"God Is My Champion"- Stephanie Ike

[Music] let's just dive right into the work we're gonna be reading from acts 12 verse 1 to 16 and I'm just gonna kick it off it says now about the time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church then he killed James the brother of John with the sword and because he saw that it pleased the Jews he proceeded further to cease Peter also now it was during the days of unleavened bread so when he had rested him he put him in prison and delivered him to four scores of soldiers to keep him intended to bring him before the people after Passover Peter was therefore kept in prison but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church and when Herod was about to bring him out that night Peter was sleeping bound with two chains between two soldiers and the guards before the door were keeping the prison now behold an angel of the Lord stood by him and the light shone in the prison and he was struck Peter he and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up saying arise quickly and his chains fell off his hands then the angel said to him gird yourself and tie on your sandals and so he did and he said to him put on your garment and follow me so he went out and followed him and did not know what was done by the angel did not know that what was done by the angel was real but thought he was seeing a vision when they were past the first and second guard posts they came to the iron gate that leads to the city which opened to them of its own accord and they went out and went down one Street and immediately the angel departed from him and when Peter had come to himself he said now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from the expectation of the Jewish people so when he had considered this he came to the house of Mary the mother of John whose son name was Mark where many were gathered together praying and as Peter knocked on the door of the gate a girl named Rhoda opened so I don't name door them was there but they don't came to answer when she recognized Peter's voice because of her gladness she did not open the gate but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate but they said to her you were beside yourself basically you were out of your mind you don't lost a child yet she kept insisting that it was so so they said it is his angel now Peter continued knocking and when they opened the door and saw him they were astonished Heavenly Father we thank you for your word Lord the word that you have given him a it come forth in the power of the Holy Spirit may it speak to everyone who opens up their heart to hear and Lord have your way do only that which you can do Lord give us the assurance that you are a good good father that you are our defender that your goodness runs after us Lord that you keep us that we cannot even stand in our own way heavily father have your way in Jesus mighty name amen family you may be seated you know I was getting ready for this message so some interesting things happen first of all this morning I have this vision and in the vision I see myself wearing a champion hoodie like today like right now like this evening it sounds like wow okay I don't have that but I could find it in the mall so I'm thinking that maybe the Lord wants me to redeem myself because not too long ago I wore an Adidas tracksuit with Nikes and I guess that was a taboo in America in Nigeria if I bought it I style it however I liked it so I thought maybe God wants me to redeem myself and wear a champion with some Nikes but when I got to the mall and I found the hoodie that I had seen in my vision the Lord started speaking to me and he said I want you to tell my people that I am their champion that it should be a word that is written on their hearts that the same way I showed you this vision of like it was just the same way I just saw I'm wearing right now just everywhere just written everywhere that in that same way we should carry that on our hearts in our minds you see a champion is one who fights for another's cause he said my blood is still speaking on your behalf that the victory that my blood attained that it still speaks over you and so as he when he gave me this scripture I was really moved by it because you see in this scripture the first thing that we were told that happens is that James a disciple is killed James is the brother to John John is the one disciple who identified himself as the one that Jesus loves he said he would call himself the disciple whom Jesus loves and the other disciples will feel a certain kind of way but James would had a certain see he had a knowing that you love me if they don't know it if they don't know how much you love them will I know it and I'm gonna define myself by it I am the disciple whom you love it is shown in the Bible how you know John will just rest his head on Jesus's shoulder on his chest they had there was such an intimate relationship between the two and so out of all the disciples James his brother is killed can you imagine what happened when James was arrested and they were praying for him and I'm sure that John was like this cannot happen this would never be and all of a sudden the reports come back that James was killed by the sword but you see an interesting thing in the book in mark 10 when Jesus was having a specifically with James and his brother John he almost predicts that their death will be something similar to his he tells them that the same cup that I drank you would drink it also that you will it was almost a foretelling that your death will really come by persecution so in the way he has prepared them for it but you see the truth in life is that anytime we are outsiders to a story we have our speculation we have our assumption when we see something happens to someone else we're like God that is unjust that is not right that is unfair and it's hard to speak about James perspective because we don't know the backstory to James but in the book of Acts I believe in acts 6 there is a man named Stephen Stephen was a faithful follower of Christ he was not known as the disciples was Stephen was a man that was known to be full of the Holy Spirit he was a man known to move in many signs and wonders but Stephen at a point was also arrested Stephen was the man who saw before he became the Apostle Paul had given the order for his execution when Stephen was arrested he was about to be stoned the beautiful thing I love about his story is that we get an inside scoop about how he saw it from as an outsider all you will see is that while Stephen is this faithful man that loves God and wants to walk out the things of God and now he's arrested and he's about to be stoned but Stephens experience was so different when Stephen was kneeling down he said I see the heavens opened up and I see the Lord it was almost a picture that the Lord was waiting to welcome him home Stephen was at peace everyone else may have been panicked but Stephen was all right he's like oh no I am aware that it is my time you see Stephen even said something similar that Jesus said he said Lord forgive them do not hold this against them he moved in a different level of peace because he was in alignment with the will of God in that moment but it's hard for us to understand on the person side of the story if we are not then we can only see and judge based on what we see God why would you allow that to happen to this person why would you let that happen to Stephen why would you let that happen to James and so you have Peter James has just been killed and now he's arrested and it's interesting that the night before he is also going to be his execution as planned he's sleeping it almost showed me someone who had lost all hope because at that time I mean I would give it all like God I would pray do something you know shout something but Peter is asleep it was almost a sign like god I mean you know maybe it's my time no James was just taking I don't know what else I have in me it was a moment that we can look and say that what if Peter this was a state of hopelessness you see Peter I the reason why I can believe that Peter did not have an expectation to even be free is because even when the angel came he was more convinced that it was a vision more than reality that at that point he's like you know what this is what it is and I guess my time has come but that was not what the call of God for his life at that time was you see unknown so Peter people were praying for him and when they undo to their prayer and angel is released to free Peter but what moved me about what was taking place is that when Peter goes to the home where he's being prayed for the lady Rhoda who who you know sees him at the door so she was someone who was actually a servant she was a servant girl who would normally open the doors for visitors so she tells the people of the home and she's like hey Peter's at the door she's excited she believes that God you have released Peter from the enemy's camp and they don't believe her the people that we would think that wow this is where the power came from that what is the faith that released the angel came from the servant girl because she was the only one that had the expectation that no no Peter she was excited you see joys of that the type of joy that she expressed is a sign of when you see what you have believed the people in the house who would seem like the people that were more spiritual it shows us you see last week I talked about how the posture of prayer is expectation when there is no expectation you're not really doing anything when Peter was at the door and they said no it must be his angel then what were you praying about you're praying for Peter to be set free Peter shows up you say nah nah bruh he's his angel God you know the Bible tells us that God often uses the foolish things to confound the wise God used the faith of a servant girl to get Peter out of the enemy's camp you see why this moves me so much it's because the Lord began to show me that there's some of you and perhaps maybe many of you that there are things in your life that you just feel like you don't know what to do there areas in your life like you just feel like God I feel like I've given it all I've God and this is just what it is and he wants you to know that he's not looking down at you at that place he's not saying hey you know get your fade up that he has a plan that he has people positioned people that would be praying for you people that would open doors for you people that are signed to help you you see one of the things that the Lord taught me that really moved me one day he asked me he says how does a dead man have faith you see when someone is resurrected from the dead what faith was exchanged the man is dead what faith does he have to resurrect himself or herself and I thought about I said lord I don't yeah I can't see that I don't know if he's interceding for himself from heaven then everybody else would be doing that but how does a dead man have faith to be resurrected it was never his it was the faith of the person the Holy Spirit used to select him or her you see there are things in your life there are things in your life that you may feel like god I don't have what it takes I'm trying but if the strength is not in me and God said that is perfectly okay because again in your weakness I would always be your strength you see even Jesus had a moment of weakness on his way to the cross he was carrying his cross and it was so heavy for him at a point that he could not bear the weight of it to the point that the soldiers had to force someone named Simon to come and pick up his cross and help him carry the cross up to on you know on his journey but you see something I really found fascinating about Simon is that the very name Simon means heard there was a woman in the scriptures Leah when she felt like her husband didn't love her she cried out to God and says my husband does not love me all of a sudden somehow without the love they happen to do a little something and she got pregnant when she got pregnant she names her child Simon and she says because the Lord has heard that I am unloved now we fast-forward to this scenario with Jesus and the man the soldiers think that they're just forcing a random person to come and carry his cross but what if that man was assigned by God as an answer that when Jesus was carrying it and the weight was too heavy for him to bear that what if Jesus Christ the father and say Lord I need help I am gonna be faithful to my assignment but in this very moment I need help and all of us father the soldiers think they're forcing someone but that man was an answer to Jesus even Jesus's Prayer now if Jesus would need help in a place of weakness what about us you see I came here to deliver a very simple message God says that he is your champion and that is a word that you should carry on your heart you don't have to figure everything out by yourself you don't have to always know everything you don't have to know how it's gonna work out you don't even have to know god I may not I don't even know I'm gonna make it till tomorrow you can rest in God in those moments and say god I don't know but you do and I want to look up to you and say God you have your way in my life God wants you to know that he is your champion he is your defender I literally decided a message God is my champion there let it be my declaration that in a moment and in the midst of my fear and anxiety that I can remind myself and say it's okay because God is the one who carries my life in his hands you see whatever it is that may be plaguing you crippling you making you feel like you cannot take a step forward you have to look at that thing and say God is my champion there is someone he has positioned out there that is assigned to help me in this scenario and I would just be the person to receive help when it comes you see we have to learn and be open to help we have to be open to receiving it is also a blessing to receive that is a blessing to give sometimes we're so quick to say no I want to do this for other people but there are times where God says it is time for you to also get poured into God wants to fill you up again you see family I really want us to use today as a time to worship because worship is when an exchange happens worship is when we say God you can take my weakness and fill me up with your strength in that exchange the Lord will begin to reveal to many of you people that may already be in your circle he may begin to reveal to you decisions that he would empower you to make but for you to know that he is your champion you see he did not even allow Peter to stand in his own way he did not look at Peter and say Peter you have little faith this is why I've called you home he said Peter I see that you may be down you may not understand why James just passed away why James was murdered but I had a plan for that and James is resting in peace knowing that but you may you may be you may be the outsider looking in and wondering god but this always happens look at this person and that person and this person and God is saying you don't understand the plans I have for the people that you're calling out and I also have a plan for your life a plan that would keep you a plan that would prosper you you are not in this thing by yourself you see whatever God assigns he equips when God gives you a word he is there to encourage you and so I want us to take this moment and declare in our hearts that God you would be my champion this is going to be an interesting year you know in the beginning when our pastor preached on the year of revealing he said it's gonna be it's gonna reveal a lot of things there's gonna be you're going to encounter a lot of amazing things and you're going to encounter things that may want to shake you up because that is actually the assignment against you being older your call today you see there's a scripture that talks about in the time that you ought to be teachers you still need to be taught and it's not a word that is against being a student it's not a word that it's against learning or receiving from pastors the teachers know that word teacher actually means doctor it means that there is something about your life there is a calling on your life to bring healing to situations in the earth to bring healing your call is assigned to heal people and it says that so in the time in that I mean it was about times and seasons you see being revealed is about you walking out your call whatever it is but it may be in through books may be through music and it be whatever in your career that God has assigned your position to bring healing to situations and to people and in the time that you also walk in that you still are holding on to your wounds when you should be walking out the call that brings healing to the earth you're married to your pain and the Lord is saying but if you look at me as your champion you will not need to be married to the things that happen to you yesterday you would understand that God I can control my past but I can trust you with my present I have no idea either what's gonna happen tomorrow but this moment right now our pastor talked about this the power of the present moment that this moment right now God I can trust you you see the moment we take our eyes of the fact that we are called to be healers in this nation we are called to bring healing what through whatever it is that God has called you to when we hold on to pain and wounds and scars we are allowing the enemy to distract us to be infants again that word actually says in the time that you ought to be teachers you still need to be taught the basic principles of the word of God the basic principles trust in God knowing that he has your back not not not given in to fear because God is saying I would be your defender I would be your protector not allowing fear to you not allowing the voices of doubt to surround you and it and that scripture actually says you still need to be taught again so it's almost like this cycle of deception where we are coming to God but it's like this it's almost like a drug to give me temporary relief and I find myself back again but the Lord says when you look at me it breaks the cycles in your life because you see oftentimes what keeps us in a loop is when we are trying to do things based on our own strength when we're trying to find our way based on our own strength and God is saying you don't need to worry about what you can do I am here I want to fight for you we were thinking about that that Lord you fight for us and God wants to fight for each and every one of you and so this is a moment of declaration that God I'm gonna receive I'm just gonna lift my hands and surrender and say God I don't need to do this life by myself I don't need to figure it out by myself and I really want us to press into worship and so family stand with me thank you Jesus thank you Jesus I believe something so powerful it's gonna break over your life as we worship you see there are times where you just you're not even there times at all times you have to allow the spirit to flow as he pleases and I believe that in the moment you see worship is also about surrender we don't come in here on Thursday nights and on Sundays to be entertained not at all we come in here because we say God I want you to touch me and what we do as stewards when we stand on this altar is to say Lord however you decide to move we will submit to it and I believe that there is something that as you press into your worship tonight that you're not thinking about who to the left of you who's to the right of you but you were looking to God that everything that troubles you you begin to lay it at his feet and say god I don't know how but you would be my way maker you would make the way for me I'm not gonna stay in this repeated cycle of trying to do things in my own strength and so family in this moment if you know that you need to make that declaration over your life if you know that you've been holding on to things you'll be holding on to your way of doing things your way of seeing things I want you to come to this altar that you're making that statement and say God be my champion have your way I give you everything thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you Jesus you say there's something about stepping out there's something about stepping out it's it's you're not you're not concerned you're like God I don't want to stay in the same place it was almost a prophetic act of saying God as I've heard this word and I know that it speaks to me I'm choosing not to stay in the same place I'm gonna take a step out step out on faith I step out on your word knowing that Lord you got me God is my champion God family just say that with me God is my champion God is fighting for us what is it in your life what are you believing him for what are you trying to do he is your champion he's saying that you would not stand in your own way as long as you're in my hands we're not assigned to do everything by ourselves there are people assigned to help you and for some of you maybe what you struggle with is receiving help I want you to come to this altar maybe you struggle with being open for someone to step into your life and say hey I can support you in this area there maybe you're very skeptical of people and you're very guarded and yes people have hurt you in the past and you don't know how to open up to people look to God and say God I've been betrayed in the past but I'm gonna keep believing that anytime someone has access to my life and there's something about that access that I filled you on it I will open myself up to it give me the sermons but let me not discern through the lens of my fear let me discern through your love show me who you have in my circle that you have called to me so if you know you struggle with that come to this altar right now thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you lord thank you lord Heavenly Father as we lift our hands up high as a sign of surrender we say Lord you have your way that this is a sign of saying that we are letting go that anything that we cannot control that Lord we are gonna let it go [Music] thank you God the declaration that we are making in our heart right now at anytime something tries to come to trip us up we would say no no no I serve a king who fights for me I would not submit to this temptation I serve a king who fights for me he will always make a way for me to be victorious thank you Jesus while we are in this posture of worship and surrender I want to call out one of our worship leaders Kyle [Music] thank you don't worry about who's next to you don't worry about any of that while I was in prayer today I saw that there will be a grace that comes upon you you see the powerful thing about grace is that it's like in a moment that's many of you walked in here burdened heavy struggling with there were addictions temptation unforgiveness bitterness but when the grace of God comes upon you in a fresh way all of a sudden you're empowered to do things that you did not know you could do and as I was in prayer for you I saw the Spirit of God doing something fresh upon you to empower you for what is ahead you see all God needs is your willingness that's it is to say God I may not even feel like giving you this thing but I'm going to surrender because in that state of saying God I am willing even when my feelings don't align the power of the Holy Spirit empowers you to accomplish what God desires for you and so in this place I want Kyle to just worship from his heart [Music] Electrify for me I'm a champion you're much happier [Music] I'm putting down the armor it doesn't fit I'll let my faith fries and I will not quit I'll let you fight for me [Music] I'll let you find me I'm pulling down the armor that doesn't fit I'll let faith rise I will not quit I'll let you fight for me I'll let you fight for me cuz you're my champion you're my champion you are ways when you're my champion [Music] you are my champion you always win you're my champion you're my champion you always win you're my champion you're my champion you are ways with I'm putting down the arm that doesn't feel how let my faith rise I will not quit I'll let you fight me how Electrify me putting down the arm that doesn't feel how let faith rise I will not quit I'll let you fight me how let you fight me [Music] you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything no you can have it all you can have it all give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything give you up you can have it all give you everything give you you can have you can have I give you everything give it you can have you can have it all you can have I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you ever you can have you can have it all you can have it all I give you say to your champion you can have how can you ever I give me well you can have you can have it all again you from the tops of your long saying you can have you can have it all you can have it I can't give you everything again you can have I give you where yuga now you can have I give you everything I give you can have you can have you can have you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it you can have it I don't want and I don't need it hot I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all I give you everything I give you everything you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all [Music] you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have it all you can have you can have my life is not my phone do you I beat it up I give myself I give myself to you but alive and I'm I owe to you I be loved I give my sale but life is my life is not my yeah I give myself I give myself to you my life is not my life to you I belong I give myself girl give myself to you one more time my life is not mine to you I belong myself yeah one more time my life is not my home to you I'll be long yeah hugging myself yeah this time no music just the voice is surrendering to God in this moment my life is not my fault - I belong he hears you he hears you I give myself yeah one more time my life is not my home to you I'll be long yeah [Music] I'll give myself hell he needs to hear one more time my life is not my do you have in love myself [Music] thank you Jesus thank you Jesus Lord may this be the posture we are forever lay that's your feet wet you see I just sends the unexpected help is coming your way you see it would be it was so unlikely that I believe that even in the moment the people did not even recognize that the servant girl the one that was overlooked that the Holy Spirit used her [Music] unexpected help is coming your way and you will testify you are not in this by yourself God wants you to know that you are not doing life by yourself you are not doing life by yourself Heavenly Father we thank you we thank you Lord because your children have cried out to you our life is not our own Oh God and in our yes to you we encounter things that we don't understand and now we're yes to you we suffer oftentimes even persecution we are misunderstood we feel isolated but Lord also in our yes to you is your provision it's your favor is your a point at time Oh God that what you have purposed to be so will be Lord we receive the assurance right now that we cannot stand in our own way when we have said yes to you and so Lord we thank you there are instructions you're gonna give us and in the past we were indecisive but Lord because we're not looking at ourselves because we are looking at you to be the defender of our cause we would walk out everything that you've placed in our heart we will begin to realize that these ideas are not just random ideas that these ideas are not just things that seem fluffy but these ideas carry healing in it thank you lord Lord we will trust you we will trust you Oh God and we receive your grace we receive your empowerment Oh God that in this moment as we lifted up our voices Lord that there was a great exchange that took place we let go and we laid our fears before you we laid our anxiety before you we laid everything I even sense that many of you there are testimonies that your testimony is not meant to be hidden and the fear of sharing it is because of what you think how you think you would be perceived but the Lord is saying that I walked with you I held your hand through it not for you to hide what took place that in your testimony there will be healing and even though you fear what the naysayers would say they have no impact to your life we don't have to be afraid anymore God will cover you and he would give you a piece of the Word of God talks about a peace that surpasses all understanding meaning at a time that we should naturally be worried we're at peace in the time that we should naturally have anxiety because now we're looking and we're saying God you would be the defender of my cause I don't need to fight this battle by myself all of a sudden you would receive a peace that you cannot even explain and so Lord we surrender to your will into your way there are many things ahead of us in this journey and this moment we mark it in your presence that this is a moment of freedom this is a moment of clarity this is a moment where not only are you holding on to me but I am holding on to you thank you Jesus so what is taking place and what will continue to take place in our hearts in our minds in Jesus mighty name [Music]

Channel: ONE | A Potter's House Church

Views: 31,765

Rating: 4.9086294 out of 5

Keywords: LA Churches, TPH, The Potters House, TPH LA, The Potters House LA, One LA, Toure Roberts, Sarah Jakes Roberts, tphla

Id: 2NaQiHOskOI

Length: 44min 53sec (2693 seconds)

Published: Thu Jan 23 2020