14″These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.” Revelation 17:14

For the believer, success comes from living according to God’s Truth not only in this world with business, family, and life but, more importantly, in our lives of faith. The worldly point of view is different where success is determined by diligence, skill, confidence, and good fortune with an advantage to those who maneuver and politic without integrity. While worldly success is determined by numerous factors, the believer’s success is solely determined by following God’s Truth. If we believers follow the value system of the world, we will fail. While it may seem non-believers have an advantage, we should not mistakenly believe their approach will work for us. The success of non-believers is temporary. They are destined to ultimately fail because what they follow is irrelevant, their objectives misguided. The rich man who used whatever means necessary to get ahead will discover in the end that the money gained ends up causing pain, strife amongst jealous children, and will be a curse when facing God for judgment. 

For the believer, there is one path for a complete victory: God’s truth. This is living a life of faith. Truth is being correct, clean, and righteous according to the Word of God: to obey God’s commandments from the Bible and to follow our conscience inspired by the Holy Spirit in our actions at each moment of each day. We cannot lie, cheat, and mistreat others like the non-believer. The devil will always try to trick us and cause us to betray God’s direction just like the serpent tricked Adam and Eve. Today these same demons tempt us to betray God’s truth.

How do we stay true? At each moment in our lives in whatever situation we find ourselves, we must always ask is what I am doing pleasing God or not? If I do this, am I serving myself or God? If we choose to serve God over our own desires, we will always overcome the efforts of the demons who seek to cause us to sin. While our eternal soul guided by God’s Truth and Holy Spirit is always aligned with God’s purpose, our minds and hearts are driven by our old self – our own purpose – to betray us. We must constantly be self aware. We are often liars and enemies to ourselves. We must eliminate the evil spirit, nature, and habits ingrained in our old selves because they are the enemies of our faith. It is our old, evil habits that can sneak up on us when we drop our guard.

Contemplating our faith deeply is important, but it is more important that we focus on living and acting to receive God’s blessings in our day to day lives – moment by moment – so that His power works for us to build our lives of faith. No matter how diligent we are, if we sin and do not obey God’s Word, we cannot achieve real victory. When we act according to God’s purpose, we receive His blessings and miracles. Ask yourself, “Will I receive blessing or curse with these words, this action?” Constantly ask this at all times for every situation and moment. Our hearts must be filled with this directive. Blessing or curse? When we do, nothing can block our way. Peace and joy will surely come to us if we follow God’s truth.

Do not try to figure out how to address a problem on your own but look to God’s Truth for guidance: focus on obeying His Truth, and position yourself to receive blessings. Being chaste or diligent without aligning with God’s truth will not grow our faith. Obeying God and following the path to receive His blessings is the only way we grow in our faith and overcome the demons that try to cause us to betray that faith, enabling us to gain victory in our lives through God’s blessings and power.

Please click for Korean sermon https://soundcloud.com/yhpaik/1986-3-28a