October 3, 2021 Sunday AM

[Music] [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] me [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] yes praise the lord everyone this morning scripture is deuteronomy 23 and 4. hero israel you approach this day into battle against your enemies let not your heart be faint fear not and do not tremble neither be ye terrified because of them for the lord your god he is that goeth with you to fight for against your enemies to save you [Music] who will stand against the lord [Music] no [Music] victory belongs to jesus victory belongs to him [Music] victory belongs to jesus [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] victory oh [Music] who will stand against [Music] [Music] we [Music] oh victory belongs to jesus [Music] [Applause] [Music] no [Music] [Music] yes [Music] victory [Music] [Music] jesus [Music] [Music] here [Music] is [Music] no [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] hallelujah [Music] [Music] victory yeah [Music] so we put our hope in you [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] you will deliver [Music] victoria [Music] who i am [Music] [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] victory [Music] [Music] victory [Music] [Music] victory [Music] victory [Music] [Music] is [Applause] [Music] is is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] victory [Music] no matter what we're going through [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Applause] is [Music] [Applause] is [Music] [Music] yes [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] then [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] victory [Music] me [Music] victory belongs [Music] victory belongs to jesus belongs to me [Music] good morning my name is elena anderson and this is my husband william anderson if you are a guest with us today whether here in person or listening online watching online welcome we are just so glad that you you're here with us if you are here in person we hope you will stop by the welcome center or the connect center for coffee and refreshments that's straight out these center doors and to your left and we have a special gift for you also a connect packet for you now inside that packet there is a connect card and we would like for you to fill that out also if you turn your card over there is a place where you can put a prayer request that way we can pray with you for your special needs now you can also use your cell phone to fill out this information just go to lpcnlr.com forward slash guest card and fill out the information we're just tickled you're here we would love to reach out and provide information about events and upcoming things here at the church we pray that you feel at home and we're very thankful that you've chosen to be with us to worship the lord today [Applause] [Music] i was lost i was found by a life of sin and shame until jesus brought me out and i've never been the same i will be grateful cause you have been faithful i will always choose to give you praise [Music] you've already [Music] you've already done [Music] [Music] is [Music] oh [Applause] [Music] you've already done it now you've already well i'll praise you at all times i'll praise [Music] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] [Music] i will be grateful cause you have been faithful [Music] i will be grateful for [Music] [Music] oh [Music] you've already already you already [Music] hallelujah come on why don't you just stretch your hands toward heaven right now if you already know he's done enough why don't you praise him accordingly come on give him praise accordingly you've already done enough jesus you've already done enough jesus [Music] thank you come on give it praise i'll praise i praise you [Music] i'll praise you [Music] hallelujah come on clap your hands to him come on give him the praise he's worthy of receiving today oh hallelujah hallelujah why don't you turn to someone and tell them god has already done enough for me for me to praise him from now until he comes hallelujah hallelujah you can make your way back to your seats ushers if you will i want to invite you to come to the front you may be seated this morning we're going to receive our tithe and offering today we thank the lord for his blessings in our lives how he has helped us strengthened us made us able today to give the portion that belongs to him the tenth part and to give in our offering today out of the free will of our heart today i'm happy to report to you that calvary academy had a rummage sale the past couple of days and they were able to raise fifteen thousand dollars we're so happy for them i know that many of you contributed items and some of you came and shopped i'm sure and you were blessed by what you found and we want to say thank you to everyone that participated let's pray over our tithing offering today lord we come to you with humility and thankfulness god we ask that you would receive our tithe and offering as we give them to you or we thank you for the opportunity to cheerfully give today in jesus name [Music] from the bottom of my heart to the depths of my soul i get home [Music] every song i choose to sing i can fall to you [Music] i will trust i will trust you through every storm yes through every trip i will trust i will trust jesus [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] to the depths of myself [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] i will try through everything [Applause] [Music] jesus [Applause] [Music] say jesus [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] your name's a mighty fortress shining bright in the darkness my rock of her foundation jesus jesus [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] jesus [Applause] foreign [Applause] [Music] is [Music] is [Applause] [Applause] jesus [Music] jesus [Music] oh come on somebody shout that name jesus come on make it green from the rafters today shout the name jesus oh let's do it one more time now lift your hands all over this building and worship that name together [Music] so [Music] [Applause] oh we love you jesus what a strong tower what a strong tower the name of jesus is and the righteous can run into it and they are they're saved aren't you thankful for the name of jesus today thank you choir for blessing us in this house today [Applause] i want an extended warm welcome to everyone here today all of our guests who've joined us this is your first time to be here we want to say welcome we're honored you're here if you're a repeat guest or maybe you're a friend of the church we want to welcome you here today i know that there are guests all across this building and we want you to know how honored we feel to have you here and i think it'd be great right now if we just took a moment look around us find someone to welcome to the house of the lord why don't you just give someone a big smile this morning tell them how good it is to be in church [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Music] hallelujah hallelujah so good to see you here today i want to remind you about a couple of things happening of course this evening before service we have a very special thing that happens that is our kids choirs meet and they prepare for our service and so if you have children from k4 through 8th grade i want to encourage you to have them in their their choirs k four through second grade is in the front fellowship hall third through fifth and kids alive room two and six through eighth grades in the chapel and they're going to be singing tonight we're excited about that also connect university discipleship class will be this evening at 6 and it's held on the west side of level three and we invite you to come early at 5 45 for refreshments it's a great place for new believers new members to connect up with what god is doing here in the church and for you to know more about what we believe and who we are also there's a spanish discipleship class happening as well and this is same time different place and it is in the room above the connect cafe dining room so if you need help getting there you can ask an usher host us and they'll help you get there some exciting events on the horizon for first pentecostal church one is this tuesday evening pastor ben pollock from broken bow oklahoma will be here preaching and singing it's going to be a great time it's been a while since he's been here we're excited about being his family being with us and then october 21 22 mid-america conference it's going to be a great time here at the church you don't want to miss it tuesday evening brother andrew parks will be preaching friday at 11 30 brother brennan claiborne will be preaching and friday evening brother gary robinson will be preaching it's going to be a wonderful time in the holy ghost and i invite all of you to come and support it's specifically geared to our students junior high high school students college career but it's open for everyone and i hope that you will make sure and be here on thursday and friday nights we will not have church that tuesday night so i want you to come and support what god is doing and then the last day of the month october 31st is a very special event it's our inaugural all-nation sunday and i want to encourage you to be here it's a little different schedule than normal we won't have a morning worship service we'll begin everything at 2 p.m we'll come in here we'll have church after church there is going to be an international food fest and concert hopefully if the rain will hold off and we're praying it does it'll be outside on the east side if not we'll have other provisions made but it's going to be a great time two to six at the entrances and exits as you leave there are cards that you can grab to take with you to invite people to all nations sunday it's going to be a great time and we want to honor all nations that come here on that sunday so today i want to invite you if you're a member here or a guest with us and plan to return make sure that you go to our website fpcnlr.com forward slash all nations and let us know your nationality we want to honor all nations on that sunday special sunday our doors are going to be wide open to all the nations and we give god praise for what he is doing in our church family why don't we do that right now let's just offer up praise for what he's doing hallelujah i want to direct your attention to the book of nehemiah chapter 7 i realize you're standing i won't keep you standing but just for a moment but i want us to read from the word of god our prayers of course are with the brown family sister lois brown a long time saint of this church precious lady went on to receive her reward and we're praying for her we're also praying for brother glenn addie the passing of his father and his family we want to be in prayer brother addie we know god's an ever-present help the time of trouble the time of need and we're praying for sister mary mcgee she's doing so much better we're praying for lee chadwick wes hanel and steve doughty and we know that god is able to meet every need if you believe that lift your hand right now let's pray over them lord we thank you that we know you're able to meet every need in this house god i ask you to bring comfort to these families who've had loved ones to pass away bring healing virtue to every person in need of healing today in the name of jesus we pray nehemiah chapter 7 verse number 1. now it came to pass when the wall was built and i had set up the doors and the porters and the singers and the levites were appointed that i gave my brother hanani and hananiah the ruler of the palace charge over jerusalem for he was a faithful man and fear god above many and i said unto them let not the gates of jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot and while they stand by let them be shut let them shut the doors and bar them and appoint watches of the inhabitants of jerusalem everyone in his watch and everyone to be over against his house we came to pass we built the wall we set the doors and nehemiah says i appointed gatekeepers and i appointed my brother hannah and i and hananiah the ruler of the palace and i told them to not open the gates until the sun came up and to make sure that they stand by them and keep the doors shut and barred and to appoint people to watch over the inhabitants of jerusalem and today i just want to preach from this thought wall builders and gatekeepers wall builders and gatekeepers god's looking for some wall builders and some gatekeepers in this house today god bless you you may be seated we meet nehemiah whose name means comforted by god as an adult serving in the persian royal court as the personal cup bearer to our king artaxerxes the first this prestigious position reveals the upright character of nehemiah a jew though he remained in persia after the exiles had been allowed to go back to their homeland he was highly interested and even from nehemiah chapter 1 he was burdened for the state of the affairs in judah his brother hannah and i had given him a report of what was taking place there and he wept as he considered the desecration and the demolition of jerusalem the book of nehemiah could be read as a sequel to the book of ezra and some scholars believe the two were originally one work the book of nehemiah opens in the persian city of susa in the year 444 bc later that year nehemiah traveled to israel and he is leading the third of three returns by the jewish people following their 70 years of exile in babylonia the book of ezra describes the two earlier returns and the book of nehemiah shares with us about the third most of the book of nehemiah centers on the events that take place in jerusalem of judah nehemiah is the last historical book of the old testament and although the book of esther appears after nehemiah in the canon the events of esther occur during the period between ezra chapter six and seven between the first and second returns of the people of to israel the prophet malachi was a contemporary with nehemiah and under the direction of ezra the priest the temple of jerusalem was rebuilt but the jewish commit community was dispirited and defenseless against its non-jewish neighbors and distressed at the news of the desolate condition of jerusalem nehemiah obtained permission from artaxerxes to journey to palestine to help rebuild its ruined structures he was provided an escort with documents that guaranteed his free passage across persia with the assistance of judah's persian officials so in 444 bc nehemiah journeyed to jerusalem and he galvanized the people to rebuild the walls and repopulate the city nehemiah of course encountered hostility from the non-jewish local officials in neighboring districts but in the space of 52 days something remarkable happened in 52 days under the direction of nehemiah the jews rebuilt the walls of jerusalem you may ask today what makes nehemiah so remarkable well nehemiah was a layman he was not a priest like ezra nor was he a prophet like malachi he served the persian king in a secular position before leading a group of jews to jerusalem in order to rebuild the city's walls nehemiah's expertise in the king's court equipped him adequately for the political and physical reconstruction necessary for the remnant of israel to survive under nehemiah's able leadership the jews withstood opposition and came together to accomplish their goal nehemiah led by example giving up a respected position in a palace for hard labor in a politically unstable district he partnered with ezra the priest who appears in this book to solidify the political and spiritual foundations of the people nehemiah's humility before god and you find that in nehemiah 1 and nehemiah chapter 9 his humility before god provided an example for all of the people who would return to judah he did not claim glory for himself but always gave god the credit for his success and remarkably when the job was done and after a period of time that he led uh the the people in this district some 12 years he returned back to persia i say all of this today to tell this local assembly and those who are joining with us online the church is in need of wall builders and gate keepers we need men and women such as nehemiah and hannah and i and hananiah we need people that will roll up their sleeves and say i will work to rebuild the walls and to keep charge over the gates i am reminded of what nehemiah says he says that hannah and i his brother and hananiah the ruler of the palace he was a faithful man and he feared god above many i want to tell you today god values faithfulness he values faithfulness and if you want to be used in the kingdom of god if you want to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper you must first prove and show yourself faithful to god and show fear or respect to the lord i want to tell you today god is in need of wall builders and gatekeepers [Applause] nehemiah arrived in jerusalem and he stayed there some three days before setting out during the night with a few men to survey the walls it is quite possible that sam balot and tobiah those nemesis of of nehemiah probably had allies in the city and they were aware of nehemiah's presence in the city and possibly they had people watching him and so because of the powerful opponents to this plan and to nehemiah his plan was kept secret and this this idea to to rebuild the walls was hidden from the general populace nehemiah wrote in his diary i have not told anyone what my god had put in my heart to do for jerusalem nehemiah and his small party under the cover of darkness begin the survey they begin at the valley gate on the western side of the wall from the scripture we understand that they apparently went clockwise around the city going in the direction of the jackal well until they reached the dung gate which had been destroyed by fire the secret entourage continues to move toward the fountain gate and then the king's pool pool and from this point nehemiah had to make a detour because of the rubble and steepness of the terrain he continued on foot making his way to the kidron valley and reentering again through that valley gate our text describes what nehemiah found in nehemiah 2 then said i unto them ye see the distress that we are in how jerusalem lieth waste and the gates thereof are burned with fire come and let us build up the wall of jerusalem that we be no more a reproach nehemiah knew that it was not enough to rebuild the temple alone you see ezra had already built the temple and the house of god he knew was not safe without walls and without gatekeepers and so nehemiah felt that burden to rebuild the walls and to set the gates aright the people even with the temple being re reconstructed were still liable to wander off and mix with those people outside of the city of jerusalem we look and we read about nehemiah's experience and his survey of the lamb and nehemiah saw the rubble of the walls the walls that were once glorious places the walls that held the city of jerusalem together they were broken down he saw broken down walls that once protected the throne of david the sepulchers of nehemiah's forsaken foref forefathers lay in waste desecrated by the uncircumcised the rubbish heap of forgotten dreams lost hopes and diminished futures loomed large in the mind and in the heart of nehemiah no doubt as nehemiah surveyed the city walls his memory raced with scenes from israel's gloried past with each displaced stone that nehemiah saw he was reminded of the tragedy of broken covenants the signs of defeat and domination by foreign powers were scattered about jerusalem a city whose gates and walls were in great dis repair and nehemiah said this just cannot be we can't have a temple that's not protected we can't have a city whose inhabitants are vulnerable to the enemy and so nehemiah comes up with a plan something has to be done something has to happen and under the capable leadership of a lay man not a priest not a prophet just a man of of jewish descent nehemiah is fit for the task nehemiah has the burden sent from god and he he gets all the people together he galvanizes the support and the men and women who are faithful who are skilled who are god sanctioned they take up that burden and they begin to work on the walls of jerusalem i want to tell you today that this job of wall building and gatekeeping is not alone it's not just for the pastor to do it's not just for the priest it's not just for the prophet but it's for the lay man it's for every saint of god today in this room every person hearing me every person seeing me i want to tell you god has a work for you to do he needs you to be a wall builder for your family he needs you to be a gatekeeper for your family he needs you to be a law builder for his church he needs you to be a gatekeeper for his church oh come on let's praise him for the opportunity to be wall builders and gatekeepers he announces the plan in nehemiah 2 and 18. he says i told them of the hand of my god which was good upon me as also the king's words that had spoken unto me and they said let us rise up and build so they strengthened their hands for this good work i want to tell you today wall builders gatekeepers it's good work it's not bad work hey this is a good job this is a good task building up the walls and keeping charge over the gates it's a good work so our desert seas generously provided the building materials the exiles under the direction of nehemiah they make the pilgrimage back to the beloved city of jerusalem and they begin rebuilding the walls and as they begin this this rebuilding process the sounds of trowels and the voices of laborers is mixed with the snickers and the sneers of the opposition nehemiah 4 and 7 but when sand balat and tobiah and the arabs and the ammonites and the ashtodites heard that the repairing of the walls of jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed they were very angry i want to tell you today the enemy is most angry when he sees a wall builder building up walls and closing in gaps your adversary your sin ballot your tobiah they don't really care if you don't do anything they're not gonna they're not gonna bother you too much as long as you cease to work they're not gonna say too much about you as long as you choose inaction over action but the moment you get the trial in your hand the moment you begin mixing the mortar for the walls and you start that building process and you start closing in some gaps that are open and rebuilding some things in your life that's when the enemy becomes angry at you but i want to preach to every person in this house you don't need to pay any heed to the voice of the adversary you don't need to let the enemy bother you because you're on a good work you're doing a good task god has appointed you to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper it's amazing to me when people come to church they come here and they repent of their sins and they're baptized in the only saving name the name of jesus christ for the remission of their sins and they receive the gift of the holy ghost that is evidenced by speaking in other tongues and they get on this new road and they clean up their life they quit saying things they used to say and they don't go places they used to go and they're not watching the things they used to watch or drinking what they used to drink or clubbing or doing any of the other stuff but they clean their act up they get rid of things they change their friend group and at that moment is when family and friends will come against them it's amazing to me you can have people that they haven't been able to hold down a job for years and all of a sudden they come to church they get a job they're doing good and their family or their friends start fussing and start fighting them and say you don't need to go to that church that church is they're full of heretics that church is a legalistic bunch of people in fact that church is a cult i want to tell you what that is that's the enemy coming against the wall builder that's the enemy that's coming against the person that's closing up the gaps that's building up the wall that's setting the gates in order but what you need to do is what nehemiah did you don't need to pay any attention you know what you need to do you need to do what nehemiah said we're not going to pay you any mind we're not going to be bothered by what you have to say we're just going to keep on walking we're going to keep on working we're going to keep mixing the mud putting the stones in place somebody needs to get their trial out today somebody needs to get some mortar built up somebody needs to get busy putting some stones back in place god is looking for wall builders and gatekeepers as long as there are gaps as long as the wall is in disrepair you know what it is when you start a new life people become convicted by it oh yeah they don't they don't know how to handle that conviction they feel that condemnation they see you doing something different talking different going to the church praying fasting becoming self-disciplined hey listen our world doesn't know anything about self-discipline our world is about give it to me now i want everything now there it's the spirit of the prodigal give me my inheritance now i want it now it doesn't matter what happens i want it but when you start becoming a wall builder you understand it takes time it takes time to build a wall it takes time to set a gate and the enemy gets angry when you start building walls and start keeping your gate i want to tell us all in this room today we need to do what nehemiah did we need to evaluate those walls we need to see where things have crumbled where there are gaping holes in the walls of our lives god help us to see it as you see it lord help us to see those vulnerabilities those weaknesses those those those things in our lives that are in disrepair those crumbled stones the rubbish the fallen the desecrated lord help us to see it help us to evaluate our lives so that we can rebuild our spiritual defenses so that there would be nothing lacking or gaping you see the enemy will always ridicule wall builders the enemy will always ridicule people that start putting boundaries up in their lives tobiah the ammonite chapter four he was close by the laborers that were building the wall and he said even if if a fox were to climb up on that wall that they're building it would break down their wall of stones even a fox if it decided to climb up it would break down what they're building and so it is with people in our lives that ridicule wall builders and gatekeepers but that does not negate what god has called us to do he's called every believer to be a wall builder and a gate keeper there is a need for wall builders and gate keepers i'm reminded of what the old testament prophet wrote about he said the lord searched for someone who could who could close in the gap someone that could make up the hedge someone that could build up the wall if you will someone that could keep the gate and regrettably there was no one to build the wall or to keep the gate but i'm looking into the faces of sincere men and women today god has a purpose for you it's not for you just to sit on a pew on sunday morning sunday night tuesday night it's not for you to just enjoy the benefits of this local assembly but god is calling every person in this house to be wall builders and gate keepers [Applause] my spirit is troubled today we live in a world that's boundary free we live in a world where people can identify as whatever they choose we live in a world where boundaries are dismissed and discredited and they're considered legalistic and old-fashioned and out-of-date and archaic we live in a world where boundaries personal boundaries are dismissed but i want to tell you that the word of god instructs us that boundaries are right and that we should set boundaries in our lives we should build walls in our lives that protect us from the adversary it's right to establish boundaries in our lives boundaries are found throughout scripture i'm reminded of the book of joshua it deals extensively with boundaries in fact there are five chapters in the book of joshua and all they deal with are boundaries for the tribes of israel it is god's plan for you to have boundaries or walls in your life lines must be drawn you must decide what you're going to allow to live inside and that thing or things that should be expelled from your lives it is the will of god that every person here today would start a building project that every person would be burdened with the task that nehemiah faced that they would re-establish the boundaries that they would build back the walls i'm preaching today to third and fourth generation apostolics i'm preaching today to people that have been raised in this church you grew up in this church you you you cut your teeth so to speak on the pews of this church and nothing the enemy would like more than for you to allow things into your life to allow the enemy and the degradation of our world to crumble the walls around your life to create a free pass into your mind and a free pass into your heart but i've come as your pastor on this beautiful sunday morning the first sunday of october to tell you it's time for you to become a wall builder it's time for you to close in the gaps it's time for you to reassess your life and make sure you're not allowing anything that shouldn't be in your life oh it's so easy i i i'm reminded of greek history the sacking of troy it was done uh it was done under the guise of an innocent horse it was a wooden horse built and the men hid themselves in that horse greeks sailed off they thought and they thought they had received a trophy they brought that horse into the city of troy and what they did not know is there were fighting men inside of that thing and when darkness came upon that city they came out of that and they sacked the city i want to tell you that's exactly the way the devil works in our lives he wants to slip things in innocently it's not a big deal this won't lead me to hell let me tell you when you're having a discussion about things and and you're wondering if it's hell or not or if it matters or not or or if this is going to send me to hell or not i want to tell you you need to understand that that that's not even a good argument because that's not where we should base our boundaries and our walls you're in dangerous territory when when you're trying to decide if your wall should be that close to to eternity hey i want to tell you it's time to step back it's time to build up some laws you've allowed maybe some things in your life whether it be electronic media things that you see things you read things you hear things you watch i want to tell you better be careful if you allow those things in your life inside of your city because you never know what those things can do when they're turned loose when they have free reign they can be destructive [Applause] i feel a burn to preach to you today and tell you god is looking for wall builders and gatekeepers matthew chapter 7 verse 13 enter ye in at the straight gate for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction and many there be which go in there at because strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it i want to tell you today not all roads lead to to heaven not all roads lead to eternal life there is a straight gate it is a narrow way and believe it or not there was one man named peter that had a key to that gate and on the day of pentecost he unlocked the door of that gate he said if you'll repent of your sins be baptized in the name of jesus christ for the remission of sins and receive the baptism of the holy ghost you can enter in the gate i want to talk about the anatomy of gates for a moment in ancient times in ancient gate systems gates were more complex than just a gate maybe you would put on your your cow pasture but they were multi-layered the outer gate was made up of strong and looming loomingly large wooden doors or iron doors they were considered the first line of defense and behind that inner or that outer gate there was a space and then there was an inter inner gate with equally large and strong wooden doors or iron doors this was considered the second line of defense and between these two gates would be a passageway the same width as the defensive wall that made up the walls and the gates between these outer and inner gates there would sometimes be corridors with recessed guard rooms on on either side of the gates and there were other passageways around these gates that were and sometimes made into courtyards in fact in the bible it caused some places within the gates and that's talking about inside between the outer and the inner gate much of jewish life and matter of fact all ancient life took place in the gate area not only did people and property flow in and out but it was a place where town meetings for impromptu law courts would happen the the gate area was often the the marketplace it was the place people traveling in to or out of could buy the things they needed uh this area between the gates and around the gates was was something like a a park if you will there were places to sit places to visit it was a place where important decisions were made and and at the gates the elders of the city would assemble themselves and they would consider matters and make decisions about these these matters and we read in the days of the exile jeremiah even lamented that the elders have ceased from the gate and the young men their music and and what a tragedy it was in that day for there to be no elders at the gates the the this area the gates it was a place for formal agree agreements it was the place where covenants were made between families it was an important place where contracts were established and agreements with witnesses were were made and in fact we read in the book of ruth it was it was a place that boaz went to redeem ruth and and many times prophets would go to the gates of a city no doubt that's where jonah went when he went to nineveh but the prophets of the old testament would go to this area and that's the place that they would preach and proclaim the word of god like amos where he said hate evil and love good and establish justice in the gates so the gate was that that entrance and that exit it was the place of of where things were allowed in and where things were expelled from it was an important place in ancient times a gate is a place of authority it's a place of security gates control exits and entry into areas the door in your home is a gateway you have the authority dad or mother to open and close the door or the gate of your home your eyes and your ears and your nose and your mouth they are gates to your body jesus said the eye is the lamp of the body so if your eye is healthy your whole body will be full of height but if your eye is bad your whole body will be full of darkness if then the light in you is darkness how great is the darkness the apostle paul spoke to the corinthians he said flee from sexual immorality every other sin a person commits is outside the body but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body because those are gates first peter chapter 5 this apostle the one that had the key to the kingdom of heaven he said be sober be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour i've come today to preach to this church and tell you you need to be a wall builder and you need to be a gatekeeper you need to be sober you need to be vigilant because the adversary is roaming the adversary wants to come in the adversary wants to take possession of your city he wants to take possession of your home he wants to take possession of your children he wants to take possession of your life it's a common theme throughout the new testament to be sober to be watchful to be vigilant jesus told the disciples the apostle paul spoke it the apostle peter preached it they were telling the church you've got to be aware in other words you've got to be a gatekeeper you've got to watch what comes in your life you've got to build walls but if you don't keep the gate the walls don't matter i want to preach to you today thank god for the boundaries thank god for the walls but also thank god for mamas and daddies grandmas and grandpas aunts and uncles and cousins brothers and sisters that say i'm gonna be a gatekeeper i'm not gonna allow the devil in my life i'm not gonna allow the devil in my home your enemy is plotting and waiting at the gate judges 16 and 2 and it was told the gazites saying samson has come hither they compassed him in and laid weight for him all night in the gate of the city and were quiet all the night saying in the morning when it is day we shall kill him your enemy they're at the gate they're there waiting they may be camouflaged they may seem innocent as a wooden horse they may seem so innocent and non-threatening but your enemy is waiting at the gate the bible tells us sin crouches at the door or the gate it desires to overpower you and take possession genesis chapter 4 god said if you do well believing me and doing what is acceptable and pleasing to me will you not be accepted cain than if you do not do well but ignore my instruction sin crouches at your door sin is at your gate and it desires his desire is for you his desire is to overpower you but you must master it you know what that lets us know that if you allow the enemy to sit by your gate to sit by your door and if you are in a in a moment of ignorance or a moment of of of not thinking things clearly and and properly vetting things and you allow that into your life it will dominate you it will control you it will take over and that's the reason god told cain sins crouching at the door but i want you to know if you'll do what is right and what is pleasing to me you can overcome you can overpower sin you can have dominion over sin come to the music today oh i feel a burden sent from god to preach to this church and tell you god is looking for wall builders and gatekeepers he's looking for people that will stand in the cap that will make up the hedge he's looking for people that will rebuild the walls he's looking for people that will manage the gates that will keep watch over the gates our gates and walls we know they can't be broken down it's a sad story but throughout the books of the kings and the chronicles we read where judah's kings most of them especially the ones that didn't do right in the sight of god they had disregard for the gates they they were not concerned about the walls and we understand from the laws of the universe things don't become better they don't progress i i don't care what scientists will say things don't get better things fall apart things break down things become in disrepair and those kings of judah they were more concerned about their their own political career their own wealth that they had no regard for the city and they lived opulent lives in ivory palaces and all around them the city was crumbling the walls were falling the gates were falling torn down and i think here today it's so easy for us to get focused on this natural life and success and dreams and ambitions that if we're not careful and we don't reevaluate our lives and survey our lives that we can have this image in our mind that we're successful but our relationships are broken marriages in ruin children wasted dysfunction abounding we think we have it all together we think we're successful and yet we look around and everything is in rubble and ruin [Music] the writer of proverbs said in proverbs 25 he that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down and without walls stand with me today when you allow your fleshly desires and ambitions to override what god has planned for you you allow yourself unbridled access to the things of this world whether they be hollywood sports books whatever it is when you allow yourself that unbridled access you don't gird up the loins of your mind and become self controlled and self disciplined you're like a city that is broken down and without walls but i want to tell you today god has purpose for every person in this room he's looking across the sanctuary today for wall builders and gatekeepers men and women who are like nehemiah hannah and i and hananiah men and women who are faithful and who have the fear of the lord men and women who will not depart will not be neglectful i'm reminded of the times of josiah king of judah the bible tells us that the gatekeepers were at each gate and they did not depart from their post they did not leave their place of service why because they understood that my calling is divine and god's called me to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper he's called you today to take inventory of your life where are you lacking where where where are the gaping holes of your wall which gate is in your eyes is it your mouth is it your nose is it your ears which gate is unarmed which gate is lacking which wall wha what what place is lacking in your life god is speaking to you today and telling you i want you to be a wall builder i want you to be a gatekeeper you know why walls and gates are so important nehemiah understood yes they built the temple but for the presence of god to come down in that temple it's got to be protected it's got to be sanctified there's got to be some protection because his spirit is too precious it's too precious i want to tell you today his spirit inside of you is so precious and he is he is asking of you to be a wall builder and a gate keeper oh lift your hands all over this building today come on this sanctuary [Music] come on everybody in this sanctuary come on i'm asking you to take a moment [Music] let god begin to speak to your mind your heart things that you need to change walls that need to be rebuilt gates that need to be kept come on i see people coming to this front these altars are open today [Music] come on there's there's time right now for some people to reconsecrate their lives come on get a burden like nehemiah that says we're going to rebuild the walls and we're going to keep the gates we're going to rebuild the walls and we're going to keep the gates we're not going to allow anything to distract us we refuse to allow anything to destroy us [Music] we understand we're not ignoring concerning the devices of satan we know he wants to slip in and he wants to dominate he wants to control but i want to tell you today if you'll get your trial out if you'll become a wall builder and a gatekeeper oh hallelujah the enemy cannot come in the enemy cannot come in the enemy cannot dominate the enemy cannot control you come on let's lift our hands let's pray all over this building come on in the name of jesus [Music] [Music] uh come on lift your hands you will let god speak to your spirits come on let the holy ghost click into your mind things you need to get out you need to expel places you need to re-fortify come on let the lord click into your mind ready to be improved and fortified [Music] come on close your eyes come on pray right now church [Music] come on come on secured [Music] together come on across this house he's calling you to be a gatekeeper [Applause] [Music] come on baby there's some accounts you need to delete maybe there's some pages you need to unfollow maybe there's some books you'll throw in the garbage cans some brother come on he's called you to be a gatekeeper [Applause] [Music] come on your gates have been open for a long time and things have come in today to shut the gate come on today come on in time for you to respond it's time for you to make some changes come on build it back build it back build it back [Applause] build it back come on build it back come on right now in the name of jesus come on right now i want you to close your eyes and tell god what you're gonna do tell him god i'm gonna rebuild the walls lord i'm gonna expel some things from my life i'm gonna get rid of something i'm gonna close some gates i'm not gonna allow things in my life i'm not gonna allow some things in my life i'm going to get rid of it in jesus name come on i want to hear your voice i want you to lift it up to god come on he wants to hear you he wants to hear you come on [Music] i want to be a gatekeeper i want to be a gatekeeper [Music] [Music] satay i want you to join up with someone near you i want us to pray at the close of this service come on i'm asking every person join up with someone let's pray together maybe you're standing by your command companion pray with your companion come on let's make some let's make some commitments today [Music] [Music] come on we're not of this world their god shouldn't be our gods come on their gods should be our gods make sure your city's in order make sure there's nothing displeasing in your city [Music] oh come on lamb leaves come on mamas you're the gatekeeper of that home don't allow the enemy come on daddies come on you're the gatekeeper of your family [Music] don't let the enemy in don't let him slip past [Music] earlier earlier this week i was talking with brother jonathan davis we were just talking and he said you know i made it a point in our home my boys assured you to be so careful what we say not allow the gods of this world to influence our lives you know what he was saying to me that day i'm being a wall builder and i'm endeavoring to be a gatekeeper he told me he said you know in the old testament the law israel wasn't even menti israel wasn't even supposed to mention the names of other gods not even to mention names he said we've done our best and i know he would say maybe he's not perfect but he's doing a good job he said we don't we don't mention the stars of this world the sports stars and movie stars the celebrities he said we don't even call their name in our home hey you know what that is that's called wall building and gatekeeping [Music] i want to remind this church we don't take our cues from this world we may be in this world but we're not of this world our citizenship is in another place [Music] i see people get so consumed it may not be the sports that are your gods it may not be the the celebrities and the movie stars and idols and singers that are your gods but you may have allowed politics to become your god or allow the current events to become your god when that's all you talk about and all you post and all you story about hey we need to be careful our our speech should give us a way that we're blood washed and we're that that we're children of god [Applause] [Music] [Applause] we allow current events to become our god hey we've we're just as bad as the person that falls down and worships some man-made creature i want to encourage every person in this house take inventory today i've not come with a personal vendetta i've come with a burden from the holy ghost through much prayer study today to tell you it's time for you to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper be so careful what you allow in your home and your family and your mind that's the reason you put the helmet of salvation on your head that helmet is to protect what comes in your mind it's a wall if you will it's a gate if you will and god is speaking to the church today he wants you to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper or lift your hands lift your hands and open your mouth and telling god i want to be a wall builder i want to be a gatekeeper [Music] [Music] [Music] i want to think on your things i wanna dwell on good peace i wanna be consumed by your grace i wanna be enraptured by your love [Music] i want you to have full and total sovereignty over my life in the name of jesus in the name of jesus hallelujah god bless you today thank you for letting me obey the holy ghost give you what's in my spirit today turn to someone tell them i'm going to be a wall builder and a gatekeeper jesus [Music] [Music] you

Channel: First Pentecostal Church North Little Rock

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Length: 108min 12sec (6492 seconds)

Published: Sun Oct 03 2021