- Hey, it's great to have you guys gather together
in life group, especially as we're starting into a new year.
Gathering together with others is so important
because we don't ever want to fight alone.
We are talking about the "Warrior,"
and I pray that this message series would inspire all of you
to recognize that Christianity is not a playground.
It's a battleground.
We battle not against flesh and blood,
but against the power and the principalities
of this dark world.
So in this message series, we're gonna see
that Jesus wasn't just a meek and mild guy
that played with lambs and let kids crawl up in his lap,
but when he returns, he returns really making war
against the enemy, taking back the ground
that Satan's tried to take for years and years and years.
Ultimately, the good news is our Warrior,
Jesus Christ, the King of kings, he wins the war.
We're gonna dive into more specific questions
about the Warrior, but to start things off,
it's a new year,
and hopefully you wanna change something in your life
for the better to become more like Christ,
to become more generous,
maybe to get in better shape to honor God with your temple,
whatever it is, you've probably got a new year's resolution.
If you don't, think fast (chuckles)
because I'm about to ask you what it is.
I'd love for you to go around the room
and talk about what's one thing
that you're trying to change in your life this year.
For me, generally I'm adding something.
I'm adding a discipline this year, I'm cutting back.
What I've recognized over the years,
I've added and added and added and added,
and the truth is there are very few things that I do
that really make a big, big difference,
and those few things matter more and more and more.
So I'm cutting back and eliminating
a lot of the little things, some of the smaller things,
some of the things I've just done
because I've always done them before.
So I'm aggressively pruning.
If you don't clean out your closet,
it will eventually be overrun.
That's kinda the way my life is right now.
This year, instead of adding, I'm cutting back.
Go ahead and take a moment.
Pause this, go around the room,
and talk about what's the one thing you're working
to change this year?
All right, let's dive into the next question,
and in the first week,
we talked about really two qualities of every warrior.
We know we're talking specifically to men,
but the truth of the matter is,
that women, they can fight too and need to fight.
We all have fight ins that we need to win.
We talked about the two big qualities.
One is that we have someone to protect.
The second thing is we have a kingdom to advance.
You may wanna take a moment and reread Nehemiah 4:14.
You may even read a few verses before that
just to fully get the context,
but what I love about this is you see Nehemiah
really with the heart to protect
the people that he cares about,
and he talks about who he is going to fight for.
I'd love to know who you're fighting for,
the someone to protect.
Who is it in your life that you really feel
called to protect?
Now let me tell you what I know you're probably gonna say.
If you're married, you probably really
wanna protect your spouse.
If you have children, I certainly hope
you wanna protect your children.
Those are really good answers, so you can start there.
But hopefully, God will give you a heart
that goes beyond your home, because we serve a big God
and he wants to use us to make a big difference
in people's lives.
My wife Amy has a real heart to protect and nurture women
coming out of human trafficking and prison
and abusive situations, and the more I've been around her
and some of these amazing women who are being healed
and becoming incredible warriors,
my heart has grown to protect them.
I have a real heart to guard and protect,
honestly, all women, single moms,
especially those who are coming out
of a difficult situation.
And then the church is my heart,
meaning as I am a shepherd underneath the Good Shepherd
and my church is my flock,
I really wanna do everything I can
to preach God's Word in a way that impacts your life
so you can overcome the temptations of the evil one,
the distractions of the liar
that tries to take you off of God's purpose,
and so that's really who I'm trying to protect.
I'm believe every single one of you
God has given you a heart of a warrior.
There's someone to protect,
someone that you're going to guard
against the forces of this dark world,
and so let's go ahead and talk about that.
Certainly, those closest to you,
but maybe God might give you a heart for those beyond.
Let's take a moment and talk about it.
You have the heart of a warrior.
Who is it specifically God is calling you to help protect?
All right, let's dive into the third question,
and this is where the rubber meets the road.
We always try to have some kind
of application at this point.
We've talked about this, God has created you
with the heart of a warrior,
meaning there's sometimes someone you're gonna protect.
There's a kingdom to advance.
The kingdom's not your own.
What we're trying to do is make a difference
in the lives of other people.
Now, as warriors, how do we do this?
Well, sometimes you throw a punch,
meaning sometimes you stand up for what's right,
you fight back, you get involved,
you may get a little bit messy,
but sometimes you have to get involved.
Jesus did this, he mixed it up with the Pharisees at times.
One time he threw over a table,
he called the Pharisees some names that were pretty rough.
Sometimes you throw a punch.
Sometimes you turn a cheek.
You have to have the wisdom to know
I'm gonna let this go, I'm not gonna throw a punch.
I'm going to show mercy, I'm gonna show grace.
Sometimes you pray a prayer.
Some of the most important battles that we fight,
we actually fight on our knees.
What I wanna do is however you're gonna fight it,
maybe throwing a punch, maybe turning a cheek,
maybe praying a prayer,
maybe enlisting other warriors to stand with you
when you don't feel like you have the strength to stand,
what I wanna do is talk about your biggest battle.
What is it right now?
As a warrior, there's a battle to fight.
There's a mission to complete.
There's something that God is calling you to do,
something you're wrestling with, something you're fighting.
What is the battle you're fighting,
and how is it you're fighting?
What is that battle you need to win?
In my family, there's a lot going on.
We always have the mission of the church,
we always have spiritual opposition,
we always feel slightly overwhelmed.
Right now, we've been battling with health issues
of people that we love.
I'm of the opinion most likely
that if our enemy can't get to me directly,
he's gonna get to people that I love,
because that weighs on me oftentimes
even more than my own life does.
These are battles we're fighting.
We're fighting with good advice,
we're fighting with diet, we're fighting with supplements,
we're fighting with prayer like you couldn't believe.
We're fighting, this is a battle we're fighting,
and we believe with the help of Jesus, we will win.
What's your fight?
What's your battle?
Let's take time to go around the room and talk about it,
and then make sure you leave time to pray,
because that's how we fight our real battles.
Guess what?
You're a warrior, you're the heart of a warrior.
God has called you, equipped you to fight.
Sometimes you throw a punch, sometimes you turn a cheek,
you always kneel to pray.
You're gonna take time to pray.
What's the battle you're fighting,
and how are you fighting it?
(gentle music)