Champion Reflexes — Tim Dilena

Jesus as Savior and Champion

Isaiah chapter 19. Isaiah chapter 19 I want to read you one verse and just show you a prophecy of Jesus coming and I want to then take you to the book of Luke. I want you to look at Isaiah and then I want you to look at Luke with me just for a second here.

Isaiah chapter 19 look with me at verse 19 says in the day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt and a pillar to the Lord near its border. And then verse 20 is that I want you to notice and it will become a sign and a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt.

But they will cry to the Lord because of oppressors. Now I want you to look what he's gonna send. I'm reading out of the New American Standard he says this. And he will send them a Savior and a champion and he will deliver them.

I'm gonna tell you Jesus is not just Savior Jesus is champion. I'm gonna tell you that tonight. Now I want you to keep that word because if we are supposed to walk in who he is if we are to walk the Bible says in first John chapter 4 as he is he was on this earth we so shall we be.

So I'm we are to walk with that kind of stature. What God's doing inside of us now. Isaiah. I'm sorry. Luke chapter 1. Luke chapter 1. And I want to just read. I just want you to hold your Bible. I'm gonna read.

I want it. We're gonna start. I want us to look very quickly in just a few minutes. We're gonna look at just the beginnings as time was being prepared for the champion to come. And I want to show you what God was doing among some of the people from from Elizabeth and Zacharias with the birth of John the Baptist and also with Mary and Joseph with the birth of the champion with the birth of Jesus.

Let's pray and let's just thank God he is not only our Savior but thank God he is our champion. Amen. Jesus we thank you so much that we are not just the forgiven people but we are people that have overcome and we have overcome because of what Christ has done because of who you are.

Lord God. I am so thankful to be here knowing I am forgiven of my sins but I am so thankful to know that I don't have to give in to those sins anymore. But because of what Christ has done inside of me because there is a champion in me I believe God for that champion spirit to come out of me.

Lord God in everything that I do when you called us you didn't call us to lose a battle. You didn't call us Lord God to lay down. You called us to come out fighting. You've called us to be champions. You've called us to do things for the kingdom.

Father we believe that brother Dave and Teresa and Gary are there in Brazil not because they think a few things are gonna happen but because they serve a champion God that can break through in that area there.

God we didn't move in here to New York City just to start a church. Lord God. But God we want to see the champion run across these streets begin to touch people's lives and great things begin to take place now.

God do something here tonight in Jesus name maybe seated I promise you I will leave this standing when I am finished with your pulpit. We come from an area that in Detroit that is that is poverty stricken that there's so many things that are happening there that when we leave at night when we leave and go home the sin doesn't stop our church on one side of us is a transvestite hotel on the other side of us they just put in and we are praying it down.

This deja vu men's strip club across the street is worldwide triple X videos and there there we are. And how many know that's where the church is supposed to be. So we're right in the midst of this stuff.

Well it was just a few weeks ago that we that we have watched our city begin to go bankrupt and and we were watching people kind of come to the church and begin to look at us. That wouldn't. Wouldn't man's as the choir was even singing as man's resources are running out there starting to look to us and I'll explain that in a little a little bit later we we are we're wanting to do something different on the on the facade on the outside of structural thing of our building.

And one of the things that was interesting was it wasn't anything major until we begin to talk to a non-christian man who is who is from Egypt he's a Muslim man who came to us. We said listen we said you're an architect and is there anything that we can do in our and for our building.

He says well let me just see and look around here. Well he says you realize that your church is on the busiest intersection of all of Detroit's is that's where you're at. He said hundreds and hundreds of thousands of cars pass by your your church every day.

So he says I have an idea for you that I want you I want you to pray about this is a Muslim man wanting us to pray about this thing and so we're so I said we will pray and and this is this is a pretty ambitious thing that we feel like is going to begin to show off who Christ is we are we are going to even though we're not in Times Square we're gonna have a little bit of a Times Square look when we go home I come to the church at 6 a .m. in the morning and when I come into the church 6 a .m. in the morning I'll see five or six transvestites that'll just be waiting in front of the church transvestite prostitutes and everything else.

So as we're going to the into the prayer meeting you'll go through all this. So all through the night men are going to the bar and the strip club and transvestite prostitution everything. Well they said we we think you should put a Times Square Church jumbotron screen on the front of your church so you can run Jesus 24 hours a day.

So he says when you go to sleep when you go to sleep at night and the church shuts down Jesus is still out there. And so our hope and prayer is is that while the prostitutes are out there they're gonna see Jesus dying for the him them on a cross.

And then as those men are going into the strip club they're gonna see him rising again for them from the tomb and and we are believing that 24 hours a day as we start in September. So if we are going to believe that God is going to be going to do great things even when the church is not running Jesus is still down there because that's what he does.

He is there constantly moving throughout that place. And so we are just seeing some tremendous tremendous things take place. We have a soup kitchen that I was preaching at not too long ago and we got down to the altar call and while we were at the altar call if you really want to ruin the altar call just just start a fight in the place.

And so while I was giving the altar call these two men fell into the door having a fight. So no one's looking at me and I'm trying to keep everyone's attention. Lena look at me look at me and there and there and they're going to hit him hit him and so I'm just and so you the Walter call is lost at this point and so one of our guys who's not even he was not even saved.

The first guy who was saved he came out of he was a black belt and a Muslim that got saved and that's a good guy to have in the kingdom. And so we have this black belt Muslim guy so he jumped on one guy and did some move on him.

It was like some some Arabic sleeper Mideastern hold and just when and the guy just like fainted and I just thought I'm go that's a lawsuit and then I'm looking at then I'm looking at this other guy and what happened is this other guy who's not even saved grabs the other guy by the neck and he looks at him and it's a metal cement floor and he goes this is the house of God.

So with both of them dead we were able to go through with the altar call and continue on this thing this guy that this this this Muslim black belt Christian guy lived with me for a few years and it was funny it was it was this sometimes I would just kind of push him around a little he was only like five foot two and I push him around sometimes and he would let me do my thing until I got a little bit rough and then all of a sudden something would click in and he would do some move and then have his hands around my neck and and and I'm going just kidding just it was just it was this it was this something in him that motivated him that when it crossed the line this black belt miss kicked in on him and I was finished.

I mean I thought I was bigger I was finished at that point there was something in him that was that he would keep suppressed until you cross the line. And then at that point everything this man trained for everything this man was would come out of this man.

And this is what he would do. I want you to understand something because champions don't become champions in the ring. They're just recognized there. A champion is made in the daily routine of life which means if you cheat in the morning it'll show up in the battle.

Daily Discipline and Champion Reflexes

That's why it's important to understand you don't become a champion when the devil comes against you. It is in the daily mundane things. When pastor Carter says hey I want you to show up at church. You may not think it's helping but it is when you think sometimes see we think that we have to get a charge out of something in order for it to work now.

I admit my one of my problems in life is is other than spitting it would be would be what I and I and I admit this and and and God's got is coffee now. I I don't know about you. I look forward to it every morning.

It is something in me. But I need the coffee and the word and and the Holy Spirit and we and it is tremendous. And I drink it. And some of you are like this you are until you drink that coffee. You don't want anybody near you.

You don't want anybody. You know what I'm talking about. Okay let me. But see the word is not like that. The word is not caffeinated Mountain Dew Starbucks. This is not this is not what it. Let me tell you what the way how many have ever had vitamins before.

A's and C's and E's. Have you now and ask you a question how many. Once you've taken that vitamin you felt something take place. No you didn't listen to me. You didn't sit and oh C's and E's are running through my body.

I feel I feel so much listen. I've had C's and E's and nothing has happened. But see but see it's not meant to but it's strengthening you without you even knowing it. See some of us read this word wanting some type of fix when really it's more like vitamin that is beginning to work inside of us and to prepare us for things that are coming down the road.

You may not it may be drudgery and it may be difficult at first but there's coming a time where you're gonna sense that strength come back to you. So you would be ready for that battle. Listen. Champion is not made in a day but he's made in the daily.

It's the daily things. But this this young man is what I called jumped into. What I would say is a champion reflex. And when the battle came he knew exactly what to do. He knew exactly what to go into.

Understand something. Friends that's what happens when you're in the word. When you're in the house of God. And then find yourself in a battle. The champion reflex kicks in. It means when you're driving down as I did the other day in a car is turned over.

My first reaction is here's the reflex. My first reaction is Oh what happened. The first reaction is Oh God don't let someone be injured there. Then all of a sudden this intercession kicks in. It's a reflex that from being in the presence of God and being in the word of God begins to come out naturally.

So you can be in this place. Mark this down. You can be in this place and have hunger. But if you don't add daily discipline to hunger you'll lose your hunger. You can come to a place like this and just say man this is awesome.

I want to be. But if you don't add the daily discipline then you lose that hunger. Is there. See understand this church anything of value in my life calls for everyday commitment and maintenance. Everything of value has to be dealt with every day from my teeth to my marriage.

It's the truth. If I if I'm not interested in my teeth that I just don't brush them. But I am interested. And if I wasn't interested in my marriage I wouldn't be be going at and trying to maintain everything that's going on there.

See what happens is it is without get this church without daily attendance without daily maintenance nothing changes in your life. Nothing. If you live your life by just waiting for the next battle nothing changes because you don't become a champion in the ring.

You don't work out in the ring. Think about this. Jesus said there are certain devils that you're gonna meet that they only come out by prayer and don't ask you a question. If fasting is that part of your discipline how do you do it if you meet a demon.

If I'm talking let's pretend one of these I'm talking with Patrick and all of a sudden he's not saying. And all of a sudden there's a demonic influence. I can't sit there and say hold on. I'm gonna go fast.

I feel hungry. And then you just come back. And then you can't do that. It's in the daily discipline that is there that allows me then to confront those things that are going on. See if some of you are trying to work out in the ring and in the workout is happening every morning.

Workout happens when you get up for church and get the kids ready and you get here. And sometimes it is a Starbucks service and sometimes it's a vitamin A service. But whatever it is it's building up the inner man and preparing you for the fight that is there.

Pentecost Did Not Cancel Daily Faithfulness

Probably one of my favorite chapters of the book of Acts is Acts chapter 3. The day after Pentecost they just had fire on their head and speaking in tongues and all these things. Thousands of people are getting saved.

And then Acts chapter 3 I love the way it opens up. It says now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour the hour of prayer. Acts 3 almost sounds like a downer because the ninth hour was the time they're supposed to go to church.

Pentecost didn't cancel the routine. Just because the Spirit fell didn't mean that you don't go to work. Well God's moving. I don't work when God's moving just because the Spirit fell doesn't mean if the Holy Ghost fell in this place tonight guess what.

To be a champion. You got to get up tomorrow morning get your kids ready for school and you go to work. That's a champion. It's what God does after Pentecost which is just as powerful. The ninth hour is the schedule of the day.

That's why Acts 2 didn't change them. Being a church they had to be at three o 'clock meeting as they were every single day. It just began to equip them some more. But the thing that you have to understand church is that it's every single day it's giving daily attendance to those things.

Longest standing ovation ever given on a public forum was 22 minutes. Long people stood for 20. They used you clap for pastor Neal for a minute. Two minutes which was good. Three minutes he said three minutes.

22 minutes. Think about that. I would have been over there going come on. I have to preach. That's in the 20 and listen. It wasn't because he was fast. It wasn't because he hit home runs. Wasn't because he scored touchdowns.

It was for a man get this that showed up to work every day for twenty one hundred and thirty one games. His name was Cal Ripken who beat Lou Garrett. And people stood and cheered. Listen just because he showed up every day every day that was it.

They cheered him because get this church he did his job. Something happens. I believe when the people of God just do their job it is easy. It is easy to worship in here. How about worshiping out there.

It is easy to read the Bible standing here and music's playing and the preachers is preach. But it's a whole of the thing to read it at home. And your kid is yelling and Barney's playing in the background and all these things.

And you've got to read the Word of God. See that's where God begins to develop something inside of you. It's not the ring but it's what happens outside of the ring that God develops the champion reflexes that go on inside of you to prepare you.

Faithfulness Makes You Available to God

Now go to Luke chapter 1 and let me tell you where this begins. Look at this with me. I want to show you this starting with. First of all I want to look at Elizabeth and Zacharias. Look at this with me as they were going to begin by miracle to birth John the Baptist.

The Bible says in verse 8. Now it came about while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed hour of his division according to the custom of the priestly office. He now look at verse 9.

He was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside an hour of the incense of offering. And look at verse 11 and an angel of the Lord appeared to him standing at the right of the altar of incense.

Now look at this. He did not go into the in into the in to do his its priestly duties because he was led by the Lord. Look at your Bible. It was his time. It says his lot was up. It was like nursery duty.

Oh I'm on the list. That's Zacharias. And the day he shows up. God shows up just now write this down because I'm going to show you where these champion reflexes come from. Number one faithfulness. Faithfulness makes me available to God.

Faithfulness. He just showed up but it was his thing to do. It was. He didn't have a cloud lead him there. There was no there was no Ark of the Covenant that led him into it was he was on the list to go and do the priestly thing.

And it would happen to be that day that God showed up in the place. Listen Evan Roberts who is responsible for the Pentecostal revival coming to America. This 27 year old boy who went who was living in Wales and said this.

He said I am praying that a hundred thousand souls to be saved when the Wales when the Welsh revivals were finished at the turn of the century almost 1 million souls got saved. And this is what they said.

It all came back to this young man Evan Roberts. And this is what he said. His motto was this is that whatever meeting they were going to have in church he would be there. And his verse was John chapter 20.

Verse 24 it says in Jesus appeared to the 12 and Thomas wasn't there. He says I will never miss a service because Jesus may show up. So he was at everything. It could have been the women's missionary bandage rolling meeting.

He was going to be there. There was Evan. It could have been the support group for first spirit-filled pregnant women that are going to. Evan was there. He was going to be right there just to be right along with them.

If they were going to have a meeting Evan was going to be there because Jesus may show up that night. Do you know when they brought the other the Welch revival back to a Thursday night college and career Bible study with 12 students they said that became the origination of what took place in the Welch revivals.

12 kids showing up and he was there 12. That's it. What what could happen if all of a sudden you went into the nursery with that kind of expectancy. I know you walk in there going oh god not this week though.

And I can't handle kids and there you are. But what if you go in and saying God this may be the week you visit these kids. If you show up at that nursery duty and there you are. Who knows you may be the usher that's here today that you're just thinking oh I'm on the list.

I wanted to sit and listen. I wanted to be part. Who knows as your listen. You know it says in Acts chapter 6. While they were serving tables they were performing signs and wonders. They were serving widows and going oh would you like some potatoes.

Oh it looks like you have a lame leg. Let me give you the potatoes and pray for a miracle. Why not. It's just being faithful. Who knows what God can do. I walked on a plane in the midst of the whole stars thing.

When I was going in and I was flying into Canada where all the stars thing was taking place. And I'm sitting there thinking man I'm should I be traveling. I know I'm just trying to be faithful. What's on the schedule and go and speak at this thing and all this stuff.

And everybody walks on a plane with masks and gloves. I was like a doctor's convention. They're all walking on going no mask no gloves breathing on everybody and they're looking at me like I'm the weird guy.

But they didn't realize my seat was in Goshen that while the plague was hitting Egypt the children of Israel would be in Goshen and nothing would touch them. I'm just sitting there. I was good. Hey good to see you.

Good to see. Yes. No gloves no gloves. Look at this. No no mask. It's just me. And there I am all the food just and just simply being faithful and finding out that people ask you. Aren't you afraid. Aren't you worried.

Aren't you afraid that someone may breathe upon you. Not. If I'm in Goshen if I know I'm in the right place with God. Those things don't don't begin to bring fear to my heart. Because when I'm walking in in simple faithfulness with God say.

And it's faithfulness sometimes church in those mundane things that you don't think is bringing anything but God is doing something. It is important just to be here with the choir when you're. It could be the day God falls down and you choose to stay on.

This could be when your faithful God makes you available something happens. Listen. I understand because there's there's there's those levels of friendship. Jesus had 70 then 12 and 3 and 1. But let me let me break this this this friendship thing down now.

Don't get don't get angry at me if I if you get put in one of these categories but just listen with. You knows when your cell phone rings. Now it shouldn't ring in here. But when it does ring what is the first thing you do.

You know you don't answer it. You look to see who it is. Then you decide if you're gonna answer it. Oh that's pastor car. Yes sir. Yes. You better answer that. You better answer that when I see his number on my thing click.

Yes sir reporting for duty. Whatever he says cuz I love that man. But here's the thing now listen to me. I want you to say when people ask me for my phone number let me tell you. I have three levels of phone numbers.

If I give you my office number my office number you can call but I may not be there. If I give you my home number I can screen it because I'm not there all the time and you'll be on the answer machine.

But if I give you my cell phone number that means I want to talk to you. Listen. So if you ask me what number you giving me pass the tip don't get upset. Listen to me. But you can tell. Listen. You can tell where your relationship is based upon what number you get.

I'm just telling the truth. That's all I'm doing. Because here it is get this. The deeper the friendship the greater the availability. The deeper the friendship the greater the availability. That means when I am walking in friendship with God and I look at my cell phone and it says GOD.

Now God doesn't call my cell phone I want. But if it is yes God it means I am available the deeper the friendship. It's not a matter that simply I'm giving out phone numbers. It is a matter that I want to be available to you.

That's why it's important church in real friendship. Even availability is reciprocal. The people who have unrestricted access to me also give me unrestricted access to them. It works the same way with our Heavenly Father.

I believe he is most available to them who makes themselves most available to him. And so here we just thank God. Make me available. Make me available. God says okay every time I call. When I ask you just to pray.

When I ask you just to be a church. When I use pastor Carter and pastor Neal and say hey we want you to be at two services each week. Then I'm telling you faithfulness begins to make me available for what God wants to do.

That's what God does. No no. Watch this. He is faithful and God shows up. Let me give you another one. Mark this down. Watch this prayer makes the ordinary extraordinary. Look at this. He's just on the list.

But while he goes in look what it says in verse 10 the whole multitude of people were in prayer outside the hour of incense offering. So while he's praying what people are praying God is able then to visit that situation.

That is there something begins to happen. Church. I am telling you when the people of God begin to pray. I was I was talking about reflexes. I was reading this or heard this on the news. Listen to this.

Prayer Makes the Ordinary Extraordinary

There's a three-year-old boy who went to the grocery store with his mother. Before they entered the grocery store she said to him now you're not going to get any cookies so don't even ask. She put him in the cart sat in a little child seat when he wheeled down the aisles.

He was doing just fine until he came to the cookie section saw the chocolate chip cookies stood in the seat and said. Mom can I have some chocolate chip cookies. He's. I told you not even ask. You're not gonna get any at all.

Now sit back down. They continue down the aisle but in search for certain items. They ended up back in the cookie aisle. Mom can I please have some cookies. She said. I told you you can't have any. Sit down and be quiet.

Father. They're approaching the checkout lane. The little boy sense this may be his last chance. So just before they got to the line he stood up on the seat of the cart shouted in his loudest voice in the name of Jesus may I have some chocolate chip cookies.

Everybody applauded in all the lines and it said that when he left the story at 23 boxes of chocolate chip cookies. You don't know what Jesus can do. My phone rang Sunday night a few weeks ago. Three weeks ago my phone rang and I we were putting our kids down and we just got back from Sunday night service and I didn't.

I didn't. I couldn't hear the phone. We're upstairs and I went downstairs to turn off all the lights and the and the answer machine was blinking down there so I I hit the I hit the button and it was the mayor of our city.

He goes uh he goes Tim I need to talk to you. I've been reading the book of Job and I got to talk to you. He goes I'm Job. So I said this is a good witnessing opportunity so anybody who starts off with I'm Job.

This is a good time to talk about Jesus. I was a little late. It was probably about 11. I didn't want to. I don't want to call his household. I wasn't sure what time the phone call came in but on the next day I was getting ready to go into the office for staff meeting at 9 in the morning and so well I was in the bathroom just kind of preparing getting ready to leave the house.

Didn't hear it. The phone rang again and it was him again. Here's my here's my cell phone number and he goes you need to call me as soon as possible. I'm reading Job quick. I called him when I got to the office.

He said I want to come in and talk to you came into the office on Tuesday morning. We sat there for two and a half hours but that day I had a number of people go into prayer because I didn't want the ordinary to stay ordinary.

I wanted the ordinary to become extraordinary. Two and a half hours I heard this man as the city was going bankrupt and talking to me about giving over to drug and alcohol addiction while in the job and at times would just leave the job and go to parks and sit there drinking cognac and smoking weed and all these.

This is the mayor of our city and and just came in and said I just need to talk to you says this is this is my life. He says everything is caving in. I'm losing my family my children everything. What do I need to do.

And then he said this to me. This is after two and a half hours because and and I only like people that tell me the truth. They thought now you've asked the right question or told me the right thing. I said well here it is me.

I said if you're telling me you want truth. I said here's the truth. I said one is you don't know Jesus. I said you talk about him but you have no relationship with him. Then I know you go to church and they have relatives in the ministry.

I said but just because you can talk lingo to me doesn't mean you're walking in a relationship. I said you have to understand something is that when you when you are wanting to give your life to God you've got to surrender.

It's not just believing it is making him Lord. The Bible says in Romans 10 9 and 10 if you believe in your heart listen if you believe in your heart that Jesus Lord and confess that God has raised him from the dead.

Believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead and confess the about the Jesus is Lord you shall be saved. It's not just believing that he is alive and that he exists it is truly proclaiming him as Lord.

It means the unstripping of everything that you are and and and giving your life over to him. So I'm sitting there going okay this is a risk. This is a big risk. And can I tell you something the pastors would concur with this.

You know when when we get up here and tell you a story what I'm about to tell you about this mayor thing and all this stuff. Can I just tell you friends is that here's the truth of the matter is that there are so many times is that we have got to go through sometimes 24 embarrassing moments before you hit the good point.

Not every person I talked to falls on their knees and says you know what must I do to get saved. I talk to people on the plane all the time and it's not interested personal. I don't want to talk to you about religion.

That's your thing that's my. But sometimes you hit the one you just get and friends you know what it is. It's just daily talking to people. And then one day boom there it is. And what prayer does is make that day exciting.

So when I said mayor here let's make no qualms about if you want Jesus. And I just said I'm so far into this. Let me just go for broke get on your knees and lift your hands up in the air. He go. He looked at me and it was like this moment of silence that I'm waiting for the authorities to carry me away.

And he looks and he goes. I have never heard this before in my life. Falls on his knees puts his hands up in the air and says Jesus I need you to change my tears welling up in his eyes. He says this I want to relate.

I call the next date is to make sure it was real. He says I am telling everybody about a relationship with Jesus everybody what's happening. But see what happens church. Is that when you go into that day it's not just simply doing it but it's saying God.

I want the ordinary to become extra ordinary. And sometimes that calls for praying things through to see God show up and do something. Let me close with this one. Faithfulness can make me available to prayer makes the ordinary extraordinary.

Righteousness Opens the Future

Mark this down. I want to skip over just a little bit in that chapter. Righteousness. Get this righteousness opens up opens up my future. Verse 26 it says. Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee same chapter called Nazareth.

And look at this church. This is interesting. Verse 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph an angel. After it leaves Zacharias. Elizabeth shows up at Mary and Joseph's house. They look at this.

They are engaged and she still has her virginity. I can't tell you how many times when I'm doing premarital counseling. I'll look at a couple and tell them and say just ask this question. We want you to walk in purity.

We want you to walk in purity on this thing. And then I'll look and say how are you doing. And boy it's nothing that just gets the pastor's heart. When you see the couple's head it goes down. And then sleeping together instead of waiting just put into what God wants to do.