The Lord is Your Helper

Hebrews 12:1-2

Deuteronomy 9:1-2

It was a known proverb. Who can stand against the children of Anak? And that proverb often took root in the minds and hearts of the children of Israel, just questioning, how on earth are we going to overcome these people!? Who can stand against the children of Anak? And sometimes in our lives we get to the situation where it’s possible that fear might grip your heart because you’re facing a situation or it’s something you’re facing and the enemy of your soul wants you to be gripped by fear.

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Caleb heard this proverb. It was widely known. And when you hear something, what the enemy of your heart wants to do is to grip it with fear. It’s as if you become paralyzed in the headlights; you can’t move. Perfect love casts out fear.

You and I have to remain focused. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee. And the opposite of fear is perfect love and Jesus dispels fear.

Not just this week, but for our whole life, my heart is not going to be afraid because of who God is and what he is going to complete in my life.

There was a promise made to Caleb.

Deuteronomy 31:4-7

I’m going to keep my focus on the Lord God. Caleb had a different spirit.

Numbers 32:12

You and I have the choice in our life to go forwards in the right way or not. We are free to make that choice. Before we are a Christian, the default of your life is sin. As a Christian, we have the option and the glorious power and strength of God so that we can go forwards and fulfil his will in our lives.

Joshua 14:6-10

Forty five years he’d been waiting for the fulfilment of the promise for the land he would have. During that time he didn’t doubt God. More importantly he didn’t become resentful that this thing wasn’t happening for him. He didn’t feel bitter that God had somehow forgotten him, as it were. But he wholly followed the Lord.

Joshua 14:11-12

His strength was undiminished. What I want to highlight to you this morning that the key thing was that his focus hadn’t altered. He wholly followed the Lord. Don’t discount this because it was in the Old Testament. We’re talking about a man’s relationship with God. But I’m emphasising to you that when we read about someone like Caleb who is a witness of how God interacts with an individual., how he takes an individual so carefully and nurses that life and that life in Caleb’s terms was one where he stayed focused, week in week out, and when others might have got blessed or there was something he heard about, as far as he was concerned, wholly he stayed focused. And in forty five years he still knew God was going to see him through.

Is there a mountain in your mind that you’ve been facing this week. Something that the enemy has said “you see that won’t work out” or “God will never provide for you in the way you thought he would” or “you’re never going to get blessed”. And the enemy will use anything he can to cause our hearts to be gripped by fear.

But God is faithful and he will complete the work he started in your life and this morning, the faith that is being communicated to you, as with Caleb, now therefore Lord, let’s go for it. I want to see you glorified because I want to bring glory to your name, because I am trusting you. In everything I am trusting you and until that day when I shall see you face to face after I have fulfilled my days on earth, all I want to do is to fulfil your purposes for my life. And I want to help others to fulfil the purposes for their lives.

“Give me this mountain Joshua.” God says.

Psalms 48:14

And Jesus in the New Testament he refers to “continue in my word and the truth shall make you free”. Our call is that we should continue steadfast in God.

With Caleb it was a case of “Joshua, don’t worry about the fact that this has still got to happen. I’m still relying on God to do this.”

Joshua 14:13-15

Hebrews 13:5-6

That is true of you this morning. The Lord is your helper. The Lord is your helper. Don’t fear what man can do to you. It might be in your workplace that you’re facing something that’s gripping people with fear at the moment. The Lord is my helper. It might be concerns about your family or your children or in your marriage. I will not fear what man shall do unto me because the Lord is my helper.

He is faithful and the one who has called me. I will not fear.

So Caleb possessed the area of the Anakins.

Joshua 15:16-20

There is something about having that focus in your life. You transmit it. But the key point is for us to stay focused; I’m going God’s way, I will not fear what man will do. In any situation in my life, I’m going forward in Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 12:1-4

Verse 2: “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith”. That’s focused. That’s Paul saying “This is the way to live and this is how you should go forwards in your life: Looking unto Jesus” By his holy spirit he lives inside you.

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. He completed the work God sent him to do.

Mr Russell

John 6:53-56

This is the most wonderful union we can have. Day by day we walk by him. He’s inside you. He’s never going to leave you. You belong to him. You’ve become one with him. That is the first thing we remember as we come.

But there is another thing. When Jesus spoke to his disciples at the last supper, it used to be a supper to commemorate the deliverance out of Egypt. But Jesus said,” From this day on, whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, do this in remembrance of me”. For hundreds of years they had celebrated it to remember the deliverance from Egypt but now Jesus said “From now on, you do this to remember what I have done for you.” It was always a celebration meal. It was never meant to be me and Jesus alone, thank you Lord. It was never meant to be that. It was a meal.

The power is in your relationship with Jesus and in him. And because he lives in you, the power is in you. The power is not in the bread and wine, it’s in you! There is no mystic power in the food and drink. It was meant to be a celebratory meal to enjoy and to share together. In the acts of the apostles “and they broke bread with joy and gladness”. It’s a joyful time because we remember what Christ has done in us but also it’s a time to celebrate our one with Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:10

We give thanks to God for our relationship with Christ and our fellowship with one another. Let me say this, until you know that oneness with him, you will never understand oneness with one another. Until we get our focus on him, we won’t have fellowship with one another. You’ll only see the problems and the negativity. When I have a difficulty with someone, I can look at that person and say “he or she loves Jesus as much as I do and he or she has a longing and desire to serve him as much as I do, and therefore, we are one together”. This was very helpful in seeing past the problems and the difficulties.

When your walk with him is right, your walk with your brethren is right. And you’ll be able to see past all the problems and the negativity and see the unity.

Hebrews 12:2

The joy was us!

[Communion]

There should never be any condemnation in Jesus Christ and we should never feel condemned by one another. But now we can rejoice in what God has done for us. We are all brothers and sisters. By focusing on him and not on the negatives, that is how we love one another.