Welcome to the Believer's Bible Assembly This is the day that the Lord has made

and we're going to rejoice and be glad in it Open your Bibles to Luke chapter 22 verses 31 and

you that he may sift you as wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith should

not fail And when you have returned to me strengthen your brothers As we examine the text this

morning we see that in Luke 22 Jesus is preparing his disciples for the trials that

lay ahead He did it in Luke 22 and he's still doing it today Jesus is

preparing his disciples He's preparing us through the word for the trials that lay ahead and he

warned Simon Peter that Satan that deceiver that liar the one who comes to steal kill and destroy

Desires to sit him like wheat meaning he would go through a period of severe trials and testing However in

verse 32 Jesus reveals two key truths that we must know and understand and never ever forget

Number one Jesus is always praying for us believers his disciples Jesus is always praying for us And

#2 those who have been restored now have a responsibility to strengthen others Those are two

key points that I want to drive home to you today from this teaching What this

verse reminds us is that our faith journey our faith walk is not just about ourselves and our personal

survival But it's about encouraging strengthening building up believers in the body of Christ So that's why

I want to talk today about strengthening one another in the faith First I want

to say that we are kept by Jesus' prayers Jesus is our intercessor Luke 22:32 but I

have prayed for you that your faith may not fail Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith

would not fail Now knows what Jesus said knows what Jesus didn't say Jesus didn't

say I'll take care of Satan for you No he didn't say that He said I pray

for you that your faith may not fail We understand about Satan he comes to steal kill and destroy and

he uses thoughts ideas and suggestions to create fear when in doubt These are these severe trials that

we have to go through periods of testing And what's going to get us through and what's gonna grow us

and develop us spiritually is not Jesus interceding to stop it but interceding and praying for

us that we get through it That's what we got to know and understand Trials

tribulations trouble drama if you stand in for the word of God it's not if it's gonna happen but

when it's gonna happen But here's what we like in the scriptures that Jesus is with us that

Jesus is praying for us but he's praying that our faith will not fail And Jesus specifically prayed for Peter

that his faith would not fail because Jesus knew That Peter would deny him not once not twice but 3

times But Jesus also knew that he would be handing the keys of the kingdom

to Peter And if you recall our study in Acts it was Peter who led the apostles after Jesus's

ascension It was Peter who gathered the disciples together and prayed and while they were praying the Holy Spirit

came And it was Peter that preached the first gospel message Jesus knew that his faith

would not fail Likewise with you and I when we go through our situations Jesus is

praying for us as well that our faith will not fail Now that word failed means to die

out or come to an end Jesus knew that Peter's faith would not die out it would not come

to an end Likewise he knows that our faith would not die out or come to

an end if we keep our eyes stayed on Jesus the author and the finish of our faith which implies

if we don't keep our eyes fixed on Jesus the author and the finish of our faith our faith

will fail it will die out it will come to an end So Peter's faith may falter it

may start to lose strength but it would not fail It will not cease to come to an end

Likewise our faith sometimes may start to lose strength but it will not fail it will not cease it

will not come to an end Why Because Jesus is praying for us He is our

intercessor And Jesus always intercedes for the believers because he is our advocate First John

chapter 2 verse 1 John wrote that if anyone sins we have an advocate one who will intercede

for us with the Father because it's not a matter of if we sin but when we sin But

here it is when we sin We have an advocate one who will intercede to

the Father on our behalf and that's Jesus Christ because he's always interceding for the believers

Romans chapter 8 verse 34 says this Who then is the one who condemns No one Jesus Christ

who died more than that who was raised to life is at the right hand of God And

is also interceding for us Jesus is our intercessor Jesus is our advocate He's always interceding for

us We may stumble our faith might start to lose strength but we don't have to stay down

because the scriptures assures us that Christ is still praying for us today So no matter

what you're going through in life know this that Christ is praying for you He's interceding for you

for you to get through whatever you might be going through and that your faith will not fail

in the process Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25 says this therefore he Christ is able to save completely

Those who draw near to God to him since he always lives to intercede for them

the believers The scripture is so full It says that Jesus Christ is able to save completely

completely completely those who draw near to him and he always lives to intercede for them the believers

Knowing this should give us confidence that even when we stumble his prayers sustain us

and we need to remind one another of that That's what we need to do That's why we need to

strengthen one another with this truth that Jesus Christ intercedes for us with this truth that Jesus Christ

is our advocate We need to remind one another that to strengthen them in their faith walk

and to let them know that our strength begins with Christ's strength Well we try

to do it on our own we will always fail because we don't have the strength

we don't have the ability To see our way out of the situation But Christ gives us the strength

His strength to help us get through whatever it is that we need to go through and

that's good news this morning The second thing I want to let you know about is not only are we

kept by Jesus' prayer we have a responsibility We have an obligation Once we have gone

through and been brought through and have been restored and strengthened we have a responsibility to strengthen our brothers and

sisters in Christ Now let's go back to what Jesus said in Luke 22:32 Jesus didn't just say to

Peter that he would be restored but he gave him an assignment He said when you have turned

back to me now strengthen your brothers The only way that we are strengthened on a

daily basis is that we constantly turn back to Christ for our strength turn back to Christ To lead us

and guide us in all truth and turning back to Christ is turning back to

his word So we return back to Christ we turn back to his word we are strengthened in the

inner man and now we can get through whatever it is we have to get through

in life Listen I'm putting emphasis on this because somebody thinks it's a magic pill Somebody thinks it's a magic

wand No it don't happen that way That's not reality We are strengthened when we turn back to God

and His word which gives us the strength that we need to get through life And Jesus told

Peter when you have turned back to me now go and strengthen your brothers Once we have been

strengthened once we have been restored we now have an obligation to help others to strengthen them in

the faith 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 3 through 4 talks about how God comforts us in

our troubles so that we can comfort others The reason we can help to restore others is because

Christ has brought us through whatever trial or situation we were in So now we serve

as examples to those brothers and sisters in Christ whose faith is weak whose faith is about

to be shipwrecked that if God can do it for me he can do it for you But there's only

one way and that's through Christ There's only one way that's through His word God does not respect the

persons but the question is will you allow God to work in you and through you

to strengthen you to restore you but once we have been comforted and restored in our troubles we now can

comfort and strengthen others because of what Christ has brought us through Galatians chapter 6 verse 1 and

who are those who are spiritual What does this mean So we have to define

this Those who are spiritual are those who respond obediently to the leading and the guidance of the

Holy Spirit to act on behalf of another Those who are spiritual are not those that are floating up in

the clouds It's not those that me she tai bow tie See that's what we think the spiritual ones

are the ones that lay hands on people and they just fall out First of all none

of that's biblical but that's a different teaching But this is what the text is talking about those who are

spiritual are those who respond obediently to the leading in the guidance of the Holy Spirit to act

on the behalf of another To edify to encourage to comfort to pray for them to strengthen them Those are

the spiritual ones that the Bible is talking about in Galatians chapter 6 verse 1 and

pass it on to others Like I said the same God who did for me is willing and able to

do it for you through Christ Everything in our Christian life comes through Christ That's

why he says I am the way I am the truth I am the life No one comes

to the Father except through me Restoration is only through the Father Healing is only through the Father Deliverance

is only through the Father Blessings are only through the Father Grace is only through the Father and

the only way to the Father is through Jesus Christ We have experienced God's grace and we're called to

pass it on and share it with others So our testimony now becomes a source of

strength for restoring others in the faith our testimony And listen you have a testimony

because you've gone through a test and you're still standing The reason why you have a testimony is

because your faith has been tested it's been tried and it's been proven And so

now you can help restore another brother another sister that's walking that same path We talked about

this before where we sharing our faith The last thing we need to do is beat them upside the head

with scripture They can't understand the scripture The Bible says in order for you to understand the scripture it

has to be spiritually discerned How can you spiritually discern something and you don't have the spirit

to discern it So they can't understand the scriptures but they can understand your testimony

They can understand how God brought you through and your testimony will give them hope Your testimony will encourage

them Your testimony will edify and comfort them and strengthen them And their faith walk And if

they don't know Jesus Christ your testimony will lead them to Christ That's the power

of our testimony That's the power of the spoken word People are gonna be drawn to

you through your testimony Now once they come to Christ now we can talk to them about the word Now

we can share the word with them Now we can disciple them with the scripture because they're ready now They

see how the scripture has equipped you and empowered you They're ready now to receive your

testimony becomes the source of strength for restoring others in their faith And the reason we have

a testimony is because we have passed the test Jesus is praying for us that our faith won't fail

Once we've been restored now we have a responsibility to share our testimony with others

And the third thing I want to share with you this morning is that it's a

collective effort Strengthening one another in the faith is the call of the church the ecclesia That's why we're here

The Christian life was never meant to be lived alone and the scriptures over and over again talk

about how we should build up one another how we should edify one another and comfort one another pray

for one another Today we're talking about strengthening one another This is repeated throughout the New Testament

as it pertains to the church the body of Christ believers First Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 1

says therefore encourage one another and build each other up Hebrews 10:24-25 talks about how we

should motivate encourage one another towards love and good deeds and not neglecting to meet a symbol together with one

another Again that's why we come together on Sunday mornings is to motivate to encourage one another towards love

the love of Christ the love of God the love of one another and to do good deeds

We should be out here doing the good work sharing the gospel with people That's why we meet

together That's why we assemble together because the Christian life was never meant to be lived alone So many

Christians are in isolation They're dealing with church hurt and they've identified the church with

Christ And that's a trick of the devil That's why I share with people over and

over again You need to make sure you have a relationship with Christ not the church

Because Christ will never hurt you He said his word I will never leave you nor forsake you Christ

is making a session for us on a daily basis and we are the mouthpiece of

Christ And when we assemble together that's what we do We build each other up we encourage one another Why

So we go out here in the world We can continue to fight the good fight We

continue to strengthen one another in the faith as we continue to walk this faith journey Ecclesiastes chapter

about married couples but it not only pertains to married couples but it also pertains to believers in the body

of Christ Two are better than one If one fails in the faith the other now can lift

them up This Christian life was never meant to be lived alone so when we assembled together

as the body of Christ that's why we assemble This is what we do We encourage we lift one

another up if they're falling Somebody might be right there on the edge of going back into the world going

back into what God delivered them from and that one word from you that one encouraging word from you can

make all the difference The body of Christ the church we are a community of faith and we

are called to strengthen and encourage those who are weak in their faith who are weary

in their faith walk It's like they carrying the weight of the world on their

shoulders That was never God's intent for us to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders He

instructs us to cast all our cares upon Him because He cares for us But as a community

of faith we are called to strengthen one another encourage one another build each other up when you're weak

we through our love and our fellowship together Jesus prayed for Peter not only for his survival because Satan's

gonna take him through some things He would deny Christ 3 times but Jesus restored him

And gave him a mission to feed his lambs feed his sheep God restored him because

he had an assignment for him Jesus not only prayed for Peter and his survival

but for his restoration And his usefulness in strengthening others In the same way Jesus

prays for us and when we are lifted we must lift others We have an obligation

when we are lifted we are restored when he has brought us through Now we

have an obligation to lift up and help restore others When we are encouraged we must encourage others

When we are edified we must edify others When we are comforted we are to comfort

one another praying for one another That's what that's all about keeping each other lifted up before the throne

Let us take our responsibilities seriously to strengthen our brothers and sisters in Christ so that none may fall

but all may stand firm in the faith So let me leave you with this final word this morning Luke

chapter 22 verse 32 encourages us to strengthen our brothers and sisters in the faith After

we have been restored We are to strengthen others by encouraging them to return back

to Christ That's the ministry of reconciliation that we have been given as the body of Christ in

our help comes from That's where our strength comes from That's where our blessings come

from We have an obligation to encourage people to return back to Christ and we have been strengthened

to strengthen others Please get this this morning The reason why you've been strengthened brought through is so that now

you can strengthen others All the things that we have gone through Think about it have equipped

us To help others grow in their faith Now listen when we were going through

them we can't understand why Lord why am I on this journey It seems like for

every two steps I take I've taken 5 steps back Lord what's going on Now

we know we've been strengthened so that we can strengthen others We've gone through whatever we've gone through all

the pain the tears all of our experiences good and bad all of our failures our victories

our ups and our downs Have equipped us for just a time as this to help others stand

firm in their faith We should share God's grace and mercy with others We should encourage those who have

stumbled to get back up again We have to remind them that Jesus is our advocate He's

on our side He's not against you He's for you and he's seated at the right hand of

God always making intersession for us and we need to remind them that no matter what trial

trouble or tribulation may come your way your faith will not fail when you trust Christ completely Your

faith will not fail as long as you keep your eyes stayed on Jesus who

is the author and the finisher of our faith Amen Amen