Happiness Will Never Happen Outside of God (Part II) | Senior Pastor Kenneth Carpenter

turn to the great book of acts chapter three um it's going to be a few moments tonight i i want to do something that i haven't done in a long time acts chapter three and verse number one i didn't get finished this morning i didn't get finished with my message today i never want to lose my desire to live for god you ever lose your desire to live for god you're goner you're a goner you ever lose your desire all i also want to say to brother james brother james and sister ashley their family moved here from memphis and just a god appointed thing connected with our our dear family from true purpose and we just love would you would you give a great big hand for all of our family from true purpose i love you all it is a jesus it is a jesus joy to have you all at first apostolic church so jesus joy but i didn't get finished today preaching to myself so i want to continue and just finish out chapter three of book of acts verse number one now peter and john went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer being the third hour a certain lame man from his mother's womb was carried whom they laid daily at the temple at the gate of the temple which is called beautiful to ask alms of them that entered into the temple who seeing peter and john about to go into the temple asking alms peter fastening his eyes upon him with john said look on us he gave heed unto them expecting to receive something of them then peter said silver and gold have i none but such as i have give i thee in the name of jesus christ of nazareth rise up and walk he took him by the right hand and lifted him up and immediately his feet and ankle bones receive strength i want to continue my message today preaching to myself on the desire father i love you tonight can't make it to heaven without your word lord can't make it to heaven god without hearing your word preached to me god i ask you tonight lord to anoint my lips of clay oh god help me to minister to the church tonight god shake us and wake us lord don't let us sleep the sleep of death god anoint us for the next few moments and i'll give you praise jesus name we pray amen you may be seated they were going to prayer peter and john were going to prayer and before they got to prayer before they got to prayer they encountered the lame man before they got to prayer they encountered the lame man they did not encounter him after prayer or during prayer they encountered him before prayer before they prayed peter said silver and gold have i none but such as i have give iv the name of jesus rise up and walk they were going to prayer god help us to understand that we don't go to prayer to get power they already had power they already had power we don't go to god to get power we don't go to prayer to get power we go to prayer to keep our desire alive prayer keeps our desire alive they had power they had power they hadn't even got to prayer yet and they had power will you say if you have power why go to prayer because i have something that i need more than power i need my desire i need my desire jesus mentioned one time about fainting spiritually about fainting being overcome and fainting and he said man ought to always pray that it faint not so prayer tonight is not me going and getting some kind of power prayer tonight is about me going and keeping my desire alive we could visualize prayer as a fireplace and you put logs on the fire but if you don't keep putting a log on the fire the fire goes out so you keep putting logs on the fire so it is with prayer no prayer no desire prayer desire linked together we know that they went to prayer before they got to prayer they exercised power over the lame man and he was healed but the healing of the lame man made the religious people not happy they arrested paul and silas they arrested excuse me they arrested peter and john and they threatened them they intimidated them they tried to intimidate them to the place to where they would not preach his name but when they left acts chapter 4 and verse number 23 and being let go they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them they got with their own and they said now let us tell you what they're saying to us they're saying to us don't preach anymore in that name they are threatening us they are telling us that if we preach in that name we could be imprisoned and possibly face death they told them what had happened verse 24 and when they heard that they lifted up their voice to god with one accord and said lord thou art god which had made heaven and earth and the sea and all that in them is now the first thing i want you to know about prayer is prayer helps to remind us that god is in control one reason we need to pray is because without prayer we become intimidated and fearful about everything that happens in our lives but can i remind the church tonight that if you are a blood-bought spirit-filled child of the most high god washington is not in control no person is in control of your life can i remind you that god is in control of your life can you give him some praise tonight god is in control of your life we need to be reminded as a church tonight that god is in control the enemy would like to intimidate us the enemy would like to fill the church with fear oh friend where's my brother nichols at tonight my good family that moved from california brother nichols where yet would you stand would you stand right now what did you tell me yesterday when we were stepping having our bible study you said something about fear and being cautious what was it just holler it out he said to me brother carpenter living in caution is one thing and living in fear is another i refuse to live in fear we will be cautious but we will not be fearful because our god is in control our god come on rally to that tonight our god is in control well you just don't know you don't know i've got all these people controlling my life not if you're a bloodball spirit-filled child of god if you're a bloodball spirit-filled child of god god is in control of your life pharaoh's not in control of your life the king is not in control of your life but god is in control of your life if you are a young person here tonight and you feel like you have been set back in life because you're being raised by a single parent or you're being raised by something that is handicapped you i got to tell you get born again get your life in the hand of god and god will be controlling your life you can throw joseph in a pit but god has got control of him you can put joseph in prison but god has got control of him you can lie on joseph but god has got that's why you need to stay in the church because god is controlling the church when they heard these things they lifted up their voice to god with one accord and they said lord god thou art god which hath made heaven and earth the sea and all that is in them what they basically said there god you're in control who by the mouth of the servant david said now this is what they say in the bible is written why did the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing the kings of the earth stood up and the rulers were gathered together against the lord and against his christ forever truth against thy holy child jesus whom thou hast appointed both herod and pontius pilate with the gentiles and the people of israel were gathered together now he says this is what happened it was already written in the word he says number one this would be a good thing for you to remind yourself god's in control and it's already written in the word all this crazy stuff we're witnessing around us in our society god is in control and god already had it written in the word it's already written in the word how perverted this world would get god is in control and god already said it i don't care what man tries to do to us god is in control and god is all god has already written it in his word for of a truth against thy holy child jesus whom thou hast anointed both herod and pontus pilate with the gentiles and the people of israel were gathered together now listen to this they the heathens gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done the devil is nothing but a pun in the hand of god god is able to outsmart the devil with one hand tied behind his back even the crucifixion it would be said of the crucifixion had the princes of this world have known it had the spiritual demonic realm had known it they would have never crucified the lord of glory those old slimy demons going through the crowd that day tickling the vocal cords of man tickling their minds saying scream out crucify him scream out crucify him scream out crucifying that's what they wanted they thought it will crucify him we'll silence him but all those devils had a council three days later and they said boys we did the wrong thing we did the absolute wrong thing there was only one jesus that we had to deal with but since we had been crucified he sent the holy ghost down and now we got 120 jesus we got to deal with and somebody said well the service is not over yet they've done baptized 3 000 and now we've got 312 can i tell you the devil is not all wise can i tell you that things happen in your life that god is orchestrating it and the devil thinks he's destroying you but it's only going to turn so i'm going to give you some praise tonight whoa hallelujah thank you jesus all glory to god my mighty god i magnify you tonight and now lord behold their threatenings and grant thy servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word what a prayer request you know what their prayer request was help us to be bold enemy has his way he'll put a spirit of fear on us and with the spirit of fear will come the cousin of insecurity we'll let a spirit of fear come upon us and then it's not long we're insecure it's not long that we're without faith but they said god give us boldness give us moments he didn't say take the enemy away he said just give us boldness that's what we need today we need some boldness in us we need some holy bold prayers we don't need to fall apart and crumble when we don't get the news we thought we should get but we need to step up with holy boldness and say if god before us who can be against us we need some holy bonelessness stop stop saying this crazy stuff like i don't know how much more of this we can take i'll tell you how much more we can take as much as they can give that's how much we can take i don't know how much of this attack i can take i know exactly how much i can take all the devil can dish out bring it on i can take all because i have one verse greater is he that is within you than he that is in the world i am going to make it i am going to bounce back i am going to see a better day i am going to be dynamically used of god god is going to use me just give me boldness god that's all i'm asking god just give me boldness god give me bonuses speak thy word just just just give me boldness god just give me boldness to speak thy word by stretching forth thine hand to heal and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of the holy child jesus and when they had prayed the place was shaken where they were assembled together and they were all filled with the holy ghost and spake the word of god with boldness the first time they were filled with the holy ghost tongues came out of their mouth as a sign that they had been filled the second time they're filled with the holy ghost tongues didn't come out to prove they had the holy ghost but the boldness come out of their mouth let the weak say i am strong fear insecurity we've got to be empty of fear we've got to be empty of insecurity we have got to be empty of these things because if we're empty of fear and insecurity we can be filled with the holy ghost to cause us to speak boldly but if i am full of fear i can't be full of the holy ghost too if i am full of insecurity i can't be full of the holy ghost too we've got to lose the fear we've got to lose the fear we've got to lose the insecurity we've got to lose the inferiority complex we've got to lose that inferiority complex and it can't happen to me why can't it happen to you well i don't think i can be blessed keep talking that way and you won't but find you some scriptures like this god is no respecter of persons do you know if god has blessed one human being god is bound by his word to bless all human beings just get in line qualify your life if god has answered one prayer he'll answer everybody's prayer but you can't get in prayer you can't go to god expecting to receive something full of fear and insecurity you've got to empty yourself out say god you're in control you're in control god now i want to tell you about a little battle going on i want to tell you about a little battle going on i call it the battle of almost in almost in the battle the hardest battle and the toughest line you'll ever fight is when you're almost in you're you're almost in the devil knows that you're almost in brother jeter sent me this this week at least let me stop here for a moment sister jeter would you all stand back there would you both of you stand back there brother sister jeter would you stand they're elders here in the church they're elders here in the church some time ago they went on a healthy tremendous weight loss program i don't even recce i have to take a second look at them are we not thankful for the journey that they've been on thank you all i you may be seated there sometimes i have to take a second look i tell brother jeter i said you ain't half the man you used to be you know and uh i came by the office the other day and i saw this woman in there and she was taking her finger and pointing like this and i thought well i better go in there that looks like maybe a daycare parent may be a little upset i better go by there and see what this woman's pointing at and i walked in i almost spoke to her and it was sister jeter standing there pointing to somebody tell them to thank you all for this healthy program if you want to know about it if you want to know all about it's a very healthy it's a very healthy program if you want to know all about it you see them you see them after trying and yes i i know he said what are you doing taking a break and i really applaud i really applaud you i really i really applaud you you condemn me but i do applaud you brother jeter sent me this the other day it's called 212 the extra degree at 211 degrees water is hot at 212 degrees it boils with the boiling of the water comes steam and with steam you can power a train one extra degree makes all the difference can i tell you almost end don't get almost in get all the way in don't get almost don't don't come around the church and and man i'm almost man by i i'm i'm i'm almost here but listen you can't get the power being almost here you can't get water to boil being almost here but when you get all the way in the water begins to boil when you get the mindset god i don't care what it takes i want to be all the way in the church man i have found a church over there in maryville where the power of god is moving and the word of god is being preached i'm going to get all the way in there i'm going to get all the way in that church maybe see now i'm no great i'm no great spiritual guru and i don't want you to think i am when i tell this story i just have to tell this part to tell the whole story several years ago god laid on my heart like that to go on a fast i knew it was god telling me to go on a fast and i went on a fast and uh some time went by my wife was asking me when how long do you think you're going to be on this fast and i just simply told her i don't know i said i wasn't planning to go on the fast it was just that god laid on my heart to start fasting and i'm fasting on a sunday morning my mother-in-law asked if she could see me in the office for a few moments now i have got the greatest mother-in-law i don't get i listen if you got a mother-in-law joke to tell i don't i don't i don't get with mother-in-law jokes i got the best mother-in-law she loves me more than she loves her own daughter all right i prove it at christmas time she gives money at christmas time she gives me and sister carpenter the same amount of money except i get another piece of money because i'm her pastor all right and she probably knows that penny's going to get it anyway so okay she asked if she could see me in the office we went in the office it was up on the hill she had a burden for her children she wanted all of her children to be in church she said i was down praying this past week she said i was asking god lord help my children to get in the church and said god spoke to me and god said why would you want your children in this church you don't believe what they believe why would you want them in the church you don't believe this and there were just a couple of things mamaw had got close to getting in the church but she was holding on to a couple things she's almost in she was she was she was 211 degrees she was almost in she was 211 knowing that she wanted her children to get in this church but she was holding on to a few little things of the world and sitting in that office that day she said god spoke to me and said why would you want your kids in this church you don't believe what they believe and she said i told god the things that i'm holding on to and the things that i haven't given up i want you to know today that i'm going to give them up i'm going to do these things and i'm going to give them up and she went from 211 degrees to 212 and the water began to boil and when she walked out of the office and the door shut god lifted that fast from off of me and said that's the reason that you're fasting you're fasting so that they'll get all the way in ronda what about that tonight brad what about that tonight oh friend get all the way in some of you want your children to get in this church you got to get all the way in don't just get close to the edge get all the way in this church come on i told you this morning i'm apostolic because i believe the apostolics have the message of salvation i am not ashamed to say i'm apostolic i'm like the apostles i am not ashamed to say i'm pentecostal i believe in receiving the spirit i believe it's a message to preach get all the way in get all the way come on get all the way in some of you young girls are wanting god to send you a man and it's not happening yet and you're going to settle for less than the best and god's not brought him here because you're not all the way in but if you would get all the way in god would bring you and not only the young girls that's for the young boys too praying for god to send you a girl god ain't gonna put that on no poor girl god ain't gonna give a half backslid boy to a holy ghost field girl well i'm waiting on god to bless me why would he want to bless 211 why would he want to bless hot he wants to bless steve he wants to bless steam and you got to get all the way in i promise you what i preach tonight's the truth i preached tonight's truth there's some deliverance that come your way if you'd go from 211 to 212. instead of asking why it hasn't happened check your temperature is there anything that god's been talking to you about about giving up and i don't i don't listen i don't want to deal with any of you show it to me in the bible people all right you think that we could just love god enough to give god some things that he didn't even write in the book do you maybe think that god even left some things out of the book and he said i want them to see if they just do it because they love me i just like to see if they do it just because you you think there may be some things that are not even written in the book and god's dealing with you to do it you say well i can't find in the bible i can't find people show it to me in the bible well you can't find it in the bible where it says thou shalt not play in the road you can't find in the bible where it says thou shalt not play with a gun but god gives us a little bit of matter up here matter matters huh god gives us a little thinking power up here and what about it god has just left some things up to us to respond mom you may be seated my wedding vows were very plain for better for worse for richer for poor in sickness and in hell forsaking all others keeping the only unto thee well you think i've said that before as long as i shall live i do he didn't say anything about opening the car door for he didn't say anything about getting up and making her coffee he didn't say anything about writing a poem it didn't say anything about without being prompted and with no ulterior motive just looking over at her and saying i love you i love you i'm just so thankful you're my wife i love you you think god might want some insane stuff that we would just do some things that's not written in the book and we just step out and say you know you know i told somebody some time ago they came out with a root beer a root beer mother thorpe that the root beer was called near beer and they said pastor can i drink near beer i said well i wouldn't they said why i said it sounds too much like near lake of fire come on you think young people tonight instead of us having a long list of things you're to do and not to do do you think that god could just speak to you about some things that's not on that list and you would just say i'm tired of being 211 i want to go to 212. i just want to get all the way in i want to get all the way you watch god you mark it down you make up in your mind tonight i'm going all in tonight i'm going absolutely all in tonight i'm tired of playing on the fringes of the church i'm going to get all the way give me a choir handbook give me a sunday school book give me something to do i'm going all the way in you watch god wait a minute verse 5 chapter five verse number one now a certain man named ananias with sapphire his wife sold a possession kept back part of the price his wife also being private to it brought a certain part laid it at the apostle's feet now instead of talking about a couple and nice and sapphira let's talk about the battle within us you see the battle of ananias and sapphira is they only wanted to be apart physically and not spiritually they wanted to be in the room with the church but they didn't want to have the spirit of the church and wanted to be a part of the church but the church had the spirit of giving the church had the spirit of 212 the church had the spirit of helping but ananias and sapphira was almost there but something was holding them back and so they decided they decided and i'm not trying to bring a a blanket a wet blanket on this message but the truth is no one lasts for long on the fringes you don't that's why a lot of times there's a big turnover in the church it's not that something's wrong with the pastor oh the devil would try to plant that the big turnover sometime is just simply people at 11. you just don't stay alive long at 2 11. ask ananias and sapphira they wanted to be in they wanted to be physically connected to the church but not spiritually connected to the church so when they sold a property as others so property instead of going all in like others did they dialed it back to 211 and acted like they were giving all and you know the story ananias walked into the presence of god and said this is what we sow the property for which was a lie and peter just simply said why did you allow here's the clue why did you allow satan to feel your heart you know why he filled it it was empty you can't feel something that's full that's why prayer keeps your desire full he fell dead they wound him up carried him off to the cemetery three hours later his wife came in and because she was the wife god gave her a little special mercy peter poses the question did you and your husband get such and such out of the land and really that's because she was the wife and god was having a little mercy upon her and seeing if she would catch on but she didn't she said yes for such and such peter said why have you and your husband tempted the holy ghost you have not lied to man but you have lied you have lied to god and they both died do you know that if we could ever have the death of something inside of each of us is an ananias in sapphira if you could ever have the death of something have the death of the ananias have the death of the sapphira because something happens after the death of these acts chapter 5 verse 5 and ananias hearing these words fell down gave up the ghost great fear great fear came on all them that heard these things when ananias died great fear hit the church the young men take took him out as i had said we go all the way down to verse 10. sapphira she fell down straightway at his feet and yielded up the ghost and the young men came in and found her dead and carried her forth and buried her by her husband verse 11. i hope you see this on the screen because when ananias and sapphira dies and listen at me tonight look at me please understand in all of us is an ananias and sapphira he's got to die got to die because watch this watch this verse 11 and great fear came upon all the church and upon as many as heard these things and by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people and they were all with one accord in solomon's porch of the rest dearth no man joined himself to them but the people magnified them and believers were the more added to the lord multitudes both men and women in so much that they brought forth the sick into the streets and lay them on beds and couches that at the least the shadow of peter passing by might overshadow some of them and they would be healed look at what happened when ananias and sapphira died fear came on the church and disciples began to multiply people begin to be believers and the church went to another level they went to the level to where they said peter can't pray for all the people that line up just let peter walk by and what kind of faith is this let peter walk by and let just the shadow of peter going by go over the sick and they'll start jumping up can i tell you your life will go to another spiritual dimension if you will let ananias and sapphira die if you'll let that almost end almost there die if you'll say ananias and sapphira not all not most of it but i'm given all of it i'm not giving most of my my mentality my mind no other music or to stir you like god's music no other preaching or to stir you like the preaching of the truth there shouldn't be a football stadium a hockey stadium a baseball field there shouldn't be any kind of entertainment that moves you like the house of god there ought to be something about staying with me tonight oh god don't let me lose my desire oh god don't let me lose my desire something about the house of god i know you all think about i know you all think that pastor's got a little hobby horse if there's anything under the attack right now it's the house of god i understand that people can't make it to church and we got the internet but please if you can make it to church make it to church there's something about the value of the house of god i don't care you would think you would think brother seander that the older your pastor would get he would mellow out on this but i think the older that i'm getting the more dogmatic that i'm getting about the house of god if we lose our desire for the house of god the devil has great opportunity to come in it will be the house of god that your marriage can be healed it will be the house of god that you will have friends that will help you live for god it will be the house of god that will have other young people that your sons and daughters will meet and marry of like precious faith it will be the house of god that will put you together and i'll carry your burden and you'll carry my burden and by the help of god we'll make it to heaven together the house of god psalms 27 for musicians and singers would you come come a running psalms 27 and 4. listen to this read it with me when it comes up on the screen read it with me psalms 27 and 4. psalms 27 and 4. read it with me one thing what one thing was it what do you ask god who owns it all i have one desire notice he didn't say i want to live a long time because what good would a lot of years do without the house of god he didn't say i want a bunch of money what good would a bunch of money do without the house of god there's wealthy multi-millionaires in our town tonight that would give anything to see their son and daughter singing in our choir full of the holy ghost but what would the one thing oh my god what would the one thing be if i could ask god for one thing that i may dwell in the house of the lord forever that's my one desire one thing i have desired one thing i've desired of the lord hey this just came to my mind you know how we got in this crazy sin business anyway don't you it says when eve saw that the tree was good for fruit the one the lord said don't eat of when she saw that the tree was good for fruit and a tree to be desired we're in this crazy sin business because a woman had the wrong desire if the wrong desire can lead us to sin then the right desire can lead us to grace come on let's let the holy ghost move right now come on let's say the holy ghost move right now god it's my desire god i don't want to lose my desire god i don't want to make excuses of why i don't come anymore on wednesday night god i don't want to make excuses for why i don't come anymore on sunday night god i don't want to make an excuse god i don't want to be looking for reasons not to come to church it's my desire it's my desire it's my desire it's my desire this is karma you get ready for baptism tonight it's my desire come on it's my desire oh god i don't want to lose my desire i fear i don't want to lose my desire money will never take the place of a desire to live for god a big church building will never take the place of a desire to live for god having several hundreds that come out to service will never lose never take desire away god god my desire my desire my desire would you just pray with me right now all over this building i've got to get this out of my system god i don't want to lose my desire oh god i don't want to lose my desire i don't want to lose my desire god come on check yourself out tonight are you losing your desire the answer to that is yes and you need to come and find you a place around this altar and pray we gotta we got a big altar around here you you ought to come find you a place to bury your face you gotta come find your place to bury your face and pray i don't wanna lose my desire i wanna lose my desire come on me and your men that's me and that's me come on that's me and that's me and come on i won't lose my desire i don't want to lose my desire come on man your prayer is i don't want to lose my desire i don't want to lose my desire god i don't want to lose my desire god i see myself as delivered i see myself as set free and i see myself tonight with these chains broken i see myself tonight with a brand new future i see myself tonight being totally set free i see myself gaining the respect of people around me i see myself tonight i see myself god that's right come on oh i like what i hear right now i like what i hear come on pray come on church let's pray we can't lose our desire we can't lose our desire for the prayer room you've got to open up your bible in the morning and read it you can't lose your desire to read your bible through come on you can't lose your desire to read your bible through come on you can't lose your desire it's time to get all the way in some of you've got things in your life that are keeping you at 211. you've got things in your life that's keeping you at 211. come on tonight let's get rid of them let's get rid of them tonight the holy ghost has been dealing with you about things you've been doing the holy ghost has been dealing with you about things you've been doing give it up tonight go to 212 tonight go to 212 tonight oh yes god come on pray come on pray is is oh is come set me up oh until the whole world this is this is holy ghost shine bright into the whole world love your love your love oh amen we're going to baptize sister kathy robinette tonight the wonderful name of jesus we believe lord's just going to touch her and minister to her may would you pray with us tonight over a cathy lord right now in the name of jesus god we want to thank you for healing we want to thank you for salvation and we want to thank you for washing away every sin of god and in the name of jesus when she comes up out of the water every sin is washed away all things are passed away and behold all things become new god we're grateful to take on that wonderful powerful mighty name of jesus christ tonight hallelujah jesus christ just take your wrist right here right now sister kathy robinette professor your faith obedience to the word of the lord i do now indeed baptize you in the name of jesus christ for the remission of your sins and you shall receive the gift of the holy ghost in jesus name this is this is is is is this is this is is oh in um let's sing it together come on sing it one more time together so give the lord a hand to praise right now i'm thankful for sister kathy robinette being baptized tonight would you put your hands together and thank god two went down in jesus name today just a gentle reminder uh if you're here tonight from the sevierville campus we we announce this at the very end of the service but this coming tuesday night first lady announcer carpenter and i will be continuing on our family matters uh brother carpenter i'm speaking to the men and sister carpenter will be speaking to the ladies there on on tuesday night it's a very powerful a very very powerful how many appreciated that when it was here at the main campus and uh i've seen a lot of great spiritual seen a lot of great spiritual growth out of this the house of god and one another is our lifeline and i know that under covet brother nichols said it's so right live cautiously but i'm not going to live in fear and uh i just want you to i don't think you'll get covet if you do this if you just turn before you leave here tonight and tell someone i appreciate you i just appreciate you all right would you do that i don't think you'll get coveted all right global grounds is open i'll see everybody wednesday night at 7 30. god bless you