? (Theme Song) ?
? Jesus is worthy ?
00:00:02.33\00:00:11.60
? oh yes, he's worthy
? ? worthy of all... ?
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? all the praise. ? ? (Theme) ?
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Pastor Byrd: If you
would, take your Bibles and turn
00:00:20.90\00:00:22.70
with me to the book
of Hebrews, chapter 10,
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Hebrews chapter what everybody?
00:00:26.36\00:00:27.23
Hebrews chapter
10 verses 24 and 25.
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Two familiar verses
of scripture for us.
00:00:35.30\00:00:37.76
Hebrews chapter
10, verses 24 and 25.
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The Word of God says to
us today in Hebrews 10:24-25:
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If you have it let me hear
you say "Amen" - The word says:
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"And let us consider one
another to provoke unto love
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and to good works:
What kind of works?
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Not forsaking the assembling
of ourselves together,
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as the manner of some is;
but exhorting one another:
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and so much the more, as
ye see the day approaching."
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Why are we here?
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Father in Heaven, now
through your Word we seek
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to answer that question.
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Why are we here?
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And God, we pray that the power
of your Holy Spirit would speak
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to us and through us,
that we might say a word
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for Thee to Thy people,
that, God, that question
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might be answered
in the affirmative,
00:01:45.10\00:01:48.63
why are we here?
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And God, we give you
the praise, the honor,
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and every single
bit of the glory.
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Now move, God, by your
powers, sprinkle out your grace.
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When the appeal time
comes, move in this place.
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It's in Jesus' name we pray.
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Amen.
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Why are we here?
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As I shared a little earlier,
when I consider the state
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of our world
today, we're in trouble.
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We've got unrest in Egypt.
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We've got a football player
who is a multi-millionaire,
00:02:29.40\00:02:36.23
who has everything a
23-year-old could ever dream
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of, cars, homes, money, but
now yet he is sitting in jail,
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no bail, arrested for murder.
00:02:49.06\00:02:54.20
We've got the Zimmerman trial
going on in Florida, where you
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need to understand that
racial overtones are heavy.
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Emotions are running high,
the arguments have been made
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both by the
prosecution and the defense,
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the jury is now deliberating,
and in every major city
00:03:11.86\00:03:18.70
in the U.S. the nation
is bracing for the aftermath
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of the verdict.
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Last week, 19 firefighters
in Arizona lose their lives
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fighting wildfires.
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Which means now
somebody doesn't have a father,
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a husband, a coworker,
they don't have a friend.
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And we just say to
ourselves, oh, that's so sad,
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because commonplace is
tragedy, and so now we become
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desensitized by somebody's loss.
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Then last Sabbath, a week
ago today, the San Francisco
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International
Airport is shut down.
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Asiana Airlines plane goes
down in San Francisco, killing
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now three people, and
I just say it was nothing
00:04:03.43\00:04:06.43
but the grace of God.
00:04:06.43\00:04:07.50
Because when you look at
that plane, it was supposed
00:04:07.50\00:04:10.76
to be more than three
people who were killed,
00:04:10.76\00:04:13.93
and a dozen others injured.
00:04:13.93\00:04:16.53
Then, since we've
seen one another last,
00:04:16.53\00:04:19.03
the Supreme Court overturns
the Defense of Marriage Act.
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And so what the
Bible has defined as
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a sacred institution
between a man and a woman
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is now being changed by man,
which shouldn't surprise us,
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because that's what man
has done with God's Sabbath.
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Changed what God has
said into what man has said,
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which further illustrates
the fact that what God
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instituted in the Garden
of Eden, which is the family
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and the Sabbath,
they're both being attacked.
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Compromised by man,
making what is right appear
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wrong and what is
wrong appear right.
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Syria is still out of control.
00:05:00.70\00:05:06.86
War is still
rampant in the Middle East.
00:05:06.86\00:05:10.16
Crime is still on the
rise in the United States.
00:05:10.16\00:05:13.40
People can't find jobs,
homes are being destroyed
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daily, and with all that
is going on in our world,
00:05:17.03\00:05:20.80
a church-goer asks the
question, "Why are we here?
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What's our purpose?
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Is there really a God?
00:05:31.00\00:05:35.63
Is all of this worth it?
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Why do we come to church?
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Why are we here?"
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It's no secret
today that what people
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look for in church
today is totally different
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and radically different
than what they looked for
00:05:46.93\00:05:48.93
in a church yesterday.
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You see, my parents' age group
--some of you went to school
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with my folks, and so
some of you fall in this same
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category --my parents' age group
went to church and whatever
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was said from
pulpit, whatever was preached
00:06:01.13\00:06:04.03
from the pulpit,
whether you liked it or not,
00:06:04.03\00:06:06.33
you did it and
you didn't ask why.
00:06:06.33\00:06:09.90
My age group now goes to
church, and whatever is said
00:06:09.90\00:06:14.76
from the pulpit, while they
still do it, they still ask why.
00:06:14.76\00:06:19.43
But the age group underneath
me, if they even go to church,
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they don't necessarily do
what is said from the pulpits,
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and they don't respond
well to "because I said so."
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They want to know why.
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In case you didn't
know, times have changed.
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And so have people.
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The needs of
people are changing.
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No longer can the
church be an exclusive club
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where the elite come
to socialize and see who's
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here and who's not.
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No longer can the church
be Showtime at the Apollo,
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where it's amateur hour and
any and everybody can get up
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and do whatever they want.
00:07:02.53\00:07:04.20
No longer can the
church operate with an 8-track
00:07:04.20\00:07:07.53
mentality in a DVD society.
00:07:07.53\00:07:10.73
No longer can the church be
a place where it merely goes
00:07:10.73\00:07:13.93
along to get along, just
going through the motions,
00:07:13.93\00:07:17.26
day after day, those
motions of week after week,
00:07:17.26\00:07:20.83
another month, another
year of recycling hymns,
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restating
responses, repeating events
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or special days, or
rehearsing the same sermons.
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No longer can the church
be a place that just hurls out
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directions, states rules
and regulations, and thinks
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no one would question
why it does what it does,
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when it does what it does,
and how it does what it does.
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The needs today of
people are different.
00:07:53.73\00:07:59.20
There's a phenomenon
on the horizon called
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post-modernism which
says there are no moral
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absolutes, that
there is no absolute truth.
00:08:08.43\00:08:12.96
Your truth is your truth.
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My truth is my truth.
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You believe what you want
to believe, I'll believe what I
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want to believe, and as
long as you stay over there
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with what you believe and
I stay over here with what
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I believe, we'll all be fine.
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People's needs are changing.
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People are looking for a place
where their needs can be met.
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No, let me be clear.
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The church I'm representing
this morning is not necessarily
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a building.
00:08:42.30\00:08:44.30
Because there are a lot
of people in the building
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but not the body.
00:08:47.43\00:08:49.66
In the sanctuary
but not in the spirit.
00:08:49.66\00:08:53.76
The church rather, I grew
up in the Adventist church,
00:08:53.76\00:08:58.20
and we called it a movement.
00:08:58.20\00:09:00.66
The church is a people
or a movement of people who
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understand spiritual things,
who live in spiritual places,
00:09:04.46\00:09:08.00
because it's
possible when Jesus comes back
00:09:08.00\00:09:10.63
for his church that
there will be some people
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still sitting in the building.
00:09:12.86\00:09:16.20
Let me be clear today
as I'm being real today.
00:09:16.20\00:09:18.26
The Lord is not impressed
with you because you got up
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this morning,
put on your clothes,
00:09:22.56\00:09:25.23
and came to this building.
00:09:25.23\00:09:27.16
Because you can still
come to church but not be
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a part of the church.
00:09:29.90\00:09:32.36
In case you didn't know,
the devil came here today too.
00:09:32.36\00:09:36.53
As a matter of fact, the
devil has a better record
00:09:36.53\00:09:39.16
of attendance than most of us.
00:09:39.16\00:09:41.56
And I want you to understand
that no longer today are people
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staying at churches because
Momma and Daddy are there.
00:09:45.83\00:09:49.40
No longer are people staying
at churches out of loyalty
00:09:49.40\00:09:52.16
or allegiance.
00:09:52.16\00:09:53.16
No longer are people staying
at church because of prestige
00:09:53.16\00:09:56.16
or position.
00:09:56.16\00:09:57.23
No longer are people staying
at churches just to go through
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form, fashion, ritual
without deliverance, healing
00:09:59.93\00:10:04.73
and breakthrough.
00:10:04.73\00:10:05.73
So, why are we here?
00:10:05.73\00:10:08.10
Why are we even at church?
00:10:10.20\00:10:13.23
Why do we even come to Oakwood?
00:10:13.23\00:10:15.83
As I offer my reasons for
why we're here, let me first
00:10:18.16\00:10:21.36
set a foundation.
00:10:21.36\00:10:24.33
Number one, I'm here
because I believe in God.
00:10:24.33\00:10:33.16
Let me say that one more te.
00:10:33.16\00:10:35.53
I'm here because
I believe in God.
00:10:35.53\00:10:42.73
I believe that before we were
even thought of, there was God.
00:10:42.73\00:10:51.36
I believe that at the snap
of His fingers, the heavens
00:10:51.36\00:10:56.50
were made.
00:10:56.50\00:10:58.20
I believe at the
clap of his hands,
00:10:58.20\00:11:01.73
worlds on top of worlds
swung yonder into space.
00:11:01.73\00:11:06.63
I believe that at the
mere command of his lips
00:11:06.63\00:11:11.13
that the earth was formed.
00:11:11.13\00:11:12.63
The Bible says in the beginning
God created the heavens
00:11:12.63\00:11:17.73
and the earth.
00:11:17.73\00:11:18.96
In the beginning, in John 1:1
the Word says, "In the beginning
00:11:18.96\00:11:22.76
the Word was the Word,
the Word was God, and the Word
00:11:22.76\00:11:26.20
was with God." And so
though I've never seen God,
00:11:26.20\00:11:31.76
I have faith to believe
and know there is a God.
00:11:31.76\00:11:35.06
Faith is
believing what I can't see.
00:11:35.06\00:11:39.20
Faith is the substance of
things hoped for, the evidence
00:11:39.20\00:11:42.93
of things not seen.
00:11:42.93\00:11:44.00
Without faith it is
impossible to please God.
00:11:44.00\00:11:47.10
Those that come to God
must come to him and seek him
00:11:47.10\00:11:50.56
because God is the
reward of those that diligently
00:11:50.56\00:11:52.76
seek him.
00:11:52.76\00:11:53.76
Faith cometh by hearing,
hearing by the Word of God,
00:11:53.76\00:11:56.03
and the Word of God
says the Son of God,
00:11:56.03\00:11:58.63
Jesus Christ, built his church.
00:11:58.63\00:12:01.20
And his church is built upon
the rock, and the gates of hell
00:12:01.20\00:12:04.33
shall should not
prevail against it.
00:12:04.33\00:12:06.33
So I believe in God.
00:12:06.33\00:12:08.10
I believe God set up his
church, and if God said it,
00:12:08.10\00:12:14.60
that settles it.
00:12:14.60\00:12:16.23
Number two, and I'll
say this one quickly.
00:12:16.23\00:12:19.46
I believe that
God's church is God's body
00:12:19.46\00:12:24.06
of which Jesus, the
Son of God, is the head.
00:12:24.06\00:12:28.80
Pastor Byrd is not the head.
00:12:28.80\00:12:31.43
God is the head.
00:12:31.43\00:12:33.40
The conference is not the head.
00:12:33.40\00:12:36.03
God is the head.
00:12:36.03\00:12:37.80
The general
conference is not the head.
00:12:37.80\00:12:40.00
God is the head of the
church, through the Holy Ghost,
00:12:40.00\00:12:44.16
understand, the church, we
are baptized into one body.
00:12:44.16\00:12:48.30
You see, church means ecclesia.
00:12:48.30\00:12:50.20
God's called out.
00:12:50.20\00:12:51.33
God's called out people.
00:12:51.33\00:12:54.40
Believers are
members of his body.
00:12:54.40\00:12:57.90
Christ is the head of the
body, the head of his church.
00:12:57.90\00:13:01.83
And so now, number three.
00:13:01.83\00:13:03.13
This is the one I'm
going to spend time on,
00:13:03.13\00:13:06.10
my final point.
00:13:06.10\00:13:08.26
Not only do I believe in God,
not only do I believe God's body
00:13:08.26\00:13:14.60
is his church and
Jesus is the head.
00:13:14.60\00:13:17.00
But the reason why I'm
here, number three, is because
00:13:17.00\00:13:20.23
I'm obedient to God.
00:13:20.23\00:13:22.20
I'm obedient to God.
00:13:22.20\00:13:24.56
Now, the Word of God
says, "Remember the Sabbath day,
00:13:24.56\00:13:32.06
to keep it holy.
00:13:32.06\00:13:33.06
Six days shalt thou
labor and do all they work.
00:13:33.06\00:13:37.03
But the seventh day is
the Sabbath of the Lord
00:13:37.03\00:13:40.33
thy God: in it thou shalt not
do any work, thou, nor thy son,
00:13:40.33\00:13:42.56
nor thy
daughter, thy manservant,
00:13:42.56\00:13:43.66
nor thy maidservant, nor
thy cattle, nor thy stranger
00:13:43.66\00:13:45.73
that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the Lord
00:13:45.73\00:13:47.73
made heaven and earth, the
sea, and all that in them is,
00:13:47.73\00:13:49.73
and rested the seventh
day: wherefore the Lord blessed
00:13:49.73\00:13:51.73
the sabbath day,
and hallowed it."
00:13:51.73\00:13:53.73
Then the Bible goes on
in Leviticus 23:3 and says
00:13:53.73\00:13:57.86
that God's Sabbath is
to be a holy convocation.
00:13:57.86\00:14:02.20
Which means it's to be
a holy coming together.
00:14:02.20\00:14:06.63
But then I go to the
New Testament and I read
00:14:06.63\00:14:08.63
our scripture of the
day, Hebrews 10:25, let us not
00:14:08.63\00:14:11.30
forsake "the assembling
of ourselves together,
00:14:11.30\00:14:14.23
as the manner of some is;
but exhorting one another:
00:14:14.23\00:14:16.23
and so much the more, as
ye see the day approaching."
00:14:16.23\00:14:23.06
Now, I'll break this down,
then I'm going to sit down.
00:14:23.06\00:14:25.26
The New International Version
puts it this way, and I like it.
00:14:25.26\00:14:28.26
It says, verse 24, "Let
us consider how we may spur
00:14:28.26\00:14:33.93
one another on
toward love and good deeds.
00:14:33.93\00:14:37.90
Let us not give up
meetings together are some
00:14:37.90\00:14:41.36
are in the habit of
doing, but let us encourage
00:14:41.36\00:14:44.00
one another, and all
the more as you see the day
00:14:44.00\00:14:46.76
fast approaching." Which means,
friends of mine, coming together
00:14:46.76\00:14:50.83
is important to our spiritual
growth and in our spiritual
00:14:50.83\00:14:54.96
encouragement.
00:14:54.96\00:14:58.26
Coming together is important
to our spiritual growth
00:14:58.26\00:15:01.90
and encouragement.
00:15:01.90\00:15:02.93
We are to spur one another on.
00:15:02.93\00:15:06.80
To those things that will
help us grow as believers.
00:15:06.80\00:15:09.23
You see, we come into
the sanctuary, we come
00:15:09.23\00:15:11.23
to church to learn.
00:15:11.23\00:15:12.50
We come to sing praises.
00:15:12.50\00:15:14.33
We come to pray in
Christian gatherings.
00:15:14.33\00:15:17.16
There is strength in numbers.
00:15:17.16\00:15:19.76
There is strength
when the people of God
00:15:19.76\00:15:22.23
touch and agree and
call on the name of the Lord
00:15:22.23\00:15:25.03
together.
00:15:25.03\00:15:26.03
God said wherever there are two
or three gathered in my name,
00:15:26.03\00:15:29.83
I will be in the midst.
00:15:29.83\00:15:31.50
When I pastored in Soso
Mississippi I live that text.
00:15:31.50\00:15:35.26
Because there were literally
two or three of us gathered
00:15:35.26\00:15:37.73
in the midst.
00:15:37.73\00:15:38.73
Come on, say amen.
00:15:38.73\00:15:40.73
But that's why I got
out of bed this morning.
00:15:42.20\00:15:46.36
That's why I put on
this suit this morning.
00:15:46.36\00:15:49.60
That's why I came to church
this morning, because I get
00:15:49.60\00:15:52.86
strength when I
come to the house of God.
00:15:52.86\00:15:55.46
I get strength when I come
and I worship with like-minded
00:15:55.46\00:15:59.80
believers.
00:15:59.80\00:16:00.86
Yes, a personal
relationship with Jesus Christ
00:16:00.86\00:16:03.83
is an individual experience.
00:16:03.83\00:16:05.80
It's far from a
private experience.
00:16:05.80\00:16:08.36
You see, when you become
a Christian, yes, your faith
00:16:08.36\00:16:12.40
is not dependent
upon anyone else.
00:16:12.40\00:16:15.10
Each of us is saved by
our own trust in Jesus Christ.
00:16:15.10\00:16:17.23
But when a person
becomes a believer in Christ,
00:16:17.23\00:16:19.23
that person becomes a
part of the family of God,
00:16:19.23\00:16:21.23
which is God's church.
00:16:21.23\00:16:22.26
Just like a baby is
born in to a family,
00:16:22.26\00:16:24.50
and that baby grows and matures,
so Christians are born and they
00:16:24.50\00:16:27.80
mature in Christian
families that help believers
00:16:27.80\00:16:30.93
go and mature.
00:16:30.93\00:16:34.86
Although we can pray and
worship, yes, on our own,
00:16:34.86\00:16:37.20
we're told by Christ to
do these things together.
00:16:37.20\00:16:40.96
Sometimes we need to be
taught and led in worship.
00:16:40.96\00:16:49.30
God in God's providence may use
somebody else to bring a word
00:16:49.30\00:16:54.23
or song to you that the Bible
says in James 5 may convert
00:16:54.23\00:16:57.30
a sinner from the error
from his way and save his soul
00:16:57.30\00:17:00.70
from death.
00:17:00.70\00:17:01.86
Now, let me make this practical.
00:17:01.86\00:17:05.03
God can use anybody.
00:17:05.03\00:17:11.50
I said, God can use anybody.
00:17:11.50\00:17:17.66
If God spoke through a donkey,
then sure enough, God can speak
00:17:17.66\00:17:25.73
through you and me.
00:17:25.73\00:17:27.56
You see, let me be practical
and plain, when I come to God's
00:17:27.56\00:17:31.13
house, it doesn't
matter who's preaching.
00:17:31.13\00:17:35.50
It matters not who's singing.
00:17:35.50\00:17:38.26
I hear people all the time.
00:17:38.26\00:17:39.56
If so-and-so's
preaching, I'm not going.
00:17:39.56\00:17:42.00
If a certain choir is
singing, I'm not going.
00:17:42.00\00:17:44.23
He doesn't do a thing for me.
00:17:44.23\00:17:45.53
She doesn't do a thing for me.
00:17:45.53\00:17:46.83
They don't do a thing for me.
00:17:46.83\00:17:48.13
And you've got
the wrong attitude.
00:17:48.13\00:17:51.36
That's your loss.
00:17:51.36\00:17:53.93
Because God can use the
preacher you don't like,
00:17:53.93\00:17:57.60
the singer you don't
like, the choir you don't like
00:17:57.60\00:18:01.36
to be a blessing for your life.
00:18:01.36\00:18:03.73
And you're not hurting
the preacher or the singer,
00:18:03.73\00:18:06.00
but you're hurting
yourself and depriving yourself
00:18:06.00\00:18:08.60
from what God has for you.
00:18:08.60\00:18:10.00
If somebody knows what
God has for me, it is for me.
00:18:10.00\00:18:14.80
We need to be taught
and led by others sometimes.
00:18:14.80\00:18:19.46
It may not be what we
want, but it's what we need.
00:18:19.46\00:18:25.36
We need collective worship.
00:18:25.36\00:18:27.70
We need corporate worship.
00:18:27.70\00:18:29.73
There's a blessing when we
come together and collectively
00:18:29.73\00:18:33.00
discuss the
Sabbath school lesson.
00:18:33.00\00:18:35.80
There may be something
in the Sabbath school lesson
00:18:35.80\00:18:37.80
that I don't see that
one of my class members see.
00:18:37.80\00:18:40.16
There's a blessing when we come
into the sanctuary and we sing
00:18:40.16\00:18:43.90
"We Have This Hope" in
the coming of the Lord.
00:18:43.90\00:18:46.83
There's a blessing when we
sing together, "Come, thou fount
00:18:46.83\00:18:50.26
of every blessing,
through my heart to sing
00:18:50.26\00:18:52.96
and praise."
00:18:52.96\00:18:53.96
There's a blessing when we pray
together, when we sing together,
00:18:53.96\00:18:57.33
when we read the Word of God,
when we hear the Word of God
00:18:57.33\00:19:01.06
together.
00:19:01.06\00:19:04.53
There's an even better blessing
when we worship together
00:19:04.53\00:19:10.16
with variety.
00:19:10.16\00:19:12.26
It's getting quiet in here now.
00:19:12.26\00:19:15.66
Somebody say variety.
00:19:15.66\00:19:18.03
There's a blessing
when collectively we come
00:19:18.03\00:19:21.56
and worship with variety,
and even in our cultural
00:19:21.56\00:19:26.03
differences.
00:19:26.03\00:19:27.03
Variety is the spice of life.
00:19:27.03\00:19:31.26
That's one of the things I
love about being a Seventh-day
00:19:31.26\00:19:34.63
Adventist Christian.
00:19:34.63\00:19:36.00
It's a worldwide movement.
00:19:36.00\00:19:39.70
To be able to travel and see
different and a variety of ways
00:19:39.70\00:19:43.10
through the lenses of people's
cultural norms and how they
00:19:43.10\00:19:46.76
worship God on God's
Sabbath is a wonderful thing.
00:19:46.76\00:19:50.56
For example, let me put it
to you this way, make it plain:
00:19:50.56\00:19:54.20
the way we sing "What A
Friend We Have In Jesus"
00:19:54.20\00:19:59.80
is not the same way they
sing it in an African village.
00:19:59.80\00:20:05.46
And I know what I'm talking
about because I've been there.
00:20:05.46\00:20:08.20
There is a drum.
00:20:08.20\00:20:13.66
There is a beat.
00:20:13.66\00:20:16.16
There is syncopation.
00:20:16.16\00:20:18.70
And when you hear it in that
African village, it's beautiful.
00:20:18.70\00:20:24.70
The way it's sung in that
African village, "What A Friend
00:20:24.70\00:20:28.33
We Have In Jesus," is
not the same way it's sung
00:20:28.33\00:20:32.73
on a Caribbean island.
00:20:32.73\00:20:35.10
Somebody's from
the islands, they know
00:20:35.10\00:20:37.10
what I'm talking about.
00:20:37.10\00:20:38.10
When I go to Jamaica
and I preach, and they sing
00:20:38.10\00:20:43.73
"What A Friend
We Have In Jesus,"
00:20:43.73\00:20:47.60
someone from the
islands, you know, they echo
00:20:47.60\00:20:50.06
each measure.
00:20:50.06\00:20:51.86
What a friend we have
in, what a friend we in,
00:20:51.86\00:20:55.40
all our sins and griefs to,
all our sings and griefs to."
00:20:55.40\00:20:59.26
And I just marvel.
00:20:59.26\00:21:02.76
When we come to
Oakwood, the organ leads us,
00:21:02.76\00:21:13.00
it drives us, and we sing it.
00:21:13.00\00:21:18.73
But the way that it's
sung in Africa is not wrong.
00:21:18.73\00:21:22.46
The way that it's sung
in Jamaica is not wrong.
00:21:22.46\00:21:26.43
The way we sing it at Oakwood
is not wrong, it's just based
00:21:26.43\00:21:31.30
on our cultural norms.
00:21:31.30\00:21:33.93
I've been to three camp meetings
in three weeks, preaching
00:21:33.93\00:21:36.66
the past three
Sabbaths, and I've had to preach
00:21:36.66\00:21:39.03
three different
sermons because some of you all
00:21:39.03\00:21:41.03
have been
watching on the Internet.
00:21:41.03\00:21:43.03
Come on, say amen.
00:21:43.03\00:21:45.30
And I've been in
three different places.
00:21:45.30\00:21:47.30
Somebody says, well,
preach the same thing over.
00:21:47.30\00:21:49.30
I said, no, them folk been
watching and then they'll put
00:21:49.30\00:21:51.30
on there, "He
preached the same thing."
00:21:51.30\00:21:53.30
[laughter] Tell the truth.
00:21:53.30\00:21:55.10
shame the Devil,
Somebody else tell me, "Ooh,
00:21:55.10\00:21:56.66
Paster, you sure
preached last Sabbath." I said,
00:21:56.66\00:21:58.90
"I can't preach that this
Sabbath, Lord have mercy."
00:21:58.90\00:22:01.96
I've been to three different
camp meetings, three consecutive
00:22:03.90\00:22:07.33
Sabbaths, and all of
them corporately worship
00:22:07.33\00:22:12.33
in different ways.
00:22:12.33\00:22:14.30
Same denomination, same country,
same language, same Sabbath.
00:22:14.30\00:22:23.73
New Mexico was a certain way.
00:22:23.73\00:22:26.90
Pennsylvania was a certain way.
00:22:26.90\00:22:29.86
New York was a certain way.
00:22:29.86\00:22:33.10
But I received a blessing
in each place that I went to.
00:22:33.10\00:22:40.23
My lips were not poked out
because they didn't do it like
00:22:40.23\00:22:43.73
we do it at Oakwood.
00:22:43.73\00:22:46.13
I didn't have rocks in my jaws
because they didn't sing the way
00:22:46.13\00:22:50.53
I wanted them to sing.
00:22:50.53\00:22:52.16
But my personal
spiritual experience grew
00:22:52.16\00:22:55.50
because of the
collective spiritual experience.
00:22:55.50\00:22:58.56
Unity does not mean uniformity.
00:22:58.56\00:23:01.06
Let me be clear.
00:23:05.63\00:23:06.63
We bowl down the alley.
00:23:06.63\00:23:11.06
I am blessed when the
voices of inspiration sing.
00:23:11.06\00:23:15.90
I am blessed, Sister Myles,
when the church chorale sings.
00:23:17.73\00:23:24.83
I am blessed when the
children's choir sings.
00:23:24.83\00:23:30.63
I am blessed when
the youth choir sings.
00:23:30.63\00:23:35.30
I am blessed when
the Aeolians sing.
00:23:35.30\00:23:38.93
I'm blessed when Dynamic Praise
and the Voices of Triumph sing.
00:23:38.93\00:23:43.66
I'm blessed when
Dr. Osterman plays.
00:23:43.66\00:23:48.26
I'm blessed when
Brother Jimmy Wilson plays.
00:23:48.26\00:23:52.20
I'm blessed when
Steven Manders plays.
00:23:52.20\00:23:56.10
I'm blessed and, no, I can't
be here every week and hear
00:23:56.10\00:24:01.46
everybody sing and play
all the time, and that does not
00:24:01.46\00:24:04.33
mean I like one
group over the other.
00:24:04.33\00:24:07.60
I've got an assignment
from the almighty God to go
00:24:09.23\00:24:14.70
preach this gospel into
all the world, amen, somebody.
00:24:14.70\00:24:19.73
But when I'm here,hen I
watch the DVD, I'm blessed.
00:24:19.73\00:24:26.03
And there's a blessing when
I come to collective worship
00:24:26.03\00:24:28.03
and experience the differences
these cultural norms represent.
00:24:28.03\00:24:30.86
And who am I to
judge the authenticity,
00:24:30.86\00:24:35.10
the legitimacy, the
genuineness of the people
00:24:35.10\00:24:37.83
worshiping God out of
these cultural norms and one's
00:24:37.83\00:24:40.53
cultural experience?
00:24:40.53\00:24:43.30
Let me tell you all something.
00:24:43.30\00:24:45.76
When I come to church on
Sabbath morning, I don't care
00:24:45.76\00:24:47.46
where I am.
00:24:47.46\00:24:49.26
Alabama, Paris, France,
where I don't understand what
00:24:49.26\00:24:52.53
they're saying and they
don't know what I'm saying,
00:24:52.53\00:24:54.16
I just say, "God is love."
00:24:54.16\00:24:55.03
Come on, say amen, somebody.
00:24:55.03\00:24:56.76
I just say, "Happy Sabbath,"
and they say "Bon Sabba"
00:24:56.76\00:25:00.16
back to me.
00:25:00.16\00:25:00.73
Come on, say amen.
00:25:00.73\00:25:01.80
When I go to the
Spanish country, feliz Sabbado,
00:25:01.80\00:25:04.30
happy Sabbath.
00:25:04.30\00:25:06.33
When I come to
worship God on God's Sabbath,
00:25:06.33\00:25:11.56
I come to worship God.
00:25:11.56\00:25:13.50
I come to praise God.
00:25:13.50\00:25:15.40
I'm not looking at whether
your heart is right or wrong.
00:25:15.40\00:25:20.16
Because the reality is, I don't
even know what's on your hearts.
00:25:20.16\00:25:24.36
I leave the judging of the
heart to God and God alone.
00:25:24.36\00:25:28.06
I've got my eyes fixed on Jesus.
00:25:28.06\00:25:31.73
Let me tell you something.
00:25:31.73\00:25:32.73
To live in this
world today is rough.
00:25:32.73\00:25:37.20
To live in 2013 is rough.
00:25:38.20\00:25:43.96
It's rough. It's tough,
it's more than a notion.
00:25:43.96\00:25:49.00
People will come up here
and preach, people come up here
00:25:49.00\00:25:51.00
and sing, and you have no
idea what they're going through.
00:25:51.00\00:25:54.20
I'll tell my own testimony.
00:25:56.33\00:25:57.50
My wife and I, for the past
few months, we're holding down
00:25:57.50\00:26:01.16
two households.
00:26:01.16\00:26:02.30
The house here in Huntsville,
the house in Atlanta.
00:26:02.30\00:26:06.06
And guess what?
00:26:06.06\00:26:07.06
It can get rough.
00:26:07.06\00:26:09.40
But that's why I thank
you today, Dr. Morris, because
00:26:09.40\00:26:11.86
I once was young, but now
I'm old, but I've never seen
00:26:11.86\00:26:15.93
the righteous forsaken
nor his seed begging bread.
00:26:15.93\00:26:21.23
Are you hearing what I'm saying?
00:26:21.23\00:26:23.43
There are times, because life
is rough, in our lives that we
00:26:23.43\00:26:26.20
may have many
different things hitting us
00:26:26.20\00:26:28.20
from different directions.
00:26:28.20\00:26:29.20
And oftentimes it's difficult
to make sense out of life
00:26:29.20\00:26:32.66
when you're confronted
with attack on every angle.
00:26:32.66\00:26:34.90
But if you've ever experienced
the Lord, if you've ever let God
00:26:34.90\00:26:41.50
move you, if you've ever had God
touch you on a personal level
00:26:41.50\00:26:46.56
and seen God do things in
your lives that you thought
00:26:46.56\00:26:49.56
were impossible, then it's clear
that it's impossible for you
00:26:49.56\00:26:53.13
not to give God some praise.
00:26:53.13\00:26:55.13
When I worship God, I'm trying
to find strength where I can
00:26:55.13\00:26:59.60
get strength.
00:26:59.60\00:27:01.56
Try to find some
power where I can get power.
00:27:01.56\00:27:05.13
Let me tell you something.
00:27:05.13\00:27:06.66
God does not need what
we're offering him in worship.
00:27:06.66\00:27:09.90
We need it.
00:27:09.90\00:27:10.90
It's not like God is
sitting back talking about,
00:27:10.90\00:27:12.90
if you all don't worship,
you're all not going to get it.
00:27:12.90\00:27:15.06
Naw, he doesn't say that.
00:27:15.06\00:27:16.06
We need to worship God so that
we can tap into God's strength.
00:27:16.06\00:27:18.20
PB: Thank you very much
for tuning in and watching
00:27:19.16\00:27:21.06
Breath of Life today.
00:27:21.06\00:27:22.06
We do hope that you were
blessed by our ministry and that
00:27:22.06\00:27:25.86
we gave a healing
word in a hurting world.
00:27:25.86\00:27:30.16
In order for Breath of
Life to continue ministry,
00:27:30.16\00:27:32.63
we need you.
00:27:32.63\00:27:33.83
We need your
prayers, we need your support.
00:27:33.83\00:27:36.70
We want you to know
that any and all donations,
00:27:36.70\00:27:39.03
small or great, they
are sincerely welcomed
00:27:39.03\00:27:41.83
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00:27:41.83\00:27:43.70
To contact us or to make
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00:27:43.70\00:27:46.83
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00:27:46.83\00:27:53.83
Or you may write to us at
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00:27:58.13\00:28:03.60
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00:28:03.60\00:28:06.50
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00:28:13.40\00:28:18.83
PB: As the world gets
worse, our church participation,
00:28:19.66\00:28:27.03
our church attendance and our
00:28:27.03\00:28:28.03