Still Fighting | Sarah Jakes Roberts

hey family pastor T here god bless you listen you're getting ready to hear a powerful message and I wanted to also remind you about the message that is in this book it released as you know on February 6 it's already number one new release on Amazon in three different categories if you don't have this book in your life get it in your life it is changing the world one whole person at a time but God bless you for now I've got a great message that I want you to hear check it out it was Benjamin Franklin who said that there is nothing certain in life besides his death in Texas that was before what kinda came out now what kind of there's another no alright it's too soon ok it's alright death and taxes if I may add without being disrespectful to the memory of Benjamin Franklin another another thing that is certain it would be battles I think that battles are just as certain as death and taxes when I was growing up I was under the impression that when you got saved and gave your life to the Lord and I mean like really started living for the Lord and I like just doing what you wanted to do and then saying Lord forgive me but I mean like really making a conscious decision to live for God that that would at some way in some capacity keep you from experiencing battles and the more that I've been living this life and walking this thing out I recognize that battles come no matter what side of the fence you're on that even if you're living life in your own way and making your own decisions that there are still struggles and issues and heartbreaks and and job loss and car repossessions and then I also recognize that on the other side of the battle that when you start living your life for the things of God and you start living your life being led by the Spirit that there is another guarantee of battle but the difference between the two the difference between the battles we face when we're living on our own and the battles we face when we're living for God is that there is a protection there is an insurance there is a guarantee that that battle whatever it is isn't going to kill you and this is important to me because I've been studying and praying about this idea of spiritual warfare and we've been experiencing spiritual warfare and it's done something down on the inside of me that has made me realize that I cannot fight in the season of spiritual warfare the same way that I fought before I became spiritual it's important for those of us who are still growing and evolving in our relationship with God to know that because if you are not careful you will try to battle spiritual warfare the same way you battle somebody talking about you not recognizing that there are some things that are par for the course there are some things that are just going to be a part of you pursuing what God has placed down on the inside of you so for those of you who are taking notes my subject is still fighting still fighting and this is more about the the literal terms still like being still and knowing that God is in control that there is a way that you can fight I feel the presence of God there is a way that you can fight where you don't even have to move at all that your very presence that your very confidence about who was gone ahead of you that you're very confident about what God has called you to do that you can be still that you cannot say a word and still be engaged in battle because your very presence I feel angels surrounding you protecting you moving and navigating on your behalf so much so that you recognize what's really a battle and what's not you don't have to actually get in the position and start wailing because I know how to fight and be still I gotta say it the way I see I want to show you all Jehoshaphat this is going to be in 2nd chronicles 20 and before we get into the text I want to give you a little background inbound king jehoshaphat he is the king of Judah and the king of Judah he's a good king he's made good decisions the only time that he's ever had issues the only time he's ever had struggles is when he allowed who he was an alliance with to influence his decisions don't worry that's a whole nother message and I won't drive down your street in that regard on today but what I will say is this the only time that he was ever off sinner is when he allowed who he was in alliance with to influence him instead of him influencing them he was a good king he was a righteous King he knew how to make the right decisions for the territory that he was in he was a good person he knew what to think and what to believe and what to say and what to prophesy over his life and all of that was true until he got aligned with someone who believed differently than him instead of him pulling them up they pulled him down and then he found themselves engaged in battles that he should have never been in that's a snack but that was for somebody I know it was and so there's a moment when he is aligned with a happened while he's aligned with a have a hab convinces him to go into battle and it turns out terribly they end up being just surrounded on all sides things are going downhill but when he was in the middle of the fight Jehoshaphat remembered that he wasn't by himself and so he cried out to God in the middle of the battle and God protected him let me tell you what I love about the God that I served that even when I'm wrong he doesn't ignore my cries that even when I don't do things right and even when I find myself in messed-up situations I can still cry out to the Lord some of you are in here because you did everything the right way and you never had any issues some of us are in here because when we got in the middle of the fight and we recognized that we had made a world that we could not control we started crying out for God we started saying God if you don't do it for me I don't know how it's gonna happen god I did things my way I'm in a battle that I shouldn't even be in and get you sage me you protected me man I feel like going in for just a minute because when I look back over my life about the times when I was in relationships and in jobs and then opportunities that I knew I had no business being here I cried out I cried out to God I cried out when I was surrounded I cried out when everyone else was bleeding out beside me I cried out when I was losing my mind I cried out when I was scared I was scared straight and I cried out to God I know for some of you you want me to move on but I'm just telling you for just a minute that there are some of us in this room who recognize that our cries have power attached to them sometimes your breakthrough won't come until you open up your mouth you've been waiting for somebody to help you you've been waiting for someone to save you and I hear God's saying if you would just cry out if you would just finally admit that you don't know what you're doing that you're lost and confused then I can come in and step in and I can show you that you were protected even when you were in battle that I had you covered even when you got in to the thing that is currently hurting you scaring you shrinking you and depressing here Jehoshaphat he got in this battle without any guidance or wisdom from God and he recognized in that moment how great of a mistake that was and so he cried out to God so he cries out to God when he's in the battle that he shouldn't have been in and then do you know what's even more difficult than crying out to God when you're in a battle that you have no business being in is when you're in a battle that God brings to you alright here we go y'all ready okay jehosophat got into a battle that he entered into on his own regard he started doing things the right way livin the right way making the right decisions and all of a sudden battle came to him nobody told him that when you do things the right way that it doesn't save you from battle that as a matter of fact it attracts battle to you the first time you got into the battle the second time battle came to you both of them were in God's will and a part of God's plan and were manifested to birth who you are but you need to recognize that there are moments when you are following God and battle comes to you and when battle comes to you you have a decision to make and instead of crying out to God you gotta trust them and that's harder than crying out believe it or not because at least when you cry out to God you know you're wrong and you have to cry out but when battle comes to you it makes you wonder if you were really doing things the right way when battle comes to you it makes you wonder if you're really qualified to do the thing that you're pursuing when battle comes to you and it makes you question everything about who you are and right before battle came you were fine you knew you were doing everything right you were proud of yourself you were confident then all of a sudden I'm in this struggle and I'm trying to figure out why battle has come to me and you have to trust God in spite of the fact that you have been ambushed when you least expected it at a time when you were doing everything right and so when we find Jehoshaphat he's already made in men's with the fact that he disobeyed God and he's put all of his ducks in a row and he's doing everything that he's supposed to do and yet he receives word that he is about to have an attack happened to him in Judah and someone we find him in second chronicles 20 and 15 he's getting ready to fight and so just to give you context he's gathered all of the profits and all of the men and women and children into the temple and he sits down and he starts crying out to God the way he cried out to God when he was in the middle of the battle that he got himself into and he starts reminding God who he is to him I think that's a major key that we have to be willing to recognize when we are in the middle of these battles that we gotta remember who God is in the midst of the battle sometimes the only way to stay still and fight is to remember who put you in the battle to remember that you're not in it on your own and so he got into his prayer closet and he started making a demand on God I mean I feel like an old church mother I want to show you all man if we just have one prayer service just one night I believe that some things could take place in the spirit realm because there is nothing like when you start getting in your prayer closet I don't mean the little cue prayers like God is good god is great and we thinking for our plate I mean when you start saying god I need you I need to understand what is going on in this world I need to understand what's going on in my life if you don't show me I don't know who I'm gonna be no I'm not just gonna get up because the timer has gone off I'm not just gonna get it because I have something to do I will not get off of my knees until you send me a word until you send me some interest somebody prayed themselves into this room I won't give up I'm not gonna lose my mind in the midst of this process Jehoshaphat got into his prayer closet and he said God I gotta understand why I'm under attack I don't just take bullets and say no this is life no God you got to show me who am i becoming as a result of being under attack who am i becoming as a result of these people coming up against me what are you trying to show me what are you trying to say I'm opening I'm willing to hear and listen and grow and expand but God if you don't say it I don't know what I'm gonna do and second chronicles 20 and 15 he's waiting to hear from God and it says a man in the midst of them he begins to speak out and he said listen all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem and you king jehoshaphat thus says the Lord to you do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude for the battle is not yours but God for those of you who quote that all the time now you know where it is take note so when somebody try to read you like you don't even know where that is you say uh-uh the first thing God wants Jehoshaphat to understand is that this battle is not over you the first thing I need for you to understand is that this battle is not about you you're in it but it's not about you if you don't understand that you'll start asking questions like why is this happening to me and you'll miss the fact that literally the battle is not yours but God means that this battle is about what God is doing on the inside of me it's not about me it's important that we really get that before I move on because we have a tendency to make it about us what am I doing wrong what could I have done better why did they turn their back on me but when you start saying like oh I understand that this is about what you're doing on the inside of me there's an insurance that comes with that there's a confidence that comes with knowing that this battle isn't even about me and the more that you make it about me the more that you are guaranteed to lose because on my own I can do nothing but because this battle is about what God is doing on the inside of me when my name is in your mouth you ought to be a little bit afraid because the Godhead I serve and what he's doing in my life I'm letting him grow and transform and change me this battle isn't about me it's about God so God my role in this battle is to see how can you increase inside of me my role in this battle is not to figure out how I can shut down the rumors how I can get things together my role is to allow you to overflow an increase out of what you're doing on the inside of me the first thing you have to know Jehoshaphat in spite of what you did wrong in spite of your disobedience in spite of the decisions you made this that sure in right now I feel that for somebody I don't know who it is this battle that you're in right now is a result of what God is doing on the inside of you in battle is a part of the process battle is when you figure out who God is battles when you recognize what God has placed down on the inside of you this battle is not yours it's God that means angels are backing you up that means there's a heaven edge of protection with you that means that all things are gonna work together when it's all said and done this battle is not about you if it was about you I would want you to be afraid but this battle is about God sometimes you got to tell the enemy that you didn't pick a battle with me because you might win if you pick a battle against me I'm weird I'm crazy I do all kinds of things but because I know who God is and because I've linked up with him when the enemy starts picking on me I start getting stronger in the spirit realm because I recognize it's not about me it's about the God that's down on the inside of me some of you have been wondering where you're going to get your win and I'm telling you right now when God magnifies himself on the inside of you then darkness will push up off of you when God magnifies himself on the inside of you I feel the presence of God in this room somebody needs to allow God to be unleashed fully I'm tired of second-guessing myself I'm tired of wondering what's down on the inside of me God take control over my life let there be overflow in everything that I do because then when I engage in battle when I engage in battle it can't be about me when I engage in battle I can't do it on my own when I prayed and I said without you I am nothing I can do nothing I can say nothing that can change lives but with you I believe lies that be can be transformed what I'm saying is me alone with this mic is not enough to win the battle of Darkness is being waged on your life but because I'm full of the Holy Ghost but because I study and I pray in the same Holy Ghost that allowed Jesus to get off their cross and be resurrected three days later it's not just existing down on the inside of me it's available to you too so the more that that same Holy Ghost I mean that same fight I mean that same willpower I mean that same strength its magnified on the inside of you you fight differently you fight differently so he lays the foundation and he says I need you to know that the battle is not yours but God verse 16 continues and it says tomorrow go down against them this was so confusing to me as I was reading because I wanted to shout off of the battle not being mine I did I'm a church girl I love the battles not yours its the Lord's it's a good song it will take you in okay but then the Spirit of the Lord says you still have to go down to the battle it's not yours it's God's but you still got to stand up to it it's not yours as God's you're guaranteed the mood to win but the only way you win is if you go down and stand up to it I love this because he says to go down against them that means don't wait for this thing to blow up don't wait until it gets any larger don't wait until it's tapping you on the shoulder I want you to go right down to where the attack is happening I want you to go right down and tell wherever that attack is happening that this battle isn't even mine it's God sometimes we wait for the thing to blow up and then we want to handle it under the guise of not being confrontational but what I'm telling you is that the Spirit of the Lord is a bit confrontational and not like in the petty ways that he has delivered us from but God is not going to allow you to live your life in such a way that you ignore the attacks when you have the power to in them God is not going to allow you to keep praying that you would get a revelation about a relationship that he's already given you a revelation about he wants you to go down and attack that thing God is not going to give you another idea until you manifest the one that he's already given to you I feel like somebody needs to go down against fear that somebody needs to go down against depression that somebody needs to stop waiting to see if the generational curse is gonna pop up in their life and start digging in such a way that they said no I want to see if it's in here I want to know if it's down on the inside of me and so he tells Jehoshaphat go down against them they will surely come up by the ascent he says before they even come up I want you to go down and you will find them at the end of the brook before the wilderness of Giroux and verse 17 continues it says and you will not need to fight in this battle the battle is not yours is God you still have to go down there though and he says position yourselves stand still and see the salvation of the Lord I realized that the reason why he wanted them to go down wasn't because he was going to throw them in a fight at any given moment it's because he wanted them to see how I'm on your side God please give it to me the way you held it to me earlier I want you to go down and position yourself with such class and grace in dignity and confidence that this thing is not going to kill you and I want you to stand still when war is breaking out around you I want to talk about steel fighting I know that there's another sermon where we can talk about David and Goliath and getting our five smooth stones but I want to talk about how sometimes the only way we can fight is to position ourselves and stand still and wait to see the salvation of the Lord show up because he's with you he's with you and it says Oh Judah and Jerusalem do not fear or be dismayed tomorrow go out against them for the Lord is with you and so he wants them to be positioned in such a way that they see when God shows up that's all I want for you I want you to be positioned in such a way that you're not growing bitter while you're waiting to see when God shows up I want you to be positioned in such a way that you don't question yourself when you're waiting on God to show up I want you to be positioned in such a way that everyone else around you can be murmuring and complaining but because you know that God is with you you're waiting to see the salvation of the Lord while everyone else is sharpening their tools they were getting ready for their clamp backs and trying to figure out how they're gonna get revenge how they're trying to figure out how they're gonna get back on other people I want you to be positioned in such a way that you realize that that battle over there is not even mine it's God I'm just gonna stand here and wait to see what happens because I know that he's with me and I want to skip down to verse 22 because I didn't understand as I mentioned to you if the battle is not ours it's God why are we going down and positioning ourselves and we're going to see the salvation of the Lord but I felt like couldn't they get their hands dirty just a little bit you know like why could they fight and verse 22 says now when they began to sing into praise they're positioned and waiting to see the salvation of God show up in this battle they are under attack they are already beyond the gates they're already in the middle of a fighting they don't even realize when it's going to pop off and instead of sitting down there and complaining and and whining they begin to sing and to praise the Lord I really feel like that there is a connection to the heart posture of praise and worship that releases ambushes against our enemies and I don't just mean like our external enemies I mean the enemy man when we begin to lift our hands and worship worship has to compete with depression we want to talk about the battles on the outside but for a minute I want to consider the battles that take place on the inside and the power of praise and worship of singing and praising in the middle of those battles that allows ambushes to be released worship is powerful when you open up your heart and you say God search me when you open up your heart and you say God I need you to find something down on the inside of me that is keeping me from my destiny it sets an ambush against that thing that is threatening your purpose it sets an ambush against oppression it starts giving you ideas like maybe I should go to counseling like maybe I need to get into rehab because I opened myself up and worship in such a way that I start thinking is that friendship really for me is that job opportunity really growing me I opened myself up to worship and my life started changing I started getting more connected to the Spirit I know it's not always chewed and everybody thinks some people are being extra when they worship but there are some of us who know that I need to open up myself up fully I don't have time to be cute I don't have time to have a cute little praise that makes everybody feel good and feel comfortable it's something wrong with me I know there is because I'm still here and because I'm still here I know his work isn't finished and on the inside of me and I'm not going to continue walking around this world like I have it all together oh no search me Oh God I opened up myself to you I feel that for somebody can I just prophesy for a minute that there will be a heart of worship that takes over your life that there will be a heart of worship where you're no longer ashamed and you don't feel weird and you begin to open up yourself in such a way what you need to hear from God God I need you to set an ambush on my brokenness I need you to set an ambush on my addiction I can't do it on my own that's what happens in the text they begin to sing praise and ambushes are set on their enemies I believe that God can do something in your life when you begin to sing and praise and open up yourself in such a way that he can set an ambush God killing anything in me that's killing the you in me God kill anything in me even if I love it even if I think I needed even if I think I can't breathe without it God if it is going to kill what you place down on the inside of me I am giving you full permission on a Thursday night at 9:00 10:00 p.m. to set an ambush on anything that's done on the inside of me that would dare go to war with the destiny that's on the inside of me god I give you full permission to set an ambush on addiction in this room I'll do it I'll never have I'm next spiritual leader they don't even have to get with me if they don't want to god I'm giving you permission to go to war with everything going to war with them saying I rebuke you how about that by the power of the Holy Ghost I demand and decree that you would lose the lives of this generation the president doesn't even have to be in the room because the God that I serve those past Secret Service gotta declare and decree but the power of the Holy Ghost that you would set an ambush on everything in this nation that was there come up against what you want to do in this life I give you full authority I give you full reign God take control and if you can do it through anybody do it through me set an ambush down on the inside of me until all I see is you until there is a fire burning down in my soul set an ambush until toxic relationships are broken set an ambush until generational curses are broken set an ambush until demons start trembling I'm sorry I told you I was the church girl but I wanna give God permission in this moment [Applause] seven ambush on stress set an ambush on cancer seven ambush on semental help done an ambush I've got a presence of God after the presence of God I only need two people to help me set an ambush on the enemy I didn't come in here for you to feel good I didn't come in here for you to be entertained I came in here to set an ambush on everything trying to set an ambush on you I came in here to go to war with the enemy get your fight back remember who you are you can set an ambush oh and a hail open up your mouth and give God some praise [Applause] don't play that church music don't play that organ they didn't come here for that de la don't do that don't do that because I know they're made crazy and they're praying grandmother's been the showed up at 6:40 North Lybrand don't do that to them they can't handle it trust me you don't want to do that to them they've been done on leash angels in this place don't do that to them I promise you the devil will start getting angry don't do that to them depression they start running out the door don't do that to them [Music] [Applause] set an ambush I can set an ambush if I remember my praise I can set an ambush if I start worshiping I won't even have to lift my arms I can set an ambush should not move it on I can set an ambush in a cubicle I can set an ambush on set just me into my god and a corner all by ourselves battle breaking out all around me and I can set an ambush y'all want to go skip to verse 24 for me y'all stay standing I'm almost finished I promise twenty-five why God what battle was breaking out you guys have to read the whole chapter it's really powerful their enemies end up turning on one another and taking one another down they never even have to get their hands dirty that battle was never there but what got me was in verse 25 it says when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil there are all these dead bodies on the ground they found among the dead bodies an abundance of valuables and precious jewelry which they stripped off for themselves what am I saying I'm saying that God had them preserved their energy and the battle that wasn't theirs so that when it was time to reap the rewards they wouldn't be tired from fighting vitals they didn't have anything to do with them all I'm telling you is the beast eale while you're fighting because I feel like when the battle is over that there's going to be treasures on dead bodies that they're going to be treasures that people left behind that they're going to be loans waiting to produce your films that there are going to be people who understand your gifts and your talents what am I saying that while they were praising and worshipping and everyone else was in battle God was making treasures follow for the people who were in battle what am I saying to you there is a treasure somewhere with your name on it be still and know that God is on your side be still and know that your worship is releasing ambushes and when the ambush is over and the blood field and the tears have been crying and the depression has lifted off of you that the job is still there that the purpose could not be healed that the pressure that God placed not on the inside of you no man could give it and therefore no man can take it away I don't care what battle you're in when you came in this room there is a treasure attached to that battle and all I wanted you to know this Thursday night to learn that you're still fighting even when you're praising that you're still fighting even when you're worshiping I know it doesn't look like it I know you're not hustling and going after the back all are you doing is getting your heart right and be in a position where God can use you I'm telling you that's the greatest fight that anyone can have you're still fighting you're still fighting God sees you you're still fighting I dragged myself in the church because I'm still fighting I haven't given up on my dream yet I haven't given up on being the first one yet I'm still fighting I'm still fighting I don't see how it's gonna happen I don't know how you're gonna open the door but I'm still fighting because my heart is singing and praising and I'm trusting your promises and I know what you said about me and I wasn't crazy when you said and I know you didn't say it to anyone else in my family but because you said it to me I'm trusting you God I'm trusting you in battle is breaking out all around me I'm trusting you to help me recognize the best way to fight this battle as I've been speaking you realize that I've been fighting all the wrong ways except for in worship I thought that I could control the narrative about my life so I was chasing down rumors and opinions I thought that I could expose something on social media that would make me special and I've been fighting all of the wrong ways thought relationships would be my come up and it's not working I've been fighting all of the wrong ways and now I want to know how to steal right now I want to know how to live in a posture of worship and praise that allows me to steal fight you don't need an invitation to come this is your church you don't need an invitation to have an encounter this is your guy you don't need an invitation for you to surrender in to worship in the praise this is what we came here to do I want to invite you into this moment so that you can get the right kind of fight the kind of fight that doesn't need someone to validate you the kind of fight where all you need is to hear from God I want to invite you to this altar what we recognize that this battle isn't about me it's about what God lays down on the inside of me and so I need to know how to be steel so that I can protect what God lays down on the inside of me if I get in battling it makes what he plays down on the inside of me toxic then I lost but if you protect what you place down on the inside of me even with war waging around me then I could still I'm still fighting I'm still fighting I'm still fighting maybe you're here and you don't really do church or religion and I didn't mention I was a church girl but I know the Lord for real and I want to invite you to be in relationship with him because only he can give you the power to stand up to the battles that are a part of life as I was reading this text I always like to find a reflection of what God is saying in the Old Testament in the New Testament because I do believe that there is a marriage there and as I was praying I pictured Jesus on the cross and I pictured Mary down at the foot of the cross crying and John hugging on to her and I pictured their earth trembling and the Roman soldiers laughing I pictured all of that how they thought it was over this was the greatest battle that they thought had come to an end little did they know that while he was on the cross with not a weapon in his hand that he would still fight me that he was fighting on the cross so that we could have encounters like this he wasn't moving he wasn't custon he wasn't saying anything and this was the greatest battle they had unleashed everything against our Jesus and he's standing on the cross and he's still fighting because he recognized that when this battle is over and they put me in that tomb I'm coming back for all of my treasure and that's you and that's me and so we just want to have a moment a moment we'll reinvade that level of fight when we talk about the blood of Jesus and how it has changed us and transformed us it is us receiving an impartation of that kind of fight I know what the world tells me about fight I know what culture tells me about fight but I want to receive an impartation that allows me to be still and still fight that allows me to be on a cross and still recognize that this too was gonna work together for my good so father God we thank you for Jesus God we thank you so much for your son that demonstrated for us perfectly how to live in a world full of chaos and to maintain our fight God it feels like all hell is breaking loose around us it feels like we don't know who to trust or what to do we don't even know what steps to take we don't know what thoughts are helping us versus what's hurting us but God we received a word tonight that we believe has radically changed our lives God we are asking that you would clear the path that we may recognize the right way to fight that you would give us a piece in the midst of the storm got our prophesy over these your sons and daughter that they would receive a divine revelation of this battle being yours this battle has your name on it God I want them to start thinking the battles right now that they thought are bigger than them and then I want them to size it up compared to you and I want them to recognize that there is no battle that is greater than what you have in store for them so god I am asking that you would increase in their life that you would give them peace and wisdom and understanding that you would give them confidence about who they are and who you've called them to be and God I just want to rebuke in the name of Jesus and the name that is above every name at the name of Jesus your word says that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess I want to use that name over warfare right now in the name of Jesus I want to use that name over everything that is coming up against them right now I want to use the name of Jesus the name that has been changing lives for thousands of years I want to use the name of Jesus over depression I want to use the name of Jesus over loss I want to use the name of Jesus over grief God I'm asking that you would cover cover every broken area with that name that you would bring healing and perspective and peace can you just repeat after me Heavenly Father thank you for Jesus thank you for making him who knew no sin all of mine all of my strengths all of my weakness you placed in his body and nailed it to the cross and when he was raised up free and victorious my strength was raised up to but my weakness was lost I lay hold of that truth I receive it i decree it as true i prophesy it over weakness and i demand that i walk in it arrest every thought that wages war against your truth fill me with your spirit until i overflow and change everything connected to me while i still fight in jesus name [Music] hey my friend I pray that that message blessed your life it blessed me for sure I want to also encourage you to pick up wholeness winning in life from the inside out this book is gonna change your life god bless you I'll see you next time

Channel: ONE | A Potter's House Church

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Id: Y4ZEgQVpSFI

Length: 41min 38sec (2498 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 23 2018