Participants: Carlton P. Byrd
Series Code: BOL
Program Code: BOL000170
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00:02 ♪ (Theme Song) ♪ ♪ Jesus is worthy ♪
00:12 ♪ oh yes, he's worthy ♪ ♪ worthy of all... ♪ 00:19 ♪ all the praise ♪ "Except the Lord build 00:24 the house, they labor in vain that builds it. 00:32 Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman 00:38 waketh but in vain." 00:39 I like the way the Good News Bible puts it. 00:41 It says, "If the Lord does not build the house, 00:44 the work of the builders is useless. 00:47 If the Lord does not protect the city, it is useless 00:52 for the sentries to stand guard." 00:54 Now, this text is often used at our church openings, 00:58 church dedications, renovations. 01:00 It's applicable, however, here because if you study 01:03 the context of the verse, David writes this psalm 01:06 to Solomon, giving him some godly advice on starting 01:10 a family. 01:11 David mentions two things. 01:14 In verse 1, that God can do for any family. 01:17 David says, God can build your family. 01:21 Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain 01:25 that build it. 01:26 Now, David in the text, is not talking about 01:29 consecrating or constructing a house or a building 01:33 per se; David's talking about building a family 01:37 and if anybody ought to know about building a family, David 01:40 ought to know what to do and what not to do. 01:43 Do I have a witness in this place? 01:44 [Aud. reaction] PB: In the text, 01:46 David is acknowledging God as the master home builder. 01:50 And if we're going to stop the satanic attacks on 01:52 the family, we've got to God be God. 01:55 Let God build our homes. 01:57 Let God build our families. 01:59 If you want a home that will last and survive, then you'd 02:01 better let God be the master home builder. 02:04 God invented the family. 02:06 God instituted the family. 02:08 God created the family. 02:09 And if God created the family, God knows what's best 02:12 for the family, God knows what will work and won't work. 02:15 God is the creator; we are creation. 02:18 God is shepherd; we are sheep. 02:20 We've got to let God build the house. 02:24 Now, any builder will tell you on any house you've got 02:32 to have good walls. 02:34 You've got to have a good roof. 02:37 But a builder will tell you that if you don't have 02:40 a good foundation, the house will shift, the house will move, 02:47 and ultimately the house will fall. 02:51 Do I have a witness in this place? 02:53 [Aud. reaction] PB: That's why Jesus told us 02:55 that the wise man built his house upon the 03:01 rock; the foolish man built his house upon the what, 03:04 everybody? 03:05 Aud.: Sand. 03:06 PB: The rains came down; the floods came up. 03:09 The wise man's house stood; the foolish man's house fell. 03:14 Today, you'd better build your house on a solid 03:16 foundation. 03:17 You'd better build your house upon the solid rock, 03:20 on Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground 03:25 is sinking sand. 03:26 If you're married with children, build on the rock. 03:29 If you're single and by yourself, build on the rock. 03:34 [Aud. reaction] PB: Verse 1 continues. 03:38 "Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman 03:45 waketh but in vain." 03:48 Which means not only number one, can God build our home, 03:52 but number two, God will protect our home. 03:57 What is a city? 03:58 A city is a group of families who live close 04:00 together. 04:01 The word "watch" means to protect, to guard, 04:06 to secure and save. 04:07 David then is saying, not only will God build your 04:10 home, but God will protect. 04:13 God will guard. 04:15 God will save and secure your family. 04:20 The family needs protection in our world today. 04:23 The world we live in, friends, we know 04:26 it's not safe. 04:27 There are burglars out there, prowlers out there, 04:30 robbers out there, intruders out there, criminals out 04:34 there, thieves out there. 04:36 The world we live in is not safe, and we need protection 04:40 from evil, satanic forces. 04:42 The devil and his demons want nothing more but to break 04:45 up and destroy our families. 04:48 But, if we let God build the house, if we let God protect 04:52 the house, then no weapon formed against you 04:55 is going to prosper. 04:56 It won't work. 04:57 If God be for us, who can be against us? 05:02 Unless the Lord builds your home, everything you do 05:05 is going to be in vain. 05:08 Unless the Lord builds your home, you're going 05:10 to experience turmoil, trouble and trial. 05:14 Unless the Lord builds your home, your plans 05:18 are going to fail. 05:19 But today, let God be God. 05:21 Acknowledge who God is, that God is the master builder. 05:26 Let God build your house. 05:28 But how else do we stop the attack on the family? 05:32 In addition to letting God, acknowledging who God is, 05:36 number two, you've got to read the building manual. 05:38 [Aud. reaction] PB: You can't just know 05:42 the builder, but you've got to read the building manual. 05:47 The B-I-B-L-E. 05:49 Yes, that's the book for me. 05:52 I stand alone on the Word of God. 05:55 The B-I-B-L-E. 05:56 There is a famine, listen to me, in the land, and it's not 05:59 for bread and water. 06:02 But there's a famine for the Word of God. 06:04 Let me tell you. 06:06 Let me be real. 06:07 Twenty-first century, people don't know the Bible 06:09 like they used to. 06:12 That's Christians, that's Seventh-Day Adventists. 06:16 Amen light. 06:17 Aud.: Amen. 06:18 PB: That's everybody. 06:19 We've got to return to Bible study, and that's not just 06:25 for new members. 06:27 That's old members too. 06:29 We've got to get back to the days where we 06:32 have family worship. 06:33 Where we read the Bible together. 06:36 If you have a large family, have family worship and read 06:40 the Bible. 06:41 If you have a small family, have small-family worship 06:44 and read the Bible. 06:45 If you just have you, yourself and I in your 06:48 house, have family worship by yourself, and read 06:52 the Bible. 06:53 Somebody asked me one time, Well, you're talking 06:55 about having family worship by myself. 06:57 Hw do I have family worship by myself? 06:59 I say, easy. 07:01 Put a CD in, have praise and worship. 07:06 Y'all don't know what I'm talking about. 07:08 Twenty years ago, when I started in this conference, 07:11 I pastored a church that had two members. 07:13 And I would go to prayer meetings sometimes, 07:17 and it would be me, myself and I. I did not shut the door, 07:21 turn off the lights of the church. 07:23 I cut on every light in that church. 07:25 I opened up every door in that church. 07:28 I took out--back then we had boomboxes. 07:30 Anybody remember those? 07:32 I put a cassette tape in my boombox. 07:34 I turned it up as loud as I could, and I would have 07:39 praise and worship in that church by myself. 07:41 I would read a passage of Scripture by myself. 07:46 I would then have a closing song--put another tape in. 07:49 Y'all don't hear what I'm saying. 07:51 [Aud. reaction] PB: And then me and Jesus 07:53 would have a benediction. 07:54 Do I have a witness in this place? 07:56 Pastor Byrd: We've got to have worship, 07:58 and we've got to read the Bible. 08:01 It was so amazing, when Danielle and I got married 08:03 we had our first worship. 08:05 It was just amazing that the same way we used 08:08 to have worship in my home was the same way she had worship 08:11 in her home. 08:13 And we would sit down and we'd have song service. 08:15 And after we had song service--we called it praise 08:18 and worship now, but it used to be song service. 08:20 And we would have song service together, 08:23 and then we would read the Morning Watch. 08:25 Do I have a witness in this place? 08:27 We would read the Morning Watch together, 08:30 then we would read the Bible together, and then recite 08:34 our favorite memory verse. 08:36 We'd have prayer requests. 08:37 We'd then say prayers, from the youngest 08:40 to the oldest. 08:41 Y'all don't hear what I'm saying. 08:43 And then after we'd finish praying, we would say, now, 08:46 does anybody remember? 08:47 Does anybody remember, at the end "Let the words of my 08:52 mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable 08:58 I thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer." 09:04 Amen! 09:05 Hallelujah, somebody! 09:06 [Aud. reaction] PB: We've got to get back 09:10 to reading the Bible. 09:13 And listen to me good. 09:16 I'm not just talking about watch the Bible on TV. 09:21 'Cause all this watching the Bible on TV 09:23 is not what the Bible says. 09:24 I'm not talking about just watching it on a DVD. 09:29 That's entertainment. 09:30 They embellish the story. 09:31 Y'all don't hear what I'm saying. 09:33 Nothing wrong with that, but that's not 09:36 what I'm talking about. 09:37 I'm not just talking about listening to the Bible 09:40 on a CD when you're driving in your car. 09:44 There's nothing wrong with that, but that's not what 09:47 I'm talking about. 09:48 Iím talking about get in your house, sit down 09:52 somewhere, and read the Word of God. 09:55 Get back to the basics. 09:56 Statistics say that even though 20 million Bibles 10:00 are sold annually in the U.S., and that's hardbacks, 10:05 that's not this soft stuff. 10:08 That's hardbacks, 20 million sold annually. 10:10 Only 59 percent of people read the Bible at least 10:14 casually. 10:16 That's down from 73 percent in 1980. 10:19 Less than half of all Americans can even name the first book 10:21 of the Bible. 10:25 One-fourth don't even know what is celebrated 10:28 on Easter. 10:29 Despite how much we talk about the importance 10:31 of the 10 Commandments and that they are the moral 10:33 health to society, only 4 out of 10 10:35 Americans can even name half of the commandments. 10:39 In fact, some Christians don't even know 10:43 what's in the Bible. 10:44 George Barna, the great church-growth specialist, 10:47 says that 80 percent of born-again Christians 10:50 believe the saying "God helps those who help themselves" 10:54 is in the Bible. 10:57 It trips me out when I hear people come up here and say 11:00 "The Word says, God helps those who help themselves." 11:05 Where does the Word say that? 11:08 Unless your Bible has been penned by Benjamin Franklin. 11:11 Do I have a witness in this place? 11:13 [Aud. reaction] PB: One-third of all Americans 11:16 don't even know who delivered the Sermon 11:19 on the Mount. 11:21 Many people think it was Billy Graham. 11:23 [Laughter] PB: But we've got 11:25 to make reading and studying the Word of God the focus 11:30 for our families. 11:32 Jesus said, "Search the Scriptures, 11:35 they testify of me." 11:37 It's in the home where the Word of God is taught and preserved. 11:41 It's in the home where sound doctrine is explained 11:45 and lived. 11:46 Ellen White says that the first school for a child 11:49 is in the home. 11:52 Parents must give the Scriptures priority 11:56 in the home, because God's Word is the necessary foundation. 11:58 Satan has done a masterful job at keeping families 12:01 so busy, we're so busy we don't have time 12:05 to read the Bible, let alone practice it 12:08 in our own lives. 12:09 Spending time in God's Word, spending time in waiting 12:13 upon the God is critical. 12:14 If Satan can keep our families too busy to read the Scriptures, 12:18 too busy to study the Scriptures, then our 12:21 families will lose our joy, lose our strength, 12:24 lose our effectiveness in the world. 12:26 So, let me tell you what to do practically. 12:29 Turn the Internet off! 12:33 Turn Facebook and Instagram off. 12:37 Take the ear plugs out. 12:40 Turn the telephone off! 12:44 Read the Bible. 12:46 Turn the television off. 12:51 Americans watch 1 billion hours of television 12:55 every day. 12:56 The average American watches nearly four hours of TV 12:59 every day. 13:00 Children and teens spend more time in front 13:02 of the television than they do any other activity. 13:05 Even though our children spend 7 or 8 hours a day 13:07 at school during 9 months of the year, they actually 13:09 spend more time in front of the television. 13:11 One report indicates that an 18-year-old spends some 13:14 1500 hours a year before television, compared 13:17 to 900 hours in school. 13:18 Turn the TV off! 13:20 Aud.: Amen. 13:21 PB: Time must be taken to read, to study, 13:24 and pray together. 13:27 Time must be taken for the family to eat together. 13:31 I know that's troublesome for me even as well, 13:33 because I'm busy going here, there and everywhere. 13:35 But we've got to take time for the family to sit around 13:38 the dinner table. 13:39 Not take your food and go sit in front of the TV. 13:42 Sit around the dinner table, and spend some time together. 13:46 As families live out God's plan for them, 13:50 God will be glorified, families edified, 13:52 and the devil terrified. 13:54 Acknowledge who God is, the master builder. 13:57 Read God's manual and then spend time talking 14:00 to the builder. 14:01 [Aud. reaction] PB: How do you spend time 14:04 talking to the builder? 14:06 You spend time with the builder, talking to Him in prayer. 14:09 O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless 14:13 pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything 14:18 to God in prayer. 14:24 Have a little talk with Jesus. 14:27 Tell Him all about our troubles. 14:30 Hear our faintest cry, He'll answer by and by. 14:34 Have a talk with Jesus. 14:35 It makes it right. 14:36 It is in the home where the prayers are learned 14:38 and developed and practiced. 14:39 Our children learn to pray in the home. 14:41 We've got to challenge our family, friends, coworkers, 14:43 churches to pray more. 14:44 The family that prays together stays together. 14:49 "Knee-logy" will do more for the world than theology. 14:55 [Aud. reaction] PB: A man must get on his knees 14:59 before he gets up on his feet. 15:04 Ask and it shall be given, seek and ye shall find. 15:10 Knock and the door shall be opened unto you. 15:14 I've found the answer. 15:17 I've learned how to pray. 15:20 Jesus on the main line, tell Him what you want, call Him 15:27 up and tell Him what you want. 15:31 Prayer can't be answered unless prayers are prayed. 15:36 Because God honors no drafts where there are no deposits. 15:40 But when we pray. 15:44 I said when we pray, prayer brings us into the presence 15:48 of God. 15:49 Prayer changes things. 15:51 Prayer changes people. 15:53 Prayer unleashes the power of God in your life. 15:56 The devil can't stand you praying, but the devil can't 16:01 stop you from praying, and the devil can't stop my God 16:04 from answering prayer. 16:06 I wish I had a witness in this place, that God 16:08 will answer prayer. 16:09 And let me throw this in before I take my seat. 16:13 When you pray, don't expect a $1,000 answer 16:20 to a 10-cent prayer. 16:21 Get real with God. 16:31 Go in your secret closet. 16:34 Tell God all about it. 16:36 Stop all these canned prayers. 16:38 Stop them. 16:40 Pour out your heart to God. 16:43 Tell our God about it. 16:45 And what I love about the Lord is, the Lord won't tell 16:47 your secrets. 16:48 Aud.: Amen. 16:49 PB: And remember, strength in prayer is better that limp 16:56 in prayer. 16:59 Sound the alarm. 17:02 Church community, we're in a state of emergency. 17:06 Dial 9-1-1. 17:09 We're under attack. 17:14 But we don't have to dial just 9-1-1, we can dial 17:21 1-1-1 -- 1 for the Father, 1 for the Son, 17:28 and 1 for the Holy Ghost. 17:32 If we just let God build the house, let God protect 17:40 the city, let God be the foundation, let God 17:45 be God. 17:46 If we just read God's Word, spend time studying God's 17:50 Word. 17:51 Spend time talking to God in prayer, we can take back 17:53 our homes. 17:54 Take back our families. 17:57 Take back our marriages. 18:00 Take back our communities. 18:03 Our communities and churches. 18:05 Take back the world. 18:07 Let God build the house. 18:10 Listen to me: home construction begins 18:13 with us improving our relationship with God. 18:17 Home construction begins with our reliance on God. 18:20 Home construction begins with our letting God be God. 18:23 Home construction begins with reading about God. 18:25 Spend time with God, talk to God. 18:28 Except the Lord build the house. 18:30 Now, some of us today, some of us watching are not 18:40 in the fortunate position of home construction. 18:46 Because some already have a home built. 18:50 So what some of us need today is not home 18:52 construction, but what we need is home improvement. 19:00 Because things may be all right, but everything is not 19:06 what it should be. 19:08 Don't sit up here and act like you don't know what I'm 19:10 talking about. 19:12 Tell the truth. 19:13 Shame the devil. 19:16 All of us have made some mistakes in our lives. 19:19 Do I have a witness in this place? 19:22 But to get things right, we've got to go to God. 19:26 We've got to go ask Him for guidance and direction; 19:30 for home improvement. 19:32 We've got to ask God, God help us clean up the mess 19:36 we've made. 19:38 And there are four things I leave with you to remember 19:43 in home improvement. 19:45 Number one, in home improvement, remember, 19:47 it's different from home construction. 19:49 In home improvement, number one, it takes longer 19:53 than you planned. 19:54 Number two, it costs more than you figured. 19:59 Number three, home improvement is messier 20:02 than you anticipated. 20:03 Number four, it requires greater determination 20:07 and more patience than you expected. 20:10 It's not easy, home improvement, but with the Master 20:14 Builder home improvement can be done, and it's worth it. 20:21 A strong home begins with a strong marriage. 20:25 A strong marriage begets strong children. 20:28 Strong children beget strong families. 20:32 Strong families beget strong churches. 20:35 Strong churches beget strong communities. 20:37 Strong communities beget strong cities. 20:39 Strong cities beget strong nations. 20:42 9-1-1. 20:44 We're under attack! 20:46 [Aud. reaction] PB: But we overcome. 20:50 Let God build the house. 20:54 Let God be God. 20:57 Read God's Word. 20:59 Study God's Word. 21:02 Pray to God. 21:04 Because if we don't, the church will be debilitated; 21:10 the community will be devastated. 21:12 Our schools will be dominated, the world will be disintegrated, 21:15 the globe will be annihilated. 21:17 Let God build the house! 21:21 Glorify God's church, fortify each other, rectify 21:27 the wrong, care about the community, satisfy 21:29 the family, sanctify the children, unify the world, 21:33 dignify yourself and magnify the Lord! 21:37 Today, if you're a man, be a man. 21:43 I said, be a man. 21:45 Walk like a man, talk like a man, 21:50 dress like a man, act like a man. 21:54 If you're a woman, be a woman. 21:57 Walk like a woman, talk like a woman, act like a woman, 22:03 dress and cover yourself up like a woman! 22:06 And if you're a woman, let the man be the man! 22:15 If you're single, don't mope around. 22:21 You and Jesus, tonight Saturday night, you 22:24 and Jesus, snuggle up with some popcorn. 22:29 You and Jesus, wrap yourself up in a blanket, and tell 22:32 somebody, I'm all right, 'cause I'm wrapped up, 22:35 tied up, tangled up in Jesus! 22:38 He's all I need. 22:42 Men, if you've been beating on that woman, stop. 22:51 If you've been mentally, physically or sexually 22:54 abusing that woman, stop. 22:55 Ladies, if you've been disrespecting that man, 23:00 stop. 23:01 If you've been playing mind games on that man, stop. 23:07 It's time to take back our families. 23:10 To the divorced folk out there, 'cause a lot of times 23:15 you feel ostracized. 23:16 To the divorced people out there, if you're divorced, 23:21 God still loves you. 23:24 He still does. 23:26 There is therefore no condemnation to those 23:30 who are in Christ Jesus. 23:32 Pull yourself together. 23:35 Trust God. 23:36 If you're a single parent raising your family 23:38 by yourself, God loves you too. 23:41 Just hang in there, don't give up, don't give out. 23:47 Hang on in there. 23:49 We've got to take back our families. 23:53 If you're mad with our mother, 23:56 if you're mad with your father, 24:01 let it go. 24:02 Let it go. 24:03 Let God handle things for you. 24:06 If you've made a mistake in your relationship 24:08 or your marriage, forgive yourself, 24:10 because God has already forgiven you. 24:18 Stop letting the devil make a slave out of you. 24:22 Husbands, forgive your wives. 24:27 Wives, forgive your husbands. 24:33 God has already forgiven us. 24:38 Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain. 24:49 I praise God, Danielle and I are coming up on 17 years. 24:53 Oh, hallelujah, somebody. 24:55 [Aud. reaction] PB: Of marriage. 25:00 With all the rigors of ministry, with all the struggles 25:03 that people deal with, I praise God. 25:06 I think about people in this church, 25:08 and that's one thing while Iím here, 25:10 it will never stop. 25:11 That we celebrate when all these couples come up 25:13 here and they celebrate their wedding anniversaries. 25:16 Praise be to God. 25:18 To all the single folks, God loves you. 25:24 That's why in this church, you read in the bulletin, 25:26 you saw my e-mail. 25:27 We're about to start what I call 25:29 a single parent ministry. 25:33 Not a singles ministry, but a single parent ministry. 25:39 That's why on Sabbath afternoons we're starting 25:41 back again a divorce recovery ministry. 25:44 Because a lot of times the church has a blind eye 25:46 to the real world. 25:48 This thing is real. 25:49 Satan is attacking the family. 25:55 But praise God, somebody's able to say I may have messed 25:58 up, but today I've been changed. 26:02 I'm healed. 26:05 I'm free. 26:08 I'm delivered. 26:09 I found joy! 26:12 Peace! 26:12 Grace! 26:16 The Breath of Life gift offer this week is the book, 26:18 "The Ten Commandments Under Attack." God's law has 26:21 stirred controversy in recent years. 26:23 So, are the ten commandments out of date? 26:26 Offensive? 26:27 Find out how the ten commandments lay a solid 26:30 foundation for society and how each commandment 26:32 is so important to us every day. 26:34 Contributing authors include Dwight Nelson, 26:36 Clifford Goldstein and Mike Tucker. 26:38 There's also an introduction by Mark Finley. 26:40 Living by the ten commandments will bring blessings 26:43 to us, our families and our country. 26:45 "The Ten Commandments Under Attack" is yours for a gift 26:49 of $5 or more. 26:50 Just call our toll-free number: 877-BOL-OFFER. 26:55 That's 877-265-6333. 26:59 Please have your credit card ready when you call. 27:02 Or you may write us to request your copy. 27:04 Just send your check to Breath of Life, P.O. Box 340, 27:08 Newbury Park, CA 91319. 27:12 Get your copy of "The Ten Commandments Under Attack" 27:14 today. 27:17 PB: Thank you very much for tuning in and watching 27:19 Breath of Life today. 27:20 We do hope that you were blessed by our ministry 27:22 and that we gave a healing word in a hurting world. 27:27 In order for Breath of Life to continue in ministry, 27:30 we need you. 27:32 We need your prayers, we need your support. 27:35 We want you to know that any and all donations, 27:37 small or great, they are sincerely 27:39 welcomed and appreciated. 27:41 To contact us or to make your donations, please feel free 27:44 to give us a call at 877-BOL-OFFER. 27:49 That's 877-BOL-OFFER. 27:55 Or, you may write to us at Breath of Life, P.O. Box 340, 28:01 Newbury Park, CA 91319. 28:05 P.O. Box 340, Newbury Park, CA 91319. 28:10 Or log onto our website at www.BreathofLife.tv. 28:13 PB: We've got to return to Bible study. 28:19 And that's not just for new members, that's old members, 28:24 too. 28:25 We've got to get back to the days where we have family 28:28 worship, where we read |
Revised 2015-02-05