WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.580 And I'm going to invite you, if you can, we're 00:00:01.580 --> 00:00:05.179 going to be reading out of the book of Amos. 00:00:05.860 --> 00:00:09.419 Small, small little book in the Old Testament, 00:00:09.599 --> 00:00:14.660 but God has led me here. Amos chapter 3 in verse 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:20.120 12. Amos chapter 3 in verse 12. Just going to 00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:26.460 read one verse of scripture. Man, there is, there 00:00:26.460 --> 00:00:29.940 is a message here that God has for... for us 00:00:29.940 --> 00:00:35.820 and we're continuing uh a thought that i shared 00:00:35.820 --> 00:00:39.240 a couple weeks ago on taking it back and so we're 00:00:39.240 --> 00:00:42.920 just going to amen add another another phase 00:00:42.920 --> 00:00:46.359 to that amen and and this is what the word of 00:00:46.359 --> 00:00:51.640 the lord says it says thus says the lord as a 00:00:51.640 --> 00:00:56.960 shepherd takes from the mouth of the lion two 00:00:56.960 --> 00:01:03.109 legs or a piece of an ear, so shall the children 00:01:03.109 --> 00:01:09.209 of Israel be taken out. Someone say taken out 00:01:09.209 --> 00:01:14.629 who dwell in Samaria. I'm going to preach today 00:01:14.629 --> 00:01:18.150 for a few moments on this thought from the mouth 00:01:18.150 --> 00:01:21.989 of the lion, from the mouth of the lion. Would 00:01:21.989 --> 00:01:25.670 you be so kind to join me with a word of prayer 00:01:25.670 --> 00:01:28.209 right now? Father, we love you today. We thank 00:01:28.209 --> 00:01:31.239 you. For all the things that you've done thus 00:01:31.239 --> 00:01:35.579 far, God, many blessings and Lord, but we know 00:01:35.579 --> 00:01:37.480 that there are some God right now who are under 00:01:37.480 --> 00:01:39.019 the weather. We pray for them, God, that you 00:01:39.019 --> 00:01:41.560 would restore their health. You bless the church. 00:01:41.700 --> 00:01:45.379 And today, God, we also are anticipating your 00:01:45.379 --> 00:01:48.359 word. And I ask God that you would anoint all 00:01:48.359 --> 00:01:51.620 of our hearing today that we have an ear to hear 00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:54.939 what the spirit is saying to the church. and 00:01:54.939 --> 00:01:57.780 anoint my lips of clay that every word i preach 00:01:57.780 --> 00:02:00.599 god would be yours and not mine we give you all 00:02:00.599 --> 00:02:03.120 the honor and all the glory in jesus name everyone 00:02:03.120 --> 00:02:07.420 say amen you may be seated i don't know i was 00:02:07.420 --> 00:02:09.379 going to do it like a little poll and ask how 00:02:09.379 --> 00:02:11.919 many of you i guess i'm doing it now but if you 00:02:11.919 --> 00:02:12.960 don't want to raise your hand you don't have 00:02:12.960 --> 00:02:14.460 to but how many of you have ever been bitten 00:02:14.460 --> 00:02:18.930 by a dog all right few hands gonna And I might 00:02:18.930 --> 00:02:20.750 have triggered something for some of you who 00:02:20.750 --> 00:02:23.289 have had a traumatic experience. If you've ever 00:02:23.289 --> 00:02:25.969 been bitten by a dog, it is an unforgettable 00:02:25.969 --> 00:02:30.969 pain. And I've only been bitten by a small dog. 00:02:31.150 --> 00:02:34.710 But can I tell you, small dogs have strong bites, 00:02:34.770 --> 00:02:40.789 too. It hurt. It hurt, that little bite. And 00:02:40.789 --> 00:02:43.949 if you've ever experienced the bite of a dog, 00:02:44.090 --> 00:02:46.210 you know, it's just one of those things that 00:02:46.210 --> 00:02:49.020 you just never forget. And I began to look at 00:02:49.020 --> 00:02:53.060 the bite forces of dogs. And the bite force of 00:02:53.060 --> 00:02:59.919 an average dog is about 240 PSI. And PSI is pounds 00:02:59.919 --> 00:03:05.900 per square inch. So the average dog has a bite 00:03:05.900 --> 00:03:11.400 force of about 240 PSI. A German Shepherd bites 00:03:11.400 --> 00:03:20.060 at about 238 PSI. And a Wattrider has one of 00:03:20.060 --> 00:03:23.000 the strongest bites among dogs, even stronger 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:26.120 than a pit bull, in fact. A Wattrider has a, 00:03:26.240 --> 00:03:28.500 in fact, I think pit bulls get a bad rap sometimes, 00:03:28.740 --> 00:03:32.199 you know. A Wattrider has an even fiercer bite 00:03:32.199 --> 00:03:38.879 than that, and it registers up to 128 PSI. And 00:03:38.879 --> 00:03:42.139 that's powerful enough to cause serious injury. 00:03:42.199 --> 00:03:44.340 It could even be fatal. It could puncture flesh. 00:03:44.500 --> 00:03:47.099 And so your arm definitely doesn't want to be 00:03:47.099 --> 00:03:50.240 like that wooden branch right there caught in 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:56.180 the mouth of a Wattweiler. And as lethal as that 00:03:56.180 --> 00:03:59.620 sounds, and it is, it really pales in comparison 00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:06.060 to that of a lion. A lion's bite, by comparison, 00:04:06.830 --> 00:04:13.169 is over 650 psi that is three times stronger 00:04:13.169 --> 00:04:17.569 than your average lion or excuse me average dog 00:04:17.569 --> 00:04:23.250 such a bite is so powerful it's powerful enough 00:04:23.250 --> 00:04:27.730 to easily easily without a lot of work pierce 00:04:27.730 --> 00:04:33.470 flesh crush bone sounds sounds terrible right 00:04:33.470 --> 00:04:39.250 clamp down on its prey So the bite of a lion 00:04:39.250 --> 00:04:44.389 is so much more stronger than that of your average 00:04:44.389 --> 00:04:49.750 dog. And a lion's bite is one of the fiercest 00:04:49.750 --> 00:04:56.589 displays of power in the wild. Once a lion locks 00:04:56.589 --> 00:05:01.410 its jaw, once it gets a hold, once it grips something 00:05:01.410 --> 00:05:06.730 with its mouth, it rarely lets go of it. It has 00:05:06.730 --> 00:05:11.250 like this lockjaw that can penetrate and hold 00:05:11.250 --> 00:05:15.110 on, not letting it go. And when you consider 00:05:15.110 --> 00:05:19.529 that, it makes the imagery of the text that I'm 00:05:19.529 --> 00:05:23.670 reading today all the more dramatic and impossible. 00:05:25.069 --> 00:05:29.970 If a lion's bite is strong enough to crush bone, 00:05:30.410 --> 00:05:35.560 how much stronger must the hand be? to rescue 00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:41.980 its prey from its grip? That's the question that 00:05:41.980 --> 00:05:46.339 Amos answered in his brief but chilling description 00:05:46.339 --> 00:05:51.199 of Israel's fateful condition and God's promise 00:05:51.199 --> 00:05:57.339 to restore them. As he begins to tell in this 00:05:57.339 --> 00:06:02.860 dramatic form of Israel being like a lamb or 00:06:02.860 --> 00:06:06.769 a sheep caught, in the grip of a lion's mouth, 00:06:06.970 --> 00:06:11.870 begins to share, begins to expose the seriousness 00:06:11.870 --> 00:06:16.389 of Israel at that time. Now, it was the promise 00:06:16.389 --> 00:06:20.209 or it was the prophet Amos that began to share 00:06:20.209 --> 00:06:22.689 these things. And the thing about Amos is that 00:06:22.689 --> 00:06:26.129 he actually wasn't a prophet in the classical 00:06:26.129 --> 00:06:29.949 sense in that he wasn't a trained prophet. didn't 00:06:29.949 --> 00:06:32.629 come from a lineage of prophets. In other words, 00:06:32.689 --> 00:06:35.769 he wasn't the son of a prophet. He wasn't a part 00:06:35.769 --> 00:06:39.649 of a school of any prophets. What he was was 00:06:39.649 --> 00:06:43.269 a shepherd, a shepherd whom God had called out 00:06:43.269 --> 00:06:48.129 of the sheepfold to speak boldly to his flock, 00:06:48.230 --> 00:06:51.589 which was the nation of Israel. And so this was 00:06:51.589 --> 00:06:56.370 just an average guy, just an ordinary worker 00:06:56.370 --> 00:07:00.259 in the fields working with sheep. And God called 00:07:00.259 --> 00:07:04.060 him out of there to speak to his people. And 00:07:04.060 --> 00:07:07.620 so it is with that background in mind, the fact 00:07:07.620 --> 00:07:12.439 that this was a man who understood the nature 00:07:12.439 --> 00:07:15.459 of the wild being a shepherd himself, that he 00:07:15.459 --> 00:07:20.220 was able to pin such a warning to God's people. 00:07:20.560 --> 00:07:24.019 And the Bible tells us in this little book that 00:07:24.019 --> 00:07:27.860 he wrote, that he left his Judean village of 00:07:27.860 --> 00:07:31.480 Tekoa, marched all the way northward into Israel. 00:07:31.699 --> 00:07:34.600 And there he began to witness some things that 00:07:34.600 --> 00:07:37.540 really disturbed him and shook him to the core. 00:07:37.800 --> 00:07:42.019 He began to see the prosperity of the people 00:07:42.019 --> 00:07:45.699 of Israel. And all of this prosperity was on 00:07:45.699 --> 00:07:48.279 the surface. But underneath that prosperity, 00:07:48.680 --> 00:07:51.180 the Lord began to show him some things about 00:07:51.180 --> 00:07:55.060 Israel that there was sin and corruption underneath 00:07:55.060 --> 00:07:58.879 all of that outward prosperity. And he began 00:07:58.879 --> 00:08:02.180 to see that they had gone astray and that they 00:08:02.180 --> 00:08:05.220 were living in sin and they were neglecting the 00:08:05.220 --> 00:08:09.019 word of God and living with idolatry and had 00:08:09.019 --> 00:08:13.699 accommodated and tolerated wicked leaders and 00:08:13.699 --> 00:08:16.860 the oppression of the poor. So despite the outward 00:08:16.860 --> 00:08:22.319 sign of health and wealth and prosperity, underneath 00:08:22.319 --> 00:08:26.279 was a nation in decline. Underneath was a people 00:08:26.279 --> 00:08:30.399 who had found themselves in the grip of the lion's 00:08:30.399 --> 00:08:34.879 mouth. He begins to prophesy. He starts to condemn 00:08:34.879 --> 00:08:38.080 the surrounding nations. And then he starts to 00:08:38.080 --> 00:08:41.120 condemn Judah. And then he finally turns to Israel. 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:45.159 And he paints this picture of their enemy. And 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:48.120 he wants Israel to understand the nature of the 00:08:48.120 --> 00:08:51.220 enemy that they're up against. That he is this 00:08:51.220 --> 00:08:55.080 ferocious lion tearing through their lives and 00:08:55.080 --> 00:08:58.740 wanting to leave nothing left behind it. And 00:08:58.740 --> 00:09:02.500 in this warning, He exposes not only Israel's 00:09:02.500 --> 00:09:05.740 adversary, but he also gives us a picture, church, 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:10.419 of our adversary today. He also shows us in that 00:09:10.419 --> 00:09:14.679 picture what we are up against on a daily basis. 00:09:15.240 --> 00:09:17.639 And there are some things that we want to look 00:09:17.639 --> 00:09:20.440 at today, understanding the spiritual battles, 00:09:20.559 --> 00:09:24.000 the spiritual warfare that we are engaged in, 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:27.419 understanding the nature of the enemy. And the 00:09:27.419 --> 00:09:29.919 first thing we see about the enemy is that he 00:09:29.919 --> 00:09:33.840 is like a lion. He is a lion who hunts to tear 00:09:33.840 --> 00:09:39.360 apart. He wants to tear things apart. You know, 00:09:39.360 --> 00:09:42.620 in Scripture, He goes by many names, adversary, 00:09:43.299 --> 00:09:48.779 bells above, the accuser, devil, Satan, the wicked 00:09:48.779 --> 00:09:51.299 one. All throughout Scripture, there are various 00:09:51.299 --> 00:09:56.139 labels that our enemy is given to describe. He's 00:09:56.139 --> 00:10:00.620 also described as a serpent and a dragon even. 00:10:00.960 --> 00:10:05.590 But the Holy Ghost inspired. Peter, in his book, 00:10:05.590 --> 00:10:10.009 to describe our enemy as a lion. And he writes 00:10:10.009 --> 00:10:13.149 this in 1 Peter chapter 5 and verse 8. He says, 00:10:13.169 --> 00:10:17.200 be sober. Be vigilant because your adversary, 00:10:17.419 --> 00:10:22.600 the devil, walks about like a roaring lion seeking 00:10:22.600 --> 00:10:27.740 whom he may devour. And so he lifts the veil. 00:10:27.820 --> 00:10:31.460 He exposes the nature of their enemy. I mentioned 00:10:31.460 --> 00:10:33.600 a couple of weeks ago that it is imperative. 00:10:34.480 --> 00:10:38.120 It is crucial for us, and especially in the time 00:10:38.120 --> 00:10:40.000 and the season that we're living in right now, 00:10:40.019 --> 00:10:43.440 church, that we understand that we are in a spiritual 00:10:43.440 --> 00:10:46.679 battle. Can I get an amen from somebody? We are 00:10:46.679 --> 00:10:50.840 in spiritual warfare. And it is important, and 00:10:50.840 --> 00:10:54.000 it is my job as your pastor and the under -shepherd 00:10:54.000 --> 00:10:56.740 of this church to prepare you, to help you to 00:10:56.740 --> 00:10:59.980 see the nature of the battle and what is at stake. 00:11:00.139 --> 00:11:03.659 We need to understand that the devil is not some 00:11:03.659 --> 00:11:06.480 comic book character, you know, with little horns 00:11:06.480 --> 00:11:09.440 and a pitchfork. We need to understand that the 00:11:09.440 --> 00:11:12.759 enemy is not just some boogeyman, you know, hiding 00:11:12.759 --> 00:11:15.690 in the closet like we see maybe in the... these 00:11:15.690 --> 00:11:19.070 other depictions of horror or scariness. We need 00:11:19.070 --> 00:11:21.789 to understand that he is not just a figment of 00:11:21.789 --> 00:11:24.889 our imagination, but that the enemy is real, 00:11:25.070 --> 00:11:28.950 that Satan is real, and he has very real intentions 00:11:28.950 --> 00:11:32.970 on tearing apart our lives, tearing at the fabric 00:11:32.970 --> 00:11:36.250 of our lives and ripping us away from the promises, 00:11:36.289 --> 00:11:39.129 the blessings, and the inheritance of God. And 00:11:39.129 --> 00:11:41.590 we have to understand this, not so that we can 00:11:41.590 --> 00:11:44.450 be afraid of him, but so that we, like Peter 00:11:44.450 --> 00:11:48.950 writes, can be sober and be vigilant and be cautious 00:11:48.950 --> 00:11:53.009 and walk through this life aware that there is 00:11:53.009 --> 00:11:57.490 an enemy who is seeking whom he may devour. And 00:11:57.490 --> 00:12:00.409 lions, lions, when you really begin to think 00:12:00.409 --> 00:12:03.330 about... how they hunt. They are strategic hunters. 00:12:03.549 --> 00:12:06.129 And I want to just pull out a few things about 00:12:06.129 --> 00:12:09.330 lions because I've seen some parallels with the 00:12:09.330 --> 00:12:12.610 way lions hunt and the way that Satan seeks to 00:12:12.610 --> 00:12:15.570 devour God's people. So take note of the following 00:12:15.570 --> 00:12:18.429 tactics that lions use. There are three that 00:12:18.429 --> 00:12:20.490 I want you to look at very briefly because there's 00:12:20.490 --> 00:12:22.450 a lot I want to cover today. But number one is 00:12:22.450 --> 00:12:26.929 that lions watch and wait. They watch and wait. 00:12:27.230 --> 00:12:31.840 They rarely... down their prey at full speed, 00:12:32.019 --> 00:12:39.059 unlike perhaps a cheetah or another type of predator 00:12:39.059 --> 00:12:42.440 in the wild. They don't chase down their prey. 00:12:42.500 --> 00:12:46.120 Instead, they are patient predators who study 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:50.519 their targets. They watch and they wait and they 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:54.220 study and they analyze and they do, you know 00:12:54.220 --> 00:12:57.889 what lions do? They do their homework. They don't 00:12:57.889 --> 00:13:00.730 just go and run and just chase every rabbit and 00:13:00.730 --> 00:13:04.470 every little animal that moves. They study their 00:13:04.470 --> 00:13:08.009 prey. And they might do it day after day after 00:13:08.009 --> 00:13:11.350 day. They're very patient hunters because they're 00:13:11.350 --> 00:13:13.309 not just after anything. They're after the big 00:13:13.309 --> 00:13:16.370 prize, you know? They're after a big meal. They're 00:13:16.370 --> 00:13:18.129 after something that's going to be worth it. 00:13:18.230 --> 00:13:21.870 Because once they exude all of that energy, they 00:13:21.870 --> 00:13:24.830 got to make sure that they have timed it just 00:13:24.830 --> 00:13:27.370 right. And they don't waste any of their energy. 00:13:27.529 --> 00:13:30.049 And so they study their target. They look at 00:13:30.049 --> 00:13:32.769 their habits and the things they do and the places 00:13:32.769 --> 00:13:36.389 they go and the daily habits of their life. And 00:13:36.389 --> 00:13:38.330 they're just studying them. They're making notes. 00:13:38.429 --> 00:13:40.330 You know, these lions are like making little 00:13:40.330 --> 00:13:43.350 mental notes about what their target is doing. 00:13:44.080 --> 00:13:47.059 That way, they can expose and they can exploit 00:13:47.059 --> 00:13:51.480 them in that moment. And this is exactly how 00:13:51.480 --> 00:13:55.440 Satan seeks to get the upper hand on the people 00:13:55.440 --> 00:13:58.179 of God, is that he's studying us. Can I tell 00:13:58.179 --> 00:14:02.240 you today that Satan has been studying you? Hallelujah. 00:14:02.440 --> 00:14:06.200 He has been analyzing you. In fact, I will go 00:14:06.200 --> 00:14:09.179 as far as to say that Satan's got a file on every 00:14:09.179 --> 00:14:13.139 one of us. He's got a file. I don't know if it's 00:14:13.139 --> 00:14:16.139 like an actual filing cabinet, but he's got a 00:14:16.139 --> 00:14:19.419 case file on every one of us. He's got a report. 00:14:19.620 --> 00:14:21.919 He's been studying. He's been analyzing. He's 00:14:21.919 --> 00:14:26.100 been conducting surveillance. He's been looking 00:14:26.100 --> 00:14:29.139 at our lives. And you know what he's doing? He 00:14:29.139 --> 00:14:33.620 is waiting for an opportunity to strike. And 00:14:33.620 --> 00:14:38.120 usually it is an opportunity where we are vulnerable. 00:14:38.460 --> 00:14:42.580 He looks for the vulnerable. And the same way 00:14:42.580 --> 00:14:46.379 that a lion looks for a vulnerable target, he 00:14:46.379 --> 00:14:50.279 waits to see when we are at our worst. He waits 00:14:50.279 --> 00:14:53.879 to see when we are hurt and upset and frustrated 00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:58.919 or tired or perhaps anxious or fearful. He doesn't 00:14:58.919 --> 00:15:01.240 come when we're at our best. He doesn't come 00:15:01.240 --> 00:15:03.470 necessarily when we're We're on the mountaintop 00:15:03.470 --> 00:15:05.909 when we're riding on cloud nine. He doesn't come 00:15:05.909 --> 00:15:08.750 in those mountaintop moments, but he comes in 00:15:08.750 --> 00:15:11.149 those valley moments. He comes when we're at 00:15:11.149 --> 00:15:13.450 our lowest because he likes to take cheap shots. 00:15:13.549 --> 00:15:16.029 You know what I'm saying? He comes. He doesn't 00:15:16.029 --> 00:15:18.509 want a fair fight. So he waits until you get 00:15:18.509 --> 00:15:21.289 bad news. He waits until you're feeling kind 00:15:21.289 --> 00:15:24.289 of melancholy, kind of low, until you're sort 00:15:24.289 --> 00:15:26.889 of this sort of, you know, treading water spiritually. 00:15:27.269 --> 00:15:29.990 That's when he decides to come. And this was 00:15:29.990 --> 00:15:32.929 the reason why when. And Cain, way back in the 00:15:32.929 --> 00:15:36.309 beginning, was about to, after he had fallen 00:15:36.309 --> 00:15:39.730 into disappointment, the Lord told Cain, he said, 00:15:39.769 --> 00:15:42.649 sin, he said, be careful, Cain. He said, sin 00:15:42.649 --> 00:15:46.690 lies at the door. Other translations say sin 00:15:46.690 --> 00:15:50.129 is crouching at the door. The picture that God 00:15:50.129 --> 00:15:53.690 was painting for Cain was that sin or temptation 00:15:53.690 --> 00:15:57.710 is like a lion that is crouching, hiding underneath 00:15:57.710 --> 00:16:00.990 the brush, and he's waiting for an opportunity. 00:16:01.440 --> 00:16:05.559 He said sin is crouching at the door and his 00:16:05.559 --> 00:16:09.399 desire is for you. But he said you should rule 00:16:09.399 --> 00:16:12.279 over it. I've come to tell somebody today that 00:16:12.279 --> 00:16:14.700 you have to make sure that when you are weak, 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:17.820 you find your strength in him. You got to make 00:16:17.820 --> 00:16:20.720 sure that you don't go too long with that. If 00:16:20.720 --> 00:16:23.000 you've got anger, you better let go of that anger. 00:16:23.120 --> 00:16:25.039 If you've got bitterness, you got to give that 00:16:25.039 --> 00:16:27.480 to God. If you're frustrated, if you're tired, 00:16:27.700 --> 00:16:29.799 if you're weak, if you're anxious, if you're 00:16:29.799 --> 00:16:33.639 hurt. Don't keep going through life in that way 00:16:33.639 --> 00:16:36.080 because eventually the enemy is going to come 00:16:36.080 --> 00:16:38.580 in and he's going to take advantage of that and 00:16:38.580 --> 00:16:41.100 he's going to attack you at your weakest moment. 00:16:42.279 --> 00:16:45.240 And he's very patient. He'll show up on a day 00:16:45.240 --> 00:16:46.779 you didn't think he would show up. That's what 00:16:46.779 --> 00:16:49.080 he's waiting for. And the second thing that lions 00:16:49.080 --> 00:16:51.559 do is that, and this goes hand in hand with the 00:16:51.559 --> 00:16:56.000 first, they target the isolated. They target 00:16:56.000 --> 00:16:59.480 the isolated. In the wild, lions look for those 00:16:59.480 --> 00:17:03.240 sheep or prey who have strayed from the herd, 00:17:03.620 --> 00:17:09.099 who have went off from the herd. And typically, 00:17:09.440 --> 00:17:14.319 typically, it's the young or the weak, the wounded 00:17:14.319 --> 00:17:20.259 or the distracted. And this is what happens if 00:17:20.259 --> 00:17:24.839 a lion will rarely, I mean, unless he's really 00:17:24.839 --> 00:17:27.579 hungry, you know, desperate, he'll rarely attack 00:17:27.579 --> 00:17:32.200 an entire herd. But he goes after that one, the 00:17:32.200 --> 00:17:36.880 slow poke, the one who is trailing, watch this, 00:17:36.980 --> 00:17:40.880 from the pack, the one who is taking their sweet 00:17:40.880 --> 00:17:43.460 time, or the one who is drinking at the watering 00:17:43.460 --> 00:17:46.730 hole while everyone else has moved on. He waits 00:17:46.730 --> 00:17:49.329 for the one that is isolated, the one that is 00:17:49.329 --> 00:17:55.039 disconnected from the body. The one that's disconnected 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:58.579 from the herd. The one that is kind of doing 00:17:58.579 --> 00:18:02.880 its own thing. And just distracted and isolated. 00:18:03.079 --> 00:18:07.779 This is why spiritual isolation is so dangerous. 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:11.279 It's when you are disconnected from the church. 00:18:11.559 --> 00:18:15.359 Amen. From leadership. From your pastor. From 00:18:15.359 --> 00:18:18.619 fellowship. From the word. You may not realize. 00:18:18.660 --> 00:18:20.880 I don't care how spiritual you think you are. 00:18:20.980 --> 00:18:23.859 When you are disconnected from the body. you 00:18:23.859 --> 00:18:27.200 are more susceptible to attack from the enemy. 00:18:27.400 --> 00:18:30.339 Because if he can isolate you, if he can cut 00:18:30.339 --> 00:18:33.519 you off from support, cut you off from encouragement, 00:18:33.839 --> 00:18:36.619 cut you off from accountability, cut you off 00:18:36.619 --> 00:18:39.640 from these things, and he isolates you, then 00:18:39.640 --> 00:18:42.259 when you find yourself in trouble, you won't 00:18:42.259 --> 00:18:45.079 know who to call on. You won't know who to call, 00:18:45.160 --> 00:18:48.019 who to text. You won't know who to ask for help. 00:18:48.240 --> 00:18:51.019 You'll be all by yourself. No one will be able 00:18:51.019 --> 00:18:54.000 to hear your cry. will be able to know when you're 00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:56.619 hurting because you have disconnected yourself 00:18:56.619 --> 00:18:59.440 from people. You've allowed your obsession for 00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:02.400 privacy and secrecy to rob you from the beauty 00:19:02.400 --> 00:19:05.859 of unity and fellowship with the body. Your soul 00:19:05.859 --> 00:19:10.380 is at stake. If you disconnect yourself, you 00:19:10.380 --> 00:19:13.460 become a prime target. So what you've got to 00:19:13.460 --> 00:19:17.599 do as a believer is fight to stay connected to 00:19:17.599 --> 00:19:21.910 the people of God. Fight to stay connected To 00:19:21.910 --> 00:19:25.309 the church of God. Fight to stay connected. To 00:19:25.309 --> 00:19:28.910 the brethren. Lest you find yourself. Somewhere 00:19:28.910 --> 00:19:35.430 on an island. And in the mouth of the lion. So 00:19:35.430 --> 00:19:39.289 what does he do? He waits. And he watches. And 00:19:39.289 --> 00:19:42.849 then he targets the isolated. And then thirdly. 00:19:43.170 --> 00:19:45.809 When he attacks. He don't just go for anything. 00:19:46.670 --> 00:19:51.809 He goes straight for the throat. This is something 00:19:51.809 --> 00:19:55.930 that lions strategically do to bring down their 00:19:55.930 --> 00:20:00.430 prey. They aim for the throat. When lions attack, 00:20:00.609 --> 00:20:03.269 they go straight for the jugular, straight for 00:20:03.269 --> 00:20:06.730 the throat. And what they do is they cut off 00:20:06.730 --> 00:20:12.990 the air supply for an effective kill. They cut 00:20:12.990 --> 00:20:15.849 off the air supply. If they can cut off the air 00:20:15.849 --> 00:20:18.250 supply, you know what they can do? They can silence 00:20:18.250 --> 00:20:23.769 their animal's cry. They can silence the plea 00:20:23.769 --> 00:20:27.890 for help. If they can silence it, they can kill 00:20:27.890 --> 00:20:33.630 it. And they cut off all the vital passageways 00:20:33.630 --> 00:20:37.569 leading with oxygen to the brain. It's an effective 00:20:37.569 --> 00:20:41.400 kill. And no wonder. One of the things that Satan 00:20:41.400 --> 00:20:45.700 does to effectively tear apart someone's life 00:20:45.700 --> 00:20:49.480 physically or emotionally or spiritually is what 00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:51.980 he wants to do. Hear me what I'm saying. He wants 00:20:51.980 --> 00:20:56.940 to silence your voice. If he can, it doesn't 00:20:56.940 --> 00:20:58.279 matter. There could be a lot of things going 00:20:58.279 --> 00:21:01.960 wrong in your life. But if he can just get his 00:21:01.960 --> 00:21:05.799 mouth and grip it and if he can silence your 00:21:05.799 --> 00:21:08.200 voice, what do I mean? If he can shut up your 00:21:08.200 --> 00:21:12.920 praise. My God, if he can shut up your confession, 00:21:13.220 --> 00:21:16.660 if he can silence your voice, if he can silence 00:21:16.660 --> 00:21:19.440 your worship, then he knows that it's only a 00:21:19.440 --> 00:21:22.579 matter of time until he can devour your life. 00:21:22.680 --> 00:21:25.240 So what do you've got to do as a believer? You've 00:21:25.240 --> 00:21:27.980 got to fight to keep opening up your mouth. You've 00:21:27.980 --> 00:21:30.720 got to say, no, hallelujah. You've got to say, 00:21:30.839 --> 00:21:34.619 in all things I will bless the Lord and his praise 00:21:34.619 --> 00:21:39.559 shall continually be in my mouth. Tell somebody 00:21:39.559 --> 00:21:42.619 you got to let God know that he is true. You 00:21:42.619 --> 00:21:45.859 got to continue worshiping and praising God because 00:21:45.859 --> 00:21:48.380 the enemy wants to silence your voice. I wonder 00:21:48.380 --> 00:21:50.720 if there's somebody right here right now that 00:21:50.720 --> 00:21:53.539 could just lift up a praise unto the Lord. I 00:21:53.539 --> 00:21:55.619 wonder if there's somebody today that can just 00:21:55.619 --> 00:21:59.380 magnify his name. Come on, clap your hands. Come 00:21:59.380 --> 00:22:03.779 on and give God some praise today. He wants to 00:22:03.779 --> 00:22:05.559 silence your voice. He wants to shut up your 00:22:05.559 --> 00:22:07.819 witness and your testimony. He wants you to stop 00:22:07.819 --> 00:22:10.440 talking about him. He wants you to stop witnessing 00:22:10.440 --> 00:22:12.740 about him. He wants you to stop praising him. 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:15.799 Because if he can silence your voice, it's only 00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:18.299 a matter of time until he can drag you back into 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:21.720 the lion's den and finish you off. But I've come 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:24.119 to tell you today that even if you have been 00:22:24.119 --> 00:22:30.059 avoided these things, even if you have done your 00:22:30.059 --> 00:22:35.000 best to not fall, pray in isolation and even 00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:37.319 if you've done your best to continue to praise 00:22:37.319 --> 00:22:40.759 him when life tries to silence you, there is 00:22:40.759 --> 00:22:43.359 something we all need to understand today is 00:22:43.359 --> 00:22:46.880 that no one, and I mean no one is immune from 00:22:46.880 --> 00:22:53.539 the lion's bite. Even the most, even the righteous 00:22:53.539 --> 00:22:58.039 get bit. You don't believe me? Watch what happened 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:01.980 to the Apostle Paul on the island of Malta. That 00:23:01.980 --> 00:23:03.680 time it wasn't a lion, it was a snake, but he 00:23:03.680 --> 00:23:08.039 got bit. You can get bit doing the will of God. 00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:11.519 You can get bit doing the right thing. It's not 00:23:11.519 --> 00:23:13.640 always a sign that you're doing wrong. So even 00:23:13.640 --> 00:23:18.759 if you have somehow avoided and deflected these 00:23:18.759 --> 00:23:22.180 things, you can still, no one is immune. Even 00:23:22.180 --> 00:23:25.700 the faithful can have pieces of their life bitten 00:23:25.700 --> 00:23:30.849 off. But just as the lion is about to feast on 00:23:30.849 --> 00:23:33.910 his portion, just as the lion starts to think 00:23:33.910 --> 00:23:37.009 that I finally got my prey where I want it, I 00:23:37.009 --> 00:23:40.710 finally got it in position, I'm ready to finish 00:23:40.710 --> 00:23:43.349 this thing off, and maybe, and as graphic as 00:23:43.349 --> 00:23:46.230 this sounds, just bear with me, but maybe he's 00:23:46.230 --> 00:23:49.539 taking some chunks. Maybe he's taken some things, 00:23:49.700 --> 00:23:53.359 you know, some painful things. Maybe he's bitten 00:23:53.359 --> 00:23:56.000 into something. Maybe he's crushed some bones. 00:23:56.180 --> 00:23:57.940 Maybe you've got some bones that have been crushed 00:23:57.940 --> 00:24:00.900 and some dreams and some hopes and desires and 00:24:00.900 --> 00:24:03.180 things and goals in your life that have kind 00:24:03.180 --> 00:24:05.720 of been crushed or stamped down a little bit 00:24:05.720 --> 00:24:08.319 or at least delayed at the very most. And maybe 00:24:08.319 --> 00:24:10.440 those things have been crushed. And maybe he 00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:12.700 thinks that he's about to finish you off. He 00:24:12.700 --> 00:24:14.900 says, I got sister so -and -so and brother so 00:24:14.900 --> 00:24:17.630 -and -so right where I want him. And I can just 00:24:17.630 --> 00:24:20.529 finish him off right here. And maybe the devil 00:24:20.529 --> 00:24:23.269 thinks that he's about to, you know, the table 00:24:23.269 --> 00:24:25.670 is set. And he's putting his little bib around. 00:24:25.890 --> 00:24:27.849 And he's got his fork and his knife. And he thinks 00:24:27.849 --> 00:24:30.069 he's about ready to just finish you off. And 00:24:30.069 --> 00:24:33.730 just have himself, you know, a fancy feast. And 00:24:33.730 --> 00:24:36.130 just feast on your life. And destroy everything. 00:24:36.349 --> 00:24:38.970 And destroy your home. And destroy your marriage. 00:24:39.170 --> 00:24:42.349 And destroy your family. And your children. And 00:24:42.349 --> 00:24:45.829 the goals and the visions that God has given 00:24:45.829 --> 00:24:49.359 you. Just when he thinks that he's running away 00:24:49.359 --> 00:24:51.579 with it. He's running away with his portion. 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:54.380 Running away with his pride. Running away with 00:24:54.380 --> 00:24:57.140 the thing that he wants most. This is where we 00:24:57.140 --> 00:25:00.500 see the good shepherd. It is the shepherd that 00:25:00.500 --> 00:25:04.519 steps in and fights for what's left in our life. 00:25:04.680 --> 00:25:08.380 Hallelujah. it is the shepherd. The shepherd 00:25:08.380 --> 00:25:11.119 will fight for what's left. Somebody praise God 00:25:11.119 --> 00:25:14.680 today. Somebody say amen. The shepherd will fight. 00:25:14.819 --> 00:25:19.609 Oh yes, Amos. Amos may have reflected on the 00:25:19.609 --> 00:25:23.369 times in his life where he had to defend one 00:25:23.369 --> 00:25:26.910 of his sheep in the pasture. He was a shepherd 00:25:26.910 --> 00:25:30.269 himself. Maybe he remembered those times where 00:25:30.269 --> 00:25:33.730 he had to jump into action and save one of his 00:25:33.730 --> 00:25:36.670 bleeding sheep that was being dragged away by 00:25:36.670 --> 00:25:39.690 a ruthless hungry lion that wanted to do nothing 00:25:39.690 --> 00:25:43.890 more than ravage his little flock. Maybe he recounted 00:25:43.890 --> 00:25:48.609 on a day where he saw Saw the life of his lamb 00:25:48.609 --> 00:25:51.609 hanging in the balance in the mouth of a lion. 00:25:51.750 --> 00:25:54.430 And he had to go over there and just rip from 00:25:54.430 --> 00:25:57.710 that lion's mouth anything that he could to salvage 00:25:57.710 --> 00:26:00.910 the life of that lamb. And take anything that 00:26:00.910 --> 00:26:03.769 he could back from the mouth of the lion. It 00:26:03.769 --> 00:26:07.029 could be that Amos was visualizing this in his 00:26:07.029 --> 00:26:11.450 life of that moment. And it could also be that 00:26:11.450 --> 00:26:14.730 Amos was reflecting on the testimony of King 00:26:14.730 --> 00:26:18.029 David. Young David was getting ready to fight 00:26:18.029 --> 00:26:21.609 Goliath and they had questioned him on his credentials 00:26:21.609 --> 00:26:24.750 to do just that. It was David that stood up before 00:26:24.750 --> 00:26:27.849 King Saul and testified saying these words in 00:26:27.849 --> 00:26:32.170 1 Samuel chapter 17 in verse 34. He said of himself, 00:26:32.309 --> 00:26:35.349 your servant used to keep his father's sheep. 00:26:35.430 --> 00:26:39.250 And when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb 00:26:39.250 --> 00:26:43.670 from the flock, I went out. After it and struck 00:26:43.670 --> 00:26:47.849 it. And delivered the lamb. From its mouth. And 00:26:47.849 --> 00:26:50.849 when it arose against me. I caught it by its 00:26:50.849 --> 00:26:54.910 beard. I struck and I. killed it. Oh, what we 00:26:54.910 --> 00:26:58.049 see here today is more than just a picture of 00:26:58.049 --> 00:27:01.069 what David can do, more than a picture of what 00:27:01.069 --> 00:27:04.069 Amos can do. My friend and my brother and dear 00:27:04.069 --> 00:27:06.990 friend today, I come to tell you about what God 00:27:06.990 --> 00:27:09.930 can do because our Bible says, anybody going 00:27:09.930 --> 00:27:12.910 to preach with me here today? My Bible says that 00:27:12.910 --> 00:27:16.529 Jesus is the good shepherd. If you know him to 00:27:16.529 --> 00:27:18.650 be the good shepherd, why don't you give him 00:27:18.650 --> 00:27:21.750 some glory and some praise right now? Come on. 00:27:21.880 --> 00:27:24.819 I said give God some glory and some praise. If 00:27:24.819 --> 00:27:27.440 you believe that he's the good shepherd. I come 00:27:27.440 --> 00:27:29.579 to tell you today. That the good shepherd. shepherd 00:27:29.579 --> 00:27:33.460 is ready to come and deliver us out of the mouth 00:27:33.460 --> 00:27:36.799 of the enemy he wants to reclaim what belongs 00:27:36.799 --> 00:27:41.519 to him when we see David snatching the lamb from 00:27:41.519 --> 00:27:46.720 the lion's mouth this is a foreshadowing of Jesus 00:27:46.720 --> 00:27:50.859 Christ two thousand years ago he came from his 00:27:50.859 --> 00:27:54.019 royalty in heaven and he stepped down into the 00:27:54.019 --> 00:27:57.200 mess of our world and he saw each and every one 00:27:57.200 --> 00:28:00.670 of us in the mouth of sin in the mouth of hell 00:28:00.670 --> 00:28:03.470 in the mouth I wish I had a witness in the mouth 00:28:03.470 --> 00:28:07.309 of the enemy but God said no anybody grateful 00:28:07.309 --> 00:28:11.190 that God stepped in and he snatched you out of 00:28:11.190 --> 00:28:14.049 the mouth I wish somebody would give God some 00:28:14.049 --> 00:28:19.519 glory in this house today I'm preaching to somebody. 00:28:19.819 --> 00:28:22.380 He snatched you out of depression. He snatched 00:28:22.380 --> 00:28:24.980 you out of drug addiction. He snatched you out 00:28:24.980 --> 00:28:27.559 of alcoholism. He snatched you out of pride, 00:28:27.900 --> 00:28:30.680 out of anger, out of hurt, out of despondency. 00:28:30.980 --> 00:28:35.259 I'm so glad that God didn't leave me in the mouth 00:28:35.259 --> 00:28:41.500 of the lion. He could have left me there, but 00:28:41.500 --> 00:28:43.380 he didn't leave me out of the mouth of the lion. 00:28:43.940 --> 00:28:46.900 He came for me. Someone say, he came for me. 00:28:47.690 --> 00:28:51.029 He came for me. This is what he came to do. And 00:28:51.029 --> 00:28:54.589 he came when Satan had a grip on you. He came 00:28:54.589 --> 00:28:59.549 to rescue you from the mouth of the lion because 00:28:59.549 --> 00:29:02.930 his hand is more powerful than the grip of the 00:29:02.930 --> 00:29:08.490 lion's mouth. Now, I can understand. As I get 00:29:08.490 --> 00:29:09.910 ready to close, just give me a few more moments. 00:29:09.930 --> 00:29:14.289 I can understand how and why God would come and 00:29:14.289 --> 00:29:18.519 rescue. or why a shepherd, I could say, would 00:29:18.519 --> 00:29:22.839 rescue an entire sheep. I can understand if a 00:29:22.839 --> 00:29:26.440 sheep is in the mouth of its predator and a good 00:29:26.440 --> 00:29:29.380 shepherd goes and rescues and saves the life 00:29:29.380 --> 00:29:32.140 of that sheep. That makes total sense to me why 00:29:32.140 --> 00:29:34.660 a shepherd would do that. But what I am struggling, 00:29:34.920 --> 00:29:37.240 help me, some of you who are very biblical, help 00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:40.339 me understand this. Help me understand why though 00:29:40.339 --> 00:29:44.259 would God, the same God, do that for nothing 00:29:44.259 --> 00:29:49.970 but a leg and an ear. I can understand why God 00:29:49.970 --> 00:29:55.750 would go and redeem an entire lamb. But what 00:29:55.750 --> 00:29:58.609 is it about God that is willing to go? What is 00:29:58.609 --> 00:30:02.970 it about this good shepherd that sees value in 00:30:02.970 --> 00:30:06.650 something that most people would look at and 00:30:06.650 --> 00:30:13.869 say, well, just cut your losses. Let it go. But 00:30:13.869 --> 00:30:17.430 the good shepherd goes way beyond. Can I just 00:30:17.430 --> 00:30:19.930 be honest? What you and I probably would do in 00:30:19.930 --> 00:30:24.190 that situation. If somebody, even if you, I mean, 00:30:24.210 --> 00:30:25.930 as much as you've got some dog lovers in here, 00:30:25.990 --> 00:30:27.569 as much as you love your dog, man, if a lion 00:30:27.569 --> 00:30:29.089 took off with his ear, I'd be like, man, you 00:30:29.089 --> 00:30:30.869 know what? Let's have a moment of silence for 00:30:30.869 --> 00:30:36.650 its ear, you know? I mean, at least you like 00:30:36.650 --> 00:30:41.109 have the rest of him there, right? But what kind 00:30:41.109 --> 00:30:46.900 of love, what kind of, whew, what? What kind 00:30:46.900 --> 00:30:52.200 of person, what kind of character would possess 00:30:52.200 --> 00:30:55.920 someone to say, you know what? I'm not willing 00:30:55.920 --> 00:31:01.119 that anything should be lost. Oh, my God. I'm 00:31:01.119 --> 00:31:06.099 not willing. And this is the good shepherd. I've 00:31:06.099 --> 00:31:08.119 come to recur with somebody. Is that all right? 00:31:08.180 --> 00:31:11.980 Someone say, go ahead. That even when the damage 00:31:11.980 --> 00:31:15.680 has already been done. And it seems like, well, 00:31:15.819 --> 00:31:18.559 why don't we just cut our losses and just move 00:31:18.559 --> 00:31:21.559 on? We should just be happy with what we have. 00:31:21.720 --> 00:31:25.980 Can I tell you that we serve a God that is not 00:31:25.980 --> 00:31:29.799 willing that anybody should perish? We serve 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:33.740 a God that is not willing for half of your life 00:31:33.740 --> 00:31:38.660 and 30 or 60 or 70. God is a God who will fight 00:31:38.660 --> 00:31:44.690 for everything that is left. You know what he 00:31:44.690 --> 00:31:50.329 fights for? The missing pieces. Oh, my God. He 00:31:50.329 --> 00:31:52.170 fights for the missing pieces. He fights for 00:31:52.170 --> 00:31:53.910 what's left of your dreams, what's left of your 00:31:53.910 --> 00:31:56.430 desire, your heart, your dignity, your family, 00:31:56.509 --> 00:32:01.250 your business, your life. He fights for what's 00:32:01.250 --> 00:32:05.970 left. Someone say, what's left? I say, whatever's 00:32:05.970 --> 00:32:09.569 left, God will fight for it. God wants it. God's 00:32:09.569 --> 00:32:15.079 going after it. God's not satisfied. He wants 00:32:15.079 --> 00:32:17.220 to see the whole picture come back together again. 00:32:18.460 --> 00:32:21.039 He wants to see everything come back. Can I tell 00:32:21.039 --> 00:32:25.960 you that with God, with God, it's never too far 00:32:25.960 --> 00:32:30.940 gone. Because he can work miracles. In fact, 00:32:31.000 --> 00:32:32.960 let me just tell you like this. He does his best 00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:37.140 work with what's left. Oh, my God. Hallelujah. 00:32:38.160 --> 00:32:41.599 He does his best work with what's left. You don't 00:32:41.599 --> 00:32:44.519 believe me? You can ask the widow that Elijah 00:32:44.519 --> 00:32:46.559 ministered to when the creditors were knocking 00:32:46.559 --> 00:32:48.480 at her door, threatening to take her children 00:32:48.480 --> 00:32:51.480 away from her to make them slaves. He asked her, 00:32:51.559 --> 00:32:53.740 he said, sister, what do you got in the house? 00:32:54.880 --> 00:32:58.160 Hey, that's my version right there. Hermana, 00:32:58.220 --> 00:33:01.339 what do you got in the house? He said, all I 00:33:01.339 --> 00:33:03.460 got is this little jar of oil. He said, that's 00:33:03.460 --> 00:33:08.089 all I need. Little jar of oil? that was the leftovers 00:33:08.089 --> 00:33:12.049 it was the whatever was left in the pantry it 00:33:12.049 --> 00:33:13.849 was there just little jar he said i want you 00:33:13.849 --> 00:33:15.769 to take that and with that jar of oil she kept 00:33:15.769 --> 00:33:18.150 pouring out the oil pouring out the oil filled 00:33:18.150 --> 00:33:19.970 up as many jars as she could until she could 00:33:19.970 --> 00:33:22.450 pay off all of her creditor god does miracles 00:33:22.450 --> 00:33:27.619 with what's left Oh, my Lord. How about the other 00:33:27.619 --> 00:33:30.279 widow? The widow of Zarephath. When Elijah came 00:33:30.279 --> 00:33:33.160 to her and she was about to eat her last meal 00:33:33.160 --> 00:33:35.799 with her family and only had a little bit of 00:33:35.799 --> 00:33:39.299 flour. And he said, well, what do you have? He 00:33:39.299 --> 00:33:42.920 said, make me something to eat. Make me something 00:33:42.920 --> 00:33:44.180 to eat. She could have looked at him and said, 00:33:44.240 --> 00:33:45.779 get out of here, man. Go to Jack in the Box. 00:33:45.859 --> 00:33:48.680 This is my food. You know, this is the last thing. 00:33:48.720 --> 00:33:52.380 We're about to eat this and die. He said, no. 00:33:53.140 --> 00:33:55.079 Give what you see. The struggle that some of 00:33:55.079 --> 00:33:57.880 us are having is we won't give him what's left. 00:33:59.220 --> 00:34:02.740 God doesn't want this. If God is asking for it, 00:34:02.819 --> 00:34:04.660 even if it's just a little bit of faith. Oh, 00:34:04.660 --> 00:34:06.680 I'm going to help somebody right now. Even if 00:34:06.680 --> 00:34:09.039 it's just a little bit of faith. I don't have 00:34:09.039 --> 00:34:11.920 a lot. You all remember that song? Faith, faith, 00:34:11.960 --> 00:34:13.739 faith, just a little. This is kind of old. This 00:34:13.739 --> 00:34:16.059 is old. Just bear with me. Just a little bit 00:34:16.059 --> 00:34:18.510 of faith. Faith, faith, faith, just a little 00:34:18.510 --> 00:34:21.969 bit of faith. You don't need a whole lot. Just 00:34:21.969 --> 00:34:25.250 use what you've got. Faith, faith, faith, just 00:34:25.250 --> 00:34:27.309 you can go and Google it later. Hallelujah. A 00:34:27.309 --> 00:34:29.750 little bit of faith. You know, that's all that 00:34:29.750 --> 00:34:34.190 God. Didn't Jesus say a mustard seed? That's 00:34:34.190 --> 00:34:40.010 it. And you can move mountains. I don't want 00:34:40.010 --> 00:34:42.949 to sit here and talk about what you've lost. 00:34:43.070 --> 00:34:44.989 I want to talk about what's left, what's worth 00:34:44.989 --> 00:34:48.519 redeeming in your life. Say, oh, it's just my 00:34:48.519 --> 00:34:50.820 little prayer time. No, God wants to redeem it. 00:34:52.139 --> 00:34:55.460 God wants to redeem it. Because what's left has 00:34:55.460 --> 00:34:59.159 value. Oh, my God, I feel something right now 00:34:59.159 --> 00:35:02.000 in the Holy Ghost. God wants to take whatever 00:35:02.000 --> 00:35:04.699 it was, whatever it is, and say, look, if you 00:35:04.699 --> 00:35:07.820 just give it to me, I will multiply it. I will 00:35:07.820 --> 00:35:10.340 do something with it. I will bless it. And so 00:35:10.340 --> 00:35:12.400 what I've come to tell somebody today is take 00:35:12.400 --> 00:35:18.090 back what the enemy bit off. Amos said, this 00:35:18.090 --> 00:35:20.789 lion ran off. He thinks he's getting away. You 00:35:20.789 --> 00:35:21.909 know, the devil thinks he's going to get away 00:35:21.909 --> 00:35:26.429 with some of this stuff. Oh, man, what a lunatic. 00:35:26.650 --> 00:35:28.610 He thinks he's going to get away with the way. 00:35:28.690 --> 00:35:30.190 You know the devil thinks he's going to get away 00:35:30.190 --> 00:35:33.309 with the things he's done to your family? He 00:35:33.309 --> 00:35:35.030 really thinks he's going to get away with it. 00:35:35.369 --> 00:35:37.630 He thinks he's just going to run off with a piece 00:35:37.630 --> 00:35:41.650 of your family in his mouth. He thinks he's going 00:35:41.650 --> 00:35:44.010 to run off with a piece of your life and a piece 00:35:44.010 --> 00:35:45.869 of your children. He said, no, you know, even 00:35:45.869 --> 00:35:47.909 if just one of them, you know, three out of four 00:35:47.909 --> 00:35:49.829 is not too bad. No, no, no. We're not playing 00:35:49.829 --> 00:35:53.190 like that. It's everything or it's nothing. Oh, 00:35:53.309 --> 00:35:55.909 my God. I don't know about you. Hallelujah. I 00:35:55.909 --> 00:35:58.150 don't want to see partial victory. I don't want 00:35:58.150 --> 00:36:00.769 to see most of my family saved. I want to see 00:36:00.769 --> 00:36:05.829 all of my family saved. I wish I had a witness 00:36:05.829 --> 00:36:11.940 today. And so God, what does he want to restore? 00:36:12.019 --> 00:36:17.659 He wants to redeem what was left. What was taken. 00:36:17.800 --> 00:36:19.440 And you know the two things. I'm going to wrap 00:36:19.440 --> 00:36:21.719 it up. The two things that he went after. The 00:36:21.719 --> 00:36:24.420 Lord showed me something. As the shepherd goes. 00:36:24.739 --> 00:36:28.239 And he tackles down this lion. And with greater 00:36:28.239 --> 00:36:33.000 hands of strength. He begins to pull and pry. 00:36:33.179 --> 00:36:36.400 This lion's mouth open. And you know the two 00:36:36.400 --> 00:36:38.800 things. The things he went for. He said number 00:36:38.800 --> 00:36:42.960 one. He went for a piece of an ear. Piece of 00:36:42.960 --> 00:36:45.800 an ear. Why would he go for a piece of an ear? 00:36:46.380 --> 00:36:49.280 Well, I think God is interested in going after 00:36:49.280 --> 00:36:53.579 someone's ear today. Because the ear represents 00:36:53.579 --> 00:36:57.739 spiritual hearing. You see, if there's one thing 00:36:57.739 --> 00:36:59.960 the devil wants to take from you, it's your ability 00:36:59.960 --> 00:37:02.599 to hear clearly the voice of God in your life. 00:37:04.780 --> 00:37:08.320 And notice it said one ear, not two. You know 00:37:08.320 --> 00:37:10.559 the devil's satisfied if you only hear God half 00:37:10.559 --> 00:37:14.480 the time? That's good. You ain't going to get 00:37:14.480 --> 00:37:16.199 that on Amazon, man. Let's just thank the Lord. 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:21.780 He's happy if you only are half obedient. Because 00:37:21.780 --> 00:37:23.699 what you don't realize sometimes is that half 00:37:23.699 --> 00:37:27.340 obedience is still disobedient. If I could just 00:37:27.340 --> 00:37:30.019 get them to miss some Sundays for no reason at 00:37:30.019 --> 00:37:33.539 all. If I could just, hallelujah. If I could 00:37:33.539 --> 00:37:38.039 just get them to tithe 5%. Oh, hallelujah. If 00:37:38.039 --> 00:37:40.440 I could just get them to get a half, you know, 00:37:40.440 --> 00:37:44.099 hit the devil, you know. you'll negotiate with 00:37:44.099 --> 00:37:47.460 you a little bit you're like well if they only 00:37:47.460 --> 00:37:50.860 hear it half the time but The shepherd goes all 00:37:50.860 --> 00:37:53.340 the way. And he says, no, I need to reattach 00:37:53.340 --> 00:37:56.440 that ear back. I need to get that ear. Oh, do 00:37:56.440 --> 00:37:58.699 you remember the story of when Peter took his 00:37:58.699 --> 00:38:01.119 sword out and he cut that dude's ear off? Hallelujah. 00:38:01.260 --> 00:38:04.119 Malchus, the priest. And this guy was like, what 00:38:04.119 --> 00:38:06.619 in the world? He's bleeding. He's got this ear. 00:38:06.820 --> 00:38:08.719 And Peter thinks he's doing the will of God, 00:38:08.780 --> 00:38:10.619 right? But Jesus steps in. You know what he does? 00:38:10.699 --> 00:38:13.860 He picks up the ear. Hallelujah. Oh, I know we 00:38:13.860 --> 00:38:15.900 think, oh, man, that poor ear. Just let it go. 00:38:15.980 --> 00:38:17.559 You know, tape the thing up, you know, and just 00:38:17.559 --> 00:38:21.409 move on. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. But Jesus, he 00:38:21.409 --> 00:38:24.550 goes and he gets the ear and he reattaches it 00:38:24.550 --> 00:38:27.449 because God's not willing for you to hear only 00:38:27.449 --> 00:38:30.070 half the time. God's not willing for you. Oh, 00:38:30.070 --> 00:38:33.329 my Lord. God wants to attach so that you can 00:38:33.329 --> 00:38:36.889 have complete hearing of his voice and his word. 00:38:36.949 --> 00:38:40.150 He said, my sheep know my voice and I know them 00:38:40.150 --> 00:38:43.150 and they will follow me. Would you stand to your 00:38:43.150 --> 00:38:45.530 feet up this hour? Hallelujah. And the other 00:38:45.530 --> 00:38:47.869 thing that he went after was the leg. Someone 00:38:47.869 --> 00:38:50.809 say the leg. legs he said go give me he said 00:38:50.809 --> 00:38:53.329 give me those two legs he said give me the two 00:38:53.329 --> 00:38:55.789 legs and there were two legs i don't know if 00:38:55.789 --> 00:38:57.989 they were the hind legs or the front legs but 00:38:57.989 --> 00:39:00.469 but the shepherd said i need to get those legs 00:39:00.469 --> 00:39:04.210 because the legs represent your spiritual walk 00:39:04.210 --> 00:39:07.889 oh my god oh you know the devil would be satisfied 00:39:07.889 --> 00:39:11.090 if you would just walk crooked spiritually the 00:39:11.090 --> 00:39:14.010 devil my god the devil see let me tell you something 00:39:14.010 --> 00:39:16.289 there are some of you here today and i say this 00:39:16.289 --> 00:39:18.539 with all due respect The devil knows he might 00:39:18.539 --> 00:39:20.960 never be able to get you to backslide. He knows 00:39:20.960 --> 00:39:23.079 that he might never get you to be able to denounce 00:39:23.079 --> 00:39:25.739 God and become an atheist. But if he can simply 00:39:25.739 --> 00:39:28.980 cripple you from walking into your destiny, if 00:39:28.980 --> 00:39:31.679 he can simply, my God, handy, if he can just 00:39:31.679 --> 00:39:35.420 take your legs out and make you a wooden stone. 00:39:35.739 --> 00:39:38.539 you know in the church and and if he could just 00:39:38.539 --> 00:39:41.579 take away your spiritual obedience and mobility 00:39:41.579 --> 00:39:45.099 in god and to prevent you from walking out the 00:39:45.099 --> 00:39:48.239 word of god and walking out the the purpose of 00:39:48.239 --> 00:39:50.739 god if he can cut your legs off from underneath 00:39:50.739 --> 00:39:54.199 you then he can sideline you from being fully 00:39:54.199 --> 00:39:57.960 engaged in the work of ministry and get you doing 00:39:57.960 --> 00:40:00.699 something else but i hear the voice of the lord 00:40:00.699 --> 00:40:04.219 saying i came to restore your hearing and i came 00:40:04.219 --> 00:40:08.250 to restore your walk oh hallelujah because the 00:40:08.250 --> 00:40:11.550 steps of a righteous man are ordered of the lord 00:40:11.550 --> 00:40:14.650 i come to tell somebody right now god wants to 00:40:14.650 --> 00:40:17.530 restore your walk so that you can walk again 00:40:17.530 --> 00:40:23.409 in faith oh we walk by faith and not by sight 00:40:23.409 --> 00:40:28.409 somebody give god some glory today come on somebody 00:40:28.409 --> 00:40:33.309 praise him today i feel something in my spirit 00:40:33.309 --> 00:40:37.000 ah You say, yeah, pastor, but the walk is hard 00:40:37.000 --> 00:40:39.500 sometimes. Nobody said it was going to be easy, 00:40:39.639 --> 00:40:42.300 but you got to be like that sheep in Psalm 23. 00:40:42.780 --> 00:40:46.300 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the 00:40:46.300 --> 00:40:50.840 shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you 00:40:50.840 --> 00:40:55.480 are with me. Hallelujah. Your rod and your staff, 00:40:55.500 --> 00:41:01.780 they comfort me. I can get through a lot of things 00:41:01.780 --> 00:41:06.519 in this life. in high water all hell can break 00:41:06.519 --> 00:41:10.300 loose but as long as i keep walking as long as 00:41:10.300 --> 00:41:17.570 i've got my legs get through it i will see the 00:41:17.570 --> 00:41:20.469 other side somebody with the whole i dare somebody 00:41:20.469 --> 00:41:23.170 to pray right now i dare somebody to close your 00:41:23.170 --> 00:41:26.030 eye i dare somebody to lift your voice i dare 00:41:26.030 --> 00:41:29.010 somebody to extend those hands god is working 00:41:29.010 --> 00:41:41.889 right now in the holy ghost Hallelujah. Hallelujah. 00:41:42.650 --> 00:41:46.329 Hallelujah. It might be there's only one person 00:41:46.329 --> 00:41:49.210 in this whole room. And you know that God loves 00:41:49.210 --> 00:41:53.110 you enough. God loves you enough. You say, would 00:41:53.110 --> 00:41:56.170 God dedicate this service for me? You better 00:41:56.170 --> 00:41:59.829 believe he would. Would God dedicate that preaching 00:41:59.829 --> 00:42:03.989 to me? You better believe he would. Because God 00:42:03.989 --> 00:42:09.210 is not willing that anybody be left behind. God 00:42:09.210 --> 00:42:12.159 is not willing. I don't know if there's somebody 00:42:12.159 --> 00:42:14.719 right this altar is open I don't know if there's 00:42:14.719 --> 00:42:17.880 somebody that just needs to get into the arms 00:42:17.880 --> 00:42:21.019 of the shepherd right now let the shepherd pick 00:42:21.019 --> 00:42:24.599 you up let the shepherd carry you on his shoulder 00:42:24.599 --> 00:42:28.719 let the shepherd raise you up let the shepherd 00:42:28.719 --> 00:42:32.019 heal you let the shepherd restore you let the 00:42:32.019 --> 00:42:36.440 shepherd let the shepherd redeem you let the 00:42:36.440 --> 00:42:39.699 shepherd do a miracle let the shepherd heal your 00:42:39.699 --> 00:42:41.900 heart heart. Let the shepherd heal your mind. 00:42:42.079 --> 00:42:45.300 Let the shepherd heal your spirit. Let the shepherd 00:42:45.300 --> 00:42:48.960 restore your relationship with God. Let the shepherd 00:42:48.960 --> 00:42:52.000 renew your anointing. Let the shepherd renew 00:42:52.000 --> 00:42:58.420 your spirit. Come on. Come on. God's waiting 00:42:58.420 --> 00:43:00.960 on somebody right now with the Holy Ghost. He's 00:43:00.960 --> 00:43:02.739 waiting on somebody right now with the Holy Ghost. 00:43:04.619 --> 00:43:07.679 You want to be upon this altar claiming that 00:43:07.679 --> 00:43:11.300 lost ear, claiming those legs, claiming whatever 00:43:11.300 --> 00:43:14.219 the devil has tried to bite off of your life 00:43:14.219 --> 00:43:16.460 and say, I want it back.