Even the most important of people fail and fail publicly! Big business has had “great” ideas which fail greatly! Failure is part of our life whether we accept it or not. Remember, you fell the first time you tried to walk! Don’t worry about the number of times you fail. Worry about what will happen if you don’t try!

1. Facing the reality of failure

The treasure of the Gospel has been given to us in human bodies. These bodies often fail. This should not be a surprise. We are not perfect like God. Failure has been factored in. See James 3:2. We know we stumble in many ways. So many people have been given up by others but yet created success out of failure. People who are successful have often failed more times than been successful; they haven’t had a perfect flawless path to success.

God is not surprised by our failures. See Psalm 103:13-14. Jesus recognised it. See Matthew 26:41. When we have problems and failure, then we can come to God. He understands after all. Spiritual growth is about falling down and getting back up again – all the way to Heaven!

2. Facing the reason for failure

Failure does not have to be seen in a negative light.

• We fail now so that we might succeed later. The affliction is for now, the glory is for later. We have to suffer now, so we can reign in the future.
• We fail in the incidental, so that we might succeed in the important. The things that happen now are light in comparison to the heavy weight of eternity.
• We fail in the temporary so that we might succeed in the eternal things. Things which are seen are nothing compared to the unseen.
• We fail outwardly so that we might succeed inwardly. God is not so concerned about the outward appearance. The real you is on the inside. It is better to fail in a cause that will ultimately succeed than to succeed in a cause that will ultimately fail. When we fail, then we are to ask God how we can learn and become the person He wants us to be.

3. Facing the result of failure

We need to see things from the inside out rather than the outside in. The outside man is ultimately going to decay and die. Don’t place your confidence in the outside man. You will lose in the end. The inward man can be renewed. That is the big difference and its strength.

4. Fighting the giant of failure

Failure shouldn’t be accepted without a fight.

• Acknowledge your failure – Some people will try and cover it up. Accept it and deal with it. Don’t profess your innocence if you are guilty. It creates false illusions. Not all failure is sin. False teachers may say otherwise. See Hebrews 11. Moses, Noah, etc had great faith but had failure.
• Accept God’s forgiveness. See Psalm 103:10. It is something that is possible for all of us.
• Apply the lessons of failure toward success. We need to learn the lessons of failure. It leads to success! All discoveries of what is false lead to truth. Our failures are not in vain if we learn the lessons.
• Accept failure as a fact of life but not a way of life – We fail but we are not all failures. It is an event. It does not make us a failure unless we let it. We start again. Don’t wallow in self pity. Get right with God and get up again. See Jonah 3:1-2. God is the God of a second chance. Jonah failed greatly. He did the opposite of what God wanted. He then did it and 120,000 were converted.
• Avoid judging failure in others. In the story of the rich man and the beggar, the rich man appears to be succeeding in life. The rich man was the failure. In the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18) the successful one was not the Pharisee. The tax collector was right with God. We don’t have all the information. Don’t judge on the outside. The life of Jesus seemed like a failure when He becomes crucified on a cross and most desert Him. The outside appearance wasn’t the whole picture. Jesus won the greatest victory over the Devil, sin and death. He rises three days later to glorious life. What an example to us of slaying the giant of failure!

Categories: 2 Corinthians