Victory by Faith | Sunday, May 24, 2020 (Full Service)

Good morning, Cross Connection Church family. Welcome to church at home, and happy Memorial Day weekend! I hope and pray that you and your family are doing well this Sunday morning.

On the topic of prayer, I want to remind and encourage you to send us your prayer requests. Every single day, the members of our prayer team are lifting your requests up to the Lord. We trust that our God hears and answers our prayers.

As you are sending your prayer requests, please remember in your prayers to thank God for all of those throughout our nation's history who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our freedoms, as we remember them tomorrow on Memorial Day. General George S. Patton once said, "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that they lived." Winston Churchill said, "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." We are truly grateful for those who have fought and given their lives in defense of our freedom.

Before we begin our time of worship this morning, I would ask you once again to consider sending an invite text message to a friend or a group of friends, inviting them to join us for church at home this morning. Just send out a text inviting people to join us online at live.ccurch.com. We have a great service planned this morning, and let's invite the Lord to meet us now in prayer as Pastor Anthony leads us. Amen.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, we are so thankful that we can raise our hallelujah to You and raise our worship to You this morning. We want to bless You, God, with all that is within us, and cry out to our Abba Father.

Lord, would You receive our worship? Would You receive our praise? Will You be glorified and lifted high? God, would You build us up in our faith as we pour out our hearts to You? Would You pour back into us more love, more power, and more faith? We thank You in Jesus' mighty name. Amen.

In the presence of my enemies, I raise a hallelujah. My weapon is a melody. I'll raise a hallelujah; heaven comes to fight for me.

I'm going to sing in the middle of the storm, louder and louder. You're going to hear my praises roar. Up from the ashes, hope will arise. Death is defeated. The King is alive.

There is a hallelujah with everything inside of me. I raise a high hallelujah in the darkest flame. I raise a high hallelujah of mystery. Still, you lost your hold on me.

I'm going to sing in the middle of the storm, louder and louder. You're going to hear my praises roar. Up from the ashes, hope will arise. Death is defeated. The King is alive.

Sing a little louder in the presence of my enemies. Sing a little louder, louder than the unbelief. Sing a little louder; my weapon is a melody. Sing a little louder; heaven comes to fight for me.

I'm going to sing in the middle of the storm. Louder and louder, you're going to hear my praises roar up from the ashes. Hope will arise. Death is defeated. The King is alive.

Hey, Cross Connection Church! Pastor Jason here. It is great to see you guys—well, a camera at least—but I'm trusting that you're on the other end watching this. Welcome to church this morning! I would love to take this opportunity to say welcome. We're glad you're here. We're super glad you're here.

Another thing we would love to do is pray with you. We would love the chance to pray for you. If you have a prayer request, a praise report, or anything that you would like us to pray for, we would love to be a part of that. You can submit your prayer request or praise report at prayer.lifeinconnection.com, and we will walk with you on this journey of prayer.

Also, at lifeinconnection.com, you can find all the other ways to communicate with us that you might need. You'll find old messages, ways to give, and all kinds of information there at lifeinconnection.com.

All right, so today's mission is the Gentle Hearts Children Foundation.

Catmandeue, Nepal. The Gentle Hearts Children Foundation is a place where they rescue kids off the street. They provide training, shelter, and protection, helping them to live a happy and fruitful life while knowing about Jesus. Here’s a little video that will show you more about what they do.

Hello, how are you? Thank you for your prayers. By the grace of God, we are fine here. Thank you for all the love and support. Keep praying, because we will also remember you in our prayers. Thank you.

Hi, thank you so much for your prayers and support for the Zender Foundation. I really appreciate you standing with us. The time is not favorable, but we are feeling the mighty presence of our God, and we are very grateful to you for your support. By the grace of God and through your prayers, we are witnessing life transformations in the lives of the children and the people we are involved with. Thank you so much for your partnership. We highly appreciate you.

In Nepal, the lockdown is still ongoing. Life seems very vulnerable, but despite the challenges, we are feeling His presence in our day-to-day lives. Thank you so much for everything that you are doing. God bless you all.

It’s a time of service where we set aside to bring our gifts and tithes to the Lord. God wants us to give; He wants us to be cheerful, hilarious givers. At Cross Connection Church, we want to make that as easy as possible for you. We have three main ways for giving: you can text to give at the number below, go to our website lifeandconnection.com to give there, or mail it to the church address, which you can also find on the website or below.

All right, guys, Anony is going to go ahead and lead us in some more worship. God bless you all. I'll catch you next time.

On the day that death surrendered to the mighty cross of Jesus Christ, the earth would shade beneath the weight of darkening skies. On His brow, a crown of sorrow rested for a King whose weakness was our strength. No word He spoke; His love was shown for all to see. Oh, the cross of Jesus Christ is the reason for His blood, which has set me free. It will never lose its power for me.

Know that the dawn of resurrection floods the night as hope prevails to shine. Salvation wakes our chains to break, and we rise. Oh, the cross!

The blood of Jesus Christ is the reason for my life. His blood has set me free. He will never lose His power for me. Hallelujah! Christ, the victory! Hallelujah! Hallelujah is for me. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Christ's victory! Hallelujah! Hallelujah is one for me. It is one. It is one for me.

On the day He comes in glory to reveal the fullness of His reign, our hearts will bow before the sound of Jesus' name. The cross of Jesus Christ is the reason for my life.

For his blood has set me free. He will never lose his power for me. Oh, the cross of Jesus Christ is the reason for his love that has set me free. You will never lose it. Power. You will never lose. It's powerful.

Father, we are so thankful and so grateful for you, God, now more than ever. We know that you are with us every step of this journey. Lord, we thank you, Father, that you are good. We know you use all things for good and that you will make it all good for us. Lord, help us to follow you. Open our hearts. Speak to us today for what you would want us to hear from you. We love you, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Before we begin our study today in Deuteronomy chapter 3, I want to take a few minutes to acknowledge a few things. First, this last Tuesday, evangelist and apologist Ravi Zacharias died of cancer at age 74. As the Scriptures reveal in 1 Thessalonians 4:13, we do not sorrow as those who have no hope, but we do sorrow. I am grateful that Ravi is with Jesus. The Bible declares in Psalm 16, "In his presence is fullness of joy and at his right hand pleasures forevermore." Ravi is in the presence of our Lord and experiencing fullness of joy. Be that as it may, we, myself included, are sorrowful. The name Ravi Zacharias may not be familiar to

I began reading Ravi's books and listening to his lectures almost 20 years ago. I can say without exaggeration that my approach to the Scriptures and the way I preach them has been significantly affected by the writing and teaching of Ravi. I began downloading and listening to his message, "Let My People Think," or his radio program, "Let My People Think," in 2003. I have listened to probably hundreds of hours of his lectures. If you're not familiar with Ravi, I would highly recommend that you search for his podcast on your phone. If you're interested in a good summer read, you should consider his book, "Can Man Live Without God?"

Ravi came to faith at age 17 after a suicide attempt. The words of Jesus in John 14:19, "Because I live, you also will live," forever changed Ravi's life. He found hope, peace, and meaning in Jesus Christ, and he spent the next 57 years imparting the same to others through the gospel. If you've followed my teaching for any length of time, you will notice the influence of Zacharias in my teaching. My theopilosophical approach to the Scripture is, in many ways, attributed to Ravi.

I often speak of the fact that any worldview, for it to be worthwhile, must have compelling and coherent answers to the basic philosophical questions of life, dealing with identity, purpose, origin, destiny, and morality. If your worldview does not answer the questions, "Who am I? Why am I here? Where did I come from? Where do I go after this? And what is right and wrong?" in a compelling and coherent manner, then your philosophy is lacking. I am wholly unashamed to say that I learned the truth of these things from Ravi.

I think that Ravi's death is a great loss, though I am grateful that he is in heaven. As King David said in 2 Samuel 3:38, "A prince and a great man has fallen this day." The second thing I want to say today is that Ravi is in the presence of Christ because of the reality of those words of Jesus that Ravi loved so much from John 14:19: "Because I live, you also will live."

Jesus is alive, and we celebrate his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. In fact, this last Thursday, May 21st, was the celebration of the ascension of Jesus. In celebration of the continuing life of Christ, the church has been partaking of the supper that the Lord instituted the night before his crucifixion for the last 2,000 years. We will continue to celebrate his death, burial, and resurrection until he comes again.

Next Sunday, we will be celebrating communion together, and we want to furnish you with the elements to do so. Next Sunday is an important day in the annual church calendar; it is the day of Pentecost. We'll be talking a little bit more about that next week, but I want you to be aware that we celebrate communion together even though we will be at home.

So, today, May 24th, between 2 and 4 p.m., if you would like to drive through the church parking lot, just like we did a couple of weeks ago on Mother's Day, we will be providing you with bread and the cup for communion for next week. I hope that you'll take advantage of this. Communion is very important to us as followers of Jesus. If you're available and looking for a reason to get out of the house for a drive this afternoon, drive through the church parking lot, and we will provide you with the elements for communion for next week.

I know that there's a lot I'm hitting on before we actually get into the scriptures today, but as you well know, today is May 24th. I was reminded this last week, as I was doing some research for a paper that I was writing, that today is an important day in church history. One of my favorite figures in church history is the founder of the Methodist Church, John Wesley. In fact, I'm such a fan of John Wesley that my youngest son's middle name is Wesley, after John Wesley.

John Wesley lived in the 18th century in England. He is, in my opinion, one of the most important Christians of the last thousand years. His life and work have fundamentally altered the Western world for the last 250 years. On May 24th, 1738, 282 years ago today, Wesley experienced a radical transformation in his life by the power and grace of God. Though I believe that he was a Christian prior to this experience, it marked a significant turning point in his faith journey.

This experience on May 24th, 1738, was undoubtedly sacred. It marked a significant waypoint in John Wesley's life. In fact, prior to that day, the 35-year-old Wesley was on the verge of giving up his work as a minister. He describes the event of that day in his journal as follows:

"In the evening, I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street where one was reading from Luther's preface to the Epistle of Romans. About a quarter before 9, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation. An assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."

Some of you watching this morning need to trust in Christ alone for salvation, too. Your heart has been cold and hard, and in some way, you have been resisting the work that God desires to do in your life. You cannot answer in any meaningful way the questions of identity, purpose, origin, destiny, or morality. You are feeling the weight of your sins, and you do not have the assurance and peace that are found in Christ.

Today is the day to trust in Christ alone for salvation and to ask Him to come into your life and take away your sins. I realize that this may be out of the sequence that I normally follow in my teaching. I haven't even opened to the text of Deuteronomy that we are going to study today, but I believe there are some of you listening to this message right now who need to trust in Christ for salvation, either for the first time or as a reaffirmation of that trust.

I want to lead you in a simple prayer to do that before we look at Deuteronomy chapter 3 today. Trusting in Christ alone for salvation is not complicated. First, you admit that you are a sinner. Second, you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and paid the penalty for them. Third, you confess your sins to God through prayer and accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

If you would like to do that today, I want to lead you in a prayer right now. So, if that's you, would you just bow in prayer?

With me wherever you're at, just follow along in this very simple prayer of confession and faith.

Dear Jesus, I pray that you would come into my life and forgive me of my sins. I recognize my need for you. I recognize that I've come short of your perfect standard in your law. I've broken your law. But I pray, God, that you would forgive me on the basis of what your Son, Jesus, did on the cross. I thank you so much that you have loved me and given yourself for me. I pray that you would come into my life and forgive me of my sin. In Jesus' name, Amen.

If you did that today, I want to invite you to send us a message at the website on the screen, commit.lifeconnection.com. We would love to be in contact with you, to send you a Bible if you don't have one, and to help you begin your walk with Jesus as you start your new life with Him right now.

Now, if you watched our broadcast from last week, you know that we are studying through the book of Deuteronomy. This book, the fifth book of the Bible, contains a very challenging passage that we dealt with last week, focusing on the beginning of Israel's conquest of the promised land. Moses, in this passage, is reminding the children of Israel of their recent history just before they were going to cross over the Jordan River to take possession of the land that had been promised to Israel some 400 years before this.

The challenging passage we looked at last week dealt with the destruction of the Amorite people of Heshbon and their king, Sihon. This is a challenging passage of Scripture because it offends the sensibilities of people living in our time. As we read in the passage from Deuteronomy chapter 2, verses 33 through 35, we see, "And the Lord our God delivered him over to us. So we defeated him and his sons and all his people. We took all his cities at that time and we utterly destroyed the men, women, and the little ones of every city. We left none remaining. We took only the living livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took." Understandably, these words are...

A stumbling block to many, passages like this one are ridiculed by skeptics and antagonists against the Bible and Christianity. They are purported to be genocide passages, and Christians are made to feel ridiculous for following what is called a warmongering God like Yahweh in the Bible. In his book, The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins calls the God of the Old Testament the most unpleasant character in all of fiction. He accuses God of being a petty, unjust, unforgiving control freak, a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser who is a capriciously malevolent bully. As a result of such words, a lot of Christians have distanced themselves from the Old Testament. Maybe you've done that. Texts like this one are hard, and Christians can find themselves unsure how to defend these things. One Christian writer refers to passages like these as skeletons in God's closet.

I want to grant to you at the outset that passages like these are challenging. How do we reconcile passages like the one I just read with the commands which are just three chapters later in Deuteronomy 5:17 and 19? You shall not murder, and you shall not steal. Now, I dealt with this a bit more in depth last week, and I'd encourage you to go and watch or listen to the teaching if you haven't already. The text that we have before us in chapter 3 is similar in nature to the one that we studied last week at the end of chapter 2.

Here's the problem: a lot of times, the objections to these passages are distractions from the point of application. Do we in the 21st century object to the way that the Amorites were dealt with according to 21st-century standards? Yes. If the Amorites were peaceful innocents, then the way that God and Israel dealt with them would seem to us to be wrong. But in ridiculing the events described here, we miss some important things. Most importantly, we miss that because of sin, God judged the whole world in Genesis 6-9. The instrument of His judgment was a flood. Then God judged the people of Sodom and Gomorrah because of their sin in Genesis 19. The instrument of His judgment was fire from heaven. God also judged the people of Egypt because of their sin in the opening chapters of Exodus.

The instrument of His judgment was plagues. Here, He judges the Amorites. The instrument of His judgment was the people of Israel. Then He will judge the people of Canaan, and Joshua will again be the instrument of judgment. We have a hard time with the instrument He chooses to use, but this is what the Bible describes. Later, God will judge the people of Israel for their sin. He used the people of Assyria to judge them during the time of the prophet Isaiah, and He used the people of Babylon to judge them during the time of the prophet Jeremiah.

In fact, we will see going forward in at least four passages in Deuteronomy that God will warn Israel that He will judge them if they rebel against Him. For example, in Deuteronomy 8:19-20, it states, "Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and serve and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroyed before you, so you shall perish because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God."

I bring all of this up to make a very simple point: God will judge all who stand in enmity against Him. We may not like this point, but it is what the Bible teaches. We may not like how the Bible pictures God's judgment, and we may not like who the Bible describes as being judged or worthy of judgment. But like it or not, that is what the Bible teaches.

In Romans 1:18, we read, "The wrath of God will be revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness." Your objections to God's judgment might make you feel vindicated for your moral position against Him, but they won't vindicate you on the day of judgment, as it is appointed for men to die once, and after this, the judgment.

The Old Testament presents the justice and judgment of God without mercy, and none of us like the image of God's justice and judgment without mercy. All of us want and desire mercy. So, all of that serves as a preface to the passage we are in today.

In Deuteronomy chapter 3, we see the judgment of God without mercy upon another group of people. When we are presented with such judgment, we are tempted to self-righteously indict Him as unjust, all the while justifying ourselves as the righteous ones. This tendency can make us feel better about ourselves, but it distracts from the point that God will judge all. That means you. He will judge you too. One day, you will stand before God for judgment, and your self-justifications won't save you.

However, I want to suggest that this passage teaches us something far more important than just a lesson about the judgment of God. God's judgment of the Amorites in this passage can keep us from seeing a much more significant point.

We begin reading today in Deuteronomy chapter 3, starting at verse 11. There we read, "Then we turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og, king of Bashan, came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. And the Lord said to me, 'Do not fear him, for I have delivered him and all his people and his land into your hand. You shall do to him as you did to Sihon, king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon.' So the Lord our God also delivered into our hands Og, king of Bashan, with all his people, and we attacked him until he had no survivors remaining.

We took all his cities at that time; there was not a city which we did not take from them—sixty cities in all, in the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these cities were fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides a great many rural towns. We utterly destroyed them as we did Sihon, king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children of every city. But all the livestock and the spoil of the cities we took as booty for ourselves.

At that time, we took the land from the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were on this side of the Jordan, from the river Arnon to Mount Hermon. The Sidonians call Hermon Sirion, and the Amorites call it Senir. All the cities of the plain, all Gilead and Bashan, as far as Sela and Edrei, were cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan.

Only Og, king of Bashan, remained of the remnant of the giants. Indeed, his bedstead was an iron bedstead. Is it not in Rahab of the people of Ammon? Nine cubits is its length, and four cubits its width, according to the standard cubit.

The destruction of Og, king of Bashan, and all his people teaches us that God will judge all who stand in enmity against Him. However, Israel's victory over Og and all the cities of his territory teaches us something of greater importance about our God. God overcomes our overwhelming enemies by faith.

In light of what offends our 21st-century cultural sensitivities in this passage, we are blinded to some really crazy details about this whole event. Don't miss what this text says. Israel, a group of former slaves and shepherds who had been camping in the desert for the last 40 years, overcame and destroyed King Og, a giant, and his sixty high-walled fortified cities, along with a great many rural towns. How is that even possible?

Thirty-eight years prior to this victory, the people of Israel were fearful to go up into the promised land because it was filled with fortified cities and giants. They knew that there was no way, in their own strength, that they could overcome such overwhelming enemies. The task seemed insurmountable. Humanly speaking, there was no possible way that Israel could hope for victory.

But then we come to Deuteronomy 3:1-3. "And then we turned and went up the road to Bashan. And Og, king of Bashan, came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. And the Lord said to me," Moses recounts, "Do not fear him, for I have delivered him and all his people and all his land into your hand. You shall do to him as you did to Sihon, king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon."

So the Lord our God also delivered into our hands Og, king of Bashan, with all his people, and we attacked him until he had no survivors remaining. God faithfully delivers victory to those who trust in Him. We can be so distracted by something in the Bible that bothers us.

That we miss the main point of the whole of the Bible. God will judge all who stand in rebellion against Him, just like He judged the world with a flood in Genesis 6-9. Just like He judged the people in Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. Just like He judged King Sihon and the people of Heshbon. Just like He judged King Og and the people of Bashan. Just like He judged the Canaanites and His own people, Israel, when they rebelled against Him.

But God will act and faithfully deliver victory to those who trust in Him in faith. God will give mercy and grace to those who put their trust in Him for salvation. Don't miss the bigger point of the Bible because you are so fixated on the points of the story that stumble you.

Will you pray with me? Father God, there are challenging passages in the Scriptures. There are challenging things that, when we come to them, like this passage in Deuteronomy chapter 3 and the previous passage in Deuteronomy chapter 2, we have a hard time with, especially as we see it from our perspective sitting here in the year 2020.

But I pray, God, that you would open our ears, our minds, and our hearts, that we would not harden our hearts and that we would hear what it is that you, by your Spirit, are trying to speak to us from the text. Lord, there will be a day of judgment. As Hebrews chapter 9 says, it is appointed to all men to die once, and then comes judgment. We will all stand before you one day for judgment.

But Jesus, you went to the cross and you died in our place so that, as we trust in your finished work on the cross, you are our substitute. And Lord, we can find mercy and grace in you. In the same way that messengers were sent with a word of peace to the people of Bashan and the people of Heshbon, Lord, I pray that we would receive your word of peace through the gospel and we would readily turn to you in faith and experience your saving grace.

God, do a work in our hearts and help us not to be stumbled or distracted by some of these things and kept from the truth of what your word teaches. Lord, open our ears and our hearts to receive from you. We pray. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Walking around these walls, I thought by now they'd fall, but you have never failed me yet. I am waiting for change to come, knowing the battles are won, for you have never failed me yet.

Your promise still stands; great is your faithfulness. I am still in your hands. This is my confidence: you never failed me. I know the night won't last; your word will come to pass. My heart will sing your praise again.

Jesus, you're

Great is Your faithfulness. Your faithfulness. I'm still in Your hands. This is my confidence: You never fail. Your promise still stands. So great is Your faithfulness.

I'm still in Your hands. This is my confidence. You never failed me. Yes, You never failed me.

I've seen You move; You move the mountains. And I believe I'll see You do it again. You made a way where there was no way, and I believe I'll see You do it again.

I've seen You move; You move the mountains. Yes, I believe I'll see You do it again. You made a way where there was no way, and I believe I'll see You do it again.

I'll see You moving; You move the mountains. And I believe I'll see You do it again. You made a way where there was no way, and I believe I'll see You do it again.

I'll see You do it again.

Your promise still stands. Great is Your faithfulness, Your faithfulness. I'm still in Your hands, for this is my confidence: You never fail. Your promise still stands. Great is Your faithfulness, Your faithfulness. I'm still in Your hands. This is my confidence. You never fail me.

God, You never failed me, and I never will forget that You never failed me. You never failed me. Just as we just sang, You will never fail us. You have never failed us yet, and You never will. I pray that You would help us to put our trust solidly in You, even during times like this that can challenge and shake our faith.

I pray, God, that we would find ourselves being drawn closer to You in the midst of this. Lord, I pray especially for those right now who are going through a very difficult time. Maybe they've lost their income, lost a job, or their business is going under. They are going through very difficult things, or maybe just the stress of everything that's going on in the world is weighing on people.

I know that there are a lot of people who are hurting right now. We ask, God, that You would reveal to them Your strength and Your power, Your peace and Your rest in the midst of this storm. God, do a work in us and help us to find in You peace and joy as we trust in You.

And now, may the Lord bless and...

May He keep you. May He make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you His peace. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of His Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

Now, before we go today, I do want to remind you that today, between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., if you drive through the church parking lot, we will be making available to you the elements for communion. Next Sunday, on Pentecost, we will be celebrating together. So, come on by between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m. We would love to see you and give you the elements for communion.

May you have a wonderful Memorial Day tomorrow. Remember in your prayers to pray for those in our nation who have been affected by the loss of a loved one who has made the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. Thank you, and God bless.

There are a couple of things I’ve completely forgotten. Yes, mission. Here’s a short video to show you a little bit more about what they do.

We love stuff. We love a lot of stuff. We like things. Things are great. People are cool. One of the easiest ways to contribute is to text your gift in. We would love to be a part of that. Everything is awesome. All right, that was fantastic.