Theological Status: Critical Concern
Biblical Parallel(Archetype): Thyatira
❓ What do these grades mean?
🔍 Biblical Discernment: The 7 Church Parallels
The Cold Orthodox Parallel
Ephesus
Teaching that upholds doctrinal precision yet parallels the loss of the "first love"—the vital, motivating power of the Gospel (Rev 2:4).
Why strictly "Mark & Avoid"?
We do not issue this rating to attack the speaker, but to protect the listener. This church's overall teaching trend consistently deviates from sound doctrine. As per Romans 16:17, we identify these patterns so believers can guard their hearts.
We do not issue this rating to attack the speaker, but to protect the listener. This church's overall teaching trend consistently deviates from sound doctrine. As per Romans 16:17, we identify these patterns so believers can guard their hearts.
🧐 Overview
Sermon Summary: This sermon explores the 'gifts' God offers, such as love, healing, and joy, using the Christmas season as a backdrop. While encouraging and accessible, it contains significant theological errors that could lead listeners to misunderstand how God's grace and strength operate in the Christian life.
Big Idea: I got a couple gifts I want to talk about today that you can open up today and I promise you God bless you all. [00:44:09 ▶️ 📄]
Pastoral Analysis: The sermon is a topical message on spiritual 'gifts.' However, it is fundamentally flawed by two primary errors: 1) It reverses the biblical formula for strength by teaching that our joy given to God is a prerequisite for receiving His strength, a synergistic error. 2) It promotes an over-realized eschatology by presenting guaranteed physical healing as a present entitlement of the atonement. These errors undermine the doctrines of Sola Gratia and the sufficiency of Christ's work.
Biblical Parallel(Archetype): Thyatira — The sermon, while warm in tone, promotes teachings that subtly corrupt the doctrine of grace by making it conditional on human performance, thus seducing listeners away from a purely grace-based foundation.
🧭 Biblical Alignment Dashboard
Overall Verdict: Fundamentally in Error
| Category | Status | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Soteriology | ❌ FAIL | The sermon introduces a synergistic framework where human action (producing joy) becomes the cause for receiving divine strength, which contradicts the doctrine of salvation and sanctification by grace alone. |
| Bibliology | ✅ PASS | The speaker treats the Bible as the authoritative source for the message, frequently quoting and referencing its texts. |
| Hermeneutic | ❌ FAIL | The speaker reverses the plain meaning of Nehemiah 8:10 to support a conditional, works-based principle. Furthermore, the application of Isaiah 53:5 to guaranteed, present physical healing misinterprets the primary New Testament application of that passage to spiritual healing from sin. |
| Theology Proper | ✅ PASS | The sermon does not contain errors regarding the nature, character, or attributes of God the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit. |
| Sacramentology | ⚪ N/A | No sacraments (Baptism or Communion) were observed or discussed in the provided transcript. |
📖 How they Handle Scripture & Jesus
Primary Text: Matthew 2:11 (Topical (Safe))
Scripture Saturation: Verses Read: 6 | Referenced: 7 | Alluded: 4
Passages Read Aloud:
Key References: John 3:16, 1 John 3:16, Colossians 1:14, Psalms 130:4, Matthew 1:21, Nehemiah 8:10, Matthew 2:10
Christological Connection: Redemptive Trajectory: The sermon uses the Christmas narrative (Magi's gifts) as a springboard to discuss God's gifts (Love, Healing, Forgiveness, Joy), explicitly grounding them in Christ's death (John 3:16, Colossians 1:14).
🧱 Sermon Outline
- The Gift of Love [00:44:27 ▶️ 📄] : The love of God is always there, even when making bad decisions. It is reflected in giving.
- The Gift of Healing [00:49:10 ▶️ 📄] : Healing covers physical health and mental health (sound mind). It can be instantaneous or a process.
- The Gift of Forgiveness [00:52:28 ▶️ 📄] : Forgiveness is a freeing act that removes chains and shackles when repentance occurs.
- The Gift of Joy [00:56:22 ▶️ 📄] : Joy is found in God's presence and provides strength. The world cannot give or take away this joy.
🗝️ Key Topics & Themes
- Gifts : The central theme of the sermon, focusing on spiritual gifts available immediately.
- Love of God : The foundational gift, demonstrated by Christ dying for sinners.
- Healing : The gift covering physical and mental restoration.
- Forgiveness : The gift that brings freedom and removes the weight of sin.
- Incarnation : Discussing why God chose to be born as a man in a stable.
✅ Commendations
Pastoral Tone | Warm and Relatable Delivery
The speaker maintains an encouraging and accessible tone throughout the sermon, effectively connecting with the congregation through personal anecdotes and a clear speaking style.
Gospel Foundation | Clear Articulation of God's Initiating Love
The sermon correctly grounds the concept of God's gifts in His foundational love, rightly referencing John 3:16 and Romans 5:8 ('While you were yet sinners, Christ died for you') to show that God's love is the unmerited source of all blessings.
Homiletics | Effective Closing Illustration
The final story about the man and the birds (00:59:17 ▶️ 📄) serves as a powerful and memorable illustration for the doctrine of the Incarnation, making a profound theological concept understandable to a general audience.
⚠️ Theological Concerns
🔴 Conditional Grace (Reversal of Causality)
Root Cause: Semi-Pelagianism / Synergism. This error assumes the believer has the inherent ability to initiate a spiritual good ('bringing joy') which then triggers God's response of giving strength. This contradicts the doctrine that all spiritual good, including the ability to rejoice, flows from God's unmerited grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).
"When I bring the Lord joy he brings me strength" [00:56:59 ▶️ 📄]
Correction: Nehemiah 8:10 states, '...for the joy of the LORD is your strength.' God's joy, rooted in His own nature and redemptive work, is the source of our strength, not a reward for our emotional output. Our ability to persevere comes from what He is and what He has done for us in Christ (Philippians 4:13), not from what we generate for Him.
🟠 Over-Realized Eschatology (Healing in the Atonement)
Root Cause: Pentecostalism / Keswick Theology. This teaching stems from traditions that view certain blessings, like guaranteed physical healing, as a distinct work of grace to be claimed by faith. It misapplies the full scope of the atonement's benefits to the present age, blurring the line between the 'already' and the 'not yet' of God's kingdom.
"The price He paid not only for salvation, but He paid it for healing as well." [00:49:43 ▶️ 📄]
Correction: Isaiah 53:5 ('with his stripes we are healed') is quoted by Peter in 1 Peter 2:24 in explicit reference to spiritual healing from sin: 'He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.' While Christ's work secures our ultimate glorification and physical resurrection, it does not promise the removal of all physical suffering in this life, as Paul's thorn in the flesh demonstrates (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).
📜 Full Sermon Transcript (Audit)
Use the 📄 icons next to quotes above to automatically jump to their location in this raw transcript.
[00:00:35] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Hey Alyssa.
[00:00:37] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Hi guys.
[00:01:14] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Jesus, holy name of Jesus, there's no higher name, there's no fainter name, it holds all authority, all power, it's in his name, all we should be, I'm talking to you, Jesus, we care, you're our power, you're our power,
[00:01:52] In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
[00:02:21] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Amen.
[00:02:25] Let's pray.
[00:02:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
All the things we want, everything we want, we have, we can't see, and I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying,
[00:03:17] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Let us pray.
[00:03:39] ... ... ... ... ...
[00:04:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Praise the Lord Church.
[00:04:34] Let's all stand today.
[00:04:35] We're getting ready to worship the Lord today.
[00:04:37] So glad to be with you today.
[00:04:39] Sister Jessica is going
[00:04:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
Amen.
[00:04:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Praise the Lord.
[00:04:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
Praise the Lord.
[00:04:57] Our scripture this morning is coming from Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6.
[00:05:02] It says, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful.
[00:05:13] Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
[00:05:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:05:19] Amen.
[00:05:20] Wonderful scripture to open up with today.
[00:05:22] Why don't we just close our eyes and welcome the presence of God into the house of God today, shall we?
[00:05:28] Gracious King, we thank you right now.
[00:05:30] We give you glory, we give you praise, we give you thanks today.
[00:05:34] Loving you, our God, we welcome you into this house today to give you praise, to give you honor, to give you thanks this morning, God.
[00:05:42] We magnify that wonderful name today.
[00:05:44] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:05:46] Let's lift him up today, shall we?
[00:05:48] Let's give him praise.
[00:05:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Hallelujah, God.
[00:05:52] Thank you, Jesus.
[00:07:30] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
No weapons fall against us
[00:10:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
God, you are great.
[00:10:32] God, you are wonderful, Lord.
[00:10:36] Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:10:40] Let's just give Him a little grace and a little thanks this morning.
[00:10:43] I magnify that holy name, that righteous name, that powerful name today.
[00:10:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Hallelujah, Holy King Jesus.
[00:10:50] Amen, Amen.
[00:10:51] So good to worship with you today.
[00:10:53] Praise God.
[00:10:54] In just a second, we're going to step out and shake folks' hands.
[00:10:57] If you're a guest or visitor here today, we'll come to you, whatever's most comfortable.
[00:11:01] If you feel like you should walk around, that's cool too.
[00:11:03] But either way, why don't we step out and greet somebody.
[00:11:05] Tell somebody it's great to see them in the house of the Lord today.
[00:11:09] Greet somebody, Jesus, wonderful.
[00:11:21] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
I like that jacket.
[00:11:34] Bless you, bless you.
[00:12:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Let's lift him up and give him praise, shall we?
[00:15:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Let us sing together.
[00:16:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:16:52] I believe that today.
[00:16:57] I trust God for that today.
[00:16:58] Holy Ghost, I thank you, Lord.
[00:16:58] Thank you, Lord Jesus.
[00:16:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:16:59] Amen.
[00:16:59] What a wonderful presence.
[00:17:01] What a wonderful feeling in the house of God today.
[00:17:03] So it's always great to feel the presence of God in the house of God.
[00:17:06] We're going to pray.
[00:17:08] We're going to pray just on our knees.
[00:17:10] And we're going to pray for those that need healing.
[00:17:14] I want to continue to lift up Sister Diana today.
[00:17:19] I pray for her to have continual and speedy recovery and healing.
[00:17:24] I want to proclaim also the fact that the latest report is that there's no more cancer found.
[00:17:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
And so today we say to God in the glory of the Lord.
[00:17:35] Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:17:38] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:17:40] Not to go into too many details, but we've been worried about more chemo, radiation, all that kind of stuff, but that's not going to have to happen.
[00:17:46] So to God be the glory for that.
[00:17:48] I want to lift up Sister Gisella Cruz today.
[00:17:51] I want to pray for her.
[00:17:52] She's sick this morning.
[00:17:53] I want to continue to magnify the Lord in touching her body today.
[00:17:56] Her little girl has a few family members and some friends that he knows from his time in California and such that...
[00:18:07] and some major sickness in their families.
[00:18:09] I want to pray for them today as well.
[00:18:11] I want to lift them up in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:18:14] Any other prayer requests that you'd like to lift up before the Lord today, unspoken requests?
[00:18:19] Mighty God, Amen.
[00:18:20] Let's just take these things and let's go to the Lord with faith today.
[00:18:25] Believe in God.
[00:18:27] Trust in God, for He alone is able to heal, to touch, and to set free.
[00:18:33] Let's take Him before His throne, Grace.
[00:18:35] Gracious God, we love You today.
[00:18:39] We praise You today.
[00:18:40] We exalt You today, God.
[00:18:42] Thanking you, loving you, believing on you, God, trusting in your will, your way, your goodness, Lord.
[00:18:49] My God, you are holy, you are righteous, you are powerful, God.
[00:18:53] Touch Diana today.
[00:18:55] Touch Gisella today.
[00:18:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Mighty God, touch family members that have been negatively impacted recently by sickness and by death.
[00:19:03] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Lord, I praise you in advance for your touch.
[00:19:07] I exalt you in advance for your healing, God.
[00:19:11] We proclaim these things in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:19:15] In Jesus' name.
[00:19:16] Amen.
[00:19:17] Let's praise and prayer answering God today.
[00:19:20] Let's worship and prayer answering God this morning.
[00:19:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
Let us go through things in our lives that's not fair.
[00:19:28] It's not fair that we have to deal with cancer and we have to deal with loss and we have to deal with all the things that we deal with.
[00:19:35] Especially around the holidays when things are hard, our family's not living for God like they should.
[00:19:40] And when I saw this song this morning, it touched me in a deep place.
[00:19:44] And I just want to sing this for anybody who feels like that what you're dealing with is not fair.
[00:19:50] This is how we make it fair.
[00:20:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Alleluia, God!
[00:20:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Why don't we just close our eyes and focus on the Lord this morning, shall we?
[00:20:21] God, I focus on you today.
[00:20:35] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
The world begins with a melody And brings a hallelujah light As heaven comes to mind for me
[00:24:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
The Unbeatable!
[00:25:16] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Thank you, Jesus.
[00:25:21] He is at your testimony today.
[00:25:27] Why don't we just exalt Him a little bit this morning?
[00:25:29] I know that St. Lawrence, Hallelujah, hope is going to rise from my heart today.
[00:26:27] Is He alive to you today?
[00:26:32] Is Jesus alive to you this morning?
[00:26:35] Hallelujah, God!
[00:26:35] Thank you, Jesus!
[00:26:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Thank you, Jesus!
[00:26:38] Amen, amen.
[00:26:39] What a wonderful presence.
[00:26:40] For just about 20 seconds, why don't you just close your eyes and thank the Lord for His presence, His touch upon your life.
[00:26:46] Hey, there's some folks coming out from the ashes.
[00:26:49] There's some folks shacking off the shackles in your life.
[00:26:53] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
There's some folks that are letting the chains fall to the wayside of what's held you down to what's held you back.
[00:27:00] Oh, I thank you, God.
[00:27:03] I thank you, God.
[00:27:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen, amen.
[00:27:07] Thank you for your praise, your worship, your glory to God.
[00:27:11] You're uplifting to the Lord today.
[00:27:13] Just a couple things on the docket today to talk about just as a way of announcements.
[00:27:18] Of course, we're putting out a weekly update as to how our transition stands.
[00:27:25] This was originally going to be the last Sunday here.
[00:27:27] Now it's at least going to be next Sunday we'll be here.
[00:27:31] It could potentially be a little bit longer.
[00:27:34] We're just waiting on one approval from God.
[00:27:39] and once that's approved then we'll be making our way to the Heritage House on Highway 150 and we'll keep you updated on that we'll just kind of keep you updated the original closing was tomorrow but we have pushed that back right now but that being said we're just gonna be here thank you to everybody that helped move stuff yesterday man once we got into it man it just went we were done earlier than I thought we would be we knocked it out in about an hour and a half so thank you to all of those of you who helped out
[00:28:12] Church that helped out as well so to God be the glory for that traditional our traditional lineup of services this coming Wednesday we have a live stream generally at seven o'clock sometimes we have to send it out a little early if there's something jamming up the live stream but nevertheless we put out a message on Wednesday we want you to watch it we'll send it to you we'll put it on Facebook and all that good stuff and we want you to watch it and this particular series is
[00:28:41] Which will line up to today's message as well.
[00:28:44] Saturday morning we have prayer time.
[00:28:46] We come together at 9 o'clock right here on Saturday mornings at 9 a.m. We just pray for about 30 or so minutes, take a prayer request, and then go on about our day.
[00:28:54] But it's a powerful time that we're able to come together in the house of God to pray and to talk to God.
[00:29:02] To God be the glory for that.
[00:29:03] And also, this coming Saturday, we have a men's fellowship at Longhorn Steakhouse.
[00:29:08] Praise God for Brother Merle, who stepped out and chose the location for that.
[00:29:12] I usually, you know, steakhouse is great, but it's what we call a Dutch, I think it's called a Dutch dinner, a Dutch bill or something.
[00:29:20] Anyway, you pay for what you want.
[00:29:22] You're going to buy and eat what you want.
[00:29:25] Eat your, let's see, how does it
[00:29:27] We're going to have a great time this coming Saturday at Longhorn right there on Talbert Boulevard at 6 p.m. Can you say amen?
[00:29:48] Amen, amen.
[00:29:49] Well, it feels good in the house of God today.
[00:29:51] It's awful cold outside.
[00:29:53] I think the temperature just kind of dropped and the winds started blowing and that's
[00:30:02] I'm happy to be able to have gotten into the house of God today.
[00:30:05] It's a lot warmer in here and I can feel the presence of God in between the chairs and in between the individuals this morning as well.
[00:30:15] Thank you for sticking with us.
[00:30:17] Thank you for sticking close to God.
[00:30:19] Thank you for sticking close to God in your prayer life, your consistency.
[00:30:24] It means a lot during this time.
[00:30:26] Praise God.
[00:30:27] This is the giving season and what greater thing can we give to God
[00:30:37] The greatest gift, and that would be ourselves.
[00:30:40] Praise God.
[00:30:41] We're going to worship the Lord in giving here in just a moment.
[00:30:46] And to those of you who give consistently, what we do is we march around.
[00:30:50] If you have something to give now, 60% of the church gives online, so some won't march around, and that's cool.
[00:30:56] But if you have something to give in just a moment, we'll march around and just drop it in the basket here today.
[00:31:02] But we praise God for those of you who have a mindset to give it, to live it, and to love it.
[00:31:09] I honestly believe that a heart that is willing to give, a heart that is willing to share tends to unlock the miraculous in the spiritual realm.
[00:31:22] and we can talk deeper about that but it's much more than just finances it's just a mindset a whole mindset heart set of giving amen let's all stand once again we're going to pray and then we'll march around together
[00:31:41] Pray for the offering today, shall we?
[00:31:43] Gracious King, we love you today.
[00:31:45] We give you praise, we give you honor and glory today to multiply this offering this morning.
[00:31:51] Touch it, if it be your great will, Lord.
[00:31:54] Raise it up and multiply it like you did the fishes and the loaves.
[00:31:58] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:32:00] Amen.
[00:32:00] Let's march around and give today, shall we?
[00:32:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Silent night, Holy night, All is calm, all is bright, Long yon virgin light,
[00:32:56] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy
[00:34:42] Let's do it!
[00:36:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Thank you, God.
[00:37:00] Let's give Him a handclap of praise today, shall we?
[00:37:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Hallelujah, Lord.
[00:37:06] Amen.
[00:37:06] You know, we can't sing Christmas carols the whole year.
[00:37:22] And then we'll have you stand.
[00:37:25] I have more to read in addition to that, but I don't want to make you stand for the whole time.
[00:37:30] That's Matthew chapter 2 and verse number 11.
[00:37:35] We're entering to the thick of the Christmas season.
[00:37:38] And it's the season of giving.
[00:37:40] It's the season of love.
[00:37:42] and I praise God for that Matthew chapter 2 in verse 11 it says and when they were come into the house they saw the young child with Mary his mother and fell down and worshiped him and when they had opened their treasures they presented unto him gold gifts gold and frankincense and myrrh we're going to back up and read verse 7 in just a moment
[00:38:10] Let's just ask the Lord to keep his hand upon this particular message today.
[00:38:15] What do you say?
[00:38:16] Gracious God, we thank you for your truth, your righteousness this morning, God.
[00:38:20] Believe in God, you're trusting in you, Lord.
[00:38:22] Pour out your spirit, pour out your touch today.
[00:38:25] We believe you for that.
[00:38:27] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:38:28] You may be seated today.
[00:38:30] Great to see all of our guests and visitors in the house of the Lord this morning.
[00:38:35] Good to see home folks alike.
[00:38:36] Several people not able to be in the house of God for one reason or another.
[00:38:39] It generally happens around Christmas time when people start getting together.
[00:38:43] People start getting sick too.
[00:38:46] And so they are opting to watch on the live stream.
[00:38:50] And we thank God that we have that opportunity to be able to provide that.
[00:38:55] Amen.
[00:38:55] Verse 7 of the same chapter.
[00:38:57] I'll just back up.
[00:38:57] You can listen if you want to.
[00:39:02] When he had privily called the wise men and inquired them diligently, what time the star appeared.
[00:39:10] And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go search diligently for a young child.
[00:39:14] For when you have found him, bring me word again that I may come and worship him also.
[00:39:21] When he had heard the king, they departed.
[00:39:23] When they heard the king, they departed.
[00:39:24] And lo, the star appeared.
[00:39:31] And stood over the young child where the young child was.
[00:39:35] When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
[00:39:40] And in verse 11, which we've read, And when they came into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him.
[00:39:50] And when they had opened their treasures, they presented to him gifts.
[00:40:03] I want to talk about that today if I can.
[00:40:15] I did a little search this morning because I was just interested on what the top gifts were through the years.
[00:40:24] Most of us don't probably keep up with what the latest and the greatest is because it's hard to keep up with.
[00:40:30] Amen.
[00:40:31] But I looked at some of the latest and greatest through the years.
[00:40:33] Did you realize the Cabbage Patch Kids were a big thing back in the 80s?
[00:40:39] Yeah.
[00:40:39] I don't think I ever got one, but I think my wife did.
[00:40:44] Rubik's Cube was a big one in the late 80s and the 90s.
[00:40:47] Mr.
[00:40:47] Potato Head was a big one.
[00:40:48] One of the biggest sellers.
[00:40:52] Tickle Me Elmo.
[00:40:54] Somebody thought that that was a cool thing.
[00:40:57] Does anybody even have one anymore?
[00:40:59] You probably get one at Goodwill.
[00:41:01] Here's one that I thought was funny because you can get these at Five and Below now for pretty cheap and nobody really cares much about them.
[00:41:07] And that's a Slinky.
[00:41:09] Praise God.
[00:41:10] That was the biggest hit through most of the 40s, the 1940s.
[00:41:17] A slinky.
[00:41:18] So if a kid opened up the package and got a slinky, they would jump in and click in their heels.
[00:41:23] Which, you know, I will say this.
[00:41:25] When my kids were younger, and I hate to use them as examples sometimes, but sometimes they would play with the box longer than they played with the toys.
[00:41:32] And that's just nature of the beast.
[00:41:36] But in the 1940s, the Slinky was a big one.
[00:41:39] The Yo-Yo was a big one.
[00:41:42] And then in the 2010, 2011, and 2013, the iPad, when it first rolled out, was a big hit.
[00:41:50] Now I'll say, I didn't have my first iPad until about two years ago.
[00:41:53] Praise God.
[00:41:53] Actually, I did get one as a gift back in 2012, and I couldn't use it because it just kept turning off on me.
[00:41:59] Some of you would probably wonder why I still preach with paper.
[00:42:03] And that is because I used to preach with an iPad.
[00:42:05] And it kept cutting off on me.
[00:42:07] Sometimes I couldn't find my message on there.
[00:42:09] So I said, I'm not doing this.
[00:42:11] I'm going to cut out one more piece of technical ability and I'm going to go with old school paper.
[00:42:16] Praise God.
[00:42:18] And so those were the biggest hits in 2010, 2011, and 2013.
[00:42:21] And in 1958, the biggest seller was the hula hoop.
[00:42:27] Praise God.
[00:42:29] The hula hoop.
[00:42:30] Don't buy me a hula hoop because you're going to get a show, praise God.
[00:42:36] And my wife said, man, we stopped buying hula hoops when they got expensive.
[00:42:40] And I thought, what's expensive?
[00:42:41] And she said, $10.
[00:42:44] I guess that's kind of cheap for a gift nowadays actually but I know that they put like lights in them and they glow in the dark and all that kind of jazz but the hula hoop maybe it's still fun to somebody amen but have you ever gotten a gift and you didn't know what to do with it well I got a study on that too I was interested and they didn't ask me this so I didn't I didn't participate in the study but when everybody gets a gift and you know sometimes you get that gift you're like
[00:43:10] I'm not really sure what to do with this and maybe you've provided that gift and you could tell that you know just they're just they're trying to be thankful for it and most people are but 31% keep it and use it that's a third but a third keep it and use it about 30% hide it or put it in a closet or put it away somewhere and never touch it again or rarely
[00:43:40] It keeps going here.
[00:43:42] 13%?
[00:43:43] Just throw it away.
[00:43:46] Just throw it away.
[00:43:47] 12%?
[00:43:50] Give it away.
[00:43:51] I would have thought that that percentage was higher.
[00:43:54] 6% take it back so there you go with that only about a third of the people that you give gifts to and I don't I don't this seems skewed to me I don't know but a third keep it and use it praise God but I got a couple gifts I want to talk about today that you can open up today and I promise you
[00:44:13] God bless you all.
[00:44:27] I'm not here to preach just love love love because love says that if you're doing something wrong I'm going to share it with you as well love says I'm going to love you enough to speak truth in your life as well amen if you love your kids you don't just let them do anything that they want to do so love says I'm going to keep you in the right direction and that's the love of God the love of God will see you through when you're making good decisions and when you're making
[00:44:54] Bad decisions.
[00:44:55] The love of God is there.
[00:44:58] I know it's not shiny.
[00:44:59] I know it's not the flashiest tool in the toolbox.
[00:45:04] And maybe you didn't even know you needed it today.
[00:45:06] But this is one of them, that 30% that you're going to take it and you're going to use it.
[00:45:11] Praise God.
[00:45:12] It's one of the greatest gifts we can get.
[00:45:14] Ask me if love doesn't matter when somebody's left you.
[00:45:19] Ask me if love doesn't matter when your bills are greater than your income.
[00:45:24] Ask me if the love of God doesn't matter when you're at the end of your personal rope.
[00:45:29] Tell me the love of God doesn't matter then, because it does.
[00:45:33] And I know we throw out expressions, the love of God, the love of God, but when we think about just how good it really is, and how deep it really is, I don't want to just scratch the surface on this.
[00:45:44] I want to dig a little bit deeper and know the true love of God.
[00:45:48] It'll love you deeper than any person will.
[00:45:51] It'll love you greater than any individual will, praise God.
[00:45:54] So my love for God reflects His love for me as well.
[00:46:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
That I might go to Him.
[00:46:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
While you were yet sinners, Christ died for you.
[00:46:10] It's a big deal.
[00:46:10] That's a lot of love.
[00:46:12] It's a lot of love.
[00:46:14] Amen.
[00:46:15] I have an electric screwdriver that I don't use all the time because I'm not that handy.
[00:46:23] But when I use it, man.
[00:46:25] Thank God I've got it.
[00:46:27] Amen.
[00:46:28] There are times that the love of God shows up in your life and you didn't even realize just how much you needed it until it shows up in a big way in your life.
[00:46:39] When things fall apart, when situations and circumstances ain't how they're supposed to be, the love of God shines true and thank God for it today.
[00:46:48] Hey, can we just close our eyes for just a second today?
[00:46:51] Maybe just whisper and say, God, thank you for your love.
[00:46:55] Thank you for your love in my life.
[00:46:56] Thank you for your love upon my soul today.
[00:47:00] Thank you for the love that you provide to me today.
[00:47:04] In Jesus' name.
[00:47:06] That's why John 3.16 says, God so loved the world that He gave.
[00:47:13] We're talking about gifts.
[00:47:15] It's one of the biggest gifts we can have.
[00:47:17] That He gave His only begotten Son.
[00:47:21] 1 John 3.16, Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us.
[00:47:31] We lay down our lives for the brethren.
[00:47:35] Amen.
[00:47:36] There's a lot of giving.
[00:47:37] You know why there's a lot of giving?
[00:47:39] Because there's a lot of loving.
[00:47:41] You don't give to anything necessarily unless you love it.
[00:47:45] Now I know we can argue, well I pay the power bill, and I pay the internet bill, and I pay the gas bill.
[00:47:50] I understand all that because you're doing those things because you love those that you're benefiting from it.
[00:47:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Right?
[00:47:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
I pay the power bill because the folks that benefit from it I love.
[00:48:01] And that's why we do those things.
[00:48:03] And so we give to things generally.
[00:48:08] And I give to God my life, my soul.
[00:48:11] We boil it down like this.
[00:48:13] Your time, your treasure, and your talent because the Lord loves me and I love the Lord today.
[00:48:22] Amen.
[00:48:22] The second gift that you get to open up today that you don't even have to wait to Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.
[00:48:27] Some of you cheat.
[00:48:29] Some of you cheat.
[00:48:29] I know you open things up on Christmas Eve.
[00:48:33] And some of you open it up on Christmas Eve morning.
[00:48:36] It's all right.
[00:48:37] If it's your family, you get to write the rules on this.
[00:48:43] Sometimes we have gifts that we think are so great, we just want you to go ahead and open it.
[00:48:48] Just go ahead and open it.
[00:48:50] Just go ahead and enjoy it.
[00:48:51] Why wait?
[00:48:53] I know some of you, you know, we got to be a purist.
[00:48:56] We got to be a Christmas purist here.
[00:48:58] We're waiting till Christmas morning.
[00:49:00] We're going to do the tradition.
[00:49:02] You know, this is the way it's going to be.
[00:49:04] But some of you just like to
[00:49:06] Amen.
[00:49:08] The second one is healing.
[00:49:10] Oh, my goodness.
[00:49:12] Once again, you didn't know you needed it until you got it.
[00:49:15] You didn't know how good it was until you got it.
[00:49:19] You didn't know how powerful it was in your life until it affected you.
[00:49:24] Amen.
[00:49:25] The Bible says in Isaiah 53, it says,
[00:49:36] and by His stripes we are healed.
[00:49:42] Somebody say Amen to that.
[00:49:43] The price He paid not only for salvation, but He paid it for healing as well.
[00:49:50] Amen.
[00:49:51] I fully understand that healing deals with primarily our physical health, but I always like to talk about that it talks about our entire person, our mental health as well.
[00:50:02] That's why the book of Timothy talks about that He has not given us the spirit of fear, but He has given us the spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind.
[00:50:15] So not only does the Lord heal you physically, but He wants to touch somebody in their mind today.
[00:50:19] Man, I know you've been feeling a little scattered.
[00:50:21] I know you've been feeling a little out of sorts recently.
[00:50:24] But man, God is willing to come down and heal you in regards to that.
[00:50:28] Sometimes healing is instantaneous.
[00:50:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Sometimes it takes a process.
[00:50:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
We pray for people with oil because the book of James says let the elders among them pray and anoint them with oil so we pray for people who have deeper needs we anoint them
[00:51:01] we pray a deeper prayer with oil that's why we do that the oil signifies the presence and the anointing of God passed from one individual to another that's why we do that some don't some churches don't we do because we see the value in it and we see the value of healing flowing to somebody look I want the best
[00:51:28] He wants to heal.
[00:51:30] He wants to lift that depression up off of you.
[00:51:33] He wants to lift that double-mindedness off of you.
[00:51:37] When you're here one day and then you're over here the next, the double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.
[00:51:45] He wants to heal you from that.
[00:51:47] Amen.
[00:51:49] He's not paid the price for salvation but also for healing.
[00:51:53] Has He healed anybody in your body before?
[00:51:56] Has He ever touched anybody in your body?
[00:51:58] We can testify all day long.
[00:52:00] We can pass the microphone around and say how God has blessed and how God has touched.
[00:52:05] But I like to focus on the fact that how many times has He healed you and you didn't realize how big it was?
[00:52:12] How much He touched you and you didn't even realize how significant the healing really was.
[00:52:20] Amen.
[00:52:21] The next thing that you get to open up before Christmas even gets here is forgiveness.
[00:52:28] That's one of the greatest gifts you get to enjoy immediately is forgiveness.
[00:52:34] Colossians 1 and 14 says, "...in whom we have redemption through His blood, even through the forgiveness of sins."
[00:52:41] Psalms 130 and 4 it says but there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared amen Matthew 1 and 21 it says and she shall bring forth the son and shall call his name Jesus and they he shall save his people from their
[00:53:03] Man, there's forgiveness in the house of God today.
[00:53:06] Does that mean that you get permission to do what you want to do?
[00:53:09] No.
[00:53:09] It just says when I've made a decision that's against God, there's forgiveness that gets to come down.
[00:53:14] When I come to God in repentance and say, God, I am sorry for this.
[00:53:19] I messed this up.
[00:53:20] I did wrong with this.
[00:53:22] There's forgiveness at His hands.
[00:53:25] There's forgiveness in His wings today.
[00:53:28] Amen.
[00:53:30] Forgiveness is a very freeing act.
[00:53:35] You know that you've been forgiven and you have given that over to God.
[00:53:40] It is literally a weight that has been lifted off of you.
[00:53:45] I visualize it today like it's jumping on a trampoline.
[00:53:53] I don't jump on a trampoline anymore, obviously.
[00:53:56] But when I did, man, you got up there and you just... And you hit again and...
[00:54:03] And some would do flips.
[00:54:06] Some would do little twirls.
[00:54:08] In fact, I will share this.
[00:54:11] That one of the times I was jumping on a trampoline, we were rolling a guy's yard.
[00:54:15] You remember this?
[00:54:18] And some of you don't even know what rolling a yard is.
[00:54:20] You take toilet paper and you throw it.
[00:54:21] Does anybody know what this is?
[00:54:24] And you throw toilet paper all over their yard?
[00:54:26] Anybody know what this is?
[00:54:27] Like two people?
[00:54:28] Thank you.
[00:54:28] Okay, great.
[00:54:30] Well, we used to do that a lot in the 90s.
[00:54:32] I guess people started getting shocked doing that.
[00:54:35] Anyway, so I had the grand idea, the guy who were rolling his yard, I'm going to jump on his trampoline while we're rolling the yard.
[00:54:47] We knew the family.
[00:54:48] We knew the family.
[00:54:50] We know them really well.
[00:54:51] So it's kind of a funny thing.
[00:54:53] And I was jumping on the trampoline and I don't know what happened, but it was like, Hey, somebody's coming.
[00:54:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
You got to get down, get down, get down.
[00:55:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
and so I jumped off the trampoline my foot got caught or it's just my clumsy self and I landed square on my head on the ground you really had to be there to see it it was pretty funny and I walked away a better man praise God I walked away feeling pretty free that I didn't die that day
[00:55:25] Praise God.
[00:55:26] Forgiveness as much as the same way.
[00:55:28] Man, I walk away knowing that that stuff has fallen to the wayside.
[00:55:32] I walk away knowing that literally chains have fallen to the side.
[00:55:37] When forgiveness comes into your life you realize just how good it really is.
[00:55:40] It's a gift that's being given out today.
[00:55:43] Praise God.
[00:55:43] Somebody let the chains fall.
[00:55:45] I hear something.
[00:55:46] I hear sounds of chains falling to the ground.
[00:55:49] I hear sounds of chains and shackles.
[00:55:52] All into the ground today.
[00:55:54] Praise God.
[00:55:55] And somebody's feeling freer because of it.
[00:55:59] There's freedom and forgiveness.
[00:56:01] He who the Son of Man has set free.
[00:56:03] How did He set them free?
[00:56:04] By forgiveness.
[00:56:06] He who the Son of Man has set free is free indeed.
[00:56:10] Amen.
[00:56:12] He removes the chains.
[00:56:14] He removes the shackles from you.
[00:56:15] And we're better able to move forward with the glory of God.
[00:56:19] The fourth gift that you get to enjoy today is joy.
[00:56:22] Somebody say joy.
[00:56:24] Joy.
[00:56:25] Matthew 2 and 10, and when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
[00:56:30] 1 Peter 1 and 8, we have not seen, you have not seen in whom you love, and you have not seen in not yet believing, we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.
[00:56:46] Nehemiah 8 and 10 says this the joy of the Lord y'all know this one the joy of the Lord is my strength when I bring the Lord joy he brings me strength who knew that there was a strengthening in this joy
[00:57:07] that we're able to enjoy with God.
[00:57:10] Amen?
[00:57:11] I get to be strengthened.
[00:57:12] God puts strength.
[00:57:14] He puts something within me that I didn't have before.
[00:57:17] When I bring joy to the Lord, praise Him.
[00:57:19] When I begin to praise Him and I begin to worship Him, joy is passed and I get strength as a result of that.
[00:57:28] Amen.
[00:57:30] People knew back then just how powerful praising God was and people nowadays
[00:57:38] When you worship God.
[00:57:40] Psalms proclaims it like this, the presence, in His presence there is fullness of joy.
[00:57:47] Not just a little bit, not just the leftovers, but there is fullness of joy in His presence.
[00:57:55] My God, that's why we preach about His presence so much.
[00:57:58] That's why we talk about being in His presence so much because if you want joy, I'm going to step inside the presence of God.
[00:58:06] If I need that strengthening hand, I'm going to step
[00:58:10] Let me be where He is and I can receive the joy that He provides to me.
[00:58:16] The world's not going to give you joy because the world is not the joy giver.
[00:58:23] The world didn't give it and so the world can't take it away.
[00:58:26] So I'm not going to go to the world as the source of my joy.
[00:58:38] There was a gentleman that asked the question, why would an all-powerful God become a man?
[00:58:43] Even if He did, why would He choose to be born in a horse trough, an animal stall, a barn, if you will?
[00:58:52] Why would the Lord choose to do that?
[00:58:55] It seems almost ridiculous to us.
[00:58:58] It just seems almost crazy.
[00:59:00] Nobody here has had any children in a barn.
[00:59:03] Not one of you.
[00:59:04] I don't think.
[00:59:05] I don't think.
[00:59:06] I could be wrong.
[00:59:08] But for the King of kings and the Lord of lords to come down and be born in a stable.
[00:59:17] The Bible over this particular story goes on to say that as he was asking himself this question there were some birds that were flying to get close to the heat of the house and as they got a little bit close to the house they would bounce off of the
[00:59:35] And then he tried to set a trail of food for them and they still didn't find the trail.
[00:59:52] And he said to himself, if I could just speak their language, I would tell them how to get to the warmth.
[01:00:00] and then it dawned on him why the Lord came down in the way that he did wrapping himself in flesh so that he could walk among us so that he could talk among us so that he could teach among us and speak as we speak that's why the Lord saw fit to come down yeah even in the barn he could have been born in a in the king's palace he could have been born of all those things but he wanted to be down
[01:00:30] among the people to speak how we speak and to see things how we see things folks that's love and that is love that is beyond any other love today so he's here amongst us not just then but he's here amongst us now as well he's here amongst us in our lives and our hearts
[01:01:01] Let's all stand.
[01:01:11] I thank God for His gifts.
[01:01:13] And in this series that we've been doing on Wednesday, there are many gifts.
[01:01:17] The gifts of the Spirit.
[01:01:19] Prophecy.
[01:01:20] Tongues.
[01:01:21] Interpretation of tongues.
[01:01:23] Faith.
[01:01:24] Healing.
[01:01:26] All of those wonderful things are gifts of the Spirit.
[01:01:30] But there's some gifts that we get to enjoy today.
[01:01:33] I get to enjoy the love of God.
[01:01:35] I get to enjoy forgiveness.
[01:01:38] I get to enjoy His presence.
[01:01:41] I get to enjoy His healing.
[01:01:43] And I get to get joy inside of my life.
[01:01:48] Amen.
[01:01:49] Here's what we like to do at the end.
[01:01:50] We like to
[01:01:52] For anybody that's comfortable, we'd like to join around the front and just have a time of prayer for just a few minutes today.
[01:02:00] Amen.
[01:02:00] So let's just begin to come to the front today.
[01:02:03] And let's just begin to talk to God.
[01:02:05] Let's just begin to say, God, thank you for your unspeakable gifts.
[01:02:09] Thank you for your powerful gifts.
[01:02:12] Hallelujah, God.
[01:02:13] And wherever you are, just begin to talk to God.
[01:02:15] Just begin to say, God, we thank you this morning.
[01:02:19] We believe in your power, your healing, your touch.
[01:02:22] Thank you, gracious King.
[01:02:24] Thank you, Jesus.
[01:02:26] Hallelujah, God.
[01:02:27] Thank you, Lord.
[01:02:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
He knows and abandoned them
Hey Alyssa.
[00:00:37] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Hi guys.
[00:01:14] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Jesus, holy name of Jesus, there's no higher name, there's no fainter name, it holds all authority, all power, it's in his name, all we should be, I'm talking to you, Jesus, we care, you're our power, you're our power,
[00:01:52] In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
[00:02:21] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Amen.
[00:02:25] Let's pray.
[00:02:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
All the things we want, everything we want, we have, we can't see, and I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying, I want to keep on trying,
[00:03:17] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Let us pray.
[00:03:39] ... ... ... ... ...
[00:04:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Praise the Lord Church.
[00:04:34] Let's all stand today.
[00:04:35] We're getting ready to worship the Lord today.
[00:04:37] So glad to be with you today.
[00:04:39] Sister Jessica is going
[00:04:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
Amen.
[00:04:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Praise the Lord.
[00:04:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
Praise the Lord.
[00:04:57] Our scripture this morning is coming from Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6.
[00:05:02] It says, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful.
[00:05:13] Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
[00:05:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:05:19] Amen.
[00:05:20] Wonderful scripture to open up with today.
[00:05:22] Why don't we just close our eyes and welcome the presence of God into the house of God today, shall we?
[00:05:28] Gracious King, we thank you right now.
[00:05:30] We give you glory, we give you praise, we give you thanks today.
[00:05:34] Loving you, our God, we welcome you into this house today to give you praise, to give you honor, to give you thanks this morning, God.
[00:05:42] We magnify that wonderful name today.
[00:05:44] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:05:46] Let's lift him up today, shall we?
[00:05:48] Let's give him praise.
[00:05:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Hallelujah, God.
[00:05:52] Thank you, Jesus.
[00:07:30] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
No weapons fall against us
[00:10:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
God, you are great.
[00:10:32] God, you are wonderful, Lord.
[00:10:36] Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:10:40] Let's just give Him a little grace and a little thanks this morning.
[00:10:43] I magnify that holy name, that righteous name, that powerful name today.
[00:10:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Hallelujah, Holy King Jesus.
[00:10:50] Amen, Amen.
[00:10:51] So good to worship with you today.
[00:10:53] Praise God.
[00:10:54] In just a second, we're going to step out and shake folks' hands.
[00:10:57] If you're a guest or visitor here today, we'll come to you, whatever's most comfortable.
[00:11:01] If you feel like you should walk around, that's cool too.
[00:11:03] But either way, why don't we step out and greet somebody.
[00:11:05] Tell somebody it's great to see them in the house of the Lord today.
[00:11:09] Greet somebody, Jesus, wonderful.
[00:11:21] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
I like that jacket.
[00:11:34] Bless you, bless you.
[00:12:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Let's lift him up and give him praise, shall we?
[00:15:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Let us sing together.
[00:16:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:16:52] I believe that today.
[00:16:57] I trust God for that today.
[00:16:58] Holy Ghost, I thank you, Lord.
[00:16:58] Thank you, Lord Jesus.
[00:16:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:16:59] Amen.
[00:16:59] What a wonderful presence.
[00:17:01] What a wonderful feeling in the house of God today.
[00:17:03] So it's always great to feel the presence of God in the house of God.
[00:17:06] We're going to pray.
[00:17:08] We're going to pray just on our knees.
[00:17:10] And we're going to pray for those that need healing.
[00:17:14] I want to continue to lift up Sister Diana today.
[00:17:19] I pray for her to have continual and speedy recovery and healing.
[00:17:24] I want to proclaim also the fact that the latest report is that there's no more cancer found.
[00:17:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
And so today we say to God in the glory of the Lord.
[00:17:35] Hallelujah, Jesus.
[00:17:38] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.
[00:17:40] Not to go into too many details, but we've been worried about more chemo, radiation, all that kind of stuff, but that's not going to have to happen.
[00:17:46] So to God be the glory for that.
[00:17:48] I want to lift up Sister Gisella Cruz today.
[00:17:51] I want to pray for her.
[00:17:52] She's sick this morning.
[00:17:53] I want to continue to magnify the Lord in touching her body today.
[00:17:56] Her little girl has a few family members and some friends that he knows from his time in California and such that...
[00:18:07] and some major sickness in their families.
[00:18:09] I want to pray for them today as well.
[00:18:11] I want to lift them up in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:18:14] Any other prayer requests that you'd like to lift up before the Lord today, unspoken requests?
[00:18:19] Mighty God, Amen.
[00:18:20] Let's just take these things and let's go to the Lord with faith today.
[00:18:25] Believe in God.
[00:18:27] Trust in God, for He alone is able to heal, to touch, and to set free.
[00:18:33] Let's take Him before His throne, Grace.
[00:18:35] Gracious God, we love You today.
[00:18:39] We praise You today.
[00:18:40] We exalt You today, God.
[00:18:42] Thanking you, loving you, believing on you, God, trusting in your will, your way, your goodness, Lord.
[00:18:49] My God, you are holy, you are righteous, you are powerful, God.
[00:18:53] Touch Diana today.
[00:18:55] Touch Gisella today.
[00:18:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Mighty God, touch family members that have been negatively impacted recently by sickness and by death.
[00:19:03] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Lord, I praise you in advance for your touch.
[00:19:07] I exalt you in advance for your healing, God.
[00:19:11] We proclaim these things in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:19:15] In Jesus' name.
[00:19:16] Amen.
[00:19:17] Let's praise and prayer answering God today.
[00:19:20] Let's worship and prayer answering God this morning.
[00:19:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
Let us go through things in our lives that's not fair.
[00:19:28] It's not fair that we have to deal with cancer and we have to deal with loss and we have to deal with all the things that we deal with.
[00:19:35] Especially around the holidays when things are hard, our family's not living for God like they should.
[00:19:40] And when I saw this song this morning, it touched me in a deep place.
[00:19:44] And I just want to sing this for anybody who feels like that what you're dealing with is not fair.
[00:19:50] This is how we make it fair.
[00:20:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Alleluia, God!
[00:20:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Why don't we just close our eyes and focus on the Lord this morning, shall we?
[00:20:21] God, I focus on you today.
[00:20:35] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
The world begins with a melody And brings a hallelujah light As heaven comes to mind for me
[00:24:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
The Unbeatable!
[00:25:16] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Thank you, Jesus.
[00:25:21] He is at your testimony today.
[00:25:27] Why don't we just exalt Him a little bit this morning?
[00:25:29] I know that St. Lawrence, Hallelujah, hope is going to rise from my heart today.
[00:26:27] Is He alive to you today?
[00:26:32] Is Jesus alive to you this morning?
[00:26:35] Hallelujah, God!
[00:26:35] Thank you, Jesus!
[00:26:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Thank you, Jesus!
[00:26:38] Amen, amen.
[00:26:39] What a wonderful presence.
[00:26:40] For just about 20 seconds, why don't you just close your eyes and thank the Lord for His presence, His touch upon your life.
[00:26:46] Hey, there's some folks coming out from the ashes.
[00:26:49] There's some folks shacking off the shackles in your life.
[00:26:53] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
There's some folks that are letting the chains fall to the wayside of what's held you down to what's held you back.
[00:27:00] Oh, I thank you, God.
[00:27:03] I thank you, God.
[00:27:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen, amen.
[00:27:07] Thank you for your praise, your worship, your glory to God.
[00:27:11] You're uplifting to the Lord today.
[00:27:13] Just a couple things on the docket today to talk about just as a way of announcements.
[00:27:18] Of course, we're putting out a weekly update as to how our transition stands.
[00:27:25] This was originally going to be the last Sunday here.
[00:27:27] Now it's at least going to be next Sunday we'll be here.
[00:27:31] It could potentially be a little bit longer.
[00:27:34] We're just waiting on one approval from God.
[00:27:39] and once that's approved then we'll be making our way to the Heritage House on Highway 150 and we'll keep you updated on that we'll just kind of keep you updated the original closing was tomorrow but we have pushed that back right now but that being said we're just gonna be here thank you to everybody that helped move stuff yesterday man once we got into it man it just went we were done earlier than I thought we would be we knocked it out in about an hour and a half so thank you to all of those of you who helped out
[00:28:12] Church that helped out as well so to God be the glory for that traditional our traditional lineup of services this coming Wednesday we have a live stream generally at seven o'clock sometimes we have to send it out a little early if there's something jamming up the live stream but nevertheless we put out a message on Wednesday we want you to watch it we'll send it to you we'll put it on Facebook and all that good stuff and we want you to watch it and this particular series is
[00:28:41] Which will line up to today's message as well.
[00:28:44] Saturday morning we have prayer time.
[00:28:46] We come together at 9 o'clock right here on Saturday mornings at 9 a.m. We just pray for about 30 or so minutes, take a prayer request, and then go on about our day.
[00:28:54] But it's a powerful time that we're able to come together in the house of God to pray and to talk to God.
[00:29:02] To God be the glory for that.
[00:29:03] And also, this coming Saturday, we have a men's fellowship at Longhorn Steakhouse.
[00:29:08] Praise God for Brother Merle, who stepped out and chose the location for that.
[00:29:12] I usually, you know, steakhouse is great, but it's what we call a Dutch, I think it's called a Dutch dinner, a Dutch bill or something.
[00:29:20] Anyway, you pay for what you want.
[00:29:22] You're going to buy and eat what you want.
[00:29:25] Eat your, let's see, how does it
[00:29:27] We're going to have a great time this coming Saturday at Longhorn right there on Talbert Boulevard at 6 p.m. Can you say amen?
[00:29:48] Amen, amen.
[00:29:49] Well, it feels good in the house of God today.
[00:29:51] It's awful cold outside.
[00:29:53] I think the temperature just kind of dropped and the winds started blowing and that's
[00:30:02] I'm happy to be able to have gotten into the house of God today.
[00:30:05] It's a lot warmer in here and I can feel the presence of God in between the chairs and in between the individuals this morning as well.
[00:30:15] Thank you for sticking with us.
[00:30:17] Thank you for sticking close to God.
[00:30:19] Thank you for sticking close to God in your prayer life, your consistency.
[00:30:24] It means a lot during this time.
[00:30:26] Praise God.
[00:30:27] This is the giving season and what greater thing can we give to God
[00:30:37] The greatest gift, and that would be ourselves.
[00:30:40] Praise God.
[00:30:41] We're going to worship the Lord in giving here in just a moment.
[00:30:46] And to those of you who give consistently, what we do is we march around.
[00:30:50] If you have something to give now, 60% of the church gives online, so some won't march around, and that's cool.
[00:30:56] But if you have something to give in just a moment, we'll march around and just drop it in the basket here today.
[00:31:02] But we praise God for those of you who have a mindset to give it, to live it, and to love it.
[00:31:09] I honestly believe that a heart that is willing to give, a heart that is willing to share tends to unlock the miraculous in the spiritual realm.
[00:31:22] and we can talk deeper about that but it's much more than just finances it's just a mindset a whole mindset heart set of giving amen let's all stand once again we're going to pray and then we'll march around together
[00:31:41] Pray for the offering today, shall we?
[00:31:43] Gracious King, we love you today.
[00:31:45] We give you praise, we give you honor and glory today to multiply this offering this morning.
[00:31:51] Touch it, if it be your great will, Lord.
[00:31:54] Raise it up and multiply it like you did the fishes and the loaves.
[00:31:58] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:32:00] Amen.
[00:32:00] Let's march around and give today, shall we?
[00:32:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Silent night, Holy night, All is calm, all is bright, Long yon virgin light,
[00:32:56] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy
[00:34:42] Let's do it!
[00:36:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Thank you, God.
[00:37:00] Let's give Him a handclap of praise today, shall we?
[00:37:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Hallelujah, Lord.
[00:37:06] Amen.
[00:37:06] You know, we can't sing Christmas carols the whole year.
[00:37:22] And then we'll have you stand.
[00:37:25] I have more to read in addition to that, but I don't want to make you stand for the whole time.
[00:37:30] That's Matthew chapter 2 and verse number 11.
[00:37:35] We're entering to the thick of the Christmas season.
[00:37:38] And it's the season of giving.
[00:37:40] It's the season of love.
[00:37:42] and I praise God for that Matthew chapter 2 in verse 11 it says and when they were come into the house they saw the young child with Mary his mother and fell down and worshiped him and when they had opened their treasures they presented unto him gold gifts gold and frankincense and myrrh we're going to back up and read verse 7 in just a moment
[00:38:10] Let's just ask the Lord to keep his hand upon this particular message today.
[00:38:15] What do you say?
[00:38:16] Gracious God, we thank you for your truth, your righteousness this morning, God.
[00:38:20] Believe in God, you're trusting in you, Lord.
[00:38:22] Pour out your spirit, pour out your touch today.
[00:38:25] We believe you for that.
[00:38:27] It's in Jesus' righteous name.
[00:38:28] You may be seated today.
[00:38:30] Great to see all of our guests and visitors in the house of the Lord this morning.
[00:38:35] Good to see home folks alike.
[00:38:36] Several people not able to be in the house of God for one reason or another.
[00:38:39] It generally happens around Christmas time when people start getting together.
[00:38:43] People start getting sick too.
[00:38:46] And so they are opting to watch on the live stream.
[00:38:50] And we thank God that we have that opportunity to be able to provide that.
[00:38:55] Amen.
[00:38:55] Verse 7 of the same chapter.
[00:38:57] I'll just back up.
[00:38:57] You can listen if you want to.
[00:39:02] When he had privily called the wise men and inquired them diligently, what time the star appeared.
[00:39:10] And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go search diligently for a young child.
[00:39:14] For when you have found him, bring me word again that I may come and worship him also.
[00:39:21] When he had heard the king, they departed.
[00:39:23] When they heard the king, they departed.
[00:39:24] And lo, the star appeared.
[00:39:31] And stood over the young child where the young child was.
[00:39:35] When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
[00:39:40] And in verse 11, which we've read, And when they came into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him.
[00:39:50] And when they had opened their treasures, they presented to him gifts.
[00:40:03] I want to talk about that today if I can.
[00:40:15] I did a little search this morning because I was just interested on what the top gifts were through the years.
[00:40:24] Most of us don't probably keep up with what the latest and the greatest is because it's hard to keep up with.
[00:40:30] Amen.
[00:40:31] But I looked at some of the latest and greatest through the years.
[00:40:33] Did you realize the Cabbage Patch Kids were a big thing back in the 80s?
[00:40:39] Yeah.
[00:40:39] I don't think I ever got one, but I think my wife did.
[00:40:44] Rubik's Cube was a big one in the late 80s and the 90s.
[00:40:47] Mr.
[00:40:47] Potato Head was a big one.
[00:40:48] One of the biggest sellers.
[00:40:52] Tickle Me Elmo.
[00:40:54] Somebody thought that that was a cool thing.
[00:40:57] Does anybody even have one anymore?
[00:40:59] You probably get one at Goodwill.
[00:41:01] Here's one that I thought was funny because you can get these at Five and Below now for pretty cheap and nobody really cares much about them.
[00:41:07] And that's a Slinky.
[00:41:09] Praise God.
[00:41:10] That was the biggest hit through most of the 40s, the 1940s.
[00:41:17] A slinky.
[00:41:18] So if a kid opened up the package and got a slinky, they would jump in and click in their heels.
[00:41:23] Which, you know, I will say this.
[00:41:25] When my kids were younger, and I hate to use them as examples sometimes, but sometimes they would play with the box longer than they played with the toys.
[00:41:32] And that's just nature of the beast.
[00:41:36] But in the 1940s, the Slinky was a big one.
[00:41:39] The Yo-Yo was a big one.
[00:41:42] And then in the 2010, 2011, and 2013, the iPad, when it first rolled out, was a big hit.
[00:41:50] Now I'll say, I didn't have my first iPad until about two years ago.
[00:41:53] Praise God.
[00:41:53] Actually, I did get one as a gift back in 2012, and I couldn't use it because it just kept turning off on me.
[00:41:59] Some of you would probably wonder why I still preach with paper.
[00:42:03] And that is because I used to preach with an iPad.
[00:42:05] And it kept cutting off on me.
[00:42:07] Sometimes I couldn't find my message on there.
[00:42:09] So I said, I'm not doing this.
[00:42:11] I'm going to cut out one more piece of technical ability and I'm going to go with old school paper.
[00:42:16] Praise God.
[00:42:18] And so those were the biggest hits in 2010, 2011, and 2013.
[00:42:21] And in 1958, the biggest seller was the hula hoop.
[00:42:27] Praise God.
[00:42:29] The hula hoop.
[00:42:30] Don't buy me a hula hoop because you're going to get a show, praise God.
[00:42:36] And my wife said, man, we stopped buying hula hoops when they got expensive.
[00:42:40] And I thought, what's expensive?
[00:42:41] And she said, $10.
[00:42:44] I guess that's kind of cheap for a gift nowadays actually but I know that they put like lights in them and they glow in the dark and all that kind of jazz but the hula hoop maybe it's still fun to somebody amen but have you ever gotten a gift and you didn't know what to do with it well I got a study on that too I was interested and they didn't ask me this so I didn't I didn't participate in the study but when everybody gets a gift and you know sometimes you get that gift you're like
[00:43:10] I'm not really sure what to do with this and maybe you've provided that gift and you could tell that you know just they're just they're trying to be thankful for it and most people are but 31% keep it and use it that's a third but a third keep it and use it about 30% hide it or put it in a closet or put it away somewhere and never touch it again or rarely
[00:43:40] It keeps going here.
[00:43:42] 13%?
[00:43:43] Just throw it away.
[00:43:46] Just throw it away.
[00:43:47] 12%?
[00:43:50] Give it away.
[00:43:51] I would have thought that that percentage was higher.
[00:43:54] 6% take it back so there you go with that only about a third of the people that you give gifts to and I don't I don't this seems skewed to me I don't know but a third keep it and use it praise God but I got a couple gifts I want to talk about today that you can open up today and I promise you
[00:44:13] God bless you all.
[00:44:27] I'm not here to preach just love love love because love says that if you're doing something wrong I'm going to share it with you as well love says I'm going to love you enough to speak truth in your life as well amen if you love your kids you don't just let them do anything that they want to do so love says I'm going to keep you in the right direction and that's the love of God the love of God will see you through when you're making good decisions and when you're making
[00:44:54] Bad decisions.
[00:44:55] The love of God is there.
[00:44:58] I know it's not shiny.
[00:44:59] I know it's not the flashiest tool in the toolbox.
[00:45:04] And maybe you didn't even know you needed it today.
[00:45:06] But this is one of them, that 30% that you're going to take it and you're going to use it.
[00:45:11] Praise God.
[00:45:12] It's one of the greatest gifts we can get.
[00:45:14] Ask me if love doesn't matter when somebody's left you.
[00:45:19] Ask me if love doesn't matter when your bills are greater than your income.
[00:45:24] Ask me if the love of God doesn't matter when you're at the end of your personal rope.
[00:45:29] Tell me the love of God doesn't matter then, because it does.
[00:45:33] And I know we throw out expressions, the love of God, the love of God, but when we think about just how good it really is, and how deep it really is, I don't want to just scratch the surface on this.
[00:45:44] I want to dig a little bit deeper and know the true love of God.
[00:45:48] It'll love you deeper than any person will.
[00:45:51] It'll love you greater than any individual will, praise God.
[00:45:54] So my love for God reflects His love for me as well.
[00:46:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
That I might go to Him.
[00:46:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
While you were yet sinners, Christ died for you.
[00:46:10] It's a big deal.
[00:46:10] That's a lot of love.
[00:46:12] It's a lot of love.
[00:46:14] Amen.
[00:46:15] I have an electric screwdriver that I don't use all the time because I'm not that handy.
[00:46:23] But when I use it, man.
[00:46:25] Thank God I've got it.
[00:46:27] Amen.
[00:46:28] There are times that the love of God shows up in your life and you didn't even realize just how much you needed it until it shows up in a big way in your life.
[00:46:39] When things fall apart, when situations and circumstances ain't how they're supposed to be, the love of God shines true and thank God for it today.
[00:46:48] Hey, can we just close our eyes for just a second today?
[00:46:51] Maybe just whisper and say, God, thank you for your love.
[00:46:55] Thank you for your love in my life.
[00:46:56] Thank you for your love upon my soul today.
[00:47:00] Thank you for the love that you provide to me today.
[00:47:04] In Jesus' name.
[00:47:06] That's why John 3.16 says, God so loved the world that He gave.
[00:47:13] We're talking about gifts.
[00:47:15] It's one of the biggest gifts we can have.
[00:47:17] That He gave His only begotten Son.
[00:47:21] 1 John 3.16, Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us.
[00:47:31] We lay down our lives for the brethren.
[00:47:35] Amen.
[00:47:36] There's a lot of giving.
[00:47:37] You know why there's a lot of giving?
[00:47:39] Because there's a lot of loving.
[00:47:41] You don't give to anything necessarily unless you love it.
[00:47:45] Now I know we can argue, well I pay the power bill, and I pay the internet bill, and I pay the gas bill.
[00:47:50] I understand all that because you're doing those things because you love those that you're benefiting from it.
[00:47:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Right?
[00:47:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
I pay the power bill because the folks that benefit from it I love.
[00:48:01] And that's why we do those things.
[00:48:03] And so we give to things generally.
[00:48:08] And I give to God my life, my soul.
[00:48:11] We boil it down like this.
[00:48:13] Your time, your treasure, and your talent because the Lord loves me and I love the Lord today.
[00:48:22] Amen.
[00:48:22] The second gift that you get to open up today that you don't even have to wait to Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.
[00:48:27] Some of you cheat.
[00:48:29] Some of you cheat.
[00:48:29] I know you open things up on Christmas Eve.
[00:48:33] And some of you open it up on Christmas Eve morning.
[00:48:36] It's all right.
[00:48:37] If it's your family, you get to write the rules on this.
[00:48:43] Sometimes we have gifts that we think are so great, we just want you to go ahead and open it.
[00:48:48] Just go ahead and open it.
[00:48:50] Just go ahead and enjoy it.
[00:48:51] Why wait?
[00:48:53] I know some of you, you know, we got to be a purist.
[00:48:56] We got to be a Christmas purist here.
[00:48:58] We're waiting till Christmas morning.
[00:49:00] We're going to do the tradition.
[00:49:02] You know, this is the way it's going to be.
[00:49:04] But some of you just like to
[00:49:06] Amen.
[00:49:08] The second one is healing.
[00:49:10] Oh, my goodness.
[00:49:12] Once again, you didn't know you needed it until you got it.
[00:49:15] You didn't know how good it was until you got it.
[00:49:19] You didn't know how powerful it was in your life until it affected you.
[00:49:24] Amen.
[00:49:25] The Bible says in Isaiah 53, it says,
[00:49:36] and by His stripes we are healed.
[00:49:42] Somebody say Amen to that.
[00:49:43] The price He paid not only for salvation, but He paid it for healing as well.
[00:49:50] Amen.
[00:49:51] I fully understand that healing deals with primarily our physical health, but I always like to talk about that it talks about our entire person, our mental health as well.
[00:50:02] That's why the book of Timothy talks about that He has not given us the spirit of fear, but He has given us the spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind.
[00:50:15] So not only does the Lord heal you physically, but He wants to touch somebody in their mind today.
[00:50:19] Man, I know you've been feeling a little scattered.
[00:50:21] I know you've been feeling a little out of sorts recently.
[00:50:24] But man, God is willing to come down and heal you in regards to that.
[00:50:28] Sometimes healing is instantaneous.
[00:50:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Sometimes it takes a process.
[00:50:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
We pray for people with oil because the book of James says let the elders among them pray and anoint them with oil so we pray for people who have deeper needs we anoint them
[00:51:01] we pray a deeper prayer with oil that's why we do that the oil signifies the presence and the anointing of God passed from one individual to another that's why we do that some don't some churches don't we do because we see the value in it and we see the value of healing flowing to somebody look I want the best
[00:51:28] He wants to heal.
[00:51:30] He wants to lift that depression up off of you.
[00:51:33] He wants to lift that double-mindedness off of you.
[00:51:37] When you're here one day and then you're over here the next, the double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.
[00:51:45] He wants to heal you from that.
[00:51:47] Amen.
[00:51:49] He's not paid the price for salvation but also for healing.
[00:51:53] Has He healed anybody in your body before?
[00:51:56] Has He ever touched anybody in your body?
[00:51:58] We can testify all day long.
[00:52:00] We can pass the microphone around and say how God has blessed and how God has touched.
[00:52:05] But I like to focus on the fact that how many times has He healed you and you didn't realize how big it was?
[00:52:12] How much He touched you and you didn't even realize how significant the healing really was.
[00:52:20] Amen.
[00:52:21] The next thing that you get to open up before Christmas even gets here is forgiveness.
[00:52:28] That's one of the greatest gifts you get to enjoy immediately is forgiveness.
[00:52:34] Colossians 1 and 14 says, "...in whom we have redemption through His blood, even through the forgiveness of sins."
[00:52:41] Psalms 130 and 4 it says but there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared amen Matthew 1 and 21 it says and she shall bring forth the son and shall call his name Jesus and they he shall save his people from their
[00:53:03] Man, there's forgiveness in the house of God today.
[00:53:06] Does that mean that you get permission to do what you want to do?
[00:53:09] No.
[00:53:09] It just says when I've made a decision that's against God, there's forgiveness that gets to come down.
[00:53:14] When I come to God in repentance and say, God, I am sorry for this.
[00:53:19] I messed this up.
[00:53:20] I did wrong with this.
[00:53:22] There's forgiveness at His hands.
[00:53:25] There's forgiveness in His wings today.
[00:53:28] Amen.
[00:53:30] Forgiveness is a very freeing act.
[00:53:35] You know that you've been forgiven and you have given that over to God.
[00:53:40] It is literally a weight that has been lifted off of you.
[00:53:45] I visualize it today like it's jumping on a trampoline.
[00:53:53] I don't jump on a trampoline anymore, obviously.
[00:53:56] But when I did, man, you got up there and you just... And you hit again and...
[00:54:03] And some would do flips.
[00:54:06] Some would do little twirls.
[00:54:08] In fact, I will share this.
[00:54:11] That one of the times I was jumping on a trampoline, we were rolling a guy's yard.
[00:54:15] You remember this?
[00:54:18] And some of you don't even know what rolling a yard is.
[00:54:20] You take toilet paper and you throw it.
[00:54:21] Does anybody know what this is?
[00:54:24] And you throw toilet paper all over their yard?
[00:54:26] Anybody know what this is?
[00:54:27] Like two people?
[00:54:28] Thank you.
[00:54:28] Okay, great.
[00:54:30] Well, we used to do that a lot in the 90s.
[00:54:32] I guess people started getting shocked doing that.
[00:54:35] Anyway, so I had the grand idea, the guy who were rolling his yard, I'm going to jump on his trampoline while we're rolling the yard.
[00:54:47] We knew the family.
[00:54:48] We knew the family.
[00:54:50] We know them really well.
[00:54:51] So it's kind of a funny thing.
[00:54:53] And I was jumping on the trampoline and I don't know what happened, but it was like, Hey, somebody's coming.
[00:54:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
You got to get down, get down, get down.
[00:55:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
and so I jumped off the trampoline my foot got caught or it's just my clumsy self and I landed square on my head on the ground you really had to be there to see it it was pretty funny and I walked away a better man praise God I walked away feeling pretty free that I didn't die that day
[00:55:25] Praise God.
[00:55:26] Forgiveness as much as the same way.
[00:55:28] Man, I walk away knowing that that stuff has fallen to the wayside.
[00:55:32] I walk away knowing that literally chains have fallen to the side.
[00:55:37] When forgiveness comes into your life you realize just how good it really is.
[00:55:40] It's a gift that's being given out today.
[00:55:43] Praise God.
[00:55:43] Somebody let the chains fall.
[00:55:45] I hear something.
[00:55:46] I hear sounds of chains falling to the ground.
[00:55:49] I hear sounds of chains and shackles.
[00:55:52] All into the ground today.
[00:55:54] Praise God.
[00:55:55] And somebody's feeling freer because of it.
[00:55:59] There's freedom and forgiveness.
[00:56:01] He who the Son of Man has set free.
[00:56:03] How did He set them free?
[00:56:04] By forgiveness.
[00:56:06] He who the Son of Man has set free is free indeed.
[00:56:10] Amen.
[00:56:12] He removes the chains.
[00:56:14] He removes the shackles from you.
[00:56:15] And we're better able to move forward with the glory of God.
[00:56:19] The fourth gift that you get to enjoy today is joy.
[00:56:22] Somebody say joy.
[00:56:24] Joy.
[00:56:25] Matthew 2 and 10, and when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
[00:56:30] 1 Peter 1 and 8, we have not seen, you have not seen in whom you love, and you have not seen in not yet believing, we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.
[00:56:46] Nehemiah 8 and 10 says this the joy of the Lord y'all know this one the joy of the Lord is my strength when I bring the Lord joy he brings me strength who knew that there was a strengthening in this joy
[00:57:07] that we're able to enjoy with God.
[00:57:10] Amen?
[00:57:11] I get to be strengthened.
[00:57:12] God puts strength.
[00:57:14] He puts something within me that I didn't have before.
[00:57:17] When I bring joy to the Lord, praise Him.
[00:57:19] When I begin to praise Him and I begin to worship Him, joy is passed and I get strength as a result of that.
[00:57:28] Amen.
[00:57:30] People knew back then just how powerful praising God was and people nowadays
[00:57:38] When you worship God.
[00:57:40] Psalms proclaims it like this, the presence, in His presence there is fullness of joy.
[00:57:47] Not just a little bit, not just the leftovers, but there is fullness of joy in His presence.
[00:57:55] My God, that's why we preach about His presence so much.
[00:57:58] That's why we talk about being in His presence so much because if you want joy, I'm going to step inside the presence of God.
[00:58:06] If I need that strengthening hand, I'm going to step
[00:58:10] Let me be where He is and I can receive the joy that He provides to me.
[00:58:16] The world's not going to give you joy because the world is not the joy giver.
[00:58:23] The world didn't give it and so the world can't take it away.
[00:58:26] So I'm not going to go to the world as the source of my joy.
[00:58:38] There was a gentleman that asked the question, why would an all-powerful God become a man?
[00:58:43] Even if He did, why would He choose to be born in a horse trough, an animal stall, a barn, if you will?
[00:58:52] Why would the Lord choose to do that?
[00:58:55] It seems almost ridiculous to us.
[00:58:58] It just seems almost crazy.
[00:59:00] Nobody here has had any children in a barn.
[00:59:03] Not one of you.
[00:59:04] I don't think.
[00:59:05] I don't think.
[00:59:06] I could be wrong.
[00:59:08] But for the King of kings and the Lord of lords to come down and be born in a stable.
[00:59:17] The Bible over this particular story goes on to say that as he was asking himself this question there were some birds that were flying to get close to the heat of the house and as they got a little bit close to the house they would bounce off of the
[00:59:35] And then he tried to set a trail of food for them and they still didn't find the trail.
[00:59:52] And he said to himself, if I could just speak their language, I would tell them how to get to the warmth.
[01:00:00] and then it dawned on him why the Lord came down in the way that he did wrapping himself in flesh so that he could walk among us so that he could talk among us so that he could teach among us and speak as we speak that's why the Lord saw fit to come down yeah even in the barn he could have been born in a in the king's palace he could have been born of all those things but he wanted to be down
[01:00:30] among the people to speak how we speak and to see things how we see things folks that's love and that is love that is beyond any other love today so he's here amongst us not just then but he's here amongst us now as well he's here amongst us in our lives and our hearts
[01:01:01] Let's all stand.
[01:01:11] I thank God for His gifts.
[01:01:13] And in this series that we've been doing on Wednesday, there are many gifts.
[01:01:17] The gifts of the Spirit.
[01:01:19] Prophecy.
[01:01:20] Tongues.
[01:01:21] Interpretation of tongues.
[01:01:23] Faith.
[01:01:24] Healing.
[01:01:26] All of those wonderful things are gifts of the Spirit.
[01:01:30] But there's some gifts that we get to enjoy today.
[01:01:33] I get to enjoy the love of God.
[01:01:35] I get to enjoy forgiveness.
[01:01:38] I get to enjoy His presence.
[01:01:41] I get to enjoy His healing.
[01:01:43] And I get to get joy inside of my life.
[01:01:48] Amen.
[01:01:49] Here's what we like to do at the end.
[01:01:50] We like to
[01:01:52] For anybody that's comfortable, we'd like to join around the front and just have a time of prayer for just a few minutes today.
[01:02:00] Amen.
[01:02:00] So let's just begin to come to the front today.
[01:02:03] And let's just begin to talk to God.
[01:02:05] Let's just begin to say, God, thank you for your unspeakable gifts.
[01:02:09] Thank you for your powerful gifts.
[01:02:12] Hallelujah, God.
[01:02:13] And wherever you are, just begin to talk to God.
[01:02:15] Just begin to say, God, we thank you this morning.
[01:02:19] We believe in your power, your healing, your touch.
[01:02:22] Thank you, gracious King.
[01:02:24] Thank you, Jesus.
[01:02:26] Hallelujah, God.
[01:02:27] Thank you, Lord.
[01:02:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
He knows and abandoned them
