Harold Hoffman - The Bride: Lesson 1 | MIDWEEK

[Music] [Music] good evening online thank you so much for being with us it's so good to be in the house of god on a wednesday night let's just take a couple moments and praise the king of kings and the lord of lords thank you jesus [Music] [Music] oh me jesus oh more than we enough know my heart is full and my soul is free and my no i weakness stop singing [Music] [Applause] [Applause] the lord says the lord says and i can't stop singing no i can't stop singing jesus [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] redeemer defender our great and mighty savior there's no one higher than you because you are always to forgive us [Music] we're astounded by your mercy and love our hands are lifted high and surrendered your grace for me is always enough for there is no one greater than you let my life your forever [Music] [Music] [Music] forever [Music] you are always with us we've been set free [Music] [Applause] [Music] for me is always been enough and there is there is no one higher than you if we believe that while we lift up our voices and begin to praise the king of kings the lord no one like our god there is none more there is none more is victory christ our savior [Music] our hands are lifted [Music] if there is [Music] the glory of your day there is no [Music] come on all over this house come on all over this house every hand is lifted every voice is proclaiming the name of the lord jesus come on hallelujah come on let it out from the bottom of your soul come on with everything you got within you hallelujah hallelujah come on let the grace ring out let the joy ring out come on jesus christ is lord he's in this house today hallelujah hallelujah i love you jesus i need you jesus hallelujah hallelujah what a good day it is amen how many of you are excited to be here i heard a couple of ya how about the rest of you you guys excited to be here you see it's it's it's a good time to be here because i know who's gonna be here i know that any point in time we walk into this building and we start speaking the name of jesus he's going to show up you can't find this on any street corner i'm telling you first church isn't just like a 7-eleven they you passed a lot of churches to get here you passed a lot of buildings that that claimed to have religion before you got here i'm telling you there's an authentic relationship with a creator there's an authentic relationship we're the man that we call jesus and we serve him amen amen it's so good to see each and every one of you in the house of the lord today those of you that are joining us online thank you so much for tuning in i know that there's a lot of places that you could be on a wednesday but you chose to be here and we're thankful for that amen amen amen amen we're going to move forward if we could have their our ushers make their way we're going to take up an offering but before that's being done i just want to remind everybody that we have pastor i'm going to be preaching for the next few weeks until we i know that's a good thing amen amen so how many of you enjoyed your life groups this this semester that's right amen amen so i don't know if it's too early to jump on the uh on the promotion train yet but we do have life groups starting in uh seven weeks i believe it is august 30th so we'll have life groups starting again and be sure to be on the lookout for those once you see those posting they fill up quick guys so jump on board with those and uh let's let's do it all over again i can't wait to hear some of the testimonies um here's some of the uh the joyous times that people are having we have some new life groups that are going to be starting um i i'm excited it's going to be good things and i can't wait to see what happens how many of you are ready to be able to hear from the word of the lord it's been a while since we've had a a good old-fashioned bible study with pastor so i'm excited and in anticipation for that but let's go before the lord on prayer on behalf of this offering my lord my god my savior lord i love you and i praise you today so thankful for another opportunity lord to be able to be in this house lord to be together with those that are called by your name god you have specifically chosen us for this generation lord each and every one that is in this place has a specific purpose lord and we're asking lord that you just fulfill that role in each and every one of our lives lord lead us guide us in ways that are righteous and holy before you lord as we come before you today god to give you of our offerings lord give you of the tithe lord we're returning it to you lord for what you so richly blessed us with lord in the so many situations that are taking place in culture and in society i never have to worry about for anything because you're there you're there with us closer than a brother closer than a father lord and i'm so thankful for it today god as we come we're going to give unto you in the name of jesus christ we pray amen amen as you're coming those of you that want to you're more than welcome to walk around say hello to everybody give each other a air high five if you would if you see kind of hard to see a smiling face but do me a favor and smile with your eyes today man amen [Music] [Music] do [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] so [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Laughter] ah boy learn something every day jesus name well good evening everybody wow this is different this is the first time since what february that we've been able to do this it's been a long job wow wow please uh we have folks that still can't come to church and i understand that they they've got some physical situations and some of that immunity thing has been compromised and i understand that so please keep those people in your prayer i i know that laryn uh not sean's wife she she's got several things and there are others he's amazing people in canada who are going to have to postpone a little while longer i think when canada comes back we need to have a dinner for them and just treat them good and say wow we missed you and we're glad you're back amazing absolutely amazing continue to pray peter she's burying her mother tomorrow morning i appreciate all of you that went and showed your respects there at the funeral home and in jesus name when i was 16 i read a little i don't know if you could call it a book it it wasn't a hardback it was it was just uh probably about 20 pages folded and stapled and it was entitled is jesus in the godhead or is the godhead in jesus it was written by an old gentleman by name of gordon mcgee and he was he was an amazing writer and uh and for years yeah there it is we gave those books away when we did bible lessons and bible classes with people and uh that's really i guess if i had to point to a time in my life where things changed that that was it i i was i was reading that book in the little bedroom my dad built for me we lived in a little two-bedroom house and uh my dad being my dad wanted to make it as nice as he possibly could for me so he built me a desk and built me shelves that i could put my books on and that was kind of my spot that was kind of my cocoon and my cave that i would study in and i still remember i still remember reading that book and having that aha moment when i realized what the guy was trying to say and i was 16 i'd been raised in pentecost i had a wonderful pastor i i really did a very righteous consecrated man but he wasn't a student and i i didn't learn anything technical about the bible in in the church where i was raised it was it was what i guess you would call the shallow end of the pool when it came to bible study that the people prayed and uh um and and that of course that's where i received the baptism of the holy ghost and was baptized and and but but really this happened on my own and um and then i found a little book that my dad had by g t haywood called the victim of the flaming sword and when i read that book that that that was when i made up my mind i was going to try and apply the the discipline that i had developed in my life when i came to school work i was going to try and apply that same kind of discipline towards study of the bible and so um what i'm going to do in this series of lessons is um they're they're basically the result of 40 years of of a love affair with with the bible personal study uh messages and lessons that i've heard other people teach personal conversations that i've had with other people through the years i am convinced more than ever and as i've told you and tried to be as transparent as i could haywood had this verse that just he just it was his mantra and it was isaiah 46 9-10 i am god and there is none else and i am god and there is none likened to me said declaring the end from the beginning and every time haywood did anything he always went back to the beginning and he and and the great preachers that i respected and tried to follow i found that they did this again my father-in-law brother cook who was well known for his love of the old testament he he always did that uh s g norris who was the president of the bible school in uh in saint paul minnesota was was that kind of man and uh i never did get to hear some of the uh other elders uh um but um the the ones that i did get to hear this was the style of preaching and teaching that they did and so i'm convinced more than ever that the lord declared the end from the beginning and and gt haywood said history was actually two words it was his story and and i liked that and so from in the beginning to the last word amen it's one story it's one story it is actually god telling his story and uh of course one of the ways that he is described is the beginning and the end and what i'm convinced the bible is is he is telling not only our beginning but also our end and and there are many ways that that the lord used to convey his story you have the law and that of course uh pretty much starts in exodus chapter 20. and you've got through 24 24 in exodus is is basically uh the foundation of the law and 25 through 40 talks about them building the tabernacle when you get into leviticus and deuteronomy the law is expanded and then they're there there there are books in the bible that are considered poetry uh the song of solomon is one of those the psalms uh would fit into that category and then there is a large a third of the bible is dedicated something called prophecy foretelling and then you have the gospels matthew mark luke and john and the story of the earthly ministry of jesus then you have of course the book of acts where the church begins and then you have the letters or the epistle that were written to the church that started in the book of acts and but one of the ways that the word conveys its message is something that's known as a type scene a type scene takes an event that is very common and well known to the reader and uses this event that they're all familiar with to teach a spiritual truth um first corinthians 15 and 46 says that spiritual things aren't first but natural things and afterward spiritual things so god would use natural things and use those to teach spiritual truths the message translation says physical life comes first then spiritual in other words the event is the scene that that is very familiar to the people that are listening and this shared event is a natural example of a spiritual type it is a it's a time saver what it is to the teacher um i i don't remember where i read this but i agree with it that educators take simple things and make them very complicated so that they can look good but a communicator will take something very complicated and make it simple and you had favorite teachers as i did in school and these were the ones that could take a very complicated concept and just bring it down to where you could just grab it and that we they weren't all like that and uh this this is where the word typology comes from and and one of these type scenes that's used extensively in the bible is what i'll call the the nuptials and the betrothal better known to us as engagement and by the time jesus showed up there was a very developed marriage ritual in the jewish community and this ritual was used extensively by jesus and by other new testament writers to illustrate their point and this ritual gives us a beautiful outline for the prophecies that are woven through the bible and so one i'm going to try and do in the next couple weeks is i'll begin it tonight i don't know how far i'll get here but i want to take multiple verses that you've heard again and again and again and make them come alive to you and maybe for the first time in your life you realize what they're really talking about because modern weddings are far removed from what was going on during the time of jesus today a couple uh will hook up and uh and many times live together and even have children before they're married we use a term fall in love and to many it's just exactly that it's a fall and um in the word in the bible love is a verb it is not a noun we in our culture it's a person place or thing love but love in the bible is is action it's it's not this romantic notion that we have been taught that it is in the bible it's about sacrifice and commitment and it's not about self-serving pleasure even modern traditions things that during my lifetime have been denigrated to to a place where they don't matter anymore um a white gown on a girl coming up a middle aisle i don't even ask anymore but there was a time when i would just look at that girl and say do you deserve to wear that i realize we're trying to reach all different kinds of people i'm not in the killing game i'm trying to be in the saving game and i don't want to embarrass anybody but the tradition of a girl wearing a white dress is about a dad that watched out for that girl and when she comes up that aisle and he is giving that girl to that man he is saying to that or used to be saying to that man i've watched over her she's pure she's never been with another man sexually but that's been replaced with scorn once sacred vows are now replaced with um i'm going to write my own pastor and i said nah i don't think so and uh whoever heard of a prenuptial agreement in the bible and the idea of one man marrying one woman for life is considered an antique in our culture during the time of jesus marriage was the center of society and it was a very sacred act it wasn't about romance it was about the uniting of families the uniting of clans it it stabilized families and established a lasting peace for generations to come it was about the will and not about this romantic notion that we so often have of love when you go back to the beginning the first 24 verses in genesis 1 gives us a very quick overview of creation and then of course 26 and 27 man is made there's only 31 verses in genesis chapter one so after man is made it's it's wrapped up pretty quick but then you go to chapter two and when you go to chapter two the narrative slows down and and repeats the creation and the beginning of man and woman that god breathed the breath of life into adam the the word the original word uh for is is is the best way i the best description i found was the relationship between a craftsman and his material like a potter and the clay or a carpenter and his wood and uh when god formed man it says of the dust of the ground but when he breathed into him this is a whole this is this is a whole different word breathe it's it's it's it's a very intimate term uh very similar to face-to-face kissing god gave adam being separate from himself thus in acts 17 in him we live and move and have our being it's the only creative act of god that he said was not good so he gives man a helper as our is the word in hebrew not help mate it's help meet it's important to note that that that she is made in verse 22 but they are not joined until verse 24. there's a time between her being made and her being joined with this man and god himself like the father of the bride leads the woman to the man so that they would live in harmony and relationship with him and with each other and just like every newspaper if you've ever been around i i i i had lunch today and i did something i haven't done in i i don't know how long i i i knew i was gonna have to wait for a long time on my lunch so i bought a newspaper two dollars and fifty cents for a detroit news i couldn't believe it and and and all it was was the front page two other pay and the sports page and a couple of that's all there was for two dollars and fifty cents so i won't be buying any newspapers again soon but uh i have been where they print newspapers and they set the type and and then of course they they print and just like every newspaper begins with the type being set adam and eve are the typeset or or the type scene for all other marriages and this is where this biblical thread of the bride in the groom begin there is no greater example of a covenant in the old testament than marriage when you get to genesis 24 you will find that marriages were arranged this is the story of abraham sending a servant to find a wife for isaac and you will find that there are common denominators in these stories there was always a go between someone who was arranging this marriage there was always as near as i can tell in every example there was a well there was an agreement that was made there was always a meal that was shared then the bride's price was bargained for and then the bride had to make a choice as to whether she would be willing to abide by this agreement that was drawn up if she chose to abide by the agreement there was a blessing then there was a veiling and then there was a consummation when you get to genesis 29 you have the story of jacob there's a matchmaker involved here by the name of rebecca you're also going to find there's a well here there's a kiss here there is an agreement a bride price that was agreed on there was a meal there was a veil there was a consummation moses you will find also has a well and a meal and then a marriage when you study the law the marriage event grows you will find that the marriage always began with an arrangement usually it was the father of the bride who arranged the marriage and made sure that the family and the clan would benefit because of the marriage a bride price would be negotiated between the father of the bride and the father of the groom and this was not the sale of a woman but it rather was a gift of honor that was given that the dowry was was actually a payment of the daughter's share of the family inheritance given at the time of the marriage many times part of the dowry was a group of coins these coins would be attached to the bride's headdress and would become a symbol much as a wedding ring does today after the agreement between the the two parties there was something called a betrothal we would call it an engagement but it wasn't like engagements are today this as near as i can tell a marriage covenant had two parts there was what we would call the betrothal and there were the nuptials there was an agreement and then there was the actual event that would go on the they they were promised to one another an agreement was drawn up and the rights and the responsibilities of the bride and the groom were made very clear if both parties agreed to these agreements they usually drunk a glass of wine and for all intents and purposes they were married they were married at the betrothal he would then give a gift to the girl and then there was a meal at the bride's house and now the plot changes after the meal the groom would leave and return to his father's house usually he would not be back for another 12 months his duty was now to build a room attached to or surrounding the family well for his new bride you see not only was there a bride price but there was a bride place and it always had to be better than the place where she was coming from while he is building this place she is preparing herself she would take the coins of her dowry and sew them into her wedding garment she would also go to the temple to cleanse in something called a mikvah i wish i had time to teach you about this but when it says and it filled all the house where they were sitting in the book of acts the word house there is not house it's house of god in the original language because ancient jerusalem had skinny streets modern jerusalem has skinny streets there was no place feasible no place possible for 3 000 people together in ancient jerusalem with the exception of one place what was known as solomon's porch on the outside of the temple when they excavated it around the perimeter of that place are 12 what we would call baptistries it's what they were called mikvaus there were four different purposes for these mikvahs and i can't get sidetracked with all of that but one of the purposes of a mikvah was when a woman had agreed to marry a man and he had left she would go to the temple and she would wash and his name would be called out over her she would go to this ritual cleansing and this is why jesus asked nicodemus it's in john 3 and verse 7 why are you so amazed that i'm saying to you you must be born again because nicodemus being a hebrew elder knew exactly what jesus was talking about that this woman would go and wash his name of her groom would be called out over her and literally she would rise new it was a washing a cleansing a public declaration of who i now belong to now you have a time known as sanctification or she was set apart it's when a bride would take herself out of the potential pool of available women women and make it very plain she's off the market and she is preparing solely now for one person one groom listen to john 3 and verse 29 he that hath the bride is the bridegroom but the friend of the bridegroom which standeth and heareth him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice this my joy therefore is fulfilled there was someone known as the friend of the bridegroom this is the groom's trusted friend his not what we would call his best man and the friend of the bridegroom it is his job to teach and train this prospective wife this is what my friend likes um don't cook that he doesn't like that when you get married and you're living with him we don't want you to have to say what i wonder what he likes it was the job of the friend of the bridegroom to teach this woman what his best friend liked don't wear that he wouldn't like that and as a side note the greatest betrayal in that culture was when the friend of the bridegroom would seduce the bride into loving him this is my job as a pastor my job is not to get you to love me my job is to get you to love him to let you know my friend doesn't like that my dad my friend doesn't like it when you act that way when you talk that way when you look that way you have already publicly declared he's the one for you it's my job to get you ready i know pastors that are only concerned about making sure that church kicks the pope ring they are just determined that that church is there to please them i remind you of what jesus said i didn't come to be served i came to serve i didn't come to be ministered to i came to minister she's now waiting for the groom to return this is what is known as the betrothal period that's where mary was found with child you see mary when she turns up caring jesus could easily have been stoned for adultery or at least she could have been ostracized due to rape joseph could have sued her dad for compensation but he was a just man and the bible said he wanted it to be done privately he didn't want to bring him do you realize how great of joseph apparently died very soon after coming back from egypt because we don't ever read of him ever again in the bible but do you realize how great of a man joseph really was when his engaged bride told him i've never been with a man but i'm pregnant i wouldn't have believed that story but joseph had a divine visitation when the groom completed the place he was free to get his bride this is an occasion of great celebration he would leave his father's house in a special garment i found this verse in isaiah 61 i will greatly rejoice in the lord and my soul shall be joyful in my god for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels the friend of the bridegroom leads the way with a trumpet a ram's horn that's called a shofar he is blowing this thing and as he finishes blowing he begins to declare behold the bridegroom cometh the bride was now waiting to be carried off when she heard the trumpet and the shout she would put on her wedding garment which she had kept and made sure was spotless it didn't have a wrinkle and then the best word i can use to translate into english he would steal her from her father's house along the way back home the road was lined with well-wishers making music and dancing usually she had ten maids these maids would hold lamps in front of her and her husband shining on the path as they were making their way back to her new home it was a tremendous honor in those days to be a bridesmaid so when you read matthew 25 and you read of these foolish virgins who weren't who were negligent and didn't have the oil in their lamps to light the path for the one thing they were supposed to do they were not partic permitted to participate in the event she would go with her husband to this house that he had built she would take off her veil and she would place it not just anywhere but she would place it on his shoulder no wonder it says unto us a child is born and unto us the son is given and thou shalt call his name wonderful counselor prince of peace mighty god and of it said the government will be on his shoulder and of the increase of government and peace there will be no end they would come to the marriage supper held at the groom's house it was a feast the purity of the bride was paramount and without me getting too detailed it was very important that proof of her virginity could be seen by all the father of the groom would then bless the newlyweds it is not by chance that jesus began his ministry at a wedding and was actually the father in flesh blessing this event with his presence so it was a big deal when they ran out of wine because you had to have that at that event it is within the context of these last days event these betrothed and nuptials take great significance because jesus began his public ministry at a wedding in cana and ends with a wedding feast at the end of revelation this is not coincidence this is intentional this is a type scene john makes it clear jesus would begin where it all will end at a celebration humanity united with their creator in something greater than eden because if eden was the ultimate then it would have only needed to have been reopened but john sees a new heaven and a new earth jeremiah in jeremiah 31 talks about that as well listen to jeremiah when he keeps talking about the day the day the day the day is coming a prophetic hope when the lord is going to write all wrongs now you may begin to understand why john the baptist identified jesus not just as the lamb that took away the sin of the whole world but john the baptist very clearly identified jesus as the bridegroom and john the baptist's role as the friend of the bridegroom was to diminish and the groom's light was to increase it was time for the agreement to be made and once the agreement was made the type scene requires a cup and a meal to confirm it this is the meal jesus is having with his disciples this is why in first corinthians 11 it says and when he had given thanks he'd break it and said take heed this is my body which is broken for you this do in remembrance of me after the same manner also he took the cup when he had stepped saying this cup is the new testament in my blood this do ye as often as you drink it in remembrance of me for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you do show forth the lord's death till he comes this cup is the agreement confirmed with my blood and jesus fully agreed to the price no wonder in mark 14 and 36 he said if it was possible would you take this cup away nevertheless not what i will but what thou will see the price for this wedding was tremendous peter understood this when he said silver and gold are not are not going to work here for as much as ye know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold from the vain conversation received by tradition by your fathers but with the precious blood of christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot the niv says for you know that it is not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you redeem from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers but with the precious blood of christ a lamb without blemish or defect this is the bride's price this is the cost in order to have this woman to be his bride the blood would now be the garment that the bride would wear sewn into her vestments the bride had to drink the cup also and when they ate that bread and they drank that cup those original disciples when they had no idea what they were signing on for because years later paul is reprimanding the corinthians when they forgot they missed they forgot the whole point of the supper that when you are the betrothed bride of jesus christ and you drink the cup you are signing on for all that that entails that the bride and the groom are now promised to each other and for all practical purposes though they have not consummated and will not do that until he comes back to get her they are married and within that price was the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the holy ghost no wonder jesus told the woman again at a well if thou knewest the gift of god if you just knew what was paid for you if you just had any idea what's going this is this is one of the the woman at the well is one of the most tight-packed events in his ministry because like all betrayal those scenes i could find in the bible there had to be a will but she's at the well at the wrong time women came in the morning and the evening they didn't come in the afternoon men didn't speak to women back then especially a woman like this but jesus speaks to her and and and not only is she a woman she is a woman of of a hated race she is half jew half gentile she's a samaritan jesus throws all of that away and says the hour is coming and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the father in spirit and truth for god is a spirit and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth for the father seek as such to worship him in type he is saying there will be a jew gentile host that will worship him and he doesn't care which one you're from all he cares about are are you going to be a worshiper are you going to be a worshiper john continues to build the imagery when he said do not let your hearts be troubled this is from the niv trust in god trust also in me in my father's house are many rooms if it were not so i would have told you i am going there to prepare a place for you and if i go and prepare a place for you i will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where i am you know the way to the place where i am going he said i am going away now if you study prophecy in the old testament this is the point the prophets missed they saw his coming they they they they prophesied about his ministry they process i forget how many prophecies were fulfilled on the cross on the day jesus was crucified i don't have time to get technical with you but daniel chapter 9 has what's known as daniel's prophecy of the 70 weeks and if you're a prophecy student there are 69 weeks and then there's a gap messiah will be cut off and the seventh week doesn't happen until many years later this is what the prophets didn't see in the old testament they didn't see the cutting off of the messiah they didn't see him going away they they missed that completely but jesus is very very clear because he uses the nuptial type scene again and again to comfort them one time the pharisees are deriding his disciples and said why don't your disciples fast and he said nobody fast as long as the bridegroom is present with them but when the bridegroom is gone the disciples are gonna fast and he later explained to them i'm going to go away i don't expect you to fast now but i am going to go away and this is what old testament prophets didn't see he then said that this was new wine and a new garment nobody sold a new piece of garment on an old garment nobody puts new wine into an old wine skin jesus left to prepare a place for those who agreed to the terms of the betrothal he doesn't this you have to understand that while the bridegroom is gone the bride doesn't just sit there and wait she is obliged to act she is obliged to learn intricately what her husband loves and she's going to do everything in her power to please him now you understand the horror that came to that woman when she lost some of those coins that were given to her as a dowry and she went through that house top to bottom moving every piece of furniture inspecting every crack and every crevice finding that that thing that was given to her as her dowry and as the price for her engagement and her wedding she is obliged to act you see the bride is participating in the covenant when she agrees to be brought into the family by taking on the name because when he goes away the first thing she does is go down to the temple and washes and his name is called out over her when nicodemus comes to jesus by night and asks if this means you to need to be reborn naturally jesus with tongue and sheik basically looks at him and says you are a respected jewish leader and yet you don't understand what i'm telling you just as the bride who had agreed to the terms went to the mikvah to wash and had the covenant name of the groom called out over her we as the bride who have accepted the terms go down in water to have the covenant name of our bridegroom called out over us and you rise to walk the bible says in newness of life no wonder acts 15 says that the residue of men might seek after the lord and all the gentiles upon whom my name is called there is a man i've followed for years his name is ff bruce he's still alive he's very old now but he's considered the foremost pentecostal scholar alive in the world today ff bruce always translates acts 15 and 17 like this that the residue of men might seek after the lord and all the gentiles upon whom his name is called over in baptism baptism is a washing that's why you will read in acts 22 and now why terrorist thou arise and be baptized wash away thy sins it's why romans 6 and 4 said that we are buried with him by baptism and that we would rise to walk in newness of life no wonder while paul was teaching about husbands and wives in ephesians chapter 5 he describes the bride as being washed with the water of the word because the bride is cleansed by speaking the name of her bridegroom over her and baptism just as we were cleansed when we were washed in water and had the name of the lord called out over us this is what paul was referring to in first corinthians 6 and 11 and such were some of you but you're washed you're washed remember the type scene once she is betrothed she has to be cleansed then sanctified which means she's set apart she's not available to any other lover she's not available to any other potential suitor she she has been made right by spoken words she is married but not together set apart waiting to be stolen and this is the hard part the waiting just as so many of the prophets did not see him cut off there was to be an interlude between his leaving and his triumphant return so the angels in acts chapter 1 said that the befuddled crew at the top of the hill why are you gazing into the heavens he that went away is coming again in like manner and until he comes back you should go to jerusalem and receive the promise that he has promised unto you john does the same thing as jesus he uses the type scene he is saying i'm going away but i'm coming back but until then i'm going to give you a gift i'm going to give you a down payment i'm going to give you what ephesians calls the earnest of our inheritance is there anybody here tonight that's been filled with the holy ghost would you just shout yes do you get what i'm trying to say to you that once you have been filled with the holy ghost you are a walking talking billboard that says he's coming back he's coming back because the reason i had the holy ghost in the first place is it was to comfort me while i was waiting for my bridegroom to come back oh if there was ever a time to be full of the holy ghost right now hallelujah hallelujah i'm tired of hearing people say flatten the curve i say let's flatten the fear when this is all this is the trial run this isn't the last game this is a trial run this corona thing and i want to know what did it bring out in you did it bring out your best or did it bring out your worst did it bring out your kindness and your graciousness i got you about i'm gonna preach it to you sunday i don't want to say it to you now i just tell you right now you got to look at this and when we're through this thing in a couple months you got to be able to look back over your shoulder and say i carried myself with class my prayer didn't diminish my worship didn't stop i did everything i knew how to magnify god in very difficult times and i'm not here to harm anybody but i'm the friend of the bridegroom and it's my job to teach you and i want you to understand something if you got a sour attitude right now you're doing the wrong thing if you got a bad attitude you're doing the wrong thing this thing is supposed to bring out the goodness inside of us and that's not possible unless you're full of the holy ghost because if you're not full of the holy ghost right now there's no comfort in you you're afraid [Applause] it doesn't just say pray it says watch and pray matthew 26 41 mark 15 33 luke 21 36 here's ephesians 6 and 18 praying with all prayer and supplication in the spirit and watching here's colossians four and two continued in prayer and watch in the same with thanksgiving here's first peter four and seven but the end of all things is at hand be therefore sober watch and pray in other words vigilance is going to be required right now you got to keep your eyes open for this we say unto you by the word of the lord that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the lord shall not prevent them which are asleep for the lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the orange angel with the trump of god the dead in christ shall rise first then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the lord wherefore comfort one another with these words he's coming back the same way that he left there's going to be a shout there's going to be a trumpet behold the bridegroom cometh amen paul in the book of thessalonians talks about we were caught up the greek word is harpazo it means force and suddenness the best way to translate it is a violent snatching he is coming to steal his bride to fulfill his promise my bride's going to be with me forever that where i am you may be also it's called the parousia the coming it contains all of these announcements the trumpet the friend of the bridegroom shouting the shouting descent the group that goes out to meet him the wise virgins who still got some oil in their lamp that are not negligent in their preparation because the bride is wading the call and has kept herself for the groom and when he takes his bride there will be a wedding feast that's why listen to this verse i when i read this today i could have run around in my office but i say unto you i will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when i drink it new with you in my father's kingdom it's at that last separate he said this is the last time here we're going to be doing this but it's not the last time we're gonna do it again and the next time we do it we're gonna do it in my house that i prepared for you stand and when that happens and when the bride goes to be with the lord just as that other bride would take her veil and put it on his shoulder the bible said of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end stay clean stay consecrated you've been washed you've got the comforter inside of you i'm doing my best to keep you ready and watching but he's coming and you don't want to miss you don't want to miss the trumpet you don't want to miss the voice of the midnight preacher the bridegroom's coming the bridegroom didn't say that somebody other than the foolish virgins and the bridegroom that's the purpose of the church because when you get to the end i read it wrong for years at the end of that book it says the spirit and the bride say come i always thought that meant the church would be in harmony with the spirit of the holy ghost and trying to attract people to come into church it doesn't mean that at all it means that the church moved on by the holy ghost is going to pray come lord jesus come lord jesus i've kept myself i've done my best i kept the coins i swept the house i didn't lose any of it in the house i kept my life pure i did the best i could to stay consecrated unto you because i don't belong to anybody else i belong to him i belong to him and i beg you i appeal to you give yourself in prayer give yourself to the word we are on the verge of something magnificent or something terrible it just depends on whether we're going to consecrate or not because his promises before i come back the glory of the latter house is going to be greater than that of the foreman i'm going to hang on to that promise until i die get alzheimer's or i'm caught up in the rapture amen i probably told you this but my daddy told mother a couple days ago well i guess it's time for us to die and the lord is coming to get us and my mother looked at him and said jesus ain't coming right now and he looked at her almost at gas and said esther why would you say that she said because the lord promised me i was going to see a harvest in the church before he came back and i'm hanging on to that promise we're going to see a harvest harry if you want to die and leave die and leave i ain't interested in dying i'm interested in interceding and doing everything i can to give birth to this thing that i feel in my spirit wants to live [Applause] hallelujah did you hear what victor said sunday he said he created the world with his word but he saved the world with a wound i love that man i love that raise your hands one more time lord jesus what a privilege it is to be in bible class again what an honor it is to just be sitting here lord feasting on the richness of your word and i'm asking you god to let that fresh hunger and that desire rise deep inside of us lord to understand just because you aren't back yet gets me off the hook i've made the agreement i've drunk the wine i've washed in the water i've had your name called out over me and i'm doing everything i can to listen to my pastor to get ready to please the bridegroom when he shows up there are lots of things about jesus i do know but i do know this he loves worship i know he loves prayer i know he loves repentance i know he loves it when you're kind amen that the fruit of the spirit is love and joy and peace and gentleness and goodness against there's no law no law no law i called the sheriff that was with us two years ago amen when we honored all of the law enforcement and i said i said chief his name is burke i said chief berg i just driving down the road and i was thinking i had you on my heart i just wanted to tell you that we're believing god and praying with you and standing by you because i know you guys have a thankless job right now but nobody in first church is criticizing you we're grateful to live in a city when you call 9-1-1 someone shows up and it's not just the police but the fire truck and the first responders what a privilege that is to have that and the chief the chief was so gracious to me on the phone but he said pastor hoffman i'm going to give you a phone number he said i just retired he said this is the new chief of police now and gave me his number and now we've contacted him and i said well then i'll bet you're glad to be out of that desk in that chair and he said you ain't a kid he said i'm so glad i'm not the chief of police now and i thought dear god i don't ever want there to be a day when i say i don't want to be a pastor now i don't want to be a leader of church i don't want that to happen amen i don't know where all this is going folks but i do know this keep a sweet spirit be kind to one another and stay consecrated to your master because in an hour that you think not the thieves coming and he's going to violently snatch us out of here and i don't want to be on this planet when god takes the one thing out of it that means more to him than anything else his bride amen lord jesus permeate this house sanctify this piece of real estate years ago i heard carl hill pray a prayer that he wanted it to be a lighthouse that old lady before she died told me that she had a vision of people standing at the baptistry and that literally went out in the parking lot waiting to get baptized i thank god for these precious elders that dug this thing out of the rock and we're not about to get lazy with it and take it for granted now this thing was crafted and created by sacrificing men and women and we're going to do our very best to stay true to you and to them and the legacy of this church family and we're going to be ready for you when you come in jesus name we pray and call it done hallelujah hallelujah let us

Channel: First Church Sterling Heights

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Id: v9mbuOJAAqo

Length: 81min 40sec (4900 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 15 2020