Win Battles We Know Nothing About, Secret Righteousness - Kevin Brechbill

I'm not a product of my circumstances; I am a product of my decisions. No matter what test comes your way, you are a product of your decisions in response to that test.

Well, it's definitely exciting to be here today. Um, appreciate everyone, everyone coming out. So I decided to just share something. Uh, this message is kind of for Addison, uh, to Addison from, from, from her father. And, uh, so you guys are welcome to listen in on that. And I was thinking about this. I was like, what does a father, what's the most important thing a father is to tell his child to be a Christian? Like, what is that?

I haven't figured that out, but I do have something I want to share.

And it actually comes from something that I actually have noticed in, in Addison, uh, in her character that I think I see her developing. And it's something that I see as very important. In fact, I think in the Christian experience, I think a lot of times that we, we miss this aspect of, of our Christian, of the Christian life. And I, it's something that I really want us to understand. I'm going to keep the message fairly, uh, short because we want to, um, go to the baptism here after a bit.

And David asked me what the, uh, title of the message is. I said, "When battles we know nothing about." And I just quick pulled that out. Um, another one you could think about is secret righteousness. So I'll let you guys think about that as I move, as I move forward. I want to start with a quote.

"The strongest people are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win battles we know nothing about." I want you to think about that being a Christian. "The strongest people are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win battles we know nothing about."

If there's one thing I would like Addison to learn about being a disciple of Christ is learning to win battles that no one else knows about. Because I think that's what builds character.

So I would like to put forth this idea. Who are the strongest people? People with the greatest character. People that have quality in their conduct. They just simply have outstanding, uh, conduct. Their integrity is, is unflinching. You know, as a youth, I pursued this question.

Um, I often thought about it because I looked at great men of God and I wondered, what is their secret? What's the secret? And there's, there's multiple ones. I'm not saying this is the only one, but I think it's very important to understand this as a Christian. And so I listened and I asked questions and I watched.

This is my observation. A lot of people want to, a lot of people try, and a lot of people have good intention.

But I think I've found that very few people truly take ownership of themselves. And it's in this con, in this idea of learning to win the battles that no one else knows about.

I think most people, including myself, usually find an excuse. Aren't that, isn't tempted to do that?

If we can learn to win battles that no one knows about, it not only says something about you, but it does something to you and for you. It's an interesting verse. It says, "For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil." Now, have you ever thought about that verse, what that verse entails?

Often we think of work that's done in secret, we tend to think of as evil, right?

I want to turn that concept upside down this morning.

Everything that's done in secret, whether good or evil, will bring judgment for. And I think that's a refreshing verse. Think of all the people that have, uh, died for the sake of Christ and all the governments of the world that have tried to crush Christianity.

The good's going to be revealed. I think that's a powerful thought. So if you're living for the right king, whether you're, you're put down, you're not seen or not, it will be revealed someday. I think that's powerful.

To me, it's just an awesome verse. Um, it, it, it's, it's beautiful and actually gives me goosebumps when I, when I think about it, think about it. However, I want to take this idea and push it on down the road a little bit, a little bit. What it, and look at what does it mean to learn to win secret battles.

I want to do it with a short version of Joseph, uh, the life of Joseph. I think most of our, most of us are familiar with the life of Joseph at some level.

But I want to use this story as a springboard.

And I think if you really read the story of Joseph, to me personally, I find it to be one of the most moving, compelling, and rich in quality stories that I, next to Christ, that I, I know about in the scripture. It's just powerful. There's a reason why it's so powerful. It's because out of his story, in every situation, he's a conqueror.

I mean, who does that? And we have a vast amount, a lot of, a, a, a big part of his story that we can read about. And he wins like every time. Isn't that amazing? How does that happen? Does that just happen?

So if there's anything I want to give Addison this morning is the vision to reach into eternity and take hold of the secrets of the tools of the kingdom of God. And I think one of them is this tool.

I think it's a pathway to eternity.

So I'm just going to read something that some, I found some of it and I put some of it together. It's, it's, it's just written in first person, uh, about, about Joseph. And, uh, just to give a short idea of what, uh, of what he did. It says, "When he was about to die, he called his sons and his brethren together. I have seen in my life envy and death. I wondered not from the truth of my Lord. My brethren hated me, but the Lord loved me. They wished to kill me, but the God of my fathers guarded me. They let me down into a pit, and the Most High brought me up again. I was sold for a slave, and the Lord made me free.

I was taken into captivity, and God's strong hand kept me. I was kept in hunger, and the Lord nourished me. I was alone, and God comforted me. I was sick, and the Most High visited me. I was in prison, and the Savior showed favor in unto me in bonds, and he released me amid slanders, and he pleaded my cause amid bitter words of the Egyptians, and God rescued me amid envy and guile, and God exalted me. Potiphar, the chief cook of Pharaoh, entrusted me to his house, and I struggled against a shameless woman, woman urging me to transgress with her. But the God of Israel, my father, guarded me from the burning flame. I was cast into prison.

I was beaten. I was mocked, and the Lord granted me to find pity in the sight of the keeper of the prison, for he will no wise forsake them that fear him, neither in darkness, nor in bonds, nor in tribulations, nor in necessities. For not as God, for not as man is God ashamed, nor as a son of man is he afraid, nor as one that is earthborn is he weak, or can he be thrust aside. But in all places he is his hand, and in divers ways doth he comfort, departing for a little to try the purpose of the soul. He showed me approved, and I endured, for the endurance is a mighty charm, and patience giveth good things."

It's just a concise, uh, a, a concise story of the life of Joseph. But when you work down through all his situations, it's an incredible story. How did Joseph develop that kind of character to come into every one of those situations and by all appearances respond right?

How does that develop?

The things we see, he experienced betrayal, deception, treachery, temptation, lies, and he doesn't become a terrible person. What's he become? He becomes a godlier person. How can there, how can that be? What's the secret? He endured false accusation from his own brethren, and he didn't retaliate. He was sold as a slave and didn't become better. He experienced intense and daily temptations and didn't yield.

He endured lies against him, and he didn't retaliate. Falsely thrown into prison, endured captivity, and he, and he was in prison, and he even excelled in prison.

And out of that, what we see, his response was consistent in gentleness and forgiveness. What's that secret? What are the battles that he won that we know nothing about? That's my question. What gave Joseph such outstanding resolve that gave him the ability to succeed through the, through endurance? How did he, how did he, how, how was he capable of endurance?

He experienced great testing, and he came out approved.

I want to be that kind of an individual. I want to be that kind of a man. I want you to be that kind of an individual. I want Addison to capture that.

So let's think about something, and I put it in this way. I believe there's two, uh, main ways that character is developed.

The first one, I'm going to say it's not by choice. Okay? And what I mean by that, circumstances comes into your life. Testing comes into your life. You're tested. Okay? Like Joseph, we saw the things that he was tested with: temptation, betrayal, deception. Like we saw those things, and he excelled in those things. He came out approved.

And I, I'll put this forth. I don't think we know ourselves until we're under test. You don't know what kind of a man or woman you are until you're under test. I think that's very, very true. I think that's why we see people get put into, um, places of responsibility, and they fall apart. That's when you're tested. When you become a mother or a father, when you become all those things, um, go to work, you're under responsibility. Like when you're under test, that's when you'll find out who you are.

You have the opportunity to respond correctly or incorrectly.

And I'm going to say there's many times that test comes your way that you can either respond correctly or incorrectly, and nobody knows about it. I'm not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decision, of my decisions. No matter what test comes your way, you are a product of your decisions in response to that test. But circumstances and tests that come our way, it's not necessarily by choice. Okay?

We need to respond correctly. However, I think as a Christian, and this is where I want to push this, push this idea down the road, Father, I call it next level Christianity. And I think it's when we do things by choice. And this is what I want to put to you as a, as a Christian.

What are the things that you choose to, by choice, to do in secret?

Now, we're here a lot today about when you become a Christian, you're supposed to do things out in the open, right? Like you're supposed to show people your, your, your works.

We are what we repeatedly, uh, what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act, but a habit. Our character basically is a, is a composite of our habits. Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.

What you choose to do, your choice will decide your destiny.

So let's go back to this verse that I started with.

The Lord is waiting, I believe, for us to show him that we love him.

And I'm going to put out this idea that next level Christianity, I don't know what for, uh, if there's a better word for it, is the idea of righteousness practiced in secret.

And it goes this, uh, I'll just read this verse again, Ecclesiastes. It says, "For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil." Okay?

Everything that you do in secret, whether it's good or evil, will be rewarded openly one way or another. What do I mean by this?

I want to take you to Matthew, and I'm going to read three verses. You're welcome to turn to it. Matthew 6:4, Matthew 6:6, and Matthew 6:18. And I want to put out this idea. I think as a Christian, we need to be a kind of an individual that we need to win battles that no one knows about. And I think it, it, it's, it's what God is looking for. Like Christianity is so, I don't know for word, just cheap. Everything's cheap. And we don't have the character to do things to walk in obedience that God asks us to do. Now think about these three things I'm going to read here that he tells us to do in secret.

And if you look at the Greek word, it means in secret. Just let you know. Matthew 6:4, it says that your charitable deed may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will himself reward you openly.

Now, if you choose to do a charitable deed and no one knows about it, does it matter? It says the Lord will reward you openly. Do you have the character to wait for him to reward you openly? I don't even know what that means exactly. I'd be open to some suggestions what that means.

How does he reward you us openly? Matthew 6:6. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret what will reward you openly.

Are you praying in secret? Like we know we pray at church.

We hear about all-night prayer meetings, which I'm not actually an advocate of necessarily. It's okay, maybe.

But the Bible says pray in secret. I think we all know that there's a, there's an assembly prayer that's, that's acceptable.

Are you praying in secret? If you are, the Lord will reward you openly. If you, if you aren't, you'll never receive a reward. It's, it's that simple. Are you, do you have the character to be obedient in place of sacrifice as that when Saul was, uh, went out and made, made sacrifice or something and say, or, or God says he would prefer obedience over sacrifice? Are you willing to be obedient? He says we're to do your charitable deeds in secret. Now, if I break my tire or if my tire blows and, and good grief, your name just went out the door. Josh. Well, Zach.

And Zach comes along and, uh, fixes my tire and pays for it. Now, I know he helped me financially, right? Okay? Those kind of things happen all, all the time. But we're supposed to be doing charitable deeds that no one knows about. Okay?

Matthew 18, it says, this is the third one, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. So there are three things that you can do secretly. I don't know you're doing them, and you don't know if I'm doing them.

But I personally, one of the, one of the things that is rewarded openly, um, your character comes out of that kind of dedication. Like it's, you, you look at some men and you think, how do they have that kind of capacity?

How do they respond like Joseph of old? Situation after situation hits them, and they respond right. I personally think this is the secret. It's what you do. It's the battles you win that nobody knows about. And that's what I want Addison to capture.

I think that's one of the most important things to understand as a Christian in our day and age where everything is hashtag.

It produces very little to zero Christianity.

The secret to influencing others is to become the person of change. And I think it's through the battles you win that no one else knows about. I don't care if it's battles that you fight in sin. If you're not winning them, it's going to show in your character. But then I think there's next level. We actually do things that are righteous. We win battles, righteous battles, righteous acts. Getting myself confused there.

I think the battles you win in secret, it forms, reveals, and creates your character. It establishes your integrity. It seals our souls.

And the other thing I think you see when people, when, when people get to this level of, of following God, I think you see, this is what you see that I don't think is truly seen very often. I think it's very few people that get to this level. When you see someone that has the ability to follow God without reservation, not very many people get to this level. And I think it's because of the secret, the secret life that they're living. When you're at war with the things you do in secret, whether good or evil, and you win, if you win, God will reward you openly. The stakes are huge as to, uh, whether we win these battles or not.

Whether you win or lose the battle, the battles done in secret, you either will compromise your soul or set your soul free. And this is done, God has given you the ability to do that. No one else can do it for you. Nobody. But I think it's a, it's a test. Do you love God or do you don't? Do you, do you, do you, do we, you know, take a shortcut?

Um, in today's world, it's all about shortcuts, and I don't think there is any. I really don't. So I want to close with two verses that wrap this thought up. In 2 Corinthians, it says, "For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord commends."

If you're winning battles that no one knows about, the Lord will commend you. What, what, what, what more do you want? Or, or doesn't God appeal that much to you? And then the final verse I want to end with is a beautiful verse. It's a, it's found in Peter 1:7, "That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ." That's the eternal, um, that's what the Lord gives from an eternal perspective. And that's my thought to you, Addison. So that was those thoughts. Uh, that's all I have. Does anyone have any, have any, uh, closing thoughts?

That definitely resonates with me. Um, just along that same line of logic as, as well, I, I've often, there's been times where I struggle with doubt Christianity about my faith and the, as it, as it being, am I, am I a true Christian? And I, and along that same logic of doing things in secret is, what do I do in secret? Am I actually serving God in secret? And if that answer is yes, then that, that, um, yeah, basically that shows me what, what path I'm on. And I, I just look at, look at my life in secret to be able to gauge where I, whether I actually am following Jesus or not. But thank you very much for sharing that.

I, I also was thinking about accountability and, and I'm an advocate for accountability, but just, I'm just thinking out loud now whether this is true or not. Um, but I, I, I'm also thinking about, can accountability be used to, in, in a negative way where we bring things up that are secret to be able to show people, like, this is my struggle, but then you, you can share and say, this is the victory I've had. And there's nothing wrong with that, but maybe it might take away from some things where you can fight battles without having the, um, the benefit of affirmation from other people. I, I don't know. It's just an idea that I thought.

I don't know if it's, it's right or not. Just kind of thinking along that line.

When I was at Fresh Start and we did accountability, you were allowed to bring your sin up three times after that. You weren't to hear it anymore. Uh, work in progress. So maybe connect to that a little bit. Any other thoughts? Yeah, I was really intrigued, um, by what you shared. I, I, I, I believe, I, I definitely believe what you shared is true. I, it is interesting that the three, probably the three main

Christian attributes, whatever you want to call them, that we find it, I'm going to say most of us, if not all of us, find it the hardest to do in our daily lives is the very three things that Jesus hones in on very early on in the sermon of the mouth.

And that's almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. And in all those three things, he said that you're to do it in secret. And, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. There's something to that I feel I haven't, like, I feel like I'm miles away from a lot of times. And the very three things that, you know, whatever, whatever it is, like we, we, we sound, like you said, we, we try to find shortcuts around them.

And I agree, I don't think there are any, but that's those very three things that he told us to do in secret. That's just a really intriguing thought.

You had asked about, um, what does it mean he'll reward you openly? That's going to be on judgment day. You know, we do it in secret. Now, people, I think we'll all be surprised on judgment day that the people who've won all of these hidden battles that no one even knew about have done so many things for Christ that no one knew about. On judgment day, they're going to be in front of the whole universe and God's going to reward them openly. Um, if they did serve him secretly, I mean, a lot of what we do has to be in front of man. Jesus wants our light to shine. But yeah, not the things for self-glorification like giving alms and that sort of thing.

And that's one reason in this church we don't pass a collection plate. It, uh, you probably get more money if you do a collection plate instead of having a bottle. I mean, that's why, that's why church, that's why churches do it because they know there's going to be a little peer pressure. People may be looking, you know. Um, and I've always been shocked they do that because Jesus said, "Give in secret," you know. And so we've tried to make that easy for people to give in secret here. Uh, that's just one of the small things.

I was thinking of that verse where I can't quite remember. It's in one of the Gospels where when people, uh, they come to judgment day and they say, "Oh Lord, we've done all these great and wonderful things." He says, "No, I don't know you." I was thinking of that in relation to what you just read there.

Yeah. Um, we better have some secret things that we're doing or I don't think it's going to, going to stand well. Any other, any other thoughts? Really appreciated the message, Kevin. And I had to think of a comment a gentleman's name one time. Interestingly enough, he was a politician, but he said, "Character is doing what's right and then what is wrong."

Yeah. Yeah. And like David said, that'll be revealed on judgment day.