Against The Flow
Our Enemy
Psalm 124

The Great Spiritual Battles

The enemy, Satan and the legions of the demonic beings, will do all they can to defeat, discourage, and entrap those who seek to follow the Lord Jesus Christ in this life, vv. 1-7.

The Bible teaches us the enemy is not people or circumstances, it is the spiritual powers of darkness, Ephesians 6:10-20, Luke 22:31-34.

A number of the enemies’ strategies revolve around the effort to oppress the spirit of faith:

The enemies use hostile opposition to intimidate, v. 3.

The enemies use adverse circumstances to frighten, v. 4.

The enemies use long term strategies to discourage, vv. 5-6.

A number of the enemies’ strategies revolve around enticement to sin and to be enslaved by it:

The enemies use moral traps that steal integrity and spiritual vitality, v. 7.

The enemies use enslaving habits or character flaws that oppress and weaken, v. 7.

The Great Spiritual Victories

No strategies of the enemies can succeed or triumph over the ones who walk by faith with the Lord Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, vv. 1-6, 8.

Life must be approached with wisdom that the nature of the battle and victory is always spiritual, vv. 1-8.

Always take your stand in the authority of Jesus by praying the promises of the Word of God, vv. 6, 8.

Project the love and power of God into the future, not the worst case scenarios we are prone to conceive, vv. 1-2.

Continue forward in faith, never giving into fear, discouragement or sin, vv. 1-8.

Learning to face battles means you are on the right road in life and that you will be part of the overcomers who triumph as they walk by faith in Jesus, v. 8.

This coming Friday, I have the opportunity to fly to the Philippines to lead a one-week seminar for pastors. A key ministry partner of ours in Asia is Asian Access. They have a vision to develop, for each country in Asia, a leadership development ministry that will equip pastors, bring pastors together from across denominational lines as the church in that country, and encourage a church planting strategy for the nation. The ministry brings 15 pastors together for a two-year program where they meet four times a year. Bonds are formed during the two years that last for the rest of their ministry. I have led seminars as part of this ministry in China, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. I have also traveled to Japan to do seminars for pastors and leaders in four different cities. It is a profound joy for me to be part of what God is doing among the nations for His glory.

That I have the support of the church to do this is part of what makes RHCC such a special place to serve the Lord. Jesus teaches us that God has the world on His heart, “God so loved the world …”, and that those who share the heart of God will also share a love and passion for the nations and reaching them for Christ. We live in the most amazing time in history for living out God’s love for the nations. I will leave from LAX and within 20 hours I will be on the ground in Manila. The mobile phone service I have allows for texting at no extra cost so that I can be in instant communication with Lynda while I am away. When I am in the Philippines we will have a short-term team going to Cambodia to minister at the Jesus School in Phnom Penh. We also had a short-term team for three weeks in Thailand in July and student teams were in Romania in June and July.

But our desire to reach the nations starts right here in our local community in the South Bay. We are one of the most blessed churches as God has brought people from so many nations to live in our community. We are one of the most diverse communities in the world. God is building His church at RHCC out of the richness of that diversity. It is my conviction that a church ought to be as diverse as its community. We should reflect the diversity in all ways - ethnically, age, economic resources (from poor to rich), and nationality. Our diversity for me was what made watching the children coming to our VBS several weeks ago so much fun and satisfying as children from the diversity of the South Bay were coming to learn of Jesus together at RHCC.

This Fall we will focus as a church on the call of God for us to BLESS our community as we live out and share the Good News of salvation by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In 1 Peter 3:9 he calls for the young church to bless their community, “bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” Of course the most important way we can bless others is to give others the chance to see lives changed by Jesus and to hear the Good News of salvation themselves.

In our preaching series we will focus on 1 Peter 3 and 4 on how we can live lives that are a blessing with an eagerness to share with others the reason for our life and hope in Jesus. We will have a special Share Conference on September 16 which will train us in how to BLESS our community. This will flow into a five-week Life Group study on the concept of BLESS. The elements are: Before everything, prayer; Listen to others and hear their hearts; Eat with others so that you are developing real relationships; Serve others so they are touched by the love of Jesus in actions; and Share the Good News of the Gospel through your own testimony and the Word of God. This BLESS focus is all part of the call of the Bible to redeem the time because the days are evil. We need to give everyone we can the chance to see how Jesus changes lives and to hear the Gospel which will show them how to have Jesus bless their lives.

Pastor Byron welcomes your questions/comments at bmacdonald@rhcc.net

Following each worship service, members of the prayer team will be available in front of the platform to pray with you and minister to your spiritual needs. You may also submit prayer requests to Vicki Hardin at Chaplain_Vicki@aol.com, (310) 612-7832, by yellow card or on our website.

We're here for you! The pastoral staff at RHCC is available to help you with your marriage, finances, parenting, emotional issues, or if you are in need of prayer. We can also provide recommendations for Christian counseling services in the South Bay. Contact Pastor Nate Aanderud at (310) 521-2565 or naanderud@rhcc.net.

Welcome to Rolling Hills Covenant Church—a caring community of people who believe the Bible is the Word of God and choose to live by its truth.

If you’re new or maybe you’ve been here a while and want to learn more about RHCC and build stronger relationships with others, come to Rolling Hills Connect. You will be welcomed by our staff, learn about the church’s purpose and priorities, and connect with others who are also exploring the church. Sunday, August 27 at 11:15 a.m. in the Loft.

Our mission is to know Jesus intimately and to share His love and truth passionately. We discover God by studying His Word, both personally and with others. We endeavor to love others, with Christ as our example. And we commit our time, talents, and treasure to serve God, to reflect His glory, and to share the salvation of Christ throughout the world.

For information about what else is going on at RHCC this month, pick up What’s Happening in the blue boxes.

Are you in need of prayer? Come to the Prayer Room (to the right of the stage) or the 290s patio following services today. Elders will be available to pray for you and anoint you with oil.

Help build loft-style homes for families in need living in the Ensenada, Mexico area on Saturday, August 12 at 8:30 a.m. in the rear parking lot. Families and small groups are welcome! Bring your own hammer. Please sign up with Mark DiBacco at 310.901.1549. You can also sign up to travel to Ensenada, Mexico August 25-27 to assemble the homes!

Every weekend, it takes a dedicated team of volunteers behind the scenes to keep our services running smoothly. We need people to help with video production, lighting, sound, slides, and more. Contact Brian Johnson at 310.521.2547 or bjohnson@rhcc.net. No experience necessary, we’ll train you!

• Please pray for Carrie, Jeff and Kevin George on the homegoing of Carrie’s father, Vincent Longo.
• Please pray for Robin Fitzgerald Krotz on the homegoing of her husband, Michael Krotz.
• Please pray for Susan Swank on the homegoing of her mother, Mary Heigl.

Giving goal (6/1/17-5/31/18): $8,100,000

Budget Needs YTD: $1,113,688
Received YTD: $1,150,089
Over/Under YTD: $36,401

Needed last week: $121,115
Received last week: $157,445

Text any amount to 310.307.3661 to give.