Bro Gary Wednesday Evening 4/4/12

Bro Gary Wednesday Evening 4/4/12

It is a marvelous thing that we can have God draw upon us and speak to us.  God is faithful, but the wonderful thing is when God speaks to us and we are ready, hungry and thirsty and His Word becomes alive. 

Psa 63:1  A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;

For all the prayer requests that we had the month of March and those previous: the best counsel that we can give people that we are praying for is to “Seek God early.”  This is also the best counsel that we can follow ourselves.  Always seek God early.  When things are developing in our lives, when burdens and plans are developing, seek God early.

The most important thing that we will need tonight, for Easter, and for Vacation Bible School is to have sought God early.  Vacations and other plans are not bad, but it is important to have sought God early. 

The hunger of our soul is made real when God the Father and Jesus draw upon us.  We never want to reach the place in our experience where we feel that God draws upon sinners but not on us.  We want to keep climbing.  We don’t want the attitude that we have arrived.  We want to keep the attitude:  “We want to keep climbing the mountain spiritually.” 

There have been times when we find our self exhausted, yet we find ourselves needing to climb.  There are heights ahead and I don’t want to homestead here; I want to climb the mountain.  At those times, God comes and draws upon us and gives us strength to climb.

We have hopes of people being here Sunday but not only do we want them to come; we want them to be convicted and converted.  The need is men and women getting saved.  It takes God.  It takes His power and His Spirit.

Psa 63:2  To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.

Psa 63:3  Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.

May God help you and me to never allow a silence that needs to be broken.  May God help us to praise Him for what He has done, for what He is doing and for what He will do.

Psa 63:4  Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.

Psa 63:5  My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:

Marrow and fatness to me does not refer to an outward part that is tangible.  Marrow refers to our bones, something inside us.  We have been blessed.  Another winter has almost passed by but none of the saints have burned out and none of the saints were involved in a tragic accident.  God has been so merciful. 

We can thank God for protection.  We don’t know what comes down that highway or up and down that alley.  We don’t know what is up the canyon.  There are people in this county like all counties that have mean, evil spirits.  We have much to praise God for.  He has been wonderful. 

We all have literal blessings.  We all are undoubtedly asking God to take care of some literal things for us.  David’s thought was, “God I really need some help in my inner man.  I need God to bring something real to me of spiritual content.”  It takes God to bring something to us.  We cannot borrow from one another.  It takes God.

Psa 63:6  When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.

Psa 63:7  Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

Psa 63:8  My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.

“My soul followeth hard after thee” – obey carefully.  David knew this, but he wrote it again: “Soul, follow hard after God.”  It isn’t a lack of knowledge tonight; sometimes we need a quickening of our spirit and of our knowledge.  “God help use to obey in the little things so that you will be pleased to flow through us, use us, lead us, and direct us.”

You can count on God.  “Thy right hand upholdeth me.”  He had done it, and does it, and He will do it again.

It is wonderful that Jesus paid the price that He could draw all men unto Himself.  John 12:32. 

It doesn’t matter who comes to your mind, He can draw them to Him.  Jesus positioned Himself that He can go to the vilest sinner.  He can go to the emptiest religious person.  He can go to all these people that have a defense system up: “I’m an atheist; I don’t believe in God.”  They have a defense system up.

No man can come except the father draw them.  The Son and the Father have the same attitude that they want to draw all men.

Ecc 4:9  Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.

Ecc 4:10  For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

Ecc 4:11  Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone?

Ecc 4:12  And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

I thought of your requests when I thought of the threefold cord.  I have utmost confidence that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit will draw upon their hearts.  The Bible bears out that we have a cord. 

Ecc 12:6  Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.

Isa 54:2  Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

As I was praying, everyone in this audience has one or more family members that they are praying for and that is good, but God told me that I need to pray for more than my family.  “Lengthen thy cords.”  I don’t know what part of reaching a soul is my responsibility, but I want to be responsible to that part. 

It is sad when people know what is wrong with everything out in the world yet they don’t read the Bible.  I really believe that.  It is our responsibility to make our calling and election sure.  Don’t any of us think that just because we go the Church of God in Paradise that we have a free ticket to heaven.  The Bible teaches to study to show ourselves approved unto God.

I know that God is drawing on souls.  We were in the presence of God this week.  There is no question that the Father and the Son is drawing on souls. 

God spoke to David, ‘may you obey God carefully so that your petitions are not hindered.’  You are important to God.  When you open your heart and say, “You have laid a soul upon my heart.  Help that soul and help me to know how to carry this burden.” 

When you look at a precious life: those that are not saved, their lives are messed up.  Only Jesus can help them.  When I think of you and me as we go to that soul and we carry that cord.  As we go to prayer, there is something within us, “Oh that soul…”  I want to lengthen that cord and draw on that soul with love.

Sin is terrible.  Stay true to God.

Blessed are the merciful.  Mercy blesses two ways.  When your heart reaches out to someone mercy blesses you, and think what mercy does to them.  There is no comfort in the world; there is no comfort in the courts. 

Jesus said to Peter “Lovest thou me more than these?” John 10:21

There are a lot of things that are out there in this world, there are causes that are not sinful but I’m not sure that God wants us to get mixed up in them.  God wants us to love Him more than causes.  Jesus deserves first place in our affection.  This loving Him means to Love him affectionately.  Jesus asked Him three times, Peter came to the point the third time:  “I love you ardently, with all my heart.”

Mar 12:28  And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?

Mar 12:29  And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

Mar 12:30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

Love Him with all your heart.  When it comes to your heart, don’t let your heart be wasted loving anything but God, His people, and His truth. 

Love Him with all your heart and all your soul.  There are a lot of strange spirits in the world today, don’t let any of them have spiritual inroads into your heart.

Love Him with all your mind.  I want to use my mind for God’s glory.  We need God to help us in our mind.  Our mind can become lopsided with cares and issues.  We must have God help us in our mind so that our mind is right on target 24/7. 

We must love God with all our mind and all our strength.  None of us have any energy to waste on things to no profit.  Use your time and energy well.

Mar 12:31  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

May God help us to love one another.