(Breath of Life Theme Music)
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Sermon #S007 -
Unrealistic Requirements
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Pastor Snell: How many of us
believe that God still does
supernatural things?
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How many of us are expecting for
something different to occur in
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your life?
[Congregation: Shouting]
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Pastor Snell: I just need to
know who to aim the sermon at.
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I just need to know who the
believing people are in the room
today and online. Amen.
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Matthew 14: 22, "Immediately,
Jesus made His disciples get
into the boat and go before Him
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to the other side, while He sent
the multitudes away. And when He
had sent the multitudes away,
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He went up on the mountain by
Himself to pray. Now, when
evening came, He was alone
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there. But the boat was now in
the middle of the sea, tossed by
the waves, for the wind was
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contrary. Now, in the fourth
watch of the night, Jesus went
to them, walking on the sea.
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And when the disciples saw Him
walking on the sea, they were
troubled, saying, 'It is a
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ghost!' And they cried out
for fear. But immediately, Jesus
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spoke to them..." And He is
saying the same thing to us
today. This is God's word to
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somebody. "...'Be of good cheer!
It is I; do not be afraid.' And
Peter answered Him and said,
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'Lord, if it is You, command me
to come to You on the water.' So
He said, 'Come.' And when Peter
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had come down out of the boat,
he walked on the water to go to
Jesus. But when he saw that the
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wind was boisterous, he was
afraid; and beginning to sink he
cried out, saying, 'Lord, save
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me!' And immediately Jesus
stretched out His hand and
caught him, and said to him, 'O
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you of little faith, why did you
doubt?' And when they got into
the boat, the wind ceased. Then
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those who were in the boat came
and worshiped Him, saying,
'Truly, You are the Son of
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God.'" I want to give emphasis
on verse number 27. "But
immediately Jesus spoke to them,
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saying, 'Be of good cheer! It is
I; do not be afraid.'" Today,
saints, for a little while, I
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want to talk to you under the
subject Unrealistic
Requirements. Unrealistic
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requirements. Let's pray
together. Father, I pray once
again that You would make Your
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Spirit so dense in this place,
that it would suffocate all
alternative principalities.
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Father, I pray that You would
not just caused the building to
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swell, but Lord, cause our
hearts to swell because we have
as much as You as we can
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contain. Father, I'm praying
that in the hearing of the word,
that faith will be multiplied
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exponentially. Lord, would You
let your strength be perfected
in my weakness? Lord enlarge our
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expectation. Lord enlarge our
hope. Lord, would You make our
faith just a little bit more
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elastic today? Lord, would You
hide me in the shadows of the
cross that Jesus alone might be
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seen, that Christ alone would be
heard? At the end of our time
together, may Jesus alone be
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praised. We ask this in the name
of Him who is altogether lovely.
It is in the name of Jesus that
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we pray. Let God's
people say together Amen.
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Amen. You may be seated in the
house of the Lord. Again talking
today on the subject Unrealistic
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Requirements. You know, saints,
one of the problems with the
church in our time is that our
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faith has become more rational
and less radical. We've
developed an intellectual faith,
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a common sense faith, a
sensory-based approach to
believing where we interpret
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faith through the prism of
things that can be seen. Can I
see it? Can I touch it? Can I
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handle it? The long-term result
is that we've even learned how
to manipulate the scriptures to
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justify our own unbelief, so
that we no longer have big
expectations in God. We no
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longer make bold request of God.
Most of us don't make room for
the supernatural to even occur
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in our lives. We only ask for
what we've already have. We only
expect what we've already seen.
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When God says all things are
possible, to them, that believe,
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so that whenever we have the
conversation about faith and
stepping out there in God,
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there is certain sentiments that
always prevail. They say,
"Pastor, I have faith,
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but we've got to also have
common sense." "Pastor. I've got
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faith, but you might need a
backup plan." "Pastor, I've got
faith, but I just need to see
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something." "Pastor, I've got
faith, but I'm also a realist.
Understand that I'm not against
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the virtues of planning or
common sense, but those things
are not to be exalted above
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faith. Those things are to
be made subject unto faith.
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In other words, you can't put
trust in common sense, for the
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Bible says, "There is a way that
seemeth, right unto a man, but
the end thereof are the ways of
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death. You can't put trust in
what you see, for the just shall
not walk by sight, but the just
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shall live by faith. You can't
put trust in your plan, for the
Bible says in his heart a man
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plans his course, but it is the
Lord that determines his steps.
Why do you need a backup plan?
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If your steps have been ordered
by God? Paul says He always
causes us to triumph.
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In fact, you can't be a realist
and a person of faith at the
same time. A realist can only
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assess what is, but as people of
faith, we call those things that
are not yet as if they already
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are. How many of us know that
you can't limit God to working
in a way that makes sense to us?
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In other words, God doesn't have
to make sense because God is the
one who made sense.
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You all are not with me today.
In other words, God does not
have to conform to your logic.
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In other words, we've got to get
to a place where we don't see
the promises of God as
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fictional, but we know that they
are literal. The issue is that
we see the promises as not as
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attainable, but as allegorical.
How many of us know that it was
not realistic for Moses to
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attempt to open up a Red Sea. It
wasn't realistic for Joshua to
believe the sun was going to
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stand still. It wasn't realistic
for Peter to attempt to walk on
water. It wasn't realistic for
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Jesus to say that, "I'm going to
lay down my life. In three days,
I'm going to raise it up again."
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I just need to know. Do I have
at least seven folk in the space
who are willing to get
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unrealistic in their faith? In
other words, God is wanting you
to get to a place where you pray
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some unrealistic prayers, where
you dream some unrealistic
dreams, where you embrace some
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unrealistic visions, where you
begin some unrealistic pursuits.
In other words, your faith is
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not supposed to adjust to
reality. Your reality is
supposed to amend itself to
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divine faith. I need somebody to
get that the most dangerous
thing about the pandemic is not
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COVID. It is our common sense.
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[Congregation: Shouting]
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In other words, being realistic
has become more contagious than
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our faith, but we've got to get
back to a place where our faith
becomes contagious.
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Am I preaching to anybody today?
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Is there anybody that wants to
join me in creating some new
variants of faith with every
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testimony? You want to create
some new strands of belief with
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every miracle. The thing about a
contagious person is they don't
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try to spread it. But because
they are infected, they just
spread it involuntarily.
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I need some folk that are
infected by faith who are going
to spread the belief system you
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have, involuntarily, to those
who are around you. I need you
to know that my goal for the
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next few months, through the
preaching of the Gospel, is to
sneeze faith all over the body
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of Christ...
[Congregation: Shouting]
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So that we can create a chain
reaction of belief in the
household of faith. Are you with
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me today, saints? Go back with
me, if you will, if you don't
mind, to Matthew 14. Let's look
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together at verse number 22.
Matthew 14:22. When you get back
there, let me hear you say
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"Amen." Matthew 14:22, the Bible
says, "Immediately, Jesus
made..." He did what?
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[Congregation: Made]
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He made His disciples get into
the boat, and go before him to
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the other side. Now, saints, I
need you to know that today's
message actually has more meat
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than we will be able to digest
in one sitting. But the thing I
like about this story is that
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the first thing it teaches us is
that, sometimes, the solution
for trouble is actually a little
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bit more trouble. In other
words, the solution for trouble
sometimes is greater trouble.
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Now, beloved, I need you to know
that there are some things in
the text that are not obvious at
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first glance, but they become
clearer as we look at it in the
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context. Now, understand this,
saints, that what precedes this
story is the miracle of Jesus,
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feeding the 5,000. Now,
understand that after this
miracle, there is a grassroot
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campaign that begins to take
place. In fact, in John 6,
Jesus, notices, that the people
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are about to try to make him
king by force. In other words,
they see in Jesus someone who
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will give them immediate
deliverance from the tyranny of
Rome. This miracle that Jesus
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does, they believe that it will
make them invincible from all of
their armies. They believe that
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Jesus can feed the entire army
with food. They believe Jesus is
able to heal their wounded
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soldiers. They trust that Jesus
is to throw their enemies into
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confusion. In fact, they believe
that their army will never
suffer a casualty because even
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if a soldier dies, they believe
Jesus can bring him back from
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the dead. These conversations
that start in some small circles
are now smoking out loud.
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In other words, it is gaining so
much traction and momentum that
if Jesus won't take the throne
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voluntarily, they're going to
force it upon Him through
acclamation. Watch this
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because Ellen White says that
the 12 disciples literally begin
to join in with the crowd
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and they leverage their
influence to try to make Jesus
become king. The reason, saints,
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that they abort their mission is
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because they are vying for the
12 cabinet spots that will be in
the new monarchy that is ruled
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by Jesus Christ. What they are
going to do is they're going to
appeal to His Jewish heritage
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and His willingness to
take care of His own people.
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It's amazing, friends, that when
Jesus notices what is about to
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take place, the Bible says that
He dismisses the crowd and He
forces the disciples to get in a
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boat and go on ahead of them.
Now, the Bible says that he made
them. Your version may say He
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constrained them. One version
says He compels them. The reason
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that's laid out is because he is
sending them in the boat against
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their protests. In other words,
you got to be clear that they
don't want to get in the boat.
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Why? Because this 5,000, that
has been fed, you realize that
that's just 5,000 men.
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That doesn't include
the women and children.
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This platform that they have is
the largest platform Jesus has
had up to this point.
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In other words, they see this
as an opportunity that cannot be
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squandered. They've got to
strike while the iron is hot.
They want to make the most of
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this opportunity to make Jesus
king. When Jesus pushes them in
the boat, you've got to know
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that these guys are 38 hots.
These guys are vexed with Jesus.
They are upset with the savior
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because they feel like
this is a missed opportunity.
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Understand that this disposition
shows how easily we get
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distracted. Do you realize that
at a time when they should be
happy, they are sad?
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They just witnessed
Jesus feed 5,000 people,
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and leave enough leftovers that
they all got a basket to take to
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their home. In a moment where
they ought to be celebrating,
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they're crying. They turn this
moment of triumph into a moment
of personal tribulation.
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I need you to get, friends, that
their internal disposition is
actually what invites this storm
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to come upon them. Now, remember
I said earlier that sometimes
the only thing that helps you
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get rid of trouble is to get
into some additional trouble.
Are you all with me? In other
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words, look at this quote here
in Desire of Ages put this up
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here. Ellen White literally says
- put this up. She says that
their thoughts were stormy and
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unreasonable and the Lord gave
them something else to afflict
their souls and occupy their
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minds. God often does this when
men create burdens and troubles
for themselves. When the Gail
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struck them, they were afraid
and they forgot about their
disaffection, their unbelief,
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and their impatience. Now,
I'm not sure if you caught that.
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In other words, what she's
saying, friends of mine, is that
when we fail to recognize God's
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goodness, God has to send some
trouble to take your mind off of
your imagine trouble. In other
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words, when you consistently
make a mountain out of a
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molehill, when you find
something wrong no matter how
right your life is,
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when you're in that space where
you pick apart everything in
your journey, sometimes,
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God has to send a real storm to
set you free from your imagine
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storm. The disciples thought
they were having a bad day until
the storm actually showed up.
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The larger issue is our human
discontent. Do you realize,
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friends of mine, that you can
always find something to
complain about? In other words,
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there are some of us that don't
realize that you have a good
job, but you're so busy picking
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apart your employer, your
co-workers, and those that you
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don't like. Sometimes, God sends
a vocational storm to set you
free from your perceived storm.
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There were some of us that
complain so much about having to
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go to church, that God allowed
a pandemic to send us home for a
00:16:57.95\00:17:03.15
year, so that had more joy when
we came into the house of the
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Lord. There's some of us that
already have a good spouse, but
you're so busy picking them
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apart, that God is going to send
a marital storm to allow you to
have more appreciation about
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what you have. I guess
what I'm saying today, beloved,
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is you've got to get to a place
where you stop picking apart
everything that's in your life.
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Is there anybody like me that's
just made it up in your mind
that I'm going to stop figuring
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out everything that's wrong? I'm
going to wake up and say this is
the day that the Lord has made.
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I will rejoice and be glad in it
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In other words, friends of mine,
you got to learn how to
recognize God's goodness in
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everything. In fact, I've had
this happen. Recently, in my own
life, I remember there was a
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week, probably about five or six
weeks ago, where we had a number
of funerals that week.
00:17:58.17\00:18:02.61
I had a number of sermons to
do on Zoom. I was trying to get
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ready for Sabbath. I begin to
complain a little bit about all
the responsibilities, and all
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the places I had to
go and speak or preach.
00:18:13.66\00:18:15.59
I need you to know that same
week was the same week that I
came down with Bell's Palsy in
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my face. It's crazy because, now
at that time, I couldn't hardly
speak. I was nervous. I would
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never get my speech back. I was
afraid I would never get my S's,
my P's, and my W's. It's
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amazing. One minute, I was
complaining about having to
speak. When my speech was
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temporarily taken away, what
happened is my real trouble
delivered me from my imagine
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trouble. I need you to know that
I'm going to preach every sermon
God gives me from this point on
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like it's my last one because I
realized it doesn't have to be
that way. Are you all hear me
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today, saints? Is there anybody
that's willing to say, "Lord,
I'm done complaining about
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what's wrong, but I'm going to
praise you for what's right."?
Are you all hearing me today?
00:19:07.48\00:19:11.48
Instead of complaining,
"Oh, I got pain in my knee,"
00:19:11.51\00:19:15.45
maybe you ought to thank him
that the only paying you got is
in your knee instead of
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complaining, "Lord, my car is 15
years old." Maybe you ought to
praise him that after 15 years,
00:19:22.59\00:19:31.03
the car is still driving.
Instead of complaining that the
microwave is broke on a cold day
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like this, you ought to thank
him that the only thing broke in
the house is the microwave.
00:19:36.24\00:19:40.21
Students, instead of complaining
about the food at the cafe,
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maybe you ought to thank God
that there is food for you to
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eat. In other words, saints,
you've got to get to a place
where you just learn how to stop
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focusing on what's wrong and
recognize that God is right no
matter what is happening in your
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world. Sometimes, God has to
deliver us from discontent by
making us a little bit more
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discontent. Are you all hearing
me today, saints? Let me say it
this way. It's kind of like this
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and those with small kids, you
know what I'm talking about.
There are days every now and
00:20:15.74\00:20:19.81
then where you know how it is as
a parent. You try to get that
little cat nap in before your
00:20:19.85\00:20:23.95
next responsibility. I remember,
one day, I was having one of
those days and the kids came up
00:20:23.99\00:20:28.12
and I'm trying to get that in.
They were like, "Daddy, we're
bored." Now, I need you to know
00:20:28.16\00:20:35.06
that we don't give our kids
every indulgence, but we spent a
lot of money on toys, devices,
00:20:35.10\00:20:44.81
trampolines, and stuff we never
had. Come on and say Amen. In my
mind, you should never be bored
00:20:44.84\00:20:53.11
about nothing. Amanda came, and
they said, "We're bored." I
said, "Go and ride your bikes."
00:20:53.15\00:20:57.69
They come back like five minutes
later and say, "You know, Daddy,
we're bored." I say, "Listen. Go
00:20:57.72\00:21:02.16
play your device." They come
back a little later and they
say, "Daddy, we're still bored."
00:21:02.19\00:21:06.76
I say, "Go and watch your
cartoons." They come back later,
and they say, "Daddy, we're
00:21:06.80\00:21:08.56
still bored." And then, I
remembered what my parents would
do to me whenever I say too
00:21:08.60\00:21:15.70
often that I was bord. In other
words, when fun becomes a
problem, I said, "Go get that
00:21:15.74\00:21:25.75
basket of laundry over there.
You go get the mop and the
broom. The youngest one go get
00:21:25.78\00:21:30.79
the vacuum cleaner. Let me put
your hands to work since your
toys and your games won't
00:21:30.82\00:21:36.96
satisfy you no more. It's crazy
because, all of a sudden, they
got delivered from their
00:21:36.99\00:21:43.90
boredom. In other words, more
fun couldn't solve the boredom.
They didn't get delivered until
00:21:43.93\00:21:50.64
I gave them some work. Let me
say to all the kids at home,
when you say you're bored,
00:21:50.67\00:21:56.68
you're just making a prayer
request for work. Are you all
hearing what I'm saying?
00:21:56.71\00:21:57.71
[Congregation: Clapping]
00:21:57.75\00:21:59.88
What I'm saying is that every
now and then, God has to deliver
you by sending something you
00:21:59.91\00:22:06.19
don't think you need. Are you
all hearing me today, church?
Friends of mine, I need you to
00:22:06.22\00:22:15.10
get that on the journey of
faith, every now and then, God
is going to send or make some
00:22:15.13\00:22:25.77
unrealistic requirements of you.
Now, I want that to be clear
that these requirements are
00:22:25.81\00:22:31.51
designed to stretch you. These
requirements are designed to
grow you. These requirements
00:22:31.55\00:22:40.19
won't always feel comfortable.
The reason you need to know this
is because if you don't
00:22:40.22\00:22:44.63
understand this, the
requirements that God makes will
sometimes feel unrealistic.
00:22:44.66\00:22:51.07
As he sometimes, in
order to grow your faith,
00:22:51.10\00:22:53.20
one of the first things God
requires is for you to go back
to the place where your faith
00:22:53.23\00:23:02.54
failed last. Notice now that the
Bible says that he had to force.
00:23:02.58\00:23:05.98
Your version may say constrain
or compel them to get into the
00:23:06.01\00:23:11.05
boat. The reason Matthew lays it
out that way is because he has
to send them against their
00:23:11.09\00:23:17.46
expressed will. In other words,
he is requiring them to get in
the boat even though they do not
00:23:17.49\00:23:24.83
want to go and see. There are
two reasons they don't want to
go. Number one, as we stated,
00:23:24.87\00:23:30.81
they see this as a missed
opportunity. The second reason
they don't want to get in the
00:23:30.84\00:23:39.38
boat is because they remember
what happened last time. They
went on a boat at night. Are you
00:23:39.41\00:23:43.49
all with me? Do you remember
what happened the last time they
were there on the Lake of
00:23:43.52\00:23:48.82
Galilee? Jesus was there in the
boat asleep. Understand that
after a night of toil and
00:23:48.86\00:23:58.43
stress, they get to a point
where they are so frustrated and
they are so depleted that they
00:23:58.47\00:24:06.21
cry out to Jesus and say,
"Master, don't you care that we
00:24:06.24\00:24:10.15
perish?" I need you to remember
something. Notice that after
their night of toil, that after
00:24:10.18\00:24:19.65
Jesus calms the storm, notice
that he doesn't just rebuked the
00:24:19.69\00:24:23.36
wind. He then rebukes the
disciples and says, "How is it
that you are afraid?
00:24:23.39\00:24:29.40
Why is it that
you have no faith?"
00:24:29.43\00:24:33.07
In other words, saints, his
assessment is that there is a
deficit in their faith.
00:24:33.10\00:24:41.18
If this was to be a midterm,
they've got an F on their
midterm of belief. I need you to
00:24:41.21\00:24:49.48
understand, beloved, that ever
since that time, they got a
little bit more cautious every
00:24:49.52\00:25:00.43
time they got into a boat. In
other words, they are watching
the elements closely every time
00:25:00.46\00:25:06.03
they go out to see. Understand
that this requirement to get in
a boat, especially at night, is
00:25:06.07\00:25:13.84
very triggering for the
disciples. In other words, not
only do they have to get in the
00:25:13.88\00:25:18.41
boat at night, this time, Jesus
is not even with them in the
00:25:18.45\00:25:21.82
boat. I need you to know that
there is a cocktail of fearful
emotions that is running through
00:25:21.85\00:25:28.79
them as Jesus puts them in the
in the boat. As Jesus puts them
in the in the boat,
00:25:28.82\00:25:32.03
you got to be clear that they
are watching the elements the
00:25:32.06\00:25:35.63
entire time, so that just in
case things go left, they can go
right back to the shore.
00:25:35.66\00:25:41.04
They are at a place on the
journey where their eyes well up
with tears as they see the spot
00:25:41.07\00:25:50.01
where Jesus usually sits being
empty. They're anxious as they
push away from the shore and
00:25:50.05\00:25:58.79
Jesus gets further and further
away. That panic is heightened
when they can no longer even see
00:25:58.82\00:26:03.53
the shore. God makes them face
the situation that they wanted
00:26:03.56\00:26:12.47
to avoid the most. In other
words, beloved, I need you to
understand something. They're
00:26:12.50\00:26:17.01
asking the question to
themselves. Why does Jesus keep
putting us in boats at night
00:26:17.04\00:26:26.58
time? Why does Jesus keep
sending us through the same
thing? It's unfair that God
00:26:26.61\00:26:31.05
would put us in the same
predicament repeatedly. But one
of the things I need somebody to
00:26:31.09\00:26:35.99
get is the only time God makes
you face. Something repeatedly
is if that thing is critical to
00:26:36.02\00:26:43.03
your destiny. Let me take my
time. You all a little slow
today. Remember that their
00:26:43.06\00:26:52.17
mission is to take the gospel to
the world, but they can't take
the gospel to the world on camel
00:26:52.21\00:26:58.05
or on donkey. Every now and
then, they're going to have to
get in a boat and travel through
00:26:58.08\00:27:03.55
some rough weather. Jesus knows
that in order for them to master
the storms after He's gone,
00:27:03.59\00:27:09.39
He's got to teach them to master
some storms while He's still
00:27:09.42\00:27:13.29
here. In order for them to be
ready after He leaves, He's got
to make sure that they're
00:27:13.33\00:27:19.37
prepared before He goes. So
understand that this consistent
test is not punishment. It is
00:27:19.40\00:27:26.14
preparation. Thank you so much
for joining the Breath Of Life
television ministries broadcast.
00:27:26.17\00:27:32.41
We hoped you've been blessed
through today's message by
Pastor Debleaire Snell. Join us
00:27:32.45\00:27:41.56
next week for part 2 of
"Unrealistic Requirements". You
don't want to miss it.
00:27:41.59\00:27:45.33
(Breath of Life Music)
00:27:45.36\00:28:08.65
(Music)
00:28:08.68\00:28:11.35
In a world that's constantly
changing, it's a blessing to
know that there is a living
00:28:11.39\00:28:17.03
hope. His name is Jesus. On
Sunday, April 17, in conjunction
with the Interfaith Broadcasting
00:28:17.06\00:28:24.97
Commision we invite you to view
"A Living Hope" our Easter
television series, which will be
00:28:25.00\00:28:32.51
shown nationally on ABC
Television affiliates across the
United States. A Living Hope
00:28:32.54\00:28:39.58
will feature an Easter message
by Pastor Debleaire Snell. Our
special musical guests will be
00:28:39.61\00:28:48.06
Grammy award winning artist Cece
Winans, along with SELAH, and
violinist Patrick Bogui. For
00:28:48.09\00:28:55.70
broadcast cities,stations and
times of 'A Living Hope" please
visit breathoflife.tv or give us
00:28:55.73\00:29:00.70
a call at (256) 929-6460 [End]
00:29:00.74\00:29:15.75