Sunday Evening Worship Service l Raymond Woodward
by Raymond Woodward
First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Genesis 11:4, Habakkuk 2:1, Ezekiel 3:17, Isaiah 62:6, Psalm 18:2, Psalm 144:1-2, 2 Samuel 22:2-3, Psalm 61:1-3, Proverbs 18:10, Genesis 35:19-21, Micah 5:2, Luke 2:10-12, Micah 4:8-9, John 1:29, 1 Peter 1:18-19

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/raymond-woodward--sunday-evening-worship-service-163
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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don't you love pastor he's awesome [Music] he's probably a little mistaken in his descriptions of me but he's awesome and and I love Pastor Mark McCool's sister Jamie and all of your team um I love bishop and sister McCool have loved them for years and she told me that I'd be okay if I just considered them honorary parents but I've been doing that for years anyway so it was just kind of permission finally I love them I love this great team uh Pastor Nate Pastor Anthony they're wonderful wives you are served by a stellar first family here at First Apostolic Church you are so abundantly blessed and uh if Pastor Anthony is watching we greet him and your dad is is humble but we are all very proud of you we really really are um and I'm so thankful for all of you great saints of God because here's what I know pastors can't lead to church if there's no Saints and so the great saints of God the kingdom of God is not measured in um ministers that travel it's not measured in well-known evangelists the kingdom of God is measured in Saints and aren't you glad to be a saint of God it's just wonderful it's just wonderful God's so good to us um here's what we'll do just go ahead and be seated and the devil's not expecting this but when you get seated would you lift up your hands and would you fill this room with praise just just let your praise out like a thunder like a a huge waterfall the sound of many Waters from a multi-generational multi-ethnic multilingual multinational church that's what First Apostolic church is Hallelujah Jesus we worship you and we honor you and we're so grateful for you we're so grateful for you we're so grateful for you my subject for your consideration tonight is simply two words Strong Tower somebody say Strong Tower towers are imposing structures and they are meant to be imposing structures you see brothers and sisters a tower indicates power the idea is simple really the tower is a self-supporting structure it is taller than it is wide Often by a significant factor and while people may live in Towers that is never their primary purpose Towers rather are built to serve other functions based solely upon their height the height of a clock tower improves the visibility of a clock the height of a lighthouse Tower well that expands the visibility of the coastline the height of an observation tower it increases the visibility of the surrounding territory sometimes for defensive purposes and even today in our modern world towers are still used strategically they strengthen prisons they strengthen military installations and if you've got one of these towers expand the range of telecommunications transmitters exponentially one of Canada's landmarks where I'm from the CN Tower in Toronto is such a structure but knowing the Dismal history of humanity it's not surprising at all that men would take the power of a tower and find some way to use it for their own evil ends and sure enough the very first time we ever see a tower in scripture in Hebrew the languages of mgdal that's a tower a MIG doll and the very first time we ever see a tower in the Bible men have already figured out how to use the power of a tower against God himself Genesis 11 and 4 and they said go to let us build us a city and a tower whose top May reach unto heaven and let us make us a name lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole Earth the tower that those people built at Babel was what is known as a ziggurat archaeologists have excavated several of these large structures which were built primarily for religious purposes a ziggurat was like a pyramid if you can imagine that except that the levels were recessed so it actually made a set of steps and you could walk to the top of the tower on steps at the top there would be a special Shrine dedicated to a pagan god or goddess so sometimes we read in the English Bible and we mistakenly think that in Babel the people were dumb enough to think that they could build a tower right up into the heavens but that really wasn't what they were doing they weren't literally trying to climb up to heaven they were building a shrine to a pagan God and as they ascended to Heaven what their idea was that that Pagan god or goddess that they tried to worship would come down from heaven and meet them on top of that Tower and so that's what they meant when we said let's build a tower that will reach to heaven the structure and the city were called Babel which means the Gate of the Gods now that project in Genesis that was an arrogant declaration of war against the Lord God the people were intentionally resisting God's command he had said I want you to replenish the earth I want you to populate the whole Earth but they decided no we're going to stay right here we're going to build a great City and a great tower and we're going to stay together rather than disperse but even more they say they admitted here we want to make a name for ourselves we want others to admire us and maybe join us in this cause brothers and sisters they were certainly unified the only thing their Unity lacked was the approval of God and so God came down and he confused their language which caused them to scatter as he originally intended the word Babble is from the Hebrew word balal which means confusion and so God's judgment was that the Gate of the Gods would become the Tower of confusion and that's the first time we see a tower in the Bible but despite that debacle at Babel for the most part the power of a tower is used very positively throughout scripture of course Towers were built at strategic points around City walls they were fortified with weapons that could be aimed at the enemy they were manned by Watchmen and those Watchmen it was their responsibility to guard the city against attacks you already know where we're going with this because spiritually speaking the prophets were the Watchmen of the nation of Israel they stood on the tower in the place of Power with a word from the Lord that shouldn't be strange to this church you've got pastors that serve you they are Watchmen on the wall they stand in the tower of God's power and they declare the word of the Lord to you week after week and you are abundantly blessed when you've got a Watchman looking out for your soul habakkuk talked about it he said I will stand upon my watch and set me upon the tower and will watch to see what he will say unto me and what I shall answer when I am approved Ezekiel he spoke and recorded the word of the Lord son of man I have made thee a Watchman unto the house of Israel therefore hear the word at my mouth and give them warning from me do you understand what a privilege you have to have pastors who hear the word from the Lord and come into this Pulpit I don't want a fettered Pulpit I don't want to bound Pulpit I don't want my pastor wondering how I'm going to respond my spirit in my heart when I walk into a sanctuary like this is preach to me man of God tell me what the Lord is saying to you I need a Watchman in the Tower of Power Isaiah spoke about it I have set Watchmen upon thy walls o Jerusalem which shall never hold their peace day nor night ye that make mention of the Lord keep not silence I'll tell you that's what we need in the 21st century is people that will stand up and declare what God is saying the world brothers and sisters is upside down people don't know what in the world to think or believe or how to behave good is being called evil and evil is being called good light is being called darkness and darkness is being called light but in the middle of the chaos there are men and women of God who serve in the kingdom of God thank God for the voices that fill this Pulpit not a guest speaker from Canada but every week every service there's somebody here and they're telling you what thus saith the Lord if there's one percent of you that's grateful for that I want you to lift up a shout of thanks to God for your pastors and for your church and for the word of God that we hear every week Towers were used not only to guard people but to guard Vineyards and cattle against thieves and predators and because God himself was the protector of Israel their songs who often compared the Lord to a high tower to A Strong Tower and nobody but nobody could write those songs better than David Psalm 18. the Lord is my rock and my Fortress and my deliverer he's my God my strength in whom will I trust my Buckler and the Horn of my salvation here it is and my high tower God is watching out for me he's the Watchman on the high tower looking over my life Psalm 144 blessed be the Lord my strength which teacheth My Hands to War and my fingers to fight he's my goodness and my Fortress he's my high tower and my deliverer he's my shield in he in whom I trust who subdueth my people under me second Samuel 22 and David spake unto the Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies and out of the hand of Saul Now I know you just read over that but that was a 15-year episode in David's life being chased by Baxley and King Saul who was trying to kill him being chased by a king that was tormented by evil spirits and was possessed by jealousy and Saul was trying to kill him but when David got through that trial he didn't come out backslidden he didn't come out bitter when he came out he came out with a blessing on his lips and he said the Lord is my rock and my Fortress and my deliverer the god of my rock in him will I trust he is my shield and the Horn of my salvation my high tower and my refuge My Savior thou savest me from violence is there anybody who's ever found the Lord to be a protector over your life he wrote this in Psalm 61. he gets a little repetitious you'll just have to bear with him he's so grateful to the Lord that he keeps talking about this God who occupies a high tower a Watchman over his life Hear My Cry o God attend unto my prayer from the end of the Earth will I cry unto thee oh I love this part when my heart is overwhelmed lead me to the rock that is higher than I there's a lot to get overwhelmed by there's a lot to get overwhelmed about in this world but when my heart is overwhelmed somebody just lead me to that rock that is higher than I because God you have been a shelter for me and here it is and a strong tower from the enemy oh I wish somebody clap your hands for a minute there's only a challenge I'm I'm at home these these wonderful pastors of yours they they've made me feel so at home I'm at home tonight so I'm just going to tell you something I thank God that we clap our hands in service it's wonderful the only problem with clapping our hands is that clapping our hands is our North American form of entertainment appreciation you clap at car shows dog shows piano recitals while your little niece is murdering Mary Had a Little Lamb and we clap and that's how we show appreciation for other human beings doing something that's maybe kind of mediocre but we want them to think that we think it's amazing so there's one time in scripture when the Bible says oh clap your hands all ye people but there's a second half to that verse and there are many verses in the scripture that say lift up your voice like a trumpet cry aloud spare not lift up your voice in the sanctuary so that's why that verse there's only one time the Bible says clap your hands all ye people but then it says and shout unto God with the voice of Triumph so I wish you'd just lift up your voice while you clap those hands and just say oh God I'm glad you're my strong tower oh God I'm glad you're my refuge you're my rock you're my Fortress what can the enemy do to me when I've got a God Like That he's my deliverer he's my healer he's my shield and my buckler he's my strong tower [Applause] oh my goodness now that feels good that feels like Sunday night at First Apostolic Church Solomon grew up hearing his dad sing all those songs that I just quoted David sang them in the palace God you're my strong tower and you're my rock no wonder Solomon grew up and later penned these words in his collection of proverbs the name of the Lord is a strong tower the righteous runeth into it and is safe there is such power in the name of the Lord that when the enemy comes in like a flood the spirit of the Lord lifts up a standard against now I'm not a grammarian my dad kind of was he was in education all of his life and my dad one of his don't tell anybody this and dad's not here anymore to defend himself but one of his favorite personal Sports was he'd visit churches and back when we had paper Church bulletins you remember this they they'd pass out the bulletin and dad would take his teacher's red pen and circle all the spelling mistakes and bring it home now I'm not a grammarian like my dad but but they tell me that that scripture that says that when the enemy comes in like a flood the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him there are at least some because see Hebrew doesn't have uh punctuation like we have in English so there's at least a group of Scholars that say that instead of putting the comma in a certain place we should put it in another place which is kind of interesting to me because commas are important for all you people especially you young people that text all the time and you don't use punctuation I rebuke you in the name of no no situation I know we don't think anymore in the texting generation but Punctuation is actually quite important because um let's eat comma grandma is different than let's eat grandma that's very different Punctuation is important and in that verse we read it in the English Bible and it says when the enemy shall come in like a flood comma the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him there's at least one group of Scholars that do fairly significant that says the comma should be in a different place when the enemy shall come in comma like a flood the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him can I tell you the Lord's on your side the names on your side the floods on your side the blood's on your side the spirit's on your side the words on your side what shall man do unto me if I've got a God who is my strong tower oh my now now you're gonna think for a minute um in a in a few minutes you're going to think for a minute that the preacher has kind of lost his mind so just get ready for that and just kind of Overlook it um many of those songs were not written by King David when he lived in the palace and had everything going for him actually most of those songs about the Tower and the Rock and the Fortress and the shield and buckler they weren't written by King David they were written by kid David when he was just a humble Shepherd boy tending sheep out on the backside of Bethlehem which was his boyhood home Bethlehem certainly wasn't a very glamorous place to grow up in it was just a small nondescript humble Village in Judah but let me tell you for such a little tiny Place Bethlehem sure had a lot going for it when Jacob's beloved wife Rachel died bringing her son Benjamin into the world Jacob buried his beloved Rachel in Bethlehem the beautiful story of Ruth who was a moabite a pagan brought into the family of Israel through her marriage to Boaz well most of that story most of the Book of Ruth is set in and around Bethlehem and David knew that very well because Ruth was his great grandmother and so David who would grow up to become the most beloved King ever Israel ever had David would be born in Bethlehem he would grow up to be king and he knew the streets of that little tiny town like the back of his hand as a boy he ran errands to the market he fetched water from the town well he grew into being a young man and he would tend his father's sheep in the fields and valleys and on the Hills surrounding Bethlehem and he would write his Majestic Psalms as he looked over the mountains and the rivers and the valleys and he would be anointed by the prophet Samuel and he would be crowned King of the nation of Israel and both of those powerful moments in his life would happen in Bethlehem tiny little place but so much going for it some people say well you know David he won the battle against Goliath in the valley of Eli and I'd like to correct that he didn't actually win the the battle in the valley of Eli that's only where the battle was fought he actually won that battle years before when he was out on a hillside 10 and sheep worshiping God play in his harp writing beautiful songs of praise to the Lord that's where the battle was won so when David stepped out on the battlefield in the valley of elah he was already more than a conqueror he was already on The Winning Side everybody else that day looked and saw this great big giant and this little tiny boy named David that's not what David saw David saw this little tiny Giant and a great big awesome almighty God and that's why David won that battle for such a tiny place Bethlehem sure had a lot going for it now here's where you're going to think the preacher's just gone off the rails three thousand years three thousand years after David lived and died we still talk and sing about a place most of us have never been every Christmas five weeks ago from right now you all were gathered celebrating Christmas five weeks ago and you talked and you sang and you heard sermons about this little nondescript place called Bethlehem now you're going to think the preachers lost his mind because it's January okay but I haven't lost my mind we're going somewhere we sometimes think about the Christmas story where we get all of our decorations out some of you still have decorations out I just discern that in the spirit we sometimes think that we have accurate information about the first Christmas just because we hear other people repeat things so commonly and so often and we just accept it and it sounds right and it can be disconcerting to find out that we actually don't have our facts straight you know you we just went through Christmas some of you had all kinds of stuff like manger scene setup we picture Jesus being born in a stable with eight animals present the Bible never says any of that it only says that after his birth he was laid in a Manger we picture Shepherds and three wise men the Bible never says three but we picture them standing together at the manger but the Bible tells us that by the time the wise men arrived Jesus was two years old and living in a house and we picture everybody following a star to the manger but I'm sorry that just didn't happen the Shepherds from the fields near Bethlehem were the only ones who came to see Jesus on the night of his birth and they did not see a star you know what they did they followed some kind of strange instructions from an angel now you remember this Luke 2 and the angel said unto them fear not for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people for unto you is Born This Day in the city of David a savior which is Christ the Lord watch this this is crazy and this shall be a sign unto you you shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a Manger do you remember this from five weeks ago anybody mm-hmm yep lying in a Manger I gotta ask a question what kind of sign is that that's like saying you'll find the baby wrapped in a blanket laying in a crib in Knoxville how is that helpful there were hundreds maybe thousands of mangers that dotted the countryside because a Manger was basically like a feed trough for Animals there were hundreds of them how would that help you find a baby that was born in Bethlehem unless like so many other things in the Christmas story that we celebrated just over a month ago there's actually something much bigger at work here and those instructions are not vague at all they're actually very specific now you remember just five weeks ago remember it was the prophet Micah who told us that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem afrata that was part of its claim to fame but when we put all the pieces together we find that Micah was actually far more specific than that this is our go-to verse for Christmas Micah 5-2 but thou Bethlehem a frata though thou be little among the thousands of Judah yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel whose goings forth have been from of old from Everlasting and by the way that can't be anybody but almighty God because there's nobody else that goings forth have been from of old from Everlasting [Applause] now you remember we first see Bethlehem Ephrata more than a thousand years earlier when Rachel died bringing Benjamin into the world Genesis 35 and Rachel died and was buried in the way to ephrath which is Bethlehem and Jacob her grieving husband set a pillar upon her grave that is the pillar of Rachel's grave unto this day now watch this an Israel journeyed and spread his tent beyond the Tower of Adar now we already know the word tower in Hebrew is McDowell so this place was called magdal Adar after Rachel died and she was buried they journeyed a little farther they went as far and he spread his tent in a place called mcdal Adar the Tower of Adar or in English we would say the Tower of the flock the Tower of the flock was a watchtower it was where Shepherds could watch over their flocks as they grazed in the surrounding Countryside I got to tell you there were hundreds of those structures in ancient Israel but there was one structure it was important because it was near David's hometown of Bethlehem it was important because Rachel had died near this Tower and there were many such structures but this Tower McDowell Adar the Tower of the flock it took on special meaning because it was in a special place David was a Shepherd himself in all of his early years so he would no doubt have been very familiar with this Tower this special tower on the outskirts of his hometown and as time went on and David built Jerusalem as his capital and then his son Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem I got to tell you that that Tower became even more significant and so now I want you to follow me here because we're not about to break out singing Christmas carols that's not where we're going because of the unclean nature of shepherding at the time the gospels were written the only place anybody was allowed to Shepherd A Flock in Israel was in the wilderness you couldn't Shepherd sheep anywhere near where people lived it was an unclean animal and an unclean profession and so they just didn't allow it near towns and Villages so far away from where everybody else lived that's where the Shepherds tended their sheep but there was one exception one exception it was actually permitted under the law of the Jews because you see hundreds of lambs were needed for temple sacrifices and these flocks couldn't be way out in the wilderness because you'd need them for sacrifice and there were daily sacrifices so there was one exception every other group of shepherds tended their flocks way out in the wilderness way out in the mountains way out in the Hills but because hundreds of lambs were needed for temple sacrifices those flocks had to be kept in close proximity to Jerusalem and thankfully just about five miles away from that glorious Temple was this little town of Bethlehem its Hills and its valleys were perfect for sheep to graze you hear me Bethlehem became the only place in all of Israel where sacrificial Lambs were raised on the edge of Bethlehem was magdal Adar the Tower of the flock and the talmud a Jewish writing says that all cattle as far as McDowell Adar were deemed to be holy and only those animals could be used for temple sacrifices now McDonald Dar the Tower of the flock it was like all the other towers that the Shepherds used but it was a special one it had two floors the Shepherds would actually live in the upstairs part and that would be their vantage point to watch over the flocks and over the Sheep but in the lower part that is where when a lamb was born they would retrieve that lamb from the flock and they would bring newborn Lambs into that lower level of the Tower these aren't ordinary Shepherds these are Temple Shepherds these aren't regular Shepherds these are Shepherds that work in the sacrificial system of the law and so the Lambs that they grew up they had to be spotless lambs and so they would bring them into that lower level of the special tower in Bethlehem called McDowell Adar and because they didn't want those Lambs to kick and thrash and kick their legs and injure themselves and and make a blemish in their skin or in their wool they would wrap their legs with long strips of cloth and they would hold them and bind them so they couldn't be injured or damaged or blemished and thus unfit for sacrifice the Shepherds that tended these Lambs brothers and sisters they weren't regular Shepherds they weren't ordinary Shepherds of all the Shepherds in Israel these men were skilled in Discerning exactly what was a perfect lamb and what was an imperfect lamb they were part of the temple system without them Israel had no spotless Lambs for their Temple offerings this is amazing to me because when they brought newborn Lambs into the lower level of Adar they would put them in a stone manger in the middle of that floor and they would wrap their legs in Long bands of cloth and protect them I gotta tell you those are the Shepherds that the angel appeared to on the night that God Almighty came into our world and was born as a baby I know you think Jesus was born in a barn but that's not true the angel said this will be a sign unto you you're going to find the baby he's going to be wrapped in Long strips of cloth swaddling cloth and he's going to be lying in a Manger that wasn't random that wasn't any manger in the whole Countryside that was one manger it was where those Shepherds worked every single day of their lives when the angel appeared to them the Bible tells us that they took off running you know why they knew exactly where they were going and when they walked in and saw God in a body of Flesh wrapped up in those swaddling bands that it held so many spotless Lambs they knew exactly what the angel had been saying on that night God imparnated himself on that night God came to this world on that night it was the almighty in a little baby boy [Applause] can you imagine can you imagine McDowell Adar the Tower of the flock they knew exactly where to go you say are you stretching that pastor Raymond no not at all because we always go to Micah 5 chapter 2 at Christmas but this isn't Christmas this is five weeks after so we're going to Micah chapter 4 and verse 8 and 9. and thou o Tower of the flock the stronghold of the daughter of Zion unto thee shall it come even the first Dominion the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem now why Dost thou cry out aloud is there no King in thee is thy counselor perished for pains have taken thee as a woman in travail Luke's original audience would have immediately picked up the significance of an Angel appearing to Shepherds in Bethlehem because they knew when you said Bethlehem you were saying sacrificial Lambs they knew when you said Bethlehem you were saying spotless Temple lambs and they sure would have recognized the significance of Jesus being wrapped up in swaddling bands and laid in that manger in that Tower God was given us a signal that this is isn't any other baby being born this is something spectacular and special and if you look at Micah's prophecy he said the first dominion and the kingdom would be revealed at McDowell Adar at the tower of the flock and now it begins to make sense where else would a woman Intervale crying out with the Pains of Labor where else would a woman ever be associated with a tower where Temple Shepherds worked only here but it was in that very Tower where that virgin girl named Mary brought forth a spotless lamb who would be sacrificed to take away the sin of the whole world so those Shepherds knew exactly where to go on the night that the Angels appeared the angel hadn't just specified the town where Jesus would be born the angel told them the exact spot where Jesus would be born the exact spot where he would be laid that's why your Bible says this they came with haste they knew exactly where to run they found Mary and Joseph and the Babe lying in a manger and when they found that out and they saw it for themselves they made it known abroad if anybody brothers and sisters realize the significance of Jesus birth it was those Shepherds now let's come back John chapter 1 the next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him and saith Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world as Jesus walked and talked and preached and as he ministered he was that spotless lamb Peter the day of Pentecost preacher he would later write these words for as much as you know Apostolic Church you were not redeemed with corruptable things like silver and gold you can't buy your way into God's Church it wasn't that you didn't receive it by tradition from your fathers let me tell you how we got in this wonderful Arrangement called The Church of the Living God it was with the precious blood of Christ here it is as of a lamb without blemish and without spot Micah's prophecy said is there no King in the Bethlehem is your counselor Paris tower of the flock but brothers and sisters ever since that miraculous night we now have a king and we now have a counselor and we've got a whole lot more than that for unto us a child is born unto us his son is given the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name his name his name Shall be Called wonderful counselor the Mighty God the Everlasting father and the Prince of Peace he's everything you need he's everything you've ever wanted oh I wish you'd clap your hands all ye people and shout unto God with a voice of Triumph oh my goodness let me just come to a close music come on back I think we may need you or we may not God strayed hundreds of years of prophecies if God could arrange history itself to converge on one specific spot on the night that God came into this world can I just tell you he is able to find you wherever you are and how powerful prophecy is that God didn't just specify a town or a nation he specified one spot one manger one Tower and those Shepherds came running can you imagine how God is watching out for you you can't go anywhere if you ascend up into the heavens he's there if you go into the lower parts of the earth he's there there's nowhere you can go that he's not gonna be with you there's no trial you can get in that he can't find you there's no situation that you can encounter that he can't come and pull you out if God can Converge All a prophecy and all of history and all of Heaven on one little tiny spot that wouldn't be hardly as big around as this if God can do that whatever you're facing tonight God can meet you right in the middle of your situation he can come into your kitchen he can come into your automobile he can come into a hospital room he can come into some kind of terrible situation or conversation and my God is able to deliver because it's not just about one Tower in Bethlehem he is my strong tower today his name is the greatest strongest force on this planet his blood washes cleanses heals and delivers I want to back that truck up his blood delivers and saves and redeems and cleanses and heals his spirit empowers and lifts up and heals the broken his spirit is so powerful This Is Our God a tower indicates power Bethlehem had a strong tower yeah they did but we have a stronger Tower the name of the Lord is a strong tower the righteous runeth into it and is safe I want you to lift up your hands right now I'm finished preaching there's one thing more important than your hands to be lifted up right now you know what it is you know how he loves it it's your voice it's your voice [Music] somebody you said it this week I don't even know if God knows my name I don't even know if God is aware of what I'm going through you don't understand he's your strong tower if he could do that he can touch you if he could arrange that he can arrange your deliverance This Is Our God his name is so great you can run into his name and you can be safe I'd like you to reach over to somebody standing near you could be a family member or friend you might not even know their name but would you reach over maybe take them by the hand and lift that hand with yours or maybe put your hand on their shoulder I'm not talking about a little sleepy time end of a good Sunday prayer I'm talking about a prayer of power because the tower the high tower the Strong Tower the great tower The Fortress Tower his power is in this room right now do you feel that Jesus walked into this building tonight to meet with you Jesus is walking up and down these aisles Jesus is walking in these rows and he's there to touch you right now oh I want somebody lift up your voice and pray in the spirit right now if you're filled with the Holy Ghost pray in the spirit right now he knows where you are he knows what you're going through he's touched with the feeling of your infirmity he is the Strong Tower [Applause] [Music] there is Deliverance for somebody in this room tonight I don't know if it's deliverance from fear or deliverance from sickness or deliverance from oppression or depression I'm not sure exactly what kind of Deliverance it is but there's Deliverance in this room because the Strong Tower of his name is here this great church some of you people are warriors I can see you praying back there but would you help us would you step out of where you're standing and just make your way to this altar because we're going to pray as family tonight we're going to pray as church family thank you for responding you folks are wonderful you're beautiful people [Music] wonderful [Music] thank you for respawning as you come would you just keep coming come out of the aisles and let people get all the way to the altar that's going to be important in just a minute yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes [Music] [Applause] somebody lift up your voice like a trumpet and prey in the Holy Ghost pray in tongues right now God's Gonna pour out his spirit in this room foreign [Music] are you ready get a hold of somebody by the hand lift that hand with yours and lift up your voices together and begin to worship God his Deliverance is here the Strong Tower is here the Fortress Is Here The Rock the rock is here the baptizer is here the healer is here foreign [Music] [Applause] foreign guys I just want to hear your voices lifted in prayer this beautiful wonderful music we're going to let them just participate with us for a second lift up your voice fac ulty pastors and ministers and leaders I set you loose to just walk through this group of people lay your hands on people somebody's going to receive the Holy Ghost tonight somebody's going to receive a healing or a miracle or a Deliverance tonight foreign [Applause] he knows exactly where you are and just like he came to that spot he's coming to your spot tonight he's coming to where you are right now [Applause] yes yes yes receive it receive your healing right now in the name of Jesus receive your Miracle right now in the name of Jesus receive deliverance from depression right now in the name of Jesus receive the Holy Ghost right now in the name of Jesus [Applause] get a hold of somebody get a hold of somebody look around there's people praying on either side of you in front and behind you lay your hand on them somebody is going to receive their Miracle tonight [Applause] we're good assistant [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] your name is [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] horse from the mountains Jesus in the streets Jesus [Applause] shout Jesus from the mountains [Applause] Jesus for my family I speak the Holy Name Jesus [Applause] shout Jesus Christ for my family [Applause] Jesus [Applause] shout Jesus from the mountains [Applause] [Applause] your name your name is healing [Music] [Applause] [Music] shine through the Shadows [Applause] name is [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] [Music] Jesus for my family [Music] [Applause] right [Applause] from the mountains Jesus in the Stream Jesus [Applause] for my family I speak holy day [Applause] your name is [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] your name is [Applause] foreign [Music] [Applause] time oh sticky Jesus [Music] speak the name of Jesus [Applause] speak the name of our names [Music] pastor's been so kind to give me the liberty of this Pulpit today and I thank him for that we're used to praying for people kind of like this [Music] I like to push you out of your comfort zone just a little bit because there's something so powerful and so pure and so precious here tonight I know it might push you just a tiny bit but would you turn around and find somebody you don't even need to know their name but if you do know their name and you do know what they're walking through then you are empowered and equipped to pray I want you to turn around to somebody and if if you would just lay your hand on their head or lay your hand on their shoulder but I want you to be facing them because there's something so powerful where two or three agree and when you get there don't pray some sleepy little tired end of the Sunday no no no no pray a prayer of Deliverance and blessing over them if you know something they're walking through you may want there you go you may want to walk over to somebody and you know what's going on in their family and you want to make maybe call the name of Jesus because here's what I know about Jesus he can show up in that spot he can show up right in that home he can show up right in their situation [Applause] yes yes yes [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no [Applause] [Music] no no no no no no no no no no no no no no all right [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] hey hey hey [Music] foreign [Music] ful to be in the presence of almighty God isn't it just wonderful to entertain his presence he is my strong tower he is my refuge hallelujah hallelujah Glory Glory Glory Glory Hallelujah we do not ever dismiss the presence of the Lord if you must go you can go when you're ready to but I would tell you let's continue to entertain this presence let's take this with us let's go from this place with the assurance that he is our Strong Tower he is that place that I run into Hallelujah would you greet your brothers and sisters around you would you love them remember that we do have Worship in the word Wednesday night Bishop McCool will be ministering to us we love you dearly Lord bless you in Jesus name