(Breath of Life Theme Music)
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Sermon #B634 -
It's Time to Shine
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PB: Matthew chapter 5, verse
number 13. If you have it, let
me hear you say Amen.
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[Congregation: Amen.] The word
says, Ye are the salts of the
what? [Congregation: The earth.]
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"But if the salt have lost his
savour, wherewith shall it be
salted? It is thenceforth good
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for nothing, but to be cast out,
and to be trodden under foot of
men. Ye are the light of the
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world. A city that is set on a
hill cannot be hid. Neither do
men light a candle, and put it
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under a bushel, but on a
candlestick; and it giveth light
unto all that are in the house.
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Let your light
so shine before men,
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that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father
which is in heaven."
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Today I just want to take a
little time to speak on the
subject “it's time to shine.”
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It's time to shine.
Father God, bless us now.
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Speak for your service here, at
the appeal time, Lord, do your
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thing. We promise we'll give
you the praise and the glory in
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Jesus' name. Amen. It is no
secret that the world we're
living in is becoming more and
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more godless. God and God's Word
are being pushed out of systems,
structures in our world.
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If you don't believe me, watch
the news. If you don't believe
me, go to the Internet.
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If you don't believe me,
walk up and down the street.
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Most people today couldn't care
less about living according to
godly standards and godly
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values. The world was once a
beautiful place when God created
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this world, but the choice of
our foreparents, Adam and Eve,
had brought sin into the world,
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and the world has been going
down in a dark downward spiral
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ever since. We're now living in
the 21st century and we're
probably living in the most
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godless society ever. But
not only is the world becoming a
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godless society, the world is
also becoming a hostile place
for people of faith.
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I don't care today if you're
Christian, Muslim, Jewish, or
Buddhist. The world is no longer
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a safe place. We can look at the
horrific massacre that took
place yesterday at that New
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Zealand mosque where 49 lives
were claimed, and we can look
and see the hostile world we
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live in. And let me remind you,
don't just think it's an attack
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on Muslims. Do some digging and
there are some white
nationalists involved in all
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this. So, if it's a Muslim
mosque today, it can be an
Adventist Church tomorrow,
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it can be a Baptist Church
tomorrow, a Methodist Church
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tomorrow. It's becoming
increasingly difficult to live
godly lives in a world that is
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hostile to God, God's
Word and God's people.
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Now, we know when I get an
evangelism in revival time,
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the best comes up out of me
because this is what I so enjoy
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doing. So, can I get real
today? [Congregation: Yes.]
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I said, can I get
real? [Congregation: Yes.]
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Alright. We've got bigger issues
than drums, keyboards, and
guitars. Can I get real?
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[Congregation: Yes.] We've got
bigger issues than who's
singing. Bigger issues than
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who's preaching. Bigger issues
than "should we clap in church?"
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We got bigger issues than what
is going to happen at Alumni
Weekend. I wish I had a witness
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in his place. Yes, these things
have their place, but we've got
to get back to what really
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matters. We've got to get back
to the main thing. We have
totally forgotten the mission of
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the church, which is to seek
and to save the lost. That's us.
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That's our children, our
grandchildren, our neighbors,
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and our friends. We have totally
forgotten that the message of
the church is rooted in
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Revelation 14. There used to be
a time that when we talked about
revival, everybody got excited.
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There used to be a time that
when we talked about revival, we
didn't have to hire Bible
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workers because the whole church
were Bible workers. We didn't
need Bible workers back in the
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day. People would invite other
people to the revival. People
brought people to the meetings.
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There was joy when somebody came
down at awe, giving their lives
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to Jesus Christ. There was joy
when people would witness others
giving up habits, giving up
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addictions, and chains
were being broken in the name of
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Jesus. There was a joy when
people went down into that
watery grave of baptism
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when they said “yes' to
Jesus and “no” to the devil.
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But what has happened?
We sweat the small stuff.
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We major in minors. We worry
about stuff that has nothing to
do with our soul salvation.
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What are we starting to do, not
just here, but everywhere? We
minister to ourselves.
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We preach what we want. We teach
what we want. We sing what we
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want. You've heard me say it
once, I am going to say it
again. We sing to ourselves.
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We preach to ourselves. We teach
to ourselves. We're insolated.
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We're isolated. We're incestual,
and the fruit of incest is
always something retarded.
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So we've got retarded churches,
retarded members because we care
more about ourselves
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than the Gospel Commission
of Jesus Christ and doing what
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matters most. Let me tell you
something. Everybody listen,
everybody watching Oakwood. Let
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me tell you something. Unless
people hear the Gospel message
between now and the second
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coming of Jesus, they're going
to be lost. You know that my
other thing is-- we got to seek
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ye first the Kingdom of God and
His righteousness and all these
things shall be added-- but
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listen to me good, all those
that are here, all those that
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are watching. Unless we get
serious as a church about
evangelism again, the church is
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going to die. Oh, you
all not ready for this today.
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If it were not for immigration
and migration in North America,
the church would be dead.
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You all not ready for this
today, but in the name of Jesus,
it's time to shine.
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Despite the darkness in
the world, it's time to shine.
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Despite the chaos, the
confusion, the commotion, the
calamity of this Christ-less
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culture, we're still God's
lights and it's time to shine.
That's our purpose in the world,
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to go and light our world
because God has called us to be
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His lights. God has endowed us
with something that makes us
different than the world in
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which we live. You see, before
we found Jesus, before we knew
who we were in Jesus, trouble
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used to trouble us. But now that
we know who we are and whose we
are, we know how to trouble our
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troubles, we know how to
frustrate our frustrations, we
have a different posture in our
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pain, we all have a different
stance in our situations.
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As a matter of fact, the way you
can tell the difference between
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a child of God and somebody who
doesn't know God is to put us
under the microscope of trial
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and tribulation. You see, when
the world sees the sour, we see
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the sweet. When the world sees
the ugly, we should see the
pretty. When the world sees the
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glass half-empty, we should see
the glass half-full. When the
world holds their heads down,
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we ought to look up to the hills
from whence cometh our help.
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When we cry all night long, the
world does.  We ought to say
weeping may endure for a night,
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but joy comes in the morning
because we're God's lights in
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this dark world. Matthew chapter
5, Jesus is preaching the Sermon
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on the Mount. He begins with the
Beatitudes and verses 1 through
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12, but then he shifts and uses
two powerful metaphors in verses
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13 through 16. He calls the
first metaphor salt. Everybody
say salt. [Congregation: Salt.]
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Come on. Say it like you mean
it, say salt. [Congregation:
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Salt.] In verse 13 he says, "You
are the salt of the earth."
Which means then, as salts,
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we have purpose in our world. In
other words, we are not here to
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adopt the world but we're
supposed to be change agents in
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the world. People ought to get
curious when they see us coming
here on Sabbath mornings.
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People ought to know that
something is happening when we
come in this place.
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The only reason this world
hasn't fully collapsed is
because we're salts,
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and salt retards
the decaying process.
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Now, remember, salt penetrates
things, purifies things, and
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preserves things. If you put
salt on your meat, your meat
will last longer and still be
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good for a while. Does anybody
know what I'm talking about?
That's why veggie meat has so
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much salts, that's why veggie
meat lasts so long, because all
that salts penetrates, purifies,
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and preserves. Are you hearing
what I'm saying? Jesus said,
"You are the salt of the earth.
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have called you to penetrate. I
have called you to purify and
preserve the world."
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You see, the reality is salt
does no good sitting on your
table in a salt shaker.
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Salt has to get out the salt
shaker, get on your food to
season your food, to make your
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food taste better. In the same
way, we don't do any good
sitting up in church,
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ministering to ourselves. But
you got to get up out of your
salt shaker, get up out of your
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seats, get up out of your
comfort zone and go into the
world to influence and seize the
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world because if you don't get
out of the salt shaker, it might
mean you're not real salt.
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Because they do have a thing
called salt substitutes where
they look like salt, tastes like
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salt, smell like salt, but it's
not salt. We've got a lot of
church folk that look like
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disciples, smell like disciples,
talk like disciples, they can
even pray like disciples,
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but they're not true disciples
because the true test of a
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disciple is if you're salty then
people around you ought to get
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thirsty. Everybody
likes to feel useful.
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Being useful is almost the same
thing as being needed or wanted.
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But salt that doesn't get out of
the salt shaker or salt that
loses its saltiness is useless.
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When we lose our saltiness, when
we forget our purpose, we become
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useless. Let me share one more
thing about salt. Salt
influences whatever it touches.
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So if you are salt and
you want to influence others,
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you've got to make a decision
on the type of influence you are
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going to be, because you can be
a good influence or a bad
influence. Are you hearing what
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I'm saying? Have you ever
noticed that it's easy to be
good when you're around certain
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people, and it's easy to be bad
when you're around other people?
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There are some things you can
say to some people in certain
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company that you won't say to
other people in other company.
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There's some places you can go
with some folks that you can't
go to with other folks.
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There are some things you can
watch with some people but you
can't watch what other people.
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My question this morning
is what kind of salt are you?
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Are you an influence that
promotes decay and rot, or are
you an influence that prevents
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decay and rot? Jesus said you're
the salt of the earth, but Jesus
doesn't stop there.
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He goes on to verse 14, and I'm
moving quickly, he says in verse
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number 14, "Not only you are
salt, but you are the light."
You are the what, everybody?
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[Congregation: Light.] "Light of
the world." Now, when Jesus
makes this statement, don't
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misunderstand what Jesus is
saying. Jesus is not saying
we're the light, but Jesus is
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saying we're light leading to
light. We're the light in the
world. Jesus is the light but
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we're just light leading to the
light. My favorite writer said
that we are the lesser light
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leading to the greater light,
which means, then, light didn't
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start with you. Light didn't
begin with you. Light didn't
originate with you.
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The Bible says in Genesis 1:1,
"In the beginning, God created
the heavens and the earth.
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And the earth was without form
and void. Darkness was upon the
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face of the deep, and the Spirit
of God moved upon the face of
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the waters. And God said, 'Let
there be light' and there was
light, and the evening and the
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morning were the first day." So
light didn't start with you.
Light didn't begin with you.
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Light doesn't originate with
Light begins with God. So, in
your shininess, don't get the
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big head. We're not light in and
of itself. We are simply
luminaries, reflectors of God's
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light, which means just as the
moon reflects its source of
light from the Sun, the S-U-N,
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we too are only reflections of
the one true light, God's son,
the S-O-N Jesus Christ.
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In case some of you get caught
up in your own shininess and you
start admiring how shiny you
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are, let me give you a humility
check and remind you that you
aren't doing the shining,
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but it's God shining for you. A
light does not exist to call
attention to itself.
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A light exists to draw attention
to the thing it illuminates.
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Our light shines not to call
attention to us, but to call
attention to the light Jesus
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Christ that we serve. Our
witness doesn't magnify what
we've done. Our testimony is not
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about ourselves. Our purpose is
not about to say to people,
"Look, he is a great Christian."
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But our purpose is for them to
look at us and say, "He must
serve a great God."
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I serve a risen Savior. He's in
the world today. Jesus is the
light that shineth in me.
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But not only that, another point
I want to make on this text.
Jesus says you're the light of
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the world. When he says that,
He's conferring favor on us.
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He's saying that He's the light
and He favors us by allowing us
to participate in His light.
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The fact is, God made
our hands without our hands.
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It's just God's mercy to be
allowed the hands He's made to
bless others. God doesn't need
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us. God can do what he wants
without us, but God allows us to
be His hands, His lights in the
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world. And because we're
God's hands, because we're God's
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lights, because we got favor,
we are able to light up dark
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places. You see, when you show
up in the midst of darkness,
your presence alone should light
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up the place. When folk are in a
hospital room crying and
doubting, "I'm going to lose my
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loved one. I'm going to lose
my friend." When you walk in the
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room, the room should light up
because you're bringing light to
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darkness. When folk are down
to their last dime and they're
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worrying, "Where is my next meal
coming from?" and you walk into
the room, they should stop.
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Why? You're bringing light to
darkness and you got to let them
know, "What's wrong with you?
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Don't you know we are more than
conquerors? Don't you know He is
Jehovah-Rapha? He's a healer.
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Don't you know that the earth is
the Lord's, the fullness
thereof, all they that dwell
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therein, that I once
was young but now I'm old,
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but I've never seen the
righteous forsaken nor His seed
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begging bread?" When you
show up, your situation should
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lighten up. Let me tell you
this --- throw this in quickly.
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The way you came in the church
may not be the way I came in.
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The way I've come in the church
may not be the way my daughter
is coming to church
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and my grandchildren are
coming to church. We got to be
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relevant, but you can't be
relevant if you're handcuffed by
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tradition. Not all tradition is
bad but whenever tradition does
not surrender to the Word of
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God, we got a problem. You see,
there are some traditions that
remain even if they're
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ineffective. This is the kind of
tradition that you got to be
afraid of because it says,
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"I'm going to do the same things
and I'm going to expect a
different result," but that is
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lunacy. Understand that
that does not make sense.
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There are a lot of people I see
across this world who work in
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the church and they're busy
around the church, but I'm not
sure they're doing the Lord's
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work the Lord's way. We got a
lot of motion but no movement.
So you got to ask yourselves,
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"Is what I'm doing effective?
Is what I'm doing building the
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kingdom of God?" Jesus continues
in verse number 14, "You are the
light of the world," but he also
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says, "A city that is set on a
hill can't be hid.” Now,
remember, a hill is higher than
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ground level. A hill is not at
ground level, it's higher than
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ground level. So, a city set
on a hill is on a high place.
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So then if I'm on a hill there,
I'm in a city, it means that
I've been elevated and I can't
00:20:15.14\00:20:21.92
then be hidden. People can see
my light if I'm on a hill in a
city because there's
00:20:21.95\00:20:26.42
-and because they can
see my light, there's greater
00:20:26.45\00:20:32.03
responsibility accountability
and that comes along with the
knowledge that I have. I'm on a
00:20:32.06\00:20:41.34
hill. I'm elevated. I'm a
pastor, but there's greater
accountability. You're elders,
00:20:41.37\00:20:51.25
but there's greater
accountability. You're church
officers, but there's a greater
00:20:51.28\00:20:55.85
accountability. You're church
members, but there's a greater
00:20:55.88\00:21:01.02
accountability. God will place
us in specific positions where
we can be more visible
00:21:01.06\00:21:04.63
because He's trying to
spread more light in the world;
00:21:04.66\00:21:07.40
and that's why he has some of us
among our family, because he's
trying to spread light.
00:21:07.46\00:21:13.57
That's why some of us, we don't
understand it, but we're on the
same job, and we really want
00:21:13.60\00:21:17.94
out. But God has us on a job to
spread light. That's why some of
us are still in the same city.
00:21:17.97\00:21:23.01
You really want out of
Huntsville but God still has you
here because he's trying to
00:21:23.04\00:21:27.25
spread light. But I've learned
in my ministry and I've learned
00:21:27.28\00:21:30.09
in my life, when you are set on
that hill, the more your
visibility the more your
00:21:30.12\00:21:35.99
vulnerability. That the higher
the level the higher the devil.
00:21:36.02\00:21:39.19
Because when God gives you
visibility, you become a target
00:21:39.23\00:21:43.23
for the devil. I've learned in
my ministry, dogs don't bark at
parked cars, dogs bark at moving
00:21:43.26\00:21:49.47
cars. Because of this, there are
some of us that God is not
bringing to our greater
00:21:49.50\00:21:54.28
visibility and earthly elevation
because some of us can't handle
00:21:54.31\00:21:58.65
it. Some of us couldn't handle
being set on a hill. So be
00:21:58.68\00:22:01.95
careful. Young people, listen. I
hear "I want to be the Breath of
00:22:01.98\00:22:04.32
Life. I want to be the
pastor of the church one day."
00:22:04.35\00:22:05.92
You better be careful what you
pray for, you just might get it.
00:22:05.95\00:22:09.92
Because the greater the
visibility you have the greater
the responsibility that you
00:22:09.96\00:22:13.63
have, and people will
start watching you differently.
00:22:13.66\00:22:16.67
You see, when I was down and
so-so, no one cared what I
thought, no one cared what I
00:22:16.70\00:22:21.70
said. But now that I'm here,
people always, "Well, what did
he say? What does he think?"
00:22:21.74\00:22:25.31
They may not have anything to
say to you but they're watching
00:22:25.34\00:22:28.61
you. Jesus continues, I wish I
had time, he continues in verse
00:22:28.64\00:22:31.95
15. He says, "Neither do men
light a candle and put it under
00:22:31.98\00:22:34.25
a bushel but on a candlestick
and it giveth the light to all
that are in the house."
00:22:34.28\00:22:37.15
In other words, God hasn't
blessed you with this wonderful
00:22:37.19\00:22:41.69
gospel. God hasn't blessed
us with this wonderful Advent
00:22:41.72\00:22:45.29
message. God hasn't blessed you
with your wonderful family, your
good health, your job,
00:22:45.33\00:22:49.40
your position, your promotion or
with your career for you to lose
00:22:49.43\00:22:55.04
focus and hide. Your purpose
is not served when it's under a
00:22:55.07\00:23:00.64
bushel. God has called you to be
a light and He has called you to
00:23:00.68\00:23:06.61
be bold for Him. It's
interesting to me, it's so
amazing how before you got the
00:23:06.65\00:23:16.56
job, before you got the
promotion, before you got the
degree, before you got the
00:23:16.59\00:23:21.56
husband, before you got the
wife, before you got the car,
before you got the house,  you
00:23:21.60\00:23:25.53
would say, "I love the Lord. He
heard my cry and pitied every
groan. I thank God. I praise
00:23:25.57\00:23:32.51
God. I worship God. Hallelujah,
God is good." But the moment you
00:23:32.54\00:23:37.85
get a raise, the moment you get
a new car with air-conditioning,
00:23:37.88\00:23:43.35
young people, the moment you
pass your tests, you were in
prayer meeting when you were
00:23:43.39\00:23:52.26
trying to get financially
cleared, the moment the cancer
goes into remission, what
00:23:52.29\00:23:58.47
happens to the light? Now you
got the nice car, now you got
the nice house, now you got some
00:23:58.50\00:24:06.68
education, now you have a job,
now you've been financially
cleared, now you've got a good
00:24:06.71\00:24:11.78
bank account, now you are
sitting back in church talking
about, "It doesn't take all
00:24:11.81\00:24:17.02
that. I don't know why they
have to do all that praise and
00:24:17.05\00:24:20.49
worship. I don't know why he
preaches so loud and stomps that
00:24:20.52\00:24:24.49
foot. I don't know why we have
to sing so long and loud. I
don't know why church is so
00:24:24.53\00:24:29.36
long, all that singing, all that
shouting, all that praising. It
doesn't take all that."
00:24:29.40\00:24:35.74
But when you were broke, when
you didn't have a dollar to your
00:24:35.77\00:24:43.61
name, all you did was call on
the name of the Lord. When you
were on your sick bed of
00:24:43.65\00:24:51.12
affliction, all you did
was cry out to the Lord.
00:24:51.15\00:24:54.72
Don't you know that if you
talked about Him when you didn't
00:24:54.76\00:25:00.20
have a thing, it now means
that you do now have something?
00:25:00.23\00:25:04.03
You ought to tell somebody that
when I think of the goodness of
Jesus and all He's done for me,
00:25:04.07\00:25:13.41
my soul cries out, "Hallelujah.
Thank God, thank God for saving
00:25:13.44\00:25:24.62
me." Church, it's time to shine.
You've got your health, it's
00:25:24.65\00:25:32.86
time to shine. You're in school,
they can't put you out now, it's
00:25:32.89\00:25:40.17
time to shine. You pass the
tests, but nobody knows you love
00:25:40.20\00:25:45.27
Jesus. Your cancer has gone in
remission, but nobody knows you
00:25:45.31\00:25:50.18
serve Jesus. But it's time to
shine, y'all. I said it's time
00:25:50.21\00:25:54.35
to shine. The very fact that we
are in this church right now and
somebody has not come in here
00:25:54.38\00:25:58.19
and opened fire, it's time to
shine. It's time to shine. We
take stuff for granted.
00:25:58.22\00:26:03.46
The fact that I'm here in my
right mind, it's time to shine.
00:26:03.49\00:26:09.00
You've been in the valley long
enough, you've been in trouble
00:26:09.03\00:26:14.44
long enough, you've been in mess
long enough, you've been sick
long enough, you've had drama
00:26:14.47\00:26:22.58
long enough, you've been quiet
long enough, but it's time to
00:26:22.61\00:26:28.12
shine. Jesus closes and says,
"Let your light so shine that
others may see your good works
00:26:28.15\00:26:33.89
and glorify your Father which is
in heaven." It's time to shine.
I said it's time to shine.
00:26:33.92\00:26:43.26
The Lord is my light and my
salvation whom shall I fear.
It's time to shine.
00:26:43.30\00:26:50.77
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path. It's
00:26:50.81\00:26:57.11
time to shine. The world is
perishing, but it's time to
shine. Mosques are being blown
00:26:57.15\00:27:04.55
up, but it's time to shine. The
enemies of God are rising up,
but it's time to shine.
00:27:04.59\00:27:08.86
Souls are perishing, but it's
time to shine. People are going
to Christ-less graves,
00:27:08.89\00:27:14.56
but it's time to shine. You may
have been wallowing in sin, you
may have been soaking in sin,
00:27:14.60\00:27:21.07
you may have had a habit, an
addiction, you may have been
depressed, but it's time to
00:27:21.10\00:27:31.45
shine. We used to sing it in
Sabbath school, hide it under a
bushel, no. I'm going to let it
00:27:31.48\00:27:42.06
shine. Won't let Satan blow it
out, I'm going to let it shine.
Jesus gave it to me, I'm going
00:27:42.09\00:27:56.71
to let it shine. Let it shine
till Jesus comes, I'm going to
00:27:56.74\00:28:07.35
let it shine. Thank you very
much for tuning in to this
week's Breath of Life broadcast.
00:28:07.38\00:28:11.59
We hope and pray that you've
been blessed by Dr. Byrd's
inspirational message.
00:28:11.62\00:28:16.19
If you would like to hear
this sermon in its entirety,
00:28:16.22\00:28:18.73
please feel free to visit
us at www.breathoflife.tv.
00:28:18.76\00:28:24.47
Or, call us at (256) 929-6460.
00:28:24.50\00:28:30.64
[End]
00:28:30.67\00:28:45.69