I’ve been forgiven, sermon 11/29/15

Posted on December 11, 2015 by growintheword

I’ve been forgiven

Synopsis of sermon 11/29/2015

Delivered by Bishop Walker

Text: John 8 (NKJV)

8 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

2 Now early[a] in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. 3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught[b] in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded[c] us that such should be stoned.[d] But what do You say?”[e] 6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.[f]

7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up[g] and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience,[h] went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her,[i] “Woman, where are those accusers of yours?[j] Has no one condemned you?”

11 She said, “No one, Lord.”

And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and[k] sin no more.”

We all have been benefactors of forgiveness. Having said this, there are so many unreasonable expectations that are placed on children of God, it is unreal. We are progressive, meaning we are becoming, but have not yet arrived. Although we have not arrived, there should, however, be some measurables along the way. In other words, some things we used to do, we don’t do anymore.

Stepping out of it is not the hard part. Staying out of it is much harder. The good thing is, once I understand who I am, I know what I’m capable of and so I keep myself out of some situations. In the text, it talks about a woman being caught in the act of adultery. People often talk about this text and how it is about the woman caught in her adultery, but the revelation is much deeper than that. This is really about the first time grace was given.

In the text, the Bible doesn’t name the woman it talks about. Whenever the name is not mentioned of the main character of a scripture, it means we are all included in that situation, which means we can apply the scripture directly to ourselves. In the text today, the scribes and Pharisees come to Jesus after catching the woman in the very act. They say that she should be stoned. Now we have:

  1. The reality of being caught in the very act

Have you ever been caught with your hand in the cookie jar?  There are a lot of emotions tied to this. No matter how good you think you are, we all have had moments where we were caught in the midst of our weakness. You need to know:

  1. No matter who you are, the struggle is real – There is struggle in the life of all us and that struggle is real. You have to be on guard at all times, because the devil is always looking for an opportunity to exploit you.
  2. The devil will make it fun of you in private and make it shameful for you in public – No matter what your issue is, we don’t know how long you been dealing with it. In fact, you would be surprised of how many people that you know that once had pasts that would surprise you ( if you knew about it). The devil will lead you on to make it shameful publically.
  3. How do we deal with the devil’s tricks?
    1. By self-realization – Don’t get caught up in what people think you are. Know who you are for yourself. Paul says in Romans 7:24 (NKJV) 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? – After you get through jumping, shouting, and praising the Lord, you have to be willing to ask the Lord to help you out, because you got some real issues.
    2. Have sense enough to run – When you are confronted with something that can consume you, then you have to run! Sometimes you simply have to run!
    3. Spiritual Resolve- You come to a place where you are just done! When I was a child I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

Now we must:

  1. Reveal the contradictions of your accusers

Religious leaders brought the woman to Jesus to say she was caught in the very act of adultery. One has to wonder where the scribes and Pharisees were to be in a position to catch her in the very act. Were they in her window? If so why? Tell your neighbor to get out of your window!

Religion vs relationship:

  1. In religion, people would rather antagonize rather than evangelize – Don’t use religion to beat people up. You would be surprised to know how many pew devils there are. One of the worst things you can have is members with stones in their hands. If it wasn’t for God’s grace where would you be?
  2. You got to catch the fish, before you clean them. Rom 3:23 says 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
  3. Prov 24:16 says 16 For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity.

1 John 1:10 says 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

  1. Religious people have selective morality – She is accused of this act. You can’t commit adultery by yourself. It takes two to tango. Where is the man during this accusation? Nowhere is the man brought up on charges or accused of any wrong doing. They just brought the woman to Jesus. People do the same today. We give some people a pass, but we want to throw stones at others. This is called Selective morality. We throw people under the bus, but when we are down, we want people to pray for us.

Finally,

III. Rejoice for complete acquittal

Jesus does something in this woman’s life that is so important. It is about Jesus’ act of grace.

  1. He created space for grace – It’s interesting; A doctor recently said that if people believed that their sins had been forgiven, half of his patients would walk out of the hospital the next day. Lots of time, we allow what we have done, hold us captive. We blame what we have done as a reason that God put sickness and diseases on us. God doesn’t work like this.
  2. Finally Johnny decides he’d had enough. He decided that he would confess. He figures his fate for killing the duck couldn’t be worse than what he was suffering under his sisters blackmail tactics. Johnny goes and tells his grandma that he accidently killed her duck. When he told her, his grandma said, “I know what you did, because I was looking out the window when you did it and I forgave you then for what you did. I just wanted to know how long you was going to allow your sister to make you out of a slave”. Just like this, God has forgiven us for the things we have done. He forgives us and gives us his grace.
  3. One day, he takes aim at his grandma’s pet duck, thinking maybe he needed to try and hit something else. He draws back on the sling shot and on this particular day he hit’s the bullseye. Yes, that’s right, he kills his grandma’s duck. Johnny’s sister saw it and threatened to tell his grandma what Johnny had done. Johnny pleads with her not to tell what he had done and she agrees not to tell if he would do her chores. Johnny agrees and every time his sister was told to do something, she would make Johnny do it. Johnny had to do the dishes, take out trash, and anything else his sister did not want to do.
  4. Ex – There was a boy named Johnny and everyday he would try to take his sling shot and hit the bullseye on his target. Day after day, Johnny failed to hit the bullseye.

John 1:14- 16 says 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me. ‘” 16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. – Whereever Jesus is, grace is. What is grace? It is God giving me what I do not deserve. It is the acknowledgement of my own human condition and granting me what I don’t deserve regardless.

  1. They brought the woman to Jesus, trying to trap him. John 8:6 says Jesus writes in the sand. Sand is another form of dirt. We don’t know what Jesus was writing in the dirt, but I imagine he was thinking, “Dirt is talking about dirt” (referring to the Scribes and the Pharisees).
  1. The Bible says the Scribes kept pressing him. Jesus finally says in vs 7, “you without sin, cast the first stone” and from the youngest to the oldest, they start dropping their rocks.
  2. Jesus looked at the woman in vs 10. Jesus gets up from the ground and looks at her, then he asks “Where are your accusers?” If you can imagine, the woman probably was crying with her hands in her face. Jesus stops her from doing this and forces her to look around and she discovers that all her accusers were gone. This meant that there was no one left to condemn her, so Jesus says to her, “Neither do I condemn you”
    1. They wanted to kill her, but Jesus wanted to give her life.John 10:10 says 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
    2. Rev 12:10 – 10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.
    3. Luke 6:41 says, 41 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?
  • When the enemy wanted to kill me, Jesus gave me life – “Where are your accusers”, Jesus asked? John 8:11 says 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” They were gone. Since they were not there to condemn her, then He said he would not condemn her either. – Being accused of what you did not do isn’t grace. This is being not guilty. For Jesus to say he won’t condemn you, then He is saying he is aware that the accusations are true, but instead of throwing rocks at you, He is throwing grace at you.

 

 

You have to acknowledge what you did, if you want God’s grace. He gave me life, when my enemies wanted to kill me!

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You are going to make it

Posted on December 3, 2015 by growintheword

You are going to make it

Synopsis of sermon 11/22/15

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Text: Jeremiah 18:1-6 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!

 

One of the most amazing things about God is he kept working with me. Another amazing thing about God is his patience. He kept working with us in spite of us. In fact we ought to thank God for giving us another chance.

God never gives up on what he intended for our lives to become. God is not like people. People are quick to give up on you. God never forsakes his children and never gives up on us. There should always be evidence that God is working on us, no matter where we are in life. Every circumstance in your life is God working on you.

Remember that all things work together for the good of them that love the Lord and are called according to his purpose. In the text, Jeremiah is summoned to come down from the wall to see what the potter was working on the wheel. God gives us this revelation to show us his heart and his passion. In comparison to the story in the text, God is the potter and we are the clay.

 

You are going to make it. You got to know that God is going to break you out, but understand that there is a process that God takes you through:

The text says he looked at the potter and the clay. In other words he saw that the potter was going to make something. Know that:

  1. I’m at the potter’s disposal

God, the potter, knows our end and our beginning. He has factored all things before he even begins.

  1. Never forget that you are just clay.
    1. You are just dirt. Gen 2:7 says 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. Job 34:14 says 14 If He should set His heart on it, If He should gather to Himself His Spirit and His breath,- Here Job reminds us that without the spirit of God, we would be nothing but clay or dirt.

Acts 17:28 says 28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring. – Some of you got it going on, but let us remind you that after all your accolades, you are still just clay. At the end of the day, you are nothing but dirt. If you die, you will return to dust. It is amazing how we can be so arrogant when we’re nothing but dust.

It is God’s power that sees the goodness inside of our clay-ness. Man can’t see it, but God can. He will get it out of you by any means necessary. God is working on you!

  1. God begins with us with the end in mind. He is the author and finisher of our faith. He has already completed our destination, before he begins. Before He even started, God knew it would be a part of us that would mess this thing up. Phill 1:6 says 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; – God knew before we got in this mess, that he was going to bring us out.
    1. God doesn’t create you and then try to figure out what he will make of you. He already knew, before he made you, what he wanted you to be. The potter was going to make something.
    2. When God created you, he had something in mind. That something is your ending. That something is so awesome, Satan is trying to kill you to keep it from coming to fruition. Some of you can testify, the devil had his chance, but you are still standing!
  2. We have to recognize that we are the clay and He is the potter. We need to be in God’s hands. The scripture says the clay was in his hands.
  3. I have personal defects

The scripture says, the clay was in the hands of the potter, but it was still marred (vs4).

  1. Being in God’s hands doesn’t exempt you from issues. No matter your title, everyone has something wrong with them. Our defects are what cause us to leave the potter in the first place.
  2. The clay was marred in his hands; we became marred by the issues of life. God takes us back to the wheel to remake us. God preserves us and makes us have value and this keeps us from the clearance rack. John 10:29 says 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.- When you’re in the hands of the potter, the devil can’t get you out of his hands. Sometimes because you are flesh, you have a tendency to want to do your own thing. This is how we become marred. Pro 14:20 says 12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
  3. Where God is taking you, we might have to deal with your issues. God will not allow you to contain your issues. God won’t let you take your issue to you next level.
  4. It was marred in his hands. When God sees it marred, he sees what others can’t, because he is a master potter. The master potter knows that if he covers our marred condition up, there will be horrible consequences up the road. Therefore, he stops and fixes it right then, to make it what it ought to be. He cuts the bad place out and starts again. Everyone wants to be a diamond, but no one wants to be cut. When we come out of this, we will go to the next level.
  5. You started at the bottom and you wonder why you can’t make it to the top. The reason is because you marred. God tries to deal with your marred condition, before you get there, while you are still under the radar.

III. God preserved my destiny

God refused to give up on your defect. He refused to allow you to be defined by your marred condition.

God is patient enough to let us start over.

  1. God is a God of second chances and a God of reset. 1 Cor 13:4 a 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; – God loves us despite of our short-comings.
  2. He loved us so much, he didn’t keep going. He stopped and fixed us first and started over.
  3. He puts us back on the wheel and makes certain that nothing messes with our destiny.
  4. God didn’t give up on me because he saw the best in me. – Eph 2.10 says 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. – God is willing to keep working on us on the wheel. When people said we were worthless, he kept working on us.

What if everything is flawed such as your marriage, relationship, and etc… What do you do with this? Jer 18:4 says 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hands of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.- He made it again. Just like this, God makes you over. He makes you good for him and not people. The first time you tried to be good for people, but remember God don’t need man’s affirmation.

Only the master can take something marred and make another vessel. Only the master can make it something good. God made it! God made you! The same vessel and the same clay that was a disappointment, that didn’t look like it was supposed to, and that was flawed, God made that same over again. God made the same vessel over again! He didn’t throw you (the clay) away. He took that same vessel and made it good.

What does this mean? It means that I am the same, but not the same. It looks like me, but it is not me. I look the same, but I am not the same. I am different, because there has been a change that has taken place.i god says its done, it is done.

 

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Converted

Posted on November 19, 2015 by growintheword

Converted

Synopsis of sermon 11/15/15

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Anchor Text:

Acts 9:1-6 (NKJV)

The Damascus Road: Saul Converted

9 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.[a] It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”

The scripture says, then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” We were all born into sin. We all have gone through seasons where things weren’t so great. In these seasons, our lives had been a series of events that would have led to damnation if not for heaven’s intervention.

Jer 29:11 says 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. – One of the most powerful experiences that could ever happen to us is conversion. This is totally different than simply joining. When you join, you simply become a member of the church, but when you are converted, it goes a little deeper: When you are truly converted, no one has to tell you to show up! You don’t have to tell a converted person to treat people right; You don’t need to prime a converted person up with the praise team or ques from an organ either! All a converted person has to do is think about the goodness of God and the praise will begin!

This sermon is not to get you to shout. This sermon is for understanding the transformative power of God. God takes something and converts it for his own glory.

Saul was a terrorist to the Christians of the early church. He was even present at the stoning of Stephen. On the road going to Damascus, God met Saul. God interrupted Saul’s agenda from terrorist to evangelist. This same power is available to us today.

There is a level of evidence seen when a person is converted.

  1. Past Conduct

Saul was an amazing individual. He was diligent, intelligent, passionate, and the list goes on.

There are things we can learn from Paul’s conduct:

  1. We’ve all had a Saul season. Saul’s name is changed to Paul to represent his right now season (not his past), but you can’t appreciate this right now Season (also referred to as the Paul season), without understanding his Saul season. All of us have had a Saul season. Prov 14:12 says 12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.- Saul’s season represents the season where you thought you would do it your own way. If you think about it, much of what we look at in the world is beyond our ability to change it. One thing we can change however is ourselves.
  2. No matter what you did, know that God can still use you. No matter what you did, know that God can still use you. God can take the raw materials of our past, and use it. This is not a time for us to make excuses about why God can’t use us. Everybody reading this has had some type of Saul season.
  3. We come to tell you today that God can still use you! He used Abraham who lied about his wife being his sister, Jacob who was a trickster, Moses who killed a man and hid his body, David who was an adulterer, and Jeremiah who tried to walk around his one assignment. All of these examples should be evidence that God can use you!
  4. God takes one thing and converts it for his glory.
  5. POWER OF CONVERSION

God met you and changed you. You wasn’t an easy case.

  1. When God gets ready for you, he knows where to find you. Psa 139:9 says 9 If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea – In other words, there is no limit on Gods ability to find you. When God gets ready to find you, he will find you like he found Saul.
  2. God will meet you where you are about to do what you are about to do. God is aware of your every move. Some of you know that God has been calling you and pulling you away from things. Know that this is God literally speaking to you an guiding you.
  3. True conversion will send you instantly into another direction. 2 Cor 5:17 says 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.- When conversion happens in your life, the things of the past have to let you go. Because of your new life, Christ has no room for the baggage of your past.
  4. When the light shined upon him, Saul was blinded. Sometimes God has to blind us of our own issues. God had to blind Saul and open up his eyes, so that he could see (clearly). – Just like this, God opened your eyes so you could see differently. One encounter with God can change your whole life.
  5. How was Paul able to argue that he was an Apostle? Apostles are those that walked with Jesus or had seen him in person. This consisted of eleven disciples plus the one that replaced Judas. The question often arises, how then was Paul (formally known as Saul) able to call himself an Apostle? Well the answer is, on Damascus road, Saul had an encounter with God and he saw God. This illustrates to us that whenever you meet God for yourself, you will change instantly.

Whenever you are truly converted, you have:

III. Paradigm of Commitment

When converted, your commitment is greater than the average person. When you are converted, this thing is real for you. In Saul’s former life, he persecuted the church. In his later life, Paul was persecuted by church. In his Saul life, he ran with the devil and his Paul life, he ran against evil.

Why would the devil start messing with you when you get saved? It is because he wants to block your commitment.

  1. Your purpose will always have to be greater than your pain. James Baldwin wrote “I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain.” – When you are playing church, pain will uproot you. When you are converted, you understand that no matter what happens, you can stay and finish your assignment. Paul said, “If God be for me, he is more than the whole world against me. Paul said, “… and we know all things work together for the good of them that love the Lord and are called according to his purpose…” – God did what he did in your life just to show somebody that he is real in your life.
  2. The same energy you had for the world you now have for the kingdom. – God will bring us to a place of humility sometimes. God is not after religion; he is after relationship. God salvaged Saul. In his encounter, God asked Saul why he was persecuting him. He could have instantly killed Saul, but he didn’t. Why did he salvage him? It was because Saul was a good man, full of energy, passion, and dedication. He was articulate too. God knew he could take all of these qualities and convert it for the kingdom.
  3. It is amazing how when we were in the world, we had all that energy, and now when it comes for the things of God, we are always tired. When we were out in the world, we used to go to happy hour and stay longer than an hour. Now we can’t even spend an hour in Bible Study. We used to spend all kind of money at the club and having so called fun, but now we get upset if the preacher asks for 5 dollars to sow in a ministry.
    1. One thing is for sure, the church is the only place that you can tell the weather on the inside. If the weather is bad, there will barely be anyone inside the church.

Again, there is a different between joining and being converted. Be honest and ask yourself, did I simply join or have I been converted?

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I had to do it! Sermon 11/01/155

Posted on November 13, 2015 by growintheword

I had to do it

Synopsis of sermon 11/1/15

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

We as Christians, suffer from entitlement issues. We need to realize that whatever God has for us to do, it is for us to do.

There comes a moment that God will take you through so much that you have to yield to his will. You can run, but you can’t hide! You come to a place where you say, I’ve got to do it!

God has providently orchestrated you to do it! No one else can do this assignment, but you. You have to do what God says do.

Jonah was commissioned by God to go to Nineveh. The problem was that Nineveh was a wicked city and Jonah did not want to go there. Jonah decided instead to run from God and go to Tarshish.

  1. Reasonable to the call

Jonah 1:1-2 1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.”

When God calls us, he always sends his word to confirm it. He also makes it clear that it is Him calling us. Whatever we are called to, we must know:

  1. What God calls us to is never easy: Stop complaining as if you are the only one called to something difficult. Can you imagine being Noah who was asked to build a ship for a flood, when it wasn’t even raining? What about Moses, with nothing but a stick and stutter, going out to Pharaoh to try and convince him to let God’s people go? Can you imagine how it must have been to be Jesus coming down from heaven to die for us, knowing that we wouldn’t receive him? John 16:33 says 33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Isaiah 43:2-3 -When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.- Know that God never calls you without having your back.

  1. He chose you because he knew you could do it – Everything that happened in your life was about God bringing your purpose forth. He is taking you through predetermined trials to get you ready. If you’re catching hell now, know that there must be greater in store for your life. Romans 8:28 says 28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Hebrews 13:20-21 says 20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you[a] what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
  2. God won’t give you an assignment he hadn’t equipped you for. Romans 8:30 says 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. Philippians 1:6 says 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; Ephesians 2:10 says 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.-Whatever God calls us to, he equips us for.
  1. Running has consequences

Jonah 1:3 3 But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.

The bible says that Jonah found the ship going to Tarshish. Jonah goes to the ship and pays the fare. Know that there is always a ship willing to take you where God is willing for you to go. That ship may be friendship, mentorship, relationship, sponsership, or etc… It is important for you to know, however, that any ship outside the will of God is considered a hardship.

  1. Your disobedience makes you magnet for storms – 1 Samuel 15:22 says 22 So Samuel said: “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams .- Your obedience attracts unnecessary trials and tribulations.

Sometimes the Lord sends storms. Storms are not always the work of the devil. How then, do we rebuke a storm that God sends to get our attention?

Jonah 1:4-16 4 But the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid; and every man cried out to his god, and threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten the load. But Jonah had gone down into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came to him, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God; perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not perish.” 7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this trouble has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Please tell us! For whose cause is this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid, and said to him, “Why have you done this?” For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. 11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?”—for the sea was growing more tempestuous. 12 And he said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know that this great tempest is because of me.” 13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to return to land, but they could not, for the sea continued to grow more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they cried out to the Lord and said, “We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man’s life, and do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O Lord, have done as it pleased You.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows.-

    1. Wherever Jonah goes, there is a storm. Whenever you are outside the will of God, storms will show up.
    2. The ship was in jeopardy. They wanted to know what was going on concerning the storms. Jonah explained that he had been running from God and if they would throw him overboard, the storm will cease.
    3. Instead of throwing Jonah overboard, they rowed even harder, trying to keep the ship afloat. We are just like this. We know the problem, but we still try to make it work. You can keep on rowing, but it ain’t going to work.
  1. You are a liability on the ship. God hasn’t called you to be liability, but instead, he wants you to be a testimony. Some of you have liabilities on your ship. You want to give everyone a chance, but there comes a time that you will have to get the liabilities off your ship. Release them into their destiny. Refuse to go down with your liabilities.

III. Rejoice in another chance

We are here; because God was willing that we wouldn’t perish.

Jonah 1:14-17 14 Therefore they cried out to the Lord and said, “We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man’s life, and do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O Lord, have done as it pleased You.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows. 17 Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

  1. God could have killed you, but he kept you. God prepared a fish for Jonah. There is no fish today that could swallow you whole and yet you still live; if nothing else, the acids in the stomach would kill you, but God prepared a fish. God factored in Jonah’s disobedience. God made provision for him. He made a space to keep him, until he was willing to yield.
  2. This fish was prepared just to hold Jonah – What could have killed others did not kill you, because God was keeping you.
    1. Reflection -In this space, there is a time of reflection. God wanted Jonah to realize that he couldn’t run from God.
    2. Repentance – God is looking for your repentance. Psalm 103:4 says 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

Jeremiah 29:11 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. , – God needs you to stay alive to save a whole generation of people.

  1. Jonah was not willing to be a vessel of God, but while he was in the fishes belly for 3 days, he became ready. All God was looking for was one word, and that word was “Yes”.
  2. This mess is part of my message. Though you find yourself in a mess, God can turn it around. All you have to do is say yes.
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