1 Timothy 3:15, "...that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth."
Apostolic Life Cathedral | Sept. 29, 2024 | 10:00 AM
Acts 2:37-39
(37) Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
(38) Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
(39) For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
Three Responses to Conviction:
Ignore it
Kill the messenger
What shall we do?
The Ark of the Covenant, where the Glory of God was manifest:
Had become a legend of mythical status by 63 BC when the Roman general Pompey the Great conquered Jerusalem.
It is said that he entered the Temple, looked around, entered the Holy of Holies, touched nothing and left.
History records that he said he didn’t understand what the big deal was, it was just an empty room.
The Ark was gone.
It disappeared about the time the Babylonians conquered the Jews in 586 BC.
Perhaps, Jeremiah hid it in Mt. Nebo. Nevertheless, it was gone.
Empty ritual, dead formalism, right doctrine, BUT…
No Power! – No Presence! – No Glory!
Without the Holy Spirit we are helpless
We need to learn to get back to waiting – “wait in Jerusalem until”
Turn your face to God
Receive His Power – Linger in Presence – Seek His Glory
Are you curious and hungry?
John 3:1-8
(1) There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
(2) The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
(3) Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
(4) Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
(5) Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
(6) That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
(7) Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
(8) The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Luke 24:45-49
(45) Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
(46) And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
(47) And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
(48) And ye are witnesses of these things.
(49) And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Acts 2:1-4
(1) And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
(2) And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
(3) And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
(4) And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Two responses:
Go on as usual with ritual, habit and going through the motions
Fall on your face and seek God’s Presence, Glory and Power
Apostolic Life Cathedral | Aug. 18, 2024 | 10:00 AM
Psalms 127:1, “Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.”
God desires to dwell in the midst of His people.
David – “…when kings go to battle…”
2 Samuel 11:1-18
Put the Ammonite king’s crown on his head
Pride of life
Ammonite king, numbered the people not the fighting men
Human spirit
70,000 people dead
1 Chronicles 20:1
Uriah
Bathsheba
Lust of the flesh
2 people die
Sword never leaves the house of David
Amnon
Civil war
1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
Stedfast – firm, settled
Unmoveable – not to be moved from its place. Firmly persistent.
Always abounding – at all times, to be in excess, exceed, excel.
“…In the work of the Lord…” – “Except the Lord build the house”
Apostolic Life Cathedral | July 28, 2024 | 6:30 PM
Text: Psalms 89:15-17, “(15) Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance. (16) In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. (17) For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.”
Psalms 1:1-6, “(1) Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. (2) But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. (3) And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. (4) The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. (5) Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. (6) For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
Go deeper = “to be straight, level, right, to go forward, be honest, prosper.”[3]
The joyful sound is the call to celebrate, to rejoice, to continually delight in:
The Name of the Lord
The Righteousness of the Lord
Tonight, the Holy Ghost is calling you to respond with a joyful sound for all that Jesus did for you and all that His name brings to bear in your life.
Rejoice in all that God did for you to walk a straight, level, righteousness path of prosperity and purpose.
The Samaritans knew about that joy: “(5) Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. (6) And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. (7) For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. (8) And there was great joy in that city.”
“There was great joy in that city.”
How many here tonight want to see that same great joy in Huntington and the Tri-State Region?
It is God’s Will for the The Joyful Sound to echo along the riverbanks, valleys, and hillsides of our community:
God is calling for repentance…to be part of the joyful sound.
Paul was in Athens on Mars’ hill when he saw the altar written TO THE UNKNOWN GOD and he began to tell them of the one that they, in their superstition, were ignorantly worshipping.
Saying, “that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:”
Repentance, led by true godly sorrow, will bring the joyful sound.
The fruit of mercy is restoration. The fruit of grace is maturity.
Unfortunately, life has a way of causing you to lose sight of what originally created the happy condition…the joyful sound.
What was once exciting and revealing, full of life and rewarding, has now become mundane and lost its vitality.
The daily life is at war with the joyful sound: “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah” (Psalms 68:19).
We should come daily to His storehouse of blessing.
The problem is we have become so busy doing the work we forget the relationship with the God of the work.
Oftentimes, people fail because they have their spiritual life, their prayer life, their relationship with Jesus on autopilot.
Like a pilot in a plane, or a driver in a car, you are content to sit disengaged and apathetic.
What once drove your passion has now become drudgery.
The work that inspired is now nothing more than perspiration.
The hope that enlarged your heart and gave you faith is now a vague memory, like the beauty of nature you miss will cruising by unbothered by what is just outside your window.
You have become trapped with the thought that you just need to get the job done.
You have stopped hearing the joyful sound.
This is why you are to become renewed daily in the spirit of your mind.
Turn off the of auto pilot, disengage the cruise control,
Look around you and see all the beauty, blessing, and opportunity!
The need and possibility around you
Paul wrote, “I have fought a good fight…I have kept the faith,” but he did not stop fighting.
It is time to recapture that joy that originally caught you:
Is. 12:3, “Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.”
Is. 55:12, “For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”
1 Peter 1:7-9, “(7) That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: (8) Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: (9) Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”
Is. 9:3, “…they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.”
Acts2:1-4
You are going to have to press into it. To reach for it. To recapture the joyful sound: “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).
To press means you will have to disengage the cruise control.
Revelation 19:6-7, “(6) And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. (7) Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.”
Apostolic Life Cathedral| July 21, 2024 | 10:00 AM
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, “(1) To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: (2) A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; (3) A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; (4) A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; (5) A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; (6) A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; (7) A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; (8) A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”
The Invitation: Matthew 11:28-30
(28) Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
The “with Jesus” principle – they took note of them that they had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13).
Take My yoke.
Transformational learning-by-example
Two oxen harnessed togetherEnter the yoke = submission to the Master
It’s not about your brilliance, but willingness to submit to the yoke
Learn from Me.
Training a new young ox = custom fitted yoke
Emphasis on learning from someone, not independent study
Study, prayer, solitude, fasting, service
Grace is a teacher, and it is not cheap:
“Grace is the treasure hidden in the field…a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price…a man will sell all his goods to obtain it. It is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him. Grace calls us us to follow Jesus Christ, and to willingly yoke ourselves to Him. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner.”[2]
You were bought with a price
You will find rest.
First time “rest” is mentioned is in Genesis 2:1-3, “(1) Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. (2) And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” God rested because He delighted in the goodness of His creation: “And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day” (Gen. 1:31).
Our rest today is not about our weariness, tiredness and exhaustion, but to delight in His goodness and provision.
The rest of the Holy Ghost – “For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear” (Isa 28:11-12)”
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” (Act 3:19).
Today, right now, is Your Season of Refreshing
[1] Tom Nelson. (2021). The Flourishing Pastor. Paraphrased
Apostolic Life Cathedral | Aug. 25, 2024 | 6:30 PM
Text: Song of Solomon 8:6-10, “(6) Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. (7) Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned. (8) We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for? (9) If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar. (10) I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour.”
The Silver Palace and the Cedar Boards
Eph. 6:24, “Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.”
In sincerity = Margin, “with incorruption.” With a pure heart; without dissembling; without hypocrisy.[1]
There is a search going on tonight in this service. Like a detective snooping for clues,
A dog sniffing for that hidden morsel of food,
A child shaking that wrapped gift trying to figure out what is on the inside.
The search is on and Jesus is here, right now, in this moment searching:
“…the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24).
The Lord is pursuing men and women, boys and girls, who have decided to totally give their whole spirit, soul and body to Him.
It is a love search.
At the same time, there is in each of us a longing to love and to be loved.
It is part of the divine spark in each of us that we received when “the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7).
The Lord is still looking for this who will “fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?” (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).
When Jesus finds you will He discover that you “love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity?”
No hint of corruption? With a pure heart? No pretend affection? A love without hypocrisy?
Is your relationship with Jesus a firm wall of live, or is there a door, an entrance open to the enemy of your soul?
Tonight, the enemy want to destroy your relationship with God by placing on you the trap shame.
The “disintegrating power of shame began in the garden of Eden”[2] (Gen. 2:25-4:1).
Here was a beautiful garden of perfection and here was where Eve was beguiled, seduced and tricked because of the cunning craftiness of the whisperer – the serpent – who appealed to her desires:
Lust of the flesh – she saw that “the tree was good for food”
Lust of the eyes – “that it was pleasant to the eyes”
Pride of life – “and a tree to be desired to make one wise”
The moment Adam and Eve ate of that tree of knowledge of good and evil it set into motion a satanic plan that has been the spearhead of the devil’s attack on all those who love God and want to be faithful.
They were previously unashamed, but now shame made them run and hide from the lover of their soul.
And the Lord still went searching for them…
You see, “While human guilt reflects the experience of having done something wrong, shame conveys that there is something inherently wrong with us. Shame is a reality we feel deep within us, telling us, reminding us, we are bad, that somehow we are not enough.”[3] It is the lie that you possess a fundamental evil and have no hope.
I want to tell you tonight, anyone who tries to place that reality on you is a tool of the enemy, unsafe and should be avoided.
“By its very nature, shame likes to hide and is often silent and subtle,”
…but “Perfectly secure and safe in the love of Christ, we can choose not to hide…”
“…the more vulnerable I am with safe people around me, the more emotionally resilient I am and the more joy I experience even in times of difficulty and suffering.”
And the most safe person to be around is the Lord Jesus Christ.
There is a beautiful integration, an integral union, an integrity of relationship between you and Jesus that the enemy cannot stand.
It is a wall of love that you and God build together.
It acts as a bulwark against the enemy.
Since God’s love never fails, then satan will test your love, or try to divide through tools of disintegration to weaken and loosen the wall.
There is something to be said of this wall of love that stands firm on integrity.
Psalm 101 is known as the integrity psalm:
“I will sing of mercy and judgment: Unto thee, O LORD, will I sing” (Psalm 101:1, KJV).
“I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O Lord, I will make music” (Psalm 101:1, ESV).
Mercy, Steadfast love, is “sticky love.” “It is the sort of love you can’t shake off. It sticks to you through every high and low, every success and failure, every malfunction and sin,” every victory and defeat.[4]
Sticky Love holds that wall together and helps maintain its integrity.
Shame would try to disintegrate that wall of love, but God’s mercy, His steadfast love, attaches you to Him.
The enemy wants to destroy that attachment by disintegrating the wall of relationship, mutual trust and integrity between the betrothed bride and her Groom.
Remember:
The devil works overtime to steal (by stealth), to kill (slay, slaughter), to destroy (put out of the way entirely, abolish, to ruin, render useless)[5]
The Lord has said:
Deut 7:8, “…because the LORD loved you…
Jer 31:3, “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”
Mal 1:2, “I have loved you, saith the LORD.”
Jn 3:16, “For God so loved the world…”
Ro 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Eph 2:4-5, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ…”
Eph 5:1-2, “Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.”
1 Jn. 4:16, “God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.”
Nothing can separate, disintegrate, remove, or detach you from God’s love:
Romans 8:35-39, “(35) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (36) As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the laughter. (37) Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. (38) For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
“We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for? If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar.”
The little sister is the gentile bride, the church
The Silver Palace is the blessing and favor of God: strength, beauty, enlarge, adorn
The Cedar Boards God’s attempt to protect you from your own mistakes and shame until you are mature enough to maintain your own integrity:
Weak in faith, but not rejected by God. He encloses, strengthens and fortifies until the bride is mature in faith.“Cedar is a soft and deliciously fragrant wood. The resin and oils in the wood make it inedible to termites.”[6] = Sticky Love
Cedar boards are strong and beautiful and durable.
The young brides reply, “I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour” (SoS 8:10).
Now mature and ready to be married, she has been faithful and maintained her love for the Groom with Integrity.
[1]Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible. Ephesians 6:24.
Scripture Text: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23).[2]
“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).
[1] Material gleaned from Ron Wofford’s 2004 series on Christian Character.
[2] All scripture references are from the King James Version unless otherwise noted.
Scripture Text: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23).
John 15:1-5, “(1) I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. (3) Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. (4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. (5) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”
“Joy is love exalted; peace is love in repose; long-suffering is love enduring; gentleness is love in society; goodness is love in action; faith is love on the battlefield; meekness is love in school; and temperance is love in training.” -Dwight L. Moody
[1] Material gleaned from Ron Wofford’s 2004 series on Christian Character.
Fruitful Character – The Development of Character[1]
Text: Titus 3:8, “This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.”
[1] Material gleaned from Ron Wofford’s 2004 series on Christian Character. A huge THANK YOU to Ron Wofford for sharing this information with me over 16 years ago. These lessons are a combination of many different sources, but his is the foundation.
Apostolic Life Cathedral | June 23, 2024 | 6:30 PM
Numbers 4:29-33
(29) As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers; (30) From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. (31) And this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof, (32) And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden. (33) This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
Isaiah 54:2-3
(2) Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; (3) For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
Isaiah 33:20, “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.”
Brass Pins/Stakes were used in the Tabernacle in the wilderness to secure the gold pillars of the Outer Court upright.
These pins were driven in the ground at one end and fine twined linen was attached to the pins there and to the top of the wooden pillars overlaid with gold to which sheets of fine linen were attached.
This created a type of fence and there was only one entrance into the outer court.
The Ark had one entrance – there is one gate to the sheepfold – 0ne way to enter
The wood of the pillar represents Christ’s humanity.
The gold of the pillar represents Christ’s divinity.
Humanity wrapped in deity.
Fine twined linen was drawn tightly and fastened with the pins.
The relationship between you and God has to be mutual.
There must be as much as a desire on your part to draw close to Him as He has to draw close to you.
These cords speak to us of the drawing power of God and His love for men and women:
“I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love…” (Hosea 11:4).
Without the cords the pins and stakes would be useless.
It is God’s love that constrains us, that holds us together:
“For the love of Christ constraineth [to hold together us]; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15)
Matthew 15:8-9
(8) This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. (9) But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
We must keep the cords tied to the stakes and posts.
Consider that your identity with the Father is tied to how you treat those who mistreat you: “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:44-45).
The cord of love is to be drawn tight or everyone.
We are to love each one as our own self.
Our text says, “lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes.”
STORY: Camping one night when the wind began to blow and a strong storm blew in. Someone forgot the fasten the tent to the ground with the provided stakes.
A stake, a pin, will do you no good if left on the ground and not driven into the ground. The strength of the stake refers to its security in the ground, not whether it’s steel, iron, or brass.
There are some stakes we need to secure firmly into the ground firmly, and keep coming back to them in order to make sure they remain strengthened.
There are, among many, four fundamentals of faith that I will mention, and these four pins that will keep us attached to the love of God:
Dogma = One God
Gen. 1:1, “In the beginning God created…” God here is the transliterated form of Elohim, which means “plenitude of might,” or more simply, “one God whose characteristics are many.”
Deut. 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD.”
In Colossians 2:9 we are told that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead (all the characteristics of God) bodily, and we (the Church) are complete in Him (Jesus).
Paul did say that the Godhead was a mystery, but then he went on to explain what the mystery was, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” (I Timothy 3:16)
Only Jesus Christ fulfilled those six points. Therefore, Jesus Christ of the New Testament is Jehovah of the Old Testament
Duty = Love (to God and to one another)
Jesus & People
Discipline = Study of Scriptures
2 Timothy 2:15, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17, “(16) All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (17) That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
Doctrine = What is right <<Thank you, Harold Hoffman.>>
Reproof = What is not right
Correction = How to get right
Instruction = How to stay right
Method = Union (Balance) of the Spirit and the Word
Philippians 4:5, “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”
Modesty, Humility
2 Corinthians 3:3-6, (3) Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. (4) And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: (5) Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; (6) Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
Maintaining a balance in the Word and in the Spirit is necessary for complete growth. Without balance you can get too far on one side of the road. The best way to keep balanced is to realize that the Spirit of God will never contradict the Word of God.
“For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven” (Ps. 119:89).
A balance of Word and Spirit will result in a heavenly reward:
Ephesians 1:13-14, “(13) In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, (14) Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
Jeremiah 10:19-20, “(19) Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. (20) My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.”
Instability in the Church, in our lives, occurs when we don’t strengthen our stakes and lengthen our cords by drawing closer to God.
James 4:7-8, (7) Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
Why had this happened? Their hearts were not secured, strengthened, and lengthened.
“…I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. (17) But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; (18) I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it. (19) I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: (20) That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
Love the Lord your God.
Obey His voice.
Cleave unto Him – Get as close to Him – draw near to Him
The Father is seeking people who will draw close to Him:
“…the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24).
“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him” (2 Chronicles 16:9a).
There are moment in life where we are overwhelmed by life’s struggles that we begin to think that God is no longer drawing on us, that our walls are about to fall, BUT GOD IS ALWAYS THERE:
“Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined” (Job 23:8-11).
Proverbs 8:17, “I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.”
The Drawing Power is here right now…
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.” (Jeremiah 29:11-14).
He wants to bring you home…
The Drawing Power of God is pulling you home.
The Father was looking for the son to come home (Luke 15).
(1) Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.
(2) Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side.
(3) And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles.
(4) Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins.
(5) Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.
There are levels to the anointing of God.
It is one Spirit, but many depths.
The depths often display a maturing that takes place in the believer.
2 Corinthians 3:18, “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
“The more we behold this brilliant and glorious light, the more do we reflect back its rays; that is, the more we contemplate the great truths of the Christian religion, the more do our minds become imbued with its spirit.” – Bloomfield
One degree of glory – anointing – to another.
Glory is the fullness of God.
His manifest presence: His character, nature, ability, provision, the weight, the splendor of His majesty, and beauty.
All that He is & All that He has
And He has given it to us.
Not like Moses, whose face eventually lost the glow of the anointing of God’s glory.
“All of us, then, reflect the glory of the Lord with uncovered faces; and that same glory, coming from the Lord, who is the Spirit, transforms us into his likeness in an ever greater degree of glory” (GNB).
Level 1 – spectator level, mere observers, foot deep experience. This level is in introduction to the experience of salvation, which makes them a glory-carrier of the Spirit of God. Many are content to stay at this level.
Level 2 – ankle deep experience. At this level, many have been born again, but rarely go beyond Acts 2:38 & John 3:5. God would take them deeper into His glory, but some are content with just a trickle and miss the overflow.
Level 3 – knee deep experience. Here, those who are hungry for more venture out into seeking deeper knowledge and experiences. This is the level where people begin to learn how to pray, but there is more glory to experience.
Level 4 – waist deep experience. Here, influence begins, and reproduction takes place as the believer becomes active in church and its ministries. They contribute to the edification of the body of Christ and the harvest of souls, but they are not completely immersed in the glory of God.
Level 5 – waters to swim in. People are immersed in the glory and anointing of God. They have learned to walk by faith and not emotion. Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” They are now fully immersed in the power and anointing of God’s glory they are now a glory-bearer. This level moves from carrying God’s Glory to now showing His glory by bringing blessing, life, hope, joy, and healing to those in bondage.BUT, to get here it takes hunger, desire, and passion.
You need a daily dose of fresh oil to remain immersed in the glory of God:
Num. 11:8, “And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil.”
Psalm 92:10, “But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.”
Give us this day our daily bread – Every Day!
David progressed through these levels:
Shepherd boy anointed by Samuel
Killed a lion and a bear, which prepared him for Goliath
Kills Goliath and promotion came and he was brought to live with king Saul
Psalms 75:6-7, “For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.”
“…Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zech. 4:6).
He led armies, won battles and Saul became jealous to the point of trying to kill him.
Saul has killed his thousands…“If people come against you, do not fear them, because the One who anointed you is going to preserve you.” –MVMUTHU
David’s great test in this period was to keep himself from a spirit of bitterness
David’s anointing kept him from harm even though Saul pursued him.
King of Judah and then King of all of Israel.
David still had to struggle before becoming King in this level
David went through 5 levels, but he had one moment where the anointing came upon him and he grew from there.
He did not touch God’s anointed and stayed covered.
Go beyond your initial empowerment and move from glory to glory:
Acts 2:1-4 – initial outpouring
Acts 2:41 – 3,000 souls
Acts 3 – feet and ankle bones
Acts 4 – the believers knelt and prayed and were filled with anointing and power
Acts 5:12-16, “(12) And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch. (13) And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them. (14) And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.) (15) Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them. (16) There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.”
That same glory is here tonight and you can take it with you.
[1] Levels based on evangelist MVMUTHU’s book River of God’s Glory.
The Pillar and Ground of Truth 