The Journey of a Lifetime!

I want to speak to you this morning a message called The Journey of a Lifetime from the book of Exodus chapter 3. Exodus chapter 3, the journey of a lifetime. Now Father, I thank you God with all my heart. I thank you for the presence of your Holy Spirit.

I thank you God for your Word which is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. I thank you Lord for your willingness God to come to us in spite of our condition, your willingness Lord to give us freedom, your willingness to give us a new song, your willingness Lord to take us when all we've known is failure and to change us and call us your own. I thank you God for the anointing of your Spirit Lord that overrides the frailty of my human body and mind and gives me that which you want to speak to every heart.

I ask you to bless every person in this house God. Bless those that are strangely weeping today and don't quite know why they feel this way. Bless them with an understanding.

God bless all of us with the courage to desire to go forward in you for the fullness of what you have for our lives. God we thank you. I praise you with all my heart for it.

Bless those in North Jersey that are listening today, those that are online with us as part of this church family or just curious people. Bless them all oh God. I thank you for it.

Thank you for hearing and answering this prayer in Jesus name. The journey of a lifetime Exodus chapter 3 beginning at verse 7. And the Lord said I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters for I know their sorrows. So I've come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up from a land to a good land and large to a land flowing with milk and honey to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

In other words I'm bringing my people out from where they are to the place that they belong, a place that somebody else is occupying. But I'm going to take those occupiers out and I'm going to bring my people into this place that belongs to them. Now therefore behold the cry of the children of Israel has come to me and I've also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppressed them.

Come now therefore and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. Now you and I know that the one true purpose of the people of God in these passages was to allow God through them to bring glory to his own name as the one who creates and sustains all things. He created the heavens by the word of his mouth.

All things the Bible tells us consist by him. Nothing was made without him. The speaking of Jesus Christ actually in John chapter 1. And he had a people in the earth that he called unto himself for the express purpose of bringing glory to his name that the world may know.

Did you understand today that's the purpose of your life? The purpose of your life and my life is to let God be God. It's not difficult. Just open our hearts and let God be God inside of us.

Take us from where we are to where we need to be so that he by his power will glorify his own name through my life. The only thing he requires of me is faith and cooperation. That I will believe his promises and start putting one foot in front of the other.

When he says get out of somewhere I am willing to get out. When he says get into somewhere I'm willing to get in. I go where he calls me.

I become what he desires to make me. And I want to tell you it is an awesome life to live for God. It's a wonderful, wonderful life.

They were the descendants, these people of a man called Abraham. A man that God gave an incredible promise to him. And not only, and it didn't just apply to Abraham, it applied to all of Abraham's descendants.

And Paul the Apostle of course in the New Testament says by faith we are the descendants of Abraham. We are grafted in to this promise that God made to this one man. Let me just read it to you in Genesis chapter 12.

The Lord said to Abram, get out of your country, from your family, from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. That's where the walk with God begins for all of us. Leave where you should leave.

Doesn't mean you abandon your family. But if you're living in a place that is inferior to what God has called your life to be, he says get up and get out of that place. And I will make you a great nation.

I will bless you. I will make your name great and you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those who bless you and I will curse him who curses you.

And in you shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Now ultimately the promise is fulfilled through Jesus Christ and his church. The lineage of Christ was going to come through Abraham and through the descendants of Abraham.

Ultimately come to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, you and me. So we are in a sense the the endgame of that promise that was made to Abraham. The earth is supposed to be blessed through us as the people of God.

We have a divine purpose in this world. And pray with all your heart that none of us should come short of what God has for us. Psalm 23 verse 5, David the Psalmist says, you prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.

Now everything of hell is going to come against you to stop you from becoming that which God has called you to be. From people with will speak words to try to discourage your situations will arise to get you to believe that you can't go forward. Enemies will come to torment you.

We do fight against powers and principalities, spiritual things in high places that hate the testimony of God and the testimony of his people. You will come into opposition. It's not going to be an easy an easy walk but it is a walk that God promises.

David says you prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. I've had a picture in my mind for years of David at this banquet table and and he's got biscuits and he's got fish and and his enemies are there with the sword and all they can all they can do is David says pass the bread please would you mind giving me that loaf of bread? The table that God has prepared is in the midst and they are powerless to strike him because his confidence is in God and then David says and you anoint my head with oil. In other words you give me not only a touch of heaven but an understanding of what my life is about.

An understanding of why I exist in the earth. There's nothing worse than just aimlessly traveling through the world trying to figure out what is life, what is the meaning of life, what is this all about. Isn't it wonderful just to know what our purpose in life really is and then David says and my cup runs over.

In other words you bring such blessing into my life that it flows out of me freely to others. I can't contain it. I can't keep it inside.

There's such a newness of life that you've given to me that it becomes as natural as breathing just to tell others what you have done and are doing for me. And verse 4 of Genesis 12 says Abraham departed as the Lord had spoken to him and Lot went with him. Abraham was 75 years old when he departed from Haran.

That was his hometown. In other words it's never too late to start walking with God. It's never too late.

Don't buy the lie. Don't buy the lie that you're too old. That your day has somehow passed.

I tell you in the spirit you can do more in five minutes than people in the flesh can do in 50 years. Praise be to God. You may have you may have a trail of a wounding and hurt behind you but I tell you turn to God sir you turn to God ma'am and God will give you a voice in your own home among your own family among your own friends he will transform your life and give you spiritual authority and you shall be a blessing.

Everywhere you go you will be a blessing. That's the promise of God to those who get up and take this journey with God. Now in spite of this incredible promise the descendants of Abraham in our opening text they ended up in another place and in another spiritual condition which was quite inferior to what they had been promised that they would be.

You know that a lot of them I suppose were quite content to live this way and in this place even though they knew that they were living far beneath their promised inheritance and you see what had happened is in a time of hardship Egypt which really represents in the Old Testament the world and all the world has to offer opened its arms wide and said come to us and we will give you comfort we will feed you we will put you in the finest of the land and even God's people from time to time make a mistake when the society opens its arms. That happened in America maybe a generation or two ago I don't know how long back but the society kind of opened its arms. Remember when it was fashionable to be a Christian? Everybody was born again whether they were or not everybody was.

Born-again athletes, born-again politicians, born-again this born-again that was it was fashionable. The world, the society opened its arms and said come let us comfort you let us comfort you and in that comfort they found themselves in a place where that which offered them comfort now was dominating their very existence. The Bible calls it taskmasters.

You know Paul warned the Corinthian church about certain behaviors in 1st Corinthian chapter 6 and he said don't be deceived he said you know all and he started listing all these behaviors most of our moral or ethical behaviors that people were getting involved in he said if you continue in these practices you will not inherit the kingdom of God. Now we quite often preach that with a futuristic tense as if it's only about heaven but don't forget Jesus himself said the kingdom of God is within you. You will not inherit the kingdom of God in other words there was something bought for your life on the cross when Jesus died that is for you.

There's something that God wants to do inside of you it's it's that kingdom of God that's described as righteousness joy and peace in the Holy Spirit. It's the newness of life that God says I will plant within your heart within your life and make you not only blessed but a blessing to everyone around you but if you continue in these practices thievery lying immorality all these other things contention drunkenness strife if you continue in these things you will not inherit the kingdom of God. In other words what offered you comfort will become your taskmaster and many people who know what I'm talking about you turn to something for comfort once in your life didn't you and maybe some here have done that today and it did comfort you that little that little sip of whiskey that that little dance club that you just kind of well I just you know I'm just so tired being alone I'm just gonna go out and I'll be a witness in the club.

You're not a witness you're just a Christian in a place you shouldn't be in that's all you are and everybody knows you know it and everybody around you knows it. A little bit of sexual play what can it hurt a little snort a little sniff a little peek a little bit of spiritual sleep. Solomon said in Proverbs 6 a little sleep a little slumber a little folding of the hands to sleep and so shall your poverty come on you're like a prowler and your need like an armed man and many people know that today you've settled in somewhere that you know in your heart is is far far short of what you're called to be and you're doing things that you know you shouldn't be doing and they offered you comfort but now they're your master now they're dictating to you the terms of your day what time you get up what time you go to bed how you live and you come to the church looking for respite but remember Paul the Apostle said the wages of sin is death the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Hebrew children these descendants of Abraham suddenly found themselves in the place where that society is throwing their firstborn their newborn sons into the river to drown them. Where are we today in our colleges? Where are we in our universities? What are they doing to our children in the public school system? This generation is trying to throw our children into the river to drown them in confusion because the devil himself fears the anointing of God fears the blessing of God and hates the people of God but God in his mercy would not leave his own people in captivity and neither will he leave you in any kind of captive barrenness when you cry out to him. That was the key.

He could have delivered them any they were there for 400 years he could have delivered them at any point in that 400 years but what did God do? He waited till they cried and the bottom line is they wanted out. He'll deliver you when you want out.

I'm sure many of them were just hoping they could go to their whatever kind of services they observed maybe on the Shabbath and and they were just looking for a peace of mind they're looking for that that good feeling they want to be able to sing oh what he's done for me and they want to clap their hands they want to shout Halle Halle Hallelujah oh but they have no intention of walking away from their practice and so it becomes a roller coaster of trying to get that good feeling and then plunge back down and let the taskmasters direct my life and come back and try to get the good feeling but you know what happens after time the the roller coaster doesn't go quite as high every Sunday because God will not be mocked and he will not let you stay there he will not let you as the body of

Christ stay in a place you shouldn't be so he will let them he will the bondage to increase you allow the darkness to get deeper until we as the body of Christ cry out again God set me free God I want out I want the life and they had to know about the promise of Abraham that had to be passed down if it was verbally passed down somewhat maybe in writing I don't know but they had to know didn't you tell our forefather Abraham that we would be blessed didn't you say that we would become a blessing in the earth and the whole world would start to know who you are to us but look at us we're being driven by taskmasters and the only thing we're building is monuments to insane people and leadership but finally God heard what he wanted to hear a cry a cry when you read it in Psalm 107 what happens

when a prayer becomes a cry what God's response is when when finally somebody just says look I'm not looking for to be pacified in this place that I'm living I'm looking to get out I'm looking to get away from this practice out of this relationship I'm looking for the refining of my character I'm looking for that which God has called me to do and God called me to be I'm looking for the freedom that is supposed to be mine in Jesus Christ I'm tired of living here and living like this then a day came when a messenger shows up and says I've been sent by God to lead you into freedom I mean in the natural it's just an 80 year old man and his older brother with a stick in a one-line sermon and the guy who told him he sent to deliver them can't even needs his brother to share the one-line sermon

he can't even speak it himself but in Exodus chapter 4 in verse 31 the scripture says so the people believed when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel and he looked on their affliction they bowed their heads in worship you see that's the key that's the key it's as feeble as it might look as impossible as it might seem as far off as it might be as long as the bondage has been there but God brings a word like you're hearing this morning and on your part if you would can just bring yourself to do what they did and bow your head and believe God say God I don't know how you're gonna give me the strength to get out of here I don't know how you're gonna give me the power to change this captivity in my life but Oh God I believe it's better to go with the weakness that you

set before me than to live in this place where I'm living now and they bowed their head and they worshipped and the scripture tells us when they believed their eyes became open to the power of God to deliver them when you start believing the next thing you know you're going to see God move heaven and earth to get you out of where you are and get you in to where you need to be he plagued their enemies he could darken he's the he's the one who created the heavens and the earth he can darken the Sun he can bring life he can command death he can do whatever he wants they can bring frogs out of a river he can do whatever he wants to do to set you free and suddenly just bowing that was all he did they bowed their heads and believe that's all they could come up with they were so beaten down they

were so weary they were so oppressed they were so tired all they could do is just bow their heads and worship and believe the message that had come to them and when they did Paul says in Ephesians 118 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened that you may know what is the hope of his calling what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints and what is the exceeding greatness of his power towards us who believe according to the working of his mighty power when you believe suddenly you see his power it's revealed he starts everything around you start shaking all the mockers all the devils of hell everything that's tried to destroy your life suddenly you just become aware that the hand of God has come on you and God's leading you somewhere that you couldn't go in your

own strength and it gets progressively better in Exodus chapter 13 the scripture tells us that God began to lead them clearly there was no more any confusion for them pillar of a cloud by the day and a pillar of fire by night every man every woman saw the hand of God before them when you'd make that choice to live for God when you say I'm making the break from things I shouldn't be involved in in places I shouldn't go in relationships I shouldn't be in and everything else like it suddenly you begin to hear that voice saying this is the way walk in it God begins to speak to you I can't explain it to you I've known it throughout my life it's just a strong it's not an audible voice it's a strong impression of the heart go here don't go there do this trust me believe me and there's a sudden

and clear leading day and night 24 hours a day they're being led by the hand of God and there is no doubt about who it is that is leading them Exodus chapter 14 their enemies tried to recapture them and they learned that their enemies as they moved forward had no power to recapture them hallelujah to the Lamb of God when you make the choice to move forward your old enemies oh they can shout from a hundred yards back but they can't catch because God is not only leading you he's got his hand behind you as well he's defending you from the leading you from the front and defending you from the back that's how much God loves you in Exodus chapter 15 after they'd gone through the river the Sea of Impossibility they learned how to worship I guess like we worship this morning you know some of you

sang the songs but you're not really involved in the worship like it's a nice song and it makes you happy and you clap your hands but you're still on the wrong side of the river but once you get through you don't need music to sing that song once you get through you don't need a choir you don't need anybody telling you what to do you don't just worship in church on Sunday morning you worship at home when you get up in the morning oh God thank you worship at night you worship on the subway you worship everywhere you are because your whole being has known and begun to understand the victory of God God you you took me out of where I couldn't get out of and you brought me into what I couldn't get into and when my enemies came and said we're going to recapture you it's it's a farce this is no

there's no power in this it's it's a stupid plan you're following God Almighty you drown them you drown them in the sea you drown them in the pages of of your word and I learned that I'm free in Christ I'm free as we sing Tuesday night no more shackles no more change no more bondage I'm free I'm free to live for God I'm free to love God I'm free to know the blessing of God I'm free to worship God the way I was born to the way I was destined to he's he's put a new song inside of my heart David said many will see it didn't say they'll hear it so many will see it and fear and trust in the Lord the song that God gives to us is deeper than words it's something of his spirit inside of us that affects our entire countenance not just our words but our whole being and many see it and they begin to

realize that there is a God which of course was the promised Abraham and his descendants that your life I will bless you to the point where you'll become a blessing to the whole world that you just let Christ be Christ inside of you now in Exodus 16 that gets even better it just keeps forgetting progressively better in Exodus 16 they were given food from heaven praise be to God every morning as much as each person needed to find strength to face their day didn't Jesus say that would give us this our daily bread every morning they got up and there was this special food from heaven on the ground and God told him don't try to gather too much just gather what you need for the day for you and your family you don't have to read the whole Bible every morning folks open it up and you read it read

a verse a chapter meditate on something just this day that your thoughts be formed in God day and suddenly this book opens and you see when when you're living in a way that is not right the Bible calls it in sin this book actually opposes you if you're trying to justify a wrong way of living the book is closed it's just a historical text but when you get up and walk with God suddenly it opens suddenly it's just there you're reaching in it's like your hand is going inside of a book if that's possible you're pulling out strength not just for yourself but for your family there's a provision for everyone around you the young lady that's going to speak today at one o'clock I mean she might tell you a little bit of her story but I I remember one day she came to me in the office and I don't

think she'd mind me telling this and there was a lot of trouble in her home a lot of trouble with her family her brothers and sister and her parents and she said I really feel like I got to go back to st.

Louis and I got it I got to try to get them I said no you stay right here the anchor holds the ship the ship does not hold the anchor I said you stay here and you watch what God will do well she did her brother and sister are both graduates of our Bible School Summit International School of Ministry her dad gave his life to the Lord he had been in prison for many years he gave his life to the Lord he's living for God as best as I know and God just undertook for that family and this is a young lady that's going to be teaching about the fruit of the Spirit today at one o'clock and the Lord's taking her to a whole other place that you can't really go there apart from faith you can't really understand who God is unless you're willing to take the journey that God has prescribed for your life

you see the point of my message this morning or the message God's given me is really simple if you've been crying out in secret God has heard you you know you may not be crying out in a meeting here but you have been crying out at home you've been on your bed all by yourself no God you've been moaning in the street oh Jesus help me and he's heard your cry he brought you here today even if even if you don't even quite know even why you're here he brought you and he's speaking to your heart and he wants to set you free and take you on an incredible journey an incredible journey not just a journey that you're always running from your former enemies I'm talking about an incredible journey I'm talking about a journey that comes with a song and a vision that comes with understanding a journey

that that creates newness of life that can only come from God I'm talking about a journey that gives you an endurance to go through even the deepest trial and the hottest fire and the deepest river and valley I'm talking about something that when you get to the end of your days you're going to be looking back to your family and others say follow me as I follow Christ follow me I found the way to life I found what it means to be a blessing I found the true blessing of God they bowed their heads and worshipped they had no army they had no weapons they weren't allowed they weren't even allowed to sharpen their own instruments they they had no strategy they had no strength they had no power they had nothing they had a word from God which looked so small kind of looked like a pebble in the

forehead of a giant looks so small always does look so small doesn't it God's plan to redeem the world started as a seed in the womb always looks so small and went to a baby in a manger and I'm sure there's a lot of people had a hard time saying that that's the God who created the universe like this kid who needs his diapers changed is a God who created the universe it always looks foolish to the natural man but contained in it is the power of God I want to be a blessing I want to be a blessing I want to be but now there's a lot inside of me that fights against it there's there's the struggle of every person that's here say oh God can I just smell the roses for a while Lord you're asking me to go farther than I have already gone and I don't have any strength left to go another foot but

they bowed their heads and they worshipped and it began the journey of a lifetime that's all the God requires of you if you think there's seven steps or 16 things you gotta do bow your head and worship and say God I believe you I believe you Lord I believe you in spite of the reports around me in spite of my own heart I believe you Lord I believe you have a plan for me I believe you're going to get me out of where I shouldn't be I believe you're going to help me to find fulfillment in being a blessing in my generation that I don't have to go to the dance clubs anymore not I don't go to the dance even when I was unsaved dancing was not a gift that God gave God could you do that today could you bow your head and worship now listen I'm not asking for a physical thing right now could you bow

your head and God as weak as I feel I believe you I believe you I believe you give me the strength to get out and you give me the leading to get in so that my life can be a blessing so I can get out of what has become my taskmaster you know your taskmaster can be fear depression discouragement a wrong way of thinking if all if only I could be there I would be so happy all these things can become taskmasters but God in his mercy has a plan for your life if you will embrace it you watch what he will do prepare for the journey of a lifetime I'm going to give an altar call this morning and it's just for those who have been crying out in secret and saying Lord God you've read my mail you know where I live you've heard me you sent me a word and so I'm just going to believe you I I have to I

have to believe you that you're going to give me victory in my situation and if that's the cry of your heart I'd want to open this the front of this auditorium up to you and between the screens in the annex as well as in North Jersey and for those that are at home listening just stand up in your bedroom your living room wherever it is that you're watching just just just stand up and say God I bow my head and I worship I believe that you have a deeper purpose for my life than where I find myself today and so I'm going to go forward to it and I'm not going to be turned back from this purpose you have for my life we're going to worship for about five or ten minutes and as we stand if the Lord is drawing you Lord speaking to you and you'd strangely don't fully even understand it all but say

God I just believe I feel in my heart this is for me I feel you're calling me to something deeper than where I am I'm going to ask you to get out of your seat and just join these that are already coming God bless you man God bless you I look forward to seeing what God's going to do in your life let's stand together please in the balcony go to either exit in the main Sanctuary just slip out of where you are we'll pray together in just a moment see this is the reason why we want to be the church this is I'm not willing to abandon a generation to darkness I'm not willing to let the parasites the Canaanites the Hittites and all the rest of the heights live in the place that belongs to us and to our children not willing to give up a generation to darkness when we are the light Christ said of

this world all I got to do is hold one of these in my arms something and I realize why I fight and why why we take this journey and what it's really all about may God give us the grace to understand there's such power in a life that has lived for God let that be the cry of your heart God I'm gonna live my life for you so my prayer for this precious children here today and for all of us is it that we would that our homes would be sanctuaries that our our lives would be signposts for our children not stumbling blocks signposts that that we would live for God it doesn't mean we're perfect the children are not looking for perfection from us they're looking for reality show me the God is real you know that we can humble ourselves when we make mistakes and we can say I'm sorry when we've done

something wrong and they'll see us grow in grace and they form a right conclusion that God is real oh there's so much to be gained by you and I living for God now father we just thank you Lord for these little ones God and we we dedicate them to you today Lord these precious precious children that you've given to us individually as moms and dads but also as the church body as brothers and sisters in Christ I pray God that you help us to embrace these little ones and to live in a way that they can find you at a young age God give us victory Lord give us victory beyond our wildest dreams when the people got up and went out they took their children with them not one was left behind that children that the devil was wanting to throw into the river they took them all with them into that place

of promise God so I pray Lord that not one of our children ever be left behind God I lift up all of the homes represented here and I pray for the peace of heaven to rest on every home I ask it be a place where your word is honored where prayer is heard where reconciliation is found I ask you God for these homes Lord that Jesus there be nothing of the devil allowed to prosper there father we thank you Lord for these jewels in your crown these little ones that we will stand before your throne one day and they will be there and we will thank God with all of our heart that we chose to live for you this day we chose to walk with you God I praise you for these lives I praise you Lord that as we started singing his truth is marching on I think it's only appropriate Greg that we close with that

today where we began glory glory hallelujah his truth is marching on in Jesus name amen and amen praise God