Sermon #B636 -
Stop Making Excuses
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Pastor Byrd: Go and read
the book of Exodus, chapter 3.
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Exodus chapter 3 and we're going
to go to verse number 9. Exodus
chapter 3 verse 9, the word says
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of Exodus 3 verse 9, "Now
therefore, behold, the cry of
the children of Israel has come
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unto me: and I have also seen
the oppression wherewith the
Egyptians oppress them. Come now
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therefore, and I will send thee
unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest
bring forth my people
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the children of Israel out of
Egypt. And Moses said unto God,
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who am I, that I should go unto
Pharaoh and that I should bring
forth the children of Israel out
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of Egypt? And he said, certainly
I will be with thee, and this
shall be a token unto thee,
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that I have sent thee: When thou
hast brought forth the people
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out of Egypt, ye shall serve God
upon this mountain. And Moses
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said unto God, "Behold, when I
come unto the children of
Israel, and shall say unto them,
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'The God of your fathers hath
sent me unto you'; and they
shall say to me, 'What is his
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name?' what shall I say unto
them?" And God said unto Moses,
tell them, "I am that I am":
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and he said, "Thus shalt thou
say unto the children of Israel,
'I am hath sent me unto you.'"
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And God said moreover unto
Moses, "Thus shalt thou say unto
the children of Israel,
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'The Lord God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham, the God of
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Isaac, and the God of Jacob,
hath sent me unto you': this is
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my name forever, and this is my
memorial unto all generations."
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Now, put a bookmark there and I
got to give you a new testament
scripture. Go to John 5,
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because I'm going to preach two
sermons in one. John 5:1, the
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word says, "After this, there
was a feast of the Jews; and
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
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Now there is at Jerusalem by the
sheep market, a pool, which is
called in the Hebrew tongue
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Bethesda, having five porches.
In these lay a great multitude
of impotent folk, of blind,
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halt, withered, waiting for the
moving of the water. For an
angel went down at a certain
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season into the pool, and
troubled the water: whosoever
then first after the troubling
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of the water stepped in was made
whole of whatsoever disease he
had. And a certain man was
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there, which had an infirmity
thirty and eight years. When
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Jesus saw him lie, and knew that
he had been now a long time in
that case, he saith unto him,
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"Wilt thou be made whole?" The
impotent man answered him, "Sir,
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I have no man, when the water is
troubled, to put me into the
pool: but while I am coming,
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another steppeth down before
me." Jesus saith unto him,
"Rise, take up thy bed and
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walk." And immediately the man
was made whole, and took up his
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bed, and walked: and on the same
day was the Sabbath." Stop
making excuses. [Congregation:
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Amen] Bless us now Lord in this
work. Hide me behind your cross,
in Jesus name Lord moveth the
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appeal time. Move by your power
and by your spirit. Forgive me
my sins in Jesus name, Amen.
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Alright, before I begin today,
there is a lady by the name of
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Carolyn. Carolyn, what's the
last name pastor? Johnson,
Carolyn Johnson. Where are you
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right now? Carolyn Johnson, I'm
looking for you. If you are
here, okay. This young lady is
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from Ardmore, Alabama. I just
got a word, there we go, give it
a smile. I just got word that
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Carolyn Johnson is from Ardmore,
AL and watches Pastor Byrd on
Breath of Life. [Congregation:
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Clapping] I got word that you
drove here today to meet me and
see the Oakwood University
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church and the Breath of
Life Ministry. [Congregation:
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Clapping] On behalf of all of
us, we welcome you. Give her a
round of applause everybody.
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God bless you.
[Congregation: Clapping]
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So after church today, my
wife and I will hug you, take
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pictures with you and we have
dinner in church just for you.
Is that alright? God bless, you
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may be seated, Amen. Stop making
excuses. It's hard to believe,
but when my family and I moved
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to Huntsville, our oldest
daughter was in the fifth grade.
Our middle daughter who was the
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baby daughter at that time was
in the third grade. And our baby
girl, there was no baby girl. It
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was just Danielle, myself,
Christian and Caileigh. But time
flies because now, our baby that
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was in fifth grade is eighteen,
the baby that was in third grade
is sixteen. And they both have a
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driver's license. "Can I get the
keys to the van?" God hasn't
converted me, yet. Come on say
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amen. [Congregation: Amen] And
we've got the baby girl who's
five. Next year, I don't know if
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this has ever happened in the
history of this church, but we
will have a daughter in the
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college, a daughter in high
school and a daughter in the
elementary school all at one
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time pray our strength in the
Lord. [Congregation: Clapping]
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But one of the first quotes my
daughters learned when we moved
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to Huntsville and they were in
the fifth and third grade at
Oakwood Adventist Academy was a
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quote that one of their
teachers, Dorothy Davis, used to
make them learn. And it had to
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do with excuses. Excuses are
tools of incompetence which
build monuments of nothingness
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and anyone who dwells on them is
seldom good for anything else.
They will recite this over
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and over in the house. "Excuses
are tools of incompetence which
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nothingness..." build monuments
of and they will quote it so
much I began to like the quote
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and I then began to quote it
myself because the quote became
a model for me in my ministry.
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But then when I really think
about it, this quote is not just
not useful in the vocational but
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this quote is also useful in the
spiritual because it addresses
two kinds of excuses: the
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excuses that people make in
one's service to God and the
excuses that people make in
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making a decision for God. So,
if you're in church today, if
you're watching today, you're
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tempted to make an excuse about
service to God. And then if
you're in here today and you're
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on the brink of joining the
church, you're tempted to make
an excuse about a decision for
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God which means then this word
is for everybody up in here.
Because all of us fall in one of
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two camps: excuses in our
service for God or excuses in
making a decision for God.
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So, in response to these two
excuses, in these two different
camps, two scriptures come to
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mind. That's why I read one from
the old testaments and one from
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the new testament. Now the first
in the old testament is from
Exodus 3 and 4 if you read it
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when you go home where we find
the Lord calling Moses into
God's service. Now notice this
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call is not made from a pulpit.
This call is not made from an
office building or a boardroom.
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This call was not a volcanic
phenomenon, not a beam of
sunlight, not a gas plant that
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had burst in flames. This call
was made from a bush. But this
bush is not like other bushes
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but what makes this bush special
is that God is in it. And when
God is in something or somebody,
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no devil in hell can stop it. Do
I have a witness in this place?
[Congregation: Yes]
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But the fact that the bush
is burning is not what catches
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Moses' attention. What catches
Moses attention is the fact that
several hours have gone by and
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the bush is still burning. So
then out of curiosity, Moses
says, "Let me take a step closer
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and get a better look at this
bush that will not burn out."
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God sees He has Moses' attention
and so He tells Moses, "Moses,
take your shoes off
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because you're standing on holy
ground." But God then says to
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Moses, "Moses, I've seen my
people oppressed. I've seen my
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people tortured. I've seen my
people bullied and harassed. But
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enough is enough! I want you to
lead my people out of Egypt."
Moses then begins to offer
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excuses instead of service. His
first excuse, "Who, me? Why me?
I've got a bad past." In this
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excuse, Moses doubts himself.
Moses is saying, "God, you want
to use me? Don't you know who I
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am? I've got a bad past I'm the
one who messed up. I'm the one
who killed an Egyptian and then
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I tried to cover it up. And then
the next day I broke up a fight
between two of my fellow Hebrews
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but one of them reminded
me that I was a murderer.
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God, don't you remember?" "Yes",
God says, "but I never forgot
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you." Moses says, "But God, I'm
the one who blows it." God says,
"But you're the one who's also
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been forgiven." Moses, "I'm the
one who messes up." God says,
"But you're also the one who's
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been saved, sanctified and
delivered. Don't worry about
your past. Your past is good to
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learn from but not good to live
in. So when your past calls,
don't answer because it has
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nothing new to say." Stop making
excuses! Moses goes to excuse
number two. By whose authority
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am I being sent? In other words,
who should I tell that sent me?
Now in the first excuse, Moses
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doubts himself. In the second
excuse, Moses doubts God. God
never ask Moses to go tell the
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people what Moses didn't know
about God. God told Moses to go
tell the people what he did know
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about God. So God says in verse
14 and we read it, "When they
ask you who sent you, just tell
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them that I am, that I am has
sent you." In other words,
Moses, this doesn't have
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anything to do with who you are
but it has everything to do with
who I am. And see, when you know
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who God is, out of all the
things God can't do, God my
friends can't fail. God is God.
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God is omnificent, omniscient,
omnipresent, he's sovereign,
king of kings, lord of lords,
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CEO of the universe before Him
there is none other, after Him,
there won't be none other, He's
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the great I am! But we get to
excuse number three. What if
they don't listen to me?
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Now, this response is totally
hypothetical. It's not factual.
It's a 'what-if' response.
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And I've learned in my ministry
that 'what-if' responses are
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vision killers. 'What-ifs' are
success slayers, they are faith
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destroyers. Whenever you hear
somebody running up to you
talking about 'what-if', you
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know you've got a problem. "What
if the people don't listen?" "I
didn't ask you that, just go."
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"What if I don't talk right?" "I
didn't ask you that, just go."
"What if I don't play right?" "I
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didn't ask you that, just go."
"What if my past isn't right?"
"I didn't ask you that, just
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go." "What if they don't know
me?" "I didn't ask you that,
just go." "What if they ask me a
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question that I don't know the
answer to?" "I didn't ask you
that, just go." "What if I
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haven't been fully trained?" "I
didn't ask you that, just go."
"What if I've not been
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ordained?" I didn't ask you
that, just go." "What if I don't
have a college degree?" "A
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graduate degree?" "A doctoral
degree?" "I didn't ask you that,
just go." "Quit talking about
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what you don't have and use what
you do have and just go!"
[Congregation: Clapping]
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Moses was too concerned about
what might happen. He didn't
realize and hear what God say
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would happen. So, what does God
do? God gives him three proofs.
How many proofs everybody?
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[Congregation: Three] Come on.
How many proofs
everybody?[Congregation: Three]
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First proof, God says, "Moses,
what's in your hand?" Moses
says, "A rod." God says,
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"Well cast the rod to the
ground." Moses cast the rod to
the ground and the rod becomes a
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snake. Moses runs from the
snake. Truth be told, I would
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have run, too. Do I have a
witness in this place?
[Congregation: Yes]
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Second proof. God says to Moses,
"Reach out your hand. Take that
rod. Take that snake by the
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tail." Moses reaches out his
hand. He catches the snake. The
snake becomes a rod again.
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Third proof. God says, "Moses,
put your hand in your shirt next
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to your body." Moses puts his
hand in his shirt next to his
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flesh and when he takes it out
his hand is as leprous as snow.
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God then says, "Alright Moses,
put your hand back in your shirt
next to your flesh." Moses does
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it again and when he does it
again, his hand becomes as
healthy as it was before. The
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Lord is, in essence saying,
"Brother Moses, if I can do that
with a stick, if I can do that
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with a rod, if I can do that
with your hand, imagine what I
can do with your entire being."
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But remember I said there were
two scriptures. One in the old
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and one in the new that reflect
the two counts of excuses. We've
dealt with the old testament,
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the camp of offering God service
but let's go now to the new
testament, the second camp.
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The excuse of making a decision
for the Lord. In John 5, we read
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the text, Jesus has just
traveled from Galilee to
Jerusalem. He's traveled there
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in order to celebrate one of the
great religious feasts. The
bible does not tell us which
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feast it was. It just says one
of the great religious feasts.
Now, when he arrives in
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Jerusalem, he comes to the pool
of Bethesda. Everybody say,
"Bethesda". [Congregation:
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Bethesda] Come on, say
Bethesda.[Congregat ion:
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Bethesda] Bethesda means the
house of mercy or the house of
healing which is an appropriate
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name for Bethesda because the
people who are waiting around
the pool of Bethesda had been
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told that every now and then, an
angel would come and trouble the
water and the first person who
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jumps into the pool would be
healed by an angel. Now, the
bible makes no mention of
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medical equipment. So, that
means, there's no medical staff
there. No doctors, no nurses but
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just at Bethesda, a complex of
five porches where hundreds of
sick people lay. Now, at
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Bethesda, the word of God and
Ellen White in Desire of Ages
teach that the water could not
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heal while it was still and
quiet. The water had to be
troubled and the water had to be
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stirred up in order to bless and
to heal. There comes, understand
friends of mine, a time in our
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life where we need healing. Are
you hearing what I'm saying?
[Congregation: Yes]
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We need healing but we can't get
healing until the waters in our
lives have been stirred up.
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This isn't strange because
the less you shake a bottle of
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orange juice, all of the
concentrates will fall to the
bottom and you will have nothing
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to drink but colored water.
Unless you shake a bottle of
medicine, all the healing
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substance will gather at
the bottom and what is left will
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take no effect. That's why
they'd tell you to shake it
before you take it. And that's
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the way it is with us. Unless we
are stirred up, unless our
waters are troubled, unless
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we've been shaken up, our gifts
will fall to the bottom of the
pools in our lives. And we will
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be nothing but dead and dry,
unmoved and unchallenged,
unstirred and unchanged.
00:18:59.73\00:19:04.64
The bible says that the man had
been sick for 38 years which is
a long time to be sick.
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But the man's not interested
in making something happen.
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He's waiting for somebody to
make something happen for him.
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But there comes a time in your
life where you can't wait for
something to happen
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but you got to
make something happen.
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You can't wait for somebody to
do it for you but you got to do
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it yourself. Jesus comes up to
the man. Jesus says, "Man, do
you want to be made whole?
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Man, do you want to be healed?"
Now on the surface, this seems
like a foolish question
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for doesn't a person who's been
sick 38 years want to be made
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whole? Doesn't a starving person
want food? Doesn't a broke
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person want money? Doesn't a
person making an F want to make
an A. Doesn't a sick person want
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healing? Do you want to be
made whole? But here comes the
00:19:58.26\00:20:02.70
excuses. "Sir, I have nobody to
help put me in the water. Every
time I try to get to the water,
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somebody gets in my way and I
can't get to the pool. I could
have been healed a long time ago
00:20:08.37\00:20:13.94
but somebody was not there for
me. I could have been healed but
the water when it was stirred,
00:20:13.98\00:20:19.31
nobody was there to help put me
in the water." But you see
friends, I have a theological
00:20:19.35\00:20:23.62
and fundamental problem with his
response. Because everybody
around the pool is sick
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and how can somebody who's sick
get healing from somebody else
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who's sick? Because if you are
around sick people long enough,
you'll start getting sick.
00:20:34.30\00:20:39.00
If you hang with negative
people, you'll start being
negative. If you hang with
00:20:39.03\00:20:45.44
depressed people, you'll start
being depressed. If you hang
with gossiping people, you'll
00:20:45.47\00:20:51.38
start gossiping. If you
associate with Godless people,
you'll start being Godless after
00:20:51.41\00:20:56.79
all, birds of a feather flock
together. You're taking sickness
to sickness and in the name of
00:20:56.82\00:21:03.89
Jesus, I don't know about you,
but I don't want to surround
myself with negative people.
00:21:03.93\00:21:09.30
I want to surround myself with
positive people, Godly people,
Christ-like people, prayerful
00:21:09.33\00:21:16.71
people, faithful people,
spiritual people, visionary
people, smart people. Because if
00:21:16.74\00:21:24.01
I can do bad, I can do bad
by myself.[Congrega tion: Amen]
00:21:24.05\00:21:29.35
One of the reasons that hindered
this man from healing was his
company, his associations, his
00:21:29.38\00:21:39.29
friends. You can't receive a
miracle hanging around sick
people. But not only that,
00:21:39.33\00:21:43.87
this man's living what I call an
'as-soon-as' life.  As soon as I
00:21:43.90\00:21:50.84
get to the water, my life will
get better. As soon as I get in
the water, my problems will be
00:21:50.87\00:21:57.91
fixed. As soon as somebody helps
me, I will be healed. As soon as
I get more money, I'll start
00:21:57.95\00:22:07.22
tithing. As soon as the time of
trouble comes, I'll start going
to church. As soon as probation
00:22:07.26\00:22:15.23
closes, I'll start praying. As
soon as I learn more, I'll get
baptized. But what are you
00:22:15.26\00:22:26.27
waiting for? Thirty-eight years?
Time waits for no man. Jesus
said, "Do you want to be healed?
00:22:26.31\00:22:34.98
Do you want to be made whole?"
But I've learned in my life
00:22:35.02\00:22:38.82
and in my ministry there are
some folks who don't want to be
00:22:38.85\00:22:42.69
healed. Some folks don't want
the responsibility of what goes
along with being healed.
00:22:42.72\00:22:46.13
Being sick gives them an excuse
to lie on their back and wait
for somebody else to do it for
00:22:46.16\00:22:53.87
them. Being sick gives them an
excuse to keep doing what
they've always been doing
00:22:53.90\00:22:59.94
instead of making a change in
their life. But you can't keep
doing the same thing expecting a
00:23:00.04\00:23:03.24
different result. That's lunacy.
For 38 years, the man's been a
beggar living off the pity of
00:23:03.28\00:23:10.19
other folks. If he's healed,
he'll lose all of this. If he's
healed, he's got to get a job
00:23:10.22\00:23:17.06
and take on the responsibilities
of life. The fact is,
00:23:17.09\00:23:20.33
some folk would go through
extraordinary lengths to avoid
change in their lives.
00:23:20.36\00:23:24.87
The imprisonment is so great
that when Jesus does ask, "Do
you want to be made whole?"
00:23:24.90\00:23:29.77
Notice, the man doesn't even
say yes. But he offers excuses.
00:23:29.80\00:23:38.28
Notice in the text, Jesus does
not help this man get in the
00:23:38.31\00:23:46.59
water. But what does Jesus do?
He speaks words of life. Rise,
take up your bed and walk.
00:23:46.62\00:24:01.84
Don't just lie there. Don't wait
for somebody to do something for
you. Don't feel sorry for
00:24:01.87\00:24:12.08
yourself. Don't wait until you
think you need to learn
something else. But rise, pick
00:24:12.11\00:24:23.83
up your bed and walk. Jesus
didn't lay hands on the man.
Jesus didn't put oil on the man.
00:24:23.86\00:24:34.04
Jesus didn't anoint the man but
Jesus challenged the man. Rise,
pick up your bed and walk. Jesus
00:24:34.07\00:24:45.18
told the man what to do because
Jesus had already given the man
the power to do it. Rise, pick
00:24:45.21\00:24:53.89
up your bed, and walk. In both
stories. Moses and the man at
the pool of Bethesda, they are a
00:24:53.92\00:25:08.84
word for somebody today. Two
different stories but one
central message. Stop making
00:25:08.87\00:25:24.89
excuses. Number one to the
church members, stop making
excuses about being in service
00:25:24.92\00:25:37.97
for the Lord. And number two, to
the non-church member, stop
making excuses about making a
00:25:38.00\00:25:50.85
decision for the Lord as it was
in the days of Noah. So, that it
all so be in the coming of the
00:25:50.88\00:25:59.12
son of man. Because in the days
of Noah, they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in
00:25:59.15\00:26:07.13
marriage. So that it all so be
just like that just before the
Lord comes. And Noah preached a
00:26:07.13\00:26:16.54
hundred and twenty years. Eight
people got in the boat. I've
been preaching two weeks and you
00:26:16.57\00:26:22.61
need to say, "I'm not going to
be like those folks who heard
the word of God through Noah but
00:26:22.64\00:26:29.62
refused to get in the boat
because it won't be water but
fire next time." And today I'm
00:26:29.65\00:26:38.13
so glad that troubles won't last
always and I'm so glad that
weeping may endure for a night
00:26:38.16\00:26:44.37
but joy comes in the morning
time. I'm so glad today that
2000 years ago, Jesus didn't
00:26:44.40\00:26:54.41
wait on anybody. Jesus didn't
cut any excuses. Jesus wasn't
scared but Jesus left a
00:26:54.44\00:27:02.48
celestial courts of heaven.
Jesus left the paradise of
heaven. Jesus came down to this
00:27:02.52\00:27:10.29
sin-infested earth to save you,
you and me. Jesus went to
Calvary to save a wretch like
00:27:10.33\00:27:18.07
you and me. They hung him high,
they stretch him wide. He hung
his head, for me he died. And
00:27:18.10\00:27:26.98
that's not how the story ends.
In three day, he rose again.
Stop making excuses. The doors
00:27:27.01\00:27:32.75
of the church are open. Man,
woman, boy, girl, the doors of
this church are open. Jesus
00:27:32.78\00:27:40.82
loves you. Jesus died to save
you. Jesus is coming back to get
you. Stop making excuses.
00:27:40.86\00:27:48.60
Everybody on their feet. I'm
about to close. Everybody on
their feet, come on. Everybody
00:27:48.63\00:27:51.27
on their feet, everybody stand
up. We're making the appeal,
we're close. We'll make the
00:27:51.30\00:27:56.17
appeal, we're close. Everybody
on their feet. Pass me not oh
gentle savior, hear my humble
00:27:56.20\00:28:01.58
cry, while on others thou art
calling, do not pass me by. The
doors. of God's church is open.
00:28:01.61\00:28:05.08
Pass me not oh Gentle
Savior. Sing with me, everybody.
00:28:05.11\00:28:06.58
Thank you very much for tuning
in to this week's Breath of Life
00:28:06.61\00:28:10.15
broadcast. We hope and pray that
you've been blessed by Dr.
Byrd's inspirational message.
00:28:10.19\00:28:14.72
If you would like to hear
this sermon in its entirety,
00:28:14.76\00:28:17.29
please feel free to visit
us at www.breathoflife.tv.
00:28:17.33\00:28:23.03
Or, call us at (256) 929-6460.
00:28:23.06\00:28:30.74
[End]
00:28:30.77\00:28:45.79