WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.620 Pastor Brian preached a message on the blessings 00:00:03.620 --> 00:00:07.580 of the priesthood And I left here that Sunday 00:00:07.580 --> 00:00:10.199 and went home and for the next few days The Lord 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:12.839 just started to impress upon my mind this message 00:00:12.839 --> 00:00:15.679 which was inspired by that word that was preached 00:00:15.679 --> 00:00:18.940 two weeks ago It's another part. It's kind of 00:00:18.940 --> 00:00:21.699 like another that goes with that because he was 00:00:21.699 --> 00:00:23.859 talking about blessings and today I'm going to 00:00:23.859 --> 00:00:27.420 be talking about promise and the blessings that 00:00:27.420 --> 00:00:31.589 come with the promise Genesis chapter 21 so thank 00:00:31.589 --> 00:00:35.469 you pastor Brian for preaching that message Genesis 00:00:35.469 --> 00:00:38.289 chapter 21 verses 1 through 2 and the Lord visited 00:00:38.289 --> 00:00:41.950 Sarah as he had said and the Lord did for Sarah 00:00:41.950 --> 00:00:45.829 as he had spoken for Sarah conceived and bore 00:00:45.829 --> 00:00:50.630 Abraham a son in his old age at the set time 00:00:50.630 --> 00:00:55.770 of which God Spoken had spoken to him My title 00:00:55.770 --> 00:01:00.030 today is going to be at the set time 2nd Corinthians 00:01:00.030 --> 00:01:03.950 chapter 1 verse verse 20 says for all the promises 00:01:03.950 --> 00:01:09.609 of God in him are ye and In him amen to the glory 00:01:09.609 --> 00:01:14.469 of God through us God keeps his promises and 00:01:14.469 --> 00:01:16.290 I think there's some people in this place today. 00:01:16.450 --> 00:01:19.810 God has given you a promise maybe as a church 00:01:20.750 --> 00:01:23.590 But as individuals also, collectively as a church, 00:01:23.829 --> 00:01:25.670 corporately as a church, He's given us a promise. 00:01:26.150 --> 00:01:28.129 But I think every single person in this room 00:01:28.129 --> 00:01:30.549 today, now I think I know that the Word of God 00:01:30.549 --> 00:01:33.549 has given every single one of us a promise. It 00:01:33.549 --> 00:01:36.989 may not be, you may not have a specific promise 00:01:36.989 --> 00:01:39.290 that you say, well, God told me personally this 00:01:39.290 --> 00:01:41.370 is going to happen. But I'm going to show you 00:01:41.370 --> 00:01:43.290 in a little while that God has given a promise 00:01:43.290 --> 00:01:46.030 to every single person in this place. And He 00:01:46.030 --> 00:01:48.790 will fulfill that promise if we trust in the 00:01:48.790 --> 00:01:51.829 Lord. For a little while. I'm going to take you 00:01:51.829 --> 00:01:53.650 through a little bit of a story with Abraham 00:01:53.650 --> 00:01:56.989 and Sarah Many of you know the story very well 00:01:56.989 --> 00:02:00.129 and as I mentioned that the Tyler today is at 00:02:00.129 --> 00:02:03.810 the set time Just pray and ask God to touch your 00:02:03.810 --> 00:02:06.310 mind today that you would receive From his word 00:02:06.310 --> 00:02:09.210 today receive from this message in the name of 00:02:09.210 --> 00:02:56.620 Jesus You may be seated today. I give honor to 00:02:56.620 --> 00:03:00.219 Pastor and Sister Linder and for their leadership 00:03:00.219 --> 00:03:03.180 and for trusting many of us who stand behind 00:03:03.180 --> 00:03:08.340 this pulpit to bring the word of God. Everyone 00:03:08.340 --> 00:03:13.259 wants blessings as we should. God does not withhold 00:03:13.259 --> 00:03:16.819 blessings from us, whether we're saint or sinner. 00:03:16.900 --> 00:03:21.659 God blesses because of his love for all. If we 00:03:21.659 --> 00:03:24.000 took the time to take inventory in our own lives, 00:03:24.060 --> 00:03:27.840 we can see innumerable evidences of God's blessings 00:03:27.840 --> 00:03:32.319 in our lives. But we have forgotten most of them. 00:03:33.080 --> 00:03:35.500 And we can miss much of what He's doing even 00:03:35.500 --> 00:03:40.080 right now. They're blessings in our lives. The 00:03:40.080 --> 00:03:41.879 very fact that He woke you up this morning is 00:03:41.879 --> 00:03:44.500 a blessing. The very fact that He brought you 00:03:44.500 --> 00:03:46.500 here today and brought you into this service 00:03:46.500 --> 00:03:50.080 is a blessing. You were able to get dressed and 00:03:50.080 --> 00:03:52.300 come here and and and you can hear and you can 00:03:52.300 --> 00:03:55.060 that's a blessing from the Lord We take those 00:03:55.060 --> 00:03:57.259 things for granted. It's a blessing from the 00:03:57.259 --> 00:03:59.979 Lord If you have heat in your home and AC in 00:03:59.979 --> 00:04:03.120 your house, that's a blessing from the Lord God 00:04:03.120 --> 00:04:05.419 is good. If you have food on your table. That's 00:04:05.419 --> 00:04:08.259 a blessing from the Lord That's a blessing from 00:04:08.259 --> 00:04:11.319 the Lord. That's a blessing from the Lord. We 00:04:11.319 --> 00:04:13.439 can't we have to be careful not to take it for 00:04:13.439 --> 00:04:18.300 granted We have all had trouble We will continue 00:04:18.300 --> 00:04:21.279 as long as we are breathing even though we are 00:04:21.279 --> 00:04:25.220 blessed Which we have trouble in two of the most 00:04:25.220 --> 00:04:27.079 depressing verses that you will ever read in 00:04:27.079 --> 00:04:30.120 the Bible. Yes, they're very depressing Job chapter 00:04:30.120 --> 00:04:32.759 4 verses 1 through 2 says man who was born of 00:04:32.759 --> 00:04:36.839 woman is few of days and full of trouble He comes 00:04:36.839 --> 00:04:40.300 like he comes out like a flower and withers he 00:04:40.300 --> 00:04:44.100 flees like a shadow and continues not Turn to 00:04:44.100 --> 00:04:48.889 your neighbor and say you're a flower Don't tell 00:04:48.889 --> 00:04:50.230 them that they're gonna wither though. Just tell 00:04:50.230 --> 00:04:55.470 them that you're a flower When God inspired the 00:04:55.470 --> 00:04:58.269 writers to pen the 66 books that are in our Bible 00:04:58.269 --> 00:05:02.310 He didn't hide the good the bad or the ugly You've 00:05:02.310 --> 00:05:04.730 got to thank God for that transparency because 00:05:04.730 --> 00:05:07.889 we have those types of experiences good bad and 00:05:07.889 --> 00:05:10.970 ugly But at the end of joe's life, even though 00:05:10.970 --> 00:05:13.189 those two verses were a bit depressing at the 00:05:13.189 --> 00:05:16.589 end of joe's life In joe chapter 42 verse 10 00:05:16.589 --> 00:05:19.430 and the lord restored the fortunes of joe When 00:05:19.430 --> 00:05:21.889 he had prayed for his friends and the lord gave 00:05:21.889 --> 00:05:26.709 joe twice as much as he had before Turn to your 00:05:26.709 --> 00:05:28.230 neighbor and said you're gonna be even you're 00:05:28.230 --> 00:05:36.649 gonna be even a more beautiful flower I'll leave 00:05:36.649 --> 00:05:40.550 that there I don't know, thank you pastor. I 00:05:40.550 --> 00:05:43.470 don't know where you are in your trial and you're 00:05:43.470 --> 00:05:46.269 waiting for what you're trusting in the Lord 00:05:46.269 --> 00:05:50.550 for. But as we say here often, the best is yet 00:05:50.550 --> 00:05:56.029 to come. The best is yet to come. Psalm chapter 00:05:56.029 --> 00:05:58.810 34 verse 19 says, many are the afflictions of 00:05:58.810 --> 00:06:01.569 the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of 00:06:01.569 --> 00:06:05.220 them all. That is a promise from God for the 00:06:05.220 --> 00:06:07.759 righteous. That's a promise. Deliverance from 00:06:07.759 --> 00:06:10.620 all of our afflictions. We are still blessed 00:06:10.620 --> 00:06:13.019 when we go through trial. You may be in a trial 00:06:13.019 --> 00:06:15.560 right now, but I just listed a whole bunch of 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:17.980 things that say we are blessed and you are blessed 00:06:17.980 --> 00:06:20.480 even though you're going through the trial because 00:06:20.480 --> 00:06:25.300 he keeps us and he always provides for us. but 00:06:25.300 --> 00:06:28.480 this is where confusion sets in at times because 00:06:28.480 --> 00:06:32.220 anxiety for the expected promise sets in when 00:06:32.220 --> 00:06:35.060 God gives us a promise because we want to receive 00:06:35.060 --> 00:06:38.899 what God has for us right now if You're like 00:06:38.899 --> 00:06:41.199 me. Sometimes you become a little bit impatient. 00:06:41.300 --> 00:06:43.920 You're like God. Where is this? I want this right 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:47.639 now What happens though when blessings or are 00:06:47.639 --> 00:06:52.819 unrelated to God's promise for our lives? Because 00:06:52.819 --> 00:06:56.000 so many times there is an unknown and anxious 00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:59.920 period of time between the promises of God and 00:06:59.920 --> 00:07:02.600 the eventual blessings that come as a result 00:07:02.600 --> 00:07:07.000 of the promises that he gives to us. And unfortunately, 00:07:07.220 --> 00:07:10.360 many people give up during that period of time. 00:07:10.819 --> 00:07:13.800 Many life -changing mistakes are made during 00:07:13.800 --> 00:07:17.240 this period of time. The future of entire families 00:07:17.240 --> 00:07:20.740 are altered because someone says, I can't wait 00:07:20.740 --> 00:07:24.319 anymore. Or they say, this is too much. I need 00:07:24.319 --> 00:07:28.860 to take control. What we fail to understand sometimes 00:07:28.939 --> 00:07:32.839 that God is trying to prepare us for his promises 00:07:32.839 --> 00:07:37.180 to be fulfilled in our lives. He doesn't want 00:07:37.180 --> 00:07:40.579 us to rely on counterfeit blessings that will 00:07:40.579 --> 00:07:45.420 eventually fall apart. God wants us to have life 00:07:45.420 --> 00:07:49.379 -changing, life -altering blessings that deepen 00:07:49.379 --> 00:07:53.980 our faith in him because they will bring us permanent 00:07:53.980 --> 00:08:00.800 victories. This is the scripture that I was alluding 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:03.920 to before when I'm going to show you that God 00:08:03.920 --> 00:08:10.060 has given us promises to us all. Jeremiah chapter 00:08:10.060 --> 00:08:14.279 29 verse 11 says, for I know the plans I have 00:08:14.279 --> 00:08:17.800 for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare 00:08:17.800 --> 00:08:21.819 and not for evil to give you a future and a hope. 00:08:22.189 --> 00:08:24.769 That's a promise for every single person that 00:08:24.769 --> 00:08:28.730 is sitting in this place today. Oh, but that 00:08:28.730 --> 00:08:33.149 is so vague. A future and a hope. What does that 00:08:33.149 --> 00:08:36.710 mean? You know, that is a promise of every child, 00:08:37.169 --> 00:08:40.620 but of God today. If you've never claimed that 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:42.740 promise I encourage you to do so even though 00:08:42.740 --> 00:08:45.559 you may not fully understand it because it will 00:08:45.559 --> 00:08:49.100 help us to sustain sustain us through every trial 00:08:49.100 --> 00:08:52.360 that you will ever have to experience or ever 00:08:52.360 --> 00:08:54.659 have to go through in your life and you're going 00:08:54.659 --> 00:08:56.740 through it you're saying God you promise to give 00:08:56.740 --> 00:08:59.220 me a future and you promise to give me a hope 00:08:59.220 --> 00:09:01.179 and I'm trusting in you I don't know what that 00:09:01.179 --> 00:09:03.279 looks like I don't know when it's going to come 00:09:03.279 --> 00:09:05.519 but you said you promised to give me a future 00:09:05.519 --> 00:09:09.629 and you've promised to give me a hope Notice 00:09:09.629 --> 00:09:12.909 that that promise does not give specifics, because 00:09:12.909 --> 00:09:17.110 God's plan for each life is different, but it's 00:09:17.110 --> 00:09:22.149 still a promise. Counterfeit blessings are those 00:09:22.149 --> 00:09:25.350 blessings we generate because of impatience while 00:09:25.350 --> 00:09:28.990 we wait for God's promise. They satisfy our carnal 00:09:28.990 --> 00:09:33.649 desire and our timeline, but can bring misery 00:09:33.649 --> 00:09:37.690 and pain to us, leaving us worse off than we 00:09:37.690 --> 00:09:41.409 were before. Those kind of self -imposed blessings 00:09:41.409 --> 00:09:44.809 will make us feel good in the short term and 00:09:44.809 --> 00:09:47.289 serve to cause stagnation in our relationship 00:09:47.289 --> 00:09:50.509 with God. And they can cause us many and have 00:09:50.509 --> 00:09:53.929 caused many people to walk away from God, walk 00:09:53.929 --> 00:09:58.190 away from their relationship with God. Preparation 00:09:58.190 --> 00:10:01.490 while waiting for God's promises to come to fruition 00:10:01.490 --> 00:10:06.399 is key. And we will be challenged by our own 00:10:06.399 --> 00:10:09.320 thoughts. We will be challenged by the enemy 00:10:09.320 --> 00:10:13.080 and we will be challenged by others. We will 00:10:13.080 --> 00:10:16.740 be challenged by all the naysayers. Most of our 00:10:16.740 --> 00:10:19.759 life -changing and life -altering blessings will 00:10:19.759 --> 00:10:23.240 not come overnight. They will take time because 00:10:23.240 --> 00:10:26.500 we need emotional mental and spiritual development 00:10:26.500 --> 00:10:30.139 that we often so do we don't often don't understand 00:10:30.139 --> 00:10:32.740 We think that when God gives us a promise we're 00:10:32.740 --> 00:10:35.399 ready to receive it But gotta say no, you're 00:10:35.399 --> 00:10:38.039 not ready to receive it yet. It's still there 00:10:38.039 --> 00:10:40.659 I'm still I promise it to you is going to happen 00:10:40.659 --> 00:10:43.000 But he gives it to us so that we can understand 00:10:43.000 --> 00:10:45.600 that we do have a future and we do have a hope 00:10:45.600 --> 00:10:47.899 But in the meantime, I've got to work on you. 00:10:47.940 --> 00:10:50.600 I've got to do some things that you cannot do 00:10:50.600 --> 00:10:53.110 so you will attain the promise and the blessings 00:10:53.110 --> 00:10:56.730 that come from the promise. From the conception 00:10:56.730 --> 00:11:01.649 to a baby's birth, a fetus requires a developmental 00:11:01.649 --> 00:11:06.289 time period. God made several promises to Abram. 00:11:06.480 --> 00:11:10.100 Genesis chapter 12 verse 1 through 3 it says 00:11:10.100 --> 00:11:13.559 now the Lord said to Abram go from your country 00:11:13.559 --> 00:11:16.080 and your kindred and your father's house to the 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:18.620 land where I will show you and I will make you 00:11:18.620 --> 00:11:21.240 a great nation and I will bless you and Make 00:11:21.240 --> 00:11:24.460 you your name great so that you will be will 00:11:24.460 --> 00:11:27.980 be a blessing I will bless those who bless you 00:11:27.980 --> 00:11:32.000 and him who dishonors you I will curse and you 00:11:32.000 --> 00:11:35.730 and in you all the families of the earth Shall 00:11:35.730 --> 00:11:39.049 be blessed that was a great promise that god 00:11:39.049 --> 00:11:44.009 made to abram and his wife his family to come 00:11:44.009 --> 00:11:47.690 But after a good amount of time many of you know 00:11:47.690 --> 00:11:50.909 the story After a good amount of time of waiting 00:11:50.909 --> 00:11:55.450 the promised offspring Was not coming to fruition 00:11:55.450 --> 00:12:01.049 So genesis chapter 16 verse 3 so after abram 00:12:01.049 --> 00:12:05.259 had lived 10 years In the land of Canaan, Sarah 00:12:05.259 --> 00:12:09.679 Abram's wife took Hagar, the Egyptian, her servant, 00:12:10.259 --> 00:12:13.799 and gave her to Abram, her husband, as a wife. 00:12:14.279 --> 00:12:17.460 Ten years now had passed. God, where's the promise? 00:12:17.620 --> 00:12:20.720 Don't see it coming. Unfortunately, it was a 00:12:20.720 --> 00:12:24.899 wrong move for Sarah, wrong move for Abram, wrong 00:12:24.899 --> 00:12:29.100 move for Hagar. When Hagar became pregnant, she 00:12:29.100 --> 00:12:34.509 had disdain and disrespect towards Sarah. A rivalry 00:12:34.509 --> 00:12:38.809 and hatred was born instantly that continues 00:12:38.809 --> 00:12:41.730 to this day, if you know anything about the Middle 00:12:41.730 --> 00:12:45.350 East, between the children of that promise and 00:12:45.350 --> 00:12:48.529 the do -it -myself blessing. I can't wait. I 00:12:48.529 --> 00:12:54.049 have to do it myself. Although Ishmael, who would 00:12:54.049 --> 00:12:57.970 become the son, that was born to Hagar and Abram, 00:12:58.049 --> 00:13:00.669 although Ishmael was not the promised heir that 00:13:00.669 --> 00:13:03.370 God intended for Abram and Sarah. This is what 00:13:03.370 --> 00:13:08.190 God did. God blessed him and his offspring because 00:13:08.190 --> 00:13:14.970 God had made a promise to Abram. God keeps his 00:13:14.970 --> 00:13:20.250 promises. But here's the situation. We sometimes 00:13:20.250 --> 00:13:25.620 do things that cause us to struggle. with the 00:13:25.620 --> 00:13:29.419 promises that God will eventually give to us 00:13:29.419 --> 00:13:33.200 or struggle alongside because of the things that 00:13:33.200 --> 00:13:36.580 we've done. Hagar ran away into the wilderness 00:13:36.580 --> 00:13:40.100 because Sarah had noticed that and became very 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:43.500 upset with her. And then in Genesis chapter 16 00:13:43.500 --> 00:13:46.960 verse 10 through 12 God looked down and he was 00:13:46.960 --> 00:13:49.019 very merciful to her and the angel of the Lord 00:13:49.019 --> 00:13:51.919 also said to her I will surely multiply your 00:13:51.919 --> 00:13:54.340 offspring so that they cannot be numbered for 00:13:54.340 --> 00:13:56.980 multitude and the angel of the Lord said to her 00:13:56.980 --> 00:13:59.639 behold you are pregnant and shall bear a son 00:13:59.639 --> 00:14:02.679 you shall call his name Ishmael because the Lord 00:14:02.679 --> 00:14:05.679 has listened to your affliction he shall be a 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:09.740 wild donkey of a man His hand against everyone 00:14:09.740 --> 00:14:12.539 and everyone's hand against him, and he shall 00:14:12.539 --> 00:14:17.080 dwell over against his kinsmen. Once again, the 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:20.539 grace of God, but he was not the promise. He 00:14:20.539 --> 00:14:24.419 was the counterfeit blessing that they made up 00:14:24.419 --> 00:14:26.940 because they could not be patient for the Lord. 00:14:27.500 --> 00:14:30.460 The negative consequences of that decision by 00:14:30.460 --> 00:14:33.480 the three of them became worse when Hagar saw 00:14:33.480 --> 00:14:36.779 that she had a son. For Abraham and Sarah did 00:14:36.779 --> 00:14:39.419 not. Ishmael was not the promise that God had 00:14:39.419 --> 00:14:43.200 in mind. He was a blessing to Abraham and Sarah, 00:14:43.519 --> 00:14:47.769 but he was not the true. Promise but God in his 00:14:47.769 --> 00:14:51.750 mercy and kind so he's God himself named him 00:14:51.750 --> 00:14:54.570 and made a promise to Hagar He said I want I 00:14:54.570 --> 00:14:58.370 want you to take note of verse 12 where it says 00:14:58.370 --> 00:15:02.190 that God with his hand would be against every 00:15:02.190 --> 00:15:08.370 One and and everyone's hand against him God said 00:15:08.370 --> 00:15:12.309 and basically what God is saying Hagar Abram 00:15:12.309 --> 00:15:17.240 I gave you a son I blessed your son. He's not 00:15:17.240 --> 00:15:19.320 the true promise. The true promise is still to 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:22.139 come. But this is what's going to happen as a 00:15:22.139 --> 00:15:25.039 consequence of you doing it yourself. I'm going 00:15:25.039 --> 00:15:29.600 to make him an enemy to you. You're going to 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:33.200 continually struggle against him. Those peoples 00:15:33.200 --> 00:15:37.080 are going to continue and always struggle against 00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:41.440 each other. The promise of God, promises of God 00:15:41.440 --> 00:15:45.539 are guaranteed. Once he gives a promise count 00:15:45.539 --> 00:15:49.580 on it coming to pass The question is will we 00:15:49.580 --> 00:15:53.200 wait for his promise or will we create our own 00:15:53.200 --> 00:15:58.679 fulfillment of that promise? There is no need 00:15:58.679 --> 00:16:02.120 for us to be impatient with God I know we feel 00:16:02.120 --> 00:16:05.379 it in our flesh We feel it in our carnal nature 00:16:05.379 --> 00:16:08.059 second Corinthians chapter 1 verse 20 says for 00:16:08.059 --> 00:16:11.539 all the promises of God and him are yes And in 00:16:11.539 --> 00:16:14.799 him amen to the glory of God through us as I 00:16:14.799 --> 00:16:18.600 read before Again, God keeps his promises. So 00:16:18.600 --> 00:16:22.200 whatever promise God has made to you Be certain 00:16:22.200 --> 00:16:24.460 that it would be certain that it will come to 00:16:24.460 --> 00:16:30.580 pass in due time Because the Bible says in Numbers 00:16:30.580 --> 00:16:33.200 chapter 3 verse 20, I'm sorry Numbers chapter 00:16:33.200 --> 00:16:38.159 23 verse 19. God is not man that he should lie 00:16:38.379 --> 00:16:41.340 or the Son of Man, that he should change his 00:16:41.340 --> 00:16:46.080 mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or 00:16:46.080 --> 00:16:51.100 has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? If 00:16:51.100 --> 00:16:53.759 God has given you a promise, you can take it 00:16:53.759 --> 00:16:56.500 to the bank. You can be promised today. You can 00:16:56.500 --> 00:17:00.059 be certain today that God has not lied to you, 00:17:00.179 --> 00:17:04.200 but that it will come to pass at the set time 00:17:04.200 --> 00:17:08.660 that he wants it to come to pass. The problem 00:17:08.660 --> 00:17:11.039 that we run into is that we think our timing 00:17:11.039 --> 00:17:14.660 should be God's timing. God does not work on 00:17:14.660 --> 00:17:17.759 the seasons that he has given to us. He doesn't 00:17:17.759 --> 00:17:20.079 work on the times. He doesn't work by our clock. 00:17:21.099 --> 00:17:23.259 He's the one that created time. He doesn't work, 00:17:23.259 --> 00:17:26.460 but he's outside of time. Everything is done 00:17:26.460 --> 00:17:29.140 according to his will and is done according to 00:17:29.140 --> 00:17:31.799 the faith that we have in him. That's how it's 00:17:31.799 --> 00:17:34.660 done. He brings promises to pass according to 00:17:34.660 --> 00:17:37.000 his will and when he knows that we are ready 00:17:37.000 --> 00:17:40.519 to receive Those promises then they will come 00:17:40.519 --> 00:17:46.539 to pass No, regardless of how much time it takes 00:17:46.539 --> 00:17:50.880 So now 13 years after Ishmael was born God spoke 00:17:50.880 --> 00:17:54.119 to Abraham again to remind him about the earlier 00:17:54.119 --> 00:17:58.059 promise and to instruct him now to prepare to 00:17:58.059 --> 00:18:02.559 receive it As if to say, okay Abram, okay Sarah, 00:18:03.160 --> 00:18:05.980 you did it your way now. Now I want you to be 00:18:05.980 --> 00:18:08.799 prepared. And that wasn't the only time when 00:18:08.799 --> 00:18:11.000 they kind of generated their own thing. Because 00:18:11.000 --> 00:18:13.039 when you read their story, you read in the Bible, 00:18:13.380 --> 00:18:15.279 you see there was a couple of times, because 00:18:15.279 --> 00:18:17.920 Sarah, the Bible says, was such a beautiful woman, 00:18:17.980 --> 00:18:20.680 when they would go into places, Abram would say, 00:18:20.940 --> 00:18:24.720 hey, do yourself, do us a favor. Tell them that 00:18:24.720 --> 00:18:26.839 you are my sister so they won't try and kill 00:18:26.839 --> 00:18:30.440 me so that they can have you. Okay, so when you 00:18:30.440 --> 00:18:34.339 go there I'll put it in my and just my words 00:18:34.339 --> 00:18:39.039 I'm not gonna trust God to protect this So here's 00:18:39.039 --> 00:18:42.500 a deal. Here's my backup plan Tell them that 00:18:42.500 --> 00:18:45.220 you are my sister and that we're not married 00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:48.940 keeps me alive You'll stay but it'll keep me 00:18:48.940 --> 00:18:51.779 alive. You'll be alive, but I want to stay alive 00:18:51.779 --> 00:18:56.170 a little bit longer also Technically, they were 00:18:56.170 --> 00:18:58.069 brother and sister, they were half brother and 00:18:58.069 --> 00:19:03.509 half sister. But he kind of twisted it. I just 00:19:03.509 --> 00:19:08.470 want to say that when we get to heaven, we ought 00:19:08.470 --> 00:19:11.230 to give Abraham and Sarah a big hug, because 00:19:11.230 --> 00:19:15.890 their business is all over the place. And we 00:19:15.890 --> 00:19:18.650 get to listen to it, we get to hear it, and when 00:19:18.650 --> 00:19:21.640 you tell them thank you. Tell them your business. 00:19:21.859 --> 00:19:24.000 Tell them what God has done for you. Tell them 00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:26.220 the things that you messed up on and tell them 00:19:26.220 --> 00:19:30.079 how God has blessed you as he has blessed them. 00:19:30.400 --> 00:19:34.099 13 years after Ishmael was born, God spoke to 00:19:34.099 --> 00:19:36.140 Abram again and reminded him. Genesis chapter 00:19:36.140 --> 00:19:39.700 17, verses one through two. When Abram was 99 00:19:39.700 --> 00:19:43.019 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said 00:19:43.019 --> 00:19:46.680 to him, I am God Almighty. Walk before me and 00:19:46.680 --> 00:19:50.150 be blameless. that I may make my covenant between 00:19:50.150 --> 00:19:54.569 me and you and I may multiply you greatly. This 00:19:54.569 --> 00:19:57.890 is what God wants from us. While we wait for 00:19:57.890 --> 00:20:00.329 his promises, he wants us to walk before him 00:20:00.329 --> 00:20:03.750 and be blameless. The word blameless or perfect 00:20:03.750 --> 00:20:07.150 does not mean without fault. Rather it refers 00:20:07.150 --> 00:20:10.150 to walk before me in uprightness of heart walk 00:20:10.150 --> 00:20:13.349 before me in sincerity and walk before me in 00:20:13.349 --> 00:20:16.049 wholeness God knows that we're not perfect. He 00:20:16.049 --> 00:20:18.750 knows that we have faults There was only one 00:20:18.750 --> 00:20:22.089 sinless and spotless man and that was Jesus Christ 00:20:22.089 --> 00:20:25.190 But he made the way for us his grace and his 00:20:25.190 --> 00:20:29.190 mercy has covered us and it helps us through 00:20:29.190 --> 00:20:33.160 all of our mistakes some Mark 37 verse 37 says, 00:20:33.440 --> 00:20:36.099 mark the blameless man and observe the upright 00:20:36.099 --> 00:20:39.279 for the future of that man is peace. So walk 00:20:39.279 --> 00:20:41.960 in uprightness of heart, walk in sincerity in 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:44.900 your walk in your relationship with God and walk 00:20:44.900 --> 00:20:48.039 in wholeness before him. Now we skip down to 00:20:48.039 --> 00:20:51.980 Genesis chapter 17 verse 16. I will bless her 00:20:51.980 --> 00:20:54.880 and moreover God speaking to Abram I will give 00:20:54.880 --> 00:20:58.220 you a son by her and I will bless her and she 00:20:58.220 --> 00:21:01.660 shall become nations Kings of peoples shall come 00:21:01.660 --> 00:21:05.819 by her. So now later on it is now 14 years after 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:09.019 Ishmael was born that the real promise of Isaac 00:21:09.019 --> 00:21:13.519 was born So if you are counting from the first 00:21:13.519 --> 00:21:16.970 time that God gave gave Abraham the promise that 00:21:16.970 --> 00:21:19.930 he was going to make him a great nation to the 00:21:19.930 --> 00:21:26.650 time when Isaac was was born 24 years had elapsed 00:21:26.650 --> 00:21:30.269 When God originally gave him that promise to 00:21:30.269 --> 00:21:35.269 us That's a long time But to God it's not a long 00:21:35.269 --> 00:21:39.230 time He sees the future better than we can see 00:21:39.230 --> 00:21:43.109 the future. He knows the path that he wants us 00:21:43.109 --> 00:21:46.779 to take So we need to trust him, regardless of 00:21:46.779 --> 00:21:49.519 the date that's on the calendar. We need to walk 00:21:49.519 --> 00:21:53.259 before him and be blameless while we wait for 00:21:53.259 --> 00:21:57.700 him. If we look to God and trust in him, his 00:21:57.700 --> 00:22:01.420 word promises in Psalms chapter 121, verse three, 00:22:01.559 --> 00:22:04.880 he says, he will not allow your foot to be moved. 00:22:05.259 --> 00:22:12.259 He who keeps you will not slumber. Verse five 00:22:12.259 --> 00:22:16.359 goes on to say the Lord is your keeper. The Lord 00:22:16.359 --> 00:22:23.140 is your shade at your right hand God will keep 00:22:23.140 --> 00:22:26.039 us God will bless us or whatever it is that you're 00:22:26.039 --> 00:22:30.000 waiting for know that it will it shall Come to 00:22:30.000 --> 00:22:32.640 pass because he said I've given you a future 00:22:32.640 --> 00:22:40.210 and I've given you a hope I think because we 00:22:40.210 --> 00:22:43.769 live in a society that expects instant gratification, 00:22:45.089 --> 00:22:47.609 we have this idea in our mind that we should 00:22:47.609 --> 00:22:50.890 constantly be receiving fireworks of blessings 00:22:50.890 --> 00:22:54.769 in our lives every day, all day long. It doesn't 00:22:54.769 --> 00:22:57.069 work like that. Sometimes we just have to walk 00:22:57.069 --> 00:22:59.769 with him. We just have to walk day after day 00:22:59.769 --> 00:23:03.289 so that when God speaks his promises to us, we 00:23:03.289 --> 00:23:05.630 think that they should immediately come to pass 00:23:05.630 --> 00:23:08.369 so that we can have a testimony to share with 00:23:08.369 --> 00:23:10.650 the world right away. You know, we want to put 00:23:10.650 --> 00:23:12.890 it on Facebook. We want to put it out there so 00:23:12.890 --> 00:23:15.069 that we can get the clicks and someone can pat 00:23:15.069 --> 00:23:17.829 us on the back and say, isn't God good? But that's 00:23:17.829 --> 00:23:20.690 not what God is all about. He's not all about 00:23:20.690 --> 00:23:22.829 clicks. He's not about us getting a pat on the 00:23:22.829 --> 00:23:25.150 back He's about his perfect will being done in 00:23:25.150 --> 00:23:29.690 our lives because we are his children He doesn't 00:23:29.690 --> 00:23:31.690 want to give us blessings for us to feel good 00:23:31.690 --> 00:23:34.849 about ourselves. He doesn't work that way We 00:23:34.849 --> 00:23:37.609 tend to grow impatient with God because we don't 00:23:37.609 --> 00:23:40.509 have anything to show others For our waiting 00:23:40.509 --> 00:23:44.339 as if others are the authors of our lives God 00:23:44.339 --> 00:23:47.500 is the author of our life. God does not bless 00:23:47.500 --> 00:23:50.440 us to impress other people. He blesses us because 00:23:50.440 --> 00:23:54.099 of his love for us and for us to be a blessing 00:23:54.099 --> 00:23:59.400 to other people. Sometimes we will receive blessings 00:23:59.400 --> 00:24:02.660 instantly, but most of the time we will have 00:24:02.660 --> 00:24:05.359 to wait. We'll have to wait for those promises. 00:24:05.619 --> 00:24:10.380 God may not be on your time or my time, but he 00:24:10.380 --> 00:24:14.819 is on our side. He is there for us. There's a 00:24:14.819 --> 00:24:17.420 promise in the waiting because listen to this 00:24:17.420 --> 00:24:19.940 This is a verse that we all verses that we all 00:24:19.940 --> 00:24:23.180 know very well Isaiah chapter 40 verse 31 says 00:24:23.180 --> 00:24:26.940 but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their 00:24:26.940 --> 00:24:30.460 strength They shall man up with wings like Eagles. 00:24:30.660 --> 00:24:34.640 They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk 00:24:34.640 --> 00:24:41.500 and not faint That's a promise from the Lord 00:24:42.180 --> 00:24:45.680 That's a promise from the Lord. That's a promise 00:24:45.680 --> 00:24:52.579 from the Lord Don't neglect that promise It's 00:24:52.579 --> 00:24:54.900 a promise of strength when you read those verses 00:24:54.900 --> 00:24:58.180 that it's a promise of promise of strength It's 00:24:58.180 --> 00:25:01.500 a promise of power. It's a promise of energy 00:25:01.500 --> 00:25:04.779 and it's a promise of endurance That's a promise 00:25:04.779 --> 00:25:08.569 now The promise hasn't come to pass that he gave 00:25:08.569 --> 00:25:11.190 to you years ago. But he said in the midst of 00:25:11.190 --> 00:25:13.769 your promise, I'm going to give you another promise. 00:25:14.069 --> 00:25:15.990 You're going to be able to run. You're going 00:25:15.990 --> 00:25:18.089 to be able to walk and not faint. You're going 00:25:18.089 --> 00:25:20.230 to be able to man up with wings like eagles. 00:25:20.569 --> 00:25:23.230 So I want you to trust in that because I have 00:25:23.230 --> 00:25:26.549 given you a future and a hope that I don't want 00:25:26.549 --> 00:25:33.180 you to neglect and forget about. Those are blessings 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:37.519 that we Forfeit while we wait because we do things 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:42.099 our way instead of God's way At the set time 00:25:42.099 --> 00:25:45.960 God will fulfill his promises in our lives I 00:25:45.960 --> 00:25:49.460 really wonder if Abram and Sarah didn't do what 00:25:49.460 --> 00:25:52.819 they did if it would have actually taken 24 years 00:25:52.819 --> 00:25:57.079 for Isaac before Isaac was born. I don't know 00:25:58.410 --> 00:26:00.869 Remember that the children of this is how much 00:26:00.869 --> 00:26:03.829 God regards faith our trust in him the children 00:26:03.829 --> 00:26:06.150 of Israel when they got to the promised land 00:26:06.150 --> 00:26:08.890 remember that at the first time because of their 00:26:08.890 --> 00:26:12.240 lack of faith and unbelief God was not Happy 00:26:12.240 --> 00:26:15.220 with them. So 40 more years they had to wonder 00:26:15.220 --> 00:26:18.200 in a wilderness So what does that tell you about 00:26:18.200 --> 00:26:20.420 our promise and what God is promising to us? 00:26:20.599 --> 00:26:23.599 All he's saying to us is have faith have faith 00:26:23.599 --> 00:26:26.440 have faith It's gonna come to pass have faith 00:26:26.440 --> 00:26:29.400 have faith. It's gonna come to pass If you don't 00:26:29.400 --> 00:26:32.279 have faith, then we are putting ourselves in 00:26:32.279 --> 00:26:34.759 danger by doing things that he doesn't want us 00:26:34.759 --> 00:26:39.259 to do We need to trust in God and God will honor 00:26:39.259 --> 00:26:42.450 his word Wait on his promise, don't doubt it, 00:26:42.450 --> 00:26:46.690 it will come to pass. But unfortunately, while 00:26:46.690 --> 00:26:51.210 we wait, weariness sets in. And we can't allow, 00:26:51.309 --> 00:26:54.630 we have to fight against weariness. Because what 00:26:54.630 --> 00:26:58.109 weariness does is it brings compromise. Galatians 00:26:58.109 --> 00:27:00.210 chapter six, verses seven through nine, listen 00:27:00.210 --> 00:27:02.769 to what the apostle Paul says. He says, do not 00:27:02.769 --> 00:27:07.289 be deceived. God is not mocked for whatever one 00:27:07.289 --> 00:27:11.680 sows that will he also reap. For the one who 00:27:11.680 --> 00:27:15.319 sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap 00:27:15.319 --> 00:27:18.400 corruption. But the one who sows to the spirit 00:27:18.400 --> 00:27:21.200 from will from the spirit reap eternal life. 00:27:21.799 --> 00:27:24.259 And listen to verse nine, he says, and let us 00:27:24.259 --> 00:27:27.579 not be weary, let us not grow weary of doing 00:27:27.579 --> 00:27:32.079 good. For in due season we will reap if we do 00:27:32.079 --> 00:27:36.559 not give up. The apostle Paul links sowing to 00:27:36.559 --> 00:27:41.180 our flesh. By being weary That's what he's saying. 00:27:41.180 --> 00:27:43.740 He said when you become weary, then you begin 00:27:43.740 --> 00:27:46.940 to start sowing to your flesh That's what Abraham 00:27:46.940 --> 00:27:49.680 and Sarah did they began where they got weary 00:27:49.680 --> 00:27:52.140 and waiting till they said You know what flesh 00:27:52.140 --> 00:27:54.339 started to take over and they started they sold 00:27:54.339 --> 00:27:57.519 to their flesh. Don't fade faint or lose courage 00:27:57.519 --> 00:28:01.400 while waiting on God weariness will bring impatience. 00:28:01.579 --> 00:28:03.900 Impatience will cause us to make bad decisions. 00:28:04.380 --> 00:28:07.559 Oh, do we all feel it? Absolutely, we all do. 00:28:07.960 --> 00:28:10.079 But when we feel that weariness, we've got to 00:28:10.079 --> 00:28:13.279 go to God and say, God, help me today. Give me 00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:15.039 strength, your word. I just read it to you in 00:28:15.039 --> 00:28:17.200 Isaiah. Your word says, I will mount up with 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:19.420 wings like an eagle. I will walk and I will not 00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:21.500 faint. I will run and not beware. I will just 00:28:21.500 --> 00:28:24.160 go to him, remind him of his promises to you. 00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:26.839 Remind him of his promises and he will do it. 00:28:27.639 --> 00:28:32.000 They grew impatient I can understand if you were 00:28:32.000 --> 00:28:36.299 99 or 89 years old and God said I'm gonna give 00:28:36.299 --> 00:28:40.099 you a such you'd be like so I Sarah laughed he 00:28:40.099 --> 00:28:47.059 was like If you say so Lord But that's why we 00:28:47.059 --> 00:28:49.200 need the supernatural strength of the Holy Ghost 00:28:49.200 --> 00:28:52.720 to help us Because when we're going through all 00:28:52.720 --> 00:28:55.380 kinds of stuff, we may not be 99 and 89 years 00:28:55.380 --> 00:28:58.950 old in a natural But in the spiritual we feel 00:28:58.950 --> 00:29:02.430 like God I've been waiting for ever and this 00:29:02.430 --> 00:29:05.029 is not coming to pass So we need the supernatural 00:29:05.029 --> 00:29:08.890 help of the Holy Ghost to help us to endure Genesis 00:29:08.890 --> 00:29:11.930 chapter 18 verse 14 is anything too hard for 00:29:11.930 --> 00:29:14.329 the Lord This is what God said to Abram when 00:29:14.329 --> 00:29:16.369 they were snickering and wondering is it gonna 00:29:16.369 --> 00:29:18.990 happen God said to them at the appointed time 00:29:18.990 --> 00:29:21.769 I will return to you about this time next year 00:29:21.769 --> 00:29:27.500 and Sarah will have a son A year later, Genesis 00:29:27.500 --> 00:29:29.700 chapter 21, verses one through two, and the Lord 00:29:29.700 --> 00:29:33.240 visited Sarah, and he had said, and the Lord 00:29:33.240 --> 00:29:37.240 did for Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived 00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:41.480 and bore Abram a son in his old age at the set 00:29:41.480 --> 00:29:46.359 time of which God had spoken to him. I believe 00:29:46.359 --> 00:29:48.579 that one of these days, God is going to come 00:29:48.579 --> 00:29:53.660 back to us and say, remember that promise? In 00:29:53.660 --> 00:29:56.869 such and such a time. It's gonna it's about to 00:29:56.869 --> 00:30:00.150 come to pass When he comes to us during that 00:30:00.150 --> 00:30:02.130 time, are we gonna be easy? Is he gonna find 00:30:02.130 --> 00:30:05.210 us holding on by faith? Are we gonna be trusting 00:30:05.210 --> 00:30:08.869 in him? I don't want I know, you know I'm not 00:30:08.869 --> 00:30:12.089 here trying to kill Abraham and eyes and Sarah 00:30:12.089 --> 00:30:15.289 for the mistake that they made But God doesn't 00:30:15.289 --> 00:30:17.589 want us to bring along extra baggage with us 00:30:17.799 --> 00:30:20.160 When he brings us into the promised land he doesn't 00:30:20.160 --> 00:30:22.740 want us to he wants to he wants us to trust in 00:30:22.740 --> 00:30:25.000 him He doesn't want us to bring extra stuff. 00:30:25.000 --> 00:30:27.240 He doesn't want us to bring and have to deal 00:30:27.240 --> 00:30:30.240 with an ishmael through the rest of our lives 00:30:30.240 --> 00:30:34.079 You know why God's promises sometimes take a 00:30:34.079 --> 00:30:37.240 while is simply because he wants to build faith 00:30:37.240 --> 00:30:41.039 in us and This is what happened with Abraham 00:30:41.039 --> 00:30:44.339 and Sarah because Hebrews chapter 11 verses 11 00:30:44.339 --> 00:30:48.880 through 12 says by faith Sarah herself received 00:30:48.880 --> 00:30:52.880 power to conceive, even when she was past the 00:30:52.880 --> 00:30:56.759 age, since she considered him faithful who had 00:30:56.759 --> 00:31:00.160 promised. So there came a point when Abraham 00:31:00.160 --> 00:31:02.960 and Sarah said, you know what? We've messed up 00:31:02.960 --> 00:31:06.079 enough. We've done it our way. And as soon as 00:31:06.079 --> 00:31:08.859 their faith kicked in, God said, okay, now you 00:31:08.859 --> 00:31:11.940 are ready to receive the promise that I have 00:31:11.940 --> 00:31:17.700 for you to receive. And verse 12 says, therefore 00:31:17.700 --> 00:31:21.740 from one man and him as good as dead were born 00:31:21.740 --> 00:31:24.880 descendants as many as the stars of heaven and 00:31:24.880 --> 00:31:28.460 as many as the innumerable grains of sand by 00:31:28.460 --> 00:31:31.710 the seashore. God's promises he's he's gonna 00:31:31.710 --> 00:31:34.450 bring it to pass as God has given you a promise 00:31:34.450 --> 00:31:36.809 for heaven view If he's given you a promise in 00:31:36.809 --> 00:31:39.549 your own personal life, it's coming to pass I'm 00:31:39.549 --> 00:31:41.349 not here telling you today that he told me that 00:31:41.349 --> 00:31:43.750 for you But he told me according to his word 00:31:43.750 --> 00:31:46.009 that his promises are gonna come to pass for 00:31:46.009 --> 00:31:48.569 each and every one of us It's coming to pass. 00:31:48.569 --> 00:31:51.130 Whatever is happening in your life today. His 00:31:51.130 --> 00:31:58.470 promises are coming to pass This promises are 00:31:58.470 --> 00:32:02.869 coming to pass When I left New York over ten 00:32:02.869 --> 00:32:05.450 years ago, the only thing God gave me Jeremiah 00:32:05.450 --> 00:32:10.650 29 11. That's the only thing he gave to me It 00:32:10.650 --> 00:32:13.670 wasn't even actually was not when I left it was 00:32:13.670 --> 00:32:16.869 a cup it was like a couple years before and I 00:32:16.869 --> 00:32:19.250 knew that where I was there was going to be a 00:32:19.250 --> 00:32:22.730 transition coming at some point and Before I 00:32:22.730 --> 00:32:25.690 had even left that position. God gave me that 00:32:25.690 --> 00:32:28.900 verse Now, did I know that it was going to take 00:32:28.900 --> 00:32:33.180 over five years later? I had no idea. Did I go 00:32:33.180 --> 00:32:36.400 through stressful times? Absolutely. There were 00:32:36.400 --> 00:32:38.460 times I had to go through and I had to remind 00:32:38.460 --> 00:32:41.200 God. I said, God, what do you know? What are 00:32:41.200 --> 00:32:44.240 you doing in my, what are you doing? What are 00:32:44.240 --> 00:32:46.900 you doing to me? It's just, this is just tough. 00:32:47.160 --> 00:32:51.839 This is hard to take. But God will later on would 00:32:51.839 --> 00:32:55.240 just lead me and guide me to here And I don't 00:32:55.240 --> 00:32:57.900 have time to get into the ins and outs the things 00:32:57.900 --> 00:33:00.140 that he was doing behind the scenes But I'll 00:33:00.140 --> 00:33:02.259 get but get into that in a moment and what he 00:33:02.259 --> 00:33:04.240 was doing what he's doing in each and every one 00:33:04.240 --> 00:33:09.940 of our lives While we wait for his promise Faith 00:33:09.940 --> 00:33:14.180 that Abraham and Sarah had faith Even though 00:33:14.180 --> 00:33:17.099 they laugh the promises of God are worth waiting 00:33:17.099 --> 00:33:19.819 for the changes that he desires to make in our 00:33:19.819 --> 00:33:22.720 lives is for us to know that our future is bright 00:33:22.720 --> 00:33:25.880 and That we definitely can trust in him. God 00:33:25.880 --> 00:33:29.640 is working while we wait for our promise to come 00:33:29.640 --> 00:33:33.960 to pass The disciples of Jesus with Easter coming 00:33:33.960 --> 00:33:36.619 next week and we celebrate the death burial and 00:33:36.619 --> 00:33:39.240 resurrection of Jesus Christ The disciples of 00:33:39.240 --> 00:33:42.440 Jesus were dismayed at the point of losing hope 00:33:42.619 --> 00:33:46.319 Because their promise to them it seemed like 00:33:46.319 --> 00:33:50.880 was dead Because Jesus was crucified and buried 00:33:50.880 --> 00:33:54.740 their promise the Messiah was dead to them It 00:33:54.740 --> 00:33:57.980 seemed that all hope was lost Some of them went 00:33:57.980 --> 00:34:01.200 back to their lives as they knew it, but Jesus 00:34:01.200 --> 00:34:04.720 was not dead He was working. He was doing things 00:34:04.720 --> 00:34:07.380 and working in places where they couldn't work 00:34:07.380 --> 00:34:12.559 where you and I cannot work To his enemies Jesus 00:34:12.559 --> 00:34:16.500 was dead But guess who didn't who understood 00:34:16.500 --> 00:34:20.400 that Jesus was not dead the devil knew that Jesus 00:34:20.400 --> 00:34:23.800 wasn't dead Because Jesus was walking through 00:34:23.800 --> 00:34:28.699 his territory Taking back the keys to death and 00:34:28.699 --> 00:34:31.940 hell that it would no longer that death and hell 00:34:31.940 --> 00:34:36.389 would no longer have power over us Jesus was 00:34:36.389 --> 00:34:39.409 taking authority so that we can be confident 00:34:39.409 --> 00:34:42.309 that death is not the end of those who receive 00:34:42.309 --> 00:34:45.550 salvation. That is something that we could never 00:34:45.550 --> 00:34:50.590 do ourselves. So the devil knows that your promise 00:34:50.590 --> 00:34:56.110 is not dead. He just lies to you and I to try 00:34:56.110 --> 00:34:59.750 to convince us that our promise is dead. The 00:34:59.750 --> 00:35:02.289 devil worked very hard in your life to convince 00:35:02.289 --> 00:35:05.090 you that your promise is dead Meanwhile over 00:35:05.090 --> 00:35:08.730 his shoulder. He knows that I see what God is, 00:35:09.010 --> 00:35:10.750 God is working something out on these, because 00:35:10.750 --> 00:35:12.849 the demons are reporting back to him saying, 00:35:12.869 --> 00:35:15.210 hey, something is happening over here. These 00:35:15.210 --> 00:35:17.630 people that God, that something is happening 00:35:17.630 --> 00:35:20.829 there, just like when everyone thought he was 00:35:20.829 --> 00:35:23.570 dead, he was in hell shaking things up. He was 00:35:23.570 --> 00:35:25.650 in hell taking back power. Well, this is what 00:35:25.650 --> 00:35:28.190 God is doing in your life and my life while he's 00:35:28.190 --> 00:35:30.570 having us wait. He's snatching power from the 00:35:30.570 --> 00:35:33.829 enemy. He's snatching power from this one. He's 00:35:33.829 --> 00:35:36.670 snatching power from that one because he's about 00:35:36.670 --> 00:35:39.269 to give. He's about to give us the victory that 00:35:39.269 --> 00:35:41.889 we couldn't attain for ourselves He's about to 00:35:41.889 --> 00:35:45.050 give it to us if we just have trust and faith 00:35:45.050 --> 00:35:50.730 in him Revelation chapter 1 verse 18. He says 00:35:50.730 --> 00:35:54.210 I am he who lives and was dead and behold I am 00:35:54.210 --> 00:35:58.170 alive forevermore Amen. I have the keys of Hades 00:35:58.170 --> 00:36:02.429 and of death While it may look to you and I like 00:36:02.429 --> 00:36:06.460 our promises of dead God is busy working. He 00:36:06.460 --> 00:36:09.519 is busy working for art for you and I he's working 00:36:09.519 --> 00:36:12.599 the scenes right now With that promise that you're 00:36:12.599 --> 00:36:15.619 waiting on He's working in a situation that you 00:36:15.619 --> 00:36:18.619 would never be able to work on if you give if 00:36:18.619 --> 00:36:21.420 you were given a million years to live You would 00:36:21.420 --> 00:36:24.300 never be able to work on that in that area where 00:36:24.300 --> 00:36:27.820 God is working because only he can work there 00:36:27.820 --> 00:36:31.179 Your promise is not dead because your resurrection 00:36:31.179 --> 00:36:34.639 Sunday is coming Your resurrection Sunday is 00:36:34.639 --> 00:36:38.920 coming your promise is not dead While we wait 00:36:38.920 --> 00:36:41.820 on the promises and the blessings to be manifested 00:36:41.820 --> 00:36:44.820 our lives there are two things That we need to 00:36:44.820 --> 00:36:49.300 do as I hurry to a close Jesus said in Acts chapter 00:36:49.300 --> 00:36:55.159 1 verse verse 4 And after he had been resurrected 00:36:55.159 --> 00:36:57.780 and being assembled together with them he commanded 00:36:57.780 --> 00:37:00.960 them not to depart from Jerusalem but to wait 00:37:00.960 --> 00:37:04.099 for the promise of the Father, which he said, 00:37:04.199 --> 00:37:08.280 you have heard from me. Verse 12 says, then they 00:37:08.280 --> 00:37:12.679 returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, 00:37:12.940 --> 00:37:16.039 which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day journey 00:37:16.039 --> 00:37:20.679 away. Verse 14 says, all these with one accord 00:37:20.679 --> 00:37:24.500 were devoting themselves to prayer together with 00:37:24.500 --> 00:37:28.119 the woman and Mary, the mother of Jesus and his 00:37:28.119 --> 00:37:32.369 brothers. First Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 00:37:32.369 --> 00:37:39.969 17 says pray without ceasing What was happening 00:37:39.969 --> 00:37:44.230 there Jesus told them to go to the upper room 00:37:44.230 --> 00:37:50.829 they obeyed They went they waited and while they 00:37:50.829 --> 00:37:55.710 were in prayer the promise came We have to keep 00:37:55.710 --> 00:37:59.869 our focus on God by making prayer a priority, 00:38:00.210 --> 00:38:04.110 maintaining an awareness of God's presence throughout 00:38:04.110 --> 00:38:08.489 our day, turning our thoughts into prayers. Let 00:38:08.489 --> 00:38:11.670 prayer be your first response in every situation, 00:38:11.809 --> 00:38:15.030 whether the situation is good or bad. Jesus commanded 00:38:15.030 --> 00:38:18.550 them, they went and they tarried. They obeyed 00:38:18.550 --> 00:38:21.909 him explicitly what he said. Because I think 00:38:21.909 --> 00:38:24.710 if the if the Apostles and the and those had 00:38:24.710 --> 00:38:27.289 went and did something else if they went someplace 00:38:27.289 --> 00:38:29.289 else They probably would have been convinced 00:38:29.289 --> 00:38:32.449 What did he promise you? I don't think that's 00:38:32.449 --> 00:38:35.449 going to happen But they went straight to Jerusalem 00:38:35.449 --> 00:38:37.929 They didn't turn to the left or to the right 00:38:37.929 --> 00:38:41.650 and they waited because they obeyed and then 00:38:41.650 --> 00:38:44.769 obedience leads to spiritual preparation So many 00:38:44.769 --> 00:38:48.480 times we're not ready right away to receive what 00:38:48.480 --> 00:38:51.639 God has for us. So many times we're not ready. 00:38:52.699 --> 00:38:54.760 They devoted themselves to prayer and we need 00:38:54.760 --> 00:38:57.960 to do the same. This is how we wait on the Lord. 00:38:58.599 --> 00:39:01.420 We need to seek God through prayer and his word 00:39:01.420 --> 00:39:04.940 for those promises because his timing is perfect 00:39:04.940 --> 00:39:13.940 as they come to the instruments. When his time 00:39:13.940 --> 00:39:18.480 is right, when the time was right, God poured 00:39:18.480 --> 00:39:23.340 out His Spirit upon the 120 on the day of Pentecost 00:39:23.340 --> 00:39:26.900 because they went to Jerusalem, waited, and they 00:39:26.900 --> 00:39:31.820 prayed. In your life and in my life, God is saying, 00:39:31.900 --> 00:39:36.219 those that wait upon the Lord, if we wait, He 00:39:36.219 --> 00:39:40.360 will do it. If we trust in Him, it's guaranteed 00:39:40.360 --> 00:39:45.389 He will do it. We just have to work with this 00:39:45.389 --> 00:39:47.789 O 'Connell nature that wants to do it our way. 00:39:48.150 --> 00:39:51.190 We can't do it our way. If you're in this place 00:39:51.190 --> 00:39:53.030 today and you need the gift of the Holy Ghost, 00:39:53.570 --> 00:39:55.429 that is one promise that you don't have to wait 00:39:55.429 --> 00:39:59.269 for. That promise is available today. It's already 00:39:59.269 --> 00:40:02.050 out there. He just says you just have to receive 00:40:02.050 --> 00:40:05.150 it. All you have to do is repent of your sins. 00:40:05.570 --> 00:40:08.550 Receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For he says 00:40:08.550 --> 00:40:12.650 in 2 Corinthians 6 verse 2, He says, in an acceptable 00:40:12.650 --> 00:40:15.570 time I have heard you, and in a day of salvation 00:40:15.570 --> 00:40:18.630 I have helped you. Behold, now is the accepted 00:40:18.630 --> 00:40:23.190 time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. Could 00:40:23.190 --> 00:40:31.630 we all stand today? The promise of the Holy Ghost 00:40:31.630 --> 00:40:35.010 is for everyone. Whether it's your first time 00:40:35.010 --> 00:40:37.869 today or it's been a while since you've spoken 00:40:37.869 --> 00:40:40.110 in tongues, it's been a while since you've really 00:40:40.429 --> 00:40:46.010 Touch God. He wants to renew you today. If you 00:40:46.010 --> 00:40:48.050 need the Holy Ghost, if you need to be baptized 00:40:48.050 --> 00:40:50.010 in His name, the water is ready, the robes are 00:40:50.010 --> 00:40:52.530 ready. You can be baptized in the name of Jesus 00:40:52.530 --> 00:40:55.309 for the remission of your sins. You can receive 00:40:55.309 --> 00:40:58.670 the promise today. But I also wanted to tell 00:40:58.670 --> 00:41:02.070 anyone else today in this place, if there's a 00:41:02.070 --> 00:41:04.869 promise that you've been waiting for from God, 00:41:05.829 --> 00:41:08.150 I want to help you to understand today that you've 00:41:08.150 --> 00:41:12.170 got to believe. Trust in God for that promise. 00:41:12.510 --> 00:41:15.489 Don't do anything that he hasn't asked you to 00:41:15.489 --> 00:41:18.869 do. Just trust in him and believe on him, and 00:41:18.869 --> 00:41:23.510 he will bring that promise to pass. As we all 00:41:23.510 --> 00:41:27.630 come to this altar, I want you to come with that 00:41:27.630 --> 00:41:32.510 in mind. Today, things may seem like they're 00:41:32.510 --> 00:41:35.469 hopeless in your life. Maybe you have questions 00:41:35.469 --> 00:41:39.260 as to what God is doing. But I want you to remind 00:41:39.260 --> 00:41:42.019 I want to remind you of Jeremiah chapter 29 verse 00:41:42.019 --> 00:41:46.760 11 He says I know the plans I have for you He 00:41:46.760 --> 00:41:49.900 said the plans are not of evil. It may feel like 00:41:49.900 --> 00:41:52.719 evil is happening all around you may seem like 00:41:52.719 --> 00:41:55.699 things are depressing But don't I want I don't 00:41:55.699 --> 00:41:58.659 want you to focus on that He said I have a future 00:41:58.659 --> 00:42:01.940 and I have a hope for you So whatever it is that 00:42:01.940 --> 00:42:04.820 you're waiting on the Lord for it's gonna come 00:42:04.820 --> 00:42:07.760 to pass I'm telling you today, I'm guaranteeing 00:42:07.760 --> 00:42:10.340 it today by the word of God. If you trust in 00:42:10.340 --> 00:42:13.000 God, it's going to happen. Regardless of what 00:42:13.000 --> 00:42:15.420 other people are saying, regardless of what the 00:42:15.420 --> 00:42:18.900 naysayers are saying, it's going to come to pass. 00:42:19.099 --> 00:42:23.000 Trust in the promises of God because at the set 00:42:23.000 --> 00:42:26.250 time, he's going to bring it to pass. Can we 00:42:26.250 --> 00:42:29.570 go before the Lord today, worshiping Him? Lord, 00:42:30.050 --> 00:42:33.429 God, renew promises in heart today. Renew your 00:42:33.429 --> 00:42:36.110 spirit in the hearts and lives of everyone in 00:42:36.110 --> 00:42:39.349 this place today. Remind us today, Lord God, 00:42:39.530 --> 00:42:42.070 that your promise is gonna come to pass. It may 00:42:42.070 --> 00:42:44.750 have been 10 years ago. It may have been 20 years 00:42:44.750 --> 00:42:47.809 ago that you gave the promises, oh Lord, but 00:42:47.809 --> 00:42:50.269 they're gonna come to pass because you're working 00:42:50.269 --> 00:42:53.570 things behind the scenes that we can't see and 00:42:53.570 --> 00:43:00.909 we don't understand. Whatever God has promised 00:43:00.909 --> 00:43:04.570 you, believe for it right now. Don't doubt it. 00:43:04.710 --> 00:43:07.650 Don't let the enemy try and confuse you and tell 00:43:07.650 --> 00:43:10.210 you a lie to you and say it's not happening. 00:43:10.670 --> 00:43:13.869 Repute the enemy right now. Submit yourself therefore 00:43:13.869 --> 00:43:16.929 to God. Resist the devil and let him flee and 00:43:16.929 --> 00:43:20.670 he will flee from you. But trust in God. Trust 00:43:20.670 --> 00:43:21.750 in the Lord today.