1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,000 And I'm going to be reading today out of the book of Acts, chapter two and verse 46. 2 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:14,000 Acts chapter two, it would be so kind to join me there on your Bible app or if you've got a physical Bible with you, you can turn there today. 3 00:00:14,000 --> 00:00:19,000 Acts chapter two and verse 46. Amen. 4 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:28,000 We began this series last Sunday sharing what God is doing with us this year. 5 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:33,000 And we're just grateful for the Lord for the vision that he has given the church. Amen. 6 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:42,000 And as we look at today's verse, I'm going to invite you to open up your hearts because this is going to be a very important topic. 7 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:46,000 And I've got a lot to cover, so I hope I can get through it all. 8 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:49,000 Jesus name verse 46. It reads this way. 9 00:00:49,000 --> 00:01:00,000 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, in the temple and breaking bread from house to house. 10 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:12,000 They ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. 11 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:21,000 And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. Amen. 12 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:34,000 I'm going to preach today with the help of the Holy Ghost on the on the continuation of this series, the church on fire in the temple. 13 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:39,000 Can someone say in the temple? In the temple. 14 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:42,000 Let us pray, Father, we love you. Thank you for your word. 15 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:46,000 Thank you, God, for your presence that we feel in this place. 16 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:49,000 This is your church. These are your people. 17 00:01:49,000 --> 00:02:01,000 This is your word. And we are gathered today, God, for that purpose, Lord, for you to speak into our lives, give us direction, Lord, to unite us, to empower us, Lord, with a vision, with a purpose. 18 00:02:01,000 --> 00:02:16,000 God, and I ask today, as I humbly submit myself to you, God, I render and I surrender God all my faculties, God, my mind, my soul, my spirit, my lips, my tongue, God, so that it might be an instrument for you. 19 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,000 Let it be your wisdom in your words, God. 20 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:26,000 And I pray that you would confirm the word of God today with miracles, signs and wonders. 21 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:32,000 Lord, feel somebody today with the precious gift of the Holy Ghost. God, touch someone's life. 22 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:39,000 We ask this right now in Jesus' mighty name. Someone say amen. 23 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:41,000 You can be seated. 24 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:57,000 I hate to bring this up, but as I was considering today's thought, I had to remember the haunting steelness of those Sundays that we all can remember during the COVID lockdowns. 25 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:17,000 I know that is a bit of a sore subject. I think many of us have tried in some ways to forget that period of time because it was certainly not a time in our life as families, as a society that we really want to be thinking about every day. 26 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:30,000 But I remember one particular moment standing here in the sanctuary. I forgot what I came to do. I came maybe to pick up some supplies or do something. But I was standing here and the pews were empty. 27 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:39,000 The lights were dimmed and the only sound were the creaks in the ceiling that sometimes we hear on windy days. We get a little nervous. What's that? 28 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:55,000 It's the creaking of the ceiling and cars that were passing by. My mind raced back to those moments in this place where it was alive with worship, with prayer, and the voices of God's people. 29 00:03:55,000 --> 00:04:07,000 And as I stood here, and I'm being transparent with you, this is a very private moment for me. So respectfully speaking, this was something that I never thought I would share, but it was a personal moment. 30 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:17,000 But I felt to share it because as I stood here in the sanctuary, I was so moved and I was so grieved in many ways in my spirit. 31 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:33,000 The silence was deafening, not just because the room was empty, but because something deep within me knew that we were missing the essence of what it meant and what it means to be the church. 32 00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:46,000 For months we adjusted to online activities, meetings, and services. And while I'm thankful for the technology that allowed us to do those things, I don't think that it was ever sufficient. 33 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:58,000 It just wasn't the same. Amen. It was not the same at all. Worship felt incomplete without the echoes of voices surrounding me. 34 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:07,000 Preaching felt very different. I never prepared in all of my years of training and preparation to preach just to a camera. 35 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:20,000 Without Amen's, without the anointed atmosphere that we feel in this place today, it was for me like a fish out of water, something that I don't really want to go back to. 36 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:32,000 And it's not because of just the material things. It wasn't just the building or the other things that we do to make church happen every Sunday. 37 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:39,000 But it was those intangibles, perhaps those things that we in that moment took for granted. 38 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:53,000 One of the most painful things for me, especially as a pastor, was that during that period there was no altar. There was no altar calls, no place for people to come forward, to cry out to God. 39 00:05:53,000 --> 00:06:03,000 No physical way for me to lay hands on people, to pray with and to pray for one another. 40 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:13,000 And that's when I realized, church friend, that's when I realized that gathering in the temple is more than an activity. 41 00:06:13,000 --> 00:06:18,000 It's more than just something that we do because we're church people. 42 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:33,000 It is a lifeline connected that connects us from God to our soul. It is more than just something that we do because we are religious in many ways. 43 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:39,000 It is an integral part of what makes us the church. 44 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:53,000 And I began to understand the devotion, the dedication of the early church when we read that they continue daily with one accord in the temple, daily. 45 00:06:53,000 --> 00:07:00,000 They didn't just go once a week, but there was a daily anticipation, a daily routine. 46 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:10,000 It was embedded not only in the Jewish mindset who had converted to Christianity, this relationship to God through the temple, 47 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:18,000 but it became a very much cornerstone, a part of the early church. It was adapted. 48 00:07:18,000 --> 00:07:31,000 It was modified for Christian worship and the disciples and the early church were very much about coming together at the temple for worship and for prayer. 49 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:36,000 It was a part of Jesus's custom to frequent the temple. 50 00:07:36,000 --> 00:07:47,000 And so today I want to, for the moment that I had today, to preach about the power and the importance of gathering in the temple. 51 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:55,000 And there are four things that I want to point out that must be present in an apostolic service. 52 00:07:55,000 --> 00:08:08,000 We are today in an apostolic service. We are in a Jesus name, Holy Ghost field, one God, Pentecostal, apostolic service. 53 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:14,000 Amen, somebody. Let's give God a hand. Praise today. Amen. 54 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:22,000 That's the kind of service that we are in, but the kind of service we are in does not happen on its own. 55 00:08:22,000 --> 00:08:28,000 There are some particular things that must be present for it to be an apostolic service. 56 00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:32,000 And the things that I'm going to mention, these four things are not just traditions. 57 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:42,000 I don't want you to think about this through the lens of tradition, through the lens of what we are familiar with, through the lens of what we are used to. 58 00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:50,000 Or if you were raised in the church, what we are accustomed to, these things are not just traditions. 59 00:08:50,000 --> 00:08:54,000 They are they are actually oils. They are oils. 60 00:08:54,000 --> 00:09:00,000 They are oils that in the same way an oil sparks and sustains fire. 61 00:09:00,000 --> 00:09:09,000 These things are oils that spark and sustain fire revival in an apostolic service. 62 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:15,000 So let us today dissect what is an apostolic service. 63 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:18,000 Now, I want to tell you right now, I've only got four I'm going to talk about. 64 00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:23,000 But in prayer and preparation, there's probably more things that we could bring out as well. 65 00:09:23,000 --> 00:09:27,000 But just let me let me just bring these to you. 66 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:35,000 The first oil of an apostolic service is the oil of exuberant praise. 67 00:09:35,000 --> 00:09:42,000 Praise. Can somebody say praise? Come on, let's all say praise. 68 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:50,000 One of the hallmarks of a Holy Ghost field apostolic church is exuberant and expressive praise. 69 00:09:50,000 --> 00:10:00,000 I want to go out on a limb today and say that there is nothing like apostolic praise in all of the world. 70 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:03,000 There is nothing like apostolic praise. 71 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:12,000 I am 100 percent confident in saying that apostolic praise is second to none. 72 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:20,000 Do I have a witness out there today? Apostolic music is in a league all by itself. 73 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:24,000 I am very zealous and jealous for the things of God. 74 00:10:24,000 --> 00:10:27,000 And that's so I have no there is there is nothing in me. 75 00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:31,000 I have no hesitation. I have no trepidation. 76 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:43,000 And going out insane that there is nothing in the religious world and beyond that compares to apostolic praise and worship. 77 00:10:43,000 --> 00:10:52,000 Nothing that compares to apostolic worship, apostolic music, apostolic musicians. 78 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:59,000 And there is such a significant and special oil that exists within the app. 79 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:03,000 How many of you believe what I am saying here today? 80 00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:12,000 We as an apostolic church have a distinct sound that cannot that cannot be duplicated. 81 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:20,000 There are others that try to replicate it or that try to copy it, but it cannot be duplicated. 82 00:11:20,000 --> 00:11:23,000 Why? Because it is an oil. 83 00:11:23,000 --> 00:11:37,000 It is an anointing. It is something that God gives a Holy Ghost filled Jesus named church that cannot be compared to anything else in the world. 84 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:42,000 I don't care how talented it is. I don't care how gifted it is. 85 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:51,000 God can do more with an apostolic worship and praise than all of those things combined. 86 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:56,000 Because it is the oil. Someone say the oil. 87 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:59,000 It is the oil of joy. 88 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:02,000 And Isaiah, can I preach this like I want to today? 89 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:04,000 Someone say go ahead. Hallelujah. 90 00:12:04,000 --> 00:12:13,000 In Isaiah sixty three or sixty one three, God gives us the oil of joy for morning. 91 00:12:13,000 --> 00:12:17,000 The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. 92 00:12:17,000 --> 00:12:20,000 Joy has an oil to it. 93 00:12:20,000 --> 00:12:28,000 There is something about the joy of the Lord, the joy unspeakable and full of glory. 94 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:35,000 When you are fire baptized with the Holy Ghost and speak with other tongues as the spirit gives you the utterance. 95 00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:41,000 We no longer just worship and praise him like every other created thing in this world. 96 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:48,000 Now we are offering up God an anointed praise, an anointed worship. 97 00:12:48,000 --> 00:12:51,000 We don't just sing because we know the song. 98 00:12:51,000 --> 00:12:54,000 We don't just sing because we have the gift of singing. 99 00:12:54,000 --> 00:13:02,000 We sing from the overflow and from the abundance of a joy filled heart. 100 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:08,000 I come to tell you today that it's the joy of oil that's in our praise. 101 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:15,000 Hallelujah. It's the joy. The joy is the oil of our praise. 102 00:13:15,000 --> 00:13:27,000 And so that is why church, we can never lose the joy of the Holy Ghost that infuses and permeates every aspect of our lives. 103 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:32,000 Am I preaching today to a joyful people? Am I preaching? 104 00:13:32,000 --> 00:13:37,000 Is there anybody today that's got joy in your heart? 105 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:49,000 I wonder if you can give God a joyful hand clap, a joyful shout, a joyful pray. 106 00:13:49,000 --> 00:13:53,000 Come on somebody this afternoon. 107 00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:57,000 The Psalm is said in Psalm 100 and verse 1. 108 00:13:57,000 --> 00:14:08,000 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye at lands, and serve the Lord with gladness. 109 00:14:08,000 --> 00:14:12,000 Come before his presence with singing. 110 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:17,000 I've come to tell you today that you don't have the right to come to God any way you feel like it. 111 00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:22,000 My God, you don't have the right to show up to church any way you feel like it. 112 00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:26,000 I'm talking to the saints right now. I'm talking to the church right now. 113 00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:34,000 You don't have the right to just come any old kind of way and offer God any old kind of lousy, casual pray. 114 00:14:34,000 --> 00:14:43,000 God has been too good to you to give him a casual, whatever's left over in your body kind of praise. 115 00:14:43,000 --> 00:14:51,000 No, we've got the joy of the Lord in our hearts. 116 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:57,000 And God expects us to bring him a joyful praise. 117 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:03,000 Apostolic services are different because we don't just come to him any way we want. 118 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:05,000 We must enter his gates with thanksgiving. 119 00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:07,000 How many of you are thankful today? 120 00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:09,000 I said how many of you are thankful today? 121 00:15:09,000 --> 00:15:14,000 Enter his gates with thanksgiving into his courts with praise. 122 00:15:14,000 --> 00:15:17,000 God's got a prescribed way. We ought to come to him. 123 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:25,000 That's why the moment that your foot steps out on the parking lot and you arrive here at 1425 South Springer Road, 124 00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:30,000 and by the time you walk into those doors and you begin to make your, 125 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:36,000 you've got to make sure that every step in your walk is filled with the joy of the Lord. 126 00:15:36,000 --> 00:15:41,000 And if that's not the case, you better check yourself on the way to church and say, 127 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:43,000 get this nasty attitude out of my mind. 128 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:48,000 Get those bad thoughts out of my spirit because when I get to the house of the Lord, 129 00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:53,000 I want to be like David that said I was glad when they said unto me, 130 00:15:53,000 --> 00:16:01,000 let us go into the house. Am I talking to somebody here today? 131 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:03,000 That's the attitude that we've got to come with. 132 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:09,000 We've got to come every time and say, I'm going to get, I'm going to sweat through this shirt today. 133 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:14,000 I'm at home. My God. Hallelujah. Oh, nobody wants to go there now. 134 00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:18,000 I don't care how I look. I don't care how it sounds. I don't care. 135 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:24,000 Oh, Lord, when I get into your presence, God, I'm going to I'm not holding nothing back. 136 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:29,000 I'm giving everything to you. Come on. How about somebody say amen today? 137 00:16:29,000 --> 00:16:36,000 Where hallelujah does the oil of praise take place? And what does it sound like? 138 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:42,000 Oh, I'm so glad that our Bible talks to us the way that it does because of someone 50. 139 00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:47,000 It tells us where the praise takes place. Oh, yes, Lord. 140 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:53,000 It takes place in the temple for all you folk that say, well, I just praise him in my car. 141 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:57,000 And I don't need to act like that in church. And I got a lot of. Yeah, right. 142 00:16:57,000 --> 00:17:01,000 You have a lot of joy in your room in your car. I don't believe that. 143 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:07,000 There is a way that when we get into the house of God, it says praise the Lord. 144 00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:12,000 Where does it say praise God? Praise God in his sanctuary. 145 00:17:12,000 --> 00:17:19,000 Praise him in his mighty firmament. Praise him. Oh, my Lord, I get excited for his mighty acts. 146 00:17:19,000 --> 00:17:25,000 Praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet. 147 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:31,000 Praise him with the loot and the heart. Praise him with the tremble and the damp. 148 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:39,000 Praise him with string instruments and flute. Praise him with loud cymbals. Praise him with clashing cymbals. 149 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:49,000 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. I wonder if for the next 30 seconds you can open up your mouth. 150 00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:58,000 You can stand up on your feet. You can lift up your head and give God a joy. 151 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:06,000 Come on, church. Oh, come on, somebody. Come on, church. 152 00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:13,000 Come on. What kind of church are we today? Come on. Don't stop now. 153 00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:20,000 Don't stop now. Don't stop now. We don't need the music up here today. We don't need the praise team right now. 154 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:29,000 You are the praise team right there where you are. 155 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:37,000 You know the problem is, brother, we can become so dependent on just watching the praise team worship, 156 00:18:37,000 --> 00:18:45,000 watching the musicians play while we sit back and observe everything that's going on. That's not what apostolic praise looks like. 157 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:56,000 Hallelujah. Apostolic praise says, I will bless the Lord at all times and his praise shall continually be in my mouth. 158 00:18:56,000 --> 00:19:00,000 When I was growing up in the apostolic church, we didn't even have a praise team. 159 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:05,000 You know what we had? We had a brother behind the pulpit who couldn't even sing, praise be to God. 160 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:12,000 And we had musicians that could play pretty good, but it's nothing like the talent and the musicians and the praise team that we had today. 161 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:18,000 But we were a loud church and we were a worshiping church. 162 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:25,000 Now it seems the tables have been turned. We got all the sound. We got all the praise. And that's wonderful and great. 163 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:32,000 But that's not to take your place in worshiping God. 164 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:45,000 I did not come here to be entertained. I didn't come here for a performance. I came here to entertain the presence of the Lord. 165 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:55,000 And we got to get back to that kind of praise. Got to get back to shouting and dancing and crawling on the walls and swinging on these chandeliers. 166 00:19:55,000 --> 00:20:01,000 Hallelujah. Just make sure we got enough insurance for in case anything happens. Hallelujah. We got to get back. 167 00:20:01,000 --> 00:20:06,000 You say, but pastor, why do we got to? We're more dignified. I mean, we kind of evolved from that kind of stuff. 168 00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:14,000 We're, you know, we're a little more buttoned up now. You know what I'm saying? Like my picture might get posted on Instagram. 169 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:18,000 I don't know if I want to look like that. I don't know if I want to get my hair messed up. 170 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:26,000 I don't know if I want to break this high heel. If those high heels are too cute, sisters, that you can't dance in the Lord, leave them at home. 171 00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:31,000 Oh, did I say something? Hallelujah. Leave them at home. If you can't praise God. 172 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:35,000 And you know, you said, Pastor, you've been wearing a tie lately. You've been getting all dressed up. You know why? 173 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:41,000 Because when we first started this church, a part of me thought, well, maybe we'll make it a little more casual and people will be a little more, you know, 174 00:20:41,000 --> 00:20:47,000 a little more welcoming and a little more casual and they can move around a little more without a suit and a tie. 175 00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:54,000 But then I realized that this has nothing to do with the way people dress. You're either going to praise God whether you like it or not. 176 00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:59,000 And for those of you, Pastor, I thought you were just casual. No, I grew up wearing a suit and a tie. 177 00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:07,000 I started putting one back on because I realized that, you know what? It's not about, oh, I know how to praise God like this. 178 00:21:07,000 --> 00:21:13,000 I know how to loosen up this tie if I need to a little bit and let God do what He wants to do. 179 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:19,000 It's not a don't let nothing hold you back from giving God the glory. Hallelujah. 180 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:27,000 Oh, if you got tennis shoes on, at least use them and run around this place a little bit. 181 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:34,000 Oh, Lord. So maybe some of you could join me and put on a tie out there, brother, and let's come to the Lord. 182 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:39,000 You say, you know what? What do we really have to do? No, we don't have to do that. But here's the point. 183 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:45,000 If we're giving God our best and we're coming before the Lord and we have joy in our hearts for all that He's done, 184 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:54,000 let's not let nothing stand between us and giving God an exuberant praise that He is worthy of. 185 00:21:54,000 --> 00:22:00,000 Oh, I wonder if they would say like they said to David when he danced before the Lord with all of his mind, 186 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:05,000 his wife thought that she had lost his, he had lost his mind. 187 00:22:05,000 --> 00:22:10,000 And he said, why is it that you're dancing like that, David, when the presence of God had come back? 188 00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:18,000 And he said in my version paraphrase, he said, if you think this is bad, I'm about to get more undignified than this. 189 00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:24,000 I wonder if we can start making our neighbors a little uncomfortable, making them sweat a little bit like, 190 00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:29,000 oh, you're being a little too expressive. You're being a little too joyful. 191 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:39,000 That's right, because the joy of the Lord has come into my life. Oh, God has been too good to me. 192 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:45,000 He's been too good to me. Oh, hallelujah. Why don't we just love the Lord one more time right now? 193 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:54,000 Thank you, Jesus. Hallelujah. Oh, and then we also need not only, I could just preach about praise all this. 194 00:22:54,000 --> 00:23:01,000 I could just take the rest of this sermon and preach on praise because I got a feeling like I was just about halfway there with some of you right now. 195 00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:07,000 But let's move on to the next one because I got a few more. And the second oil is the oil of anointed preaching. 196 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:12,000 Oh, hallelujah. Oh, thank you for the preached word of God. 197 00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:20,000 Every message that is preached from this pulpit, whether it's me or another preacher, must be saturated with the oil of the Holy Ghost. 198 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:33,000 Oh, hallelujah. Jesus said in Isaiah, he read from Isaiah and he said, the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach the gospel. 199 00:23:33,000 --> 00:23:39,000 You cannot just preach. You've got to preach with the anointing. Oh, hallelujah. 200 00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:45,000 I say this to all that are here because every one of you is a mouthpiece for God in some way. 201 00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:56,000 But considering the apostolic service in particular, every deacon, every minister, every man of God that stands behind this pulpit for whatever purpose it is, 202 00:23:56,000 --> 00:24:07,000 better make sure that the oil is on your life, because what we need more than ever is Holy Ghost filled anointed preaching. 203 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:20,000 Oh, hallelujah. A lot of what modern day Christians call preaching is nothing more than just motivational speeches and religious pep talk 204 00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:29,000 where preachers get up on Sundays and they tell the congregation what they want to hear. That's not what's going to be preached in this church. 205 00:24:29,000 --> 00:24:38,000 This is going to be an anointed word of God. It's going to be the word of the Lord. It's not going to be a self centered message. 206 00:24:38,000 --> 00:24:47,000 It's going to be a God centered message. And this is what makes an apostolic church an apostolic church. 207 00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:52,000 We don't believe in the prosperity gospel. We don't believe in a me centered gospel. 208 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:59,000 We don't believe that Jesus is your genie and he's here to give you your three wishes and make your life super comfortable. 209 00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:06,000 That's not what the Bible teaches us about God. Jesus said, deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow me. 210 00:25:06,000 --> 00:25:16,000 That's what the word of the Lord says. And so I have a great responsibility as I stand before the sacred desk with fear and with trembling 211 00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:26,000 that this is not my employment desk. This is God's deployment desk. This is not for me to air out what I want to say. 212 00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:39,000 This is the pulpit. This is the apostolic pulpit. And this is the apostolic message that when it gets preacher, it is the unadulterated word of God. 213 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:53,000 Oh, it is my job to preach this word in season and out of season and to plant the seed of the word into your heart to build up your faith in God. 214 00:25:53,000 --> 00:26:04,000 The Bible says in first Corinthians chapter one and verse twenty one for since though in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God. 215 00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:22,000 It pleased God through the foolishness of preaching or the message preach to save those who believe it is the wisdom of God emanating or coming out through the voice of the preacher. 216 00:26:22,000 --> 00:26:28,000 It is the foolishness of preaching. Why does that use that term foolishness of preaching? 217 00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:37,000 Because this message is foolishness to those who are perishing. This message is foolishness to those without the gospel. 218 00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:45,000 But to us, it is the grace of God. To us, it is the voice of the Lord. 219 00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:55,000 They think it's foolish for a man like me to stand behind a pulpit all dressed up, yelling and screaming and declaring and shouting in the world's eyes. 220 00:26:55,000 --> 00:27:01,000 Hear me today. What your pastor is doing every Sunday morning is a foolish act. 221 00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:12,000 Do you get what I'm saying today? It is foolishness for me to come up here and make myself the way that I do sweating and preaching and yelling and compelling and persuading. 222 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:17,000 They consider me to be crazy, unintelligent and uncultured. 223 00:27:17,000 --> 00:27:26,000 They would question my sanity. They would question my intelligence. They would question the sensibilities that I have as a modern day man. 224 00:27:26,000 --> 00:27:35,000 But thanks be to God that my life nor is my calling connected to the approval of man or secular society. 225 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:42,000 Because there's one thing that I've got clear in my mind is that I work for God and not man. 226 00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:54,000 And so what thus saith the Lord, if I've got what they don't understand, is that every Sunday, every time I preach or the preacher preach, we're not just giving a motivational speech. 227 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:59,000 Are you hearing me today? We're not just giving you five steps to a nicer life. 228 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:11,000 We have come to stand between heaven and hell and warn people to repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 229 00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:17,000 My job is not to become your best friend. My job is to help you get to heaven. 230 00:28:17,000 --> 00:28:22,000 And I might offend you sometimes. And if the word of God offends you, then so be it. 231 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:28,000 Because some of us are just one fence away from getting right with God. 232 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:36,000 For conviction of the Holy Spirit and conviction of the word to grab ahold of us and bring us to an altar so that we might give it to the Lord. 233 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:49,000 That is an apostolic service. And this church, if it's going to be on fire and stay on fire, I declare to you today, we need more preaching, not less. 234 00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:53,000 How shall they hear except for a preacher? 235 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:59,000 We got a world where there are so many other voices, podcasts and videos and YouTube's and all kinds of things. 236 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:09,000 You need apostolic preaching in your life like never before. More, not less. More, not less. 237 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:20,000 Again, forgive me if I go back to my apostolic upbringing where I was in church three to four times a week, hearing preaching, preaching, preaching, preaching. 238 00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:27,000 But that's where I come from. And we live in a society today. Some of you already looked at your phones. You're like, Pastor, you're going to you might be going over your time. 239 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:33,000 Who told you? I never told you what my time was. Looking on my phone. 240 00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:38,000 We live in a generation that can put up with only 30 minutes of preaching. 241 00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:43,000 Let's go. Chipotle, wherever it is we're going. 242 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:46,000 30 minutes. Whoo. 243 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:52,000 But we can, but you can binge watch. 244 00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:57,000 You can binge watch two, three series on Netflix. 245 00:29:57,000 --> 00:30:01,000 Pause it, run to the restroom, come back. 246 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:08,000 Some of you don't even do that. You hold it through the whole show. 247 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:13,000 But in the church, we're looking for reasons to check out. 248 00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:17,000 Because your carnal man doesn't want to hear what's being preached. 249 00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:25,000 Hallelujah. There's a war going on in your flesh with the spirit. And these two are contrary to each other. 250 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:31,000 But if you would just lend your spiritual ear today to what the say of the Lord, it might just save you from a catastrophe. 251 00:30:31,000 --> 00:30:38,000 It might just bring you one step closer to God. How many of you want to be one step closer to God today? 252 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:40,000 Clap your hands and let's give God a hand. 253 00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:48,000 Hallelujah. 254 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:52,000 The third oil is the oil of good fellowship. 255 00:30:52,000 --> 00:31:00,000 Another distinction of an apostolic service is the beautiful fellowship before, during and after a gathering. 256 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:10,000 It is the people of God that invest time understanding the purpose, the beauty of being together with the church. 257 00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:15,000 I need you to understand today that the church is not just a social activity. 258 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:22,000 It is a spiritual togetherness that produces an oil. 259 00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:29,000 Lord, help me convince somebody right now who may be thinking that this thing we call fellowship or togetherness 260 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:37,000 is just nothing but socialization. Help somebody understand today, God, that there is a spiritual component. 261 00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:50,000 We read in Psalms 133, behold, how good, someone say how good, and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. 262 00:31:50,000 --> 00:32:01,000 It is like the precious oil upon the head running down the beard, the beard of Aaron running down the edge of the garments. 263 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:13,000 The apostolic service is a place to connect in fellowship and that fellowship produces an oil that keeps the fire burning. 264 00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:18,000 It's not just about, oh, God bless you. Praise the Lord. See you next week. 265 00:32:18,000 --> 00:32:24,000 There's something deeper that must take place. Watch what happens in the early church, Acts 2, 42. 266 00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:31,000 Just give me a few more moments of your time. Listen, it says they continue steadfastly. 267 00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:40,000 Steadfastly, that means arduently. That means the strongly that they were just over and above committed to what? 268 00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:48,000 The Apostles doctrine, the word of God, and fellowship. Someone say fellowship. 269 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:55,000 In the breaking of bread. Ooh, how many of you like to break bread? Oh, I wasn't convinced. 270 00:32:55,000 --> 00:33:02,000 I said how many of you like to break bread? How many of you like to eat? Hallelujah. All right. 271 00:33:02,000 --> 00:33:07,000 Some of you don't understand. I was being too spiritual when I said, amen, break bread. 272 00:33:07,000 --> 00:33:11,000 In prayers, they were steadfast. 273 00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:18,000 They were committed to fellowship, to living life together with their fellow brother and sister in Christ, 274 00:33:18,000 --> 00:33:23,000 to knowing and being known by others within the faith community. 275 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:36,000 And they understood the principle of spiritual fellowship and interconnectedness within the body of Christ, doing life together, going and eating together. 276 00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:41,000 The Greek word for fellowship is koinonia. This is a beautiful term. 277 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:46,000 It's a term that can be defined as holding something in common. 278 00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:51,000 It's when a group of people come together for a common purpose, they come together. 279 00:33:51,000 --> 00:34:04,000 And what is our common purpose? It's us gathering under the banner of the name of Jesus Christ and edifying each other as the body. 280 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:11,000 Now, I know this point doesn't excite some of us the way that maybe the point on praise and preaching does. 281 00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:18,000 But let me tell you, it's just as important. Some people don't believe in fellowship. They don't want it. They don't need it. 282 00:34:18,000 --> 00:34:23,000 They don't feel they need it. They avoid it. That is not apostolic. 283 00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:33,000 We've got to get to a place in our minds and in our hearts where fellowship, you know, again, sorry, going back to my apostolic upbringing, 284 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:40,000 where the dining hall was just as important as the sanctuary. 285 00:34:40,000 --> 00:34:49,000 In fact, sometimes back then, you know, a lot of the churches, the kitchen was like just one wall over. 286 00:34:49,000 --> 00:34:53,000 When you start smelling the food, you know, church better wrap up, man. 287 00:34:53,000 --> 00:35:00,000 That sister, that Ammanah is cooking something back there. We got to get to it. Hallelujah. 288 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:07,000 The dining hall was important back then. You know what the past they used to have to kick the people out of the church. 289 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:13,000 Hello, go home. How many remember that one brother just flip the lights on. 290 00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:16,000 Time to go. 291 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:21,000 Back then, we used to have to fight for people to leave. 292 00:35:21,000 --> 00:35:26,000 But in the 21st century, we have to fight for people to stay. 293 00:35:26,000 --> 00:35:31,000 And the fellowship and to connect and to break bread. You say, but there's no kitchen here. 294 00:35:31,000 --> 00:35:36,000 Well, there's at least 100 restaurants around this vicinity. 295 00:35:36,000 --> 00:35:42,000 When's the last time you took another brother or sister and just broke bread with them, got to know them, talking, sharing, laughing, equipment. 296 00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:46,000 You don't have to get into all the deep things of life. Talk about whatever it is you want to. 297 00:35:46,000 --> 00:35:52,000 Hallelujah. Just don't talk about other people. Amen. But but but that's where the oil is. 298 00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:58,000 That's where the oil is. And that's how someone could be restored. And that's how someone could be strengthened. 299 00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:03,000 And that is the key to apostolic revival. 300 00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:08,000 That's the key to keep it burning. You got to look at your circle and say, OK, circle. 301 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:15,000 This circle has been the same for the last five years. It's time to widen the circle. 302 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:20,000 It's time to include others. I don't want to invite that person in my house. 303 00:36:20,000 --> 00:36:27,000 You know, who knows what bad spirits are going to bring in? They're going to make my house smell or whatever. 304 00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:35,000 Did you forget the day when you had bad spirits and someone had to let you into their house or into their world? 305 00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:38,000 But then if we go out there, if we go out to you with that man, they never have money. 306 00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:45,000 You know, we're going to end up paying. 307 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:50,000 Take him to McDonald's. You know what? 308 00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:55,000 We know that it's going to be an investment if we go out with them on a Friday night or whatever. 309 00:36:55,000 --> 00:37:00,000 Why don't we just bless them? Just bless them and tell them beforehand. 310 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:08,000 Just just show up. Order what you want. I just want to spend time with you. 311 00:37:08,000 --> 00:37:13,000 Is this apostolic? It is. 312 00:37:13,000 --> 00:37:18,000 Get to know your brothers. Some of us have been in the same. You don't even know what each other's favorite color is. 313 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:22,000 Let's get to know each other. 314 00:37:22,000 --> 00:37:29,000 The last one, and I'm going to end with this. I know I've gone into like extra innings today, but watch. 315 00:37:29,000 --> 00:37:34,000 It's the oil of powerful altars. 316 00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:41,000 The altar is a central part of our apostolic DNA. 317 00:37:41,000 --> 00:37:46,000 As apostolic, we are altar people. 318 00:37:46,000 --> 00:37:50,000 You say, why is that? I'll tell you why, brothers. Let me help you. 319 00:37:50,000 --> 00:37:56,000 Because we strongly believe in the doctrine of the laying on of hands. 320 00:37:56,000 --> 00:38:01,000 That is one of our pinnacle, foundational apostolic. 321 00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:08,000 I know it doesn't get the same runtime as other doctors we teach and preach, but it's just as important. 322 00:38:08,000 --> 00:38:12,000 We strongly believe in the doctrine of laying on of hands. 323 00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:17,000 Next slide. 324 00:38:17,000 --> 00:38:22,000 Here the writer talks about the various doctrines of baptisms of the laying on of hands. 325 00:38:22,000 --> 00:38:26,000 Right there in the middle of the resurrection of the dead. 326 00:38:26,000 --> 00:38:32,000 Eternal judgment is the doctrine of the laying on of hands. 327 00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:40,000 So why does the apostolic church, Pentecostal churches, and even some non-denominational practice altar? 328 00:38:40,000 --> 00:38:46,000 Because if we believe strongly in the doctrine of the laying on of hands, 329 00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:51,000 then coming to an altar is a matter of practical means. 330 00:38:51,000 --> 00:39:00,000 You know what it does? It puts you in position for the hand that can bless you to lay on you. 331 00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:06,000 There are more people in this room than there are hand layers. 332 00:39:06,000 --> 00:39:11,000 So coming to an altar, an altar call, what is an altar call? 333 00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:15,000 It's practicing our belief in the doctrine of the laying on of hands. 334 00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:19,000 You say, why is that important? Read your Bible. 335 00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:25,000 Because through the laying on of hands, there are certain things that God will transmit to your life. 336 00:39:25,000 --> 00:39:29,000 Spiritual blessing. Healing in your body. 337 00:39:29,000 --> 00:39:35,000 Jesus said, lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. 338 00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:42,000 The infilling of the Holy Ghost. The Apostle Paul and Peter laid hands and people received the Holy Ghost. 339 00:39:42,000 --> 00:39:45,000 The imparting of gifts. 340 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:52,000 Paul said to Timothy, don't forget the gift of God that you got in your life didn't happen because I sent a prayer your way. 341 00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:56,000 No, I laid hands on you. 342 00:39:56,000 --> 00:40:02,000 If we believe in the doctrine of the laying on of hands and we understand its principle, 343 00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:13,000 then we ought to take every opportunity we can to put ourselves in a position to receive that blessing from God. 344 00:40:13,000 --> 00:40:17,000 So why is that important? Because we're apostolic. 345 00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:19,000 And I don't want there to be one moment. 346 00:40:19,000 --> 00:40:26,000 And you can say, well, I don't need any blessings today. 347 00:40:26,000 --> 00:40:33,000 I'm good. If that's the case, then what we also have is an opportunity. 348 00:40:33,000 --> 00:40:42,000 I feel this in my spirit. An opportunity to pray for others. 349 00:40:42,000 --> 00:40:45,000 An opportunity to respond in faith. 350 00:40:45,000 --> 00:40:50,000 When an altar call is made. Let me tell you something. There is nothing that is anointed about this carpet. 351 00:40:50,000 --> 00:40:56,000 Friend, church member, this carpet is not more anointed than the pew that you're sitting in. 352 00:40:56,000 --> 00:41:00,000 The anointing is not in this pink carpet. 353 00:41:00,000 --> 00:41:09,000 The anointing and the power is in your obedience to the call of God. 354 00:41:09,000 --> 00:41:16,000 Jesus only went to heal people who physically could not get to him. 355 00:41:16,000 --> 00:41:19,000 Who were lame or unconscious. 356 00:41:19,000 --> 00:41:23,000 But every person who could. 357 00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:26,000 Had to come to him. 358 00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:33,000 Imagine if the woman with the issue of blood said, well, God can bless me over here. 359 00:41:33,000 --> 00:41:36,000 She never would have got her healing. 360 00:41:36,000 --> 00:41:40,000 She said, I don't care what I've got to do. I'm going to crawl. 361 00:41:40,000 --> 00:41:51,000 I'm going to push my way through the crowds so that I can touch the him of his garment. 362 00:41:51,000 --> 00:41:54,000 And what we need now. 363 00:41:54,000 --> 00:41:58,000 If you'd be so kind to stand with me today. 364 00:41:58,000 --> 00:42:00,000 We need apostolic praise. 365 00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:03,000 We need apostolic preaching. 366 00:42:03,000 --> 00:42:06,000 We need apostolic fellowship. 367 00:42:06,000 --> 00:42:10,000 And we need apostolic alters. 368 00:42:10,000 --> 00:42:13,000 Sometimes I come to an altar. 369 00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:17,000 You know why? Not because I have a need necessarily. 370 00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:20,000 I come to an altar to create an atmosphere. 371 00:42:20,000 --> 00:42:27,000 I come to an altar because for someone else, they need to see somebody else at the altar for them to go. 372 00:42:27,000 --> 00:42:29,000 I come to create an atmosphere. 373 00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:39,000 I come to prepare an atmosphere and a place of faith and worship and prayer that is conducive to others coming and receiving. 374 00:42:39,000 --> 00:42:47,000 Ready to receive them and pray with them and love on them and help hold up their hands and pray. 375 00:42:47,000 --> 00:42:50,000 This is what we call alter working. 376 00:42:50,000 --> 00:42:56,000 And maybe this is something we're going to do in our church in the future is give an alter working session. 377 00:42:56,000 --> 00:42:59,000 How to pray with someone at the alter. 378 00:42:59,000 --> 00:43:04,000 Maybe there are those today who have just simply never been taught how to do so. 379 00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:09,000 And God, I think God's going to help us do that in a greater way this year. 380 00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:13,000 But it creates an atmosphere. 381 00:43:13,000 --> 00:43:15,000 I don't just want to have church. 382 00:43:15,000 --> 00:43:18,000 I want to have apostolic service. 383 00:43:18,000 --> 00:43:21,000 And I want it to be full of praise and glory. 384 00:43:21,000 --> 00:43:22,000 Right there. 385 00:43:22,000 --> 00:43:24,000 Can we just go before God? 386 00:43:24,000 --> 00:43:26,000 I feel something happening here today. 387 00:43:26,000 --> 00:43:29,000 God is dealing with each of us. 388 00:43:29,000 --> 00:43:32,000 God is dealing with each of us. 389 00:43:32,000 --> 00:43:33,000 I told you I had more. 390 00:43:33,000 --> 00:43:34,000 I went way over my time. 391 00:43:34,000 --> 00:43:37,000 But listen, there's other things that we could talk about. 392 00:43:37,000 --> 00:43:39,000 I could preach about God laid on my heart. 393 00:43:39,000 --> 00:43:43,000 But these were the things that God said. 394 00:43:43,000 --> 00:43:47,000 If you want the fire to burn. 395 00:43:47,000 --> 00:43:52,000 So I need God to get a hold of somebody today. 396 00:43:52,000 --> 00:43:57,000 I need God to deal with somebody today. 397 00:43:57,000 --> 00:44:03,000 And say, Lord, take me back to where I first believed, God. 398 00:44:03,000 --> 00:44:05,000 Lord, take me back. 399 00:44:05,000 --> 00:44:08,000 Ushala, my candle. 400 00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:12,000 Lord, take me back. 401 00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:14,000 To an altar, God, take me back, God. 402 00:44:14,000 --> 00:44:21,000 To that place, Lord. 403 00:44:21,000 --> 00:44:23,000 To a place of subrant praise, God. 404 00:44:23,000 --> 00:44:26,000 Ushala, my candle. 405 00:44:26,000 --> 00:44:30,000 Oh, God, take me back, God. 406 00:44:30,000 --> 00:44:33,000 I wonder if there's somebody today that could commit yourself 407 00:44:33,000 --> 00:44:36,000 to these things. 408 00:44:36,000 --> 00:44:39,000 Oh, hallelujah, somebody today that could. 409 00:44:39,000 --> 00:44:41,000 I'm going to praise you, God, like I've never praised you 410 00:44:41,000 --> 00:44:43,000 before. 411 00:44:43,000 --> 00:44:47,000 God, I'm going to lift my hands, Lord, as high as I can. 412 00:44:47,000 --> 00:44:49,000 Hallelujah. 413 00:44:49,000 --> 00:44:54,000 I'm going to shout God like I've never shouted, Lord. 414 00:44:54,000 --> 00:44:57,000 God, I want to get back to the days where I would lose my voice 415 00:44:57,000 --> 00:45:00,000 in church, Lord. 416 00:45:00,000 --> 00:45:04,000 From all the shouting and the singing that I did. 417 00:45:04,000 --> 00:45:08,000 God, I want to get back to a place, Lord, where I let the 418 00:45:08,000 --> 00:45:12,000 Word of God convict my spirit. 419 00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:19,000 I let the Word, Lord, do what it was sent to do in me. 420 00:45:19,000 --> 00:45:22,000 God, when I get back, God. 421 00:45:22,000 --> 00:45:27,000 Lord, I want fellowship to break out in my life, Lord Jesus. 422 00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:32,000 Oh, God, I want to be friendlier, Lord. 423 00:45:32,000 --> 00:45:36,000 God, I want to be, Lord, I want to be more open, God, to those 424 00:45:36,000 --> 00:45:38,000 that you placed around me. 425 00:45:38,000 --> 00:45:43,000 I want to be.