Phil Beach Jr. emphasizes God's faithfulness during trials, encouraging believers to recognize that afflictions can lead to spiritual growth and deeper reliance on God. He discusses how past failures and mistakes can create bitterness, but through God's grace, we can find healing and learn to rejoice in our weaknesses. The sermon highlights the importance of understanding that our struggles are part of God's divine plan to mold us into vessels of honor, ultimately leading to a greater appreciation of His goodness. Beach encourages the congregation to embrace their afflictions as opportunities for growth and to trust in God's perfect timing and wisdom.

Because you prayed this morning. Now, if you prayed this morning, that's good. But if you think God's blessing you because you merited it, beloved, but see, these are lessons. Thank God He's the Lord. Listen, listen closely. Anger, depression, a pattern of slapping in your life at people, tendencies to withdraw. Now, I could name more and more, but now listen. God will name them in your own heart. Is it possible, is it possible, the question is, is it possible that these things, the root cause of them, is because in our heart, we're still holding on to some failures in our past. We haven't been released from them because we're angry at God that we made a mistake. We're angry at God because we made a mistake and we say, God, how could you have let this happen to me? How could you have let this happen to me, God? Is it possible that the Spirit of the Lord could speak to your heart this morning and bring a healing and release you from that mentality and bring you into a place where you can say, thank you, Father. Oh, Lord, Thou has been faithful in afflicting me. Lord, thank you. You have shown me how weak and frail I am. And Lord, I never would have learned this lesson, though I would never have chosen this method, Lord. Can you relate to that more, Sal? Oh, precious. He's God. I never would have chosen this, Lord. Matter of fact, I don't think it would have ever come in my mind. But then, Lord, you're God. I'm clay. I'm clay. Lord Jesus, help me to see that I'm such an important person to you because you redeemed me. That you just reigned over this whole circumstance. And I see now, Lord, that I confess this to you, Lord. Change my heart, Lord. Lift me out of this human snare. Lift me out of it, Lord, so that I can rejoice, saying the Lord my God has dealt bountifully with me. And all his dealings were dealings of love and kindness and wisdom. You say, but how can that be? This, this, God didn't do this. This was because of my mistake and my sin. God knows. God knows. But he stood back and he let things happen. But remember, he tells the water how far to go and then he says, stop. He's got it in control. Say, Lord, what are you teaching me? Father, deliver me. Lord Jesus, listen closely. Deliver me, Lord, I pray. I'm powerless, Lord. But you said cry out, so that's what I'm doing. Lord, deliver me from being held by the past in the gall of bitterness. Lord God, I'm human. Help me. Jesus, I know thy word says that you are faithful. Make this real to me, Lord. Lord, I can't bear this. Lord, you have promised in Isaiah 61 that you would give us the oil of joy for mourning, garments of beauty and praise. This is exactly what the scripture means in Isaiah 61. The mourning and bitterness of human failure and affliction is always crowned with praise and God's anointing and God's oil. Let Him do it. Let Him do it. We are His workmanship. He's making us His way into vessels of honor. Not our way. Not our way. God will ultimately be glorified. God will ultimately be praised as having the perfect track record of having done all things well. And we will always have the perfect track record of having done all things not so well, but because of the divine grace of God that was working in me, I did good. Nevertheless, the good that I did is the good that came from God. That's what God wants. Proper perspective. The great apostle Paul. I labored more abundantly than all those apostles. Boy, what a statement to make. He said, nevertheless, it wasn't I, but the grace of God in me that was laboring. God had done a great work in Paul's life and God was so concerned about Paul's tendency because he came from the stock of Adam, just like we did. God was so concerned that Paul's tendency being flesh that his ego could hinder his plan. God gave him a thorn and said, I'm not going to remove it. Why? So that the great work that Paul did, Paul could never become deluded in thinking that there was something good in him that was constituting this great work. See, God had to give Paul an affliction. I can't sit here and try and figure out what it is. And men have created great divisions by being so foolish to try and figure out what it was. God would never do this. Listen, the fact is God gave him a thorn. And some of you have thorns in your past. And you've prayed, remove it, remove it. And God has said, no. My grace is sufficient. Now don't stop there. You need to follow along because Paul got the fullness of the purpose of God. Then Paul said, after God said no, therefore I will rejoice. Now how could Paul rejoice in that which brought pain? That which brought weakness? That which kept him weak? How could Paul rejoice because he perceived by God that that which was working weakness in his life was keeping him in a place so that he could experience God's strength working through him? Do you want God's power and God's strength working through you? Then you have to be made weak. The greatest battle in the early revival of 1900 as testified by the eyewitnesses was this. Men sat seeking for God to anoint their strength. Men sat seeking for God to anoint their strength when God sought to turn men's strength into weakness so that God could show them His strength. Now that make sense? Men sat seeking for God to fill their strength, to anoint their strength, and God went, not so. I'll not anoint your strength, but because I'm a loving God, I'll make you... How does God make us weak? Let's us do things that result in shame, that result in the need to go back and say, I'm sorry, I made a mistake. Oh, I don't like that. I don't want to do that. Do you ever hear Saturday Night Alive? Not Saturday Night Live. Saturday Night Alive, W-A-W-Z. Ron Hutchcraft, he's the youth worker. He's funny. Sometimes he'll be talking with the kids and he'll start turning his voice into a funny voice and he gets the kids laughing and he'll try and talk like that. It's funny. He'll say something like, yeah, sometimes we go to school as Christians and we say, oh, nobody likes me, I'm just an Elijah, nobody serves God in this school. All the kids laugh. How does God bring weakness in our life? Shall I? I'll tell you one thing, and forgive me for a personal example, just one thing. God brought weakness in my life years ago by allowing me to lead a group of people to have a Bible-burning service. You say, impossible. No, it's not impossible. God allowed me to be deceived and showed me just how good and how faithful my human heart was to Him. Well, how could God have allowed such a thing? In faithfulness, He afflicts us. Before I was afflicted, I continually went astray. You say, well, you weren't a Christian, were you? Yes, I was. I was a spirit-filled Christian. In faithfulness. Did the Lord lead you? Of course He didn't lead me, but He didn't stop me either. Did you think God was leading you? Of course I thought He was leading me, and He opened up the way for me to go, too. You know what the Lord wants to do? The Lord wants to perfect this work in all of us so that we all can see ourselves as the soldier who, when Jesus was crucified, took the sword and pierced Him in the side. You say, well, I'll never do that. Didn't Peter say something like that? Didn't Peter say something like that? I'll never forsake you, Lord. Oh, you won't? I would never be the one to pierce the side. Oh, you wouldn't? Oh, you wouldn't? Can you imagine the love that Jesus had for Peter when Peter looked at Him and said, Ah, Lord, don't let all men forsake You. I won't. Can you just imagine Jesus looking at Peter and saying, But yet, the first sermon preached was old Peter. Your human failures don't disqualify you to be used by God. Many times, it's what qualifies you. Old Peter was up preaching 3,000 God saved, and then when Peter breathed his last breath, he requested that he wasn't worthy enough to be crucified right side up. So, the historian Josephus tells us that Peter requested that he be crucified upside down. Boy, that was a change. Back when the Lord just started drilling in Peter's life, Peter said, I know myself. I know me. I'll never forsake you, Jesus. At the end of his pilgrimage, Oh, I'm not worthy to be crucified the same way that my Lord was. Please, turn me upside down. Let my feet point up and my head down to the dust. I'll feel a lot more comfortable. And they granted Peter his request. And tradition tells us he was crucified upside down and gave up the ghost. What happened to Peter? What happened to Peter? In faithfulness, God afflicted Peter. In faithfulness. This is true with every blood-washed child of God. So, be encouraged. Isn't it, Tim? Uh-huh. Don't you see it, brother? Sure you do. Good to see you guys. Love ya. Hi, sweetie. So, what's 1991 hold for us? God's faithfulness. Do you need anything else? Yes, but what's going to happen in my life? Well, I don't know. I threw out my crystal ball. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. That was... I won't get into it. What does 1991 hold? I'll tell you what it holds for us. God will be exalted as God in our life. And we will be made flesh. That the grace and blood of Christ will be applied. And we will remain reconciled to God. Friends. And through a sovereign working of almighty God that can't be understood by any man, God will somehow in 91, if He should tarry, make us more aware of our need for Him and less confident. In ourselves. How's He going to do it? I don't know. Do you think it might mean some hard times? Yes. Does that mean the Lord just won't let me have anything? No. The Lord might let you have everything. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Well, I don't know if I want that. Well, then you might not get it. But I'm not too sure what will happen. Well, that's alright. If you went to bed tonight and you weren't sure the sun was going to rise, that wasn't going to stop it from rising. You know? Do you ever feel like God's will in your life is contingent upon you understanding it? And when you ceased from understanding it, you thought it was going to stop too? Did I say that too fast? Did you ever think it was up to you to keep things going? Well, let me assure you something, it's not. That ought to be a good comfort to you. Ha, ha, ha. Ninety-one. A year of revelation. A year when God will become more visible to us as God. And we will become more visible to us as mere flesh. Utterly dependent upon our God. And when the good we do do, we will recognize it to be from God. We can be confident in the faithfulness of God. Do you feel held to an incident that has produced some of those things that I mentioned before? But now, suddenly, God's light may be shining. God's healing may be flowing. And God's releasing may be closer. I hope so. I hope so. Do you have something? Praise the Lord. Let's sing this song, I've Had Many Tears and Sorrows. It's in our book, the chorus book. God has a present for everyone this morning. Each one can ask, and you have to be patient for the Lord to give it. But here's the present. 2.13, thank you, Norman. God wants to grant everyone here the gift of seeing in faithfulness God has dealt with me. And may I say that when God grants you that ability to perceive that truth in your spirit, not just the confession. Start by what God's word says. God says it, but be honest with yourself. I'm having a hard time believing it. Be honest. But then that's when you say, Lord, help me. I want to say on the authority of God's word. When you see, not when you see with these eyes, but when your spirit sees that in faithfulness God has dealt with me. There will come at that moment a rejoicing, a praise, a sense of love for God that you've never known before. And it will stay there all the days of your life. And it will pave the way for a much greater enjoyment of God in the years to come. That will be crowned with thanksgiving even through the most greediest trials. It all lies in the spirit within you, the Holy Spirit, taking the veil off of your spirit that you might see in neon spiritual lights. A message from God the Father to you, his redeemed child, in faithfulness have I dealt with you. And when the truth of that statement hits home in you, it will set your feet against me. Do you believe that? Tom's back there. I think so. Say, Lord, I believe, but help thou mine unbelief. Amen. Hi, Joe. Number Norman 2? 213? Let's all sing it together now. 213. In faithfulness, my God is faithful. Everyone together. Psalm 119, verse number 65. 119, verse number 65. The message which God graciously breathed into my spirit has been ministered almost in its entirety this morning. But this, of course, is the word of God which crowns the message with God's word. Psalm 119, verse number 65. May I encourage you, beloved, to consider 1990 in light of Psalm 119, verse number 65 through 72. And may I also encourage you to ask God to grant to you the assurance that God shall in 1991, if he shall tell you, bring this to pass more fully in your life and mine. His methods are diverse. We may become aware of them. God may reveal them to us. He may not. We may know, as Paul many times was warned by the Holy Ghost, what was about to happen. He knew he was going to get tied up in Jerusalem. He knew he was going to stand before rulers. But he didn't know everything. God may choose to show you some things. He may choose not to. But it doesn't matter. The overruling affirmation of faith can be found in these verses. Thou hast dealt well with thy servant. Beloved, may I say that at the very beginning of this wonderful Scripture, it is God's will that his grace may so move upon us and his Spirit so do a work in our life that we may personalize this Scripture and from the depths of our being be able to say, Thou hast dealt well. You don't, listen, listen closely. You don't repress, deny, ignore, avoid, pretend the things that brought pain and affliction did not happen. You don't do that. You don't deny them. But when God works this in your soul, you are including all things and seeing not by mere human apprehension, not by mere human understanding, but by divine intervention you are seeing that God indeed has dealt well with you. Now I would like for you, if you could, to put your finger right there on that verse and go to the New Testament. And let's just walk through a few Scriptures this morning and let us just ask God to grant us a greater understanding in the unfolding of his purposes. The greatest stumbling block to maturity is recognizing and accepting the character of God that must work in us through human failure, the knowledge of our utter inability apart from him to please him. That's the greatest stumbling block. Because the most difficult thing to give up in the human heart is the belief that somehow, someway, apart from utter dependence upon God, we can do any good. That's the most difficult thing to give up. The very nature of sin is a disposition of independence from God. The very nature of flesh is, I'm looking at the tree, it brings wisdom, by it I can be enlightened and I'm going to reach. Everything being initiated apart from dependence upon God, that's the root cause of sin right there. That's the most difficult thing to give up. But that also is the greatest hindrance in the Christian life which God must deal with in every child of God if they are to be a vessel of honor where the lovely life of Christ is flowing through. It's all of our lots, everyone. Thou hast dealt well with thy servant, O Lord, according unto thy word. Teach me good judgments. Oh, when God teaches us the error of our bad judgments, how this prayer becomes more than just a mental affirmation but it becomes the very throngs of our soul. Oh God, teach me good judgments because thou hast faithfully showed me the outcome of mine own judgments which are always grieving. 1991 1991 Perhaps God may teach us how to pray from our soul. Teach me good judgments, Lord, that come from thee. Perhaps he may have to teach us this through allowing us to experience some of the distastefulness of our own judgments. But remember, in faithfulness, God will do this. What a secure Savior we have. Teach me good judgments and knowledge for I have believed thy commandments. Verse number 67 If you write in your Bible, put 1991 next to verse 67. Before I was afflicted, we're going to go to the New Testament. I went astray. But now have I kept thy word. 1 Thessalonians 5 Verse number 16 Rejoice evermore. Beloved, may I suggest this morning that the soul's ability to rejoice evermore is found when it is loosed from mere human observation and brought into a divine union with God's sovereign purposes. And when we recognize Verse 65 Thou hast dealt well with thy servant. When we recognize the wellness of all of God's dealings in our life. Both the joys of being led by him and the sorrows of being under the power of our own failures. All is well. Then we can learn to rejoice. For some reason it slips my mind. There's another scripture that says in everything give thanks. Is that in Philippians? Okay. Let's just turn there for a short moment. Philippians. Beloved, this is healing for the soul. Okay. Rejoice in the Lord always. And again I say rejoice. 4.4 Right. But there's another one too, isn't there? In everything give thanks. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus. Okay. So here's Philippians 4.4 1 Thessalonians 5 And now Ephesians What was that, Norm? 2 Thessalonians 5.18 2 Thessalonians 5.18 What chapter? 5.18 Nope. 1 Thessalonians 5.18 1 Thessalonians 5.18 There we go. Look at that. We were a few verses away from it. Just two verses away from it a few minutes ago. In everything give thanks. Do you think Peter was able to thank the Lord Jesus for the misery of denying Him three times? I believe that when Peter saw what that denial did for his soul he not only thanked God for it but I don't think he would have traded the experience for anything. All God's works will praise Him at that day. All of them will. In everything give thanks. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. So there's three witnesses in the New Testament. All shedding light on this wonderful lesson to learn. Now let's go back to Psalm 119 verse 67. Before I was afflicted I went astray but now have I kept Thy word. All God teaches us to trust Him and keep His word through our afflictions. Through our afflictions. Thou art good. Oh my Lord. Can you see the order of revelation here that's occurring in the psalmist's heart? First he starts out by saying Thou hast dealt well. Then he goes teach me Thy judgments. Then he begins to affirm that before he was afflicted he went astray but now he keeps the Lord's commandments and now he crowns this journey with Thou art good and do us good. What a healthy soul. Can you see this? What a marvelous progression of spiritual maturity here. He starts out God does all things well. Then he brings it into human experience. I was going astray continually. God therefore in His faithfulness saw the need to afflict me. The word afflict there means to press out of measure. To bring into a place of tightness. God saw the need to afflict me. Then I began to learn as a result of God's wise fatherly paternal dealing in my life. Then I began to learn the marvelous lesson of keeping His word. Of course I learned to keep His word by utterly crying out to Him for the strength to keep it. Then after the bitterness of being afflicted. If David wrote this we know how the Lord taught David. The Lord turned him over to his heart. You know with Bathsheba the bitter experience. Also the Lord turned David over to a level of pride in his life when he numbered the children of Israel. God just you know David said my before I was afflicted I went astray. But the Lord afflicted me. I've learned to keep His word. Now I sum it up by saying you are good and you do all things in a good way. Wow. Now verse 69. The proud have forged a lie against me. But I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart. Hear the possible grief and turmoil of being misunderstood. While spinning on the potter's wheel. But nevertheless I will keep thy precepts. And if we go into the New Testament we can get a greater insight as to what to do when we're misunderstood. We bless them that curse. We pray for them. We heap coals of goodness upon the heads of those who snarl at us. That proves the genuineness of the work that God's doing in our life. Their heart is as fat as grease. But I delight in thy law. He just can't get away. Verse 71. He can't get away from the joy of His infirmities. May we stop for a moment? Let's go to the New Testament again because Paul shared this joy. 2 Corinthians chapter 12. He can't get away from it. You'd think the psalmist would just be talking about all the marvelous things he did for God. But no, he's hung up on the wonderful afflictions that happened to him. Because he knows those afflictions showed him how utterly weak he was. And the rest of his life he just boasted about the afflictions. And he left all the good things that happened in his life to God because he knew it wasn't him anyway. Oh, the Lord is so wise. 2 Corinthians chapter 12. Okay. Verses 1 through 4. Paul describes a man, of course it's himself, who saw wonderful things. He was given by God the gift and grace of seeing incredible revelations that perhaps no other human being ever saw. At least maybe not to the extent that Paul saw them. I know the prophets saw them in part. But he didn't major on those things. He went on to say, verse 5, Of such a one will I glory, yet of myself I will not glory. Oh my God, the work that God did in Paul. Of myself I will not glory. I will not boast. Because I know there's no good thing that dwells in my flesh. Verse 6. For though I will desire to glory, I shall not be a fool. For I will say the truth, but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me. And lest I, there it is, should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might be departed from me. This was an affliction. One of many afflictions that Paul endured. Notice what God's grace did to Paul in relation to his affliction. And he said, this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee. My strength is made perfect in weakness. Now watch this. Most gladly therefore. Lord, please, by your Holy Spirit, give us a posture of looking at that which afflicts us and weakens us and say, most gladly. Not, well, I'll just do it. The Bible says so. Most gladly therefore will I complain and grumble and murmur and say, Lord, this isn't fair. No, he didn't say that. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. You see the relationship between infirmity and the power of Christ. One enables the other. The absence of the one most likely will result in the absence of the other. At least as long as we're human. Therefore I take pleasure. He again affirms and reaffirms his divine heavenly joy over God's faithfulness in afflicting him. Therefore I take pleasure. Paul could take pleasure because he understood the purpose for which God afflicted him. That was to enable him to continue to enjoy the power of Christ in his life and to keep a divine check on his ego. No wonder he was so happy. He saw God took special precaution to keep him from falling and becoming shipwrecked in his faith. Wow. God granted. Lord, grant it to me. Lord, take special precaution. I can't keep myself, Lord. Lord, take special precaution. I take pleasure in infirmity. I take pleasure in whatever reminds me of my weakness before God because that's keeping me in the posture of weakness so that the power of Christ can flow through me. Therefore I take pleasure. The word pleasure is well-pleased. Paul's saying, therefore I am well-pleased. I'm pleased with God that he's such a good Lord that he had the forethought to watch out for me. Oh, when we begin to see our history in that light, things change. When we begin to see the coming year in this light, things change. I take pleasure in infirmities, reproaches, necessities, persecutions, distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong. There it is. We read that in order to give you the New Testament supplement verse 71 in Psalm 119. He goes back to it. It is good for me that I have been afflicted. See that? Paul just said it too. It was good. It is good for me that I have been afflicted that I might learn thy statutes. Learning, though he were a son, yet learned he will be a son. All is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver. Do you see the consummation of God's working in one of his children? God brings us to the place where all, Lord, the words from thy mouth, thy holy will, all that have to do with you and your will for my life are more pleasing to me, are more to be desired, are more enticing to me than anything that this world offers. God is committed to you, child of God, in 1991, to produce the reality of these things in you, which will crown your life with joy on earth, and at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, exceeding joy will come. One scripture. See, all these things come together. Let's go to Peter and just understand something that he said. And you're really with choice here. Look at this now. In 1 Peter chapter 1, read this now in light of the whole context of this morning. Verse number 3, chapter 1. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us, that is, regenerated us. He begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, preserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Listen, you and I are being kept by the power of God right now. But while we're being kept, what's God doing? Verse 6. Wherein ye greatly rejoice. There's that rejoicing again. What is this with rejoicing in the midst of infirmity? Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Listen to this. That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found. There you go. Unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. 1991 is part of God's timetable to produce in you that which he wants so that verse number 7 may come to pass in your life when Jesus comes again. Well, you know, we can go on and on, but I won't. You see how the Savior can just walk us through and give us understanding and comfort our hearts and help us to see his wonderful working in our life? Isn't he a good Lord? Now remember, ask God to loose you from being held to the past. Be loosed. May I say the loosing comes when God shines into your spirit. It is good that I have been afflicted for I am learning to trust God. The loosing will come. The rejoicing will be there. And the year ahead of you will be marked with incredible assurance, not necessarily knowing what's going to happen, but knowing that God is faithful. Let's pray. Oh, Lord Jesus. Thank you, Lord Jesus. Oh, Father. Thank you for thy word. Thank you for thy Savior. Thank you for thy goodness. Lord, cause thy word to minister to us. In faithfulness, Lord, enlighten our hearts and our understanding. I pray for healing. I pray, Lord, for comfort. I pray that by thy power, Lord, you may cause us to enter in to a union with you, produce a joy and a rejoicing in us, lift us out of ourself, and into thy great power, we pray. As we're all just quiet before the Lord, I just want to give anyone an opportunity to stand. And in standing, you're doing it because you know that God is wanting to work this in your heart. And you just want to take a step. It might be a memory. You just want a special touch. I want to invite you. If God's moving on your heart, stand up and come forward and we'll pray for you in a special way. Just as we wait for a moment. Anybody at all. Thank you, Lord. Praise the Lord.