Participants: John Lomacang (Host), Pr. Cory Jackson
Series Code: FDOF
Program Code: FDOF000018A
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00:18 Hello, friends, and welcome to the 3ABN
00:20 Worship Center for another Dare to Dream sermon. 00:26 I told you if you were here to receive the last one, 00:29 you know that Pastor Cory Jackson 00:31 is a man anointed of God to proclaim the gospel, 00:35 the unashamed gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:38 We talked about blind Bartimaeus, 00:39 how the Lord can take a person from rags to riches 00:43 and tonight, the message is entitled, 00:45 Give It One More Shot. 00:48 So we encourage you to stay by for this Bible-filled, 00:52 spirit-filled message that we know will reach into 00:55 your heart and bring you to the place that the Lord 00:57 wants you to be and we know that God is going to bless. 01:01 Pastor Cory Jackson is from Chicago, Illinois, 01:04 the very state that 3ABN shares. 01:07 They are far north, we are far south 01:09 but the Lord has brought 01:11 the north and the south together tonight. 01:13 He presently is the pastor of the Burns Seventh-day 01:16 Adventist church in Detroit, Michigan. 01:18 He has been pastoring 14 years. 01:21 The Lord has really reached into this young man's life 01:23 and transformed him. 01:25 He is a student of Black Hills Evangelistic School. 01:29 The Lord saw him going in the wrong direction, 01:31 turned him around and led him in the right direction. 01:35 He has three children. 01:37 He's known internationally as he's being invited 01:39 around the world to share the gospel of the Lord. 01:41 And he said last night in a wonderful way, 01:44 he was studying to be 01:45 a Black Muslim and a Black Panther, 01:48 but he ended up being a Black pastor. 01:50 Can we say amen to that? Amen. 01:51 And so God really anointed his life tonight. 01:54 Once more, the message is entitled, 01:55 Give It One More Shot. 01:57 Stay tuned for the blessings of the Lord. 02:00 We have a young man that amazed me when I heard his voice. 02:04 I looked at his frame and I wondered 02:06 where that voice was coming from. 02:08 Louis Cleare, who is from Nassau, Bahamas. 02:12 3ABN had an opportunity to meet him a number of years ago. 02:15 Not too many years ago. 02:17 He's only 22 and he sang while they were there. 02:20 Tonight he's going to bless us with a song entitled, 02:24 He Will Carry You. 02:25 And right after the singing evangelist, 02:28 the next voice that you will hear will be 02:30 that of Pastor Cory Jackson. 02:48 There is no problem too big 02:51 God cannot solve it 02:57 There is no mountain too tall 03:01 He cannot move it 03:07 There is no storm too dark 03:11 God cannot calm it 03:17 There is no sorrow too deep 03:21 He cannot soothe it 03:25 Oh, if He carries the weight of the world 03:30 upon His shoulders 03:36 Then I know my brother that 03:39 He will carry you 03:45 Oh, if He carries the weight of the world 03:50 upon His shoulders 03:56 Then I know my sister that 03:58 He will carry you 04:05 He said, "Come on to me 04:11 all who are weary 04:17 And I will give you 04:23 rest 04:40 There is no problem too big 04:44 God cannot solve it 04:50 There is no mountain too tall 04:54 He cannot move it 05:00 And there is no storm too dark 05:05 God cannot calm it 05:11 There is no sorrow too deep 05:15 He cannot move it 05:20 Oh, if He carries the weight of the world 05:25 upon His shoulders 05:31 Then I know my brother 05:33 that He will carry you 05:40 And, if He carries the weight of the world 05:45 upon His shoulders 05:51 Then I know my sister 05:54 that He will carry you 06:02 I know my brother and I know my sister 06:08 that He will carry you 06:21 He will carry you 06:33 Amen. Amen. 06:35 Can you say amen? Amen. 06:37 Do you believe He will carry you through? 06:39 Yes. Amen. 06:40 Brother Louis, thank you. 06:42 And it's good to see you all today. 06:45 I'm still amazed when young Louis sings. 06:48 I don't know about you, but it... 06:50 To see all of that come out of that little bitty young man. 06:54 You know, you see him in the greenroom, 06:56 he's a different guy. 06:58 He's listening to his headphones, 07:00 normal 22 year old young man but when he comes out, 07:03 Lord, have mercy, I'm just in awe. 07:05 So I am thankful to hear him sing He Will Carry You Through. 07:13 I am a perfect witness of that. 07:15 He has carried me a mighty long way 07:19 and He has carried many of you the same. 07:23 Let us begin with a word of prayer. 07:26 Heavenly Father, we come once again 07:29 thanking You for the gift of salvation, 07:34 thanking You for Jesus, the Christ, leading us, 07:39 guiding us and directing us along the way. 07:43 As we meet together again, we just ask for your presence. 07:47 We ask for the Holy Spirit to fill this place, 07:50 fill every home that is listening 07:54 and that every heart shall be touched 07:55 and words come from oh, high. 07:57 So, Lord hide me behind your cross 08:00 and allow the word to be spoken. 08:03 In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. 08:06 Welcome to another edition of Foundations of our Faith. 08:09 I am enjoying my time here. 08:14 And I am glad to be here as we talk about 08:19 Foundations of Faith. 08:22 Understanding from yesterday that we just have to, 08:27 learn how to what? 08:28 Call on the Lord. 08:30 And call and He gives us the help we need 08:33 and so just to simply review a couple of things 08:37 that we talked about yesterday. 08:40 The call. Five things we learned yesterday. 08:44 Number one. We need to understand our condition. 08:48 Understand the condition that we are in. Number two. 08:53 We need to understand and others will try to quiet 08:56 the call when we are trying to make changes for Jesus. 08:59 And number three. 09:01 We must understand that when there are those who are, 09:04 that when we are crying, that someone will try to 09:07 stop us but we must learn to cry just a little bit louder. 09:11 Number four. 09:12 There are three things that we must do once. 09:15 Jesus Christ has, we have, He has our attention. 09:18 Number one, we must change our garments. 09:21 In other words, take off this self righteousness. 09:23 Number two. 09:25 We must change our position from sitting to rising up. 09:28 And number three. We must come close to the Savior. 09:32 We cannot live the same way and expect a different result. 09:36 And the fifth thing is that Jesus will give us 09:39 more than what we ask for. 09:41 All the blind man asked for was to see 09:44 and Christ gave him not only his sight physically, 09:48 but spiritually and next thing you know, 09:51 he went from begging to being in the way, 09:54 being a follower of Christ. 09:57 Rags to riches. 09:59 And so as we talk today, Give It One More Shot. 10:06 Our scripture for our foundation, 10:08 just two of them. 10:09 Ezekiel 36:26 that simply says that, 10:12 God will give us a new heart and a new spirit. 10:16 I like that, He will give us a new heart and a new spirit, 10:20 a new way to think and so I am looking forward 10:24 to that continually and also Romans, excuse me. 10:28 12 verse 2 "And be not conformed 10:31 to this world, but be transformed 10:33 by the renewing of your mind." 10:35 And so we spend time discussing the need to be 10:39 transformed as we are talking about character development, 10:43 and why is it? 10:45 Because in volume five, page 310. 10:48 Ellen White says this, "For if the thoughts are wrong, 10:51 the feelings are wrong. 10:53 The thoughts and feelings combined 10:55 make up moral character." 10:57 And so we have to understand that if our thoughts are wrong, 11:01 our feelings, about things would be wrong. 11:04 Not just about people but also about life. 11:08 This morning I was reading and I noticed that 11:11 some young man went to the theater in Louisiana 11:14 and shot up the theater. 11:17 And his family said he's been mentally ill for a long time. 11:20 His thoughts have been messed up to the point 11:23 where it propelled him to go to a place 11:28 where people are just being entertained 11:30 and decided he's going to kill people. 11:32 We have to take seriously how we think, 11:38 what we think about because 11:40 that things leads to how we feel. 11:44 Second volume, Mind, Character, Personality says, 11:48 that transformation begins with our thoughts. 11:51 Transformation begins with our thoughts and the challenge 11:55 we often face with our thoughts is this, 11:57 no one can see our thoughts but God. 12:00 And so we can look the part, dress up 12:03 and all that good stuff and as folk are walking by, 12:06 you can have some of the meanest things 12:07 to say about them while smiling at them. 12:10 And so we have to very careful and understand 12:13 that we are in these last days but there's a reason 12:16 why this thing for me has become important because 12:19 I came across a statement a long time ago 12:22 in Christ's Object Lessons, when the Prophet says, 12:25 when the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced. 12:28 Not almost, not somewhat, 12:30 but perfectly reproduced in His people, 12:33 then He will come to reclaim them as His own. 12:36 So God is waiting for His folk to just look like Him, 12:41 to be twins, if you want to call it that. 12:43 God is waiting for His character to be in His church, 12:47 in His people and so I have taken the liberty. 12:52 Everywhere I find myself going to spend time 12:55 talking about character, spend time discussing thoughts. 13:00 And so tonight, today, excuse me, 13:02 we are going into another segment. 13:05 If you go with me to Jeremiah Chapter 29, 13:08 as we start our three legs tonight. 13:12 We talk about teaching, preaching and healing 13:15 that Jesus did in Matthew 4. 13:17 For the first segment of this we deal with teaching. 13:22 Jeremiah 29. 13:23 Jeremiah the 29th Chapter, 13:26 Jeremiah is in the Old Testament. 13:29 Give It One More Shot. 13:31 And there are so many Bible verses that 13:33 I like but I really love this one. 13:36 Jeremiah 29:11. 13:40 The Bible says it this way, "For I know the thoughts 13:44 that I think toward you, saith the Lord." 13:47 False of feast, now I can just stop right there 13:49 and just I can just preach that thing right there 13:52 but I won't tonight right now. 13:54 But I can just stop right there and just preach 13:58 how God thinks nothing but the best of us. 14:01 You know, when others think the worst of us, 14:03 when others talk about us. 14:05 God is not doing it. 14:06 He says, My thoughts of you are of peace. 14:08 Peace is the absence of war, or the absence of conflict. 14:12 So that thing gets me excited as you can see, 14:15 because I love the way that God thinks of me. 14:20 He says, "Thoughts of peace and not of evil." 14:23 Not something bad, not something wrong, 14:25 not something that's going to hurt you. 14:27 The thoughts that I have of you, 14:29 even if I'm going this way, God says, it's still peace, 14:32 even if I'm being disobedient, it's still thoughts of peace. 14:35 God says I can't do nothing but think thoughts of goodness 14:38 of you and not of evil, and to give you an 14:42 expected end or a future and a hope. 14:46 The Bible continues to say, "Then you shall call upon me, 14:48 and you shall go and pray unto me, 14:50 and I will hearken unto you promises. 14:53 And you shall seek me, and find me, 14:56 when you shall search for me with all your heart. 14:59 We are gonna spend some time talking about that. 15:01 When you shall find, it's not that God himself 15:04 is playing a game that I used to love 15:06 when I was a little boy called hide and seek. 15:07 God is not hiding from us. 15:09 But Isaiah 59 says that our sins 15:12 have separated us from our God. 15:15 And so, verse 14 says, "And I will be found of you, 15:20 saith the Lord, and I will turn away your captivity." 15:24 So God promises some things that we can hone in on. 15:27 Number one, He promises that 15:29 He doesn't think anything negative of us. 15:31 So if anyone out there thinks that God thinks wrong of you, 15:35 you have the wrong God that you are looking at. 15:38 The God that I know, 15:39 He doesn't think anything evil of me. 15:43 Deuteronomy Chapter 4, He also says in that, 15:46 "You will find Me when you give all you got." 15:49 Deuteronomy Chapter 4. 15:51 Deuteronomy Chapter 4, Old Testimony, fifth book. 15:54 The Bible, Deuteronomy Chapter 4. 15:58 Looking at verse 29. 16:01 Deuteronomy Chapter 4, looking at verse 29. 16:04 Doing little teaching right now. 16:07 says this, 16:09 "But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, 16:14 thou shalt find Him, if thou shall seek Him 16:18 with all your heart and with all your soul." 16:21 So in other words, when it comes to God, 16:24 He expects all of us to give all we got 16:28 and we are going to see a story 16:30 that exemplifies this thing tonight. 16:32 Everything we got. 16:33 You know, I'm an athlete by nature. 16:37 Even though you look at this wide frame now, 16:40 it doesn't look as though I'm an athlete. 16:42 I'm an athlete in retirement while eating too much. 16:47 But nonetheless, I'm still an athlete. 16:49 I have a 15 year old son who thinks that no matter 16:52 how old I get, or how wide I begin to get, 16:56 he still thinks that he can beat me in basketball. 17:00 And so once a week we have to prove the point 17:03 that I can still take him, 17:06 even though it's a struggle to do it, 17:09 'cause he has energy that I just don't possess 17:11 at this moment in my life. 17:14 When we are playing together, 17:16 I have to give it all that I got. 17:18 If I, at any point, give just a little bit, 17:22 not a lot, he takes advantage of it 17:24 and he runs me around the gym. 17:27 But because I know that if I allow him 17:29 to win at any moment, he's going to hold that thing 17:32 over my head for the rest of my life, 17:34 in front of the church members, in front of the family, 17:37 and friends and I just can't do it. 17:39 So what I have to do is give it all I got 17:41 and even when I get done and I'm like, 17:44 I still have to give it all I got because if I don't, 17:48 I will not come out victorious, same thing with Christ. 17:51 We have to give it all we got, no matter what shape we are in, 17:54 no matter how tired we get. 17:56 We have to give it all we got. 18:00 In order to do that, 1 Timothy Chapter 6, 18:03 1 Timothy Chapter 6, 1 Timothy Chapter 6 18:07 gives me my marching orders. 18:10 1 Timothy 6:12, give me my marching order. 18:17 God says that, you can find Me when you give Me all of you. 18:23 But in order to do that, verse 12 says, 18:25 that I must "Fight the good fight of faith." 18:29 And to find and to be a part of Christ, 18:33 it takes fighting. 18:34 It's not something that you can just lay down 18:36 and think it's going to be like the easing 18:39 on down the road, like the whiz. 18:40 It's not going to happen that way. 18:42 We have to fight to stay faithful. 18:44 We have to fight from the moment 18:45 we get up to the time we go to sleep. 18:47 We have to fight this good fight of faith 18:50 and what's before me, the Bible says, 18:52 "Lay hold on eternal life." 18:54 You see, I like to think that one day soon, 18:57 we are going to live forever. 18:59 You know, when I was a young boy getting up, 19:00 I could get up off my bed and run 19:02 and now as I'm getting old at 44, 19:04 you may not think that's old, but as I get older now, 19:07 I got to stretch a little bit before I move 19:10 and do some turns here and there, 19:12 so that my bones can warm up. 19:15 But one day soon, I won't have to worry about 19:17 stretching anymore and doing some leg raises 19:21 and getting all ready. 19:22 Why? 'Cause when eternal life is given. 19:25 Guess what? I get a new body. 19:28 But we got to fight until then. The good fight of faith. 19:32 This thing is a fight, y'all. It's not something that's easy. 19:37 We must fight to stay faithful. 19:41 Fight to stay in and fight not to give up. Why? 19:46 Because eternal life is right there. 19:49 In order to fight, Matthew 24, Matthew the 24th Chapter. 19:55 Matthew the 24th Chapter, verse 13. 19:59 So the Bible says, one, 20:01 that when we search with all our heart, we will find Him. 20:05 Timothy tells us that we have to fight 20:07 the good fight of faith and give in all our heart. 20:11 And Matthew 24:13 says, "But he that shall endure 20:17 until the end, the same shall be saved." 20:21 Not only do you need to fight, this thing takes endurance. 20:26 This race, many times is not to the swift, 20:30 but to one who can endure, 20:33 the one who can pace himself or herself. 20:37 This thing is not a race. 20:39 As I spoke to you about my 15 year old son name Isaiah. 20:42 See, what he don't realize right now 20:44 because he don't have the wisdom, I have. 20:46 If he would just keep me running steadily, 20:49 he would beat me because my endurance is low. 20:52 He doesn't know that, I won't let him see it 20:55 because if I do, then he'll take advantage of me. 20:57 Well, he may see it now, 20:59 I didn't just gave myself up but hey, hey, hey, 21:02 but I'm in the moment, so forgive the young preacher. 21:05 All right, so, if he just realize that my endurance 21:08 is not as long as his and he just keep 21:12 dribbling that ball, keep running around. 21:13 I may just have to grab him and hold him 21:15 and just like a box, just hold on to him 21:18 for a minute, but, but in this race, 21:20 it takes endurance. 21:21 You have to pace yourself. 21:23 So in my pacing to beat him I don't try to shake 'em 21:27 and take him to the hole. 21:29 I just simply bag him down with this big body. 21:32 And then I turn around and shoot it. 21:34 That's all I do and it preserves my energy, 21:38 so that in the end, he's more tired than I am. 21:42 Because I have 100 pounds over him at least 21:44 so I know he can't take this big body, 21:47 taking him down low each and every time. 21:49 And so I take out his endurance before he take out mine. 21:53 And the same way with the enemy. 21:54 He'll try to take out your endurance before anything else 21:58 because he knows once you get tired, 22:00 you are ready to quit, you are ready to give up, 22:02 you are ready to throw in the towel, 22:04 but the Bible says, keep fighting. 22:05 And the Bible said, 22:07 "Blessed is he who endures until the end." 22:10 And so this is the job that we must face. 22:13 This is what we must do. 22:15 So let's see a picture of all four of these scriptures 22:20 wrapped up in one. 22:21 Let's see a picture of this taking place 22:24 where a person is giving all they have. 22:27 A person is fighting the good fight 22:29 and a person is enduring. 22:31 Go with me to Mark Chapter 5, Mark Chapter 5. 22:36 I enjoy the Book of Mark 'cause, 22:39 for me, just me personally, the Book of Mark is a book 22:44 in which salvation is seen, 22:49 both man, woman and children. 22:53 And so we look at Mark Chapter 5, 22:56 the first 20 verses deal with a man who's a demoniac, 23:02 who is out of his mind. 23:04 Suicidal, if you may. 23:05 The disciples touch shore, this man starts growling 23:09 and the disciples, even though they are with Jesus 23:12 and just survived the storm in chapter 4. 23:16 And He said peace be still, as soon as they see this man, 23:18 they start running. 23:21 And Jesus deals with this man who has cutted himself 23:23 and no man can tame. 23:25 And the Bible says, that he calms into his 23:27 right mind and wants to go with Jesus but Jesus says, 23:31 "No, go back home and tell your friends 23:33 the good things God has done." 23:35 And our story takes us to verse 21. 23:38 And the Bible says, "And when Jesus was 23:41 passed over again by ship unto the other side, 23:45 much people gathered unto him, 23:47 and he was nigh unto the sea again." 23:49 Yesterday we spoke about... 23:51 they are always lot of people following Jesus. 23:56 Lot of people always thronging about Him. 24:00 And that could be you and I if we're not careful, 24:02 just simply following and not giving in to the Savior. 24:08 Verse 22 says, "And, behold, 24:09 there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, 24:11 Jairus by name. 24:13 And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet, 24:15 And besought Him greatly, saying, My little daughter 24:18 lieth at the point of death, I pray Thee, 24:21 come and lay hands on her, that she may be healed, 24:24 and she shall live." 24:26 Now, now here is Jairus, ruler of the synagogue, 24:29 coming to the Savior. 24:31 And there at Levi Matthew's house 24:33 and Jesus gets up instantly. 24:35 His disciples according to "Desire of Ages" 24:38 kind of stunned that Jesus would 24:39 deal with this arrogant leader 24:41 and they see that he gets up at once. 24:44 And Jesus to me, you know, 24:46 I love Jesus but Jesus' just cool. 24:49 Jesus is a cool brother, cool savior. 24:52 He's just cool, you know. Nothing gets under his skin. 24:56 He is as He is moving, "Desire of Ages" says, 24:59 He stops along the way and He heals some 25:02 who are broken hearted and He heals some 25:04 who are troubled and He heals some who are sick 25:07 and even though He knows the end from the beginning. 25:10 He knows what He can do. 25:12 Jairus has not figured that thing out yet, 25:15 so he is wondering why is this Jesus taking His time 25:18 when my daughter is losing it. 25:21 And Jesus just taking His time, stopping here, 25:24 healing somebody. 25:25 Stopping here, helping somebody and Jairus gets frantic 25:29 but along the way the story seem to take a little turn 25:34 to bring in another character in the scene of things. 25:41 And verse 25 says, "And a certain woman, 25:45 which had an issue of blood for 12 years." 25:51 A woman has a problem 12 years with an issue of blood. 25:58 Yesterday we talked about the man, 26:01 Bartimaeus who was blind, couldn't see. 26:05 Economic status must be poor. 26:06 He was begging and he was only outside. 26:09 Now we have a woman who is, has an issue, 26:15 a malady, a problem. 26:17 And sometimes, brothers and sisters, 26:19 it's not enough to just call upon Christ. 26:22 There's something more we need to do. 26:24 And I love math, and so if you would 26:27 just be with me for a moment. 26:30 Twelve years is a long time, 12 years is a 1,044 months, 26:37 12 years is 626 weeks, 26:41 12 years is 4,338 days, 26:46 12 years is 26:53 Long time. 26:54 12 years is 27:02 12 years is a long time to have a problem. 27:07 It's not anything short at all. 27:10 I thought it was long before I can graduate school 27:13 but it was 12 years this woman is dealing with one issue. 27:19 Can you imagine having one problem 27:22 that's lasting 12 years? 27:24 Can you imagine the psychological thought? 27:26 Can you imagine the frustration that takes place? 27:29 Can you imagine what goes through a person's head 27:32 that they are dealing with something for 12 long years? 27:39 When I try to do, wherever I go is 27:41 try to humanize this thing so we can, 27:45 we can all understand and apply to our lives, 12 years? 27:51 You see I'm walking on stage today because for 12 years 27:54 I dealt with two injuries on my big toe. 27:58 Because I told you, I was an athlete, 28:00 played basketball in college and ran track across country. 28:04 I know I don't look like it. Don't know judge me. 28:09 But when you become an athlete and you are playing basketball 28:12 as much as I did in high school and a little bit in college 28:15 and when I get growing and older 28:18 and people step on your toes, your big toe, 28:21 when you're younger you don't tend to think 28:23 that you need to ice it. 28:25 You think you are invincible. 28:27 You think everything is just all right 28:28 and so I felt the same way. 28:32 I didn't think one day that I'll get old and a famous word, 28:36 it's called arthritis began kicking in. 28:40 So one day I could not bend my toes 28:42 and most people walk in, your toes been, 28:45 my toes just stood still. 28:47 Now I didn't pay it too much amount, 28:49 I just kept walking and I figured, hey, 28:51 its part of getting old. 28:53 No one gave me a book on what old feels like or looks like. 28:56 So I just figured this is part of the patch. 29:00 And so for 12 years, I'm dealing with these toes. 29:04 Not one toe, two big toes. 29:08 Then I would, when I started preaching more 29:10 and being more engaged, how we get home 29:13 and them two big things would just ache. 29:19 And I finally went to the doctor and the doctor said, 29:23 you are in trouble right now. 29:26 'Cause the way they were growing with the arthritis on, 29:28 they were starting to turn. 29:32 So understand what 12 years feels like. 29:36 Understand what pain feels like. 29:38 Understand what discouragement feels like. 29:42 But this woman has an issue of blood for 12 long years 29:46 and verse 26 says this, "And had suffered many things 29:51 of many physician and had spent all that 29:54 she had and was nothing better but rather grew worse." 29:58 Now listen to me now. Help me understand something. 30:02 It's one thing to have good medical insurance. 30:07 It's a whole another thing when you have to take it 30:09 from your own pocket. 30:11 It's a whole another ball game when you take out money, 30:15 not just from your savings and your checkings 30:17 but perhaps even your IRA or your retirement fund 30:22 and you go to different doctors who supposedly specialize 30:27 in helping your situation and you find out 30:31 that in each situation, you are getting worse 30:33 and worse and worse. 30:37 Imagine the psychological drama that's taking place. 30:41 You know, you get excited when you hear 30:42 about this physician specializes in this 30:44 and so you go and you spending, they are like, 30:47 ma'am, I can't help you. 30:48 I can refer you to doctor so and so. 30:50 Then you go to doctor so and so and you feel as 30:53 though this one can do it, so you shell out some more cash 30:55 and he says, ma'am, I'm sorry, I just can't. 30:57 How about you try doctor such and such over there? 31:00 And then you go to doctor such and such, 31:01 and you go all the way of it, 31:02 and by the time you get to your last doctor, 31:06 and the doctor tells you, 31:07 ma'am, there's nothing more anybody can do. 31:12 You are flat broke. 31:16 And not only that, you spend all this time 31:18 going to these different doctors 31:19 and you find yourself getting worse. 31:24 So you've been dealing with something for 12 years. 31:28 You are now broke. 31:31 Medicare, medicate is not going kick in, you are broke. 31:36 And the people who specializes in this thing tells you 31:40 there's nothing you can do. 31:42 Nothing they can do, excuse me. 31:46 Can you imagine feeling rejected? 31:52 Discouraged? In all these things? 31:56 Can you really imagine how this woman is really feeling? 31:59 Let me try to give as close to understand as I can. 32:05 I tend to get personal but I have a mother 32:07 that I love to death, who is going on 70 years old 32:12 and at age 12, interesting, 12 years, Jairus' daughter. 32:17 She contracted polio in Ross Hill, Mississippi. 32:22 Took the vaccination for polio and still contracted polio 32:27 and there's no cure for polio and as she's gotten older, 32:32 she is gotten worse. 32:35 We just had a stint of being in a hospital for 3 days 32:38 a couple of months ago 32:39 and I see the dejection on her face. 32:45 And no matter how many doctors I have taken her to, 32:47 no matter how many people say, it's this problem, 32:49 it's that problem, we've done natural stuff, 32:51 we've done medical stuff, we've done almost everything. 32:56 And it just does not seem to work. 33:01 And this last stint, where being in a hospital, 33:06 she looked at me. 33:09 She said, son, I'm tired. 33:12 And my mother, I've had her with me since 2002. 33:18 This is 2015, for 13 years. 33:21 You can say I've been the parent now, 33:23 taking care of my mother, because it's interesting 33:25 they take care of us and then we take care of them. 33:29 And for me, it's hard watching this bulwark of a woman, 33:32 who raised me by herself. 33:34 Only this tall and her fists is this big because 33:37 when she punch you, she would knock you clear out. 33:41 And she can hit so hard. 33:43 I didn't think my mother had it in her. 33:45 I thought Superman and Wonder Woman 33:46 was just a Marvel comic but it was real life in my home. 33:51 But I'm watching this bulwark of a woman, 33:54 now get feeble, and feeble. 33:58 And this last stint in the hospital, 34:01 and the doctors were talking about in a case 34:04 of resuscitation, do we have your permission. 34:07 My mother said, no. 34:10 So as the son listening to this, 34:14 I started crying. 34:16 And I did when I said, momma, what did you... 34:18 what did you say? 34:20 She said, I said no. She said, I'm tired. 34:23 I get up every day and my back hurts. 34:27 I get up every day, my legs hurt. 34:29 I get up every day, my internal organs are hurting. 34:35 And I'm tired right now. 34:39 I've been through this, to this doctor and that doctor. 34:42 I've done this, I've done that 34:44 and situation is not getting better. 34:48 So I said, I said, Mr. Doctor, can you step out a minute 34:51 before you put this on a chart? 34:54 I said, momma, have you lost your mind? 34:56 I said, momma, I'd rather you sore than 34:59 not have you at all. 35:00 She says, son, you are not living this life. 35:05 You don't know how painful this thing gets. 35:10 You don't feel what I'm feeling. 35:14 So here I am, so sometimes 35:17 when I think about it, 35:18 it's still fresh, it gets to me. 35:22 I couldn't even imagine the thought of 35:24 not having my mother around. 35:29 But I can understand. 35:30 I can empathize with her because I watch her pain. 35:35 I watch what she go through, I'm right there 35:37 when she can't put certain things on. 35:39 I have to help put her clothes on 35:41 or help her reach places she can't reach. 35:43 I'm right there. 35:45 And so I can imagine this woman, y'all. 35:47 Listen to me now, has been going through this 35:49 for 12 long years and nothing has gotten better. 35:53 It has gotten worse. 35:57 And not only that, listen to me now. 36:01 Not only that, but she missed Christ 36:04 when He was in Capernaum teaching. 36:07 She went to go see Christ and she missed Him. 36:10 And not only that but, dare she missed Him 36:12 when she heard that He was at Levi Matthew's house, 36:15 she got there too late. 36:19 So imagine 12 years. 36:24 This issue, then you missed a Savior twice. 36:29 Imagine the psychological effect 36:31 that you are going through. 36:33 On top of that, go to Leviticus 15 36:36 for a moment, Leviticus 15. 36:39 Now she has to deal with this. Leviticus 15. 36:42 Leviticus, the 15th chapter. 36:47 Leviticus 15:19 more particular. 36:52 Leviticus 15:19, the Bible says this, 36:56 "And if a woman have an issue, 36:59 and her issue in her flesh be blood, 37:02 she shall be put apart seven days, 37:05 and whosoever toucheth her 37:06 shall be unclean until the evening. 37:09 And every thing that she lieth upon in her 37:11 separation shall be unclean, every thing also that 37:14 she sitteth upon shall be unclean." 37:18 Going down to verse 25, the Bible says, 37:20 "And if a woman have an issue of her blood 37:22 many days out of the time of her separation, 37:25 or if it run beyond the time of her separation, 37:29 all the days of the issue of her uncleanness 37:32 shall be as the days of her separation, 37:35 she shall be unclean. 37:37 Every bed where she lieth all the days of her issue 37:40 shall be unto her as the bed of her separation, 37:43 and whatsoever she sitteth upon shall be unclean, 37:47 as the uncleanness of her separation. 37:49 And whosoever toucheth those things shall be unclean, 37:53 and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, 37:57 and be unclean until evening. 37:59 And so on top of all that, 38:03 she can't be around anybody. 38:08 So on top of having this issue for 12 years, 38:11 on top of spending all her money, 38:13 on top of going to every doctor and getting worse, 38:17 on top of missing Christ twice, she can't be around people. 38:22 She's all by herself. Imagine that. 38:29 Nobody, she can't get in the car for 12 years 38:33 and go on a nice, little date with her husband. 38:36 She can't lay in a bed with her husband for 12 years. 38:40 She can't participate in Thanksgiving meal. 38:42 For 12 years, no Christmas time. 38:44 For 12 years, she can't hold the new grandbaby. 38:49 For 12 years, she can't kiss her husband good night. 38:52 I love you, honey. 38:53 For 12 years, she can't do anything to be bothered. 38:59 She can't attend graduation and she can't attend church. 39:03 For 12 years. 39:06 She's all by herself for 12 long years. 39:11 She can't celebrate any anniversary 39:13 between her and her husband. 39:16 She's missed 12 years of her children's life. 39:18 For 12 years, no Christmas gifts. 39:22 For 12 years, y'all. No camp meetings, 12 years. 39:26 Can't come and observe a baptism, 12 years. 39:31 For 12 long years, she's all by herself. 39:35 Now it's bad enough if you by yourself 39:36 for a couple of months or a week or so, 39:38 but for 12 long years, y'all. 39:43 It make anybody go crazy. 39:46 She can't call the pastor and say, 39:47 pastor, I need you to pray with me. 39:49 He said, lady, you are unclean. I can't come in your vicinity. 39:53 The elders can't come and see her. 39:54 The deacons can't come over the deaconess can't 39:57 can't take some song over and sing, 39:59 can't take communion for 12 long years, 40:05 12 long years. 40:09 You can only imagine the psychological 40:14 process she's going through. 40:16 Maybe she thought about ending it all, I don't know. 40:20 But 12 years is a long time. 40:24 I can't even remember what I did 12 years ago. 40:28 I can't re-detail, that's how long it's been. 40:31 12 years ago, my son was 3. 40:34 He weren't thinking about playing me in basketball. 40:37 12 years is a long time. I've been in ministry 14 years. 40:43 12 years. We are back to Mark, chapter 5. 40:50 This lady is desperate. 40:52 On top of that, blood drains, 40:58 takes away your energy. 41:00 So it was not like she had a lot of energy on top of it. 41:04 I have a friend who is anemic. 41:07 I tell you the truth. 41:09 If she don't take her iron pills, 41:11 she's out for the count. 41:13 No energy at all. Sleep most of the day. 41:19 12 years. 41:26 If we end the story there, it's no use of preaching. 41:31 It's no use of encouraging anyone. 41:34 Everybody would soon just want to give up, 41:38 but thank God there's a Christ that knows 41:43 how long my 12 years has been. 41:46 That knows how many a long time I've had. 41:51 The verse 27 says it this way, "When she had heard of Jesus." 41:59 Come on now. I could... 42:02 Today at just certain parts, this, you got to excuse me 42:05 because there are these things I just enjoy all by myself. 42:08 See, there are times we read the Bible 42:10 and we just read it like a novel, 42:12 we read it like a book. 42:13 But see, a preacher don't need much to start 42:15 preaching on something. 42:17 So, see, I get excited when it simply says, 42:20 "When she had heard of Jesus." 42:21 See, that right there takes me to another plateau 42:25 of understanding when she had heard. 42:27 Didn't see him, she's missed him twice. 42:29 She's been discouraged and she's been dismayed 42:31 and she's been alone and she's perhaps been suicidal 42:35 but the Bible says, "When she had heard of Jesus." 42:38 See, that right there is my wing in, 42:40 that right there is the key to unlock the door. 42:42 "When she had heard of Jesus." Why? 42:44 Because Romans 10 says, "Faith cometh by hearing, 42:47 and hearing by the word of God." 42:49 See, she had heard. 42:50 Remember, Bartimaeus heard that Jesus 42:52 was coming and he started crying out. 42:54 See, sometimes you got to hear. 42:56 You may not see it, you can just hear it. 43:01 Always easy said than done. 43:02 See, sometimes we hear about certain preachers 43:04 going to be in the area, all we do is hear it 43:07 and we flock there. 43:09 Or if you hear there's a good party, 43:11 you have to be there. 43:12 You just heard about it and you find yourself there. 43:15 See, sometimes if you find out that there's a good restaurant, 43:17 you just hear it and you find yourself there. 43:20 See, I was told when I got here, 43:22 I love Chinese food. 43:23 Even though I'm a black man, I was told that there's 43:26 a good Chinese place in this place, 43:28 I heard about it. 43:30 Went to it, went back today all by myself. 43:32 Sometimes you just hear stuff and it change your life. 43:37 So this woman just heard that Jesus was around. 43:41 See, I don't know what she heard, 43:43 but here's what I do know. 43:45 Whatever she heard, perhaps prompted 43:47 in a sense of excitement. 43:50 It prompted her to do something different 43:52 than what she did before. 43:53 Maybe she heard in John, chapter 2, 43:56 that he turned water into wine. 43:58 I don't know. 43:59 Maybe she heard in Mark, chapter 1, 44:01 that Peter's mother-in-law was healed. 44:03 I don't know what she heard. 44:05 Maybe she heard that in John, chapter 5, 44:07 that He healed a man at a pool in Bethesda. 44:10 I don't know again, I don't know what 44:13 she heard but what I do know 44:14 is that when she heard it, she moved. 44:16 Maybe she heard in Mark, chapter 1 44:18 that He healed a leper. 44:20 I don't know. 44:22 Maybe she heard that blind Bartimaeus 44:24 himself was healed. 44:25 I don know. 44:26 Maybe she heard in Mark, chapter 2 that four brothers 44:29 took their homeboy and tore the roof off 44:32 the place and lowered him down 44:34 and He got up and start walking. 44:35 I don't know, she heard something. 44:39 I don't know. 44:40 Maybe she heard in Luke 18, of the woman that was walking 44:44 like this for 18 years and when she found out 44:47 it was Jesus and Jesus just said, 44:49 "Woman, thou art loosed." 44:50 And she just start shaking it up and shaking it up 44:53 and just walks straight. 44:54 I don't know what she heard but she heard something. 44:59 Maybe she heard in Mark, chapter 5 45:01 that He healed a demoniac. 45:04 I don't know but all I do know is that 45:06 she heard something. 45:07 And it's good enough for me. 45:09 See, I heard that there's a Savior 45:11 that can save a wretch like me, 45:13 so I start following this Savior. 45:15 I went from Black Panther to black pastor 45:18 and I've been happy ever since. 45:20 Are you with me so far? I just heard about this Savior. 45:25 Sometimes all you got to do is hear it. 45:27 You don't have to see it, you just got to hear 45:29 what he can do and that's enough for me. 45:31 See, see, she heard and I can imagine what she heard. 45:34 Oh, shoot, I got one more chance to this thing. 45:37 Why? 'Cause three strikes, you are out. 45:42 Whatever she heard, and it prompted her to move on. 45:46 And this is where the fight is in. 45:48 See, see, I told you that God does not... 45:50 Listen to me now. 45:52 God does not have any thoughts of us of evil, but of peace. 45:55 He wants to bring stuff in our life to a sense of peace. 46:00 But He wants us to fight and give our all 46:03 and so now these scriptures are kicking in. 46:09 The verse 27 continue, says, when she heard of Jesus, 46:13 she came in the press behind, 46:15 well, she came in the crowd behind 46:17 and touched His garments and, "For she is said..." 46:20 Listen to me now. 46:22 "For she said, If I may touch but His clothes..." 46:25 Come on now, if I may touch but his clothes 46:28 not his body, if I may touch but His clothes, 46:31 then I can be made whole. 46:33 See, see, God understands it 46:35 and this is know clear this thing is for me, 46:38 as I'm reading "Desire of Ages" and she says that, 46:41 she says the Savior knew that He had a daughter 46:44 who had an issue for 12 long years 46:47 and He start walking in her direction. 46:49 See, see, Jairus thought that this thing is all about 46:52 him but he had a daughter who's been struggling for 12 years. 46:55 See, Jairus had a daughter that was 12 years old, 46:58 that was about to die and sooner die 47:00 but Christ had a daughter also for 12 years, 47:02 that's been struggling and so he did say, 47:05 "I'm not going to let you strike out again." 47:07 Amen. Hallelujah, somebody. 47:08 I'm going to walk in your path, I'm going to slow myself down 47:12 because I know that your energy has been lost 47:15 because you been bleeding for 12 years. 47:17 So I'm going to move slow in this thing to make sure 47:20 that this time you don't miss me. 47:22 This time you won't be too late. 47:24 This time I got you right where I want you 47:26 So He walked in her direction purposely. 47:29 You need to understand something today, 47:31 that when Christ wants you, He's going to walk your way. 47:34 He's not going to take a detour. 47:35 He's not going to miss the turn. 47:37 He's going to walk your way. 47:43 Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness. 47:46 But you can see her fighting this thing. 47:48 She can, you can see her fighting and listen, 47:50 theologians believe that she wasn't standing up 47:53 like us, they believe. 47:56 I wish I could crawl up in here, 47:57 but they believe she was crawling. 47:59 And you can imagine. She's already embarrassed. 48:04 And I'm not even talking about perhaps the smell. 48:06 She's probably self conscious of herself. 48:09 She's probably self conscious that, so many folk, 48:13 how am I going to get through, I don't have the energy 48:15 to make it through and she's crawling. 48:18 You ever crawl in desperation 48:20 and you just don't have the energy. 48:23 And it's hard to put one foot above the next 48:26 and then to reach out. 48:29 It takes a lot of energy, it's not as simple 48:32 as you may think especially when you are tired. 48:35 There are times I watch my mother slowly reach her hand 48:39 out to me when I can just be like, boom. 48:40 But my mother is like this at times and it takes 48:43 some energy so I can imagine this woman on her knees 48:47 struggling and not on concrete, but sand, 48:50 struggling and she sees Him in a distance 48:53 and she's excited about it, but it just seems so far away 48:57 and all of a sudden, the Savior is right in her vicinity. 49:03 And as He's in her vicinity. 49:06 The Bible says, listen to me now. 49:09 Bible says, "And straightaway..." 49:12 Verse 29, "the fountain of her blood 49:15 was dried up, and she felt in her body 49:18 that she was healed of the plague. 49:22 She was healed of the plague." 49:25 Listen, I have such an imagination that I believe, 49:29 brothers and sisters, that the moment 49:31 she touched but the helm of His garment, 49:34 the moment she reached out and touched but 49:35 the helm of His garment, that all of a sudden, 49:38 Bath and Body Works just started floating in through 49:40 and she had a cucumber melon smell about her. 49:42 I don't know but it was the smell that 49:44 stood out like never before. 49:45 You know how a woman just walks into a room 49:47 and you are like, and I'm not talking about 49:48 you married because you can't do that 49:50 but you can imagine when a woman walk in room 49:52 and you are like, oh, man. 49:54 That was, that smelt good. Where she go now? 49:56 Some of you married men probably do it 49:57 but you don't want to get caught doing it. 49:59 I'm not telling you to do that 50:00 but you just better be careful. 50:02 So I can imagine that all of a sudden, 50:03 all the attention's on her. 50:05 Why? Because she has a smell like no one else. 50:09 She has a presence like no on else. 50:11 And the Bible says that instantly, 50:13 instantly she was healed. 50:17 And why, because God says, 50:19 "I want to give you a future and a hope." 50:21 Somebody say amen out there. 50:23 "I want to give you a future and a hope." Why? 50:25 Because I don't think anything evil of you, 50:27 nothing but peace. 50:28 I've watched you for 12 years. I've watched you struggle. 50:31 I watched you go through the pain 50:33 and I'm going to come at the right time, 50:37 at the right moment. 50:39 See, sometimes we think that God doesn't know 50:42 what He's doing but God always knows what He's doing. 50:46 He understands timing better than we do. 50:50 He understands timing. 50:52 See that some of us, that if He grab us 50:55 at the wrong time in our mind, we won't be right, 50:59 but He grabs us at the right time that both can 51:01 come and meet and have each other. 51:06 He crossed her path at the right time. 51:09 He could have crossed it Capernaum. 51:10 He could've crossed it at Levi Matthew's house 51:12 but He crossed it at the right time, 51:16 'cause she was fighting the good fight of faith. 51:18 She was giving all she got and her endurance lasted 51:26 and here's your question. 51:28 All these people in the crowd again, 51:30 how does that one person gets healed? 51:34 It's not about the crowd sometimes, 51:37 it's about you and Jesus. 51:38 You can't worry about everybody else's doing, 51:41 you have to worry about what you are doing. 51:43 You have to understand that God calls at the right time 51:46 and sometimes, listen to me now, 51:48 it's not enough to just call. 51:51 For some of us, we have to reach out and grab. 51:55 Sometimes you have to reach out and grab 51:58 the Savior and the Bible says, "Jesus stopped immediately." 52:02 Listen to me now. 52:04 He stopped immediately and said, "Who touched Me?" 52:06 And Peter being Peter said, 52:08 "Lord, You got everybody touching you." 52:10 He's like, "No, no, no. 52:11 There's something different about this touch right here. 52:13 There's something different about what's taking place." 52:16 See, see, when your healing comes, 52:18 God was stopped instantly to recognize you 52:20 and He wanted to make sure that no superstition was there. 52:23 He says, baby girl. 52:24 I can imagine, baby girl, 52:26 your faith has made thee whole. 52:28 See, we are here today because 52:30 of the Foundations of our Faith. 52:31 See, all we need is a little bit of faith, 52:33 the size of a mustard seed. 52:34 She says if I were just to reach out and touch 52:36 the helm of His garment, not grab Him, 52:39 not come before Him and say, "Yo, Jesus. Help me." 52:41 She says, "I just want to touch a little bit 52:43 of what you got, Lord." 52:47 Don't take a whole lot. 52:50 Don't take a theological study to come to Christ. 52:53 It just takes some willingness, 52:55 mix that with some faith and God can heal. 53:00 So the Bible says that in Philippians 4:19 53:03 that my God shall supply all my needs. 53:07 Not some of my needs but all of my needs and sometimes, 53:13 brothers and sisters, you have to reach out 53:16 while believing to grab what you want. 53:20 And so it goes back to the story of my mother 53:23 who had been in the hospital 53:24 and the doctors could not find what was going. 53:27 I said, momma, now is the time. 53:29 It's acceptable time for you to reach out 53:32 and grab God's hand with faith. 53:34 And we start praying a different prayer. 53:36 You see, when the faith kicks in, 53:38 you don't pray the same type of prayer. 53:40 Oh, Lord, why are we here? Lord, why You got me? 53:42 Why my momma? We've been at church. 53:45 No, we are praying, Lord, raise her up. 53:47 Get up out of here. 53:49 There are some doctors who don't believe that need to see, 53:50 there's the great physician in the room, why? 53:53 Because we are told the Ministry of Healing 53:54 that when Jesus walked into the sick room, 53:56 all diseases are gone and so we started praying that prayer. 54:00 We started reaching up, 54:02 so we can reach down and bring us up. 54:04 And my mother walked out that hospital, 54:05 they couldn't figure out why she was there. 54:07 Somebody say, amen. 54:08 They said, I don't even know why you are here, Mrs. Jackson. 54:10 I don't know either, so momma, let's get up out of here. 54:14 Sometimes you got to reach, you got to reach. 54:19 You can't just call. 54:20 Calling is good for some but some of us got to reach. 54:26 You got to reach. 54:27 Reaching sometimes is not easy. It reminds me of a story. 54:32 Two Native Americans, one was older, 54:35 one was younger and they were out fishing. 54:39 And as they were out fishing, the older Native American 54:42 start hearing cracking in the ice and he told junior, 54:48 he said, junior, come on to this side. 54:51 Junior's like, oh, old man. There's no cracking. 54:55 You are hearing things. Your hearing is going bad. 54:58 It's all right. 55:01 The older Native American said, 55:04 listen, I need you to jump right now. 55:07 Don't wait 'cause it could come. 55:08 Quickly jump right now. Come on this side right now. 55:12 He says, old man, I'm still a young spring chicken. 55:17 If it start cracking too quick, 55:18 I'll just jump and it'll be all right. 55:21 The older Native American says, I need you to jump now. 55:24 I need you to jump now. 55:25 I need you to come on this side now. 55:28 Young man again says, I got you, old man. 55:32 All of the sudden, the ice cracked 55:35 and it start splitting real fast 55:36 and it caught the younger by surprise 55:40 and it petrified him, he couldn't move. 55:44 And the older one said, just jump! 55:45 Come on. Jump right now! 55:46 Jump right now! Jump right now! 55:49 Come on. Jump right now! 55:51 And he continues to just look petrified 55:54 and he couldn't move. 55:57 And as the older Native American watched him 56:00 go out into the sea, if he had only jumped, 56:04 he would have been saved. 56:06 Sometimes, we have to do what's not comfortable for us, 56:10 which may require a little jump, 56:13 which may require a little reach. 56:15 Sometimes we have to go outside and realize 56:19 that if we really won't change, then we have to reach, 56:23 becomes uncomfortable reach. 56:25 We maybe behind the crowd, 56:26 but there's that healing for you. 56:29 If you go a couple of books over in Mark, 56:31 you'll see that this woman that Christ healed 56:34 all of a sudden now whatever city Jesus went to, 56:36 they start touching but the helm of His garment 56:38 and the Bible said, "That they become whole." 56:40 Where do you think they got that from? 56:42 From the woman. 56:45 See, you have to understand that 56:46 your healing is not just for you 56:48 but your healing is to help somebody else 56:51 see Jesus and to know that's the same Jesus 56:53 can help them like He helped you. 56:56 So it's never one way, it's always two way, 57:00 so that you can help somebody. 57:02 So if you just decided you don't want to jump, 57:07 then you may hurt somebody who need to jump. 57:12 So as we continue, we need you to jump today, 57:16 need you just to reach out. 57:18 Just Give It One More Shot. Why? 57:23 Because your healing is right there. 57:27 Sometimes it's not enough to call, 57:29 you just have to give it one more shot 57:33 and the Savior that I know would just walk 57:35 in your direction nice and slow, 57:38 like He is strolling on a good Sabbath morning. 57:42 Strolling and He may even pause so you can reach back, 57:46 touch Him and keep moving. 57:48 Father in Heaven, please help us to reach. 57:52 Please help us to come to the point, Lord, 57:54 where we can touch You in a special way. 57:57 We thank you, Lord, for all You do. 57:59 In His name. Amen. |
Revised 2015-12-03