The Promise of the Father: A Spirit Filled Church

The Promise of Our Father: The Spirit Filled Church Acts 2.42-47 Pentecost resulted in a Spirit Filled Church. The Promise of the Father for the followers of Jesus is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. We hear different things today about churches. We hear things like, “the worship in that church is awesome. “We hear, “What great programs they have!” Felix Mapa’s church in a remote area of Papua New Guinea All over Europe and North America The withered fig tree, leaves but no fruit, looked good but fruitless. Temple, what magnificent buildings… going to be destroyed, fruitless. What is a Spirit filled church? We’re going look at that from God‘s Word this morning. Remember there were no church buildings until the 3rd century. Their organization was simple. Pentecost Sunday had taken place and this, and this is the result The marks of a spirit filled church. Pentecost or the Feast of First Fruits The first of the wheat harvest waved before the LORD. Honor the LORD with all of your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing and your vats will brim over with new wine. Proverbs 3.9 -10. Giving is a blessing. It has promised returns. Marks of a Spirit Filled Church: Those people love Jesus! You can feel the strong arms of Jesus there. The Presence of the LORD is there when it gathers. Their boast is in the LORD, not how great their church is. They don’t say, “You ought to come to my church.” They say, “You ought to come to my Jesus.” Yesterday morning, 35-40 Hindus from Bangladesh coming to Christ. v.42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, persevere Robe devoted to something or someone is to be loving, loyal and dedicated Clothed With Christ Jesus Romans 13:12-14 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. Not a hit and miss. Not an option. Marriage sometimes yes, sometimes no. I don’t feel like being married this week. I am too tired. I have so much going on. How long will that last? There is a need today to patiently persevere in the Word. Pastors need to be faithful to the Word. God’s people need to be devoted to the Word * What was the Apostles Teaching? * It was the Word. What was the Word? It is the Logos. John 1.1 In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. With great power the apostles continue to testify to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus and much grace was with them all. Acts 4.33 Clothed with the power from on High the apostles taught the soon to be written New Testament The apostles teaching was Jesus Christ, the Son of God, crucified and risen and coming again! I Corinthians 2.2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. The early church was devoted to this. Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, perseveres We are in a time now that “calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.” Revelation 13.10b One of the marks of a Spirit filled church is that they are devoted to the Word of God, to Jesus Christ and that is their focus. Preach the Word Herald, Proclaim Publish They were devoted to the Fellowship. “You yearn for a safe place, a community of friends who are hungry for God, who know what it means to sense the Spirit moving within them as they speak with you. You long for brothers and sisters who are intent not on figuring out how to improve your life, but on being with you wherever your journey leads. You want to know and be known in conversations that aren’t really about you and or anyone else but Christ. “Only a few voices direct us to worship or call us to a new level of trust. Only a few invite us to experience spiritual conversations in a spiritual community.” -      Dr. Larry Crabb (True Spiritual Community, Formerly The Safest Place On Earth Fellowship= community, communion, joint participation, the share in something, intimacy, a gift jointly given The Spirit filled Church or a church filled with people who are Spirit Filled, have community, they participate in each others joys and sorrows, struggles and victories. They encourage each other. We participate in each others lives. Prayer, caring, loving In this fellowship we see Jesus. We see Him in others. We see Christ in eyes, words and deeds and in just the ministry of Presence. What is this need we have. We need community. We were created for fellowship. Fellowship with God. Fellowship with one another. It is based on His Word, by His Spirit. There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus. They care for each other… and they do not broadcast what they do for one another. Edie, Margot, Leah These is holy intimacy among them, the love of God. They share each others lives. A person who stirs up conflict in the community is detestable to the LORD Proverbs 6.19 They were devoted. The early church was devoted to this. Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, persevere Biblical Fellowship Old Testament word for fellowship is peace in some translations. It means sacrifice for alliance or friendship, voluntary sacrifice of thanks. Exodus 20.24 “‘Make an altar of earth for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats and your cattle. Wherever I cause my name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you. Leviticus 3.6 “‘If you offer an animal from the flock as a fellowship offering to the Lord, you are to offer a male or female without defect. There is a purity, a perfection with our fellowship with the LORD. It is special. Numbers 10.10 Also at your times of rejoicing—your appointed festivals and New Moon feasts—you are to sound the trumpets over your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, and they will be a memorial for you before your God. I am the Lord your God.” Giving to God is a form of fellowship. We have koinonia as we give. The same with giving gifts to one another. II Samuel 6.17 They brought the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the LORD. A wonderful time of rejoicing and victory for Israel. They had fellowship with Him. We used to open the school day with a moment of silent prayer. We used to have prayer at graduations. I prayed years ago at Bay Shore High School’s Graduation. We acknowledged God. No more. Sad. God wants to have fellowship, not sure how many were doing that… I know I was. We had prayed the night before at the Family Altar, the sofa in the living room. We had prayed before we went to sleep. My Mom prayed with us before we left for school. So it was appropriate for me to pray at school. II Chronicles 30.22 Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites, who showed good understanding of the service of the Lord. For the seven days they ate their assigned portion and offered fellowship offerings and praised the Lord, the God of their ancestors. New Testament word for fellowship is koinonia. It means fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse, the share which one has in anything, participation, intimacy, a gift jointly contributed, a collection, a contribution, as exhibiting an embodiment and proof of fellowship I John 1.3 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. I Corinthians 1. 9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. II Corinthians 13. 14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. The Fellowship of Sharing In His Sufferings Saint Francis wrote, “We have got a lot of dying to do if we are to have the lives our souls hunger for, a lot of entering into the great mystery of death and resurrection.” That is fellowship. Isn’t that where we connect the deepest? When we bear one another’s burdens, when we show our scars? Of course it is. Philippians 3.10-12 I want to Christ, the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings They were devoted to the fellowship. Bread= food often eaten Barley, Wheat, Mills, Ovens The early church was devoted to the breaking of bread Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, persevere * The Breaking of Bread had to do with eating together. Acts 2.46b They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, This was sublime fellowship Extreme joy Not without its challenges but we can have joy in problems, in grief, in struggles! The source of joy is the LORD and our relationship to Him and fellowship with Him? After this service this morning! * The Breaking of Bread had to do with the LORD’s Supper. We do this to remember Christ’s sufferings Proclaiming the LORD’s death until He comes I Corinthians 11. 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the LORD’s death until He comes. His Body broken, His blood shed Do this in Remembrance of Me. I Corinthians 11.24 The way He broke the Bread Luke 24.30 When He was at the Table with them, He took bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them. We do this to examine ourselves. I Corinthians 11.28 A man or to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. to test, to scrutinize, deem worthy, If Repentance is needed, then do it, confession, As soon as you come to Christ you can take this, even if it is right before! Jesus served this to men who followed Him and were clean by the Word He spoke but still needing to be converted. We do this to be reminded of His Promise of the Kingdom Mark 14. 25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” We remember what our salvation is based on The LORD left a meal to remember Him by. Broken unleavened bread. This is My Body broken for you. The Song is of Moses and of the Lamb. Revelation 15.3-4 The Passover lamb in Moses was fulfilled in Jesus, the Lamb of God. Revelation 5.6 I saw a Lamb, looking as if had been slain, standing in the center of the throne. I Corinthians 5.7 Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Prayer Prayer= addresses to / conversations with God, places devoted to prayer/ synagogue and outside if there was no synagogue Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, persevere Constantly in prayer prior to Pentecost and a mark of the church afterwards. Acts 1. 14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, Prayer is conversation with the LORD God Almighty. Both in public and more so private. Missionary and evangelist E. Stanley Jones wrote, “The first thing in prayer is to get God. If you get Him, everything else follows. Allow God to get at you, to invade you, to take possession of you. He then pours His very prayers through you. They are His prayers—God-inspired, and hence, God answered. “Prayer’s like the fastening of the cup to the wounded side of a pine tree to allow the resin to pour into it. You are now nestling up into the side of God—the wounded side, if you will—and you allow His grace to fill you up. You are taking in the very life of God.” Oswald Chambers, —Matthew 6:6 Jesus did not say, “Dream about your Father who is in the secret place,” but He said, “… pray to your Father Who is in the secret place….” Prayer is an effort of the will. After we have entered our secret place and shut the door, the most difficult thing to do is to pray. Devoted= regular and continually, persist, constantly diligent, committed, dedicated, persevere Colossians 4.2 “devoted” to adhere to one, be his adherent, constant to one, to be steadfastly attentive unto, to give unremitting care to a thing, to continue all the time in a place, to persevere and not to faint, to show one's self courageous for, to be in constant readiness for one, wait on constantly So important being devoted to prayer is that Jesus ruthlessly cast out everyone who bought and sold in the temple, and said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations…. But you have made it a ‘den of thieves’ ” (Mark 11:17). A House of Prayer for all nations: praying for the children of Bangladesh on Tuesday morning, for Haiti on Sunday night Praying for Kenyan Pastor Mathew. The prayer box, the prayer meetings We need to be on our guard for those things that can enter our temples and take the place of prayer. The devil has an arsenal full of stuff… everything from bitterness to busyness. He told His disciples the parable of the widow, the friend at midnight and the unjust judge to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He calls us to faithful, persistent, importune, persevering prayer. Romans 12.12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. If you pray only when you have a great need in your life then you are not devoted to prayer. We are to pray always and not give up. What is a Spirit Filled Church? It is described here: v.42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Continue in this way.

The Day of Pentecost

John 14.15-21 Hymn #143 The Comforter Has Come Hymn #659 We’ve A Story To Tell To The Nations Hymn #155 Spirit of the Living God The Day Of Pentecost Acts 2.1-13 Pentecost is a long-standing Jewish harvest celebration, a Christian celebration outpouring of the Holy Spirit and of the birth of the Church. The Greek word that means “fiftieth.” 50 days after Passover. 7 weeks from the Resurrection. They took the sheaves from the first fruits of the wheat harvest and waved them before the LORD in thanksgiving. The Feast of Weeks, also known as Pentecost, is a Jewish holiday celebrated 50 days after the Feast of Firstfruits (the day after Passover). It's a time of thanksgiving for the harvest and commemorates the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai. In the New Testament, it is associated with the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples, marking the beginning of the church.  For ten days after Jesus ascended the followers of Jesus waited. About 120 Acts 1.15 They prayed. They prayed continuously. 10 days Rebecca, can you tell of the importance of prayer in the church? Sound like a rushing mighty wind filled the house Tongues of fire upon each of them They were all filled with the Holy Spirit They began to speak in tongues as the Spirit enabled them The people heard these Galileans speaking in their own dialects from where they were from. In Jerusalem God fearing Jews from every nation under Heaven Heard them declaring the wonders of God in their own native tongue dialects where they came from. Jesus said they would be witnesses in Jerusalem, all Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. This was the beginning, paving the way For our discussion * Tell how the Gospel is tied into all nations I was going to have Pastor Johnson briefly tell us of the mission work you have done over the years. He is unable to be here. So I will share what is going on right now in my life and our fellowship.o * How do you believe a House of Prayer for all nations fits in here? * Obviously there was quite a change from hiding for fear of the Jews and all of them in Jerusalem with Peter preaching publicly and three thousand being baptized that Day. Talk to me about what made the difference. The Resurrection, being clothed with power from on High Baptized with the Holy Spirit. We see not long after Pentecost a miracle done in Jesus’s Name. Peter and John were arrested. Roberto, can you tell us briefly about your prison experience in Cuba? testimony to when you were filled with the Spirit, when your brother Paul prayed for you. Speak of the difference between inviting people to church and witnessing for Christ Church growth was never a goal of the church in the book of acts. It was the result of being filled with the Spirit. The Church Growth Movement began in the late 1970’s. Look where we are after nearly 50 years. Look where the Church in the Book of Acts was in 50 years. These are the men that have turned the world upside down! Acts 17.6 Ignorant unschooled men… who had been with Jesus and were filled with His Spirit. The Holy Spirit came at Pentecost He came in mighty fullness then His witness through believers won the lost and multitudes were born again. The early Christians scattered o'oer the world they preached the gospel fearlessly though some were martyred and to lions hurled, they marched along in victory. Then in an age when darkness gripped the earth the just shall live by faith was learned the Holy Spirit gave the Church new birth As reformation fires burned. In later years the great revivals came when saints would seek the Lord and pray O once again we need that Holy Flame to meet the challenge of today. --------------------------- CHORUS: Come Holy Spirit Dark is the hour we need your filling your love and your mighty power move now among us stir us we pray come Holy Spirit Revive the church today!

The Coming Of The Holy Spirit

Luke 11.9-13 The Coming of the Holy Spirit John 16.7-15 Associate of Dwight L. Moody, R.A. Torrey’s testimony: I shall never forget the eighth of July, 1894, to my dying day. It was the closing day of the Northfield Students’ Conference — the gathering of the students from the eastern colleges.(Yale, Harvard, Dartmouth and others) Mr. Moody had asked me to preach on Saturday night and Sunday morning on the Baptism with the Holy Ghost. On Saturday night I had spoken about, "The Baptism With the Holy Ghost: What It Is; What It Does; the Need of It and the Possibility of It." On Sunday morning I spoke on "The Baptism With the Holy Spirit: How to Get It." It was just exactly twelve o’clock when I finished my morning sermon, and I took out my watch and said: "Mr. Moody has invited us all to go up to the mountain at three o’clock this afternoon to pray for the power of the Holy Spirit. It is three hours to three o’clock. Some of you cannot wait three hours. You do not need to wait. Go to your rooms; go out into the woods; go to your tent; go anywhere where you can get alone with God and have this matter out with Him." At three o’clock, we all gathered in front of Mr. Moody’s mother’s house (she was then still living), and then began to pass down the lane, through the gate, up on the mountainside. There were four hundred and fifty-six of us in all; I know the number because Paul Moody counted us as we passed through the gate.
After a while Mr. Moody said: "I don’t think we need to go any further; let us sit down here." We sat down on stumps and logs and on the ground. Mr. Moody said: "Have any of you students anything to say?" I think about seventy-five of them arose, one after the other, and said: "Mr. Moody, I could not wait till three o’clock; I have been alone with God since the morning service, and I believe I have a right to say that I have been baptized with the Holy Spirit." When these testimonies were over, Mr. Moody said: "Young men, I can’t see any reason why we shouldn’t kneel down here right now and ask God that the Holy Ghost may fall upon us just as definitely as He fell upon the apostles on the Day of Pentecost. Let us pray." And we did pray, there on the mountainside. As we had gone up the mountainside heavy clouds had been gathering, and just as we began to pray, those clouds broke and the raindrops began to fall through the overhanging pines. But there was another cloud that had been gathering over Northfield for ten days, a cloud big with the mercy and grace and power of God; and as we began to pray, our prayers seemed to pierce that cloud and the Holy Ghost fell upon us. Men and women, that is what we all need: the Baptism with the Holy Ghost. Note the date! It was a year before Phineas Bresee was “thrown out” of the Methodist Church and began the Church of the Nazarene, eventually housed in what became known as the Glory Barn. They moved to that location because Redmond’s Hall owners asked them politely to leave due to “excessive noise”. Just a few years earlier A.B. Simpson founded the Christian and Missionary Alliance (1887) emphasizing Jesus as Savior, Sanctifier, Healer and Coming King. The Assembly of God was founded in 1914, in Hot Springs, Arkansas The Assemblies of God has a very large global membership, with estimates ranging from 67 million to 86 million members and adherents worldwide. Like the Nazarene Church, at the present time, our growth is seen mainly in world areas, outside the USA. The Free Methodist Church was birthed in 1860 when Benjamin Titus Roberts, a pastor in the Methodist Episcopal Church, could no longer serve in harmony with their practices. He could not see how a church could support slaveholding, rented seats in the church, withholding women from full-time service in the church, and quench the movement of the Holy Spirit in public worship. In 1858 he was finally stripped of his ordination credentials in the Methodist Episcopal Church. In upstate New York he met in 1860 with 15 pastors and 45 lay persons and was elected the bishop of the free Methodist Church. Some Free Methodist ladies had an influence on Charles Finney in his ministry in upstate New York. You can read about that in Power From On High Finney: To the honor of God alone I will tell a little of my experience in this matter. I was powerfully converted on the morning of the 10th of October. In the evening of the same day and on the morning of the following day, I received overwhelming baptisms of the Holy Ghost that went through me, as it seemed to me, body and soul. I immediately found myself endued with such power from on high, that a few words dropped here and there to individuals were the means of their immediate conversion. My words seemed to fasten like barbed arrows in the souls of men. They cut like a sword. They broke the heart like a hammer. Multitudes can attest to this. Oftentimes a word dropped without my remembering it, would fasten conviction, and often result in almost immediate conversion. I want you to see that God was at work from 1860 until 1914 establishing new works out of a Move of His Spirit. Some were simultaneous. All of it by the LORD. HE is doing a similar thing in our day. We don’t understand it. Note that in several situations the founders of these groups when through some painful trials in the Methodist Church they had served in. Stripped of credentials, forced out by the powers that be. They did not grieve much because God had moved them into a new place, unbeknown to them at the time, but with His people and even more, led by His Spirit. Also great missionary moves were taking place. The China Inland Mission was being formed and flourishing! All across the nation, in individual congregations which would eventually become nationally known and band together with those of like precious faith, and around the world with the nations God was pouring out His Spirit. Habakkuk 3.2 LORD, I have heard of Your fame;     I stand in awe of Your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day,     in our time make them known;     in wrath remember mercy. We have been talking about the things Jesus said leading up to Pentecost. A time of new beginnings. Acts 1.1-8 He ascended back into Heaven They remained in Jerusalem until they were clothed with power from on High as per His command. 10 days later, on the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples in Jerusalem * Jesus’ Words to the Disciples About Leaving it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Comforter will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. The Coming of the Holy Spirit was in conjunction with Jesus leaving to go back to Heaven. The Comforter = called as one’s aide, to be besides one, an advocate, an intercessor, a helper The Holy Spirit destined to take the place of Christ with the apostles (after His ascension to the Father), to lead them to a deeper knowledge of the Truth, and give them strength and power needed to enable them to undergo trials and persecutions on behalf of the Kingdom of God and to remain faithful. He continues His Work, the work of Jesus to this day. Acts 1.1-4 There were times of Revelation of the Persons of the Trinity * From Creation until the birth of Jesus was the time God revealed Himself primarily as the Father. * From the Birth of Jesus until His Ascension was the time God revealed Himself as the Son Hebrews 1.1-4 * From the Day of Pentecost until the Second Coming of Jesus is the Age of the Spirit, the Spirit doing the work of God, glorifying Jesus, the Son. Jesus introduced them to the Holy Spirit. We are now in the Age of the Spirit. He has been outpoured Acts 2.1-7 With this marvelous outpouring comes gifts and graces. He produces His fruit in us. He works in us to make us more like Jesus. We are baptized with the Spirit. Filled to overflowing. Then we grow in Christ. He gives wonder filled gifts to us. Matthew 7.11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him! * The Spirit’s Work is To Bring Reality of Sin To The Souls of People -v.8-11 To Make us Holy by bringing us to Jesus. His Spirit speaks to our hearts about sin, judgment After a person has received Christ as his Savior, the Holy Spirit gives them the witness of the Spirit. It's a spiritual assurance that one is a child of God. This witness is not a singular event, but a continuing assurance that comes through the Holy Spirit's work in the believer's heart and life. Romans 8. 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. We pray that everyone will come to know the LORD. He is not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance. He is at work. His work is in the hearts of people. We do not know what is going on inside of people. God has many Pentecosts in His Sky. -E. Stanley Jones This is where persistence in prayer comes in. The Fruit of the Spirit One wing of the Dove In the Bible, the Holy Spirit is described as descending upon Jesus in a bodily form like a dove during his baptism. This is depicted in Luke 3:22, where it says, "heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are my beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased.” * The Spirit Guides Us Into All Truth -v.13, 15 Jesus is the Truth. I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. He takes the things of Christ and makes them known unto us. He works in us to refute false doctrine. We have discernment. 1 John 2:20 You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. He guides us in the deeper life. The Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. * The Spirit Will Tell of What Is To Come v.13 The gift of prophecy Like we shared last week. Revelation 19.10 The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. The Spirit inspired the Apostle Paul, John and Peter to write of the End of Time, the Day of the LORD. This is important, all important. The Spirit speaks through men and women to tell of us what is to come. My friend, Helen Wilk, was used in my life. Another meeting with the pastors in Bangladesh on Wednesday morning. Listen, be open. I have had false prophesies spoken. Things that never came to pass. The other wing of the Dove The Gifts Other gifts Romans 12. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. I Corinthians 12 .1 Now about the gifts of the Spirit,brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them.5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as hHe determines. * The Spirit Glorifies Christ vs.13-14 He will glorify Me. He will reveal Jesus to us. Reminding us of Jesus’ words Revealing the things of Christ to us. He will not speak of Himself. We all need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Open your heart to the gift of God. How much more will your Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?! The LORD’s Supper

The Prophecy Of The Day of Pentecost

The Prophesy of the Day of Pentecost Joel 2.28 “And afterward,
    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your old men will dream dreams,
    your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women,
    I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens
    and on the earth,
    blood and fire and billows of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness
    and the moon to blood
    before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 32 And everyone who calls
    on the name of the LORD will be saved;
for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
    there will be deliverance
    as the LORD has said,
even among the survivors
    whom the LORD calls. Peter quoted from this passage when he preached on the Day of Pentecost. It was the beginning of the outpouring of God's Spirit. But the prophecy of Joel does not completely pertain to the Day of Pentecost, Joel’s prophecy is also about the last of the Last Days, from verse 19 to the end times. The Day of the Lord will be different from this present day of grace. IIThessalonians 2. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed,whom the LORD Jesus will overthrow with the breath of His mouth and destroy by the splendor of His coming. The entire prophecy will be fulfilled during this age and will be culminated at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. What about the first part, about God’s Spirit being poured out on all flesh? There have been many over the centuries who have testified to these verses in personal experience. One of them was a lawyer in the 1800’s by the name of Charles Finney: There was no fire, and no light, in the room; nevertheless it appeared to me as if it were perfectly light. As I went in and shut the door after me, it seemed as if I met the Lord Jesus Christ face to face. It did not occur to me then, nor did it for some time afterward, that it was wholly a mental state. On the contrary it seemed to me that I saw Him as I would see any other man. He said nothing, but looked at me in such a manner as to break me right down at His feet. I have always since regarded this as a most remarkable state of mind; for it seemed to me a reality, that He stood before me, and I fell down at His feet and poured out my soul to Him. I wept aloud like a child, and made such confessions as I could with my choked utterance. It seemed to me that I bathed His feet with my tears; and yet I had no distinct impression that I touched Him, that I recollect. I must have continued in this state for a good while; but my mind was too much absorbed with the interview to recollect anything that I said. But I know, as soon as my mind became calm enough to break off from the interview, I returned to the front office, and found that the fire that I had made of large wood was nearly burned out. But as I turned and was about to take a seat by the fire, I received a mighty baptism of the Holy Ghost. Without any expectation of it, without ever having the thought in my mind that there was any such thing for me, without any recollection that I had ever heard the thing mentioned by any person in the world, the Holy Spirit descended upon me in a manner that seemed to go through me, body and soul. I could feel the impression, like a wave of electricity, going through and through me. Indeed it seemed to come in waves and waves of liquid love, for I could not express it in any other way. It seemed like the very breath of God. I can recollect distinctly that it seemed to fan me, like immense wings. No words can express the wonderful love that was shed abroad in my heart. I wept aloud with joy and love; and I do not know but I should say, I literally bellowed out the unutterable gushings of my heart. These waves came over me, and over me, and over me, one after the other, until I recollect I cried out, "I shall die if these waves continue to pass over me." I said, "Lord, I cannot bear any more;" yet I had no fear of death. How long I continued in this state, with this baptism continuing to roll over me and go through me, I do not know. But I know it was late in the evening when a member of my choir--for I was the leader of the choir--came into the office to see me. He was a member of the church. He found me in this state of loud weeping, and said to me, "Mr. Finney, what ails you?" I could make him no answer for some time. He then said, "Are you in pain?" I gathered myself up as best I could, and replied, "No, but so happy that I cannot live." At this time and on from Pentecost… God’s Spirit Being Poured Out On All People Pour= distribute largely In the past it was for certain select Israelites, like Moses and Elijah, Kings like Saul, David and Solomon. Chosen servants for an appointed work. Now it for everyone who believes on Jesus. At Pentecost He was poured out. So the big question is having believed are you living an overflow experience with the Holy Spirit? Have you been clothed with power from on High? Are torrents of Living Water gushing forth from you? John 7. 37 On the last and greatest day of the festival , Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in Me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. John 7. 9 The Samaritan woman said to Him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and Who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Gushing Rivers A Spring overflowing the well Is this your relationship with the Holy Spirit? Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed? Men and Women Prophesying. v. 28-29 Not to a select few prophets but everyone… even women! This is an answer to Moses’ desire. Numbers 11:29 But Moses replied, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD's people were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them all!” Back story: 26 However, two men, whose names were Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders, but did not go out to the tent. Yet the Spirit also rested on them, and they prophesied in the camp. 27 A young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” 28 Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses’ aide since youth, spoke up and said, “Moses, my lord, stop them!” Joel’s prophesy For that moment Speaks to us today, 2,700 years later Speaking words by Divine Inspiration Forth telling Whether in the pulpit or the coal pit Whether at home or at the store. Whether between two people texting or by livestream Prophesy can be just futuristic. Helen Wilk 11 years ago “You have gone through a lot of suffering. God is going to bring people back into your life from years ago. (An example of this is Marcos and Nydia) He is going to open up a worldwide ministry for you.” Romaine in 1992 Habakkuk 1.5 Look at the nations and watch and be utterly amazed, for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told. Bangladesh Pastors on Wednesday on Zoom. Two invitations to do Pastor’s Conferences this week, one in Myanmar and the other in Bangladesh, this added to one a while ago in Kenya. You all prophesy when you quote God’s Word. II Peter 1.20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. Dreams and Visions v.28 Old men dreaming dreams, not about what they are going to do when they retire but of the Kingdom of God. Retirement is in Heaven. Young men seeing visions of the Kingdom coming. Visions of possibilities in a world wide field. Most of faith missions began with a young man’s vision God has given vision to you in your youth. Tonya’s vision of the word, “Parsonage” on the house in 1984. Dream on May 26, 1992 Lamamuir set sail from London to China with 24 missionaries on May 26, 1866 The beginnings of the China Inland Mission and faith missions I look at the miracle in the mountains of Haiti. The church being built there, a miracle. I am pitiful with tools. I remember trying to build a doghouse and a builder friend coming over and laughing what I had started. Jacob and Joseph dreamed dreams Old men dream dreams They may not be as active as they once were in the Kingdom but they can tell of their dreams… Psalm 92. 14  They will still bear fruit in old age,     they will stay fresh and green, 15  proclaiming, “The LORD is upright;     he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in Him.” Visions - talk to the young men. Love how God is speaking. Josefina’s son-in-law. Wonders We ought to be in awe and wonder regularly. We will be if we are in a Spirit filled church. Love alone is wonder filled. In awe of His Providence In awe of family reunions In awe of His power In awe of His working In awe of answers to prayer In awe that we are being used in His Worldwide Work. The ability to speak in the dialects of the people who came there for Pentecost from every nation on earth. Walter Crow in Haiti in the early 70’s. The awe of pastors and people around the globe listening to our time in the Word and prayer through livestream. Share our livestream with hungry and thirsty souls. There should be healings from time to time. Miracles happening. Salvation For All Everyone who calls on the Name of the LORD will be saved. We are in a time of Grace. Fill my cup, LORD.

Clothed With Power From On High

Joel 2.28-32 Hymn #67 Blessed Assurance Pastor Johnson praying Hymn #150 Come, Holy Spirit Hymn #155 Spirit of the Living God Clothed With Power From On High Luke 24.36-49 We have been talking about the 40 days from the Resurrection to the Ascension. Jesus had spoken to them about the coming of the Holy Spirit. John 14-16 on the way to the Garden, where He would be arrested. After His Resurrection He gave them many convincing proofs that He was alive. Towards the end of this time He went back to the imminent coming of the Holy Spirit, after He went back to Heaven Whenever Jesus spoke about the coming of the Spirit He used to terms like we read before, “clothed”, “baptized, “ filled”. The relationship of His followers, believers, with the Holy Spirit is total and running over. The Spirit is given without measure John 3.34 Is He in your life? Are you filled to overflowing? Are people being drawn to Jesus as their Savior through you? The greatest need in the church today is for this Promise, the Gift of the Holy Spirit. He is the breath of the church. He gives power to love, live, be a witness. He gives good gifts, spiritual gifts. He produces good fruit, the Fruit of the Spirit. Gifts and fruit, the two wings of the Dove. From now until the Day of Pentecost we will be looking into this. On Pentecost Sunday, June 8th we will be looking into this Promise for you. On the 8th of June we will have a special service with a number of the elders sharing the Word together, team preaching. It will be grand! Let’s talk about this little paragraph in Luke this morning. 45 Then He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what My Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” This prophecy of Jesus continues to this day. We need Scriptural understanding concerning the Holy Spirit. Three times Paul writes about wanting us not to be ignorant. * Israel Romans 11.25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, * Death of Believers I Thessalonians 4.13 we do not want you to be ignorant about those who sleep in death,so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope * Spiritual Gifts I Corinthians 12.1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant We need Scriptural understanding concerning the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. We all need it. It is a gift! We need it to be His * Witnesses vs.45-48 More about that in Acts 1.8 and the whole book of Acts and on to this day! We pray for the nations here. We are seeing God work among the nations. Thank you for all who prayed this week for Pastor Liton in Bangladesh, feeding the orphans, for Pastor Felix, in a remote area of Papua New Guinea and for the food distribution in Haiti. A whole pallet full of rice was delivered throughout the mountains where malnourishment and suffering abound. This is a House of Prayer for All Nations. I love how Jimmy Williams in Haiti is praying for Liton in Bangladesh E.M. Bounds wrote men are God’s method. The church is looking for better methods, better men. What the church needs today is not more machinery or organizations or more and novel methods but men whom the Holy Ghost can use men of prayer. He does not anoint plans but men, men of prayer. Notice when He spoke about us being His witnesses it began in Jerusalem, where we are, and spread to adjoining areas, even ones we had previously avoided, and went throughout the whole world. The power of the Holy Spirit in mission work, in being a House of Prayer for all Nations. But first here, now on May 18, 2025. One of the many hindrances to being clothed with power from on High is promoting our own local fellowship. This can be and usually carries with it the thought that we are a tad bit better than the others. God help us! When the Spirit it is the LORD Jesus Christ that is exalted and He adds daily to the church those who are being saved. When He is present we acknowledge Him and leave talking about Him, His goodness and grace, not how tremendous the worship was or how wonderful the sermon was or how good we look. Witness= martyr Share the Word Tell of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ Eyewitnesses Heart witnesses Testify This can happen out of hunger for God. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled. My Nana, Rose Biggs, nearly 100 years ago now, came to Christ in a little mission in Brooklyn. I have told you the story of the little girl in the apartment there in Bensonhurst, who invited her to some evangelistic meetings. After walking with the LORD for a while, she was hungry for more of Him. One morning she prayed, “LORD, if You have something more for me, would You please give it?” He did. Later she heard a message from God’s Word on the wonderful Baptism With the Holy Spirit and she said, “That is what I received but I didn’t know what to call it!” * The Promise of the Father v.4 of Acts 1 Why wouldn’t you want what God has promised? Whatever He has promised for me, I want! Tis the enduement for life and for service. Acts 2. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the LORD our God will call.” Far off= on the Earth at that time of the First Century, far off in time, the past 2,000 years Mark 12:34 And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far G3112 from the kingdom of God. And no man after that ask him any question. Eph 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off G3112 are made nigh by the blood of Christ. After His Resurrection Jesus spoke Peace be with you. In the 40 days He spoke about being clothed with Power from on High. He told them not to leave Jerusalem until that happened. * Sent by Jesus v. 49 I am going to send you what My Father has promised; Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirt This is why the Nazarene Church was founded. They were “thrown out” of the Methodist Church. The Methodists in Southern California in the 1890’s were fighting against this preaching a second work of God in the life of the believer. The Christian Missionary Alliance The Assembly of God all proclaimed this and came into being within a few years of each other. Bible Institutes led by local pastors were helping young men studying for the ministry were all around. These fledgling groups and churches and associations had little property, little assets, little influence. All they had was the LORD. Leaving the more affluent and established churches these Spirit filled believers followed the leading of the LORD, even to training their pastors. THIS PROMISE IS for you! Acts 2.39  The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” We rejoice over the past, we look forward to Heaven but we live in the moment. And the need of the hour, of this moment is for the fullness of the Spirit. We all need to be filled with Him * Clothed With Power to sink into (clothing), put on, clothe one's self This is God’s Will for us. This is the gift for all believers. It is not just for Pastors or Evangelists. It began with the Apostles but did not stop there. To every believer the Promise of God! Acts 2. 17  “‘In the last days, God says,     I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,     your young men will see visions,     your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women,     I will pour out my Spirit in those days,     and they will prophesy. The Holy Spirit coming upon us in power from above! We need this to witness in our lives and with our lips! We need it for living to please God and for our lives for people to see. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives. Acts 19.2 Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed? Child of the Kingdom be filled with the Spirit Nothing but fullness Thy longing can meet Tis the endument for life and for service Yours is the promise so gentle, so sweet I will pour water on him who is thirsty, I pour floods up on the dry ground Open your heart for the gift I am bringing While you are seeking Me I will be found.

The Two Fishing Trips

John 21.1-14 Luke 5.1-11 The beginning and the end Jesus revealed Himself to Peter, James and John in a fishing boat at the beginning. This was not a leisurely trip. I heard Pastor David and Steve Evans talking about going fishing last week. I told them, “When you go, I want to join you.” Fishing with my Dad in New Hampshire… for fun. He taught me to fish. That little tug when a fish nibbled at your bait… This was their livelihood. They were net fisherman. The Sea of Galilee teams with fish. I have swam in it. Jesus comes and bids people to follow Him. He upsets careers and lives with a Heavenly call. 5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.” 6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, LORD; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for men.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed Him. From Nothing to Everything Paul Rees Jesus always gives us an overwhelming experience… overflowing. Abundance whether it is the water being turned into wine over 100 gallons… equaling conservatively 400 bottles of wine! Or feeding thousands, 25,000 with a boy’s lunch, and having 12 basket fulls leftovers, Jesus does more, much more than we can imagine. John 21 was a career change then back to the call. It was answering a call by Jesus. They were called to be His Disciples and would later, in His ministry, be designated apostles. Christ, then His eyewitnesses, the Apostles The Call of Jesus. We believe in a God called ministry. We all have a ministry. Some are called away from a career (for me it was first it was being a vet because my love of animals, and working in a grocery store) Ephesians 4. 11 So Christ Himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip His people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself upin love, as each part does its work. He didn’t give these office gifts for those in them to amass great wealth, fleece the flock and sit in places of honor. Get advanced degrees. He gave them for spiritual reasons: Equip for works of service Build up the Body Unity in the faith Maturity Measuring up to Christ That should be the goal of everyone of these gifts to His Church Notice there are no numerical goals or financial goals mentioned. Not many of you should presume to be teachers. Those who teach will be judged more strictly James 3.1 John 21 * Jesus Brought Them Back Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. This was a career change. Jesus is going to turn them around with Grace, Power and a Charge (which we will look at next week). God works miracles in the midst of our failures! He directed them to return to Galilee. He knew the temptation would be there. He would call them a second time. No lakes in Jerusalem. The Fish Gate went into the Road to Joppa, on the Mediterranean Sea. Matthew 28.8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell His disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them.“Greetings,” He said. They came to Him, clasped His feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see Me.” We know they stayed another week in Jerusalem… for fear of the Jews. We are looking into the 40 day period between the Resurrection and the Ascension. This is the third time Jesus appeared to the Eleven. Two in Jerusalem and now here in Galilee. We are not sure where this fits into the 40 days, from the Resurrection to the Ascension. In the midst of epic events the disciples were struggling! They were back for the Ascension, for 10 days until Pentecost, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He had great purposes in bringing them back to Galilee. Fisherman are drawn to the water. That is where they work. When Olin Bechtel, whose mother was part of that original group in the mid 1940’s that started this church, took me out on his clamming boat, we arrived to a spot in the Great South Bay where he would clam as I fished and crabbed. He turned off the motor. All was quiet. He looked at me and went, “Ah.” Jesus brought them back to where the whole thing started. He was bring them back to His call to them to become fishers of men. He was recharging them. A Charge Have I To Keep 1 A charge to keep I have, a God to glorify, a never-dying soul to save, and fit it for the sky. 2 To serve the present age, my calling to fulfill, O may it all my pow'rs engage to do my Master's will! 3 Arm me with watchful care as in Thy sight to live, and now Thy servant, LORD, prepare a strict account to give! 4 Help me to watch and pray, and still on Thee rely, O let me not my trust betray But press to realms on high * Jesus Speaks in the Moment They were tired and hungry and defeated. They failed Jesus. Now they are failing at their previous occupation. They are in a perfect storm. Jesus fed them and encouraged them. He didn’t say, “You are some followers! You are back where I found you! Didn’t you learn anything from the 3 1/2 years I was with you?!” He did say: Come and have some breakfast. Bring some of the fish you have just caught. Taste and see that the LORD is good Psalm 34.8 What is He saying to you right now Come, follow Me Where? Where He leads me I will follow. We have the Logos, the Word of God/ Jesus Christ We need a rhema Scripture that addresses a believer's current need.  Example, “Your brother will rise again.” They got it several times Galilee, meet you there Jerusalem, don’t leave You may have had a rough week. Maybe you are going through a tough time right. You may be saying to the LORD, “I blew it. I feel terrible. I do not know what to do. I cannot seem to do anything right.” That is where men were in the moment they said, “We have fished all night and caught nothing.” Maybe today your efforts have come up empty. Perhaps you are facing financial reverses, you are wondering how you will make it. God will not fail you. I have been young, and now I’m old I have never seen the righteous forsaken nor his seed begging bread. Psalm 37.25 * Jesus Redeems Our Worst Failures It wasn’t just the failure at fishing, Peter had the denial three times of Jesus nail knowing it. Jesus, his questions to Peter was the reinstatement of him as a disciple and apostle. He had failed miserably, and perhaps you feel like there’s no place for you to serve, Jesus says come. Look at what He did to Peter. He gave him his place in the kingdom again. We will talk about this, LORD willing, next week. Reinstatement and Redemption The Reinstatement of Jesus. Charcoal Fire like the night of betrayals Great catch of fish like when they first started The call and the reinstatement The LORD’s Supper

The Blessing of Believing

The Blessing of Believing John 20.24-31 Jesus wants everyone to come to faith. We are given the purpose of the Gospel of John in this verse: John 20. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name. II Peter 3. 9 The LORD is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. This is the heart of God. The heart of the Waiting Father There is great blessing in believing. Thomas struggled. He had to believe before he could become a witness. He had to see to believe. “I’ll believe it when I see it.” When I have been asked to testify in court over the years I have been told on occasion that I was believable, credible . I have also been asked on occasion to stretch the truth by defense or immigration attorneys. I never did that. One time, when I refused, I had an attorney say, “Well, honesty is the best policy.” I responded, “For me it is the only one!” Thomas had to see to believe. Jesus obliged. God still does with those who doubt. All creation magnifies Him. Take the birds. He cares for them. For 6,000 years they have lived without bird feeders! Bird baths too! Creation’s witness to us from God. The heavens show everyone His Handiwork. Psalm 19. 1  The heavens declare the glory of God;     the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Earth is crammed with Heaven and every bush aflame with God but only he who sees takes off his shoes. - Elizabeth Barret Browning The heavens declare the glory of God. There is not a place where their voice is not heard. Psalm 19.1-4 We are called to have mercy on those who doubt. Help them. Don’t be hard on them. Jude 22 It could be that you were teased as a child. Maybe you were abandoned. Or faced death at a young age. Our personality affects our faith. Thomas was a twin, probably named that at birth, which means he was a second child, tending to be skeptical because of a believing heart. “Uncle Mark, are you taping us?” “No.” “You’re not?” Two second borns. There are great blessings in believing. * Peace This is the first word in Jesus’ greeting to the disciples. Tranquility Harmony Security and Safety Believers have these and many more blessings. These men needed this. By believing we have life in His Name. Peace with God Romans 5.1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our LORD Jesus Christ, They all needed this. Talk about souls in torture. That was the picture of the Eleven on that Resurrection Weekend. Peter with his guilt Thomas with His doubts All of them gripped with fear. They had left everything to follow Him. Now they are locked up in a room for fear they will be killed next. At this point they didn’t even feel it safe to try to high tail it back to Galilee. Thoughts of Palm Sunday and how they got to this point loomed in their minds. Emotional Turmoil. Maybe you have one or more of those (fear, guilt or doubt) this morning… Jesus is here. Jesus came and gave them peace. The Prince of Peace brings peace to their hearts and souls. He rebuked them for their lack of faith that He was alive but not for their denial and abandonment. He gave them peace. Peace takes away guilt, fear and doubt. Today Believing prayer brings this Philippians 4. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Great peace have they who love Your law and nothing can make them stumble. Psalm 119.165 We are peacemakers. We know when to speak We know when to be silent Huge blessings! Believe and join in the blessing, “Peace be with you.” Another blessing of believing… * The Ability to believe God, Who calls things into being that were not Romans 4.17 True missionaries have this ability, the gift of faith Each of you have been given a measure of faith. Some have great faith. But Jesus said that you can do wonders even if your faith is the size of a mustard seed. Matthew 17.20 The mustard seeds in Israel. We call things into existence by believing prayer to the LORD. We call things into existence by speaking your faith Pastor Johnson, “I believe that roof is going on!” God put that in His heart. Arts words to me, “This may make you a better Pastor.” We walk by faith. The Church’s finest hour is when it believes with no evidence. Can you see what God is doing here? What He desires to do? Inconvenience yourself in prayer and watch Him work! Hebrews 11.1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. NASB Now faith is the certainty of things hoped for, a proof of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old gained approval. KJV Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. The Prayer of faith, the prayer offered in faith is a great blessing. Sick healed When we anoint those who in faith raise their hands, calling for the elders. Is it my prayer, the elders, or all of us together? Another Blessing of believing… * Seeing the Glory of God John 11.40 The Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God? “ What an amazing statement! Seeing the glory of God. For Martha of Bethany it was seeing her brother, Lazarus, come back from the dead! For us it could be *Having the strength to go on after a loved one goes to Heaven, not just strength but a new direction in which to travel! *Seeing God meet a need which we had hoped for but could not imagine how He would. *Beginning a new career at a point in life when you thought it was over *Seeing answers to prayers you have prayed a long time over *Loved ones coming to Christ God calls us to exercise our faith. For Martha it was believing what Jesus said about Him being the Resurrection and the Life. What do you need today? If it is direction… He is the Light of the world. If it is spiritual hunger… He is the Bread of Life. If you are venturing in faith… He is the Door.Go through Him. If you are needing protection… He is the Good Shepherd. If you are perplexed… He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If you are longing to see God work remember… He is the True Vine and all you need to do is abide or remain in Him, His Word and prayer * Staying the Course/ Seeing a Harvest Back to Thomas… Mar Thomas Church in India  believed to, have been founded by Saint Thomas (Mar Thoma), one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ, and known by the name of the Apostle, in the year AD 52 Tradition tells us that through the ministry of the Word in many miracles, he brought many high cast Hindus to the Christian faith. There is another interesting story about King Gundaphorus an Indo-Parthian King. An agent told the king that Thomas was a carpenter, and the king gave him money to build a palace. Thomas promptly took the money and gave it to the poor. When the king came to see his new dwelling, he was told that the real palace would be in the kingdom of heaven. The king threw both Thomas and the agent into prison to await execution. At the same time, the kings brother became ill. He became interested in the teachings of Thomas, and in a dream he imagined he died, and went to heaven, where the angel showed him the palace that Thomas had built. He woke, rushed to the king to tell him his dream and secure the release of these two men. King Goundaphorus then became a Christian himself and sent Thomas to preach over his dominion. Many thought this was a legend until the middle of the 19th century when excavations in Punjab reveal that there actually had been in info-Parthian King Goundaphorus who lived in the middle of the first century making him a contemporary of Thomas. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6.9 In these times a good word is perseverance. The first of the flowers in my yard and Margot’s are snowdrops. They shoot up through hard frozen ground. How these tender plants do that is beyond me. They are tough. I have had them bloom in the snow, through the snow. They are tender and tough. That is what believing is. It is having a tender heart, open to God with toughness that does give up or give on. Then producing a harvest 30,60 ,100 times what was sown. * A Final Word About This Wonderful Gift of Life 30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name. Brevity rather than volumes of books, initially. The foundation. Books being written about what Jesus is doing in recent times and being part of a move of God in our days is wonder filled. We have the firm foundation in the Word, the Word that became flesh and the written Word, God’s Word. Believing we have life in His name. Eternal Life, age abiding life, a quality of life now which will continue through eternity in Heaven. The Blessings of believing Peace Ability to call things into being that were not Seeing the Glory of God Perseverance Life Eternal

Jesus’ Resurrection And Our Life

Jesus’ Resurrection And Our Life Bridging the gap between the Resurrection and our lives in 2025 Mark 16.1-7o Romans 6.1-14 Never did an enterprise look more utterly ruined than when Jesus of Nazareth was taken down from the cross and laid in the tomb. -Pastor James S. Stewart, renowned Scottish Minister of another generation The disciples locked up in that upper room The disciples were in seclusion because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. They were fearful of being arrested and suffering the same fate as Jesus. They still did not believe Mary's story that Jesus was alive. From the pit of despair, guilt, fear and disbelief to joy beyond words, overwhelming joy and forgiveness in the words of Jesus, “Peace be with you.” 50 days later, after being baptized with the Holy Spirit, these men are proclaiming the Truth. Jesus is alive! The Resurrection of Jesus Christ It is an historical fact. The Tomb in Jerusalem is empty. Jesus said, “I am the Resurrection and the Life.” The women were going to anoint the dead body of Jesus. vs. 1-2 They were concerned about problems they didn’t need to be concerned about. v.3 This is a prime example of what happens when we lack faith and miss the Word of God. How are you facing your dilemmas today? We fished all night and caught nothing… yet at Your command… Why do we concern ourselves with things Jesus told us He would take care of? It could be that we do not know what He said, or we forgot, like the followers of Jesus. It could be like them, that we have been crushed by grief. That can do strange things to us. It could be we lack faith. I believe many followers of Jesus live there. These dear women were. Forget about the men. They were hiding behind locked door for fear. Good News from the Angel. vs.5-6 Luke 24. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus Himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing Him. 17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 “What things?” He asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified Him;21 but we had hoped that He was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find His body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said He was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.” Of all the disappointments in life, disappoint with Jesus is the worst. It is the end of hope. So Jesus rose from the dead but they did not see Him, even when He was walking with them. Then their eyes were opened… how He broke the bread. Paul, the Apostle writes to the church at Corinth about this. I Corinthians 15. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance; that Christ died for our sinsaccording to the Scriptures, 4 that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve.6 After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Jesus said to Thomas, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20.29 One week later. We will talk about this next Sunday, LORD willing. Even though the Resurrection is an historical fact you need faith to believe it. We are not eyewitnesses. But we do have the witness of the Spirit. Jemaul That moment from Jesus a pardon receives The tomb is empty. Your heart and mind can be as well. Maybe it is this morning. Open it up like a child and stop doubting and believe! The Tomb of Joseph of Arimethea was empty at sunrise. Jesus rose from the dead. That is the Good News this Easter Sunday Morning, The first Day of the Week The Garden Tomb A place of wonder He is not there. He is Risen. The emotions of that day can be summarized by these verses: Luke 24. 40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and feet. 41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, He asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” The Resurrection has spiritual applications Bridging the gap between Jesus’ Resurrection and our lives in 2025 The resurrection is an historical fact, and a living reality The Spiritual Application * We were baptized into His Death Romans 6.3 Our old self was crucified We have died We have a new life. Baptism is a visible demonstration of Christ’s death and Resurrection. This is eternal truth of God: There is life after death. This is the essence of the Resurrection * United in Death/ United in Life vs.5-7 Christ defeated death We can defeat sin through His power Because He lives I can face today, and tomorrow The Resurrection Power lives in us. Romans 8. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who lives in you. 6.6 For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— * Count yourselves dead to sin Do not let sin reign Master it. Do not let it master you God to Cain Genesis 4. 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” Newness of Life 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 4 We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. II Peter 1. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control;and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ’s Resurrection offers us a new life. People try to experience life. They long for it. The question of the Rich Young Ruler Jesus met on the way to Jerusalem… “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He was young, rich and a ruler. Why was he asking this? Obviously these things didn’t satisfy. There was a longing for life, eternal life. Financial Success doesn’t bring it. Anti aging treatments really cannot restore your youth. Reaching the pinnacle of success in your career will not fulfill that longing. Only Jesus can satisfy your soul. If you have eternal life you know. If you don’t you can know. LORD, be merciful to me a sinner. LORD Be merciful To me a sinner A sinner He is alive today. We can face tomorrow.

The Entrance That Stirred The City

The Entrance That Stirred The City Matthew 21.1-11 to shake, agitate, cause to tremble of men, to be thrown into a tremor, to quake for fear To agitate the mind Today we commemorate Jesus riding into Jerusalem during Passover Week. We call this Palm Sunday. Jesus, more than any other person who ever lived, brings deep seated emotions from everyone. His name is used more than any other both by His followers and by those interestingly who deny bHim. Jesus told us this would happen. Say His Name and it will evoke all kinds of reactions from adoration to condemnation to anger and even rage. , Matthew 10.34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person's enemies will be those of his own household He called men, 12 of them, to leave everything to follow Him. On His way to Jerusalem for Holy Week… Mark 10. 28 Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow You!” 29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for Me and the Gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” 32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again He took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to Him.33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” He said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn Him to death and will hand Him over to the Gentiles, 34 who will mock Him and spit on Him, flog Him and kill Him. Three days later He will rise.” I have been heading to the city or in the city when the President of the United States arrives. It is a logistical nightmare. It is inconvenient. From Mount Sinai Hospital all the way down to the Brooklyn Bridge. But this entry by the Son of God produced things never felt or experienced before. So He rides into Jerusalem, fulfilling ancient prophecy * Jesus Shakes Things up. His Presence in Jerusalem causes the City to tremble. If He rode into on a horse we could understand this on the surface but He rides into on an animal of peace! He comes in surprising ways. Be ready for them in your life! We are in a time when God is coming to us in new ways, in different ways. God help us if we think we have Him figured out. Marcos, Pastor Art and I having coffee on Friday. Pastor Art, “Do you have it figured out? Good! Don’t try.” They thought His Presence was going to bring a showdown between Israel and the Roman forces beefed up for the Passover Feast. What better time for a revolt, on the anniversary of them becoming an independent nation? Deuteronomy 4. 32 Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created man on the earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? 33 Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived? 34 Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? This was a people who had seen miracles and interventions by God. We are too! The city was going to swell to 2 1/2 million people by week’s end. The thoughts of blood baths and Israel having the Kingdom restored to them ran through the minds of the people. Last time I was there and spoke to some Israelis about the Messiah I was told when He come He will make the people obey the law, even if by force. Contemporary Religious Thought in Israel. The thrill of freedom from oppression to what actually happened in 68-70AD when Jerusalem was destroyed ran through the minds of residents and visitors. Jesus predicted this just a few minutes before, on His way down the Mount of Olives,: He said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.” Luke 19.42-44 The rejection of Jesus, the failure of recognizing God’s coming to you results in destruction of your own soul, and often among the innocent. How often the children suffer because of the sins not their own. Take forgiveness. You know it is right, you have opportunities, yet you resist. You have planted horrible seeds in your hearts. Your sins will not be forgiven. The rejection of Christ brings its own pain. We reap what we sow. I have watched unforgiveness and bitterness passed on to children and the third generation not even know its own family. So sad. * Jesus causes the heart to tremble. I remember years ago we had a thing called “conviction”. People would tremble at the thought of eternity. Our nation is in trouble. Jeremiah 6.15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,” says the LORD. Because of the United States becoming a post Christian nation poor young people do not know their right hand from their left. Poison is being consumed and they do not realize it. May the LORD cause hearts to tremble once more. May there be an awakening in our land, in our days. Mays eyes and hearts be opened. * Jesus Causes The Heart To Fear John 16.8 When He comes, He will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin,because people do not believe in Me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see Me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. The conviction is get people to come to Jesus. Karl Menninger 1973 Whatever Became of Sin? In his book the doctor projected the day would come when sin would no longer be an element of the human vernacular. He speculated that the explanation of sin and wrongdoing would be replaced by rationalizations excusing individual accountability. Menninger predicted the term sin would be replaced with words like illness, disorder, dysfunction, syndrome, etc. The human condition would be excused as a product of biochemistry, environment, experience, and trauma. He projected that even crime would go unpunished as criminal activity would be justified and minimized as the result of some medical abnormality for which one could not be held responsible. According to Menninger’s prognostication, the day was approaching when practically everyone would be considered sick and their conduct pardonable. No longer would there be any liability for human error, choice, and willful conduct. Everyone would be innocent, vindicated through biology, psychiatry, and humanistic reasoning. He was a prophet! What did the people say about Jesus? Matthew 21. 10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” 11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” Prophet and Priest and King * Jesus Came To Seek and Save That Which Was Lost. Hosanna= save now! Luke 19. 9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” You are not listening to this message today because of a coincidence, by accident, or to make someone happy. God is speaking to your heart. He is whispering, “Come and see.” “Come and taste that the LORD is good. I will give you freedom like you have never known. You will see the Kingdom of God come!” Come just as you are. Let Him recreate you! Jesus wants to transform your life. If you are asking yourself, “What is life all about?” He will show you, today! Come and see. Let Jesus stir your heart and rearrange your life. Walk with Him this week, each day.

A Lamb For the Family

A Lamb For Every Family Exodus 12.1-13, 29-36 This was the final plague of the ten: the death of the firstborn son/male in Egypt. This would end Israel’s slavery in Egypt. They would be free to travel to the Promised Land. The Exodus/ Departure would be underway that night. It coincided with action on the part of the Israelites. The LORD directed them to institute the Passover. The Passover was a one time event and a feast to be commemorated each spring. It will be celebrated around the world by the Jewish people this Saturday, April 12, 2025. The last plagues were announced by Moses as a warning to Pharaoh. This had no warning. Egypt experienced death as Israel was delivered and spared death by obedience to the LORD. v.3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. God works through families. He has a plan for the spiritual leadership in it. The human family. Mark 3. 31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call Him. 32 A crowd was sitting around Him, and they told Him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for You.” 33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” He asked. 34 Then He looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is My brother and sister and mother.” He is building His spiritual family. You are born into it. Those who are members of the Forever Family do God’s will. * The Blood of the Lamb Saved the Israelites From Death In the Family. v.21-23 Specific instructions were given. Place the blood with a hyssop branch on the door posts and over it. Stay inside until morning. Our homes should be havens from sin and it consequences. The death angel/the destroyer will Passover your house when he sees the blood. Today we need the blood of the Lamb of God over the homes of God’s people. The Lamb for every family. We need it over the House of God. There is wonder working power in the blood. Pray for families. I don’t need to go into detail about the family in America today. You and I know it is under attack. It is in trouble. Attempts have been made to redefine it. So many families are broken. People who got involved with and promoted the Men’s movement in the late 1990’s are now divorced. Every family needs the blood of Jesus over it. We need to focus on the LORD in the family. We see young people in need of love, desperately in need of love. We see mothers and fathers in need of it, husbands and wives. Austin Metcalf, the 11th grader, was stabbed in the heart by a student from the opposing team in Texas this week at a track meet. He died in his twin brother’s arms. In the US, a significant number of young men are raised without their biological father, and research suggests this absence is linked to various negative outcomes, including lower educational attainment, higher rates of incarceration, and increased involvement in risky behaviors. Over 18 million young people in the US grow up without the biological father in the home. That is 1 out of 4. This is our time, a time for the Church to rise up and be the fathers to the fatherless. Pray. Be there. May Christ bring about in America this promise in the Scriptures: Malachi 4. 5 “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.” If the family, the cornerstone of a culture, fails, there goes the nation. God’s Solution: A Lamb for every family… The Lamb is gentle. It is docile. How we need the gentleness in families and in the nation today. It is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Gentleness= mild kindness as opposed to harsh, hard, sharp, bitter Lamb Perfect Innocence Perfect Love Intrinsic Goodness Not natural defenses. A dog can bite, a cat can scratch, but a lamb is helpless without a Shepherd. We need the Lamb of God in relationships today, family relationships. The lack of respect is beyond description. I would never dare speak the way I hear some speak. We have lost so much. The elderly are spoken to in ways that are wrong. Instead of learning from their wisdom, they are tossed aside and few seem to care that they are. Our nation may be increasing in knowledge but it sorely lacking in wisdom, the wisdom of elders. We need the gentleness of the Lamb. We need the gentleness of the Lamb in the church today. I have watched fellow pastors mistreated. Pastors wanting out of the ministry. Churches at one another’s throats. Confusion among saints. God help us! May there be a wave of kindness, tender heartedness towards each other. I see bitterness in the lives of the people of God and it is so inappropriate. So unseemly. We ought to be the most joyful and thankful people on earth! Forgiveness is so needed today. Let your gentleness be evident to all. The LORD is near. Philippians 4.5 Lambs must be led. They cannot be driven. A shepherd and sheep and lambs is the picture of the church in the New Testament. Let’s fight the enemy not each other. Without the Lamb you face death The blood of the Lamb saved the family. Everyone in the Family of God comes through the blood of the Lamb of God. Ephesians 2. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Hebrews 9. 11 But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. 12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. The Passover Meal * This Was To Be A Lasting Ordinance When they entered the Land promised to them. This was one of the aids God gave them to remember where they had come from. Look to the rock from which you were hewn. Isaiah 51.1 There was a danger of forgetting the LORD once they arrived in the land. This would remind them. All over the country today there are young adults who have the benefits of growing up in a Christian Home but do not have faith. They are not part of the church. They have abandoned the faith of their families, their fathers. They do not respect their elders. Romans 3.1 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision?2 Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. 3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. These young people have been entrusted with the very words of God. They have forgotten what they have been taught. We need to pray for all of them to return to the Father’s House. Pray that chords that are broken will vibrate once more. Passover Seders involved the children * This Was To Remind Them Of God’s Protection, Deliverance and Sacrifice v.26-28 The LORD’ Supper Jesus in Luke 22.15 Jesus said, “I have been very eager to eat this Passover meal with you before My suffering begins. Christ died once for all. I Peter 3.18 Jesus took the bread and the wine out of the Passover and told us: This is My Body broken for you. This is My Blood of the New Covenant shed for you. In John’s account there is no mention of the lamb. Jesus is the Lamb. I Corinthians 5.7 . For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. The Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world One Man died for the nation A lamb for every family It will be celebrated in Heaven. We will celebrate it now. Let’s share the Lamb. 4 If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, Plenty of room in the family!

Living Under The Favor of God

Living Under The Favor Of God A prelude to the Passover Exodus 11. 1 Now the LORD had said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely. 2 Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.” 3 (The LORD made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.) Moses had been a faithful messenger of the LORD’s to Pharaoh. He gave him uncomfortable truths: Obey or suffer the consequences. Hebrews 3.5 “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. Thank God for the faithful servants in God’s House! Not hirelings but true shepherds. For prayer warriors Nine times he appeared before Pharaoh with the Word of God. Let my people go. Nine times Pharaoh disobeyed. A faithful servant of God keeps giving the truth to those he has been sent no matter what the results. Jeremiah After his commissioning, Isaiah asked, “6.11 Then I said, “For how long, O LORD?” And He answered: “Until the cities lie ruined
    and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left deserted
    and the fields ruined and ravaged, 12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away
    and the land is utterly forsaken. Then a promise of Jesus. We are at the final plague. This last one was going to hit home, the homes and families of the Egyptians. It is a lesson in what can happen to a nation which forgets God or when it stands opposed to Him. This is a lesson for our nation, as it was with ancient Egypt, ancient Israel and now with the United States. Because of the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart, Egypt was about to lose many of its young boys and men along with livestock. When a leader or leaders are disobeying God the nation moans. Proverbs 29.2 When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan. We are in a time when almost all of us know at least one young person (for me sadly many) who have died of an overdose involving fentanyl. This is why we need to pray for those in authority over us. Many of their decisions affect lives. Pharaoh’s stubborn refusal to believe, his disobedience to the Word of the LORD, brought destruction on all the firstborn males of the nation. It is lesson in living for the flesh or the Spirit. God was at work. The Israelites saw. They saw God judging Egypt and protecting His people. The Egyptians watched as they left. Numbers 33. 3 The Israelites set out from Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the Passover. They marched out defiantly in full view of all the Egyptians, 4 who were burying all their firstborn, whom the LORD had struck down among them; for the LORD had brought judgment on their gods. Living under the Favor of God If you walk with the LORD and obey Him you are free from maladies that come to those who do not walk with Him. The diseases that come from worry are not for God’s people. Fear brings certain things to the mind that the child of God need not concern themselves with. - Fear not. Do not worry. These are things we are told not to do. God gives us the power to be victorious over these. If we are in the Word reading about the faith filled ones we will fill our heart and mind with wonderful things. If you find yourself falling into either ask for prayer to be delivered. - Results of Drugs, Tobacco or Alcohol The likelihood of me getting lung cancer or cirrhosis of the liver is greatly decreased due to this. - Sexually transmitted Diseases… abstinence and monogamy in holy marriage gives us freedom from these diseases. If we continually watch the news, if we spend a lot of time on line, we will have struggles we do not need to have. It will affect your joy and peace. It will affect your whole outlook. If you get out with nature, look at God’s Handiwork, your heart will be blessed and your spirit renewed. Philippians 4.8 whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. The end of the plagues brought them to this: * Pharaoh Will Let You Go. Finally! Psalm 27.14 Wait for the LORD. Be strong and take heart. Wait for the LORD. This seemed like a long time for both nations. Egypt had been through a lot of damage and loss, all because of stubborn refusal on the part of Pharaoh. They experienced unnecessary destruction due to their leader who refused to obey the LORD. Pharaoh wanted to do what was best for Egypt. However he leaned on his own understanding. What was best for Egypt was to obey God That is what is best for any nation. What is best for any soul. Proverbs 14.34 Righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a disgrace to any people. Pharaoh is an example of stubborn refusal to submit to the LORD. Doing what is right brings blessings. We live under the favor of God. Proverbs 11.27 Whoever seeks good finds favor,     but evil comes to one who searches for it. Do what is right. * Pharaoh Will Drive You Out. He is not just going to let you go. He is going to get you out quickly. He who was opposed to you will join you in your cause. The one who was standing in the way of you deliverance from slavery will not just set you free, he is going to thrust you out. Expel you. God saw to that and made it happen. God can turn enemies for us. Some are waiting for direction from the LORD today. You are faced with decisions. The enemy is trying to sow confusion. There is a line of an old Gospel song, “When the tempter brings confusion, and I don’t know what to do on my knees I call to Jesus and I know He’ll see me through.” James 1:5, which states: "If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, Who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you".  Your situation may be similar to the Israelites under Pharaoh. You may feel there is no way out. In a few weeks Jewish people from all around the world will celebrate the Passover and their deliverance from slavery. Perhaps you are in bondage, slaving for a master of your life. Jesus came to set you free, absolutely free. You may need wisdom. God wants you to live under His favor. In order to do that you must follow Him, keep in step with His Spirit, seek the Kingdom with your whole heart. The Israelites were in pain. They cried out to God and He remembered them. Exodus 3.7 The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” What a wonderful inheritance! The LORD knows. The LORD sees. The LORD hears your cry. He is concerned about your suffering. Those tearful prayers you have been praying are heard in Heaven. He gives us these promises: Psalm 91.1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High     will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. Psalm 23.1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, 3 He refreshes my soul. Psalm 16.5 LORD, You alone are my portion and my cup;     You make my lot secure. 6  The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;     surely I have a delightful inheritance. Psalm 27.1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—     whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—     of whom shall I be afraid? The LORD rescues! Matthew 1.21 He shall save His people from their sins. Save= rescue The LORD was rescuing the Israelites. Pharaoh was going to drive them out. Some of you have been praying for a long time. Do not stop. Do not become weary. Continue to pray for that souls, that need. The LORD has ways of working that are beyond your understanding. He has ways of working you haven’t even thought of. Don’t focus on the problem. Focus on Him. Look to Him. Trust in Him with all your heart. * God Will Bless You God wants to bless you! Psalm 81.13 “If My people would only listen to me,     if Israel would only follow My ways, 14 how quickly I would subdue their enemies     and turn my hand against their foes! 15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe before Him,     and their punishment would last forever. 16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat;     with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.” He wants us to live in freedom, in spiritual abundance, blessed by Him. He wants to feed us with the finest of wheat. Good food for the bodies. Spiritual food for the soul and spirit: His Word You won’t leave empty handed. The treasures of the Egyptians would be freely given to them as they left. What a great promise! You will be blessed financially/ materially. Proverbs 13.11 Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow. God blesses us so we can bless others. the gold and silver for was for the Tabernacle! They gave it freely. God puts money in our hands to bless others. There is great joy in that! His plan for the Israelites: To bring them out of Egypt To show them His wonder To bring them into the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So that they might be a nation of priests for the whole world. His plan for you and I: To deliver us from sin To prove Himself mighty by miracles, signs and wonders. To bring us to Heaven For now to be a House of Prayer For All Nations. I Peter 2. 9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Make me a blessing! * A Good Standing With God And Many People When a man’s ways are pleasing to the LORD, He makes even his enemies live at peace with him. Proverbs 16.7 They may be enemies of the cross. Philippians 3.18 For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. They cannot deny God’s blessing. Living under the favor of God does not mean we will not have: Enemies Problems Storms Times of severe testing, the trying of our faith But we have God! God’s purpose and plan will prevail. God will bring you through every storm. Fully obey the LORD. Live under His favor. Face every storm with Him. Enjoy the Journey.