Synopsis of Sermon 9.1.24

Delivered by Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III 

Exodus 12:1-8,12 – 13
Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. 8 Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Exodus 12:12-13 KJV

“For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.”

I.            INTRODUCTION

1. Be very clear that God is a God of covenant. A covenant is an agreement. When we come into agreement with God, then or relationship becomes reciprocal. By this we mean, we do what we do and he does what he does.
2. It is also about having a covering. Obedience is the key. Do what He assigns you to do, when he tells you to, whether it makes sense or not.
3. Sometimes God will tell you to do stuff that is unorthodox. God has plans to get you out of situations. This time, we see the bloody doors as being something unorthodox.
   1. One example of God asking somebody to do something unorthodox is when God asked Naaman to dip into the Jordon River 7 times in order to help his situation.
   2. On another occasion, Jesus asked Mary and Martha where they had laid their brother Lazarus. God then asks them to take Him to the graveyard. This was unorthodox. Then Jesus told Lazarus to come forward, and Lazarus rose from the dead.
   3. On another occasion, God took clay and spit on it. Then he put it on the man’s eyes, so that he could see again. This too was unorthodox.
4. You can’t focus on the myth and miss the miracle.
5. In today’s sermon, you will learn about the Passover. God is committed to getting you out of unhealthy situations. It’s about the power of covering and the power of obedience according to what God is going to show you.
6. The Children of Israel were incarcerated because of their growth. In other words, they were enslaved. The new Pharaoh was intimidated by their growth in numbers.
7. If God be for you, He’s more than the whole world is against you. God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh to let His people go. Pharaoh is stubborn and would not let them go. As a result, God sent 10 plaques and finally, Pharaoh decided to let them go. The 10 plaques are really important. We will elaborate on them later.
8. The Children of Israel found out that they had to participate in their own deliverance.
   1. They were told to take a first-born lamb without spot or blemish. At a specific time, God wanted them to kill it as a sacrifice, and then put the blood from it on the door post of their home.
   2. God was going to send a plaque that would kill all the first-born male children and animals, but when the death angel come by, he would pass over all the houses that had the blood on the door post. After this, for generations, they would celebrate this Passover.
9. Remember they were supposed to take the first-born lamb and sacrifice it at a certain time.

II.            CHARACTER TO DILIGENTLY PRESENT YOUR OFFERING

• Your offering speaks to your character. One thing that upset God at one time, was people were bringing in offerings that had flaws and defects such as missing eyes, missing limbs, etc… This showed the negative sense that they showed towards God.
• We must be consistent with our offering and our sacrifice.

A.   We Should Be Consistent In Our Stewardship To God

1. God wants us to show up in our best self. If you can’t give your all to Him, don’t give at all.

B.   We Should Always Give Him Our Best

1. When we give God our best, 1 Samuel 16:7 NKJV says 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have [a]refused him. For[b] the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
2. We ought to give with:
   1. Generosity – John 3:16 KJV “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
   2. Integrity – I’m not going to act like I gave when I didn’t.
   3. First fruits – Proverbs 3:9 NKJV ⁹ Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase; ¹⁰“So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, And thy presses shall burst out with new wine.”
   4. Cheerfulness – 2 Corinthians 9:7 NKJV ⁷ So leteach one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of ^[a]necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. – We ought to be thankful that you have something to give.
   5. Faith – My situation might not be ideal, but I project my faith on what I give.
   6. Purposefulness – We are intentional about what we give to God.

III.            CONTENT KNOWING GOD DEALS PROVIDENTIALLY WITH YOUR OPPOSITION

• God deals with my enemies.
• He fights our battles. He is our Covering.

A.   God Does Not Tolerate What Refuses To Liberate You

1. Pharaoh was determined not to release God’s people. The enemy wants to keep you under control. He is intimidated by you.
2. Liberation – God is on the side of the oppressed.
   1. Luke 4:18 NKJV says 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me [a]to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are [b]oppressed;– When you grow in your relationship with God, you won’t allow yourself to be bound.
   2. 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 NKJV says ¹⁰ Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For ^[a]if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, ¹¹ lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
   3. John 8:32 NKJV ³² And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” – Wherever there is a word, there is liberation.
3. You’re on your way out of your Pharaoh Situation!

B.   It May Take A While, But Let God Handle It

1. It took 10 plaques for them to come out of Egypt. Pharaoh had to go through 10 plaques before he was willing to release the Children of Isreal.
   1. Water turning into blood – Exodus 7:14-24
   2. Frogs – Exodus 8:1-15
   3. Gnats – Exodus 8:16-19
   4. Flies – Exodus 8:20-32
   5. Death of livestock – Exodus 9:1-7
   6. Boils – Exodus 9:8-12
   7. Hail and fire – Exodus 9:13-35
   8. Locust – Exodus 10:1-20
   9. Darkness – Exodus 10:21-29
   10. Death of the firstborn – Exodus 11, 12:1-30 – With this, God cuts the bloodline off. Stops them from being able to reproduce.
2. God made provisions for his people while the plaques came. His people were in Egypt, but they weren’t in Egypt.
3. God reminds them to:

IV.            COMMIT TO PUT THE BLOOD ON YOUR DOOR POST OFTEN

• On the 10^th of the month, the lamb had to set there until the 14^th of the month. They had to inspect the sacrifice during that time. Exodus 12:3 NKJV 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household.
• Twilight was when they were supposed to follow God’s instructions.
• In the middle of the month is when it is a full moon. God was going to bring them out at night and use the moon to light the path.
• It’s important to do this at the right time and right place.
• The blood from your door, came from your sacrifice.

A.   Cover Your Access Points

1. The door is an access point. The entry ways to your life have to be covered.
2. We must Cover:
   1. Our Minds – He will keep you in perfect peace if your mind is stayed on him.
   2. Our Emotions – If we don’t cover our emotions, we will make bad decisions.
   3. Our relationships – Anything that is not good for me, Lord please don’t let it get past the blood.
   4. Your digital Presence – Our children are restyling with their own identity. We allow a lot of crazy stuff to come in through our digital components.

B.   The Blood Represents Power And Protection

1. The blood is so powerful, it is a forecast of the blood that Jesus would shed for us as our savior.
2. You will know the blood because:
   1. The blood reaches – It reaches to the highest mountain and to the lowest valleys.
   2. The blood redeems – When I shout like I shout, I do what the scripture says. Scripture says, “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so”
   3. The blood is a reminder – We overcame by the Blood of the Lamb.

V.            CELEBRATE THE FACT THAT DEATH HAS PASSED OVER

• When the death angel came, the Children of Isreal were passed over.

A.   Whatever Happens To Your Enemy Will Not Come Near You

1. Whatever happens in the world, won’t come to you. When someone dies in the Lord, they don’t die, they just transition. They are asleep. I Thessalonians 4:13 NKJV “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.”

B.   I’m Alive Because God Made Sure I Survived

1. Death and the grave had a conversation. When Jesus was crucified, Death said, “I’ll sting him” and the then the Grave said, “I’ll hold him”. The Grave held him Friday and then Saturday, but when Sunday came, Jesus was gone. He rose from the death.
   
   Just like this, God is going to allow you to overcome that which is trying to overtake you! Thank God for those Bloody Doors!