Strength of Christ

Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

We have all been endowed with physical strength, some more than others. We have also been given mental strength; many possess incredible skills under pressure because of this...while these strengths are afforded us, we are still limited.

We cannot do EVERYTHING...we can do a few things, maybe even really good and some things, but in order to do ALL things, we need the strength of Christ. Paul understood this. He knew that the things he was involved in, the sacrifices he's made over the years of his ministry were all because of the strength you can only find in Jesus.

Have you embodied the strength of Christ? If so, why aren't you doing anything? If you can do all things, but choose to do nothing - there's something wrong about that! The Lord has given all of us exactly what we need in order to do His will, defeat our enemies, and maintain victory.

Romans 12:3 - "...as God has dealt to each one of us a measure of faith..."

The Lord didn't extend dominion and power to you for nothing; He's waiting for you and I to rise up and do what He has commanded.

Came Back Seeing

John 9:5-7

5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said this, he spat on the ground and made some mud with the saliva. He smeared the mud on the blind man’s eyes 7 and said to him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated “sent”). So the blind man went away and washed, and came back seeing.

Jesus promises to touch the thing that hurts the most

One of the most sensitive areas of your body is your eyes…we know other sensitive areas, but I’m keeping this above board! Our body naturally protects our eyesight.

Jesus realized that this was the problem, and He went right to the issue, He never beats around the bush – this keeps many from coming to church, and even those who come to church, this keeps you from the altar, because we don’t want Jesus touching stuff…

John 4:15-18 

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” 16 He said to her, “Go call your husband and come back here.” 17 The woman replied, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “Right you are when you said, ‘I have no husband,’ 18 for you have had five husbands, and the man you are living with now is not your husband. This you said truthfully!”

Healing in Action

James 2:17 

17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself.

Now, in our main text, the man was blind – in fact he was born blind…it is interesting that Jesus covered what was already not functioning!

The man is already blind, so why would God cover his eyes? Have you ever been to Jesus, asked for something, only to end up worse than where you started?

Matthew 15:21-26 

21 After going out from there, Jesus went to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that area came and cried out, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is horribly demon-possessed!” 23 But he did not answer her a word. Then his disciples came and begged him, “Send her away, because she keeps on crying out after us.” 24 So he answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and bowed down before him and said, “Lord, help me!” 26 “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs,” he said.

She believed that Jesus could do anything, heal anything, but she also believed that Jesus would work with anyone, only to find His initial resistance and rejection!

It’s a test beloved – how desperate are you to find what you’re looking for from the only One who can give it to you?

-        How long are you willing to pray?

-        How long are you willing to fast?

-        How long are you willing to attend church consistently?

Just how desperate are you? This blind man allowed Jesus to put spittle in his eyes! Even though that wasn’t the healing…he wasn’t healed, until he was told to GO…and he obeyed and WENT!

Mark 2:10-11 

10 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I tell you, stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.”

Mark 5:18-19 

18 As he was getting into the boat the man who had been demon-possessed asked if he could go with him. 19 But Jesus did not permit him to do so. Instead, he said to him, “Go to your home and to your people and tell them what the Lord has done for you, that he had mercy on you.”

This directive from God is found in the Great Commission!! ‘…GO ye therefore…’

Many times, healing, deliverance, salvation, only happens when you get up and GO!!

Pool of Siloam

Jesus told this young man to go and wash in the pool of ‘Sent.’ This is where Jesus sends every last one of us…He always sends us to a place and / or in the direction of someone GREATER than ourselves! He sent him to a pool – why are you steady trying to dive into a bowl, when the Lord has provided a pool?

-        Why would Jesus send a blind man to another blind man?

-        Why would Jesus send a poor man to a place of poverty?

-        Why would Jesus send the backslidden to someone spiritually weak?

-        Why would Jesus leave you to your own devices?

He will always send you higher, greater, farther – but this requires MORE…

Matthew 17:18-20 

18 Then Jesus rebuked the demon and it came out of him, and the boy was healed from that moment. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why couldn’t we cast it out?” 20 He told them, “It was because of your little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; nothing will be impossible for you.”

Lastly, the man came back…seeing!

Faith took him there…he received no help from anyone, not even the Lord…and God brought him back seeing!!

Faith makes the journey, so that God can provide the miracle!

2 Corinthians 5:5-7 

5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Great Impact

Mark 9:49-50 
49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves and have peace with one another.”

You have to be very careful with salt. If you use too much on your meal, it will destroy it – salt has immediate impact on things!

It’s not only a flavor component, it’s also a preservative…before refrigeration, many would cure meat with salt to preserve the meat…salt acts as an anti – deterioration element…in other words, things last longer with salt.
Salt is also a healing component…you can rub salt into a wound and stabilize that area that was cut or bruised, it can stave off infection as well…

Matthew 5:13 
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

Jesus proclaimed that Salt is who we are…this is our purpose in the KOG…to be the Salt of the earth! Salt makes an impact!

A Haunting Reality

One of the things in life that can haunt us mentally is coming to a place where we question – ‘Am I wasting my time?’

- Job related
- Marital
- Financial Investment
- Church Involvement

This haunts people because without an impact, the temptation to believe that you are worthless or useless is more likely.
This can be solved when we simply check our progress honestly…we get into problems when we look at the energy used, rather than the impact created.

Isaiah 49:4 
4 Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain; Yet surely my just reward is with the Lord, and my work with my God.’”

The real question is, are you making impact? When it comes to serving God and doing His will, how effective are you?
Just because you call yourself a leader, doesn’t mean you’re leading anyone or doing anything…you can have good intentions and / or great expectations, but without impact – it’s a joke.

Proverbs 13:4 
4 The soul of a lazy man desires and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.

On average…people today spend 10 hours daily…fast asleep. Productivity of the human mind has decreased nearly 45% from 2003 – 2017…
The notion of getting things done has been replaced with, “I’ll do it later.” Obesity has risen in our country as children under 16 years of age spend 80% more time indoors than outdoors…

My point is, how do you expect to have impact when you give yourself over to laziness?
Let’s bring it back to the KOG…what does the Lord want you to do? What are your plans to bring it about? Do you have a plan? Or are you just waiting around for God to do something?

Lack of Impact

The other side of this, is many overwork themselves because they measure progress by the energy spent, but neglect to measure impact.
Our eyes are much bigger than our capacity to handle things, we get overwhelmed, and eventually burn out. Our complaint then, is, “I’m doing all this work, and no one appreciates it!” The truth is, you’ve over-extended yourself and whatever you gave yourself to has no successful results!
Let me introduce you to the ministry of NO…

Luke 10:38-42 
38 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”
41 And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. 42 But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

If you’re not careful, you will be run ragged by people from all different directions…you’ll take on all these projects, but get next to nothing done…ergo, your effectiveness for impact is non-existent!

Jesus basically told Martha – pick your spots girlfriend! You’re running around for what? Why don’t you come in here and join us!

In the KOG understand that it’s more impacting simply being with Jesus rather than working for Jesus!! Too many equate holiness with labor…that’s not true!
Busyness has never equaled holiness…sometimes, you must tell people NO…it’ll set you free.

There’s strategy to making an impact…this is why, as your pastor, there are things we do and things we do not do! It’s more than being heard or recognized, I want to make an impact, which means, I want to make a difference in someone’s life.

Revivals / Impact Teams / Discipleships / Conferences / Homecomings / Concerts – all of these make a significant impact in your life…this is why we keep doing them!!

There are some things we tried, and they were effective at first, then became unfruitful…(Easter Egg hunt) / (Hell house) / (Back to School Celebration)
All of these were good in the beginning, but lost their impact over time, so I had to move on…why spend our energy on something and not reap what we have sown?

We are the salt of the earth – a people of impact…make your life count for Jesus!!

Tasteless Salt

Jesus said, “If salt loses its flavor, how then shall it be seasoned?”
In other words, once salt is no longer salt, how can it regain its flavor? But the real question is this, how can salt NOT be salt? How can salt lose its potency? It has to be diluted.

If you take in pure salt, you can immediately taste its impactful flavor, however, if you mix salt with something else, like water, it loses its impact.
You are born again, however, the moment you mix with other things that are contrary to the KOG, you lose your impact. It’s hard to serve the Lord and sleep with the world!

1 John 2:15-16 
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world

Purity and righteousness are the keys to a life of impact in Jesus Christ…

Leviticus 11:44 
44 For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

We are called to be holy…to be holy is to be set apart for the Lord and His purposes…this is true impact.

You can make impact, no matter your background, color, creed, etc.…God can and will use you for eternal impact! Don’t be afraid, don’t run away – stand firm in Christ, and allow Him to use your life for great Impact!!

Don't Get Caught

1st Thess. 4: 2 - 5, "...for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God"

Have you ever found yourself in a compromising position? One of the first things that should come to your mind is, 'How in the world did I get here?' and the second thing that should come to mind is, 'I should've listened to pastor!'

One of the issues with immorality is, you don't have to go looking for it, it comes after you - it's design is to destroy your testimony and ruin the future you have in Christ. This seems to be a constant issue with men and women in the house of God who desire to date. Now, there's nothing wrong with being interested in someone and building a relationship with them...the hope is that relationship will blossom into something powerful and romantic...however, building this relationship without regard for your testimony or integrity is foolish.

You cannot and will not build a quality relationship on hormones, lust, feelings, and uncontrolled passion. I know you're the anomaly and the exception to the rule, but the truth is...YOU'RE NOT!! People much greater than you and me have fallen to temptation because they've put themselves inside situations that in the end, cost them dearly.

Don't be alone, passion runs deep. Never carpool to church alone, it's a set up...don't fall for it! All communication stops at 10pm...late night talks are very 'interesting.' Until you're married, your lips belong to your mother, aunt, grandma, sister, etc...not her SIR! O, there's truth ala vice versa as well sweetheart!!

I'm here to let you know that a powerful, meaningful relationship is accessible, if you would only concede to will of God and take the guidance of His man of God for your life.

Don't get caught with your pants down!

#Unafraid

Job 11:13-15

13 As for you, if you redirect your heart and lift up your hands to Him in prayer—14 if there is iniquity in your hand, remove it, and don’t allow injustice to dwell in your tents—15 then you will hold your head high, free from fault. You will be firmly established and unafraid.

God has called you and I to be a people who shall live without fear. Our world is failing, people are dying, sin has run rampant in our schools, homes, communities, politics…the design of hell is to produce so much despair, that even the very elect would be shaken…but what God has promised, shall not be rescinded by the affairs of this life. We, the Potter’s House shall be unafraid.

Boldly

Hebrews 4:16

16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

If you call yourself a child of God, why don’t you take your life and living to the Lord in prayer? What is keeping you back from Him?

Some shy away because they’ve been told that they’re not good enough…you haven’t paid your dues and are unworthy to enter into His presence…this is a lie from hell! You are a child of the King!

John 15:7 – 7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.

It’s amazing how many Christians in this church do NOT believe this. Having an understanding of this will change your life / prayer life forever. You wouldn’t run to other sources for strength, hope, comfort, etc. if you truly understood this powerful truth.

Matthew 11:28-30

28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

(Esther 4:11, 5:2) – her confidence was in the fact that she knew the king loved her…don’t you know that the Lord loves you? Go boldly to the throne!

Will you be the one to take a stand for Jesus and go forward this year: will you shed your excuses and make some advances…Jesus has given you all of the necessary tools to keep going, grow stronger, get higher, and last longer in His name…amen!!

P H O P

What an incredible weekend and opportunity to make God famous! Our church had the wonderful opportunity to set up in the Pasadena Health Fair and witness the power of God to our hurting community. 

I was so proud of the church that took their Saturday, weathered the storms, came out to the event and ministered to nearly 1,300 people! There were so many people saved and delivered; we are truly blessed to be a part of such a powerful thing for Jesus Christ!

Acts 16: 10 - "Now after he had seen the vision, 

immediately WE..."

This is what church is all about; working together, seeing people saved and lives touched by the mercy of Jesus Christ!

Now is the time people, we cannot sit around and argue and debate over doctrine, church fights, and nonsense...it's time to rise up as the people of God, the "Called out Ones" and preach the gospel to every living creature.

My friend, people are dying and going to hell, what are you going to do about it? It's time to fight and rescue as many as we can! I'm just so thankful that God chose my family to come here and see this great harvest...

Our youth gave up their comfort and volunteered to wear costumes to help minister to the kids that came to the event. It was so special!!

 Our booth was set up right in the middle of the action; several families came through - well, they had to! You had to visit EVERY booth in order to qualify for free presents...it's a nice feeling having people come to US instead of the other way around!

Revelation 22: 17 - "The Spirit says to the church, whoever is thirsty, let him come...whoever is thirsty let him come and drink the water of life"

The Gospel Confrontation

Jeremiah 20:7-9

7 O Lord, You induced me, and I was persuaded;
You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.
I am in derision daily;
Everyone mocks me.
8 For when I spoke, I cried out;
I shouted, “Violence and plunder!”
Because the word of the Lord was made to me
A reproach and a derision daily.
9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,
Nor speak anymore in His name.”
But His word was in my heart like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
I was weary of holding it back,
And I could not.

At the heart of the gospel, is the good news that Jesus Christ died for the sins of mankind…however, in order for that to be the good news, we must be made aware of the bad news! The Lord Jesus Christ always confronts our present conditions…conditions of our heart; this way, we can turn away from our sinful disposition, and know why.

How Shall they Know?

Romans 10:14

14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?

This very truth of the gospel is what divides many religions and faiths. Believe it or not, there are ‘Christian’ churches who have rejected this principle altogether.

They have simply given up on evangelism, or have stopped completely.

We live in a world of the offended: to keep the peace, many God-fearing churches have sacrificed their zeal for God in order to please men.

Matthew 24:9-11

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

Luke 6:26

26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets.

Understand this truth – the preaching of the gospel will make people upset. Jesus told us that this will happen…no one wants to be told about their shortcomings, and conviction isn’t something people rush into feeling!

This unchurched generation makes excuses for why they won’t attend church…

-        It’s boring

-        All the preacher wants is your money

-        I don’t need church to go to heaven

-        Church is in my heart, not in a building

The truth is, if you’re absent from Church, you’re absent from the conviction that comes from God through church.

Yet, it’s really sad when, even the church of Jesus Christ is sorely lacking in this conviction! If you’re not convicted when you come to church, it’s for 2 reasons…

1.  You’re so cold, God can get through to you

2.  The authentic, convicting preaching of the gospel isn’t found

We have been called by God to preach the full gospel and in doing so, there will be, no, there must be conviction given by the Holy Spirit!

John 16:8

8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

Standing for Truth

It’s been said that if you won’t stand up for something, you’ll fall for anything.

The church of Jesus Christ needs men and women to stand up and declare the gospel! This is in – your – face, personal evangelism! In other words, we’ve been called by God to tell it like it is!!

Acts 7:51-54

51 “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, 53 who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

54 When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.

It was a brave thing that Stephen did…it cost him his life, but his death was heaven’s gain. He went out like a soldier, like a real man of God…telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

I’ve often wondered how that episode touched something deep inside of Paul (Then Saul), that day?

We read his boldness in preaching the gospel, I wonder if the seeds of the gospel were sown into his heart all those years ago.

I’ve had people come to me, that I haven’t seen since high school, and they tell me that they’re saved and live for God, and always express gratitude for me standing up and preaching when I was in school…what about your impact?

Are you going to sit idly by and watch your family or friends die and go to hell and you say nothing? I hope not.

Shut up in my bones

Text:

9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,
Nor speak anymore in His name.”
But His word was in my heart like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
I was weary of holding it back,
And I could not.

Jeremiah was obviously discouraged, but his love for God, and their relationship spoke louder than what he was going through, and he simply couldn’t hold in the Word of God! Can this be said of you?

Will we only tell people about Jesus whenever things are alright in our world, or no matter what?

Are you filled with the Holy Ghost? If so, His word will stream from your heart and you’ll be a witness for sure. There is a boldness and passion that only His Spirit can give to you and to me.

Let us be a people who will speak His Word, live the truth of it, and make known to the world the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Mark 16:15 – ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every living creature.’