Brother Gary Sunday Morning 5/6/12

Brother Gary Sunday Morning 5/6/12

Rev 12:1  And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

The Church is the redeemed clothed in the New Testament and standing on the truths of the Old Testament.  She wears a crown of stars: the apostles and all of the redeemed. 

Isa 51:1  Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged.

It is important that we never forget what God delivered us from.  Everyone that was ever born was dead in sin because of Adam’s sin.  All have sinned and come short of the Glory of God.  It is important to know where we’ve been delivered from.  It is not the thought of “We didn’t go to the depths of sin and darkness.”  As long as we were in sin we had the potential of going to that depth.

Isa 51:2  Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.

Isa 51:3  For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

Where ever life has led you, it never leads us past the place of needing comfort.  Every one of us looks back on our life of sin and there is a season where we realize, “I’ve wasted so much.”  To the children and all that are here, take advantage of the opportunity that you have to get saved when you are young and stay saved.

Wilderness like Eden: As far as God is concerned everyone that is here has great potential.  A young boy, sixth or seventh grader, was telling me of what he had been diagnosed.  I said, “I doubt that.”  Not to put questions in his mind, but people put handles and labels on others that if they let it, it will limit them their whole life. 

When one comes to Christ, a whole new world takes place, a whole new life.  God brings us to Eden, He 

gives new lives to those that have never produced for God and were filled with husks, thorns, briars, and thistles; new life in the place of a life of weeds.  When Jesus Christ comes then a whole different farmer begins to work with that soil.  A whole different type of seed, the seed of the Word of God is sewn. 

Isaiah 51:3 The Desert becomes as the garden of the Lord:  This is definitely designed to be taken in a spiritual realm.  The things the follow start with joy.  Everything that God did in creating the earth He saw that it was very good.  The word good means: joy, beauty… this Word brings joy to our heart.  Having the seed planted and growing in our heart brings joy. 

Just the fact that you begin to till up the garden and work the soil is an identity that you are going to plant some things.  If you in this audience have experienced the plow, if God has gotten into your heart with a sharp tool, if you have a dandy-lion in your life and you feel the sharp tool, then it may be painful but you’ll be glad when you have it taken out of your life.  We know how it is, the longer that you leave a dandy-lion the more that you will have.

Rom 14:17 the kingdom of God produces joy.  I know that everyone in this audience has experienced an onslaught of spirits in the world today that want to take away your joy, your hope, and your happiness.  There is a God in heaven on His throne that has ordained that Zion have joy.   We are thrilled that we have come to Zion and are climbing Mt Zion.  It is ordained that as we climb our joy overflow, the more victories the more joy. 

Joy and gladness: It is a wonderful thing to have our sins forgiven.  It is wonderful to have our names written down in the Lambs Book of Life and to have brothers and sisters to pray for us.  The reason that we make it through is because we are a part of the Body of Christ, of which Christ is the head.

Part of the Old Testament teaching is being thankful to God. We don’t want what accompanies unthankfulness.  God wants us to be very thankful.

The voice of melody, Is 51:3, is words with music.  Only God can give us a song.  God wants to give us a song.  We are thankful for the Hymnal, and the Evening Light Song Book, all the good special songs, the choir songs, and the choruses. 

There is another song, the song of the redeemed.  It is set to music.  There are harmony parts and melody.  This song that God puts into our heart starts from heaven and comes into that heart that has been redeemed by the blood of the lamb. 

We are still in the Old Testament looking to the Gospel day and that woman, the redeemed that have sought and received salvation and presented themselves a living sacrifice.

“Dead to sin and worldly pleasure, dead indeed to sin am I, but alive to Christ my savior, daily to Him I’m drawing nigh.”

“I surrender all, I surrender all, All to Jesus, Precious Savior; I surrender all.”

“I don’t know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day…
Many things about tomorrow I can’t seem to understand,
But I know who holds tomorrow and I know who holds my hand.” 

Don’t let anything take your song.  You have to let your heart and soul sing.  It is a choice. 

We can choose to say, “God you promised a song in the night so surely there is one in the day.  Lord, you’ve done so much, but I need a song.”  It is wonderful when that melody comes down out of heaven and your heart begins to sing.  All the birds have a different song yet God made them each that way. 

Let your soul delight itself with that music coming down from heaven going across your soul and that song of praise of the redeemed.

We are blessed to be clothed with the garments of praise.

Eph 5:1  Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

It is so sure, the highway is so certain, when you follow God.  If you follow your own heart you will be disappointed, if you follow man you will be disillusioned.  In the spiritual realm we are blessed to have the mother, the Church.  We are blessed to have a spiritual mother.  If you have a literal mother that loves you then you are a blessed individual.

Our heavenly father, our earthly fathers may be gone, to think that we can have a heavenly father and we can be His children.  Will you let Him be your father?  He said to walk in love as Christ loved us.

Eph 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

Before you and I could ever send up a sweet smelling savor to God, His son did for us. 

Eph 5:3  But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;

Eph 5:4  Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

Eph 5:5  For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Eph 5:6  Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

Eph 5:7  Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

Eph 5:8  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

Eph 5:9  (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

Eph 5:10  Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

It is important that you and I act upon this scripture.  “God help me to know that is acceptable to God.”

Eph 5:11  And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

Eph 5:12  For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.

Eph 5:13  But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.

There are no secrets with God.  There are a lot of things that you and I may not know.  We don’t even ask to know some things, but God says, “I am going to manifest that which needs manifest.

Eph 5:14  Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

Eph 5:15  See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

Be careful that you walk in wisdom.  Don’t be hasty with your words and attitudes. 

Eph 5:16  Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

May God help you and me to use this widow of time for Him.  Each could say that, “I would be further up the road if I had paid less attention to whatever it was and more attention to God leading me.”  Whatever it is, pay less attention to that and more attention to where God is leading you.

Eph 5:17  Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

It is important that we seek God to know what the will of God is for us.  There are undoubtedly certain things that God wants you to do this week.  It is important that you be clothed with willingness and an attitude to want to do what God says.  The thing that overrides a schedule is when God speaks. 

Eph 5:18  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

Eph 5:19  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

Eph 5:20  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Speaking to yourselves in psalms: the depths of the Psalms has never been determined.  Oh the depth!  It is good to keep a psalm. 

Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

 We are to edify each other in love; that is as one is edified, it edifies the whole body.