Abundant Grace Fellowship
Keys To Overcoming
Parts 1-4
Keys to Overcoming, Pt. 1 (The Power of a Shout!)
By Pastor J.D. Link
Psalm 100 says, “A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations.” For the next few weeks, we will look at several practical keys in Ps 100 to help the Christian be an over comer in life. Although we legally “are” over comers through faith in Jesus Christ, we may not be living in a practical way the overcoming life. If we will put these keys into practice, our “being” will result in “seeing”; or in other words, the truth of who we are on the inside in Christ, will be manifested on the outside in a tangible way. Let’s get into God’s Word.
Depending on what kind of church you may have been brought up in, shouting may seem very offensive. Others of us may like shouting all too much. However, regardless of what prejudices we might have, we should simply look at God’s Word and see what it has to say (2Tim 3:16). Of course, we are talking about righteous shouting, or shouts of praise unto the Lord - not shouting at the dog or the kids. Some say, “God’s not deaf!”. True, He’s not deaf - nor is He timid. Besides, shouting isn’t so God will hear you. If He lives in the Believer, do you have to yell? No, as we shall see, shouting does more for you; although it does bless God, as well.
In Ps. 100:1, “Make a joyful noise” literally means to “split the ears with a shout of joy and triumph”. Did you hear that? The Bible says make an ear-splitting shout of joy! This is repeated many times in Psalms and in other places, as well. Here are just a few (Ps 32:11, 47:1, 5, 98::4, Zep 3:14). Victory over the enemies of God often came after a mighty shout. You see this when Joshua led the Israelites to victory at
Who else shouted in God’s Word? Jesus Christ The Lord! In Jn 7:28, it says Jesus “cried” (Greek word Krazo - call aloud, exclaim, intreat; also scream or shriek in some cases) in the
Shouting intimidates the enemy. Ever heard of a silent “Charrrrge!”? A quiet battle? Of course not. Shouting also encourages your brother. Even if I am scared, if the guy standing on my left and my right is shouting for victory; then I will be encouraged! Shouting over rides your mind. If soldiers think too much about what they have to lose before going into battle, they will either run away, freeze, or get themselves or others killed. A mighty shout will drowned out your carnal mind and five senses - and you will simply “do”. There are so many applications to make to our Christian walk right here, but I don’t have space to explain in detail. I pray you make the connection.
Obviously, things should be done decently and in order in the church service. There is a time and place for shouting, and a time not to. I would strongly encourage you to find a fairly sound proof place (a closet, middle of a field, in your car on the way to work, etc.), and take a few minutes on a regular basis to shout praises! Shout victory! Shout the promises of God! Shout who you are in Christ! Shout love and affection to Jesus! I am telling you, it is medicinal! It is therapeutic! It releases things spiritually and physically. Do it, and you will see what I mean. Shouts of joy and praise to God is down-right healthy! Until next time, rejoice in The Lord!
Keys to Overcoming, Part 2
(Serve Gladly!)
By Pastor J.D. Link
Psalm 100 says, “A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations.” This week we will continue to learn keys to overcoming in our Christian walk from Ps 100. We saw last week in key number one that shouting the praises and promises of God is mentioned many times through out The Scriptures. There is a reason The Bible tells us to hold fast our “confession” of faith (Heb 10:23). Let the redeemed of the Lord “say so” (Ps 107:2). Speak the truth! Shout the truth! Praise God with a loud voice!
The second key is found in verse two, which tells us to serve the Lord with gladness. The Hebrew word for serve means to work, to labor, to be a servant, to be subject to. We are to serve the Lord. Him alone we should serve (Lk 4:8). We are to choose to serve Him today and forever (Jos 24:14-15). We are to love Him and serve Him with all our hearts (Dt. 10:12). In everything we do, we are to do it as service to Jesus; because we receive our rewards from Him - We serve the Lord Christ (
In the New Testament, we are now friends of Jesus, co-heirs to the
We must guard against being self serving. The flesh does not want to serve, but rather it wants to be served. The carnal man does not to give, he wants to take. Paul said to watch for those who do and say some good things, but they only serve their flesh (Rom 16:17-18). He said of himself, that if he did not yield to the spirit of God, his flesh would serve the law of sin (Rom 7:24-25). The self serving flesh only asks what can I get; instead of what can I give (Mal 3:13-14). We must yield to The Spirit of God, and crucify our flesh daily, so that we may be God serving instead of self serving. We are made to serve God (Eph 2:10, Heb 9:14, 12:28, Titus 2:14), as Jesus gave us example (Mt 25:33-46, Jn 13:4-15, Philp 2:2-11).
How shall we serve God? In gladness! The Hebrew word means with blithesome glee, joyfully, rejoicing, in pleasure. That is how we serve God. We are not to serve Him grudgingly with a hard heart that is far from Him. Our hearts must be behind our service. Yes, we should serve God out of obedience, but He looks upon the heart (Isa 1:11-20, Dt 28:45-47, 1Sam 16:7). When our heart is right with God, it will result in service to Him.
Here are just a few verses about being glad in the Lord: Ps 32:11, 35:27, 64:10, 68:3, 92:4, 104:34, 122:1, 126:3, Philp 4:4. A thankful person is a happy person. An unthankful person is an unhappy person. Be thankful always to God. Be glad to serve Him. Rejoice in all He has done. Be a servant and be happy. This is a necessary key to living the overcoming life. Conquer depression and boredom. Drive away the blues. Do it all by being a glad, thankful servant of God. Self service equals no joy; God service equals know joy. Incorporate this second key into your life, and see what changes it will bring. Until next time, rejoice in The Lord!
Keys To Overcoming, Pt. 3
(Know Who You are In Christ!)
By Pastor J.D. Link
Psalm 100 says, “A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations.” This week we will look at the third key to living the overcoming life in Christ, which is to know who you are in Christ. In vs. 3 it says that we should know that God is our Maker, and that we are the sheep of His pasture. Why is this a key?
If you believe that your nothing more than an advanced ape, a product of billions of years of evolution, and that you are not made by God with a purpose and destiny - then you will naturally question your worth. After all, how much is a random “blob of tissue” worth? However, if you know that you are created in the image of God, created for His purpose and pleasure - then that will bring dignity to your life, and you will live with a sense of Divine destiny.
God is our Maker (Ps 95:6). His hands formed us (Ps 119:73, 139:13-18). Before we were formed, He knew us and had a plan for us (Jer 1:5). Even if you think you are an accident - you are no accident to God. We are created in the very image of God (Gen 1:26-28), and made to have dominion on this earth. Unfortunately, something dreadful happened. Adam and Eve were told not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of good and evil, or in that day they would surely die (Gen 2:17). They ate, but did they die “that day”? In their spirit, yes. Not death as in destroyed or ceased to exist, but they were now separated from God by sin. Yet death of the soul and body began, and eventually happened as well.
Because of Adam’s disobedience, sin and death passed upon all men. The human race inherited it (Rom 5:12). You may not think that is fair, but it is truth. However, there is good news. Jesus came to restore us to God. He came to fix what Adam messed up. He came to make us once again one with God. He did it by paying the penalty for our sin, and He bought us out of the Satan’s dominion. When we receive the person of Jesus Christ, Who is God in the flesh, we become a new creation (2Cor 5:17). When we are born again, we are created in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:8-10, Gal 6:15). The new man is created instantly truly righteous and truly holy (Eph 4:23-24). We are again spiritually created in the image of God (
You see, man is a three part being - spirit, soul, and body (1Thess 5:23). When Adam sinned, he instantly died (spiritually), and progressively died in soul and body. Yet, when we are born again, we instantly become alive spiritually (new creation), and progressively become alive in our souls (By renewing our mind in God’s Word, praying, practicing our faith, receiving the mind of Christ [1Cor 2:16], etc.) and in the end receive an immortal glorified body (Phip 3:21, 1Jn 3:2). This is who we are. This is the reality of the new creation.
I won’t give the references because of space, but here are some new creation truths: In Christ Jesus You are - God’s child, unconditionally loved, accepted, blessed, saved, given eternal life, forgiven, eternally redeemed, eternally perfected, made complete, can do all things, more than a conqueror, always triumphant, victorious, a world overcomer, an heir of God, given the measure of faith, given God’s power, joy, peace, grace, His Spirit, His gifts, and made righteous. In Christ you are not rejected, weak, distressed, in despair, forsaken, destroyed or hopeless. In Christ you are healed, prosperous, wise, sanctified, given all things, you live, you move, you exist, your prayers are heard, your prayers are answered. This is who we are in Christ. Knowing this is a fundamental key in being an overcomer. Will you exalt God’s Word above your circumstances? Will you declare this is the truth, despite what you may see or experience? Will you be carnally minded - which is death; or will you be spiritually minded - which is life and peace (Rom 8:6)? God’s Word is eternal truth; but is it eternal truth to you? Think on these things (Phip 4:8). Until next time, rejoice in The Lord!
Keys To Overcoming, Pt. 4 Know Who God Is! By Pastor J.D. LinkAgf-blanco.com Ps 100 - “A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” This week we will bring to a close our four part series on Keys to Overcoming based on Ps 100. We have previously looked at the power of a shout, serving the Lord gladly, and knowing who we are in Christ. This week, we will focus on vs. 5 - knowing Who God is. Knowing someone is more than just knowing they exist. It is knowing their character and nature. I have found that many people, even Christians, do not really know Who God is. They may believe He exist, and may even trust in Jesus for salvation - but they do not truly know God’s character and nature. This is fundamental to living the overcoming life. We must know that God is good. We make it a point to confess that God is good every Sunday. Why? So that it will become a reality to us. Ps 100:5 says “The Lord is good”. How many people really believe that? I know many people that attribute every evil, disaster, and calamity to God, and then say, “God is good”. Is it not the thief (satan) who comes to steal, kill, and destroy (Jn 10:10)? Is it not satan who goes about seeking whom he may devour (1Pt 5:8)? Do we know Who God is? Do we know His nature? God is good, and His mercy endures forever (Ps 106:1). God is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works (Ps 145:9). The earth is full of the goodness of God (Ps 33:5). He causes it to rain on both the just and the unjust. Even the atheist can sit on his front porch and breath the Hill Country air and hear the birds sing and watch the sun rise over the hills. God is good, even to him. Because God is good, he longs to teach sinners His way (Ps 25:8). The goodness of God endures continuously (Ps 52:1) God is especially good to His children who put faith in Him. He is good to those that wait for Him and seek Him and trust in Him (Lam 3:25, Nah 1:7, Ps 31:19). He fills the hungry soul with goodness, and will withhold no good thing from him (Ps 107:9, 84:11). Can you confess with King David, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”? Goodness is a fruit of the spirit, because the Spirit of God is good (Gal 5:22). God’s goodness leads men to repentance (Rom 2:4). God fulfills all of the good pleasure of His goodness in His children (2Thess 1:11). But we must continue in His goodness (Rom 11:22). The Hebrew word for good used in Ps 100:5 means: beautiful, bountiful, cheerful, favorable, glad, gracious, joyful, kind, loving, merry, pleasant, precious, sweet. That is a description of The God of The Bible. True, God is just, holy, & pure. God executes justice. He judges nations and individuals in the OT; He judged sin on the cross; He will judge the unrighteous and wicked during the tribulation; and He will finally eternally judge all of the unrighteous and wicked at the Great White Throne judgment. Yet, there is a fundamental truth found through out the Bible - God delays judgment, and gives ample opportunity for people or nations to repent. You see, judgment is God’s last resort - not His first. He extends mercy and grace as much as possible. His nature is to give chance after chance after chance to repent. Where sin abounds, grace does much more abound. God is so good, He doesn’t want any to perish (2Pt 3:9). God is slow to anger (Neh 9:17, Ps 103:8, 145:8, Joel 2:13, Jon 4:2, Nah 1:3), merciful, kind, gracious, and ready to pardon. We must know God. This is Who He is. This should cause the righteous to rejoice, and to have confidence in the day of judgment (1Jn 2:28, 4:17). Don’t lose hope, but rather believe to see God’s goodness in your life (Ps 27:13). Oh taste and see that the Lord is good (Ps 34:8)! Praise the Lord for His goodness (Ps 107:15)! I pray this has started to give you understanding of God’s nature and character, and that we His children will have a proper view of God. God is good! Until next time, rejoice in The Lord!