Forgiving Love

I like having in-person church. I think we should just keep it. I'm a fan. Anybody in favor? Yeah, yeah. It's good stuff, good, good stuff. Next Sunday we're going to be kicking off our Next Steps class. If you're new to the church, new to Center Point, I invite you to be a part of that class. It starts at 10 30 in the classroom right behind that wall right there. One on one, you get a chance to be introduced to this church, introduced to church leadership, and introduce to opportunities for you to get involved in ministry. I believe everybody has a ministry. I do. I believe that you may not do what I'm doing right now, but that doesn't make your ministry any less important. They're all important. And you can come and discover where your ministry is here at this church.

I was reading a story, and I found — I like information. I like finding out new things about, uh, stuff that I may not know about. During this time of quarantine, I have found myself unusually interested in birds. Now, part of that is due to the fact that my wife has a bird figure that's right outside the kitchen window, and part of that's due the fact that she has put me in charge of putting the seed in the bird feeder to feed the birds. Now, I got mixed emotions about this, because I do enjoy, uh, seeing the birds and all that they are out there, and kind of being territorial, and seeing different birds I've never seen before. In fact, we even have a bird book that we thumb through and try to identify the birds. Now, that's, that's the good part. The bad part is, is that the birds show their appreciation to me by leaving remnants all over the cars in the driveway. I haven't quite figured out why they don't treat me a little bit better, since I'm the one providing the seed, to which they seem to borrow for a few minutes and then deposit there on the hood of my car. But I've, I've been — I really have found myself enjoying seeing some of the different types and varieties of birds there.

And I ran across this story about homing pigeons, and it really interested me. In fact, prior to the First World War war, the, uh, orn — uh, two ornologists in in England began to study and became really fascinated with birds who were able to find their way back, no matter where you took them. So they began to do a little bit of research, seeing if, if they maybe could find the length or the end to which this homing beacon actually works. So they took a couple of birds that were called sheer waters from their nest off the island of the coast of Wales, and they released them in various places around the world. And the first such long flight is, they took one of the birds by aircraft to Venice, and this was a tremendous distance from where the birds home nest was, and they released it, and they tagged the bird, and they found that at 341 hours and 10 minutes later, it was back in its nest. Pretty, pretty impressive. Except they decided to — well, let's see if we can take this further. So they took a pair of these same birds, and they put them on a train to London, and then they put them on an airplane to Boston. Uh, unfortunately, one of the birds didn't survive the flight in the box, um, but the other — the other bird that did make it was released on a pier in Boston, and 12 days and 12 hours later, the bird that was tagged AX 6587 was back in its home nest. I just — blown away that this bird flew across the Atlantic Ocean and made it back home. I just think it's amazing how God has designed nature and all that is around us, and even you and I. And I believe in my heart of hearts that you have inside of you a homing beacon in your soul that, if you will pay attention to it, is constantly trying to get you back to where you're supposed to be. I believe that. I believe that. And, and I think that holman instinct is within us, and it goes deep down inside. And, and I'll talk a little bit about that, and a little bit about the subject of forgiving love today.

Psalms 130, verse 1 through 7, reads this way: "Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice. Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication. If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, oh Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I do hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning — yes, more than those who watch for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption." Now, that's the King James or the New King James version. I want to read that same passage to you in a — in a version of the Bible that maybe not too familiar with, with so many people here. It's called the Passion Translation, and I want you to listen to these words. Same, same chapter, Psalms 130: "Lord, I cry out to You out of the depths of my despair. Hear my voice, oh God. Answer this prayer and hear my plea for mercy. Lord, if You were measuring us and marked us with our sins, who would have ever had their prayers answered? But Your forgiving love is what makes You so wonderful. No wonder You are loved and worshipped. This is why I wait upon You, expecting Your breakthrough, for Your word brings me hope. I long for You more than any watchman but long for the morning light. I will watch and wait for You, oh God, throughout the night. Oh Israel, keep hoping" — oh, wish you look at somebody right now and just tell them: keep hoping, keep trusting. Look at your other neighbor there, say: keep trusting, keep waiting on the Lord — "for He is tenderhearted, kind and forgiving. He has a thousand ways to set you free. He has a thousand ways to set you free. He Himself will redeem you. He will ransom you from the cruel slavery of your sins. Oh, how wonderful is His forgiving love."

God, I thank You for being with us already today. I thank You for Your presence that has settled into this sanctuary. Lord, I pray that we could receive the anointed word You have for us today and apply it to our lives. Thank You, God, for Your mercy. Thank You, God, for Your grace. Thank You, God, for the thousand ways You have to set us free. And God, I declare, upon the authority of Your name, that freedom will reign in this place today. In Jesus' name, amen.

One of the main reasons we gather together and worship in this place is because we have been forgiven. We have been forgiven. Worship, for many of us, is a direct response of being forgiven. You don't know my story. I don't know your story. But I can tell you this: God has done a mighty work in my life. God has done such a work that I cannot set steel, that when an opportunity presents itself, I must — I must — I must raise my hands. I must engage my voice. I must be actively pursuing after Him, because He has been so abundantly good to me in my life. Oh, if you could have known me before God. Oh, if you could have heard what I had gotten myself into. But there was a God who's rich in mercy, whose love refused to give up on me even when I was going to give up on myself. My God refused to settle. He refused to let me go. Instead, He continued to pursue, and to push, and do all He could to reach down in the muck and the mire of life, and pull me up, and set my feet on solid ground. And that is why I worship. That is why so many of us in this place, we worship. We get lost in praise, because our God is a God of mercy and love.

That is why we are here. Not everybody understands an Apostolic Pentecostal church service. For someone in the room today, this may be your first time, and you may be a little bit set back by what you've seen. It's not that we do this for show. It's not that we do this for attention. It's not that we do this because we have nothing better to do. It's because when we come into this place and I feel His presence, I am reminded one more time that I am loved. I remember one more time of how good my God is, how faithful He has been in my life. And there's something in me that refuses to stay silent about how good my God is. That is why I sing. That is why I shout. That is why I dance about, talk, walk, and act like I do. Oh, if you could have known me before Jesus found me.

In the psalm that I just read to you today — in many of your Bibles, you will notice a heading on the top of it that says either "A Psalm of Ascent" or "A Song of Pilgrims Ascending to Jerusalem." This is a song that was popular as they would make their way back to Jerusalem for their high and holy days. It was a song that was penned for them to remember the good things of God. The psalm is from brokenness and repentance, and an acknowledging of failures and flaws. I find it interesting that the psalmist begins the writing by admitting the depths of his despair. I don't know where you are today. I don't know the circumstances of your soul. I don't know what's going on in your mind. I don't know what this last week has dealt you in life. But if you find that you can identify in some way with the words that the psalmist is pinning, I want you to know there's hope for you today. What exactly was the writer referring to? Was it the current circumstances he was facing, or was it the fact that he was moving along life from where he had been to where God was bringing him to? We are constantly in motion, ladies and gentlemen. We never stay still. Either we wake up with the intent and purpose that today I'm going to draw closer to God, or we, by any other decision, find ourself moving backwards and further away from Him. You're constantly in motion. Maybe this is some of what the psalmist was writing about when he says that, "I found myself in deep despair." I don't know if anybody is in deep despair here today, but if you are, you're in a good place. I'm thankful that God is willing to do whatever it takes to reach me, and I want you to know that that same God is willing to do whatever it takes to reach you today.

When I think of this, oftentimes I think about the story of Jonah in the Bible, who, by his own disobedience, ended up finding himself in the belly of a well. But even in the belly, he cried out, and God was able to not only hear him, but deliver him from the circumstances, and land him right where God wanted him to be all along. That should bring hope to someone today. Please listen to me. It does not matter how far you have gone, what kind of darkness surrounds you, what manner of hell you're living in right now. No matter how impossible, if you lift up your voice and call on God, I promise you that something in your life will happen good today. But it all depends on how you receive this word. God is a God who answers the cry of His children. And the psalmist here is accurately aware of his own failures and his own shortcomings in his life, and out of the depths of life he begin to cry out.

The Message Bible says Psalms 130, verse number one, this way: "Help, God. The bottom has fallen out of my life." Have you ever felt like that? You ever felt like the bottom had fallen out of your life, that you were just simply living in despair, living in a sense of hopelessness? Here the writer is contemplating life and where he is. I don't know the specifics of his story. I don't know everything he had faced in his life. We're not given those details to go off of. But we do know that the circumstances had made him aware of his own failures and his own bad decisions, and he feels like there is no hope. He says this word: "Lord, if You mark failures, if You mark iniquity, no one can stand before You. God, if You were to keep track of all the bad decisions I made. God, if You were to keep track of all the times I said I was going to, but I didn't. God, if You were to keep a record of all those things, who could have their prayers answered, God, if that's what You do?" But I feel like so many times you and I feel as if that's the way God views our life, after we've made a few mistakes, after we've repeatedly fallen and tripped over the same thing over and over again, that somehow you and I have been come disqualified from God's mercy and grace in our life.

But then I notice here, with all his thoughts weighing down on him, there's a shift in the conversation. All of a sudden, there's a conjunction in the language, in the sentence, and in the thought process of the writer. He remembers an important truth, that his circumstances have not changed, but something jars his memory as he pens these words. Verse 4: "But Your forgiving love is what makes You so wonderful." Oh God, I know I'm a man, and I make mistakes. God, I know I have the best intentions, but they don't always pant out the way I want them to. God, I know that I've given You my word many times, only to go back on it. God, I know I have not always lived and behaved the way that I should. But I'm so thankful when I remember Your forgiving love, God, that You don't hold those marks against me. I know You're not proud of the decisions I made, but I'm thankful, God, for Your forgiving love. There's a shift here in this moment, from despair to hope. If God were to deal with me according to my sins, how could I stand before Him? But yet here I am, because God is forgiving. His forgiving love makes Him so wonderful.

You have heard me say this before: sometimes there's a victory, ladies and gentlemen, and just showing up. Devil, if you'd have had your way, I wouldn't be here right now. And though I may not be as complete as I want to be, I'm still in the house of God. Devil, I'm still in the house of God. I may make mistakes. I may not be everything I need to be, but I'm still here. God is forgiving. His forgiving love makes Him so wonderful. I'm thankful for His mercy. If not for mercy, where would I be? If not for mercy, where would I be? If not for mercy, where would you be? Would you still be a drunk? Would you still be on drugs? Would you still be an abuser? Would you still be without hope? Would you still be locked up? Would you still be imprisoned in your own mind? Would you still be in the abusive situations you were in? Would you still be facing the same struggles? But God stepped in with His forgiving love in my life, and He learned, and I learned, that I could trust Him, and He could set me free from those things in my life. There is forgiveness with God. Somebody needs to hear what I'm saying — not just acknowledge the statement, but you need to receive this word in your spirit today, that God gives forgiving love.

Here in Psalms 130, we read the words of a man who was drowning in despair, having lost sight of hope. He runs into the mercies of God. He runs into the hope that God has placed before him. He recalls it to his mind: but you're forgiving love — but Your forgiving love stops the reckless course of hopelessness in my life. Your forgiving love places a strong hand on the wavering soul. But Your forgiving love fends off the arrows of the enemy in my life. Somebody here, please acknowledge: God's forgiving love is available for you today.

A few years ago, Chastity and I went to the Hoover Dam. I always enjoy seeing a great feat of engineering. And I remember, as we took the tour of the Hoover Dam, I was blown away by the sheer size of this feat that man had thought up in his mind, how that they could stop the Colorado River in this gorge in which it was there. I remember standing on the top of it, and looking down on the Lake Mead side, and then walking across the street, and looking down into the canyon side, and seeing all the way down the depth of the face of that, that dam that was there, and thinking to myself: it's unreal what man can do when he puts his mind together to do something. But as I was recalling these thoughts to my mind today, as I was putting together this message, I'm thankful for this fact: that it does not matter the length that man goes to try to stop God, he cannot prevent His mercy. It doesn't matter what people may try to do to come against you, to convince you. It doesn't matter what our adversary, that the devil, may try to throw at you to steer you off course. No matter what he comes up with, he cannot prevent the flow of mercy and love in your life. Oh, somebody needs to grab a hold of that truth I'm preaching right now. You feel like you're disqualified. You feel like you've failed God too many times. You feel like you've broken too many promises. I'm here to tell you: that is not the truth. That is a lie. The truth is, God's mercies are fresh and new every morning. And no matter what the enemy did to you yesterday, today you woke up, the sun is still up, and God's mercies are still available to you today. There is nothing that man can do to stop Your mercies.

The psalmist wrote: there's a thousand ways that You can set me free. God wants to give somebody here an opportunity to embrace His forgiving love. I feel in my heart of hearts there's a divine moment in exchange with eternity that's taking place in this room today. Your home and beacon is pulling you back to where it is you need to be, and when you get there, you'll find His forgiveness. God has a thousand ways for His mercy and grace to reach you. You cannot exhaust it. There's always a way for you to come back to His forgiving love.

If you go back with me for a minute in the New King James version of first number four, I want to show you something there. The verse reads in the King James: "But there is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared." Now, in your Bible — if you have a KJV Bible or NKJV Bible — you will notice that the words that are there, "there is," are italicized. Now, most people who have studied the Scriptures at all know that, when you see that in the King James version, it lets you know that those words were not there in the original language, but those who were translating it place these words there so to make the sentence make sense when we read it in English. But as I was thinking about this verse and what God was revealing to me in my spirit is simply this: that verse should read, "But forgiveness with Thee." Or another way to process this is to say: in the past, there was forgiveness; and in the present, there is forgiveness; and in the future, there is forgiveness. When I am with God, I have forgiveness. There was forgiveness for what I did. There's forgiveness where I am. And there will be forgiveness for tomorrow, no matter what comes my way. I don't willingly go into life trying to sin, but if I make a mistake and a failure tomorrow, I know that forgiveness is there for me. Well, I wish somebody would hear what I'm trying to say. Maybe you're telling yourself it's not worth trying repentance one more time, because I know I'm going to fail tomorrow. But if you do fail tomorrow, His forgiving love is there. You cannot escape His forgiveness. His mercy, His grace will follow you. Last Sunday, I had a couple of these guys follow me around, as David was pinning those words in Psalms 23 when he said, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life." That was someone who had messed up and made mistakes. That was someone who understood failures and the consequences of making wrong decisions. But he also was fully aware of the forgiving love that God has, and he came to this realization: that no matter where I go, mercy and grace follow me. Oh, what matters today is not how dark the night, not how embarrassed you feel, not your flaws, not your failures, not your mistakes. I want you to know that homing beacon is activated, and He's trying to pull you back to where you need to be — we're forgiving love — where there is healing, where there's a way out, where there's an open door, where He has a thousand ways to set you free. What matters is your homing beacon has drawn you back to where you need to be with God.

God is powerful. I've never read one time — not one time, Sister Freeman — have I read the word where it says that He delighted in His power. Not once. But He is powerful. He is a powerful God. But I've never read about Him delighted in that. God is just. He is a just God. But never one time — never one time, Shirley Kennedy — have I read that He delights in His justice. But I have read this in His word, for the word of God says in Micah chapter 7, verse number 18: "Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgressions of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy." He delights in mercy. What makes our God happy is that He has the ability to give you mercy in your life. It makes Him happy. It is His delight to do this. He delights. He loves. He desires to let His mercy wash over you. And I want you to know, ladies and gentlemen, the divine response to my failures is forgiving love.

I don't know what you're facing in your life. I told you this isn't going to be a long message. I'm — I'm ready to bring this to the end because I feel in my spirit that restoration is going to happen in this place. I feel in my spirit that the lies that the enemy has placed inside of your mind are going to melt away in this place today. I feel in my spirit that a healing is going to take place in this room today. Why? Because God's forgiving love is here. His mercy is in this room where I am today.

There's a place inside of you that only belongs to God. And I, just like you, spent some years of my life trying to put everything else in that thing, in that spot, except Him. This is not a new concept when it comes to mankind. In 1670, French philosopher named Pascal called it the God-shaped hole. I want you to know what that is. That's the homing beacon. It's the instinct that you should have a relationship with God. It's not a relationship that's meant only for the religious elite. It's not a relationship that's only meant for pastors and missionaries and elders to have in the church. But when God created you, when He was forming you and He was knitting together your inner parts inside your mother's womb, He placed just inside your heart a location that only belongs to Him. And He activated, when He started your heart, a homing beacon that, if you would tune in and listen to it, would lead you back home, no matter how far you've gone away.

I'm reaching for somebody today. I'm reaching. I'm bringing this to a close. The musicians come. It's time for God to do what God does. The divine response to failure is His forgiving love. God's response to my mistakes is His forgiving love. His response to my flesh and humanity is His forgiving love. I'm reaching. I'm reaching. I'm reaching for somebody today who — life has beat you down. You have made your own mistakes. You have tried to define yourself over and over again, only to fall short time and time again. You've been marked. You've been pushed. You've been forced down. You've been road — forced down roads you never intended to walk. But God is here today. His Spirit is in this place right now to do a work, to bring you back to where you need to be. Somebody needs to feel that homing beacon activate inside of you right now, so that you can run to His forgiving love. And for some, Roma, this altar is open any time you feel that home and beacon activate, you can move. But listen, there's one last thing I need to say. Waiting can be one of the most difficult things in life, and I know how often I myself have struggled in this area. The time has taught me the good things come to those who wait. And I feel like there's someone here who — you've not fallen away from God, but you're struggling where, where you are right now, and you feel like you've been in a holding pattern for so long, waiting patiently for God to do something. It seems often that we're instructed in Scripture to wait — wait on the Lord. And these verses are some of my favorite that I just read you in Psalms 130 on the subject, because the psalmist instructs you and I to wait and hope in His word. For me, I can feel the anticipation of the words that were being pinned in this verse, because the psalmist says he waits like those who wait to watch the sun rise.

I've spent a few mornings restless, and I didn't sleep good last night. I was restless in my spirit. As I was driving in to work this morning in the church — it was dark. I was praying in my corner there in my office. When I got done, I just laid back there in the floor and began to look out, and all of a sudden I could see the light of the sun rising. He spoke to me, and He said: You tell them, just like the sun will rise, My word will come to pass. I don't know who needs to hear what I'm saying to you today, but somebody here has been in a holding pattern for a while, and it seems like darkness has surrounded you, and word has been spoken, prophecies have come out, yet it still is darkness all around you. I'm here to tell you, God sent me today to tell you: just like the sun rose this morning, His word is going to come to pass today. I don't know who needs to hear that, but I'm telling you, I would run and embrace the truth that I have been preaching to you today. His forgiving love is here. His mercy and grace is here. Stop hiding. Stop doubting. Stop remembering the failures of the past, and embrace the truth of today, that God's mercy and grace are here. They follow you everywhere you go. And I invite you to come down today to a place where He can heal you. It's prayer time.