Sunday Morning Worship Service
by Anthony McCool
August 15, 2021 · First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:44, Psalms 89:20, Matthew 26:30, Psalms 133:2, 1 Samuel 16, Galatians 2:20, Micah 7:8

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/anthony-mccool--sunday-morning-worship-service-183
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 and musicians you can be seated across this house i welcome each and every one of you to first apostolic church of knoxville there is no place like fac knoxville on a sunday morning i believe that why don't you give the lord a hand clap for that fact alone and all of you joining us on television and on the live stream on youtube or maybe you're pulling it up archived a few days later we welcome you this morning and we are here celebrating the risen savior who is alive today and we have resurrection power that's flowing through us by him and that is our purpose and that is what we celebrate today i give honor to this fantastic congregation if you didn't hear bishop earlier you want to be here on wednesday evenings i'm not going to attempt to describe his sermon titles again his pronunciation and his enunciation if you will is much better than mine and he's much more brave than i am so uh but you do not want to miss wednesday night it's been absolutely fantastic i give honor to pastor mccool pastor whitley welcome home pastor whitley he got to go to germany and i got to go to arkansas which is fantastic no offense to any arkansanians whatever i'm not sure but it's a it's a yeah it's a special special place but it there's nothing like being here in knoxville tennessee if you have your bibles uh two verses of scripture for our key text and then we're going to bounce around in these passages a little bit but the first one mark chapter 14 verse 32 and then we're going to look at luke chapter 22 verse 44. mark 14 32 says and they came to a place which was named gethsemane and he saith unto his disciples sit ye here why i shall pray and in the book of luke chapter 22 verse 44 states and being in agony he prayed more earnestly everybody say earnestly and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground i want to speak to you for a few moments this morning on being pressed for a purpose pressed for a purpose right where you're sitting if we could just pray one more time over this sermon and let's open our hearts today for what god has for us from his word mighty god we thank you today we enter your courts with thanksgiving this morning thanking you for the opportunity that we have to assemble together to lift up your name and singing and fellowship with one another and to study your word lord let your word sink deep down into our hearts let us leave here transformed and inspired knowing that we have resurrection powers through your name and through your sacrifice we thank you and we praise you in jesus name we pray amen pressed for a purpose to the east of the city of jerusalem there is a small mountain called the mount of olives it's 300 foot above the city and on the western slope of the mount of olives is a garden on the slopes of the mount of olives the lord chose this place outside the city walls to commune with his followers not only was it a suitable place for private prayer and fellowship but it was also conveniently located by the path leading from jerusalem and the temple to the villages of bethany and bethpage which he often visited the garden on the western slope of the mount of olives was named gethsemane which its literal interpretation means oil press the actual historic setting was a place of olive oil production it was an olive oil factory and these groves of olive trees described behind me right outside the city of jerusalem with a press where they were harvested olives this is where they were processed this is where they were crushed and the precious oil olive oil was extracted under a great deal of pressure due to its close proximity to the temple this would have been the place where oil was extracted to anoint the priests before they stepped into their service at the temple it would have been the place where the oil would have been extracted to anoint a king of israel psalm 89 20 says i have found david my servant with my holy oil have i anointed him aside from the importance of this particular location in gethsemane olive oil was sacred during this time as the main oil used for anointing in religious ceremonies it was the fuel for lamps to produce light cooking healing medicinal sanitation all reliance upon oil derived primarily from the olive this place gethsemane which is made up of two hebrew aramaic words got seminai literally means olive press to this day olive oil is still pressed each year from the fruit of these ancient olive trees that still exist in gethsemane in order to extract the oil from the olive if i could personify olives had to go through an extremely grueling process a stone basin would be used as the olive crusher and it would crush the olives into a pulp a donkey would apply force to a horizontal beam which would in turn roll a millstone that would crush the round olives into a pulp type paste the millstone was designed to crush every bit of the olives including the seeds turning them into a mash that would fill approximately 15 baskets this was termed and deemed the crushing stage and it was followed then by the pressing stage and after this crushing the heavy stone slabs were lowered onto the olives gradually and the slab's weight squeezed the olive oil out of the pulp into baskets where they would be extracted into a vat or into a pit the olives underwent three different presses on the first press little to no pressure was added to the baskets and the olive oil would simply drip out olives being one-third oil one-third water and one-third mash the oil would rise to the top and this oil from the first press which was labeled as the best was labeled as the first fruits and the first fruits were the finest oil belonged to the lord and it was used by the priests in the temple a stone on the second pressed would be used and this stone would weigh approximately 500 pounds and it would gradually place pressure on the baskets and the quality from this oil on the second press would be used for food it would be used for medicine sanitation and personal hygiene and then on the third press even more pressure would be added and there was still oil left on this third press to be extracted and it would squeeze the remaining drops out of the oil and the consistency for this third press would be used for soaps and it would be used for the oil as fuel to illuminate lamps and this garden of gethsemane this literal oil factory would be the place as we know of ultimate surrender for jesus would lead his disciples to the garden following the last supper in jerusalem just before his arrest his trial and his execution it was during this supper that they shared the biblical passover meal at this communion he continued to reveal himself to the disciples he reiterated to his followers what his divine mission was how special his relationship was to them the coming of the promise of the holy ghost and he told them that the persecution that was upon him was imminent and the new covenant was going to be introduced by means of his broken body and matthew 26 30 it tells us and when they had sung on him they went out and to the mount of olives in mark chapter 14 you can cross reference this timeline to the other books the other synoptic gospels in 32 mark 14 32 it says and they came to a place which was named gethsemane and jesus told his disciples sit ye here while i go pray and he taketh him with he taketh with him peter james and john and begin to be sore amazed and to be very heavy and he saith unto them my soul is exceedingly sorrowful unto death tarry ye hear and watch and he went forward a little and fell on the ground and he prayed that if it were possible that the hour might pass from him and he said abba father all things are possible unto thee take away this cup from me nevertheless not what i will but what thou wilt and he cometh and he findeth his disciples he findeth them sleeping and he said unto peter simons and simon why sleepest thou could us thou not watch for one hour and he comes to them the second time and he says watch ye and pray lest he enter into temptation the spirit truly is ready but the flesh is weak and again he went away and prayed and spake the same words and he returned and found them asleep again for their eyes were heavy neither was they what to answer him verse 41 says and he cometh to them a third time and saith unto them sleep on now and take your rest it is enough the hour has come and behold the son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners jerusalem behind him rows of olives above him jesus would be captured in gethsemane the olive press we have this imagery of gethsemane on the slope of the mount of olives where jesus went the night before being crucified the weight of the sins of this world pressed down upon him like the millstone that would apply immense pressure down on the olives in their baskets many theologians suggest that it is no accident jesus came and found his disciples his watchmen asleep three different times symbolizing the three extraction presses of the olive our key text says and being in agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground and the lexus geographic commentary aubry taylor points out that the garden of gethsemane was located close to a road often used as a means of escape out of jerusalem so jesus could have easily slipped away down this road and disappeared into the wilderness that would have been the easy path but jesus took the hard way he took the way of the cross the way of the oil price and it's no accident that this is where jesus went to spend his last moments before going to calvary for jesus would be beaten jesus would be distressed and what seemed to be a place that should be known for betrayal would actually become the starting ground for the defeat of sin and victory over the grave this place of weariness and agony and this place of doubt this place where his friends and his followers who he performed miracles for where they would leave him and deny him and betray him and sell him out where his own people would commit treason to give him up this would be transformed into the place where a mighty ointment would begin to flow this lets us know that before a whip was ever applied to his body before a crown of thorns was ever placed on his head jesus was already feeling the weight of the sins of the world on his back and as mentioned olives had to be crushed and olives had to be pressed with a great deal of weight and though they thought they were crushing jesus though they were calling this king of the jews in a mocking manner all of his disciples had fled one of them had betrayed him and another denied him they asked him where are your friends at now jesus oh you're the king of the jews hey messiah what's happening now though they thought they were crushing jesus what was really happening is there was an extraction process that began to take place there was a crimson river in that garden of gethsemane that began to flow because we know the blood of jesus would cleanse all sin and under the law everything is purified with blood but without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins because we know in him we have redemption through his blood and he is the propitiation for our sins and it was the precious blood of jesus christ that the lamb without blemish or spot isaiah would tell us that he would be wounded for our transgressions and he would be bruised for our iniquities and upon him was the chastisement that made us whole and by his stripes we are healed every wound was an ointment for our sin every bruise oh i wish somebody was thankful for that this morning every bruise was a remedy for our weakness healing power forever flowed out [Applause] by his stripes and the starting point was the garden of gethsemane he was the messiah messiah means anointed one anointed with olive oil and jesus christ is god's olive tree and the holy spirit his olive oil and out of this suffering would be poured out to desired result his spirit would be poured out and it's going to pour until he meets us again in that same mount of olives where there will be healing forevermore but likewise god's people are compared to the olives for his people must have a transformation that must take place in their life to prove what is good to prove what is acceptable and perfect will of god paul would tell us in galatians i am crucified with christ nevertheless i live yet not but christ liveth in me and the life which i now live in the flesh i live by the faith of the son of god who loved me and gave himself for me and each and every one of us has pressures and stressors in our lives there are those under the sound of my voice this morning who you carried in today unimaginable burdens and weights that are indeed too heavy to handle you may feel this morning as if you were on that third press where it seems like the weight of your work the weight of your friends the weight of your family is all reliant upon you and the stresses of life and the pressures of life are all weighing down upon you and it's pressing you upon your back oh but let this wait be proof this morning that there is a divine anointing there is a divine ointment that's ready to flow out of you it appears the disciples spirits were so heavy it appears that their burdens were beyond their emotional capacity to hold so much that they had drifted to sleep three different times and right there in the presence of the messiah right in the midst of the word of god made flesh right there they would have been savvy of the geographical location as well where there was a road of escape or a road that this world would tell you is an escape but it would only bring more heartache and his mission wouldn't be able to be accomplished so i ask each and every person here this morning each and every person that decided and made a commitment to wake up and come to his house this morning regardless of what burdens regardless of what stress regardless of what pressing is taking place on you this morning i ask you what is your response and i ask you with a great deal of love and not in a means or manner of oh you just need to brush that off oh you just need to let it go i'm talking to people this morning who have real weights and real pressures that they live with each and every single day what will be your response when these burdens get too difficult will you drift away and fall into the spiritual slumber as the disciples did or will you turn to the methods of this world that says it is a quick escape or will you follow the path of jesus and begin to pray even more earnestly oh it but but it would bring more heartache to escape his mission wouldn't be accomplished if you decided to escape but will you pray even more earnestly and i want you to know this morning the greater the weight the more intense your prayer needs to be and i understand this morning there are people here with stories there are people here with all kind of physical ailments in their body who find themselves in unimaginable circumstances who find themselves in circumstances that i can myself personally cannot even begin to comprehend and i applaud you for your faithfulness there are individuals under the sound of my voice who you are enduring suffering you're enduring pain you're enduring affliction you're enduring physical and mental pain and i'll be the first one to tell you that i pray for the hands of a physician i'm so thankful for doctors and places and resources that we can go to to get help and i'm 100 for that and i would be there first and foremost with any need that i had but i'm also talking about bringing it to the great physician as well and i just want to know you might be here this morning and there's a financial pressure that's just weighing on you and your family and it seems that there's no escape there's parents and there's guardians under the sound of my voice who you're doing every single thing you can to provide for your children and to provide for your family working multiple jobs and the stress of life and the pressing of life it seems that you've just been pressed down to nothing and you're asking yourself is all of this worth it god i thought you called me to do this i thought i was in your will lord i thought i was being faithful to you but why am i feeling pressed oh i know we have musicians and we have singers and all kind of different ministries across this house where you prepare and you set the atmosphere for our services and many of you work all week many of you even go to school while you work and many of you have families you practice you prepare and you clean all hours of the night you get here for sound checks and meetings and rehearsals and all of these things can accumulate together where you feel like you're just pressed down to nothing god do you even hear my prayers where are my blessings at what is coming out of this high school students and college students and young adults who in many ways who you work in this world and you publicly live out your faith more than anyone else in a world that in so many different ways is contrary to the word of god and you're asked all of these different questions plus your studies plus your work plus the stress and the press of your family and all of these things accumulate together so many different occupations and vocations under the sound of my voice front line workers nurses hospital admin medical personnel police officers firemen all of our public servants teachers builders contractors whatever occupation you have some of you will leave here on this sunday and tomorrow in front of your eyes will be things that i cannot even begin to comprehend and you are called upon to make decisions and some of the most dire of circumstances and you're called to minister to families on the worst day of their life when a loved one has unexpectedly died and all of these things just begin to accumulate as a millstone that just begins to crush you over and over and then you're extracted again with even more weight and it causes us to question sometimes god am i actually in your will i thought you called me i've been baptized in your name i have your spirit within me but why do i feel so weak right now why am i in so much agony why have my friends left me why has my family abandoned me god i thought i was doing what you had called me to do all of the pressures of the day physical pain and you can find your mind in just a constant assault but he knows the way that i take when he hath tried me i shall come forth as gold olive oil production was so highly valued in israel in david's day special guards and protectors were appointed to safeguard the olive orchards as if they were silver and gold psalms 133 2 tells us it's the precious ointment upon the head that ran down the beard even aaron's beard that went down to the skirts of his garments and let this be a message to you that god hath anointed each and every one of you with his spirit with this same type of oil and you have his protection on your life from the very top of your head down to the soles of your feet and he knows he knows that there is something inside of you that is ready to flow out and he knows there is something ex inside of you that when extracted it's going to produce a mighty impact on every single individual around you and i just believe this morning through the word of god if you're here this morning and you're feeling crushed by a particular situation in your life oh you feel like you're oppressed oh let me tell you today the god you serve hasn't left you oh but there's an oil that's ready to flow out of you this morning oh the enemy thinks he's crushed you but pouring out is an anointing that has resurrection power in it and i believe there is an oi an ointment that will flow out of you and it's going to be used to shine bright in this world and you are going to be a lighthouse that points others to him the purpose the purpose and there's purpose in your pressing and he's divinely orchestrating you to fulfill his mission and they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and what else by the word of their testimony who's testimony your testimony you're crushing you're oppressing your testimony and they love not their lives unto death your life your testimony your story your oil from pressing is going to allow others to overcome when you show someone your wounds when you show someone your scars when you let someone in and see the transparency of your testimony it's a mighty ointment that just flows out and you're able to minister in such a manner that you would not have been able to without it the pressing is preparation for something greater david was anointed king of israel in 1st samuel 16 but he wasn't actually given the title and function for more than a decade later david killed goliath david had the gifts david was anointing at 17 years old but it wasn't until he was crushed by his calling for 13 years due to the daily pressing of a flesh-driven king until he was emotionally ready to ascend to the throne pressing is the preparation and maybe you feel crushed and pressed this morning because of a mistake that you made and maybe it was a series of mistakes that you made the enemy wants you to abandon your calling and he believes that he's got you stopped because of a mistake or he's got you stopped because of a relationship due to the circumstances of life we're beyond your control and he wants you to think that that way you feel is due because you serve a god who will not forgive you but if you and if i would understand this morning that there is regeneration power from the spirit of god and his grace is from everlasting to everlasting and there's an ointment that will flow out of your repentance saul and david both had the spirit of god they both failed saul rejected the convicting power of the word of god and refused to repent but david was rebuked by the prophet nathan and nathan repented when you repent of your sins when you acknowledge to god that you made a mistake there's a pressing and there's a crushing that takes place and out of that repentance there is a mighty there is mighty oil and a divine ointment that's going to flow out of you there's anointing that can flow even from self-inflicted wounds what does micah 7 tell us rejoice not against me oh my enemy when i fall i shall arise when i sit in darkness when i'm pressed when i'm crushed when i'm down on that third press where there's just nothing left in me there's an extraction taking place i'm going to rise and i'm going to be different than i was before what the enemy meant for evil god meant for good stand with me this morning my wounds make me minister in a different way my suffering allows me a different perspective my trials make me have more grace towards others than looking down my judgmental pious nose my crushing keeps my flesh in check and my pressing makes me realize how grateful i am for a god who created this world but he's not distant from us that has put all things in subjection under his feet for in that he put all his objection under him he left nothing that not put under him but now we see not yet all things put under him but we see jesus somebody say jesus out in the house who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor that he by the grace of god should taste death for every man he was pressed for you he was crushed for you and out of that oil it flows through you now when you're pressed now when you're crushed there's going to be an oil that you're able to overcome and that oil is going to impact every single person around you and your pressing isn't to take you it's to remake you and our pressing may look different and we may experience them at different points in our life but be assured you're going to have to make a decision are you going to pray more earnestly it might be for preparation it might be for humility it might be to just use you as a lighthouse that shines bright out in this world but there is going to be an oil that flows from that pain there's going to be an ointment flowing from that suffering there's going to be healing that takes place from that pressing that you are having to endure don't be weary and well doing oh for we're going to reap if you faint not and when you repent and you take on that name of jesus in baptism he is going to endow you with spirit from on high and he's going to send his spirit that oil and it's going to be from the top of your head down to the sole of your feet in abundance and running over and it's going to guide you it's going to heal you it's going to advocate for you it's going to comfort you and you'll be able to overcome whatever trial whatever tragedy whatever suffering takes place in this life and his spirit is the remedy and it will flow through you endlessly and there's purpose in your pressing this morning and there is something mighty that is ready to flow out of it so as we bow our heads across this place i wonder if this word is just speaking to anyone this morning you showed up here today by faith with unimaginable burdens heavy laden by the weights of this world it might be a situation within your family it might be a worker it might be a job situation but whatever it is you thought about taking other means to remedy it maybe it was an escape of this world maybe you thought about taking that escape route and backing up and turning away but i want you to know this morning we serve a god that is ready to keep you and he's ready to have something flow right through you and he's right there with you and he's forgiven you and he is not going to leave you oh as you pray this morning i wonder if someone would boldly just step out by faith and say i'm going through a crushing right now i'm going through a pressing right now but i'm determined i'm coming to your altar this morning and i'm going to pray more earnestly oh i know i've been crushed and i know i'm being pressed but i'm going to praise even more earnestly oh i know i'm going through some incomprehensible things that only me and god only know about i know my mind has been tormented and i haven't even opened up to anyone about it i'm getting i'm having sleepless nights and i don't know where to turn i want to invite you to this altar this morning and pray more earnestly rejoice more earnestly worship more earnestly turn it up another notch in your life and god is going to keep you and there's going to be an extraction from you you feel like you're on that third press oh but there's going to be a divine ointment that flows out of you and that oil is going to be used as a testimony to save others in jesus