"Jesus Is Still Waiting" | Pastor Henry Wright

it does seem somewhat unfair that the Lord would give a person a voice like that you know just stop by here stop by here Thank You kanesha beautiful praise God again for that wonderful but in heaven I'm all saying just like you a bit Lord happy tabatha our hearts are heavy today for sister Rose Jones who we recently honored served you the church office for over 30 years as the cashier and she lost her mother this week and her father's very ill as well so our hearts are the team we're heavy for Joe for for rose and for the law she's experienced if some of you have never gotten a notebook to keep up with the sermons just to raise your hand we have a few we can pass out some on this side not many most of them have their notebooks by now haven't seen it in notebooks left in the church that doesn't mean you're keeping up with them but they should not lead them in the church that's good all six handouts are on the readers desk out there you can pick them up as you choose to do so next Sabbath is Holy Communion and I encourage you to spend some time with the Lord this week prepare yourself for what is the highest service in the Christian Church celebrating of the Lord's Supper the ordinance of humility and the on that side of the king and what God is willing to do we come today to the end of the seven churches the next handout I give you will give you a parallel look at the seven churches and the seven seals which come next next week for my communion homily I will take you to Revelation for the opening of the vision in heaven then we'll do revelation 5 and then get into the seven seals when Pastor Kelly comes he'll be tying in with the theme ready he'll be doing also some sermons related to the book of Revelation so that's how we've planned it for the next several weeks turn to Revelation the third chapter revelation the third chapter and let's just visit again Tony did an excellent job with that passage of Scripture thank you so much revelation 3 verse 20 I'd appreciate it if you would join me in reading that passage revelation 3 verse 20 together behold at the door knock if anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me if you were reading this in the Greek the Koine Greek here's how it reads it is in the present progressive tense it reads behold I have been standing and I have been knocking mmm hence my title Jesus is still waiting behold I have been standing and I have been knocking if you just come to the door and open it that's deeply moving to me for the court right because this is not just anyone talking this is the God of gods see so the Lord of lords this is the planet spinner the Sun Creator this is the one who keeps the asteroids in their place who breathed into Adams nostrils the breath of life and clay became a living soul this God's own you who has so much on his agenda that he could be doing what's he doing knocking at my life is anybody listening to me today I'm just trying to set the scene for you this text is deeply moving to me he has a lot of other things he could be doing then standing knocking at my life come on somebody well the thing that is first so moving to me Torah is that after we've gone through all this stuff about the churches Ephesus and Smyrna Pergamum Thyatira you normal now Sardis Philadelphia whatever the case may be gone through all that all these words and sayings by Jesus ultimately the message to the seven churches ends very personally the messages come down to a you and me it's no longer about the church as a whole see what what I want what I want you to get at the beginning of my sermon is the seven churches in not with some corporate ecclesiastical appeal the seven churches end with me and Jesus and really this is the nature of salvation I'm glad to see you here today and I'm glad we have a certain amount of members in our church and I'm I'm glad that the Adventist Church has millions of people in it and I'm I'm glad for all this corporate nurse and this group stuff but when the deal goes down salvations about me and Jesus now I'm praying for you rooting for you hope you make it but when I read this text I realize that the Lord clears the deck for in me right now it's me and him behold Henry I stand at your door I'm knocking If any man if Henry now now now now now that's the other thing now I'm preaching the sermon backwards anastasiya because normally you would save this stuff for the end but I'm trying to set your mind now I want you to see that when when the seven churches ends the Lord decides I'm no longer concerned about saving the whole I'm rested with them in Ephesus couldn't get them Smyrna got some of them thought Pergamus they went back again tire tower is a mess I've tried saving the church as a whole that's not working so now I'm going to save them one by one and now Henry it's me and you I send at your door I'm knocking but here's the problem here's the problem less that bothers me the sermon ends and a comma say I wish I wish I wish after verse 20 it said and when he opened the door come on y'all do you see that in the Bible no no no no no no the Bible ends young man with me never knowing if I open the door balcony did you get that the seven churches into the comma now let me go to the beginning of the sermon you just heard the end of it it's not good homiletics but it works sometimes in Smyrna rather than Ephesus we learned that Jesus knows his church and and we lose our first love and Smyrna got a response to the loss of love brings severe trial and testing Pergamus because of the testing we begin to compromise we can't handle the chastising of the Lord in Thyatira we revert even more become like Jezebel and yet we found in Tata Thyatira there was something left in us that God still loved you ought to say men folk see that thing gets to me the stubbornness of God I keep telling you I'm gonna keep saying that I leave here you've got to work hard to be lost because God's stubbornness to save you is amazing anybody who winds up in hell worked at it you deserve it you worked at it you have to work hard to get there oh yeah you kept fighting him off you earn hell you're givin heaven yeah I'll say it again thank you thank you I'll say yeah yeah yeah you've earned hell you're given heaven you have to push back on God keep pushing and keep pushing to get God to back off because his stubbornness was amazing so entire Tara he found something worth saving he likens that church to Jezebel he finds something in Jezebel worth saving and Sarris he moves further to reform Thyatira so he brings reform but we found that in Sardis the reform didn't go far enough we never want to go as far as God wants to take us so once again in Philadelphia brings more trial and and and and and and and and persecution and testing and and and and in Philadelphia lets them know time is short you're living in the last days and we found out in Philadelphia that the time of the end begins and so all of us Laodiceans are living in the time of the end the oldest person here in this room right now was born in the time of the end from the time of 1844 and forward Jesus could have come at any time and the fact that we're still here is an announcement of the patience of the Lord behold I stand at the door I'm still knocking still knocking the city of ladies he is in Asia Minor became pramod in the day he was talkin 20,000 tall one another another nine thousand feet off say was known what I want to say something on a voice my clothes I'm astonished the work that the photo for the entire two minutes to to dock while later he tells them to buy some ice and so well tells them you you think you're rich and increased with Goods but you're you're you don't owe the store marketable rich Goods later SIA Oh lettuce here was a chance it was such a prominent Church you see like it was bad but their professor and all is literally God verse 13 it was a real the setup here bursting bursting is also read in the church air so the literally the sick letter not the verb these lair decisions America had received a letter from the Apostle Paul himself you Colossians read it then take it over there to those Laodiceans what was the specially to see what we know is this Paul died around 56 AD so that letter was written before 60 ad when their city was destroyed they rebuilt it and by the time John comes along it's now somewhere around 96 to 100 AD so some 40 years later 50 years later now the Lord says what whatever whatever he said to them 50 years ago they did not get it so now I'm writing to you and all I can say about you now is you are poor blind and miserable in fact he says to them you're like your water you see the situation there and later see it was that there was near by them a a falls at a lotta with a lot of fresh cooled water that came down but it was criss-crossed by a hot spring and by the time the water got to them it was lukewarm so they were used to tepid lukewarm water he says you'd become just like the water you drink the word later see it means judged people listen to me Laodicea represents the last days of the church when judgment is going on let me take you back now to good old Bible history 1844 the end of the 2300 day prophecy Daniel saw Jesus moving from the holy to the most holy judgment has begun in heaven has been going on since around 1844 every last one of us in this room were born while judgment is taking place in heaven we are a judged people what do you say to a judged people revelation 3 verse 14 let's take it now quickly quickly revelation 3 verse 14 I want to speed up now he calls himself the Amen in verse 14 that means he's the final word his words are sure he is true and faithful witness Jesus refers to himself in other words the message to the lay the sins is amen over done now this gets very meaningful to me because it means see so that the last thing God says to the church is not words of condemnation but the last thing God says to the church are words of appeal I'm standing and knocking somebody should have said amen my last words Trevor to the church are not words of condemnation yeah I told you you're poor blind and miserable but that's not the last thing the last part of my messages in spite who help me Jesus in spite of your condition I'm out here knocking Henry George what's going on Henry what no what are you doing over there what are you doing here White's still drinking that why are you still smoking that why you still spending that don't you know Henry you live in a time of judgment man I'm knocking get the door open we can't hear the knock for the stereo the noise in our life did you hear what I just said what do they call them them games y'all play was that what's that what's that device they use Xbox that's it all the more games you can't hear him you can him you're arguing with your wife you came hearing you listen to that bumpety bumpety means you cannot hear him but what I like about him what I like about him even though he knows he's being ignored I didn't read my Bible behold I had been standing behold I'm still knocking I don't care how you treat me you will not discourage me Henry I'm still knocking somebody give God some glory I'm the Amen verse 15 don't you about the water lukewarm knows how he gets to it real quick he didn't beat around the bush verse 14 on the Amen and then verse 15 neither hot nor cold I moved and and the Greek says I'm Obama will vomit you useless useless useless now look at verse 16 so then because you're in lukewarm and neither cold nor hot I will vomit out of my mouth because you say look at verse 17 verse 17 3 verse 17 come on everybody 4:17 okay first of all let me deal with cold and hot you look hold it hot it seems strange to me that Jesus would be further that that that one of his preferences preference one hot preference too cold wise in preference to lukewarm anybody thinking everybody gone to sleep why would one of Christ's preferences for me be that I be cold well those of you who were in medicine know as a lot of healing you can do with cold a my my my chiropractor says to me I have back problems my chiropractor says to me have knee problems the conference to me I have shoulder problems I'm 74 yo I'm 74 but it's all still working it works slower but it's all still working hallelujah thank you Jesus chiropractor says you can never use too much cold water or ice and of course we know what he can do see what Jesus is saying I can work on the person who's cold and I can work on the person who's warm but the person who's lukewarm is an almost I can do nothing for them the Lord can do more Heskey with a rank Center old he'd work with them he can show them their knee sir he can bless the person who's hot but the lukewarm person is a little warm and a little cold so they have need of nothing what you going to do with them Jesus I'm spit them out cold I can work with warm I can do something with lukewarm mm-hmm and you know I don't know about you there's nothing worse than picking up a glass of water and it's lukewarm come on you'll be honest with yourself that's so disappointing oh and you almost will say but they should all be cold or hot I mean one of the other so he said to them in verse 17 you say you're rich you become wealthy have needed nothing and then it's words to the next words disturbed me that's words are you do not know you see that in your buck I wrote a my note something happened to the church at laodicea between fall Falls letter and the early years of the Christian Church in the latter part of the first century what happened stay with me seein latest see all the problems surely the least of the first six churches are in Laodicea see everything that ever happened in the church historically is now in the last date Church we got all the problems somebody say Amen modern day Christians have become experts at sinning we do it all yeah yes some of us do pornography some of us smoke some of us drink some of us steal some of us lie so let's give it a doll tree we do it all while getting so quiet we do it all and we're good at it yeah and and and and and because of lukewarm condition we can do it all and come to church on sabbath and just have a time child didn't we worship can't wait for the Sun to go down did we have church today had a yeah so listen lukewarm conditioned produces a thing that is called hypocrisy say the word hypocrisy hypocrite hypocrite hypocrite that's an insult that means you ain't what you say you is but the hypocrite is an expert as bit of pretending that they is all the English teachers close your ears that they is their experts that you have to follow the hypocrite around for about a month the figure out that they really are a hypocrite Jesus you turn into Matthew 23 Jesus Jesus he cut loose in Matthew 23 on the hypocrites it was like Jesus got so filled up he just couldn't take it anymore and he levelled everything at them he could possibly think of in Matthew 23 he's talking to the scribes and the Pharisees who followed him around all the time Hiep verse 3 Matthew 23 verse 3 the hypocrite says but does not do verse 4 watch this one watch this verse 4 Matthew 23 for they have spiritual requirements for others but do not observe those requirements themselves nothing makes me more tired than some seventh-day adventists who gets to knowing on new members of the church about things they ought to be I will say it again I've said it before Mille sailing person just got baptized just gave up pork just gave up shrimp just gave up the the all just just gave it up and you talkin to them you're talking to them about drinking carrot juice and celery juice let the person go on and drink some pop for a while they'd least at least at least they got off the other sir let them go on and eat a big nice clean blessed by God stick with the blood drain kosher let him hear he just gave up the hormones let him eat the steak I'm serious folk then we want to take them to councils on diets and food that's a strong book when you read that book too you ain't got no mustard laughs you ain't got no pickles left you ain't got no pepper left bring got no ketchup that close that book up let the brother put some ketchup on his vigil iegs at least eating veggie legs you ain't doing that stuff yourself you follow that hypocrite home he got pickles ketchup and mustard in his refrigerator right fooling me I know you Jesus said I know you too he says you make you make crops for others you will not bear you make rules you've never kept by their poor sister yes you may still have a little something in her ears or something on her lips he's coming he's coming your face clean don't make you clean your heart make you clean I'm just under scrutiny zhis Oh eats this y'all Oh so he tells him he says he says look he says they practiced verse five religion to be seen verse six they love attention hypocrite then call my name passed out them plaques of the Sabbath didn't call my name well the overlooked you with what an intentional you'll get credit and glory may never get a plaque for me verse 7 they love titles want to be called diss and that verse 13 the hypocrites actions keep others oh jesus said the worst thing about lay the sins are they keep other folk out of the church yeah yeah verse verse verse 14 they take advantage of the unfortunate verse 15 the people they win de jure all oh oh verse 15 the people they win the church turned out to be worse than they are verse 16 to 26 the hypocrite has a distorted view of what spiritually important verse 27 28 the greatest spiritually dead inside like dead men's bones Christ said the latest sins are like people with pretty grave stones but inside are worms and maggots 29 to 36 the dipper kid the hypocrite is responsible for the persecution of many sincere people who are trying to do right this is why in late Asiya to your shock I'm almost done this is why I'm layered to see you he goes after one at a time you can't win Laodiceans as a group they got too many problems behold I got to take one legacy at a time because they are mess but well they don't know they're messed up they think they're dressed up and they're buck naked but with thrills the pastor's heart he loves us so much he's willing to go one at a time you're say men layered the scenes get personal attention from the Holy Spirit yeah so 417 reads at revelation 3 revelation 3 verse 17 read you read it read it again because you say I am rich have become wealthy have need of nothing do not know that you are what little quirk wretched miserable poor blind and naked verse 18 I counseled you to buy of me gold refined in the fire that's goal that's been purified by heat that you may be rich by garments replace those black garments that you may be clothed at the shame of your nakedness may not appear and anoint your eyes with eyesalve not the freaking powder that you may see and the I said by the way represents discernment between good and evil brethren I'll be ready for those statements on the screen yeah no let's go to those statements I gave you yeah okay can you see it let's give it a try come on I was shown that the testimony to the latest sins applies to God's people at the present time whoa it's us the latest Xion message is actually written to us Wow look at that we don't and the reason it is not accomplished a greater work is because the hardness of their hearts statement next stately next they read the half-hearted Christians are worse than infidels for the deceptive words and non-committal position lead many astray the infidel shows his colors so the lukewarm person is worse than an infidel next statement things got one more I can give you all of them by faith she the one by faith in love there you go thank you come on read by faith and love the precious beautiful attributes of our Savior that will allow us to find our way behold I stand at the door and knock it's embarrassing he's the son of God what must the Angels think for Jesus to be standing out in the cold knocking at the door my cold life is this a king is this the ruler of the universe is this the person we call king of kings and Lord of lords and yet he be doose's himself now do not forget what pastor taught you in my very first sermon on the seven churches remember that in Revelation 1 he is seen standing in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks remember that those are the seven churches so when the story starts when the apostles launched the church what emphasis is born Jesus is in the church y'all but when you get to lay the SIA his position has totally changed he's been kicked out but they do not know he's been kicked out they clarify again later see is not the seventh-day Adventist Church legacy is last day Christianity and some seventh-day Adventists are Laodiceans let me get that straight the 70 Adventist Church is not laying - see you later see it represents the entire last day Christian faith but there are some seventh-day Adventists there are some Baptists there are some Catholics there are some Methodist there are some Church of God people will become Laodiceans because they are bathed in a false sense of relationship with Jesus and do not know that Jesus no longer lives in their life they do not know that they lost their first love they do not know they become Jezebel they do not know that's happening they have no idea why they're too busy being themselves like the latest sense they make money they have clothes they have cars they have jobs they have positions they're doing fine they're in church every Sabbath they return tithe their name is on the church budget list but somewhere along the way they forgot they belong to Jesus and if Jesus took that house took that car took that job took that degree they would turn on Jesus and let me promise you something if you stay in the church long enough he will take your house he will take your car he will take your degree he only wants you nothing else you got does him any good all he wants is you your stuff means nothing to Jesus the latest sin came bathed in their accouterments they became bathed in their accomplishments they thought that was sufficient and God said hey I have moved out I want to come in and sup with you in the Middle East eating with someone is the highest compliment of favor I see him standing humility his patience his honesty his determination his desire for relationship folk that's really what gets to me Jesus wants a relationship with Henry Monroe right and so he's still waiting he's still calling spite of his harsh words emphasis I got something against you Smyrna no harsh words pergamus got a few things against you saya Tara I've got more things against you Sardis you have a name that you're live but you did Sardis is the precursor to late Asiya Philadelphia no harsh words then later see it he bombs them wretched miserable poor blind naked now if that's me see if that's me Deacon Ebanks if if if I find somebody is poor miserable blind I'm thinking that's it nothing I can do there he calls them folks they was your pastor he calls them all the names and then goes and knocks on the door hallelujah calls me everything but a child of God then goes knocks on the door what you're doing why you knocking Jesus goes he's wretched but you didn't read the whole text so you didn't read the whole text I saved the rest of the text for the last part of the sermon the text says behold I stand at the door and knock rolls and then it says in it man hear my voice he's not just knocking he's calling he's embarrassed himself before the neighborhood I'm knocking I'm calling the rest of the world's are looking the neighborhood is watching I don't care if I look bad I want to save Henry Henry knocking and calling Henry knocking and cold my Bible says when it comes to saving me you'll find a way at times the load is heavy at times the road is long when circumstances come your way and you think you can't go on when you're feeling at your weekend yes host Jesus will be strong he'll provide the answers when you found the hope is gone he'll find away for I know if he can pay the sunset and put the stars in place I know if he can raise a mountains and calm the storm-tossed waves and if he can conquer death forever to open heaven's gates then I know for you yes I know for you yes he'll find away and the times your heart is breaking with a pain that's so intense and all you hold are broken pieces to a life that makes no sense he wants to lift you up and hold you and then each tornament he'll pick up all the pieces that you fought had all been standing the win yes you will or I go if he can paint a sunset and put the stars in place I know if he can raise the mountains and come the storm toss away I know if he can a deer forever to open heaven's gate that I know of you yes I know for me and you that gotta find you find a way if he can paint accessorize and if he can raise a mountains and call the storm-tossed away and he can conquer them forever yes and open heaven's gaze and I know for you yes I know that God is able he'll find a way if he can conquer death forever and ever sky hate then I know for you yes I know fine ah fine Oh Hey Hey at the age of 18 almost walked away from this church I thought I was smarter than God I'd grown up in it but I was about as laird to seeing as you could get even as a teenager it was just church it was just Sabbath school it was just Bible always knew my thirteen from the old days we knew the Bible for every hell thirteen savages at all thirteen memory verses remember that oh I did have no trouble you couldn't have been more unconverted than I was he just kept knocking running with gangs and Dayton Ohio robbing and stealing he just kept knocking see book I'm not telling you what I read I tell you what I know through the winter of my life through the blizzard of my ignorance he stood out on the cold maybe one day you'll open the door now you can keep fooling around if you want to you can keep lukewarm inand have Stefan if you want to got a lot of patience ladies and gentlemen the day will come when he will stop knocking don't you push him don't you break his heart he's got to make you sick give you cancer you'll find a way he's got to separate you from a relationship somebody sitting here today who wants to get married you may never get married if that's the way he has to save you you'll find a way you keep wondering why you can't seem to get into that DHD program if it's gonna send you to hell you ain't never gonna get it cuz he's gonna find a way but I'm saying to you folk Jesus only has one agenda for you that's saving you nothing will get in the way of that so be you young or be you old if you're thankful today that Jesus is in the knocking business why don't you stand on your feet he's knocking right now so someone who's been thinking about transferring their membership someone who's been thinking about signing up for the baptismal class someone who's been thinking about getting ready for baptism you've been thinking about it today you want to do something about it I'll give you a chance to move from where you are and come down front right now everybody's head is bowed everybody is praying let's see what happens if nothing happens I'm cool with it but I got to give the opportunity you know you should come you're gonna make a commitment you're going to do it today pastor why you always make these kind of Appeals well take a deep breath don't worry about it just come you're praying church you're not looking around person next you tries to move get out of the way somebody come day come on how many times you just stand and wait what what could hold you what could keep you what's going on in your head right now trust Jesus with it come come it's a bold decision now either going to come Bible study come for baptism or just a on a transfer the part of this god bless you somebody else stand by this young lady somebody off come on oh yeah you can always tell me in the door standing back there but would you do something public for Jesus today I mean he's made himself a spectacle knocking at your life in front of the whole universe can you come and just stand in front of the church and say Here I am I'm gonna pray after Daniels have you seen anybody come just come and greet them for me my eyes are closed father God what a powerful message is laid to see you it made us think it made us pause and consider Jesus is still waiting help me get rid of the clutter help me to turn down the music and the noise of my life to hear him thank you Lord for knocking and calling woof what a picture knocking and calling am i worth that much thank you lord well the dear one who has come for the dear ones who have come praise You God praise God we give you thanks but may each of us go home today at the end of the seven churches asking ourselves the question is he inside or is he outside and if honest reflection says he's outside then today before the Sun sets go to the door and let him in your life will never be the same that I can testify to in the name of the Father Son and the Holy Spirit at all God's children said he man put your hands together and give god going for the word come to our life you may be seated

Channel: Takoma Park SDA Church

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Length: 56min 1sec (3361 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 07 2016