BREATH OF LIFE MINISTRIES PRESENTS: 00:00:03.00\00:00:07.64 SERMON B548 "I Will Bless The Lord" 00:00:07.67\00:00:13.94 [BREATH OF LIFE THEME MUSIC] 00:00:13.98\00:00:20.78 PB: First Samuel 21, verse 10. The Word says, 00:00:20.82\00:00:23.72 "And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, 00:00:23.75\00:00:26.12 and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants 00:00:26.15\00:00:30.63 of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? 00:00:30.66\00:00:34.03 Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, 00:00:34.10\00:00:37.33 Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? 00:00:37.37\00:00:40.54 And David laid up these words in his heart, 00:00:40.57\00:00:42.84 and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 00:00:42.87\00:00:44.91 And he changed his behaviour before them, 00:00:44.94\00:00:46.78 and feigned himself mad in their hands, 00:00:46.81\00:00:48.78 and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, 00:00:48.81\00:00:50.71 and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. 00:00:50.75\00:00:53.55 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, 00:00:53.58\00:00:55.45 ye see the man is mad?" In other words, he's crazy. 00:00:55.48\00:00:59.22 "Wherefore then have ye brought him to me? Have I 00:00:59.25\00:01:02.69 need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow 00:01:02.72\00:01:05.76 to play the mad man in my presence? shall this 00:01:05.79\00:01:08.00 fellow come into my house?" 00:01:08.03\00:01:09.53 Go to chapter 22, verse number 1, quickly. 00:01:09.56\00:01:12.23 Verse number 1. "David therefore departed thence, 00:01:12.27\00:01:14.47 and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his 00:01:14.50\00:01:16.87 brethren and all his father's house heard it, 00:01:16.91\00:01:18.81 they went down thither to him. And every one 00:01:18.84\00:01:20.98 that was in distress"--everybody say "distress." 00:01:21.01\00:01:24.08 Aud.: Distress. PB: "And every one that 00:01:24.11\00:01:25.98 was in debt"--everybody say "debt." Aud.: Debt. 00:01:26.01\00:01:27.48 PB: "And every one that was discontented"- 00:01:27.52\00:01:28.65 -everybody say "discontented." Aud.: Discontented. 00:01:28.68\00:01:29.98 PB: "Gathered themselves unto him; 00:01:30.02\00:01:31.89 and he became a captain over them: 00:01:31.92\00:01:33.86 and there were with him about four hundred"--what, everybody? 00:01:33.89\00:01:37.09 Aud.: Men. PB: Four hundred men. 00:01:37.13\00:01:38.63 Now quickly, these are the companion texts 00:01:38.66\00:01:40.60 to this song. Psalm 34. You know it. 00:01:40.63\00:01:47.90 I will bless the Lord. [Aud. reaction] 00:01:47.94\00:01:50.64 PB: At all times. And His praise--His what, everybody? 00:01:50.67\00:01:54.91 Aud.: Praise. PB: His praise shall continually be in my--what, everybody? 00:01:54.94\00:01:58.08 Aud.: Soul. PB: My soul shall make her 00:01:58.11\00:02:00.62 boast in the Lord. The humble shall hear 00:02:00.65\00:02:03.08 thereof and be glad. O, come, and magnify 00:02:03.12\00:02:06.09 the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. 00:02:06.12\00:02:13.46 Everybody, read after me. Say, "I will bless the Lord." 00:02:13.50\00:02:15.76 Aud.: I will bless the Lord. 00:02:15.80\00:02:17.33 PB: Father, that's what we've come, God, 00:02:17.37\00:02:18.77 to do to You today, to lift the name of 00:02:18.80\00:02:21.14 Jesus and bless Your name. So, as we preach 00:02:21.17\00:02:23.87 this message, God, move in the aisles of this church. 00:02:23.91\00:02:26.44 May Your people be alive and alert to receive 00:02:26.47\00:02:29.31 Your Word. Forgive me of my sins. Hide me 00:02:29.34\00:02:31.55 behind Your cross. In the name of Jesus we pray. 00:02:31.58\00:02:32.85 Let everyone say amen. Aud.: Amen. 00:02:32.88\00:02:34.32 PB: Amen. Let me begin this way, quickly. 00:02:34.35\00:02:37.25 We can never praise the Lord enough. 00:02:37.29\00:02:40.79 [Aud. reaction] PB: We can never give 00:02:40.82\00:02:43.69 God too much faith. God's been better to us 00:02:43.73\00:02:49.00 than we've been to ourselves. There should 00:02:49.03\00:02:52.10 never be a limit to our praise and worship of God. 00:02:52.13\00:02:55.57 Do I have a witness in this place? Now, 00:02:55.60\00:02:58.11 I don't know about you, but I can't thank God enough. 00:02:58.14\00:03:01.11 If I had ten thousand tongues, it still wouldn't 00:03:01.14\00:03:05.21 be enough to say what? Thank you. But I promised 00:03:05.25\00:03:08.35 the Lord, I'm going to use the one tongue I've got. 00:03:08.38\00:03:10.12 Can you say amen? I will bless the Lord at all times 00:03:10.15\00:03:14.02 and His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 00:03:14.06\00:03:17.99 I've now been in the church all my life. 00:03:18.03\00:03:21.40 I am coming up now on 45 years young, 00:03:21.43\00:03:25.07 and I was born in the church. I must admit 00:03:25.10\00:03:30.24 and confess to you that I would see people, 00:03:30.27\00:03:32.84 when I was younger, praise God in church. 00:03:32.87\00:03:35.04 I would see people jump up and down and say amen 00:03:35.08\00:03:38.25 and sing to the songs. It ain't over till God says so. 00:03:38.28\00:03:41.32 I would see them clap their hands. I would see them 00:03:41.35\00:03:43.42 stomp their feet. And at that time, I felt it didn't 00:03:43.45\00:03:46.76 take all that. But then I got a little older. 00:03:46.79\00:03:51.39 [Aud. reaction] PB: I got some battle scars. 00:03:51.43\00:03:55.53 And I soon discovered that I was judging them 00:03:55.56\00:03:59.47 prematurely because I hadn't been through anything. 00:03:59.50\00:04:03.20 And I was criticizing folk because I didn't understand 00:04:03.24\00:04:06.61 the things they were going through. And so, 00:04:06.64\00:04:08.91 I came to understand that I had judged them wrongly, 00:04:08.94\00:04:12.71 because after I had gone through some stuff for 00:04:12.75\00:04:15.48 myself--after I had been dragged through that thing, 00:04:15.52\00:04:19.25 after I had been lied on, after I'd been cheated, 00:04:19.29\00:04:22.59 after I'd been talked about, criticized, misused, 00:04:22.62\00:04:25.46 abused, and left confused--I better understood why 00:04:25.49\00:04:29.46 some people praise God the way they do. Because I 00:04:29.50\00:04:32.97 found out that if God has ever done anything for you, 00:04:33.00\00:04:36.44 you can't keep it to yourself, but you've got to 00:04:36.47\00:04:40.41 tell somebody. You can't help but praise His name. 00:04:40.44\00:04:45.45 Does anybody know what I'm talking about today? 00:04:45.48\00:04:48.35 [Aud. reaction] PB: You see, whenever you've 00:04:48.38\00:04:49.88 been through something and God has brought you out, 00:04:49.92\00:04:51.25 you stop trying to be cute. [Aud. reaction] 00:04:51.29\00:04:52.99 PB: You stop worrying about what folk are going 00:04:53.02\00:04:57.33 to think about you. You stop worrying about how 00:04:57.36\00:04:59.73 folk are going to talk ab out you. You just learn 00:04:59.76\00:05:01.96 to start praising God. As a matter of fact, 00:05:02.00\00:05:06.53 God has been so good to you that by now you don't 00:05:06.57\00:05:09.10 even have to wait until you come out of your situation. 00:05:09.14\00:05:12.21 But you've learned how to praise God right in the midst 00:05:12.24\00:05:15.74 of what you're going through. Do I have a witness 00:05:15.78\00:05:17.85 in this place? And you've made up in your mind 00:05:17.88\00:05:21.48 that you're going to praise God, and you don't 00:05:21.52\00:05:23.62 care what people say, think or do. 00:05:23.65\00:05:25.99 You see, brother, people who praise God and 00:05:26.02\00:05:29.52 are serious have stopped playing. They've been 00:05:29.56\00:05:31.89 through too much to rehearse their praise. 00:05:31.93\00:05:34.46 You see, you look at some folk, and you don't 00:05:34.50\00:05:36.90 know at Oakwood what they've been through. 00:05:36.93\00:05:38.90 You see their hats, ties, bow ties, their wardrobe. 00:05:38.93\00:05:42.07 But their wardrobe does not tell the story. You see, 00:05:42.10\00:05:45.11 some folk have been bruised, but they're here. 00:05:45.14\00:05:47.28 Some folk have been battered, but they're here. 00:05:47.31\00:05:50.51 Some folk have been laid off, but they're here. 00:05:50.55\00:05:53.65 There's somebody in this place who are at the 00:05:53.68\00:05:55.72 end of the month, and they don't have a dollar 00:05:55.75\00:05:57.49 to their name, but they're here. Some folk are 00:05:57.52\00:06:00.06 in stage 3 or 4 cancer, but they're here. 00:06:00.09\00:06:03.19 And it's difficult to relate to somebody who's 00:06:03.22\00:06:06.19 been the recipient of God's goodness, because 00:06:06.23\00:06:08.20 these are people who often express themselves 00:06:08.23\00:06:10.47 in ways other folk don't understand. 00:06:10.50\00:06:12.67 You see, when all else has failed you, 00:06:12.70\00:06:15.57 and everything has failed you, and you have 00:06:15.60\00:06:17.61 nothing else and nobody to sustain you but God, 00:06:17.64\00:06:20.44 you will learn how to praise God like you just don't care. 00:06:20.48\00:06:24.38 [Aud. reaction] PB: I will bless the Lord at all times, 00:06:24.41\00:06:29.15 and His praise shall continually--shall what, 00:06:29.18\00:06:33.02 everybody? Aud.: Continually. PB: Be in my mouth. 00:06:33.05\00:06:34.82 Now, when David wrote Psalm 34--'cause a lot 00:06:34.86\00:06:37.83 of us think that Psalm 34 is a standalone Psalm- 00:06:37.86\00:06:40.40 -but you need to understand, it is a companion 00:06:40.43\00:06:42.73 to First Samuel 21 and 22. And you need to 00:06:42.76\00:06:45.37 understand what was going on. David, in the text, 00:06:45.40\00:06:48.20 was in a political mess. Everybody say "mess." 00:06:48.24\00:06:51.04 Aud.: Mess. PB: Now, some of us--and I'm 00:06:51.07\00:06:52.77 careful--do not like mixing politics in the pulpit, 00:06:52.81\00:06:56.48 and there is some validity to that. Come on, say amen. 00:06:56.51\00:07:00.48 Aud.: Amen. PB: So I've got to be careful. 00:07:00.52\00:07:02.02 But let me remind you that politics is all in 00:07:02.05\00:07:04.79 the Bible. Oh, you don't believe me. 00:07:04.82\00:07:08.32 [Aud. reaction] PB: Moses defying Pharaoh, 00:07:08.36\00:07:12.06 the king, the president. Politics was involved. 00:07:12.09\00:07:15.86 Esther, being queen, to save her people. 00:07:15.90\00:07:20.47 Politics was involved. The fact that Mary 00:07:20.50\00:07:24.67 and Joseph couldn't find a hotel in Jerusalem- 00:07:24.71\00:07:28.81 -Washington DC--and the fact that our Lord and 00:07:28.84\00:07:32.05 Savior had to be born in a stable, 00:07:32.08\00:07:34.58 as the judge said, in Bethlehem, and then 00:07:34.62\00:07:37.02 they had to flee persecution from Herod, 00:07:37.05\00:07:39.22 let's me know politics was involved. 00:07:39.25\00:07:42.82 And so as we culminate black history today, 00:07:42.86\00:07:45.13 let us never forget that if it had not been 00:07:45.16\00:07:47.86 for the black preacher leading black congregations, 00:07:47.93\00:07:52.57 black communities and people in civic, community 00:07:52.60\00:07:55.97 and political affairs, we would still be in slavery. 00:07:56.00\00:08:00.54 Thank God Denmark Vesey was political. 00:08:00.58\00:08:04.81 Thank God Matt Turner was political. 00:08:04.85\00:08:07.65 Thank God Harriet Tubman was political. 00:08:07.68\00:08:10.82 Thank God Sojourner Truth was political. 00:08:10.85\00:08:13.66 Thank God Desmond Tutu was political. 00:08:13.69\00:08:16.66 Thank God Martin Luther King was political. 00:08:16.69\00:08:22.16 [Aud. reaction] PB: I thank God they were political, 00:08:22.20\00:08:24.73 because if they had not been political slavery 00:08:24.77\00:08:27.37 would not have ended, segregation would still 00:08:27.40\00:08:29.80 be the law, apartheid would still be official 00:08:29.84\00:08:32.64 in South Africa, Brown versus Board of Education 00:08:32.67\00:08:35.74 would have never been passed, Voting Rights 00:08:35.78\00:08:37.95 Act wouldn't be passed. And just in case you 00:08:37.98\00:08:41.98 have forgotten, I thank God for going to 00:08:42.02\00:08:45.35 Oakwood University. When I was a student 00:08:45.39\00:08:48.16 here there was a man, young people, 00:08:48.19\00:08:49.42 by the name of Dr. E.E. Cleveland, and 00:08:49.46\00:08:52.19 he taught us preachers how to be political like Moses, 00:08:52.23\00:08:57.23 political like Isaiah, political like Jeremiah, 00:08:57.27\00:09:00.97 political like Micah, and politically correct like Jesus. 00:09:01.00\00:09:05.34 We are called to lift the name of Jesus, which is 00:09:05.37\00:09:10.05 our number one mandate while we are called to preach 00:09:10.08\00:09:12.01 the message of Jesus, live the life of Jesus. 00:09:12.05\00:09:14.25 Let us never forget where we've come from. 00:09:14.28\00:09:17.35 We've come this far by faith, leaning on the Lord. 00:09:17.39\00:09:26.06 Can I be real today? If we had gone along to get 00:09:26.09\00:09:30.37 along on every issue of injustice, where would we be? 00:09:30.40\00:09:34.74 Some people that to follow Christ means that we have 00:09:34.77\00:09:37.24 to take a vow of suffering and slaughter. Just roll over, 00:09:37.27\00:09:41.08 play dead. But as Dr. King said, oppression is never 00:09:41.11\00:09:44.68 voluntarily given by the oppressor, it must be demanded 00:09:44.71\00:09:47.52 by the oppressed. Even Jesus, in the temple, had to 00:09:47.55\00:09:52.22 take His belt off and whip a ___ out of the unjust 00:09:52.25\00:09:57.09 money changers, who had made His house a house of 00:09:57.13\00:10:00.50 den of thieves. Let us never forget that while we're 00:10:00.53\00:10:03.83 lifting Jesus, after we leave Jesus, we've got to 00:10:03.87\00:10:05.90 learn to lift each other. What does the Lord require of us? 00:10:05.93\00:10:09.80 Do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly before God. 00:10:09.84\00:10:15.51 Do I have a witness in this place? Some folk don't 00:10:15.54\00:10:18.11 want to talk about politics, but yet they're the 00:10:18.15\00:10:19.78 beneficiaries of political movements, political 00:10:19.81\00:10:23.18 actions and agendas. There are some people who say- 00:10:23.22\00:10:25.92 -I heard it. When we brought Al Sharpton here, 00:10:25.95\00:10:28.16 I got all kind of letters. There are some people 00:10:28.19\00:10:32.09 who say that black activists are not activists but agitators. 00:10:32.13\00:10:38.23 That it's 2017, and we live in a post-racial society, 00:10:38.27\00:10:43.10 and we don't need all that social justice talk today. 00:10:43.14\00:10:47.61 But don't you ever forget that because of black activists' 00:10:47.64\00:10:52.35 agitations in the '60s, all cultures today, from all places, 00:10:52.38\00:10:59.25 are able to benefit today. You'd better learn how to 00:10:59.29\00:11:04.66 support each other. You'd better learn how to build 00:11:04.69\00:11:08.43 each other up. Stop tearing people down. Stop with 00:11:08.46\00:11:14.34 the crowd mentality. Let me go some more. 00:11:14.37\00:11:18.47 You're going to get mad, but that's all right. 00:11:18.51\00:11:21.71 Stop all this black versus white, all this white 00:11:21.74\00:11:24.65 versus black. Stop all this black versus black. 00:11:24.68\00:11:30.22 And speaking of black versus black, stop all 00:11:30.25\00:11:32.82 this black versus West Indian, and West Indian versus black. 00:11:32.85\00:11:35.69 [Aud. reaction] PB: We all came from the same place. 00:11:35.72\00:11:39.49 We just got dropped off on different shores. Hallelujah, 00:11:39.53\00:11:44.53 somebody! [Aud. reaction] PB: Be careful when you say you 00:11:44.57\00:11:49.30 don't like politics. Not all politics is bad, 00:11:49.34\00:11:52.37 but politics divorced from ethical beliefs, 00:11:52.41\00:11:54.14 moral stands, and biblical principles is wrong. 00:11:54.18\00:11:56.78 In the text, David is in a political mess. 00:11:56.81\00:12:00.32 Saul, king of Israel, is trying to kill David. 00:12:00.35\00:12:04.15 Saul is trying to kill David because 00:12:04.19\00:12:07.02 Saul is jealous of David. So David flees from Saul, 00:12:07.06\00:12:10.86 but he runs into the kingdom of one of Saul's enemies. 00:12:10.89\00:12:14.93 First Samuel 21:10 says that David ran and went to 00:12:14.93\00:12:18.20 King Achish of Gath. Everybody say "Gath." 00:12:18.23\00:12:21.07 Aud.: Gath. PB: Now, in Psalm 31, the companion text, 00:12:21.10\00:12:23.61 Achish is called Abimelech. Abimelech was the official 00:12:23.64\00:12:27.61 name or title of the Philistine kings, 00:12:27.64\00:12:29.98 so just like Pharaoh was the official title 00:12:30.01\00:12:32.48 of the Egyptian kings, Abimelech was the official 00:12:32.51\00:12:35.12 title of the Philistine kings. So David runs 00:12:35.15\00:12:37.72 from Saul to Abimelech, who he was afraid of as well. 00:12:37.75\00:12:42.36 David is in a mess. And not only that, 00:12:42.39\00:12:45.19 David's haters were quick to point out that 00:12:45.23\00:12:48.00 David was considered a hero in Israel. They quoted, 00:12:48.03\00:12:51.13 "Saul has slain his thousands, but David his ten thousands." 00:12:51.17\00:12:55.17 Let me remind you today that haters are quick to stir up some 00:12:55.20\00:13:00.78 mess. [Aud. reaction] PB: Haters, when they see you down, 00:13:00.81\00:13:03.65 they will do everything to keep you down. 00:13:03.68\00:13:06.08 David's haters ran to Abimelech and told him 00:13:06.11\00:13:09.35 who David was, so David, fleeing from Saul, 00:13:09.38\00:13:12.65 runs to Abimelech. He jumps out of the firing 00:13:12.69\00:13:15.46 pan into the fire. One king wanted to kill him 00:13:15.49\00:13:18.89 because he was jealous, and the other king was 00:13:18.93\00:13:20.43 not happy about him being there because of what 00:13:20.46\00:13:22.53 he was hearing about him. David was in a mess. 00:13:22.56\00:13:25.47 And in case you didn't know, like David, 00:13:25.50\00:13:28.20 we're in a political mess. Alternative facts. 00:13:28.24\00:13:34.08 A mess. Fake news. A mess. Russian relationships. 00:13:34.11\00:13:43.32 A mess. Proposed border walls. A mess. Travel bans 00:13:43.35\00:13:50.53 for select people from select countries. A mess. 00:13:50.56\00:13:55.86 Like David, we're in a political mess. 00:13:55.90\00:14:00.27 If man will stop Muslims, don't you think man 00:14:00.30\00:14:04.91 will try to stop Adventists? We're in a political mess! 00:14:04.94\00:14:11.38 So what does David do to get out of this mess? 00:14:11.41\00:14:14.52 The Bible says he pretends to be crazy. He pretends 00:14:14.55\00:14:19.49 to be mad and insane. The Bible says, saliva. 00:14:19.52\00:14:23.86 He starts foaming at the mouth. Saliva falls 00:14:23.89\00:14:28.40 from his beard. David, why did he do this? 00:14:28.43\00:14:31.60 David knew--I was reading Ellen White's 00:14:31.63\00:14:34.40 Patriarchs and Prophets. She says David 00:14:34.44\00:14:35.57 knew that the Philistines had a law regarding 00:14:35.60\00:14:37.71 the release of a madman. So they let David go, 00:14:37.74\00:14:41.31 and David now flees to the cave of Adullam, 00:14:41.34\00:14:44.01 in First Samuel 22. Now, when he gets to the cave, 00:14:44.05\00:14:46.95 the Bible says in First Samuel 22, that everyone 00:14:46.98\00:14:49.78 there with him was in distress, debt, and discontent. 00:14:49.82\00:14:57.13 So he's running from a mess, but he runs to a mess, 00:14:57.16\00:15:00.93 because everywhere he runs and the place he lands, 00:15:00.96\00:15:04.27 everybody is in distress, debt, and discontent. 00:15:04.30\00:15:09.30 So he's now in personal misery, and out of his pain 00:15:09.34\00:15:12.34 he pens this song of praise. I will bless the Lord 00:15:12.37\00:15:18.15 at all times. You all don't hear what I'm saying. 00:15:18.18\00:15:22.62 [Aud. reaction] PB: And His praise shall continually 00:15:22.65\00:15:25.49 be in my mouth. In his mess, I will bless the Lord 00:15:25.52\00:15:30.26 at all times, and His praise shall continually be 00:15:30.29\00:15:33.66 in my mouth. In other words, I can't stop. 00:15:33.70\00:15:36.20 I won't stop praising the Lord, but I will 00:15:36.23\00:15:40.57 bless the Lord. Everybody say "I will." 00:15:40.60\00:15:43.10 Aud.: I will PB: Now, it's important to understand 00:15:43.14\00:15:46.07 what is meant by "I will bless the Lord." You see, 00:15:46.11\00:15:49.58 there's a difference between I will and I shall. 00:15:49.61\00:15:54.12 "I will" states that an event is occurring right now. 00:15:54.15\00:16:01.36 "I shall" implies that something is likely to happen 00:16:01.39\00:16:05.29 in the future. David says "I will bless the Lord" 00:16:05.33\00:16:11.07 right now. So, in other words, even though he says 00:16:11.10\00:16:14.30 I don't see the conclusion of my situation, 00:16:14.34\00:16:16.84 while I have breath in my body I will bless the Lord. 00:16:16.87\00:16:23.68 You all don't hear what I'm saying. I will bless the Lord. 00:16:23.71\00:16:27.58 Because when I look back over my life, and I think 00:16:27.62\00:16:31.39 things over, all of my good days outweigh my bad days. 00:16:31.42\00:16:37.66 I won't complain. I will bless the Lord. 00:16:37.69\00:16:42.93 So I'm not going to wait until the bills are paid, 00:16:42.96\00:16:45.07 I will bless the Lord now. I'm not going to wait 00:16:45.10\00:16:48.27 until my body is healed, I will bless the Lord now. 00:16:48.30\00:16:51.34 I'm not going to wait until I get a job, I will 00:16:51.37\00:16:54.08 bless the Lord now. I'm not going to wait until 00:16:54.11\00:16:56.54 my finances are sufficient, I will bless the Lord now. 00:16:56.58\00:17:00.55 I'm not going to wait until that student loan is paid off, 00:17:00.58\00:17:03.69 but I will. Don't wait till the battle is over; shout now. 00:17:03.72\00:17:15.06 I will bless the Lord at all times, and His praise shall 00:17:15.10\00:17:17.87 continually be in my mouth. Now, notice also in the text. 00:17:17.90\00:17:20.64 I want you to quickly look at who David is talking to. 00:17:20.67\00:17:23.64 And then I want you to look at who and what he's talking about. 00:17:23.67\00:17:28.94 Look at who he's talking to and then look at who and 00:17:28.98\00:17:31.71 what he's talking about. Now first, look at who he's 00:17:31.75\00:17:35.42 talking to. First, David in Psalm 34 is talking to 00:17:35.45\00:17:37.42 the folk who are marginalized. Everybody say "marginalized." 00:17:37.45\00:17:40.76 Aud.: Marginalized. PB: If you read the text when you go 00:17:40.79\00:17:46.19 home, you will recognize he wound up with his brothers 00:17:46.23\00:17:48.20 and members of his father's family. The Bible says 00:17:48.23\00:17:50.03 there were 400 of them who were not a part of 00:17:50.07\00:17:51.83 the in crowd. The king didn't like them. 00:17:51.87\00:17:55.27 Understand the parallels, I wish I had time. 00:17:55.30\00:17:57.31 The king didn't like them because they were 00:17:57.34\00:18:00.11 related to David. The king didn't like them 00:18:00.14\00:18:03.38 because they weren't on good terms with the government. 00:18:03.41\00:18:06.38 The king didn't like them because they were 00:18:06.41\00:18:08.35 on the outside looking in. They were in the margins; 00:18:08.38\00:18:10.62 they were marginalized. Is there anybody here 00:18:10.65\00:18:13.66 who knows what it's like to be marginalized? Okay, 00:18:13.69\00:18:18.19 everybody, you don't know, so let me help you. 00:18:18.23\00:18:20.06 Marginalized means being a female in a man's world. 00:18:20.10\00:18:25.90 Marginalized means being a black person or a person 00:18:25.93\00:18:29.14 of color in a white world. That's marginalized. 00:18:29.17\00:18:32.47 Marginalized is, you're on the outside of a 00:18:32.51\00:18:34.81 society where the rich get tax breaks and the 00:18:34.84\00:18:37.41 poor get back breaks. That's marginalized. 00:18:37.45\00:18:40.45 Marginalized is, you live in a neighborhood 00:18:40.48\00:18:42.98 where you can't count on police protection, 00:18:43.02\00:18:44.95 but you count on police harassment. 00:18:44.99\00:18:47.12 That's marginalized. Marginalized is, 00:18:47.16\00:18:49.62 you can't go to the airport or the store 00:18:49.66\00:18:51.79 because you're afraid you might be separated 00:18:51.83\00:18:53.73 from your family. Marginalized. No job, 00:18:53.76\00:18:56.90 no health care, no influence. A minimum wage 00:18:56.93\00:19:02.47 per hour that is equal to what a United States 00:19:02.50\00:19:05.14 senator makes every second. Marginalized. 00:19:05.17\00:19:08.11 You have to work twice as hard to make it 00:19:08.14\00:19:12.38 simply because you don't come from the right family, 00:19:12.41\00:19:15.15 the right zip code, the right schools, or the right color. 00:19:15.18\00:19:19.95 Marginalized. Is there anybody here who knows what 00:19:19.99\00:19:23.19 it's like to be marginalized? If you're here, 00:19:23.22\00:19:26.29 David is talking to you. Marginalized. And David 00:19:26.33\00:19:31.60 is saying, Look, despite being marginalized, 00:19:31.63\00:19:35.04 O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt 00:19:35.07\00:19:43.68 His name together. Look at who David's talking to. 00:19:43.71\00:19:47.45 People in distress, people in distress who have 00:19:47.48\00:19:50.89 experienced misfortune. People in distress who are 00:19:50.92\00:19:54.06 in a state of danger. People in distress who are 00:19:54.09\00:19:56.76 in painful situations. Is there anybody here who 00:19:56.79\00:19:59.93 knows about a painful situation? A marriage that's 00:19:59.96\00:20:03.50 messed up--that's a painful situation. Addictions 00:20:03.53\00:20:06.37 that you have, you're bound--those are painful 00:20:06.40\00:20:09.77 situations. Habits that have you in shackles--those are painful 00:20:09.80\00:20:13.31 situations. Being on a job where your best is never 00:20:13.34\00:20:16.28 good enough, but yet you're good enough to 00:20:16.31\00:20:18.25 train the folk under you who are then promoted over you. 00:20:18.28\00:20:20.72 That's painful. Being on your job, where you've got to 00:20:20.75\00:20:25.09 do twice as much because of your skin color and three 00:20:25.12\00:20:27.82 times as much because of your gender to make one-half 00:20:27.86\00:20:30.29 as much as somebody with less education than you. 00:20:30.33\00:20:32.13 That's painful. A broken heart--that's painful. 00:20:32.16\00:20:35.96 Broken families--that's painful. Broken dreams- 00:20:36.00\00:20:40.30 -that's painful. A broken child, a death of a child- 00:20:40.34\00:20:45.64 -that's painful. Domestic violence--that's painful. 00:20:45.67\00:20:49.01 These were the people who were at the cave of Adullam, 00:20:49.04\00:20:54.65 who were trapped in painful situations. They were in 00:20:54.68\00:20:58.65 distress. Let me remind you that everybody in our world today, 00:20:58.69\00:21:05.79 particularly every black person in America, lives 00:21:05.83\00:21:07.60 in a constant state of distress. A constant state of danger. 00:21:07.66\00:21:13.03 You can get hurt while you're driving. You can get 00:21:13.07\00:21:15.37 killed while you're walking. You can get deported 00:21:15.40\00:21:20.08 while you're traveling. Tornadoes, earthquakes, 00:21:20.11\00:21:25.68 tsunamis, every second of every minute of every hour, 00:21:25.71\00:21:27.88 we're in constant danger. Look at who David's talking to. 00:21:27.92\00:21:29.45 These are people in the caves, who are in desperate needs. 00:21:29.48\00:21:30.69 In need of jobs, in need of housing, in need of health care, 00:21:30.72\00:21:33.86 in need of minimum wage, in need of a gang-free environment, 00:21:33.89\00:21:38.13 in need of quality education, in need of dental care, 00:21:38.16\00:21:41.60 in need of food on the table, in need of clothes for 00:21:41.63\00:21:44.33 their children, in need of respect, in need of dignity, 00:21:44.37\00:21:46.84 in need of a lift-up and not a put-down. And so, 00:21:46.87\00:21:52.61 if you're here today, and you're here in a state of danger, 00:21:52.64\00:21:55.98 a state of desperate need, and you're here and you know what 00:21:56.01\00:22:00.18 it's like to be in a painful situation. I can hear David, 00:22:00.22\00:22:03.92 a man after God's own heart, saying, O magnify the Lord with 00:22:03.95\00:22:08.99 me. In distress, O magnify the Lord with me! In misfortune, 00:22:09.02\00:22:14.93 O magnify the Lord with me! In a painful situation, 00:22:14.93\00:22:19.40 O magnify the Lord with me! Marginalized, O magnify 00:22:19.43\00:22:24.34 the Lord with me! But he continues in First Samuel 22. 00:22:24.37\00:22:30.15 And he's not only talking to those in distress, 00:22:30.18\00:22:32.15 but now the Bible says he's also talking to those 00:22:32.18\00:22:34.62 who are in debt. Now, I know I'm bowling down somebody's 00:22:34.65\00:22:38.62 alley right now. Don't sit there and act like you don't 00:22:38.65\00:22:41.76 know what I'm talking about. Today's the 25th. 00:22:41.79\00:22:44.03 You can't wait till the 28th, 'cause you got some 00:22:44.06\00:22:45.83 bills to pay, you are in debt. Come on, say amen. 00:22:45.86\00:22:48.20 Somebody's got credit card debt, student loan debt, 00:22:48.23\00:22:53.44 mortgage debt. There's a student who has unpaid 00:22:53.47\00:22:57.87 apartment rent debt. You've got two months' late car note debt. 00:22:57.91\00:23:03.14 Medical debts. You've got bills up the wazoo, and you 00:23:03.18\00:23:09.12 are so poor, you can't even pay attention. 00:23:09.15\00:23:11.85 Somebody here knows about debt. David is talking to you, too. 00:23:11.89\00:23:20.10 David is talking to those who are discontented, disrespected, 00:23:20.13\00:23:24.53 dismissed, dismayed. Anybody know about discontent? 00:23:24.57\00:23:28.70 You can't find peace, you can't get peace. Not only 00:23:28.74\00:23:34.28 are you in debt, not only are you distressed, 00:23:34.31\00:23:37.41 but you're discontented. You're disrespected. 00:23:37.45\00:23:41.12 You're dismissed. You're dismayed. You're disgusted. 00:23:41.15\00:23:44.99 You're just dissed! And you know what it's like to live 00:23:45.02\00:23:48.26 on the street. David is talking to you. David says, 00:23:48.29\00:23:51.43 discontented--O magnify the Lord with me. Disrespected- 00:23:51.46\00:23:56.26 -O magnify the Lord with me! Dismissed--O magnify the 00:23:56.30\00:24:02.20 Lord with me! Dismayed--O magnify the Lord with me! 00:24:02.24\00:24:06.78 Disgusted--O magnify the Lord with me! Dissed-- 00:24:06.81\00:24:11.28 O magnify the Lord with me! 00:24:11.31\00:24:15.75 But notice in the text, David doesn't just say 00:24:15.78\00:24:21.22 O magnify the Lord with me, but he also says, and let us--let 00:24:21.26\00:24:29.53 what? Aud.: Us. PB: Come on, let whom? Aud.: Us. 00:24:29.56\00:24:32.63 PB: Exalt His name. Together, somebody got it, 00:24:32.67\00:24:35.57 but for the rest of you all, let me help you. 00:24:35.60\00:24:37.64 David says, I know how to praise Him by myself. 00:24:37.67\00:24:41.34 I've had practice as a shepherd, walking outside 00:24:41.38\00:24:46.35 and seeing God's handiwork. I've had practice, 00:24:46.38\00:24:50.19 David said, when He helped me fight against lions; 00:24:50.22\00:24:53.46 He helped me fight against bears. I had some practice 00:24:53.49\00:24:57.79 in praising Him by myself. And I've had practice when 00:24:57.83\00:25:03.83 He prepared a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. 00:25:03.87\00:25:07.40 I've had practice, that every time my cup ran over. 00:25:07.44\00:25:11.61 I've had practice that every time I looked around, 00:25:11.64\00:25:15.24 I saw surely goodness and mercy following me. 00:25:15.28\00:25:19.55 I've had practice. Is there anybody here that's 00:25:19.58\00:25:22.98 had the joy of praising God by yourself? 00:25:23.02\00:25:26.99 You see, some of us will only shout when we have a crowd. 00:25:27.02\00:25:31.59 Some of us can't praise God unless we're in a certain seat, 00:25:31.63\00:25:36.10 in a certain section, among certain people in the sanctuary. 00:25:36.13\00:25:40.70 But let me tell you this in the name of Jesus:e prhh 00:25:40.74\00:25:44.54 A true worshipper doesn't need a crowed to praise God. 00:25:44.57\00:25:49.51 A true worshipper doesn't need a praise team to pump 00:25:49.54\00:25:54.25 them up. A true worshipper doesn't need a band to get 00:25:54.28\00:25:58.79 them to praise Him. A true worshipper doesn't need 00:25:58.82\00:26:02.89 to be in a certain seat, in a certain section, 00:26:02.92\00:26:07.50 in the sanctuary. All the true worshipper has to do is, 00:26:07.50\00:26:09.83 when I think of the goodness of Jesus, and all He's 00:26:09.86\00:26:14.50 done for me, my soul cries out. Hallelujah! 00:26:14.54\00:26:20.08 A true worshipper will praise God by him or herself. 00:26:20.11\00:26:25.68 In the choir stand or in the car. In the pew or in 00:26:25.71\00:26:29.25 the parking lot. In the prayer room or in the living room. 00:26:29.28\00:26:32.65 In the living room or in the board room. When I think of 00:26:32.69\00:26:36.22 the goodness of Jesus, I can praise Him all by myself. 00:26:36.26\00:26:40.53 Hey, hey, hey! Let me tell you something. I've been in 00:26:40.56\00:26:45.03 some church situations, and some of my travels- 00:26:45.07\00:26:48.40 -you know I travel all across the country and the world- 00:26:48.44\00:26:50.44 -where I've had to ignore bad music. It wasn't like this 00:26:50.47\00:27:00.48 today, it was bad. I mean, it was awful. It wasn't the 00:27:00.52\00:27:08.02 Aeolians, it wasn't Maurette Brown Clark. I'm convinced that 00:27:08.06\00:27:12.33 some people read Psalm 100 and think it says make 00:27:12.36\00:27:15.23 an awful noise unto the Lord. [Aud. reaction] 00:27:15.26\00:27:18.53 PB: In my travels, I've had to ignore some mean faces. 00:27:18.57\00:27:27.01 I've had to ignore cruel, hard, cold faces. 00:27:27.04\00:27:33.78 Ignore the scowls and the I-dare-you body language. 00:27:33.82\00:27:39.92 You ought to see it sometimes. You don't believe it, 00:27:39.95\00:27:43.79 stand up here with me sometimes. And you can see some 00:27:43.83\00:27:47.30 folk who come to church with this I-dare-you-to-make-me-sing 00:27:47.30\00:27:51.00 look. I-dare-you-to-make-me-stand 00:27:51.03\00:27:55.97 I-dare-you-to-make-me-smile look. look. I-dare-you-to-make-me worship. 00:27:56.00\00:28:01.54 But I've learned how to ignore all of that. Even if I have to praise God by myself. 00:28:01.58\00:28:09.48 [Aud. reaction] 00:28:09.52\00:28:10.82 PB: I will bless the Lord at all times, 00:28:10.85\00:28:15.19 and His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 00:28:15.22\00:28:17.93 >: Thank you for joining us for another exciting 00:28:17.96\00:28:19.16 Breath of Life television broadcast. 00:28:19.19\00:28:20.96 Tune in next week at the same time, 00:28:20.96\00:28:23.06 as Dr. Byrd will deliver another dynamic message from the Lord, 00:28:23.10\00:28:26.70 just for you. Until next time, may God bless you. 00:28:26.74\00:28:30.34 END 00:28:30.37\00:28:45.39