Antioch Fellowship Church | 6 September 2020

[Music] so [Music] so [Music] so [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] fellowship for the kingdom of god [Music] [Music] welcome [Music] good morning antioch family and friends and welcome to another live worship experience here at the antioch church for those of you who are joining us at home good morning and we are so excited that you joined us in just a moment we will participate in corporate praise worship and prayer and we encourage you to sing and to praise and to pray with us and just remember god can do anything shortly thereafter we will hear a word from pastor john fazen from nashville tennessee one way to honor god is through worship and another is by giving if you're interested you can do so by logging on to our app or by texting afnbc779 i hope you're ready to worship because i am and we will in five four three two one [Music] so shortly thereafter we will hear a word from pastor john fazen from nashville tennessee one way to honor god is through worship and another is by giving if you're interested you can do so by logging on to our app or by texting afnbc77977 i hope you're ready to worship because i am and we will in five four three two one good morning antioch come on let's clap our hands [Music] [Music] great [Music] down [Applause] is [Music] [Music] me [Applause] [Music] hey is [Music] praise him [Music] see [Music] [Music] he's a very present healthy please [Music] me [Music] your name is [Music] is [Music] come on somebody bless him come on somebody bless him is he not good is he not good is hallelujah [Music] hallelujah it's a simple song like of worship our grace [Music] [Music] is is is come on you can sing with us your name is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] your mind [Music] say [Music] [Applause] your name to [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] is [Music] sing with me how grace is our god the world will see how great our grace [Music] come on if you know what help us lift it this morning how great [Music] [Music] how great [Music] we give you glory lord we give you honor jesus your greatest mighty god there's nothing like you there's nothing before you we give you glory come and lift your voice all over the world we give you glory for your reign and your rule we give you glory come on and grab your hands and you know that the lord is great hallelujah [Music] would you bow your heads now and pray with me [Music] eternal god our father [Music] lord you are great mighty are the works of your hands god thank you for giving us eyes to see it thank you for giving us ears to hear it thank you for giving us life to experience it thank you for being great god we come thank you for this day that wasn't promised to us we thank you because you are god thank you for allowing us to be the recipients of your grace god we thank you now for allowing us to experience worship lord the truth is you know exactly what we stand in need of thank you for answering our needs god pray now for those who are on the sound of my voice we pray for the person who stands on our left for the person who stands on our right knowing not even what it is that they're going through thank you for being great enough to address it god we paul is now asking for forgiveness of our sins admitting before you that we've messed up we've done things that were outside of your will we've left some things undone that you are assigned to our hands to do and so we come now asking for forgiveness of our sins god we pray for those among us that are sick we pray for those among us that are bereaved lord we pray for this country in which we live you know what it is that we stand in need of so we ask god that you will speak to it that you will address it god we thank you for this day we thank you for the reason we've gathered we thank you for this worship experience god has a church family now as we prepare to turn the page to the next chapter of our history we lift it up before you god we thank you for the life the legacy of dr carrie don wesley lord we thank you for the life of pastor christopher keith wesley lord we pray and ask that you will just cover the antioch church that you will watch over us that you'll continue to guide us that you'll continue to lead us and direct us that you will have your way within us that you allow us to continue to serve as a beacon of light for this community god we want you to look at us and be pleased help us to be the church that you're pleased with have your way with us jesus lord we pray for pastor faison this morning as he prepares us and declare your word we need to hear a word from you and so we ask that you'll give him clarity of thought that you'll give him boldness of speech and that you'll prepare our hearts and our minds for a worship experience for a life-changing word so that we'll leave this place better than the way that we've arrived we pray now that you will be pleased in the name of jesus we pray amen would you give god a hand of praise amen amen [Music] thank you for tuning in to this week at antioch to our in-house audience we're so happy to see you thank you for being in the building today as it is a special one and it's everybody streaming online thank you for tuning in we pray all is well and as always we miss you we love you and we can't wait to see you again and to all of our visitors thank you for tuning in you chose antioch out of all places and for that we're grateful thank you for tuning in with us this week and we look forward to seeing you again if you could please take out the time fill out a connect card via our app or our website so that we can connect with you and invite you to join our family of faith and as a general reminder you can give by either visiting us online at afnbc.org by tapping into the antioch app or by simply texting to afnbc277 777 and again thank you for tuning in to this week at antioch so this thursday as always join us for drive through thursdays drive through thursday will take place from 11 until 1 and from five until seven and as always at that time you can pick up a food box you can update your membership information pay your tithes or offering or just come by to see some familiar faces i'm ambry walker the director of the children's ministry here at antioch and we just want to let you know we have some new things rolling out and i'm going to give you a little bit of information now our new name is kids point and we hope that you like this thing you enjoy this name and just be on the lookout in the coming weeks for more information on our new ministry name fellas if you haven't already you're late you need to register for the manhood men's conference taking place this friday and saturday online again online there is no reason why you shouldn't be in the house to watch what we have in store for the 34th anniversary here at antioch so if you haven't already tell a friend to tell a friend that he needs to be there and make sure you two are registered all you have to do is go to afnbc.org to register for the conference and get the link for limited access for the afnbc 34th anniversary manhood men's conference and then ladies it's your turn the sister summit is back and better than ever all online and you all have already registered in mass quantities and we think that you can go even further and tell a friend to tell a friend that she needs to be there too so make sure that you're registered online and that your best friends are registered too so they can tune in for the sister summit taking place friday and saturday september 18th and 19th for our 34th anniversary here at antioch and then the following week september 26th we are celebrating 34 years through song you want to make sure you're tuned in for the 34th anniversary concert and then on sunday make sure you're registered to be in the house if you want to be here because pastor jimmy baldwin sure will be and he will be delivering a message like one we've never heard before for the 34th anniversary here at antioch and on that same day we'll have a memorial tribute more details on that to come join us for the fall revival taking place again monday and tuesday september 28th and 29th headed by pastor jimmy baldwin again you don't want to miss any of these 34th anniversary activities so make sure you're registered you can do so by visiting afnbc.org or tapping into the antioch app well that's all i have for you this week i hope you're fired up just as i am my name is alex smith and have a blessed week i was glad when they said to me let us go into the house of the lord it is such a joy and privilege for us to gather together to worship on this morning make no mistake about it we have come to worship the lord today and we are so grateful that you have joined us in the room and for those who are watching online thank you again uh for joining us this morning today i am so honored and so privileged uh to present and introduce uh to our antioch family of faith our our guest preacher for the hour i was telling pastor brandon i guess a couple weeks ago that one of the most interesting things about this season is uh so many people that i've looked up to for so long have been so open and willing to reach out to me and uh give advice and give sound wisdom and and and pour into me at every at every conceivable uh moment and that that is how a relationship is formed between myself and the speaker of the hour i've i've long been appreciative and grateful for the ministry of pastor john faison from a distance and not long after february pastor faison reached out to me just to say he was checking on me and wanted to to be a source of wisdom and knowledge and since then he if i text he takes right back if you know i ask for some time he'll hop on the zoom and chat with me and so i'm so grateful today uh that pastor faizen has joined us from nashville tennessee where he pastors the watson grove baptist church there in nashville he is without a doubt one of the frontline leaders um in this and one of the most needed voices in the church for this hour and so pray with him and for him following the selections from our guests worshipers worshipers at heart from they came all the way from east texas to hang with us this morning we're so grateful for you all thank you for being here following other selections from worshipers at heart the next voice you will hear is that of pastor john faison of the watson grove baptist church in nashville tennessee [Music] come on clap your hands all over this place [Music] i don't know about y'all but god is all that i need you breathe [Music] me me [Music] me [Music] me [Music] [Music] is [Music] is [Music] me [Music] [Music] me [Music] me [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] on a wednesday [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] every eye [Music] say [Music] i need you [Music] somebody bless him somebody bless him somebody bless him somebody bless his name [Music] hallelujah if you really love them lich your hands hallelujah i don't know about y'all but my soul loves jesus have i got a witness [Music] my soul loves [Music] jesus [Music] what's my heart [Music] oh angels in heaven serenade me but even angel's voices can i worship you for me see lord i give you my heart and worship from my [Music] [Applause] [Music] to love you ever more loves jesus [Music] my soul [Music] is oh one day [Applause] [Music] is [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] loves oh no matter what i'm going through no matter what i've been through i love [Music] him [Music] [Music] she's [Music] water jesus jesus oh my soul loves jesus [Music] [Music] if you really love him come on just meditate on him [Music] come on just meditate on him hallelujah [Music] [Music] she's [Music] [Music] jesus ain't no other name like say jesus [Music] [Applause] [Music] say [Music] [Applause] jesus [Music] bye does anybody love jesus today i will bless the lord at all times and his praise shall continually be in my mouth my soul shall make her boast in the lord the humble shall hear thereof and be glad o magnify the lord with me and let us exalt his name together for i sought the lord and he heard me and he delivered me from all of my fears oh taste and see that the lord is good blessed is the man that trusted in him listen this is my first time in in-person worship in about six months y'all gonna have to forgive me but i wish somebody would just help me for a few moments honor the god of our salvation from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same our god is worthy worthy to be praised hallelujah glory to god blessed be the name of our god would you do me a favor right where you are right where you are let's pause go to god in prayer oh lord our lord how excellent is your name in all the earth god we honor you for this magnanimous and magnificent moment we bless you that your favor has not run out on our lives we thank you that your mercies are still renewed every morning that grace still goes before us that your power and your strength are still evident and present in our lives thank you for being faithful when we were faithless thank you for being good to us giving us things we don't deserve no things we could manufacture or create ourselves you look beyond our faults that doesn't mean you didn't see them you just looked past them so that you could see our needs thank you thank you for this moment of celebration today a bridging of two seasons a wonderful strategic and powerful pivotal moment in the life of this church in the life of the kingdom god it's our prayer today that our ears will be open to hear what you want to say it's our prayer that we will be discerning so that we can decipher what the spirit wants to say i thank you for life that used to be a simple prayer these days it means a little bit more i thank you for health that used to be something we just gloss over but today god it means something i thank you for strength [Music] used to be something we jump out of bed and take for granted god we've been hanging out long enough with you now to understand that it's in you we live we move and we have a being you don't always remove the storm but you are a shelter in the stormy blast the name of the lord is still a strong tower the righteous run in and we are safe thank you for being a good god we bless you for this moment of worship we thank you for ushering us into this space that we might now prepare to hear from you so lord it's my prayer that you let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart allow it to be acceptable in your sight o lord my strength and my redeemer god preached through me preach to me preach for me send a word so your people will be edified but in all things it's your name that receives the glory god i bless you for the treasure that you've placed in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of god and not of us punish not your people now for the frailty of your preacher god allow me to say it the way you want it say it lord my power is not enough never has been i need yours my strength is insufficient i need you have your way today do what only you can do and say what only you can say and we will be careful intentional to give you glory honor and praise both now and forever the blessed people of god said amen come on if you believe he's already begun give god a praise in the house today oh you can do better than that come on give god a praise in the house today hallelujah listen you may be seated in the presence of the lord i certainly want to honor the spirit of christ that is present in this place and i'm grateful grateful so grateful to god the opportunity to be able to share in this auspicious occasion and this pivotal moment in the life of the antioch fellowship church i've heard so much about you but grateful to be able to share today i wouldn't you would help me to praise god and help me to honor god for the pastor of this people the angel of this assembly amen my friend my brother pastor christopher wesley god bless you man hallelujah praise the lord praise the lord excited excited about what god is doing and is going to do the life of pastor wesley i often tell folks that when god wants to bless you he doesn't send you stuff god wants to bless you he sends you people and often your ability to navigate the blessing depends upon how you handle the relationship too fast one more time i say when god wants to bless you it doesn't give you stuff that gives you things that gives you people your ability to enjoy and embrace the blessing often hinges on how you manage relationships stop asking god to bless you if you won't treat people right because god will respond i already blessed you you just mishandled it you've been given a blessing and pastor wesley [Applause] you have my prayer my prayer is that in this season that you manage the relationship well he has a charge he knows the weight that he has to carry let me take that back no you don't you don't know yet he's got a glimpse of it but the weight gets solidified as you take the journey [Music] but i believe he's invested and he's all in [Music] but what he needs is people to pray for him he needs people to stand with him he needs folks who can be trusted when he's not around to be the same person he is they are when he is around i'm preaching better than y'all saying amen man is the relationship well antioch fellowship we had a previous season where you managed it well it's a new season you still got to manage it well honor i honor the legacy of pastor kerry wesley it is sir isaac newton who said if we're able to see far it's because we stand on the shoulders of giants we praise god for the life the legacy and the leadership pastor kerry wesley we also honor the wesley family amen god bless you certainly praise god for you grateful for this opportunity to share y'all i don't have a lot to say but i have a word that the lord gave me and i just believe in doing what the lord says so if you go with me in your bibles to the book of nehemiah chapter two nehemiah chapter two we're gonna begin at verse 16 today i'm reading amen i'm reading from the new living translation the new living translation nehemiah chapter 2 beginning at verse 16. i always give love to fellow nashville homie elder dwayne hi bless you man pleasure pleasure pleasure mary good to see you nehemiah chapter 2 beginning at verse 16. when you have it let it be known by saying amen if you don't have it say hold on we're holding nehemiah chapter 2 beginning at verse 16. now i need y'all to pray for me today i told you this is the first time i've preached two faces in six months um i'm i'm used to preaching with no help so i don't need a whole lot so if you give me some i might hurt myself so i need you to be i need you to be praying today nehemiah chapter two beginning at verse 16. amen from the new living translation here's what it says the city officials did not know i had been out there or what i was doing for i had not yet said anything to anyone about my plans i had not yet spoken to the jewish leaders the priests the nobles the officials or anyone else in the administration but now i said to them you know very well what trouble we are in jerusalem lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire let us rebuild the wall of jerusalem and end this disgrace then i told them about how the gracious hand of god had been on me about my conversation with the king they replied it once yes let's rebuild the wall so they began the good work but when sand ballot tobiah and geshem the arab heard of our plan they scoffed contemptuously what are you doing are you rebelling against the king they asked i replied the god of heaven will help us succeed we his servants will start rebuilding this wall but you have no share legal right or historic claim in jerusalem this is the word of the lord might the people of god say amen amen you may be seated in the presence of the lord i want to talk to david holy spirit's guidance with your prayers from the subject we need what we don't want we need what we don't want i i i must be honest uh and up front pastor wesley this message is directly aimed at you it really is it's aimed at you um i want to encourage you today to not lead sensitively i want to encourage you to be sensitive but not lead sensitively i need your heart to be soft but your skin to be tough need you to leave be sensitive but not lead sensitively because believe it or not you need what you don't want i'm talking to pastor wesley today but i believe there might be some folk in the house today who will receive a collateral blessing from our conversation so i'm praying that if you'll pray we'll all get something and go home amen we we need what we don't want beloved the story of god leading nehemiah begins in chapter one chapter one is that chapter wherein nehemiah hears what is happening in jerusalem he is far off in persia serving king artaxerxes he has a good government job he has pension he has retirement he's doing pretty well where he is but he hears that home is in trouble and because of that he begins to pray he begins to go to god and seek out what is it i'm supposed to do because usually what breaks your heart is the key to what you're called to address usually what messes with your equilibrium your emotions and your balance are really keys to what your passion is and your passion is always linked to your purpose nehemiah can't sleep he's praying he's going to god in a season of fasting and prayer and he knows there's something he's supposed to do god gives nehemiah the vision to rebuild the walls of jerusalem in chapter one but the story of nehemiah leading others begins in chapter 2. so in chapter 1 god leads nehemiah but in chapter 2 nehemiah leads others it's around verse 16 and 18 that nehemiah begins to share his vision with the leaders of the city and god's help that had been already provided with that city leadership later we in we get introduced to opponents of the vision that arise send ballot to and guessing beloved i i want to suggest today the chapter 2 particularly around verse 19 and 20 is the turning point in nehemiah's journey to fulfill god's call because this is where he transitions from private visionary to public leader this is the space where this transition takes place from private visionary to a public leader because beloved because pastor chris public leadership does not begin until people are involved and problems arise said it too fast i'll say it again you're not a public leader until people are involved and problems begin to arise now now y'all on installation sunday it's real cute for us to believe that we will all have universal support when we start walking out plans that god has given us to make an impact and to make a difference in the spheres in which we've been given influence it's real cute it's real nice it's real utopic for you to believe that everybody on your job that you supervise supports you it's i know it's i know you might need that in your own space but it's real cute for you to believe that everybody who has your last name wants you to succeed i know it's real cute it's real utopic it makes us feel real good but i need you to understand for you to believe you've got universal 100 comprehensive support every time you try to do what god has called you to do is simply not the reality of the world in which we live it's fantasy beloved there is no leadership without the presence of opposition you will never construct anything for god or of some significance without some type of resistance opposition pastor chris is not some pesky detail that you can avoid opposition is the mandatory down payment for doing transformative work in this world [Music] it is not something you get to skip over it is not something you get to opt out of it is not something you get to be exempted from it's the mandatory down payment to get anything done it is not a factor to be eliminated it's a reality to be embraced opposition beloved is the burden we don't want but it's the blessing that we need think about it think about it think about it look look at how look at how god has already moved heaven and earth for nehemiah so far think about it gave him the vision and passion to rebuild the walls of jerusalem god gave him favor with king arthur xerxes even got him letters to guarantee his safe passage too and from jerusalem god got him materials to rebuild the wall and even his own house got financed by the king got him armed security guard escorts for the limb of an entire stay gave him influence with jerusalem leaders so that they bought into the vision can i ask you a question if god has removed all of these barriers for nehemiah then when sand ballot tobiah and geshem show up why doesn't god just get rid of them too god has already paved the way put things in order set up the details and the conditions for him to succeed yet when negative voices send ballot to buyer and get some show up god seems to back up and let them stay y'all help me i i i i if god can remove all that other stuff then why does god keep them i tell you perhaps god knows something about opposition we need to learn god knows that our position is a great tool that god can use to make us our best for him and that's the reason i believe and i contend today why god didn't remove it from nehemiah's life and it's also the reason why god doesn't take it from ours opposition is the burden we don't want but it's the blessing we absolutely need your strongest spiritual muscles are built in the gymnasium of opposition your greatest levels of patience come from having to sit in the waiting room of adversity the greatest pictures that of you walking in your purpose will always be developed in the dark room of resistance when when we embrace this reality we become empowered to see our position in a brand new way it's not what we want but it is absolutely positively exactly what we need we we we need we need past chris and fellow leaders we we need opposition y'all uh for three particular reasons that i want to uh elucidate from the text and i'll be i'll be out of your way you you need opposition number one because opposition check this tests the integrity of our motives our opposition is needed because it tests the integrity of our of of our of our motives see opposition makes us clarify the reason behind what we're doing why you are doing something can only be validated when what you are doing gets hard [Applause] you think you're doing it for one reason until there is resistance to getting it done and the moment resistance shows up now the surface reason for why you're doing it is no longer adequate you got to dig deeper and find out why am i really doing this up up to this point the pathway to building community and building this wall has been paved with ease for nehemiah everything he's requested has been granted every step has been funded and subsidized he's been fully supported by the king and nehemiah knows that he is working for the good of the people of jerusalem nehemiah is not worried about that he knows why he's there he knows he's working for the good of the people but some of those same people can only assume that he's working for the good of the people he knows why he's there but the people he's now called to lead can only assume that is the truth because they have no evidence that nehemiah is all in for them or for god that is until send ballot to buyer and guess them show up the moment opposition shows up their presence makes nehemiah defend and prove that he's all in and nehemiah's commitment in the face of this opposition now becomes the best evidence that his motives are in the right place this is why you can't lose it when people lose it this is why you can't trip when it becomes hard and cantankerous and difficult and some days are longer than others this is why because what god is doing is giving you the scenario and the environment for you to prove you are who he already says you are beloved stop avoiding the opposition in your life and stop asking god to take it away opposition is necessary so that what god has placed in you can properly be seen and you can be the leader god calls you to be your response in the midst of the opposition is the way god's going to prove to the world that you can be trusted you got to be tested so you can be trusted if there are no tests to pass there's no trust to gain you got to have it nobody prays for it but everybody needs it you need opposition because it tests the integrity of your motives but but you also need opposition what's this because it displays the impact of our mission you you need you need opposition because it helps to display the impact of our mission see sometimes the powerful way that opposition shows up to stop your purpose actually reveals how powerful that purpose really is the presence of opposition in your life beloved proves that what you are doing actually matters [Applause] nobody tries to block stuff that ain't going to produce nothing so opposition in your life becomes the evidence god's up to something in fact if you ever have a season where there is no opposition you might not be up to anything the presence of opposition in your life proves that what you're doing really matters and when you walk in purpose everything about your opposition watch this becomes a revelation pay attention pay attention press chris pay attention with me to nehemiah's opposition just just just scan survey the text for a few moments with me and pay attention to to what happens uh first of all you want to pay attention to when they show up verse 18. you got your bible you need it verse 18 says this so they began the good work verse 19 says send ballot to buy it and guess them show up now i ain't that smart but but but but but verse 18 seems to lend to the presence of verse 19 that as soon as the good work starts the opposition arises that as soon as progress begins problems begin to arise if there are no problems it usually means there is no progress [Music] pay attention to when they show up but then also pay attention to who they are you got your bible the bible says uh the the the first form of opposition is a brother named sand ballet now here's what you got to know he's got to know about sand batter to buy it and get some these are not isolated entities these are not disconnected parties that there's a purpose there's a reason that there's a motive behind why they're acting the way they're acting see sand ballad is the governor of samaria uh uh nehemiah's plans to rebuild the wall threatens samaria's political authority see see samaria is a neighboring country and and as the governor of samaria with the walls broken down in jerusalem he's been able to circumvent district and boundary lines he's been able to cross over and use his political authority and influence be willy-nilly and really do whatever he wants to do but the moment the wall goes up he's going to his political authority wait a minute tobiah also had a problem with the wall to to buy it tobiah is the governor of trans-jordan that that's also a neighboring country there uh very close to jerusalem and nehemiah's plans threaten his political influence he's been able to walk and leverage power and control in certain ways as long as the walls were torn down and as long as there was no real sovereignty surrounding jerusalem but the moment those walls go up and the city begins to re-establish its confidence and its sovereignty suddenly his influence is going to wane then there's geshem yeshum yeshum is not a political leader geshem is actually uh not even uh hebrew he he's he's he's he's arabian he's he's an arabian leader with business ties to jerusalem that that's who gets him that's who geshe me is uh uh uh gessem is responsible and connected uh very very intrinsically and deeply into a lucrative spice trade that runs through up and around jerusalem and and with the walls torn down he ain't got to pay no taxes with the walls torn down people can come in and out and do whatever they want to do he's able to leverage the lucrative the lucrativeness of this business but the moment the walls go up now he got to pay taxes and tariffs so he got a problem with this no no notice notice notice notice notice notice all of the opposition to the walls are coming from people who have been benefiting from the walls being torn down so when the walls are being rebuilt naturally they are going to fight against the progress that is taking place that's because every purpose that blesses someone will bother somebody else and it's usually going to bother the people who have been using the people you're trying to bless am i in the book am i in the book um this is why you got to thank god for the opposition in this season of your life it simply means that what you are doing is actually making an impact every once in a while instead of cussing our position out you ought to send them a thank you note you ought to sit down at your desk and pull out your pen and don't type it no hand write that thing you ought to get that address and get you a nice little stamp and sit it there write it down and make sure you appreciate them for their presence in your life send it to them let it go through snail mail let it take its time and get there because when you get a handwritten or you know it's something special and it's something personal what you are simply doing is communicating them thank you for using what you're doing in the hands of god so i can be reminded and reassured that i'm in the right place and doing the right thing if you don't have any opposition you might be in the wrong spot am i making sense today we don't want it but we need it can't stand it keeps us up at night gets on our last nerve got phone calls we won't answer because we know who it is we don't want it but we got to have it so we can be who we're supposed to be that there's a third reason opposition shows up and i'm gonna let you go here it is uh uh our opposition is needed in our lives past chris did you stay with me because uh opposition uncovers the inadequacy of our own humanity i gotta have opposition past chris b because god uses the opposition to unveil some stuff in me see we love to make opposition about them we love to make the contention and the conflict and the resistance about them they can't see my vision they don't understand what i'm trying to do to get on my nerve that would they leave me alone they keep messing with me i'm trying to do what the lord called me to do i just want to be in the lord's will and keep on keeping on and do what i was getting about them sometimes opposition is meant to uncover the inadequacy of our own humanity that there's some stuff in us that we won't pay attention to until opposition messes with it there's some development god's trying to do in us that would never occur if the walk was too chill and too easy god help me preach today there's some stuff in us got to be dealt with god uses opposition to do it opposition man can be painful oh god help me it it it it it can hurt it it it it touches areas of your soul that you didn't think was still sensitive it pulls off scabs of wounds that you thought it healed a while ago it it it unearths some stuff catches you catches you off guard and it can come from places you never saw coming i knew such and such but i never thought i never expected these are people i trusted teaser folk i thought were gonna ride with me everybody who looks like an enemy ain't just like everybody who looks like a friend ain't it ain't about them it's about god doing some surgical intimate meticulous and detailed work on the soul of the leader just on your nerve wish they found another church y'all can't say it i can't it amazing how the wrong people always get job transfers it's amazing the wrong people always move it ain't about them man it's about you opposition is a blessing in disguise because when when we get hurt and and when we get caught off guard and when we get stunned by the presence of this opposition we never expected to see we actually become awakened to our own inadequacies we get shocked and jolted into remembering that no matter how much power we think we have we can't do this alone we need chris may you never get drunk on the american and westernized christian notion that you can do this by yourself care how much they love you and how much they follow you and how much they celebrate you don't you dare get drunk on this fake and superficial idea of independence you still need god you don't just need god to lead them you need god to lead yourself my greatest battles don't take place in the pulpit my greatest battles take place when i got more time than busyness and i gotta find what to do in these empty pockets of inactivity see leadership can make you so busy that you do stuff but you neglect the soul and you can become so successful you think you're winning then you run into a season where your soul is not strong enough to carry the weight that's been applied you need god this is a lesson this is a that ain't ain't none of that in my notes this is a lesson that nehemiah learned early in the game you've got your bible you still need it uh as as soon as the opposition showed themselves nehemiah leaned on the one who he knew was making it all possible you gotta you gotta see this in the text verse verse 19 here's what happens send ballot to buy and get some scoff at nehemiah listen to what they say what are you doing rebelling against the king see they have taken his leadership role in jerusalem as a direct rebellion against king artaxerxes they are asking nehemiah threateningly if he knew if he was rebelling against king arthur xerxes what they didn't know is that king artaxerxes had actually been funding the project what they didn't know is that he had king arthur xerxes cell phone number could have dm them on twitter real quick would have been no problem but but but but but notice how nehemiah replies nehemiah could say okay since you're wondering if i'm rebelling a king against king order xerxes let me call him and you can talk to him he could easily have replied and retorted about and boasted about his connection with king arthur xerxes but nehemiah chooses to lean on his connection to another king you got your bible in verse 20 nehemiah doesn't say nothing about king artaxerxes watch verse 20 he says the god of heaven is going to help us that the presence of opposition beloved has increased nehemiah's reliance upon the god who has actually begun the good work in the first place maybe that's the reason why the opposition in our lives sticks around longer than we wanted to maybe that's why even when we think it's gone it comes back again could it be that god keeps it around so that we'll see that we can't trust ourselves and we've got to trust god i wish i could find some people who would tell the truth today i mean if we're honest it was some of the opposition in our lives that actually made us know god better in the first place oh i know i know i know you got this personal narrative that you share with other people that you've always been close to god and you and god always been kicking it from the time of genesis all the way to the time of your present day i know you want people to believe you always walk with god and y'all always been tight y'all always been stick with each other but the reality is it was a position that taught you how to pray the reality is you didn't really study the way you studied until opposition bust you upside your forehead to the white meat you didn't know how to love the way you love until opposition taught you how to love you didn't know how to forgive the way you know how to forgive until opposition went upside your head you didn't even know how to worship the way you worship until opposition made you come to grips opposition nobody wants it but everybody needs you ask chris i gotta go your opposition beloved is the burden you don't want but it's the blessing that you need it's gonna get on your nerves but it's gonna make you better it's gonna irritate your soul to the point you can't even articulate what you feel but it's gonna grow your spirit in such a way pretty tall but your spirit needs to be bigger you don't want opposition but you need it and on a day where we cross bridges go from one season to the next pastor kerry wesley was here he testified from the abandonment to heaven i thank god for the opposition he testified were some moments i didn't think i had what it took but god sent adversarial circumstances to pull out of me what i didn't even know was there matter of fact what's in you now is there because opposition taught him how to pour it in you what's in you is there because the school of hard knocks and the the university of resistance shaped him in such a way he could give you a model and an example you don't want it you didn't ask for it you didn't pray for it but you need it because it's going to shape something in your life that eyes have not seen that ears have not heard neither has it entered into the hearts of man what god has in store for you i gotta i gotta go pastor carey would testify i needed it but my savior and your lord would also testify had as strong as i was i still needed somebody on the team who didn't quite get it because even their role shaped and molded who i was supposed to be the bible says in mark chapter 3 that jesus chose his 12. but it is no mystery that one of the 12 he chose was named judas usually when you get a chance to choose your own team you choose everybody that has your best interests but i get a testimony from jesus today who tells me i still needed some opposition and resistance in my life because it helps me to be who i'm supposed to be and when judas walks in his calling he betrays jesus but if there is no betrayal there is no crucifixion if there is no crucifixion then there is no burial if there is no burial then there is no resurrection if there is no opposition then there can be no resurrection all i'm trying to say is god has a purpose for everything that happens in your life it might not make sense today but keep on pressing it might get on your last nerve but keep on leading it might bother you and break your heart from time to time but keep on yes keep on going for i believe god will make a way out of no way i said i believe god will open a door that no man can shut so i've learned to thank god for my mountains i've learned to thank god for my valleys i've learned to thank him for the storms that he brought me through if i never never never never never never never had a problem i would know that god could solve them i would know what faith in god is i able to do so through it all through it all i've learned to trust in jesus i've learned to trust in god through it all i said through it all i've learned to leave and depend on his word i gotta get out of here buddy is there anybody in the building today that knows i've learned more through my opposition than i did my success i learned that god will step in on time i learned that he's a free that's thinking closer than any brother i've learned he will yes he will he'll do what he said do you know he'll do it if you know he will do me one favor lift your hands open up your mouth and say yes yes yes yes see yay [Music] [Music] listen right where you are right where you are will you bow with me god has spoken [Music] and the reality is he spoken to more than just pastor chris [Music] [Applause] before we move forward will you do me a favor when you begin to pray now and simply ask god to help you to necessarily and appropriately apply that word as it pertains to your life you know your life you know the areas of struggle that you wish you could avoid and that you wish god would erase and you've been trying to figure out for the longest why god won't deal with this why god won't deal with them you thought maybe it was you you've been for the longest pointing the finger at everybody else and what god has spoken to us through this man of god is that the reason why god didn't take it away is because he was using it it was necessary for your development it was necessary for the next level he's taking you to you needed it it wasn't nice but it was necessary so will you ask god think consider your life consider those struggle areas ask god to help you to change your perspective of the struggles and the people and the opposition ask god not only to challenge your perspective but even to challenge your character your integrity your motives all this time you just said it was the devil on your trail all this time you said the devil was busy when god was the one working you've given credit to the wrong person it was god the whole time using it to grow you up [Music] father we thank you for your word my goodness we thank you for reminding us [Music] that you employ trouble and opposition to do a work in us and through us forgive us for mistakenly assuming that it was supposed to be easy forgive us for the sense of entitlement we had forgive us for the times that we pointed the finger at everybody else when the whole time you were doing something in us forgive us for not being sensitive enough to see it but we thank you for the opportunity to grow into that place where we better understand that you use these various trials and circumstances to do what your will is for us in us and through us thank you for speaking to our hearts in such a real powerful way for the many of us came to church today looking forward to shouting we didn't know we came to sprout we didn't know he was really coming to grow up a little bit [Music] help us to really mature it's time out god for us coming to church getting a good word and it stays here help us to really use this word to apply this word to live out this word in a way that will produce fruit that you'll be pleased with now god as we prepare to extend the invitation that you extended a long time ago will you begin pricking at people's hearts for those who need to respond to your invitation give them the boldness to respond and give them the assurance that if they say yes to you they will never regret it a day in their lives and it will be the best decision that they ever made we look forward to what you are going to do and we thank you for what you've already done in the name of jesus we pray amen our decision team members are coming our ministers deacons are coming and at this at this time we're giving you the opportunity to come perhaps god is knocking at the door of your heart maybe he's been tugging at you you know that you need to yield to his will you know that you need to submit your life to him you know you need that relationship that personal relationship with the lord jesus christ wrong paul says in romans i see you already coming if you believe believe in your heart confess with your mouth the lord jesus and believe in your heart that god the father has raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved we want you to come if you want to be with this church if you want to unite with this family of faith we invite you to come if you're watching online you can email membership afnbc.org we invite you to come as worshipers at heart minister at this time we invite you wherever you are in the house or at the house we invite you to make that decision today it'll be the best decision that you ever made give god your yes today give god your life why don't you come [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] is [Music] [Music] uh [Music] is [Music] times [Music] i feel [Music] [Music] [Music] me [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] you are [Music] [Music] oh [Music] ah this [Applause] [Applause] [Music] me [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] my life [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Applause] ah oh [Music] listen we we praise we praise god for those who responded before we move from this moment will you do me a favor will everyone in the building stand for just a moment will you please stand there's something amazing that happens in this in this story [Music] nehemiah is having a conversation with those working alongside him to rebuild and they all replied together in verse 18 of that text they said yes let us rebuild the wall and then the text says so they began the good work pastor faison has so eloquently shared and in his message he told pastor chris that he can't do it alone the reality of the matter is it's easier to accept that when you know that the people who are supposed to be with you are actually with you and if we are going to be successful in this next season this is incumbent upon us to be genuinely supportive and prayerful and united as we move forward and so we want to take this opportunity to have a moment of prayer for pastor chris as well as for us as a church body and i have asked and he has graciously accepted passive faith and has accepted the request to lead us in that regard so i'm going to ask pastor fazen to return and lead us in a moment of prayer as we move forward [Music] [Music] to the glory great [Music] [Applause] this is this is not the installation prayer it ain't that this is just uh you're gonna get that later you're gonna get that later uh but this is just a gesture of solidarity asking that god would bless cover and keep pastoring people as they come together this is such a pivotal moment as god brings pastor and people together but off the man we make i believe erroneous parallels we say stuff like come together god to marry this man and this church or this pastor in this people the church is the bride of christ [Music] she already got a husband his name is jesus the job is not to marry the church it's not this is also why many times first ladies feel like the mistress are y'all here today because we push forward erroneous theology that the pastor is married to the church and then we say stuff like that what the first lady said right there you you're not marrying the church church already married church good she got a husband your job is to prepare her for her husband that's your role [Applause] hugh you you are you are jesus's best man i showed y'all help get them ready for the bridegroom makes sense so so don't put expectations on him that he gonna be jesus to you because that's not his role nothing is more frustrating in this relationship than putting divine expectations on human personality nothing is more frustrating than that for everybody involved he ain't perfect you ain't neither so so y'all were made for each other and together that's that's that's the beauty of the of the lord's church that while we're heading somewhere we grow and go together that's the beauty if you do me a favor i'm not gonna pray long but i would ask that you would stretch your hands towards pastor chris keeping your hands up makes the prayer short appreciate you father in jesus name you're the god of abraham isaac and jacob you're the god of kerry and the god of chris god you knew this moment was coming before we did [Music] for the foundation of the world you established this time and chirotic moment in history now lord we simply ask that you prepare pastor chris and antioch fellowship to walk into what you have already established we're not asking you to do anything extra because what you've done is already enough we are simply asking that you prepare them to embody and to live out what you have already spoken you that you are the god of our history help us not to make history our god thank you that you are the god of our future help us to not make the future our god thank you that you are the god of our present help us not to make this present moment a god-like structure in our lives bless pastor bless people use them for the purpose in which you have designed them allow them compassion for one another courage with one another to one another and commitment to one another if god before them you are still more than the world against them enable strengthen breathe upon empower raise up and prepare pastor chris for this role god is already walking in it already doing what you've called him to do god we simply ask that you be with him thank you for legacy thank you for leadership now god thank you for what lies ahead bless as only you can in the name of jesus amen [Applause] [Music] amen the invitation has been extended we celebrate god for those who responded let's thank god for pastor phasing this morning [Applause] my god right now we're going to uh make ready to partake of the lord's supper [Music] as the brother in the gathering you came by drive through thursday over the last couple weeks and picked up your elements from communion if you're there at home we invite you to prepare as well can we pray together god how we celebrate above all the cross we are grateful for your sacrifice thank you that you showed your love for us and that while we were in the middle of our sin while we were yet sinners christ died for us with that sacrifice in mind now we gather around your table to do what you told us to do together in remembrance of you but we're not doing it because you're dead you are alive we thank you for your resurrection [Music] now god forgive us for anything we've done done said a thought that's against your will we don't want to eat or drink damnation to ourselves but with grateful hearts we gather to celebrate the new covenant that gives us access to you how grateful we are in jesus name amen what can wash away my sin nothing but the blood of jesus [Music] what can make me whole again nothing but the blood of chi jesus oh precious is that flow that makes me white as snow [Music] no other found i know nothing but the blood of chief jesus [Music] what can wash away my sin oh nothing but the blood of sheep says what can make me hold again nothing but the blood of she [Music] [Music] that makes me white as snow oh no other found i know nothing but the blood of jesus jesus there is power how wonder working power in the blood [Music] of the lamb [Music] there is power power wonder working power in the precious blood of the lamb [Music] tell me who can stand me for us oh when we call home that's great name jesus oh jesus precious jesus we have the me told you free oh lord we [Music] the night that the lord jesus be betrayed he took his apostles and they took jesus broke bread blessed it so this is my body that will be broken for you let's eat together then he took the fruit of the vine and blessed it and this was the blood that will be shed for you it's blood that allows us into a new covenant without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins let's gratefully drink together thank you jesus for a love so deep [Music] but you would so much to people that colossians called enemies because of our own wicked works but thank you for the blood that reconciles us and most of all we're grateful that you conquered death and are alive thank you for the opportunity that you give your church your bride to be ambassadors to your kingdom in the earth we honor you today in jesus name amen amen thank god for the experience of worship this morning such a sweet presence in the room and i pray that you who are streaming from wherever you're streaming feel the presence of god as we do as you heard earlier the announcements for this month this month as we celebrate 34 years will be full of some amazing things that you don't want to miss again you can download the app and go check on the website for all of the details that alec mentioned uh during the announcements but please make plans to join us uh as alex said sisters y'all showing out with this conference registration i ain't even gonna lie hey fellas hey hey hey hey fellas listen listen we getting drove right now and each ninja it's free you don't even got to go nowhere you don't got to come up here you don't got to wake up just pull out your phone amen never mind i'll say it i think it's really interesting that folk want to lead and don't want to be discipled that's all i'm saying [Applause] all right that's fine no never mind i almost went way too far that's fine listen please please please please register for the conferences they will be a blessing to your life i don't told y'all y'all see y'all see what i'm trying to say y'all get this word amen amen as we prepare to dismiss let's also remember to give uh those who are online again you can text afnbc to 77977 you can give via the app you can give on the website or you can give a drive through thursday so let's remember to continue to be faithful to our responsibilities to do what it is the lord has called us to do because antioch is a generous church and a generous people god is continuing to bless us to bless others bible says he gives seed to the sower and as we give god is using us to give and bless people that will blow your mind so let's continue to be faithful because we are being light in a time when the world needs it more than anything else so let's continue to be faithful in our efforts if you had a birthday this past week including today happy bro you stood happy birthday hey now happy birthday online let us know it was a birthday i see your hand back there happy birthday happy birthday amen anybody had a wedding anniversary this past week including today that's right joel and rosalind leach happy ever happy anniversary i can't see who that is back there to the mass happy anniversary amen anybody get a job or a job promotion this past week including today amen amen praise the lord congratulations somebody make congratulations anybody get a chance to retire glory i said praise the lord congratulations let's continue to pray for all those who are medical workers those who are in public service let's continue to pray for our teachers our educators our students and for all those who serve in public service in the military we need to pray now more than ever again my weekly reminder if you are not registered to vote register to vote i'll leave that there all right if there's nothing else we are going to be dismissed isn't it all right let let's pray let's pray god how grateful we offer your presence in this place in your presence in our lives thank you for what our eyes have seen what our ears have heard what our hearts have experienced and now lord allow our faith to be increased and our souls to be encouraged because you use opposition to develop us thank you that all things work together for the good of those who love you those who are called according to your purpose god we pray that you were blessed pastor faith and we thank you for what he deposited into our lives today god we thank you that when he travels back to nashville everything will be well we pray for everything that concerns him well we pray that you will continue to give him a special grace for this season to continue to allow him to be a vessel that pours out what we need in the body of christ in this season now lord as we leave this place but never from your presence we give you glory now lord i pray that you bless your people this week for that you were blessed they're going out and coming in i pray that you would lift up your countenance on them i pray that you would establish them pray that you will give them grace and peace i pray that you would open the windows of heaven who are blessing they don't have room enough to receive i thank you for uh favor in every area this week and most of all i thank you that the things the enemy uses to try to discourage or oppose them you will use to develop them in jesus mighty name amen you guys continue we hope that you have enjoyed today's service but guess what it does not stop there please come back at 5 pm for our very own pastor chris wesley's installation i hope to see you my name is mikayla mcday stay safe this week [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Antioch Fellowship Church

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Length: 132min 40sec (7960 seconds)

Published: Sun Sep 06 2020