Never Give In

Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of Scripture from the book of 1st Corinthians.

As a Christian, we are racing for the prize of eternal life, but it’s going to require diligence and endurance to eventually obtain it. Like competing against another team, we must strive against the flesh and completely defeat it. To cross the finish line and enter into paradise, we must race to win, never giving up, and never giving in.

1 Corinthians 9 ²⁴ Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. ²⁵ And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

Eternal life is a reward that is granted to those who have overcome sin. To reap that reward, we must never give in to sinful urges. Every man has their own weaknesses, but we must be strong in our faith and completely defeat them.

James 1 ¹² Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. ¹³ Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: ¹⁴ But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. ¹⁵ Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Many people want blessings from God, but they don’t want to do the things that are required of them to obtain them. We must learn to walk in the will of God and to please Him before we can inherit the rewards that come from obedience. When you obey your boss at work, oftentimes they will reward your efforts by offering you a higher position in the company with better pay. If you keep up your grades, and do the things that your dad commands you, many times He will reward you by allowing you to hook up the fishing boat to the truck and go camping for the weekend. Good behavior is rewarded by God, but rebellion and disobedience will be punished. Whichever way you choose to live your life I can guarantee that you will reap what you sow. 

Galatians 6 ⁷ Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. ⁸ For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. ⁹ And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. ¹⁰ As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

“For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.”  Matthew 16:27

Like an army that defeats an enemy on a battlefield, we must defeat sin by overcoming the temptations of the carnal nature. God is watching and He will most certainly reward His faithful servants. 

Romans 2 ⁵ But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; ⁶ Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

⁷ To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: ⁸ But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, ⁹ Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

¹⁰ But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:

¹¹ For there is no respect of persons with God.

To obtain God’s blessings, we must endure temptations. To endure means to hold out and sustain without yielding. It is to suffer something difficult, unpleasant or painful without giving up or giving in. It is to continue firm and resolute through any trials or difficulties that we go through. Rather than giving in to temptation, we must yield ourselves to the will of God.

Romans 6 ¹² Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. ¹³ Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

When we endure temptations, God will shower His obedient children with blessings. It is a choice that we must make every day, as we turn away from darkness to walk in His light. God is perfectly just and He doesn’t bless sinful living. He will reward those who depart from iniquity and serve Him from the heart. As Jesus resisted the devil in the desert, we must be strong in our faith, and overcome any temptations in the flesh. 

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7

1 Peter 5 ⁸ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: ⁹ Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

“Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” Ephesians 6:16

God gives us precious promises throughout the scriptures, but you will never obtain them if you’re not going to submit to God’s will. That’s like expecting an employer to pay you, but you haven’t shown up for work for over two weeks. A dad might promise that he will give you a new car if you graduate, but if you drop out in the 9th grade do you really think he owes you a car? How foolish! Some people will come short of eternal life simply because they didn’t do what was required on their part to obtain the promise.

“Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.” Hebrews 4:1

Eternal life will be granted to those who overcome temptations.

“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” Revelation 21:7

“He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” Revelation 3:5

People claim that to win a competition, it all comes down to how bad you really want it. Are you ready to do what is required on your part to win the prize of eternal life? Will you strive each day against the temptations of this world? This is the greatest race that you could ever run, but to cross the finish line, you must never give up, and….

……Never Give In

Let’s think about these things for right now.  We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious goups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.❤️

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