THE DECISION TO HAVE VICTORY
(AN EXSPOUNDED SERMON OUTLINE)
By Pastor Diana Gray
Copyright © 2,000 All Rights Reserved

LUKE 9:23-25 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.  For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?

INTRODUCTION: Are you having trials and problems in your life?  Who isn’t right?  If we take a deep look at our lives we can usually see that we have had a lot to do with the problems.  Wrong decisions, wrong attitudes and selfish feelings.  Bad decisions and poor management as well as our attitudes has a lot to do with many of our problems right? 
     Our life is really one big choice after another to make and if we make the wrong choices then we are in trouble.  Spiritual growth doesn’t just happen by itself, we have to make the effort with the right decisions to have victory in our lives.  The first and most important decision we have to make is whether we accept Salvation or not?  All of the other decisions come after that major one. 
     If you never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior it’s not too late and your not to old to pray and ask for the Salvation of Jesus Christ.   Having done that it’s now time to make the next step, but what is the next step? Let’s pray!

PRAYER: For Godly wisdom and spiritual guidance.  Lord our Heavenly Father, you know our hearts and the needs in them.  We come before you with humbleness and the realization that we can’t do it all.  We can’t handle these trials all by ourselves and that we really are human with failings and weaknesses.  Lord in every way we know that we fall short of your glory and ask you from the bottom of our hearts to bring healing into our lives.  Father please come into our lives and become our total Lord of it.  Show us your strengths and give us your wisdom so that we can have victory.  We thank you Lord and in Jesus’ name amen.

I.  MAKE THE DECISION…. "If any man will come after me"

    A.  Deciding: Many people try to stand on the dividing line with one foot following the Lord
and the other foot in the world.  (This is a lukewarm Christian and what did the Lord say about being lukewarm? Revelation 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.) So we have the decision to make "whether to follow or not, right? 

      ILLUSTRATION: 
     Compare lukewarm drinking water to fresh cool spring fed water.  Think how distasteful and repugnant not to mention that you can smell an odor.  Coldness numbs the throat and the senses.  A hot liquid  warms the throat, fires up the  insides and givesyou energy and vitality.Indifference and idleness can lead to being a lukewarm Christian.  If a person neglects to make a solid choice to follow the Lord, they become hardened and self-satisfied.  Being an in-name-Christian who halfheartedly gives the appearance of following is being lukewarm.  The fire of the Lord will give you spiritual fire to serve Him and give you victory!
 
    B.  Making a Firm Solid Choice: (Joshua 24:15 choose you this day whom ye will serve, but
as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.)  Be firm and bold with all of the courage that you have.  If you believe strongly enough in a cause or idea you will stand firm.  Well make that same commitment to follow the Lord.   Become a spiritual leader and make a solid definite commitment.  "I will serve with my whole self.  No matter what others have decided to do, I decide to follow.  From this day on I will live by that decision.   I will surrender everything I have and am to the Lord." 
      I’m a woman of strong faith because I made the decision to follow the Lord with everything I have.  I made a solid choice with strength, will and courage, but most importantly I surrendered my pride.  Upon my knees I humbled myself before the Lord in obedience and surrendered all.  If pride is holding you back get rid of it.   You don’t need pride to walk in spiritual faith but it will hold you back.   You need humbled faith and the courage to stand!

II.  DISCIPLINE THE DECISION:  Luke 9:23 "let him deny himself"

     A.  Practice temperance, self-denial and control!  "Practice makes perfect." 

      ILLUSTRATION: Think of a baby first learning how to walk.  They take a step and then 
they fall but in a little while they get up and try again and again until they walk.  Or how about learning how to ride a bike or roller skates?  You weren’t perfect at it and you made a lot of mistakes but you didn’t give up because you really wanted to ride that bike.  It took courage didn’t it, but you wouldn’t give up no matter what you wouldn’t give up.  You believed you could ride that bike and you did.  Well make the same commitment to follow the Lord.  Discipline yourself to follow with courage and strength.  "I WILL FOLLOW AND I WILL SERVE THE LORD!"

     B. Set boundaries and limits as to how you will live, and how you will not live your life. 
(Luke 12:57 Yea, and why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?) I don’t mean you should become a hyprocritical prudish type of person, but take your decision seriously and get on fire to win souls for the Kingdom of God.  Don’t become a judgmental type of person towards others but judge yourself and how you live.  Is therean area that needs to be changed? Is there an area that would make you ashamed if the Lord was standing right next to you when you do it?  WELL GUESS WHAT? … He sees everything you do and when you’re doing it anyway, so isn’t it about time you changed? 
      It’s not your legalistic religious views but your relationship to the Lord that’s important.  All of the arguing and being falsely pious won’t get you closer to God.  What do we want, the world’s views about us or God’s view?  Are your eyes looking up focused upon the Lord or are they focused straight ahead upon the things of this world?  Are you having real fellowship with the Lord or are your eyes more on your problems?
      You can’t stay lukewarm forever.  It’s time to surrender all and follow.   Strive to have fellowship with God in a true partnership, avoiding worldly hypocrisy.  If you’re going to be a Christian and follow the Lord, than get real and get on spiritual fire!  Make the right decision and then stick to it!

III.  DEVELOP THE DECISION! "and take up his cross daily, and follow me."

   A.  Devotional diligence and patience towards learning the Lord’s Word.  Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.  We need to place every thought, word and decision before God.  Having all 
conscience and faith placed upon the Lord and His Word we study,  read, and study some more.   II Timothy 2:15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. I Timothy 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.  We need to first make our decision to surrender and then live out our decision for the rest of our life in firm commitment. 
    When we choose to see like regular TV or Christian videos and Godly shows they should be focused upon our decision to follow.  Most of what  we read like magazines or Christian books should also be focused upon this decisions.  The very words that come out of our mouths will reflect our life style and this decisions.  The world will know we are Christians by our loving walk and talk along with our Godly attitudes.  Believe it or not people will notice the change in us as time goes on.  This is why consistent church attendance is so very important to spiritual growth!

   B.  Daily take up your cross and follow Him.  It takes 28 days to make a habit and 28 days to break one.  It does get easier as time goes on but the hardest time is when you first start.  On or before we start our day’s activities it’s best to start out in prayer giving our life and love over to the Lord.  It’s called daily surrender of selfish pride and self. 
     How many crosses in the way of Christian duty do we daily have?  How many crosses of family responsibilities and problems do we really surrender over to the Lord?  We must carry all things for Christ, surrendering all for Him.  If our spirit and emotions are miserable then our body will feel the weight of the problems.  When our spiritual relationship with the Lord is under a full commitment then though we are under oppression, we can find the heart to glory in Him.

IV.  DETERMINE TO LIVE THE DECISION! Luke 9:23 "and follow me."
 
     A.  We were all given a measure of faith when we accepted Salvation through Jesus Christ.  It’s up to us to use the faith we were given (Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.)  This takes courage and dying to one’s self to fully use that measure of faith.  In other words humble your pride and daily take up your cross and follow Him. 
     We must always seek to do the good of the many placing our needs last.  The world says, "me, me, I , I" but the Lord wants us to surrender with a determination to do His will.  Remember to always place God first, others second and only then ourselves last!

     B.  Determine to stand with a strong attitude that says, "I can do it!  No matter what my
eyes see or how I feel, I see with spiritual eyes full of faith!"  Determine with the Lord’s help to be relentlessly tenacious in standing for what you believe in.  With an attitude of no matter what, you will not give up or surrender this decision to follow the Lord.  No matter what the cost or what trials and problems come your way you will not give up or back down.  Become a solid rock of faith following the Lord and gain that spiritual victory.  You are surrendering your will and placing the Lord on that throne.

CONCLUSSION:  The decision to have victory or not is yours to make and no one else’s.  You are the only physical person in your body and God’s given you free will.  What will you choose?  Stand on the dividing line with one foot following the Lord and the other foot in the world won’t last long! You can’t stay there, sooner or later you will go one way or the other. Which direction will you choose?
     Daily the world is becoming a harder place to live in and the closer we get to the rapture of the church it will continue to be so.   A born again Christian in this day and age cannot remain forever lukewarm and expect to grow spiritually.  It just won’t happen!  So what’s it going to be? Total commitment and surrender of pride and self allowing  Jesus to become Lord of your life,  or will you eventually become apathetically backslidden, numb to the things of God? 
     There is a decision to make.  If you’re a born again Christian and Jesus is your Savior then you are half way there.  The next decision is to choose whether you allow Him to become Lord of your life.   How committed to that decision will you be?  Jesus loved you enough to die for you, will you be willing to love Him enough to die for Him? What decision will you choose?  Let’s pray!

PRAYER:  Heavenly Father we love you and worship you about all else.  This message today needs to be taken seriously as it touches hearts deeply.  Help us to make the right decision and surrender all to follow you.   We need you Lord to help us through our trials and problems.  Thank you for helping us to surrender up our pride in humility.  Just as Your Word said that you gave us a measure of faith, help us now use that faith to follow you as our Savior and Lord of our lives! In Jesus name amen.

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