English Christian Sermon : The League of Dangerous Men by Evg.Daniel Kolenda

praise the Lord what a privilege it is to be here with you in beautiful Cape Town this is my very first visit to Cape Town and I'm amazed by the beauty yesterday we got to go to the top of Table Mountain and see the view of the city and I tell you you're blessed in Jesus name I've Angela spunky thank you so much for that kind introduction the only problem with the introduction like that is now I have to live up to it but by the grace of God we will do these things in greater in Jesus name Amen I I just sense the presence of the Lord here this morning I don't know if you can sense it let's just take a moment can we let's just bow our heads in the presence of the Lord Father I thank you for the holy spirit that's hovering over this place even right now lord I thank you that you are longing to move in this place and to pour out your spirit and to impart your fire and your anointing to us Holy Spirit we welcome you in this house we welcome your gifts we welcome your anointing we welcome your outpouring we welcome your power in Jesus name in Jesus name right now I just sense the Holy Spirit telling me to do this and I want to be obedient if you have sickness in your body I want you to stand right now in Jesus name right where you stand the Lord is going to touch you and heal you just stretch your hands out if you need healing this morning father I pray for each and every one of these precious people that are standing here and in Jesus name right now I release the healing power of the Holy Spirit into each body I rebuke every sickness and every disease and every pain in Jesus name I say especially right now to cancer I rebuke you in Jesus name and I command cancer to wither and to die and to disappear in the name of Jesus and I speak to your body to receive its healing now in the name of Jesus I rebuke every spirit of infirmity and every spirit of sickness I tell you to come out in Jesus name and I pray that the the blood and the stripes of Jesus would impart healing to your body right now just receive it in Jesus name by faith receive it right now in Jesus name receive receive receive in the name of Jesus hallelujah you can be seated praise the Lord if you have your Bibles open them up to the book of Hebrews this morning I'm not going to preach for a long time but I have something on my heart and I believe that this week these services are more than just another church service more than just another conference more than just another preach or another worship time this week is a divine pivot point in your life this week you will encounter the presence of God in a way that will transform you and change you forever I believe that this week the Lord will will change your course and will propel you into greater things and to higher heights and to deeper depths in Jesus name if you are in the ministry here get for your ministry to go to a new place get ready for your giftings and your anointing to go deeper than ever before if you've never been filled with the Holy Spirit be prepared for an outpouring of the Holy Ghost right here in this place I want to preach to you from the book of Hebrews chapter 11 I'm gonna begin reading at verse 32 Hebrews 11 is a chapter that lists the names and the stories of great men and God throughout history men who did great and mighty deeds for the Lord these are people that we may look at and say I would like to be like them one day I would like to model my life after them one like like them one day it's been known as the Hall of Fame of faith how many of you have ever heard that terminology given to it the Hall of Fame of faith Hebrews 11 as I was reading through these passages in and reading the stories of these men I came to a conclusion that that title the Hall of Fame of faith is simply too weak for these great men of God and so I decided to give it my own title is that okay can I get kicked out of Cape Town for doing that this morning I want to tell you what I've decided to call Hebrews chapter 11 I call it the League of dangerous men I'm gonna begin reading in verse 32 and what shall I more say for the time would fail me to tell of gideon and a barrack and of samson and of jephthah and of David also and of Samuel and of the prophets who through faith subdued kingdoms wrought righteousness obtained promises stopped the mouths of lions quenched the violence of fire escaped the edge of the sword out of weakness were made strong waxed valiant in fight turned to flight the armies of the aliens women received their dead raised to life again and on on it goes how many would say these are some mighty men and women these are some great men and women and I want to be like them I want to aspire to the greatness that they achieved in their lifetimes when you first read these names you might think to yourself this must be a list of the most perfect men and women who ever walked the face of the earth these people must have been lily-white they must have never done anything wrong in their lives is there anybody here this morning who thinks that I'm so glad you didn't lift your hands this list of people you may be surprised to know contains the names of some really rotten people in this list you'll find murderers you'll find adulterers you'll find liars you'll find cheaters you'll find thieves you'll even find someone here who committed human sacrifice and then once you have the revelation that these people weren't so perfect that actually their pasts are full of of skeletons and and stains and sins then you might wonder the second question which is how is it that God was able to use them my friends let me tell you something if you have that question in your mind it's because of a misconception that some people have that the reason that God uses people is because of of holiness now my friend listen holiness has its own reward the Bible says that without holiness no man will see the Lord how many would say that's a motivation jesus said in the scripture that some will come to him on the last day and say to him Lord Lord haven't we cast out demons in your name and haven't we healed the sick in your name and what will he say to them depart from me you workers of iniquity I never knew you you see holiness has its reward and it's necessary and it's right but holiness is does not guarantee that God is going to use you and holiness does not guarantee that you're going to greatly used and dangerously used by God there's one quality that all of these people had that made them usable by God how many of you want to know what it is one word faith there were men and women of faith there were men and women who were willing to take a risk for God there were men and women who were willing to step out of the boat they were people who were willing to put their lives and their reputations on the line for this God that they worshiped and served because they considered him worthy of their devotion and worthy of their honor and worthy of their faith say Amen as I read through the Bible I've made a discovery that the Bible is full of stories about these people full of faith I'm calling them dangerous people in fact let me let me make it a little bit more graphic for you this morning the Bible is full of stories about crazy people think about some of the stories that we've heard maybe since we were children and we've come to take these stories for granted but if you think about it you'll discover that these were all crazy people think about David this little shepherd boy he goes out into the field of battle and there he sees a giant professional warrior nine feet tall I don't know what that is in the metric system nine feet tall from head to toe he's wearing armor in one hand he has a spear and the other hand he has a shield on his waist he wears a sword he is the champion of the Philistine army and here's David what is he armed with a piece of leather and a rock he's crazy think about Noah this old this old man building this gigantic boat bigger this than this entire room it's never rained before and history they're nowhere near a body of water think about this and he's building this massive boat and everyone who passes by old Noah calls down to them and he says you better repent there's gonna be a flood water is gonna fall from the sky and flood the earth people look at him and they say oh that old Noah he's crazy think about Peter in the boat in the middle of the sea in the middle of a hurricane he can't quite see that who it is that's walking on the water but he thinks that it sounds something like Jesus and so the Bible says that he says the Lord if it is you then called me to come to you on the water and then one one word comes back in reply Jesus didn't say Peter yes it is me in fact I want to prove it to you come walk on the water no there was just one word come Peter if it was me I would have said okay I heard Jesus voice that's good enough but no Peter he steps out of the boat and tries to walk on the water he's crazy think about Moses another Shepherd from the wilderness he goes to the most powerful King in the world walks right into his throne room surrounded by his royal guards he points his bony finger in the Kings face and says thus saith the Lord God of Israel let my people go he's telling Pharaoh to let the source of his country's economic prosperity walk out his backdoor without any compensation he's crazy but how many of you know this morning that God uses crazy people God loves crazy people you know some of the places where where the SI phan team goes to preach I've had people tell me to my face they said Daniel you're crazy I say I'm in good company because Jesus loves crazy people Jesus uses crazy people I tell you if there's anybody here this morning that would get just a little bit crazy for Jesus you would find that he shows up for you that he works for you that he uses you to do great and mighty things it's what we talk word evangelist monkey preaching about this morning some of some of you have never seen God's power in your life because you've never given the Lord a chance to work through you I had one young man he said to me how is it that overseas people are raised from the dead all the time but he said I've never seen someone raised from the dead I said when's the last time you prayed for a dead person he said never I said that's why everybody wants everybody wants to see the get out of the wheelchair but nobody wants to be the fool that takes him by the hand and pulls him out that's too crazy for us everybody wants a testimony but nobody wants the test that goes with the testimony if you would get just a little bit crazy for Jesus if you would put your trust in your faith in him if you would do something dangerous for his glory he will not fail you but he will show up for you somebody say Amen in the Bible all the people that we read about are the ones that went out and did something there's no stories about the one who stayed home and sat on his couch eating potato chips and watching Oprah you guys watch Oprah out here too huh look at the story of the two of the spies that went into the promised land we don't even know who most of the spies were only two Joshua and Caleb the two that were crazy we know the two that were willing to trust God we know the others they don't even get an honorable mention God uses crazy people amen let's keep reading here skip down to verse number 39 it says and all of these having obtained a good report through what faith they received not the promise God having provided some better thing for us that they without us should not be made perfect now let me put this into modern language it's actually amazing what this verse is saying the writer of Hebrews is saying that God in His infinite wisdom has orchestrated history in such a way that all of these great men and women of God who we read about the Joshua's the Caleb's the Samson's the Jephthah's the prophets the priests the kings all of these ones who we look at and put on such a high pedestal the author is saying that these great men and women of God are looking to you they're looking to you they're they're looking to you because they have hope in you and maybe this morning you say what could they possibly be looking to me for I'm just an average ordinary person I'm not a great man or woman of God that Scripture was written by or written about I'm just an average person let me tell you why they're interested keep reading down into the first verse of chapter 12 it says therefore seeing that we are also encompassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight and the sin that does so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race set before us the author is describing for us a picture that is unmistakable you see in his time he is describing what was the most popular athletic sport today it would be the sport of football but in his day it was foot racing and here the author says that there is a great stadium and the stadium is packed with spectators he calls it a great cloud of witness and all of these spectators are looking down at the track below with eager anticipation and what are they looking to what are they looking at all of these great men and women of God from generations gone by there in the bleachers is the League of dangerous men from generations ago what are they looking for what are they interested in my friends it's you and it's me and why are they interested in us well it's not because we're so beautiful even though you are very beautiful this morning it's not because we're so intelligent it's not because we have such great technology it's not because we're so educated or sophisticated or indoctrinated there's one reason they're interested in us it's because of what we hold in our hands you see in our hands is a baton that has been passed down throughout the generations Moses passed it down to Joshua Elijah passed it down to Elijah Jesus gave it to his disciples the disciples gave it to the church fathers and through the centuries through the millenniums of this world the baton of the gospel has come down and now it rests in the hands of this generation and may I also say that when I say this generation I'm not just talking about the young people because if you're still breathing oxygen right now that means God is not done with you yet you are still a part of this generation and it is yet to be seen what God will do through your life in Jesus name our generation now holds the baton of the gospel and the reason that generations of mighty men are looking to us is because they know something that so often we forget if we cross the finish line now if we win the race if we reap the harvest they all win every sermon they preached was not in vain every book they wrote was not in vain every tear they cried every martyrs drop of blood was not in vain if we win now but they know something else if we stumble and fall if we decide we're too tired and we take a break on the side of the road if we lay down the baton in the pursuit of worldly pleasures or comforts or conveniences if we lose the race now they all lose that's why they're looking to us and that's why we're looking to him say Amen in every generation I'm convinced that the eyes of the Lord go to and fro throughout the earth what is he searching for the best-looking person afraid not the most educated person sorry he's looking for men and women who are dangerous who are willing to trust him who are willing to put their lives in his hands I love reading the stories about some of these people they they inspire me one of my favorite of these men is a guy by the name of Smith Wigglesworth how many of you have ever heard that funny name Smith Wigglesworth a crazy guy he was not a polished professional Bible college-educated preacher he was just an old plumber in fact he said when he would get up to talk to people he would begin to stutter and he would begin to perspire and he would begin to shake he was so nervous he was so insecure in himself he couldn't even talk in front of a crowd and then something happened to old Smith something that's going to happen to you here tomorrow morning the Holy Spirit came upon him and filled him with fire and that stuttering stemming stammering plumber became a firebrand evangelist for Jesus even though he was anointed and called he still had some of his bad habits his unpolished ways in fact people said that sometimes in the prayer lines he was infamous for punching people you see when he saw someone who was suffering under the the curse of that of the devil he would become so angry at the devil that he just couldn't control himself he would punch the person and one time someone asked Smith they said why is it that you hit people so much when you pray for them and he says what I don't hit people I hit the devil and people get in my way one day the story is that he was in a church and he was walking down the prayer line and he was praying for people and he was behaving himself it was a good day and then suddenly he came upon a man who had a tumor protruding out of his belly and when when Smith saw how this man was was was suffering under the sickness this righteous indignation began to boil on the inside of him and he couldn't control himself he pulled back his old plumber fist and he punched that guy right in the stomach well the guy fell on the ground his doctor had come with him he he examined him and then shouted to Smith Wigglesworth who was already praying for other people he said you've killed this man we're gonna sue you well Smith wasn't even fazed by it he just kept praying and shouted over his shoulder and said don't worry he's healed and he kept praying a few minutes later that man got up off the ground the tumor gone the cancer gone completely and totally healed how many no that's dangerous you may be thankful to know that Smith is not praying for the sick here this morning the story is told that one day he was standing at a bus stop waiting for the bus to come and he saw a little grandma that had come all the way from her house and she turned and noticed that that her small pet puppy dog had followed her all the way from the house now I think that that grandma must have been from South Africa because she was very sweet I've heard there's very sweet grandmas in South Africa when she saw that dog the sweet grandmotherly voice began to talk and say now go home now that you can't come on the bus with Grandma you've got to run home and she kept trying to convince that dog to go home and the whole time the dog just sat there wagging its tail like this just enjoying grandma's sweet voice and Smith said he watched this for several minutes and he watched how the sweet grandma suddenly transformed before his eyes how many know that even sweet grandmothers can get fed up sometimes and suddenly that grandma looked at that puppy dog stomped her foot on the ground and said go home at once and that little dog turned around tucked its tail between its legs and ran home as fast as it could and Smith Wigglesworth sitting at the bus stop began to laugh out loud and he said now that's how you have to deal with the devil I wonder if there's somebody here this morning that's gonna come into a place where you're gonna stop sweet-talking the devil and you're gonna tell him to get out of your life Smith Wigglesworth was a dangerous man say Amen there's another one that you may know well being in South Africa a man by the name of John G Lake another dangerous man when he arrived here in South Africa there was a terrible plague sweeping through the land and they said bodies were lying in the streets because the disease was so contagious no one wanted to touch those bodies and I'm sure most of you know the story a scientist that was there trying to find a cure for the disease saw how John G Lake and his other associates were burying these bodies and they weren't wearing masks they weren't wearing gloves and the scientists said Pastor John explained to me how you're able to do this without getting sick and without contracting this disease John said take a sample of that virus and put it in the palm of my hand the scientists did as he was instructed to do and then John G Lake said now I want you to look at it again the man scraped the sample off of John's hand put it under the microscope and looked through the viewfinder and gasped at what he saw that virus had instantly died in the palm of John G Lakes hand the scientist said how did you do this what is your secret I think he was trying to find a medical explanation but he was to get no medical explanation the only explanation that John Jillette gave to the scientist was the words from Romans chapter 8 verse 2 the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and of death say Amen John Lake was a dangerous man John Wesley was a dangerous man now if lived in John Wesley's town every morning at five o'clock in the morning you would hear his voice and she stood on the street corner preaching to the miners and the people walking to work in the early morning hours every morning he would do this most days she would preach four or five times on the streets he didn't have a beautiful pulpit like this you know I've heard people say I'm called to evangelism but no one will give me a pulpit my friends what are you talking about every street corner is a pulpit your next-door neighbor is your congregation many of you have family members that have yet to be saved don't tell me you don't have an audience every day he would preach four or five times on the streets and he even did this on his wedding day and on his honeymoon I would never have gotten away with that but he considered it his sacred duty and obligation to preach the gospel to anyone who would listen to him and he did it all of his life thousands and thousands of times he preached the gospel John Wesley was a dangerous man John Hyde was another one John Hyde was a missionary to India when he arrived there in India he was so burdened with the condition of the Indian people and he didn't know how to reach them so they said that often he would lock himself away in a room for sometimes thirty days at one time just weeping and praying burdened for the salvation of those Indian people in his forties still as a young man his health began to deteriorate and he went to Calcutta to see a doctor when the doctor took a look at him he made a startling discovery John Hyde's heart had shifted in his chest because of those years a fervent intense prayer and intercession for the salvation of the Indian people so intense was his prayer life that the Indians nicknamed him John praying hide today there's a great move of God happening on the continent of India the whole subcontinent is is seeing a wave of salvation in the power of God that is unique to our time and I believe it's because of men like John prang Hyde that gave all they had to see people saved say Amen now all of these men is wonderful as they were they all have one problem this morning how many of you want to know what it is they're all gone they're all gone John Hyde will never intercede for Souls again they're all saved up there John Wesley will never preach the gospel again there's no loss people in heaven John G Lake will never lay hands on the sick again there's no sick people up there Smith Wigglesworth will never cast out demons again there's no demons up there they're all gone and now my friends the eyes of the Lord are going to and fro throughout the whole earth again and now he is searching for some new members of that League of dangerous men who can he use in our time who can he raise up in our generation who will heal the sick who will cast out the demons who will preach the gospel who will pour out their soul in intercession my friends listen the only ones that God has this morning is you and me if we don't go no one will go if we don't preach no one will preach if not here where if not now when if not us who this is our time say Amen you know there's some people they think that the great need of God in our time is for more money I hope I don't step on anybody's toes but I I always hear preachers preaching about money and sometimes I begin to wonder if they think that God is a popper the way that some people talk you'd think that that God just needs some money so he can get through the day my friends we need money it's true but let me tell you what the book of Haggai chapter 2 verse 8 says God says the silver is mine and the gold is mine just in case you were wondering no my friends the great need of God this morning is not for money there's some people they think that God's great need is for monuments so they build him these gigantic cathedrals these these huge memorials I was in London a few months ago and I was visiting some historical sites and I went to this one Cathedral it costs 20 pounds just to walk into the Cathedral it was no longer used as a place of worship it was a museum and this is what it said on the door it says this is the entrance to the house of God the very gate of heaven I thought to myself is that true does God now live in a museum no my friends listen to what Isaiah says in in chapter 55 verse 8 he says heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool where is the house that you can build for me tell me can you build a building that great and that vast my friend listen the great need of God this morning is not for monuments there's others they think that God's greatest need is for modern methods they write books about they hold conferences about it if we can just teach God how to get a little bit more modern so he can appeal to the new generation then will be effective what God really needs is some pyrotechnics what God really needs is is to dress a little bit younger needs a little bit more modern music that's what God needs if he could just get that down but this is what he says in the Book of Isaiah chapter 66 verse 1 he says my ways are not your ways and my thoughts are not your thoughts my friend listen I I received my call into the ministry and I was transformed not by pyrotechnics and not by a Christian rock band and not by the most modern sophisticated kind of a service I was transformed by an encounter with the power of the Holy Spirit that has haunted my every waking moment and I tell you what our generation needs is not to be more modern they need Jesus they need the real and the living Jesus no my friends the great need of God in our time it's not from modern methods and it's not for massive monuments and it's not from mountains of money but there is something that God needs there is something he's searching for this morning there is something he is longing for it's for more men and more women whom he can use and who will trust him and it will put their faith in their hope in him I wonder if there's any dangerous people here this morning I'm almost done I want to I want to mention a couple more things turn to the book of Judges chapter 6 judges chapter six this is the story of the call of Gideon the background of the story is that the children of Israel were being harassed by an aggressive Gentile nation called the Midianites Midian was very cruel to the Israel the Midianite soldiers would come down in raids into the Israelite villages they would burn the cities they would rape the women they would steal the valuables and they would leave them hungry and destitute they would ride off israel was afraid of Midian and Gideon being a one of the Israelites was also afraid so afraid in fact that he was threshing his wheat in a winepress now I'm not a farmer and I'm not the son of a farmer but I know one thing you don't fresh wheat in a winepress that's like washing your clothes in the dishwasher you see when you thresh wheat you need to be in an open place so that when you Thresh the wheat the wind can come through and blow the chaff away but in the winepress you can be down in a cellar in a in a damp dark cold cellar and I tell you threshing wheat in a cellar must be a miserable task because all the chaff would just fall with the wheat what a gigantic mess you would have but Gideon was in the cellar because he was afraid of the Midianites and that is where God found this trembling coward and God says to him in verse 11 the angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak terebinth at Afra which belonged to joash the Ibiza right and the Sun Gideon was beating weed in the winepress to hide from the Midianites and the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him listen to this the Lord is with you o mighty man fearless courage here's Gideon trembling out of fear hiding in the cellar and he hears the angel say to him the Lord is with you a mighty man of fearless courage and at that point if I was Gideon I would make one of two conclusions either the angel is mocking me or there's somebody else in the cellar but it wasn't either the angel was speaking to Gideon my friends aren't you glad this morning that God doesn't see you the way that you see yourself in fact he doesn't even see you the way that other people see you maybe your friends are your family members they say to you who do you think you are we've known you since you were this big we know what you're really made out of my friends listen to me God sees you differently and it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks about you it doesn't even matter what you think about you it just matters what he thinks about you and can I tell you what God sees when he looks at you I believe with all my heart that when God looks at you he sees what he envisioned when he was forming you in your mother's womb at that moment when he was showing you and knitting you together he said I'm gonna make out of this woman a mighty woman of Valor he said I'm gonna make this man a healer and an evangelist and a preacher of the gospel I'm gonna make him bold as a lion I'm gonna make him a deliverer of my people that's what God envisioned as he was creating you and all of your life no matter what you do and no matter where you go he still looks at you and he says that's the one that's gonna be my deliverer and that's why God called Gideon the way he called him because God made Gideon to deliver the people of Israel and the angel appeared and said Gideon the Lord is with you o mighty man of fearless courage and then listen to what Gideon says in verse 13 Gideon's to him Oh sir if the Lord is with us then why has all of this before - and where are all of his wondrous works of which our fathers told us saying did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt but now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian this is what Gideon was saying he was saying if what you're saying is true and the Lord is with us then why don't we see miracles like we used to see how come there's no Red Sea opening how come there's no Jordan River opening how come there's no plagues coming on the Midianites like they came on the Egyptians and if the Lord is with us where are the Moses's where are the Joshua's where are these great delivers that you that once were in our land I hear things like this today honestly I hear Christians talking like this they say things like where are the Smith wigglesworth's where are the John G Lakes in our in our time maybe here you say where are the Reinhardt banquise where are these great men who have done great exploits where are God's great delivers and listen to what the angel of the Lord says to Gideon this is going to amaze you the Lord turned to him and said go in this your might and you shall save Israel from the hand of Midian have I not sent you my friends this morning as you are asking the question in your heart where are the Smith Wigglesworth I hear the voice of the Lord reply back to you I've chosen you I want to use you I want to put my ninety in you I want to put my fire in you I want to raise you up to do something great my friends stop looking around for some great deliverer or some great evangelist or some great prophet the Lord wants to use you in your generation and he's willing and he's able to fill you with His Holy Spirit if you're just willing to trust him and the Lord transformed Gideon from that trembling coward I I almost find it comical Gideon tells his men when they have nothing to their advantage except clay pots and torches 300 against a multitude of armed soldiers and Gideon is so confident he tells the soldiers shout a sword for the Lord and mentioned me to a sword for the Lord and Gideon the Lord transformed him as he will do to you this week in Jesus name one more thing I want to mention to you and then I'm gonna close this is my third closing I'm trying to be a good evangelist look at the Book of Isaiah chapter 6 this is the story of when Isaiah was called into the ministry most of you know this I want you to keep in the back of your minds that at this point in the life of Isaiah where we read right now Isaiah was not the great prophet that we all think about he was just an average ordinary guy and then suddenly one day everything changed for him because he had an encounter with God how many of you know an encounter with God will change your life look here at verse 1 it says that in the year that King Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up and his train filled the temple above it there stood Seraphim each one had six wings with two they covered their face with two they covered their feet and with two they did fly and one cried unto the other and said holy holy holy for the whole earth is full of his glory and the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried and the house was filled with smoke imagine this one day you're Isiah and one day you're just sitting there watching television it's an average ordinary day and then suddenly you're caught up into the third heaven and there you see the almighty sitting upon the throne high and lifted up his glory is so great that it's filling the temple you see these gigantic angels stationed around the room these angels are so big they have six wings and with their wings they're covering their faces they cannot even bring themselves to look upon this one who is so holy and they cry to one another holy holy holy is the Lord of hosts the whole earth is full of his glory the room is shaking the posts of the door are moving smoke from the ground is rising do you think you might feel just a little bit uncomfortable this was not Isaiah's natural habitat and I imagine in that place he must have felt about that big and then there comes a question from the mouth of God you read in the next verse God says whom shall I send and who will go for us whom shall I send and who will go for us I'm sure that at that point if I know human nature Isaiah probably looked to one of those angels and said well aren't you gonna answer the call and maybe one of those big Seraphim looked at the other one and they shrugged their muscular shoulders there's nothing we can do and across the room he saw two more Seraphim look at each other nothing we can do who can go and then suddenly Isiah realized something the flesh and the blood the weakness and the mortality that he thought was a disqualification is the one thing that made him the one candidate in that room that was acceptable and was sufficient to carry the message remember in Acts chapter 19 the angel came to Cornelius but the angel was not allowed to preach the gospel to Cornelius all the angel could say was sent for Peter and he will tell you what you should do because you see the great privilege of the preaching of the gospel the great privilege of the carrying of the baton has not been entrusted into the mighty hands of celestial beings but it has been entrusted to the frail stammering lips of men and women like you and like me and if we don't preach the gospel my brothers and sisters nobody will nobody will but notice something else angel Isaiah their reply to the Lord as we all know the famous missions texts he said Lord here am I send me but before that happened something else happened to Isaiah the Bible said that he suddenly had an awareness a revelation of his own holiness before the Lord and for a moment maybe he thought that was a disqualifier but something happened the angel flew from the altar with live coals and touched his lips and his sin was purged his iniquity was taken away and he was usable for God back to our text in Hebrews in chapter 12 verse 1 it says wherefore we are seeing that we are encompassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight and every sin that's so easily besets us my friend holiness doesn't qualify you automatically it's faith I told you that already but there are weights and there are sins that can so often beset us and hold us back and weigh us down and keep us from running that race my friends I hope that our generation will rise up in answer to the call of God and say Lord here am I send me but I hope that before the Holy Spirit falls tomorrow morning we would all come to a place where we say Lord I'm gonna lay down everything that's holding me back everything that's keeping me from achieving what the fullness of my calling and running to the fullest of my potential everything every weight in every sin notice there's two things of course we know we need to repent of sins and if you if you're living in sin this morning I'm gonna challenge you to repent but there's some of us that it may be it's a lot of sin it's a weight maybe it's okay for somebody else you know I was I was dealing with something lately and I felt the Holy Spirit convicting me about something and I said Lord why are you convicting me about this it's not a sin and the Lord spoke to me you want to know what he said he said others may but you may not and I sense that is what God is saying to a generation who needs to cross the finish line we need to rise up take the baton in our hand and run with all of our might say Amen if you want to answer that call of the Lord this morning I want you to stand to your feet right now all over this place this morning we are going to lay aside every weight and every sin that East so easily besets us and we're gonna run the pit with patience the race that is set before us and we're gonna say like isaiah said here am i Lord send me fill me use me anoint me and make me dangerous in Jesus name if that's you this morning I just want you to close your eyes and lift your hands and I want to lead you into prayer father I thank you for every one of these men and women who have come here this morning who have made themselves available who have said I want to be dangerous I want to be risky I want to be used by the Lord father I pray that as you look down upon this waiting host you would fill swift the holy ghost that you would send the power of God upon our lives send the fire upon the altar that has been prepared and readied for the fire of the Holy Spirit in Jesus name just pray this with me say dear Lord Jesus this morning I come to you I lay aside every weight I lay aside every sin that so easily weighs me down and this morning Lord Jesus let me run like the wind set me on fire use me for your glory I yield to you I surrender all take my life Lord Jesus use me for your glory here am I send me in Jesus name and everybody sing [Music]

Channel: Your Living Manna

Views: 55,605

Rating: 4.7791409 out of 5

Keywords: Christian, Bible, Study, Sermon, Kerala, Pentecostal, Jesus, Spiritual, Devotional, yourlivingmanna, livingmanna, Rev.Daniel, Kolenda, religion, gospel, preaching, jesus christ, worship, praise, christianity, inspirational

Id: nm-YhMMT6qQ

Length: 54min 22sec (3262 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 26 2010