Sunday Morning Worship Service

well lord bless you you may be seated we greet you this sunday morning in the precious name of jesus we welcome you to first apostolic church once again on behalf of all of the saints of this assembly if this is your first time to be here we want you to feel the welcome of the holy ghost we want this to be a place that you're comfortable to worship in i want to say a special welcome to guests that we have here i want to say a special welcome to tommy ross tommy we're honored to have you and i'll say i'm glad to have one of my dear friend's daughter here uh sister leanne batson uh good to have you here today could we welcome her honor to have you worshiping with us i love her father one of the preachiness men his grandfather the same way just awesome folks and uh we're so glad to have you with us and all of our guests and i want to say a special welcome today this is just personal for me i i want to say welcome to uh papa lambert uh brother jason lambert uh congratulations uh he and sister terrier are now grandparents and oh by the way yeah noah and sarah did have something to do with that they've got a new baby finley and i know just as soon as they they get out of the hospital finley will be here at church uh but congratulations bro from uh sister jamie and myself and uh we're we're excited the first apostolic church is continuing to grow i'm excited that the lord is providing us another generation of apostolic believers worshipers ministers and if i did not get a guest card from you today i welcome you just the same and glad to have you worshiping with us i would again tell everyone just for your information uh pastor and sister whitley are in augsburg germany today finishing a camp meeting a great revival time with pastor krauss and the apostolics there in augsburg pastor anthony is in hot springs arkansas preaching an anniversary service a series of services and i'm excited that god is using them and blessing them we miss them when they're not here i've been able to tune in to some of the services there in augsburg and what an awesome awesome service or group of services they've had so we're continuing to pray for them and they're safe journey home but i'm also excited to be with every one of you today and have the opportunity for us to all go to the word of the lord together i would call your attention this morning i'm going to let you just keep your seats uh to the book of the revelation one book of revelation we're going to begin reading in chapter number one revelation 1 we're gonna go to verse number eight the words of jesus revelation 1 8 i am alpha and omega the beginning and the ending saith the lord which is which was which is to come the almighty i john who also am your brother and companion in tribulation and in the kingdom and patience of jesus christ was in the isle that is called patmos for the word of god and for the testimony of jesus christ notice verse number 10 he says i was in the spirit on the lord's day everyone say i was in the spirit he said i was in the spirit on the lord's day and heard behind me a great voice as of a trumpet now for whatever this is worth and an aside here please notice in these passages that the writers know who's speaking to john at least they proclaim it's jesus voice because after all it is in red letters and there's some understanding here that jesus is god jesus is not part of god he's not a third of god jesus is the almighty and i want us to get that clear john goes on to quote him again he says saying i am alpha and omega the first and the last and what thou seest write in the book he said i'm about to reveal some things to you john write it in a book send it unto the seven churches which are in asia and ephesus smyrna pergamus and tyatra and under sardis and unto philadelphia and until decea for a few moments this morning i want to ask you this question john said i was in the spirit on the lord's day i want to ask you today are you all in are you all in today let's pray savior i love you god i'm grateful to be in your house and i thank you for this wonderful congregation that's joined here lord you've ordained that every one of us be in this place and given us the opportunity to be in your house and hear your word now lord i pray that your word would minister mightily to us let it give us revelation and let us give us salvation for all this we're great in jesus name we pray amen are you all in what does that mean to be all in this is a common phrase we hear today that indicates are you totally committed are you all in athletic coaches like to use this a lot they say i want my team to buy in i want everybody to be all in on the coaching philosophies and the players have to be totally committed are you all in to be a part of this team i guess one of the greatest examples i've heard of being totally committed comes with describing breakfast food it has been said chickens make a contribution but pigs are all in they're totally committed what does it mean to be all in when it comes to being in the spirit i have to return to my rudimentary kindergarten fundamental concepts yes i do remember kermit standing in front of two swinging doors and one said in and one set out i know some of the rest of you folks if you weren't too proud you'd remember that too and he would say in and he would come in and he would say out and he would go out and and some of his buddies would always get it mixed up and he would say in and they'd come out and they'd run through the door and i had all kind of but that's how i learned that concept of in and out i've got news for you i want to be all in when it comes to serving god i don't i want to be totally committed and completely in when it comes to the spirit of god the term end define means expressing the situation of something that is or appears to be enclosed or surrounded by something else if you're all in with the spirit of the lord i want to be enclosed and surrounded with the spirit of god i don't want it to be a part-time commitment i don't want it to be a weekend experience i don't want it to be goosebumps at camp meeting if i'm going to be serving god i want to be all in how about you i want to be all in today in our in our text john proclaims i was in the spirit on the lord's day and heard a great voice urging him to write what he would hear and see in a vision now understand john was on the isle of patmos he was in prison patmos itself was the prison he had no means of escaping yet he proclaimed i was in the spirit on the lord's day it does not matter your circumstance it does not matter your location you may find yourself in a less than positive situation if you'll be all in you can have the lord's day wherever you are you may be bound by the waters of a prison on an island but you can still be all in and hear from god that voice from heaven basically said get ready i've got revelation for you because i've determined you're all in you're ready to receive what i've got for you well pastor how do i get all in well i'm glad you asked let me give you some scriptures that tell us how we can be all in john said in john 14 13 and whatsoever ye shall ask in my name who's speaking jesus that will i do that the father may be glorified in the son if you shall ask anything in my name i will do it you can't get all in until you know who's you're getting in with you've got to get in with jesus you've got to get in with jesus and you've got to have jesus in you he said if you love me keep my commandments and i will pray the father and he shall give you another comforter that he may abideth with you forever even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it seeth him not neither knoweth him but ye know him for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you let me tell you if you're going to be all in you've got to have him all in you now i know this may sound rudimentary as kermit going through two doors to some of y'all but let me tell you it's amazing how this world hadn't been able to figure out that if you're going to be all in serving jesus jesus has got to be all in you he said now understand he was in the present he was speaking he was making the promise of the comforter he said the father is going to send the comforter he's going to send him in my name he said i will not leave you comfortless i will come to you now is the father going to send him or is jesus going to come i'm telling you it's both because jesus and the father are one and the same he was the father in creation he was the son in redemption and he is the holy ghost the comforter living inside me now if you're gonna be all in you've got to have the comforter in you oh hallelujah he said yet a little while the world seeth me no more said i'm getting ready to leave here this physical body's getting ready to leave but ye see me because i live and ye shall live also come on underline italicized bold face print verse number 20. he said at that day ye shall know that i am in my father and ye and me and i in you let me tell you if you're going to be all in you must have the holy ghost living inside you oh somebody ought to get excited that knows what that experience is about i wish somebody would help me say i've got the comforter living on the inside i'm all in today john said in chapter 16 verse 7 nevertheless i tell you the truth it's expedient for you that i go away for if i go not away the comforter will not come unto you but if i depart i will send him unto you jesus is letting them know i've got to leave in this physical body because i've been with you but i'm going to leave and i'm going to come back and live in you as the comforter oh hallelujah he said in chapter 14 verse 26 but the comforter which is the holy ghost whom the father will send in my name he shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever i've said unto you jesus was letting it be known if you're going to be all in he's got to be all in you today preacher i believe i've got that i need the holy ghost you better know you do but what happens once you get the holy ghost then not only do you have the holy ghost living inside you then you've got to start living all in if you go over to galatians the fifth chapter i'm not going to read the whole thing but from galatians you know it's about time for school to start let me give everybody homework if you really want to know what living all in and not being all in is about go read galatians the fifth chapter start about verse 16 and read through 23 and it differentiates between the lusts of the flesh and the gifts of the spirit it tells you some mighty ugly things that folks do when they're living in flesh but it tells you of some awesome things when you're living in spirit galatians 5 24 said and they that are christ have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts now this is the figurative statement of getting control of the old fleshly man that wants to live in the lusts of the flesh and instead producing the fruits of the spirit he said if we live in the spirit let us also walk in the spirit listen you've got to learn how to live all in and walk all in let us not be desirous of vain glory provoking one another envying one another ask yourself today where am i living and how am i walking the psalmist said this in psalms 1 1 blessed are the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly hear me today folks are looking for all kind of counsel folks are looking for all kind of advice i mean there's there's council.com now you you can go online and get advice from every kind of such and such and so and so but let me tell you you better be careful when you walk in the council of the ungodly it just simply makes sense if you walk in the council of the ungodly you'll get ungodly counsel now that's not a brilliant statement i mean a blind man with leather glasses in a dark room could see that if you're seeking counsel from the ungodly the ungodly is only going to have ungodly counsel for you blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly oh god let me be careful what i hear god let me be careful what's influence in my life the things that i listen to the people who i speak to the folks the folks that's given me advice am i listening to the counsel of the godly or the ungodly nor standeth in the way of sinners be careful what you're taking a stand with nowadays you can stand with the wrong thing and when you stand with the wrong thing you'll fall for anything nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful let me tell you about the seat of the scornful the seed of the scornful is the seed of the judgmental the seed of the scornful is the one who they are experts on everything you know what i found out in humanity you know who can give supposedly the most marital advice people that aren't married boy if i was married here's what i'd do you know who can give the best advice on raising children people haven't got any kids boy when my kids grow up i'm going to tell you when i've got kids here's what's going to happen they're going to do this and they're going to do that i'll never do this and they'll never eat that no then go back and visit them about three months after the first baby comes along take this be careful not to spiritually sit in the seat of the scornful who scorns and criticizes and evaluates everything with a critical eye you know if we aren't careful i've heard our bishop give this analogy so i love to i gave him credit so i can borrow it now but i've seen it as well i i've seen folks who their expertise is in evaluating wine they're wine tasters and they'll have wine sitting out on a table they'll take the glass of wine and they'll put it in their mouth and they'll slosh it around sounds terrible and then they spit it out and they grade it but did you know i've seen folks who become message tasters sermon tasters church service evaluators i'm going to come to service today and i'm just going to see how good the preacher does well i'll give him a seven [Music] choir got a four today i couldn't dance to that song don't find yourself sitting in the seat of the scornful when i come to the house of god whatever's happening i'm going to do my best to get in the spirit on the lord's day oh god don't let me be critical don't let me be scornful whatever you have for me whoever's preaching whoever's singing whatever you've got going for lord let me get behind it and be a worshiper an appraiser i want to live in the spirit oh hallelujah i don't have time to evaluate everything sometimes it's going to be right and sometimes it may not be quite as right but i'm going to get with it it said don't walk in the council the ungodly don't stand in the way of sinners don't sit in the seat of the squirrel but his delight is in the law of the lord and his law death he meditate day and night good word good book always excites me i enjoy hearing the word of the lord and the guidance that his law brings and did you know if you're going to be all in you must know how to pray in the spirit as well ephesians 6 18 said praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit and watching there and to with all perseverance and supplication for all saints man there's a lot of good stuff right there in that one verse i'm thankful our child care center we start them at our two-year-olds the teachers teach them how to pray over their food they ask the blessing all preacher they're just they're just repeating no they're learning a habit and to the point we've had a few parents who've brought kids to our child care center before after they've been here a little while said man i don't know what y'all done but we can't eat anymore unless we pray hallelujah there's a lesson that's being learned there now that doesn't mean we're always going to be praying and now i lay me down to sleep prayer as we grow in the spirit we need to develop a prayer life that we know how to pray in the spirit and talk to god we have this desire you you you want to understand what praying in the spirit means it said watching there unto all perseverance brother mccool i got down and prayed i didn't feel a thing you need to persevere you need to be persistent in your prayer time keep praying keep talking to god every time you get down to pray it's not going to feel like a holy ghost service sometimes it's going to feel deader than a doornail you know what you need to do you need to keep praying you need to keep talking to god developing that relationship because there's going to be a breakthrough time when you least expect it god's going to reach down and touch you and hear your prayer there's going to be perseverance and supplication it said supplication for all the saints that means to ask humbly and earnestly too many go before god with a haughty attitude like they're going to order god around tell god what to do i remember sadly i confess that i watched way too much of it i should have turned it off when he first came on but i was watching one of those uh televangelists and if you want to know who it was he was either north or south of i-40 or east or west of the mississippi so you can zero in where he was but he was talking to his audience and he was talking about prayers being answered and send your your donation and he and as he was talking he said wait a minute lord i'm on the air like the lord was talking to him and he was too busy to talk to the lord and he was going to talk to the tv right now he might have heard a lord but it wasn't the lord let me tell you when the lord speaks you better listen you need to be perseverant in your prayer and your prayer might not ought to be so much about you you ought to be praying about the saints around you when the saints around you get prayer maybe they'll be praying about you and you'll get your answer he said pray for the saints pray for pray for the church if you don't have anything else to pray about please pray for your pastor i need it i promise you i pray for you i pray for all the saints oh god bless the saints the first apostolic church this morning god touch them as they're going to work touch them in their workplace why we're supposed to pray for each other james 5 16 said confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much let me give you a warning about this passage of scripture confession without prayer is dangerous there's a lot of folks want to take that passage of scripture and say confess your faults one to another period and all they're doing is trying to open doors for dialogue about sin and conflict don't go confessing if you not been praying because that's a dangerous state to find yourself in there's some folks want to give all the gory details of sin when they ought to be saying i'm a failure i've messed up and i'm asking you to pray with me right now would you pray with me that's as much god knows all the gory details and he's the only one can do anything about it anyway just simply if you're going to confess your faults one another say i'm i'm a sinner i've messed up i want you to pray with me i'm going to pray with you confess your faults one another pray one for another that you may be healed and he said to pray fervently which means having or displaying a passionate intensity well to be all in we must be all in in our worship as well philippians 3 3 said for we are the are the circumcision which worship god in the spirit and rejoiced in christ jesus and have no confidence in the flesh hear me rejoice rejoicing in worship is not irreverent but i would also warn us all that sometimes we can pigeonhole worship and we think if folks don't worship like i do they're not worshipers okay let me tell you i've been in worship services where one person would be so excited rejoicing nearly laughing because god had just done something else somebody right next to him be squalling like a baby and both of them are worshiping in order now i realize that when you talk like this some folks are making think you're making an allowance for folks not worshiping let me tell you folks we'll worship difference but folks will have some form of worship if they're in the spirit you know there is the old honorary story that they used to tell about a church that was so dead they called the emts and said there was somebody died of a heart attack and said they hauled five people out before they found the real victim there should be some kind of emotional display when you worship you may lift your hands you may sit in reverence you but you're not going to give jesus a good holy ghost yawn there should be something in your worship that signifies i'm giving of myself to you i am giving my praise i'm giving my worship i'm giving my adoration some folks have does somebody hear me today [Applause] preacher i i just don't know about doing that well somebody walks up hands you a check for whatever it is you're needing that amount boy a lot of folks started moving zeros in your mind right there i promise you won't say thank you you deserve a good golf clap man somebody comes and pays your debts off you're going to get excited some way or another i've got news for you jesus paid the ultimate debt he took care of my sins and woe be it unto me that i can't get excited in his presence i can't run a little bit i can't dance a little bit i can't clap my hands i can't lift my voice i'm going to do something i'm going to worship in spirit because i'm all in i'm all in i'm all in jesus told the woman at the well but the hour cometh now is when true worshipers shall worship the father in spirit and in truth for the father seeketh such to worship him god loves worshipers god wants worshipers god is a spirit and they that worship him must they don't sound like it's optional to me they must worship him in spirit and in truth let me tell you true worship will be accompanied by the truth well what is truth well you know pilate asked that same question in john 18 37 pilate therefore said unto him art thou a king then pilate was speaking to jesus jesus answered thou sayest that i am a king to this end was i born and for this cause came i into the world that i should bear witness unto the truth everyone that is of the truth heareth my voice pilate said to him what is truth and when he had said this he went out again unto the jews and said unto them i find in him no fault at all the first truth if you're going to be all in the first truth you must come to the realization is that jesus is the faultless sinless king he's not a great prophet he's not a third of god he is all god and you must come to that realization that he is the one who died for your sins who rose again on the third day now look the jews in this instance chose barabbas over truth now what that really means is in case you don't know who barabbas was bravos was a noted criminal in an attempt to appease those who wanted to kill jesus pilate had put forth the idea that i will release one prisoner and barabbas was such a criminal that surely not they wouldn't want me to release barabbas they would rather me release jesus because there's no fault in him i can't find him and unto the bluff that pilate would make the jew said give us barabbas give us tradition hear me i see too many that get the revelation of who jesus really is but they choose tradition over truth listen you've heard it preached people that are under the sound of my voice today you cannot stand and say i didn't know you've heard it preached the mighty god is jesus you've heard it preached he is the almighty you've heard the scriptural references jesus is that comforter that can live inside you you have a responsibility to accept truth over tradition to find the word of god living in your life today would you stand with me musicians would you come to be all in there's one other thing that i would mention about being all in to be all in you find freedom you find liberty second corinthians 3 17 said now this now the lord is that spirit and where the spirit of the lord is there is liberty what that means no more bondage of sin no no more being bound by habits no more being bound by man's tradition we're the spirit of the lord there's liberty but we all with open face behold as in a glass the glory of the lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory even as by the spirit of the lord let me ask you today when you look in the mirror what do you see reflecting back at you i'm not talking about that natural man but if you look into the spiritual mirror today are you in the image of god are you all in is he all in you romans said for they that are after the flesh do mine the things of the flesh but they that are after the spirit the things of the spirit for to be carnally minded is death but to be spiritually minded as life and peace because the carnal mind is enmity against god for it is not subject to the law of god neither indeed can be so then they that are in the flesh cannot please god but ye are not in the flesh but in the spirit if so be that the spirit of god dwell in you now if any man have not the spirit of christ he is none of his and if christ be in you the body is dead because of sin and the spirit is life because of righteousness now please understand the spiritual analogies that are taking place the spiritual examples of the flesh dying out and being subject to the spirit verse 11 says this but if the spirit of him that raised up jesus from the dead dwell in you let's pause ask the question who raised jesus from the dead jesus said destroy this temple and in three days i will raise it up he went on to say they didn't even understand it but he spoke of his own body if the spirit of him that raised up jesus from the dead dwell in you if the spirit of jesus dwell in you is what it says he that raised up christ from the dead shall also quicken that term quicken means to restore life to to cause to burn with fire to begin to show life if you've got the life of the holy ghost inside you he that raised up christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you let me ask you today are you all in are you all in if you're in this house today and you've been living on the edge you've been putting the foot in but you're not all in yet you might reach out and touch it oh that that felt good i you know i went to camp meeting and and they they had some amazing services and just for a little while i i i like what i felt i was i was reaching in let me tell you today you need to be all in you need to be completely committed it needs to be a total commitment god i'm going to serve you with everything that's in me god i'm going to give you praise with everything that's in me god when i pray i'm going to pray with everything that's in me when i witness i'm going to witness with everything every part of my life i'm all in praise team we sing a song that talks about that that says something about the same spirit that raised jesus from the dead if that dwells in you i want you to sing that for me this morning and i want to open this altar to everybody in the house that wants to be all in if you want to make that proclamation i'm all in and jesus would you step out right now make your way around this altar for a season of praise hallelujah from the dead lives on the inside of me the same spirit that raised jesus from the dead lives on the inside of me quickened my mortal body feel me the overflow he gave me authority and power baptized [Applause] [Music] [Applause] jesus [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] love jesus right now hallelujah hallelujah i'm glad to be all in this morning how about you i need to tell everybody something i've been saving this announcement but we've got a special guest going to be preaching for us tonight you don't want to miss sunday night at first apostolic church our bishop's going to be preaching for us tonight bishop mccool is going to be preaching you don't want to miss tonight i promise you we're going to have a great time in the lord first apostolic church i'm glad to be worshiping with a bunch of folks who have already decided i'm all in i'm going to be serving the lord with everything that's in me service begins at 6 30 prayer time six o'clock i would ask you to follow your own personal protocols don't be offended if someone wants to bump knuckles or wave instead of shaking hands but whatever personal protocol is comfortable with you would you greet those around you you're dismissed in jesus name