Dr. Tony Evans highlights the concept of embracing challenges and weaknesses for spiritual growth. Join him as he explains that just as a peanut’s shell needs to be cracked for the nut to be enjoyed or a butterfly breaks free from its cocoon to take flight, Christians often encounter trials orchestrated by God to eliminate self-sufficiency and promote dependency on Him. SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/drtonyev… If you would like to download two encouraging, FREE full-length MP3s of Tony’s popular sermons: “The Sovereignty of God” and “How to Handle a Crisis,” you can do so by clicking on this link: https://share.hsforms.com/1atT9MJvXQN…
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Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative and author of over 100 books, booklets and Bible studies. The first African American to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University. Dr. Evans holds the honor of writing and publishing the first full-Bible commentary and study Bible by an African American. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on over 1,400 radio outlets daily and in more than 130 countries. Dr. Evans’ sermons are also streamed and downloaded over 20,000,000 times annually. 0:00 Introduction 0:31 The Benefit of Satan 12:40 100 Days of Cultivating Kindness 13:11 The Benefit of Satan, Continued 27:02 Prophecy and Our World #tonyevans #tonyevanssermon #Trials
Grace is God doing for you what you
cannot do for yourself Grace is the
goodness of God that he displays whether
or not he changes the circumstance he
says my grace my favor is sufficient for
your circumstance even if I don’t remove
the sand right now like a woman who’s
pregnant and in labor is birthing
something
[Music]
[Applause]
thank you
to enjoy the fragrance
of perfume
you’ve got to break the cap
for that
fragrance that is inside
to be able to be smelt
to enjoy chewing a peanut you’ve got to
break the shell
so that the nut can emerge and you can
eat it
for a butterfly
to take flight it must break the Cocoon
so that it can rise to its created level
of intentionality
and for Christ to get all out of you and
me that he wants he has to break us
of our
self-sufficiency
the one thing that God hates more than
anything else
is self-sufficiency
where we feel
we can function independently of him
wherever there is self-sufficiency
God will bring about a breaking
a cracking
in the life of a person a believer
in order to help rid themselves of their
feeling of Independence
and one of the chief ways God strips us
of our independence and self-sufficiency
is through his use of the devil
God uses
Satan
to break a brother down
to break a sister down
God Is So sovereign
he rules so comprehensively and
completely
that even hell is at its beckoned call
the devil Satan and demons
have to function
at his instruction
in order to put us in our place
in these verses in second Corinthians
chapter 12
Paul has just come on out of a a high
when you reach the first six verses he
talks about an experience that he had
that would blow your mind
he got to go to the third heaven
he’s the only person human being who got
to visit Heaven see what was there and
come back to talk about it
he said I saw things there that were
unlawful to others
he said I can’t I can’t even I don’t
have the words
to talk about what I saw when God let me
go visit the third heaven I don’t know
all
that heaven is going to offer
and I know the Bible only gives us
glimpses after coming off of this high
he says in verse 7 because of the
surpassing greatness the unique
privilege of the revelation
for this reason
to Keep Me From exalting Myself
that was giving me a thorn in the flesh
because God had let me get so high
so high that no other man has ever
gotten before
that would be the propensity and the
tendency to think more of myself than I
ought to
and so God had to put something in my
life to remind me
that yeah I I gave you a privilege but
but don’t don’t think
wrong about yourself
I wonder if anybody knows anybody who
thinks wrong about themselves
you got a little money now you got a
little job now you drive a nice car now
you’re living a nice home now people put
a title in front of your name there and
they got the wrong idea
so what God has to do is he has to bring
things into our lives
and even if that means the devil to keep
you from exalting yourself
he says
because of this unique experience
when God has bumped you up
giving you opportunities and privileges
giving you recognition and significance
he wants to make sure you don’t forget
where that came from
or when he plans to bump you up
maybe you haven’t arrived there now but
he wants you thinking right before you
get there
he allows
a thorn
he calls it
it was given to me a thorn in the flesh
now Paul does not tell us exactly what
the thorn is
there are a number of options
in Galatians chapter 4 verse 15 he talks
about the need for new eyes
he had a sight a vision problem
so it could have been a physical illness
that was a thorn in the flesh
but he also calls it a messenger of
Satan
a thorny person
in your life
that’s why he could talk
in verse 10 about insults
so it can be a circumstance a situation
it can be a person or a problem it can
be an illness but the one thing is true
about it is that it is nagging you to
death
it is driving you nuts
because he says it tormented me
it it created misery in my life
and then he calls it
a messenger of Satan
and he says
the messenger of Satan was given to me
he calls it a gift
has God gifted the devil to anybody in
here today
you say but what I’m going through is
nothing but the devil yeah and God gave
him to you
a messenger of Satan a representative of
hell was given to me by God
and he says there was a spiritual
purpose to this hellish Invasion on my
life
to Keep Me From exalting Myself
because the number one sin in the Bible
is pride
thinking more of yourself than you are
too
so what God did is Paul you have a
propensity to Pride
and so I need to help you
so I have given room for the devil to
prick you
stick you needle you through a problem a
pain or a circumstance so that you will
be dependent on me
to keep you from exalting yourself
the more you want to hear from God
the more humble you got to be before God
if you get so sadity
in your view of yourself
God will sick Satan on you
he will seek the devil on you to remind
you
that you have limitations
you got things that he can let happen to
you that your name can fix that your
money can fix that your power can fix
that your privileges can fix he will
seek the devil on you
if you’re his child to Humble you
to keep you force you
from exalting yourself
he says
concerning this this
Thorn this
needle this
irritant
that’s keeping me in prison
because that’s what a thorn does that
what don’t go away you feel like a
hostage to your problem
feel like
you know you’re behind bars
concerning this thought
I employ the Lord three times
that it might leave me
I prayed about it I talked to God about
it I wasn’t I wasn’t just just ignoring
it I made this a spiritual problem uh
and and I didn’t just ask I employed
I’m begging for relief
anybody begging for relief from
something today you begging for release
yeah in other words this thing has been
this deep this long and you’re employing
do something God
because it hurts so bad
and it goes the needle goes so deep
he said to me
in verse 9 my grace
is sufficient for you
did you read that
my grace
is sufficient for you
okay so here it is
when God gives you a thorn for your
spiritual benefit even if the thorn is
provided by the devil even if it’s a
messenger of Satan
it’s for Spiritual benefit to keep you
from exalting yourself because once you
exalt yourself now you’re the enemy of
God because now you didn’t think more of
yourself thought more of yourself than
you ought to
he says I am not going
to give you the answer to your prayer
right now
I pray Paul says that it might leave
God says my grace is sufficient
I’m not going to give you the answer to
your request but I’m not going to renew
ignore it either
my grace
is sufficient
Dr Evans will be right back after this
important announcement
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
thank you
[Music]
Grace is God doing for you what you
cannot do for yourself
Grace is the goodness of God that he
displays to you and for you and on you
whether or not he changes the
circumstance
the most potent verse on Grace is found
in second Corinthians chapter 9 and this
is a verse that you need to remember
verse 8 of second Corinthians 9 and God
is able to make all grace abound to you
so that all ways having all sufficiency
in everything you may have an abundance
for every good work
he says Grace is so sufficient
that it covers every scenario
that’s why it’s called sufficient Grace
he says my grace my favor is sufficient
for your circumstance
he said to me
let me stop there
he said to me
when did God say something to you Paul
when I prayed
see
a lot of times when we pray if we pray
we are looking for the answer
and when the answer does not come the
statement is God did not answer my
prayer
but God does not only answer our prayer
when he gives us what we want
he simply said I employed that God gives
me what I want which is get rid of the
devil messing with me
he says but he said
see some of the answers to our prayer
is listening to what God says not just
what he does
all Paul got was a word
not a solution
that’s why when you come to these doors
you want God to speak to you
whether or not he changes the situation
right now for you
he said he spoke I heard his voice and
you can go a long way when you hear his
voice
even if the situation hasn’t changed if
you can just know he said it he was
talking to me in my Bible study he was
talking to me in the song he was talking
to me in the sermon I heard him say
nothing changed but I heard him
he said to me
my grace is sufficient
I have more power than enough resources
for you to handle what I’ve allowed the
devil to put you in
if you’re here today
and you’ve got a situation that has not
changed
an illness that he has not healed you up
a job situation that he has not reversed
a financial situation that he has not
yet met
a relationship resolve that has not
occurred
and you have prayed to him
and the situation has stayed or even
gotten worse listen
open your ears and say God here I am
speak to me so what do you do when
you’ve prayed
God hasn’t answered the prayer
but you’re listening
he first of all prays
and then he praises
look at the middle of verse 9 most
gladly come on now
how you gonna be glad when you’re sad
most gladly therefore
I would rather boast about my week and
know you didn’t
I will most gladly boast about my
weaknesses
so that the power of Christ May dwell in
me
did you hear what he said
I’m gonna brag on my problem
imma brag on my pride he’s not bragging
on the pain of his problem
he’s bragging on the purpose of his
problem
God never tells us to be masochistic and
just make ourselves miserable and make
us feel more spiritual
no when he found out that God was using
the devil to make him better
make him better a better Christian a
better person a better follower of
Christ when he found out that God had a
good purpose and a bad problem
he said oh I’m bragging about this
because I’m bragging on why God is doing
it even though I do not prefer what God
is doing
he’s going to use this situation he’s
going to use this problem he’s going to
use this difficulty and I’m going to
come out in this thing praise you God
bless your name I’m going to brag about
what the devil is doing to me now that’s
a change because I don’t know anybody
that brags about a satanic attack
I don’t know anybody that Praises God
that the devil is all over them but Paul
says I’m going to boast about my
weakness
because of what God’s going to do in it
and through it
and it says in verse 10.
he says at the end of verse 9 that the
power of Christ May dwell in me so
you’re going to get what here’s what
Grace is going to give you when he
coaches it you’re going to find you have
power you didn’t know you had
you’ve got ability you didn’t know you
possessed
what he says is if you will pray to hear
his voice and if you will praise for his
purpose you’ll discover power you didn’t
know you had
you will get Holy Ghost assistance
for your situation
he says
that the power of Christ May dwell in
you
see you can have the power of Christ but
it not be at home in you well if you’re
a Christian crisis in your life but he
may not feel welcomed
so the power of Christ may not be
expressed dwelling making itself at home
in you
therefore somebody say therefore
verse 10
I am well
content
um
I am well content with weaknesses in
Social stresses prosecutions
difficulties for Christ’s sake
for when I am weak then I am strong okay
he brings up contentment
the word content means
to be at rest on the inside regardless
of circumstances on the outside
it has to do with a calming internally
Paul says in Philippians chapter 4
verses 10 to 13. he says I’ve learned to
abound and a base
sometimes I’m up sometimes I’m down she
says whether I’m a beast or a bound
whether I’m up or down I have learned in
whatsoever State I am in to be content
because contentment is not tied to
conditions
you can be content when it’s sun shining
you can be content when it’s raining
because something is happening
internally at rest
the only reason he can do that is
because he’s boasting about his
weaknesses
he’s changed his perspective
When you pray James 1 5
If any man needs wisdom which means how
to handle this situation
let him ask of God
and God will give it to him let him ask
him faith
believing that God will either give you
the solution or give you the grace he
will give you one of the two
if he doesn’t give you the solution he
will give you the sufficiency
if you listen to his voice
he says I’m well content with my
weaknesses I’m gone
by the way how do you know that you have
grown because he said I had the Paul
said I have to learn to be content so so
this is a lesson you got to learn God’s
going to help you
I must learn to be content how do you
know when you have reached the point of
basic contentment
it is
that you are more thankful than you are
complaining
that’s how you know
how do you learn to be content you learn
to be content through your gratitude
so if you are facing a thorn that God
has not removed you need the flood of
Grace Grace cannot be earned it can only
be given God gives it but you must
access it
ask God how does he want to use what
you’re going through
this week I would love for you to read
Lamentations chapter three that’s after
Jeremiah
because if the pages stick together
you’ll miss it
Lamentations chapter 3
the weeping prophet spends the first 18
verses describing his pain
his hurt
and even his disappointment
that God is not doing something
he’s hurting in Lamentations chapter 3
verses 1 through 18.
then in verse 19 he switches
even though I’m disappointed even though
I’m hurt even though I’m weary even
though there’s all this wrong around me
even though I’m crying even though that
he says You Are My Hope
you are my deliverer I’m banking on your
faithfulness so let me tell you let me
tell you you need to stop I need to stop
we need to stop fake prayers
yes
talking smack
repeating the same phrases without even
putting your mind or your heart into the
discussion that that you have done
nothing you got to be honest with God
you have to be respectful but you have
to be honest God I’m hurting God I’m
disappointed you ever responded yet God
this is what I’m going through God this
is what I need God this is where I am
yes this is what’s going on in my life
however
I will trust in the god of my salvation
however
I praise you for your purpose however
I’m going to glorify you because you’re
still in charge even though things are
out of control I can tell you if God
sent Satan because you are doing and
living your life for Christ’s sake he
wants to use the devil to make you a
better Christian
future
and one of the ways you know as we close
you know you walk through the airport
you see people sometimes uh carrying
their luggage but but most people don’t
carry that luggage anymore because now
there are wheels on the bottom of each
of the bags okay now you can carry your
luggage but that means you got to Bear
your own weight but now that they put
wheels on there it doesn’t change how
heavy the load is in the bag but it
changes your ability to handle it
because you rolling it and you’re not
trying to carry it
if you’re here today and you’re tired of
carrying your own load if you’re here
today and you can’t handle it because
it’s too heavy I know somebody who got
some wheels and he will give you the
ability to handle the weight that you’re
having to carry by the devil that God is
using to make you the person and
Christian he has created you to be
thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
thank you
foreign