The Triumphant Christian Part Three (keys To Victory & Dominion) by Apostle Joshua Selman: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Recap: Our Destiny In Christ And Why Defeat Persists

We established the destiny of the man who is without Christ — that such a man is still under the legal bondage of sin, Satan, the flesh, and the vicissitudes of life. He has no legal authorization to claim victory and dominion over the limitations of life. Such a man has a void within him that no amount of success can fill, and his destiny beyond this life is doom and damnation.

John 14:6

Acts 4:12

John 3:16

A Christian is a believer in and a follower of Jesus Christ, one who has consciously received salvation by believing the gospel and placing his faith in Christ, born again, made a recipient of God's life. A true Christian has been empowered by the spirit both to live like Christ, manifesting the fruit of the spirit, and to function like Christ, displaying the wisdom, the mighty works, and the power of extraordinary results. A person can choose to live like Christ and not function like Christ, or function like Christ and not live like Christ — a true Christian carries the capacity for both.

Man that is in honor and knoweth not is like a beast in the field that perisheth. Paul, praying over the church in Ephesus, prayed that believers would understand the hope of his calling — maturity and sonship in experience, and the ability to handle the weightier things of the kingdom.

Why Believers Fail

Believers fail because of three reasons merged in one.

1. Ignorance

2. Inaccurate knowledge

   There is zeal, but the knowledge is wrong.

3. Incomplete knowledge

   Many believers have truth, but it is not complete and wholesome enough to birth victory and dominion in experience. It is like a ten-digit phone number — if you have eight of the ten digits, none of them wrong, you still cannot dial through, because it needs to be complete.

There are three levels of knowledge the believer must be introduced to.

1. How God functions

   The people who know their God shall be strong and do exploits. Many believers know that God exists and believe in him, but have not taken time to learn how he functions — and many of the problems credited to him are, in truth, the result of our own ignorance of how he works.

2. How the life we have received works

   The Zoe life received in Christ is like a brand new gadget — one must be taught how to navigate its components for optimal use, so that the riches embedded within are released like a fragrance rather than remaining locked up.

3. How the kingdom functions

   The kingdom has a way it operates, and if you do not know how it operates, you will fail to manifest victory and dominion.

God is a relational God. However, he operates and executes based on patterns, systems, and principles.

John 9

The man born blind understood the principle when he went and washed in Siloam and returned seeing, but when asked where the man who healed him was, he said he did not know — he had the result because he obeyed the principle, though he lacked the relationship. There are many believers who have a relationship with Jesus Christ but do not understand the ways of the kingdom, and there are unbelievers who have gotten pieces of the mind of Christ and are winning with it, without the life of Christ. It is the life of Christ plus the mind of Christ that produces dominion and victory in experience.

Why Believers Must Desire Victory And Dominion

1. It is our prophetic destiny to walk in dominion and be fruitful

   Proverbs 4:18

   The path of the just is like a shining light that shines more and more unto the perfect day.

   Genesis 1:26-28

   God gave the mandate: let them have dominion, let them subdue, let them replenish.

   Colossians 1:9-10

   That you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work.

2. Victory and measurable progress sponsor happiness, health, and fulfillment

   The human spirit was not designed to endure stagnation, delay, and pain indefinitely. Hope deferred makes the heart weary. When your life does not produce the fruit of growth and results, you will eventually be frustrated.

3. God is glorified as we make progress and walk in victory

   John 15:8

   Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit.

   John 15:16

   Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.

   Galatians 1:24

   And they glorified God in me.

4. Our victory and consistent results have the power to draw many to Jesus

   John 4

   The woman at the well was so transformed by her encounter with Jesus that she ran into the city saying, come see a man who told me everything that I ever did — her witness was so compelling that the people gravitated toward her and found Jesus.

   John 17:1

   Glorify thy son, that thy son may bring glory to you. The kingdom of God is an invisible kingdom, but it has earthly infrastructures through which it is manifest, and one of them is men. Men will never know how great, how loving, how mighty God is until they see him through the lens of who we are, our results, and the display of his life in and through us.

Keys To A Well-Rounded, Triumphant Christian Life

You do not win by luck, and you do not manifest victory just because you are saved. Being saved creates the potential to manifest victory and gives access to the resources that can make it your experience, but it does not automatically translate into victory. An admission letter gives a student the legitimacy to be on campus, but it is not a statement of result — it is not the graduation slip.

1. Contend for spiritual growth and intimacy with God

   In the beginning, God — not later in your life, not later in your business or your project. It matters what place he holds in your life. It is not enough that he is in your life; he must be first place.

   Galatians 4:1

   1 Peter 2:2

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   Apostle Joshua Selman

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   As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that by it you may grow. There are ordinances of intimacy that keep a man in rich fellowship with Jesus Christ.

   • A systemic prayer life — not a needs-driven prayer life, but one of koinonia fellowship. Luke 18:1 — men ought always to pray. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 — pray without ceasing. When you pray only circumstantially, you cannot deepen your relationship with God; prayer is like breathing.
   • Study and learning of the word — Acts 20:32 — the word of his grace is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among them that are sanctified. Colossians 3:16 — let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.
   • Worship — most believers only worship in church, but worship is part of the ordinances of intimacy, not confined to a building.
   • The corporate gathering of the saints — Psalm 133 — how good and pleasant it is when brethren dwell together in unity, for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

   Intimacy is related to boldness. Elijah knew his God and could say, "go ahead, prophets of Baal, do your thing." Daniel knew the God of the Bible and was willing to get into the den because he knew his God would deliver him. Intimacy is a harvest — it is invested into, not wished for. No time spent knowing God in prayer, deepening fellowship, and learning the word is ever a waste.

2. Contend for a superior, word-compliant belief system

   Ephesians 4:18

   Having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them. Exposure is not transformation — exposure can partner with and enhance the transformative process, but a person can be very exposed and yet not transformed. Transformation is a measure of the word-compliancy of your mindset, your belief system, and your orientation.

   There are cardinal belief systems a believer needs in order to win.

   • A one-with-Christ mentality — the awareness that you have been grafted into Christ, that you are not alone, not ordinary — raised up together with him.
   • A more-than-conqueror mentality — greater is he that is in you than the mountain and the obstacle that stands before you.
   • There is always a way out — for you the question is not whether there is a way out, but "open my eyes, let me see the way." Romans 8:28 — we know that all things work together for good to them that love the Lord. Even in death, there is still a way out.
   • The God-man partnership — it does not depend only on God, and it does not depend only on man; it has always been and will always be a God-man partnership. God has a role to play that you cannot play for him, and you have a role to play that he will not play for you. Grace available does not create profit — it is grace received, grace utilized, and grace maximized.
   • The king-priest dominion mentality — it starts with your priesthood, but you must go on to understand the ordinances of rulership and dominion.
   • I am a blessing mentality — Genesis 12:3 — in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed. You carry, beyond your technical and intellectual skill, a truckload of spiritual resources — including favor — into every room you enter.

3. Engage in faith-filled declarations of the word

   Psalm 107:2

   Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. It is not enough to see it, you must say so.

   Job 22:28

   Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee, and light shall shine upon thy ways. An ordinance is an established modus operandi, not subject to debate. There are many believers who are too silent, and too depressed, to manifest victory — but Satan is also a farmer, and he can throw seeds into your garden that are inconsistent with the word of God, seeds you must weed out through prophetic declarations.

4. Invest in being productive, excellent, and extremely valuable

   You must obtain grace and master the art of solving problems, answering questions, meeting needs, and providing solutions. Jesus did not come to receive, he came to give. Many believers downplay productivity and excellence, particularly in Pentecostal and charismatic circles, because of an overreliance on grace and favor — but it is not grace available, it is grace received, grace utilized, and grace maximized. The world gravitates toward solution providers, and the Holy Ghost is the believer's advantage, empowering us to meet needs and answer questions that others cannot.

   Isaiah

   Saviors shall arise from Zion, and they shall judge the mount of Esau.

5. Invest in attracting and maintaining strategic relationships

   You do not excel in this kingdom only to the degree you have intimacy with God — the cosmos is a relational realm, and you must master how to attract and maintain strategic relationships. Many people have great, God-given visions, but the men and women mandated by prophecy to stand with them have not come because they have not learned how to attract them.

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   The first law of maintaining relationships is to kill self. When people perceive you as a user, they will leave you even if they love you. Presence and attention are two major resources responsible for influence — if you abuse presence and attention, you have lost the potential for dominion.

   There is only one reason doors shut: dishonor — dishonor to God, dishonor to men, dishonor to principles. Familiarity is an expression of a lack of discernment; every time familiarity comes in, your discernment level goes down.

6. Learn financial principles

   Having the economic wherewithal can help protect your remaining in integrity. Wealth is a defender of conscience, godliness, and integrity, because the number one sponsor of compromise is being financially incapacitated. This is not a call to a careless materialistic display, but to a responsible approach to economic emancipation.

   1. Learn how to sustainably attract financial resources — the key is value, needed and useful value exchanged and served with excellence.
   2. Learn how to effectively manage financial resources — while waiting for little to become much, do not deplete the little; show great stewardship at the level you are at.
   3. Learn how to grow and replenish financial resources.
   4. Learn how to store and perpetuate wealth transgenerationally.

7. Understand spiritual warfare

   Ephesians 6:10-18

   Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Take unto you the whole armor of God, and having done all, to stand — the loins girt about with truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, praying always with all manner of prayer and supplication in the spirit.

   Greatness in this kingdom is warfare. Influence in this kingdom is warfare. Dominion in this kingdom is warfare. You are fighting three entities: spirits, men, and systems. Satan is a stubborn spirit, and until you learn to keep him perpetually at bay, he will fight, strike, and, if you let him, defeat.

8. Be connected to a larger body of like-minded believers

   In isolation, you cannot win indefinitely.

   Acts 4:20-24

   After Peter and John were threatened and let go, they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said, and when the company heard it, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. Kingdom community living is a secret to sustaining kingdom values — in isolation it is difficult to sustain them. Many believers are too isolated to manifest victory indefinitely; when they are in pain, there is no one they can call who speaks the language of faith back to them.

9. Remain ever joyful and ever thankful

   1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

   Rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. The victorious Christian must see joy and thanksgiving as survival strategies, not merely emotions. Joy is different from happiness — happiness is circumstantial, a response to good things that have already manifested, but joy is of the spirit. You sow in tears, but you reap in joy; when you reap with joy, joy is a tool, but when you reap in joy, joy is an atmosphere that guarantees a harvest. While waiting for the word to manifest, give thanks for where you are, because where you are is still someone else's prayer point, someone else's prophecy.

10. Practice humility as a lifestyle

    James 4:6

    James 4:10

    God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

    Proverbs 22:4

    By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honor, and life.

    Romans 12:3

    Not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. Being humble does not mean thinking less of yourself — that is mediocrity and inferiority, not humility. Humility is the conscious acknowledgment of God before men, and even before yourself, as the basis for every result you enjoy. Results can make people look godlike, invincible, all-inspiring, and that is the bait of the great; pride is a depleter, it divides and reduces. One way to practice humility is to remember where God has taken you from.

11. Embrace the mystery of impartation and prophetic declarations

    There is a dimension to excelling in the kingdom that depends on impartation — the availability of grace and anointing, and the acceleration it provides through prophetic declarations.

    Ezra 6:14

    The elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, and they built and finished it. There is a dimension of growth you cannot step into until there is a voice that speaks over your life. Words carry life and power — enchantment works through words, witchcraft works through words, and the blessing works through words.

God is a relational God, but excelling in the cosmos will depend on more than a functional relationship with him. You will need to understand his ways. You can have his life, but you need his wisdom and his mind.

Closing Prayer

2 Timothy 4:18

Salvation Prayer