The Ministry of the Midwife | Pastor Raymond Woodward

praise the Lord fac isn't it awesome to be in the house of the Lord so thankful for all of you thank you Pastor Zach for that very kind and entertaining introduction and uh wherever Parker is they persecute her but she holds her own that's what I know about Barker and I'm so grateful for all of you uh this is a wonderful crowd not only on a Sunday night but on a holiday weekend and I'm so grateful that you are faithful to this house of God I have the opportunity in the Run of any year to travel to a lot of different places and a lot of different churches and this is truly sincerely one of my favorite places in the whole world this is such a powerful church with such a large footprint for the kingdom don't you love your pastoral team that leads you and ministers and with such Excellence it's amazing It's amazing And we give honor to Bishop and first lady Carpenter and they're just wonderful friends and I love them very much and I love all of you it's just a joy to walk in here and and thank you for being you thank you for being here thank you for being faithful to God um why don't you go ahead and be seated when you get there and you get settled and you get comfortable you lay everything down why don't you clap your hands to the Lord all ye people and shout unto God with a voice of Triumph Hallelujah yes yes yes Hallelujah Jesus we worship you God we worship you Jesus if you praise we give you praise the ancient Greeks called it the book of Exodus which means a way out and that made it into our English Bible but the Jews they called it shamot which simply means names the book of names and it draws that original title from its very first verse Exodus 1 and verse 1. now these are the names of the children of Israel which came into Egypt every man and his household came with Jacob it is in this book The Book of Exodus the book of names that we first encounter the names of Jacob's sons who became the 12 tribes of Israel they and their families were rescued by their brother Joseph Joseph was exalted by pharaoh to rule in Egypt it's quite a story the first time you see Joseph he's being betrayed by his Brethren he's being sold for silver and he's cast down into a pit but the next time you see Joseph he has been exalted to the throne in Egypt Pharaoh has given him a new name that is above every other name in Egypt zapanath panea it literally means the savior of the world and if you want to survive if you want to buy Grain if you want to have food you have to come into that Egyptian throne room and before Joseph the savior of the world every knee has to Bow that's quite a story it happens to parallel something that you're very familiar with the first time you see Jesus when he comes to this earth he's betrayed by his Brethren and his people he's sold for pieces of silver but let me tell you the next time this world sees Jesus he will sit on a throne and he will have a name that is above every other name and before him every knee must bow and every tongue must confess that Jesus Christ is lord it's quite a story but now Joseph and all his brothers have died and a new Pharaoh has come to power in Egypt and he doesn't even remember Joseph and so this new Pharaoh forces the children of Israel into slavery and so they endure bitter lives and hard bondage for four centuries Exodus brothers and sisters is the Old Testament book of redemption because Israel needs deliverance and that Deliverance will only come once God steps in and if you watch it it's powerful and beautiful they will be covered by the blood of the Lamb when they put it on the doorpost of their house they will walk through the water of the Red Sea and then they will be led away from Egypt by a supernatural pillar of cloud and fire it is a perfect picture of the New Testament elements of New Testament salvation Jesus shed his blood and died on the cross of Calvary and his blood was applied Jesus went into the grave he was buried but then he rose again when Jesus died that was an act of man they nailed his body to the Cross when he was buried that was an act of man They Carried his lifeless body to a tomb and rolled the stone in front of it but when my Jesus came out of the Grave on Easter Sunday morning that was not an act of man that was an act of God oh my goodness but it's not enough to know that Jesus died and was buried and rose again the gospel isn't the gospel when you know it or when you hear it the gospel only becomes the gospel in your life when you obey it and when you apply it so I am grateful for the message that was preached by the first preacher in the church age on the first day of church history after the first sermon of the church age and at the first altar call of church history when Peter said repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost do you know what happens when you ask God for forgiveness his blood starts working in your life covering your sins do you know what happens when you go down in water in Covenant with the name of Jesus he washes your sins away in the watery grave of baptism and I got to tell you repentance is an act of man because you do it baptism is an act of man because the preacher helps you obey that part of the Gospel but when you receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking other tongues that's not an act of man nobody here can give you that but God would love to pour out his spirit in your life tonight that's the gospel the blood the water and the spirit applied to our lives Exodus is a perfect picture of New Testament salvation now before this book is over we will encounter more names we will encounter the names of those who enable the deliverance from Egypt and they we will also encounter the names of those who oppose that Deliverance we will encounter the name of Moses in the book of names he's the meekest man on Earth and we will read the unlikely story of how God used this stuttering shepherd with low self-esteem to deliver his people from the most powerful Empire of the ancient world and we'll encounter at least one more name in this book of names it's the name of God which he reveals to Moses when he speaks out of a burning bush on the backside of the desert and here's where God and Moses had that talk Exodus 3 and 7 and the Lord said I have surely seen the Affliction of my people which are in Egypt and I have heard their Cry by reason of their taskmasters for I know their sorrows and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large unto a land flowing with milk and honey under the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and amorites and parasites and highlights and jebusites now therefore Behold The Cry of the children of Israel has come up unto me and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppressed them now that is good news to Moses because God has a plan God says to Moses I have seen and I have heard and I'm concerned and I am coming down there and I am going to do something about it and Moses breathes a sigh of relief and wipes the sweat from his brow because Moses knows that even pharaoh and all the armies of Egypt are no match for Jehovah God so Moses is pretty happy in this moment and then God says this in verse 10. come now therefore and I will send you unto pharaoh that you may bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt and Moses said to God say what you expect me to do that who am I that I should go unto pharaoh and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt see God's plan is a little different than what Moses thought it was going to be God's plan is you go you speak you do it and then I'll help and Moses doesn't like that plan but listen to me brothers and sisters God isn't thinking for a split second that Moses is actually going to do the delivery God isn't depending on Moses skill or his power to try to break the chains of bondage that are holding God's people captive God intends to do all of the work God is going to do all the heavy lifting but he's just wanting a leader to speak on his behalf God is not trying to get Moses psyched up to go and do the job God just wants a covenant partner here on Earth to speak what he has already spoken in heaven so God does not do what we would do we'd try to build up Moses self-esteem come on Moses you can do it Moses they'll love you Moses you're going to knock it out of the park God doesn't do any of that God just says to Moses I will be with you do you know that is the most common promise in the word of God I will be with you do you know what the most common command is in the word of God fear not and that's why many times you see them together the most common command and the most common promise fear not I will be with you can I tell you you can get through anything if you have that word from God don't be afraid I'm with you it may be rough right now it may be tough this week but fear not I will be with you you see um God knows that he and anybody else make an incredibly powerful team God is quite confident in himself God has a secret weapon he knows that he's God and so he's free to choose the least among us to accomplish things for his kingdom now with human beings it's quite different we're always trying to partner with the best and the brightest and the most well connected uh we we want all of those people in our Circle but God doesn't need any of that God just needs people who will take him at his word so God says to Moses I'm going to come down there but I want you to go and I want you to speak and so Moses does what maybe you would have done he asked God for some ID is this really you here's Moses asking God the almighty could you tell me who you are and God answers verse 14. God said unto Moses I'll give you my ID I am that I am and he said this is what you say to the children of Israel this is what you tell Pharaoh when you go see him you just tell him I am hath sent me unto you God is God and His pronouns are I am well that's not quite true but that was a little bit of meddling I'm sorry when God said to Moses I am that I am here's what he was saying I am the center of everything I am in control I am the solution I am holding it all together I am calling the shots I am the Lord Moses I am the owner of everything I am running everything I am the head of everything I am in charge of everything I am the maker I am the Savior I am all-knowing I am all-powerful Moses I am God and at that Burning Bush Moses learned two truths in one moment of time he learned God's name and he learned his own name because if God's name is I am then Moses instantly knew that my name is I am not because there's only one I am brothers and sisters if God's name is I am then our name is I am not let me tell you how this works I am not the center of everything I am not in control I am not the solution I am not holding it all together I am not calling the shots I am not the Lord I am not the owner of anything I am not running anything I am not the head of anything I am not in charge of anything I am not the maker I am not the Savior I am not all-knowing I am not all-powerful I am not God what a relief that is to know that I serve God I don't have to be the I am but I know the I am and he is running things for me one of our brilliant Oneness Scholars David S Norris he said this when Moses asked God who shall I say sent me God replied in Hebrew it's a proclamation uttered in the Hebrew imperfect so grammatically it represents the potential of what will occur brother Norris says I am that I am might just as well be understood as I will be who I will be you see God is about to do what his name means there's about to be a contest between all the so-called Pagan deities of Egypt and God himself When God Says I Am he's making a challenge to every empty Idol particularly to those in Egypt and he's making a proclamation to every false god that will ever make a claim against the true God When God Says I Am he's also saying and they are not those are not real gods they are fake news those are not real gods they can't help you those are not real gods they can't do anything for you I am they're not wow and the showdown between pharaoh and Jehovah it comes during the ten plagues now the total number of Egyptian gods is uncertain we're not sure but most lists include at least 80 gods in Egypt many living creatures and many inanimate objects were considered to be the embodiment of some deity even the Nile River was worshiped as a God and the sun was worshiped as a God and Pharaoh himself was considered a god so the plagues I don't know if you've ever thought about this they were not God showing off they were not God having a temper tantrum the plagues in Egypt they were judgments specifically upon idolatrous Pagan deities they worshiped hoppy the god of the Nile River so God said okay we'll turn the Nile River to blood and your God can't do anything to prevent it they worship Hector the Frog goddess the goddess of the resurrection and so God said we'll let frogs fill the lamb your goddess can't do anything to prevent it they worship Geb god of the earth so God let lice come out of the earth they they worship Kefi the god of the insects so God said a plague of flies they couldn't stop it they couldn't control it they worshiped aphis the bull God so God let a plague come on their livestock their God couldn't do anything they worshiped in the hotel the god of medicine God let boils break out on the Egyptians they worship not the sky goddess so God led a plague of hail come down from the sky they worship Seth the protector of crops so God sent locusts and it devastated their fields they worshiped ra the Sun God you know what God did he turned the sky dark the the Bible says it was a darkness that could be felt and God said your son God isn't powerful but I am all-powerful your son God can't even control its own domain but I am the king of kings and the Lord of lords the Egyptians worshiped Osiris The Giver of Life but God took the life of the firstborn in Egypt but you know what happened in those plagues in the land of Goshen where God's people dwelt when that plague of Darkness hit all of Egypt there was light in the homes of the people of God do you know what happened when the firstborn was killed in Egypt Israel every household that applied the blood to their doorpost their firstborn lived and God proved himself these are fake Gods I'm the real God Exodus is a powerful book brothers and sisters it begins by telling how God came down in Grace and he delivered and enslaved people but Exodus ends with the Tabernacle plan it ends by declaring how God came down in glory and he dwelt in the midst of a redeemed people Moses message was a message of complete deliverance Moses preached something that we preach Egypt is a type of the world in scripture and so the gospel is all about getting yourself out of Egypt keeping yourself out of Egypt and keeping Egypt out of you and we still preach that the gospel is about getting you out of the world keeping you out of the world and keeping the world out of you but if Egypt is the type of the world Pharaoh is a type of the devil and he does not relinquish his hold without resistance he fought he fought hard to try to keep those people in bondage and we read about all of this I could go on we read about all the dramatic adventures and all the Divine Miracles and all the profound foreshadowing and the powerful typology we read all this in the book of Exodus in shamot the book of names but I stand here tonight to tell you we would never have known the name of Moses if it had not been for two obscure women whose names are in chapter one back near the end of January when you were doing your Bible reading you read through this chapter and you read their names and I can guarantee you don't remember their names they're obscure you can miss them just with the blink of an eye but if it had not been for these two women you would never have heard the name Moses Exodus 1 and 15 and the king of Egypt Pharaoh he spraked to the Hebrew midwives of which the name of one was shifra and the name of the other Pua and he said when you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women and you see them on the birthing stools if it be a son you kill him we're going to Stamp Out the Israelites but if it be a daughter you can let her live because we'll just intermarry her with the Egyptian boys and she'll be compromised into our nation but those two midwives they feared God and they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them but they saved the men children alive I guarantee you you didn't know their names shifra and Pua but it hadn't been for those two Brave women there wouldn't have been a Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt now a midwife is one who assists in the birthing process the original word Midwife means a with woman she's a woman who is with the mother giving birth part of The Midwives duties in ancient times are described in Ezekiel 16 they would cut the umbilical cord they would wash the baby with water they would rub its body with salt they would wrap it in swaddling clothes but all of those responsibilities pailed in comparison to this responsibility the main critical responsibility of the Midwife was to help that mother give birth and ensure that that baby entered the world as safely and as healthy as possible literally without the midwives the Next Generation would not be born and that's exactly why Pharaoh asked for the cooperation of The Midwives when he wanted to abort an entire gen generation of Israelite boys but shifra and Pua they continued to carry out their responsibilities even under the threat of death because they honored God you might not even have noticed their names before but without a shifra and a Pua there would not have been a Moses and without a Moses we wouldn't have seen the burning bush or the Passover Lamb or the Red Sea or Mount Sinai or the Ten Commandments or the Tabernacle so those two obscure ladies that you didn't even notice their names they're very important in the story of the book of names now today the apostolic church is blessed with great leaders Apostles and Prophets and evangelists and pastors and teachers and you are blessed with Stellar spiritual Apostolic leaders in this church they are the ones who stand behind pulpits in our churches and they preach on platforms to our conferences and they Inspire us with their messages and they lift our faith to see the miraculous and they push us to reach the lost and they encourage us to experience everything that God has for us those are leaders your leaders are God's gift to his church and we need leaders like that in every church and in every generation and I thank God that he's laid his anointing and his hand upon our leaders who push this church to be something great in this generation for God we've got to be careful in every generation not to create a celebrity culture in the church it's a wonderful thing you do it well at fac Maryville it's a good thing to honor the ministry but it's a worldly thing to idolize our leaders because quite frankly you don't know their story and you don't know where they came from but mostly you probably don't know all the unknown unsung heroes in their lives you see each of us we didn't get here all by our little old selves each of us are the product of faithful Saints in great churches like this one and those faithful Saints and some of them have never stood on a platform like this and they would pass out if you tried to stand up behind a Pulpit and give them a microphone but if it had not been for those faithful Saints none of the rest of us would be here we are the product of faithful people of God they loved us and they mentored us and they taught us and corrected us and sometimes they had to forgive us and restore us they encouraged us they invested in us they sacrificed for us and they interceded for us and I stand Here thankful for all the unsung unknown heroes in my life and in your life we wouldn't be here your leaders wouldn't be here without some faithful saints of God that invested in them food this church is one of my favorite places on this planet and I love this place and I love your leaders and I love you and they were so kind and honored me so greatly by inviting me to speak to you today but you don't really know my story you might have heard bits and pieces if you've been around Woodward but you don't know my story you might not know about my great uncle who received the baptism of the Holy Ghost on December the 28 1920 and forever changed the trajectory of our family and I am forever thankful but I'll tell you something else great Uncle Leonard there was only one person in my dad's family that was interested in what that old Elder of the faith had to say and it was my father his mother and father weren't interested his brother and sister weren't interested but my father was sent by hours at the old farmhouse kitchen table and listened to his Uncle Leonard parent teach him the word of God my mom and dad when they got married they were basically just new converts and I came along a little while later and they raised me in this precious Apostolic Faith and my dear father has gone on to Glory he never was a preacher he never preached a sermon but he raised me to love this truth you might not know his name but heaven knows his name you don't know about the Sunday School teachers and the youth pastors and the student pastors that invested in me and invested in some of you you might not even remember their name you don't know the precious old Sunday school teacher that before you ever got to her class she was down on a chair in the prayer room saying God help me reach those little kids today God help me train those young people today when God wants to save a generation he raises up a Moses but Moses wasn't born without help if it hadn't been for the courageous midwives in Exodus 1 there wouldn't have been any Hebrew baby boys born and I came to this Pulpit tonight to bring you a word from the Lord in this generation the last of the last days the end of the end times the generation facing down the coming of the Lord in this generation we need God to raise up the ministry of The Midwives once again in the apostolic movement and in the Apostolic Church Paul gives us an important principle in First Corinthians chapter 15 verse 46 he says how be it that was not first which is spiritual but that which is natural and afterward that which is spiritual Paul was saying that if you look at the natural world and you learn from it you study it you'll learn spiritual principles by studying the natural world Jesus did this in his Parables all the time he point to seed he'd point to soil he'd point to trees and then he would teach a spiritual truth so you look at the natural and then you learn something for the spiritual so let me talk about the natural world in Maryville Tennessee there is an attack on the Next Generation playing out right now in the state houses and courthouses and newsrooms and school rooms of America it is an all-out full frontal attack on everything that is moral and everything that is biblical this war is being raised on multiple battlefields but you make no mistake the schemes behind every Insidious assault have been launched from the halls of hell because the devil wants to destroy Humanity and that's why hardly a day goes by when we don't see some new attack or some new debate or some new law or some new perversion perpetuated against those of us who bear the image of God but it is the youngest and the most vulnerable Among Us who bear the brunt of that assault babies are murdered in the womb children are abused in the home teenagers are sexualized in classrooms in their Public Schools all over this state all over the province of New Brunswick where I live and they are all victims of the Sinister lies of a Godless agenda and the devil is trying to teach every young person and child and most of you through your devices that humans can casually experiment with sex and they can randomly manipulate their gender and they can surgically mutilate their bodies and there won't be any consequences do you know what's happening Satan wants to destroy the Next Generation he wants to destroy them physically mentally emotionally financially relationally and even biologically and you know why he's trying to do that because he is terrified of those young people that are in this choir and in this school and in this altar he's terrified of them spiritually no wonder hell is fighting hard because the devil is trying to preempt the greatest Revival that the apostolic church has ever known and the greatest Harvest of souls the world has ever seen and the devil will stop at nothing but total annihilation because he knows that Divine Destiny is written all over this generation the next generation of apostolic believers they are just waiting to be delivered and if you listen closely you can hear the Cry of birth pains Romans 8 verse 19. I study I know this is primarily talking about eschatology the study of the end times but there's a powerful principle here for the earnest expectation of the creature wadeth for the manifestation of the sons of God for the creature was made subject to vanity not willingly but by reason of him who has subjected the same in Hope because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the Glorious Liberty of the children of God timeout I know that's talking about eschatology the end of all things that someday this old sinful world that's in bondage and incorruption is going to be rebirth and reborn into the Glorious Liberty of God but let me tell you something there's something that happens every time a sinner comes to this altar to repent every time somebody goes down in the waters of baptism in the name of Jesus every time another soul receives the baptism of the Holy Ghost what's happening they are being delivered from the bondage of corruption into the Glorious Liberty of the children of God it happens every day around the world in the great Apostolic movement Paul said for we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now and not only they but ourselves also which have the first fruits of the spirit we've got the Holy Ghost even we ourselves grown within ourselves waiting for the adoption to with the Redemption of the body there is a groaning there are birth pains in the apostolic church today creation is groaning in travail but the apostolic church if you listen close they are groaning and travail because God wants to birth a Revival that will blow your mind Isaiah 66. who hath heard such a thing who has seen such things shall the Earth be made to bring forth in one day shall a nation be born at once for it as soon as Zion travailed she brought forth her children watch this shall I bring to the birth and not cause to bring forth saith the Lord shall I cause to bring forth and shut the womb saith thy God God said if you will pray if you will travail if you will groan with birth pains there's not a chance if you do that that I won't show up and give you the power to birth the Next Generation midwives are those who assist in the birthing process without the midwives the next generation will not be born so you please hear me tonight this great church that I love this great church that impacts our entire Apostolic movement can I say to you without any false pretense or any loose false empty praise or flattery can I say to you that what happens at fac Maryville it echoes across the width and the breadth of the apostolic movement so there is a great responsibility laid on you wonderful saints of God it is not just your pastor or the Pastoral team that this Apostolic world is watching they're watching you the great saints of God that follow your pastor and submit to your pastoral team they're watching you as well and without midwives without those who assist in the birthing process the next generation will not be born midwives are the unsung heroes behind the scenes they bring babies to birth who may not even remember them they are the unnamed prayer warriors who assist in the groanings of intercession for somebody else's children and that somebody else may never ever know of their hours of intercession they may never ever know of their spiritual investment but the Midwife doesn't care because it's her joy to usher in the next generation of children midwives are those unsung heroes the teachers who serve in our classrooms and they forfeit their blessing sometimes in our church services so that we can be blessed with a generation of apostolic kids and young people in the future I watch them at work this week they are amazing they are Stellar it touched my heart when I walked out here and I saw people tending little tiny kids do you know what they were doing they were serving as midwives they were keeping those little kids they were praying over them and playing with them do you know why so uh an Apostolic move of God could happen in this Sanctuary that's what a midwife is a midwife is those unrecognized altar workers it's those people that work in the baptistry when it starts to move in the church they're not running for the back door or for a break what they're running for is the altar what they're running for is the baptistry what they're are running for is the prayer room what they're running for is let me lay my hand on that person and see if they can receive the Holy Ghost tonight that's a midwife midwives are the uncelebrated Saints who will never fill a Pulpit they will never command a platform but they are celebrated in heaven and don't you make any mistake they are feared in hell they are the midwives and they bring the Next Generation to spiritual birth the ministry of the midwife those who've grown in intercession and grown and travail and fill our altars and fill our prayer rooms but not just for themselves no they're they're interceding for other people and other families and other young people and other people in the church and other people in the community they may never know that a midwife spent an hour in travailing prayer for them they may never know it but someday in heaven they're gonna know it and God is wanting to raise up the ministry of the Midwife in this generation that Ministry is what gave us the great revivals of the past but I've got to tell you that the ministry of the Midwife has fallen out of favor in our generation because this ministry doesn't bring you Fanfare or followers it won't bring you recognition or reward it won't result in preeminence or Prosperity or position or promotion or popularity or praise this ministry does not play out well on your social media feed and it's often overlooked even in the church but just a few months ago the last week of March I was driving between Dayton and Columbus in the state of Ohio and when I was driving God never speaks to me like this about sermons I have to study and dig and look up cross-references and it's just oh my goodness I was standing with my friend Wayne Huntley in his study at his church in in Raleigh North Carolina one time and brother Huntley said to me said you know brother Woodward sometimes I read one verse of scripture and I get like four sermons out of one verse I look back at him with esteem and honor and love in my eyes and I said I hate you Wayne Huntley I have to study and dig and prod and plan and oh my goodness research read but God spoke to me one word as I was driving that rental car on that Highway he just said midwife it was just as clear as if he'd said it out loud from the passenger seat and God made me to know I was headed for a Sunday school conference to talk to some Sunday school teachers and as soon as God spoke that one single word to me I knew exactly this passage and I knew exactly this message and I knew exactly what God wanted to say and God has made this just like a blanket or a burden on me the last few months that God is wanting to raise up another generation of midwives because he wants to give birth to another generation of apostolics it's not time to coast in church while a few dedicated people get around the Altar and pray for the people with these it's time for great churches like this one to say hey Pastor all hands on deck everybody to the birthing Room everybody to the spiritual Maternity Ward we've got a generation that is ready to be born I wish you'd lift up your hands and not worship I wish you'd pray for a minute I wish you'd lift your voice there are some gifted called intercessors in this local church I set you free right now to do what you do don't worry about what it looks like don't worry about what it sounds like don't worry about what anybody else thinks lift up your voice and pray in the spirit right now come on fac lift up your voice and pray in tongues right now God wants to use you he wants to use you in these altars he wants to use you in these pews but he wants to use you in your school in your college at your job oh pray pray pray intercessors don't you dare worry about what it sounds like God is raising up a generation to push back the flood tide of hell so the next generation of apostolics can come to the birth I'm not trying to prolong this but I wish you'd grab somebody by the hand and lift that hand with yours and pray together right now God's calling some midwives Earth may never know your name but Heaven is going to know your name Earth may never give you a claim but Heaven is going to give you a reward God's looking for some people that don't care who gets the credit they just want God to get the glory god is looking for some people who don't care who gets all the attention Pastor just let me pray just let me intercede just let me get in that altar just let me pray for somebody we're there we're there we're there this great church that is a pattern a model for the apostolic movement God is laying this call on you he's calling for midwives that will help somebody be born again of the water and the spirit foreign I love you guys you know how to pray I love this church you know how to pray that God's calling you to do more than pray for yourself and your family and your kids God is calling some midwives they're going to intercede for somebody that may never know their name they're going to pray over somebody that may never say thank you foreign music you can come get ready Exodus chapter one Exodus 1 and verse 20. therefore god dwelt well with the midwives and the people multiply to wax very Mighty because of their Ministry but watch this and it came to pass now midwives in that day were usually older ladies maybe their husband had died they're probably widows and they helped the younger women give birth and it came to pass because the midwives feared God that he made them houses literally he gave them families of Their Own listen to me what the midwives helped others push for they ended up receiving themselves hmm I know it's a tendency because we're so self-centered we even take selfies today we are an inwardly focused generation and it's so easy to come to church and make Church all about my needs and my family and my prayer requests God is calling a generation he's laying the call of a midwife on some great people in this local church where it won't just be about you and your family but pastor Raymond what happens I've got needs I've got problems I've got family members that they're not serving God my heart is heavy my heart is burdened what are you saying I'm saying if you'll help this church reach some other people God's going to give you what you're helping some other people push for you listen to me God's going to give you what you helped some other people push for oh I'm not a prophet I'm not the son of a prophet but I prophesy to you that if you'll Embrace this and if you'll get behind your great leaders in this church and if you'll intercede and pray and if you'll help them Reach a bunch of people that you don't even know their names and you don't even know where they came from and they don't come from your same background if you'll help them if you'll be a midwife interceding for a generation of lost people someday you're going to be praying in this Altar for somebody else's child you're going to be praying in this Altar for somebody else's backslider who just walked up the aisle and you're going to be there not even thinking about yourself you're going to be rejoicing and praying and interceding and watching them come home and you're gonna get a text on the way home and it's going to say hey Dad hey Mom I just went to church tonight I got back to God tonight I'm not a prophet but I prophesy to you that's first and we're going to come pray in fact we're going to do more than come pray tonight God's laying the mantle of a midwife the ministry of a midwife on some people in this congregation I know you already pray but God's calling you to a higher level I know you already pray but God's calling you to pray for something specific and it's for this next Generation to be born last scripture Jesus stood up on the last great day of the feast and he said this he that believeth on me as the scripture had said out of his belly shall flow rivers of Living Water and we don't have to wonder what he's talking about because the very next verse says that he was speaking about the Holy Ghost but watch this the Greek word there is Kalia that is not belly as in stomach as in food Khalia belly as in womb who as in birth what Jesus said is when you get this holy ghost in you it'll flow out of your belly like rivers of Living Water when you get this Holy Ghost if you will use it if you will pray if you will intercede you can birth something in the Supernatural realm you can birth Miracles when the church prays you can birth signs and wonders when the church prays now this is a different service than this morning because I'm enlisting some midwives tonight it is a sacred calling it is a sacred Trust but just like the gospel is to the whosoever will this call goes out to the whosoever will because God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to Salvation that all should come to repentance that all should be baptized in his name that all should receive the Holy Ghost so let me tell you two things there are already some midwives in this church so if you're here tonight and you've never had the joy of asking God to forgive you of your sins you can come to this Altar and Jesus will do it if you've never had the joy of being baptized and your sins washed away in the waters of baptism in the name of Jesus the only saving name there's enough midwives in this church you can do that tonight and we'll help you if you've never had the privilege and the joy of receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost there's enough midwives in this church already that you can come to this Altar and God will fulfill his learn and fill you with the baptism of the Holy Ghost but while there are enough midwives for the people that are in here and you can be born tonight you can be delivered tonight you can get your Miracle tonight there's not enough midwives for what God wants to do next at fac miracle God is getting an army of midwives together because he wants to deliver a generation of young people that are absolutely under attack by everything that comes from the halls of hell they are under attack in their schools and they are under attack in their jobs and they're under attack in their universities but let me tell you something there's an army of midwives that are going to go to prayer and the devil can't do anything about it and when those midwives begin to travail in prayer and they begin to travail in intercession God is going to use their prayer to birth something in the Supernatural I call this great church to this altar right now in Jesus name everybody if you name this as your church if you name these great godly men and women as your pastors I want you to find your place in the altar tonight when you come here I want you to lift up your hand right now I want you to lift up your voice others are still coming keep coming to the front make room for everybody but don't waste a second lift up your hands and your voice and begin to pray right now begin to pray right now some of you you are intercessors God gifted you that way lift up your voice and pray in the spirit come on great church come on great people push your way into the altar tonight yes yes yes those of you that are already here take a few steps forward make room for everybody that's still coming oh I just got to give you a heads up there's going to be a groan of intercession that's going to overtake Us in this place because Destiny is written on this church we're good for me just the prayer voice just right now just the prayer voices right now we'll sing in a minute this worship team they're so annoying and they lead us into the presence of God but right now it's a prayer meeting broke out right now there's intercession at fac Maryville pray in the spirit pray in the spirit pray in the spirit listen to that devil there's a groaning there's a groaning there are midwives being called to deliver the Next Generation Jesus used me Jesus used me Jesus called me Jesus I'm willing Jesus I'm not going to be lazy is Miracle signs and wonders are first when the church prays people are born again when the church prays the devil's kingdom comes tumbling down when the church prays foreign foreign I want you to do one more thing I want you to do one more thing we are used to praying beside each other we are used to praying with each other side by side I want you to do something different tonight I want you to turn to somebody and I want you to lay your hand on them and they can lay their hand on you but I want you to face them and I want you to pray over them I don't want you to pray some little bashful sleepy quiet prayer I want you to pray a prayer of intercession if you know they have a backslider in their family name that backslider and pray over them if you know they need a healing in their body name that thing and pray over it if you know that God has laid his hand on them for Ministry if you know they work in a department in this great church pray over them right now God is raising up a generation of midwives so the Next Generation can't be born foreign later for when Zion travail pray church for when Zion travail intercede church for when Zion travails no no no no no no tonight sometimes be a birth tonight if you've never been baptized in Jesus name and you'd like to your pastors are right here you can talk to them and you can be baptized tonight just come right over here if you've never received the Holy Ghost lift up your hands in this Altar and you can receive the Holy Ghost right now there's birthing happening all around you find one more person to pray with find one more guest to pray with find one more person near you across the altar just go to them and begin to pray for them foreign if you're finished praying right there here's what I'd like you to do your family find another family you men find another man you ladies find another lady you young people find some other young people lay your hand on them and pray God is raising up some midwives we're gonna see the greatest harvest the greatest Revival the greatest in gathering but it's going to start because God's People Prayed because Zion prevails foreign there's some birthing going on in this altar tonight I wonder if this great church could just push a little bit more just push for another couple of minutes there's some birthing happening in this altar tonight