Participants: Lawrence Dorsey
Series Code: UR
Program Code: UR000002
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00:59 Some thirty years ago I was preaching a major evangelistic
01:02 crusade in Queens, New York. 01:04 We began on a Sunday evening, and two nights later a major 01:09 storm came through and tore my tent to shreds, 01:12 and knocked it to the ground. 01:14 There appeared that night a white knight out of nowhere, 01:18 who I did not know. 01:19 His name was Lawrence Dorsey. 01:22 He couldn't do too much to help me, but he did hold my hand, 01:25 and we cried together as my tent lay tattered on the ground. 01:29 And so thirty years ago we formed a friendship that has 01:32 lasted so many, many years, and it was my pleasure to bring 01:36 my friend, Pastor Dorsey, and 3ABN together for this wonderful 01:41 meeting that we're calling, Through the Eyes of John. 01:44 And I am sure as you listen to this man of God, 01:47 who has preached the gospel around the world, 01:49 that your heart will be blessed, but more than that, 01:52 you will be drawn closer to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 01:56 We welcome you to the Ambassador Seventh-day Adventist Church, 02:01 and our host is Pastor Henoc Paulicin, another northeast guy, 02:05 who has made his way to the south. 02:07 I'm going to ask him to give the official welcome to this church, 02:09 and then pray for today's broadcast and service. 02:14 I'd like to say good morning to the Ambassador Church family. 02:17 Good morning! And on behalf of the Ambassador Church family 02:22 I'd like to say, greetings to all of our friends and viewers 02:25 for watching throughout the world. 02:27 As we look through the eyes of John unfolding 02:31 the book of Revelation. 02:32 It is a wonderful thing that we have a God who is so great 02:38 that He left us information locked in His Word so that we 02:43 would know what is coming up. 02:45 And so we ask that you pray for this evangelist and this event. 02:52 And let us bow our heads now as we pray. 02:54 Our Father and our God, we thank You for the opportunity 02:58 of being here this day. 02:59 We pray that Your Spirit will fall mightily upon this place. 03:05 Touch every heart. 03:07 And when all is said and done, may we have the assurance 03:11 that the presence of the Lord was in this place, 03:14 and that the Holy Spirit has worked. 03:17 Hear us as we pray. 03:19 This we ask in Jesus' name, Amen. 03:47 Lord we love You. You are good. 04:27 Sing it choir. Lord we love you. 04:32 We love You Jesus. 04:35 You are good. Lord we love You. 04:42 We love You Lord. You are good. 04:48 Lord we love you. 04:54 You are good. You are good. 05:00 Lord we love You. You are good. 05:09 Lord we thank You. You are good. 05:28 O Lord we love You. You are good. 05:39 Hallelujah, Lord we thank You. 05:44 You are good. Sing it choir. 05:51 Lord we thank You. You are good. 06:20 Hallelujah! Lord we thank You. You are good. 06:32 Lord we praise You. You are good. 07:33 Praise You Jesus. Lord we praise You. 07:40 You are good. You are good. 07:45 Lord we praise You. You are good. 07:55 Lord we love You. You are good. 08:06 Lord we thank You. You are good. 08:15 Lord we praise You. You are good. 08:25 Lord we love You. Lord we love You. 08:32 O for all You've have done for us all we can say is... 08:41 You are good! Amen! 08:52 Praise the Lord, Amen. 09:20 Can we give our young people another hearty Amen? Amen! 09:23 God has blessed them with voices that have been dedicated 09:26 to His glory in singing praises to Him who was 09:31 altogether lovely. 09:32 And my heart was thrilled with their music once again. 09:36 Happy Sabbath to all of you who are here, and those of you 09:39 who are watching online, and those who are 09:41 watching in their homes. 09:42 God is so very good to us. Amen! 09:47 And today we're going to have not only a blessed Sabbath 09:51 day message by His grace, but we're going to see, later on, 09:55 those individuals who have made decisions for Jesus 09:59 to go all the way with baptism right here in the 10:03 Ambassador Seventh-day Adventist Church. Amen! 10:05 And that is going to be the highlight of our day today. 10:09 I want to just thank Pastor Murray, a dear friend for over 10:12 thirty years, for just inviting me to partner with 3ABN and 10:18 for Pastor Paulicin to partner with the 10:21 Ambassador Seventh-day Adventist Church. 10:23 God has been so instrumental in bringing everything together 10:28 that His name can be glorified, and that people can be drawn 10:34 to the Master by our humble efforts. 10:37 And I am eternally thankful to both of them, and this church, 10:41 for your faithfulness. 10:42 Now today, this morning, during this series, 10:47 Through the Eyes of John, this message may not be totally 10:51 anchored in the book of Revelation, for we have a 10:54 baptism today, but we will see the focal point of it in the 10:58 instrumental person in this message is someone who has 11:03 a last day revelation character. 11:06 And that person will be the prophet Elijah. 11:10 Shall we pray? Loving Father, again we are so thankful that 11:14 You have allowed us to come to another day, a place, a time, 11:17 when Your Holy Word can be open, and we can drink deep 11:22 from its precious fountain. 11:24 Fill us, Lord, till we want no more, 11:28 and transform us by its life giving power that we might be 11:34 men, women, boys, and girls, that are fit for the 11:37 kingdom by Your grace. 11:38 We ask a special blessing on those who are watching, 11:42 that they will receive the same love, and power, and spirit 11:47 from the living God, that we will receive from worshipping 11:51 here today is our prayer, for Christ's sake, Amen. Amen! 11:56 The sermon is entitled, If God Be God, Then Serve Him. 12:03 You see, the character I'm talking about this morning is 12:06 someone who is very, very dedicated to the work 12:11 of the living God. 12:12 If you will turn with me to Malachi, Malachi chapter 4, 12:16 and that is the last book of the Old Testament. 12:20 Malachi 4, we see this written in verse 5. It says: 12:38 Now folks, I just have to go on the record to tell you, 12:41 in case you had any misconception, Elijah is not 12:44 going to leave heaven and come back to preach to us. 12:47 But the Elijah type message, the message that will bring us 12:52 face to face with the very facts of where we are, 12:55 and who we serve, and what is expected from us, that type of 13:00 message will be brought to us in the very last days, 13:04 where people receive the same message that Elijah gave: 13:08 If God be God, then serve Him. 13:12 You see, Elijah was, some people say, the greatest of the 13:17 Old Testament prophets. 13:18 He was anointed. He had no qualms of who he was. 13:23 He did not have an identity crisis. 13:26 He knew he was made, and born, and bred, to preach the gospel, 13:33 the good news, the rebuke that was needed. 13:36 He knew how to give the correction, the instruction, 13:38 that the people of God needed for that day and time. 13:42 And, ladies and gentlemen, we have to be a people, 13:45 in these last days, to know who we are. 13:48 We cannot be swept away with the compromise of this world. 13:52 We cannot be eroded away with the theology of those who are 13:56 liberal, nor can we find ourselves so self-righteous 14:00 that we have a critical spirit, and a self-righteous spirit 14:04 that allows us to think that we're better than everyone else. 14:08 We have to know that we are God's children, and He expects 14:12 us to let the love of God be what shines out of us, 14:17 for if the love of God shines out of us, people will see Jesus 14:22 and feel that we are a people who not only have an 14:28 understanding of scripture, but we have an understanding that 14:32 has been molded by the power of the Holy Spirit to make us 14:37 be extensions of His great love. 14:39 For if Jesus is seen in us, He will draw all men and women 14:44 unto Himself. You see, Elijah, he had to go against a system. 14:51 Here he is in the northern Kingdom. 14:57 Can you imagine Northern England? 14:59 I was just making sure you all were awake, even at home, okay? 15:02 Elijah's ministry was dedicated mostly to the northern kingdom. 15:09 This kingdom had the decline because of idle worship. 15:13 And, ladies and gentlemen, this was basically because of the 15:18 relationship of the leaders who were in charge. 15:21 And you know who was in charge in Elijah's day. 15:26 There was that spineless, weak-kneed, henpecked, 15:35 envious Ahab, and he was motivated and moved by the 15:44 domineering wife, this idol worshipping, wicked prophetess, 15:50 persecuting Jezebel. 15:54 Now folks, you know I have never seen anybody name 15:57 their child after Jezebel. 15:59 Now you know she's a bad one because they name their children 16:03 after everything today. 16:04 They name them after soap. 16:06 Yeah, my little child's name is Dove. 16:09 You know, we have all kinds, but I've never seen anybody 16:13 named after Jezebel, so she really was a character. 16:16 She was really intrinsically wicked. 16:20 And he had to deal with these individuals, 16:22 ladies and gentlemen, to bring Israel back to the place 16:27 where they understood that God is God. Amen! 16:31 Our connection as people with an Elijah message is seen in the 16:40 hallmark text of our church. 16:43 If you will turn with me to Revelation, 16:45 and here's where we see it. 16:46 Revelation 14, Revelation 14 looking at verse 6, 16:53 starting with verse 6, we see here the Elijah message 16:57 that must go to all the world today that they might be 17:02 prepared, that we might be prepared for the very second 17:05 coming of Jesus Christ. 17:06 It says in verse 6: 17:24 I love the way it is written here by scripture. 17:28 And we saw last night that all scripture comes from 17:32 inspiration of God, and that it is profitable for doctrine, 17:37 for reproof, for correction, for instruction, and righteousness, 17:40 that we, the children of God, might be made perfect. 17:44 But when I read this text I have to smile for it says, 17:48 that this angel that is flying through the midst of heaven 17:51 having the everlasting gospel, in other words, it's not part of 17:55 the gospel, it's everything. Amen! 17:57 It's complete. Ladies and gentlemen, I believe that we are 18:01 here in this day and time to present the everlasting gospel. 18:05 Not just the gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ, and that truly 18:09 is the heart of the gospel. 18:11 For when we look at Jesus dying on the cross, 18:14 that gives us access to heaven. 18:16 Jesus dying on the cross allows you and I to be free from sin, 18:21 free from guilt, free from pain, free from the shame that we 18:25 have gone through in our lives. 18:26 We are free from those things because of the cross. 18:30 Because of the cross all of our sins have been thrown 18:33 to the depths of the sea. 18:35 We have been freed by the blood of the Lamb. Amen! 18:39 But some people think that is all the gospel. 18:41 There's more to it, as they say on late night TV, 18:44 and there's more. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not only 18:50 about His cross, but the gospel of Jesus Christ is about His 18:54 relationship to us and His commandments. 18:57 And in John 14 and 15 He says, If you love Me, 19:00 keep My commandments. 19:01 And, ladies and gentlemen, I want you to know it's not just a 19:04 mere going through the motions of keeping one through ten, 19:09 no, it is allowing the love of Jesus Christ to come into our 19:14 hearts and allowing us to admit to Him that we are imperfect, 19:19 and we are incapable of doing it ourselves, and we solicit Him 19:23 to fill us with His Holy Spirit, to allow us 19:28 to keep His commandments. 19:29 For if you look at John 14:15, when Jesus says that, 19:33 the rest of that chapter, John 14, shows us how the 19:38 Holy Spirit will come into our lives to do for us 19:42 what we can't do for ourselves. Amen! 19:44 And ladies and gentlemen, the commandments of God, 19:46 they're so important to us, we can't escape the fact that 19:50 that is the standard of the judgment, and it also defines 19:54 what sin is, for sin is the transgression of God's law. 19:58 The world needs to know that. 20:00 So we have not only an everlasting gospel that talks 20:03 about His cross, but an everlasting gospel that talks 20:06 about His commandments. 20:08 And then the third part of the everlasting gospel that we must 20:12 all hold onto and, ladies and gentlemen, 20:14 this is the blessed hope, the blessed hope of the 20:18 second coming of Jesus Christ. Amen! 20:21 That is what should motivate us. 20:24 That is what should drive us. 20:26 That is what should give you the power when everything seems 20:30 to be coming down on you. 20:32 When you will say, I will deal with what I'm dealing with. 20:35 I will deal with this sickness. 20:37 I will deal with these financial problems. 20:39 I will deal with this disappointment. 20:41 I will deal with this heartbreak because a better day is coming. 20:45 A better day is coming when I will see Mom again, 20:49 and when I will see Grandma again, 20:51 and I will see Uncle again, because, you see, on that day 20:54 when Jesus Christ comes the dead in Christ shall rise first. 20:57 Amen! And we which are alive and remain shall be caught up 21:01 to meet them in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 21:04 And, ladies and gentlemen, on that day we will be brand new 21:08 in Jesus Christ. Amen! 21:10 There'll be no more false teeth, no more glasses, no more canes. 21:21 I won't say anything else. 21:23 But you know, there'll be no more of anything that we have 21:27 to deal with here. 21:28 We will have brand new bodies in Christ. 21:30 We will have brand new hands, and brand new feet, 21:33 and brand new eyes, and brand new ears, 21:35 and brand new taste buds to taste the delectable things 21:39 that God has for us in glory. 21:41 We will be brand new in Christ! Amen! 21:45 And that should be our motivating force of the gospel. 21:48 It will give us a love for the cross. 21:51 It will give us a love for the commandments. 21:53 It will give us a desire to look forward to that day, 21:56 and not only look forward to it, ladies and gentlemen, 21:59 but hasten us to that day, that we might do our part, 22:03 that Jesus can come and rescue us from this dying planet. 22:07 The everlasting gospel. 22:10 It goes on to say, And I saw another angel fly in the midst 22:15 of heaven having the everlasting gospel to preach to them 22:18 that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, 22:22 and tongue, and people. 22:23 In other words, everybody, everybody, everybody's included 22:29 in the gospel of Jesus Christ. 22:32 My grandson, Chris, came to me last week and he said, 22:38 Daddy we had a big discussion in religion class. 22:44 And I perked up because he's listening in religion class, 22:47 and I'm very happy. 22:48 And I said, well, what were they talking about, Chris? 22:52 He says, well, we had an argument. 22:54 And I said, An argument in religion class? 22:57 I said, You're not supposed to argue about religion. 22:58 He said, Okay, okay Grandpa. 23:00 We had a discussion in religion class of what 23:05 nationality is Jesus. 23:07 Was He black? Was He white? 23:13 Was He Asian? Was He Hispanic? 23:17 And the Asian kids were saying He was Asian, 23:20 and the Hispanic young people were saying He was Hispanic. 23:24 And the black kids were saying He was black, 23:26 and the whites were saying He was white. 23:29 And, Grandpa, you're a preacher, you preach all over. 23:31 What color is He? Ha, Ha! 23:35 Well, I said, Chris, it doesn't matter if Jesus is checkered. 23:45 It doesn't matter if He is plaid. 23:49 The thing that matters is the blood that was red, 23:54 that was spilled on Calvary for all of your classmates, 23:59 and everyone else, is the blood that will never lose its power. 24:03 Amen! And He's coming back for red, and black, and yellow, 24:10 and purple, and checkered, and plaid, whatever you are. 24:15 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, 24:18 that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, 24:21 but have everlasting life. 24:23 And he sat there for a moment and he smiled, and he said, 24:26 I should have thought of that. 24:29 So the everlasting gospel, ladies and gentlemen, 24:31 is there for you, and it is there for me. 24:33 It is there to be preached unto all the world. 24:36 And we move on with this Elijah type message. 24:39 It says this now. This is very important. 24:41 It says, Saying with a loud voice, fear God and give glory 24:46 to Him, for hour of His judgment is come. 24:49 Now fear God means not to be afraid of Him, 24:52 but to reverence Him; be in awe of Him. 24:56 Recognize who He is. 24:58 If God be God then serve Him. 25:00 If He is the Creator, if He has put the stars in their place, 25:03 if He is the one who has bought everything into existence 25:07 that is in existence. 25:08 Somebody said that God's thoughts became audible, 25:12 and reticulated into reality. 25:15 All He did was think it and it came together. Amen! 25:19 But when it came down to mankind, 25:21 He didn't think us into existence. 25:23 He got down on His knees, ladies and gentlemen, and He took that 25:27 clay and He formed us, and fashioned us into 25:30 His very own image, and then He stood that statuette up, 25:34 and then He breathed into it the breath of life, 25:37 and man not only became a living soul, but man became the crowing 25:42 act of God's creation. Amen! 25:44 That's what you are, and that's what I am, and He is coming back 25:49 for us one day, ladies and gentlemen, and we should give 25:53 Him glory for His majesty and His love towards us. 25:58 It says, Fear God, and give glory to Him. 26:03 He says, give Him glory. 26:06 It belongs to Him. 26:09 That tells me my relationship with God is not just based on 26:14 the day I go to church, where I praise Him with my song, 26:17 my tithe, my prayers. 26:19 When I read 1 Corinthians 10:31, it says, Whatsoever I do, 26:26 I do it all to the glory of God: eat, drink, whatever I do, 26:30 I do it to God. So, ladies and gentlemen, it tells me, 26:34 as a child of the King, that as I worship this loving God, 26:38 who died on the cross, who has the commandments, who is coming 26:41 back for me, I have to not only adore Him, and worship Him, 26:45 and have that reverence, fear, and respect for Him, but I must 26:50 glorify Him in my body, because it's not my body, it's His body. 26:55 Amen! So that tells me I can't eat everything, 27:02 and I can't drink everything, and I can't defile myself 27:07 with defiling substances or people. 27:10 Are you listening to me? Amen! 27:13 I have to be what God wants me to be, because He wants me 27:18 to be it. He desires that. 27:19 He has died for me, and all I can do for Him is live for Him. 27:23 And that is the motivating force of each and every one of us. 27:28 He says that we must fear God and give glory to Him, 27:32 for the hour of His judgment is come. 27:35 And folks, this is one thing that we don't have time 27:37 to deal with tonight, but we will deal with it later on, 27:39 that we have to understand that the judgment is going on now. 27:45 1 Peter 4:17 tells us, and this is just a little bit to get your 27:50 lips wet for it. It says, judgment must begin 27:56 at the house of God. 27:58 It deals with us! It says, the hour of His judgment is come, 28:03 not coming, it's come! 28:04 It's going on now! 28:06 And we will be able to direct you exactly where we are 28:09 in time to know that this judgment is going on, 28:12 and its been going on for awhile now. 28:15 But here's the part I want to use for us today. 28:17 And it says, and worship Him... 28:25 Worship Him. Ladies and gentlemen, this is very serious. 28:31 The key to this great controversy, this war that we 28:38 are in with the forces of darkness, 28:40 it's something that did not originate with us, 28:44 but it originated in heaven, and it's all about worship. 28:53 It's all about worship. 28:58 Worship means reverent honor. 29:02 Worship means adoring reverent regard. 29:07 When someone is worshipped, ladies and gentlemen, 29:12 you give them all the praise. 29:15 You give them all the honor. 29:16 You give them all the reverence. 29:18 You bow down to them because you recognize that they 29:22 are greater than you. 29:24 Worship is the heart of the controversy 29:31 between Christ and Satan. 29:33 And we are in the midst of it, ladies and gentlemen, 29:38 because we are here on planet Earth, third planet from the 29:41 sun, 5th largest in the solar system, the only place in all 29:45 of God's whole universe where rebellion broke out, 29:50 and we have the individual choice to choose 29:55 whom we will worship. 29:57 Now in Revelation 12:7, 8, it says, And there was war 30:04 in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against 30:06 the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 30:08 and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more 30:11 in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, 30:14 called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole 30:17 world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were 30:21 cast out with him. 30:26 And when Adam and Eve fell, we found ourselves aligned 30:30 with him, even though we really didn't want to be with him, 30:33 but we listened to ourselves instead of listening 30:36 to the Word of God. 30:37 So we have to deal with it until Jesus brings us back. 30:42 But this whole thing about worship can be clearly seen. 30:48 If you would turn with me in your Bibles to the book of 30:52 Isaiah, Isaiah 14, looking at verse 12 we see the motive 30:58 behind Satan's rebellion, Isaiah 14:12. 31:40 He was coveting the worship of God. 31:42 He was coveting the power of God. 31:45 He was coveting what belonged to the Son, and the Son alone. 31:48 He was coveting what the Creator should have for Himself, 31:53 the creature. It was about worship. 31:57 If you turn in your Bibles to the book of Ezekiel, Ezekiel 28, 32:04 Ezekiel 28, it continues to give us insight into His mindset. 32:09 It says, Thou hast been in Eden... 32:14 We skip down to verse 14 and He says, Thou art the anointed 32:17 cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: 32:20 thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and 32:26 down in the midst of the stones of fire. 32:28 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast 32:32 created, till iniquity was found in thee. 32:36 You know, some people want to go off and say that God 32:38 created the devil. 32:40 God didn't create the devil, the devil created himself. 32:42 And it's the same thing with us. 32:46 We choose what we will be. 32:50 We choose where we will spend eternity. 32:53 We choose which way we want to walk in life, 32:56 ladies and gentlemen. 32:58 The devil can't make you do anything. 33:00 He can tempt you pretty good. 33:02 But you have to have a resolve. 33:05 You have to have a desire. 33:06 You have to have the will to be able to not do it 33:09 in your own strength. 33:10 No, you have to ask the Lord to come into your heart, 33:13 to come into your life, and give you the power for victory, 33:17 and He will do it before you can even get the prayer 33:21 out of your mouth. Amen! 33:24 He's able! Amen! My Bible tells me that this same devil, 33:29 what he has used for us, he even tried to use it on Jesus, 33:34 and here is the most clear-cut point in the scriptures 33:38 that lets us know it's all about worship. 33:41 Turn with me to the book of Matthew, Matthew chapter 1, 33:45 book of Matthew, Matthew chapter 1, and this is why the Bible is 33:50 so important. Listen to me. 33:51 There are too many people who just poo poo the Bible. 33:55 They say the Bible, Oh it's just a book. 33:58 We saw last night, we saw last night that holy men of God 34:04 spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. 34:06 We saw last night that it came to us from God. 34:10 All scripture is given by inspiration of God. 34:13 2 Timothy 3:15, 16 it continues, That the man of God, 34:18 the woman of God, that the boy of God, that the girl of God, 34:22 will be thoroughly furnished unto all good works. 34:24 It comes from God. 34:25 It is the standard. 34:27 It is more steady, more firm, than the very ground 34:31 that we are on. Amen! 34:33 When we turn to Matthew 4:1 we see Jesus shows the importance 34:38 of the Word of God by using it as the tool when He had 34:43 hand to hand, face to face combat with Satan that you and I 34:48 can use. You see, Jesus is our example. 34:51 And when you see what He used, I mean, Jesus could have used 34:55 what He used in heaven. 34:56 When I read Revelation 12, which we looked at already, 35:01 7 and 8, and it says there was war in heaven, 35:03 and Michael and His angels fought the dragon, 35:05 and the dragon fought Him, and prevailed not. 35:06 And then the next thing you know they were out of heaven. 35:09 You see, Satan thought he could take heaven by force, 35:12 or force God's hand to accept what he was putting out. 35:16 He didn't understand that God has ways that he knew not of. 35:22 He's all ready for a battle, all ready for a war. 35:27 If God kills me then all of the worlds will look at Him as this 35:32 tyrant who's not allowing me to have freedom of speech. 35:35 You know, he was hiding behind his indiscriminate whispering. 35:40 That's why I hate whisperers in church. 35:42 Have mercy! He was hiding behind his whispering, 35:49 and he built it up to the point where they were 35:51 ready for open warfare. 35:53 And the Bible says there was war in heaven, and he thought 35:57 if he was destroyed by God, because he knew the power 36:00 of God, then people would look at God funny, and they would 36:03 serve Him out of fear, and he would have a win win situation. 36:07 He did not realize that he was going to get banished. 36:11 Jesus, when He was talking about it, He said, I beheld Satan 36:17 flying like lightening. 36:20 Before he even knew it, BAM, he was gone! 36:26 Oh, let me go back to the message here. 36:27 But it just shows me God knows how to do what God does. Amen! 36:34 So when we look at how He dealt with the devil, and it says 36:37 in verse 1, and... 36:49 I guess so. Hello! 36:52 40 days and 40 nights Jesus, He is using what we have, 36:56 the same very tools. 36:58 He's not using His divinity. 37:00 He was in a human body. 37:02 He was hungry, and when the tempter came to Him He said, 37:14 look now, here's the Word of God. 37:25 Folks don't go out of your house any day without taking 37:29 time to pray, and from reading something in the Word of God. 37:33 Get some type of tidbits, something there that you 37:37 can read that will fortify you, and keep you through the day. 37:41 David said, Thy Word have I kept in my heart that I might 37:45 not sin against Thee. 37:46 It will give you an edge, and you will find in time, 37:51 that the thing you open and read, God will have you in a 37:55 place, and in a position, somewhere during the day 37:58 where that thought, that scripture, will be able to 38:02 come up where you will either witness, or escape some type 38:05 of temptation that the devil will bring to you. Amen! 38:09 That's what He does; He's the Savior. Amen! 38:12 So the record goes on to say, the devil got slapped in the 38:15 head with that one, Then the devil took Him up on the 38:19 Holy City, and sitteth Him down on a pinnacle of the temple 38:22 and said, If thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down, 38:26 for it is written... the Devil's starting to use the Bible. 38:32 Hello! Folks, the devil knows his Bible 38:39 better than some of us. 38:41 That's why you need to know your Bible. 38:47 It's not an ordinary book. 38:49 It is powerful. It comes from God. 38:52 Romans 15:4, Whatsoever things were written, 38:56 were written before time for our learning. 39:04 It will give you a view of what God wants for us in our lives. 39:10 And the devil can't trick you, and twist you up, because you 39:15 know what it says. 39:17 Now he was really tripping when he thought that he could confuse 39:22 the Word with the Word! Amen! 39:25 I mean, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God, 39:28 and the Word was God. 39:32 So the devil starts with this scripture, And he said unto Him, 39:36 If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it is written, 39:39 He shall give His angels charge over thee, and in their hands 39:44 they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou shalt dash 39:47 thy foot against a stone. 39:49 And then Jesus says, Well, I know more scripture than you. 39:51 He says, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt 39:55 the Lord thy God. Amen! 39:58 Now the devil just said, well wait a minute, 40:00 let me just get down to it. 40:03 The record says in verse 8, Again the devil taketh Him up 40:06 into an exceedingly high mountain and showed Him all 40:10 of the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, 40:14 and then he said unto him... 40:16 Now here's my point. 40:17 This is the whole point of all of this friends. 40:19 This is the whole point of our existence down here. 40:22 Who will we serve? 40:24 If God be God, serve Him. 40:25 The devil said, All these things will I give to thee, if you will 40:31 fall down and do what? worship me. Amen! 40:36 That's all he ever wanted, for Jesus to worship him. 40:41 Now he was delusional. Amen! 40:45 He might be prince in power of the air, but princes have 40:50 no power around kings! Amen! 40:54 Jesus is the Creator. Amen! 40:58 Satan is just a creature. Amen! 41:00 Even thou he could sing in four point harmony, and he had all of 41:05 the wisdom above all of the angels, God made him! Amen! 41:13 Delusional! It's just like if you ever go into an office, 41:17 and you're trying to deal with somebody, and the secretary 41:20 acts like they're the boss. 41:27 Delusional! He was delusional by trying to offer Jesus 41:34 what already belonged to Jesus. 41:37 He says, You are mine, ladies and gentlemen. 41:41 He bought us with a price, and the price was on Calvary. 41:44 He gave His own precious blood, and it allows us to see that 41:49 this whole thing is about worship. 41:52 And when we come down to the last day conflict on planet 41:56 Earth, ladies and gentlemen, the devil's going to start using 41:59 all of his tricks. 42:00 He's going to throw down his last card, and he's going to 42:03 say, It's about worship. 42:06 And the conflict will come with men, women, boys, and girls 42:11 having to choose between receiving the seal of the Living 42:15 God, or the mark of the beast. 42:17 And in every point of history there has been a testing point 42:23 for people to believe: to believe in God, 42:26 or disbelieve Him. 42:29 Adam and Eve, they had a chance to believe in God, 42:32 or to disbelieve Him. 42:35 Those individuals in the antediluvian world, 42:37 they had a chance to get inside the ark. 42:39 Somebody said the ark was not big enough. 42:41 It was big enough for all who wanted to be saved. Amen! 42:44 To believe God or not to believe Him. 42:47 We see the children of Israel after those ten magnificent 42:50 plagues that shook down Egypt to its very core, 42:53 ladies and gentlemen. 42:54 We see that there was mercy when Jesus gave 42:56 that tenth plague. 42:58 He said that those individuals who are inside the homes 43:01 of those Jews who had the blood of the Lamb, 43:04 ladies and gentlemen, the blood of the Lamb on the doorposts 43:07 and on the sides, they were saved. 43:09 And Egyptians, even if they were firstborn, who were inside 43:13 the homes where the blood was, they were saved 43:16 by the mercy of God! Amen! 43:19 And when Israel had the Messiah Himself there face to face, 43:25 they had an opportunity to serve Him, and acknowledge Him as 43:32 King of kings, and Lord of lords. 43:34 It was their life, but because they rejected the Master, 43:38 ladies and gentlemen, we now have a world church of Gentiles 43:43 from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, 43:45 preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. 43:48 And when we look at this last day conflict, we will see 43:54 it will be among those individuals who will worship 43:58 God the way He wants to be worshipped, 44:01 and not the worshipping of their choosing. 44:04 I come back now to my favorite Old Testament prophet, 44:12 and I'm talking about the one we started out with, Elijah. 44:16 We see that Elijah had a love and desire 44:21 to serve the living God. 44:23 He had the willingness, ladies and gentlemen, to stand up even 44:30 though he was the only one, or he thought he was the only one, 44:34 to let the people know that he served an all powerful God, 44:39 and folks let me just say this to you. 44:41 Even those of you who are at home, do you know how wonderful 44:48 the God you serve really is, and how much He cares about you? 44:53 We went to sleep last night and our hearts kept beating. 45:01 And someone says a heart beats about 65 times per minute. 45:06 That's 3,900 times an hour. 45:12 That's 93,600 times a day. 45:17 And you and I had nothing to do with it. 45:20 Our lungs inhale and exhale what we need to keep going. 45:27 And we didn't have to say, heart keep beating, lungs do your job. 45:32 Because if that was left to us, ladies and gentlemen, 45:35 and if it was on manual, well, many of us wouldn't be here. 45:43 We fell asleep and the evil one would have loved to take 45:49 our lives, but God sent His angels to watch over us 45:54 in our unconscious state called sleep. 45:57 Do you realize you have something better than ADT. 46:01 You have heavenly resources watching over you. Amen! 46:06 And then at the appointed time, the old song says, He woke me up 46:11 this morning, and He started me and you on our way. 46:16 Oh yes, the God we love, who cares about us, 46:19 He's blessing us. Amen! 46:22 Then He moved us here to come together for corporate worship. 46:27 You see, as we get closer and closer to the kingdom of God, 46:31 ladies and gentlemen, as we get closer and closer to that day, 46:34 the Bible tells us we should not forsake the assembling 46:37 of ourselves together, that we might strengthen and encourage 46:40 each other, and not only that, that we should take care of 46:43 the needs of one another, those less fortunate than ourselves. 46:49 For if the true love of God is in us we will have a spirit of 46:54 charity and love that will not allow me to just come to church 46:59 to show who I am, and what I have, but it will give you a 47:03 spirit to come to church and share what God has blessed 47:07 you with other believers who might not have 47:10 what you have, who stand in need. 47:12 And you will do it with the spirit of quietness and humility 47:19 to uplift your brother and sister of Christ. 47:22 That's what God has placed in our realm. 47:26 Ladies and gentlemen, I look throughout the scriptures 47:30 and I see how Elijah stood up against Ahab and Jezebel. 47:37 He stood up and he told them they were wrong. 47:42 And folks, if we would be God's people, we have to know how to 47:46 tell people they're wrong, and we have to know how to tell 47:51 people when they're right. 47:52 And we have to know, and have the tactfulness of the 47:57 Spirit of God that when we tell people they're wrong, 48:00 we don't run them away, but we cause them to fall on their 48:04 knees and come to the loving Savior who has inspired us 48:08 with the right words to say to bring these 48:11 individuals to themselves. 48:13 Elijah told Ahab he was wrong, and he told 48:16 Jezebel they were wrong. 48:17 And he told them to gather up all of the prophets of Baal, 48:20 and to come to Mount Carmel. 48:21 And in coming to Mount Carmel they would have an opportunity, 48:24 ladies and gentlemen, to see who God was. 48:27 He said to bring together all of those people of the church, 48:31 all of those people of Israel, that they might see a test. 48:35 If God be God, then serve Him. 48:37 And you know the test. 48:38 You've heard this before, on Mount Carmel found in 48:42 1 Kings 17, where those individuals all came together 48:46 to see the test. And you know the test. 48:49 They set up those bullocks there on altars. 48:53 And Elijah told them to go first, and they said, 48:57 The God that answers by fire, let that one indeed be God. 49:02 The record says, if you read it, 1 Kings 18, that they began to 49:09 pray, in verse 26. 49:11 And they began to pray from morning until noon saying, 49:14 Obey, Oh, hear us! 49:15 But there was no voice, and there was none that answered. 49:17 And they leaped upon the altar which was made. 49:20 And they came at noon time and Elijah mocked them and he said, 49:23 Hey, what's happening? 49:24 Cry aloud! He's your God. 49:25 Either He's talking, maybe He's pursuing. 49:28 Maybe He's on a journey. 49:30 Maybe He's sleeping. 49:31 He has to be somewhere else, because He's not listening. 49:35 I thank God my Bible tells me that our God neither sleeps, 49:39 nor slumbers. Amen! 49:41 Oh, the God we serve is a mighty God. 49:43 It says, they cried aloud, and then they began to cut 49:46 themselves, verse 28, with all manner of knives and 49:49 lancets until blood gushed out of them. 49:51 Folks they didn't realize that the only blood that really 49:54 counts is the blood of the Lamb, of Jesus Christ. Amen! 49:58 Oh they're carrying on, they're carrying on, 50:00 they're carrying on, they're going on all day long 50:03 until the time of the evening sacrifice. 50:06 All the people are there. 50:08 They have been listening to the words of Elijah ringing 50:12 over and over in their minds, If God be God then serve Him. 50:15 If God be God then serve Him. 50:20 They're watching these people in this spectacle dancing, and 50:23 leaping, and cutting themselves, and mutilating their bodies. 50:26 If God be God then serve Him. 50:28 Nothing happens. There's no lightening there. 50:31 They are exhausted. 50:33 And then Elijah steps up. 50:37 And as he steps up, ladies and gentlemen, 50:40 he does something different. 50:41 He says, To my sacrifice I want you to do something. 50:45 I know what I said. 50:46 If I am standing here for the living God, I've asked Him 50:50 to bring fire down and consume this sacrifice. 50:53 But I want you to know that the God I serve is a God of power. 50:58 I want you to know the God I serve is a God 51:02 of impossibilities. 51:04 The God I serve is able to do something that no one has 51:07 ever seen done before. 51:09 I want you to douse it with water. 51:11 And they did it again, and again, and then it was 51:15 completely saturated with water. 51:17 Elijah didn't run. 51:20 Elijah didn't jump. 51:21 Elijah didn't shake his tambourine. 51:24 Elijah said, Let's go back to old time religion. Amen! 51:30 Then Elijah just prayed. Amen! 51:33 Elijah just prayed. 51:35 Verse 37, Hear me Oh Lord, hear me, that this people may 51:39 know that Thou art the Lord God, and Thou hast turned 51:44 their hearts back again. 51:46 Now ladies and gentlemen, it says in verse 38, then the fire 51:50 of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering, 51:53 and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, 51:55 and licked up the water. 51:57 How does fire lick up water? 51:58 I thought water put out fire, but God's fire turns water 52:02 to vapor! Amen, Amen! 52:05 That's how hot it is! 52:08 The God we serve is a mighty, consuming fire! 52:16 And then all of the people began to say, The Lord, He is God! 52:19 The Lord, He is God! 52:21 And it just went over the whole crowd, the multitude. 52:24 The Lord, He is God! 52:25 In other words they got back to basics. 52:27 And, ladies and gentlemen, what I'm saying to you today, 52:30 those of you who are home, and those who are here, 52:32 and those who are on internet, we have to get back 52:35 to our basics with God. 52:36 We know what He has done for us. 52:38 We know where He has brought us. 52:39 We know how He has stood beside us. 52:41 We know He has forgiven us. 52:43 We know that He loves us. 52:45 We know He has put up with us. 52:46 We know we have shamed Him. 52:48 We have done things that have broken His very heart, 52:51 but still He reaches out to you and to me. Amen! 52:56 And He says to us in our misery, He says to us in our complexity, 53:01 He says to us in this mess called life, 53:04 He says, If you just look up, I'll send the 53:09 fire to set you free. Amen! 53:15 But you, my friend, you my daughter, you my son, 53:18 must decide to serve Me as God and God alone. Amen! 53:37 I have decided to follow Jesus. 54:10 No turning back, no turning back. 54:20 The cross before me, the world behind me. 54:52 No turning back, no turning back. 55:03 Have you decided to follow Jesus? 55:35 No turning back, no turning back. 55:50 Today is a new start for someone here. 55:54 You have decided to follow Jesus. 55:57 And these individuals are going to be baptized this very day. 56:01 But there are some of us who may not be committed for baptism 56:05 today, but you want to receive the new indwelling, 56:09 the refreshing that comes from the Holy Spirit of God. 56:13 And you will make up your mind and say, Today, once again, 56:16 I renew my relationship with Jesus. 56:19 If that is your desire, won't you stand to your feet? 56:22 All of us today who have made that commitment. 56:27 And for those of you who are at home, as you listen to this 56:31 service, and you, too, want to renew your relationship 56:35 with Jesus, and you have decided to follow Him. 56:37 Just close your eyes, even now, and say, Lord Jesus I give You 56:44 my life. Renew me again. 56:48 Thank You, Lord Jesus, for hearing and answering 56:52 our prayer, and continue to guide us 56:55 because You, indeed, are life. |
Revised 2014-12-17