What If Your Definition Of Winning Is Too Small | Season 10 | Bonus Ep 1 (Easter)

Join us this week for a special Easter bonus episode as we celebrate the message of Jesus, featuring a powerful sermon from our special guest, Elder Donald Goodwin.

Death, grief, and disappointment have a way of shrinking our world until “winning” looks like survival. We push back on that with a bold sermon title and an even bolder claim: because Jesus Christ is risen, you can refuse to lose. Starting in 1 Corinthians 15, we walk through why the resurrection is not a side belief but the foundation of Christian faith, why preaching has meaning, and why hope doesn’t collapse when life hurts. 

We also confront the noisy definition of success that says winners are only the rich, famous, or powerful. Real victory is bigger than a paycheck, a car, or a house. We talk about faith as the truest measure of winning, the seed analogy makes it plain: what looks dead can rise because the Creator holds authority over death itself. That’s not motivational talk; it’s gospel reality with consequences for how we live today. 

From there, we bring it home with practical encouragement for perseverance: constant prayer, staying focused on what God has planned, and refusing to quit when you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired. 

 If this message strengthens you, subscribe, share it with someone who needs hope, leave a review, and tell us: where do you need the courage to refuse to lose right now?

Transcript

Welcome And Opening Praise

Elder Donald Goodwin 0:00

Hey all, thank you for joining us here at Grab the Faith, where we try to grab the faith and run with it. Join us as we try to learn a little more, grow a little more, and live a lot more. I'm your host, Bobby Gentry Goodwin. Stay tuned for this week's episode. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. Let the redeemed of the Lord say this. Let the redeemed of the Lord praise this name. Let the Redeemer the Lord say hallelujah. You gotta give the Lord some praise.

Speaker 2 0:53

Hallelujah! He's been so good. So good to me. Hallelujah. It's been so good. He's been so good.

Speaker 1 1:09

I'm gonna draw your attention to the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

Speaker 3 1:15

Yes, sir. Good work, brother.

Speaker 1 1:18

1 Corinthians, we're gonna start off with chapter number 15. Amen. Yes, sir. 1 Corinthians chapter 15. And it's kind of along, so please bear with me. Moreover, brother, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have received.

Speaker 3 1:35

Uh-huh.

Speaker 1 1:36

And wherein you stand. By which also you are saved. If you yet keep in memory that which I preached unto you, unless you believe in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all which I also received. For that Christ died for our sins. According to the scriptures. I feel something already, amen. And he was buried, and then he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. I don't know about that side. I feel something right now. And he was seen of Cyprus, then of the twelve. After that, he was seen of five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remained under this presence. But somewhat fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James, then of the apostles. And last of all, he was seen of me also, as one born out of due time. For I'm the least of the apostles. But I'm not me to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what I am. Hallelujah. And his grace which has bestowed upon me was not in vain. But I labored more abundantly than they all. Yet not I, but the grace of God was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and shall we believe. Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how faith so that you how faith so that some that there were no resurrection of the dead. But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then there is no Christ with it. And if Christ not be risen, then there is no pre then our preaching is vain. And your faith is also vain. Because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, who would raise God, and so be, then the dead rise not. And if Christ being not raised, your faith is in vain. He are yet in your saints. Then they also wish God fallen asleep in Christ, if in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruit of their life. For since a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as an animal all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

Speaker 3 4:16

Amen.

Refuse To Lose And Redefine Winning

Speaker 1 4:19

Let me skip on to verse number 55. It says, Oh death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which give us the victory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my brethren, be it steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. For as much as you know your labor is not in vain in the Lord. May the Lord have a blessing to the reading, the hearing, the understanding, and the doing of this holy word. Amen. Amen. You can be seated in the very true Lord. And if I could draw a topic to this text this morning, I would like to speak from this topic or this title, Refuse to Lose.

Speaker 3 5:12

Refuse to lose.

Firstfruits And The Seed That Rises

Speaker 1 5:25

We are led to believe that athletes or entertainers or CEOs are all the ones who are winning. But I stop buying this resurrection of Sunday church to tell you that you all are winners. If you have trusted in the Lord Jesus as your Savior, you are winning. If you have believed that Jesus made victory on the cross and victory over death, you too have victory. You are a winner. Winning does not simply include materialistic things. Oftentimes we seem to compare ourselves with others. We compare ourselves to what others have, and what others do, and how much money others make, what kind of car others drive, and what kind of house do others live in. But don't get caught up with saying glory. Winning does not just include materialistic things. Winning includes your faith. Winning includes your belief in God, your belief in Jesus, and your belief in the Holy Spirit. Verse 13 says, But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ be not risen, then our preaching is in vain. And your faith is in vain also. I believe, my brothers and sisters, that Paul was talking to some non-believers. Somebody say some non-believers. Paul called him food. Look at verse number 13. Paul said, You are fooled. In verse 20, Paul had already told them that Christ was the first fruit of them that slept. The children of Israel will give the priest the first fruits to the priest for their harvest, amen. As an offering or a sacrifice unto the Lord, amen. Paul was letting them know that Jesus is now the first fruit. He is the offering. He is the sacrifice, amen. The first fruit was always the best fruit. And it was a show of faith because it was the first fruit. You didn't know what the rest of the harvest was going to look like. If you gave up your first fruit, you was giving up your best, amen. And Jesus is our best, amen.

Speaker 3 7:58

Yes, sir.

Speaker 1 8:01

I believe my brothers and sisters, they went on to keep asking, how can a dead man be risen? Paul went on in the text to say that look at a seed. When you plant a seed, the seed is actually dead. It doesn't become a body or it doesn't become alive until it is what it is planted, it is watered, it is cultivated, and then it spreads and becomes a body, amen. Paul says that in the text if you want to read it for yourself, amen. He said the plant the seed is actually a dead. Then after it is sold, it becomes alive again, amen. Well, can I answer that question the elder good one away? How can a dead man rise again? How can a dead man be raised up? Because the one that created death has control over death. That's how hyper again. He created life himself. He refused to lose. Death couldn't hold him, the grave couldn't keep him. We have victory in his death. We are alive in his death.

unknown 9:26

Amen.

Speaker 1 9:28

For the believer, death is no longer seen as a final defeat, but as a passage to eternal life. Christ's resurrection ensures that one day we will be raised. That we will have victory. Somebody say victory.

Speaker 2 9:42

Victory.

Speaker 1 9:43

Church on victory is not based on the amount of money we make or what kind of car we drive.

Speaker 2 9:50

You deserve good things.

Speaker 1 9:52

You deserve nice things. You should enjoy the fruits of your labor if you're working hard. But the real victory, the real victory is a gift from God. It is not earned through hard work. It's not earned through your effort. It's a free gift from God. So your faith in Jesus Christ. Refuse to lose. It provides us with power. Power to live in a way that God reflects us to live. Amen? For the Lord your God, it is He who is with you to fight against your enemies. It gives you victory. My brothers and sisters, I'm gonna I have more notes in here, my brothers and sisters. I have more scriptures to go over. Elder Ross, I actually have some Greek definition to go over, but what I really want to do this morning is celebrate Jesus. What I really came to do today was celebrate Jesus.

unknown 10:56

Celebrate his religion.

Heaven’s Ticket And Praise Right Now

Practical Ways To Refuse To Lose

Speaker 1 10:57

Celebrate his victory. We have victory. We have joy. That's what I really think we do. That's what I really think we do. I came to celebrate this. Hallelujah. What I really wanted to engage in the spirit today was refuse to lose. Jesus has done so much for us. The tragedy that Jesus went through. The pain that Jesus went through, the acting that Jesus had to endure. You're going to yourself. You're going to Jesus. You refuse to lose. He has paid our way to glory. He has paved our way to heaven. Hallelujah. I was listening to a song that came on just this week after I prepared this sermon. It was by Public Enemy. It was called Welcome to the Terrodome. And in that song, Public Enemy says, I got so much trouble along my mind. Refuse to lose. You have a passport ticket. You can walk into the prison game to the front line. You are a VIP. You got your ticket. Get your ticket. Jesus is your ticket. And you know what? Your ticket has your name on it. It's written in the last book of life. Hallelujah. You know what your ticket also has Jesus' name on it. It was signed, it was sealed, and it was delivered. Hallelujah! You have a ticket to heaven. But don't wait till you get to heaven to shop. You want to shop right now. Don't wait till you get to heaven to wake your head. You want to wake them right now? Don't wait till you get to heaven to say glory. Hallelujah. You want to take glory right now. Is there anybody who wants to celebrate Christ this morning? Church refuses to lose suggestions. Constant prayer. Refusing to lose. It involves your focus on what God has planned for you. I know times get rough. I know time gets tough. I know sometimes you just want to throw in the town. Sometimes you get sick and tired of just being sick and tired. Sometimes you just want to say, Gowgon, take me away. But don't give up. Jesus did all that for you. The resurrection was for you. Turn you in there to say, refuse to lose. I'm getting ready to home take my seat. But y'all remember the cartoon, Popeye? Popeye the same man. He had a girlfriend by the name of Olive Oil. He had a nemesis or an enemy by the name of Pluto.

Speaker 2 14:06

Yes, sir.

Jesus Refused To Lose For You

Speaker 1 14:07

Pluto used to always mess with Popeye. Always picking on Popeye. And the cartoon, he would punch Popeye in his stomach, and his fist would come out through his mouth. He would knock Popeye all over the head with stuff. He even tried to take Popeye's girl out of him. Yes, sir. I remember that, amen. Yeah, yeah. He would mess with Popeye. But every now and then Popeye was saying, I'm taking all I can stand. Can't stand no more. Or he would reach into his jacket and he would he would pop out some spinach. Spinach gave Popeye can draw. I stopped by this one and telling me that we ought to be like Popeye. But not reach into our spinning. But reach out to God done changing. We talk to God's hand. There's power in his hand. There's deliverance in his hand. There's victory in his hand. His joy in his hand. There's power in his hand. Without the God that'll change your hand. Refuse to lose. I will not tell you to refuse to lose. If Jesus didn't refuse to lose, when he was tempted by Satan and his father for 40 days and for 40 nights, he was tempted by Satan. He refused to lose. When he was marked from judgment hall to judgment hall, when he was put on trial for crimes he didn't commit, but he refused to lose. They beat my Jesus, but he refused to lose. The cross was heavy, and the guy wouldn't have all been on that cross. But he refused to lose.

unknown 16:16

Yes, he did.

Speaker 1 16:18

He was hung on that cross.

Speaker 3 16:19

Yes, he did.

Speaker 1 16:20

He was nailed to that cross. They said crucify him, but he refused to lose. He hung and he died. The devil thought he won. The haters started to celebrate. But on the third day, he said I refuse to lose. On the third day, he got up with all power in the heaven. All power in his hand. All power in the hand. So you can refuse to lose. Is there anyone glad about it? Is there anybody glad about it? Is there anybody that would have suffered life? Is there anybody that wanna say? Today, think about what God has done for you, saints. Jesus conquered death. Yes, sir. So you can have life. Yes, sir. Jesus resurrection.

Speaker 3 17:23

Yes, sir.

Speaker 1 17:24

Always for you to have a child. Know that the Lord is God.

Speaker 3 17:31

Yes, yes.

Speaker 1 17:32

It is He who has made us. We are His people. You have joy today. You have victory today. Well, put your hands in the air and say I am a winner. Put your hands in the air and say, I refuse.