experienced. Abraham waited and waited and waited and waited and waited.

And one day he got a son. Moses waited and waited and waited and he got to see the promised land and trusted God to lead him 40 years in the et cetera et cetera. What does faith look like for you. Dear brothers and sisters when you think about it you know it says in the previous verses they shut the mouths of lions live in skins animal skins hidden caves all this stuff.

God preserved them. God had provided something for better for us so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. And what was that better thing. What is the faith of the New Covenant. It is looking to Jesus.

Because that's what he says. Fix your eyes on Jesus. This is faith. How are you living at a standard that's higher than Moses and higher than Abraham. It's very simple. Every day you start out saying Lord Jesus.

I want to fix my eyes on you. I want to fix my eyes on you now. It doesn't look impressive to the rest of the world. It's hidden. It's you say hey how do you have faith. What's the proof of your faith.

You know James says what's the mark of your faith. And he gives different examples. But you know ultimately for me. If you ask me Santosh how are you walking by faith today says every day I'm looking to Jesus.

I'm fixing my eyes on him. And I'm asking him before I send an email before I send a text message before I speak something before I discipline my children before I go to work before I do this or I do that before I cook that meal or do the dishes.

I'm saying Lord Jesus. I want to find you here. I'm fixing my eyes on you. And dear brothers and sisters do you see that by that simple walk of every day fixing my eyes on Jesus. He says you're walking by faith.

And this faith is much greater and far better than anything they had under the old covenant. That's what he says in verse 40. God has provided something better for you. Let me make it simple. Children pay attention.

God is something better. God has planned something better for your life than to tear down the walls of Jericho like you showed us in the skit some time ago. God has planned something better for you than to shut the mouth of lions like Daniel did.

I think you guys did that play also. Maybe or you will someday. God has planned something better for you than to part the Red Sea like Moses did. God has planned something better for you than to call down fire from heaven than Elijah said.

Did you know what that is. Dear children I hope you'll never forget it that you can walk every day fixing your eyes on Jesus. Now you'll say well really that's it. No fanfare no waters partying and fire coming on from heaven.

And everybody's saying whoa faith. See. This is what I see Christendom chasing. They want something spectacular some great miracle that they can boast about. And God says I'm looking for a people that are humble that are into the that are after the treasure hidden in earthen vessels.

They're after the treasure not the earthen vessel. And I look at people who are taken up with this word of faith and faith movement and all that you know what it is. It's a fancy vessel. But a treasure inside is missing.

And it doesn't matter if the vessel outside is great. That's fine if God does outward miracles as we have seen him do. And I believe he will. Evidences of healing and other great miracles relationships being restored and healed.

I'm trusting him for that lives being saved. Our children grown up to love the Lord Jesus Christ and commit their lives to him and being baptized and becoming his disciples and obeying all that he taught us to do.

Those are miracles. And I'm trusting him for more of that. But deep within is a simple treasure a simple treasure of faith. And that is fixing your eyes on him. God has planned something better for us.

What is that. Verse two. To fix your eyes on Jesus the author and perfecter of faith of our faith. This is something better. You can follow Jesus. You can fix your eyes on him. And you can run a race and you can be like Jesus.