November 2, 2014 "Before The Battle Begins" Pastor Howard-John Wesley

as I said if we would be quiet rocks would cry out that somebody today knows God's been too good for you to be quiet now if you can't praise God in church I don't know where you feel comfortable giving him glory you can't say man in the sanctuary you in bad shape if you don't know how to praise God down here don't die and try to get into heaven cuz that's all they do up there sing a holy holy holy is the Lord God Almighty just by telling you better practice down here what you get to heaven and not know what you doing amen this morning as we seek to hear a word from the Lord I want to invite you to a very familiar passage of Scripture that will prayerfully speak and teach in a very unfamiliar manner it's located in the heart of the Old Testament in the 17th chapter of the first book of Samuel if you're able to navigate in your Bible in your app to First Samuel chapter 17 you'll find a very familiar story there that really is recorded in the entirety of the 17th chapter but for the purpose of preaching I want to begin our journey in verse number 32 first time in chapter 17 beginning in verse number 32 we ask those who are able if they would stand with us as together we reverenced the reading of God's holy word from First Samuel chapter 17 beginning in verse number 32 if you there say Amen then David said to Saul that no man's heart fail because of him your servant will go and fight with this Philistine and Saul said to David you're not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him for you are a youth and he a man of war from his youth but David said to Saul your servant used to keep his father's sheep and when a lion or bear came 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 rose against me I caught it by its beard and struck and killed your servant has killed both lion and bear and this uncircumcised philistine will be like one of them seeing he has to fight the armies of the Living God moreover David said the Lord 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 Saul said to David go and the Lord be with you today as we flicked on that familiar passage I want to talk to you about before the battle begins you may be seated in the presence of God before the battle begins let me just confess and get this out the way it's been a rough week for me very rough week but those are not on the inside my Cowboys to get on the chin Monday night at home to the Redskins I had to live with that and I did my Cowboys lose but my hometown team the Chicago Bears took a loss to the Miami Dolphins the Bears predicted to win the NFC North the abundance of talent that they have on the team they have underperformed to say the least and the loss to the sad Miami Dolphins was just icing on the cake they interviewed one of the star receivers for the Chicago Bears Brandon Marshall and asked him how is it that the Bears who are obviously more talented and predicted to win the NFC North how they could lose to the sad and sorrowful Miami Dolphins and this is what Brandon Marshall said he said we lost in the locker room he looked at the loss and the defeat he said it wasn't because the Miami Dolphins were better than us wasn't because they were better coach wasn't because they had a better game plan wasn't because of who had home-field advantage of wasn't because of who Vegas predicted was the odds-on favorite he said the reason we lost is that we lost in the locker room before the game began speaking about the discord and the disunity has affected the Chicago Bears Brandon Marshall suggested that before we put our uniforms on before we stepped on the field before we saw the opponent's before the coin was tossed and the ball was kicked we had already lost because we lost before the game began as a matter of fact would you touch somebody real quick and just let me know you can lose in the locker room my brother my sister's that's not just in the game of football that's in the game of life that you can be defeated before the battle even begins come by to tell you early on in this sermon how you come out of the battle is typically determined by how you choose to go in it your success in a struggle is dependent upon what you do before the struggle begins your deliverance from a storm can be determined by how you go into the storm the outcome of the interview is set before you even get to the interview the result of the test can be determined before the first question is even asked that what you bring to the battlefield will determine what happens on the battlefield and how you look coming out of the battlefield going rewind press play pastor what you bring to the battlefield will determine what happens on the battlefield which ultimately decide how you look coming off the battlefield which is a simple way to say that how you begin and how you go in will determine how you come out let me give you an exegetical example from one of the most familiar stories of Scripture David's battle with Goliath you've been a Sunday School you've been to church about three four times you know how this story goes the dreaded and hated enemies of young is Ray of the Philistines have gathered once again to war against the armies of Israel led by King Saul they have arrayed themselves on opposite sides of the valley of Eli the Philistines on one the Israelites on the other and rather than engaging in traditional common warfare which would result in the magnitude and the multitude of loss of life Philistines have sent into the valley their warrior their champion from a city of Gath named Goliath Bible says he stands six cubits and a span scholars argue as to how tall he really is but this is what we can say about Goliath he's big and he's battle-tested he's tall and he's got the testimony of Terry thousands have fallen at the sword of Goliath and a Bible says this Goliath comes down into the valley we lie at the same time every day looks up at the armies of Israel and challenges them to send one man who can stand against me he looks at the children of the Living God and says send me one man who can fight against me and if he beats me the Philistines will be your servants but if I beat him Israel will serve us give me one man and sad to say not one soldier from the camp of Israel takes up the challenge nobody wants to mess with Goliath nobody accepts his challenge nobody wants to get in the valley and battle against a man who stands six cubits and a span that is until a teenage boy by the name of David shows up now if you've been to city school you already know how the rest of the story plays out David goes out in the valley takes a rock and a slingshot throws a rock hits Goliath in the head Goliath falls down dead and David is a great champion of Israel scholars who read the story wonder how in the world could one rock kill Goliath how can one pebble that fits in a slingshot take down a man who has killed thousands with the sword and I suggest you that the reason scholars are baffled and because they fail to understand that David had more in his arsenal than five rocks and a slingshot that hear me all it is not the rocks he found in the valley that won the victory but it was some stuff he took to the valley that caused him to win against Goliath don't you miss us and what what he found when the battle began but it was the spirit and the attitude and the mindset that was within him that brought him victory before he even set foot on the battlefield it's not what you have in your hand it's what you have in your heart that determines what this battle is going to look like somebody you need to know that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal they are not but they are not physical they are spiritual you get to have the right attitude you've got to have the right heart you got to have the right spirit and if you go down into this battle that you're about to face if you go into the next challenge of life that's awaiting you if you face the next sickness the next struggle and the next storm with the right stuff in your spirit you can take down some Giants but Bible says if you read through the soul 17th chapter 1st Samuel then when David gets down to the valley notice that he has four conversations with four different groups of people when he gets down to the valley if he's starting verse 7 to chapter 17 you'll find in verse 26 he speaks to the soldiers in verse 29 he speaks to Eli AB his older brother in verse 32 he begins to speak to Saul and in verse 45 he begins to talk to Goliath y'all stay with me it's Bible study in verse 26 he speaks to the soldiers verse 29 he speaks to a lion verse 32 he begins to speak to Saul and verse 45 he speaks to Goliath and in those four conversations we uncover four weapons that David had concealed on him that he brought down to the battle that ultimately won him the battle against a giant he had to face and I would suggest to you that before you go into the next struggle of your life that you equip and arm yourself with some spiritual weaponry that will bring you victory and any struggle any circumstance any battle any challenge any sickness any storm if you will arm yourself today with four things that David brought down into the valley you will find victory every time can I drop upon you and let you go to Sunday school for things from for conversations that David had in his spirit that allowed him to win victory over Goliath number one watch that when he shows up in the valley the soldiers who've gathered around Deacon Johnson they're all talking about how big and how bad Goliath is how many soldiers he's killed and how tall he is and how powerful his weapons look they're all talking about Goliath and they are afraid of fighting him Bob says that while David is down there Goliath comes out at the same time of day and makes the same challenge says send me a man to fight with me and all the soldiers start talking about how bad Goliath is and David says what shall be given to the man who kills him David shows up Goliath makes a challenge all the Israelites are free and David says what y'all going to give me when I kill him one more time David is there Goliath makes the challenge all the armies of Israel are afraid and David says what do I get when I win what distinguish David from all the other men of Israel is that David had a vision of victory for his life that the others around him did not share when others forecasted failure when others predicted defeat when others saw an obstacle that could not be overcome David looked at the same thing and saw himself victorious on the other side of the battle David didn't wonder about the battle he wondered what would be the reward when I come out on the other side of the battle because I already see victory I already claimed victory I already believe it's going to work in my favor the battle ain't the problem I want to know what the reward is that in order to fight the challenges of life you've got to have a vision of victory in order to have a vision of victory the first thing you've got to remember that David understood is that Goliath and this battle is not something I'm going to it's something I'm going through you do know there's a difference between a mindset that you're going to something and the mindset that says I'm going through something when you think you're going to it you say that's your final destination that that's the end of the rules and that's the last chapter but win in your mind no matter what the battle is you tell yourself it's just something I'm going through then you already begin to see yourself on the other side of whatever it is you're about to challenge in life and I don't know who I can't appreciate what I came to encourage you early on Sunday you will get through this you will make it through this this won't last forever because we serve a God who specializes in carrying us through some things we don't walk to the valley of the shadow of death we walk through the valley of the shadow of death we don't walk to the fire we walk through the fire we walk through hard times we work through stuff situations we live through rough seasons in our life but if your trust in God which I was in the Baptist trail that we serve a God who will bring you out of whatever you find yourself in he brought Moses out of the Red Sea brought the children of Israel out of the wilderness brought Daniel out of the lion's den brought the three Hebrew boys out of the fire brought gilligan I'm sorry you ain't seen coming to America touch it every time you need to get out more you need to get out more let me give you more scripture he brought Peter out of prison he brought Paul out of the storm he brought Lazarus out of the grave he brought Jesus out of death and there's somebody here today that's a witness he brought me out too and the same God who brought me out there will bring me out again would you do me a favor would you channel your Diana Ross you know your neighbor tell him I'm coming out this is something I'm about to go through but on the other side I see myself wiser on the other side I already see myself better on the other side I see myself happier you've got to have a vision of victory before the battle begins see yourself with the job before you take the interview see yourself successful before you start the business see yourself healed before you go through the surgery see yourself cancer-free before the first round of chemotherapy and radiation see yourself happy before you break up with him or her see yourself independent before you kick them to the curb see yourself going out before you even start to walk in it that's the problem you all knowing my beloved Southside Chicago that there's a multitude of violence and gun violence and killing a young black lives and they're doing an expose on the History Channel about the violence the south side of Chicago and they're talking about these young black men and they were interviewing some gangsters they the dude who was interviewing them asked what do you plan on doing when you get to be about 60 or 70 if you're living like this and watch what he said we don't plan on living that long that the reason they're so violent now is that they have no vision for their lives at 70 they don't see themselves at 65 they see themselves dying young I just come by to tell you that if you're gonna make it you got to see yourself can I can I testify I see myself at 95 at 95 I wanna be fit and trim and still getting it in at 95 at 95 all of my bills are paid at 95 my hair may be great but everyone I'm still gonna be on the top of my head at 95 I'm still gonna be playing golf and breaking 80 on the front nine at 95 I'm still gonna be driving and I don't care if you blow at me or not i'ma go as slow as I feel like going at 95 I'm gonna say whatever's on my mind and never apologize to none of y'all at 95 I'm not gonna be pastoring the church but I'm still gonna be in church and I'm gonna kiss every young girl under 30 I can find at 95 when I'm in church and the preacher starting to make me feel good I'm still gonna praise God I mean I live my hands and I may not take a lap but I'm gonna give him a little slow rocking cuz I see myself living the life God has for me even when I'm old and gray cuz you've got to have a vision for victory in your life you you gotta see yourself victorious it's the wind he talks to the soldiers David said listen I've got a victory of vision but then notice after he talks to the soldiers in verse number 29 he begins to have discussion with his oldest brother Eli and listen at the negativity Eli a puts in his spirit look at the vitriol and the discouragement and the nasty talk of his oldest brother he says verse 28 David I know why you're here you came down here to see the battle where have you left daddy's she your insulin in your heart you ain't no good you I don't know why you're down here you ain't doing nothing but getting in the way your meddling decadent something's wrong with you he literally maligns David's intentions he mocks David's efforts he ridicules David's plan he belittles David's vision he disrespects David's assignment because whenever God is giving you a vision the devil sends someone to discourage you that vision and discouragement go hand in hand that there's always someone who wants to tell you what you can't do always someone wants to tell you that your motivation is a right that your plan will not succeed that you are not where you ought to be you're not doing what you should be doing the devil and he always uses folk close to you notice therefore that when life begins to speak this negativity to David notice that this is the shortest conversation David has he doesn't try to persuade he'll I have he don't try to explain himself to Eli have him try to defend his vision to Eli AB he doesn't try to convince Eli up to support him David understands that when you're about to go into the battle you have to be selective of who speaks to your spirit that you can't listen to everybody you can't take advice from everybody you can't deal with everybody's issues you can't be persuaded by everybody's opinions because there are some people who are not qualified to speak into your spirit when you're about to go into the greatest challenge of your life there's some folk you've got to ignore you've got to walk away from you've got to shut your ears to because they are not there to help you and this is his brother Eli have and notice notice what David says to me live in person between nine is actually ayah what have I done now now don't miss that word now cuz that word now lets you know that David knows who he's dealing with she wants just because cuz if you come to me complaining about something in church and my response to you is well what's wrong with you now that that's my southern way of me letting you know that you complain too much and you always got something negative to saying you're always upset about something someone use that word now then letting you know I know you this is just more the same of what you do so David looks a live said what about done now suggesting he laughs you always have a problem with me and you're not qualified to speak to me when I'm going into battle listen let me tell you three quick things that disqualified Eliab can I drop ammonia eli up was disqualified from speaking today via number one because he was envious of david let's say he was jealous because you remember back in chapter 16 when old samuel showed up tonight the next king of israel that the first brother Jesse brought out was he lying samuel looked him up and down said no that is not the one the Lord has chosen and they went through everybody else and then they pulled in David out of the field and Samuel said now that's the one that the Lord has chosen and I'll suggest you that Eli is upset because the favor of God has not rested on him but the favor of God has rested on David and never underestimate how far jealous folk will go to discourage you when they know God has favored you don't preach faster he's he's envious up David can can take number two to disqualified him watch folk or jealous the second thing disqualified him he was intimidated by David watch watch what he says he lieth says to David you've come down here to watch the battle the problem is in any other fighting y'all sittin up here scared and he live says you come to see the battle what battle so he's intimidated watch this because David has a vision of doing what he lieth is scared to do you've got to be careful because there's some people your vision intimidates them you're trying to do what they quit trying to do years ago you got the audacity to believe you can take it somewhere they never dream they could and they will try to discourage you because they don't want your resume to outshine then passed a teaching today and he's envious of David he's intimidated by David and watch the third thing disqualifies him he's ignorant of David's assignment he's Alyssa what brings you down here you you came down here you left daddy's sheep and you're down here just watch the battle what he'll I I've been to was that earlier in chapter 17 David's father Jesse told him take the lunches I've made and take them down to your brothers and bless them because I know they're hungry here's the problem you don't understand what my father told me to do and so now you're discouraging me because you're ignorant of what daddy told me to do and you got to be careful of folk who have no discernment of what your father has commanded you to do because they will try to discourage you from doing what God has called you to do cuz they don't know what God called you to do there are some people you can't listen to I found this out on the plane with Joey I said Joe join out yesterday we had to travel up to Hartford mass Hartford Connecticut and and we flew back down and on the way back down we got on the plane and the lady came on the plane with three kids two of them were well-behaved and one of them she was hollering till her heart's content and I'm sitting on the plane trying to meditate in and work on the sermon and and then Joe don't wanna watch TV because he ain't got to preach today so I'm I'm I'm trying to write a sermon Joe so I watch TV and the girl is just hollering and Joe says well I'm gonna put on my earphones I said well I'm gonna get my earphones on put our earphones on and and the girl kept hollering throughout the entire flight when we landed the jokes like how did you get work on your sermon done huh when that girl was hollering so much I said well I had only her pharmacy said yeah I had only her phone too but I could barely hear the TV cuz girl kept hollering so loud how could you meditate on your sermon when she's hollering so loud I said well you had on earbuds but but three years ago the Kyah ministry gave me some bose noise-canceling headset that when you put them on and you flip the switch they silenced all the noise around you so you can focus on what God has called you to do and I just came by to tell somebody that's exactly what you need in your spirit some noise cancelling hex sense that there's some discouragement some nonsense some foolishness you can't listen to this about something you got to be selective of who speaks to your spirit I got to move quick listen he he has a vision of victory he's selective about who speaks to his spirit but after he speaks to the soldiers and he'll I have now he begins to speak to Saul and notice what Saul's hell's David Saul tells David you can't fight Goliath you're a child he's been fighting since he was a child here's what Saul says you're 17 he's been fighting longer than you've been alive he's killed hundreds never lost a battle been in the valley and always came out victorious no one has beaten Goliath and therefore you won't either because you see if the enemy can't discourage you he'll try to scare you he will remind you of how Goliath has been victorious over others he'll run the list of everyone who tried and failed of everyone who was diagnosed and died of everyone who gave it their best and came up short of everyone who wanted to but couldn't a folk who dreamed and never saw come to reality he will run the list of how Goliath has defeated others who have stood in your shoes with the same vision to try to scare you to think that the experiences of others set limitations on you but that's better than y'all shot let me see you try that again that the enemy will try to convince you that the experiences of others ultimately set limitations on you and here's what David says David says listen listen listen when you walk with God and you've got undeniable evidence that God is in your life you will never allow yourself to be limited by someone else's past failures say that again when you've got evidence that God is in your life you will not limit God by what others could not do when you've got evidence that God has been working in your life you just believe that the same God who started it back then is a God who's able to keep it going right now watch this what's just what's other conversation goes Saul says listen nobody else is beating Goliath what makes you think you can and the answer the answer watch I'm gonna get deep so david says because I'm anointed now you do I have a vision of victory not only am i selected by mystics in my spirit but I'm aware of my anointing soul says boy what makes you think you can fight Goliath let me give you to the Howard Jarvis tread they said well well sir I need let you know I really shouldn't be here coz you see a little while ago I was out tending my dad's sheep and a lion came and grabbed one of them she and I was stupid enough to run after the lion and when I hit the lion he let go of the Sheep but then he turned on me and I grabbed him by the beard and I struck his head off and I went back to the flock and I ain't learned my lesson coz the next thing a bear shoulder and stole a sheep and because I beat the lion I decide to go after the bear and I hit the bear the bear let go on the sheet but then the bear turned on me I grabbed him by the beard and I struck his head off and I just figured that if God brought me through the lion and if God brought me through the bear then the same dog that kept me with the lion and the same God that kept me from the bear is the same God who will keep me against Goliath Davis says listen I know I can win this thing cuz I'm anointed now I want to teach you some anointed anointed does not mean you talk in a thousand times knowing it doesn't mean you lay hands on folk and they fall out an order doesn't mean you can prophesy and speak things and to exist in people's like what anointed literally means is that you have physical evidence that the Spirit of the Lord is resting on your life you've got evidence that God's hand must be on you you've got evidence that the Lord is working in your life that evidence is not the Bible you carry it's not the Scriptures you quote it's not the church you go through but there's some people who can look back at the hell they've been in and declare the only reason I came out is cuz the hand of God must have been on my life and therefore I know I'm anointed tell somebody tell them I'm anointed after all the hell I've been through I must be anointed after all the struggles I survived I must be anointed after all the surgeries I've come through I must be anointed at all the diagnosis I dealt with I must be anointed and because I'm anointed I can claim victory in this battle come on let's go to Sunday school you got to have a vision of victory you gotta select about who speaks your spirit you got to be aware of your 19 but watch this last thing that takes David in a victory that he brings to the valve the Goliath didn't see you've got to go in the power of prayer I feel like preaching here you what's what happens David gets ready to go down in the battle and Saul tries to put his armor on David and David terms of Saul and says look look why are you putting this on me and here's the answer because that's what Goliath has if you're gonna fight Goliath shouldn't you try to look like a lion David takes it off this we says your armor is not tested by me I've not tried this before this and what I had on who and I beat the lion this isn't what brought me out of the bear now now this may work for you but I'm not going to let the size of the battle change the strategy of success that I'm gonna do wiggle eyath what I did with the lion and I'm going to do it Goliath what I did with the bear Saul look back say listen listen if you don't go to I read it with a sword you know that I would have shield you know go down with the helmet what are you gonna go in David's answer i'ma go and I'm gonna call on the name of the Lord so when he gets down in the battlefield Goliath looks at him and begins to laugh he laughs cuz David ain't got no armor he laughs cuz all he sees is a rock and a slingshot but he does not know that David has something much more powerful he tells Goliath you come to me with sword and spear but I stand here in the name of the Living God of Israel and I'm gonna call on his name and he will deliver this what David says I'm let's go I'm putting this battle in God's hands you didn't messed up and let me pray you should have killed me before I knelt down on my knees you should have ended this thing before I could lift up the name of my god but now that I put it in God's hands the Lord will fight this battle the Lord will handle this situation is there anybody here that knows the power of putting it in God's hands okay okay I'm done I'm done dad that's good as I preach can I share with you the power of putting it in God's hands there are scholars who examine Scripture with a scientific eye and as they do they begin to doubt the veracity of this encounter because they wonder how could one Rock kill Goliath so they did the science Roslin hears they said that the David with a rock the size of a baseball then with a slingshot the fastest he could have released it would have been with the trajectory of about 90 miles per hour it said if you take a projectile going 90 miles an hour and you use Newton's second law of motion and take into effect the coefficient of restitution that projectile that size at 90 miles an hour would generate about 3000 pounds of force as it was released that is if it was traveling the distance of a picture to the home plate which is 60 feet and six inches but since Goliath is at least twice that far when all shots are taken to effect the drag of the distance of the ball which is working against the velocity of the force therefore since he's further away what was generated at 3,000 pounds has now reduced itself arguably to at least 1,000 pounds that is if David was throwing it straight the problem is Goliath is taller than David which means the angular projectile which he launched it had to be at least at 45 degrees which means that now the ball is also working against gravity which has also reduced the force that the ball has been released so what was served 3,000 pounds of force has not been arguably reduced to about 500 pounds of force but you must remember that there is an armor bearer who stands in front of the lion who would have lifted up his shield to take the projectile off course and would have reduced the force to at least fifty pounds and taking it off of the direction headed towards collide head but if David could throw it and if it did work against drag and if it did counter the weight if it did go against the coefficient of restitution if it was knocked off course and still aimed at Goliath's head Goliath is wearing a helmet and a projectile that started with 3000 pounds of force and ended at 50 hitting a bronze helmet would not have been enough to kill Goliath so how can a young boy with one rock working against gravity working against the coefficient of restitution working against track being deflected by an armor bearer hitting a bronze helmet how could he kill a giant cuz he put it in God's hands there ought to be a shot right there that if you put it in God's hands it has supernatural power if you put it in God's hands in a work against every force if you put it in God's hands it'll always hit the target isn't anybody here let's ever put it in the hand of God and God will there was a song that the moon choirs in Chicago used to sing I put it all in his hand this and that this this and that this this this and then I put it all in his hands he can handle it that's a fact I put it all in his hand just right I'll put it in God's hands listen as you stand on your feet you're about to go into that valley of life you're about to face some Giants then have taken out others before you you're about to go through a procedure there's left others weak and feeble about to go through a season of being by yourself there's left others desperate and hopeless you're about to launch out in a new venture that others have failed in and here's what God says to you before it begins see yourself victorious before it begins know that there's some people you cannot listen to be aware of how anointed you are the same God who kept you through lions and bears will keep you through Goliath's and go into it putting it all in God's hands and no matter what the obstacle no matter what the forces no matter what the distance God is able to take your one rock in his hands and make it hit the target you need in your life you

Channel: Alfred Street Baptist Church

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Length: 46min 16sec (2776 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 03 2014