This sermon emphasizes the importance of surrendering to God for victory over sin. It highlights the freedom Christ offers from the power of sin, the need to actively participate in the battle against sin, and the victory through faith, flight from temptation, and fighting against the devil. The message urges listeners to identify and overcome the giants of sin and oppression in their lives through complete surrender to Jesus.

Thank you for joining me. My name is Brother Edgar and I am called by the Lord for Revival. The Lord wants me to share today some very practical steps on victory over sin. We are set free says the Lord Jesus Christ in John chapter 8 verses 34 to 36. But do we live free? Here is the text of John chapter 8 verses 34 to 36. Jesus answered them most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin and a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore, if the son makes you free, you will be free indeed. When Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and rose again, he not only set us free from the penalty of sin, but he also set us free from the power of sin. Before we could not help ourselves and we simply sinned. Now we no longer have to, praise God. I can still sin as the Lord continues to give me free will, but I no longer have to. I would like to cover five points, victory over sin through the indwelling Christ, then victory over sin through participation in the battle. And in this participation, overcoming the world by faith, overcoming the flesh by flight and overcoming the devil by fight. May I ask which are giants of sin and oppression in your life? Is it TV? Is it the internet? Is it shows? Is it drinking? Is it money? Is it drugs? Is it lust? Is it gossip? Is it unforgiveness? Is it unloving behavior? Is it fear of people? Is it pride? Is it selfishness? Is it sex? Is it adultery? Is it pornography? Is it anger? Is it unbelief? Is it a life without power? Is there addiction to food or addiction to other things? Have you tried very hard? Have you failed? Do you complain? Are you saying to God, you know, I'm doing my very, very best, Lord, but you know me. I just can't help myself. You know, I have asked you, Lord, to help me, but somehow I don't get it. Perhaps you say, Lord, I don't know what to do. Perhaps you say, God, you are a loving God. You know, I'm saved. I'm under grace. And therefore I assume I am automatically forgiven. Is it not okay that I sin, Lord? There is a still small voice that tells you, no, it is not okay. Perhaps you have given God an ultimatum as I did. God, if you do not set me free from this sin right now, I won't believe in you anymore. I subsequently sinned and then I walked away from God. This was the greatest mistake I made in my life and I nearly ended up in hell. I remember a time when I thought that I had accepted Christ as my savior and that I was saved. I had gone forward in church to receive Christ, but there was no repentance on my part. There was not asking Jesus to have mercy on me, a sinner. There was no sorrow leading me to repentance. Also, there was a relationship missing in my life. I did not have a relationship with the Son of God. There were some changes in my life, yes, but I continued a life of secret sin. Then came this fateful day in my life that I had referred to before. I had a very high position within a corporation. Temptations came and attacked me while I was working in a private office. I started to fight against the temptations. I fought very hard for six hours. I fought against evil. I fought against evil thoughts. I quoted scripture. There was no relief. My shirt was drenched with sweat. I gave God an ultimatum and I said, God, if you do not set me free from the sin right now, I won't believe in you anymore. I then walked away from God. It was the greatest mistake in my life and I nearly ended up in hell. I went and sinned. I blamed God because I said I had relied on him and he did not help me. However, in the corner of my office, there was sitting, I believe, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and he was weeping for me. He was there for me, but I had never really made room for him. Now, God and his Son had about fourth place in my life. You see, I was a Christian, but business and money were first. Then the family came second. Sports and pleasures came third, and Jesus and his Father were a distant fourth. I had heard this verse in church, in John chapter 8, verse 36, where it says, Therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. But I had not experienced it. I thought that would happen automatically in time. I thought I would get better automatically and Jesus would be my servant and watch over me that I don't do wrong. I did not understand the condition that is part of this verse, which says, Therefore, if the Son. Also, I did not understand another verse in Scripture fully from 2 Corinthians 5, verse 17. And there it says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. All things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. I wanted all things to be new, but my way. I did not understand that there is a condition which says, If anyone is in Christ, in Christ. No one taught me that I have to live in Christ to experience all of this wonderful new creation. No one taught me that when we are born again, the old flesh, the old sinful flesh will remain a part of me for a while until I physically die or until I'm taken up into heaven. The old flesh cannot be improved and cannot be saved. On the outside of me is this sinful flesh. The only solution for it is to die to its lusts and temptations daily. On the inside, I'm born again and the inside of me is that heavenly man where the Holy Spirit resides. 1 Corinthians chapter 50, verse 48 tells us that, As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust. And as is the heavenly man, so are those who are heavenly. Praise God. I did not understand that the old flesh can never be improved, can never be saved, and that temptations will still come. The old flesh must die daily. Romans chapter 6, verses 7 and 8 says, For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. Now came the question, how do I die to the self? Is this done by me or is it done by Christ Jesus automatically? I have heard sermons that all is done by Christ, but I did not see this in my life. I did this and said, Lord Jesus, please take over. I don't want these sins anymore. Just make them go away. I follow you. I did this, but yet I seem to sin even more. I had tried through the own self and that was not being victorious. Then I thought I must be demon possessed. I had a pastor pray for me to set me free from demons. He did so, and together we labored in prayer. After that, there still was the flesh and the world and the devil. Then I wondered about that great salvation. Am I perhaps a defective Christian? Does God make defective Christians? Am I defective merchandise? Am I safe from the penalty of sin, but I'm not set free from the power of sin? But yet John 8 36, Jesus had said, therefore, if the son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. What is it that I was doing wrong? Did this verse of scripture not apply to me that I am free? In a manufacturing process, products are made. Let us think of an electric kettle on a production line. Sometimes the electricity stops. Sometimes a worker does not watch the production line correctly. As the machines are interrupted, a defective kettle comes off the line. Was I a defective kettle? Was I a defective Christian? I tried my very best, but yet there was no victory in my life. Was God not big enough to keep me from falling? I must be defective, I thought, because the slightest temptation, and I fell. Oh, beloved, what a horrible life that is, and many of you know about this. On the fateful day in the office, I'd given an ultimatum to God. I said, God, I believe in you, but now you have to prove to me whether you're real. You either have to help me now, or I won't believe in you anymore, that you exist, and I will walk away from you. There was no let up in my desires to sin, and I went, and I sinned more. From that time forward, my life took a horrible step to the worse. I went into full-blown sin, and eventually left my wife and two small daughters. I finally got divorced. In the meantime, I became a very successful businessman. I also had been misused as a child, and because I trusted no one, I became very successful. I went to the highest level of business in Europe, traveling in limousines, at times in private jets, and living in castles. However, I was deeply unhappy, and living in great sin. I was on my way to hell, beloved. I should be in hell today, except for the mercy of God. True salvation came to me on a morning at the age of 62 in year 2004. It was in an apartment in New Jersey. I got up at 7 a.m. on a Saturday morning, and all of a sudden, I was in a vision. In this vision, I was in an open grave, six feet deep. The grave was neatly cut out, and I was lying on the back in this grave. I was bound by my sins from my toes to my head, and I could not get out of this grave. I cried for help, and no one came. Then I realized that I would have to go to hell forever and ever, because I was dying. My flesh turned to dust. There were worms coming from the earth to feed on me, and then I changed my cry, and I cried for the Son of God, and I said, Lord Jesus, if there's any mercy left for a sinner such as myself, I pray, please save me. Please have mercy on me. No one came for hours, it seemed like, and then a person appeared at the bottom of the grave. I believe it was the Son of God. He reached with his hand right into the grave. He put his hand behind my neck. He helped me to sit up. The moment I sat up, my sins snapped off my body as if they were threads. That moment I woke up. I had fallen out of bed. I was next to my bed. I knelt, and I repented of my sins. I asked for true forgiveness, and that I would give my life to the Son of God. I told him I believed in him. I believed that he died on a cross, and that he rose again, and would he save me, and would he make me new, and Christ answered my prayer. Praise God, praise God, and heaven came down, and glory filled my soul right at the cross. The Savior made me whole. My sins were all forgiven, and I'm now on my way to heaven. Praise God. The Savior made me whole. Yet, after a number of years, and I followed the Lord, temptations seemed to come again, and I could not understand. I found I still had that sinful flesh that conspired with the world and with the devil trying to defeat me. I had almost forgotten that this sinful flesh cannot be improved, cannot be saved. I had forgotten that it must die daily. Scripture says Christ is the victory in 1 Corinthians 15, verse 57, and Scripture says that faith is the victory in 1 John 5, 4. So, I must believe that the indwelling Christ is the victory. I have to believe that Jesus wants to live in me, and that he wants to live his life through me, but will I let him do it? Will I let him do it? That in Romans chapter 8, verse 2, it says that I also have to be willing to live in Christ Jesus, he in me, and I in him. Romans chapter 8, verse 2 says, for the law of the Spirit, and what is this law of the Spirit? It's in Romans chapter 8, verse 2. It's of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. So, if I live my life in Christ, I ought to be free entirely. Yes, but the flesh is still there, and until it dies daily, there are temptations perhaps. It needs to be put to death daily. Now, in 1 John, chapter 4, verses 4, this is the letter of John. 1 John 4, verse 4, you are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. So, this verse says that we are of God, and we overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil, through Jesus Christ who lives in us, because Jesus in us is greater is he in me than the devil who is in the world. Through Christ, we overcome the flesh, the world, and the devil. Now, victory has come to some of you. Victory has also evaded you. While victory comes through the indwelling Christ, him living his life through us, the question is, why is there no quick answer to overcoming sin? I'm not sure what your besetting sin is. We have mentioned many besetting sins. Is it pride? Is it selfishness? Is it sex? Seventy percent of all American men are now caught by pornography. They cannot stop. Fifty percent of pastors in America are affected, and they cannot stop. The question is, why can one not stop with pornography? Here is a fishing story that illustrates the point. There was once a bass sitting in a weed bed, and before him came that wiggling pretty lure. The bass knew something was wrong, so he passed up on the lure, but then it came again. The lure wiggled so nicely, but the bass said, no, something is wrong. I must leave it alone, and he let the lure pass. Then the lure came a third time. The problem is that each time when the bass looked, his desire grew. Then at the fourth time, all of a sudden, he said, no, I cannot help myself. He jumped forward, and he grabbed that lure with his mouth. A great pain came into his mouth, and he knew it was a trap. It was a terrible trap by Satan. The bass jumped out of the water as high as he could. He shook his body to try to wiggle off that lure, but it would not. You see, it had gone deep into his mouth. There was the hook that came out on the other side of his mouth with a reverse board. It was Satan sitting there in the boat, and there seemed to be no hope. Satan drew in that bass out of the water, yet the bass saw out of the corner of his eye another boat approaching. Was there no hope? Yet in the boat that was approaching, there was a game warden. You see, the game warden was the Lord Jesus Christ. He called over to Satan, and he said, do you have a fishing license? Let me see your license. Satan said, no, I don't have a fishing license. So Jesus said to Satan, hand me that fish, take him off the hook. Satan handed the bass over to Jesus. You see, the bass got hurt some, but he nearly went the wrong way. He nearly went to an eternity of death. Regardless of what you were setting sin is, Christ is able. With Christ, all things are possible. Now, the fish could not experience victory except through Christ, but now the fish had made some mistakes. He had bitten into something he should not bite into, and so there is participation. There's victory through the indwelling Christ, allowing Jesus to live his life through us, and yes, we must be born again, but we must also deny the selves. Now, with respect to the indwelling Christ, here's a testimony from Rosalind Goforth. She is the wife of Jonathan Goforth, the missionary to China, and she said in her writings, one day I can never forget it. As I sat inside the house in China, by a paper window at dusk, two Chinese Christian women sat down on the other side. They began talking about me, and I listened, and one said, oh yes, she's a hard worker. Oh yes, she's a zealous preacher. Oh yes, she dearly loves us, but oh what a temper she has if she would live only more the way she preaches. I saw then how useless, how worse than useless it was for me to come to China to preach Christ, and not to live Christ. Later she had to return to the USA for a while, and she heard a preacher in Niagara on the Lake Ontario, Canada. He asked, is your Christian life like this? Sometimes on the with visions of God, then again would come the sagging and dimming of vision, coldness, discouragement, and perhaps definite disobedience in a time of downgrade experience. Then perhaps sorrow or even some special mercy would bring the wanderer back to the Lord. The leader then went on to say that the life which she had described was not the life God planned for his children. He described the higher life that God wished for his children of peace and rest in the Lord, a life of power, a life of freedom from struggle, worry, and care. It was the life where Christ would indwell and be the one that takes over her life. Early the next morning, Rosalind Goforth, soon after daybreak, went on her knees carefully and prayerfully going over the passages that were given in the little yellow flyer the preacher distributed. So she did what she was asked to do. She quietly but definitely accepted Christ as her savior from the power of sin, as she had so long before accepted him as her savior from the penalty of sin. The day after, she says, at last she realized that Jesus Christ was actually and literally within her. She said how blind she had been. She saw at last the secret of victory. It was Jesus Christ himself, his own life, lived out in the believer. And then she related how the proof of Christ and his victory were evident in her life after that. Now, beloved, if my life is filled with sports, with entertainment, with parties, with TV, and all the world has to offer, there obviously is no room in me for Christ to live his life through me. I must surrender all to him. Are you willing to do that? The King James Bible uses the words like deny yourself, submit yourself to God. Submit to whom? Submit yourselves to God. Then comes a participation part for Christians. It says resist. Resist whom? Resist the devil and he will flee from you. You mean I have a part in this? That's what the Bible says. Yes, you have a part in this. If you don't submit and surrender to Jesus first, you will not experience that victory. The second step of asking Christ to live his life through me to give me victory over the power of sin does require that I give all to him, my Savior. One morning and while I was walking in prayer, Jesus seemed to ask me, could you envision me living in you? Could you ask me to live in you? Then I was reminded by the Apostle Paul in Galatians chapter 2 verse 20. He says, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live. He says, I don't live anymore, but Christ lives in me and the life which I now live. Paul is still alive. The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Here the Apostle Paul says that he surrendered to Jesus everything so that Christ could live in him fully. The Apostle yielded his life to Christ. What would he have yielded? What would I need to yield to Christ? My hopes, my dreams, my plans, my money? In my job, would I realize I'm working for Christ? In my ministry, would I realize I am working directly for Christ? Do I realize it must be his power and my dependence? Would I yield my will? It must be his will and my obedience. Would I give up my selfish love? You see, it must be his agape love flowing through me, to my spouse, to my family, to my family members, to my neighbors, to all peoples in the world. Would I follow Jesus in all that Jesus did? If I do, will I be fishing for man? I will make new disciples. Jesus says, follow me and be led by my spirit. Will you follow me? I will lead you. Follow me. Jesus says, will you use my mind or will you use your old mind? You have my mind available to you, says Jesus in first Corinthians chapter 2 verse 16. Part of that verse says, but we have the mind of Christ. So now comes the question of daily living. How will I react to my spouse? Will I love my spouse as Christ loves the church? If you can't do it now, have you really surrendered to Christ? How do you spend your time in the evening? Is it mostly TV, sports, internet, telephone? Do you have time for your family? Or perhaps do you even have time for the Bible? Do you have time for prayer? If you can't do the latter, have you really surrendered fully to Jesus? Romans chapter 8, 14 says, for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. Galatians 2 chapter 20, there Paul said, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. Would you be willing to yield to Christ fully? This is the Apostle Paul's testimony of complete victory in his life and submitting to Christ. Submitting to the indwelling Christ. Him living his life through Paul. Jesus living his life through me. Jesus living his life through you. Now the second step, and I made a reference when the bast was saved by Christ. He had bit into the lure he should not have bitten into. And so step two is a victory through participation in battle. Resist the devil and he will flee. And then of course in 2 Timothy 2, 22, it says flee youthful lust. So there are times of resisting, there are times of fleeing. It finally started to dawn on me, if I wanted that victory, there was a participation on my part to live this Christian life and to enter the battle with Jesus Christ in me. Do we really need to enter the battle? In 1 Samuel chapter 17, a youth by the name of David defeated a giant in battle called Goliath. The giant's height was about 9.75 feet. David was a boy and below army age. The story is told in 1 Samuel. And in 1 Samuel chapter 17, verse 40, David, the little shepherd boy or shepherd youth took his staff in his hand and he chose for himself five small stones from the brook. And he put them in the shepherd's bag in the pouch which he had and his sling was in his hand and he drew near to the Philistine. And the Philistine said to David, come to me and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field. Then David said to the Philistine, you come to me with a sword, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have to fight. This day the Lord will deliver you in my hand. I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth that all the earth may know that there is a God of Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord's and he will give you into our hands. And so it was when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to me, David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. Then David put his hand into his bag and took out a stone. He slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead so that the stone sank into his forehead and he fell on his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of his sheath. Now the five smooth stones that David picked up at the brook remind me of five principles. I believe the first stone represented a surrender stone. In 1 Samuel 17, verse 45, David said, I come to you in God's power. That's how we have to face giants. We come with Christ in us. The battle is the Lord's. David was surrendered to God. We must be surrendered to Christ. Then the second one was the faith stone. In 1 Samuel 17, verse 46, David spoke victory in faith, showing he believed God would do it. The faith stone. The third stone, the battle stone. In 1 Samuel 17, verse 47, David said, the battle is the Lord's. David said, in other words, it's God's power and my dependence upon God. I'm going to throw a stone, but it's going to be God's power that will kill this giant. Then the fourth stone is the equipped stone. In 1 Samuel 17, verse 48, David ran towards his problem. He was equipped with faith, the power of God, and a slingshot. You and I must actively pursue our problem and acknowledge it, confess it, pray, put on the armor of God, and then deal with it. Now you say, well, I don't have in my hand what David had. What do you have in your hand? You have a Bible? Do you have prayer? Are you born again? If you're born again, the Holy Spirit is in you. You have access to God, God's holy throne room. The power of God is in you. Christ is in you. The Father is in you. Based on John 14, verse 23, where it says, Jesus answered and said unto him, if a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our home with him. Wow. Then we are equipped with the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, and peace. Do you have it? Why is it not evident? Because sin is getting you down. Deal with that giant of sin. You ought to have love, joy, and peace. That people say to you, what's the matter with you? You're so full of joy. What's the matter with you? How have you changed? Praise God, it is possible. We are equipped with the gifts of the Holy Spirit to do service for him. We are called to be ambassadors for Christ. We are more than conquerors. We are equipped through Christ. When will you and I start to throw some smooth stones to oppose giants? Maybe you and I can't change the world, but Jesus can, and he's asking you and me to make ripples in the water. Maybe you and I can't kill that giant, but Jesus will. If he's in you and me and we oppose giants, he will take on giants. Praise God. It must start with my surrender and asking Jesus to exercise his victory through me. You see, there was also a fifth stone, and the fifth stone that was picked up by David to lodge it at the giant was a cornerstone. We know from our New Testament that the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. He will kill giants. In our lives, it is the cornerstone, Christ Jesus. Beloved, it must be victory through the indwelling Christ by faith, and then number two, we have to participate in battle against giants. Now, who are these great, great giants? Who are the three greatest giants that we must oppose? And the three greatest giants are the world, the flesh, and the devil. And the scripture has much to say for us to participate against these three giants. And so scripture gives us verses that help us to understand that we can overcome the world by faith, we can overcome the flesh by flight, and we can overcome the devil by fight. So how do we overcome the world? By faith. First John 5, 4. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world, and this is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith. In John chapter 16, verse 33, Jesus said, these things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. Now the world has incredible temptations for you and for me. There is that promise of love, there's a promise of joy, there's a promise of peace. The world says have wealth, be good-looking, be proud, follow sports and entertainment, be successful, then you will be loved, and then you will be happy. Unfortunately, such promises of happiness are not true but blowing in the wind. True love, joy, and peace are given to us by God through his son Jesus. So how can I minimize the world's impact? How can I do it to oppose this giant? Well, there's Christ in me, I need him. And then in Psalm 119, verse 37, it says, turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things and revive me in your way. Most of the television shows, the internet, and your phone offer things that appear to be good. Don't be deceived. Money and materialism are great deceptions. Let me give you an example from a newspaper article written by Jen Doll in the Atlantic about lottery winners. Jack Whitaker of West Virginia was already a wealthy businessman when he won what he, what it was at the time, the largest jackpot ever by a single ticket, garnering him $314.9 million on December 25, 2002. A chain of awful events followed, including his car being broken into twice, first with $545,000 in cash stolen, then later with $200,000 stolen, and later recovered. A plot was revealed in which two club employees had planned to drug his dreams and rob him. Whitaker's granddaughter was found dead at a male friend's house after being reported missing, and the death was ruled an overdose. Whitaker was sued by Caesars Atlantic City Casino for balancing $1.5 million worth in checks to cover gambling debts. Whitaker was sued by a woman who had previously sued him for not paying her money, and Whitaker's daughter was found dead. Whitaker later said, I wish I had torn up that ticket. In June of 1997, a man named Billy Bob Harrell Jr. took the $31 million taxes lottery jackpot he won. At first, it was all great. Later, his spending and his lending spiraled out of control. In February, those tensions splintered, his already strained marriage, and tragically, 20 months after winning the lottery, Harrell committed suicide. There are many of such stories. Money does not, money, the love of money does not guarantee you happiness. And Jesus says, trust me. Give your worries to me. In Matthew chapter 6 verse 25, Jesus said, therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? And then in verse 33, he told us what we ought to do. He said, but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Jesus says, trust me, put your hope and faith in me. Believe in Christ Jesus. Seek the kingdom of God first. Because also you're never alone as a Christian. I was traveling with my nine-year-old grandson at that time point in the car. And I said, now, dear grandson, thank you so much for coming with me. I often travel alone. And so it's nice to have you with me. And he turned to me all, all amazed. He said, but grandpa, grandpa, don't you know you're never alone? Jesus will never leave you nor forsake you. He is with you. You're never alone. So, A, we must overcome the world through faith. First through the indwelling Christ and then through faith. Now, part B of overcoming is the second great incredible giant, which is our own flesh. And in 2 Timothy 2 verse 22, it gives us an indication of how we need to overcome the flesh and flight is a good way to do it. In 2 Timothy 2 verse 22, it says, free also youthful lusts, but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Now, I looked back, who may have used faith and flight and fight, and a preacher down south has used these terms, and I'd love to give him credit, but unfortunately, I could not find his name. But the word flight was also used in a book called The Little Flowers of St. Francis of Assisi. And Brother Ugolino is mentioned here. And in chapter verse 7, there's a remedy given for temptations by the flesh. A number of brothers are talking, and Brother Juniper said, when I feel the approach of a diabolical suggestion, I run at once and shut the door of my heart and to secure it safely, I occupy myself in holy desires and devout meditations. So that when these suggestions comes and knocks at the door of my heart, I may answer from within, be gone for the room is already taken. And there's no space for another guest. And so I never suffer the thought to enter my heart. And the devil seeing himself baffled, retires with a discomfort, not from me alone, but from the whole neighborhood. Then Brother Giles answered and said, Brother Juniper, I agree with you, for there is no surer way of overcoming this enemy than flight. Obedience is needed for flight. Overcoming the flesh by flight requires us to flee useful lusts. Now in Romans chapter 13, verse 14, is another verse that really helps us. And there it says, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts. I have to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, so to speak. I need to ask him to be resident inside of me. And then ask Jesus to help me deal with the lusts that are coming towards me and to make no provision for sin. Let me give you an example of that. Suppose weight is your problem. Weight is also my problem. I love desserts. I love cakes. However, if I make provision for the sin of overindulgence and to just pamper my flesh, I will go through the cake area of the grocery store and I will try my best, but I will fall. So what I really need to do is I need to flee from the cake area in the grocery store. The other thing is, if I fill up my fridge with treats, with chocolate, chocolate bars, and other things that will have me gain weight, I will fulfill my lusts. I will fail. So flee by not buying those treats. Flee your refrigerator and leave it for the kids. In Luke chapter 9, verse 23, Jesus was saying, and he said to them all, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself. You say, I have to do nothing. No, no, no. Christ says, deny yourself. Say no. Say no to something. Flee something. Take up your cross daily and then follow Jesus. Take up your cross to do the things he has called you to do and follow him. Our participation in victory is required through denial. And then we must flee your own friends. It may be hard. It may be a hard saying to leave your old friends if they don't give up drugs, if they don't give up drinking. But you can't go to drinking parties anymore. You can't go to drug parties anymore, because you will fall. Second Corinthians 6, verse 17 says, therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean and I will receive you. If those friends don't come to Christ, you have to find new friends that are Christians. It is essential that you have support and that you can call someone for prayer. If your portable computer tempts you, then sell it or destroy it. You say that's extreme. Well, what did Jesus say in Matthew chapter 5, verses 29 and 30? Jesus said, if your right eye causes you to sin, plug it out and cast it from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell. Then it's the same for your right hand. It is the same for other parts of your body. But don't mutilate your limbs. Rather, separate and flee from technical devices that tempt you. Don't let your eyes wander. In Job chapter 31, verse 1, Job said, I have made a covenant with my eyes. Why then should I look upon a young woman? And what he meant was, I'm not going to look upon a young woman and get into lust. I'm not going to do that. Flee with your eyes. The flesh must die daily, and we can do so through starving it through death and following Christ. We have a point in this battle. Jesus is inside of you and me, but we must be willing to practice separation and say no. Now, when I said Jesus is inside of you, if you were born again, he is. But if there's no room in you and you have no power, then it is because there are many other things in your life that you must surrender to Jesus. So the first part in our participation was A, to overcome the world by faith. B, to overcome the flesh by flight. And then C, overcome the devil by fight. We have the third great giant to deal with. He's an unseen force. He uses our own flesh. He uses the world. He comes to our mind. And so in James chapter 4, verse 7, it says, therefore, submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. You see, I must be first in full submission to God. I need higher help. How am I going to wrestle an unseen force? The battle is the Lord's, but I must participate in saying no, deny yourself, put on the new, and put off the old. Now, combat with unseen forces has to be different from hand to hand. Combat with things you can see, feel, and touch. The unseen spiritual world cannot be overcome with human power and the flesh. I cannot touch these unseen powers. I cannot deal with it. I cannot turn. I don't know which way to turn because I cannot see the enemy. So, we need higher help. We must wrestle spiritual beings with spiritual weapons. Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10 to 18, their scripture gives us the armor of God and how to battle the devil. And here, again, we have a participation of putting on an armor. And in this passage, in Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10 to 18, please read it, but in verse 14, it starts to give us seven truths of the armor. Verse 14, stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, the breastplate of righteousness is the righteousness that is given us through Christ when we're born again. And then verse 15, and having shot your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. This means we all need to share Christ and the gospel or else we are vulnerable. Verse 16, above all, take the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And verse 17, take the helmet of salvation. You see, we need protection for our mind and the sword of the spirit. The sword of the spirit is the word of God. And then praying always with prayer and supplication and the spirit being watchful. You see, if we don't pray and watch even a soldier that is well equipped, there are still spaces in between this armor. And when you're sleeping and not watching, the enemy can still come and overwhelm you. So six pieces of this armor are defensive, but the sword of the spirit is offensive. And there it says, use the word of God. Use it as your defense. Use it as an offense against Satan. So read your Bible, learn the word of God. And Jesus used the word of God in defense against the devil. And so memorize some verses concerning your weaknesses. Let's say that lust is your weakness. Well, remember Thessalonians chapter four, verse three, there it says, for this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you should abstain from sexual immorality. If you're not sure that you're safe and you have made your decision for Christ, you're following him. And yet Satan attacks you. Then quote to him, John chapter three, verse 16. And I believe most, if not all of you know this verse for God's love, the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. You can say to Satan this verse and say, I belong to God now. Go away in Jesus' name. Oppose him. Now Satan attacks through the mind to get to you. There's a very good way to oppose him. Again, six hours in the office, I opposed and fought Satan on his ground. I should have switched the channel of my mind. And we can do that. So as Christians, we must evaluate Revelation chapter 12, 11. Do we really rely on Jesus? And first John one nine says, if we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Are you willing? And in fact, are you willing? And in fact, are you sharing your faith? Are you willing to give your life for Christ? Are you willing to give your life to Jesus? Yes, I will. Yes, I will. Praise God. Let me close with this story from North Korea. We're nearly at the end, just a few minutes. A group of Christians was discovered in North Korea. They had worshiped God and his son, Jesus. The children were with them. The adults were told by those that had captured them, if you do not acknowledge our dear leader as God, and if you do not renounce your Christ, your children will be hanged. One of the children looked up at her mother. What would she do? Earlier that morning, 28 Christians had been bound and taken before a screaming crowd of North Koreans. The guards made it clear again, if you don't deny your Christ, you will die. The mother thought of her child, but she could not deny her Lord. The other Christians quietly made the same decision. Their God was real. The North Korean guard again shouted, deny your Christ or we will hang your children. The children looked at their parents. The parents loved their children, but they knew that there was an eternal heaven for them. They could not deny their Lord. The mother bent down and whispered with peace and love to her child. She said, today, my love, I will see you in heaven. All the children were hanged. The adults who were still all bound had to lie on the street. A large street steamroller was brought to flatten the roads. They were given one more choice, one more chance. The guard shouted, if you give up your Christ, you will live. If you don't give him up, you will die. The Christians thought of their children in heaven and they started to sing slowly and softly. As the steamroller started to roll over them, crushing them to death, they were singing, more love for Christ, more love to thee, more love to thee. He said, you're willing to give your life for Christ. Won't you let him have all of you, to entwine all of you, to give you that victory over sin? One of the soldiers who saw these North Korean Christians being killed, he shared, because he became a Christian through their testimony. Would you be willing to deny yourself and take up your cross and follow Jesus? Would you deny the world, the flesh and the devil to make room for Jesus to indwell you fully? Would you repent and pray and ask Jesus to come and live his life through you? You cannot do this on your own. You need higher help. Why should you do it? Your soul and your spirit, you will live for eternity. For those not yet a Christian, it starts with becoming a Christian, being born again and following Jesus. You ask, how do I do that? You can kneel right now and speak to our Heavenly Father. Tell him that you repent of your sins, that you will turn from your sins. Ask God to forgive you. Then tell his son, Jesus, that you believe in him dying for your sins and taking the penalty for your sins and that he rose again. Ask him to save you. Ask him to give you this new life and then follow Jesus. Join a Bible believing fellowship or church. Be baptized and then start reading a reputable Bible daily. Read the Bible. Read the living word of God where this help comes from. Pray daily. Ask Jesus Christ to live in you and to ask him to live his life through you. There are Christians watching who have a defeated life. I ask you to surrender and invite Christ to be in you and live his life through you. Jesus is the victory. Tell the Lord that you want victory in your Christian life and that you will participate with Jesus in the battle. As the word of God says, faith without words is dead. Submit yourself therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Then you can say with others, but thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Will you bow your head right now? Perhaps you want to kneel. Will you pray right now? You can pray a prayer that I will give as an example, but you can use your own words. God will hear you. God will see your heart. And so let us pray. Lord Jesus, I have heard this message today and I realize I have not given you full control in my life. I repent of that today. Please, please forgive me and cleanse me anew this day of sins in my life and anything wrong in my life. I want to experience victory over sin in my life. I'd like to follow you the way that I ought to and live a life pleasing to you. I invite you, Lord Jesus, to be in me and to live your life through me. Then help me, please, to take the steps of obedience mentioned to overcome the world by faith, to overcome the flesh by flight, to overcome the devil by fight and to follow you. I plead with you, Lord Jesus, to allow me to experience the victory over the sin and the devil through you and to be obedient to your word. I have accepted you as my savior from the penalty of sin and now, Lord, I ask you to be my savior also over the power of sin. Lord, I give sports. I give my hopes, my dreams, money, everything that I have, everything that I am. I give to you. I empty myself. Indwell me, Lord Jesus, today. Make me new. And so help me to participate through submission and denial. Help me to deny the self. I ask you to be the cornerstone in my life that puts to death the giants. Help me to be obedient and have faith to overcome the world, the flesh and the devil through you. I thank you so much, Lord, that you have done this. Praise God and in Jesus' name, amen and amen. If you have sincerely prayed this prayer and you're willing to act on this message, you will experience the victory through Christ Jesus. Please continue to fully submit and surrender daily to Jesus. Also be prepared for the battle ahead because as long as you have the flesh, it may rear its head. As long as there is a Satan, he may come back at a more opportune time. As long as there is the world, there will be temptations. But John chapter 8 verse 36 says, therefore, if the son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. Thank you so much for joining me and may you experience the glorious victory that Christ Jesus so willingly gives us for our daily lives until we see Jesus face to face. Thank you and goodbye.