Mattie Montgomery: ENGAGE Men's Conference 2018

[Music] listen I uh I need to confess something I I have a tremendous opportunity in life to be able to travel around and to minister to groups of men groups of young adults groups of old adults you know and and and and and for the years I've been doing this I I have learned something about myself and that is this I am NOT a pastor I lead a few people and I do some discipleship things but for the most part I get the tremendous honor of occupying the seat of the Evangelist and to make that real simple for you what that means is that Pastor Doug and pastor even Pastor Chris last night they wanted to help make sure that everybody here was was it was comfortable and accommodated it felt welcome and so and I get to stand here this morning and tell you this I don't care if you're comfortable I want you to be holy this is the beautiful thing about a Men's Conference and also this is a beautiful thing about being a guest speaker is that if you get offended you just talked to Pastor Doug about it I don't have to hear and in the beautiful thing I think about about being in a conference of men is that we understand that sometimes the right thing is not the comfortable thing that sometimes the righteous thing is not the convenient thing sometimes it's costly to walk in in the position of the place or the thing that that God has called you to and and so we can have a real conversation or a heart-to-heart where I'm gonna maybe call you to face some things and then tell you yeah I know it's hard suck it up and do it anyway and we're men and we can talk to each other like that we could handle it right Oh Holy Father we love you Holy Father we just join me in prayer this one father we love you and we honor you we bless you you are holy and you are worthy and you are good and you deserve to be seen and you deserve to be heard you deserve to be known and celebrated and exalted in this place and I asked to direct my tongue father would you allow your your your great holy spirit to take the lead and to take charge this morning we submit and surrender this this event to you to your will to your plans and intentions and desires and dreams for this morning and we just asked you to move freely and powerfully today in us we ask this in the name of your son Jesus so uh so as pastor Mitch said I am a father to one woman just kidding I I am married to the most beautiful incredible godly woman in the entire world and wouldn't suggest it I found her in the great state of Alabama roll tide all right yeah yeah yeah get it out of your system you'll see in the national championship again so I and I I have two little boys at home six-year-old in the four year old and we have another a third little boy on the way right now and so it's it's never a quiet moment so I've been sitting in my hotel for the last couple days in absolute silence just enjoying because I don't we don't get silence in my house and I run a ministry called awakening evangelism and what we do there at awakening evangelism is we provide training and resources for believers to be able to share the gospel more effectively because I think the truth of the moment in which we are living is that most believers or most churchgoers don't even know what the gospel is I think that the reality is if a stranger ran up to us on the street and said hey I see your cross necklace or I see that you're wearing a t-shirt from a church I need to be born again how can I do that the most of us would say I want you to come to church with me on Sunday because we have equated evangelism with outreach because we have said we need to reach the world get everybody into our church but the truth is that we need to reach the world and and the burden is not a burden that pastor Doug can bear for you there are people in your workplace that will only hear the gospel from you there are people that God has sent you into their workplace because they are in desperate need of hope and you have Jesus Hope incarnate well we've got to understand the Bible says that the steps of a righteous man are ordered of the Lord that means that you didn't walk into that grocery store on accident means that the coffee shop you went to at the restaurant you eat lunch at today that none of those things were on accident they were in actually they were by design that you walked in to that place on purpose because your steps as a righteous man are ordered of the Lord and if that's the case I mean I've got a belief that uh that God wouldn't have sent a son in there unless there was some family business to attend to you know years ago I applied in a metal band and and I preached the gospel from stage and we weren't uh we weren't a band that just played Christian festivals and church youth groups we play you know we went on tour with satanic bands and atheist bands Antichrist pans and I'd preach the gospel every night and then one day I had a believer say to me listen I don't know why you keep preaching the gospel to these room full of these rooms full of drunk atheists but they don't want to hear it it's offending people and alienating people and I said what are you talking about they need it more than they need their next breath and he said he said well listen you believe that God speaks to you what if what if God doesn't want these people to hear the gospel tonight and I thought for a second and then I said sort of out of my spirit I said well then he shouldn't have sent me we've got to understand what was so often I think we get it in our minds like well maybe God doesn't want this person to hear the gospel today maybe God doesn't want to to share the good news of his love with this the waitress at this restaurant her with the the cashier working the cash register in this store but friend you've got to understand that God wouldn't have sent you into the room if he didn't want him to hear about it God wouldn't have sent you into their life if he didn't intend to use you to glorify Him in front of them and it's our joy as men of God to carry the good news of the gospel with us everywhere we go and I believe that what God is doing in this time in this season in the church is to to move on the hearts of of men and women all around the world to take ownership of the gospel and to take responsibility for their community and here's what I mean we did a couple for the last couple generations we have approached gospel sharing like well I don't need to do it Billy Graham will do it for me I don't need to do it there's televangelists people preach the gospel on the radio there's a man of God at every pulpit in every church and those people they'll do it for me because they are men and women of God and all I can do the best I can do is invite somebody to come and listen to them with me no no no the gospel was never intended to be something reserved for really righteous really godly people it was supposed to be something that is carried with weight and urgency by every believer into every situation now this this means that you're responsible for the way you live this means irresponsible to to keep always before you the urgency I would even go beyond urgency I'd say the opportunity of the hour in which we're living just just a few months ago my son my oldest son we were praying at the end of the night and and as I was talking he and his brother into bed and I I prayed and I said father thank you for the freedom that you gave us by the blood of Jesus on the cross so when I got done praying my son said daddy what's freedom now that's a real question right I mean then I've got I've got to make it accessible to a six-year-old how can I explain what freedom is to a little boy who's six and in Holy Spirit he helps me a lot with with parenting and lord knows I needed and so uh so I turned to him and and kind of before I had much time to think about it I said son freedom is the power to choose because before Jesus died for us we didn't have the power to choose everything we did was sinful and it was wrong and it was selfish and self-serving everything we did denied God because we were disconnected from relationship with him because of our sin nature but Jesus died for us and now we have the power to choose what is right and what is good and what is righteous and I thought it was a pretty good answer and he said okay and just lay down in bed like all right part of tews cool thanks and um but I think that the beautiful thing about this power we've been given to choose this freedom that Jesus purchased for us on the cross is is is is that maybe it's a sobering thought for you to realize that because you have this power you're now responsible for how you use it the good news of the gospel is that sin no longer has any power over you you no longer have any obligation to sin you have no obligation to live in compromise or to live in lack or to live and brokenness or to live in condemnation and yet as we do live in these things we have to ask ourselves to Jesus really make us free or not and if Jesus made you free if Jesus gave you the power to choose and you're still living in sin that means you're living in sin because you're choosing to love you guys that means we're living in compromise because we choose to because we have been made free by the blood of Jesus that means that I don't have to sin ever again does now does that mean that I will that I will never sin again well I'm not there yet but I have to believe that the blood of Jesus is enough for me I have to believe that His grace is sufficient for me to give me the strength to live a godly life Titus 2 says that the grace of God to bring salvation has appeared to all men it teaches us to say no to ungodliness and to live an upright and godly life in this present age I can live an upright and godly life in this presentation its grace that gives me that power if you have received grace you are under no obligation to sin ever again oh oh can I tell you a story because we're we're all men here this is a real story I've been married for nine and a half years now and I had a girlfriend in high school that I slept with and lived in sin with for a couple years and and I bought her a dog when we were together and she wrote me an email I grew up in Michigan and by the way in Adrian Michigan a couple hours away from here and she wrote me an email last week I didn't see it because I embed with computers until yesterday now here's the funny thing men I yesterday I was sitting in a hotel room alone 2,000 miles away from my wife and I get an email from my ex-girlfriend who is two hours away from the hotel room I'm sitting in guess what I did I deleted it well I sent it to my wife and said hey you know and and just last night I came in and pastor Chris said that we are in we're in the crosshairs of the enemy and then you got to understand we really are and that he's going to bring opportunity after opportunity after opportunity invitation after invitation after invitation to compromise to stand to to open the door just a little bit too to that thing that is threatening to destroy you and your family and your legacy and we have to be vigilant and we have to be strong and we have to be focused and we have to be real with ourselves about our own thoughts and intentions if we are ever gonna walk in the integrity to which God has called us so it's it listen it really wasn't that hard she's not cute [Applause] y'all said good Lord you all should see my wife mmm yes Jesus thank you Father wasn't it wasn't a big struggle but uh so today I'm gonna preach a message I've never preached before and I'm excited about it Holy Spirit has been giving it to me in pieces over the last week is I've been praying for you men and this message is called if you are taking notes or trying to pay attention to remember something this message is called our finest hour because we are in a moment right now and I'm speaking a bit prophetically we are in a moment right now in which I believe God is moving uniquely on the collective hearts of the body of Christ around the world in that he is moving us out of an era in which powerful ministry was reserved for famous people and I believe he's moving us into a time in which each individual believer can walk in power and authority and confidence of readiness in the gospel whether or not you have a website with your name on it or business cards that say pastor or evangelist on them I believe that God is moving us into an era in which believers will live like they actually believed God and I want to read this quote that's something I read years ago and just this morning actually the father reminded me of it and said I want you two to start here with these men this is your first step and it's a quote from Winston Churchill and in case you are not aware of who Winston Churchill is he was the Prime Minister of England during the during this the Second World War and he was a historically tremendous orator speaker and and he motivated a world that was really reeling and on their heels to stand up and fight against the Nazi regime and and he said he said this he said to each there comes in their lifetime I want you to really listen to this because this is kind of a point I'm trying to make he said this to each their comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing unique to them and fitted to their talents what a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour I want to read that again to make sure you hear me to each their comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offer the chance to do a very special thing unique to them and fitted to their talents what a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour man III think that the the fear of our lives as men I think the thing that keeps us waking up early and going to bed late the thing that keeps us working hard is the fear of wasting the time that we've been given I think it's something that all of us probably understand to some degree or another that we as men have this inherent desire to impact the world around us to shape a life whether it's to build a house for our families to live in whether it's to build a business to build a ministry to develop our community whatever it is there is an inherent drive inside us as men to impact the world around us to leave a lasting effect and and and I want you to understand that there is as Wilson Churchill said an opportunity given to each of us maybe not two or three or ten maybe only one but to each of us there comes at least one opportunity for us to step into what could be our finest hour the moment that most people would call destiny where where our unique abilities and talents meet up with an opportunity that is distinctly fitted for us to to impact the world around us in such a tremendous way that that like Winston Churchill generations later our legacy will it will still be standing but what a great tragedy it is that for many of us that moment comes goes and we never see it because we are unprepared and unqualified for that which could have been our finest hour and now as I said before I want to speak a little bit prophetically because we are in a moment I believe right now in which God is moving uniquely I believe we are in a moment right now in which God is moving on the hearts of our nation to step into the place of fatherhood I think Pastor Chris last night said something really tremendous he said that we in the United States are experiencing what the Bible calls the curse of fatherlessness we live I've got a friend named John Sawers who wrote a book called the fatherless generation we are seeing the fruit of a generation of young men who have grown up in households where fathers were absent and you want to talk about violence running rampant in thefts running rampant and rape and in sexual dysfunction running rampant these things are coming because there are no fathers put in in in these homes to bring identity and direction and correction to the lives of these young people my my spiritual father apostle Aaron Smith met from the rock of Mobile in Mobile Alabama he has said for four years I mean for decades that he said I can fix every problem in the world if you just put a man of God as the head of every household you put a man of God to love every woman and to raise every child we fix every problem in the world and and that's such an incredible thing and so III not only it's got dealing with the the curse of fatherlessness but God is also dealing with with with with an amused church we live in a time in a moment I'm sorry I got a change to the last week we have lived in a time in which the church shows up in droves to be amused to be entertained for a couple hours on Sunday mornings and and we want pastors that dress and talk like us and we want a worship band that plays our favorite genre of music we want a place where we could come and be comfortable we could be coddled and somebody can Pat us on the head and say everything's going to be alright but what we don't want is correction what we don't want at our at our pulpit Our Fathers people that will say I expect better from you because I see better in you because that's uncomfortable and people call that judgment but I call that love then I'm the all are in a really incredible place because I know there's a father who stands at this pulpit and expects the best from me and I think that we as a people have to understand that right now we are living in what could be our finest hour as the church we're living in an hour in which violence and racial tension and in financial disparity have caused people to desperately look for an answer and you can turn on any news station at any hour of the day and find people screaming back and forth at each other because they all have different theories and philosophies and ideas about what the answer could be but I've got news for you the answer is and has always been the blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross this is our opportunity family we've got the answer for school shootings we've got the answer for the drug epidemic we've got the answer for for for a prefer for violence or injustice in police forces we've got the answer for the things that are out raising our generation friends his name is King Jesus we've got the solution he's been tried and true he's been faithful every step of the way and for us as men to sit back and act like we don't have an answer or like we don't have it figured out listen you don't have to have it all figured out you just have to have Jesus you don't have to have Jesus and a doctorate in pastoral ministry so you don't have to have Jesus and in a thousand person church you don't have to have Jesus and a million dollars to use for outreach events all you need friend is Jesus and if Jesus walks into that restaurant with you you can do anything if she's hallelujah if Jesus walks into your bedroom with you there's nothing that can overtake you no temptation or sin or compromise or accommodation for the enemy if Jesus friend if he walks into your workplace with you he will turn that place on its head we put boundaries on our Jesus because so much of the world doesn't want him here's the great thing about being an evangelist I don't care if they're comfortable I care if they're holy I want him to meet my Jesus for no other reason than that he's worthy to be seen weeks ago I had a pastor say Maddie you know why do you preach what got you started in preaching and my answer my quick answer before I really thought about it I said he's worthy I talk about Jesus because he's worthy I talk about Jesus in rooms full of men and I talk about Jesus when I would I Drive through the the the Starbucks drive-through I'll talk about Jesus in a restaurant with my family just a few weeks ago I was at a Mexican restaurant with my family my four-year-old son the waiter came up and he got our drink orders and as he was walking away my four-year-old son said daddy he needs to hear about Jesus and I he put me on the spot I can't I can't be awkward well okay I can't say no to that and so he came back and I said man do you know Jesus do you follow do you follow God and he said well you know I believe in God I just don't follow like I said I said yeah that's code for no I said man men let's talk and so he sat there and or he I guess he stood there and I just shared the gospel with him shed a little bit of my testimony and with tears in his eyes this waiter at a Mexican restaurant in front of my two little boys and my wife the iota said and we prayed together as he committed his life to Jesus he didn't he didn't he didn't know that I write books and preached at conferences he didn't visit my website or follow me on social media he's just a waiter in a restaurant and I cared enough about his eternity and my son my son knew that the answer for his heavy spirit is Jesus holily so all right I'm gonna read some Bible verses so you'll know I'm safe all right thank you lord if y'all read this book it's awesome that's a good one all right so I want to talk about a man who was prepared for his finest hour I'm gonna go to the First Samuel Chapter 17 and this is the story I'm sure probably all of you are familiar with this story of David and Goliath and there are some things I'll read this story my entire life a million times hurt at all a million times but just recently God has been kind of revealing some things to me out of this story that I never really noticed before things that I never caught before and so I want to kind of take some things out of this draw some things out of it and help minister this to you the way that that Holy Spirit is minister this to me is that all right I don't care I'm gonna do it anyway so it's the First Samuel chapter 17 and and to give you a little bit of context the Philistines and the Israelites have encamped against each other on two Hills on either side of a valley and they're just yelling back and forth as you do and and what happens is that there is a Philistine who now every day has been coming down into the valley and shouting to the Israelites and saying if anyone from among you can come and defeat me then we will all be your slaves but if I defeat him then you will all have to become our slaves he's saying instead of fighting an all-out war let's fight one battle between two men and whoever wins will win on behalf of his entire nation and his name is Goliath he's like nine feet tall and he's got scars and hair everywhere and it's a scary just a big scary man and and so he's standing down in the valley and he's beginning to dictate the terms of the battle and I think the first thing that I want to share with you is this and this is good news for your friend this is a strategy that the enemy has always used and is still using on men today he will try to convince you that if you lose one battle you've just called find yourself from the war this is this is the tactic that Goliath he says listen I want you to come against me and if one man loses to me then every one of you has to become our slave listen that's not he doesn't have the authority to establish those terms he's not the king he's just a soldier he doesn't have the right to establish that those are the terms for the fight and yet our enemy does the same thing to us he'll come and say listen you lost that you lost that marriage and therefore you are disqualified from ever being used by me again because you lived because you were an adulterer you don't deserve a successful marriage you've disqualified yourself from ever having a godly marriage because of the pornography habit that you've had because you've been because you've lied and your finances to get where you are you don't deserve the blessing of God on your life and what will happen is he will come against us and try to to convince us that because of the failure of our past because of one lost battle we've disqualified ourselves from being a part of the war but I've got news for you friends you're never out of the fight you are never hear me you are never out of the fight and listen I know that the shame of your past may be a real deep and it may be a real dark but the glory of your future is Jesus and he can handle it I'm telling you he can handle it and the enemy may be coming to you and saying you've disqualified yourself you've moved yourself out of position you've lost the only opportunity you've ever been given but I've got news for you friend His grace is sufficient for you and strength is made perfect in your weakness and I know you feel weak I know you feel weak but he is strong and I know you feel lost for but he can find you and I'll never leave you on your own hallelujah and so uh so Goliath this giant comes and tries to establish the terms of the battle and and everybody's scared because they see this man he's a man of war nine feet tall clad in armor carrying a sword and a spear and nobody will fight him these men are hiding in their tents and then this kid shows up bringing food to to his brothers not even because he wanted to because his dad made him you know like a silly as that is I feel like there's something to that that that a son who will serve the vision of his father is a son that will position himself for his finest hour that if David listened David could have said no dad come on if you want the guys to have bread bring it yourself whatever man I got my own things going on but David was a man of honor that's a key whatever okay we'll get there so um so David is there he's bringing bread to his brothers and he hears this Philistine insulting the God of Israel Yahweh Elohim insulting him and defying the armies of God and so uh so he says is there not a cause which means hey somebody should kill this guy and people start talking no David whatever he's you can't do this he's a man of war you're just a kid there's no way you can do this but Saul the King hears the commotion around this kid who's running through camp saying that he'll fight this giant and he calls the kid to him and he tries to tell him why he can't do it he says listen you are just a youth and he's a man of war from his youth and then an in verse in verse 34 this I think is is where I want to start I just want to read a few verses to you and show you the moment that everything changes in this situation it starts in verse 34 I'll go to verse 37 it says but David said to Saul your servant used to keep his father's sheep and when a lion or a bear came out and took a lamb out of the flock I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lamb from its mouth and when it arose against me I caught it by its beard and struck and killed it let's stop right there can we be honest men if I was a shepherd taking care of an entire flock of maybe thousands of sheep and a bear came and took one sheep I would let it slide it's only one sheet man a lion or a bear came and took one sheep we can do my dad's not even a notice the sheep is gone he didn't like it that much we have plenty more but I think David knew something that many of the men in our generation don't and that is that God is looking for the man that will go to war over the little things because Affairs don't start in the bedroom they start with a text message a conversation a comment a compliment because compromise in our businesses it doesn't start with you know with tax evasion for tens of millions of dollars it starts with one little compromise with one little budge with one little omission with with one little change on our books to make things look a little better for us what happens in our lives men is that we have an enemy who's not going to come in and take the whole flock from I still just come and take one sheep at a time he'll come and take one conversation he'll come and take one you know one five-minute span of time as you're scrolling through the internet and looking at pictures on your phone he'll come and take one thing at a time and what happens is that we as men think oh we're still doing pretty good look what I've got a whole flock he only took one sheep it's fine but that same enemy if we strike a deal with him that he could come and take a sheep he'd come and take one sheep without being confronted and without having to deal with it and what's gonna happen is he'll come back again the next day and take another one and he'll come back again the next day and he'll take another one and they'll come back again the next day and he'll take another one and one one day that we go without prayer with our wife that's one sheep gone one day that we go that we think we're too tired or too busy to get in God's Word it's one sheep gone what happens is that he'll come and just take one sheep at a time and we think it's only one sheep it's not that big a deal but it is men we'll go to war over one lost sheep that God will use to change to turn the tide for an entire nation it is men that will go to war over one wayward comment over one unwelcome thought men that that root will refuse to compromise even when it's something as small as the 15 20 30 minutes that I'm supposed to spend reading the word every day men that are willing to go to war for that one thing of the men that God will use to turn the tide of our nation and so David stands up in the presence of the king this is a kid a shepherd an uneducated shepherd boy who stands in front of the king of Israel and he said and he says if a lion or bear came out and took a lamb out of the flock I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lamb from its mouth and when it arose against me I caught it by its beard and struck and killed it and verse 36 he says your servant has killed both lion and bear and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them because he has defied the armies of the Living God now it's getting serious David is reminding Saul do you remember who we are we're not just another nation we are the people of God and then his verse 37 is when everything changes listen to this it says moreover David said the Lord now that translation I like that the word Lord and all capital letters is the the personal name of God it's Yahweh now it doesn't say like Lord Lord is a title is the name of an English landowner like Voldemort is the Lord you know Farquaad from shrek is the Lord it doesn't to be to be a lord doesn't really carry the right amount of weight with it and so I feel like we've missed something personal about God when we take his name out and we put a and we put a title especially a relatively recent English title in so so he so then he says in verse 37 it says moreover David said Yahweh who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear he will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine and listen to this something crazy happens next and Saul said to David go and Yahweh be with you what happened in that moment is the soul who had been afraid every one of those 40 days that Goliath came down into the valley to taunt and defy and threaten them saw the one that had been running and hiding with everybody else suddenly regain his strength because he remembered who was for him because some boy walked into his tent and said Saul I know you might have forgotten but I still remember that Yahweh is with me I still remember there's a God in Israel I still remember that if God is for me who can be against me so you might have forgotten but I'm telling you that if God is for you this this uncircumcised philistine doesn't stand a chance and so uh and so something changes something shifts and so because before this he was trying to tell David every reason that he couldn't do it and then David shows up and he starts talking about the lion and the bear and the sheep and then he says I'm not gonna win because I'm strong because I'm talented it because I'm gifted but because Yahweh God is with me because Yahweh God fights for me God said to Moses in Exodus chapter 14 he said I will fight for you you need only to be still friends we need to know that God don't we because I think as men if we're honest with ourselves we know that we don't have the capacity to repair a broken marriage we don't have the skill or the intelligence or the internet the intellect or the the abilities to to transform our workplace with the power of God we don't have that in us but we do have Jesus in us and he has it and I love that what happens in this moment is that David has such determined faith that it stirs up determination in the heart of Saul because men the truth is it's hard to go it alone but what will happen if you set yourself and say I'll go alone if I have to is that the people around you will begin to remember that God is for them now let me let me show you let me show you so Saul says to David go and Yahweh be with you and now you know the story so David go goes in his five stones in a sling no armor no helmet no nothing and he just rocks down into the valley and when this Philistine comes out the next day and the Philistine starts laughing at him oh my a dog that you come at me with sticks what are you gonna do with that and David runs straight at him and unleashes one stone that buries itself into the skull of the enemy and puts him on his back and then oh my favorite part of the whole story I've told my little boys this a thousand times and then he takes his sword out and he cuts his head off and then check this out he carries it with him all the way beds for a 14 mile walk all the way back to Jerusalem can you imagine a child with blood and flies just everywhere wild hair welcome back into a city holding the severed head because because listen man it might be ugly and it might be gross and it might be uncomfortable for people it might even be offensive for people but I think it's time that we as men start carrying around the victory that Jesus gave us the bloody stump of the giant that stood against him listen I need you to understand that that four years of my life I was broken and perverse I was a wicked man a manipulator and a liar and I'd sleep with girls and never talk to him again and I'd sleep with girls that I knew were too drunk to make a logical decision and I would make these decisions and I'm not telling you this to glorify that lifestyle I'm telling you this because that is the severed head of a giant that tried to destroy my life but God gave me the victory man and so God sent this little boy down into the valley to win a victory that nobody else was even willing to believe for and then check this out this is maybe my favorite part of the whole passage in 1st Samuel 17 verse 52 it says now would y'all say now with me now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines as far as the valley as far as the valley into the gates of Ekron and the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to share I even give it as far as goth and Ekron then the children of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines and they plundered their tents I need you to get this that it would this was not only David's victory this was a victory for the entire nation that when the men saw David win that battle they were strengthened in their inward parts they stood up and shouted and they chased the same army that they've been hiding from and I believe that what God is willing to raise up out of this house his men who will walk who are willing to walk down into the valley alone because there's a church of people standing behind you who need the strength to pursue the enemy and plunder his camp they said it wasn't until David won the battle that Israel engaged the war it wasn't until David won the battle that Israel engaged the war and friends I want you to understand there's a battle in front of you to battle against a giant called laziness and indifference the battle against a giant called compromise it's a battle against a giant called sexual perversion pornography the battle against a giant of called casual Christianity cold dead religion and many in our church are hiding in their tents too afraid to step down into the valley and confront these issues and the Kurds of God but I believe that I've been sent here today to to invite you to stand chest to chest with these enemies even if nobody goes with you even if nobody believes you can do it because there are wives and children and your brothers sitting next to you there are men and women of God all around this church all around this region all around this state and all around this nation that are wanting to see if it really works that are wanting to see if the gospel really is powerful that are wanting to see if we really can't lay our hands on the sick and see them recover they're wanting to see if men really can walk in righteousness and power and integrity and love and I think it's time that somebody stand up and show them that if God is with you who can be against you glory to go come on let's not believe God is willing to send men down into the valley could I call the band back up I just want to I want to have a time and what we can say God choose me y'all need to understand something I know that maybe you're a little bit familiar with the story of Isaiah and Isaiah chapter 6 and my Bible has a little subtitle there and Isaiah chapter 6 that says the calling of the prophet Isaiah now I have issue with that subtitle because in that story Isaiah wasn't called he volunteered because all he saw was the the Lord saying who will we send and who will go for us and then Isaiah said Here I am send me you need to get this man we live in a church of people that are willing to be used by God if he really needs us I've got news for you God doesn't need you at all God isn't looking for people that are willing if he begs them to do something for no no God is looking for people that are eager people that will come and bang on the door of heaven and say God use me God use me God send me God send me there's a sick and dead and dying and depraved world God would you send me as a beacon of light to them father use me use me fill me with your spirit and send me into this world father God is looking for people like David who are eager and when the rest of the world is too scared to stand up for truth who will run into an impossible situation because they know that God is with him it doesn't seem impossible sometimes like high school and college students are too far gone we reached like the culture has got its has got its its talents to deep into the minds of a young generation friends I have stood in front of that young generation for ten years and I watched them by the thousands come and lay their lives down at the foot of the cross tens of thousands hundreds of thousands come and surrender everything because there they were confronted with the truth of the unwavering unstoppable [Music] man I want to tell you somebody somebody has got to be willing to go first somebody's got to be willing to go alone [Music] somebody's got to be willing to grit their teeth and ball their fists and stand I to eye and chest chest with an enemy that the rest of our church is running from maybe is called cancer maybe it's called depression anxiety maybe is called drug addiction pornography maybe it's just called complacency indifference and laziness in the church [Music] but God is sending the name David means beloved Yahweh is sending his beloved down into the valley this morning you hear that God is sending his beloved down into the valley this morning do you hear that God is sending his beloved down into the valley this morning man who listening I don't know if any of you are with me but I'm going my marriage will glorify God and my children will glorify God in my life will glorify God not just at the pulpit but in the gas station and in the grocery store and in the airport and in the mall and wherever it is that my feet go because I believe that my steps as a righteous man have been ordered of the Lord and I'll go alone if I have to men listen would you stand up on your feet with me this morning glory to God glory to God going father we just ask you right now would you come and mark man today what you mark man is beloved Dharavi men that have been set apart God for your glory to exemplify and embody your son Jesus Oh father I thank you that these men have been called to engage you and to engage the world that you love on a different level than they ever thought possible [Music] god I asked right now that you break the back of fear would you break the back of compromise would you break the back of sexual perversion would you break the back of selfishness and self-gratification gun would you would you come right now and set him free set him free set him free I plead the blood of Jesus or every man in this room thank you thank you this my friends my beloved brothers can be our finest hour [Music] this can be our finest hour if we would say yes to following God with no compromise it is possible I'm telling you it is possible relentlessly violently passionately and urgently we've got a scream yes with everything in us man listen if you're willing to stand up and if nobody goes with you if you're willing to stand up for the sake of righteousness to carry the gospel with you everywhere you go and to glorify Jesus with all of your strength and all of your mind and all of your heart I want you to come forward right now this is the place of surrender this is the place of determination this is the place where we say if nobody goes with me I will glorify my god every day and every place I go no matter what come on man come on man oh I can feel he'll begin to tremble come on man come on I can feel that Giants Wiis knees getting weaker come on man [Music] there [Music] but Jesus wins Jesus wins Jesus wit Jesus wins somebody shout Jesus

Channel: The Altar

Views: 13,730

Rating: 4.9757576 out of 5

Keywords: mattie montgomery, sermon, bible, jesus, christ, life, eternity, church, family, mens conference, holy spirit, god, yahweh, elohim

Id: VK071CxkqY4

Length: 48min 31sec (2911 seconds)

Published: Mon Apr 23 2018