Immune System 03/29/2020: full transcript and answers

▶ 0:00 And this morning we’re going to talk about the immune system and the more this morning I want to the immune system like our physical immune system fights off and defends us from viruses and bacteria and also we have a spiritual immune system that fights off the kingdom of darkness and also has ways to attack viruses and bacteria that come into the body and this morning I want to look at this example and see how it relates to the spirit. But first I think God has a question for us this morning who will we turn to and have a few examples here that I’d like to go over first lady mary todd lincoln was Abraham lincoln’s wife when she when he was president and during their time there in 1862 she became inconsolable when her son died her son willie and instead.

▶ 1:12 Of turning to God. History says that she started to have seances in the white house calling conjuring the dead and dead spirits and of course we know in the scriptures this is not right that’s what Saul did to call up Samuel and he was wrong to do that but here we have an example where someone had faced some tragedy and instead of turning to God they turned to the kingdom of darkness. In second Chronicles chapter 16 verse 12 we have the story of Asa he became diseased in his feet and his infirmity was severe says in the scriptures yet in his disease he did not seek the Lord but the physicians so here we have a case where someone only saw the natural solutions and did not seek God.

▶ 2:11 And it says that he rested with his fathers and he died in the 41st year of his reign he died a couple years after he had the disease and so God is reminding us and asking us this morning who are we turning to yes we have doctors that we go to and we’re sick but did we get on our knees and pray and ask God to help us do we depend on God for our help in time of need in Isaiah 38 verse 1 we have the example of Hezekiah it says in the scriptures in those days Hezekiah was sick and near death and Isaiah the prophet went to him and said to him set your house in order for you shall die and not live and at this time I Hezekiah. Instead of going to the kingdom of darkness instead of going to just physicians he pleaded his case with Christ God in heaven he said remember now I Lord I pray how I have walked before you in truth and with a loyal heart and have done what is good in your sight I have heard your prayer I have senior and this was God’s were reply this was God’s reply.

▶ 3:37 This was God’s reply to Hezekiah he said I have heard your prayer I have seen your tears and don’t we want God to hear our prayer isn’t a wonderful thing God hears prayers we think that God isn’t listening but hear his reply through Isaiah was I have heard your prayer and we were reminded Sunday after Sunday that we need to pray we need to fast God is listening he is he is waiting for us. To get down on our knees to pray to get a hold of his attention. Surely I will add to your years your your days 15 years and so Hezekiah here in this example he went to God for a solution and God delivered him gave him another 15 years of life on earth that’s powerful.

▶ 4:37 Instead of turning the kingdom of darkness instead of just turning to physicians he also surrendered himself to God. 2nd Samuel 12 verse 15 David’s son became ill because of his sin David had uriah killed and committed adultery with bathsheba and this was the son that was in bathsheba’s womb and God said you know your child’s gonna die that was his judgment and the child was sick and therefore God therefore David pleaded with God for the child and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground but later he perceived from the others that the child was dead.

▶ 5:30 So David arose from the ground he washed and anointed himself and he changed his clothes and he went into the house of the Lord and he worshipped God in this example David brought this upon his own life in a bond and the sin affected his family he fasted and he prayed he sought the Lord but still there was no deliverance some kind sometimes God doesn’t heal sometimes he doesn’t do what we want him to do but David responded right he repented from this sin he didn’t do it again and he went to the house of the Lord immediately and thank God because he knew he was wrong and sometimes we ask for things and we don’t get them but like David here we can continue to go to God’s house give him thanks worship him praise him for the things that we still have.

▶ 6:37 And it is also true that in America we have great sin David brought this on because of his sin America we have great sin in our country and and God you know at some point he’s got to make judgments. And we must get our knees like it says in 2nd Chronicles 7:14 if my people will humble themselves and pray turn from their wicked way and he’ll come and heal the land sometimes it doesn’t always work out the way we think like David but David had a good heart and still worshiped and went to the house of God so. Who will we turn to in our time of tragedy who we turn to in our time of need whatever’s going on in our lives where we turn to the kingdom of darkness like mary did will we turn to just natural solutions like Asa or will we stumble ourselves and seek God seek the Lord.

▶ 7:46 That’s what God is asking us today now I want to talk about the immune system our bodies have a physical immune system it helps us recover after receiving a harmful bacteria a virus disease whatever it is. And. That physical immune system will fight off the infection and also after it does is done fighting off it will defend your body from further infections from those kind of viruses or bacteria in. The same way our spiritual man has an immune system and our spiritual man has a condition that immune system of our spiritual man is it healthy is it weak is it dead and God is encouraging us in America the American church you need to strengthen your immune system.

▶ 8:55 The coronavirus. The way they explain the coronavirus is that it has the key to our cells and when it comes into our body it is able to latch on to our cells and the cells bring it right in because it has the key to get in and then it uses ourselves to reproduce itself it uses ourselves to make copies of itself and distribute itself throughout the body. It spreads in our bodies and also can spread to others it’s not visible to the naked eye and like the virus there is a spiritual virus in our country in our world in first Kings 22 verse 21 a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord and said I will persuade him talking about a hat the Lord said him and what way he said I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets and the Lord said you shall persuade him go out and do so and lies have been accepted in the American church and have become a spiritual virus.

▶ 10:17 Throughout the world and our community’s lies are being propagated as truth the lies come in either through deception or whatever the case may be and then they are distributed and repeated just like the virus and they spread. Repentance from dead works one of the most basic doctrines in the Bible has become has the churches chant try to change its meaning or church followers church followers either don’t read the Bible or they don’t understand or they reject it in make repentance something else other than what it’s supposed to be repentance from sin we are supposed to turn from sin and so.

▶ 11:11 That is just one of the examples where lies have come into the church and have been distributed. But our immune system creates antibodies to destroy the virus and a healthy immune system can keep up with. The virus will make those antibodies and distribute out throughout the body and fight that virus and if you can keep your body healthy enough for long enough though that immune system will attack that virus and get rid of it.

▶ 11:51 Ephesians chapter 6 verse 12 we do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against the rulers of the dark darkness of this age against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places so we have several types of viruses we have the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of darkness is the one that has all these lies and they they share them and then and then Christians we we distribute them you know Eve in the garden Devil the Devil is able to persuade her that to eat the knowledge of the tree of good and evil when God specifically said don’t do it the Devil was able to convince Eve and Eve gave in to that message either through her own fleshly lusts or whatever the case may be but see that’s the problem in.

▶ 12:46 Acts 28 verse 3 Paul. Was ministering actually no he was he was he was in prison they were gonna send him he was appealing to Caesar they were gonna send him to Caesar and he was on his way on a boat and the boat was caught in the storm and this the boat shipwrecked on an island. And a viper while they were gathering sticks to make a fire a viper came out and fastened on Paul’s hand and he shook it off into the fire and suffered no harm. Now I know that the immune system is not involved here but it’s an example of how the kingdom of darkness the viper is an example of Satan came to Paul and the kingdom dargis had no effect suffered no harm and that’s what we want to be as Christians when the kingdom of darkness comes or Satan comes it has no effect like Jesus when he was being tented while he was fasting forty days after he’d been baptized he went in the wilderness he was being tented by Satan Satan had no effect on Jesus in.

▶ 14:08 Luke 10 verse 19 says behold I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Of course it’s talking about the enemy here many Christians have suffered persecutions and harm but their spiritual man the one that is headed for eternal life is not affected it is empowered. Of course we know in that story of Paul before he was shipwrecked he was fasting on the boat he was praying and was visited by an angel says in Acts 27 verse 23 like we heard this morning we need to fast we need to pray Acts 27:35 he thanked God during the storm while the storm was going on he had all the people gathered together and he said it’s we’re gonna take some food and eat everybody was listening to Paul because he had the word he knew what to do and so at that time in their distress he they prayed and thanked God even during the storm that’s powerful no matter what you’re going through in life no matter what’s going on in your life you can stop you can give thanks to God and praise and thank him.

▶ 15:37 Galatians 5:17 says for the lust for the flesh lusts against the spirit in the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary to one another at war with one another and so the flesh is also part of this virus spiritual virus the Devil comes in with his message and then the flesh wants to give in to that message or the flesh just has desires of its own it wants to be sexual and moral it wants to get intoxicated feel good it wants to get angry you know if you haven’t learned to not get angry you get violent you got to train your flesh train your minds not do these things repent from those things. But the flesh is at war with the spiritual man that is inside of you and God is asking us today your spiritual immune system is it strong or is it weak we have a spiritual virus in the American church that is plaguing young Christians old Christians all kinds of Christians and God.

▶ 16:51 Is asking you will you do what is necessary to strengthen your spiritual immune system. In Galatians chapter 5 verse 16 it gives us a solution I say then walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh now we are talking today about several examples the Bible says that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but are mighty and so we’re reminded today to walk in the spirit means to be exercising the spiritual weapons that God has equipped the church with. And for that we turn to Ephesians chapter 6 13 has great examples of that but it has great examples but it’s not limited to these examples.

▶ 17:53 Chapter 6 verse 13 gird yourself gird yourself with truth that means that you have been reading the Bible you have been under you have gotten stuff out of the Bible and it you’ve hidden the word of God in your heart it’s girded it’s in your mind when somebody comes and says something that is not true you already know because it’s in your heart and that’s what you have to do to do that you have to be reading the Bible on a daily basis you have to make an effort take time out of your day to get the truth of God in you. Put on the breastplate of righteousness again these these weapons and these defenses that God has given us they’re here for us to put on but we have to make a choice it is our choice to get our knees it is our choice to open up the book it is our choice to make time to strengthen our spiritual immune system put on the breastplate of righteousness the scriptures also say that he who practices righteousness is righteous now righteousness is just doing what is right.

▶ 19:13 But with that scripture it’s saying you know sometimes you fail but you’re practicing you’re not always right but you you are practicing it it is part of your daily life you try to do what is right the shield of faith do we have faith in God but church we can’t just have faith can you imagine having all these enemies around you and all you have is a shield you just have to sit there and take all these hits and you can’t do anything God wants us to be completely equipped. Completely strong in our immune system take the helmet of salvation we need deliverance if you are a drug addict if you are have a problem with intoxication if you have a problem with sexual immorality there must be some deliverance in your life in Christ can bring that salvation to you.

▶ 20:15 The sword of the spirit and so we step into the weapons that we can attack with you see it’s great to have a shield it’s great to have the helmet it’s great to have the breastplate and the loins and and the your feets secure but if you’re just defending yourself you never get anywhere and so the sword of the spirit the word of God is our weapon to attack and the physical immune system when it creates those antibodies it sends it out throughout the body to attack and destroy that virus and is the same way in God he is equipped us and given us the word of God to use to fend off the kingdom of darkness to fend off the lusts of the flesh and we have to be walking in that.

▶ 21:07 This is important here because it is different from truth truth is that you’ve read it it’s in your heart but you see when Jesus was in the desert facing. Satan he used the word of God to shut him up he used it three times he said I am going to worship the Lord God almighty and remember he referenced the Old Testament. The word of God it says is quick living and powerful sharper than any two-edged sword mighty. There is nothing like the word of God and that’s why it’s so important for you to know it to have it in your heart so you can use it. Praying always with prayer and supplication in the spirit like we were talking about earlier praying and fasting the scriptures also say out of the mouths of babes and sucklings I have ordained praise praise to still freeze stop the enemy in the avenger see all these weapons of our warfare are not carnal but in.

▶ 22:24 Our eyes they are too simple the scriptures say that. God has chosen the foolish things of this world to confound the mighty and though these things may seem foolish getting on your knees lifting up your hands you’re praying to the air it seems foolish but they are mighty and powerful and when we walk and when we exercise these things and we put them on we can become strong in our spiritual immune system and God is calling everyone throughout the American world throughout the American church and throughout the world it’s time to put on your spiritual. Equipment that God has equipped you with it’s time.

▶ 23:20 To strengthen your spiritual immune system it is here for us to receive it’s here for us to use but we’ve got to put it on. Proverbs 24 verse 10 if you faint in the day adversity your strength is small this scripture is not meant to attack you it’s not meant to make you feel bad it’s not meant to offend you this scripture is meant to let you know that you are weak and you need strength and this also is to let you know that God has the strength you need and you you can become strong it is very important when a soldier goes through boot camp the sergeants and all the people there are there to train them into warriors that can go out into the battle feel and that is what God wants for us he does not want us to be weak so that we get destroyed he wants us to be strong.

▶ 24:28 Jeremiah 4. Verse. 1 says. Return to me like we learned this morning there were several people that turn. Some turned to God some turn to the king of darkness some turn only to this world then Jeremiah for one were reminded if you will return return to me Ephesians 6 verse 10 it says be strong in the Lord we can be strong in the Lord God has equipped the church with the tools necessary to be strong and God is calling us to take up his offer to take up the equipment he has given us and strengthen ourselves and Lord. Many people in the church here have been fasting and praying that God would turn the tide in our current situation.

▶ 25:28 Our current situation is affecting our economy and it’s also hurting people with the sickness and it is a time for us to pray it is a time for us to fast not just for that but that God would. Speak to people by his spirit convict people by us Holy Spirit that they would turn to him would you join me in prayer this morning and thank you again for joining us Lord Jesus this morning God we submit ourselves Jesus to strengthening ourselves God and the Lord Jesus we know today God that you have equipped us you have given us everything that we need it is here for us to put on God Lord I pray Jesus that you would begin to destroy all the lies that have been distributed throughout the church world God Lord by fasting and prayer praise and unto you God that these weapons Jesus would go out and destroy those lines Jesus we call on you this morning God like we learned this morning you want to do a new thing Lord Jesus we pray we’ve got to strengthen ourselves so we can be part of that new thing Lord Jesus come this morning come this day God and Lord we need you and we thank you everyone said amen.

▶ 26:58 I want to remind you today you can make a change tonight you can make time for God you can set aside a time to pray tonight you can set aside time to read God’s word if you have a spouse if you have kids you guys can work out a schedule something you can do something to make time for God today is the day of salvation today is the day of salvation thank you for joining us God bless you.