Pastor Brad DeLong - Moments With The Master

i feel a specific word to that end to help us today if you don't mind making your way back to your seats and we're going to turn to the book of mark chapter 5. this is a powerful story we're about to read we're going to lead a read a somewhat lengthy portion and i'm going to get through as much of this as the lord allows and we're going to continue to follow him and follow his spirit that's what we do as a church it's what we do as his church he leads and guides us jesus has just crossed the sea with his disciples he taught on the other side and he calmed a storm in the midst of that sea with just his words and his command he and his disciples cross this body of water only to find another man and another miracle waiting for them on the other side mark chapter 5 and verse 2 tells us and i want you to take note of this transformation of what god did in this man's life when jesus had come out of the boat immediately there met him out of the tombs of man with an unclean spirit he had his dwelling among the tombs that's not normal no one could bind him not even with chains because he had often been bound with shackles and chains again not normal and the chains had been pulled apart by this man the shackles broken in pieces neither could anyone tame him and always night and day he was in the mountains and the tombs crying out cutting himself with stones i believe jesus heard that cry even from across that sea and he may have just crossed that oh that's all he did in that region when he got out of that boat was touched that man's body and he got back in the boat and it could have been that jesus crossed that sea just for that man who was crying out in those tombs and there's someone who's come here today but before you got here you've been crying out to him and calling on his name and you've been desperate searching for him or searching for some answers in your life and i believe jesus has come to where you are today and he's ready to transform you and heal you and change your life when he saw jesus from afar when he saw the master even from a distance the bible says he ran and he worshipped him and he cried out with a loud voice and said what have i to do with you jesus son of the most high god i implore you by god you do not torment me so as soon as he sees jesus both he and these unclean spirits inside of him recognized who jesus was and they exemplified that by exhibiting the only logical response to the one who calmed the storm and the sea fell down and he worshipped jesus many of you know the remainder of the story that jesus asked from his name his response indicated that he was tormented by a legion of unclean spirits spirits ask for mercy and leniency and eventually jesus commands them to come out of the man go into a nearby herd of pigs and swine and with one command and one directive jesus effectively undoes all the torment and all the captivity in this man's life verse 14 says so those who fed the swine fled they told it in the city in the country they went out to see what it was that had happened and they came to jesus and they saw the one who had been demon-possessed and who had the legion he was sitting in clothing in his right mind and they were afraid and those who saw it told him how it had happened to him who had been demon-possessed and about the swine they began to plead with jesus he said we don't know who you are we need you

to get out of here when he got into the boat he who had been demon-possessed i loved the past tense he who had been demon possessed begged him that he might be with him but jesus didn't permit him he said to him go home to your friends tell them what great things the lord has done for you how he's had compassion on you and he departed and began to proclaim into capitalists all that jesus had done for him and all tomorrow and the story among many others even in this room serves to showcase what i want to preach this morning that just one encounter in one instance and one experience in one moment with jesus can change and alter a life in an eternity along with one conversation with him and one interaction with his presence in one moment with his majesty and his brilliance it can heal any life it can heal any ailment it can restore any brokenness even right in the middle of this sermon god can do it in your life and i believe he wants to one moment with the master can make the difference and this morning you see my title moments with the master some of you have already had it today i want you to pray though because there's others in the room who just need one encounter with jesus and it could change everything would you lift your voices with me and pray to that end oh god i need a moment with you i need an experience with you i need an encounter with you and your presence today i pray that i'd have that moment and i pray for every other person in this building and those watching online that they would have a moment where you change them where you heal their body where you strengthen them lord when you speak peace into their life in the name of jesus we pray in jesus name you can be seated some of you may know mariah and mila and i just recently returned from vacation and took a cruise off of the west coast out of the san diego region and i just before we traveled out there i began to read up on this ship that we were going to be traveling on and uh all the the staff and the crew just wanted to do a little research i'm one of those that before i go on a trip i do a whole lot of research i want to know where i'm eating i want to know where i'm going i want to know what what good places there are so i did some research before i went i discovered in my research that this particular staff and this crew are tasked with several specific assignments and responsibilities while we're underway while we're setting sail and one of those was what they call creating magical moments for each and every one of their guests in their cruisers they specifically call them magical moments because it's their desire that every guest has at least one moment when their experience is altered their mindset is shifted their heart or their emotions are engaged they want their guests to have an experience that surpasses the norm or have a moment that goes beyond the mundane or the expected and they are quite proficient at orchestrating such moments these magical moments for their guests in fact i recorded about 10 of these moments that we had on our trip most of them revolved around mila that they would remember mila's name by the hundreds of kids and that multiple people could remember who she was and i obviously remember who she was i think she's adorable maybe that had something to do with it but they could remember her name out of all these kids and each and every night

they would go up five or six floors just to get her the ice cream that she liked for dinner she called it sugar ice cream as opposed to unsugared ice cream which i don't want any part of all right we have these magical moments the truth is they took great care of us and they provided these moments of excellent service these extra mile moments throughout our trip we experienced them on a regular basis but we noticed that once we got off the ship coincidentally those magical moments just seemed to disappear and evaporate for some odd reason when we got back to shore the people around us on the street didn't seem as concerned about us having magical moments out on the sidewalk the experience was completely different once we got back on land in san diego i'm sure you could figure out why when we got to the airport there were certainly no magical moments there i waited an hour for a bagel we had the opposite of magic whatever that word is we even got stuck on the plane for a little while because the air bridge wasn't working effectively and we noticed that all the magic and all the extra mile moment suddenly ceased once we got off that ship and we were back to the mundane of the airport in the city sidewalks we were devoid of magic from that point on it's head scratcher i'm sure but i'm thankful to tell you that the account doesn't stop there you see then we came back home we got to the house we changed our clothes we got into the van nothing too man's cool about that but we didn't stop there thankfully we drove to the church we pulled into this parking lot we entered the house of the lord we walked into this beautiful sanctuary we got back to our church family into the people of god and that night we started to worship the greatest name together that name of jesus and on the very night we got home i got to watch three kids that night and two others the next day received the gift of the holy ghost and i was reminded all over again that there's just nothing like these moments that we have in an altar there's nothing like these moments we have in his presence and these moments we have with the master i got to watch amelia with her hands lifted in the air tears coming down her face as she began to speak in other tongues as the spirit gave the utterance i got to listen to young caleb and some of our young men speaking in other tongues and receiving the spirit of god i watched little ashland and our young ladies over here crying tears of joy as the love of god surrounded them and in light of it all it reaffirmed to me what i already know that even the best of the magical moments that this world or any entity has to offer they are entirely outmatched by any moment i get to spend in the presence of the mass there's just nothing like being in his presence there's nothing like being in its glory there's nothing like brothers and sisters laying hands on me and me feeling the power of god and me feeling the love and the strength there's nothing like moments with the master and while those moments of excellence moments of quality with others even especially when i'm surrounded by family they can bring joy and they can bring simulation there is still simply no match for the transformation the all the brilliance the power of moments found in the presence of jesus christ the almighty god simply put i have found no other entity no other individual no other experience

no other encounter that can match the glory and the goodness of just one moment with jesus christ the psalmist said i'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of the lord because one moment the house and lord is worth more than a thousand elsewhere there's nothing like being in his presence there's no other encounter that can change me like an encounter with jesus there's no other experience that can transform me like an experience in his presence no other moment can alter my life my heart my family my eternity like just one moment with the master i could search the whole world and some have some of you could attest that you searched the world for years and you looked everywhere for something that could match this but you came up empty because there's no one who can feel you and there's no one who can fulfill you like jesus christ the almighty god for that matter none of us will ever find anything that can match in equal moments like the moments we have with him and i want to key in on some young men and some young ladies this morning i want to remind you you could go and search everywhere you could search in other people you could search in other relationships you could search career paths you could search other places and you'll never find someone who can fill you like jesus can and you'll never find a relationship that can help you like the one with jesus you'll never find anything as fulfilling as walking with jesus in a life spent with him in moments in his presence moments with the master are matchless and just one of them can change everything i reference those five young men and women who receive the holy ghost and it points back to a moment that further exemplifies what i'm preaching today a moment found in acts chapter 2. this moment reminds all of us of the premise that one encounter with the presence of god can change the course of an entire life and the course of entire churches history acts 2 says that when the day of pentecost had fully come they were all with one accord in one place and suddenly in an instant and in a moment there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind it filled all the house where they were sitting there appeared unto them clothing tongues like as of fire and it sat upon each of them and they were all filled with the gift of the holy ghost as the spirit gave the in just a matter of moments that group of believers that group of somewhat dejected followers they had just watched jesus ascend into heaven but that group had encountered with the spirit of god and it changed absolutely everything this was the moment the church was born it was the moment the prophecies were fulfilled it was the moment the comforter came the moment his power and his spirit were poured out and all points back to the fact that the master can do more in just one moment than you and i could do an entire lifetime the master can do more in one altar call than all my wisdom and counsel could do in a life that's why we follow the holy ghost in a service like this and we just follow after him because god can do much better than me at getting his word and his message across that's why moments with the master matter and i thank god that pentecost is still alive and well today those five kids the seven that have been filled with the holy ghost this year are evidence of that let me just pause here and say if you've never been filled

with the spirit of god you've never had the infilling of the holy ghost you can have that moment today you should have that moment today if you've never been baptized in his name and had all your sins washed away in your past buried in that baptismal tank you can have it today brother mitchell will tell you it's one of the greatest things that could ever happen to you if you've never repented of your sins apologize ask for forgiveness turned away from sin and towards god and align your heart with his you can have that moment today a powerful moment and the bible says that you'll become a new creation all things will pass away behold all things will become new with just one moment with the master that's the power one moment with jesus can unleash in your life you can be changed in a moment with him in fact i was talking to someone a couple weeks ago along these same lines i told him we've observed this on many occasions that what the enemy and what life and what sin and darkness have marred over years days months years what the enemy has worked on and destroyed in a life over a year's time god can restore that in just a moment god can restore it in just an instance now i emphasize the process i believe in the process a series of moments we need more than just one moment with him we need a life of moments we need daily moments that's why i tell people when they're baptized in jesus name that it's just the beginning were they filled with the holy ghost it's just the beginning but oh what a beginning when your life has changed and when your past is buried and when your debt is canceled anyone remember that moment oh when your life was changed in baptism or you had your hands lifted and you started to speak in that heavenly language like the word of god commands what a beginning when the master gets a hold of your life if you've never had that moment today you can have and what we've noticed and witness is when people come out of that baptismal tank i tell them say there's no that we don't put any bleach in the water no special bleach nothing about the water nothing about me but when we baptize you in the name of jesus in obedience to the word of god they come out by that water and we've seen it people just they don't even know what to think i've heard them describe it i feel like i'm weightless i feel free i i feel like i could float i i've watched someone who went down in baptism he went in that tank dejected and broken and he came out of the water and brother fred was with me he said hey you look a whole lot different your demeanors change everything's different one moment with jesus can change it all one moment with the master can change your life oh you're already doing it but i think we ought to pause and praise the lord for that moment he changed you that moment he transformed you and you were never the same hallelujah hallelujah oh there's testimonies all throughout the room the transformative power of god and they're all throughout his word as well in the gospel of matthew alone i counted at least eight different instances when at least eight different lives were changed in just a single moment they're just the tip of the iceberg but they represent what we're talking about today the new king james version often records that someone was healed or they were delivered or transformed in that very hour it says it happened in that very hour

other translations point to something more immediate it happened immediately that god healed him immediately whichever way you look at it the fact remains that in just matthew alone in matthew 8 a leper was instantly healed in matthew 9 the woman with the issue of blood she dealt with it for years she tried every other option but she just touches the hem of jesus's garment and she's ins one moment with the master can heal your body of a disease that you've had for a decade or more in matthew 15 the gentile woman's daughter was cured in matthew 17 a little boy was delivered from an evil spirit in matthew 20 blind eyes were open immediately and yet another decisive moment with the master and i know that someone could say today well i was during his earthly ministry he was actually there he was physically present it's a little different today i want to remind someone that he is just as present today and he's just as what you felt today the power of god he's just as powerful today in your life as he was when he was walking the earth in those three years of ministry in fact acts chapter 3 says there was a man at the gate beautiful he had been there his entire life he was lame and broken his entire life but here come peter and john in just one interaction with the healing power of god and he's completely healed and he's able to walk and he starts jumping and rejoicing like some of you have done and as i read that and thought about i just felt the word for someone who's come in today and you felt spiritually lame or you felt broken for days weeks months even decades god is able to touch you in just a moment he doesn't need a series he can do it in just one moment oh broken family can be put back together in just a moment a broken body can be healed in just one moment a broken heart can be healed and put together in just one moment he often uses a process it's his prerogative to do so there's often a process of healing but god does not need a process he's not confined to a process the healer the the great physician the almighty god's able to do it in just one moment one moment with jesus cannot be underestimated and i as much as i'm trying today it cannot be overstated one moment with him can change everything this is exactly what we find in scripture i mentioned it the apostle paul himself experienced it many of you know saul or paul he directly persecuted the church he had a checkered and amar past full of sin full of mistakes he had him personally imprisoned the same people that he would one day lead and love and embrace rebelled against god but one moment on a road to damascus and everything shifted and everything changed acts 9 says he encountered a bright light the glory of god so bright that it blinded him my prayer has been that someone would have the same experience with the glory of god just without the blindness we don't want you a bunch of blind people walking out of here we want you to have sight well paul asked he said who are you in verse 5. sometimes you just need to know who it is that is in the room with you who it is that's helping you because if this god is who we say is he can do it in a moment he can do it we just need a reminder who it is that's interrupted our life or interrupted our plans he said i'm jesus the one you're persecuting in verse six so he trembling and astonished said lord what do you want me to do and the lord

said to him arise and go into the city and you'll be told what you must do you're going to have another moment there you're going to have another encounter there and just three days later paul had that encounter with the spirit of god and this man who had resisted the lord in his church was changed by just two mere moments in the presence of the master paul called himself the chiefest of sinners and if god can transform his life in two moments what can god do in a life that's in this room today what could god do in that unsaved loved one or that family member that you've been praying about they are not too far gone for god to get a hold of their life and transform them he is able to do it the master is able to help and strengthen as i said the apostle paul's a clear testimony that along with him the most powerful transformation in the bible one of the most affirms what we're hearing today the last biblical example i want to give you god's able to transform any life at any time if you believe that i want you just to agree with me god is able to transform any life at any time he's able to help any life he's able to turn any life around at any time we read about already in our text it's the transformation of the demoniac the man who was bound in darkness in captivity the context the surrounding chapters make it all the more powerful just before we picked up the story in mark chapter 5 before they were ever confronted by the man in bondage to the enemy jesus and his disciples were confronted by a storm on the sea in mark 4 37 says the great windstormer hose and the waves beat into the boat so that it was already filling i love this next part would you go to that next verse but he was in the stern there's a storm someone battling battling a sickness battling a storm battling something you didn't anticipate but he was in the stern that may be all you need today to know that you're going to be all right because he's he's with you he's in the stern they they woke him and said teacher don't you care that we're perishing and he arose and rebuked the wind he said to the sea peace be still and the wind ceased and there was a great call it was yet another moment when their lives went from absolute turmoil and fear to undeniable peace and assurance in just a moment's time and as i read this in preparation for today i just wanted to pause here and remind someone that you may have come in with a storm but all he needs is a moment to stand on the stern of the bow of your life and say peace be god can speak peace into your life or into a family right now god can do it i wonder if we just pause right now and pray to that end would you pray and speak peace into this room or into someone's life who's around you right now oh god there's someone who came in battling turmoil battling a storm battle and sickness and we speak that word of peace into their life and into their family you are the peace speaker you are the healer you are our help today you're the god of all peace and we trust in you lord we trust in you lord and not only that we find another opportunity for transformation waiting for him in the shore and i want you to get a picture of this transformation as musicians come this morning because there may be someone who came in today and you've thought no it can't happen for me or it can't happen for them i want you to see the extent of this transformation

that happened in just one moment let me just tell someone this morning it's not impossible for you if you believe that would you help me when i it is not impossible for you our bishop mentioned last sunday no one is beyond god's reach no one's beyond god's help you read verses three through five you find the extent of this brokenness lived in the tombs and the mountains he cried out every night he harmed himself in his great distress he and others had tried everything they knew to try they bound them in chains they bound them in shackles they tried to restrain tried to confine him they even tried to tame him it wasn't just people that were trying to harm him they were trying to tame or to curb these outbursts tried everything they knew to try like that woman with the issue of blood went to every doctor she knew and then decided i got to go to jesus some have tried everything you know to try you're at your breaking point you have been everywhere else you talked to everywhere else you looked every place else well you didn't realize the whole time what you may have forgotten is that one moment with him it may not be that god just instantly heals you or gives you a miracle that moment may be the one that gives you the strength that you need to get to the next moment and the next and the next i'm talking to someone today who's desperate i want to remind you that one moment when jesus can change it all at demoniac saw his moment i'm praying some of you see your moment today here comes the master gets out of the boat i don't know if it was a legion inside of him or just that man he instantly recognized someone recognized your deliverance today and recognize who's in the room and he runs to jesus and he falls down and worships him just a couple verses later you know we we take for granted that there's a whole life before those couple of verses a whole life how did he get to that point a legion of demons a legion of darkness it didn't really matter he just needed a moment with jesus and this man broken dejected unclothed untamed my goodness what if he walked in here maybe he did today we just see him differently maybe someone in their spirit looks a lot like that man and they're broken dejected and they've been cut off feel like they're cut off from god and cut off from others jesus talks to him what's your name brother wright gave me an awesome point about this he said in that time when you wanted authority over someone you you asked their name he said what's your name because he said jesus son of david the son of the most high he said what's your name legion get out of them one command one moment it was such a transformation that not just people from the city but there were people from the country and they said we've got to go see this man we're going to go see what happened some of you ah there's a guest here today people are going to be wondering what in the world happened to that guy what in the world happened to him something has happened in their life there's been a transformation they're totally different god got a hold of them one day and everything changed everything was different they brought people they said we got to see this they were so marveling out of they were so afraid they said we don't want anything to do with this worst mistake ever and then that man was one of the first men we've ever heard of preaching in the region of decapolis

that man who is hiding in the tombs that man who was cutting himself that man who was so broken had a moment with the master like some of you're going to have this morning and god changed it all i want you to stand with me right now it wasn't just the demoniac but there's testimonies in this room what god can do in a moment my dad 15 years old came into the church you were smoking a pack of cigarettes a day around that he received the holy ghost that's all it took took the cigarettes threw him down a sewer it's been over 40 years later he's never turned back i thank god that my dad had a moment with the master but fred really wave your hand we heard about it last week he came in on a wednesday my god help me never to discount what the lord can do on a wednesday night because it wasn't for a powerful wednesday night he may not be here he intended to kill himself and commit suicide but god got a hold of him on a wednesday he's been worshiping with us ever since sister michelle where are you at right over there just told her testimony calling on the name of the lord battling addiction didn't know what else to do i'm sure it tried some other things but one night just got so desperate and she starts calling on the name of jesus and the lord took that addiction from her and god's changed her life and she's helping others see their lives change i'm telling you one moment when jesus can change it all oh would you lift your hands right now i believe god's about to do it i believe god's gonna change someone you've come today broken you're gonna leave healed you become sick i believe god can heal you you've come needing redemption you've needed grace god's ready to fill you with his spirit god's ready to transform your life you've come needing the holy ghost he's got it for you today with the biblical evidence of speaking in other tongues there's moments with the master if you need a moment you came looking for a moment you need god to heal or strengthen you i wonder if you just not hesitate step out of where you are right now we're going to come back around the front and god's going to help and strengthen you need healing you need god's peace would you step out of where you are right now and come and lift your hands and believe he's going to meet you here if you draw an eye unto him he'll draw an eye unto you oh would you come right down you need the gift of the holy ghost but you never repent of your sins would you step out it's a sign of faith and come and pray you just need a moment for the strength of god interacts with your weakness if you believe in the power of a moment with jesus would you step out of where you are come and pray with some desperate individuals who need god's help but you come and lift your hands and lift your voices in the name of jesus in the name of jesus christ with the gift of the holy ghost is is your name is from jesus in the darkness jesus is she jesus jesus is five your name is us is jesus jesus yes we've got a moment of transformation that's about to happen christians going to be baptized in the name of jesus and all his sins are going to be washed away i don't believe god's quite done here yet i want to share just briefly i started taking inventory this week there's moments happening all throughout the room but the moments in my life with the master that happened just in this room i was 16 years old standing right

where brother chris hallis is the lord spoke to me for the first time in this room i was right there by brother jury and god called me standing in that aisle way i told the story about my family we needed strength we were in a critical season in time and we're going to pray about this in just a moment for families but we came down here to the front and this church surrounded us and prayed us and we had a moment that carried us for days and months and years i remember junior i don't know if he's in here today he was standing right over here when he received the baptism of the holy ghost i got to witness that my sister-in-law tiffany who's in the back got the holy ghost in where isaiah is my brother began a process of restoration and god began to bring him back he was standing right here on this platform during a graduation ah i'm a product of moments with the master moments in the presence of god that have changed me and changed my family i want us to pray again for families before we sing again if your family is needing god's help or strength i know firsthand what a moment like this could do for you would you just be so bold and vulnerable to lift your hand and say you know what my family's in need of a moment with the master today i feel such a burden for some families i'll church would you mobilize right now and pray with these individuals we've got families all across the room that are in need of the help of god and the power of god as we sing again would you lift your voice and would you pray in the name of jesus in the name of jesus jesus jesus jesus i speak the holy name of jesus yes it is your name is power yes is well every baptism is special this one's got a special place in my heart we've been in a bible study about the past six to eight months god's been working on christian this whole family we came in last week and the lord got a hold of his heart and he came back he said this is home this is home god's working on him i told him his word says we're baptized into the body so he's about to become a part of the body of christ and this is just the beginning but i'm believing he's going to receive the gift of the holy ghost he's going to with the evidence of speaking in other tongues we're going to pray for him in this family would you stretch your hand towards them right now in the name of jesus thank you for this life god thank you for what you're doing lord uh we're believing it's just the beginning of the transformative moments he's gonna have with you we're believing he's gonna be filled with your spirit lord he's gonna walk in overcoming life we thank you for what you're about to do and for every sin you're going to wash away in jesus name now christian in obedience to the word of god because of your faith i baptize you in the name of jesus for the remission of your sins in jesus name in jesus name hallelujah go ahead