Hebrews 11:30
“By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.”
Introduction:
Why is concentration so important? People who concentrate or meditate were able to change the world. Steve Jobs was able to change the world with Apple by spending time each day meditating. If we are able to concentrate on God, He will undoubtedly use us to change the world. The most important thing we can pray for is for us to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We need to concentrate on nothing else but what God desires. The Israelites circled around the walls of Jericho for seven days concentrating on God’s promises, to his covenant. What is the covenant God gave us? That Jesus is the Christ, and that God who began his good work in us will finish it. This Jesus Christ is with us and is the only answer and solution the world needs. The faith we have is not a blind faith but a faith that is upon God’s covenant.
When asked to concentrate for 10 seconds, there were many people who were unable to. To combat their inability to concentrate, many even take medication. On the other hand, there are also people who can concentrate, but they are concentrating on the wrong things. As children of God, we need to concentrate on the heavenly things. We need to concentrate on what God desires. When we are able to concentrate on the things God desires, we can see God working on our lives.
1.Why is it important to concentrate on the covenant?
Because we have received all of the answers in Jesus Christ. Paul confesses that everything is in Jesus. Our identity in Jesus Christ has completely changed to children of God, spiritual doctors, watchmen and ambassadors, and the sovereign God is in complete control and is responsible for our lives. We have a peace and assurance no one else has.
When we proclaim the gospel, people can become alive, and this is a rightful identity God wants us to enjoy.
We need to concentrate on the covenant to overcome ourselves. Our habits and nature are impossible to change. “Not by power or might, but by the Spirit of God.” You know yourself more than anyone else and that you’re filled with disbelief and bad imprints. We are able to overcome ourselves and change the impossible within us with the Spirit of God.
Romans 12:2
The spiritual battle we fight is within our minds. We can overcome Satan’s battles and schemes by concentrating on the covenant. Jesus Christ has already crushed Satan’s head and there is no authority greater that can overcome us.
John 16:33
Jesus Christ within us has already overcome the world, and with the light of Jesus Christ in us, we too can overcome the world.
Isaiah 43:1
As we hope and depend on God, concentrating on God, he will renew us with new strength.
2. What happens when we concentrate on the covenant?
We receive God’s strength. We struggle in our lives because we lack strength, but by focusing on the covenant, God is able to renew us with new strength, and revive our souls. When we truly restore worship in your life, everything else in your life is renewed as a result.
We gain clarity of mind. Your perspective, the way you see things, changes. Cinderella, after meeting the prince and falling in love, returned back to her same unchanged reality, yet she was different. In that same way, our circumstances may remain the same, but the way we see things must be different in Christ. We have so many hidden scars from Satan but Christ reached to us first and healed them all.
Philippians 4:6
When we focus on Jesus Christ, we become one with one another and with God. The Israelites, when they concentrated on the covenant, they became one with each other and with God and they broke down the walls of Jericho. When they concentrated on the covenant of the blood of the young lamb, they were liberated from Egypt.
3. How can we concentrate on the covenant?
We can focus on the covenant by focusing on God’s word. We are unable to see God but we know that he is with us because of God’s word. When we concentrate on God’s word even just for a little time each day, the Holy Spirit works within us. Not only must you listen to the Sunday Pulpit message but organize it so you can recall and meditate on it.
Matthew 6:33
We can focus on the covenant through prayer. Not just prayer about the things you want, but prayer centered on God’s word. We often just pray when we come across hardship, but you can pray 24/7 when God’s word is organized in your life, whether you’re driving, working, running errands etc. We were not made to live our walk of faith alone, which is why God established the church. We are not alone but are together, building each other up. God established the system of the church to help each other concentrate.
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