Throwing in the towel

Philippians 2:13 NLT "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him."

Fighters use this term to call a fight to say they surrender.

I’ve had enough and will not be able to continue.

I quit.

1.                  You have to have something to quit, in wanting to quit. Most people I know who have successful ministries/lives struggle with quitting because they have the option to quit.

a.                  You can’t quit something you are not doing.

i.If you desire to do anything in this life you will receive the option at some point in your life to throw in the towel.

b.                  You are either involved in something great or on your way to greatness if you’ve ever wanted to quit.

ii. If you are never tempted to throw in the towel then chances are you aren’t attempting anything with any amount of significance.

iii.                Only champions are presented with the option of throwing in the towel.

c. Champions have a strong desire to quit. Only winners want to quit.

i.Peter wanted to quit, the bible said he went back to fishing when he betrayed Christ.

ii. John the Baptist wanted to quit he was like look should we look for another messiah or are you the One?

iii.                King David almost quit after the transgressions of his life.

iv.                Samson threw in the towel to Delilah and ruined some great opportunities but his hair was growing back.

v.                  Jesus Himself wanted to quit when He said let this cup pass from me Father yet not my will but yours be done.

1.                  Wanting to throw in the towel means your life has value.

2.                  Your future has value, your marriage has value, your career has value, and your destiny has value.

2.                  Don’t quit.

a.                  Never throw in the towel of life.

b.                  Never throw in the towel in your marriage.

c. Refuse to throw in the towel in your dreams for God.

Philippians 2:5 “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though he was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

**Philippians 2:13 “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”**

d.                  In your future don’t fail, fight.

e.                  If Moses would have quit when things got difficult where would an estimated 2 million Israelites be?

f.   Where would the city of Nineveh be if Jonah would have continued to run from God?

g.                  Where would Jeremiah be cause he wanted to quit but instead he turned his desire to quit into a rallying towel and an explosive desire to keep on keeping on.

i.The bible said that locked up inside of Jeremiah was a fire and God wanted the fire released and the devil wanted the fire quenched.

ii. Jeremiah decided to fan those flames and begin to wave the rally towel for a victory.

iii.                When the going gets tough start a I can’t quit because speech…”I can’t quit cause my TK is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Alec is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Chase is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Madi is counting on me, I can’t quit cause…

3.                  Always serve.

a.                  One thing about all of you is that you serve.

i.Never lose that investment.

ii. Die to yourself as you plant the seed of service. Never get selfish.

iii.                Never lose that awesome, awe inspiring, God living, life altering privilege of serving. 

b.                  Throw in the towel of service into the lives of others.

i.Jesus used a towel.

ii. Jesus selected a towel as His weapon of choice.

iii.                I have truly found myself in serving others.

1.                  I am blessed cause I throw in the towel of service.

2.                  I am honored to, I am called to, I am privileged to, just like Christ it’s in my DNA.

John 13:1 “Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. 2 It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God.4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist,5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples' feet, drying them with the towel he had around him. 6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" 7 Jesus replied, "You don't understand now what I am doing, but someday you will." 8 "No," Peter protested, "you will never ever wash my feet!" Jesus replied, "Unless I wash you, you won't belong to me." 9 Simon Peter exclaimed, "Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!" 10 Jesus replied, "A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet,* to be entirely clean. And you disciples are clean, but not all of you."11 For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, "Not all of you are clean." 12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, "Do you understand what I was doing?13 You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and you are right, because that's what I am.14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet.15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.”

4.                  One question from the disciples continued to burn in their hearts…who was gonna have the Chief office in the Kingdom?

a.                  Jesus finally had to get onto His hands and knees to wash their feet, the menial service of a slave, to burn into their minds that He had called them to serve and not to rule.

b.                  Oh how the church has suffered in centuries before because we have been consumed with the passion to be great.

i.Instead of humbly serving Christ we use Christ’s name to serve ourselves.

c. And He poured out the water on their feet and girded Himself the scripture said with a towel.

d.                  He tied around Him a towel.

e.                  Do you understand He could have girded Himself with a legion of angels as a symbol of His authority?

ii. He could have girded Himself with a sword as a symbol of His authority but He girded Himself with a towel.

iii.                And poured out water and washed their feet.

1.                  Christ’s weapon of choice, a towel.

2.                  A symbol of servant hood.

3.                  A core value of my life.