Participants: Dr. Cheryl Wilson-Bridges
Series Code: HG
Program Code: HG000009
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00:34 Sing this Sabbath song.
00:35 We call, this is Black History Month. 00:37 We'll take it back a little bit. 00:38 Is that all right? Come on and sing with us. 00:41 I love to praise Him 00:45 I love to praise His name 00:47 I love to praise Him 00:50 I love to praise His name 00:52 I love to praise Him 00:56 I love to praise His name 00:58 I love to praise His Holy name 01:03 I love to praise Him 01:07 I love to praise His name 01:09 I love to praise Him 01:12 I love to praise His name 01:14 I love to praise Him 01:17 I love to praise His name 01:20 I love to praise His holy name 01:25 Say He's my rock 01:27 He's my rock 01:28 My rock, my rock My sword and shield 01:30 And He's my wheel 01:32 He's my wheel in the middle of the field 01:36 I know He'll never I know He'll never 01:39 Never let me down Never let me down 01:41 He's just a jewel He's just a jewel 01:44 That I have found 01:47 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 01:50 I love to praise His name 01:53 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 01:56 I love to praise His name 01:58 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 02:01 I love to praise His name 02:04 I love to praise His Holy name 02:07 Let say it again, say. 02:08 Say He's my rock 02:10 He's my rock 02:11 My rock, my rock My sword and shield 02:14 And He's my wheel He's my wheel 02:17 In the middle of the field 02:19 I know He'll never I know He'll never 02:22 Never let me down Never let me down 02:25 He's just a jewel He's just a jewel 02:27 That I have found 02:31 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 02:34 I love to praise His name 02:36 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 02:39 I love to praise His name 02:42 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 02:44 I love to praise His name 02:47 I love to praise His Holy name 02:52 Say He's my rock 02:53 He's my rock 02:55 My rock, my rock My sword and shield 02:57 And He's my wheel He's my wheel 03:00 In the middle of the field 03:02 I know He'll never I know He'll never 03:05 Never let me down Never let me down 03:08 He's just a jewel He's just a jewel 03:10 That I have found That I have found 03:14 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 03:17 I love to praise His name 03:19 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 03:22 I love to praise His name 03:24 Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah 03:27 I love to praise His name 03:30 I love to praise His Holy name 03:33 I love to praise His name 03:36 I love to praise His name 03:38 I love to praise His name 03:41 I love to praise His Holy name 03:52 Hallelujah. Hallelujah. 03:55 How great is our God 03:57 We all know that one. 03:59 Sing with me how great is our God 04:05 All will see how great 04:10 How great is our God 04:15 You know he is great. Come on, sing that again. 04:18 How great is our God 04:24 Sing with me how great is our God 04:30 All will see how great 04:34 How great is our God 04:41 Come on, I'm gonna sing and I want to hear you'll sing. 04:42 Come on. 04:43 I am ready now God 04:46 That's not good. Come on. 04:47 He is my Lord. 04:49 Everybody sing with me, sing with me. 04:51 How great is our God. 04:55 Only sing, yeah... 04:59 How great is our God. 05:04 Here we go, come on. 05:06 You're the name above all names. 05:08 You're the name above all names 05:10 You're the name above all names 05:14 You are worthy of my praise You are worthy of my praise 05:21 And my heart will sing And my heart will sing 05:25 How great How great 05:27 Is our God Is our God 05:33 You're the name above all names You're the name above all names 05:40 You are worthy of my praise You are worthy of our praise 05:46 And my heart will sing An my heart will sing 05:50 How great How great 05:53 Is our God Is our God 05:58 Listen to my theme, come on. 05:59 Then sings my soul Come on. 06:04 My Savior God, to Thee 06:10 How great God Thou art You know it, come on. 06:12 How great Thou art How great Thou art 06:19 How great Thou art 06:24 Then sings my soul Then sings my soul 06:30 My Savior God, to Thee 06:37 How great 06:39 How great Thou art 06:44 How great 06:45 How great Thou art 06:50 How great 06:53 How great is our God 06:59 Sing with me how great is our God 07:04 All will sing All will sing how great 07:08 How great How great 07:10 Is our God Is our God 07:14 Is our God Is our God 07:16 Come on. 07:17 Is our God Is our God 07:20 Is our God Is our God 07:22 Come on. 07:24 Is our God Is our God 07:27 Is our God Is our God 07:30 He's my God Is our God 07:33 He's my God Is our God 07:36 Is our God Is our God 07:40 Is our God Is our God 07:43 Is our God Is our God 07:46 Is our God Is our God 07:49 How great 07:51 No music, come on. 07:52 How great is our God 07:56 Sing with me 07:57 Sing with me how great is our God 08:01 You got to believe in this song. 08:03 All will sing All to sing how great 08:07 How great How great 08:11 Is our God. 08:15 Hallelujah. 08:26 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 08:30 Moves in my heart 08:34 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 08:38 Moves in my heart 08:42 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 08:47 Moves in my heart 08:51 I'm gonna sing 'till Jesus comes 08:57 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 08:59 Moves in my heart 09:01 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 09:03 Moves in my heart 09:04 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 09:06 Moves in my heart 09:07 I'm gonna sing 'till Jesus comes 09:10 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 09:12 Moves in my heart 09:14 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 09:15 Moves in my heart 09:17 I'm gonna sing 'till the Spirit 09:19 Moves in my heart 09:20 I'm gonna sing 'till Jesus comes 09:23 It was grace that brought me It was grace that taught me 09:30 It was grace that kept me 09:33 And it's grace that will lead me home 09:36 I'm gonna pray 'till the Spirit 09:38 Moves in my heart 09:39 I'm gonna pray 'till the Spirit 09:41 Moves in my heart 09:43 I'm gonna pray 'till the Spirit 09:44 Moves in my heart 09:46 I'm gonna pray 'till the Spirit moves in my heart 09:48 Can't you feel the spirit moving? 09:51 Can't you feel it moving? 09:55 Can't you feel it moving? 09:58 Can't you feel it moving? 10:02 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:04 Moves in my heart 10:05 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:07 Moves in my heart 10:08 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:10 Moves in my heart 10:11 I'm gonna sing 'till Jesus comes 10:14 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:16 Moves in my heart 10:18 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:20 Moves in my heart 10:21 I'm gonna shout 'till the Spirit 10:23 Moves in my heart 10:24 I'm gonna shout 'till Jesus comes 10:27 Till He comes 10:30 I'm gonna sing 10:37 'Till my Jesus 10:46 Till He come. 11:10 Waging War - Aiming Our Worship Weapons. 11:14 Let's pray. 11:16 God our Father, 11:18 we come before You humbly 11:19 and we just ask for You to fill this place. 11:22 There's nothing I can say or do dear Lord 11:24 without Jesus Christ, speaking on my behalf. 11:28 So hide me behind the cross 11:30 and let this "word" be a word from you. 11:32 We pray in your holy Son's name. 11:34 Amen. 11:36 War, it's a small three letter word, 11:42 that can radically change one's life for ever. 11:46 For most of us the word "War" 11:48 conjures up images of the injured, the destitute, 11:52 the frightened people embroiled in war 11:55 all over the world in far away nations. 11:58 We watch this on the news every day, 12:01 and we hear incisive reports 12:03 of people from around the world, 12:05 whose homes, whose workplaces, 12:08 whose lives are ravaged by war. 12:13 All though it is a small three-letter word, 12:17 War is no small matter. 12:22 War experts 12:24 who consider they're an nefarious trade and art, 12:27 they tell us that there are various types of wars 12:30 that can be waged through out the world. 12:34 They tell us that there is conventional warfare, 12:36 they uses the weapons of tanks, planes, and troops. 12:41 There's also guerrilla warfare, 12:43 they use as the tactics of fighting 12:46 in small bands and ambushes. 12:49 Then you have psychological warfare, 12:52 which uses propaganda, threats, intimidation 12:56 and demoralization. 12:58 And there is political warfare, 13:00 which we've seen a lot of, haven't we recently? 13:03 Political warfare, which uses political means 13:06 to compel your will. 13:09 And then finally, there is ideological warfare, 13:12 which uses opinions and ideas as weapons. 13:18 But you know, United States of America, 13:21 here, we're talking Black History Month, 13:23 has waged 12 wars in its history. 13:27 But the most heinous war, 13:29 the most hard war was the Civil War, 13:34 The Civil War. 13:35 It was filled by the debate over slavery and state rights. 13:39 The American Civil War 13:42 was a war that pitted north against south. 13:45 It was so despicable and so horrible. 13:49 This war was a war that was waged on our own soil. 13:54 Fathers, brothers, uncles, cousins 13:58 fought amongst each other. 14:00 And so in this war, 14:02 it boasts the highest causalities 14:05 of any war in the United States. 14:07 Over 140,000 people died in that war. 14:14 It was an illusive, horrible, ideological war 14:18 that had been fought for generations. 14:20 It was a war that only took four years of weaponry. 14:24 But yet, civil rights 14:25 and slavery rights were being fought 14:27 even after the weaponry war was ended. 14:31 It was a war that if you look closely, 14:33 is still being fought today. 14:38 You know, I-- 14:40 as pastor said, I attended Andrews University. 14:43 And back when I was at school 14:44 at Andrews University in Radiologic technology. 14:48 The program had a two year internship, 14:50 where you had to attend a medical facility. 14:54 Now Andrews has no medical facility 14:56 near the campus, 14:58 so you had to select one of three. 14:59 And I selected Hinsdale University 15:01 in Hinsdale, Illinois. 15:03 Now Hinsdale, Illinois is a beautiful affluent town. 15:07 If you look at the 2010 census today, 15:10 it's 90 percent Caucasian, 15:13 and it is one in the one percent 15:16 highest affluent area in Illinois. 15:18 So imagine when I was going to college back in the back, 15:23 in the-- 15:26 back in the. 15:28 So it was very affluent and it was predominantly white. 15:31 Unfortunately I was one of two African-Americans students 15:35 selected to join that program. 15:38 It was a prestigious honor. 15:40 I said it was a prestigious honor 15:43 until I experienced the prejudice. 15:49 Until I experienced the overt racism, 15:52 until I experienced the bigotry 15:55 from our own Christian brothers and sisters. 15:58 I said it was a civil war, did I say that? 16:01 Because back then, I wasn't fully converted, 16:04 help me Jesus. 16:06 And so, therefore civil war broke out. 16:09 But thank God, I was able to maintain my academic status. 16:15 Transferred out of there 16:16 and not become academic fatality. 16:17 Amen. Amen. Amen. 16:21 But sometimes, we have to endure that kind of war, 16:25 and the United States was not the first kingdom 16:28 to be embroiled in a civil war. 16:30 The Bible tells us, that in Revelation 12:7-8, 16:34 that there was war in heaven. 16:36 There was a civil war that was fought 16:38 between Michael, Jesus Christ 16:40 and the dragon, the devil in heaven. 16:43 The celestial war between the forces of good and evil 16:47 continues here on earth. 16:49 For millennia, Satan and his minions 16:53 have waged spiritual warfare against God's people. 16:56 Satan's war weapons that he aims at us 16:59 are temptations and trials. 17:03 Temptations and trials. 17:07 Let's read our text 17:08 that was read so nicely by the elder, Exodus 17, 17:11 I'm gonna read 14-16 again. 17:14 And I'm reading from the New King James Version, 17:18 and it says, "Then the Lord said to Moses, 17:22 "Write this for a memorial in the book 17:25 and recount it in the hearing of Joshua, 17:27 that I will utterly blot out 17:29 the remembrance of Amalek from under the heaven." 17:32 And Moses built an altar and he called its name, 17:36 The-Lord-Is-My-Banner, for he said, 17:40 "Because the Lord has sworn: 17:42 the Lord will have war with Amalek 17:44 from generation to generation.'" 17:47 Now we have to ask the question, 17:49 what happened, 17:51 why did God decide to have war with Amalek, 17:55 what is the explanation for this text? 17:58 Well, in order to find that out, we got to go back. 18:00 Amen. 18:01 We got to go back, because we need to know who is Amalek. 18:05 Well, in Genesis 36:12, you don't have to turn there. 18:08 Amalek was the grandson of Esau, 18:13 the grandson of Esau. 18:15 Now Esau, we remember was the twin brother of who? 18:18 Jacob. 18:20 Of Jacob, the twin brother of Jacob. 18:21 And Jacob was the father of the Israelites, right? 18:26 So Amalek and Israelites were cousins. 18:32 They were cousins. They were family. 18:34 Now the Amalekites, the Bible tells us, 18:38 "They were the first people to fight Israel 18:40 in the wilderness. 18:42 Three trials took place in wilderness. 18:43 The first one was drought. 18:46 There was bitter water made sweet. 18:49 And then the second one was a famine. 18:52 Bread was sent from heaven. 18:53 And the third one was a drought again. 18:56 Lord was trying to teach them something, wasn't He? 18:58 Was a drought again, and water came from the rock. 19:01 And they journeyed from Elim, 19:05 and all the congregation of the children of Israel 19:07 came to the wilderness of sin. 19:10 So they should've known there is going to be a problem. 19:11 Amen. Amen. 19:13 In the wilderness of sin which is between Elim and Sinai 19:17 on the 15th day of the second month, 19:19 after they departed from the land of Egypt. 19:21 So they just left Egypt. 19:23 Then the whole congregation, 19:25 the children of Israel complained against Moses 19:27 and Aaron in the wilderness. 19:29 And the children of Israel said to them, 19:31 all that we have died 19:33 at the hand of the Lord in Egypt, 19:35 when we sat by the pots of meat, can you hear them? 19:38 And we ate the bread to the full, 19:40 for you have brought us out into the wilderness 19:43 to kill the whole assembly with hunger. 19:46 Then the Lord said to Moses, 19:48 "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. 19:51 And the people shall go out 19:53 and gather a certain quota every day, 19:56 that I may test them, 19:57 whether they will walk in My law or not." 20:02 Now, the Israelis were in the wilderness of sin, 20:05 and Satan tempted that Israelis with trial of famine, okay. 20:11 They complained that they were hungry, 20:13 'cause there was no food out there for them to eat. 20:16 They were so accustomed to the meals 20:19 and the food that they had in Egypt, 20:20 then when it was time for the Lord to feel them, 20:22 feed them, to strip them down, they complained. 20:26 How many of us do the same thing, come on? 20:29 When it's time for the Lord 20:31 to get into our minds and to talk with us. 20:33 He starts removing things from us, we start to complain, 20:37 instead of seeing it as God doing something in our lives. 20:42 So they started to complain, 20:44 but Satan's weapons of temptations and trial 20:47 can become God's test of faith. 20:49 Amen. 20:51 Now we're complainers, and I know for me, 20:53 my parents are West Indian, my parents are from Trinidad. 20:56 Amen. Any Trinidadians here? 20:59 And my parents used to say, "You want to complain, 21:02 I'll give you something to complain about." 21:04 You'll know that? You know that. 21:08 Some of y'all know that. 21:09 Not nowadays, you all will know what that's about. 21:12 That was back in the day. 21:13 But you see, God is not like us. 21:16 And He is not like my parents used to be. 21:18 When they complain, God said, 21:21 He was gonna give them His glory. 21:24 When they complain, God said, "I've heard your complains 21:28 and in the morning you will see My glory." 21:32 So we give God grumbling and gripes, 21:35 and God hears our complaints and He gives us a gift. 21:39 He gives us His glory. 21:45 But if God is gonna give us His glory, 21:48 then we need to understand what does that mean. 21:52 What exactly does it mean for God to give us His glory? 21:56 Let's go to Exodus 33. Let's go to Exodus 33. 22:02 And many of us know this story. 22:05 This is the story where Moses is asking God 22:08 to show me Your glory, show me Your glory. 22:12 And so, in verses 18 and 19, 22:18 Moses said, "Please show me your glory." 22:21 And then God says, 22:23 "I will make all my goodness pass before you. 22:26 And I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you, 22:29 I'll be gracious to whom I'll be gracious, 22:32 and I will be-- 22:33 have compassion on whom I'll have compassion." 22:36 So you see, when God gives us His glory, God said, 22:40 "I will make My goodness pass before you." 22:44 "I will make My goodness pass before you, 22:46 and I will proclaim the name of the Lord." 22:48 God's glory is God's goodness. 22:51 What God has done for us is His goodness. 22:54 Amen. Amen. 22:56 The things God has done for you over and over 22:58 is God's goodness. 23:00 And don't we say God is good. 23:02 God is good. In all the time. 23:04 Because what He's done for us is His goodness. 23:07 And that is why we praise. Yes. 23:10 Don't we praise God 'cause He is good. 23:12 'Cause He brought you out, 23:13 because He's done things for you. 23:15 So God's goodness is why we praise. 23:18 And then God's glory is God's presence, 23:21 because the Hebrew word for glory means honor, 23:25 splendor, and reputation. 23:28 Exodus 16:8. 23:32 We shall be seen, 23:33 when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, 23:36 meaning his glory. 23:37 And in the morning, bread to the full, 23:39 but the Lord hears your complaints 23:41 which you make against him. 23:42 Okay. 23:44 So God gave them the manna, manna rained from heaven, 23:50 bread from heaven, the manna. 23:52 And when they ate that bread, 23:54 the digestion of the bread of heaven 23:57 allowed them to partake of God's glory. 24:00 Now, how did that happen? 24:01 Because the Bible says in Psalms 38, 24:04 "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good." 24:08 The Bible also says in John 6:51, 24:11 Jesus said, "I am the living bread 24:14 that came down from heaven. 24:16 If anyone eats up his bread, he will live forever. 24:19 And the bread that I shall give is my flesh, 24:22 which I shall give for the life of the world." 24:25 Jesus Christ was symbolizing the manna, the living bread. 24:30 So when they ate the bread, 24:32 it was symbolic of having Jesus Christ 24:34 being part of their life, 24:35 digesting the word, eating the word, 24:37 the living bread of Jesus Christ. 24:40 And we're only able to worship God, 24:42 when we are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ. 24:44 Amen. 24:46 Otherwise our worship is as filthy rags. 24:50 So they have to ingest the bread 24:52 to have Christ inside. 24:53 So if they worship, 24:55 when that glory fell down could be covered by the blood. 24:59 And that's what we need to do today. 25:00 Amen. 25:01 To experience God's glory and His goodness in the manna. 25:05 We had to digest the living bread, 25:07 the word of God, and have Jesus Christ inside, 25:10 so that our worship is not like clanging gongs 25:12 and tinkling cymbals. 25:14 So then our worship becomes something 25:16 that is a sweet melody to the ear of God. 25:19 Amen. 25:20 You don't have to worry about the ear of man. 25:23 It's God who we're trying to please with our worship. 25:25 Amen. 25:27 It is God that we're trying to please with our praise. 25:31 And therefore, we need to be covered 25:32 by the blood of Jesus Christ. 25:34 Now this is a worship lesson to all of us. 25:37 You see, each day 25:39 we should be having praise and worship on our own. 25:42 Collecting and getting that bread down, 25:44 digested deep down inside. 25:47 And each day we should be getting a portion 25:49 like God said just a portion, 25:51 and then when Friday night comes, 25:53 and you have your Friday night worship, 25:54 then you'll get a double portion. 25:56 Amen. Amen. 25:57 With your family and friends in a double portion. 25:59 So when you come here to this house, 26:01 you're not coming to get, you're coming to give. 26:04 You're so filled up with worship, 26:07 you're not coming to receive, you're coming to give. 26:10 You have the worship down inside 26:12 and you're not coming to be fed, 26:14 there's somebody to feed you. 26:16 You're coming to help others 26:18 and to make sure that your worship is a witness. 26:20 Amen. 26:23 So when they were in the wilderness, 26:25 and He was the living bread, 26:27 and He gave them manna from heaven. 26:28 And now we've learned outworship lessons. 26:31 So in the wilderness, 26:32 when you have trials and tribulations, 26:34 in the wilderness when you have problems, 26:36 in your wilderness God can turn your problems into praise. 26:40 Amen. 26:42 You don't have to worry about what's happening in your life, 26:44 God can turn your problems into praise. 26:47 The third trial, talking about the trials in the wilderness 26:51 was water from the rock in Exodus 17. 26:54 The Israelites were still in the wilderness of sin. 26:57 And they complained and complained again, 26:59 they started complaining again, right? 27:02 They were thirsty and there was no water 27:04 and they wanted to return to Egypt. 27:06 So in Exodus 17:4, 27:08 Moses cried out to the Lord saying, 27:11 "What shall I do with these people, 27:14 they are almost ready to stone me?" 27:18 Don't we do that sometimes? 27:20 Behold God says, "I will stand before you 27:23 on the rock of Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, 27:26 and water will come out of it, that the people may drink." 27:29 Now look at this, Moses is so upset, 27:32 because the people that are his people, 27:34 his own family are trying to stone him 27:36 because of trials and tribulations 27:38 that they are going through. 27:39 Like he had anything to do with there not be a water. 27:42 And don't we do that, 27:43 blame other people for our own issues. 27:45 God's trying to teach us a lesson. 27:47 We blame the boss, 'cause he fired me, 27:49 or maybe you weren't a good worker. 27:55 Maybe I shouldn't have said that. 27:57 But maybe you weren't a good worker, 27:59 maybe you were so obsessed, 28:00 you weren't spending time with your family. 28:02 Maybe the Lord wants to show you, 28:04 that you shouldn't worship your job, 28:05 you should worship him. 28:09 Sometimes our trials are for a reason. 28:12 And we have to go back and learn the lesson. 28:14 So Satan takes stones, and he pelts them at us, 28:18 but you see when Moses said, "They are trying to stone me." 28:22 God said, "Strength the rock." 28:23 See, God will take our problems. 28:26 There are stones Satan is throwing at us 28:28 and turning it into a rock of Jesus Christ. 28:31 He'll take that problem, that marriage, 28:34 that might be a stone is thrown at you, 28:36 because you're getting a divorce 28:37 or you're having marital problems. 28:39 And He will turn it into the rock 28:41 of a stronger relationship down the road. 28:44 He may take that stone of illness, 28:47 you're diagnosed with cancer, 28:49 and turn it into the rock of a stronger faith. 28:54 We have to know 28:55 that Jesus Christ in our wilderness, 28:58 God can turn our misery into a miracle. 29:01 Amen. 29:02 God can turn our misery into a miracle in Isaiah 30:20, 29:09 Isaiah 30:20, it says, 29:12 "And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity, 29:15 and the water of affliction," in verse 21 it said, 29:19 "Your ear shall hear a word behind you saying, 29:23 'this is the way, walk ye in it.'" 29:28 God may allow adversity and trials 29:30 to come into your life. 29:32 But it is not to give you misery, 29:35 it's to show you His power 29:36 and work a miracle in your life. 29:39 And sometimes, when we are in battle, 29:42 and when we are in our wilderness, 29:45 God will turn your problems into praise, 29:48 and your misery into a miracle. 29:50 Now Moses, when we're talking about Amalek, 29:54 why did they want to have war with Amalek? 29:56 And when God made that promise to Moses 30:00 and told him that he was gonna fight Amalek for generations. 30:04 Then Moses built an altar, remember that, 30:07 Moses built an altar, 30:08 and he called the name of the altar "Jehovahnissi." 30:12 Amen. 30:13 Let God fight your battles. 30:16 Let him turn your misery into a miracle. 30:20 And sometimes it's not the miracle we expect. 30:23 But we got to give God praise anyhow. 30:25 Amen. Amen. 30:27 Because He's sovereign. 30:29 And we have to stop trying to tell God 30:30 what we want Him to do, 30:32 and allow Him to do for us what's best. 30:34 Amen. 30:37 So Satan's weapons of temptation and trials 30:40 becomes God's test of faith. 30:42 Before God can send you out to fight, 30:45 first God will test you to build your faith. 30:54 You know, I'm from New York. We had a basketball game. 30:58 Now I was the captain of the cheerleaders. 31:00 I dated one of the basketball team members. 31:02 So the girls from Turtle Hook were there, 31:04 and they decided to launch a threat. 31:08 They came over to us, 31:10 me and my girlfriends are sitting down in the area, 31:13 and he said, "look, 31:14 we are tired of you all taking our men, 31:17 you need to meet us in the cemetery tomorrow, 31:21 and we are gonna kick your butt." 31:24 So the question is why did God say-- 31:31 Come back with me. Come back with me. 31:34 Why did God say that He was gonna blot out Amalek. 31:40 We haven't answered that question yet, have we? 31:42 Why did God said, 31:45 that He was gonna utterly blot out Amalek. 31:49 Let's read Deuteronomy 25, 31:51 I'm gonna get back to the story, don't worry. 31:54 I will leave you hanging. 31:56 Let's read Deuteronomy 25:17-18, 32:00 but I'm going somewhere with the story. 32:01 There is a point. 32:03 Deuteronomy 25:17-18, 32:05 and the point is not I get beat up. 32:10 In verse 17, it says, 32:14 "Remember what Amalek did to you 32:17 on the way as you were coming out of Egypt, 32:21 how he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, 32:26 all the stragglers at your rear, 32:28 when you were tired and weary, and he did not fear God." 32:39 Now Amalek, attacked Israel, 32:43 the attack on Israel was unprovoked. 32:45 They met them on their way, when they were tired and weary 32:48 and they ambushed them. 32:51 The attack on Israel's ranks was above barbaric, 32:55 guerrilla warfare that they launched. 32:58 And the Israelis stragglers in the rear, 33:01 were all taken captive or killed. 33:04 Now many other heathen tribes had attacked the Israelites. 33:09 Many other heathen tribes 33:11 had probably ambushed the Israelites. 33:14 So why did God say 33:17 that He was going to blot them out. 33:20 Because Deuteronomy 25:18 gives us the answer. 33:24 It says, "He feared not God." 33:28 And the Hebrew word for fear there 33:30 means reverence, worship. 33:34 Amalek did not worship God. 33:39 So God decided to blot them out. 33:44 Now this is one of the most insipid 33:47 and subtle tactics, 33:49 that the devil uses to war against us as Christians. 33:53 You see, because it's not that we don't worship, 33:56 it's the context, 33:58 it's how we worship and what we worship, 34:04 because when our worship is weak, 34:07 anemic, focused on ourselves, 34:09 self-centered, people-centered, other-centered. 34:13 You see that worship is not powerful worship. 34:17 And it doesn't have the power of God embedded in it. 34:20 So you're a weak Christian. 34:22 And when somebody says something about the song, 34:25 you take offence. 34:27 Because, see, your worship isn't rooted 34:29 in the God of the worship, 34:30 it's rooted in the song of the worship. 34:35 And so every little thing that happens 34:37 is an offence to you. 34:44 And so therefore, we become worshipers we think, 34:48 but we're really spiritual weaklings. 34:51 We're not worshipers, we're spiritual weaklings. 34:54 So then, when something happens, 34:56 you're sitting there and sister or brother so and so 34:59 was here last week, 35:00 but now they are out of the church 35:02 because they are the stragglers in the back. 35:05 They're the ones that we don't notice. 35:07 They're ones in the back. 35:09 So when Satan ambushes them, 35:11 they're not strong enough to maintain. 35:14 Your worship has to be deep, 35:16 personal inter-relationship with God almighty. 35:20 Amen. 35:23 We worship in order to engage with God, 35:26 to seek out His faith, His plans for our lives, 35:29 not to tell Him what we want and expect Him to do it. 35:38 We wonder why, 35:40 we don't have the fortitude to make it through the trials. 35:43 Because our worship needs to be deeper, 35:46 our worship relationship with God 35:48 needs to be seeking his face. 35:51 And when we do that, then God's power, 35:54 God's strength will envelop our lives, 35:57 and then we can withstand the trials. 35:59 Amen. Amen. 36:00 And the tribulations. 36:03 To fight a war, to fight a war, and this is war, amen. 36:08 Its war, when you're Christian. 36:10 Satan has declared war against you. 36:13 This is war. You must have weapons. 36:18 Satan has all kinds of crafty subtle ways 36:22 to infiltrate our lives, 36:24 and to launch his simple war weaponry against us. 36:28 We live in the "I" culture, don't we? 36:32 We got the iPhone, the iPad, the iBook, 36:34 the I life, the I world. 36:36 It's all about me. It's "I" life. 36:40 And we look at this, 36:41 and we are just steeped in this American culture. 36:45 And there are Amalekites all around us. 36:49 There are Amalekites all around us, 36:52 and we don't mind any more. 36:54 We kind of like the Amalekites. 36:56 We don't have a problem with the Amalekites, 36:59 because we live in a culture of creeping compromise. 37:05 Look at what we look or at on TV. 37:11 Reality TV has just completely changed our culture. 37:16 And things like pride, selfishness, materialism, 37:20 greed, anger, I have never seen such careless, 37:24 ruckus women in my life as on reality TV, 37:29 and our young women are emulating these people. 37:33 We have got to do something... 37:35 Okay, at the moment I'm so block, I'm sorry. 37:37 We have got to do something 37:39 about what we allow our children to watch. 37:42 Greed, anger, lying, lust, gossip, adultery, pornography 37:48 all of these things have become acceptable social behaviors. 37:53 The next day, after school... 37:59 my girlfriends and I-- 38:01 and so the first thing we had to do 38:03 was get our hair cornrow, 38:04 back in the day, you remember that? 38:06 We had to get our hair cornrowed. 38:09 Now the second thing women are gonna do in a fight 38:11 is they're gonna mess your face up. 38:15 They're gonna scratch you, and leave you scarred, 38:18 and that's humiliating. 38:20 You can't go to school the next day with scar. 38:22 So back then, we had to use petroleum jelly. 38:25 Hey, someone know what I'm talking about, 38:27 that's you need to slap that stuff on, 38:30 'cause you didn't want them to scratch your face. 38:34 Now the other thing, 38:35 I told you, I went to public school, right? 38:38 The thing they're gonna do is rip your jewelry out, 38:41 or have on the biggest rings you ever saw. 38:44 Some people have been in the street fight, I see it. 38:48 Put on the biggest rings you ever saw, 38:50 and punch you with those rings. 38:53 Now I was like David, I opted out of the armor, 38:55 didn't need the jewelry, 38:56 'cause my girlfriends had on all these jewelry. 38:58 Said, "I don't need the jewelry." 38:59 But they were getting the jewelry ready 39:01 for the fight. 39:02 Now the other thing you need to do, 39:04 when you're gonna be a girl in a fight 39:06 is you got to put on a lot of clothes, 39:08 'cause they're gonna rip your clothes off, 39:12 and expose you to the neighborhood. 39:15 So you got to have on layers and layers 39:18 and layers of clothes. 39:19 And then the final thing you have to do, 39:21 when you are in a street fight, 39:23 is you got to have on the right shoes. 39:26 Somebody is talking about the armor, right, 39:27 you got to have on the right shoes. 39:29 And see you can't be cute with the heels on that day, 39:32 and me, I was planning to run, so I had to have sneakers. 39:38 So there is a ritual and you must prepare, 39:42 and you need the right weapons to be in a fight 39:46 and to have warfare. 39:47 You with me today? Okay. Yes. 39:49 So the question is, how can we be prepared 39:53 if we are Christians in a warfare with Satan, 39:56 how can we be prepared to fight? 39:59 What are the weapons, and what is the ritual, 40:03 that allows us to fight Satan? 40:06 Come on now, 'cause we need to aim our war weapons at him. 40:11 So let's look at God's war weapon in the second text 40:14 that was read today. 40:15 Exodus 25:8-9, 40:20 Exodus 25:8-9, it says, 40:26 "And let them make me a sanctuary, 40:30 that I may dwell among them, 40:34 according to all that I show you, 40:36 that is the pattern of the tabernacle, 40:39 and the pattern of its furnishings, 40:42 just so shall you make it." 40:45 So God's war weapons are lost from his sanctuary, 40:49 where there is a pattern, and a ritual for worship. 40:54 Now God's word weapons that he gives to us 40:57 is praise and worship. 40:59 God gives us praise and worship 41:03 as our war weapons to combat Satan. 41:06 You see, because when you are worshipping, 41:08 you're in the presence of God. 41:10 And that means that God feels you, 41:12 and when you praise Him, 41:14 we know we inhabits our praises, 41:16 so that means that God's presence is with you 41:18 and therefore demons have to flee. 41:26 They cannot launch their weapons 41:29 against you. 41:31 So God's war weapons are praise and worship. 41:33 And there is a proper pattern for praise and worship. 41:37 Praise is the gateway to worship. 41:40 Praise is what? 41:41 Gateway-- To worship. 41:42 Praise is the gateway to worship. 41:45 God gives us praise and worship to wage war against Satan, 41:50 not war against each other. 41:53 Amen. 41:55 The first mode of praise is, offering a sacrifice. 42:00 Back in the Bible times, they had to kill a bull or goat 42:05 all that drag something to the altar. 42:07 Today hallelujah, Romans 12:1, we offer ourselves. 42:10 The second mode of praise is physical movement. 42:14 What is it? Physical movement. 42:15 Physical movement. 42:17 So when you are in worship, 42:19 and you stand to read a scripture, 42:21 what is that? 42:23 When you're in worship 42:24 and you kneel down to read a scripture, 42:25 what is that? 42:27 When you're in worship, and you bow your head, 42:29 what is that? 42:31 There are also other kinds of physical movement, 42:33 you can clap your hands. 42:34 In Psalms 47:1, and in Nehemiah 8, 42:38 it shows you standing and sitting and bowing, 42:40 they're all physical movements. 42:42 Clapping, Psalms 47:1 is a physical movement, 42:45 Psalms 96:5, 42:47 bowing and kneeling, physical movement. 42:49 2 Samuel's 6:14-16, 42:52 dancing, leaping, whirling, physical movement. 42:54 Psalms 63:4, 1 Timothy 2, 42:57 lifting our hands, physical movement. 43:01 Now you don't have to do all of them, 43:03 and every church doesn't have to participate in each one. 43:06 But why we're fighting about it? 43:07 Amen. 43:15 If you go to the church, get stands when they read, 43:18 hallelujah, physical movement. 43:21 And if you go to the church that claps when they sing, 43:23 hallelujah, physical movement. 43:26 But is God the focus? 43:30 Because that's what determines. Yeah. Amen. 43:35 Because if it's all about us and what we do 43:37 that God's not hearing that anyway. 43:40 The most beautiful music that we can sing, 43:43 the most glorious sounds of the anthem 43:46 and the operatic voice. 43:48 If God is not feeling that sound, 43:50 it is noise before His throne. 43:57 So we have to stop judging one and other, 44:00 and allowing ourselves 44:02 to understand the biblical knowledge 44:04 and understanding of worship, and stop fighting each other 44:07 and aiming these weapons at Satan, 44:10 where they belong. 44:13 Third one, silence and meditation. 44:17 Silence and meditation. 44:22 We go to churches and we say, it's too dead in there, 44:24 it's too silent, I can't worship in there. 44:25 Silence is the form of worship. 44:29 You need to take time to hear God's voice. 44:33 You need to take time to meditate on His word. 44:36 Psalm 77:12 tell you, silence is necessary. 44:40 Psalm 119, silence is part of worship. 44:44 You go to some churches, 44:46 there is never a minute of silence. 44:48 Well, testimonies are mode of worship. 44:50 2 Chronicles 16:9, Psalm 66:16, 44:54 I'm not telling you without the bridges things, 44:56 I'm giving you the word of God. 44:58 Amen. 44:59 Testimony is the mode of worship. 45:02 Prayer is the mode of worship. 45:04 Isaiah 56:7, Matthew 23:13, God said, 45:07 "My house will be a house of prayer for all people." 45:10 It is a mode of worship. 45:11 A holy life is a mode of worship. 45:15 We're worshiping, worshiping, worshiping all the time. 45:17 This is my praise team leader 45:18 and they're just worshipping all the time. 45:20 And then they're leaving it 45:21 a meanest person in your church. 45:26 If you're involved in worship and it's serious, 45:28 you would be transformed. 45:31 Nobody goes into the presence of God and Jesus Christ 45:34 and comes back out the same. 45:37 Something in you would have to change. 45:39 Even if it's incremental, something would have to change. 45:43 And so the fruit of worship is also a holy life. 45:49 These are forms of worship, 45:51 but finally and you see that in 1 Peter 3:9 45:55 and in Hebrews 12:14 45:57 that the mode of worship, form of worship is a holy life. 46:01 But finally, music, the seventh, 46:05 is a form of worship. 46:07 Praise is most invariably linked to music, 46:10 both instrumental and vocal. 46:12 References to music in the Bible, 46:14 44 out of the 66 books in the Bible reference music. 46:19 The Book of Psalms, 46:20 the largest book in the Bible is God's personal hymnal. 46:27 Music is God's choice for worship. 46:31 It continues incessantly at his throne, music. 46:35 Psalms 69:30, Psalms 150:3-5 and 2 Chronicles 7:6, 46:41 is a form of worship. 46:46 But too many of us worship the music, 46:49 and not the Master. 46:53 Too many of us worship the music 46:56 and not the Master. 46:59 When we engage regularly 47:02 and praise is a part of our daily ritual, 47:04 it is God's weapon to fight against Satan. 47:09 You see when your life is filled with praise, 47:12 and these hardships come into your life, 47:14 it's a hardship, it's a difficulty, 47:16 but you take it differently, 47:20 because you are involved with the Master, 47:23 and you see the divine purpose. 47:25 And you can summit yourself to whatever like Joe said, 47:29 "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him." 47:33 Ellen G. White, says in her writings 47:34 in Gospel Workers, 47:36 "The human heart, uncontrolled by the Spirit of God, 47:40 is void of the meekness of Christ, 47:44 but loves to battle for the truth. 47:47 Those who are proclaiming God's message to the world 47:50 must not be captious or critical or overbearing. 47:54 They should not be too free to criticize or condemn others. 47:58 They should be careful not to let the words wound, 48:02 but should led pure biblical truth 48:05 cut its way to the heart." 48:10 So let's quickly look at the biblical truth 48:13 of the pattern of the sanctuary. 48:15 The sanctuary is God's blueprint for worship. 48:21 The sanctuary is what? God's blueprint for worship. 48:23 It's God's blueprint for worship. 48:25 The sanctuary service of ancient times 48:28 is the cornerstone of the musical motif 48:31 of today's contemporary praise of worship. 48:35 So the sanctuary service of ancient times 48:38 is a model of today's praise and worship service. 48:43 Now Judson Cornwall, 48:45 who is a Pentecostal worship writer 48:48 from the late '70s and '80s promoted the idea 48:53 that the worship leader can take the people 48:56 on a musical worship journey 48:59 that mirrors the journey into the holy of holies 49:02 or the most holy place. 49:05 At every point, and he used Psalms 100 as his model. 49:10 Then later he said, first, must know where the people are, 49:16 where he wants or she wants to take them 49:18 and then when they've arrived. 49:21 So in order to know that, 49:22 you have to understand the needs of the people. 49:28 Now there are three areas 49:29 we know of that comprise a sanctuary, 49:31 the outer court. 49:33 And the outer court had an open space 49:35 that was enclosed by gate 49:37 and this area contained the brazen altar 49:39 of burnt offering, 49:41 which was closest to the entrance. 49:43 And then between the altar and the door 49:45 was a tabernacle with the bronze laver 49:47 and with bronze laver was made from mirrors 49:50 that was given by the women. 49:52 And the bronze laver 49:53 was where the priest washed their hands and their feet. 49:56 So it was made by mirrors, 49:57 because you need to see your sins 49:59 before you want to be cleansed out. 50:01 Amen. 50:03 So the first phase 50:05 in this five phase musical model 50:08 is that, when you enter into the sanctuary, 50:12 the outer court and you're just so thankful, 50:14 that you can be cleansed of your sin, 50:16 and that Christ was the sacrifice. 50:19 The first phase is songs of personal testimony 50:21 in the camp or jubilation. 50:24 Songs of jubilation, love lifted me, 50:27 songs of jubilation. 50:28 The second phase is through the gates with thanksgiving, 50:33 so songs of thanksgiving, 50:35 through the gates with thanksgiving. 50:36 And the third phase, we enter into his courts with praise. 50:41 So that's the musical model. 50:43 Then you have the two apartments, 50:45 the holy place, and the most holy place. 50:47 And in the holy place, we know was a table of showbread, 50:50 the golden lampstand with a seven candlesticks, 50:53 the altar of incense. 50:54 And then there was also the altar of incense 50:57 where the horns were sprinkled with blood 50:59 and this is before the veil. 51:00 Now in that, in the holy place, the fourth phase is all, 51:05 because in that place 51:07 where the prayers of the saints go up. 51:09 The candle is the Holy Spirit, 51:12 you're in awe that Christ can dwell within you. 51:15 So the musical motif is one of all, 51:18 and then the final, 51:20 when you go into the most holy place. 51:22 And you're taking them on a musical journey 51:25 where you see the Ark of the Covenant 51:26 where the presence of God is, is falling down in adoration. 51:31 For the presence of God, so it's the adoration. 51:35 So the musical, the sanctuary message 51:39 has a modern application for today. 51:42 We as spiritual Levites, we as those, the last day, 51:46 the remnant church will worship 51:47 is the core of our remnant message. 51:49 We need to understand worship, 51:52 and we need to be the ones out there, 51:53 sharing the message without the phase. 51:56 Amen. 51:58 Not squabbling against one another. 52:04 Now you may say, now the bridges, I don't know. 52:09 I don't believe what you just said 52:10 about praise and worship music. 52:12 I don't believe that music can be a weapon 52:16 to fight a war against Satan. 52:18 Well, I tell you then ask David, 52:20 because when King David played his heart 52:23 and Saul was filled with the demon. 52:25 The demon had to flee. 52:29 Well, you say I don't know, Elder Bridges I don't know, 52:32 because that still doesn't mean anything to me. 52:34 Well, ask Joshua, because Joshua, 52:37 the Lord didn't even tell him to fight the war. 52:39 He just said, "Blow the trumpet." 52:41 And the walls came falling down. 52:45 I don't know, you say, 52:46 it still doesn't seem like proof enough. 52:48 Well, ask Jehoshaphat 52:50 because he just sent out the Levites to sing. 52:53 And the Lord sent ambushes among the armies. 52:56 But finally Jesus Christ says 52:58 that when He conquer sin and dead, 53:00 the trump shall sound the dead in Christ shall rise. 53:04 And then sin, dead and hell will be blotted out. 53:13 We need to understand that this is a war, 53:18 and that musical worship is a weapon to fight Satan, 53:23 not each other. 53:25 And I don't know if you have a piano player, 53:27 that will be good. 53:30 The next day we made it to the cemetery. 53:36 We had on all our gear, 53:39 we were dressed to fight. 53:43 And as we were walking in to this huge cemetery 53:47 around the corner from my house. 53:51 All I could think to myself is Lord, Jesus, 53:55 my parents are gonna kill me. 54:00 and unfortunately, 54:03 as I was walking to that cemetery, 54:09 the only Christian among my friends, 54:14 I should have been the one to convince them 54:17 that this was foolish. 54:19 I should not have succumbed to temptation and trials 54:23 but I did. 54:26 And while we were walking to that cemetery, 54:30 I kept thinking to myself, 54:32 "Lord, how can You get me out of this. 54:34 This is gonna be a mess. 54:37 And when we arrived at the cemetery, 54:40 there was already a crowd that had gathered. 54:43 Because all other people in my neighborhood 54:46 had come to see what was gonna happen during this fight. 54:50 And we were standing there 54:52 waiting for either blows to be thrown 54:56 or for something to happen. 54:58 And suddenly, as I looked further in the distance, 55:03 there was another crowd of people coming. 55:06 You see I attended the junior high school 55:10 from seventh to ninth grade, 55:12 but most of us, myself and my girlfriends included, 55:17 we had siblings in the high school. 55:20 and you see, although we made a pact, 55:23 not to tell our sisters the word got out 55:27 that there was gonna be a fight at the junior high. 55:30 So as we look in the distance, we saw our sisters coming. 55:36 And they were ninth graders, they weren't seventh graders. 55:39 So they were big and they were dressed in war gear, 55:44 their hair was braided, 55:45 and their faces were slavered with Vaseline, 55:48 and they had on extra cloth, 55:50 'cause they were coming to fight. 55:53 And suddenly the girls from Turtle Hook changed their mind. 56:00 They didn't feel the need to fight that day, 56:02 and not a blow was thrown. 56:05 Amen. 56:06 Because you see, our advisory knew we had an advocate, 56:10 that was coming to our rescue. 56:13 You see, when you worship and praise God. 56:17 God knows you have an advocate who comes to your rescue. 56:22 You no longer have to fight Satan. 56:24 Jesus Christ shows up Himself 56:28 and fights the war on your behalf. 56:30 We no longer need to tussle and to wrestle with Satan, 56:35 because we will lose the war. 56:38 But Jesus Christ is a victor every time. 56:41 Amen, amen. 56:46 And so my plea to you is simple today. 56:50 Let's stop fighting one another. 56:53 Let's ask God to fill our lives, and our hearts, 56:56 and our minds with His biblical worship. 56:59 Let's not talk about preference. 57:02 Let's talk about God's presence. 57:06 And let's fill ourselves with a holy word of God 57:10 and His worship principles. 57:13 If you want to make that commitment today, 57:15 just raise your hand. 57:17 The angel see you, just raise your hand. 57:19 Hallelujah. |
Revised 2016-05-02