Read Textual Sermon from Joel Osteen
Well, God bless you. It's a joy to come into your homes, and if you're ever in our area, please stop by and be a part of one of our services. I promise you, we'll make you feel right at home.
I like to start with something funny, and I heard about this pastor who was walking down the street when he came upon a group of young boys surrounding a small dog. He asked what they were doing. They explained that they were having a contest: whoever could tell the biggest lie would get to keep the dog. The pastor launched into a 10-minute sermon, starting with "Don't you know lying is a sin?" and ending with, "When I was your age, I never told a lie." There was complete silence, and just when he thought he’d gotten through to them, the youngest boy spoke up and said, "All right, give him the dog."
Say it like you mean it: This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. I have what it says I have. I can do what it says I can do. Today, I will be taught the Word of God. I boldly confess: my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus' name. God bless you.
I want to talk to you today about Outlast the Opposition. We all have things that come against us in life—people who aren’t fair, we’re dealing with an illness, our business has gone down. We’re praying, believing, doing the right thing, but nothing is changing. It’s easy to get discouraged and think, "It’s never going to improve." But the way you win some battles is not by defeating the opposition, but by outlasting the opposition. You have to have staying power. You can't be weak and give up because it's not happening on your timetable. Some enemies are stubborn; you have to outlast the trouble at work, outlast the difficulty in your marriage, outlast the slow season in your finances. We want God to deliver us from the attack, but if He’s not changing it, it’s real simple—you have to outlast it.
Sometimes we feel like God has forgotten about us. We’ve seen Him turn situations around in the past, but this problem won’t seem to go away. God is still going to turn it around, but this time, He’s going to do it a different way. You have to have a holy determination, a made-up mind, where you dig your heels in and say, "I am in it for the long haul. Quitting is not an option. I am going to outlast this sickness. I’m going to outlast the addiction. I’m going to outlast this injustice."
This is what David did. He defeated Goliath in five minutes—no big deal. God favored him, and he quickly took down this huge giant. Overnight, he became a national hero. But there was another man named King Saul who was against David. Saul was on the throne of Israel when God promised David the throne. God could have had David defeat Saul like he defeated Goliath—quickly, no problem. But this time was very different. David had been anointed to be the next king of Israel. After he defeated Goliath, he left the shepherd’s fields and went to the palace to serve King Saul. But Saul was jealous of David; he could see the favor on his life.
One time, David was playing the harp for Saul, trying to make him feel better. Saul threw a spear at David and barely missed him. David had to run for his life. He spent months in the desert, in hiding, living in caves, with Saul and his men constantly on his trail trying to kill him. It wasn’t fair—David hadn’t done anything wrong; he was being good to Saul. You would think that God would stop Saul, vindicate David, and put him on the throne like He promised. But God doesn’t always do things the same way. For some victories, we have to prove to God that we’ll do the right thing when the wrong thing is happening. We have to be good to people when they’re not being good to us. We have to stay in faith when it’s unfair, when it’s taking longer than it should, when we don’t see how it could work out.
How bad do you want what God promised you? If you give up easily, you didn’t want it bad enough. If you let people discourage you, bad breaks talk you out of it, or delays cause you to quit believing, then you’re going to miss what God has for you. There are two kinds of faith: delivering faith and sustaining faith. Delivering faith is when God instantly turns it around—that’s when we defeat our Goliath. We don’t have to wait; we don’t have to endure; God suddenly shows out in our life. But most of the time, we’re going to need sustaining faith. That’s when God takes us through the difficulty, through the challenge. He could turn it around right now, He could change it instantly, but if He did that every time, our faith would never develop; it wouldn’t grow like it should.
Something happens in the struggle, when our mind tells us it’s never going to work out, but in our heart, we know what God promised is on the way. Our mind says, "You’re wasting your time; there’s no use even believing anymore," but you just keep on keeping on, trusting God, thanking Him that it’s on the way—that’s sustaining faith.
Now, don’t think that everything is going to be easy. Don’t expect every person to be for you. Just because it hasn’t happened yet doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen. The victory is on the other side of the opposition. It takes staying power, a made-up mind, someone who’s not moved by the circumstances.
At one point, David saw Saul and his men sleeping. He snuck up on them, and he could have easily taken Saul’s life. This was his big chance to get revenge, to pay him back. But David wouldn’t do it. Saul had been anointed to be the king. David knew to "touch not God’s anointed." Had David taken matters into his own hands, that would have kept him from the throne. You have to pass the test of honoring those who are in authority—not because they’re doing what’s right, but because of their position.
It’s easy to be disrespectful to people when they’re being disrespectful to us. It’s easy to want to vindicate ourselves. "Here’s my big chance to pay them back, to make them look bad. After all, they did it to me." No, stay on the high road. Let God be your vindicator; let Him pay your enemies back. God sees what’s happening. He sees every wrong, every injustice. If you’ll leave it up to God, He’ll vindicate you better than you can vindicate yourself.
Month after month, David kept doing the right thing. He could have been sour. "God, it was easy to defeat Goliath; why is this taking so long?" David understood—some opposition you have to outlast. If you get discouraged and worn down, it’s never going to happen; you’ll miss what God has in store.
Thirteen years after David was chosen to be king, after all the hiding, being mistreated, Saul was killed in a battle. He was suddenly taken away, and David became the king. What’s interesting is David never defeated Saul; he simply outlasted him. When you let God fight your battles, He’ll get you to where you’re supposed to be.
Now, some of the challenges that you’re facing—you’re being your best, but things aren’t improving. Like David, you have to outlast that opposition. Don’t worry about defeating it. If you’ll just outlast it, you’ll see the victory. God will take care of your "Sauls." You keep honoring God, and you won’t even have to fight. God will move the wrong people out of the way; He’ll open doors that you couldn’t open; He’ll turn the situation around in your health.
Now, outlast the sickness. Outlast the loneliness. Outlast the trouble at work. You have to tap into your staying power.
A friend of mine works for a big company. For years, his supervisor was against him, always putting him down, making him look bad. This supervisor even went to the main boss and tried to get my friend fired, but the boss wouldn’t do it. The boss took all his other recommendations—why wouldn’t he take this one? Because God is in control of your life, not people, not the sickness, not the addiction. God has the final say.
This supervisor was always spreading rumors about my friend, trying to poison him in front of all the other employees. But my friend just kept doing the right thing, overlooking offenses, being good to people. One morning, this supervisor was called into the main office. He’d been with the company over 20 years, and it looked like he would retire there. But that day, he was unexpectedly terminated—they let him go. A few minutes later, they called my friend in. Out of all the people there, they gave him the supervisor’s job. He said, "Joel, I wasn’t qualified for the position. There were others in front of me, but for some reason, they chose me to head up this department."
The Scripture says, "The trap the enemy set for you, they will fall in themselves." You may have people against you, trying to discredit you, make you look bad—you don’t have to fight those battles; just outlast the opposition. Keep doing the right thing, keep being faithful each day, and God will take care of who’s trying to stop you.
Are you upset over what’s not changing? You’re praying, believing, but it’s not improving. It’s because that’s not a Goliath—that’s a Saul. You can’t pray it away; you can’t make it work out. You have to outlast it. Trust God’s timing. God knows what He promised you, He knows what He put on the inside, and at the right time, it will come to pass.
God told Moses in the book of Exodus to go tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. They had been in slavery for many years. Moses told God that he didn’t want to go, that Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to him. He finally went, but it was just like Moses thought. Pharaoh basically laughed at him, saying, "Moses, who are you to tell me what to do? You have no authority here; I don’t have to listen to you." Moses went back and said, "God, I told you he wouldn’t listen. I told you it wouldn’t work out."
What’s interesting is the Scripture says that God caused Pharaoh to be stubborn so He could show His power in a greater way. God had Moses go back again and again, but He already knew Pharaoh would say no—He caused him to harden his heart. Moses could have said, "God, I give up. I’m doing what You asked me to do, but it’s not making a difference." No, he just kept doing the right thing, even though nothing was changing. Everything in him said, "You’re wasting your time; it would have happened by now. This man’s never going to change his mind." He had to outlast Pharaoh’s stubbornness.
I wonder if you’re frustrated by an enemy that God is causing to be stubborn. He’s not letting it work out yet because He’s going to use that situation to catapult you to a new level. All you can see is that nothing is improving; what you can’t see is what God is about to do—the doors He’s about to open, the healing, the favor, the vindication, the breakthroughs. And you may have some stubborn enemies; the good news is, they are not too stubborn for our God. He would not have allowed it if He wasn’t going to bring you out better.
Now you have to get your fire back, dig your heels in a little bit deeper, and show the enemy you’re more determined than he is. God didn’t bring you this far to leave you. He didn’t let Pharaoh say no because Pharaoh is more powerful; God is setting you up to show out in your life. He allowed the opposition not to stop you, but to promote you. Now you need to be more stubborn in your faith than the stubborn things that come against you.
That sickness may be stubborn; you can’t seem to get well. That’s okay—I’m more stubborn than the sickness. "I will live and not die. Father, thank You that You’re restoring health back unto me. Thank You that the number of my days, You will fulfill."
That financial difficulty is stubborn—it’s been in my family line for generations. But can I tell you, I’m more stubborn? "I will lend and not borrow. Father, thank You that abundance is coming my way. Thank You that what I touch prospers and succeeds."
Moses went back and told Pharaoh again and again to let them go, but Pharaoh was stubborn. Yet Moses was more stubborn. Every time the enemy tells you no, you need to go back and tell him yes one more time. Don’t let the enemy have the last word. Keep speaking faith over your life, keep declaring favor, keep calling yourself blessed, healthy, strong, victorious.
Pharaoh finally decided to let the Israelites go, and these two million people headed toward the Promised Land. It wasn’t long before Pharaoh changed his mind and came chasing after them. It looked like a setback, but really, God was setting them up. They were at a dead end at the Red Sea; they had nowhere to go. But just because you’ve run out of options doesn’t mean God has run out of options. God told the Israelites, "The enemies you see today, you will see no more." The Red Sea parted, the Israelites went through on dry ground, and when Pharaoh and his army came chasing, the waters closed up—they were all drowned. They saw those enemies no more.
You may have situations that look like they’ll never work out. God is saying to you what He said to them: that depression—you’re about to see it no more. Hallelujah, that is not your destiny. That struggle in your finances—you can’t get ahead—you’re about to see the enemy of lack no more. God’s about to release you into abundance. The sickness that’s been hindering you, the addiction, the loneliness, the anxiety—you might as well have a going-away party; you’re going to see them no more. This is a new day; God is doing a new thing.
Now keep this tenacity down in your spirit. This is not the time to be tired and weak and run down. You’ve been armed with strength for every battle. You are not weak; you are well able to outlast what’s trying to stop you.
Over these last 20 years that I’ve been pastoring, I’ve had to learn to outlast some things. When I first stepped up to minister, every thought told me that I couldn’t do it, that I wasn’t qualified, that I didn’t have the talent. I tried to push those thoughts down, but they came right back up—they were stubborn. I couldn’t pray them away; I couldn’t believe them away. I had to outlast the insecurity, outlast the fear, outlast the intimidation. I wish I could tell you that if you had enough faith, you would never have to fight fear or anxiety or people being against you. That’s not the case. Some things you just have to outlast. You have to be more determined than what’s trying to hold you back.
Twenty years later, I don’t fight those same thoughts. The enemies I saw back then, I don’t see today. What am I saying? Don’t get stuck in the middle. Don’t believe the lies that where you are is permanent, that you’ll always be that way. Outlast the opposition. Keep believing, keep reprogramming your mind, keep thanking God that He’s bigger than what you’re facing.
A few years after I started pastoring, the church began to really grow, and more people started watching. That’s great, but with all the exposure comes more critics and people who don’t understand you and people who don’t want you to succeed. At first, I didn’t know how it was going to work out; it seemed like every week, someone was coming against us, trying to discredit us. But I never debated with people; I never tried to change their minds. I just kept running my race, honoring God, being the best that I could be.
It was about 10 years in that I felt something lift off of me. It was like God said, "Alright, Joel, you’ve outlasted your critics. You passed this test. Now the enemies you see today, you won’t see anymore." And yes, sure, I still have a few critics—maybe a couple—but people can’t stop your destiny. God being for you is more than the world being against you.
My encouragement: Don’t fight with your critics; just outlast them. Let your actions speak for you. Let your success do the talking.
Paul said in Ephesians, "Having done all, to stand." He was saying, when you’ve done everything you can—you’ve done your best to get well, you’ve been good to people who weren’t good to you, you’ve worked hard and haven’t seen increase—what do you do? Get upset, discouraged, give up? No, just stand. Standing is trusting God, knowing that He is in control. When you’re standing, you’re not frustrated by what’s not happening; you’re not complaining because it’s taking so long. You’re at peace, you’re at rest; you know what God started in your life, He’s going to finish.
The Amplified Bible says, "Stand firm, immovable." That means you’re not moved by the medical report, you’re not moved by how your child is acting, you’re not moved by the contract that didn’t go through. You’re steadfast—you keep believing, you keep thanking God, you keep being your best. Quitting is not an option; giving up is not in your mindset. You know what God promised is on the way. If it’s not happening—no big deal.
You just keep standing. Somebody asked, "Are you still believing to get well? You've had that sickness a long time. I saw the medical report—what are you going to do?" I'm going to stand. I'm going to trust God. I'm going to thank Him that healing is coming. I'm going to keep declaring that I'm healthy, whole, and strong.
"Well, how long are you going to stand?"
I'm going to stand until I see what God promised me come to pass. God is looking for people who have stubborn faith. Anybody can get discouraged, anybody can give up and say, "Pharaoh said no." If you're going to reach your destiny, you have to make up your mind that you’re going to stand no matter what comes against you and no matter how long it takes.
The Apostle Paul outlasted betrayals, shipwrecks, beatings, and being lied about. He had plenty of opportunities to get stuck. He could have said, "God, it's not fair—all these things have come against me." Instead, he had stubborn faith. He said in Acts 20, "None of these things move me." He was saying, "I'm not moved by the opposition." He wasn’t moved by how unfair it was or by how long it was taking. He just kept standing. He went on to write over half of the books in the New Testament.
We need to get to the place where we can say, like Paul, "None of these things move me." Not moved by the economy, not moved by what's not working out. I have a made-up mind. I'm going to keep standing, keep believing, keep trusting. I'm going to outlast what's trying to stop me. This is one time where it’s good to be stubborn. You are not going to be talked out of what God put in your heart.
I was at the beach one time when our children were small. Alexandra was three, and Jonathan was six. We were having a fun time making castles in the sand when this little yellow bumblebee came and landed right beside us. Well, Alexandra screamed and took off running, and I just swatted him out of the way and we went back to playing. Thirty seconds later, he was right back, flying all around us. The kids started screaming. I got my towel and swatted him down to the ground. I thought I showed him who was boss.
A minute later, there he was again, buzzing all around, annoying us. This time, I not only swatted him to the ground, but I got my tennis shoe and squashed him into the sand as hard as I could. I thought, "I'm tired of dealing with him." A couple of minutes later, I looked over just to make sure he was still dead. I couldn’t believe it—I saw one wing barely start to move, then another wing came up out of the sand. He walked around for a few seconds like he was in a daze. I was amazed—not only that he was still alive, but that he could get back up again. About that time, he took off flying in the air away from me, and just when I thought I was done with him, he turned around and headed right back toward us. I thought, "You’ve got to be kidding. This bee is like the Terminator—I'll be back." He came and buzzed by my head like four or five times. I had to dodge to get out of the way. Alexandra said, "Daddy, get the towel!" I said, "No, Alexandra, this bee deserves to live. I’m a thousand times bigger than him, and I still can't kill him."
When life tries to push you down, step on your dreams, squash your health—you’ve got to do like that little bumblebee and get back up again. Outlast what’s trying to defeat you. The power in you is greater than any power that’s trying to stop you. The Scripture says a good person falls seven times but gets back up again. You have comeback power. God wouldn’t have allowed the adversity if it was going to finish you off. It’s just another step on the way to your destiny.
We see this with Joseph. He was betrayed by his brothers, thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, put in prison, falsely accused. It was one bad break after another—13 years of injustice and disappointments. Surely he would be bitter, discouraged. No, Joseph understood—he just kept standing, kept doing the right thing. One day, while he was in prison for something he didn’t do, the guards came and said the Pharaoh wanted to see him, the leader of the country. Joseph didn’t have an appointment with him; he had never met the man. But when it’s your time to be promoted, all the forces of darkness cannot hold you back. When you pass the test of outlasting the opposition, the promotion will come looking for you. The healing will come to you. The right people will find you.
Joseph went and interpreted the dream for the Pharaoh, who was so impressed that he made Joseph the prime minister of Egypt. When we study Joseph’s life, we realize God wasn’t asking him to defeat his brothers. He wasn’t asking him to break out of the pit or to escape captivity. God was simply asking him to outlast the opposition. That all had to happen for him to become the prime minister.
Some of the challenges you’re facing, the things that are bothering you and not changing—God is not asking you to overcome them; He’s just asking you to outlast them. It’s all a part of His plan; it’s necessary to get you to your destiny. And yes, the Pharaohs can be stubborn. Things may not be improving yet, but stay encouraged. God is still in control; He has you in the palm of His hand. What He promised you is on the way.
Now, do your part and keep standing. Don’t be moved by what’s not changing. Have this stubborn faith. If you’ll do this, I believe and declare that, like with Joseph, things are going to suddenly change in your favor. You didn’t see it coming—breakthroughs, healing, vindication, promotion, the fullness of your destiny. In Jesus' name.
And if you receive it, can you say Amen today?
Well, I’d like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, "Lord Jesus, come into my heart. I make You my Lord and Savior." Friends, if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible-based church. Keep God first place.
