Hindrances To The Gospel of Jesus: Do You Know What Goes On Behind The Scenes?

Hinderances To The Gospel of Jesus: Do You Know What Goes On Behind The Scenes?

In today’s episode, we delve into the subject of hindrances to the gospel of Jesus Christ. These hindrances have only one origin, the Kingdom of Darkness. One gentleman said that the Lord has given to every man his work. It is his business to do it, and the devil’s business to hinder him—if he can. So, sure as God gives a man a work to do, Satan will try to hinder him. He may present other things more promising; he may allure you by worldly prospect; he may assault you with slander, torment you with false accusations, set you to work defending your character, employ pious persons to lie about you, editors to assail you, and excellent men to slander you. You may have Pilate and Herod, Ananias and Caiaphas all combined against you, and Judas standing by to sell you for 30 pieces of silver. And you may wonder why all these things have come to pass. Can you not see that the whole thing is brought about through the craft of the devil, to draw you off from your work and hinder your obedience to Christ? Keep about your work. Do not flinch because the lion roars. Do not stop to stone the devil’s dogs. Do not fool around your time chasing the devil’s rabbits. Do your work but, see to it that nothing hinders you from fulfilling the work God has given you. Let your aim be as steady as a star. Let the world brawl and bubble. You may be, as the Apostle Paul, assaulted, wrangled, insulted, slandered, wounded, and rejected. You may be chased by foes, abused by them, forsaken by friends, despised and rejected by men, but see to it that with steadfast determination and with unfaltering zeal you pursue that great purpose of your life and the object of your being until at last you can say; “I have finished the work which you, dear God, have given me to do?”¹ Hindrances To The Gospel of Jesus: Do You Know What Goes On Behind The Scenes? That’s our focus on this week’s Light on Life.

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Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put it into operation.
This week’s call is:

Hindrances must be overcome. You must know that you have the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11). Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony.
This week’s question is:

Question: We’re more than conquerors. What does that mean to you when you experience hindrances to your mission on Planet earth? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:

We are currently teaching in the book of First Thessalonians. You can click on the links below to listen to some of these podcasts.

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 45 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. He and his wife Sharon of 40 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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Podcast Notes

The Main Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

We are in 1 Thessalonians two, starting at verse seventeen talking about hindrances to the gospel.
If any man of God understood this subject, it was the Apostle Paul.
He was well acquainted with opposition.

1 Thessalonians 2:17–20 (ESV) — 17 But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, 18 because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan hindered us. 19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20 For you are our glory and joy.

Paul is pressing forward with the gospels preaching it in places where the gospel had never gone before.
Along the way, Paul experienced difficulties.
He ran into opposition.

2 Corinthians 11:23–28 (ESV) — 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.

Does this sound like smooth sailing to you?
You know people think that way — that everything in life will be without challenges if you’re in Jesus.
No, Paul points it out clearly here in this passage we are studying in Thessalonians.
There will be days or times in your walk with Jesus and because of Jesus when life is all about tough sledding.
Paul was walking in the perfect will of God.
Get that — you have an enemy who opposes God, hates God, and everyone who has anything to do with God.
The struggle is real.
Along the way, you will trudge through a swamp of hindrances.
You, like Paul, will smack into some brick walls and experience some hard places.
Hindrances must be overcome.
Paul, said, ‘I wanted to do the right thing — I wanted to come to you over and over but I was hindered.
You know, it’s always helpful to define terms.
What does it mean to be hindered, exactly?
The Greek word ‘hinder’ is the one we want to look at and, with that thought, here is the Definition of the Day.
The word ‘hinder’ means to make progress slow or difficult, to thwart.
It means to obstruct.
Now that doesn’t mean that progress is not being made — it’s just that advances are slow going.
If you take a look at an English dictionary for the word ‘hinder,’ you will find that the definition yields something similar.
Add to what we already have the thought of hindering being the creating of difficulties for (someone or something), resulting in delay or obstruction.
There is the word obstruct again.
So, we are talking about impediments to the gospel.
When things are not progressing as they should, that is a clue we should get.
The clue is that we are not alone on Planet Earth.
There is something that is the source of the obstruction.
That source is an enemy of the gospel — it’s against the gospel going forward.

Ephesians 6:13–15 (ESV) — 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.

Here you are, you have your gospel shoes on and you are marching forward with your ministry, and all of a sudden you step into a mud bath of a field.
Every step you take is hard.
It takes a lot more effort to go forward — things slow down.
You can’t walk as fast.
The scripture tells us, in fact, that we are supposed to be running to the finish line like a world-class marathoner.

Hebrews 12:1 (ESV) — 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

How do you run your race if your feet are cemented in a field of mud?
You have to get out of the mud, dust off, clean off, scrub off, and get back on the track.
Anything that causes the message of the gospel to slow down or to quit advancing as it should has enemy involvement written all over it.
This is a truth that we all need to acknowledge.
If we don’t recognize enemy opposition, we can’t take authority over it.
Your enemy is out there impeding the gospel.
He wants to be the headline story, not Jesus.
Satan has read the back of the Book and he knows that he is the loser.
So, he’ll do anything to slow down what he knows is coming.
That’s these hindrances we are talking about.
If there’s an obstacle or an obstruction placed in the way of the gospel, mark it down that’s automatically the devil at work.
Heaven is not impeding the gospel.
They’re not holding back the good news.
That would be a house divided against itself.
Now, when we say ‘your enemy’ we mean devils, demons, and evil spirits, let’s just be clear about it.
This is the ‘we wrestle not against flesh and blood’ conflict we see in Ephesians six.
We’ve already seen how Paul rose up in defense of his ministry by countering charges from human enemies that he was deceitful, that he was teaching false doctrine, and that all he wanted was money and attention.
You know the obstacles we face come via the hands of men.
Men who are in darkness are under the influence of the god of this world and become instruments of evil.
Now, all of this sounds like a bad picture but you know Satan’s plan to hinder is not the end of the story.
No, it’s only chapter one in the book of your life.
Keep reading.
There is a higher and more compelling reality than anything the devil tried to throw your way.

The Real Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

Here’s the real truth!
Jesus defeated the devil at Calvary through His death, burial, and resurrection.
He gained the keys of death hell and the grave and, once He did, He turned around and gave the church the authority He had won in combat.

Matthew 28:18–20 (ESV) — 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 [Go therefore] and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

You can ‘go’ because you have the authority to go.
Jesus said go — he didn’t say get bogged down.
Well, what about the opposition? — what about the hindrances?

Mark 16:15–20 (ESV) — 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” 19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.

When Jesus gave you the authority to go, He also gave you the equipment to go with.
He didn’t send you out empty-handed.
These signs will follow them that believe.
Signs, marvelous signs – miracle wonders from the hands of the Almighty.
In my Name, they will cast out demons.
In my Name, they will pray in a language that the devil doesn’t understand.
They will pray divine secrets that come from the mind of the Holy Spirit of which the devil has no insight.
We covered this in a previous podcast where Paul was taken up to the third heaven and heard unspeakable words — a revelation of utmost power and performance.
The devil knew nothing about what God said to Paul.
They will speak in new tongues.
But that’s not all the equipment.
While they are preaching the gospel in wild wilderness places where civilization may not have even come, poisonous snakes will have no effect on them.
They have time for poison — they only have time to run their race.
You don’t have time for poison from snakes — quit listening to the devil’s lies.
Don’t let his poison of doubt and despair fill your mind.
In my Name speak to that poison and command it go — you are an authorized one.
In my Name, they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.
Divine wonder-working equipment.
I’m going to say it again, you can’t be stopped.

Romans 8:35–39 (ESV) — 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

When Lord Nelson reported to the British admiralty his great victory over the French fleet in the Battle of the Nile, he said that “victory” was not a large enough word to describe what had taken place. When Paul spoke of the victory which through Jesus Christ he had won over all the ills and adversaries and temptations and woes of life, that greatest of all words, “conqueror,” was not sufficient to describe it; and therefore he said “more than conquerors, through him that loved us.”²

Get it — more than a conqueror.
What does that mean?
It means Satan can hinder you but he can’t stop you!
Nothing can stop this mighty moving force.
And with that thought, here is the Illustration of the Day.
If we look at those men who were consumed with one thought alone, to conquer the whole entire world, if we look at how close they came in terms of square miles, this is what the chart reveals.

Genghis Khan (1162–1227), 4,860,000

Alexander the Great (356–323 B.C.) 2,180,000
Tamerlane (1336–1405), 2,145,000
Cyrus the Great (600–529 B.C.), 2,090,000
Attila (406–453), 1,450,000
Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), 1,370,000, all of which he lost in 3 years
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) 720,000
Mahmud of Ghazni (971–1030) 680,000
Francisco Pizarro (1470–1541), 480,000
Hernando Cortes (1485–1547), 315,000³

But, that’s not the wow — the wow is that Jesus conquered all of it.
He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
You are hooked up with Him.
The Church, empowered by the message of Jesus, is an unstoppable force.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t experience hindrances.
And with that thought here is the Quote of the Day.
I came across this eye-catching quote while doing an electronic search in my library.
It comes from a novel that I have never read but, the quote is compelling.
Here it is.

Evil knows what we will become: Stronger. Wiser. Unstoppable. Don’t let him take who you are. Make him fear who you will become.⁴

The devil knows that if he doesn’t do something if he doesn’t lay some hinderances in your way, all you are going to do is grow stronger and stronger.
You are going to go from glory to glory and from strength to strength.
For He that has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
You can be hindered but you can’t be stopped.
In the letter Paul wrote to the born-again believers of Rome, he shares the same struggle he had in Thessalonica.

Romans 1:11–13 (ESV) — 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles.

The word presented is the same class of word that hinder is in.

Overcoming Hindrances to the Gospel in the Ministry of Jesus

Mark 4:35–41 (ESV) — 35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Do you see what the will of God was for the disciples? — it was to go to the other side.
Do you see the hindrance? — the storm made the ship slow down.
The disciples were toiling trying to keep the ship afloat — forget about the gospel — all they were thinking about was survival.
But do see the answer to the hindrance? — it’s the authority of God — it’s faith in the Name — it’s speaking the Word, “Peace be still.’
It’s knowing where you are supposed to be going — the other side, and tenaciously setting your face in that direction not looking to the left or looking to the right.

Hindrances to the Gospel: Make Sure You Are Not the Problem

When it comes to hindrances to the gospel, make sure you’re not the problem.
Are you in God’s will?
Are there things weighing you down?
Are you sinning?
Now, you can go a lot of directions here but, specifically, I’m talking about the words of your mouth.
Make sure that your words are not a hindrance to your progress.

Malachi 3:13–15 (ESV) — 13 “Your words have been hard against me, says the LORD. But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ 14 You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the LORD of hosts? 15 And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape.’ ”

Here is this same thought in Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 35:13 (ESV) — 13 And you magnified yourselves against me with your mouth, and multiplied your words against me; I heard it.

If God says you can, you can’t say I can’t — you surely shouldn’t say I won’t.
Make sure your words are not a hindrance to your progress.
Your spoken words must be in line with His written words or you will bog in your own self-created field of mud.
Now, if you find that you are in line with God’s will and you are doing things rightly, meaning your words are true and in line with the scriptures — you’re doing all that you can and yet things are difficult, your progress is being hindered by demonic influence.
Use your authority and speak to the problem in Jesus’ Name.
Know that you have victory through Him that loves you.

Now Father God, I thank you because you are the only wise God, Maker of Heaven and Earth. By your mighty right arm, you have gained for us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for that victory and we commit our lives to going forward with the message of redemption and the Lordship of Jesus. We will not allow ourselves to quit, or to look back. We look forward in Jesus Name and we take ground for the Kingdom of God. And we do it in Jesus Name, Amen.

Hindrances To The Gospel of Jesus: Do You Know What Goes On Behind The Scenes?
You guys have a great God Week and we will see you next time for another edition of Light on Life.

Your Powerful Victory Over Satan the Devil

__________
References:

Adapted from Pulpit Helps, August 1992, p. 8 ↩
Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc., 1996), 520. ↩
Source unknown Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002). ↩
Storm Siren, Marry Webber, chapter 35 ↩

emeryhorvath.com

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Hindrances To The Gospel of Jesus: Do You Know What Goes On Behind The Scenes?

Podcast: Light on Life Season Ten Episode Twenty-Seven

by Emery Horvath

Listen to the Audio

Click to Listen | Right Click to Download |Subscribe in PlayerFM

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:

We are currently teaching in the book of First Thessalonians. You can click on the links below to listen to some of these podcasts.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

The Main Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

The Real Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

Overcoming Hindrances to the Gospel in the Ministry of Jesus

Hindrances to the Gospel: Make Sure You Are Not the Problem

Listen to the Audio

Click to Listen | Right Click to Download |Subscribe in PlayerFM

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:

We are currently teaching in the book of First Thessalonians. You can click on the links below to listen to some of these podcasts.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

The Main Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

The Real Truth about Hindrances to the Gospel

Overcoming Hindrances to the Gospel in the Ministry of Jesus

Hindrances to the Gospel: Make Sure You Are Not the Problem

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