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Genesis 50:20 You plotted evil against me, but God turned it into good, to preserve the lives of many people who are alive today because of what happened.
Do you have enemies? If you do, would you go and eat from them if you were hungry? How many of you would help their enemies if they heard they were in a big problem?
Have you ever gone to a tall building with escalators but on this day, they were not working but you had something you wanted to get done on the highest floor? Then you know that there is only one way to get there and that is by climbing the stairs, and this is very punishing but you know that this is the only way to get what you want. Similarly, in this world, you have to go through that enemy to achieve your blessing one way or the other.
The whole bible from Genesis to Revelation is full of promises of how the lord will bless us. We know that he will bless us in one way or the other but what we are not expecting is that God will use our enemies to bless us. We are so used to seeing our enemies harming us that we don’t trust that they can be used by God to bless us.
For example, in Exodus 12:35-36 The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and clothing. The LORD had made the Egyptians friendly toward the people of Israel, and they gave them whatever they asked for. In this way, they carried away the wealth of the Egyptians when they left Egypt
Yes, these Egyptians were evil and even cruel to the Israelites before. They were the perfect examples of what an enemy looks like, but still, without them, God wouldn’t have blessed the Israelites. Keep in mind that they were in the land of Egypt, therefore all the markets and stores including all the wealth and good things belonged to the Egyptians and the only way God could pass some of those good things from the hands of the enemies to his children was through these enemies sharing it out willingly.
Remember God has the power to change hearts according to Deuteronomy 30:6, so he can soften and even harden the hearts of even your enemies.
From my personal experience, I can remember very well that the people who helped us when we wanted to acquire a place to build the MTM church building weren’t even our fellow Christian brothers or church members. They were people who we would never think could help us, but still, God used them to help us attain all that we needed to build our church.
So, brothers and sisters, we should learn a great lesson from the children of Israel and the ways God used to bless people. Don’t limit God at all, after all, God is asking you and me, “Is there a limit to my power?” the LORD answered. “You will soon see whether what I have said will happen or not!” according to Numbers 11:23.
If God chooses to bless you through a friend or an enemy that is his choice.
It’s all a part of God’s plan to get you to where you’re supposed to be.
According to Daniel 3:18 & 28-29, the three Hebrew boys would have remained ordinary slaves in the hands of the Babylonians if it wasn’t for the decree to set on fire anyone who didn’t worship the idol. Without King Nebuchadnezzar’s decree the three Hebrew boys God would have not been honoured throughout the nation
Don’t complain about your enemies, it may look like a setback, but really, it’s a setup for God to get you to where you need to be. That’s why we don’t have to play up to people and try to convince them to like us. Hopefully, they’ll give me a good break. No, God doesn’t have to use your friends. He can use your enemies, your critics, the ones that are trying to push you down. He can use them to push you up. King Nebuchadnezzar was created by God to help Daniel and his Hebrews achieve their purpose in life.
Just think of it, without Judas, how would Jesus have died and have been resurrected?
Without the resurrection, we wouldn’t have redemption, no salvation. We celebrate Mary, the mother of Jesus, giving birth in the manger. We celebrate John baptizing Jesus, the dove coming down from heaven. But the man who betrayed Jesus, the one who sold him for 30 pieces of silver, was just as critical a part of his destiny, if not more so than the others. So, it was God’s grand plan.
Imagine if Jesus had gotten upset because of his betrayal and called the 12 legions of angels mentioned in Matthew 26:53-54 to rescue him. Would we have gained our redemption and salvation? But instead, Jesus who knew everything happening to himself let Judas betray him, and he didn’t try to stop him or try to talk him out of it (John 6:64),
Jesus knew that betrayal was a part of his divine destiny. Too often, we fight against everything that doesn’t go our way. We get upset and start questioning God, why is this happening? Always remember that nothing happens by accident in God’s kingdom. and if you keep the right attitude, God will use it to your advantage.
Brethren always remember that just as God has divine connections lined up for you, people to encourage you, and push you forward. The same God has also lined up people who will try to stop you, discourage you, and try to make you look bad. They are the King Nebuchadnezzars, Goliaths, Herods, and even pharaohs ordained to come across your path.
If you don’t understand this principle, you’ll get discouraged and then give up before your victory.
The opposition you see now is not meant to stop you but It’s meant to establish you. When you overcome it, you will not only step into a new level of your destiny, but everyone around you will benefit, for instance, anyone who killed this enemy Goliath was going to become rich and also marry the daughter of King Saul according to 1 Samuel 17:27-28. So, you can see that sometimes your blessings are held by your enemy and you have to go and get them.
From today you need to have a holy determination despite what your enemies are saying and doing. Brethren it’s your choice to have a new fire, a new resolve, and every time things get tough, and things look like they are not going to work out. Instead of getting discouraged get that passion back. Some of us are like a wheelbarrow that needs someone to keep pushing it, so in most cases, God will send your enemy to push your wheelbarrow to keep it moving otherwise most of us will be stuck in one place.
Now you know why God allows critics, doubters, and even some haters. So, when you feel tired and think you want to give up, they force you to keep moving forward, not because you feel like it, but because you don’t want to give your enemies the joy of seeing you defeated.
Some of the things that we don’t like, we’re asking God to get rid of if he removed them right now, we wouldn’t reach our highest potential. That opposition is making you stronger. Those people trying to stop you, the betrayal, the disappointment, that cannot keep you from your destiny. God has the final say. If he hasn’t removed it yet, that means he’s going to use it for your good.
Psalm 119:71 It is good for me that I was afflicted. If David were here today, he would tell you that it was good that Goliath showed up. Jesus would say, “It was good that Judas betrayed me.” it may have been uncomfortable at the time, but one day you’ll say, “This enemy didn’t defeat me, this enemy promoted me.” now stay in faith; God has your back. He wouldn’t have allowed the pressure unless it was going to work for your good.
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure .(1 Corinthians 10:13)
Sometimes God uses your enemies more than your friends to bless you. It is those enemies who through their approach, talk, and even actions that force you to pray, fast, and do everything in between so that you don’t fail. These enemies act as fuel which keeps you going.
David said God prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Notice, when God brings you through the opposition, he’s not going to do it in private. He’s going to do it where all of those enemies can see it.
Maybe today, you’re facing some kind of enemy, an enemy in your health, in your finances, in a relationship, and it doesn’t look like it’s ever going to work out. Just remember that God is preparing your table in the presence of your enemies (Psalms 23:5 ).
The doubters, the discouragers, the ones that said you couldn’t do it, they’re going to see you blessed, in such a way that you are, living your dreams, in a place of honor, in influence.
So when people are talking about you, trying to make you look bad, trying to push you down, don’t worry, God knows. They are putting you in position for God to bless you in a greater way. Don’t fight no matter what always remember that
God is going to use those same enemies to bless you.
I always thank God for my friends, but I’ve learned to thank God for my enemies as well.
According to Psalm 110:1 says, that God will make your enemies your footstool. That means anything that comes against you, the persecution, the betrayal, the disappointment, if you’ll stay in faith, instead of being a stumbling block to take you down, God will use it as a stepping stone to take you higher.
You and God are a majority. Sometimes when God wants to promote you, he doesn’t send you a good break.
He sends you an enemy, we grow in difficult times. That’s when our character is developed.
That’s when we discover talent, confidence, courage that we didn’t even know we had. That pressure is not going to stop you. It’s going to increase you. When Jesus was about to be crucified, he stopped by the Garden of Gethsemane. Gethsemane is translated from the Greek to mean “an oil press.” or the place of pressing. It was an olive garden. Remember that the only way you could get the oil out of the olive is to press it. Without the pressing, you’ll never get the valuable oil.
If you’re never under pressure, you never have to stretch your faith, endure, and persevere, then you’ll never discover the valuable treasures that God put on the inside.
A stranger can’t hurt you, it’s the people who are the closest to you that will hurt you the worst. Betrayal and jealousy are the two most dangerous things you can and will experience in your life. You must realize that your favor attracts enemies. They will pretend to be on your side but many will secretly be hoping for your fall and failure.
Unfortunately, life consists of people who are going to hurt you, but don’t miss what God has for you because you are bent out of shape because of what people have done. You cannot let your life be driven by bitterness and revenge, you need to let go of the hurt that people have done to you.
Use the pit experiences of life to transition into a better life. Live your life like Joseph, his own brothers sold him out, threw him into a pit and yet he forgave them. Sometimes you got to go through the pits of life so that God can bless you.
Joseph didn’t get angry, he didn’t get back at them but instead he helped them. He knew it was all in God’s plan, he didn’t know why he went through so many bad experiences but he knew that God will use your enemies to bless you.
Matthew 5:44, Don’t cancel out your blessings because you have unforgiveness in your heart. The greatest thing you can do is to bless your enemies because God will promote you to greatness. I know this is one of the hardest concepts for us humans to grasp, why would we bless our enemies? How can we pray for them after what they did to us? I get it, it is hard but this is one of the lessons we need to learn.
So today my friends remember that we all will be hurt in our lives, it’s not a matter of if but of when.
We have to know that it is how we move on from, the lessons we learn and how we forgive that will open up the blessings for you. Even when these lessons come from your enemies.
Pastor Nathaniel
Amen, Thank You