The Gift
by Kevin Allen
July 17, 2022 · Centerpointe Apostolic Church (Murfreesboro, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Ephesians 2:4-8, Isaiah 65:17, Isaiah 11:6, Isaiah 2:4, Isaiah 11:9, Romans 8:18-21, 1 Corinthians 15:52-54, Jeremiah 31:31-33, Genesis 6:8, Romans 12:6, Romans 6, Genesis 12, Genesis 15:1, Genesis 15, Hebrews 6:13-14, John 1:1, John 1:14, Luke 1:30-31, Acts 2:1-4, Hebrews 6:17-19, 2 Corinthians 4:6-9

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/kevin-allen--the-gift
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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I want to preach to you on a very simple title today, simply titled my sermon, "The Gift." And today's message — we're going to do a little deeper dive in the word. Um, the word of God is important, so vitally important to our everyday life. And as I go through these scriptures today, as I read and begin to unpack what I feel like the Lord has for us today — um, we're an apostolic church, Pentecostal apostolate, that's definitely — if you're in service with us, you just know that we believe in being filled with his Spirit. We believe it's so important to be filled with his Spirit. But sometimes I feel like we don't fully grasp all that that is intended to be in your everyday life. So important, this gift that God has given us. And I, I feel led today to do a little deeper dive to make sure that we understand not just why, but how we are to use that gift in our everyday life.

So if you'll go with me to Ephesians 2. Paul — again, you've heard me explain this several times, and it's important when you, when you're reading the word of God to know the audience that was intended. He's writing to a church there in Ephesus, so these are folks who are not ignorant of the things of God. They have a knowledge of God and understanding. They've had an encounter with God. So Paul's writing to individuals who, who have had, had this experience there in their life, and they're, they're, they're working every day to be better. So listen to what he says. He says: "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ — by grace you are saved — and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace and his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." The gift is there.

God, I just want you to have your way in this service today, Lord. Your word that we read is already anointed, but will you anoint our hearts and our minds to receive what you have for us today? In Jesus' name, amen.

I want to drive home a very specific point, that salvation is God's gift to us. It is his gift. We are — we are saved by grace. We just read that we are saved through faith. But today I want us to see this truth rise up again in each of us, because I feel as though some here today may be seeing this for the very first time. And as you receive this gift I'm talking about today, I want you to know that it's not a one-time deal. This isn't something that you just experience once and you can talk about, "Hey, I — I've done that before." But this is to be active in our lives every day. This should be something that we, we desire to engage with on a regular basis. It's not a one-time thing, or an every-now-and-then, or only when I'm in trouble, or if I'm really sick, or if I have a family member who are — or a friend that's going through something. But that every day I'm engaging that Spirit that God gifted inside of me. It's important.

Did you know that God is determined to save you? I'm going to say that again: do you know that God has determined to save you, and that there is absolutely nothing that can stop you from being saved but you? Nothing else. You'll face no other enemy, no other foe, no other obstacle, no other circumstance can prevent you from being saved. Only you can stop you, guys, because God is determined, and he is, is about doing this by working through you. It is God's intention to give you the power to overcome every obstacle and every circumstance you will face in this life. There is absolutely nothing that can stop you from being saved if you'll put your trust in him and allow that Spirit that he fills you with to give you the power for every circumstance and situation. There is nothing you'll face in this world — there's absolutely nothing that you'll come against — that his power and Spirit cannot help you overcome. Oh, somebody ought to be excited about that truth. I just told you that nothing can stop you from being safe. Now, salvation is God's gift to me.

But it's bigger than that. Salvation is God's gift through me to the world in which I live in. Let me say it again, maybe a little different: salvation is for me — yes, it is. It is there to save me from the punishment of sin, yes. But it's bigger than just me. It's bigger than just my family. Salvation is God's gift to this world, and he chooses to use you and I to be that gift, that we are to be active participants in what he's doing — not just to receive something, to say that "I've got my ticket punched, I'm going to heaven." Yes, that is one part of it, but that is only the beginning of it. And I feel like so many people stop at the very beginning of what God is trying to do on you. This is more than you're just getting out of hell, but God's desire is to fill you with his Spirit, to give you that same resurrection power — not just as you go to heaven, but that you can be his mouth, his voice means his hands, his feet, everything to reach into his kingdom around, so that it can move forward. And I feel like so often times we simply are just satisfied with the fact that I'm not going to hell, when there's so much more to life than just that. He's filled you with his power and his Spirit for you to be an overcomer in this world. For what? To further his kingdom.

What does it mean to be saved? It's a good question to ask. What does it mean? If you've been around here for a little while, you've heard me express to you that I don't like the term "saved." "Saved" means something's already been done, but I'm still here — I haven't made it there yet. I prefer to use the term "I'm in the process of being saved," because I'm still working out my salvation, because every day I have the opportunity to either continue moving forward or to go backwards, and so do you. Salvation is not complete until we are with him, until he comes back to take us home. For some — and I, I said this just a few minutes ago — salvation is nothing more than being rescued from hell, or being rescued from an alternative lifestyle or addictions, or about — from, from bad relationships or from sin, which — which often equates to hell on earth for too many. Salvation is just about what it is that God does for them. But, but salvation is a very personal thing, and it's more than just your personal relationship. Because when you read through the scriptures and you, and you begin to realize that there's much more that happens in life if we move past the step of initial salvation — that we continue to move forward and where God is calling us to — when we read and see that there, that salvation is bigger than just you, life takes on a whole new meaning.

You know, the American way is, is, is this: go out and you have a dream, and you can start a family, and you can, you can build up a life. You can build up wealth, you can build up education. And there's nothing wrong with those things necessarily, unless that's the sum total of what you feel like your existence is. And if that's the case, and you — you have bought into a lie that the enemy has been sowing for years. God chooses — and, and I'm a big believer that as we live our life in obedience according to his word, that he will bless us abundantly. We are blessed people. But I think we often miss times misun interpret what the blessings are for. Yes, you can, you can, you can enjoy the benefits of a life well lived and, and, and, and following after the principles that are in the scriptures, but we cannot get away from the fact that God is always desiring for you and I to put the kingdom first, to seek after the kingdom first. There's something about you and I having the ability, by being empowered with his Spirit, to do things that we never, ever dreamed we could do because — because God's about stretching us into areas where we're uncomfortable, because in doing so we become relying on him, and I become dependent on him. It's not about my talent. It's not about my abilities. God has gifted me in some ways, but when I surrender to his Spirit drawing me, he takes me into areas and puts me in positions of influence that I would have never achieved by myself. And it's not so that

my name becomes something. It's so that his kingdom can be furthered. And I'm looking at a bunch of people today that I feel like you're misunderstanding the potential that you have. We are a powerful force that hell is afraid of, if we would ever wake up and understand that that power inside of you is there to further his kingdom.

Reading — I see Paul's idea of salvation was much bigger than often times you and I make it. Paul had a vision, just like you read about the Old Testament, as they were prophesying, talking about when that day of salvation was come. When prophets in the Old Testament talked about salvation, they talked and used language — it was very vivid. They talked about new hearts and God writing his law in their hearts as they began to understand their role and their part to play in the kingdom of God. But they seen this big picture as God was beginning to turn the tide in Israel, beginning to understand how important they were, as he was going to pour his Spirit out, that — that by saving and changing Israel, he would be changing the entire world. They were to be an example to the world around them. Now, had always been his desire. There, there is — there's absolutely, ladies and gentlemen, there's absolutely no way that you read this book and you can walk away with any other conclusion than this: that God's desire has always been for his people to be very uniquely separated unto him, that he is a very jealous God, and his desire is that we would always put him first. That's — there's no other way to read this, not if you take it it's entirety. Now again, you can take this book and you can, you can slice it and dice it up, and you can make it say just about anything you want to say. Doesn't mean that's what it was intended for. But if you go back to it, and again you remove your opinions and you just go back to the word of God and what the word of God has to say, there's no way you walk away with any other understanding of that: God was very specific about his desire for us to be his, his.

The Old Testament prophets — all day when God would save his people — Isaiah 65:17 says, "Before, behold, I create new heavens and new earth, and the former shall be redeemed nor come into mind." Isaiah 11:6: "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf of the young lion." This language is so vivid. Like, this, this is — this is not something that happens naturally on its own. You're talking about things that are, that are the enemy, the predator and the prey, lying down together. What's the prophet talking about? He's talking about a radical change that takes place when we get ourselves in alignment with God's will, purpose and plan for our lives. Isaiah 2 and 4: "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people, and they shall beat their swords into plowshares" — because there's not going to be a time to fight anymore. There's going to be a time of peace, a time of happiness, a time of, of joy. Isaiah 11 and verse 9: "They shall not hurt nor destroy and all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." These, these prophetic voices — as God was beginning to reveal to him his desire and his purpose and his plan for Israel — had always been to be a showpiece for the world to look at, as, as how you could live a life in obedience to God, and that life would bring about harmony and peace and joy and perfection. They saw that God was going to do this, and Paul recognized it also, because we see in Paul's writings, Romans chapter 8, he talked about the body being redeemed in verse number 18 of chapter 8: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with" — listen to this — "the glory which shall be revealed in us." Verse 19: "For the earnest expectation of creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subject for in futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope, because the creation itself must also be delivered from the bondage of corruption and to the glorious liberty of the children of God." Paul's saying this: the creation, from the very beginning, is waiting

in hope and anticipation for the redemption that's going to take place. And that hope and that glory is inside of you and I when he fills us with his Spirit. Creation itself stands with baited breath, just waiting for the moment that he's coming back to set things back the way they were supposed to be. Adam and Eve messed up in the garden. They ruled, they had dominion, and God had a plan and purpose, but man got things out of order, like oftentimes we do. And because of that, sin entered the world and they were kicked out of the garden. God didn't have to come up with a plan B, because God had a plan. God had a plan. God had a plan. We didn't mess it up. God had a plan. There had always been a plan of redemption, and I'm thankful for that plan. But it's much more than just you and I getting out of hell. It's about establishing a kingdom here where his reign and peace can be.

That phrase in verse 19, that earnest expectation — you look it up, a literal interpretation is: it waits on tiptoes for what's about to take place. Excitement — ever been around a little kid and they get excited, and they're just like, you know — so that's the way creation is waiting for his return, is waiting. Paul says this in First Corinthians 15: "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 this mortal must put on immortality. So that when this corruptable shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality, then shall be brought the past saying, and death — death is swallowed up in victory." We, we say this often times at funerals when people die and pass away, but this is a part of the promise that God has there. It's in this moment that was there.

Adam and Eve messed up. Then the blessing that God gave Adam, which was lost in the fall, was — God promised to restore through Abraham, which was secured through Jesus Christ at the cross, which he proclaimed to them at Bethany and set them out into the world to preach the same message of death, burial and resurrection, and the hope of his return, to bring about the final blow to break the curse of sin forever. What was said in motion, God said, "I'll take care of that, and there'll be no more death, there'll be no more tears, there'll be no more sickness, no more sadness, no more sorrow," to fulfill what God told Eve in the garden: that "I will crush the head of the enemy, and I will abandon stealing, hate, sin and hell forevermore."

Paul seen this, but he also had to start the conversion process and understanding in the church. This comes to pass when we get our hearts right, when we see and we understand that we can't do this by ourself. That God understood that we do — we have shortcomings. Did you know that we have shortcomings? We don't always end up working out the way it's supposed to be. This came to pass, though, when we end up turning and getting our hearts where they're supposed to be, we get it right. Israel couldn't do this. So many examples — and if you've read through the Bible at all, you read the Old Testament time and time again, you read the story and you're like, "Why, why, why did you go back? Why did you turn back? Why did you go back to the same thing that ensnared you time and time again?" But that same thing is playing out in our world today, all around us — even, even, even some there in this room. And we get ourselves stuck in the same situation over and over and over and over again.

But if you read Jeremiah 31, it says this in verse 13, number 31: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant about you" — but I'm so glad he made a new covenant — "with the house of Israel, over the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, which my covenant they break, although I was a husband unto them, saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord: I will put my law and their inner parts, and I will write it in their hearts, and will be

their God, and they shall be my people." I don't know about you, but who in here today is thankful that God is filling hearts? Who in here today is thankful that God is filling hearts — something that we could have never done on our own? I don't have to go to a high priest. I don't have to drag a sacrifice in. No, no, no, I don't have to do any of those things, because he — he changed, and there was a new covenant that was brought about, that gives you and I the ability that anytime I want to, I can boldly go behind the veil. I can go into the throne room of God. I can make my petition known, because Jesus Christ went to Calvary's cross and died for you and I, took the penalty of sin that you and I had hanging over our head, and he nailed those things to his cross and said, "I'll pay the price that you can't pay."

None of us in here are perfect. I think it's important that we acknowledge that. So look at your neighbor right now and say this — say, "I'm not perfect." And then say this: "Neither are you." No, no, none of us are imperfect. But man, if you could have seen me before God got a hold of me — if you could have seen us, if you could have seen — if, if I had a snapshot that I could throw up on the screen and showed you what it looked like before God got a hold of us — we got a whole lot of reason to be happy today in this place. No, I'm not perfect. No, I, I still got issues I'm dealing with. No, I still struggle from time to time. But if you could have seen where I was at when my God found me — I'm thankful that he didn't leave me in that state of affairs, but he said, "I'll reach down to where you are, and I'll pull you up out of the muck, in the mire, out of the mistakes, out of the failures, out of the labels that are there, and I'll put you on a solid foundation." Anybody thankful that we have a God that doesn't leave you the way he found you, but he's constantly working to help you change your life? Oh, hallelujah. Hallelujah.

I'm thankful today. Without a changed heart, we're not going to make it. I'm going to tell you right now: if you, if you've got religion, conversion — whatever word you like to use to describe that experience — that didn't change you, then you didn't get God, because God never leaves you the same. It's not just an emotional feeling. We're emotional beings, and sometimes Pentecostal apostolic churches get accused of being emotional, and I have to say, we have perfected the art of ramping you up in song. Oh buddy, we can put those bridges and those — whatever the other musical terms are — that we can shift it just right, and next thing you know, we'll jerk a tear out of you. We know how to do that. But it has to be more than just emotion.

Now I'm thinking — tell you, this word's feeding to get deep, and I feel like I need to plow just a little bit, because what I have seen in my lifetime of being around apostolic Pentecostal churches is that we got a lot of emotional junkies. Um, yo — okay, y'all gonna love me. We got a lot of folks that'll come up here and they'll shout and run and hoot and holler. They'll go up the walls and down the walls, swing on the lights. They'll speak in tongues — sounds like there's some kind of a convention going on in here. I'm for all that. I'm not against it. I was born and raised in this. You — you, I tell you what, if you make me uncomfortable in church, boy, you really had to do something. But I see so many people that year after year after year never seem to change. Okay — oh, they'll shout and they'll pray in Jesus' name, but the problem is, the sum total of their experience with God is directly connected to their emotions. In fact, for some people, I think they would choose the emotional feeling over God actually working a miracle in their life. I believe it. But here's the deal: this is why it has to be more than emotions, because there are some times in life when your emotions will lie to you. You know — you know what I'm talking about? Yeah. Now here's the deal: this group right over here — how y'all doing? We love you all so very much,

and we — so y'all just bless us when you get up here and you worship and you go for it. But here's what we know: your frontal lobe is not developed. That's not — and what does that mean? That means that you just do stupid stuff. You do. But guess what? I was there, and when I was your age I did stupid stuff too, so I'm real lenient in this group. It's these other groups I get a little frustrated, when you're still doing stupid stuff because your frontal lobe is developed.

Here's what goes on: this group right here who's struggling, they'll say things like this. "Come here, Blake. I love you." They'll say things like this. You know what they'll say? "I'm in love. I'm so in love." "You uncomfortable? No. Good. Come walk with me, then." "I'm in love. She's so cute. It's the one that's there forever. My life is just here." And they're dreaming all this. Now here's the deal: all of us have been here at one, one time or another. We've been here, right? And, and what was going on there emotionally? Why did we feel — if it felt right, didn't it? It felt — they write songs about this and make millions and millions of dollars about this. "Go ahead. Thank you." Yeah, you know, they — just a little sidebar moment. Now I'm 46 years old, so in my opinion I grew up with some of the greatest music ever. But now I listen to some of those songs and it's like a bunch of perverts wrote it, using terms like "little girl," singing those songs.

Now again, we're emotions. I know — I promise I'm gonna get it back. "Baby, I love you — I'll get it back, just stick with me. You're sweating, see. Bless her, say a prayer for the first lady up here — she's struggling." What I'm saying: your emotions will mislead you. Yeah. How many be willing to say that there have been times you felt very emotionally connected to something that was wrong? So guess — guess who knows that we're emotional? The enemy. And he loves to get you emotionally tied to something, especially when it's something that's wrong, because he knows, "If I get you emotionally attached to it, I got you." Because we will base things off of our feelings instead of the facts, and that's where we get in trouble. Because when our feelings go controversial, or are contrary to the truth, we get selves in trouble. Because there's going to come a time in your life — and, and I'll say, there's going to come multiple times in your life — where things going to happen that you feel like everything is falling apart and nothing's ever going to work out to you, when the word of God says that you're more than a conqueror. There's going to come a time in your life when your relationship should be to the point that, regardless of how you feel, you keep going back to the truth that is in the word, and you keep reading and reminding yourself, "I know I don't feel this way, but your word says this, so I choose — I choose — I choose to disregard my emotion in this moment and to believe what your word is saying about me." That's why he fills you with his Spirit: so that there are times that you can disengage the emotion from it, if you're some total relationship with God. And the only way you can truly stay on track is when things are ramped up on an 11 and everybody's shouting and hooping and hollering, and the choir was saying — well, here's a, here's the deal, guys: we have to leave this place and go out into the world. All right, the choir can't follow you around all day long singing songs just so that you can make it. At some point you gotta allow that Spirit that he filled you with to engage your mind in truth. Quit going off of emotion. Emotion will lie to you, but the word of God is true, always, in your life.

Now I'll bring that up for this, because I, I'm thankful for the grace of God in our lives, but man, grace has been abused in modern Christianity. I don't know that there's a word out there that has been more stretched, flipped, flopped, iron, creased, stapled, put together, then grace. What is grace? Well, I think the first way you look at that is to say that the grace is God's divine favor. In fact, the first time we encounter the word grace is in Genesis chapter 6 and verse number 8, referring to Noah, says, "But Noah found grace in the eyes

of the Lord." Every time the word grace is used in scripture, from Genesis to Ezra, it's in conjunction with eyes or sight. And that's a study — I just gave somebody a sermon nugget, you need to run with, go look it up. When we see that grace concept is used, in finding grace in the eyes of our Lord, like a father who's looking at his kids — you know, I love all y'alls kids, y'all. We — I mean, we got the cutest kids at Center Point. They are beautiful. But ain't none of them prettier, my three. Now they're a mess. They have their moments. But those girls have a special place in my heart. They have a way of talking to me, and you know, they usually get what they want, because they're my girls. Do they know this? Yes. Does it drive their mama crazy? Yes. Have I stopped? No, because they're my girls. That's when you see grace and understand favorite. His grace is: he looks at you because you're hiss. Well, somebody didn't grab hold of that. All right, we, we think we somehow disqualify ourselves. And here's the deal: do my girls frustrate me? Yes, they do. They have their moments. Does it change my love for them? No. No, it doesn't. I may not like what they're doing, but it does not alter how I love them. Now that's human love. God's word says that there is nothing that can separate you from his love. Nothing. So even in your darkest moment, when you've made the dumbest mistake of your life, when you've repeated that mistake time and time again, it does not negate his love. It doesn't take it away. Somebody needs to grab ahold of that today, because somehow you've convinced yourself that you're unworthy. You don't have to qualify yourself for his love — he just gives it. You don't have to qualify yourself for his love — he just gives his love. Now he doesn't — he doesn't like some of the things we do, but it doesn't take his love away. That's grace there.

The first definition here, by grace assembly, is: God saves us because he favors us. He saves us because he, he loves you. You are his child. Too many today struggle with the fact that God loves you. But God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. He loves you right where you are, right where you're at, write what you've done, write what you're going through. God loves you. God loves you. Did you know that he loves you? And the sooner you get your head around that, then you can start to begin to understand grace. Do you think that he extends to your love for you, and then realizes how bad you are, and pulls back? No. The truth of the matter is, he purchased flawed material willingly, knew he was buying a bad lot, but he went ahead and paid the price. That's, that's grace. That's one way.

The second way you look at grace is, grace is divine empowerment. Now, I read you a while ago that Noah found grace in the sight of the world, but Noah also needed ability, built a boat, because it was going to rain, and nobody knew what that was. Now, in case you didn't know — and most people have heard about Noah and his big boat — but did you know that up until Noah built the boat, it had never rained? Ever. They didn't — and there was no term for that. And Noah's saying to his neighbor, "Hey, hey, hey man, what you doing?" "I'm building a boat." "For what? We're not near any water." "Yeah, but water's gonna come out of the sky." "Oh, okay. All right, Noah, you're saying water's gonna come down, it's not gonna be in the river?" "No, it's gonna literally come right out of the sky." Okay. God had to give him empowerment to do the work he called him to do. Romans 12 and 6: "Having them gifts differing according to the grace that God has given us." Each of us have abilities that God desires to use — not to further your kingdom, but his. Are y'all okay? Y'all sticking with me? I promise we've got somewhere we're going to go, if you hang with me just another minute. God has given us individual gifts, that differing according to his grace, I have. And there have been many times that I have what I needed to accomplish what God wanted me to do. God was extending grace for me, to me, and giving me the ability. Because here's what: God will breathe on you and give you what

you need. So it's the second way you look at it: it's there to save, because he loved you; it's there to empower you. The third way is, is, is God's grace is to — uh, it is a divine covenant in your life. Now I need about 10 minutes to unpack this. Are you okay? It's 12:44, again with lucha clock, which means technically I'm still within my 15, 20-minute window. All right, so stick with me. I want to unpack something here for you, all right? Something is very, very important.

Grace is the divine favor. It's a divine empowerment. It's a divine covenant. Paul tells us in Romans 6 that we are not under the law, but we are under grace. What does he mean by that, grace? He's talking about a dispensation. Now you and I are living in the dispensation of grace right now, and I'm thankful for that. We're here. This dispensation is for administration, for the kingdom of God. Grace is a divine covenant — covenant, it is an agreement that God has made with man to save him. Grace is the guarantee from God that he will finish what he started. He won't leave you alone, but he will finish what he started. And if you allow, God is declaring that by his grace he will save you, he will save you for his purpose, and he will save you for his namesake.

So let me unpack this. When Paul is talking about grace in the New Testament, this picture that he has in his mind — if you read through Paul's writings — is, is in both — in Ephesians 2 and elsewhere, he has, always has in mind the story of Abraham that's in the Bible. Amazing story about Abraham. And in both in — when you read through his writings in Ephesians, when you read through his writings in Romans, when we read through his writings in Galatians, the central character and the story of grace is Abraham. He's got it in his mind. And I believe that when Paul thinks of Abraham, he sees the model of what salvation looks like. Now, most people know about Abraham — Father Abraham — if you grew up in church, you probably sing song about him. But if you don't, if you're not familiar with it, he shows up very early on in the Bible. And what's interesting is, is God says to Abraham that, though I'm — I'm going to reach down to where you are — but he, Abraham, was not the model choir boy. I think sometimes we think he was just this perfect guy that he picked up. But if you go into studying, when he pulled him out of er, er of counties where he was living, he, he was there in a very idolated, idolatry enriched situation. In fact, if you study that out, you'll see that he was there in the heathen pagan — his father was a maker of idols. But God reaches down to Abraham and speaks to him and says, "I want you to leave. I want you to leave your, your country. You leave your father's land, and I'm gonna, I'm gonna take you someplace. I'm gonna do something special with you." But he got a man that was deep rooted in, in, in, in, in, in, in a nation there with idolatry and sin.

God says to Abraham that, though, that "I'm going to take you, and through you all nations of this world are going to be blessed through you, Abram. Through you, you're going to be a blessing. Dawn, not about you." But if God is speaking to me and he said those things, it'd be hard to get your head around that. "What does that even mean, God? What are you saying to me? What are you, what are you, what are you talking about?" God says to Abram that "through you all nations are going to be blessed" — meaning that the blessing that Adam lost, the blessing of multiplication and nations being blessed, is — God's referring to the blessing that Abram lost — excuse me, that Adam lost in the garden. Adam lost it. He messed up. But God comes back around to Abram and says, "I'm gonna, I'm — what was lost, I want to restore back through you. You're going to be a blessing."

God says to Abram in Genesis chapter 12, "Follow me." And Abram leads the land of his beginnings, his land of his nativity, and he follows God through several cities, until he walks into the land that God says, "Everywhere your foot touches, I'm going to give it to you. I promise you, Abram, this is going to belong to you." Then God gives Abraham the promise that his descendants

being like the sand of the sea and like the stars of the heaven. This is all a beautiful thing, but this all comes back to a very critical moment in Genesis chapter 15. Something special takes place in Genesis chapter 15, verse number one. It says this: "After these things, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram, I am thy shield and thy exceeding greater reward." It was touched on the campaign this is, this past week: the promised land wasn't the reward. The promised land wasn't the reward. What was the reward? God was. It's, it's about the relationship. And I know I'm going slow, but please stick with me. Let's — yeah, I'm — I need about 3, 4, 5, 10, 18, 15 minutes. We, we missed — can you put that scripture back up there for me? You miss what the reward is. It's the relationship with him.

See, uh, we equate this oftentimes because of our humanity — and, and I'll even say it this way, because of our brokenness — that, that the, the, the thing that's good about my relationship with God is that I live a blessed life, that things work out for me, that I can pray and God answers prayers, that, that by obedience God blesses me financially, that the stuff comes my way. And, and here's what happens — we're all guilty of it — that we think that when things are going good, that my relationship with God is right, but when things go bad, that somehow I've done something and God is punishing me, when what we fail to often realize is: it's not what's either coming into my pocket or going out of my pocket. It's about the relationship. Now, some have lived long enough and been through enough in this room here, that you know exactly what I'm saying is true, that some of the sweetest moments you've ever had with God had been in the worst trial of your life. Now let me ask you this question: how do you possibly quantify the value of that moment? Is there a price tag you can put on it? When you were diagnosed with cancer, and you were sick, and you were throwing up, and your hair was falling out, but, but God was nearer to you than you have ever experienced him in your life — how do you put that? "Are you saying to me, Pastor Kevin, that I have to go through that process to have a relationship with God?" No, I'm not saying that. But when you understand that my reward — the value that is there — is my relationship with him, and the ups and downs and the highs and lows of life are oftentimes him adjusting the relationship, taking me through the experiences, to understand that the best part of my life at 46 has not been my bank account, or my retirement, or the house that I live in, or the vacations that I've experienced, but it's been the times when I've been down on my face and I knew I was in the very throne room of heaven, and there is nothing that can replace those moments in my life. The value of the relationship. It's the gift that is there.

"Abraham, I'm going to make a covenant with you, a contract with you, so that you will know I never break my word." And God instructs Abraham to gather several animals together. "Blake, Haven, Caden, Dylan — you guys come here." God says, "I need you to gather some things." He says, "I need you together — they're turtle dove. Come on, turtle duff, would you lay down on that little carpet line right there?" Says, "I want you to gather a ram" — "lay down right there" — "I want you to gather a she-goat and a pigeon." That's — I'm in the book you're reading, Genesis 15, things he needed. Now, for the pigeon and the turtle dove, you guys get to stay whole. For the she-goat and the ram, I gotta cut you in half. So, Pastor Michael, if you mind coming over here and grabbing a leg, we're gonna — I'm just kidding. He tells him to sacrifice this and lay this out, because he's, he's establishing a, a contract — it would be modern language — but he calls a covenant. "I'm establishing a contract with you, Abram." This covenant for which God's eternal purpose would rest. God was about to let his eternal covenant rest in this contract that is there, but he knew, "I can't allow this to be conditional to man." Please stick with me. So God took Abram, and he put him in a deep sleep, and set him over to the side. And in the

middle of this — you can read about it in Genesis chapter 15 — in this, he made him the passive recipient of a unilateral covenant that God made with man. God, through the fiery lamps, he came down, and God walked through the sacrifice. Because here's what: this, this was not something that was unique, that had never been done. They had often times been covenants between other men, men to men, and they would make a sacrifice like this, and they would divide up the sacrifice. And when they did, one man would get on one end of the sacrifice — Michael would get over on that end — and one guy would get on the other. And these animals were slain, and they would begin to walk towards each other, and they would get in the middle of that, and they would shake hands and make a covenant relationship. And what they were saying in that is, is: "I'm going to keep my in, and if I don't keep my hand, may this happen to me, if I don't keep my end of the covenant contract." So it was a very vivid example of how serious this contractor covenant was. But, but God says, "I know this, that I can't depend on man, because man will disappoint. Man will, will come up with a reason that he won't hold up his end of the bargain." So instead, he puts Abram asleep over to the side. Then the Bible describes these, these fiery lights coming down from heaven in the middle of sacrifice, and then God walks through the middle of the sacrifice himself. He doesn't do anything with anybody else, because he knows, "I can't depend on anything." And when he could find nothing else to swear by, he swore by himself. Hebrews 6: "For when God made a promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself, saying, Surely blessings I will bless thee, and multiply, and I will multiply thee." "Abram, I know you're a good guy. I pulled you out, but there's flaws in you, and I can't depend on you. But I'm still going to hold up my end of the bargain."

Now maybe you're asking: how in the world can God make a covenant with man? How can God make a covenant with humanity? How is — hell is man, who cannot fulfill the law of God, the righteousness of God, who's weak in the flesh, who can't match it — how is it possible? What's God going to do? In John chapter 1, says that "in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God." Verse 14: "And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory — the glory is the only begotten of the Father — full of grace and truth." The angel looked at Mary in Luke chapter 1, and he said in her, "Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth the son, and she — he shall be called Jesus."

All those years ago, in Genesis 15, God was establishing a covenant relationship. "But Abram, I know you can't hold up here into the bargain, but I've got it covered, because I'll stand on one side, but I'll also, through time, I'll come around on the man's side, and I'll come down, and I'll meet myself in the middle, and I'll take — woo!" He had determined that he was going to keep that covenant relationship, and he was willing to pay the price. Almighty God manifest himself in the flesh, came to earth. Oh, and a little bitty baby — hell begin to shake, hell begin to quiver. "You guys can get up and go back. Thank you so much. Give them a hand for what they did."

It was through perfect obedience. We misunderstand oftentimes what Jesus was doing, but he was staying perfectly obedient. Why? Because it went back to Genesis 15. He had made a covenant. There was no other way for him to get out of it. Bishop, he couldn't nullify it. He was guaranteed it by himself. That's why he couldn't change his word. He couldn't go back on it. He had to fulfill what he promised in Genesis 15, when he was moving through the sacrifices.

Now why am I preaching this? Because too many times we misunderstand the gift. The gift was the fulfillment of the promise. The gift that took place and the poured out in Acts chapter two. And it said: "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven

as a russian mighty wind, and it filled the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to cloven tongues, as if a fire set upon each of them, and they were all, all filled with the Holy Ghost." What was going on? The promise of the covenant was being fulfilled. Yes, he died on the cross. Yes, he — there's an empty tomb. But it was about the promise coming back. What, that gift, that infilling, for you. I'm thankful for the crib. I'm thankful for the cross. I'm thankful for the empty tomb. But I'm thankful for the gift that's inside of me. All of that made it possible so that I have overcoming power. And it's not just about me getting out of hell, but it's about the fact that I have kingdom-changing power inside of me. Every gift, every talent, every ability, every resource that God gives me in my life, it's not for my consumption, but it's about kingdom growth. That's what the gift is. That's what the gift of — yes, it's, it's salvation purchased for me. But it's not for me to sit on a church pube. It's not for me to be a top pair, but it's for me to take when I leave this place and I go out to the world where I am, and that gift inside of me, God empowers me to further his kingdom.

As I bring this to a close — musicians come. Paul, having experienced all of this himself and having a full understanding of grace, he continued to write in Hebrews chapter 6, verse 17: "Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs the promise of the immutable immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope that is set before us, which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters into within the veil." Paul got it. This is still pretty fresh and pretty new. He's a guy who remembers going to temple and having to make sacrifice, having to visit a priest, who remembered having to put his hands on that animal's head and confessing all the sins that he had, and watching that animal's blood be spilt. He said, "But God kept the covenant, because we were anchored into something that was on the other side of the veil. But when he said, 'It is finished' on that cross, that veil went from the top to the bottom, and what I was anchored to come rolling out to me. I pulled it in, and when I threw my hands up, God filled me with what was on the other side of that veil. It lives inside of me."

And he wrote this in Second Corinthians 4: "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts, to give the light of knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earth and vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not for us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed, but not in despair. We are persecuted, but not forsaken. Cast down, but not destroyed." What is Paul saying? He said, "My flesh is troubled on every side, but that Holy Ghost inside of me is not stressed. Nope, nope, nope, nope. We are distressed, we are perplexed, but Holy Ghost is not in despair. I'm persecuted, but the Holy Ghost doesn't forsake me. I'm cast down, but that Spirit's not destroyed inside of me." I'm trying to speak to somebody today: that gift you have inside of you is much bigger than you can ever imagine. It's much more than just getting out of hell. It's your ability to further the kingdom of God. And I wish I could excite some army today to stand to their feet and understand the power and the potential that lives inside of you. Oh, if we could ever awaken to this, Center Point, and understand that we have an obligation and a responsibility, not to just be beneficiaries of what we feel inside this room — but in here I get my strength, and here I get my encouragement, and here I get reminded that I have inside of me everything I need to walk outside those doors into the harvest field and further his kingdom. And he's still in the business of pouring that Spirit out.

What — you buy your heads with me. Holy God, I've delivered my heart to your church today. I've reminded them of the power that you place inside of us. It's not just meant for us to consume, but it's meant for us to be empowered. That grace gives us the ability to help your mission go forward. God, I know there are those in this room who have not yet been filled with your Spirit. Lord, I pray, God, in just a minute you would pour it out. I pray that you would draw them to a place, God, where you could feel them. But God, I'm here today to also rekindle the ministry fire that has all been gone out, and I play that the wind from the very throne room of heaven would blow over that one more time and fan that flame inside of them, so that they would know, God, that you have a mission, a kingdom mission that belongs to them. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray. These altars are open. I think it's a time for a refreshing and renewing in his Spirit, that gift that is there. And I wish she'd come down, find a place to pray around this front. They're going to sing. Ministry and brother are going to be walking around praying for folks. If you need the baptism of the Holy Ghost, you've never experienced this Spirit and feeling, I invite you to come right here in the front, right in front of the pulpit, right here. I want to pray for you. I want to pray for you. But it's time to find a place of prayer, if you're comfortable with that. We're going to pray. They're going to