{"id":3911,"date":"2025-03-23T13:43:19","date_gmt":"2025-03-23T20:43:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hopelcs.ca\/church\/?p=3911"},"modified":"2025-03-26T11:53:57","modified_gmt":"2025-03-26T18:53:57","slug":"the-strength-to-stand-isnt-yours-god-is-faithful-1-corinthians-101-13-march-23rd-2025-3rd-sunday-in-lent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hopelcs.ca\/church\/the-strength-to-stand-isnt-yours-god-is-faithful-1-corinthians-101-13-march-23rd-2025-3rd-sunday-in-lent\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThe Strength to Stand (Isn\u2019t Yours) \u2013 God Is Faithful&#8221; \/ 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 \/ March 23rd, 2025 \/ 3rd Sunday in Lent"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Sermon Outline \u2013 March 23rd, 2025<br \/>\n<\/strong><strong>Text:<\/strong><strong> Luke 13:1-9<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> Introduction \u2013 The Reality of Temptation<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>When we think of temptation, we often picture &#8220;classical temptations&#8221; (money, greed, lust, etc.).<\/li>\n<li>But there are also <em>invisible<\/em> temptations\u2014those that seem justified, reasonable, or even good.<\/li>\n<li>Today, let\u2019s expose these hidden temptations and see how God\u2019s faithfulness is our strength.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> The Invisible Temptations We Face<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>(Each temptation is a false path, leading us away from God.)<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>The Pursuit of Constant Happiness\n<ul>\n<li>The digital world tells us everyone else is happy; we feel pressured to seek happiness at all costs.<\/li>\n<li>But true joy isn\u2019t found in changing circumstances\u2014it&#8217;s found in Christ.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>A Life of Complaint\n<ul>\n<li>The opposite temptation: embracing victimhood, always seeing ourselves as the ones who suffer most.<\/li>\n<li>Tempts us to forget our blessings and vocation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Adapting God to the World\u2019s Standards\n<ul>\n<li>The pressure to reshape God&#8217;s truth to fit modern culture.<\/li>\n<li>But God\u2019s Word does not change\u2014it shapes <em>us<\/em>, not the other way around.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The Illusion of Control\n<ul>\n<li>We think we can manage life, our future, even our faith by our own strength.<\/li>\n<li>But Proverbs 16:9 reminds us: <em>&#8220;The Lord establishes our steps.&#8221;<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Measuring Worth by Productivity\n<ul>\n<li>We are tempted to find value in what we do, rather than in Christ\u2019s finished work.<\/li>\n<li>But Ephesians 2:8-9 reminds us we are saved by grace, not by works.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Transition: These temptations are ultimately forms of idolatry\u2014placing something above God.<\/p>\n<p><strong>III. The Mercy of Our Savior<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Paul warns in 1 Corinthians 10: <em>&#8220;Let anyone who thinks he stands take heed lest he falls.&#8221;<\/em><\/li>\n<li>The Law convicts us\u2014but Jesus doesn\u2019t just diagnose sin; He provides the cure!<\/li>\n<li>He <em>is<\/em> the Way of escape from sin and temptation.<\/li>\n<li>Luther: <em>Christ came to save us from ourselves.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>God\u2019s faithfulness, not our strength, is what sustains us.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Illustration: The doctor story\u2014if we refuse to hear what\u2019s wrong, we won\u2019t seek healing.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> God Is Faithful \u2013 The Strength to Stand Isn\u2019t Ours<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>1 Corinthians 10 doesn\u2019t say <em>we<\/em> bear temptation alone. It says God won\u2019t let us be tempted beyond what we can bear\u2014because He is the one bearing us.<\/li>\n<li>Trusting in our own strength is like buying the cheap option\u2014eventually, it costs us more.<\/li>\n<li>Our hope is not in \u201cbeing better\u201d but in Christ, who carried the burden for us.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Illustration: The little girl carrying the bag\u2014thinking she did it, but all along, the father was the one carrying her.<\/p>\n<p><strong> Conclusion \u2013 The Strength to Stand Is in Christ<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Whether &#8220;classical&#8221; or &#8220;invisible,&#8221; temptation will come.<\/li>\n<li>But we don\u2019t stand alone\u2014our Father carries us.<\/li>\n<li>He forgives, strengthens, and calls us to bear fruit in Him.<\/li>\n<li>God is faithful\u2014He will bring us safely home. Amen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;..<\/p>\n<h3>Text: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9<br \/>\nTheme: \u201cThe strength to stand (isn\u2019t yours) &#8211; <em>God<\/em> is faithful\u201d<br \/>\n___________________________<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Intr<\/strong> \u2013 The text of the epistle for today talks about temptation. When we talk about them what usually comes to mind are the ones we could call \u2018Classical temptations\u201d. Money, sexuality, gossip, infidelity, greed\u2026. They seem obvious, and they are out there all the time, inviting us to escape the \u2018boring\u2019 faith environment to try some breath-taking adrenaline-boosting options\u2026<\/p>\n<p>These \u201cclassical\u201d temptations are still around us trying to push us away of the Word. But I would like to talk also about some other kind of temptation. I am talking about those temptations that sometimes become <em>authorized, justified, or invisible<\/em>. We do not perceive them anymore as temptations. They don\u2019t show up as a visible golden calf. They get into people\u2019s lives as they try to find good reasons to show how there\u2019s nothing wrong in that. Sometimes, they may become even a way of life.<\/p>\n<p><strong>1 \u2013 The \u201cinvisible\u201d temptations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Let me list some examples:<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8211; The pursuit of constant happiness<\/em>. Think of the digital world. When we go online, we think that everybody seem so overwhelmingly happy while our life is so full of problems! Friends are traveling, celebrating, smiling, having fun\u2026 Then those words ring in our ears: \u201cYou are meant to be happy. You deserve happiness!\u201d The idea presented is that when it comes to your happiness there\u2019s little forbidden. If things do not go right, just change your house, your spouse, your boss, your friends, your church\u2026. \u201cYou were born to be happy\u201d. And suddenly, we find ourselves trapped into this temptation thinking it is ok to live with this pressure of being happy all the time, with the resulting frustration to deal with. <em>The reason why this is a temptation is: it normally drives us away from the Biblical definition of happiness.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>-A life of complaint.<\/em> That is the opposite of the previous one. In this case, we are tempted to embrace victimhood, as if we were those whose lives are always the worst. We have not enough money, we get sick too often, our job is terrible, nobody calls us for coffee, and almost nobody notices we exist\u2026 We internally become that cartoon character who was always moaning \u201cOh, me, oh my, oh dear\u201d, exercising a type of selfishness which someone called \u201cthe power of the victim\u201d. By becoming the victim one can at the same time start to control everything around and gain power over them.\u00a0 <em>The reason why this is a temptation is: it tempts us away from acknowledging bot our vocation and all the blessings we have<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<em>Adapt God to the philosophical, pragmatical and social needs of our time<\/em>. We are constantly tempted to make God to follow the spirit of the time. The social pressure to be not so narrow minded as to believe an old book of tales and \u2018metaphors\u2019 and to accept new ways of seeing things. Specially, to accept new concepts of life, faith and behaving that clash against God\u2019s Word, creating our good reasons to justify them. <em>The reason why this is a temptation is: it replaces the Word with the World\u2019s<\/em> aspirations and ideologies.<\/p>\n<p><em>The Illusion of Control <\/em>&#8211; One of the greatest temptations we face is the belief that we can control everything in our lives\u2014our future, our success, our health, and even our faith. We plan, strategize, and organize, thinking that if we just try hard enough, we can guarantee the outcomes we desire. But when things don\u2019t go our way, we grow anxious, frustrated, and even resentful toward God. The truth is, control is an illusion. As Proverbs 16:9 reminds us, <em>&#8220;The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.&#8221; <\/em><em>The reason why this is a temptation is: it<\/em><em> puts us in the driver seat that belongs to Jesus.<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\"><strong>[1]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Measuring Worth by Productivity <\/em>&#8211; In our fast-paced world, we are tempted to equate our worth with how much we accomplish. We live by to-do lists, judge our success by output, and even bring this mindset into our faith, thinking that the more we <em>do<\/em> for God, the more He must love us. <em>The reason why this is a temptation is<\/em>: it leads is to find worth in what we accomplish, instead of what Christ has done for us. Ephesians 2:8-9 reminds us, <em>&#8220;For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>These temptations &#8211; and many other examples could be recalled &#8211; often are ones that go unnoticed. They just become part of life. Even inside the church we are sometimes tempted to adopt a way of life in which temptation becomes invisible and justified.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, all these temptations they fall under what 1Corinthians 10 describes as idolatry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWait a minute, pastor. I don\u2019t bow before idols or pagan gods, so I\u2019m not an idolater.\u201d First of all, I know you don\u2019t\u2014and thanks be to God for that! But idolatry runs deeper than statues and rituals. An idol is anything that takes God\u2019s rightful place as first in our lives. These temptations\u2014and many others\u2014fit that category. They represent lifestyles where God is still present but no longer at the center.<\/p>\n<p>Then here comes Paul to hit us like a brick preaching the law in its strictness. \u201cLet anyone who thinks he stands take heed lest he falls\u201d. Sin is sin, whether we recognize it or if we redefine it to fit our way of living. Sin is tied so tight to our human nature that outside of the God\u2019s forgiveness and love we have no hope of escaping eternal condemnation. And we need that. We need the Law of God ringing in our ears to let us know about our imperfection and the danger of losing our salvation to temptation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou sure, pastor? You see, I know that sin is a biblical teaching and must be taught. But aren\u2019t we sometimes too negative? Perhaps the way to help people is being more positive?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That reminds me of a story.<\/p>\n<p>Paul was talking to a friend about his last medical appointment.<br \/>\n-The doctor said that my eyes are perfect. My lungs are correctly functioning, my kidneys work fine, and my heart couldn\u2019t be better. Ah, and about cholesterol and blood pressure&#8230; nothing wrong with them!<br \/>\n-Oh, wow, said the friend. &#8211; But Paul\u2026didn\u2019t you go to the doctor because of a backache?<br \/>\n-That\u2019s right.<br \/>\n-So why did the doctor tell you only what\u2019s good?\u00a0 Didn\u2019t he point out what\u2019s wrong so you can cure it?<br \/>\n-Oh, yes, he tried to talk about what is bad, but I wouldn\u2019t listen. I like only to hear good news.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes we refuse to hear anything about what\u2019s truly wrong and needs change. \u00a0You cannot talk about sin, guilt, lack of responsibility, depression, death\u2026 Nor discuss any other thing showing the truth that we are imperfect. \u201cHey, let\u2019s change the topic, man\u201d. \u201cBe positive!\u201d \u201cTalk about good stuff!\u201d But do we go to the doctor to hear about what\u2019s good or to know what needs healing?<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>2 \u2013 The mercy of our Savior<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Now, the doctor tells us the truth. We are sinners. But is that the purpose of the doctor, to say the plain truth and that\u2019s it? Not really. Jesus Christ points out our imperfection, yes, He does.\u00a0But unlike many in our days who have delight in finding sins only to hammer the sinner, He forgives. \u00a0He loves and recovers our hearts. He brings us the cure for our worst illness. The follow-through of the appointment with The Doctor is a new life where treatment and prevention walk together.<\/p>\n<p>Jesus does not only provide a way of escape sin and temptation; <em>he is the Way of escape<\/em>. Luther nailed it when he said that Christ came <em>to save us from ourselves<\/em>. Our hope, our strength, our salvation is outside ourselves. And yet it comes inside to our hearts through faith, by Grace, to save us, to strengthen and to give us the assuredness that only His Word can do.<\/p>\n<p>1Corinthians 10 is inserted in the context of a warning against idolatry. Because in the end, all these temptations boil down to the first commandment. We are tempted to replace God by something else as the first place in life, as the source of our faith and trust. Therefore, we need to pay attention to what God says: <strong>God is faithful.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>3 \u2013 God is faithful<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Now, we know we continue to be sinners. We know temptations keep knocking at our door all the time. We know that is a nut hard to crack. Then, what do we do?<\/p>\n<p>Our natural thinking would lead us to try to be better persons, to behave better, to please God. \u201cIf I only could be a little stronger, if I do obey a little better, then I\u2019ll please God and have strength and power to overcome temptations. After all, there\u2019s that bible verse in first Corinthians that says &#8220;God won&#8217;t give you more than you can handle&#8221;, isn&#8217;t that right?<\/p>\n<p>This reminds me of a Brazilian saying: <em>Cheap becomes expensive<\/em>. It\u2019s a saying used to define those situations when you buy something cheap to save some money only to find that the piece does not work well. Now you have spent your money in a useless piece and will have to spend more money to buy the one you should have bought at the beginning of the whole story.<\/p>\n<p>Cheap becomes expensive when we think of tackling temptations with our own hands. Once we learn from different sides of society that \u2018you were born to be happy\u2019 by \u201cdoing it yourself\u2019, then cheap ways to it overflow. Books, TV shows, \u201ccounselors\u201d&#8230; You deserve to be happy so never mind if you do \u2018a little wrong\u2019 here, another one there, if you step over other peoples back to upscale in life. \u201cDo a little better and become a little better. No problem! You deserve it.\u201d <em>Cheap becomes expensive<\/em>. Broken marriages, relationships full of resentment, pain\u2026 The spiritual price to pay often is so high that people eventually breakdown. <em>And again, here we are being idolaters \u2013 substituting trust in God for trust in something else.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In first Corinthians Paul tells us something different. \u201cGod is faithful\u201d. \u201cGod won\u2019t let you be tempted\u201d. Is not about us receiving a burden from God and trying to handle it, to carry along. The strength to stand isn\u2019t yours. It\u2019s His. This is about God being faithful, caring, and merciful by not allowing us to go beyond our strength. He is de one doing the action. He is the caring and loving One. Because the burden of sin was laid upon Christ, because He went to the cross in our place, we are made sure that even if temptations come, is not up to us, but up to Him. We need the expensive that became not cheap, but actually free!<\/p>\n<p>We don\u2019t need happiness as a <em>feeling<\/em> much as we need it as <em>meaning<\/em>. Our happiness flows for our meaningful life in Christ. We don\u2019t need to play the victim; Christ was made the victim on the Cross in our place to give us a life of forgiveness and strength. We don\u2019t need to adapt the Word of God to anything; it is Sufficient and True as it has always been. We can follow our hearts when our hearts follow Jesus. That\u2019s when it is well oriented and going in the right direction.<\/p>\n<p>Jesus is the source of all we need to face and overcome temptation. Also, when we fall, we have his forgiveness that lifts us up again and make us walk in His love every new day! Will we still be tempted? Of course, we will. Will we face temptation alone? Of course, we won&#8217;t! As a fellow pastor wrote, &#8220;Our God gives us the way of Him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the way He gives us, His forgiveness, through His Word and Sacraments, our spiritual food and drink.\u201d God is love. God is grace. God is Faithful!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cc &#8211;<\/strong> A fellow pastor told me this story that happened to him and his younger daughter. He was returning home from the grocery store with the plastic bags in his hands and having the toddler walking beside him. At some point of the way the kid insisted in carrying one of those bags, even after he saying she probably wouldn\u2019t be able to carry it \u2018till home.\u201d-Are you sure you can do this, sweetie?\u201d \u201c-Of course, daddy. I promise I\u2019ll carry this bag home &#8211; was her answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As they moved some yards on the girl started to show she was getting tired, as anticipated by the father. Finally, she asked. \u201cDaddy, would you please, carry me in your arms?\u201d The request was granted.<\/p>\n<p>When the father stood in the front door, he put the youngster back on the ground so he would be able to open it. That\u2019s when she proudly looked up and stated: \u201c-See, daddy? I promised you I would bring this bag home in my hands!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes, temptations come. Whether \u2018classical\u2019 or \u2018invisible\u2019, they try to lead us astray. And yes, sometimes we think the merit of dealing with them is ours. But our father just looks down and smiles. He is the one acting. For the strength to stand, the strength to walk and carry on is not yours. It\u2019s His. God is faithful. He always gives another day, another month, another year! He forgives us, takes us in His hands and sends us to bear fruit, praising Him, loving our neighbor, fleeing temptation. \u00a0For the strength to stand and carry on come from his hands of love. In Him, we will be carried in safety all the way to our eternal home. Amen.<\/p>\n<p>________________________________<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\"><strong>[1]<\/strong><\/a> Prioritizing Comfort Over Faithfulness &#8211; Another subtle temptation is choosing comfort over faithfulness. We avoid difficult conversations about faith to keep the peace. We resist stepping out in service because it disrupts our routines. We stay in our spiritual comfort zones rather than seeking deeper growth in God&#8217;s Word. We justify it by saying, <em>&#8220;I\u2019ll follow Jesus\u2026 as long as it\u2019s convenient.&#8221;<\/em> But Jesus never called us to an easy life\u2014He called us to take up our cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23).<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<em>Follow your heart<\/em> \u2013 That became almost an unquestionable <em>must do<\/em> of modern times. It seems that the heart has become one of the most powerful rulers of our present world. If you \u2018follow your heart\u2019, then you must be right. Not many people would take a minute to think what would happen if your heart is following the wrong person, the wrong reason &#8211;\u00a0 or following nothing at all.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<em>&#8220;Well, I may be wrong, BUT&#8230;&#8221;<\/em> The first part, <em>&#8220;I may be wrong,&#8221;<\/em> is immediately undone by the adversative conjunction <em>&#8220;but.&#8221; <\/em>It&#8217;s becoming common uncommon to hear people\u2014especially showbiz stars\u2014using the catchphrase <em>&#8220;I have no regrets&#8221;<\/em> or <em>&#8220;I don\u2019t repent for anything I\u2019ve done.&#8221;<\/em> The reasoning? <em>&#8220;Even my mistakes made me grow into the better person I am today.&#8221; <\/em>But even when someone acknowledges they may have done something wrong, the moment they add a <em>&#8220;however,&#8221;<\/em> it often serves to justify their actions and sidestep the need for true repentance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sermon Outline \u2013 March 23rd, 2025 Text: Luke 13:1-9 Introduction \u2013 The Reality of Temptation When we think of temptation, we often picture &#8220;classical temptations&#8221; (money, greed, lust, etc.). But there are also invisible temptations\u2014those that seem justified, reasonable, or even good. Today, let\u2019s expose these hidden temptations and see how God\u2019s faithfulness is our [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":3912,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3911","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>\u201cThe Strength to Stand (Isn\u2019t Yours) \u2013 God Is Faithful&quot; \/ 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 \/ March 23rd, 2025 \/ 3rd Sunday in Lent - Hope Lutheran Church Port Coquitlam<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hopelcs.ca\/church\/the-strength-to-stand-isnt-yours-god-is-faithful-1-corinthians-101-13-march-23rd-2025-3rd-sunday-in-lent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u201cThe Strength to Stand (Isn\u2019t Yours) \u2013 God Is Faithful&quot; \/ 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 \/ March 23rd, 2025 \/ 3rd Sunday in Lent - Hope Lutheran Church Port Coquitlam\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sermon Outline \u2013 March 23rd, 2025 Text: Luke 13:1-9 Introduction \u2013 The Reality of Temptation When we think of temptation, we often picture &#8220;classical temptations&#8221; (money, greed, lust, etc.). But there are also invisible temptations\u2014those that seem justified, reasonable, or even good. 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