The following sermon is made available by Lakeside Bible Church in Cornelius, North Carolina.
For more information about our church or to find more recorded sermons,
please visit us online at lakesidebible.church.
We'd also love to connect with you on social media.
You can find us by searching Lakeside Bible NC on Facebook and Instagram.
For specific questions about the Bible or our church, please email us at info at lakesidebible.church.
Philippians chapter 1 is where we are as we continue through our series in the book of Philippians.
And we're going to read verses 27 to 30, but we're going to divide this passage into two parts.
We'll cover the first half of it today, and we will cover the second half of it next Sunday.
But let's begin reading, please, at Philippians chapter 1, verse 27.
The Bible says,
It says,
Up to this point in Paul's letter to the Philippian church, he's been focusing on updating the people about his physical well-being.
He has been updating them on the ministry of the gospel, the status of it.
Is it continuing? Has it been prevented?
And of course, all of this is set within the context of his imprisonment in Rome.
So in verse 27, Paul transitions away from his own circumstances, and he begins his pastoral instruction in this letter to the Philippian church.
Making this transition, you'll notice in verse 27, he uses the word only to open the sentence.
It's the first word in the English.
It's also the first word in the Greek that Paul wrote it in.
He used it at the beginning of the sentence to signify that his singular concern was that they live a life that was worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
That's what he cared about.
So he says,
I'm not sure what my future holds.
I may die.
I think God's going to let me live.
And if he lets me live, this is why.
For your progress in the faith and for your joy in the faith.
But whether I come to you or I don't come to you.
That's what he means in verse 27.
Whether I survive and I come and get to visit you again in God's grace and God's provision.
Or whether or not I'm executed and I never see you again.
My concern for you Philippians is that you live a life that's worthy of the gospel.
That your conversation, your manner of life, your behavior, your conduct as a believer would be fitting for the gospel that has actually come to you and saved you through the power of God.
It doesn't mean that we gain the gospel, that we gain salvation by being worthy.
But that we should live a life that the gospel we have already been given, that the gospel we have already been accepted is fitting of and is deserving of.
In other words, now that you're a believer, act like one, Paul says.
Whether he was present or absent, he cared deeply that these believers would live out a practical profession of their faith.
He cared that they be unwavering in their faith.
And that they would passionately pursue a life that stood firm on the gospel.
Paul didn't believe that verse 21, the conviction of that, for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
He didn't believe that that should be exclusive to a small group of believers.
But that it should be at the heart of every person that has experienced salvation.
His transition from testimony to instruction communicates that a life that is consumed with Christ is not something to be admired in spiritual leaders.
But it's something to be experienced by every believer.
His example was to become their reality.
And it was time for the Philippian church to personalize this particular commitment to Christ.
There are times where we view commitment in the Christian life.
Where we view faithfulness in the Christian life.
To the extent that Paul talks about it here.
Well, it makes sense.
Paul was an apostle.
That's what he did.
He was a church planner.
He was a preacher.
Of course his whole life is supposed to be consumed with Christ.
I'm just a normal guy.
I'm just a normal person.
That's not what I do for a living.
What do you mean my life has to be consumed with Christ?
When Paul addresses this instruction, he's saying this life is not about what you do.
This life is about who you are.
And this is not to be admired.
To live as Christ is not just to be admired in spiritual leadership.
It's supposed to be experienced by any believer.
This is to be your life as well.
And of course this instruction is echoed throughout the New Testament.
Paul on different occasions and in different churches wrote the same thing.
In Ephesians he wrote,
To the Thessalonians he wrote,
That you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,
being fruitful in every good work,
and increasing in the knowledge of God.
To the Thessalonians he wrote,
As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you,
as a father does his children,
that you would walk worthy of God,
who has called you into his kingdom and to his glory.
Paul was stressing the point that this attitude that I have is not just exclusive to leadership.
This is for every single believer.
And it's for you and me too.
That our lives are to be worthy of the gospel so that we could in truth stand and say,
For to me to live is Christ,
and to die is all the gain in the world.
The word conversation here in verse 27,
This word is from the Greek word polis,
which is used to refer to a city or a city state.
Essentially Paul's referring to a particular citizenship
as he introduces this instruction to the Philippians.
Philippi was a very proud Roman province.
They had absorbed the Roman life in every way possible.
And if you study their history, you'll understand why.
There was a patriotism in Philippi that was unique.
So when Paul wrote using this word,
they would have understood exactly what he meant.
In fact, they had gone so far in their love for Rome
and in their citizenship in Rome
that they had literally changed everything about their culture.
They changed the way they dressed.
They changed their names to Roman names in Philippi.
They adopted Latin as their primary language as opposed to Greek,
which is what it had been before.
They loved being Roman.
And they cared deeply about living their lives as worthy citizens of Rome.
It wasn't from a sense of submission to a tyrannical rule of government.
That's not what it was.
They actually viewed their life and their abilities and their purpose
in light of their contribution to society.
It's quite different than how we view life today.
Today we think about ourselves.
We always look out for ourselves first.
We look out for those that we love first.
In their life, everything about them was pushed toward contributing to their culture,
contributing to their city, contributing to Rome.
They were obsessed with being Roman.
There was an incredible patriotism there.
So when Paul writes this and he appeals to this mindset in the Philippian church
and in the city of Philippi,
he's appealing to them to not focus on being citizens of Rome,
but focus now on being worthy citizens of heaven.
In fact, in writing about this, John MacArthur said,
if the citizens of Philippi were so devoted to the honor of their human kingdom,
how much more should believers be devoted to the kingdom of Christ?
And we could fill in the blank with whatever it is that we obsess our lives about.
It could be our citizenship.
It could be our hobbies.
It could be our careers.
It could be whatever it is that you have obsessed your life,
that you have assumed in your identity as a person.
But if that thing is not the gospel of Jesus Christ,
if it's not what Christ has done for you,
then you won't live a life that is worthy of the gospel.
You may live one that's worthy of an American,
but then we're reminded of what Marty read just a moment ago,
or that he's saying,
kings and kingdoms will all pass away, the word tells us.
But there's something about that name.
There will come a day where the existence that we know it as America
will not be like it is now.
And so obsess your life about America,
and it's not going to mean much.
Obsess your life about your hobbies.
There may come a day where you can't achieve your hobbies
the way that you want to achieve them.
There may come a day when you can't experience the family
and the friendships that you have now.
So obsess your life then about the gospel and about heaven.
His point was that their conversion to Christ
had translated them into the kingdom of God,
and it was necessary for them
to live as worthy citizens of that kingdom.
He wasn't condemning their desire to be good citizens of Rome,
but he was stating that their first concern
should be living as good citizens of heaven.
Paul was concerned
that when their commitment to the gospel
was opposed by the Roman culture,
that they would stand firm on their faith
and live worthy of the gospel that had saved them.
The temptation for the Philippians
and the temptation that we will face as well
would be to soften our stand on the gospel
in order to accommodate or capitulate to
the philosophies of the culture around us.
It was okay for them to want to be Roman,
but there was going to come a point in their life
where their Roman-ness
was not going to match up very well with the gospel.
And when they were confronted by that culture,
the culture that opposed the gospel,
the culture that opposed what Christ was,
the culture that opposed what they stood for,
the culture that opposed the righteousness
that they were trying to live out,
what would they do?
Would they find a way to accommodate the culture
or would they stand firm on the gospel?
Would they find a way to capitulate
to the ever-changing whims of society
or would they stand firm on the gospel?
And it's the same struggle that we're going to have too.
When you stand for the gospel,
eventually you're going to face opposition
and that was the point.
He's encouraging them to move forward,
to strive together,
to focus in on the gospel,
but it's underneath the reality
that when you do that,
your un-Roman-ness is going to face opposition.
People are going to hate you for it.
They're going to hate what you stand for.
They're going to try to intimidate you.
And when that happens,
are you going to stand firm?
Is your life truly in that moment
going to be about Christ
and wrapped up in the gospel?
Or will you soften and cower?
And so that becomes the point of his instruction.
Of course, the nature of the gospel
should tell us what this,
how this life should be lived out.
The truth is,
the gospel-worthy life
that Paul expresses in these verses
seems to be largely absent
in the church today.
People whose perspective of life
is completely wrapped up
in being a citizen of the kingdom of God
are rare.
And the very nature of what the gospel
has done for us
communicates what we should be,
but it also shows us and reveals
how we fall short so often.
Think about what the gospel is.
The gospel we believe
is a gospel of forgiveness.
The only thing that we bring to salvation
is brokenness.
The only thing we bring to salvation is sin.
The only thing we bring to salvation
is rebellion.
Yet when we trust Christ,
he provides forgiveness
that supersedes any sin you've ever committed.
It doesn't matter how bad it is.
It doesn't matter how much you've done it.
It doesn't matter even how much
you've rejected him in the past.
When you come to Christ
and you cast yourself on him alone,
and you make him your Lord,
he forgives every sin you've committed.
He forgives every rejection
that you have perpetuated in your life.
He conquers all unbelief in your heart.
It's a gospel of forgiveness.
But if the gospel is a gospel of forgiveness,
why do so many Christians refuse to forgive?
Why don't our lives match up
with what the gospel has actually done for us?
The gospel we believe is a gospel of repentance.
Naturally, if sin is what separates us from God
and it's Christ that had to come
and pay the penalty for that sin
in order for us to be reconciled back to God,
obviously that means in order to trust Christ in faith,
we gotta turn away from everything else.
That if sin is what separates us,
sin must be repented of in our lives.
If gospel is a gospel of repentance,
yet so many Christians continue to live in willful sin,
or at least to affirm
that it's okay for others to live in sin.
When we take a stand on righteous living
and the culture opposes that,
what will you do?
Will you find a loophole somewhere in your understanding
that would allow you to live the way that you wanna live?
Or maybe you don't jump that far into it yourself,
but are you willing to accommodate
and affirm sinful behavior in somebody else's life?
Because just some of those things in the Bible,
I'm not necessarily comfortable with them,
but some of those things in the Bible,
maybe they're a little irrelevant to us today.
It was a different time now.
It was 2,000 years ago.
But God's word is unchanging.
The gospel is a gospel of repentance,
and we must stand firm on that.
It's a gospel of love.
So many Christians involve themselves
in needless division, hatefulness.
It's a gospel of life.
So many churches feel like death.
We're supposed to be preaching
that what Christ does for us is provide joy
in the midst of heartache and suffering and difficulty.
Yet we may ask a friend to come to our service
and we can't sing.
We don't want a fellowship.
We're quiet.
We preach a gospel of life,
yet what we portray is deathly.
It's a gospel of faith,
yet we often live in a state of doubt.
It's a gospel of freedom,
yet we often try to bind others afterwards by law,
sort of a bait and switch.
Come to Christ.
You don't have to do anything for it.
He'll provide salvation for free.
They believe that God will provide salvation for free,
and then you insinuate on the back end,
now you got to do all of these things.
If you don't do all these things,
maybe you didn't really get it to begin with.
So this gospel of freedom
no longer is a gospel of freedom
once you're inside the church.
Then it's a gospel of law.
It's a gospel of community,
yet so many Christians neglect the fellowship of the church.
The point is this.
The call of salvation
is a call to a radically different life
that's focused on Christ and his truth.
We're to live a life that's worthy of that gospel,
even when it inevitably leads to suffering,
as was Paul's point here.
In fact, the whole theme of these verses
is on how we should willingly and joyfully
endure suffering for our faith.
And what we'll study this morning
is three quick points
that will be much shorter than that introduction.
Three demonstrations that Paul gives
for the gospel-worthy life.
He says, whether I come to you or else I am absent,
I may hear of you,
and this is what I wanna hear.
If you're gonna live the gospel-worthy life,
this is what will be evident for you,
especially as you face persecution.
The first thing he says
is that there would be a commitment to sound doctrine,
a commitment to sound doctrine.
Look with me again at verse 27.
Only let your manner of life
be worthy of the gospel of Christ,
that whether I come and see you or else be absent,
I may hear of your affairs,
that you stand fast in one's spirit.
You stand fast in one's spirit.
Standing fast or standing firm
was a term used to picture a soldier
holding his position at all costs,
even to the point of death.
Obviously, that context and that illustration,
that word picture would be
that the soldier would be under assault for some reason.
And in that assault, he wouldn't retreat,
he wouldn't cower, he would stand firm.
He would be on the defensive,
but he would stand firm on that defensive.
And Paul writes and he says,
the gospel-worthy life,
when faced with opposition,
when faced with an assault from the enemy,
when faced with an assault from the culture,
the gospel-worthy life stands firm.
It stands firm on the defensive.
And what it's standing firm on is sound doctrine.
And this statement is the reality
that what we believe will be opposed,
and it must be defended.
It must stand firm.
The culture in which we live
claims that there is no such thing as truth.
At the very least,
it claims that truth is a personal relative matter,
and that any insinuation of absolute truth
is foolish and outdated
and even hateful, we're told now.
Believers recognize, though,
that the scriptures are the ultimate source of truth,
and that the gospel of Jesus Christ
is the only means by which a person
can know God and be given eternal life.
At some point,
no matter how much you love the culture around you,
at some point,
there's gonna be a conflict
between the way that the culture says life is supposed to be
and the way that the scripture says life is supposed to be.
When a believer in the gospel
is confronted by a culture
that vehemently denies the gospel,
it's absolutely necessary
that Christians stand firm on sound doctrine.
That's what Paul's getting across.
This gospel-worthy life stands firm
on the scriptures.
Not only do we stand firm
in light of the culture that's around us,
but there is a danger today
of Christians that aren't even standing firm
on sound doctrine within the church.
We must remain constant on the fact
that there is only one interpretation of scripture,
and that scripture,
that interpretation,
must not be manipulated
to suit the ever-changing whims of our culture.
It's one thing to stand firm
against the vehement deniers of the gospel.
It's another thing that within the church
and within Christianity
that you stand firm
on the truth of the Bible in general.
That we don't look at the culture
and look at all the secondary doctrines
maybe in the Bible
and change our mindset
of what the Bible means
and how God intended it
based on how our preferences
and our culture has changed.
But even within the church,
we stand firm on the truth of the Bible.
St. Augustine said,
if you believe what you like in the gospel
and reject what you don't like,
it's not the gospel that you believe,
but yourself.
And that's very true.
Not only does he say
we're to be committed to sound doctrine,
he also says we are to experience unity
in proclaiming the gospel.
Unity in proclaiming the gospel.
Look again at verse 27.
Only let your conversation be
as it becometh the gospel of Christ,
that whether I come and see you
or else be absent,
I may hear of your affairs
that you stand fast in one spirit
with one mind striving together
for the faith of the gospel.
Standing firm pictures a defensive posture.
It's we're facing assault from the enemy,
we're facing assault from sin,
we're facing assault from unsound doctrine,
and we stand firm on that.
Striving together,
this unity in proclaiming the gospel
is the posture of offensive,
of an offensive nature.
So as we confront this culture around us,
it's not just that we defend our doctrine,
but we go on the offensive
in proclaiming the gospel,
the only thing that can actually benefit
the world around us.
We live a gospel-worthy life
when in solidarity,
we contend side by side
with other believers
for the faith of the gospel.
Unity then becomes
one of the dominant themes
of this particular book.
He's already mentioned unity,
he's mentioned partnership
in the gospel in the first chapter.
He's gonna go on in the next passage
and in chapter two
to talk about the necessity
for unity and for humility
as they look to one another
to engage in gospel work.
He's gonna call out
a specific group of ladies
in chapter four
that for some reason
had some contention.
He's gonna call them out
specifically in verse two
of chapter four
that they'd be of the same mind
in the Lord.
Unity in the gospel
is absolutely necessary
for us to go on the offensive
in this gospel-forsaken world.
And that's where we get our mission.
It's not just to defend,
it's to push forward.
The term comes from an athletic term
that pictures a team of people
standing shoulder to shoulder,
leaning into the opposition,
leaning in.
It's not just defending against,
it's leaning in.
I think most of us would say,
and I'm gonna put myself in this boat,
most of us would stand firm.
If somebody were to confront us
with some type of unsound doctrine,
we would stand firm
on what our belief is.
But how many of us
without even being confronted
are actually pushing forward
in an offensive with the gospel
to actually tell people
that their sin will damn them to hell
and that their only hope
that they have
is that if they trust
the gospel of Jesus Christ,
that if they make Christ their Lord
and turn away from their sinfulness,
that's the only means
by which they can truly know God
and have eternal life.
It's one thing to defend.
It's another thing
to go on the offensive.
The church is weakened
when believers lose focus
of their singular purpose
as the church,
which is the faithful proclamation
of the gospel.
That's our mission.
That's what we do.
That's what we're supposed to do,
not just by the preacher
on a Sunday morning,
but every day.
Proclaim the gospel.
The good news
is what the word means.
We do that with joy,
but we do it together as well.
We splinter often.
Not us,
but the church in general.
Splinters often
because we lose focus
of that purpose.
The truth is
we have no other strings
to our bow.
We're often tempted
to take a stand
on anything and everything
except the gospel.
We litter our social media feeds
with every possible opinion
about politics
and sports
and entertainment.
Yet how often
do we go on the offensive
and proclaim the gospel?
We sit at work
day by day
and we'll have
a hundred conversations
with the person
that sits in the cubicle
next to us.
We'll have a hundred conversations
about anything
and everything
we can think of.
But how many of us
have locked arms
with the church
and gone on the offensive
to proclaim the gospel
to those people?
The gospel is the only thing
that can help them.
And we've been commanded
to share it.
So not only does
the gospel-worthy life
stand firm
on truth,
but it unites
with the mission
of the church
and goes on the offensive
to share the gospel.
Then finally,
we see faithfulness
in the face of opposition.
Faithfulness
in the face
of opposition.
Look at the beginning
of verse 28
and this is where we'll stop.
And in nothing terrified
by your adversaries.
This really is the end
of this particular series
that Paul's writing.
The punctuation
that's given to us
in the church Bibles
is a little bit confusing.
If you've got a scripture journal,
it actually ends there
with a period.
It's the end of the sentence
and then the next part
of that phrase
picks up as a new sentence
which begins,
this is to them
an evident sign
of destruction
and of salvation
for you
and that from God.
So when we look
at the construction
of this the way
that I believe
Paul intended it
to be written,
we see that this third thing
in verse 28
is actually the end
of a series.
That in this demonstration
of the gospel,
this demonstration
of the gospel-worthy life,
we stand firm,
we unite in proclaiming
the gospel,
striving together
for the faith
of the gospel.
And then he tacks on here,
not being fearful
of any of your opponents
in anything.
What's translated here
as terrified
is an equestrian term.
Speaks of a startled horse
suddenly bolts
and bucks his rider.
It gives the idea
of being skittish
or constantly on edge.
And Paul wasn't downplaying
the reality of fear
when coming up
against physical harm.
He wasn't denying that
or downplaying that.
This was an instruction
not to panic
or live in paranoia
to the point
that it would actually
prevent you
from standing firm
in proclaiming the gospel.
It was meant
to be a reminder
to them
that as citizens
of the kingdom of God,
their king
was in control.
That as they have
believed the gospel,
as they have been
translated into this
kingdom of God,
their primary citizenship
is now heaven
and their king
rules it all.
And they can trust
his purpose
and they can trust
his plan.
Now that plan
is probably going
to include
some persecution
in some form
or another.
For them,
it was going to
actually include
martyrdom.
That may not be
the case for us,
especially to that extent,
but there's going
to be opposition.
There's going
to be difficulty
and we all know that.
We're not foolish to it.
Can I be honest
and tell you
that this is where
I am the weakest
personally.
It's one thing
for me to stand
firm on the gospel.
I can do that.
I enjoy theology.
I enjoy studying
the Bible.
I enjoy having
conversations about that.
I'm full of opinions.
Just ask Julie.
It's one thing
for me to proclaim
the gospel.
It's kind of my job.
I get to do that
every Sunday.
I get to stand up here
and preach the word.
Where I personally
struggle
is living in a
constant state
of fear
for actually
doing those things.
I can build up
a confidence
to come into
a church worship
service because
everybody expects
if they're going
to come to church,
they expect to be
preached to.
There's nothing
really to be scared
of with that.
It's another thing
for me to walk over
to my next door
neighbor,
Karina,
and actually tell her,
you know what?
I'm actually a pastor
and I'd love to
tell you about the Bible.
I'd love to tell you
about the gospel.
I live in this state.
This skittishness
that just
we're creeping along
in this Christian life
as far as the culture
around us.
We're so afraid
of the persecution
that inevitably will come.
We're so nervous
about what people
are going to think
and what people
are going to say
because our pride
rules everything
in our hearts.
We're so nervous
about that
that we never actually
end up proclaiming
the gospel
because we're jumpy
at every little thing.
I don't know
what that person
is going to think
and maybe they'll
think I'm coming
on too strong
or maybe it'll
affect my ability
to move up
in my job.
Maybe my wife
who's not a believer
maybe my wife
not Julie
but maybe your wife
that's not a believer
maybe your wife
that's not a believer
maybe this is going
to affect my
if I really get serious
about serving the Lord
and if I really
try to share the gospel
with her
she might think
that I'm just
some kind of fanatic
she may leave me
and I love my wife
and I want my wife
to leave me.
If I really try
to push my kids
if I really try
to teach them the gospel
I really try to
get them to come
to church
maybe they're going
to resent me
in some way
maybe it's going
to affect my boldness
or my ability
to get a promotion
maybe it's going
to affect my friendships
yes yes
it will affect
all of those things
in one way or another
but the gospel
worthy life
lives in the reality
that their king
controls it all
and if Christ
is our Lord
he's the one
we serve
not our boss
not our spouse
not our friendships
all of those things
are important
so long as
our life
is first
primarily consumed
with Christ
a believer
that's consumed
by fear
will never stand
firm
nor will it
strive for the gospel
this isn't the type
of boldness
that comes
when we
take a deep breath
either
and just kind
of look inside
and muster up
any kind of courage
it's not the type
of boldness
that Paul's
referencing here
this is a boldness
I think that comes
through the power
of God
through the spirit
of God
as we draw
close to him
as we daily
preach the gospel
even to ourselves
remind ourselves
of what God
has actually
done for us
God through his
power builds
this confidence
it's given
as we
truly
trust God
that's the point
everything we do
is built
on faith
which is why
this is such
a struggle
it's a struggle
for me
because
in reality
my faith
is often
very weak
those of you
from Laurel
know exactly
how weak
it is
took me
a year
and a half
to actually
move forward
with this
church plant
I was scared
of it
it's tough
to trust
the Lord
in that
but how foolish
is that
as we look
at the gospel
we trust
God
with our
eternity
but we don't
trust him
for anything
else
sometimes
so much
of our
perspective
as believers
is directly
related
to the extent
to which
we trust
God
trusting
the truth
of God
will move
us to stand
firm
on sound
doctrine
we'll stand
firm
on it
when we
truly
trust
God
that he's
right
and we'll
defend
it
trusting
the work
of God
will move
us to partner
with the church
in proclaiming
the gospel
trusting
his word
will cause
us to stand
firm
trusting
the fact
that he
actually
does work
through us
will cause
us to press
forward
in striving
together
for the gospel
trusting
the goodness
of God
the rightness
of God
will move
us to be
faithful
in the face
of opposition
you see
all of this
eventually
just comes
down to
faith
without faith
it's impossible
to please him
the writer
of Hebrews
tells us
some of you
may say
you know
when I
trusted Christ
when I
ventured
into this
Christian life
I came
for the
forgiveness
and for
the love
and for
heaven
and for
God
I didn't
come for
suffering
and difficulty
I didn't
come
to have
to live
in light
of the
threat
that
people are
going to
oppose
everything
that I
believe
and oppose
everything
that I
am
and if
my life
actually
gets
wrapped
up in
this
that
means
I'm
going
to face
even
more
opposition
but all
of those
things
end up
coming
down
to the
extent
with which
we
actually
trust
the
Lord
this
week
Julie
and I
had a
conversation
preparing
for this
particular
message
a truth
that Julie
had to
remind me
of this
week
that even
in preaching
a sermon
or studying
a passage
or leading
a church
or whatever
this is
when I
can let
go of
the fact
that I
can't
do it
and actually
trust the
Lord
to do it
even if
I
look like
a fool
even if
I don't
do it
the right
way
or if
I'm
weak
in some
form
or fashion
I have
to trust
the Lord
and as soon
as I can
trust the
Lord
his work
can begin
through me
in whatever
way he
desires that
work to be
done
if you're
going to be
bold at
work
or in your
family or
wherever else
you're going to
avoid the
skittishness in
the Christian
life
you're going
to have to
trust God
that even
in persecution
he loves
you
and he has
a purpose
for that
Marty's
testimony
he didn't
mention as
much about
today
earlier this
year about
going through
that difficulty
he was
airlifted to
the hospital
and almost
died
had brain
surgery
a couple
brain
surgeries
actually
earlier this
year
a man
with a
weak faith
would look
at that
and wonder
maybe
is God
truly got
my back
in this
is this
really what
this life
is supposed
to be
like
and you
get through
those moments
with joy
when you
truly trust
God
you cast
yourself
on him
you stand
firm
when you
really
truly
believe
that what
he has
given us
in his
word
is actually
his
word
and so
just like
we mentioned
earlier in the
service
like that man
in the
new
testament
when we
come
daily
to our
time of
study
our
personal
devotion
we come
with that
prayer
Lord
I believe
your truth
help my
unbelief
help me
believe it
so that I
can stand
firm
on it
help me
to trust
that you're
going to
work
when I
have this
conversation
later today
with my
wife
help me
to trust
that you're
going to
work
when I
actually
share the
gospel
on social
media
this week
and I
just
kind of
put this
out there
help me
trust
that you're
going to
work
help me
trust
Lord
that you
are
actually
in
control
and if
I
deal
with
suffering
it's
all
because
you
want
me
to
deal
with
that
living
the
gospel
worthy
life
to
truly
say
for
to
live
is
Christ
and
to
die
is
gain
starts
with
this
kind
of
demonstration
that
we
pattern
our
lives
after
the
gospel
itself
and
then
we
live
it
out
in
faith
so
that
these
things
become
a
reality
for
us
as
well
express
written
consent
from
Lakeside
Bible
Church
don't
forget
to
visit
us
online
at
lakeside
Bible
church
or
find
us
on
Facebook
and
Instagram
by
searching
for
Lakeside
Bible
NC
if
you
live
in
the
Charlotte
or
Lake
Norman
area
we'd
love
for
you
to
attend
one
of
our
worship
services
we
meet
every
Sunday
morning
at
10
a.m.
in
the
gym
at
Cornelius
Elementary
School
we'd
love
to
meet
NING