"When Disappointment and Deity Meet" | The Apostolic Connection
by Kenneth Carpenter

Kind: sermon
Scripture: Luke 24:30-53, Acts 2:1-4, 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/kenneth-carpenter--when-disappointment-and-deity-meet-the-apostolic-connection-pastor-ken
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

------------------------------------------------------------
Now, can I tell you something? Disappointed people this morning. Deity will meet with you whether you ask for him or not. God is with you whether you realize it or not. There's a lot of us today that really don't realize how much God has been with us throughout our lives. You you you begin to look back and you begin to note now God was with me in that decision and God was with me during all that. But but see they didn't know that this was God Jesus manifest in the flesh. And so as he's just going to go on, they said, "Wait a minute. We want to invite you to come home with us." As much as I would love to be able to articulate and so move you today to give your heart to God, I can't do it. Disappointed people must give an invitation to deity to come home. You have got to want to come out of the situation that you're in. You have got to want and believe that God can break the chains and God can turn the circumstances around. I don't know when's the last time I felt joy. I don't know when the last time I've been whole inside. But I'm here to tell you, deity, would you come and mingle with my disappointment? I've been through a divorce. I've been through bankruptcy. I've been through cancer. I've been through betrayal and all these things. But I'm calling on deity this morning. Deity, come and flood. come into my soul and flood my soul. They they gave an invitation. I have never I have never been fond. I have never I have never smiled upon people. I it is always grieved my heart to see uh other people go back and try to get folks to come to the altar and and and and go back and try to pull them to the altar. And I want to say stop. If it's not in their heart to come, it's no good. You're just embarrassing them and making them possibly do something that's not in their heart. So this morning, disappointed person, if you want an invitation of deity, you've got to give it. He was going on. He was like he was going on himself. He didn't say, "Hey, I'll go home with you." He had more to reveal to them. Oh, yes, he did. But he went as though he would just go on. And it was them. They reached out and said, "Hey, wait a minute. The day is late. Why don't you go ahead and come on home with us?" They gave an invitation. They invited him to come home. Then in verse verse number 30, verse number 30 said, "And it came to pass that as he said at me with them, he took bread and blessed it and break and gave to them." Now they invite him. They still don't know who he is. They invite Jesus to their home. They still don't know it's Jesus. Disappointment and deity. They still don't know. And they invite him to their house. And he sits down and the bread is set on the table. And he blesses the bread and he breaks the bread and he gives it to them. And look what happens in verse number 31. And their eyes were opened and they knew him and he vanished out of their sight. You see, anytime you give an invitation to deity, get ready for a revelation of deity. You will never invite him in unless he will then reveal himself to you. When we reach out and invite him in, then all of a sudden, he begins to reveal, "Hey, I'm greater than your problems. Hey, I'm greater than your darkness. Hey, I'm greater than your depression. Hey, I'm greater than your sadness. Hey, I'm greater than what you've been going through, man. I feel the resurrection power. I feel the resurrection power here this morning. I feel that resurrection power. I feel that resurrection power. You see, he break bread. He sat down, took bread and blessed it, and break it and and I can just imagine this. He hand it to them and just like that their eyes were open and they knew that it was him. Jesus. I don't know if they even got the complete name out. Jesus. And all of a sudden, he's gone. He's gone. He vanishes out of their sight. He's gone. He vanishes. The scripture says, "I'm not I'm I'm truly sticking to the text." Jesus, he vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, "Did not our heart burn within us while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" And they rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem and found the 11 gathered together and them that were with them. And you know what they did? Revelation will always move you to the crowd where Jesus is appearing. Now notice that religion won't move you, but revelation will move you. When they were eating bread and he he their eyes were open, they knew it was Jesus and then all of a sudden he's gone. They said, "Didn't we have heartburn? Didn't our hearts burn within us when the stranger begin to tell us about the scripture? That's the same thing that may be happening right now, but it may be just a stomach that is in knots. Or maybe a throat that can't be cleared good. Or maybe you're like me when I was going to church and I didn't know the Lord. Maybe it was tears that I had to be the macho guy and every now and then reach up real quickly and go. But did not our hearts burn within us? They said when he talked to us about the scripture, didn't our hearts burn? And they said, you know what we need to do? We need to go back to Jerusalem tonight. And so they went that seven mile trip in the middle of the night. And they went that two hour that two-hour trip back in the middle of the night. And when they they knew the house to go to. And when they got to the house, the other apostles were there. And man, something was happening. The midnight oil was burning. There was a church service that had went past 9:00. I mean something would happen to her and when they walked in the tomb from Emmas when they walked in all of a sudden they heard somebody Simon Peter say I saw the Lord he is alive. See what revelation will do to you? Revelation will take you from a place of disappointment and put you down in a house of worship and others around you are saying I was on crack cocaine but God delivered me. My marriage had been dissolved, but God brought it back. And and and I was diagnosed with an incurable disease, but Jesus healed my body. And I was such a lonely person, but God came in. Can I This gets, you see, it just gets it just it just gets better as the story goes on. And all of a sudden, they come in and take a seat in the back. Simon Peter's up telling how he's seen the Lord. And some others are up to the Mary Magdalene and she's up testifying how she's seen the Lord. And then it got quiet for a moment and the two fellas that were on the road to Emmas that were disappointed. But deity met them. They stood up and they said, "Now it's time for us to testify." I mean to tell you we were going home disappointed. We were absolutely in despair without any hope. Stranger came, followed us to our house. We invited him in. It's the Lord. It's It's the Lord. It's the Lord. And the Bible says that while they were speaking, while they were speaking, the Bible said in verse 34, saying, "The Lord is risen indeed and appeared to Simon and they too and they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in the breaking of bread. And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, "Peace be unto you." Can you imagine that here? Everybody's in a room gathered together late at night. And may I say on the third day late at night because I believe there's some people here that gave God a chance on your situation. And you gave up while the sun was shining because you you painted God in a corner and said, "He's got to move by 12:00 noon." But this is late at night. But I would remind you it is still the third day. And late at night on the third day, they got together and got to have a little church. And Simon said, "I've seen him." And the two on the road to Emmas said, "I've seen him." And that's as much that's as as much as deity can take. Because the Bible plainly says, "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am in the midst of them." And when Peter started saying, "I've seen him." And the two on the road to Emmas started saying, "I've seen him." That was too much for deity. Deity said, "They're talking about me. They're praising me and I'm going to show up in the room." And so without the knocking of a door, without without somebody going to a door, they turned around and there stood Jesus. Peace be unto you, he said. Well, you can imagine when they turned around, you can imagine what went through their minds and they were terrified and afraid and supposed that they had seen the spirit. And he said unto them, you see, they thought it was another world. Everybody say another world. They thought this is the spirit world. This is another world. That's what they really thought. They were terrified and afraid and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, it that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me have." And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. But I think he wanted to go a little further than that. He He's trying to prove that he's in a glorified body. He's trying to prove. Please listen to this, church. He's trying to prove I have overcome. I'm the same Jesus. It is finished, but I'm not finished. It is finished, but I'm not finished. He's trying to prove I'm not a spirit. I'm not from another world. Here's my hands. Here's my feet. And then, I don't know if that made any sense or not. So then he says, "And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet." Verse 40. And while they yet believed not for joy and wondered, he said unto them, "Have you have you here any meat? Have you got something to eat? Is there do do you have any meat?" Verse number 42. "Any do you do you have anything to eat?" They gave him a piece of broiled fish and of a honeycomb. Verse 43, please. and and he took it and did eat before them, and said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. And he said unto them, "Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem, and ye are witnesses of these things. And behold, I send the promise of my father upon you, but carry ye in the city of Jerusalem until you be endued with power from on high." And he led them out as far as to Bethany. And he lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to pass while he blessed them, he was parted from them and carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen. You see, when you meet deity, it's never over. When you meet deity, you never come to an end of deity because now the disappointed people meet deity. They go back to Jerusalem and they see Jesus again. And then he tells them, "I'm about to leave, but I want you to go back to Jerusalem. I want you to stay here in Jerusalem, excuse me, and wait for the promise of the father." You see disappointed people when you start walking with deity it just gets better as you go on with deity. Religion wears off. Religion causes you to have to put a f a phony fake front on. But not salvation. A true relationship with Jesus doesn't wear off. It's not something that you've got to put on hanging around your neck. It just gets better and better and better. I wish somebody would help me love Jesus in this house today. How do you think it must have felt? How do you think it must have felt when those two disappointed disciples on the road to Emmas find themselves being told by the risen Christ that they were to go back and wait in Jerusalem until they be filled with the power from on high. How do you think it must have felt when the two from Emmas and Acts chapter 2 and verse number one, they were there? I told you. I told you that whenever you get into Jesus, it just gets better as you go. It does. It's not religion. It's not the phony stuff. It's not this fake it till you make it gospel. All right? that that may do good in other other areas of your life, but it doesn't do good in religion because we're not going to fake it till we make it. We're going to have faith it till we make it. All right? That's what we're just going from one victory to another victory. One one victory, man. I I our hearts burn within us. He gave us just a flash of revelation. We saw him in his glorified state and now here we are. He's ascended up into heaven and we're waiting for this thing called the Holy Ghost. And in Acts chapter 2 and verse number one, and when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they and I'm doing no harm to the scripture to tell you that the former men on the road to Emmas, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them clothed in tongues like as a fire, and it set upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. You think it's good to have him for dinner? You think it's good to walk with him on a path of disappointment? You think it's good to have him for dinner? You think it's good to stand in an upper room and see him for a few moments, but wait till he fills you with his spirit. That will never be taken away from you. Just somebody just help me worship him this morning. I get overcome. I get overcome with this savior. I get overcome with this savior. I get overcome with this savior. I get overcome. I I make no apologies. I I make no apologies to you today as pastor of this church, but sometimes when I'm preaching about Jesus, he's so real in my life. We cannot see him, but he's here today. Can you imagine what it must have felt like? Because having the Holy Ghost was a greater thing than having the visible appearance of Jesus there because he had to identify with you through flesh. But when he filled you with his spirit, he puts his DNA in you. That's right. You can't make it on your own. That's right. You don't have the power to turn your life around. That's why you're in the mess you're in now is because you don't have the power. But oh, the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is that great divine nature alteration. That's what the the Holy Ghost is. All of a sudden, I can't explain it. I can't explain it. But all of a sudden, they burst forth speaking in a heavenly language as God gave them the utterance. Would you think that would be as good as it could get? Oh, not so. You see, this gospel has the has the endurance factor. It has the ability to go with you because as time begin to go and as Christians begin to die, 1 Corinthians 15:51, they were expecting Jesus at any moment to return in the clouds of glory. But when it didn't come and it didn't happen and Christians begin to die, the Holy Ghost inspired Paul and Paul said, "Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump. For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that that is written, death is swallowed up in victory. What's the greatest enemy of you and I this morning? Death is the greatest enemy of you and I. But oh when you are a dis when you are a person that was disappointed but deity mingled with your disappointment you're able to say oh death where is your sting oh grave where is thy victory the sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law but thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, be therefore my beloved my beloved brethren, be you steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. For as much as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. You would think when I got the Holy Ghost and I spoke in that heavenly language that that's as good as it gets. No, it will go on with you through life. And should you begin to see death on the horizon, you do not have to lose your faith because he was victorious over death, hell, and the grave. Because something's going to happen one day. The Lord is coming back in the clouds of glory. In the moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump, the dead are going to rise. Come on, somebody give him praise in this house now. First Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians 4 and13. I'm telling you, when deity and disappointment meet together, 1 Thessalonians, excuse me, 4 and13. But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that you sorrow not, even as others which have people have no hope are disappointed. Which have say it again, no hope. Verse 14, please. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you, hear me disappointed people. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Verse 18, please. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. You know, Christians today, can I just tell you what can help us get our minds off of our troubles and get it on something that is factual? The coming of the Lord is a fact. Friend, whatever you're going through today may be true or it may not be true, but I'm here to tell you the coming of the Lord is a fact. And if you're a child of God, you want to be comforted. I don't know if your finances are coming back. I don't know if your wife is coming back. I don't know if your health is coming back. I don't know if your children are coming back. But if you're a child of God, I know Jesus is coming back. I know he's coming back. I know he's going to split the clouds of glory.