APOSTOLIC ACTING OUT
UNDERDOG
Scripture text – 1 John 4:4 – “4Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” 1 John 5:4-5 – “4For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 5Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”
The 2001-2002 sports season was an upset season conquered by underdogs. Indiana University upset Duke University in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA College basketball tournament and went on to win the National Championship. The New England Patriots upset the heavily favored St. Louis Rams to win Super Bowl 36 in the National Football League. The Arizona Diamondbacks upset the New York Yankees, whom had won four of the previous five World Series championships, to win the World Series in Major League Baseball.
We have got to be an underdog to the world. If we are equal or better than the world, we will eventually get upset just like the Duke Blue Devils in the Sweet 16, St. Louis Rams in the Super Bowl, and New York Yankees in the World Series.
What I mean by being an underdog is that we don’t need to conform ourselves to this world like it says in Romans 12:2 – “2And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
We need to do like Daniel did when the king had an idol god and he had everybody worship that god. Instead, Daniel kept his faithfulness and prayed and worshipped the only true God. So in Daniel 6:16-22, Daniel gets thrown in the lions’ den. King Darius thought he had won the battle, but Daniel, like a true underdog, fought through adversity and triumphed over the heavy favorite, which were the lions. By the help of God, the Lord sent His angels to shut the lions’ mouths and Daniel, the underdog, converted the great King Darius to worship the one true God, like it says in Daniel 6:26-27 – “26I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end. 27He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.”
We need to take up the cross and follow Jesus, like it says in Mark 10:21 – “21Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.”
If we do this, we will win in the end. Even though, on the way, we will receive our share of splinters and it will seem that the odds are too great against us, and the burdens of this world are too much to bear; just remember that we are an underdog and we will triumph in the end.
Just like the biggest underdog of all time when in 1 Samuel 17:45-51, David, small young man, triumphed over the 9’9” giant in Goliath. Again, in this situation, God is on David’s side. Even though the Philistine army thought that there was no way this kid could stand any chance against their great giant warrior champion, in the end, the Philistines got upset by the huge underdog by the help of the name of the Lord.
So just like it says in Romans 8:31 – “31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” In the end, we will have the victory if we endure until the end. Like it says in 1 Corinthians 15:54 – “54So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”
Isaiah 25:8 – “8He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.”
When you think that there is no purpose for living for God, and you think, “I don’t see the victory,” just picture yourself in these people’s shoes. Do you think that David saw a purpose when he faced a 9’9” giant that had a sword and amour while he had nothing but a sling? Do you think Daniel saw a purpose when he saw those big hungry lions face to face? Do you think Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego saw a purpose when they say that huge fiery furnace in Daniel 3:14-25? Do you think Moses saw a purpose when he was trying to get God’s people out of bondage from a very stubborn Pharaoh in Exodus 5:1-2 – “1And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 2And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.” Do you think Noah saw a purpose when he was making an ark and preparing for a flood when it had never rained before and everybody on earth was wicked in Genesis 7:1-10? Do you think Joseph saw a purpose when his brothers turned against him and sold him and told their father Jacob that Joseph had died in Genesis 37:5-11, 28-35? Do you think Job saw a purpose when he became stricken with poverty and disease and lost everything he had in Job 2:3-10?
There are 3 things all of these people had in common. First, they were all underdogs in their situations and were not expected by human reasoning to get thru their situations. Second, they all trusted in God completely with total faith in God and prevailed in every situation with help from God. The third thing is that none of them had the Holy Ghost that gave them power like we have. So there is no situation that they have gone through that we could not make it through, because we have power they did not have. Because it says in Acts 1:8 – “8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
So we could have made it through all of those situations easier than they did because we have the Holy Ghost and they didn’t. We have power to lay hands on the sick and they will recover as it says in Mark 16:18 – “18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” James 5:14-16 – “14Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Neither Moses nor David nor Daniel nor Noah nor Joseph nor any of Daniel’s friends could do that. That was never performed until Jesus came to Earth. Speaking of an underdog, Jesus, as a human, had his share of underdog experiences. Starting with the birth of Jesus Christ. Born in a manger in a stable; not in a mansion in a kingdom, in Luke 2:7 – “7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Then, after fasting for 40 days, Satan thinks he can take advantage of a weak body, but little did he know that this underdog would upset him so much with His spiritual strength that comes from fasting and praying in Luke 4:1-13.
So, you don’t like the idea of being an underdog and you want to go with the big dogs of the world for a season and come back when you are ready? It says in 1 Corinthians 15:52 – “52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” You would miss that if you were not ready.
If you haven’t heard anything else I have said tonight, listen to this. All these scriptures are from nobody but God, as it says in 2 Timothy 3:16 – “16All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
So if you are wondering how you can receive the power that the Holy Ghost gives and you don’t have the Holy Ghost, just look to the scriptures and Acts 2:38 will tell you.
The 2001-2002 sports season was an upset season conquered by underdogs. Indiana University upset Duke University in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA College basketball tournament and went on to win the National Championship. The New England Patriots upset the heavily favored St. Louis Rams to win Super Bowl 36 in the National Football League. The Arizona Diamondbacks upset the New York Yankees, whom had won four of the previous five World Series championships, to win the World Series in Major League Baseball.
We have got to be an underdog to the world. If we are equal or better than the world, we will eventually get upset just like the Duke Blue Devils in the Sweet 16, St. Louis Rams in the Super Bowl, and New York Yankees in the World Series.
What I mean by being an underdog is that we don’t need to conform ourselves to this world like it says in Romans 12:2 – “2And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
We need to do like Daniel did when the king had an idol god and he had everybody worship that god. Instead, Daniel kept his faithfulness and prayed and worshipped the only true God. So in Daniel 6:16-22, Daniel gets thrown in the lions’ den. King Darius thought he had won the battle, but Daniel, like a true underdog, fought through adversity and triumphed over the heavy favorite, which were the lions. By the help of God, the Lord sent His angels to shut the lions’ mouths and Daniel, the underdog, converted the great King Darius to worship the one true God, like it says in Daniel 6:26-27 – “26I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end. 27He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.”
We need to take up the cross and follow Jesus, like it says in Mark 10:21 – “21Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.”
If we do this, we will win in the end. Even though, on the way, we will receive our share of splinters and it will seem that the odds are too great against us, and the burdens of this world are too much to bear; just remember that we are an underdog and we will triumph in the end.
Just like the biggest underdog of all time when in 1 Samuel 17:45-51, David, small young man, triumphed over the 9’9” giant in Goliath. Again, in this situation, God is on David’s side. Even though the Philistine army thought that there was no way this kid could stand any chance against their great giant warrior champion, in the end, the Philistines got upset by the huge underdog by the help of the name of the Lord.
So just like it says in Romans 8:31 – “31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” In the end, we will have the victory if we endure until the end. Like it says in 1 Corinthians 15:54 – “54So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”
Isaiah 25:8 – “8He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.”
When you think that there is no purpose for living for God, and you think, “I don’t see the victory,” just picture yourself in these people’s shoes. Do you think that David saw a purpose when he faced a 9’9” giant that had a sword and amour while he had nothing but a sling? Do you think Daniel saw a purpose when he saw those big hungry lions face to face? Do you think Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego saw a purpose when they say that huge fiery furnace in Daniel 3:14-25? Do you think Moses saw a purpose when he was trying to get God’s people out of bondage from a very stubborn Pharaoh in Exodus 5:1-2 – “1And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 2And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.” Do you think Noah saw a purpose when he was making an ark and preparing for a flood when it had never rained before and everybody on earth was wicked in Genesis 7:1-10? Do you think Joseph saw a purpose when his brothers turned against him and sold him and told their father Jacob that Joseph had died in Genesis 37:5-11, 28-35? Do you think Job saw a purpose when he became stricken with poverty and disease and lost everything he had in Job 2:3-10?
There are 3 things all of these people had in common. First, they were all underdogs in their situations and were not expected by human reasoning to get thru their situations. Second, they all trusted in God completely with total faith in God and prevailed in every situation with help from God. The third thing is that none of them had the Holy Ghost that gave them power like we have. So there is no situation that they have gone through that we could not make it through, because we have power they did not have. Because it says in Acts 1:8 – “8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
So we could have made it through all of those situations easier than they did because we have the Holy Ghost and they didn’t. We have power to lay hands on the sick and they will recover as it says in Mark 16:18 – “18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” James 5:14-16 – “14Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Neither Moses nor David nor Daniel nor Noah nor Joseph nor any of Daniel’s friends could do that. That was never performed until Jesus came to Earth. Speaking of an underdog, Jesus, as a human, had his share of underdog experiences. Starting with the birth of Jesus Christ. Born in a manger in a stable; not in a mansion in a kingdom, in Luke 2:7 – “7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Then, after fasting for 40 days, Satan thinks he can take advantage of a weak body, but little did he know that this underdog would upset him so much with His spiritual strength that comes from fasting and praying in Luke 4:1-13.
So, you don’t like the idea of being an underdog and you want to go with the big dogs of the world for a season and come back when you are ready? It says in 1 Corinthians 15:52 – “52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” You would miss that if you were not ready.
If you haven’t heard anything else I have said tonight, listen to this. All these scriptures are from nobody but God, as it says in 2 Timothy 3:16 – “16All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
So if you are wondering how you can receive the power that the Holy Ghost gives and you don’t have the Holy Ghost, just look to the scriptures and Acts 2:38 will tell you.
