The Dry Place
🗣️ Speaker: Pastor Derrel Strickland
Pastor Scott's sermon explores the significance of spiritual dry seasons, drawing from Matthew 4 to illustrate how even Jesus faced and overcame wilderness trials, emphasizing that such periods often precede great victories. He encourages believers to embrace these challenging times as opportunities for deeper faith and greater revelations from God.
The core takeaway from this message is that spiritual dry seasons are an essential part of the Christian journey, often preceding significant victories and deeper revelations from God. These challenging periods should be embraced with faith, as they serve to strengthen our reliance on God and prepare us for greater blessings and spiritual growth.
Additional Info
The info below was generated by an AI from the audio recording of the sermon.
Finding Victory in Dry Seasons: Embracing Spiritual Trials
We've all experienced moments in life where our prayers seem to fall on deaf ears, leaving us wondering if God is listening. These spiritual dry seasons, though challenging, play a crucial role in our faith journey. They often precede significant victories and deeper revelations from God. Understanding and embracing these periods can transform our spiritual walk.
Understanding Spiritual Dry Seasons
A spiritual dry season is a time when it feels like God is distant, and our spiritual practices seem fruitless. Even Jesus experienced such a period when He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. This shows that dry seasons are not a sign of God's displeasure but a part of the divine plan for our growth.
The Purpose of Dry Seasons
Dry seasons test our faith and dependence on God. They strip away the distractions and comforts, forcing us to rely solely on God's provision. These times of testing refine our character and prepare us for greater victories. Just as Jesus emerged from His wilderness experience ready to begin His ministry, we too are being prepared for the next phase of our spiritual journey.
Biblical Examples of Dry Seasons
Throughout the Bible, many great men and women of faith experienced dry seasons. David went from his mountaintop victory to the depths of despair after falling into temptation. Daniel, despite his faithful prayers, found himself in a lion's den. The Apostle Paul endured numerous trials, yet his greatest revelations came during these times of suffering. These stories remind us that dry seasons are a common experience for those who follow God.
Surviving and Thriving in the Dry Place
Jesus demonstrated how to survive dry seasons through reliance on God's Word. When tempted by Satan, He countered every lie with scripture. This teaches us the importance of knowing and meditating on God's Word, as it is our most powerful weapon against the enemy's attacks. Regular Bible reading and prayer keep us spiritually armed and ready to face any trial.
The Setup for Greater Victories
Dry seasons are not the end; they are a setup for something greater. God uses these times to position us for victories we could not achieve otherwise. The Israelites walked on dry ground to escape their enemies and reach the Promised Land. Similarly, our dry seasons lead us to new revelations and deeper relationships with God. On the other side of our trials, we find renewed strength and purpose.
Embracing the Journey
It's essential to embrace dry seasons with faith, trusting that God is working even when we cannot see it. These times challenge us to grow closer to Him and prepare us for the blessings ahead. Instead of fearing the dry place, we should welcome it as a necessary part of our spiritual development.
Conclusion
Spiritual dry seasons are challenging but necessary for our growth and preparation for greater victories. By understanding their purpose, relying on God's Word, and trusting in His plan, we can navigate these periods with confidence and hope. Remember, on the other side of every dry season lies a deeper revelation and a stronger, more resilient faith.
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Use the questions listed below as a launching point to discuss the sermon points together as a family. These are great for dinner table discussions and small groups.
Reflect and Connect:
Share a Season: Have you experienced a 'dry place' or challenging season in your spiritual walk? How did you navigate it?
Scripture’s Role: How has the use of Scripture helped you resist temptations or overcome trials in your life?
Digging Deeper:
God’s Presence in Difficulties: How can recognizing that God leads us into these challenging times change our perspective on suffering?
Victory After Trials: Share an example of a significant blessing or victory you experienced after a period of struggle.
Practical Application:
Daily Armor: What steps can we take as a group to ensure we equip ourselves with Scripture daily to face life’s challenges?
Supporting Each Other: How can we support fellow group members who might be going through a dry season right now?
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Connecting our kids to what we as adults are learning and hearing on Sundays is vital to passing on our faith to the next generation. Use the summary below as a great way to talk about the message we heard with your kids.
Jesus in the Desert
Once upon a time, Jesus went into the desert. This desert was very, very hot, and Jesus didn't eat or drink for a long time, 40 days and nights! One day, the sneaky devil came up to Jesus. 'Hey, if you're God's Son, why don't you turn these rocks into bread and eat them?' But Jesus said, 'Nope! People need God's words more than bread!'
Next, the devil took Jesus to a very high place at the temple and said, 'If you're really God's Son, jump down! Angels will catch you!' But Jesus shook his head, 'We shouldn’t test God.'
Lastly, the devil showed Jesus all the world’s kingdoms and said, 'I'll give all of this to you if you worship me.' Jesus replied, 'Go away, Satan! Only God deserves worship!'
And then, angels came and took care of Jesus. Jesus showed us that even in tough times, we should trust God and do what's right. The end!
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Cultural and Religious Environment
The events described in Matthew 4:1-11 occur in a significant period of Jewish history. Jesus, a rabbi, operates within a Judaic context deeply influenced by the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament). The Jewish people of this time were expecting a Messiah who would deliver them from Roman oppression and restore Israel's kingdom.
Political Environment
During Jesus' temptation, Israel was under Roman rule. The Jewish people experienced political tension and military occupation. This backdrop heightened the anticipation of a savior who would lead them to freedom. Yet, Jesus’ mission differed; He came to establish a spiritual kingdom rather than an earthly one.
Geographical Setting
The wilderness of Judea, where Jesus was tempted, is a rugged, arid region. With sparse vegetation and extreme temperatures, it symbolizes isolation and hardship. This setting underscores the severity of Jesus' fast and His human vulnerability, making His victory over temptation even more profound.
Scriptural References
Jesus' responses to temptation all reference Deuteronomy, a book central to Jewish teaching and the covenant between God and Israel. Specifically, Jesus quoted from Deuteronomy 6:13, 6:16, and 8:3. This highlights the importance of the Torah in Jewish life and emphasizes Jesus’ role in fulfilling the Law.
Satan's Role
Satan, or the devil, acting as the 'tempter,' uses familiar scripture and Jewish expectations to challenge Jesus. His temptations reflect a deeper struggle between divine purpose and worldly power—a struggle at the heart of Jewish messianic expectations versus Jesus’ true mission.
By understanding the cultural, political, and geographical context, we gain insights into the depth of Jesus' temptations and His subsequent triumph, illuminating His role as the Messiah.
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Well, hey there, everyone. I'm Daniel Hahn, and I'm the online campus pastor here at Oxford assembly of God church. And this is our podcast. And I just want to thank you for listening today. We hope the message you're about to hear inspires you, builds your faith, and helps you see that God has a purpose for your life.
And now let's get into the message. But I know we've already prayed, but can we pray one more time? Father, I don't want this to just be another service. We have services 52 weeks out of the year. But, God, I want this to be a special time where we seek after you and your word, and we hunger after you, God.
Like we've never hungered before. God, I'm praying for a fresh manna from your throne. I'm not asking for word, a word from 40 years ago, God, I'm asking for a word for today, because we're looking forward to what you're doing in our midst today, not what you did in the past. We are grateful for what our past has, but we're grateful for what you're going to do in the future. God, there's a great harvest, and we need to be about that harvest.
So, God, I pray that you would implant within us a fire. And God, for anyone that walked into these doors today that needs a word of hope, I'm praying that something that is said today would plant that word of hope inside of them. God, that you would use me. I am clay. That you would mold me and just speak through me.
God, may it not just be my word, may it be your words to your people today. In Jesus name and everyone say amen. If you have your bibles, open it to Matthew four, and we're going to begin reading at verse one. Matthew four. Begin reading at verse one.
It's a pretty familiar passage of scripture that I have not preached on before, and I felt the Lord kind of leading me in that direction. Then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting 40 days and 40 nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, if you are the son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. But he answered, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, if you are the son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written, he will command his angels concerning you, and on their hands they will bear you up. Least you strike your foot against a stone. Then Jesus said to him, again, it is written, you shall not put the Lord your God to the test. Again.
The devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their glory. And he said to him, all these I will give you if you will fall down and worship. Then Jesus said to him, begone, Satan. For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God, and him alone shall you serve. Then the devil left him.
And behold, angels came and were ministering to him. This morning I want to talk about the dry places. Have you ever been in a season where it seemed like you had prayed your heart out to God, and your prayers were falling on deaf ears? I'm going to be transparent with you and say something this morning. I have been there.
I've said this before and I'll say it again. The church has become a place that only talks about the good times and those mountaintop experiences. But we need to be real with the people and prepare people for those low times, because even when you serve Christ, you are going to have low moments. We need preachers today that are not just positive influencers. I am sick and tired of those kinds of messages, because I'm going to tell you something.
The world is in a mess, and we need to talk about the mess, because if we don't talk about the mess, we can't fix the mess.
I believe the dirtier that our culture gets, the more we need to talk about the dirty and the issues. We need preachers that are willing to preach the whole truth and not just the part that culture has put its stamp on and said this, you can talk about this, you cannot. I've personally been through a season where it seems like God has been silent. And I'm gonna tell you something. It is hard to pray when it seems like God is not hearing you.
But I was reminded of a story that a preacher once told. I cannot tell you where I got this story, but it's something that has always stuck with me. This pastor was struggling with a terminal illness. He had a terminal eye condition. His eyesight was deteriorating rapidly.
How many of you know preachers need to be able to read the word of God? We need to be able to see. He was going through a very difficult time in his life, and it seemed like God was simply not hearing him. He was praying day in and day out. God, heal my eyes.
I know you can do it. I've seen you do it in my altars before God. I need a healing for you, a personal touch. But it seemed like God was not hearing him. And then one Sunday, after he got done preaching, he opened the altars for prayer, and a woman came forward.
The preacher asked the woman how he could pray for her, and she said, lo and behold, please pray for my eyes. The doctors say there's nothing that they can do, and my eyesight is diminishing, and eventually I'm going to go blind. The preacher was taken back, and he thought to himself, God, how in the world am I supposed to pray in faith for someone that is struggling with the very same thing that I'm struggling with when I have not seen you answer my prayers? The Holy Spirit immediately quickened his spirit and said to him, go ahead and lay hands on the woman, because the one that does the healing sees just fine.
He laid hands on her, and that woman's eyesight was restored right then and there in that altar. I'm here to tell you I don't understand why God does things the way that he does them. But I am convinced that God hears. God answers. God has never failed, and God has a plan, even for the pain that we experience in our lives.
So today I want us to talk about a time when Jesus was in the wilderness, because many people think that everything will work out great in life if they will then only have those mountain top experiences. If I can only just give my life to Christ, get on fire for God, then everything will be great. Ain't that right, Miss Renee? Everything's great. No challenges whatsoever, right, gator?
You get on fire for God, all the problems just go away. But even Christ, the son of the living God, had to endure dry seasons. So may I ask, what makes you think that you and I in this church today will not also have to endure dry seasons? He had no sin in his life. We have sin in our life.
There's an excuse for us to go through dryness if you really want to break it down. But Jesus had no sin in his life. Perfect one held close to his father, and yet he still went through dry seasons. If the son of the living God, the only perfect one, went through trials, tribulations, and dry seasons, friends, I'm here to tell you we should not be surprised by them. We should expect them.
I want to warn you of something this morning that is not going to get a lot of amens. There's a lot of that I'm going to say in this message. This is not a hang from the chandeliers type message. I'm going to go ahead and warn you. This is a I want to get closer to Jesus and here's what I got to do.
I feel beat up, but this is what I'm challenged to do and so I'm going to do it kind of message. Here's what I want to tell you. This is not encouraging, but it is the truth. The closer that you get to Christ, the more likely you will experience a dry season. You see, many people say they want to be more like Jesus, but they don't understand what they're saying.
Because in order to be more like Jesus, you're going to have to go through the things that Jesus went through. You're going to have to let go of your titles and your egos and become the least of these in order to be more like Jesus. Any of you want to do that, you're going to have to be willing to leave the herd of popularity. In order to be more like Jesus. You're going to have to be willing to go through seasons of loneliness.
If you want to be more like Jesus, you're going to have to be willing to go through trials and tribulations. You're gonna have to be willing to carry your own cross daily. You're gonna need to die to your own fleshly desires and take up the desires of your father. And lastly, you're gonna need to get used to dry seasons because they're gonna come often. Hallelujah.
How many want to come to the altar and receive that? You see, I have a feeling that if we marketed getting closer to Jesus in that context, because that's what it is, the altar would not be filled with people wanting to be more like Jesus. If I were to say all those that want to suffer, please come down front to the altar. We will pray for you. I doubt that many would come, but if I say come to the altar if you need something, I have a feeling this altar would be filled with people.
What am I saying? We want the victory without the battle. There's nothing wrong with asking God to heal your body. I've done it. There's nothing wrong with asking God to help you overcome an addiction.
There's nothing wrong with asking God for strength. We've all been there. But at some point we need to start praying. Lord, not my will, but your will be done. I don't care what it looks like, because if my life will bring someone else to Christ, then it was worth it.
I'm done with nursing, I'm done with the baby food. I'm ready for the solid food. What am I saying? I'm saying that oftentimes we want to avoid the battle and jump straight to the victory without realizing that there is a plan and a divine purpose for that battle. The apostle Paul prayed once for a thorn to be removed from his life.
We have no idea what that thorn was. Many people speculate, but we're not going to do that today. All I know is he had a thorn in his flesh. But here's what God said to him. My grace is sufficient for you.
You see, a true victory is not a handout. There are no participation trophies given out at the end and there are no government subsidies. Now let me be clear on something. Jesus freely gives us salvation to whoever desires. But that's not what we're talking about this morning.
We're talking about developing a closer walk with Jesus, the one who gave us his all. And I don't know about you and I've said this before, but anytime I think about everything that Jesus has done for me, how in the world can I not say, Jesus, I give it all to you. I am nothing but filthy rags is what my good works are. But you know what? I'm going to give you what I have.
I don't have much, but here's what I have to offer. At district council just a few weeks ago, an ag missionary, Joe Gordon, preached, and I'm going to tell you something. Every time this man preaches, I walk away wrecked. I don't know if you've ever been to a church service like that, but it was one of those services where I felt like, just take every dime I've got, go to missions, praise the Lord, just sell it all. My cars, my house, my clothes, take every bit of it.
I was wrecked that night. He said something that resonated in my spirit. Here's what he said. Many people have pity for the missionaries that are serving in desolate conditions and situations. But he said, I don't have pity for them.
I have pity for you living in America because in America you have such a comfortable lifestyle that you are tempted to do things on your own and forget all about God.
That wrecked me because I'm there. I'm telling you, there is a purpose behind the dry seasons and the trials. And our missionaries, they could tell you about some trials and some dry seasons, but they could also tell you about some major victories where they saw God literally make something out of nothing. Because I'm going to tell you something. Those people in Cuba, they're hungry for God, but they're also hungry in their stomach.
But you know what? They serve a God that is able to provide. When you have nothing and all you have is God. Let me tell you something. You've got enough.
Here's what Pastor Jim Raley said recently when he preached on the dry place. The enemy wishes I wouldn't tell you this. He doesn't want you to know it. But you need that dry place. You needed that desert season.
You needed that battle with the devil. The Holy Spirit put you there. Notice in the passage it said the spirit led him. He allowed you to go there. I thank God for every mountain.
I thank God for every high place that he has taken me. But when I look back, I would not have known that he was a healer. If I did not get sick, I would not have known that he was a way maker. If I never lost my way. How many of you have lost your way?
I would not have known that he was peace if I had not got in war. So I have to thank God not just for those good times. I have to thank him for those desert seasons. Our first point this morning. The dry place often precedes a great victory.
Matthew four one. Then Jesus was led up by the spirit. If you have your bibles underlined that by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Something interesting is taking place here and you'll miss it if you don't dive in. Directly before this passage we read that Jesus was baptized.
Matthew 316. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened to him. And he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him. And behold, a voice from heaven said, this is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased. So Jesus went from being baptized and honored by his father and those around him in chapter three to being led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil in the very next chapter.
You see, I'm here to tell you that dry places often preceded by spiritual victories. So let me warn you, if you are currently on the mountaintop, the desert is probably ahead. Jesus was baptized. He was praised and lifted up by his father and then immediately led into the wilderness to be tested. Now I want us to compare the two.
For those that are visual, I've got a graphic for you. Jesus went from the cool waters of the Jordan to the barren desert. Now I want to remind you, this is directly after to the barren wilderness. Huge crowds. Now solitude and silence.
The spirit resting on him like a dove. Now the spirit is driving him into the wilderness. The voice of his father calling him beloved son. Now he hears the hiss of Satan trying to tempt him. He was anointed.
Now he is attacked. The heavens were opened. Now hell is unleashed. Pastor David Wilkerson once said that he remembered as a child hearing his dad and those visiting missionaries say, watch out after those great victories because the enemy is always there to try and bring you down and take away that blessing. You see, the dry place often precedes a spiritual victory.
Jesus identified with us in his baptism, and now we read that Jesus is identifying with us in temptation and testing and church. We see this playing out in David's life. God spoke to David and promised him that his family would always have a seat in the kingdom. His kingdom would be an everlasting kingdom. And it seemed like every single thing that David touched was blessed.
He achieved great victories and won every battle that he set out to win. It seemed like it was impossible for this king to fail. It was impossible for him to get any higher. He is on top of the mountain. He is on top of Mount Everest, and he has never been more blessed than he was at this time.
David knew that it was only because of God that he saw all these blessings. And so he went to the temple and he praised God, and he said, who am I that you have blessed me with so much? How many of you can say that today? Who am I that you have blessed me with so much? But here's what happens.
David leaves that place of high victory and blessings and finds himself going from the very top of the mountain to the lowest point in his entire life in the midst of temptation. And he falls and ends up in the driest season of his entire life. Friends, you find this throughout scripture. Let me share another story. Daniel.
How many of you know Daniel? Daniel was revered as a man of God. He was close to God. He prayed, he fasted. God gave him visions and enabled him to prophesy.
Daniel spent weeks fasting. And later on in scripture, we read that Daniel was dealing with some type of struggle. And he said, I have no strength left. I mourn, and I have no more tears. And after being faithful to pray three times a day, he ends up on the top of the mountain.
No, he ends up in the lion's den. We read in two corinthians twelve that the apostle Paul was taken up into the third heaven. And while he was there, he sees things and hears things that no one has ever seen or heard. In other words, Paul was given access to a whole nother realm. Immediately after Paul comes out of that revelation, here's what happened to him.
We already referenced it. Second Corinthians, twelve seven. So to keep me from becoming conceited, because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. When Paul prayed for God to remove that thorn in the flesh, here's what God said. We've already said it.
My grace is sufficient for you. Just keep going. Later on we find Paul in prison. He is beaten. Some of his friends have forsaken him.
He went through multiple dry seasons. But there is a pattern that is forming here that we see throughout scripture. We see that with every dry season comes an even greater revelation. If you don't believe me, then you have not read the epistles, because every epistle that Paul wrote was during a dry season. Yet what do we read?
Well, let's read in the excerpt. Second Timothy, one eight nine. Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering. Suffering, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus. Before the ages began, Paul was telling, Timothy, and I believe his words are for us today and this world today.
While you may be going through a dry season on the account of Jesus, never be ashamed of Jesus. While the world may be telling you not to talk about the blood of Jesus because it's dirty and not politically correct, I'm telling you, it is the only thing that can save us. So do not stop talking about the blood and never be ashamed of the blood. Can I tell you something else? Many people beg the question, why would a good God allow his one and only son, the spotless one, and all of these great men in the Bible, heroes of the faith, to suffer through a dry season when they were following after God?
Can I submit to you that God wants to make a statement about you and I to Satan? God allows us to be tempted by the devil so he can demonstrate the superiority of Jesus Christ.
It makes it worth it to me just knowing that according to scripture, God created humans just a little lower than the angels. Because Satan is a fallen angel. This includes him. So what is the point? God is saying, Satan, take a look at what I can do with less.
Look at what I can do with humans who are lower than you. You see temptation provides us and I with an opportunity to demonstrate the accuracy of one john four four. He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. Who's in the world? Satan.
Satan is the prince of the world, but greater is Jesus, who is in you than he who is in the world. Satan may be the prince of the world, but the jesus that lives in us is greater. Church and every time that you and I come to a dry place and we choose to lift up our hands in worship in spite of what we see all around us, God is looking at the devil, and he is saying, take a look at what my children are doing in the midst of a desert place, in the midst of a dry place. They are worshiping their way right out of this dry place because they're choosing to worship. Friends, it is time for the church to realize and embrace what the apostle Paul knew.
Satan is trying to convince us that when we encounter dry seasons, it is because we did something wrong. But may I submit to you that it could be in reality sometimes a dry season could be a sign that we've done something right, and God is getting ready to take us into a deeper level. Jesus went from being baptized, elevated, and praised by his father and those around him to being led into the wilderness by the spirit. I'm telling you, the dry place often precedes a great victory. But can I tell you what lies on the other side of that desert is worth the struggle?
Here's how Pastor Jim Raley put it. Jesus will take you where you don't want to go in order to take you where you've always dreamed of going. I'm here to tell you, Adam may have got us kicked out of the garden and thrown into the wilderness, but Jesus chose to go to the wilderness to defeat Satan so that he could escort us back into the garden. Where Adam failed, Jesus was victorious. Someone needs to give jesus a shout of praise in the house today for escorting us back into that garden.
It's all because of him. We don't like to talk about the blood, but it's only because of the blood that we have that accident. So while you may be ashamed to talk about it, I'm going to talk about it. Our second point. This morning, Jesus proved that we can survive the dry place.
Many people get the notion that because Jesus was fully God, then Jesus must have had an advantage over the rest of us. And the only reason that he was able to endure temptation and avoid sin was because of this. But I want you to know something today, church, our Jesus is not a cheater. Our Jesus earned our salvation. Our Jesus suffered and felt pain like we do.
He chose to go from glory down here to do that for you and I. Our Jesus faced temptation and sin at every single turn. He endured for the sake of the cross and our salvation. Why? Because he loves us.
Hallelujah. Some will tell you that Jesus was 50% God and 50% man. But that is not correct. Jesus was 100% God and he was 100% man. In order to earn our salvation, Jesus had to be 100% man.
And Jesus proved time and time again that he would not cheat to accomplish this mission. He did not cheat on this test. Test, church. He did not cheat. He suffered and went through struggles just like you and I did.
But he was victorious on our behalf. We see this playing out throughout this passage of scripture. Every temptation that Jesus, that Satan threw at Jesus was an attempt to get him to cheat and invalidate our salvation. Aren't you glad that Jesus got through? Matthew four three.
And the tempter came and said to him, if you are the son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. Satan's statement was both an insult and a temptation. Satan knew full well who Jesus was. He knew that Jesus was the son of God, yet he tempts him. Go ahead and prove it to me.
You see, Satan will often want you to prove your salvation. But can I tell you something? You don't need to prove anything to him because I am telling you, he sees the blood. He'll tell you that nothing happened when you prayed that prayer of salvation at the altar. He'll tell you that you are the same rotten, sinful person and that you are not worthy of saving.
But I'm here to tell you that he sees and he knows the blood of Jesus Christ is flowing in your veins. And the only thing that he can do about it is attempt to make you question and doubt it. But church, do not doubt in the power of the blood. Doubt the deceiver.
We gain another insight from this. Satan's temptation proves that he has been watching Jesus. During his fast, Satan knew that he was hungry. Can I tell you something? Satan knows what you're up to and he will direct his temptations accordingly.
In this situation, Satan questioned the lack of provision from God because Jesus was rightfully hungry. God did not feed him. So the temptation was, why don't you just make what you need? If you are the son of God, turn these rocks into bread. I know you're hungry.
Prove to me that you're the son of God. And go ahead and feed yourself because your father is not feeding you. And I know that you're hungry. But can I tell you something that Jesus knew? God does not need help from Satan to accomplish his mission.
God will accomplish what he sets out to do without provisions from me, you, or Satan or anyone. He will turn nothing into something. Satan attacks Jesus again. Matthew four five, six. Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, if you are the son of God, throw yourself down.
For it is written, he will command his angels concerning you, and on their hands they will bear you up lest you strike your foot against a stone. In this temptation, Satan does something that we need to take notice of. He quotes scripture, church. Satan knows the word, and he will use it to manipulate it to achieve whatever he wants. In other words, if he cannot convince you to act independently of God, then he will work through your religion.
You see, Satan can play the part. He can even look the part. He can come into church dressed with his high hat on and look like he fits in like the rest of us. He can look the part. But friends, God doesn't need Satan's help to get you where he wants you.
God can do it all on his own. Preach it, pastor. And then Satan has one final punch for Jesus. Matthew four eight. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
And he said to him, all of these I will give you if you will fall down and worship me. With this temptation, Satan seemed to be offering a good thing. The reason Jesus came in the first place was so that he could win the earth and all of its kingdoms back from Satan. Essentially, Satan was offering to give Jesus what he wanted via a shortcut that would avoid the cross altogether. But if Jesus would have done that, he would have been taking a shortcut.
And can I tell you something about shortcuts? Shortcuts rarely lead to a full victory. Shortcuts often produce only a sliver of the blessing that God intends for us. But this also gives us insight into Satan's own heart. Satan would rather have worship and admiration than possession of the kingdoms of the world in their glory.
Now, how did Satan gain possession and authority over this world? I'm going to go back all the way to Genesis. God gave Adam the earth as a stewardship, and Adam turned it over to Satan. And he and eve chose to eat of the forbidden fruit. And since that time, all of us, all of Adam's descendants here's what we've been doing.
We've been casting our vote of approval by our personal sin, every one of us. Yes, I approve of this. I want Satan to be the prince of the world. Every sin. Now let me be clear on something.
All things ultimately belong to God. But God has allowed Satan to function as the prince of this world. You ask me, why is the world in the mess that it's in? This is why. Second Corinthians four.
Four. Here's what it says in their case. The God of this world has blinded their minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. But can I tell you something? Jesus came so that the blindfold could come off of the unbeliever.
Here's what I love about Jesus response to Satan. In every single temptation that Satan threw at Jesus, Jesus came back with. It is written. Now, where is it written? Church.
It's written in scripture. He wasn't quoting man's opinion. He didn't quote his horoscope for the day. He didn't even quote a famous preacher. He quoted the word church.
I'm here to tell you, if you are not in the word, do not be surprised when Satan knocks on your door with temptation and you find yourself out of ammo. Because I'm telling you, the only way to disarm the attacks and temptations of the enemy is through prayer and the word of God.
Jesus could have taken a stand against Satan with a display of his own glory. He could have used logic and reason. But Jesus chose to use something that we have access to and we have at our disposal. Every. You may not be familiar with it because it may be on your coffee table collecting dust.
It's called the word of the living God. Friends. If we are ignorant of God's truth, we are poorly armed in the fight against temptation and testing, and it will be our very own fault. Jesus made a statement about the word of God. And it's this.
While Satan was tempting him to turn stones into bread, jesus showed us that the word of God is more precious than food. The relief that food brings is temporary, but the hope that we find in the word of God, friends, that is eternal. Let me tell you, we are living in a time church, when Satan knows the word of God better than most christians today. Many are willing to believe anyone that quotes from the Bible. A preacher can say whatever he wants to as long as culture has put its stamp of approval upon it and people will absorb it hook, line and sinker.
But where are the people that are willing to take a stand for the unhindered, unaltered word of the living God, even if it is not popular or comfortable? We need people in the church that know the word of God to the point that they cannot be deceived by someone who merely plays church. Let me tell you what happens when a Christian who knows the word of God starts to proclaim it in the presence of Satan. Satan is unable to stand against a righteous life that constantly confronts and bombards him. With the unaltered word of God, his plans fall, his lies are exposed, and his character is revealed.
Let me tell you, if it worked for for Jesus, it is good enough for me. Jesus shows us that the only effective counter to deception is the word of God, not man's opinion. We have to see temptation for what it is, a lie. Then we need to combat temptation with the word of God. And finally, we need to be in a habit of reading God's word.
So we are always building ourselves up in the truth and have it inside of our hearts. It's interesting to me that every scripture that Jesus used that he recited to combat the lives of Satan, every single one of them are found in deuteronomy, chapter six and chapter eight. I'm going to offer this as a suggestion. Could it be that Jesus was meditating on those chapters right before Satan came to attack him? Let me tell you, I want to make sure that I always have some fresh bread in my oven to answer Satan's attack.
Friends, Jesus showed us how we can survive the dry place. Our third point this morning, our third and final point, the dry place is a setup for a better place. Let me ask you something, and I want to get very personal. Now. You've heard me talk a little bit about my dry season.
You've heard me go through in detail a few of our heroes of the faith in the Bible that went through dry seasons of their own. We've studied a time when Jesus was in a dry season. When I say a dry season, I mean he was in a literal desert without food and water. But what about you? Have you ever reached a place where you set your heart on getting closer to God?
You've decided you're not going to be nonchalant about your Bible reading and your prayer life. You've decided you're going to be more disciplined. Maybe you went to church and there was some message that stirred in your spirit and the spirit moved on you and you left on fire for God and you had a desire to go deeper with God. In the past, you've been a little lukewarm in your relationship with God, but you've decided all that is in the past. I am serious.
Maybe you're not seeing fruit from a ministry that you're doing that you feel like you should be. So you get serious and you make your relationship with God a top priority. And God starts to answer your prayers and you start to see things moving and happening, and your hunger for God returns. But then in the midst of this, you wake up one morning and for no reason at all, you're down. Your soul is dry and empty.
Am I the only one that has ever experienced this? Pastor David Wilkerson shared a story once at a time when he went through a dry season for six weeks. And I'm going to tell you something. If you don't know Pastor David Wilkerson, he is a hero, a modern day hero of the faith. He went through a dry season church pastor David Wilkerson, here's what he said in his journal.
This is my dry spell. Is it a result of depending too much on my feelings? Is it a result of not being yielded enough to Christ? Could it be that he is angry with me? I know this is more than just feeling the blues.
I don't doubt his love for me. But there is a sense that I am not hearing his voice like I should. But somehow I know that he is going to bring me out of this dryness. I know that he will fulfill the promises that he has made to me. He will turn my dryness into a river of life.
That came out of his journal. That again, comes from pastor David Wilkerson. Here's what T. Austin Sparks said, another great man of God when he went through a dry season. There are times that the Lord lets us feel that we're left all alone.
He seems to close the heavens and there's no two way communication. Everything you expect seems to come to an end. It's a broken down and it all seems to be in ruins. All the promises seem to be gone. And you don't seem to be able to hear the voice of God.
And you read the Bible and the words are just running together and there's a dryness and you start beating yourself up. You start thinking, what is wrong? What did I do? We examine our lives and we see how have I failed God. Friends, I'm here to tell you that this is part of walking with God, and God even allows it.
If you don't believe me, go back to Matthew four. The spirit led him into the wilderness.
If you've been going through a dry season, I've got a word from heaven for you. And I just want to say, if you have no idea what I'm talking about this morning, you're not experiencing a dry season right now. You've never experienced one. I'm going to tell you, I've been in your shoes. Because when I was younger and a new believer, I was on fire for God.
And when I would hear people that were more mature in the faith than I was at the time talk about these dry seasons, I would often think to myself, you must be doing something wrong. You're not praying enough. You're not reading the word enough. You need to soak in the presence of God. More or even worse, you've got some kind of unrepentant sin in your life you need to come to the altar and get rid of.
But as I've gotten older and I've been walking with God, studying his word, I've come to realize that this is part of our walk, that spiritually dry seasons are going to come. But I'll be honest, I have been struggling with understanding the reasoning behind it until I heard this from pastor David Wilkerson. Here's what I feel God has shown me. If you're standing on dry ground, you are on your way to a greater miracle. I want you to see it in scriptures.
When God took israel and led them out of slavery, he told them he was going to lead them on dry ground. That means they were going forward. They were not going backwards. God was leading them to the promised land. They were going to new revelation, new victory.
And God told them they were going to go on dry ground. And here's what I want to tell you. It is on dry ground where the enemy is defeated. The enemy will always try to chase you and get you to where you're on dry ground. But I'm here to tell you, that is where the wheels of those chariots will fall off.
That is where the enemy will be slain. Because on dry ground, Jesus will always reveal himself.
I'm not afraid of the dry place anymore. I want you to know something today. Sometimes God hides his voice. Sometimes he backs off. He is present because he promises to never leave us.
But here's what I believe he is saying to us. I don't just want you church to go on voices. I want you to understand. And I want you to believe me and trust me. Even when you cannot hear me, when you cannot see, when you feel all alone, when you're down I want you to stand still and I want you to know that you may be on dry ground, but I am taking you somewhere.
I'm showing you something. You are going to be changed. I want to close with one more scripture as the praise and worship team comes back. If you are in a dry season right now, this. This needs to be your passage.
You need to post this on your refrigerator because I'm going to tell you something.
It's powerful. Isaiah 40 117. When the poor and the needy seek water and there is none and their tongue is parched with thirst, I, the Lord, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights and fountains in the midst of the valleys.
I will make the wilderness. Did you get this? A wilderness. A pool of water and the dry land. Springs of water.
Are you dry? The Lord said, you can just call out to me. Trust me. Do not panic. Nothing bad is happening to you.
Nothing evil is happening to you. God says, I have allowed this. You're right where I want you. Now stand and see what I do. He goes on.
I will put in the wilderness. The cedar, the acacia, the myrtle and the olive I will set in the desert. The cypress, the plain and the pine together. What's going on? We're seeing a harvest church.
We're seeing new fruit. Life is springing up. That we may see and know, may consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord has done this. The holy one of Israel has created it church. God did it.
God has brought me to this dry place. And when I get out of this dry place and when you may be, maybe if you're in a dry place, when you get out of the dry place, the world better watch out because we are going to be more on fire for God than we have ever been before. And I'm going to tell you something. If that's the only result of the dry place, bring it on. I don't care if you're here today and you're going through a dry season, I want you to know something.
Today I felt the Holy Spirit impress this on me this week as I was writing this. God wants you to know something. Just because you are going through a dry season does not mean that God does not love you. Hear me? In this house, the enemy is coming to some of you, just like he did when Jesus, when he is making you question the love and the provision of your God.
But you hear me, and you hear me, good children. God loves you. So you need to do like Jesus. Did. And just stand, be still and start quoting scripture at the enemy and watch him flee.
What passage should I quote? Well, here's one. John 316. For God so loved the world, Satan, did you hear me? For God so loved the world, Satan, that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him, he should not perish but have eternal life.
I don't know how much more he could display his love. So that temptation, that's not going to work because here it is in scripture. It doesn't mean he's not going to try it because he's going to.
The only way that we are going to shun Satan, shut his mouth, is exactly the way jesus did it. He has outlined it for us. Jesus went to the dry desert. He went to the dry place. He was victorious by constantly saying, satan, it is written.
Satan, it is written. Satan, it is written.
But do not be surprised if Satan quotes scripture. But you better watch the language that he uses because I guarantee you there's been a twist in those words. And that's why you and I need to have the word of God in our heart and we need to be reading the Bible every single day so that when he quotes something that is not accurate, there will be a check in your spirit and you will say, no, that is not the word of God. Let me recite the word of God to you. Here's what that says.
Here's the amazing thing about Jesus. He went into that. He was baptized, he went into the wilderness. He was tempted. But then something happened right after Jesus ministry began, right after that temptation.
You tell me great things are not come after dry seasons. It's coming. Church, don't set up a tent in that dry place. You're not there long. Don't build a house.
Get ready to pack that tent up just like the Israelites did and we're moving on. And there's greater things on the other side. I'm not promising there won't be more dryness coming down that road, but I got news for you. He got me through this one. He's going to get me through that one.
And there was greater victory here. So I know there's going to be greater victory down there and I'm excited for it. So bring on.
So if you will stand, if you are here today, and I want you to know something. We, the church has done a bad job of this because I feel like we shun those that say, I'm just in a dry season. I'm not hearing God. That's something I just don't know. We immediately think something's wrong with your spiritual walk.
And I want nothing to to do with you. You've got sin in your life. You're not reading the word. Something is not right. But I want you to know something, that we've all been there.
Whether we all want to admit it or not, we've been there.
But if you're going through a dry place right now, a dry season, I just want you to lift up your hands. I want you to cry out to God. I'm not going to do this for you. I want you to cry out to God. And I believe God's gonna hear you.
And I believe he's gonna touch you and kiss you with his presence right now in this place. I'm not saying the dryness is gonna be gone completely, but I'm just asking that the Holy Spirit would just kiss you with his presence to let you know that he sees you. He's not forgotten about you. And he's there with you. Because Satan has been telling you lies after lie.
And I believe there are some of you in here that you're starting to believe it. But I want God to reveal himself to you anew.
And so, as we sing this song, I just want you to lift your hands and I want you to praise. And if you feel led to come down to the altar, someone will be here and we will pray for you. Even if it's not because you're going through a dry place or a dry season. Maybe you need to receive salvation today. Maybe you need a healing in your body.
God's able. God is able. So can we do that as we sing this song? Can we just praise him today?
On behalf of our pastor and staff here at OAG, we want to say thank you. Thank you for being a part of our ministry. We are grateful for you and the support you give our church and its ministries so that we can continue to do what God has called us to do, to be the family church for the family of God. For more content from Pastor Strickland and Oxford assembly of God, check out our media website at OAG Church Media.
