Reject The Spirit Of Defeat And Move In Victory

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

God has not given you a spirit of defeat. God has given you a spirit of victory and you ought to proudly walk in that victory today.

Introduction

In recent weeks, I’ve tried to do my best to encourage all of you to live with hope and joy in your hearts because hope and joy breathe life into us and produce good works.  We ought not be dragging our feet, nor hanging our heads, moving in a spirit of defeat.  No, all of us should be moving in victory, as God has given us the victory.

The Lord Is Our Shepherd

David sang, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want (Ps. 23:1).”  How many of us can say the same thing about the Lord?  Do we truly understand what it means to say that God is our shepherd?  This is a lesson I was taught, but it was a lesson I had to learn through personal experience.

The little sheep, for example, is helpless; it lives in need of its shepherd’s care.  We are as little sheep in the eyes of God; we live in need of His help, and He takes care of us.

As our shepherd, God provides for us.  Jesus taught us, saying, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on (Matt. 6:25).”  I’ve learned not to concern myself about such things over the years, as God has continually provided and made a way for me my loved ones.

As our shepherd, God shields and protects us from all hurt, harm, and danger.  Jesus taught us, saying, “My Father is greater than all; No one is able to snatch [His sheep] out of His hands (John 10:29).”

David sang that the Lord led him beside still waters (Ps. 23:2).  The Lord leads all of His sheep beside still waters, not troubled waters.  This is to say that the Lord removes what troubles us, His little sheep.  His desire is for us to dwell in peace and comfort, and because He is our shepherd, He helps us to be able to do just that.

The Spirit of Victory

As Paul told Timothy, I say to you today, God has not given us a spirit of defeat; He has not given us a spirit of fear (2 Tim. 1:7).  God has not given us a spirit that is troubled, worried, or anxious about things to come.  God has not given us a spirit that is troubled, worried, or anxious about the things one lacks.  God has given to all of those who have sincerely believed in His only begotten Son the victor’s spirit – a spirit of victory.  

Paul told Timothy that God has given us a spirit of power (authority) so that we ought not fear, because we have His truth (2 Tim. 1:7).  God’s truth dwells in us through the Holy Spirit, who leads us in the spirit of truth and error.  Because the Spirit leads us, we are not confused as others are, as God is not the author of confusion, but rather, is the author of the divine truth.

Paul told Timothy that God has given us a spirit of love (2 Tim. 1:7).  From the spirit of love that God has given to us, we can produce much fruit, good fruit.  The spirit of victory breeds life, uplifting others, whereas the defeated spirit sucks all of the oxygen out of a room.

Paul told Timothy that God has given us a spirit of a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7).  Jesus taught, saying, “In Me you have peace, be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”  The spirit of victory is of good cheer, not dragging its feet but marching with head held high!

Jesus taught, saying, “My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid (John 14:27).”  The victor’s spirit is one of contentment, that wants for nothing, and is anxious for nothing because God is its provider, sustainer, shield, and protection.

The Gravest Mistake of Man

So, why are so many of us moving with a defeated spirit today if we say that God is our shepherd?

I believe the primary reason why so many are hanging their heads today is because we aren’t looking to our shepherd as we ought to.  I believe the answer is that we aren’t truly depending on our shepherd as we should.

Some are paralyzed in fear and doubt because of the works of wickedness that abound today – they’ve given up and lost all hope.  Others, on the other hand, want more than what God gives and does for them – they aren’t satisfied.  In their dissatisfaction, they move with the misguided belief that they can bless themselves better than God.

Now, what can a little sheep do better without its shepherd’s care?  Can it take care of itself?  Sure.  The sheep can go into a field and graze on its own.  However, if a predator is in that same field, can the little sheep protect itself?  The little sheep would certainly put forth the effort of protecting itself; however, the sheep would face all sorts of problems.  

Firstly, the sheep doesn’t have much in the way of defensive capabilities.  In fact, the only thing it really can do would be to run from the predator, and that in itself is a problem because they don’t have the speed to outrun predators.  So, while the little sheep would put forth the effort to live, it cannot survive without the care of its shepherd.

The gravest error one can make is choosing to live without the care of the Good Shepherd, as if one does not need His care.  We are as sheep in the midst of wolves.  In the midst of wolves, the sheep most certainly needs its shepherd, or it will fall.

Satan Challenges Man’s Heart

I want to consider Job’s story as an example of what I speak of in this week’s message.  Solomon would probably be a better example, as he was a man who chose to live without the Lord for a part of his life.  However, though Job did not choose to live without God’s care, he was a man who endured the worst Satan can do to someone.

Job’s spirit challenged by Satan

Before the devil’s onslaught, Job 1:1 tells us that Job was a blameless and upright man who feared God.  That is not to say that Job was afraid of God and would not turn to the Lord.  Job feared God’s judgment and chose to live in a manner to please the Lord and find favor in His eyes.  Job lived in obedience.

Because he lived in obedience, pleased the Lord, and found favor in God’s eyes, God blessed the work of Job’s hands and increased his possessions.  Because Job had found favor in the eyes of God, the Lord had put a hedge around him, his household, and all he possessed.

Job 1:6 tells us that Satan came with the other angels of God one day to present themselves.  When he gave his report, Satan spoke of having gone to and fro in the earth.  The implication is that Satan had been doing his works in the world.  As Peter said, the devil is like a roaring lion, seeking to consume and devour (1 Pet. 5:8).

When the Lord proposed that Satan try (or test) Job, Satan scoffed at the idea because Job was in the favor of the Lord!  The devil begged God to remove Job’s blessings and permit him to be afflicted, with the belief that Job would curse Him to His face (Job 1:11; 2:5).

This is how Satan moves to defeat you

You see, these are the tactics that Satan uses to move against us, to defeat our spirit.  If you aren’t familiar with the devil’s tactics, let me share them with you.

To attack you, he needs an opening.  You see, you’re in the care of the Lord, and he does not have the strength or power to go through God to attack you.  Again, I remind you, Jesus said that we’re in the Father’s hands and nobody can snatch us out of His hands.

So, because He can’t go through God, the devil will entice you to lure you away from following Him.  Once he gets you away from God’s presence, that will be his opening to get in and attack.  

The devil must not be underestimated because he has studied you and knows you very well.  Satan knows our weak points and knows what we will fall for.  He has certainly gotten me, still to this day, as he knows the carrot to dangle before me to lure me off course.  

Inevitably, we all give in because all of us have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  When he gets us, he will attack with the intention of bringing us down.  We often think we are enticed solely by sexual pleasure, but no, the devil will also entice us through acts that may anger us or cause grief.  The worst came out of Job when his friends had angered him and stirred up his pain and grief.

Then, when he finally gets us to sin, the devil will move to make us feel awful.  Satan will constantly remind you of your wrongdoing, mocking that you dare call yourself a child of God.  The devil beats us over the head to make us feel worthless, so that we don’t love ourselves.  Satan will hold your sin against you and try to make you believe that not even God loves you.

It is when we begin to think that we are worthless that Satan begins to smile.  You see, when one does not love themselves, they will surrender to wallowing in the pit of grief and defeat.  When one believes that God does not love them, one’s soul will shatter and break; they will be defeated.

Walk in a Spirit of Victory

Have you ever been in such a place?  I know I have.  I remember being on the bed in an emergency room with my brother and mom.  I remember his head dropping and tears forming in my mom’s eyes when we were told I had renal failure and had to undergo dialysis.  

You see, I remember the place I was in those first few months of going to a dialysis center at 31 years old.  I remember thinking to myself, how can I be the only person of my age in such a place, in such a condition?  I remember thinking to myself, how could God permit this to happen, blaming Him, when I could have done a better job of keeping myself in good health.

God is with you

Now, Satan thought he had me defeated, and he did have me down and out, but then a day came when I got tired of feeling defeated.  A day came when I remembered that God is my shepherd.

In Psalm 23:4, David sang that at one point he was in the valley of the shadow of death, but he did not fear evil because the Lord was with him.  I felt like David that day when I was in a pit of despair.  I remembered that the Lord was with me and I cried out to Him in that day.  In that day I felt the comfort of God’s rod and staff as He tended to me and cared for me.

When I was going through my dialysis treatments, in center, the machine would check my blood pressure and often sound because my blood pressure used to run sky high.  But the day came when, through the comfort of the Lord, my pressure started to relax more and more.  When I began to grow tired of having to go in center for dialysis, they recommended me as a good patient for home care.

The last few months of dialysis treatments, however, may have been the roughest.  At that time, the world was plunged into the pain and suffering of COVID-19.  The home hemodialysis machine was beginning to have all sorts of problems, which affected me and my blood pressure.  

There was a night when I sat on the floor by my bed and cried, praying to the Lord.  I said to the Lord, ‘I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this.’  I told the Lord that I was reaching my endpoint.  Next thing you know, I was getting a phone on Mother’s Day weekend to receive my kidney transplant.

Satan thought he had me down, but with God as my shepherd, I was lifted up.  Regardless of what may be going on, God’s children ought not ever drag their feet or hang their heads in defeat!  God is with us, dwelling in our spirit, giving us the spirit of righteous victory.

Blessed and Highly Favored

You are blessed and highly favored because you have put forth your best effort to love and please the Lord.  Because you are blessed and highly favored by the Lord, He will lift you from the valley of the shadow of death (sin) as well.

David sang that the Lord prepared a table for him in the presence of his enemies.  We, again, don’t truly understand what this says about God and our victory!  The little sheep would be terrified to graze in a field in the presence of predators.  However, God will lift you out of a terrible pit and bless you!  

God will bless you in the presence of those who desire to see your downfall, including Satan!  The devil will be busy trying to hold sin over your head, all the while God will forgive us as He is both just and faithful to cleanse us of all unrighteousness.

You are God’s anointed, which is truly something special to be said of you.  The little sheep is anointed for its protection so that no other sheep can hurt it, and so that pests won’t harm it.  Your anointing stands as a sign to all, including the devil, that you are one of God’s flock.  You are cared for and protected by the Lord!

Stop surrendering your victory to the devil, one who is weaker than you.  Satan can’t rob you of your victory, which is to say that he can’t take victory from you by brute force.  Your salvation is sealed through the shed blood of Jesus.  Your salvation is sealed through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.  Through God, you are more powerful than Satan, his army, and all flesh and blood combined!

The only way Satan can take anything from you is if you choose to hand it over (surrender it) to him.  Don’t hand the victory God has given you over to Satan.  Regardless of what you may face, I encourage you to stop hanging your head in defeat because you aren’t defeated!  Take a deep breath, remember that you have the victory, and walk in that victory over all that tries to hand you defeat.