Fullness of the Holy Spirit III, “How do we respond to the Holy Spirit” Bible Study 06/30/10

Posted on July 2, 2010 by growintheword

Fullness of the Holy Spirit III

How do we respond to the Holy Spirit?

Synopsis of Bible Study 6/30/10

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

There is a process that they teach in seminary called systematic theology. Using this process, you study the word systematically in order to get a better understanding of it. This is the approach we will use today.

4 things about the Spirit of God

  1. He can be obeyed. Acts 16:6-7 says 6Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia, 7After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not. – Timothy, Paul, and Silas are moving in their assignment. They moved through the region of Phrygia and Galatia and were prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the message in the Province of Asia. Notice the Holy Spirit is preventing them from speaking in a certain place. What we see here is even though there may be an assignment on your life, one of the things that the Spirit of God does is give you a specific time to move in that assignment. Many of us have a zeal for our assignment, but how many people will admit that they have gotten ahead of God on their assignment? There has to be sensitivity to when the Spirit of God leads us. Sometimes he will say not now. In some places, the spirit will tell you to keep your mouth closed.
  2. Spirit of God can be lied to. We think we are supposed to do something and we claim we did it under the anointing, but we lied. Ex– You actually see people doing this in church. They act like they are writing something on the envelope and they act like they are putting something in the envelope, but actually there is nothing inside. Acts 5:1-5 says 1But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, 2And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? 4Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. 5And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. – They had come up with a system of pooling things together so that everyone’s needs would be met. The goal was to bring their stuff to apostle’s feet and allow them to distribute it to the members. Verse 2 says that Ananias kept some of their possessions back, and his wife Sapphira was aware of it. They bought a certain part of their earnings in to lie at the Apostle’s feet, but lied by saying it was all that they had. In verse 3, we see that Peter knew that they were lying, because he was anointed. He wanted to know why they would allow themselves to be used by the enemy. In verse 4, Peter reminded them that it was in Ananias & Sapphira’s will to do right, but they didn’t. Peter reminded them that they did not lie to Peter; instead they had lied to God. In verse 5, Ananias died after hearing the words that Peter said. Everyone had great fear as if to say, “Here is my offering.”Now are we saying you going to die if you lie to the Holy Ghost? No, but we are saying Ananias did and because he did, the risk is too great for us to lie to him.
  3. He can be resisted – Acts 7:51 says 51Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. – Basically this scripture is saying that the people resisted, because their fathers did. We have the power to obey, but we willfully disobey. Ex-Royce (the church Organist) travels with Bishop when he preaches across the country. Royce decided he wanted to stay and shape and he asked Bishop about his diet. Bishop gave him his diet and its perimeters. On one of the trips they bought out the food and Royce had a choice between the baked chicken and the fried chicken. Royce willfully resisted the Holy Ghost by choosing the fried chicken over the baked chicken. When you get to point where you have to do what you have to do, you have willfully resisted the Holy Spirit. It might not be chicken for you, but you have something that you have chosen to do while willfully resisting the Holy Spirit.
  4. He can be blasphemed. Blasphemy is the only unpardonable sin. Matthew 12:31 says 31Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. – God says he will forgive all sins but blasphemy of the Holy Ghost. When you curse the Power of God in your life, it is unpardonable.

The Greek word for spirit is 4151. Pneuma pnyoo’-mah from 4154; this is where we get the word pneumonia. It means wind or breath.

Historical framework of the Holy Spirit

The advent and age of the spirit

  1. The Holy Spirit abided with us in the Old Testament. Ruach or 7307 ruwach roo’-akh from 7306; is the Hebrew version of this word pneuma. When Ezekiel called the four winds of God to come together when he was in the valley with the dry bones; this was the pneuma/ruach, the breath or wind of God. In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit was beside us. In New Testament, he abided in us.
  2. God spoke to prophets preparing for this arrival of the Holy Ghost.
  1.  
    1. God told the prophets that the only way to live this word out is in the Spirit of God. Ezekiel 36:24-27 says 24For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  26A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. – Even way back then, the Prophet Ezekiel is saying the only way you can live this word out is by the Spirit of God. There is no way you can live God’s word out in the flesh.
    2. God says he spoke it and he will act. Ezekiel 37:14 says 14And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.
    3. God said he will pour his blessing on their off spring and children. Isaiah 44:3 says 3For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.

The Holy Spirit generationally

  1. The prophecy of the Holy Spirit is found in the book of Joel. Joel 2:28-29 says 28And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. – The references of the Spirit of God coming happened through Ezekiel, but manifest himself in Joel.
  2. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit is going to stay with us forever.  John 14:16 says 16And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
  3. When we receive the Holy Ghost, we will receive power. Acts 1:8 says 8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. – What will we receive? It will be power. Who will it come from? It will come from the Holy Ghost. What will the Holy Ghost make us? He will make us witnesses. Where? In Jerusalem or in other words everywhere.
  4. Jesus tells them to wait. Acts 2:1 says 1And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. – In Acts 1:8 Jesus told them to go to upper room and wait for the power to come. They were all there on one accord in the same place in obedience.
  5. The Holy Ghost comes. Acts 2:2 says 2And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. – Pentecost means 50. 50 days after Jesus ascended back into heaven; there came a sound like a mighty rushing wind. The wind was the pneuma as we discussed earlier. The pneuma filled the entire house where they were waiting which meant if you were in that place, you were going to be filled. They were in the house on one accord and everyone got filled.
  6. Tongues appeared like fire. Acts 2:3 says 3And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. – There was tongues sitting on top of them on their heads and they looked like fire.
  7. They were filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts 2:4 says 4And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. – This verse has been confused by so many people and given so much credence to false theology, it is important for us to discuss this. What we have been hearing all our life is people will know when you have received the Holy Ghost, because you will speak in tongues. This is not the only sign that you have received the Holy Ghost. Tongue comes from the Greek word glossolalia. It comes from the English word dialect. It was like this tongue referred to a language. What they were speaking was not the series of mixed syllables (tela-um-ba). we here They were speaking another language.
  8. The Jews that were responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion were gathered and heard the manifestation. Acts 2:5 says 5And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. – This was only 50 days after Jesus had ascended. This means Jesus had just been crucified just a little over month ago. These same Jews that was at this place were the same that were responsible for Jesus being crucified. The Jews gathered here was part of the religious establishments.
  9. Everyone heard each person witness in their own language. Acts 2:6 says 6Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. – Every man heard them speak in his own dialect or language. It would equivalent to a group of German students and a group of Russian students coming and sitting down and we all turn around speaking German and Russian to them, though we were never taught to speak their language.
  10. There were witnesses. Acts 2:7-11 says 7And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? 8And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? 9Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, 10Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, 11Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. – They heard them speak in their own tongue, the wonderful works of God. Remember in Acts 1:8 it says 8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. What is a witness? It is someone who testifies of what they have seen and heard. What had the disciples seen and heard? They had seen the wonders of Jesus, so when they spoke the tongues, it was of the wonder works of God. There were witnesses everywhere. Everyone heard them speaking in tongue. Nobody wants to deal with this part of the issue. Everyone wants to just deal with the mixed syllables (tela-um-ba) that you hear people do and they just want to fall out.
  11. There was doubt at first. Acts 2:12-14 says 12And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? 13Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. 14But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: – Jesus on one occasion asked the disciples who did the Jews think he was? The Jews could only relate to the Spirit of God they saw working through the prophets. It was Peter that said that Jesus was the Son of the Living God. Jesus said that flesh and blood could not reveal this to him. He said this could only be revealed by his Father in heaven. As a result Jesus told Peter he would give him the keys to heaven. This same Peter was the one who denied Jesus. Peter who had messed up was the same Peter that stood up and addressed what had taken place.
  12. Peter assures them that these people were not drunk. Acts 2:15-17 says 15For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.16But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; 17And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: -. Peter reminded them that this was a manifestation of what was prophesied by Joel (found in Joel 2:28-29). The Holy Ghost will bring it back to remembrance for you.
  13. Peter reminds the Jews of the prophecy. Acts 2:18-19 says 18And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: 19And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: – God prophesied that wonders will happen above and below us.
  14. Peter reminds them of who he was. Acts 2:20-21 says 20The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come: 21And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. – Peter says this and reminds us that this is coming from someone that messed up before (denying Christ). In other words, now because of the Holy Ghost, if we call on him, we shall be saved. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done.
  15. Peter reminds what was prophesied. Acts 2:22-23 says 22Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: 23Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: – Peter said there was no fair trial. They knew from the beginning that they wanted to kill Jesus. He told them that Jesus knew this, but had a bigger plan to execute.
  16. When we were taught the 12 tribes of Israel, it was for a reason. Remember that the Jewish people identified with David the greatest king of Israel. Jacob and Leah had a son named Judah (meaning praise). When she had that son, it was from the tribe of Judah that David is born. David comes from the lineage of Leah. From the tribe of Judah also comes Jesus. When Peter makes a reference to David, he really is associating them with what they are familiar with. Peter starts to quote David in Acts 2:24-28 says 24Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. 25For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: 26Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: 27Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. 28Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.
    1. Peter says let me speak more freely: In Acts 2:29 – 33 he says 29Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.30Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; 31He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.32This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.33Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
    2. Peter begins to quote Psalms 22: Acts 2: 34- 36 says 34For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, 35Until I make thy foes thy footstool. 36Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
    3. Now the Jewish people wanted to know what they should do. Peter says in Acts 2: 34- 41 37Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? 38Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. – The Holy Ghost had already come. From that point on anyone who repented and accepted Christ received at that moment the Holy Ghost. You don’t have to wait on him anymore; because at that moment once you received him he came you’re your life. You have the Holy Ghost. He lives within you.
    4. Peter says save ourselves from this wicked generation. 39For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call. 40And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. 41Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.- The reason why some people have  problem with a big church is because they want it to be about them. They want people to recognize them and their family. They want people to know that they are here, but when you get filled with the Holy Ghost, you empty yourself. I ain’t about you or your name; it is about God’s name. It’s about him being exalted. You decrease so he can increase. The same Holy Ghost and the same Holy Spirit that manifested himself then dwells in us. He gives us power to do more than go through the forms of Religion. We are tired of people who dance, run, and shout, yet have no power. He gives us the power to walk right, talk right, and live right. We ought to be after his anointing and his power to fill us up. We ought to want to be his witness, because when we were in the world, we had all the power to witness to the world. We had no problem telling the people what we wanted from them. We had no problem inviting people to the club. We had no problem walking up to strangers asking what’s up. Now that we are saved, we try to be shy when it comes to talking about the goodness of God. We don’t even want to invite people to walk down the isle to experience God. When you got power though, you have the same boldness that you had in the world. You don’t mind letting somebody know about God, because you have the power to be his witness everywhere. Not just in church, but on your job, on your campus and in your house. You don’t just have power in your church. Your power is portable! He gives us this power and this fullness. It is available and it is inside of you.
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Blessing at my breaking point, Sermon 06/27/10

Posted on June 30, 2010 by growintheword

Blessing at my breaking point

Synopsis of Sermon 6/27/10

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Text: Psalm 27:7-14: 7Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. 8When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.9Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. 10When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up. 11Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies. 12Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty. 13I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. 14Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

Each of us has had moments where we were tested beyond our comfort zone. This is not an easy place to be. Know however that there is a blessing tucked away in the encounter. When working out, there is always that place we call our threshold. At this point we can either press forward past the pain or turn back to our comfort zone. Ex- Bishop explains that he was lifting weights with a former NFL player. Just when he thought he couldn’t do anymore, they wanted him to continue. They were trying to push him past his threshold of pain. Bishop knew he couldn’t lift anymore, but they decided to show him a picture of a man with this chiseled body. It was a picture of someone that had attained the results that Bishop desired. This motivated him to go a little further past that threshold of pain towards accomplishing what he wanted to accomplish. This is how God does for us. When we think we have reached our threshold of pain and we want to return to our comfort zone, God will send us a word that shows us a picture of what we are out to look like and it gives us what we need to push past our place of pain. This is a place of intensity and enormous pain.

David discovered there is a blessing at our breaking point. God will come in a give you a revelation so you will know even if it hurts, there is a blessing at the point of pain. You can’t give up now! The blessing is at this point of pain. God blesses us at our breaking point.

What is most impressive in this Psalms is no matter what, David continues to talk to God. David tries to get us to see that it is alright to desire that your prayers be answered.

I.            Desire that my prayers is answered

  1. Many of us have been at that place where we need God to work it out for us right now. We know God moves in his own time, but we need a breakthrough right now!
  2. It is always ok to be honest with God. Psalm 27:7 says 7Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. – Like David, it is alright to say this thing is hurting you. It is not that we doubt him, but we believe this thing is more than we can bear. Jonah was in the belly of whale and it was at his breaking point that God stepped in. Hannah was at her breaking point when she began to pray. They thought she was drunk, but it was at this moment that God stepped in on her behalf. You will find out that some of your most powerful prayers will come at your breaking point. It is at the breaking point that your prayers are most sincere. Even Jesus in the garden at his breaking point, desired that his bitter cup be removed. Many of you have been there, you didn’t know how it was going to work out, but you realized that in these moments your prayers were more powerful.
  3. At this point you have to:
    1. Realize the power of being persistent. – Psalms 27: 8 says 8When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. – We have to be consistent when seeking God.
    2. Know that God is Immutability– Psalm 27:9-10 says 9Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. 10When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up. – Immutability deals with the unchanging God. Even though things around us are changing, we know God is the one constant that we have in our life. God is the same day after day. He is not a man that he should lie. If he said it 5yrs ago, he means it today. God is immutable and always there.
    3. We need instruction – David needed instruction. Psalm 27:11 says 11Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies. – David had a lot of enemies around him and he realized that he needed a word from the Lord. He needs to know what God’s instruction isfor his life.

                                                              i.      We need a relevant word– We need a word that can make since of what is happening in our life. What we are going through, we don’t need a cliché for. We need a real word that can meet us right where we are.

                                                            ii.      We need a Revelation of his will-What is it that God needs us to do right now? We don’t want to miss what God has for our life. We don’t want to miss what he wants us to do.

                                                          iii.      We want to react in wisdom– We want to move. We want to make sure we are doing what God told us to do. We don’t act a fool just because we have enemies. We can’t come down on their level. If we act like we want to act, we would end up in jail. So we want God to give us what we need so we can react in wisdom.

                                                          iv.      We need divine intervention– Psalm 27.12 says 12Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty. – It has gotten so rough; we need God to step in right now! Your money and your degree can’t get you out of this. It is just like a miracle. Divine intervention is God’s involvement in human affairs. David is saying circumstances are all around him, but he knows God can divinely intervene.

  1. God can work through curcumstances.
    1. God will work in it-He can work in the thing. He will use the thing to bless you. Ex- Somebody has a sickness and you are asking God to intervene. God might give the doctor the wisdom to prescribe the medication to heal you or work the procedure. Don’t curse the doctor or get mad at the person. God can use them to bring your miracle. He will use your doctor, your lawyer, or your teacher. God can use the circumstance to bless you.
    2. God will go over it (the circumstance). – Over transcends the facts. God will rise above it and blow people’s minds. People will ask how it happened and all you will be able to do is say it is a miracle.
    3. He will work without it. – God will just move it all together. He will move it out the way. We don’t care how he God blesses us as long as he does.

II.            Determined to persevere in what God allows

Psalm 27:13 says 13I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

  1. Be willing to stay in there no matter what God allows to come. Now if God allowed it, then it must there to bless you. One of the most powerful things about coming to your breaking point is that you will discover what David discovered. David says he was about to faint or give up. He was about to fold or resign, but he saw something. David saw the goodness of God moving in the land of the living. This is the providence of God. God is actively involved in the lives of his people. He is not just standing by saying he will just let things happen. No matter how difficult the pain, God is moving in it. No matter how tragic your situation, God is moving in it.
  2. You have to have the right perspective. It is about how you look at a thing. If you look at your problem crazy and it will look at you crazy. David says he believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
  3. David says it is really about :
    1. Our Faith – In verse 13, David says though he had circumstance, he yet believed. Though he has drama in verse 12, he still believes. Anyone can have faith while all is well, but what will you do when the bottom falls out? When the bottom falls out, this is when you say, “Yet I believe.” If they lay us off, we will still believe! If things don’t work out the way I want them to, I will yet believe.
    2. Our Focus – You can see what’s wrong or see God moving in your situation. They’re stuff you see now, you could see 5yrs ago, because you were not mature enough to see it then. All you could see is what they were doing to you. Now you can see God in it. You can tell now that all things work together for the good of them that love the Lord and who are called according to his purpose.
    3. Our Future -When our faith is right, my focus is right. Where did David see it? In the land of the living. Because you intelligent, all you got to do is use deductive reasoning. David says he had drama around him, he yet believed, and then he saw God move in the land of the living. This means the drama in verse 12 was designed to destroy him, but he could see now because he was there. We are in the land of the living. Some people can’t see it, because they haven’t been through enough stuff yet. When you have been through stuff that could have killed you, you give God the glory, just because you still here! We are alive to testify about it. What was designed to destroy us was also designed to develop us. This why you got to hang in there and endure hardness like a good soldier! Count it all joy! Be not weary in well doing. In due season you will reap, if you faint not!  
  4. There is no need to be alive and acting like we are dead. Live folk make noise! Some people come here DOA, but there are some that thank God that he woke them up this morning and started them on their way.

III.            Develop a posture of anticipation

Psalm 27:14 says 14Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

  1. David says, I told you to wait. David says while you wait, God will strengthen our heart. There is a sense that the heart is the essence of a person. When we say we love you with all of our heart, it doesn’t mean our physical heart. It means we love you with the essence of who we are. The heart, the soul is who we are.
  2. The essence of who we are has been threatened by our experience. Even though externally we look like we have it all together, internally the essence of who we are is under attack. Though we come in looking well put together, we are about to break apart inside. David says because of this, he needs God to strengthen his heart. He needs to be restored. He needs God to do what no one else can do. Like David, we are about to break down. Has thou not heard or known that the everlasting God faints not. He gives power to them that doesn’t have might…Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.
  3. David says wait on the Lord. Wait has a lot of meanings.
    1. Deals with being productive– It is the productive sense, it means to serve. When you wait, you keep doing you. Produce without excuse. Keep singing, keep serving, keep showing up for work etc… Don’t let it break you down. Keep producing.
    2. Deals with being Prudent-Deals with wisdom. God allows us to make wise decisions. When my things don’t make sense, let me make sense. We still believe he is more than the whole world against us.
    3. Deals with Pursuance– This means to pursue him. It deals with being reliable. We go through reaching for people that can’t help us. David says though enemies are around him, he still wants to reach for God’s glory. That maybe was what the woman with the issue of blood was doing. She had reached for doctors that could not help her, but she realized that Jesus was coming by, so she reached for him. Maybe the blind man on the side of the road was feeling this way too. They told him be quiet, but he got a breakthrough, because he pursued God. What about the man whose friends tore the roof off the building to get him at Jesus’ feet.
    4. Deals with Anticipation. When you are waiting with anticipation, you wait on a revelation. Don’t wait ignorantly. Your posture is grounded on a revelation. Ex- A person at a bus stop is waiting, because they have a schedule that says their bus picks up from there around that time. They are waiting looking for the bus. If they hadn’t had a schedule they would not have come to this spot. They wouldn’t have come around there, if they didn’t think what they were looking for was coming around this way. Stand in your spot. If he promised you it is coming. It is coming. Every day, we must wake up looking. Don’t wait with your lip stuck out. Wait giving God the praise.
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Fullness of the Holy Spirit II, Bible Study 06/23/10

Posted on June 25, 2010 by growintheword

Fullness of the Holy Spirit II

Bible Study 06/23/10

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

1 Corinthians 4:20 says  20For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power – To understand fully this you have to tear this scripture apart. The kingdom means God’s way of doing things. God’s way of doing things is not in word only. It is in power too. This sounds like a contradiction, because when God created the world, he spoke it and it was done. He set things in motion by the word. Remember in the beginning the Spirit of the Lord moved upon the face of the water. John the Baptist was sent to announce the coming of Jesus Christ. In the wilderness he cried out, “Repent because the Kingdom of God is at hand.” When Jesus comes, he makes a declaration about his purpose. When he talks about what he is going to do in  Luke 4:18, he says 18The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, – In other words Jesus explains that the Spirit of the Lord was upon him and had anointed him to do what he was about to do. On another occasion, Jesus says, “When you pray, pray our Father who art in heaven… let your will be done as it is in heaven … let your kingdom come, thou will be done in earth as it is in heaven. “ It is all about the kingdom. The kingdom of God suffers violence, but the violent taketh by force.

Now just to clarify things, the concept of the Kingdom of God is not found in the word. It is found in power. This says to us, the Kingdom of God (God’s way of doing things) is not just in word. You come to church and operate in a relationship with Jesus Christ. The fact that there are two kingdoms is indicated in the life of Jesus Christ. Jesus says his kingdom is not of this world. So when we enter a relationship with Jesus Christ, we change citizenship. We live under Kingdom principles. The Kingdom of God contradicts the Kingdom of Darkness. The kingdom we are in is not in word only, it is in power. Many come in and get a word, and they gain faith, because conceptually they understand the word. We believe that what we heard is possible. Now we have the word, we have the key chains with spiritual slogans; we have the license plates, mugs, and etc… So as you can see, having the word is not our problem. The problem is after all that word; we keep making the same bone headed mistakes. You can come to church all day long and believe what you heard, but you don’t have victory over the shortcomings, because you don’t have power. The kingdom doesn’t operate on the word. It takes power to get to the Kingdom. Remember even the kingdom of darkness has the word. The devil will quote the word right back at you. This is why Jesus refuted the devil with word in the garden. It is clear, since Satan kept using the word to tempt Jesus; the kingdom of darkness has the word too. The missing element is they don’t have power.

I.                  How do we move from this to actually attaining the victory?

  1. We have to decrease so he can increase so that we might have the power to overcome what is trying to trip us up. How many of you believe that God wants our best? Lots of times we rationalize things by saying none of us are perfect which is true, but God desires us to live an abundant life. John 10:10 says 10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.- The thief is going to come, but Jesus came that we might have life more abundantly (the God kind of life). Jesus came that we might have victory over what the enemy is trying to do. Jesus came that we might not become permanent victims. Jesus came that we might be able to fulfill the promises in his word.
  2. The truth is God doesn’t want our best. This might be a shocker to most of you. Let’s think about it on another dimension. Maybe God wants you to have faith in his best. Your best is limited at best. You don’t know the potential you have inside of you so when you. This is evident, because when you reach your threshold, you say you are at your best, but God pushes you to give more, because he knows your real best. You didn’t even realize that you had this inside you until God pushed you. The truth is God wants you to have faith at his best (his standard), because your best is subjective. Ex-As a parent you go to child’s room after you told them to clean it and you see that stuff is not right. He/she says they did their best, but you make them do it over again. The reason for this is their best is not defined by the child, it is defined by the parent. Go to your school professor and turn in your paper while saying you did your best and your professor may say it doesn’t reach their expectation for you. As a result, you do better the next time, because you got a B on what you thought was your best. You do better. Until you can believe that you can conquer a thing or until you have faith to believe it possible or until you are challenged, you will not give your best. If you don’t have faith to do better, you will simply say it is your best. It is this easy to fall off your best if you don’t live in the spirit. It is easy to say that the Lord knows your heart which again is true, but this is why God left someone inside you to help you do what you can’t do.
  3. Positive side – Romans 8:4 says 4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.-The righteousness of God cannot be lived out in your flesh. God’s standard is not possible in our flesh. It is only possible in the spirit.
  4. Negative side – Romans 8:13 says 13For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. – The spirit will put to death the deeds of the body. The Holy Spirit will put to death the deeds, because your body will conspire and conjure up things your flesh wants to do. The Holy Spirit will say, “You ain’t going to do that!” You need someone to say that you are not going to do that and the Holy Spirit is the only one that you will listen too.

II.               The Person of the Holy Spirit (his personality)

  1. Being the least understood of the God head, a lot of people deny the very presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit occurs 89 times in the New Testament. This doesn’t even include the times when the New Testament refers to him as “Spirit”. There are others times he is referred to has the Spirit of the Lord (i.e. … the Spirit of the Lord is upon me).
  2. His Attributes:
    1. He has Intellect – He is intelligent. He has a mind. He thinks, he searches, and he teaches. 1 Corinthians 2:10-13 says 10But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.12Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. – We have to see how the Spirit of God is at work in our life. The Spirit of God searches all things. He knows the deep things of God. Even when we pray, the Holy Spirit is able to give us revelation about the deeper things of God. He knows what God is up to.
    2. He has emotions – Ephesians 4:30 says 30And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. – How do we grieve the Holy Spirit? He is inside you ready to assist you and ready to help you get the victory and you keep ignoring. You conceptually understand the word you got, you believe it is possible, and you ignore the Holy Spirit and his ability to help you do what you need to do and as a result, he is aggrieved. When you put something crazy in your body, you grieve the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit wonders why he has to coexist with your foolishness. When you curse somebody out, it grieves him, because he could have helped you with it. Can you imagine that the Holy Spirit is grieving over your ignoring him?
    3. He has a will – 1 Corinthians 12:11 says 11But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.- He distributes gifts according to his own will.

III.           8 things the Holy Spirit does

  1. He teaches– John 14:26 says 26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. – First, Comforter used in this scripture also means advocate. The Holy Spirit will teach you all things. The Holy Spirit will speak to your Pastor and take everything you are dealing with and place it on your Pastor. This will inspire him to write a sermon just for your situation. It is clear this is the work of the Holy Spirit, because your Pastor doesn’t have time to interview each and every person in the church to make this happen. The Holy Spirit deposits our issues on the Pastor so that he or she may release a word to us. Every time your Pastor gets up to preach, you shouldn’t see him. Instead you should see the Holy Spirit speaking to you. Each of you can end up hearing the same sermon a different way. Everyone is hearing it where they are. It is like medicine to your bones. Your body has receptors for pain. When you take medicicine it goes to those receptors. This is how the medicine knows it is a headache rather than a foot ache. In like manner, the word we receive goes where we are hurting. This is why you should not look at folk strange when the word hits them and not you. You don’t know where they are hurting. You might also receive a word and think it is not for you, but a year later the Holy Spirit will bring this word back to your remembrance.
  2. He testifies and bears witness of himself. John 15:26 says 26But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: – He will always confirm that this is of Jesus. All week you will be talking about and issue, you come to church on Sunday, and the same issue you have been talking about will come out in the sermon. The Holy Spirit will confirm and testify of Jesus Christ. He verifies things and will bear witness God’s word.
  3. He guides or leads- Romans 8:14 says 14For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. – All who are led by God are the sons of God. Every day when you wake up, the Holy Spirit is trying to tell you where to go. We are so stubborn; we want to go out on our own way. Every day the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us where to go. The spirit is saying just follow me. Ex- Bishop demonstrates how we react to the Holy Spirit trying to direct us. Bishop randomly asks a guy to get up and follow him. This guy is a husband, a grown man, has children, and a CEO of a company. Why is this guy following Bishop? It is because he respects Bishop’s spiritual authority and he submits. He has confidence in Bishop’s leadership. Everywhere Bishop goes, the man follows. This guy didn’t even question why Bishop wanted him to follow. He just jumped up and followed him. This makes us ask the question, why then do we question the Holy Spirit? Further in the demonstration, the guy is instructed to go his own way. Soon he goes far enough to lose sight of Bishop Walker. Just like this, people lose sight of the Holy Spirit by trying to go their own way. The Holy Spirit tries to tell us to follow and we want to go our own way. This is what your Pastor is doing every Sunday at our churches. He is trying to get us to follow the Holy Spirit. Get in line with Holy Spirit, because he is trying to guide you! Inside of you is this amazing navigational system (the Holy Spirit). Ex-It’s sort of like your GPS system. Once you put a destiny in, you can even get detracted if you want to. This system is so committed she will get on line and say rerouting if you make a wrong turn. She has factored in your foolishness. She just keeps on talking regardless to what you do. She will not turn off until you get to your destination. She will not stop talking until she is able to say that you have arrived at your destination. The next time you act a fool and hear the phrase rerouting or make a U-turn, think about that. This is the same dedication the Holy Spirit has to guiding you to your destiny.
  4.  He performs miracles– When Phillip the Evangelist meets Ethiopian Eunuch, he came to him out of the water and the Spirit of the Lord snatched him away. The eunuch did not see him anymore. Acts 8:38-39 says 38And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.39And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.- Phillip got baptized or saved and was just snatched away. It was like a miracle. Miracles are often the work of the Holy Spirit. Many of us are objective people. This simple means we believe it is this way or that way. There is no gray area. Then there are subjective people that believe things can vary. When you look at how miracles happen, the doctor says you have this illness, by faith you come to a person of faith and say pray for me. You believe Gods word so you go through the act which is exercising the word. You also know there is power inside of you. You pray and you wonder how the tumor shrinked. It is t he power inside you that miraculously did the work that amazed the physicians. The same power that can remove a tumor can heal a mind. He is a miracle worker.
  5. He convinces. John 16:7-8 says 7Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. 8And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: – Reprove means he will prove the world wrong. The world’s kingdom has its own idea about sin, judgment, and righteousness. Bishop states he is not fundamentalists which takes everything literal. He is not a liberalist either, which is someone that says anything goes. He classifies himself as being right in the middle. Sometimes it is amusing. There is a place between amusing and nausea. The world we live-in have to dilute sin. So it renames stuff to minimize it. They have to be politically correct. They dilute it so much; it doesn’t seem like sin anymore. You have to say it so it fits in a social construct so that it doesn’t offend anyone. They dilute it so much; it doesn’t seem like sin more. What the Holy Spirit does is convince the world what sin is. He will convince them of what rightness and judgment is. Only the Holy Spirit can speak to this wicked generation and convince them that they are wrong. You can go all day long arguing with someone about what is right or wrong or what the word says, but only when the Holy Spirit convinces them will they change. Some of us were stubborn, we were set in our ways and it was the Holy Spirit that convinced us to check ourself. It is hard to submit to the Spirit. You will create your own righteousness. This is what the world has done.
  6. He restrains.2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 says 6And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. – Paul says there is a hidden power at work. If you let that power run, it will run all through your life. It is called iniquity. You have an authory in you that can restrain it. Every time Jesus showed up, he didn’t have to negotiate with demons. They automatically said when he showed up, “What do we have to do with thee?” This is why you can’t be a punk Christian. Even on the job. There comes a time that you have to walk in authority and say, “This house isn’t big enough for the both of us. You will not have my children, my destiny, or anything else. “You got to walk in the room and cause devils to go running! You don’t have to peep around corners! Walk in your authority. Ex-Bishop was somewhere and his hotel was by the French Quarter. Bishop decided to take a walk and the guy at the front desk told him that he needed to be careful. He says that they have witches, warlocks, and voodoo. Bishop responded to him, “No they need to be careful” Why does God’s people have to be careful? We need to walk in our authority.
  7. He commands and directs people Acts 8:29 says 29Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. – There was a specific time that the Holy Spirit had revealed for Phillip to go over and talk to the eunuch. The Holy Spirit will release you at the right time. We are gifted and got vision, but you are too anxious. Exhibit A is this, you got the vision and you envisioned these people to help you, so you make calls. They tell you no. You automatically think since everyone said no, then you must have missed what God wanted you to do with the vision. The truth is you should have waited until the Holy Spirit released you. The Holy Spirit knows exactly when to tell you to go to somebody. You got to be released into the right season. When the Spirit of God sends someone to you, he is going to let you know that they are coming. Beware of people who come into your life telling you God told them to. Even UPS has the courtesy to tell you that you have a package on the way. The Holy Spirit will tip you off when God is sending something or someone your way. He might not tell you the whole thing, but he will tip you off.
  8. Intercedes in prayer. There are moments where we are in trauma. We are in acute pain, when life just hurts. Out of your belly there is nothing but pain and out of your mouth are fragments of disconnected emotions. There are things that just don’t make sense to anybody. In those moments of ugghhh…, because we know it doesn’t always come out as, “Father in the name of Jesus… “Romans 8:26 says 26Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. – The Spirit of God softens the blow of the pain. There is some stuff that we went through that we would have lost our mind, but he softened the blow. We don’t even know how to pray. He stands between earth and heaven and interprets for us. The Holy Spirit will take our tears, put it in a heaven beacon, and send it express to heavens laboratory. They will put it under a microscope and look at the tear and know the very cause of it. Then heaven will prescribe a word for you, package it up, and send it to your man of God (your Pastor). Out of your Pastor’s mouth will then come healing for your body. He will heal you right where you are hurting. Thank God for the Holy Ghost. 
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What trouble taught me, Sermon 06/20/10

Posted on June 23, 2010 by growintheword

What trouble taught me?

Synopsis of Sermon 06/20/10

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Some of the most amazing lessons of your life won’t be in times of ease. Instead they will be in times of stress and strain. Trouble is often didactic. There are lessons in every experience God allows us to go through. Even though we are saved, we are not exempt of trouble. Job 14:1 says 1Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble. Ralph Waldo Emerson put it this way. He says, “Difficulties arise to be surmounted”. In other words, the purpose in which trouble comes is so that it can be defeated. You and I have within us the ability to overcome whatever tries to overcome us. Despite the trouble, we learn the lessons that come along with it. Like David, when trouble has pushed us to our breaking point in our lives, we evaluate our relationship with God, and we begin to thank God for what he has allowed us to go through. You are better because of the trouble you went through! You’re stronger and you’re wiser because of it! Your praise is even where it needs to be because of it! Trouble came to make us better. Philippians 3:10 says 10That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; – Paul discovered revelation is birth out of trouble. Revelation is expensive. If you want God to take you to another spiritual dimension, you have to demonstrate your ability to deal with trouble. In every level of your life, you will deal with trouble. This season is designed to bless you. In other words, we may have trouble, but it doesn’t have us. Rather than complain and be depressed, know there is a blessing tucked away in the midst of the trouble.

David says in Psalm 27:5 says 5For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock. David discovers that God has a plan of rescue in our crisis.

I.                  Plan of rescue in a crisis

Psalm 27:5 says 5For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.

  1. God is never working it out as you go through it. He has already worked it out before you even get in it.
  2. David says this is the secret place of God. Like a parent is to their child, God is responsive to our cry. We have learned not to waste time going to people that are not equipped to help us. We have learned to go right to God, because God is our help. When you know where you help comes from, this becomes your first priority. You will go after God no matter how difficult things may be.
  3. Why would we do this?
    1. Because God is Reputable – His reputation precedes him. We can get many testimonies that will confirm how good God is. We don’t have to even go to the bible to get views on God’s reputation. You can ask your neighbor and they will testify to how good God is.
    2. He is Reliable-Every time we call on God, he shows up. Like our Grandparents used to say, he might not come when we want him, but he is always on time.
    3. He Rescues-David says that God will hide us when our trouble is most acute. In earlier biblical times, during the time of war, the safest placed to run was into the temple. Once they got into the house of God, there were soldiers that would come around and protect them and keep them secret. It was customary to hide warriors for the Lord back in biblical days. The soldiers would not let harm come to you in the temple.
    4. He Covers-God always gives us a covering. He protects us from stuff we aren’t even aware of. Grandma used to say he keeps us from dangers seen and unseen. We thank God for protecting us from the things we didn’t see coming our way.
    5. God gives me Comfort – While I am in there, God reminds me of his promise. Troubles will eclipses what God has told you. So God has to constantly keep reminding us what he told us. Like in  John 14:1 it says 1Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me., Jeremiah 29:11 says 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., Chronicles 20:15 says 15And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.- We thank God for his word
    6. His word Changes– God’s word changes my situation. David says in reflecting on his past, he was not as solid as he should have been. Like David, many of us were wishhy washy and only came to God when we wanted to. We didn’t have the stability. David says no matter what comes, based on what he’s been through, he is more stable now than ever before. Just like David, some of the stuff we experienced would have gotten us if we had not gone through all that we have been through before. Our trouble gave us stability.
  4. What does it mean for God to hide you? It means we are placed in God’s protective custody, because he knows our testimony is valuable. Like protective custody in the real world, God changes our identity and changes where we are. He relocates us. Thank God that he has got us covered.

II.               Proper response in a negative context

Psalm 27:6a says 6And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;

  1. David says now his head will be lifted up. It is about spiritual resolve. You will always have haters when:
    1. You have Anointing– You will have haters when you are anointed and appointed. People will hate on your anointment and your appointment, because your appointment follows your anointing. People will hate on you for what God has called you to do. While you are in it, know that God may not move the hater, but he will give you opportunity to be a testimony in the midst of all of them. This is why the Psalmist says in Psalm 23:5 says 5Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. – If God gives you an opportunity to speak well of his name, that is a blessing in itself. What good does it do for you to speak about him in the midst of people that already know how good God is? When we speak well of him in the place where your context is negative, then we have chosen not to let our context change who we are. Understand why God keeps you there.
    2. It is about our now. Now is where Leah was when she decided she would give her son back to God. She named her child Judah which meant praise. Like Leah, we have to choose to be at our now. When you say now, you are saying you are tired of allowing yourself to be taken advantage of. You are tired of allowing the devil to manipulate your feelings and emotions. Keep your head up, because when you do so, you have chosen to protest. You are protesting being a permanent victim.
    3. You have to develop a Godly Attitude – We have been through too much to walk around with our head down. We have chosen not to let this break us down!
    4. We have learned to make Adjustments – Though our context changed, we will not. We have to learn how to adjust. We will be content in every context we find ourselves in. We choose to be full in an empty situation. Lay me off, and I will still survive! Some people you can’t tell what they go through, because they have learned how to adjust.
    5. We acknowledge – When you hold your head down, you let he world know the enemy has control over you. When you hold you head up, you show that God is good to you and you know God has it under control. You have to get to a place where you respond properly in a negative situation. David says my head be lifted up with mine enemies around me.

III.           Praise regardless of your circumstances

Psalm 27:6b says … I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD.

  1. Sing the blues if you want to, but why make all the sacrifice of getting ready and driving to church and then just sitting there once you arrive. If you are here, you might as well praise him! We choose to sing the goodness of the Lord. We give a sacrificial praise. Sacrifice means that even through the circumstances say we shouldn’t be joyful, we have decided to move past that.
  2. We must praise like it is explained in James 1:2 where it says 2My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; – This kind of praise says we will praise God no matter what is going on around us. We are not praising God just for us, it is for you too! This praise needs to be heard. Ex-Recently when the Lakers were down in the playoff games, the entire coliseum started screaming and standing on their feet. People were texting Boston fans saying, “Brother Kobe is down.” This was Kobe’s Town. The fans started putting those signs up and the noise came. Then the noise started motivating the team and then all kind of crazy stuff happened. The Lakers went on to be victorious, because of the noise that was activated.
  3. We didn’t go through what we go through just for us, it is others can know what to do when they go through. When we are making noise, it is so someone else can know that God is able. When Paul and Silas were in jail, they praised loudly so the people in jail could hear them. How will others know how good God is unless you open your mouth? We must be willing to sacrifice. We must praise God even when we don’t feel like it! There are people going through stuff right now that we can’t even imagine, but they are determined to give God the praise regardless of the circumstances. A sacrifice of praise is praising God when you don’t feel like it! It is praising him when you come in tired and weary, frustrated, and aggravated! It is praising him when the conditions are not conducive of praise! In spite of the circumstances and conditions going on around you, understand that you are a living testimony of the goodness of God. It has nothing to do with how good your day has been. Even though you don’t understand what in the world is going on around you, you recognize you have to praise God anyhow! You realize that you can’t feel sorry for yourself! You open your mouth and bless the name of the Lord even if you are in a room with people who don’t like you! We will give that sacrifice praise. Even though our bills are past due, the budget has not been met, and we don’t know how we will make it! It is our sacrifice of praise! It doesn’t mean all is well! No matter what, we will stand with tears running down our face! When David wrote this, he wasn’t in church; he was running for his life! It is the sacrifice of praise from a real soldier! We are determined no matter what; we are going to push this praise out! We are going to let the devil know that he should have killed us when he had the chance! He messed around and let us get to the temple and we are going to praise his name! This is what trouble taught us!
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