Sunday Morning Worship Service

could we entertain his presence for just a moment across this house Lord we thank you Lord we praise you Denny Livingston pinned the words to the song he said he didn't calm my storm but he kept me safe and warm can we thank God for just a few moments for his comforting hand the direction that he gives us the comforter in our lives when we don't have the answers when we don't know what the next step is Trials tribulations [Music] a doctor's report that gives us a great deal of uncertainty but God's hand just reaches down and gives us Comfort right right in the midst of our storm could we give him a hand clap of praise and father we thank you this morning and as the song says take me there we believe that we are in your presence and we can feel your presence in this house in Jesus name in Jesus name you can be seated across this house and I greet each and every one of you this morning at First Apostolic Church all of you tuning in online uh and by way of our television broadcast we welcome you the same I want to get right into the word of the Lord this morning if you have your Bibles habach chapter 2 and then Revelation chapter chapter 1 habach chap 2 verse number number two says and the Lord answered me and said write the vision and make it plain on the tables that he may run that readeth it verse three states for the vision itself is yet for an appointed time but at the end it shall speak and not lie though it t wait for it because it will surely come it will not t and Revelation 1:3 States blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written therein from the time at hand I want to preach to you for a few moments on the topic of vision Vision in our lives principles of Prophecy could we pray one more time over this word Heavenly Father we thank you for what you've done in this house Lord as we go into your word this morning Lord let it speak directly into our lives directly to our situation Lord let it be an encourager to us let it be an inspiration to us let it give us Vision this morning for what our next step is in you in all this we give you glory praise and honor in Jesus name we pray amen Vision principles of Prophecy a prophecy is not merely given to a single generation but each prophecy affirms God's faithfulness in every generation and many people in this life can feel trapped without hope for the future some individuals feel trapped because of a job or feel trapped because of circumstances that are out of their control some people deal with sickness and disease some individuals struggle with a heavy financial burden may be even your struggling with the consequence of a decision the effects of sin in your life but the good news is what we preach about what we believe uh the the thing we come to celebrate every Sunday and we should celebrate every day the word of God in our life the good news is that through the gospel through the good news believers have hope prophecy gives us hope for the future and the prophetic scriptures fill our hearts with hope of Believers that have a future in eternity we do not have to live without hope man shall not live by bread of loone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God a significant portion of scripture involves Pro proy estimates of the number of verses that are specifically predictive range from 8 to 10,000 further fulfilled prophecy is one of the evidences of scriptural Supernatural origin and this prophetic voice is found in both Testaments when we think of prophetic literature when we tend to think of sections commonly referred to as a major or minor profits and there's no necess there's no hierarchy between importance it's the length of the books when we talk about major and minor Prophets The Major Prophets Isaiah Jeremiah Ezekiel and some commentators even include Daniel in the Major Prophets and the Minor Prophets Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Zephaniah hegi Zechariah and Malachi and rather than thinking of the Old Testament prophetic literature only in this way it's helpful to remember the content of the Old Testament is the same cont content the same Hebrew scriptures that Christ would have had during his ministry Jesus said to the unbelieving scribes and Pharisees I send unto you prophets wise men scribes that upon you may all the righteous blood shed on the earth from the blood of righteous Abel under the blood of Zacharias whom ye slew between the temple and the altar we see this scriptural precedent from The Book of Genesis and the way the uh the way the Hebrew scripture was uh situated the way the Hebrew scripture was arranged had 2 Chronicles as the last book which gives us the story of Zacharias it's as if Christ was giving these two bookend accounts of the first and the last book of the Old Testament to say that you will be responsible for everything from Genesis to the end and this two-edged sword as we understand it in Hebrews 4:12 for the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even the dividing aunder of Soul and Spirit and of the joints and marrows and as a discerner to the thoughts and intense of the heart this two-edged sword the old and the New Testament the Old Testament from Genesis to 2 Chronicles again the arrangement of the Hebrew scripture of the Old Testament Jesus saying you'll be responsible for everything that it contains the flip side of it the other side of the coin is that you also have the prophetic promises the Covenant promises that are also contained throughout the book this 8 to 10,000 predictive and we won't go through each and every one of those this morning Jesus told the unbelieving scribes that you'll be responsible for them Jesus also acknowledged the three divisions of the Hebrew scripture when he said to his disciple these are the words which I spake unto you while I was with with you that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and in the prophets and in the Psalms concerning me so when Jesus said that all things written by the prophets concerning him must be fulfilled he had in mind a much larger section of the Hebrew scripture than what we commonly identify or refer to as prophets he was placing Abraham in there as well he was placing the psalmist David in there as well and we can see this cooperated in Acts 2:30 God's Voice through the Hebrew prophets was not static and it was not onedimensional Hebrews 1 tells us God who at sunry times and in diverse manners spake into the past by the fathers by the prophets there was in other words a variety of ways that God communicated through the prophets and in some cases they only spoke the words that God gave them and in other cases they wrote the words or enacted what God told them to do when we think of Prophecy as a genre of scripture it's important to look at the figurative language that is used we must identify if it's a historical account is it poetic is it apocalyptic is it prophetic in and of itself with Parables and allegories and Psalms is symbolism is it a figure of speech prophecy is a distinct genre that makes us frequently use figurative language and you'll hear this language in the context of our praise and worship songs or even in our public proclamation of the Gospel we'll say you've got to cross your Jordan River and it's not going to be easy all of us knowing that we're not literally crossing a river though it is raining pretty heavy outside you might by the time you get home but you're not literally in the Middle East crossing a river or there's a giant in your life there's not a literal 10-ft human being that's stepping on to the battlefield but you might identify it as a specific circumstance in your life and we see this prophetic word throughout scripture that we apply to our lives given the circumstance and situation that is very much appropriate and that is very much alive and that's why God's word is living and breathing and that's why we must get it ingrained in our hearts and our minds so when we Face the uncertainty in the trials and tribulations of life that it breathes out of us so we know what God's direction is for us it is said that the three most important words to determine the value of real estate are location location and location and the same could be said uh for determining the meaning of a text it would be context and context and context dictionaries do not define words words are defined by the context in which they are used dictionaries offer possible meanings depending on the context this is why sometimes that there can be a vast miscommunication when you're texting somebody and it might be better to go ahead and give them a phone call because you can hear the tone of their voice and you might be able to be a little more emphatic or empathetic uh depending on the situation that may or may not been able to be seen or determined or felt through simple words and that's why we have emojis as well because that really helps us get the point across but just as every word in scripture has a context so every Prophet who wrote or who is recorded as speaking or acting in scripture had a context this context includes their culture the geography the ancestry the sociological and religious influences the political surround roundings and just as we read a text carefully to discern context we must be aware of the contextual dimensions of the prophet's life in order to approach the meaning found in the prophet's words texts or actions and I promise you we're going somewhere I hope that was a a lot of confidence right that's a a solid maybe okay a definite maybe but prophecy is not limited to the anticipation of future events it also involves the recapitulation of words previously spoken whether the Holy Spirit gathers up the words of ancient prophets and places them on the lips of those who live long after the words were originally written or spoken or whether the spirit leads one to speak of the events that have yet occurred we can identify it as prophecy to prophesy is to speak on behalf of God that's a very sacred thing prophecy is to speak on behalf half of God and the Prophecies of scripture are not just generic statements that could be interpreted in just a wide variety of different ways and for a careless application in our lives but they are specific and although figurative language may be used the prophecies have a literal meaning and definite objects and in both Testaments individuals are often the objects of specific personal prophecies for instance although the blessings of the abrahamic Covenant extend to All Families of the Earth the inauguration of the Covenant focused on Abraham personally and we use this as application when God told Abraham to step out of where he was he was in a Dwelling Place he was in the tent God told him to step out because you can't see the blessings that I have for you by having this shielded view in your place of comfort but when you step out of where you are he said look up at the sky and see if you can quantify the Stars see if you can begin to count the stars and of course he couldn't and we see this figurative speech as well and also this literal interpretation as well saying that this is what your blessings are going to look like you're not going to be able to count them if you follow after me and we use this as prophetic application as well and this is what we're talking about when we think of context and and as we interpret the prophetic utterances of the old and the New Testament one of the great purposes of biblical prophecy is to offer as I mentioned at the beginning hope everybody say hope hope to those who read and fulfilled prophecy serves to demonstrate the faithfulness of God sometimes errors can be made to respond to the prophetic scriptures by seeking to interpret them through the only the lens of current events and this has resulted in many erroneous attempts to identify perhaps the Antichrist and predict the date of our Lord's return though as though we need some type of Sherlock Holmes or Robert Langdon to decode what God has told us to do and some connect conspiratorial efforts or conspiracy theories with scriptures While others think they can do something that would possibly help scripture be fulfilled but the inspired use of the Old Testament prophecies in the New Testament demonstrates however that prophecy and everything associated with its interpretation and fulfillment is in the realm of Divine Providence and I just believe that God knows what he's doing when we look at his prophetic word it is God who determines the often surprising meaning of prophecies and it is God alone who brings to pass their fulfillment the bre approach to studying prophecy is to indeed believe what we read recognize that there may be dimensions of the prophetic significance that we don't fully yet understand and leave the Fulfillment to God on the flip side we can't also view it with a sense of apathy thinking well there's no way that I can figure it out so why even study it to begin with but this is not an option for people who believe that scripture is in the inspired word of God we are called upon to roll up our sleeves if you will another figurative uh language figure of speech to get to work to study to show thyself approved a Workman who may not be ashamed rightly dividing the word of Truth to get into the scripture to look at the context to to live it to breathe it to have it ready to exit our lips in all capacities and all situations of Life which brings us to our key text in habach the first chapter of habach deals with a great deal of lamenting by the prophet wandering asking how long crying out to God how how long am I going to have to endure the circumstance that I am currently facing there there is a neighboring Army that's about to come and take over the future of this kingdom is an uncertain place the famine is beginning to hit the land and it's dire circumstances all around and back begins to cry out the whole first chapter is earmarked to habac lamenting to God crying out to God he asking God why why is this happening to me I follow your promises yet I am still having to go through XYZ I have been faithful I have trusted in you I've determined to stand firm I've spoke your promises in the midst of scoffers and doubters and my friends and peers who laughed at me and i' I've continued to stay strong but where's that Covenant promise at when are you going to show up when are you going to talk to me it wasn't as if he was just down on his knees just crying saying God help me there there was some emotion taking place in what he was asking God God where are you uh I've been faithful and I I've spoke I've been your mouthpiece to the people yet I'm still having to suffer through all this and I'm up to this point now God and I've suffered thus far but how much longer is the general question habach is lamenting in this first chapter and as we get to chapter 2 verse one it states I will start at my watch this is back speaking and station myself on the rampants and I will look to see what he will say to me and what answer I'm given to this notice his prayer he refers to as a complaint and the Lord answered me and said write the vision make it plain upon the tables that he may run that readeth it for the vision is yet for an appointed time it is yet for anointed time but at the end it shall speak and not lie though it t wait for it because it will surely come it will not t the prophetic word of God does not have to be sensationalized the prophetic word of God does not have to be exaggerated you don't have to have any kind of doubt or fear trying to look at the prophetic word of God for your life what it takes is you bringing all of your emotions before him what it takes is transparency right in his presence giving him every single thing you have sometimes even asking him why am I having to do this why am I having to go through is God would you give me an answer because that's the times in your life like habca he didn't have anywhere else to turn there wasn't an alternative option that was the only place he had to go he said I I've spent a whole chapter lamenting I spent a whole chapter complaining but now I'm going to go up to the Watchtower everybody else in this city might be asleep everybody else in my home has already gone on to bed but I need an answer from you God and I'm not going to leave this place I'm not going to leave this Watchtower until I get an answer from you I need to hear what you have to say to me Lord no doubt he went up to the Watchtower there was some symbolism even involved in that this was the generations and the future generations to come this is where someone would a guard would have gone up to keep watch throughout the night and this is where he chose to go ask for God for direction it wasn't some Heavenly magical realm that he stepped into that it was absolute reality and he stepped off and looked out into the distance and no doubt he couldn't see very far in the darkest of night but he knew this is the way this this is the future Generations depending on this prayer Lord this is the kingdom this this is the survival of my children depending on me getting an answer from you and the Lord answered him and said write the vision and make it plain on the tables that he that runneth is able to read it he he he said write it down he said I'll Stand upon on this Tower notice that the prophet used the resources that he had what was available to him and God moved and God worked in what he already had but it took him getting to a desperate point it took him crying out at a specific time and God answered his prayer and he said I want you to write the vision down now when you write this down you're going to have to have some boldness you're going to have to have some courage because right when you write this down there might be those in your life that begin to laugh and scoff you you see what they're doing you you see what's going think going to happen in their life they ought to just give up the their their Destiny's already been written out for them that oh you you're writing that out about your your your family member or your or or your health but he said in the end it will not lie if you'll be patient if you'll be patient I'm going to move in your life if you will be patient I'm going to bring Victory to your situation he said write it down give it give it some legs let people know what it is that you're declaring for God to do in your life it reminds me of the story of Jeremiah who was thrown in the in the prison for telling the people that if they didn't turn away from their sins and repent then the Babylonians were going to take over and right in the midst of the prison courts Jeremiah's cousin came into him and said man I got a piece of property that you need to buy it's it's a beautiful piece of property but the only the only problem is the Babylonians are are coming in to take over the land and his cousin's offering him a contract a a deed for some property that is not even going to be recognized by the Babylonians that are coming in to overtake it but Jeremiah with 2020 Vision right in the court of that PR prison I think I got a pin here he takes a pin out and it the Bible says he assembles witnesses around him it says he Gathers everybody around him and he takes that deed of the purchase and he also gets some pottery jars that would be used like a safe and he signs his name real big on this contract and says houses fields and Vineyards are again going to be possessed in this land you've got to write division down it might not happen overnight you might not receive your answer in a month but it will not lie and what God is saying through habach and what God is saying through the Jeremiah in the prison courts that you've got to be able to gather everybody around you got to be able to put all your cards on the table probably not a great figure of speech to use when talking about theological application but in any case you got to go all in and say this is what I want God to do in my life I'm an heir of his I'm a child of his I've taken on his name and God's promises God's prophetic word is still applicable to my situation today but the PIN is in your hands and you have to write down what you want God to do Jeremiah when he was in the court of the prison he he he he crossed every tea and dotted every eye there there can't be any loopholes to negate what you're writing down there there can't be a a clause in there that says you know well if x y z doesn't happens then uh this can't take place it says write it down plainly one interpretation by a theologian says this was referencing because it says those who runneth may read it that this was referencing those who were fleeing to a sanctuary city where the Avenger was on their heels ready to take their life this was meant to be a a a hope for them that they could make out what was on the sign that way while they're running for their life they could receive Direction and they could receive hope and it wasn't going to take them a long time to read it because there was something tragic taking their life on their heels and I believe 100% that God's prophetic word is telling us this morning that whatever might be nipping on your heels this morning whatever might be trying to take you out whatever might be plaguing your mind I got a sign right here that says God Is A Healer God is a deliverer God Can Make A Way when there is no way if I know one thing my God is a deliverer now it's not going to take you a long time to interpret you're you're not going to have to translate it in a bunch of different languages but if we'll get a hold of God and understand that his word is infallible and every single promise and every single 8 to 10,000 of the predictive language and the prophecies is applicable to us today we can know that we are heirs to his promise and we can write down the vision in our life to say God I need healing God I need you to move God I've been faced with an uncertain situation and I have no idea what next step that I need to take I believe we serve a God so powerful who can show up at any time and we serve a God who can meet us just like he met habc just like he met Abraham he said make it make it plain because what I'm going to do in your life there's going to be somebody else that's running they're going to see your testimony they're going to see what he's done in in your life they're going to see how he healed your body they're going to see how he he met you in your darkest hour and then when they're facing something when they're on the Run they're going to pass right by What In the Heat of life and say oh if God did that for them I've got hope in my life if I'm running for sin and he he delivered them I know he can deliver me as well musicians come the prophet waited in patience the prophet waited in perseverance well I've lamented for a chapter there's not an option to quit I'm just going to go look out into the night I don't have anywhere else to turn to I have no idea I have no idea what to do but God if you'll give me an answer I promise you I I promise you I'll put the pen to paper I promise you I I'll write it down I I know it might take some time and I I know there might be doubters and I I might there might be scoffers but I know I'm air to a promise I'm air to to a covenant promise and when I write down and make it plain it it might not be in a month it it might it might not even be in a year but your word tells me that it is not going to lie your word tells me that it is not going to lie and it is going to come to pass oh Lord and I I know when you answer my prayer and you perform a miracle in my life when the vision comes into reality that others who are on the Run are going to be able to read it as well and I can say that God is my refuge God is my strength he's my my everpresent help in time of trouble and and Lord let them see through my life while the things in their life are nipping at their heels that there is a house that they can run into that there's a place that they can turn that there is a God who is able to meet them even in the darkest of night when they've tried everything else I wonder if there's a testimony this morning that would stand up as a sign to this world that says hey look at me that look at me what God did in my life he can do to yours I'm not talking about some type of theological extrapolation that fills up 20 pages but I'm just talking about the prophetic word and I hesitate to use the word simple but I use the word plain that every single person can understand it that God placed mercy and Grace in my life that I'm a rotten sinner but God transformed my life and if he delivered me he can deliver you would you remain standing with me God's prophetic word doesn't need me to add anything to it God's prophetic word doesn't mean me to dress it up in some manner or or try to somehow P persuade you to believe it it stands on its own and it's just as powerful as a New Testament Church Believers Acts 2 15 for these are not drunken as ye suppose seeing it is but the third hour of the day which means maybe if you come back later it won't never mind might be as you suppose I'm just kidding verse 16 look here we we have the Apostle Peter citing Old Testament prophecy which we do the same today as well and it shall come to pass but this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel and it shall come to pass in the last day saith God I will pour out my spirit upon All Flesh and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy and your young men shall see Visions Vision the principle of Prophecy it gives us Direction the the next step and your old men shall dream dreams and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my spirit he reiterating that it's for every single single person no matter who you are and they shall prophesy and I will show wonders in Heaven above and signs in the earth beneath Blood Fire and Vapor of smoke the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and notable day of the Lord come and it shall come to pass say it with me that who soever say that with me whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be what and what his [Music] name you have a promise in your life today it said you'll prophesy see Visions dream dreams but you got to write it down you got to get specific about what it is you want God to do and you got to be bold with it you got to stand by it because in the end it's not going to lie let's all bow our heads across this house Heavenly Father Lord we thank you for your word this morning Lord you know and see every single heart that is in the house today and every single heart and mind that's tuning in online Lord you know the needs in our life you know the dilemmas and the perplexities of the situations we Face Heavenly Father we ask for direction today Lord as we stand on the Watchtower looking out and what seems like just a a dark oyss where there's no vision anywhere we ask you to give us vision and we do so by coming to your throne of grace coming to your altar with boldness with great expectation with the pen in our hand and the words in our mouth stating stating what we're asking you to do in our life because we know that we have a prophetic promise oh if you need healing in your body I invite you to step forward and write it down and make it plain right now if you need answers in uh a an uncertain situation I ask you to step forward and write it down if you're needing peace in a storm right now come speak to him come speak it out come write it down make it bold make it plain you're believing that God is going to move you're walking and talking and praying by faith maybe there's a a son or a daughter a person in your life whatever the relationship looks like that you've been praying for write their name down knowing that [Music] he praising my Risen King and savior all the day long I trust in God my savior the one who will never [Applause] fail he will never fail I trust in God I trust in God my oh would you get that on your mind right now be specific with your prayer be specific with your prayer God has the ability to overturn kingdoms to overturn the hearts and minds of any person we serve an all powerful God and you've got a promise you've got a promise in your life he can make a way when there is no way when it's not determining on anybody else yes Jesus Oh yes Jes would you get somebody by the hand or put your hand on somebody's shoulder and let's pray together there's some people in here myself included that I need to hear an answer from God I need to hear from you Lord I brought it all to the altar I brought it all to you how are you going to answer I'm writing it down that's why I trust that's s the Lord I Saw the Lord and he heard and he answered I saw the Lord and he heard and he answer I saw the Lord and he heard and he that's why I trust that's why I trust God I'm going to ask you a question this morning you've written down what you want God to do in your life when we praise him after he's done something that's giving him thanks and that's absolutely appropriate when we praise him before he does it that's called Faith so I ask you this question this morning what does your worship look like if he answered what you just wrote down hallelujah what does your praise look like what does your praise look like if he answers when he does what you just spoke out to him they're going to sing that song and I want to invite every single believer every single person who's put the pin to paper would you worship like he's already done it would you thinkk him [Music] [Applause] like I S I saw the Lord and he heard and he answer me I saw the Lord and he heard and he answered I saw the Lord and he heard he that's why I trust him why I TR him that's why I saw the Lord and he heard and he answered pray the Lord and he heard and he answered i s the Lord and he heard and he answered that's why I trust him that's why the Lord the and he heard and he answer I saw the Lord and he heard and he answered I saw the Lord and he heard and he answer that's why I that's why I trusted God My Savior the one who will [Applause] never he'll never fail he will never fail I trust in [Music] God my savior the one who will never f [Applause] he will never fail I saw the Lord I Saw the Lord and he heard and he answered I saw the Lord and he heard and he answer I saw the Lord and he [Music] heard that's why I trusted that's why I i s the Lord s the Lord and he heard it and he answered i s the Lord and he heard and he answer I saw the Lord and he heard and he that's why I TR that's why that's why answer would you give Jesus High Praise for his word would you praise him for his word hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah that's why I trust him that's why I trust him you know Sister Jamie Bible talks about having a good helpmate sister Jamie gives me lists sometimes now they're not honey do list there's honey want to do lists I'm wanting to do it she just keeps me and she puts them on sticky notes sometimes brother Lambert and I've actually walked out of the house and stuck them to my jacket as I going out till I got to the car and then I put it on the dashboard it was a reminder of the tasks that and you know you know what the best feeling in the world is as when I get to the last one I can mark them all out I feel like I really accomplish something but can you imagine we've got a god he's taking all of our list down he's said I'm taking care of that that's done that's done the vision of prophecy's already been done it's been fulfilled I'm going to trust in him I'm going to believe in him that the word work is done in my life