Faith in a World of Uncertainty - Pastor Stan Harvey

a paper bible which is what i always prefer uh make sure it's handy nearby acts chapter 12. and we're reading it from verse number one and i've got a few verses here about 10 verses acts chapter 12 verse number one the bible says now about that time herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church and he killed james the brother of john with the sword and because he saw it please the jews he proceeded further to take peter also then were the days of unleavened bread and when he had apprehended him he put him in prison and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him intending after easter to bring him forth to the people peter therefore was kept in prison but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto god for him and when herod would have brought him forth the same night peter was sleeping between two soldiers bound with two chains and the keepers before the door kept the prison he was to be executed but there he was peter the apostle asleep and verse number seven behold the angel of the lord came unto him and a light shine in the prison and he smote peter on the side not even an angelic light that would enter his room until his his cell would wake him up he had to get smacked say hey get up wake up and he raised him up saying arise up quickly and his chains fell off from his hands amen and the angel said unto him girth thyself and bind all thy sandals and so he did and he saith unto him cast thy garment about thee and follow me and he went out and followed him and was not that it was true which was done by the angel but thought he saw a vision and when they were past the first and the second ward they came unto the iron gate the leadeth unto the city which opened to them of his own accord and they went out and passed on through one street and fourth with the angel departed from him and and here's our final verse watch this and when peter was come to himself he said now i know for a surety of a surety and now i am certain that the lord has sent his angel and had delivered delivered me out of the hand of herod from all the expectation of the people of the jews i want to start a new series for this month and it's amazing to me the amount of times now that we have been locked down whenever i go to the bible the amount of times that god's people in scripture were in some kind of restriction or some kind of prison and so for the next several weeks we're going to look at this on simply lessons in lockdown lessons and lockdown and more specifically today i want to talk about uh how to how to have faith in in a time of uncertainty would you lift up your voices in prayer with me wherever you are we're going to pray for our giving we're going to pray for the ministry of the word of god today father in jesus name we thank you for what you are doing here today thank you lord for the touch of your hand of your spirit upon all of us upon each of our lives lord we open up our hearts with not fear and not trepidation but faith lord believing with god that you're going to do something wonderful bless everyone lord even at this time let god as we give let it be used for the furtherance of the gospel the work of the ministry to bless those that are less fortunate multiply lord i pray and for your word i pray that your anointing would be upon your servant and your people speak to us once again to the glory of god have your way i pray in each and every one confirm your word today in jesus name amen amen praise god god god bless you amen well needless to say we can't wait till we're all together again oh what a day of rejoicing that is going to be praise god when we open up the doors again and be able to worship the lord together uh this is just kind of building up this uh expectation this anticipation of when we can i think we're going to go absolutely ballistic when we enter the house of god again this place is going to erupt we're going to literally lift the roof off of this place but while i i guess maybe speaking from my own personal experience bemoan this lockdown for many it's been enjoyable and i've never seen so many people go out i've never been out in nature as much as i have been since these last few weeks uh it's it's amazing isn't it that while uh we were free we we never took advantage of going out now that we're locked down we're out in in the parks and walking around uh every day and as i said earlier it's amazing to read in scripture just how many of god's people were subject to some kind of lockdown some circumstances where they were trapped restricted in many cases outright locked up not locked down but locked up and and i don't purport to compare what we're experiencing to some of the the horrible situations that they found themselves in some circumstances where they were trapped and they were in a difficult situation whether it's in an egyptian prison whether it was in a boat full of of animals for for over a hundred and forty days uh or perhaps being locked down in the belly of a fish for three days uh i i submit that god gives that allows that to happen so that we can learn something from our circumstances what happens when we are restricted and bound up there is always something to learn and to be gain and and of course what we're experiencing really is nothing in comparison to the tragic situations that they experience in the bible the difficulties the outright atrocities that the scriptures uh details and here in the text that we read we read we read of james one of jesus big three if you will is killed by execution with the sword and peter is now imprisoned and this of course highlights one of the difficult issues that we face today the the fact that we are living in a time and in a world of great uncertainty i think there is nothing more uh discomforting and discouraging and disheartening to an individual than than to not know than to be filled or surrounded with mystery and uncertainty as long as we know what is coming we can handle it as long as we know what to expect we can prepare for it but when we don't know what's going to happen when we don't know what what's around the corner or what's going to happen tomorrow then then it it has a way of of just ripping the life out of us it has a way of draining our enthusiasm and our excitement why why do these things happen when is life going to return back when are we going to get out of lockdown this is one of the uncertainties right now it just uh seems to be going up and down and even still there are those who may be struggling with the questions will i still have my job when all of this is over will that vaccine work will it really is it really what what they have said it to be and and you know what's going to happen and while we can predict much of these things there really are no guarantees in life i want to remind you and submit to you that that even in this time of uncertainty it's it's always been a part of the human experience uh james in chapter 4 verse 14 he says whereas you know not what shall be on the morrow for what is your life it is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away that's what throughout the scriptures throughout the word of god it tells us just how how futile and short life really is psalms 39 and verse 5 he says behold you have made my days as unhand breath and my age is as nothing before you verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity amen there is this uncertainty that surrounds us uh there is these uncertainties to life we don't know exactly what will always happen we don't know the day that we're going to go and we are surrounded by by all kinds of questions and mysteries that can sometimes plague us and cause us to lose our peace and our joy i don't have time to unpack all of the things that pertains to the mysteries in life but i want you to remember that that even though these things are uncertain there are some things that can cause us to find peace and hope and a surety it is amazing in this story and that's why i love the story of when peter was locked up that that he was already his good friend james had already been executed by the king and now they were crying for his blood and he was locked up with a four quaternions of soldiers he had so many soldiers surrounding him he was all he was could there's no way that he could escape and he didn't know whether tomorrow would be his last last sunlight last sunshine that he would enjoy he didn't know if that dinner that he had that night would be the last dinner but one thing that is quite amazing in this story is that peter in this night it could be the the last night of his life there he was sound asleep he was fast asleep in that in that prison cell even with the uncertainty what might happen the next day he was able to lay his head he was in such a deep sleep that his snore was probably being heard all throughout all of the prison cells where he was that his nor could be heard by the the soldiers that were there and and and the question inevitably must be asked how in the world was peter able to sleep so deeply that even when the angel came in the bright light of the angel into that cell he wasn't he couldn't wake up he had to be smitten he had to be smacked and say wake up how how is it that he could sleep so soundly like a baby in in the midst of his uncertainty in the midst of what seemed to be an impending doom amen i tell you today brothers and sisters that i believe that there was something different about this this peter different from when he was when he was walking with the lord in a time when even he denied jesus three times before even the rooster crowed three times he denied the lord but yet here he was fast asleep in the midst of a terrible circumstance while he was in prison i believe it's because there were some things that peter had settled in his life that was certain there were some things that he had determined there would be a surety and a certainty in the face of uncertainty in this world and one of those things you've got to remember is that though we are life is uncertain in this world there are some things that you can build your life upon there are some things that you can put your trust in that you can put your hopes in there are some things that you can trust that are gonna be okay that no matter what comes your way you can always trust that god will be on your side oh praise the name of the lord i i believe it's the fact that he came to a realization that there are some things that are certain for example the first thing i want to talk to you about three things that i believe are certain number one is that death is certain amen and that that sounds kind of strange that we can find some kind of assurance and some kind of appeasement in our hearts and souls to understand that death is a certainty yes you you might as well come to accept the fact that uh that that's that that's the case that that's the situation over the last couple of weeks uh sadly we've had some uh some funerals son of our brothers and sisters have passed away uh brother bella and sister arietta and and more recently over in the united states our friends anthony trimble brother hoffman's dad passed away and as sad as those things are of course we when i did the funerals for our brother and sister there was a sense of assurance there was a sense of peace and i i quoted the text from the book of ecclesiastes where the bible says it is better to go to the house of mourning than it is to go to the house of feasting another strange statement that the bible talks about that it is better to be in a funeral than it is to be in a party and the reason why he says that is because because he says that because man will will begin to think about his end he says it's better to be in a house of of of mourning than it is that house of feasting because when you were in the morning we are confronted with this idea of death we are confronted with this idea that we are one day going to die not now please don't don't get sad on me don't get depressed this is not some kind of morbid fascination but but hear me this is a certainty because death is a certainty we can we can learn to make up our minds about what are important what are the some of the things that are important in life that you know brother slack would often say well what does it matter a hundred years from now amen and that's the attitude that you've got to take into the situation that you might be in 100 years from now what is it going to matter whether she likes you or not whether that situation is going to change or not a hundred years from now it's not going to matter and when you are confronted with a certainty of death you begin to make changes in your life that are really important what really matters what matters is that you get yourself right with god what matters is that when your life on earth is through amen that you know where you're headed you know where you're going and if there's anything that you can you can do with your life today if there's anything that is there's nothing more important in your life than to get your life in a right alignment to be at peace with god to make sure you know that when your life on earth is true that you are right with god that when you close your eyes in this world for the last time at that very moment you're going to open your eyes looking into the face of jesus stepping into your glorious reward oh hallelujah i want you to know it's not a morbid fascination but it's simply wisdom and understanding to know that we're not going to be in this world forever we've got to focus on that which is important on that which really matters oh praise the name of the lord wherever you are why don't you lift your hands and begin to thank god if you were a born-again believer lift your hands and begin to thank the lord to say yes god a death it's not something to to depress us or to discourage us but i submit to you the bible tells us that it is the passage to our reward that's why we've got nothing to fear that's why we've we can look at this a virus in the face and say i've got nothing to fear the name of jesus is higher the name of jesus is more powerful it's the name above every name it's the name that is more awesome oh praise the name of the lord amen in the phase of uncertainty here's what's certain death i know that sounds kind of strange but i want you to know that's liberating that's why that's what paul said you know paul wrote he wrote four letters while he was in prison while he was on lockdown he was under house arrest in rome and he wrote the book of ephesians philippians philemon and colossians and in the first book in the in the book of philippians the first chapter he tells them he starts he salutes them he greets them he thanks them for their fellowship in the in the gospel and he tells them he says for me to live is christ but for me to die is gain he said i'm not afraid to die death for the christian is different it's not something fearful it's something he says for me to die is to gain and i submit to you brothers and sisters that you have got to come to reconcile at some point in your life what really is important what really what it doesn't matter a hundred years from now what you've got to make sure is that when the time comes that god that you will be right with god and he will lead you through the valley of the shadow of death god that's why with all this going on in the world at the moment and you know i'm getting so many messages and emails of people telling me don't get the vaccine and people telling me you should get the vaccine and people are losing their minds now i'm not going to tell you what to do you need to consult your doctor but ultimately what does it matter if the vaccine kills you or the virus kills you you're all gonna die we're all gonna get there some way so don't let it cause you to lose your religion don't let it cause you to lose your mind and to lose your joy and your peace and for goodness sake don't start judging your brother and sister if they stand on one side of the debate and you're on the other side of the debate what does it matter if you want to get the vaccine get the vaccine if you don't don't but don't judge what it's not a moral issue you're not gonna as long the most important thing is is that when your time on earth is true you know where you're headed oh i can't wait to be in the presence of god in his watching looking at him face to face around the throne room but like paul said well for me to live as christ but dies gain i'm ready to die but but i'm still alive for a reason i'm still here and i'm glad i'm alive for your sake at the moment but he had reconciled within himself really what it was all about amen it's a certainty death and taxes you can't avoid it you can't run away from it but i believe when you come to accept it that you're going to start making changes in your life and if i'm talking to anybody right now that that you don't know where you're going to spend eternity you're not sure that there's an uncertainty about your your salvation you can make the bible says you're calling and your election sure the gospel is very simple jesus christ went to the cross died was buried and he rose again and how you apply that is by being born again repenting of your sins turning your life around following jesus uh being baptized in jesus name if you've never been baptized please contact us let us know we can we can organize a way for you to be baptized and then he says that he will fill us with the gift of the holy spirit not only is it a gift it's not only it is an added blessing but it's absolutely necessary for you to be saved and go to heaven that's what it means when jesus said to be born again of water and of these spirit and you can make up your mind and when you do i'm telling you everything else every other issue every other problem will begin to fade in the background why because god will be the center of your life he'll be number one he'll be sitting upon the throne of your life and of your heart oh praise the name of the lord the second thing that i believe that is certain of course is god's word the word of god god only gave adam and eve his word first peter chapter 1 and verse 24 for all flesh is his grass and all the glory of man is the flower of grass the grass withereth and the flower thereof falleth away but the word of the lord here it is endures forever and this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you amen the word of god is what we've got to focus on in a time of uncertainty there is something that is as solid as a rock there is something that is more sure than the bricks and mortar of your house and that is the word of the lord i was reading this week in matthew chapter four this incredible story when jesus when he began his ministry after that incredible baptism in the jordan where the dove comes down and the voice of god speaks to confirm that this is the son of god that the bible says the spirit led him into the wilderness and for 40 days and 40 nights he fasted and what's amazing about that passage is that it says after 40 days and 40 nights he hungered after 40 days of fasting it wasn't during the 40 days he hungered it was after i i hunger after four minutes of fasting in fact you just say the word fasting and my mouth starts to salivate it's 40 days then afterwards it says he hungered and he was hungry oh lord have mercy help us we've got to get more more into habit to the habit of fasting but he he hungered and and in the wilderness he was tempted by the devil he was tempted by satan and each time satan tempted him uh somehow connecting the temptation to his identity he said if you be the son of god if if you be the the the son or the word if can also be translated since since you are the son of god he said turn these stones into bread and and he tempted him three times and what is so powerful that i often miss in that story is that the first thing that jesus said every time he was tempted he said it is written twice not once not twice but three times jesus says it is written it is written it is written amen that when he was under pressure when he was being tempted by the enemy what jesus turned to was not some fandangle a revelation of some kind was not some dynamic a mechanism or system but what he turned to was the word of god he says it is written you should man shall not live by bread alone but by every word the proceedeth out of the mouth of god you want to know why because there's power in the word the word of god is powerful and in the midst of all your uncertainty you've got to focus in on god's word like the word of god get in your heart let it get in your mind let it get in your spirit let it get in your soul let it be the first thing you think about let it be the last thing you meditate upon oh but let the word of god furnish your soul let it be grafted into your spirit why if jesus himself would fight the devil with those simple words it is written it is written it is written you've got to know the word of god you've got to get his word in your spirit and i promise you something will change in the composition of your being something will transform because there's power in the written word of god what you have in your leather bound book called the bible it's the most powerful thing that you could ever fill up your mind get the word of god in your heart oh hallelujah oh that was so good i think i might just give myself a high five amen wherever you are in your room whoever you're with turn to your neighbor your brother your mom and dad give them high five and say yes thank god we've got the word it's as solid as a rock when the winds and the storms may come oh but when my life is built upon the foundation of god's word i'm gonna stand it's a sure place it's the fastest nail upon the doorpost oh yes the word hallelujah no matter what you've got to do you got to get focused on the word of god when you get discouraged in your the greatest trials of your life that there be a voice to declare in the deep of your soul it is written it is written he will not leave me nor forsake me oh praise the name of the lord the bible calls itself the word of god only the bible has the authority to give itself tiles the bible calls itself the word of the lord the word of christ the word of life the word of truth the word of faith and just simply the word jesus christ is the living word he is the word made flesh and the bible is the written word the living word is revealed in the written word and the written word leads us to the living word they are one i want you to know brothers and sisters that the word of god declares our victory and our promise and a sure thing amen that you can back upon his word you can trust his word because the bible says his word is like a seed that produces eternal life in us the bible says the word is like milk that nourishes the new christian the word is like meat that gives strength to the mature saint the word is like water that refreshes and cleanses the word is like bread that is ever fresh and meant for daily consumption the word is like priceless gold an inexhaustible gold mine like honey that is sweet to the taste the word is like a fire that purges sin and it's like a hammer that demolishes evil the word is like a lamp that banishes darkness and gives direction the word is like a mirror that reveals to us what we are and what we can be in god the word is like a sword that separates the flesh and the spirit the word is an anchor that can depend we can depend on in any storm the word is supernatural in its power the word is forever settled heaven and earth shall pass away but his word shall abide forever oh in this time of lockdown get the word in your heart get it in your mind get it in your spirit get the word of god let it be in your heart like fire shut up in your bones oh hallelujah i've got to come to a close the third theme that is certain and i want you to remember this brothers and sisters the third thing that is certain is that our victory is guaranteed our victory no matter what regardless of how long how far how bad and how dark this world gets our victory the victory of the church and the child of god is certain i've read the back of the book i've seen what it says oh we've got the we've got the the benefit of being able to jump right to the back and we can see that in the end christ will always be victorious we will be winners we are more than conquerors through him that loved us i can sort of understand how peter could sleep so soundly like a log like somebody he's probably snoring like somebody's chainsawing a log was because maybe in the midst of his difficulty he remembered a time when he was on a ship yes this experienced fishermen they were out on the boat the winds and the storms were so boisterous that it started to cause them to become fearful of the situation that they were in and they're turning around and the the disciples along with peter a couple of them experienced fishermen are a buck and getting the water out of the boat to make sure that they can stay afloat and they're looking around hey where is our leader where'd jesus go and they went to the bow the boat and they discovered jesus and there he is in the middle of the storm in the middle of this incredible upheaval in the ship and he was lying on a pillow the bible says sound asleep in the middle of the worst kind of storm that these experienced fishermen have ever seen they were in the perfect storm if you will and there he is sound asleep and i can just imagine the disciples coming up to jesus and say uh a master sword he'll wake you from your siesta i don't mean to disturb you but uh we're about to die and would you mind uh giving us a little hand over here and and i could just picture jesus waking up rubbing his eyes and shaking his head do you really have to wake me out of my siesta for something like this he gets up out of the his sleep he stands the front of that boat looks at the sea and the storms and simply says and this is my modern day sydney vernacular shut up i don't think he would have been that rude he simply said peace be still and when jesus spoke the storm had to hush and it was a placid glass that was on that the surface of that water and peter saw and he wondered and yes even after peter had denied the lord and ran away and walked away went back to fission because he he he just it was it was filled a life of uncertainty didn't know what was happening yet when he saw the lord after three days he rose from the dead triumphing triumphant over death hell and the grave he knew that's why he was able to stay asleep he knew for a surety that victory was guaranteed because he saw the worst of what this world could offer and that is crucify his his master and savior and bury him in a tomb oh but god has guaranteed victory for us three days later he rose from the dead and i've come to tell you friend as a child of god there is nothing to fear there's nothing to be so so afraid and cause us to shy away but let us put our trust in the lord who always gives to us the victory i can do all things through christ who gives to us the victory oh hallelujah glory to god that's why i believe musicians you can come peter was able to sleep in peace with a sense of overwhelming peace the bible says that surpasses understanding how you can have peace when all hell is breaking loose how you can have peace in the middle of the greatest uncertainty of life there is a peace that surpasses i don't understand it i don't know how but i can sleep the night before my execution i can rest because peter had reconciled he reconciled he was already reconciled with the certainties don't get so hitched up to the uncertainties of life don't get so connected to the things that that are uncertain you don't know when if your team's going to win this year or not you don't know what's gonna happen but you can reconcile to the things that are certain yes death he wasn't afraid any longer this is what's different for the christian you the for the child of god you can look at death differently from everybody else that's why he could sleep he was reconciled he knew god's word he had already built his life and his future upon the word of god and here's what you can be assured of that in the end we will be victorious the church triumphant oh lock us down all you want to but i am convinced that before the rapture before the great trumpet shall sound the church is going to have a glorious last revival harvest of this world that the world has never seen this this building will be too small this building will just be we need a revival so big you you can't house it in a building a revival is so big it's gonna spread to every home every every workplace every school every community every street oh that is what i am assured of that we will have a victory god will have a church he walked out from that place and i i wanna i wanna just finish this one verse [Music] that when he was awakened by the angel he came to himself from verse number 11. he says that now i know of a surety oh now i know for sure that the lord has sent his angel and has delivered me out of the hand of herod everywhere you go everywhere you are would you lift your hands and begin to pray hallelujah in the name of jesus lord right now we lift our voices unto you we lift our hearts lord this is a time of an altar we're making an altar right now in our homes in our lounges our lounge rooms in our bedroom we get on our knees today lord and father we thank you for the promises of your word for the certainties of life look god that you have given to us help us to reconcile with what is real with a certain help us to make our calling and our election sure help us to to to lord to stand firm upon your word today as we repent of our sins as we put your word in our hearts and our minds until it becomes a part of us until it's engrafted in us lord i ask you to have your way right now in the name of jesus lord we repent of every sin for anyone lord that does not have the holy ghost right now i want you to pray for you to receive this gift god wants to give it to you hallelujah in the name of jesus lift your voices lift your hands let him fill you with his spirit right now in jesus name receive the gift of the holy ghost let him fill you you'll begin to speak in tongues as the spirit of god will give you the utterance oh hallelujah if you need healing in your body right now lift your hands and receive the virtue from the lord the refreshing shall fall from the presence of god as our musicians lead us in worship i wonder for this next song i want you to continue to talk to the lord if you're with a friend with your family why don't you pray for one another right now in jesus name [Music] [Music] oh when the darkness [Music] oh [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] you

Channel: POSydney

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Keywords: sermon, Sydney, pentecostal, POS, Australia, worship

Id: s9AW4Dr9C0M

Length: 41min 30sec (2490 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 01 2021