Participants: Carlton P. Byrd
Series Code: BOL
Program Code: BOL000093
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00:01 (Theme Song) Jesus is worthy
00:09 oh yes, he's worthy worthy of all... 00:18 all the praise. 00:21 (Music) Pastor Byrd: God said 00:23 in Jeremiah 1:5, "Before I formed thee 00:25 in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth 00:28 out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee 00:35 a prophet unto the nations." 00:36 Which means, my friends, before you were even thought 00:40 of, before Big Mama and Big Daddy 00:43 got together, God had already placed destiny 00:47 on somebody's life. 00:48 Hallelujah, somebody. 00:50 So I don't care if you're young. 00:53 I don't care if you're old. 00:54 I don't care if you're thin or not so thin. 00:56 I don't care if you're a man or a woman, black or white, 01:00 there's greatness in you. 01:02 There's destiny in you. 01:04 There's promise in you. 01:06 The reality is the person sitting next to you 01:10 doesn't even understand what they're sitting next to. 01:14 Because if they knew what they were sitting next to, 01:17 they might act a little differently, because they're 01:21 sitting next to somebody who has greatness 01:24 inside of them, somebody with God's hand on them, 01:28 somebody that God's about to use to do something 01:31 for his glory. 01:32 So, quickly today, I call the biblical roll 01:35 and I go to the biblical story and reckon that Noah 01:39 was such a man. 01:42 Noah preached 120 years about something that had 01:47 never happened before. 01:49 Noah preached 120 years for nobody to listen to him, 01:54 nobody to join him, but his wife, their three sons 01:57 and their wives. 01:59 Noah preached 120 years. 02:01 He was laughed at, he was mocked, he was ridiculed. 02:05 He was scorned. 02:06 He was criticized. 02:07 He preached 120 years only to get in a boat 02:11 full of cows, full of horses, full of 02:17 donkeys, elephants, kangaroos and camels. 02:20 He preached, it's gonna rain. 02:22 It's gonna rain. 02:23 You better get ready. 02:28 And bear this in mind, God showed Noah 02:32 the rainbow sign. 02:34 He said, it won't be water but fire next time. 02:38 But why would Noah preach about rain? 02:45 Why would he preach about something he had 02:47 never seen before? 02:49 Why would he preach about the condensed moisture 02:52 of the atmosphere falling visibly 02:54 in separate drops? 02:56 Why would he preach about liquid in the form 03:00 of droplets, condensed from atmospheric water vapor 03:04 and precipitated? 03:06 Why would he preach about the major component 03:09 of the water cycle that was responsible 03:12 for depositing most of the fresh water 03:14 of the earth? 03:15 In short, why did he preach about rain? 03:17 Noah simple preached about rain because the Lord 03:23 told him to. 03:24 Noah preached because Noah knew destiny was on him and he 03:31 knew that God's promises were in him. 03:34 Now, the Bible says in verse 5 of Genesis, Chapter 6 that the 03:38 wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every 03:42 imagination of the thoughts of his heart was on evil 03:45 continually. 03:47 Now, I was reading this week the Message Bible, and I like 03:50 how the Message Bible puts it. 03:51 The Message Bible says God saw that human evil was 03:54 out of control. 03:55 People thought evil, imagined evil, 03:59 evil from morning to night. 04:02 God was so sorry that he made the human race 04:08 in the first place. 04:11 It broke his heart. 04:13 God said, I'll get rid of my ruined creation, 04:17 make a clean sweep. 04:19 People, animals, snakes, bugs, birds, the works, I'm sorry 04:24 I made them. 04:25 But then the text goes on and says, "But Noah 04:28 found grace in the eyes of the Lord." But Noah, 04:35 after the foolishness of man, but Noah. 04:39 But, after the sinfulness of man, but; after 04:44 the wickedness of man, but; after the immorality 04:49 of man, but; there's something about the word "but." 04:55 I was looking and studying the word of but, and understand 04:58 the word but is one of few words that can represent 05:01 four different parts of speech. 05:03 It's a conjunction when it's used to introduce something 05:07 contrasting with what has already been mentioned. 05:10 The sun is shining right now, but it's about to rain. 05:15 It's a preposition when it's used to say except, 05:19 apart from or other than. 05:20 I trust no one but him. 05:22 It's an adverb when it means no more than or only. 05:27 He is but a shadow of his former self. 05:32 It's a noun when you're arguing with somebody against 05:34 something in objection. 05:36 When you say that are no buts about it. 05:40 And as I read the Word of God, I'm learning that God always 05:47 has a but for Satan's attacks. 05:51 Weeping may endure for a night, but joy. 05:55 A thousand shall fall at thy side, 05:59 10,000 at the right hand, but it shall not come 06:03 nigh thee. 06:04 The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is 06:09 eternal life. 06:10 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. 06:15 God always has a but for Satan's attacks. 06:20 Understand, if we look at this text, but Noah found grace. 06:23 He found what, everybody? 06:25 Grace in the eyes of the Lord. 06:26 Quickly, this is the first time in Scripture that the word 06:30 grace appears. 06:32 Grace, God's unmerited favorite. 06:37 Grace, God's favorite exercise towards undeserving sinners 06:41 like you and me. 06:42 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. 06:48 The Message Bible says it differently, 06:50 it says, but Noah was different. 06:53 God liked what he saw in Noah. 06:58 I wish I would heard God say, I like what I see 07:02 in Carlton Byrd. 07:04 Verse 9 then goes on and let's us know three things 07:08 about Noah. 07:09 Number one, Noah was a just man. 07:11 Number two, it lets us know that Noah was perfect 07:17 in righteousness, in his generations. 07:20 Noah, number three, walked with God. 07:23 Now, quickly, let me do this and then I'm going 07:25 to sit down. 07:26 Let's start with number one. 07:27 Noah was a just man. 07:32 It was not some divine whim or divine luck 07:35 that made Noah the recipient of God's favor, 07:39 but it was a life that was at harmony with the will of God. 07:43 Let that be a reminder that when your life and when you're 07:46 living a life in harmony with the will of God, God will 07:49 bestow favor on your life. 07:52 Somebody knows something about God's favor. 07:56 Anybody know anything about God's favor? 07:59 Let me help somebody to understand. 08:02 Favor is when you get the job you didn't apply for. 08:06 Favor is when you're in the grocery line, 08:07 you have $20 to your name, the cashier rings up your 08:10 groceries and says, "That'll be $19.99. 08:13 That's favor. 08:15 Favor is when you've been diagnosed with cancer and you 08:19 go for your checkup and the doctor says, I'm seeing 08:23 something a little different on the ultrasound. 08:25 The doctor can't explain it. 08:28 He says, the cancer has gone in remission. 08:31 I don't understand what is happening. 08:35 You sit there and you say, I know that's favor. 08:37 Noah was a just man. 08:39 The word just, understand, does not mean 08:41 spotless innocence. 08:44 After all, nobody is perfect. 08:48 All that sin come short of the glory of God. 08:51 No one is without sin. 08:52 Let he that is able cast the first stone. 08:56 The word just implies upright, honesty, virtue. 09:01 It is praiseworthy to note that Noah was not merely 09:06 called just, but notice the text says, he was called 09:10 a just man. 09:12 To live a Christian life in Noah's time 09:14 meant a man could stand fearlessly and steadfastly 09:16 against evil enticement and against subtle temptation 09:19 and against vile mockery. 09:20 The greatest want of the world is the want of men, men who 09:27 will not be bought or sold, men who will stand true to duty 09:31 as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for right 09:34 though the heavens fall. 09:36 You read about Noah studying Ellen White's writings, 09:38 "The Patriarchs and Prophets," about it, you will discover 09:40 that Noah was no weakling. 09:44 Noah was not scared. 09:46 Noah was not void of judgment or void of willpower. 09:50 Noah was a man. 09:52 Noah was no pushover. 09:54 Noah stood for something and the world in which we life, 09:58 we've got too many folk who stand for nothing and will 10:03 fall for anything. 10:04 I've learned, folk will sink you if you let them. 10:09 I've learned, if you don't speak up for yourself, 10:13 folk will speak for you, and I don't need anybody 10:15 speaking for me. 10:17 I'm a grown man, I can speak for myself. 10:21 Do I have a witness in this place? 10:24 Noah was no pushover. 10:25 Bible says Noah was a just man. 10:27 But then the Revised Standard version goes on to talk about 10:30 point number two, Noah was perfect in his 10:33 generation, which means Noah was blameless 10:36 in his generation. 10:37 This does not mean that he lived in a state of 10:39 sinlessness, but rather he lived a life of moral 10:43 integrity. 10:44 The trajectory of his life was determined by his 10:47 moral fiber. 10:49 How many people's lives end up the way they do because of the 10:53 moral fiber they have selected for their lives? 10:57 Thirdly, Noah walked with God. 11:01 Noah walked with God. 11:05 Does anybody want to walk with God? 11:12 Noah's life resembled that of Enoch who had been translated 11:16 to heaven, walking with God, without seeing death. 11:19 Enoch walked with God, and Noah walked with God. 11:26 That's why I'm trying to walk and talk with my mind 11:33 staying on Jesus. 11:35 Enoch was translated 69 years before Noah was even born. 11:42 So that means then, in order for Noah to know about Enoch, 11:46 during Noah's childhood when Enoch's translation 11:49 was still vivid in the memory of the older folks, 11:51 somebody had to tell Noah of Enoch's godly life. 11:55 But the fact that Noah walked with God does not imply that 11:59 by his own efforts he had obtained righteousness. 12:05 Like all of us, Noah was saved by faith. 12:09 Noah was imperfect, but what I love about 12:14 brother Noah, God used Noah to give people the opportunity 12:23 to mend their ways. 12:25 God used this preacher of righteousness to give 12:30 the message of warning that it's gonna to rain. 12:35 God could have destroyed man without giving man 12:40 the opportunity to repent. 12:43 But that's not like God. 12:45 God's not willing that any should perish but that all 12:49 should come to repentance. 12:51 So, Noah, though old, God had a purpose for his life. 12:56 Noah, though tired, God had destiny on his life. 13:01 Noah, though preaching a strange message, God had 13:05 promise on his life. 13:07 And what I love about Noah being a just man, being beyond 13:10 perfect in his generation, beyond walking with God, 13:13 Noah preached a message that was beyond him. 13:16 Listen to me carefully. 13:19 Noah preached a message that was beyond his family, 13:24 beyond his friends, beyond his neighbors, 13:28 beyond his money, beyond his tradition. 13:32 Noah, number one, preached a message that was liberating. 13:37 He preached a message that was going to set people free, 13:42 free from the bondage of sin, free from the clutches of 13:46 sinister behavior, free from the shackles of sin, 13:49 and that's what I love about the gospel. 13:52 It sets people free. 13:55 People who come from one walk of life, when they fall in love 14:00 with Jesus, when they come in contact with the Lord Jesus, 14:04 it changes their whole trajectory in their life. 14:08 Folks you used to hang with, you don't hang with anymore. 14:11 Stuff you used to do you don't do anymore. 14:14 I don't know what it is, but there's something 14:16 about the Gospel that sets people free. 14:21 Something about the Gospel that changes you. 14:24 Changes your walk, changes your talk. 14:27 It liberates you. 14:29 It frees you. 14:30 And if the son sets you free, you shall be free indeed. 14:36 Number two, Noah preached a divine message. 14:40 He preached a message from God. 14:42 From God's mouth he stands in this pulpit. 14:45 They're not to preach their own opinion. 14:47 They are not to preach their own preference. 14:49 They are not to preach their own outlook. 14:51 They are to preach what doth sayest the Lord. 14:55 They are not to use the pulpit as a whipping board, 14:58 but what does the Word of God say? 15:01 Preach the divine Word of God. 15:04 Be in season and out of season a divine Word that mixes 15:09 loss and grace. 15:10 A divine Word that mixes religion and relationship. 15:14 A divine Word that lifts the name of Jesus, 15:18 because Jesus said, if I be lifted up from 15:22 the earth, I'll draw all men unto me. 15:25 Number three, Noah preached a courageous message. 15:28 Noah knew he couldn't be popular and prophetic 15:32 at the same time. 15:34 Sometimes you've got to cry aloud and spare not. 15:39 Sometimes you've got to call it like it is. 15:44 Sometimes you're going to be broken, but you've got 15:46 to be courageous. 15:48 Sometimes it won't be easy, but you've got to be 15:51 courageous. 15:52 Sometimes you will have to stand alone, but you've got to 15:55 be courageous. 15:56 Sometimes it will be unpopular, but you have 15:59 to be courageous. 16:00 Sometimes it will be painful, but you have to be courageous. 16:05 No pain, no gain. 16:08 No battle, no blessing. 16:10 No valleys, no victory. 16:12 And no pain, no power. 16:15 I've never known anyone in my life who was incredibly 16:17 powerful who was not equally painful. 16:20 People always want your power. 16:23 Oh, you the pastor of this, you the Breath of Life this. 16:26 People want your power, but do they ever ask 16:29 you for your pain, and if you're not willing 16:31 to carry my cross, you can't wear my crown, 16:33 for my crown is created by the intensity 16:35 of my cross. 16:38 Understand, I've learned in life, if you want 16:40 a water hose to shoot further all you have to 16:43 do is squeeze the hose and the more you squeeze 16:47 the hose, the further the water shoots. 16:50 For it is the restriction that creates the pressure 16:54 for the propelling of your destiny. 16:56 You will never discover your purpose until you discover 17:04 the core of your pain. 17:08 Number four, Noah preached a visionary message. 17:14 The great Helen Keller was blind. 17:17 She was asked a question, what could be worse 17:21 than being blind? 17:23 She said, having sight with no vision. 17:28 Noah had a visionary message, but not just a visionary 17:36 message, a visionary message from God. 17:40 Because, understand it, I'm learning in my life, if God 17:44 gives you a vision, it can only be from God if the vision 17:48 outlives you. 17:49 If the vision dies with the visionary, 17:54 then the vision was not of God in the first place. 17:58 Noah preached a message that would outlive him, 18:07 a message that would be a blessing to people 18:09 long after he was dead and gone. 18:13 Let me tell you something. 18:14 Whenever God gives a vision, when you keep that vision 18:17 under supervision, God will always give provision. 18:22 All I'm saying, take a walk. 18:26 Every place the sole of your feet touch you've got the devil 18:30 nervous, because every time you start walking 18:34 in the authority of God, the devil knows God 18:37 is up to something. 18:38 Every time you start going places, he knows what God 18:43 is about to do in somebody's life. 18:45 Let me tell you something. 18:47 If you saw what I saw, you'd be acting like 18:50 I'm acting, because I praise him not on what you see, 18:55 but I praise God on what I see. 19:01 See, I don't see my-- right now, I see my-- not yet. 19:09 I give God glory in my possibility, not my reality. 19:15 Noah had never seen rain. 19:19 But God told him, it's going to rain. 19:26 I've never seen heaven. 19:30 But God told me, let not your heart be troubled, ye believe 19:36 in God, believe also in me. 19:39 In my house, oh, I feel like preaching right now, 19:43 are many mansions and if it were not true, 19:46 I would have told you. 19:47 I go and prepare a place for you and if I go 19:50 and prepare a place for you, I will receive you unto myself, 19:54 that where I am, there ye may be also. 19:58 Number five, finally, Noah preached an inclusive message. 20:04 Noah's message was for everybody. 20:07 God's salvation is for everybody, 20:12 not just a select few. 20:15 God's message is for Oakwood and God's message 20:19 is for St. Marcus. 20:21 God's message is for Mason Courts and God's message 20:25 is for Madison. 20:26 God's message in Atlanta is for Bankhead, but it's also 20:31 for Buckhead. 20:32 God's message in New York is for Harlem 20:35 and it's for lower Manhattan. 20:37 God's message in Los Angeles is for South Central 20:41 and his message is for Beverly Hills. 20:43 God's message is in Chicago on the South Side as well as 20:48 on the west side, because God's message is for everybody. 20:57 See, I'm learning, I'm growing, I'm learning that some people 21:02 like the idea of evangelism. 21:06 They like the concept of evangelism. 21:10 They like to give money to support evangelism. 21:12 Send money to support evangelism, helping people in 21:16 trouble, but don't mess up our nice, pretty church 21:20 with your peculiar ways. 21:22 That's just like some church folk, they want to keep people 21:26 out who need the church the most. 21:28 But what I love about brother Noah, brother Noah's 21:33 message was for everybody. 21:35 Red and yellow, black and white, all are precious 21:38 in his sight. 21:39 Everybody's that young, old, black, white, male, female, 21:43 rich, poor, everybody get in the boat. 21:49 Noah's message was liberating, divine, courageous, visionary 21:56 and inclusive. 21:58 So it was in 1863 when the Emancipation Proclamation 22:04 was signed. 22:05 Get your history right. 22:07 The Emancipation Proclamation did not free the slaves, 22:10 it preserved the union. 22:12 In 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, 22:17 and th Amendment was ratified ending 22:22 slavery in the United States, a man by the name of Abraham 22:26 Lincoln preached a liberating, divine, courageous, visionary 22:34 and inclusive message. 22:36 Liberating, it will set you free. 22:39 Divine, it's of God. 22:41 Courageous, its principle is not popular. 22:44 Visionary, it had never been done before and it would last 22:47 beyond him. 22:49 Inclusive, it was not just beneficial for black folks, 22:52 but it was a message for all people. 22:55 On August 28, 1963, a man by the name of Dr. Martin Luther 23:01 King, Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and he 23:07 preached, I have a dream, to over 200,000 people 23:11 calling for the end of racism in America. 23:15 He preached a liberating, divine, courageous, visionary 23:19 and inclusive message. 23:22 Liberating, it will set you free. 23:24 Divine, it's of God. 23:27 Courageous, its principle is not popular. 23:30 Visionary, it's going to last beyond him. 23:33 Inclusive, it was not just beneficial for black folks, 23:36 but it was beneficial for all folk. 23:39 And so it is, 2013, God is calling this young preacher, 23:46 God is calling this church to preach a liberating, divine, 23:53 courageous, visionary and inclusive message 23:56 from the Word of God. 23:59 Liberating, if the Son sets you free, you shall be free 24:04 indeed. 24:05 Divine, I am God and there is none like me, because I am 24:11 that I am. 24:12 Courageous, you've got to cry aloud and spare not. 24:16 Visionary, because one day the Lord himself shall descend 24:20 from heaven with a shout, with the voice 24:23 of the archangel, the trump of God, and the dead 24:25 in Christ shall rise first, then we which are alive remain 24:29 shall be caught up together with the clouds to meet 24:31 the Lord of the air and so shall we ever be 24:33 with the Lord. 24:34 Inclusive, for God so loved the world that he gave 24:39 his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him 24:46 should not perish, but have everlasting life. 24:52 God is not just calling me, God is calling you, Preach, 24:57 teach and live a liberating, divine, courageous, visionary 25:04 and inclusive message, because if you don't preach 25:08 this message the church will be debilitated, 25:11 the community will be devastated, our schools will be 25:15 dominated, the world will be disintegrated, the race will be 25:19 apocopated, the globe will be annihilated. 25:22 You've got to preach something that's bigger than you. 25:25 God has destiny in your life. 25:28 But you've got to preach, it's gonna to rain. 25:30 God has promise on your life, but you've got to preach, 25:34 it's gonna to rain. 25:36 God has a purpose for your life, but you've got to preach, 25:40 it's gonna to rain. 25:42 God has greatness on your life, but you've got to 25:45 preach, it's gonna to rain. 25:48 God has a plan for your life, but you've got to preach, 25:53 it's gonna rain. 25:54 And the greatest sermon ever preached, is the sermon 26:01 that is lived. 26:04 To live is Christ. 26:10 But to die is to gain. 26:17 We have a social responsibility. 26:21 We have a civic responsibility. 26:25 But most importantly, we have a spiritual responsibility. 26:33 Preach it, live it, share it, tell it. 26:37 It's gonna rain, but it won't be water, but fire next time. 26:55 >: The Breath of Life gift offer this week is: 26:57 "Help in Daily Living," a practical guide 27:00 to everyday blessings by renowned Christian author 27:02 Ellen G. White. 27:04 The book contains four powerful chapters on having true 27:06 and lasting relationships, developing godly character, 27:09 walking a practical daily faith that brings blessings, 27:13 and staying the course of being a light in the darkness until 27:16 the Lord returns. 27:17 You'll discover the benefits of trials, the importance 27:19 of little things, the influence of living a consistent 27:22 Christian life and the joy of the Lord. 27:25 "Help in Daily Living" is yours for a gift of $5 27:28 or more. 27:29 Just call our toll-free number, 877-BOL-OFFER. 27:33 That's 877-265-6333. 27:36 Please have your credit card ready when you call. 27:38 Or you may write to us to request your copy. 27:40 Just send your check to: Breath of Life, 27:43 P.O. Box 340, Newbury Park, California 27:46 91319. 27:47 Break out of the ordinary life and into the extraordinary 27:50 life God intended for you to live. 27:52 Get your copy of "Help in Daily Living" today. 27:55 PB: To contact us or to make your donation, please feel 27:59 free to give us a call at 877-BOL-OFFER. 28:09 Or you may write to use at Breath of Life, P.O. Box 340, 28:15 Newbury Park, California 91319. 28:19 Or log onto our web site at www.breathoflife.tv. 28:24 PB: Whenever God gives a vision, God always |
Revised 2015-02-06