Knowing your bible Part IV “What the Bible Reveals to Us”, Bible Study 03/24/10

Posted on March 26, 2010 by growintheword

Knowing your bible Part IV
What the Bible Reveals to Us
Synopsis of bible study 03/24/10
Delivered by Bishop Walker III

When you look at the word of God, there are lessons and foundational principles that every student of the bible needs to be clear about. The bible reveals these principles clearly to us.
I. The purpose of Redemption
2 Timothy 3:15: 15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.- The more we learn about the scriptures, the more our faith is increased and as a result, we are able to become saved.
1. Demonstrates the wickedness of the sinner. We can only understand redemption is by sin our sin nature as it is explained in the bible. Romans 3:10 says 10As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:; 23 Romans 3:23 says 23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;- Verse 10 explains that none of us are righteousness. Verse 23 explains that we all have come short of the glory of God. We all naturally have a sin nature. We have to realize that a sin nature dwelt in us and we needed a savior.
2. We see the wrath of his sovereignty. Galatians 3:22 says 22But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.- God has this answer to our sin problem and he has the sovereignty to give it to us. In other words, sin according to Pentateuch (first 5 books of the bible), must be punished by death. Because God is sovereign, he can interrupt the consequences. Romans 6:23 says 23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. – We know what the wages of sin is (death), but God’s gift affords us eternal life. God says he overrides our punishment with his grace and his love.
3. We have faith to believe. John 3:18 says 18He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.-Redemption has a lot to do with having the faith to believe. Why would God hold back our consequences? It is because God knows the value of our soul.2 Peter 3:9 says 9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.-We are sinners, but God says he loves us. The devil says to God,”If you love them, why do let them act the way they do.” God says that it is because he knows the value of our lives. His desire is that we come to repentance. This means in order for you to end up going to hell, you have to be trying to go to hell! God is so long suffering, we can’t understand why he puts up with us.
4. The scripture shows us the way of salvation. John 3:16: 16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.-We see our self as sinners and we see interrupting the consequences (explaining he doesn’t take us out because he is longsuffering). This is not a license to do what we want. We should appreciate redemption. What if this was your last chance for us to get things right and Jesus came back in the midst of our sin and you woke up in judgment and had to explain to God what you were doing. God saved us, even though devil had the right to have us because we sinned. Based on the law we should have paid the ultimate price, but Jesus shed his blood and redeemed (or purchased) us from the devil. He bought us back. Psalm 107:2 says 2Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; – We shout on our car or house, but some of us can shout simply on the fact that he saved us.
II. The purpose of reinforcement
1. The bible reinforces that God loves us and cares for us. The scriptures reinforce what God did. God is constantly telling us that he loved us and paid the price for us. The word of God builds our standards.
a. Builds us up through their standards.
2. It is a Paradigm or model. We look at the scripture as our model or standard. John 14:15 says 15If ye love me, keep my commandments.- If we love him we obey his word. 1 John 2:3 says 3And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.-We say it is not easy to keep God’s word. 1 John 5:3 says 3For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. – The word grievous in this scripture means harsh. His commandments are not too difficult for us to accomplish.
3. What do you think is the most difficult principle of God’s to keep? Most people will say its fornication.
a. Fornication. – Don’t spend time worrying about the do’s and the don’ts in the bible. Spend time on the do’s and you won’t have time for the don’ts. – What keeps us is throughout the scripture, it says we are redeemed. Imagine if before you lit your weed you would think back at how Jesus redeemed you and shed his blood and this is the way you are choosing to thank him (you can apply this to any of your strongholds). The bible teaches us if you really understand that it cost something, then you start saying it is not worth disrespecting what it cost.
4. Builds us up through the symbols.
a. A mirror- James 1:23-25 says 23For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. – As a mirror, the word of God reflects the mind of God.
b. A seed -1 Peter 1:23 says 23Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. – When you plant a seed, you don’t always get a harvest right away. Ex- Some of you may have gotten angry, because you invited someone to church and they said they liked it, yet they never came again. Don’t worry about it. The seed has been planted. One plants, another waters, and God gives the increase. If you would think back, many of you have gotten a 5 yrs ago that is just now blossoming in you. It takes a while to receive the harvest.
c. Water-Ephesians 5:25-27says 25Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. , Ezekiel 47 associates water with the anointing. Remember when they pierced Jesus in the side, water and blood came out. Remember the scripture that talks about out of your belly will flow rivers of water. It is all about the idea of water representing the anointing.
d. A lamp -Psalm 119:105 says 105Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. – The word of God guides us into our future to keep us from falling.
e. A sword – Hebrews 4:12 says 12For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.- The word cuts you. It goes deep. Ex- You come to church and you are determined that you are going to be mad, but after you receive the word, you can’t help but to leave with a smile on your face. The word cut you like a sword. It brought about conviction.
f. Precious metals- Psalm 19:10 says 10More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Psalm 119:127 says127Therefore I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold- the bible is referred to as precious metal like gold and silver, because of its desirability and preciousness and its value.
g. Food- Job 23:12 says 12Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food. – Everyone wants to be fed, like it is food. Job said he likes word better than food. You eat food that you might grow, so in like manner we feed on the word to grow spiritually
i. Milk 1 Peter 2:2: 2As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: – You don’t give steak to a baby. You have to give baby what they can digest. We have to treat baby Christians the same way. They may have to have some milk first, before they get to the meat. This is why you shouldn’t get upset if a milk based sermon is delivered every now and then.
ii. Meat- Hebrews 5:12-14: 12For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 13For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 14But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. – Meat nourishes the body. Meat represents us wanting to get to the next level. Meat is challenges us. This is the position that we have about the word where we think, “Warm my heart, but challenge my head.” Meat-lovers is that next level to the next level. This is when we really want to challenge our head. Ex-We have a generation of preachers that put too much gravy on our meat (this is the whooping type sermon). Know that good meat makes its own gravy. You don’t need the popsicle/cupcake sermons ( which means we go right to the dessert), we need a balanced diet (Some meat, some potatoes, and then maybe dessert).
iii. Bread – John 6:51: 51I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world- Bread can nourish anybody.
iv. Honey Psalm 19:10: 10More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. – Honey is filled with glucose and it will give you that extra boost of energy. We find ourselves showing up, because we need an extra boost. God’s word will give you and the extra energy you need to move on.
h. Hammer-Jeremiah 23:29: 29Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
i. Fire-Jeremiah 20:9: 9Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
III. The purpose of revelation
1. God reveals himself so we can see his power – God shows us his power, when he gets Mary pregnant when she is a virgin. He shows his power also when he raises Lazarus for the dead (These are just 2 examples)
2. They reveal Gods promises-God has kept all 3000 promises that you find in the bible. 2 Corinthians 1:20 says 20For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.- The glory of God comes, because he always does what he says he will do.
3. They reveal Gods’ plan-The bible is so revealing, it gives some people more pieces of the puzzle every Sunday. God reveals his plan through his word. Jeremiah 29:11: 11For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
4. They reveal God’s person. Who is God? How do you explain God to people who do not know who God is? The scriptures give us amazing revelations of who God is. It is important for you to remember that the bible you read today is a translation, so in your bible words for God appear as Lord, God, Him, He, and etc…
a. The bible is written in 3 languages which are Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. If we understand that the bible is written in these 3 languages, then if we can understand how God’s name is used throughout scripture, it reveals something to us that we probably never knew. God used in one verse may mean something different in another verse. It depends on how the language is using it. Remember the names of God are adjectives, descriptive of God’s nature. If you understand the names of God and you are shown some instances of how the names were used, it opens up a wide possibility to discover that we may have been using the scripture wrong.
b. Names of God
EL: – “mighty, strong, prominent”. It is over 250 times in the Old Testament. See Gen. 7:1, 28:3, 35:11;- It is equivalent to use of Muslim term Allāh , but the attributes of Allah in Islam is entirely different from those of Hebrew EL. Elah and Alah in Hebrew linguistically are similar to Allah, but these two Hebrew words do not refer to God, so when Muslims say we worship the same God, know that we don’t.
ELOHIM: – The family name of God such as creator. It is used over 2500 times in the Old Testament.
EL SHADDAI: – God Almighty or “God All Sufficient.” – Used 48 times in the Old Testament (31 times alone in book of job). Ex- When Job is talking to God, he is calling him the supply. He had lost everything.
ADONAI: -“Master” or “Lord” (which means the Lord controls our lives) 300 times in the Old Testament. First used in Gen 15.2.
JEHOVAH: “the self existent one”. This is where we get the word Yahweh. In Hebrew spelled Yhwh. Found in Ex 3 in the story of the burning bush.- He is saying he is who he is. He will be who he will be. No one created him.
JEHOVAH-JIREH: – “The Lord will Provide.” – God not only has what we need, but he is what we need. – He doesn’t just give joy, he is joy.
JEHOVAH-ROPHE: “The Lord Who Heals” found in Exodus 15:22-26, 15:22-26-Health in the bible is always total. It is spirit, soul and body. It is never just physical.
JEHOVAH-NISSI: – “The Lord Our Banner- When we go to battle, we lift his name.
JEHOVAH-M’KADDESH: “The Lord Who Sanctifies – Found in Leviticus 20:7-8.
JEHOVAH-SHALOM: “The Lord Our Peace” Judges 6:24. ” –This idea of peace means I have a right standing with myself, God, and man.
JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU: “The Lord Our Righteousness” – It means we weigh ourselves by his righteousness. We are the righteousness of God. Jer. 23:5 – 6.
JEHOVAH-ROHI: “The Lord Our Shepherd” Psa. 23, JEHOVAH-SHAMMAH: “The Lord is There” (Ezek. 48:35).
JEHOVAH-SABAOTH: “The Lord of Hosts” – Sabaoth is the commander of the angelic hosts in the army of God. We don’t have authority to call down the angels of God, but God does. God sends his angels. Psalms 46:7
EL ELYON: ‘Most High” (from “to go up”) Deut. 26:19, – Whatever is over our head is still under his feat.

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There is a blessing in the belly, Sermon 03/21/10

Posted on March 23, 2010 by growintheword

There is a blessing in the belly
Synopsis of sermon 3/21/10
Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Text: Jonah 1:15-17: 15So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. 16Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows. 17Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Within all of us, there is a call. There is an assignment. There is something that God has ordained for our lives. Within all of us, there is a spirit of rebellion. It is over whether we want to accept God’s call. Whenever God calls us, we have a tendency to run from that assignment. People have often said this is a validation of an authentic. Everything within you will resist. Your flesh will always run from what the spirit of God wants you to do.
Understanding the Call from God
1. It is always to a particular person.There is Jonah 1:1 says 1Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,- Whenever calls, it is to a particular person. When God calls, he is very specific about who he is talking to. The bible says the Lord spoke to Jonah. Never miss this, because the last thing you want to do is move into someone else’s assignment.
2. It is a Call to action. Jonah 1:2 says 2Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. – God speaks to Jonah and tells him to get up. Whenever God calls, it is a call to something. It is a call from apathy and complacency. You will never be called to sit or to be on the sidelines. God calls you to action.
3. It is to a particular place. God tells Jonah he wants him to go to Nineveh (also found in verse 2). God always calls us to solve a problem. God specifically indicates that your assignment is going to be in a particular place and in this case it was to Nineveh.
4. To a Particular purpose-This purpose is clear. Jonah was supposed to go to and cry judgment over Nineveh for 40days. God told Jonah to remind them that he was upset with them because of their iniquity. The story Jonah is an amazing story. God will do what he has to in order to get us into our assignment. The word of God tells Jonah to go to Nineveh, but in verse 3, it says he went to Tarshish. Jonah 1:3 says 3But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.- He runs from responsibility and accountability. The bible says as Jonah ran he found a ship in Joppa. Jonah got into the ship after paying the fare; he began to run from the very presence of the Lord.
5. It is Deliberate- Job is very deliberate about running from God according to verse 3. He makes a conscious choice to do the opposite of what God told him to do.
6. It is Directional- Jonah’s action is directional. Rather than going where God wants him to go, Jonah runs to Tarshish. Understand the relationship between Nineveh and Tarshish. Nineveh represents the challenge. Tarshish represents the comfort. Nineveh represents the assignement and Tarshish represents the place of complacency. Yet, Jonah pays a fare. What is interesting is he has to make, sidbursements.
Will have to make Disbursements-When you run from God, it will be costly. It will cost you money, it will cost you your family, and it will cost you your destiny. Many people reading this can testify that running from God can be costly.
7. Can cause you to go downward. The bible said Jonah fled form Tarshish and presence of the Lord. After paying the fair, Jonah went down into the ship. He is on a downward projector. Whenever you are running from God, it is always a spiral down. Everything will go down. Every relationship and every significant thing in your life will go down when you run from God. It is an amazing thing to watch, because it is disturbing.
8. Can be Disturbing- Here is a man who has an amazing assignment placed on his life. He wants to resist with everything in him. Jonah chooses to run from God and this is disturbing.
The thesis to this whole message is that God is after your yes. God will do whatever is necessary, until you say yes. God will do whatever he needs to do, until you yield to what he wants you to do. The bible says Jonah gets on a ship that ferries him away from the presence of the Lord. Many of you have gotten on some ships that said they will take you far away from what God wants you to do. What was your ship? Was it a relationship? Was it a fellowship? Was it a friendship? Whatever your ship was, it turned out to be a hardship. Any ship that you get on, that carries you from the presence of God, will always turn around and be a hardship.
The bible says they took Jonah on the ship and after accessing the situation, they had to throw Jonah overboard. The bible says Jonah was swallowed up by a great fish that he had prepared. For 3 days and nights, Jonah is in the belly of the whale. Jonah will discover that what we will discover, that even in places like this, where we don’t want to be, it is place of isolation (the belly of the whale). There is a blessing in the belly of the whale. God has you at a standstill. Why does God have us here? God says he has to hold you until you say yes to his will and yes to his way. It is not going to happen for you until you do what God has called you to do. There is a blessing in the belly.
I. Revelation of preparation
1. God is using this season to bless you. He is using this season to prepare you for something. Jonah 1:15 says15So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.-The men on the ship that Jonah gets on are ferrying across the water. They do well until Jonah gets on the ship. Jonah represents the disobedience and being outside the will of God. Now wherever Jonah goes, there is going to be chaos and storms. When you are out of the will of God, wherever you attach yourself to, you will bring storms to. They begin to access the situation after the storm come. They began throwing stuff over board to lighten the load so the ship would not go under. After throwing cargo overboard and recognizing that it is not working, they see Jonah is asleep on the ship that is about to go down in a storm. They wake him and ask him what he has done.
2. Jonah tells them that he is running from God and he wasn’t where God wants him to be. Jonah says if they want this thing to stop, they must throw him overboard. Jonah 1:12 says 12And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Jonah 1:13 says 13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. – In other words, they tried to make it work without having to throw Jonah overboard. Consider this, maybe your problem is trying to tell you something. It might be telling you to throw it overboard, but because you think you can change your problem, you still trying to make something work that God never intended to work. Whenever you got people in your lives that are outside the will of God, they will bring storms and drama into your life. This is a time to release some folk off your ship. We have enough drama in our life already. We don’t need to be adding more drama to what we already got. We don’t need to take on excess baggage. Some people might think this is not Christian like. Should we throw people off of our ship? Some people have a Messianic Complex which means they think they can save everyone. If you need a nice way to throw people off the ship, you can simply say “God spoke to me and said to release you into your destiny.”
3. There is some of Jonah in all of us. God loves us in spite of our disobedience. God corrects us. When God disciplines us, he makes arrangements. Ships sail in deep water. They are in the middle of the The bible says they throw Jonah overboard. Know they are in the middle of the sea. Jonah 1:17 says 17Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. While you are mad at God, because he hadn’t shown up, notice that in the scripture they we are in the middle of nowhere, thrown off the boat into the sea, and he can’t swim, but the Lord prepared a fish for Jonah. God thinks enough of us that God will put a fish in the right place and the right time to catch our disobedient behind to hold us in a place until we get ourselves together. The belly is nothing more than a place to keep you. God kept us. He kept us from manipulating his decisions, he kept us from merciless debt, and he kept us from missing our destiny. Give him glory for keeping us.
4. It is almost like a sentence. Jonah is in the belly for 3 days. It is like God is saying, “I sentence you to 3days and 3 nights. I sentence you to yourself. “There will be season where God says, “I will sentence you”. Here in the belly of the whale, Jonah has to uses his opportunity to reconnect through prayer.
II. Reconnect through prayer
1. Jonah discovers that he is a painful position. There comes a time that have to own your moment.
How?
2. By Taking responsibility for your laxness. Ex- It is our fault that our credit is bad. It is our fault we didn’t graduate. It is our fault that our life is in a mess. We can blame everyone else, but at some point, we have to take responsibility. Here in the belly of the whale, we reassess our life.
3. Time to reassess your life. This is when you realize that you have to look at yourself. Jonah 2:4 says 4Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.-He is at a place where he is disconnected from others and all he can only look to God. He always had people around him, but know he is at a place where he has to think about what he is going do with the rest of his life All of us come to a places where we evaluate the things we have done and the people in our lives.
4. Time to reconnect with the Lord- The belly is a powerful persuader. If it wasn’t for the things that happened to us, we would not have reconnected to God. Some of us need to go to jail. For them, this is the only way God will get us to say yes. Some of us need to get sick. This is the only way God can get us to say yes. God had to let us go bankrupt so we would know what it means to bring the tithe.
a. We realize that we have been chasing stuff. Jonah 2:8 says 8They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.-We have been chasing stuff missing his mercy. Jonah 2:9 says 9But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD. – Translation: “Lord knows I am ready.” We are willing to do what he wants us to do. If we come out the belly, it will be because of us saying “yes”. We are going to go ahead and praise him while we are still in the belly and not wait until we come out! We are going to say, “Lord, you got my yes.”
b. When Jonah said yes, he was released into his purpose.
III. Released into your purpose
1. The belly was never intended to be a permanent resident. Don’t let people send you mail in the belly. We should be out by the time the letter gets there.
2. Verse 9 says “I’m ready!” Verse 9 is our yes. Jonah 2:10 says 10And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. – Jonah in chapter 1 starts with disobedience. Jonah gets a word from God. It is a specific word, to a particular place. It was a particular assignment. Jonah was told to go to Nineveh and he deliberately disobeyed God and went to Tarshish. He found a ship and went down into is after paying fare. He got on the ship with people who did not know he was out of the will of God. When the storm came, they recognized that he was the problem. He told them that he was the problem, he was thrown overboard, the storm ceased, and the ship went the other way. Jonah got on the ship in Tarshish, he got on from dry ground, and the ship begin to ferry.
3. God prepared a fish. Ships don’t sail in shallow water. When God called Jonah, God prepared a fish. He Jonah was going to run. He spoke to fish and told the fish to escort that ship. He told the fish to stay down, because he would need him later. The fish was instructed to follow the ship. The whale is following the ship. Note that some scholars say that the book of Jonah is not true, because I fish would not digest a human being. The missed the part that says God prepared the fish. God made the fish be able to do what it had never been able to do before. The fish is following the boat , so when they threw Jonah overboard, the fish is in the right place at the right time. If the fish is not at the right place at the right time, then Jonah is going to drown. God’s mercy and grace keeps us.
4. Jonah is in the belly of whale in chapter 2 and he is praying. He is talking to God, meanwhile the fish is moving. Remember in chapter 1, God spoke to Jonah. In chapter 2, we notice God is silent. Jonah is praying ( talking to God) , but you don’t see where God is talking to Jonah. Isn’t it amazing that you can tale to God while you are in the belly, but God is not talking back. Wonder why God is not talking in chapter 2? It is because God told Jonah what to do in chapter 1, so there was no reason for him to talk. He is not going to talk until he hears a “yes”. While we are talking to God, the fish is still moving. If you stop talking, your fish will stop, but as long as you are talking (to God), the fish is still moving. Why must the fish move, because Jonah 2:10 says 10And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.- Jonah was vomited on dry ground after he said yes in verse 9. This means God moved the fish to a place to spit Jonah up where he would not drown! God won’t leave you where he found you! What’s amazing is God still ain’t talking to Jonah, because he talked to him in chapter 1, but in chapter 2, God talked to the fish. God said he wasn’t speaking to Jonah yet. God told the fish what to do and the fish vomited Jonah up on the dry ground.
5. Jonah is reading this today. Jonah has been disobedient and has found themselves in the belly of the whale! Church folk can’t handle your vomit. They can’t handle the vomit that is on you! We have mess on us but our mess is a reminder of how far God bought us. God left a little vomit on us to remind us that we hadn’t done everything right, but we thank God for his grace and his mercy!
6. When God hears your yes… Jonah 3:1 says 1And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying,- In other words, God wasn’t going to speak to us until we said “yes”- The Lord came a second time! He is a God of a second chance, when you mess up on your first chance, you don’t have to commit suicide or give up on your destiny. God loves you so much; he will give you a second chance. Ask Abraham; He got a word from God, messed up with Hagar, and got Ishmael, yet he got another chance. Ask Jacob; when he got Bethel. Ask the prodigal son who messed up and was allowed to come home. Ask Peter who denied Jesus, yet he got a second chance. This anointing cost us something. God is a God of another chance.

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Knowing your bible Part III, “How the bible equips us” Bible Study 03/17/10

Posted on March 20, 2010 by growintheword

Knowing your bible Part III
“How the bible equips us”
Synopsis of Bible Study 3/17/10
Today we want to talk about what the bible produces in us. It should push us to be better. 2 Timothy 2:15 says 15Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.- Study to show yourself approved, because a servant needs not to be ashamed, because they can rightly divide the word of truth. The word equips us to perform ministry. The way we live out God’s will every day, the word of God helps equip us to do that.
2 Timothy 3:14-15 says 14But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; 15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.-You come to know Christ, the wisdom of the word of God.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 says 16All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.-Perfect means mature. Thoroughly furnished means complete and equipped. It is important to know the importance of this. There are many people who do not find value in being complete in God’s word. It is like being on airplane and listening to the pilot on the intercom say that there is a crisis, but they will have to get back with you later when he figures out how to handle it. This would unnerve us, because you would think he would come over the public address system and say that he has everything under control, because they are completely equipped. After all, why would you put people at this high an altitude, put people’s lives in danger, and not be equipped to handle the crisis? Like this, God wants us to be completely equipped in this word so that we can handle our crisis. We have to know this word for ourselves
I. Equips us by building our faith
a. Different Areas of faith
1. Saving faith -2 Timothy 3:15 says 15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.- The bible shows us our condition, our condemnation, and it shows us how to obtain conversation. It shows that Jesus died for us regardless of our sin nature. It is based on our ability to come to God so that we might be saved. There are those that feel they don’t qualify to be with God. Know that there is nothing you can do where the grace of God can’t find you. Most of us have been at this same place where we think that we don’t qualify to be with God, but a word came into our life, we believed in that the word, and as a result we got saved. This is why the enemy doesn’t want us to know the word.
2. Serving faith-2 Timothy 2:15 says 15Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.-study means to be diligent or labor. It suggests that when spend time in God’s word, we are able to rightly divide his word. Rightly dividing his word is like a surgeon being able to make a straight cut. As we study, we are motivated to study his word more and not relying on our Pastor as our only means of bible study. We want to go deeper, so we can rightly divide the word of God which means we want to be precise in our interpretation. If we rightly divide or study God’s word, then we are not ashamed when the enemy tries to confront us based on the word. Ex- How many people had a moment where they had someone who knew the bible, but was absolutely wrong on an issue? You knew they were wrong, though they were so convincing about it, yet you were so unlearned, you didn’t have the scriptures to come back and tell them how they were wrong. In that moment you were ashamed, because you could not rightly divide the word. Just knowing is not enough. You have to be able to rightly divide the word and be able to go through the word for yourself. If you don’t know that, all you have is a feeling. Ex- It has be more than saying something touched me from the crown of my head to the sole of my feet. This feeling could also be indigestion. Being able to rightly divide the word means I don’t have to run from people. I can stand flat footed and tell people why I believe what I believe.
i. Do you know it is possible to be in church for 20yrs and not know the bible? Ex- Some people came from churches where the preacher said turn to a scripture and by the time you got there, they were done preaching. The others that come to church and literally rely on what the preacher is going to preach on as their total bible study experience. As a result, they never know the word of God.
b. The word of God equip us for the fight
1. Ephesians 6:17 says 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: – The Sword of the spirit is word of God. The sword of the spirit comes from the Greek word rhema-It is a short roman sword, almost like a dagger. Roman soldiers would have it on their side as a tool to cut things up or to use as a dagger in a time of hand to hand combat. The word “logos” refers to “The whole word of God”. John 1:1 says 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – The word here means logos. Rhema refers to a specific word. Ex- Imagine the logos as an idea of armory or a big building filled with weapons. During war, the soldier walks into the armory to choose a weapon. The weapon he chooses is the rhema. It is a specific weapon for a specific battle. Logos is the armory, but we look for a specific rhema word or weapon for a specific battle. The whole logos is good, but we have to know what we need, when we need when we need it. When Jesus was being tempted in Matthew 4:1-11, he went to book of Deuteronomy to grab a rhema word. He kept saying, “It is written ““…” Jesus knew specifically what he needed. The truth is we really don’t come to church to get a word, because we are supposed to get a word at home. We come to church to get a rhema word. We need a specific word for what we are going through. Ex- If you lost your house, the scripture that says “…how beautiful and pleasant it is for us to join together in unity… “won’t be the word for you at that time. When the devil comes and tries to mess up your mind, you need to go into that armory (logos) and get you a rhema word so you can say, “Devil, I got a rhema now! “ We might need to grab the situation that says “He’ll keep me in perfect peace if I keep my mind stayed on him”. When the Devil messes with your money, you might need to grab a rhema word that says, “My God shall supply all of my needs…” When he messes with your health, you might need to grab a rhema word that says, “He was wounded for my transgressions and bruised for my iniquities and by his stripes, I am already healed.” Tell the Devil you know he is trying to convince you that you ain’t going to be nothing, but we got a rhema word that says we are wonderfully and fearfully made. We are the head and not the tail. We are a royal priesthood.” We have to know what to fight with. This is how you know that you are in the right church. Anyone can inspire you. Dr. Phil can inspire you, but when you come into House of God, there has to be such a connection to the anointing that every time the man or woman of God comes with the word, it should drop right into your situation. It has to be a word that makes you want to run on and see what the end is going to be. You are assured that you will get the victory, because you have a rhema word.
2. There is another term called logos-centric- It is the word that God’s word is the center of all we do. Ex- In the Mt Zion mission statement, there is s a line that says we are a word centered ministry.
II. It performs an enabling ministry
a. The word of God enables us to grow spiritually. 2 Timothy 3:15 says 15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.- We are told that the word of God makes us wise to teach us to have understanding. How many of you have done stuff in the past that you can’t believe now that you did? Growing in the word makes you make wise decisions. It has been said that reading the word of God for 30mins a day for 10yrs is equivalent to having a Doctor of Philosophy Degree. The word of God is a seed, God waters that seed, and it produces fruit and grows.
1. We are furnished in God’s word. 2 Timothy 3:17 says 17That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.-We grow to go. God builds us up to enable us to operate in our area of ministry. When our children grow up and turn 18, we want them out the house as soon as possible. The reason is, when you’re grownup, its time to do something.
2. The word gives us the tools.
1. We understand God’s works- (In other words, what is God doing around us).
2. We understand God’s will (What he wants from us).
3. We understand God’s ways (How he accomplishes his will). We don’t get upset, because God is working on his will in our lives. Sometimes we might not understand. His ways might be contrary to what we thing. Isaiah 55 reminds us that his ways are not are ways and his thoughts are not our thoughts. Sometimes God is accomplishing his will by conflicting our ways.
1. They enable us to go spiritually
III. It performs an enlightening ministry
a. We are enlightened through their coaching ministry. Everything we know about God came from the word of God, like our doctrine for example. As a result when we found our self slipping, God’s word coaches us. It makes us do stuff we don’t want to do. A great cloud of witnesses encourages us is in there to encourage us.
b. We are enlightened through their chastising ministry. There ought to be something in us that convicts us. It should literally make us say ouch. Nobody likes to be put to the test. It shows us where we should be in relation to where we are. It reminds us of how short we are from the glory of God. James 1:23-25 says 23For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.-Whoever pays attention to the word of God continues it. You have to look at the word of God like a mirror. It reflects where you should be and where you are and as a result, it convicts you. We often think the word we receive is for someone else, but it is for us. The word of God is a convicting word. The word of God reproves. It comes from the word, evidence. Hebrews 11:1 says 1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. In both cases, it is like convincing evidence or a smoking gun. God will give a scripture and it will be like a smoking gun right where we are hurting. It is like medicine. It is amazing how one pill knows I have a headache and not a foot ache. The receptors are sending signals where the pain is. This lets the medicine know where to go. That is how God’s word is. It goes where your pain is. Don’t get mad at the preacher. He is just giving you the pill. It goes where the pain or your struggle is.
c. We are enlightened through their correcting ministry. It doesn’t just tell us what’s wrong; it teaches us how to fix what is wrong. Ex- Bishop Walker trains Pastors across the country. He tells the Pastor’s that they don’t have to tell people that they are wrong. They know they are wrong. It does no good to tell them they are going to hell. They know this. Bishop tells them that they need to tell them how not to go to hell. The word of God doesn’t just beat us down. It builds us up. Jesus came to reconcile. Jesus knew where we were spiritually and he came to build us up. Ex- We know cursing is wrong. What we need to know is how not to curse. The word of God restores us.
1. The whole idea of correction in the body of Christ is hard because we have a generation of repeat offenders. You know how some people seem to join the church every Sunday? What is their issue? Why do you want to get baptized every six months? Ex-A part of the health care profession benefits from your sickness. If they made pills to heal you, they would put themselves out of business. If they cure you, they won’t eat. What they do instead is make a pill with thousands of side effects. Ex- They give you a pill to stop your coughing, but it may cause you to have a rash, or high blood pressure, or some other ailment. It is like you have to keep paying the piper.
2. In the beginning was the word (logos). Logos was with God, logos was God, and then the scripture goes on to say … and the logos became flesh and dwelt among us. When the logos became flesh and it became rhema. Jesus was our rhema word. He was the word for every specific situation. That’s why everyone that came to Jesus looking of a healing got it. Nowhere in the bible do you see them coming back to be healed again. When they got healed, they were whole. You don’t see blind the man coming back because one of his eyes was getting faulty again. You don’t see the people with leprosy coming back saying they were itching again. When Jesus healed them the first time, it was done. In like manner, we get a word delivered by our Pastor, we get convicted, we get principle, we come out of church saying we going to be better, and 2 mins later we right back in the same mess. We have to understand the exchange of rhema. Jesus was the word made flesh, so that we could become flesh made the word. Everywhere we go, we are the word. We should be seeping the word. We should have so much word in us, it leaks out. It ought to be hard to backslide, because we are so full of the word. When you open up your mind and spirit to receive the word, you are good. Ex- This is what messes us up. When we grew up in some churches, we saw people in church for 20yrs and they were doing some crazy stuff. They would be outside smoking, cursing in church meetings, and raising their hands in worship in church, refusing to speak outside. Just because you are in church, it doesn’t mean you are in the word. The Devil goes to church too. You got to get in his God’s word.
d. We are enlightened through their commanding ministry. The more we read it, the more we believe it, and then we become more like him. We are not here to impress or be emotional. We are trying to get a rhema word. We want a word that teaches us not only to be good, but how to be good a husband or a good wife. At the end of the day, we want to leave church saying we have a command from God
e. We are enlightened by the conquering ministry-You can’t walk around with all this word with your lip stuck out and looking like that. Because of who we are and who we know, we are conquerors in everything we are.
f. Romans 8:35-36 says 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.-All of these things mentioned in verse 35 are inevitable. They will come. Their objective is to separate us from Christ. Why is that important? It is because the only way to separate you from Christ is to separate you from his word. The word and the son are the same. Verse 36 says for Christ’ sake, we are killed all day long, because we are Christians. Know that as Christians, we are targets. People are not going to like us. We should expect people to be intimidated by us, because of whom we are and who we represent. All that going on in your life should be confirmation alone that God has his hand on you. Somebody is always going to be after us.
g. We are over comers. Romans 8:37-38: 37Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.38For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,-It doesn’t matter what happens in our life . Though there is demonic activity and negative stuff that comes your way, know there is still more is on the way, but we are sending a message to our future. Bring it on!
h. No matter how high God takes us, we are still going to be faithful. Romans 8:39: 39Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.- We are going to be faithful no matter what. Whether we lose our house or our job, we are still going to be here giving God the glory. If anyone comes into our life, we are not going to let them separate us from a Christ. We need God’s word too much! We are not going to let anyone separate us from the love of God. The devil is trying to make us separate ourselves from the word. Ex- How many times have you heard this question? “Where you been? I’ve just been going through.” This sounds like a person in need of a rhema word. God’s word comes to equip us. We thank God that no matter what comes in our life. Never let go of God’s word. Ex- Bishop Explains in 2005 he remembers standing in Baptist Hospital, contemplating on leaving God’s word. He remembers God’s word coming back to him such a powerful way. God said to him, “This word is the only thing that can keep you alive. It has sustained you in good days and it will sustain you in bad days!” The enemy was trying to separate him from the word of God. You got to believe God’s word. We will let nothing separate us from his word. Every time we go to that armory and find ourselves in battle, God always gives us a rhema word and we will come out better than when we went in!

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He was there, Sermon 03/14/10

Posted on March 16, 2010 by growintheword

He was there
Synopsis of sermon 3/14/10
Delivered by Bishop Walker III
Text: Psalm 31:9: 9Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.; Psalm 31:19-24: 19Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!20Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. 21Blessed be the LORD: for he hath shewed me his marvellous kindness in a strong city.22For I said in my haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications when I cried unto thee. 23O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer.24Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD.
This is a prayer of David. The entirety of Psalms 31 is a prayer of David and it helps us understand the importance of being in place (or position). All of us understand this, because being in place is synonymous of being in purpose. Knowing this, Romans 8:28 makes a lot of sense, because it says 28And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. – In other words Romans 8:28 is referring to those who are in place.
No matter how much you know God’s word, there are times when we find ourselves spiritually and emotionally off center. Life and its circumstances can push us close to the edge and cause us to begin to wonder about the places we find ourselves. These places are not physical, they are emotionally and spiritually. We are talking about tension that can exist in our human relationships as well as our spiritual relationships. This is the kind of place where David is. It is the place where you keep declaring to God, if we come out of this, only he can bring us out. We don’t need this to happen up the road, we need this to happen right now!
David is transparent in this prayer and it really gives us some great lessons.
It is broken down in 3 parts.
a. Foes-From verse 1-8, David is talking about his foes or his enemies. He is talking about how his foes having done him wrong. They have taunted him, attacked him, and made a mockery of him.
b. Feeling. From verses 9-13, David is expressing his feelings. David wants the Lord to know what this is doing to him. He is heartbroken over this.
c. Faith-From verses 14-24, David talks about this faith. He is talking about his faith response in life through all the attacks and assaults that have been launched into his life. It is important to have a candid pray life with God. We should be real with God and be able to talk to him about what we are going through. What we will discover is what David discovered, that there is no place you can go where the grace of God can’t reach you. We can get through whatever we are going through simply because we know God is there. Some of you may not be spiritually and emotionally where you want to be. You are praying that you need some things to kind of line up now .Sometimes it takes a little while for those things to get properly aligned. The reality is you look over your life and you know based on what you experienced in God, that he is always moving. God is there. Somebody right now doubts this, because the enemy wants you to think that God has you in a place of isolation and you have become frustrated, but know that God is there. Ask some people around you and they will tell you God is there. Remember that the time the bottom fell out and you asked God what was going on and he spoke to you in the still small voice and reminded you that he was still there? Remember pulling the sheet over your head saying you can’t take this, and God reaffirmed that he was there? Remember that day that ever thing was going wrong and God reminded you that he was there?
No matter what you are going through, you move to a place in your prayer life where God reveals himself to you. The more transparent you become with God, the more God reveals himself to you that he is right there. This entire Psalms again is nothing but a prayer and David prays to God and asks him to move him from his crisis. We don’t know what is specifically happening to David in the text, but we do know his is being assaulted by the adversary. Remember the adversary will not always be a person. Anything that tries to prevent you from getting to the next dimension of your life is an adversary. It is an enemy to you. Triflingness is an enemy to us. Slothfulness can be an enemy to us. We have some enemies.
David is being honest and he talks about being damaged by his experience.
I. Damaged by your experiences
1. All of us have gone through some things in life that have left scars. David opens in verse 9 saying that he is in trouble. Yes David is anointed and has position, but he is not fronting. He is real about what he is going through. If you don’t move past your dilemma you will be paralyzed by it.
2. You know that there are things that you are dealing with such as private pain, layoffs, financial situations, and etc… Know that it doesn’t matter how many scriptures you may know, all of us have some troubles.
a. Trouble- In verse 9, David says he has trouble. Psalm 31:9: 9Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.
b. Tears. In verse 10, David admits that he has tears. Psalm 31:10: 10For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed. – Some folk know how to fake like they haven’t cried, but God specializes in tear and grief management. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.
c. Tired- The b portion of verse10, David says to the Lord, he is tired and worn down. Psalm 31:10c: … with sighing: my strength faileth… Just like David, we are trying to push on, but we are tired.
d. Treachery – In verse 11, David speaks of treachery. Psalm 31:11: 11I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine acquaintance: they that did see me without fled from me. – How do you deal with it, when the people that you thought were going to embrace you and be happy for you, turn their back on you? We can handle the people that are our known haters on our street doing us wrong, but it hard to handle the folk in church doing us this way.
e. Terminal – Psalm 31:12-13: 12I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind: I am like a broken vessel. 13For I have heard the slander of many: fear was on every side: while they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life. – No matter how personal your pain is, don’t let yourself get paralyzed by it. Don’t let yourself get to a point of stagnation and make yourself a victim for the rest of your life. God is there moving providently behind the scenes and he has his hands on your destiny. There is no depth you can go to where the grace of God can’t find you. The effectiveness of your witness is found within your ability to go on and keep pursuing your goals regardless of your adversaries.
II. Deals with my enemies
1. Some of you found your prayer life expand the more you went through things in your life. Sometimes you have to throw the cute prayers to the side and wail before God. Psalm 31:14-15 says 14But I trusted in thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God. 15My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. – David says the enemy is trying to make him think they control his destiny, but he asks the Lord to remind his enemies that he is in the Lord’s hands. If we get laid off or anything happens to us, we have to know that God has our back.
2. David discovers that no matter what the enemy does, God has the power. Psalm 31:19-21 says 19Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men! 20Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. 21Blessed be the LORD: for he hath shewed me his marvellous kindness in a strong city. – Strong city means empire. It is a place where people will not change, yet in the scripture David God has done something miraculous. He has done something on the job that they thought couldn’t happen. Something they have never seen before.
a. Credit – David is saying God wants us to recognize the power of God’s credit. Why do we get upset? Look at God’s credit and what he has done for us in the past. He has been so faithful to us; his credit is good to us.
b. Cover – David says he needs God to cover him. Our adversaries are coming and God covers us in a pavilion. Sometimes when he covers us, he makes us a secret. Some of us don’t like this. We like to think every season is our season to be out front, but we need to appreciate when God covers us and make us a secret. After he has made us secret, he will elevate us when we come out. When he elevates us, he has moved stuff out of the way while we were in secret. People will think you popped up out of nowhere, but know that you were in secret.
c. Cares-God will provide for us in a strong city, because he cares. Even while God has us in secret, he is still putting food on the table and providing for us. Because of God, we are still paying bills and doing what people say can’t be done. Stop wasting energy on what they are doing to you, and give God the glory for what he is doing for you.
3. In every experience, the litmus test of maturity is your ability to make a shift from it just being about you, to taking your experience to encourage someone else. If when you get what you need stops you right there, then you have missed the whole process of why God wanted you to go through this process.
4. David makes this clear. He is determined to endure.

III. Determined to endure
1. When David shares in he has been broken, in verse 22, he admits he spoke too soon. Psalm 31:22 says 22For I said in my haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications when I cried unto thee. – He thought God forgot about him, but God still heard his voice. David had made some assumptions about what God was going to do, but God reminded him that he was there. He was about to give up (for us this would be that we were about to get out of the choir or quit coming to church and etc…). God reminded him that he cared too much about him to leave him there.
2. God will reward the proud the doer. Psalm 31:23: 23O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. – If you love the Lord like you say you do, know that the Lord will preserve the faithful and he will plentifully reward the faithful doer. The proud doer is the one who has pride or that is stuck up. It is the one that has turned against you. God will always preserve the faithful. Remember that it was the same David that wrote “Fret not thyself of evil doers, neither be thy envious of the workers of iniquity for they will soon be cut down by grass and wither as the green earth …” This is the reward of the wicked. What we must do is trust in God, watch how God blesses us, and takes care of us.
3. Let’s look at Psalm 73:17 which says 17Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end. – This means that God will always keep the faithful. We didn’t always do what we were supposed to do, but we kept showing up and paying our tithe and as a result, he preserved our life. God keeping us means if we got up and told our testimony, we don’t even look like what we have been through. We are well kept.
4. It is about what’s next. Psalm 31:24: 24Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD. – This is an amazing scripture. David says he wants to pass the wisdom on. Be of good courage and as a result the Lord will strengthen your heart. The heart is the essence of who you are. Hope pushes us to possibility. Hope is about what’s next.
a. Be of good courage. People go to basic training and they obtain knowledge and consequently they go to the front line and are not scared, because of what they know. People are courageous based on what they know. Courage can be a result of knowledge. Ex- A movie is scary, but when you see it again, you are not scared because of what you know. Your courage is based on what you know. The devil has taken you through all this and why are you still scared? You have been though his before. Courage is based on what you know, which comes from the word, which produces faith. If we are of good courage, based on what we know, the man of God keeps putting us in the know with the word, and we become courageous because of faith. This word strengthens us, because we were tired of running and now that we have this word, our courage makes us fight right. Now we are believing God for things we never have before.
b. If you exercise your faith, God will eliminate your fatigue, so you can have expectancy regarding your future. Your faith eliminates your fatigue and your faith positions you for what you should expect in your future.
This whole message is about what you know. David is praying to God, because of what he knows through his relationship with God. He is trying to get out of a situation because he tired, but realizes God is there. As a result, God says he has him and will not leave him in that situation. Some of you, know God and came today (or reading this), because you know God. You need God, because you know you are in trouble. You want to know what God is going to do about your situation Ex-Pastor Freddie Haynes tells about his daughter who is in her terrible 2s. He says he was in his office and his wife was there with their child who was acting really badly. Mom put the child in the crib as a result of the child being bad. The child hated the crib, and she screamed at the top of her lungs. She screamed to the point that Freddie had to come into the room where she was to see what was going on. Fred hated to see his girl crying out like that, but he saw his wife looking at him with her eyebrow up. Freddie is in a situation or conflict. On one hand his wife has rendered justice on the daughter. The child is in the crib for a reason. When Freddie walked in the room, the child moved from crying out to crying to. When she saw her daddy, she directed her scream to her daddy. The child knew when Daddy shows up, he makes it alright. Now the baby was raising her arms up to daddy. Freddie wants to know what to do. How can he deal with his daughter, without disrespecting the justice of his wife? He is struggling. His daughter is trying to get out of a situation she don’t want to be in, but the wife is looking at him like “You better not take her out”, so what should he do? Freddie decided to get into the crib with the baby. God will do this for us too. He might not get us out of our situation, but he will get in the situation with us and hold us in his arms.

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