My Last Message | Carter Conlon

up to this point I've been able to keep it together and I hope I can through the end of the this service and this this final message really that the Lord's put on my heart for you as a senior pastor of Time Square and it's been an emotional moment for me and for others that are just even though there's only ten of us here in North Jersey at the campus at broadcasting and I was thinking back with a chuckle in my heart too when I left the last pastored before this one in in Canada I remember walking in 26 years ago into the sanctuary and it wasn't by design but they were singing the song gone at last the congregation then it's an old gone at last gone at last all my sins are gone at last and I found it so funny and today thank you Greg you know for the sentiments thank you for everything that everybody has spoken on video today and in private and you know they said there's a common question that people have asked me or if you haven't you thought it and the question is why why does it pastor a senior pastor in the prime of his strength maybe in the fullness of his stride why does he abdicate in a sense position and take on another you know because in in much of secular society that's just not done people claw to get to the top rung as it is and then once they're there then they just you know they try to push everybody aside that might be threatening that position and they hang on and the the dilemma is when that happens in the church quite often you have leadership that hangs on past the calling of the Lord we we always have servants of God have to be willing to let God speak to us if he has something else for us to do and even though it may not be easy to hear it now you can just imagine I want to just this is not my message but I want to share with you from Philippians chapter 2 verse 5 God was speaking to me about this this morning where Paul says let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God now in other words there was no higher position that he could obtain but to be in the form of God and equal with God it just doesn't get any higher than that but in spite of that one day I can see it in heaven that his father spoke to him and said son I have something else for you to do than to be here where you are something that is you're gonna have to trust me in this it's not going to necessarily be easy but I'm going to make some promises to you and and you're gonna have to trust that great good is going to be done through your obedience remember on the cross Christ himself said into thy hands father I commit my spirit in other words it's it's going to be really up to you to fulfill these promises that you've made to me and the promises that you say you're going to do for the sake of others through me it's really all up to your father but I do yield my life and I abandon my future into your hands for this purpose now you have to consider Christ being in the form of God and equal with God making himself of no reputation taking upon himself the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death even to the death of the cross and so the way I see it is that God is giving me an opportunity to actually follow in the footsteps of my master to learn what it means to be a servant to all and I I couldn't think of a better man that God is bringing in than pastor Tim Delina to take this church into the future and it will be my pleasure my personal pleasure to take upon myself the form of a servant and to serve this man of God as I'm asking our elders and leadership in the church to serve this man who God has appointed and this is not a man's idea this was not a committee idea I was welcoming pastor Tim to New York City ten years ago we were sitting in a restaurant and as we were speaking together suddenly the Lord spoke to me and he told me said this is not he is not going to replace the man he thinks he is he is going to be your replace your replacement as senior pastor of Time Square Church that's ten years ago and the Lord took pastor Tim through the schools that he needed to go through to prepare him for this calling and he has in my opinion graduated with 100 percent an a-plus graduation he's done well and I just loved speaking with him almost daily and talking about the things of God and the plans for the future and I honestly have to say it will be a pleasure for me to serve this man in the same capacity that you are going to be asked to serve Him as the pastor of Time Square Church I will still be here but as I've told others there will never be a co-leadership in this church that will never let it happen there can only be one pastor only one senior pastor and all the rest of us are in submission to that and are given the charge of helping the vision that God speaks through the senior pastor to become a reality and I will throw my hat into that ring and be part of that I'll still be that pastor Tim's request I'll still be giving guidance and some leadership to the Tuesday night prayer meeting at Time Square Church I'll be available to help where I can if he needs me to speak at any time I'll be available to do that too as well now everything I do outside of the church will be found on a website called Carter Conlon comm you will see that it'll be part of the TSC website you can click on and we'll take you over to another website where if I'm speaking at pastors conferences and radio programs and suchlike all of that would be on that website now we're just simply doing that for the sake of order so that there's not this duplicity on the website so that everybody understands who's doing what and where they're doing it and you'll be able to stay informed as god opens the doors before me that he is and I'm given the opportunity to travel and to speak in different places and I trust and hope that it will be a great blessing to you I'm not starting another minister everything I do will be associated and lead back into Times Square Church so that needs to be very very clearly understood now this is the final message as senior pastor that I will be delivering to you as a congregation I have to say it's been an incredible privilege for me and for pastor Teresa to be here for these 26 years seven of them as associate pastor to David Wilkerson and then 19 years as the senior pastor of time scorcher ch there have been great joys there have been battles they've been struggles there's been floods and fire and trial and mountaintops it's all been an incredible experience and I wouldn't trade a day of it for anything else that might be offered to me I just thank God for this great great and incredible privilege of seeking God on your behalf as the people of God and I can speak for pastor Therese and I can speak for myself that we have not been lazy and are seeking of God for your sake we have as Greg said earlier we've always sought for a fresh word from the Lord we have never in my knowledge brought to you something that is stale or borrowed from somebody else there's always been a word and I have always waited every week I've waited I've waited till the last minute sometimes I said I am NOT I'm not going to do what Saul once did he panicked and forced himself to bring some act of worship and service before the people simply because he was afraid that he would look bad if he didn't have it I would have always preferred to stand up in the pulpit with nothing than to have concocted or crafted something to stand before the people of God that didn't come from the heart of God so I can honestly say God has never failed me never not one time has he failed me if it came down to a couple of times he gave me the word in my seat on the platform at times for a church but if sometimes it's just a test to see if we really trust him and we're willing to let him speak to the people so it's been an incredible incredible privilege to lead you into the ways of God I believe that in measure the Lord sent me here and pastor Teresa to time square charts as a an example to you in a sense if you've know our story and you know our testimony we were highly disadvantaged when it comes to the kingdom of God we both came into the kingdom of God with incredible amounts of hurt and pain and baggage and boundaries and walls around us and things that people had done and said that would have led us to believe that our lives could only amount to a certain thing and never never go deeper or never go farther than that but even in our struggles in in the early years we believed God there was something of faith that God planted in our hearts and because of it we were able to go forward and go into the pages of this book and we began to realize that everything written here is our inheritance you know the Bible says that when Jesus rose from the dead he took our captivity captive with him and gave gifts unto men you know quite often people are are happy to have their captivity taken captive but they don't claim their gifts they they don't claim the second part of this great salvation the calling the giftings the power the abilities the the the supernatural ability that's given to take us outside of the confines of our physical bodies and take us into the fullness of what God has for us and I feel in my heart that the Lord brought us here to show you that it's possible now obviously we've still got a ways to go we all do like Paul once said I've not attained I've not attained to the fullness of what God has for me but I I'm constantly leaving behind what needs to be left behind and I'm I'm moving forward to that high calling of God in Christ Jesus and I could say the same thing I've not attained and I doubt we ever will attain the fullness of everything in this life but we have left behind many many things that tried to convince us that they had the right to hinder future they tried to tell us that you know this is one box you're never going to get out of her one limitation you're never going to escape one mountain you're not going to be able to climb or valley you're not going to be able to bridge it and get through it and and I personally found all these things to be lies you see because we are what God says we are and we go where God says that where to go we become what God says we will be and we accomplish what God says will be accomplished and at the end of our journey it realistically is all about him I have I've learned over my the course of my life to obey God it's really no it's really no deeper than that and this is why both pastor Therese and I are taking the path that we're taking now because God has something for us I don't know fully what it is I don't know Abraham didn't either he went out at 75 he had no idea that his simple obedience was going to be such a blessing to so many and I said to somebody recently I said well whether or not whether or not it amounts to something great in the sight of men I I do have the satisfaction of knowing that I have obeyed God and the greatest among you the scripture says it's going to be the servant of all so I do thank God for the ability the gods placed in my heart and the desire to be a servant pastor Tim and Cindy I know you're watching this morning and Christian and Anna and Grace and Lauren you you are one of the more delightful families I've ever known I've known some good families over the years but you really are a delightful family and I'm telling you Time Square Church has already opened their arms and are embracing you all of you together because the the calling is not just on one man when when a man of God has called his whole families taken into the calling with him and I just look forward to those grandpa moments that I'm going to have with with all of the kids the fun times that we're gonna have and I'm looking forward to walking with you through your successes and and your challenges both that will come your way I just look forward to being there and to being part of your journey god bless you I love you and I know the this is going to be an experience that will change the trajectory of the rest of your lives I want to speak to you today from the last words of Joshua at the end of at the end of his ministry and he had something to say to the people of God and so I'm going to do that today but would you pray with me first I'm gonna go to Joshua chapter 23 and actually beginning at Joshua chapter 13 one verse and then go to Joshua chapter 23 so father I thank you God with all my heart I thank you for the touch of heaven that's here today in this service I thank you Lord for your word which always has been a lamp for our feet and a light for our paths I thank you mighty God that you have kept us all these years you have taken us on a course as you once took the people of Israel into a place where we have experienced our victory through Jesus Christ we crossed over the Jordan of spiritual death into spiritual life and Jesus Christ is our promised land so Lord God I'm asking you to help me to be able to convey the thoughts that you've placed on my heart and I'm asking you to help pastor Tim Delina in the future to take this church in to the place that you are clearly speaking to us about give us the grace to follow give us the faith to believe give us the courage to endure god help us any of all of us not to turn back and we thank you and we praise you for your word today that you will speak through one more time through this frail vessel and we thank you for it in Jesus name Amen now at the end of this message we're going to have communion together so at some point perhaps you might want to get some bread or crackers and some juice so you at home you can partake of communion with us now before I even say this I just want to give such special - my wife pastor Teresa Conlon and I pastor Tim told me recently you've married so far above your station in life and I have to agree with you pastor Tim god that's been one of the blessings that God brought into my life he gave me perhaps the most remarkable woman I could have ever hoped for in my lifetime to be my life partner and I just I just my heart is just brimming with gratitude for all that God has done and all that he has enabled her to do and will continue to do so in the future thank you so much Jesus for what you've done for us as a couple and for the lovely wife that you gave to me chapter 13 of Joshua says now Joshua's was old in advanced in years and the Lord said to him you are old advanced in years and there remains very much land to be possessed in other words Joshua you've served you've served me well the Lord said and you've taken the people out of the wilderness and you brought them through the Jordan they've they've seen the miraculous conquering power of Almighty God they've seen the miracles and they've gone into the land and you've led them and you've led them honorably Joshua had led them honorably because there were there were incredible numbers of victories that had been won but the Lord said to Josh for your time now your time of leading the people has come to an end and we always have to be open to that voice of God we always have to be willing when God wants to speak and say you you brought the people this far and now your season of leading the people in this capacity has come to an end now doesn't mean we've come to an end God in in my case may give me something else to do that's going to glorify his name yeah may possibly even in a deeper way I don't know but it doesn't matter the Lord spoke to Joshua once said there's much land yet to be conquered and you are not the one that is called to lead the people into this final Porsche as it is into conquering the Promised Land of course keep in mind now the promised land for the believers in Christ for time squirt church and those that are listening is Christ the promised land is the fullness of your inheritance now it's one thing to be in the land it's one thing to have crossed over from death to life which the people had done but there still remain much yet to be claimed and this is this is my word to you today there's there's very much that remains to be claimed yet in many of your lives you're born again by the Spirit of God you've made the decision for Christ and but you're not living yet in the fullness of what God has for you there's more that he has we are called to be lights that shine in the darkness we are called to be signs as it is from God that are wondered at as God once said to Abraham your seed are going to be so blessed that the whole world is going to be blessed through them we are called to have something that can only come from God and of course not only the Old Testament but in the new on the day of Pentecost when the people came out of that upper room there was a it was a textbook example of the fulfillment of this promise that there's much more yet to be conquered now these people that just came out of this upper room they're born again they have they've been filled with the spirit but when you study this in the original languages they were speaking about an anticipated outworking of the inward life of Christ that was in them in other words I am here I'm outside of the Upper Room the Holy Spirit is on me I'm in the land of promise but here is what God is going to do through my life and you see this is this is what happens to you and I when we get into the Word of God God gives us a vision of the future he's the holy spirit start speaking about things to come remember jesus said he will take what his mind and show it to you and he will show you things to come so we start seeing those things in the Word of God that are part of our inheritance as I said earlier is one thing to know our captivity has taken captive but it's another thing to receive the gifts that God has for each of us you are called with a holy calling you are called with a unique calling each of you there are no exceptions to this you are called into something that will require the gifting of God to take you there you can't go there in your own strength and if you try you will fail you need the presence of God in your life to reach the fullness and to accomplish what God has called you to do and what God has called you to be now Joshua chapter 23 and verse 4 now so from the time that the Lord spoke to Joshua in the beginning in chapter 13 I believe it was right through this chapter 23 he has been dividing the land as it is as an inheritance and he was telling each tribe and the people this is where you will go this is what you'll become now no only God can do that Joshua and the sense is a Jesus type man say that and only he can tell you what your inheritance is where your strength will be what your dwelling place on the earth will look like how glorious that would be and what it will accomplish for that divine purpose of being a blessing remember to all the families in the earth that's the ultimate calling of the Church of Jesus Christ in chapter 23 verse 4 he says see I have divided to you by law these nations that remain to be an inheritance for your tribes from Jordan with all the nations that I've cut off as far as the Great Sea westward and the Lord your God will expel them before you and drive them out of your sight so you shall possess their land as the Lord your God promised you you don't have to figure out how you're going to become everything that God's called you to be God if you have faith in your heart the promises of God will drive out these things that have entranced them elves in the center of your promise fear that might be at the center core of your heart a sense of self-loathing maybe that you don't even like who you are and you don't feel you'll amount to anything unbelief that wants to destroy you and convince you that your life will never reach the fullness of what God called you to be the Lord says God will expel them before you as you just make the choice and I make the choice to just go forward believing him he will expel these enemies from before you he will you don't have to do it you don't have to take a course on how to get over the fear of failure you don't have to take a course on how to do certain things God will expel them God will push them out of the place that they occupied that belongs to you now because you are a new creation in Christ Jesus therefore verse 6 he says be very courageous this was the word that had been spoken to Joshua even before he led the people out of the wilderness and into the Promised Land don't be afraid don't be dismayed in other words fear fear comes when when you see your enemies that you have to face the things of your own heart your own life your own heritage this may comes when you start to assume that your enemies are stronger than you are and you forget that God is with you Joshua had learned this Joshua learned over the course of his life that whatever God asks you to do will be done where he leads you you will get there no matter what opposes you no matter what kind of storm tries to convince her you're going to drown you will get to the other side of where God is calling you in Christ Jesus God will expel them from before you and drive them out of your sight I love that out of your sight I mean to be so far behind you you can't see them anymore they can't even go boo from the sides of your from the corner of your eye they're not there anymore the former fears the former struggles of the former limitations are just so far gone behind you you can't even see them anymore and you shall possess their land as the Lord God promised you so here's my word to you today you will if you go forward if you will follow the leading of pastor Tim Delina who's coming into this church if you will follow the Word of God and what the Spirit of God speaks to you you will become everything that God promised you to be every one of us will count for the glory of God there will be ministries that will be born that will be mind-boggling it could only be God there be Vangelis pastors teachers leaders church planters civic leaders godly people in the school system that will be given wisdom and boldness that's beyond our natural ability it can only come from God therefore be very courageous to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses unless you turn aside from it from the right hand to the Lord to the left in our case it's the Word of God to us today to you today the word that that you already know and the word that will come in the future be very courageous don't turn away from it don't say this can't happen to me don't say this is too far ahead are too impossible or the Giants are too big or the chariots are made of iron don't fall into that trap don't turn to the left hand don't turn to the right hand look the devil straight in the eye and say get out of my way you are occupying the place that is mine and believe God and watch what God will begin to do in your life unless you go among these nations who remain among you verse seven you shall not make mention of the name of their gods nor cause anyone to swear by them you shall not serve them nor bow down to them in other words don't let your the thinking of this world become your thinking don't embrace it as I said earlier you know in the world you get to the top of the ladder and you you you kick anybody down it tries to get anywhere close that's the way they do it in the world but not in the kingdom of God don't serve the gods of this world don't let your thinking be wrapped by the things that people are saying who live outside the kingdom of God get your direction get your guidance get your strength from the Word of God you shall hold fast to the Lord your God as you have done this day for the Lord has driven out from before you great and strong nations but as for you no one has been able to stand against you to this day and that's the truth there are many here today you you you were in a stronghold and God has driven out from before you things that were too strong for you I'm talking to people today who used to be addicted you were substance addicted or you were you were addicted to something to thought pattern or a thought process or something that got ahold of you and you knew you couldn't get out on your own strength you may even have been addicted to a sense of self-loathing whatever it was or hopelessness for the future a shame and regret for your past but God drove those things out from before you bought you with his blood on the cross where Jesus died for you two thousand years ago and no one has been able to stand against you to this day the devil couldn't come and take that back from you the Lord Jesus Christ drove it away from your life not one man of you he says in verse 10 shall chase a thousand for the Lord your God is he who fights for you as he has promised you therefore take careful heed to yourselves that you love the Lord your God here's the point God says nothing has stood before you to this point and been able to keep you away from me and nothing will stand before you in the future to keep you from becoming everything that I've called you to be look to me look to the author and the finisher of your salvation the author and finisher of your faith look to the one who conquered death rose from the grave on the third day and promised that by his Spirit that raised Christ from the dead you shall also be quickened in your mortal body brought from death and into life brought from a place of weakness into the power of God brought from a place of not even being able to get up in the morning or see a future - suddenly seeing something that only the Spirit of God could give to you not just for your sake but for the sake of others that you might be the fulfillment of the promise that God made to Abraham and through Christ Jesus become a blessing to people all around you in the world to which might I add there's no limitation to that you can start by being a blessing in your marriage or your home or to your own children or to your friends or associates and there's no limitation to where God will take that there's no limitation to what God can do you can use your life to bless countless numbers of lives that you've not even considered that he would in the future so my final word to you is don't turn back and don't think you've arrived and don't think you're as far as you can go you're going to be under the leadership of a man now that's going to take you into the next probably 15 year period in your life as a believer in Christ and he's a good man and he has a word from God and he's a man of faith and he has lived righteously and God has kept him and is a good mind and a sound mind he's got a devotional life in a prayer life and if you follow and the promises of God start opening up to you and there's nothing in your heart that says I can't achieve this you will come into a fullness of God and listen to me you're going to need it now we're in a season of storms now we're most likely entering into a season of Sorrows in this world and people are going to be drowning in hopelessness and they need your voice at this time they need you to be standing in the power of God they need you and I to be standing in the fullness of our inheritance in Jesus Christ this is not a time to play Church this is a time to be alive by the Spirit of God this is a time to be speaking God speaking through us to this perishing world all around us it's a time to be saying to people follow me as I follow Christ and leading others into not just their salvation as wonderful as that is the giftings of God in the victory of God and the power of God and the future that only God can give Paul the Apostle says in the book of Philippians chapter 2 and verse 12 he says therefore my beloved as you have always obeyed not as in my presence only but now much more in my absence work out your own salvation with fear and trembling now in the context of what I'm speaking today Paul is not talking about you know do good work so that you can be saved that's not it that's not what he's speaking about he's saying there's there is a pathway that your salvation brings to you and for you that you have to determine in your heart that you're gonna find that pathway and you're gonna walk on that pathway with this constant sense of all that only God could be doing this as as we take this salvation and we look in the Word of God and we say Lord these things belong to me so I'm going to go forward with this sense of reverence and awe and trembling in my heart and I'm going to believe that every promise that you make in your word is for me don't sit down and become idle don't be content just to sit in church and sing some songs on Sunday this is a seven seven day a week 365 days a year walk and you should always be growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ you should always be able to look back from season to season and say thank God I'm not what I the fullness of what I should be but I'm not what I was a month ago or a year ago whatever the situation is he goes on and says for it is God who works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure it's God it's God that's putting the thoughts of what you could be just like Joshua define the these places of inheritance ease he's putting before you thoughts of what your life could be of what the fullness of your salvation offers you he's putting it before you both to will to go in and then to accomplish everything that he's called you to be and that he has determined to do through your life do all things without complaining and disputing in other words don't talk yourself out of your inheritance remember the children of Israel that's exactly what they did they saw it all they saw that the milk and the honey they saw the bow of grapes and they just saw everything and they said it's exactly as God has said but the Giants you see are too big for us and we look like grasshoppers in their sight and they talked themselves out of their inheritance don't do that don't talk yourself out of your inheritance be careful of your speech be careful that you don't let unbelief get ahold of your lips and you start confessing your own defeat because ultimately what you begin to believe that's the pathway that you're going to follow that you may become blameless and harmless children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation among whom you shine as lights in the world holding fast the word of life so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain Paul is saying keeping this word that I have given you so that when the day when Christ returns and gathers us home and we stand one day at his throne I may not be left with the feeling that I've run in vain or labored in vain eyed I think there would be no more of a tragic feeling for a pastor than to get to heaven and realized that the people that he led didn't embrace the fullness of what God had for them then in great measure his speech fell to the ground even though it may have been sent of God that people didn't embrace it but I am waited time Square Church of better things for you I have watched you and the one thing I love about not only New Yorkers but particularly New Yorkers and those that are online is that that you are fighters you are you have you have to fight to survive on the street I know that I get that but I want you to challenge that that nature into something that's going to bring glory to God and in his kingdom fight for your inheritance fight for your families fight for the truth fight for the lost fight for those who fight against their own salvation become everything that God's called you to be for their sakes it's not just about you and me it's about them it's about others we're already secure we're already in the Lamb's Book of Life and in that book that God has written in heaven with our names in it we are already destined for the throne of God heaven is already our home so now we stay not for our sakes but the sake of others that we might become the fullness of what God has us to be so that we can shine as lights in this crooked and dark generation this is my final word to you as your senior pastor I've had the privilege of leading you as senior pastor for 19 years and seven years as an associate pastor I've walked with many of you through your trials your struggles through your successes and through your failures and if there's been one message on my heart it's always been get up and keep walking because I know what the grace of God is I have been a great recipient of great grace he's kept me he's carried me he's led me so don't get don't get down if you struggle get up and keep walking with God and fight for your full inheritance you fight through faith you say God I believe you open the door and I'll walk through it and you put it in my hand I'll use it for your glory you put it in my heart and I will follow where you lead me and you watch what God will do for Time Square Church I honestly believe the best days are just ahead of us the promise of Scripture is the glory of the latter temple will be greater than the former and that wine at the end of the banquet will be better and sweeter than at the beginning I do thank God I do thank God for pastor David Wilkerson in the early years of Time Square Church I do thank God for the role that the Lord gave me to play in the development and ongoing journey of this church but I honestly believe the best days are just ahead in my mind's eye and in my heart I see an absolute explosion of salvation coming into the church I see a church that's going to reach this generation in the way that they need to be reached I see young men and women heading out to do the will of God who are not even saved yet I see some things in the future that God allows me to see from time to time to know in my heart that the best is yet to come pastor Tim I just so look forward to walking this journey with you I so look forward to you and I being able to show the church world in our generation what a transition in churches should look like I so look forward to serving one another but I do recognize that you will be the leader you will be the pastor of Time Square Church and all the rest of us would be servants to the vision that God plants in your heart and I couldn't be more confident or happy to be under the leadership of a better man this is going to be an amazing few years of my life I don't know how long I'm 66 now I don't know how long I've got but whatever I do have is going to be a pleasure to walk it with you the best is indeed yet to come

Channel: Times Square Church

Views: 121,371

Rating: 4.914444 out of 5

Keywords: Carter Conlon, Sermon, Times Square Church

Id: WpwKwPT5NcU

Length: 39min 38sec (2378 seconds)

Published: Wed May 06 2020