Sunday Morning Worship Service
by Anthony McCool
First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Nahum 1:15

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/anthony-mccool--sunday-morning-worship-service-103
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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thank you praise team thank you musicians and if you would keep that same Spirit as you make your way back to your seats and you can be seated I welcome each and every one of you to Sunday morning worship service here at fac Knoxville those of you in the house and those of you tuning in online we welcome you the same and if you're a firsttime guest we want you to know what an honor it is for you to be here worshiping alongside of us and we love you and we hope you feel the love of Jesus Christ manifest through the great saints of God here at fac now oille if you have your bibles if you would turn to me turn with me to the book of nahom chapter 1 and we're going to read at verse 15 nomap 1 verse [Music] 15 the word says behold upon on the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good time Tidings that publisheth peace that publisheth peace to Judah keep thy Solem Feast he said continue to celebrate keep your feast and perform thy vows for the wicked shall nor more pass through thee and is utterly he is utterly cut off the first part of that verse says behold up on the mountains I want to speak to you for a few moments this morning on the topic there is hope on your Mountain There's Hope on your Mountain would you pray with me Heavenly Father we thank you this morning for the opportunity to assemble together to lift up your name and to study your word father we know that iron sharpeneth iron and we know not to forsake the assembling of oursel together because we know that our faith is built when we come together when we worship together when we pray together when we serve together when we give together and Lord we know that you inhabit the Praises of your people and Lord we believe that you are moving up and down the aisles here this morning knowing and seeing the deepest parts of our heart Lord knowing the needs that we have that need to be met on this day and Lord by faith we praise you for them and put them in your hands knowing that you are exceedingly capable we thank you and Praise You In Jesus name we pray amen There's Hope on your Mountain this past uh week and a half ago I guess it was I had the privilege of addressing the great staff here at Apostolic Christian school and I asked for their Indulgence of I use a few of the similar thoughts from this talk and uh many of my thoughts are derived also from the great leadership author John Maxwell uh many of you are familiar with him who writes extensively about leadership in the workplace and in the family and every capacity of life and is uh does that from a Christian perspective and I highly uh recommend all of his work and it's a a great inspiration so I derived my title this morning though from the book of nahom There's Hope on your mountain and every one of us at some point in our life will face what is no less no seemingly with fret or weariness and at times fear a mountain in our life and it can look a lot different for each and every one of us and some of you under the sound of my voice are currently on the ascent up a mountain experiencing the confusion experiencing the trouble experiencing the uncertainty not knowing what necessarily lies next but you either climb CL the mountain and continue on praying and hoping for victory because quitting is certainly not an option and it's the only way forward then to meet the mountain head on I pray and I know we are continuing to pray this morning for my uncle uh Ron Dunn who's going through some extensive chemo treatment he made the statement as he started it if the mountain was smooth I wouldn't be able to climb it and I agree 100% and our prayers are with him as he climbs that mountain and we do so together mountain climbing is not for the faint of heart because the world's highest peaks are some of the most inhospitable places on the face of this Earth this hasn't stopped people from attempting to conquer mountains in 1786 the first climbers made it to the summit of Europe's highest Mountain Mont Blanc in France certainly quite a feet but there's a big difference between climbing the highest of the Alps at 15,771 FT and climbing Mount Everest the world's highest peak at 29,035 FT especially the days before Hightech equipment Everest is remote in the altitude in in capacities all the hardiest and experienced climbers the weather is ruthlessly unforgiving experts believe that the bodies of 120 failed climbers remain on the mountain to this day it's a journey that truly cannot be made on your own or by yourself I should say mauce Wilson who had snuck into Tibet and tried to climb the mountain secretly without the permission of the Tibetan government because he was trying to make the ascent quietly he hired only three Porters to climb the mountain with him and as they approached the North Cole those men who had great experience on the mountain who knew what dangers lurked ahead said you're out of your mind we're not going any further but Wilson decided to try to make the climb on his own and you guess it this decision caused him his life for 32 years between 1920 and 1952 seven major Expeditions tried and failed to make it to the top of Everest but George Frey an experienced Mountaineer this this Mountaineer this climber this expeditionist if you will he knew more than everyone else and he certainly knew more than the people that lived in that Community who knew the dangers that Mount Everest presented Ed he had been all over the world climbing and when they reached a certain altitude those who were helping him and those who were navigating the way for him said hey it's a good time now for you to put on your spikes he said I that's I I appreciate it y'all go ahead and do that but I know what I'm doing I'm the master climber to which once again you guessed it he slipped and fell 1,000 feet to his death refusing to adhere the advice of those that knew the dangers of the mountain and this was being written by the man who eventually reached the top Tenzing and he regretted regretted the man's death but he wrote often about careless climbers who did not truly realize what they were undergoing either through Pride or through uh relying on their own Talent or not seeing the need to have others with them he said they would assuredly fail if they did not recognize this and in 1953 tinzing embarked on his seventh expedition to Everest and during this Expedition his goal was just to get one person from the base camp of the summit to the top the team brought 10 high altitude climbers including the new zealer named and this name will be familiar to you Edmund Hillary and all together the men would require 2 and 1/2 tons of equipment and food and those supplies couldn't be trucked or airlifted to the base of the mountain they had to be delivered and carried on the backs of men and women 100 miles up and down the Himalayan ridges and over rivers crossed by narrow rope and plank Bridges to the base camp tinzing would have to hire two and 300 people just to get the supplies to the vicin of the mountain supplies needed by the party above base camp would have to be carried another by another 40 Porters helpers each a sherpa who we'll talk about in second who extensive Mountain experience the best third of that team then would continue working up the mountain carrying another 750 PBS of necessary equipment in 30 lb loads only tining and three other Porters would have the strength in skill to go to the highest camps of the summit one group would go and clear the path and use the resources so another group could then go and just get a little bit higher than them and then that group would come down and then another group would go in hopes that they could get a little higher than that next group all with the aspiration of if just one of them could reach the peak of Mount Everest for each level the climbers reached a higher degree of teamwork was required one set of men would exhaust themselves just as I mentioned for the next group two man teams would work their way up fighting fighting finding a path cutting steps securing ropes and when they finish they would have spent themselves hopefully to the extent of allowing a pathway for the next journeyman to continue on higher he said tensing you do not climb a mountain like Everest alone you don't climb a mountain like Everest trying to race ahead or by competing with the person next to you you do it slowly and carefully relying on the man or the woman next to you unselfish teamwork he said certainly I had personal aspiration of reaching the summit by myself and this is what John Maxwell highlights and he refers to it as the mountain way but he said even if I can get the person the next person up to the top I will receive and I have in my mind to receive just as much gratification and just as much joy if one of us can just get to the top he calls this the investment of the mount and away if if someone else got to the top I'm going to Rejoice just as if it were me if someone else got to the top even though it's my seventh Expedition I will be just as happy that somebody made it and I was able to help in some capacity that is the Mountain Way the Mountain Way investing maybe in our family and then the Next Generation and clearing a pathway that we ourselves might not able or might not ever uh reap the Harvest of the seeds we planted but knowing that we've cleared a path for the next generation and every single one of us under the sound of my voice who find joy and are merry in this beautiful complex of a sanctuary where I we lift our hands and enjoy the tremendous talent and the pray and worship only are we here because of precious saints of God of old who cleared a pathway for us who prayed and fasted and had tent revivals and had church services with no air conditioning and they rubbed nickels together just to pay the electric bill so before I get too high and mighty as I look into the lights this morning or whatever Ministry context that you serve in but before your talent just gets oh so magnified in your eyes as pastor says when I brush the angel dust from my shoulders it's more than likely dandruff you are only here because of someone else I was so touched by a word at uh a memorial service for my wife ell's grandparents down in shreport Louisiana the pastor of that church and the pastor uh preaching the sermon for the memorial service of her grandparents uh Pastor McGee made a very impactful statement and Kelly's grandparents are not individuals of significant financial means and they never wanted anyone to ever know but the pastor knew because of the giving but these faithful men and women of God whose names have never highlighted a flyer for a youth convention or names were never broadcast as uh being the special speaker at a camp meeting or Revival service but their life was committed in their giving to give to missions in such a tremendous way mission work across the world schools built churches built community centers built across the world that they would never never even see never even go to those worshiping in a a house this morning or on this day due to the time change because of their faithful giving those people not even knowing where the resources came from Pastor McGee said that he was on a a tour in a one of these large cathedrals in a European city and he asked the tour guide why are beautiful cathedrals and buildings like this still not being uh constructed to this day in the tour guide said well it's my opinion that men and builders and contractors want to see the fruits of their labor in this lifetime and these structures were built by Visionaries and Builders who knew that one section was built at a time in their life and then another architect would build upon it but to receive the magnitude and the beauty of this edifice it would be something that they would never see the end result and I say all that to say this I am so blessed to be a part of a church body and a congregation such as fa Knoxville who give and serve and invest in things that knowing that they might not ever even see the Revival that comes from it because the the great spirit of God and the moving of God and the Revival services that we are having I have no doubt that they started out at a prayer room and we're receiving the Harvest from them from a prayer meeting maybe in what we call the Advent center now or when some old saints of God were on their knees at 123 West Columbia they never got to experience they never got to walk in here and see it but in their prophetic vision and in their giving they said oh there's going to be a day when there's going to be some kids quest having Church on one end and there's going to be a Pia in the event center on Sunday afternoon and there's going to be a beautiful building that's welcome for all to come in and lift up that name that is high and lifted up above every other name and investment that might not ever be seen in your lifetime one of the greatest Inspirations in my life and I say this not because he's my grandfather and we're all aware of the tremendous Bible teacher that he is and we know that when he came to the city of Knoxville he had to cancel revivals year in and year out and he's preached conferences and camp meetings and all those things and that's great and I don't denigrate those for just for any moment but the greatest sermon that I've ever heard my grand Grandpa preached the greatest sermons I've ever heard him preach were at the memorial Services of great saints of God who he put whether there'd be 10 in the audience or 200 in the audience or 300 500 of the audience the same amount of effort in memorializing a great saint of God I understand and I wasn't able to be there and regrettably my my my sister ashon Pastor Nate there and their their dog unexpectedly passed away a few weeks ago and they they held a memorial service and would you know Bishop spoke and they said he had a sermon Fit For A King and like my grandpa does at all of these occasions he one particular thing that stands out to me at this previous Christmas he puts the same amount of effort whether it's in a memorial service or whether he's riding you a card or he's coming into your hospital room to pray that same dedication and that same passion he wrote to his great-grandchildren he said East I I might not ever get to hear you sing on the praise tee or Elanor I might not ever get to see you play the keyboard perhaps or Callaway if God would call you to to preach and we're going to have to really pray for him but we just we hope he stays in but he said if God should ever call you to preach I'm not going to be there but I hope that I've laid a pathway for you I hope I've given you a foundation I hope I've left you a legacy to know where to go when you're in trouble to know when you go when you're hurting to know that there is a God who loves you to know that his mercy and Grace endureth forever to know that no matter what you do there's a church family that's going to wrap their arms around you an investment in a day that you personally may not see the mountain way before that before I start thinking what a great preacher whatever call it what singer that I am we're only here by the grace of God through someone else Alex Haley the great author of roots said that in his office is the picture of the famed moral story of the turtle on the fence poost when asked the question how did that Turtle get there I the response is I don't know but he didn't get there by himself and he says he keeps that in his office so when he wins all of these awards for being a tremendous author and wins all of these awards for having the bestselling novels and the bestselling uh Journal presentations that everything that I do and everything that I've done is a product of someone else nahom 115 says behold up on the mountains the feet of The Messengers of Joy proclaiming salvation go ahead and put your your weapons away and continue what you're doing and and keep your feast and find joy and continue to praise and celebrate because there's a message coming down from on high that it's going to be all right Judah hears these Glad Tidings that its oppressor is utterly destroyed and this was an appeal to Judah The Watchmen who had gone in and fought at times and kept track of what was taking place they now came down and letting their voice reverberate from the high places as the they looked up at the mountain not knowing if an enemy was going to come over it the next morning not knowing if this would be their their last peaceful night but the messengers of Joy came down from the mountain and said hey there's Victory I've got an aerial Vision I I've got some good news for you that there is Victory and there is a message coming down from on high and Isaiah would use this literal description as a Messianic prophecy as well that there's good news from on high that there is salvation on the way no matter what the mountain looks like in your life there's going to be a day and a a savior that is able to remove it we know the song it's the blood that reaches from the highest mountain there there's good news maybe there's a sin mountain in front of your way there is a God who's ready to forgive you and whose mercy and Grace is new every single morning and The Messengers of Joy appear upon the mountain because their voice can be heard far and wide and those mountains are those of the kingdom of Judah and they're so high up that the first thing that you see is their feet oh and when I see their feet I know that good news is on the way they're at a higher elevation than I am they're able to see some things that I cannot they've cleared a pathway that I can get to but they did it so I could go up there and potentially go a little higher and they're there to tell us hey everything's going to be all right I've Got a Feeling everything's going to be all right there's there's Victory There's Hope and there's peace and I know a mountain sits before you but there are those that are higher up that's got some news for you and when we are faced with those Everest type mountains in our life that's when we should pray more than we ever have fast more than we than than we ever have and step up our level of commitment because it's going to be a fight we can't get too comfortable we can't take it too lightly what the enemy seeks to impose on us but the mountain can be climbed and when you have an size problem in front of you the greatest thing you could do is to find somebody who's climbed a mountain before the greatest thing that you could do is find somebody that's got a little bit of experience in mountain climbing we see this imagery of the mountain all throughout scripture and also is a literary device in our common vernacular as well that this High structure with inhospitable uh weather and unpredictable uh climate that can take our life just in a moment but we have to climb it to get to the top we have to climb it to receive victory in our life at Mount Everest if you were going to climb it the agencies that are used to lead the people to the top are called Sherpas and Sherpas are a Mountain Community in Nepal they live high in the mountains above 300 M and they work in the fields and live off the land they exist so high up that this is how their bodies have been trained they've been trained to breathe more efficiently at high altitudes their pulmonary blood pressure Rises less than other climbers because this is where they live at this is they've experienced it for so long in their lives and at 4,000 M the reduced air pressure provides 40% less oxygen than at sea level and this can lead to an accumulation of fluid in the lungs that can lead to high altitude sickness and death and that's aside from falling off the side of it scientific Studies have found that they have at least 10 genes that have adapted to high altitude living and their genetic structure reduces the negative effects of high altitude on the body there's a people who have such a certain level of experience who have endured this climate in their life for such a long period of time that they're able to think different that they're able to uh live different they're able to lead you to a place that you cannot get on your own and when you're in that mountain of your life and you're climbing and you feel like you're not sure what next step to take and you feel your feet are coming out from under you and there's great uncertainty in your life ah I'll mention it again I love youth conventions and national conventions and I'm not against them we're about to we're about to have a meeting for one and I'm for them I love camp meeting and a guest speaker coming in here and preaching the word and that's great but the greatest thing that you could do in your life is find a spiritual Sherpa find a saint of God and get beside them and say and I know that you've end Ed this I know that you've gone through this and I need your prayer right now I need you to take me to the next step and when I see that they made it and I see the victory that they have in their life then I know that I can as well Hallelujah I can't help but think when I think about spiritual sherpers and in my life just so recently sister darling Huffman went on to be with the Lord and she was in an absolute fight day in and day out and often times and she wouldn't even let you know what struggle she was experiencing but yet every time she was in the house of God she was out worshiping every single one of us and there was a picture of her that I that I have saved of her lifting her her hands up right in the face right in the face of the mountain and when I think about that and when I see that and I see modern day Apostle Paul's who say death where is thy sting I've got hope and Glory I'm facing I'm not quitting and I I I called her one day I called her one day I I was preaching a a a message about a lion's roar and how when that Roar goes out in the lion of Judah it just incapacitates the the the uh the pray then stops some right before you and I was comparing her uh praise to that and I I said Sister Sister Huffman would you care if I if I shared a a little bit of of your story and she said God's been so good to me she said God's been so good to me he communes with me every single day the only thing that I can do is get into his house and lift up my hands and when I think about spiritual sherpers like that when I'm going through the moments in my life where I feet feel like my feet are slipping a little bit and I don't know if I'm going to be able to continue on on this journey any longer I think of great saints of God like her and I I think of her Legacy and I know that hey I can make it I can make it she she took us a little bit further she cleared the path just a little bit further and because of great saints of God like her and because of her worship and Faith right in the midst of a giant then I know that I can too and every single person we all have people in our lives and great saints of God that we can point to who stepped right into the shadow of the Giant and said I'm going to raise my hands and as the praise team Sayang I'll Raise A Hallelujah right in the presence of the mountain right in the midst of the enemy and I'm going to make it I'm going to make it and I thank them today oh you ought to give God praise because you wouldn't be given any praise if it wasn't for somebody else if it wasn't for a pray mama or a Praying Grandmama or somebody who sacrificed their resources for you to be here where you're at this morning we're only here here because somebody made a way for us these spiritual sherpers who n called these these ones that they bring good news from the mountain good news that hey it's going to be all right I know you're having some some sleepless nights and I I know you're enduring some weariness but that sorrow though it may last through the night there's joy coming in the morning there's joy coming in the morning you're going to make it and there's hope praise team and musicians come bring good news from the mountain and that's what we're called to be today using our testimony and the things that we've gone through as a witness to somebody else with our hand extended to somebody fa send them out in their life to say hey you're going to make it hey we're going to go through this together there's good news let me tell you a little bit about what I've been through there's Victory let me let me tell you a little bit what God's done for me there's joy on the other side if you won't quit if you won't throw in the towel I I promise you I promise you we can can get through this we must be merchants of Hope and I was so encouraged by the last chapter Pastor Whitley's book There's Hope for Temptation There's Hope for whatever Mountain you're facing hope is one of the greatest gifts we can give to those around us and we must not underestimate its power I'm not talking about not facing the realities that set before us but I'm talking about doing the complete opposite being ready for the challenge and doing it together praying and fasting and interceding on the behalf of others and saying hey I'm I'm here with you I might not have the the right words and I I might not know what the next step is but I'm going to pray with you and I'm going to believe with you and I'm going to offer you hope it takes a great leader to exhibit hope when Winston Church Hill recognized the value of hope he was Prime Minister of England during some of the Darkest Hours of World War II he was once asked by a reporter what his country's greatest weapon was against Hitler's Nazi regime without pausing for a moment he said it's what England's greatest weapon has always been hope people will continue working people will continue struggling people will continue fighting if they have hope hope lifts morale it improves self-image it re-energizes us I'm not talking about we've all seen that Meme of the the the dog who's sipping a cup of coffee while everything's on fire and he's said oh it's fine it's fine that's not what I'm talking about this morning I'm talking about having a mindset and a determination that I'm going to face some great mountains in my life or you're currently facing a great mountain in your life but I want you to know don't do it alone you're not by yourself and I I might not have the right words and I I might not know what the next step is as I mentioned earlier but we will do it [Applause] together whether it's a fellow saint of God or a family member somebody I I know who struggling with something we must do it together we can be two types of people and there's only two options we can either be somebody who lifts people up or we can be someone who takes them down are we going to be the embodiment of the Holy Ghost wind beneath the wings G giving those the ability to elevate a little higher or will our words and our actions be the anchor on the boat I close with this story during the Olympic Games they did a special interest story on uh some of the canals in Paris and this uh this is is true for many port cities and canals before uh modernday conveniences of disposal of waste in all different capacities much of the waste and the g human waste and the garbage was just disposed onto the street or into the canals but they said there was a season of time when the merchants of incense the merchants of fragrance would come with their boats coming to sell and that as these boats would begin to dock when these boats would begin to open up the goods they had for sell the incense and the fragrance that it would completely change the dynamic and the atmosphere of the entire place people who by all accounts walked around with a foul stench in the air were Suddenly uplifted by this beautiful Aroma from these merchants of incense so much so that people started planning their celebrations and weddings and social Gatherings and the town squares would come even more alive because the merchants of incense were coming oh and there would be uh festivals that would take place and people would begin to track and Note and get excited oh there's the merchants of incense I couldn't help but think that that's exactly what God has called us to do to be merchants of incense and every single capacity when I walk into situations that there's a foul sension a an aroma that's taking place that merchants of incense can step in and come completely change the atmosphere oh where there was waste once present or Garbage once present the merchants of incense came in and completely changed the dynamic of their surroundings we must be merchants of Hope in all capacities in everything that we Face we must not be the the the one of oh I guess this is going to be it for us or I don't know if anybody is going to be able to come back from this or I I just you know I have my doubts absolutely not defeat should never be the language of the Victorious child of God you should be the one with boldness who you have dominion and Authority through the name of Jesus Christ to say hey we're going to call on the Lord on this situation and we're going to believe that he's going to make a way when there is no way we believe that he's going to perform a miracle in this situation we believe that there's going to be provision take place in this situation yes there's confusion yes it's cloudy but a merchant of incense has just stepped into the room and the complete atmosphere is going to change the aroma is going to change and now though my hope it seemed lost there's a spiritual Sherpa right here with the hand outstretched saying hey I think we can get a little bit higher oh I I think we can get you a little bit higher not have the posture oh I told you they weren't going to make it I told you they would never make it oh I saw this coming with that one oh no you got to be there with your hand extended out saying hey we love you nothing you've done is too bad for the blood and our arms are wide open stand with me I want to open this altar this morning to any person who's facing a mountain m in their life to any person who has begun the ascent of the mountain in their life where you don't know what your next step's going to look like the the weather has been in uh the weather and the climate has been so treacherous that it's caused you to have sleepless nights and you've missed meals and you've had a great deal of weariness but what I want you to know this morning when you step to this altar recognizing that mountain in your life the one thing I can promise you I can't I I can't promise you you're not going to have to fight I can't promise you you're not going to have to exert everything you've got but what I can promise you is when you come to this mountain at this church you're not going to go alone and when you step forward there's going to be somebody with you with their hands outstretched with you saying hey we're going to get through this together whatever you're going through I'm going through I'm going to stand in the gap for you I'm going to fast on your behalf I'm going to pray on your behalf I'm going to sacrifice on your behalf and I'm just believing that God is going to pour out his Spirit oh and I start hearing those Messengers from on high I start seeing those testimonies from time past when those great saints of God who were facing Giants on the battlefield had their hands lifted high and saying it's time to fight it's time to praise it's time to Rejoice there's good news from on high there's good news from on high there's hope there's hope there's hope yes Jesus come on my soul oh don't you can't sh me lift up your soul cuz you got a Ling inside of those L give him praise the Lord would you pray with somebody find somebody to pray with find somebody to pray with don't know what somebody going [Music] through some the [Music] Lord come on my Soul oh don't you get child up your soul you got speak hope speak Hope to come on right now we're going to make it we're going to make it it's going to be all right on my be up your oh it's going to take a fight it's going to take your energy you're going to make it you're going praise the [Music] Lord oh would you find somebody to pray with find somebody to pray with I beg you you're not going through this alone you're not going through this alone there's hope there's the Earth Will shout your praise our hearts will cry these HS will sing great are you Lord all the Earth Will shout your prise our hearts will cry these throngs will sing great are are you [Music] [Applause] Lord you're in the right the right going to be all right it's going to be all right we're going to make it we're going to make it there's a path clear for you there's somebody in the house that's already experienced what you have through their Liv know that there's Victory know that there's trial and they made it so you can make it you can make it to make soul don't child be LIF up your soul you got a lion inside of those us get up and praise the Lord I ask you with 100% participation this morning if we could lift that sweet incense up to heaven and just absolutely change the atmosphere in this house everybody praying where you can hear yourself praying oh and let that prayer of Hope go forth with whatever stench is in the air with whatever waste the enemy came up with oh there's a sweet incense of hope that's going forth that's changing the atmosphere Lord with thank you today for your word we thank you today for your blood we thank you for salvation we thank you for the good news on high Lord we lift this incense up to heaven knowing knowing that it fills your nostrils knowing that your presence is coming down right now knowing that you're touching and moving and working and healing and providing Lord we thank you this morning yes Jesus you we thank you and to you are all let that you deserve the glory oh there's a change taking place you deserve it Lord you're worthy of it