SUCOC 2021.04.18 - 10:15 Morning Service

[Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] is [Music] [Music] oh jesus christ he died for me [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] hallelujah [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] hallelujah [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh will call upon now [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] yes [Music] [Applause] [Music] hey [Music] [Music] every day [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] me [Music] [Music] jesus [Applause] [Music] let everything [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] hey [Music] oh and there was no food in the house [Applause] we need [Applause] i'm [Music] [Music] oh [Applause] oh go give me the soup [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] ah [Music] no [Music] been in your way [Music] i don't know how you feel are you okay [Music] all right let the saints of god say amen what a joy it is to assemble and to worship god in spirit and in truth to give him all of the glory and every ounce of the praise for he alone is worthy to be praised we are just so delighted to see everybody online real time for our 10 15 worship that we render to god each and every lord's day for we recognize that it is by the hand of god that all blessings do indeed flow we are most grateful and gratified to see you here in this virtual sanctuary and this cyber sanctuary and it is our prayer that as we render worship unto god that your spirit will be uplifted and if you have not put christ on in baptism it is our prayer that you will come asking what must i do to be saved and we will give you that same biblical formula that was obeyed in the first century because we believe that the gospel of jesus christ is still strong enough to save men and women right here today before we begin our worship we want to just congratulate take a moment and congratulate our ladies here at the south union church of christ on yesterday history was made on yesterday we hosted our 2021 ladies day and let me tell you this was all done virtually what the devil meant for evil god has repurposed for good we know that we were unable to meet here in person and ordinarily and customarily there would have been hundreds of ladies gathered here at south union however we refuse to be defeated and the illustrious ladies of south union have once again gained additional territory for the kingdom of god we want to first of all thank god for his ability to give us the faith to continue to press on we salute our leader sister patricia isom sister isom helped to lead the way and coordinate our wonderful ladies day of course with the assistance of the other illustrious ladies here at south union that make up our ladies ongoing ministry those ladies are sister lois t holland sister tammy alpara sister aaron thompson sister christy stokes sister erica tucker uh sister stacia o'keowu sister daryl hurd sister carolyn boozer sister carolyn horace sister barbara mitchell sister sandra nixon and sister norma jeffrey we thank god for them they have done a remarkable remarkable job uh coordinating and facilitating orchestrating our 2021 ladies day now here are the metrics from yesterday the metrics have indicated that there were over 370 registrants can you believe that 370 virtual attendees not including how many people grouped up together to watch this wonderful online broadcast we reached over 27 states 27 states were represented ladies from all over the nation received an encouraging word from god as well as texas leading the way with over 110 registrants we thank god for everyone working cooperatively and collaboratively together so that god might be glorified we want to salute sister tina george because sister tina george was one of the wonderful presenters on yesterday and i'm told the streets are talking now i'm told the phone lines are talking and they say that sister george did a phenomenal job and you know i'm like paul i partly believe it i know the great talent that we have here at south union and so i thank sister george for a job well done as the ladies continue to do great things here in the kingdom of god's dear son and so we want you to continue to stay tuned to each and every event that the ladies undertake here at south union because we know that you'll get a blessing and you'll be blessed right on time additionally on next saturday if it's the lord's will april the 24th at 1 30 pm we will host a southwestern christian college donation parade here at south union now this is not exclusively for south union members only we're inviting as many people as we can to come out and to donate to christian education of course this ministry is led by the united ladies of houston in conjunction with our south union ladies and we thank god for sister lois holland who leads the way fearlessly and continues to promote christian education even in the time of a pandemic of course we do realize that everyone will not be able to make the parade line and drop off your donation in person and so we're asking that if you do have a donation and you'd like to contribute we're asking that you bring it to the building physically just call the number that you see on your screen 713-747-5440 ask for our administrative assistant sister tammy wright or you could mail it to the building and our address is 7427 ardmore street houston texas 77054 whatever you do do whatever you can to encourage our youth to encourage young people to continue to study hard so that god might use them in the future and also we want everyone to know that on may the 3rd that's monday may the 3rd monday night may the 3rd we're going to kick off our family and friends virtual uh week now i want everybody to make sure that you have your calendar set because we have four dynamic preachers of god who will present to us in a virtual format no one will be here at the building but we will all meet each other on the cyber sanctuary online and that will begin every night beginning may the 3rd at 7 pm on our youtube page we look forward to hearing from brother gary smith of the fifth ward church of christ brother g michael williams ii of the missouri city church of christ we look forward to hearing from brother john tillman of the garden oaks church of christ as well as brother james glenn of the belford church of christ you don't want to miss this wonderful event and this will be our virtual family and friends celebration extravaganza that begins virtually on may the third and then finally on may 9th on may 9th oh what a day it shall be we look forward to kicking off our come back sunday amen somebody our comeback sunday you know every now and then it's good to come back and so we're inviting everyone who can make it back physically to please be mindful to register online now registration can be found on our home page on our website but listen very closely registration will open on april the 24th that's next saturday april the 24th we will have an online registration you can just go to our uh website look at our homepage click on the tab for registering for worship service on may the 9th we do recognize that may the 9th is mother's day and so we look forward to having you in the house we're asking all visitors to please register online if you intend on coming all members please register online what this will enable us to do is to make sure and to ensure that we have at least six feet of social distancing right now our team is working feverishly to make sure that our auditorium is configured where we will be able to worship and worship feel free to worship and move about within the auditorium but this can only be possible if we all cooperate together so please we're asking that you register online don't just show up let us know that you're on the way because what we may have to do is if we reach a certain number of capacity we may have to insert a second worship but we need to know that ahead of time so we can let you know what to plan for so we look forward to seeing you on come back sunday that's may the 9th right here at 9 00 a.m amen may god be praised for the great things that he has done let's worship him in spirit and in truth god bless god has smiled on me oh he has set be free my god has oh yes he has smiled on me i know that he's been good so good to me sing it again my god oh yes he has smiled on me oh and he has he set me free my god oh yes he has smiled on me i know that he's been good so good to me good morning let's go to god in prayer to the great i am the one who sits high and looks low the one that takes care of all of our needs and everything that you do for us we never want to approach your throne without admitting that we've sinned and you've fallen short and for that we would look for you to please forgive us and we will continue to do the things that we have to do we just thank you so much for this beautiful day we've been through uh going through the the the the situation and we just pray that you will guide us and protect us in the things that we need to to do and we just thank the leadership thank the the ministers thank the everybody that that had anything to do with the program you know yesterday we just thank you lord from the things that you provide for us sometimes we get anxious that we but you know you come in right on time just when you think it's time to to divert go to another city you you come right in on time you helped us so much and let us never forget that your god and you've created us to worship you and we just pray dear lord that all will be well we just thank you that the latest day program on yesterday was a tremendous success and we just thank you for all of the things you do for us name of jesus the christ amen amen i woke up this morning with my mind well i woke up this morning and my mind it was dead on jesus hallelujah hallelujah [Music] i hallelujah up this morning woke up this morning with my yes it was yes it was jesus i woke up this morning with my mind hallelujah hallelujah i'm giving him praises i'm giving him praises with my mind my mind is dead giving him praises i'm giving him praises with my mind saying i'm giving him praise i'm giving him praise he deserves with my mindset i'm walking and talking i'm walking in and jesus hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah [Music] [Music] christ the lord the lord you can't hate your neighbor in your mind if instead of the master sing and hallelujah hallelujah and i'm singing hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah good morning church this morning scripture reading is a familiar one because from the book of matthew the chapter is two and the verses are one through twelve once again that's matthew chapter two verses are one through twelve and i will be reading for the new american standard version of the bible if all found say amen and the bible reads now after jesus was born in bethlehem of judea in the days of herod the king maja from the east arrived at jerusalem saying where is he who has been born king of the jews for we saw his star in the east and have come to worship him when horror the king heard this he was troubled and all of jerusalem with him grand gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people he inquired of them where the messiah was to be born they said to him in bethlehem of judea for this is what has been written by the prophet and you bethlehem the land of judah are by no means least among the leaders of judah for out of you shall come forth a ruler who will shepherd my people israel then harold secretly called the magi and determined front of the exact time the star appeared and he sent them to bethlehem and said go and search carefully for the child and when you have found him report to me so that i too may come and worship him after hearing the king they went their way and the star which that they which they had seen in the east went on before them until they came and stood over the place where the child was when they saw the star they rejoiced in sealy with great joy and after coming into the house they saw the child with fisma with mary his mother and they fell to the ground and worshipped him then open their treasures they presented to him gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh and having been warned by god in a dream not to return to herald the magi left for their own country by another way i have read for you matthew chapter 2 the verses were 1-12 the subject of this morning's sermon is coming back another way blessed to the hearers believers and doers this is holy and divine word let's continue to have your attention as we are led in prayer let's go to the father word of prayer to the great god in heaven the father of our lord and savior jesus christ we come before your throne of grace and mercies with our heads bowed and thanksgiving in our hearts thank you dear father for allowing us to see another day be able to come into your house of worship and be able to worship for you in spirit psalms and truth but most of all dear father we thank you for the most wonderful precious gift of all that's your darling son christ jesus who came down from the courts of glory to the sin filled earth and gave his life so that we may all have life and have it more abundantly we come dear father thanking you for all the material the physical blessings that you have bestowed on us even though we do not deserve it but we thank you dear father for being the true loving god that you are the god of many chances second chances the god who loves us more than we love ourselves and for that we thank you but we also come dear father knowing that we fallible creatures if we fall short of the glory of god from time to time we sin and error and we just ask dear father that you forgive us of those transgressions against thee whether they be by a word thoughts or deeds we ask that you blotted out the book of life never to be held against us in this time nor the time to come but we also come dear father on behalf of those many that have been afflicted by this coronavirus those that have fallen those that are still sick we just ask dear father that you send a comforter to be with those family members that have lost their loved ones and we ask dear father that you touch them with your finger love and restore their health to a point where they'll be able to join the fold once again dear father we just asked and we know that you have all power and we just ask that you continue to put that hedge around all of us watch over us keep us in your care and as i prepare to close this prayer dear father we just hope and trust to pray that everything that we do and say will be pleasing acceptable in your sight this is our prayer in jesus christ's name let us all say amen oh i want to see him look upon his face way over there to sing forever of his saving grace on the streets of glory let me lift up my voice all of my cares i'm going home and it's ever to rejoice well and as i journey through this land i'll be singing as i go i will be pointing souls to calvary to the crimson flow well and me the arrows pierce my soul from without within will burn my wealth and it's through him i must sing for [Music] glory let me lift up for my lord dark maybe the night will and but i'll cling more close to him and he will give [Music] look upon and i'm going on [Music] and it's ever [Music] [Music] and [Music] [Music] how [Music] let's keep thinking sing forever [Music] lift up my voice and all of my cases going home at last ever to rejoicing all of my cares going home at last ever to rejoice amen brother tucker's not out yet so we're gonna keep on singing amen when we reach that city of the new jerusalem well we're gonna sing hallelujah sing [Music] hallelujah in that mighty chorus voices will so sweetly gonna sing we're gonna sing hallelujah hallelujah and god will be a sadness [Music] when we [Music] that land where saints will never [Music] victory will be our everlasting theme when we [Music] [Music] i'm gonna rest beneath [Music] i'm gonna sing hallelujah hallelujah [Music] gonna trade my earthly home for a better one writing well the christ left to prepare a mansion for children in the end and i'll join him in that then when tears no sorrows can be and a win uh-huh [Music] with from the work that i've [Music] [Music] in glory [Music] and lord please preserve my mansion i want a robin a crown amen song before our speaker would be they ain't just watching over me because i believe during this whole pandemic there's been something keeping us safe something keeping us out of harm's way something keeping us keeping us period keeping us and i believe we have an angel watching over us not just an angel the angel watching over us amen all night and all day i've got an angel watching over me my lord i'm singing all night all day i've got an i've got an angel watching over me while i went to the churchill so where i used to pray i've got an angel watching over me my lord and my soul got to happen and i stayed all day i've got an angel watch alone when i've got an angel all night all day i've [Music] you know every night before i go to sleep i got an angel watching over me my lord i pray to the lord and my soul he keep i got an angel [Music] all night [Music] [Music] i've got an angel not watching over me no covey no covet cause i've got an angel over me all night singing all night [Music] are watching over me you know every night before i go to sleep i got an angel watching over me it's what i do saying i pray to the lord my soul the night and all day all night and all day i've got an angel i'm watching over one more time all night [Music] one more time all night watching over me amen amen i really love the lord oh i really love love the lord you don't know what he's done for me i'm glad he gave me the victory and that's why i love him i [Music] love the lord oh we're singing say i really love i love the lord yes i do say hi i really love do you love the lord oh because you don't know what he's done for me i'm glad he gave me the victory and that's why i love oh yes i love him i i really love love the lord you don't know you just don't know you don't know [Music] through a pandemic he gave us the victory really love jesus say hi i really love the lord you just don't know you just don't know you you don't know what he's done for me he has preserved us and he gave me [Music] and i don't deserve it at all i love him i love him i really really love jesus say love the lord you just don't know you don't know what he's done for [Music] he gave me new victory and that's why we love we love jesus say hi really love i love the lord amen god has blessed us in innumerable ways and he has elongated the time for us to walk this mundane domain and for this we should be everlastingly and eternally grateful if you know that god is good just take a moment and type in the chat box why don't you just say god is a good god amen if you know that he's worthy to be praised just take a moment and encourage somebody online god is worthy to be praised and if you're not too shy and you're not afraid to share what god has done for you just in the past week just take a moment and say god delivered me amen god delivered me god preserved me god kept me god keeps holding me and i am grateful unto god that we've made it back to worship it's good to be in the service just one more time we want you to know if you're visiting online that you are honored guests and always and every day that you are able to view the worship services here at south union we are just delighted to see you log in and uh be assured that here at south union we believe in the bible for the bible is in fact the word of god it is a lamp to our feet and a light along our path the bible is the word of god and the bible is still strong enough to save our souls because the word of god stands forever and if we just obey what god has said if we just obey what god has said we know that god's word will never return to him void and so we are persuaded that there may be someone watching even right now in the confines of your own home in your own houses you may be watching right now you may be feeling down today but you've come to the right place we serve a god who can lift us up he can lift heavy burdens he can roll our burdens away king jesus we used to sing we'll roll all burdens away if to him we pray if we just pray the lord is showing off abel somebody say he show enough abel amen you know you you have to go up in the country i have some country roots to know what it means to say show enough you know forever i i didn't hardly know what show enough stood for i didn't know what it was abbreviated i didn't know what it meant i knew show enough good i had to grow up and find out that it really stood for sure enough praise the mighty name of jesus amen had to go to english class and stop by english amen class sure enough yeah well where i'm from we say show enough you show enough good amen this this this god that we serve is so enough good he's sure enough good and we know that the god of heaven uh will continue to bless us and so we we just we're just privileged uh really we're privileged to praise his name we're thankful for our uh worship leaders they have done a remarkable job on today as they do every day and we appreciate brother nicholas hooper brother jason reeves we appreciate them for their work's sake we appreciate the scripture reading and the prayer that was rendered to us brother harris and brother kelly they've just done a wonderful job and we are prayerful for those men who will be on deck to continue to do the same i want to make just a quick brief clarification regarding an announcement that i made earlier i was recycling through my faults and as brother holland would say pop holland says i'm above 16. i'm past 16 these days this southwestern christian college parade and donation i need to tell you the time i told you the date but i didn't tell you the time uh april the 24th this saturday if it's the lord's will but the time is 1 30 p.m 1 30 p.m 1 30 to 2 30. the ladies will be here and they will be able to receive your donation 1 30 to 2 30 p.m now if you have a a real real heavy donation uh that i mean it's just showing up heavy they might stay to 231 i don't know we might be able to get them to stay to 231 but if you can be here 1 30 to 2 30 they will be more than happy to assist you and again we say thank you to our united ladies of houston and those sisters here at south union and of course sister lois t holland we appreciate them so very much but make sure that whatever you can do make sure that we are able to complete it and to do it now if you have your bibles if you would please open your bible i'm excited about uh today's lesson open your bible to matthew the second chapter matthew let's meet in matthew chapter 2. i am very excited about today's lesson because today we're going to begin a thought theme and as i say sub series that i pray will bless your life and it's my prayer that as we study today you will be encouraged from what the scripture reveals regarding the faith of god's people watch this text the bible in matthew 2 verses 1 through 12 we will not read all of these verses but we shall read let's look at verse number eight and we'll read down to verse 12 verse number eight the bible the word of god reads and he sent them to bethlehem and said go and search diligently for the young child and when you have found him bring me word again that i may come and worship him also when they heard the king they departed and lo the star which they saw in the east went before them till it came and stood over where the young child was when they saw the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy and when they were come into the house they saw the young child with mary his mother and fell down and worshiped him and when they had opened their treasures they presented unto him gifts gold frankincense and myrrh and being warned of god in a dream that they should not return to herod they departed into their own country another way is that in your bible want to preach from the subject for the next couple of weeks next few weeks i should say here it is coming back another way coming back another way everybody loves to watch a comeback if you've ever seen your favorite sports team down at halftime if you've ever been a participant in team sports and you experienced a struggle at the beginning of the game you know what it feels like to come out of the huddle to come out of the locker room with a new outlook and perspective and having a wheel here it is to win you've been down two touchdowns your favorite team has fought somebody said the saints your favorite team who that i'm looking for who that nation so somebody somebody said the texans praise the name of jesus i'm the cowboys let me get it right for so i can get into my truck safely yeah cowboys are down by three touchdowns somebody i can hear saying they stayed down y'all something else this morning and they come out of the huddle they come out of halftime and they not only regain the lead but they win the game i see steelers nation over here i gotta plug everybody in i'm gonna get in trouble but everybody likes a comeback everyone likes to see the underdog that's what march madness is all about part of the pageantry of march madness is you don't know who's going to come out on top the favorite team may go into the game being favored however they may emerge from that game having taken a loss because the pageantry the excitement of it all the build up the struggle and the strain to be the champion is a most beautiful phenomenon to observe there's nothing like a comeback a comeback signifies that there has been a change in momentum somebody say momentum there's been a change in momentum you you've still been in the game but the momentum has shifted and now that the momentum has shifted the dynamics of the game it's it's a new ball game now it's 0-0 and now each team has to strive to outlast the other team but yet when we see a comeback it's just something sweet to behold watching your favorite team overcome here it is the odds in a real sense family i want us to see that uh the odds of this pandemic were stacked against us i want us to be clear to understand what is going on i want us to see fact that we have been uh isolated and sometimes we have been quarantined if you will for at least 13 months we've been without the public assembly of worship we've had to adjust we've had to adapt we've had to modify the way we've done church the way we've done worship the way we've done ministry the way we have come in our spirit to worship god we've had to go through some changes but i'm thankful that now it's time for a comeback i don't know about you but i i'm thankful for the comeback i'm i'm thankful you may be thinking well you coming back preacher but i'm staying in well i want you to know that i'm ready for a comeback i want everyone to protect their health and i want everyone to make sure that they're safe but those of us who feel comfortable reassembling i want us to come back and not only do i want us to come back family but i believe that when we come back we ought to come back another way family i i say i believe god wants us to come back another way i want us to see family that it is important while we reassemble i want us to be rejuvenated how about when we reassemble how about we be uh continuously motivated how about when we reassemble how about our love goes up a little higher that's what the ladies did on yesterday they they took the ladies day program up just a little higher who would have thought if we were back in the country we say who would have thunk who would have thought that during the midst of a pandemic we would have had a successful ladies day program the way we had on yesterday who would have ever thought that over listen if we were in the building we would not have reached 27 states y'all talk back to me if you can you see i i'm learning to praise god in the midst of the trouble i praise him because even in the trouble we can still see triumph god can still do some great things when we have faith in him and when everybody comes together when we have here it is all hands on deck and everybody comes together we can do some great things and god can get some glory why because we're ready for a comeback primed for a comeback in this particular text family we're going to see that there were things that stood out in their lives and i'm talking about the lives of the wise men there were some things that stood out to them that enabled them to come back another way and family when god does some things for you you can't allow yourself to come back the way you left you cannot allow yourself to come back the same way in which you left things must improve my coming out of this pandemic not saying that we're out of it but coming back to the building to reassemble shows me that i've got to love people a little bit harder i don't know about you but it shows me i've got to forgive folk a little bit easier i've got to uh study just a little more i've got to express my appreciation for my brother and sister a little better i must show my devotion to god here it is i want to give a little more y'all getting quiet on got quiet on that point you shouted on amen but i want to give to god just a little more because i don't want to return with the same attitude i don't want to return with the same stale stuck and stagnant attitude i want to be better and god he can make us better y'all believe this listen to the text we observe in the text a few things that i think would be appropriate for us to observe in our lives today the first dynamic of this transition is the wise men had information somebody say information the wise men had information and check this out they had information based on proclamation they had information based on publication they had information based on what had been promoted here it is by the holy prophets in amos 3 and verse 7 the bible says surely the lord god will do nothing but as he reveals his secret plans or his secret unto his servants the prophets watch this now god will do nothing until he reveals his secret unto his holy prophets family these wise men as they were called were not wise in their own way but they were called wise men because they were wise in the things of god they were obedient to the plan of god here it is they listened to god in the midst of herod and his insatiable desire to eradicate any contenders to his throne they defied the odds and here it is they learned to obey god rather than man have we heard of that before they learn to obey god rather than man what made them wise is that they did not go about establishing their own way but rather they listen to the way of the lord and it's a wise thing to listen to god even in the face of danger and adversity they were called wise men and they were wise because they received information and they accepted the information that they received be based on the proclamation of the holy prophets in other words they knew something about what god had spoken to the holy prophets and when you know something about the word of god when you know something about uh the the infrastructure of god when you know something about uh how god works his his his will then you become dumb to yourself and wise toward the lord you place your plans on the back burner and you pick up god's plans and you run the race i'm encouraged to see family that they they had some information they must have had some information because they were out searching they were out looking for the messiah they were out being inquisitive over his birth now let me let me deal with some of the idiosyncrasies of this passage and some of the misconceptions that we have promoted in our quest to be religious or religious minded especially when it comes to uh the time the season that we call christmas now many times you you've heard it said that there were three wise men yet according to the scripture we don't really know how many wise men there were we know that there was more than one man but the scriptures nowhere in the bible does it ever uh designate the number three it says wise men could have been four could have been five uh could have been two we don't know but the bible says and place emphasis and this is what i am encouraged by the emphasis is placed on the character and not the chronology or the number the emphasis is placed on their character they were wise not how many there were because you can have a large quantity of food y'all getting quiet god is not impressed so much with quantity he looking for quality and so the scripture reveals to us their quality is that they were wise and they trusted god another thing that is a misconception about this text many times is that the wise men came to the manger and they were there present at jesus birth yet the scripture does not record that the scripture actually records that jesus was a young child the emphasis from this particular text and the word that is uh translated into child indicates that jesus was most likely a toddler another thing that is a misconception about sometimes around jesus and his birth is that um they were all in a uh a barn-like setting uh in a trough-like setting because there was no room in the end yet no room in the end indicated jesus's birth but when the wise men showed up if you read the text closely the family of jesus they were in a house so several years have transpired and i want us to make sure that we when we read the bible we don't read into the bible what the culture has dictated but we allow the bible to tell us how to dictate the culture so these wise men i know where i'm going now these wise men they were sent and dispatched by herod but they had some previous information on who jesus was based on their familiarity with the holy prophets and the prophecies that came from old watch this in genesis 22 and verse 18 the bible reads and in thy seed shall all nations of the earth be blessed the wise men understood something about the prophecies of jesus i know that they did because in galatians 3 16 the scriptures read now to abraham and his seed were the promises made he saith not and to seeds as of many but as of one and watch this now and that seed which is christ when the wise men came to investigate the king who would save all mankind they knew that they were coming to see the messiah i don't want you to miss this because in order to unlock and appreciate their tremendous bravery in the face of adversity you must understand that they were dispatched by one king but yet they were devoted to another i said they were dispatched by one king yet they were devoted to another if you read the text the text reveals that herod was king but when king is used to speak of herod it is lowercase i mean it's right there in the text but i want us to make sure we understand what we're reading now someone says well what is does this have to do with the text stay on the line i'm going somewhere the text says that herod lower case king but when they come to look for jesus it's right here in the text king is capitalized showing unequivocally the distinction between an earthly king and a heavenly king showing us the difference between a king that had a starting date and has a date for his demise versus a king who is eternal and lives forever the holy spirit wants us to see that we're talking about two different kings and i praise god in the fact that these wise men i'm getting excited now that these wise men you can't preach this lesson and be angry now to these wise men they understood that we're being sent by one king but we must serve another king and i'm thankful to god family that while we are here in this particular lot called life that we have other kings who want us to understand that they've sent us but you must always remember as a child of god who you are duty bound to serve is there anybody here who's ready i mean you ready for a comeback you have to know who you're serving see we serving god we are serving the most high god and our allegiance must be to god no wonder these wise men understood they must have understood passages of scripture like jeremiah 23 verses 5 and six here it is behold the days come saith the lord that i will raise unto david a righteous branch and here it is capitalized and a king shall reign and prosper and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth in his days judah shall be saved and israel shall dwell safely and this is his name whereby he shall be called the lord our righteousness these wise men they understood that we've been sent by one king but we're going to serve another king we've been dispatched by one king but we are devoted to the king of kings is there anybody here who's thankful that your devotion is to the king of kings and to the lord of lords your devotion is to not the one is is not to the one who leads the state but your devotion is to the head of state your devotion is to the sovereign one your devotion is to the one who has salvation in his grasp the one who said yes to the cross and the one who was buried but didn't stay buried the one who rose again with all power heaven and earth in his hands my devotion it's to the king of kings are you all with me i just have two little points i'm going to take a few points and peel off this onion each week this is our last point right here they received information but these wise men i want us to see this now in their receiving information they embodied anticipation is right here in the text they were anticipating the coming of the christ look at the text the text says in matthew 2 and verse two the wise men came from the east somebody say travel you see when you know who you have come to see you don't mind traveling we've gotten i know we're comfortable and cozy and kosher in our easy chairs watching brother tucker preach but when you know that you come to serve the king of kings and the lord of lords you don't mind putting on some church clothes ladies heard about pandemic bandit on yesterday i won't get into all of that but he's not uh just prowling on women he he comes the ladies will know what i'm talking about amen somebody but whatever you have in your closet whatever we can still squeeze into i know it's been 13 months i know we've been you know we've gotten relaxed in here man amen we relax i get all of that but when you know somebody ought to help me preach i say but when you know when you know that god's presence dwells in this place you anticipate coming back look at the text these wise men according to verse 2 these wise men traveled from the east and listen to their texts listen to their conversation saying where is he that is born king of the jews for we have seen [Music] his star in the east and are come to worship him watch this they were already on their way looking for the king of kings when they were small time partly interrupted by the lower king they were already on their way looking for the king of kings they they they anticipated his arrival and and and when you anticipate the arrival of the true king you are aware to the every awareness of god i said you are aware of the ever-rewiredness of god the text says they were already marching but watch what happens in verse three when king herod heard these things he was troubled you see they they they were already on their way to see jesus and herod thought he could interrupt and intercept their plans and so he comes up with a lie he conjures up a lie he says by the way since you're going that way um do me a favor if you will when you find him come back and tell me where he is because see i'm ready to worship him too let me say that again that feel good coming out he said when you find him do me a small favor now i'm speaking in my african-american church of christ-ism preaching voice this is in my mind do me a favor uh when you find him come back and let me know i mean i would like to worship him too but the bible says that when they found him [Laughter] as they were intercepted by the small lowercase king they were protected by the king of the world and he came to them and gave them a vision family when satan tries to turn you around if you are wise you will listen to the voice of god and you won't come back the same way satan says i want a worship too in other words satan wanted to hitch a ride to church and when we return don't you know that satan's going to want to hitch a ride i need somebody to help me preach satan says you know what they're opening up i hear they're opening up church i hear that y'all reassembling if you don't mind let me ride with you i mean because i'd like to worship him too but what we have to understand is when we see or smell satan we must put him down and go come back return to the house of prayer another way satan when i left i was dealing with envy satan when i left i was dealing with pride satan when i left i was dealing with doubt satan when i left i was dealing with fear satan when i left i was dealing with depression i was going through financial hardship but what god has shown me during this pandemic is god will not only keep me right on time but god can keep me when i don't have a dime i'm going to devote myself to god the text reveals that they were filled with anticipation why would they feel with anticipation i'm closing now they were filled with anticipation because maybe just maybe maybe they attended worship at some point or caught wind of the prophet's preaching like we they had a desire to please god maybe i don't know just maybe they heard maybe they ran across isaiah 7 14 therefore the lord himself shall give you a sign behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and watch it now his name shall be called emmanuel just maybe just maybe they understood it because in matthew 1 22-23 now after all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the lord by the prophet saying behold a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a son and they shall call watch it now his name emmanuel which is being interpreted god with us oh i'm closing now but i can't close without making this last observation maybe they anticipated the arrival of the king because they knew who was riding with them maybe they anticipated coming and worshiping the king because they knew that god was with them the last time i checked up on it the only way folk can make it doing a pandemic doing separation doing isolation and quarantine is that god has to be with them the only way that you can make it back to the house of prayer the only way you can make it back to the lord's dwelling place the only way that you can come to the altar is that god must have been with you over 500 000 deaths yet you and yet i am still here it's not because i've got a high immune system i've been walking around people with kovid not even knowing that they had it not even knowing that they were carriers it's not because of your so-called vaccine vaccine or vaccination schedule but god has been with us is there anybody here who knows who knows that it was god who's been with you god paid your bills god gave you your meals god kept you from every harm and danger god kept your life on the right side of the road god kept your family together god kept your marriage together god watched over your children god preserved your job and you're still here is there anybody here who's thankful that they can come back to god another way i'm not coming back in here with an arrogant spirit i'm not coming back in here with a hearty spirit i'm not coming back here with an unforgiving spirit i'm not coming back here with the spirit listen i left and i didn't want to sing but after 13 months of preservation i will open my mouth unto the lord let the redeemed of the lord say so stuff that used to bother me it's not bothering me anymore stuff that used to get on my nerves i ain't worried about you stuff that used to hey man get under my skin i ain't worried about my skin i'm worried about sin i'm concerned about sin and when the lord lets me back in when he let me back in family i don't mean no harm but watch this some of the stuff that used to bother me some of y'all are going to think and may say has our preacher been anesthetized i mean i ain't worried about no body i i'm honest i'm not worried about doesn't mean i don't appreciate you now don't mean i don't love you but i ain't worried about this petty stuff somebody bring some pettiness to me i'm i'm gonna laugh and say hey god good he's preserved me for 13 months man ain't gone good [Laughter] i'm not worried i'm amen some are gonna say has he been inoculated yeah yeah i'm inoculated to pessimism amen i've been vaccinated from negativity i've been vaccinated from doubt and fear i'm not worried about that because i've seen what the lord has done is there anybody are there any praises in the house today amen i left out thinking praise was a bad word but after 13 months i'm coming back with some praise i don't know about you i'm coming back with some praise because god has been so good to me man they've been so good to us and so why i didn't understand why i took all of that 13 months can radically reform your mind can it skipping out on worship coming to bible class when i'll get ready all that stuff is that's that's that's last that's so that's so last year-ish that's so 20 20 20. it's 20 21 brother every time the doors swing open i'm walking in he meant somebody yeah i don't take it for granted any longer i'll tell you i don't take bible study for granted any longer i don't take that brother who prays all day and night for granted any longer i don't take brother tucker's preaching all day and all night going past my time limit you know everybody has a time limit for the preacher come on now come on now get real get real my family has a time limit for me yeah prayer is the name of jesus i have a time limit for myself i'm past my own time limit let me extend the invitation if you're here if you're watching online you're watching online we're just excited to come back to the house of god amen yeah we excite and we want to see your face in the place what you need to do is register all right register online uh beginning april the 24th okay register online we want to make sure that we have a record of everyone who comes and our team our staff logistically our leadership working right now in the plans of making sure that everyone is safe we just want to reassemble as a corporate worship uh to see everyone because god has he's just been so good listen if you're here and you're not part of the body of christ hope that we've said something that has encouraged your soul we want you to see that jesus christ is the savior of the world you've heard the gospel romans 10 17 so then faith cometh by hearing hearing by the word of god will you believe that same gospel that we preach that jesus christ is the savior of the world that he intercedes for us he is our great mediator he mediates for us even right now will you believe that with all of your heart hebrews 11 and 6 but without faith it is impossible to please god for he that cometh to god must believe that he is and that he's a rewarder of them that diligently seek him would you believe the word of god would you believe the preaching of the gospel believe it so much that you're willing to confess jesus christ you're willing to repent of your sins you're willing to say yes to water baptism not because of what we say but because of what he has said and we know that the lord will add you to the church amen and you can leave here being a member of the blood-bought institution the church of christ you can leave here knowing that it will be well with your soul we're not perfect people oh but we serve a perfect god and if you need prayer just just share with us i need prayer and the righteous will pray for you remember only the lord knows them that are righteous so if we say that we're righteous that makes us self-righteous amen what i can tell you is that all of us are going to pray and i just believe that somebody here can get a prayer through amen yes sir and we'll pray that god will continue to be with us will you come will you dedicate your life to jesus as we sing without you lord without you lord i can't make it without you lord no no no without you lord well there was a time in my life i was living insane or without christ but it made me wonder what i did wrong to make my race so hard to run without you lord without you lord no no no without you lord let the church say amen sound like brother tucker is excited what a wonderful message i re reminded me of when we would go on vacation and on the rare occasion we would come back another way and sometimes the scenery would be nice and it would be a pleasant uh route to take but sometimes coming back another way we would run into maybe some road construction and it wouldn't always be pleasant but we knew that we were coming home and it made it all worth it so when we got home we would call somebody and let them know that we made it so come on back a different way and call somebody and let them know you made it amen um all righty we have some prayer requests and we like to start off with sister sanders then it says thanks everyone who prayed for her cousins she states that larry scott is not in hospice care anymore and she says that jimmy is still struggling with health complications and she says jordan is doing better and she asks continued prayers for the carter sanders minix jones mckinney and scott families also sister dana brooks she asked prayers for traveling grades for herself and her niece brother and sister rockmore asked please pray for traveling grace for the nicosia family and the niece and her and their niece and nephew of brother and sister rock more as they will travel to indonesia and then to malaysia i said please pray for sister shirley richardson's son marlon london and his health challenges continued prayers for sister karen cooper as she is resting at home continued prayers for brother lee reese brother vincent davis brother william mcdaniel and sister stella simpson also sister tammy scott asked prayers of a healing of pain in her body if there are no other requests would you buy with me please and we are still asking perhaps for brother al cole the brother of sister ruby cole she says he's still in the hospital but he shows signs of improving amen also we are asking perhaps for health and strength for our elder brother leonard davis and sister ziona davis also asking prayers for our leadership in general we just pray that you would just continue to pray for all of the leadership as there's health issues amongst some of us and also as we plan to reopen there's going to be some challenges involved in that but we just asked you to it uh pray for us would you please bomb to the great god of heaven to the father our lord and savior jesus christ father we come thanking you father for allowing us to rise this morning with you in our hearts and on our minds that we were able to find our way to a media that we were able to worship you in spirit and in truth we just pray father that you would continue to be with those who have asked prayer for themselves or for their loved ones we just pray that you would continue to be with the sanders family and their uh family members who are are ill or recovering with your straight father that you would bless them give them the things that they stand in need of we just pray that you would be with uh uh the um uh sister brooks and her niece as they will travel we pray father that you will give them safe journey to and from their destinations we pray father that you would be with the nicosia family and the niece and nephew of brother and sister rockmore they traveled abroad we just pray father that you would be with them uh and protect them father that they too would have safe journeys to and from we pray father that you would be with um the son of sister richardson uh marlon london blessing him and his health situations we're just afraid that you would continue to be with sister karen cooper as she recovers uh from her illness we pray father that you would continue to be with brother lee reese brother vincent davis brother william mcdaniel sisters devil simpson and many others father who we know that are struggling with illnesses father those who are come to listen we pray father that you would be with brother and sister davis as they are having some health issues as well as others of us father who may have issues father that we may have made known or not we just pray father that you would continue to be with sister tammy scott and she asked for healing within her body we just pray father that you would be with each and every one of us realizing father that we all stand in need of something we pray father that you would bless us in the way that you know we stand in need of we just pray father that you would be with us father as we plan to uh reassemble here in the building we just pray father that things will go well as we uh meet and plan uh plan out to do so we just pray father that you would bless us protect us and keep us safe father these blessings we pray in your daughter and son jesus name amen this part of our worship services allow us to express our love for god by giving to him as he commands us a portion of our monetary blessings and also allow us the opportunity to demonstrate our attitude in giving and the bible tells us in second corinthians chapter nine and the verses are six and seven and the bible reads but this i say he was so experimented shall reap also sparingly and he which sold bountifully shall reap also bountifully every man according as he purposes in his heart so let him give not grudgingly or of necessity for god loveth a cheer forgiver at this time let us give thanks for the offering eternal father the creed and make of heaven and earth we humbly approach your awesome throne of grace thanking you for all the wonderful blessings of life that we have been able to enjoy from the early existence of our lives until this present moment and we're just so thankful for the greatest gift your son jesus who died and shed his blood for the remission of sin and all that we may live and have eternal life father we come to you thank you for this opportunity to express our love and our appreciation for the blessings that we have received this past week and father we ask that you look down on this offering we trust and pray that everyone that gave that it was given with the right spirit and that you receive all the praise the glory and the honor we pray for our leadership we ask that you would guide them with wisdom and knowledge that it be used for the spreading of your word throughout this community and also for the upbuilding of the kingdom kingdom here at south union we just asked and prayed that you continue to make provision for us in our lives and that we always appreciate the blessing that comes our way and that only comes from you now the law we ask that you continue to build us and guide us and bless this offering that you receive all the praise the glory and the honor it's in your son jesus christ's name we pray and give thanks amen during this moment of worship we assembled together as saints of god to participate in the suffering of our lord and savior jesus christ which is the lord's supper and as we share in this sacrifice it reminds us of the cross for it was on the cross where jesus christ hung bled died and shed his precious blood for the remission of sin and according to first corinthians chapter 15 and verse 4 and that he was buried and rose again the third day according to the scriptures we do this as we anticipate his return and the bible tells us in acts chapter 20 and the verse is seven and the bible read and upon the first day of the week when the disciples came together to break bread paul preaching to them ready to depart on tomorrow and continue his speech until midnight and we find recorded in first corinthians chapter 11 and the verses are 23-29 and the bible reads for i have received of the lord that which also i delivered unto you that the lord jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread and when he had given thanks he break it and said take e this is my body which is broken for you this do in remembrance of me after the same manner also he took the cup when he had sup saying this cup is the new testament in my blood this do ye as off as you drink it in remembrance of me for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup ye do show the laws dead till he come wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the lord unworthy shall be guilty of the body and blood of the lord but let a man examine himself and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup for he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drank a damnation to himself not discerning the lord's body let us give thanks for the lord's supper eternal father we approach your throne of grace once again thanking you for this opportunity to share in this memorial feast and father as we commune with you and your son jesus christ we pray the lord that you would direct our minds back to the cross of calvary where your son jesus christ shed his precious blood for the remission of sin we are mindful of the bread we pray that you will bless the bread which is the communion of the body of our lord and savior jesus christ we are mindful of the cup we pray that you would bless the cup which is the communion of the blood that was shed for the remission of sin and as we partake of it we pray that we take in a manner that is pleasing to you and that you receive all the praise the glory and honor it's in your son jesus christ's name we pray and give thanks amen he [Music] he broke the bonds of sin and sent the captive he bore it [Music] thank you oh heavenly father for this day we ask you a special prayer father upon the elders here at south union give them the thing to stand in need of father give them good health that one day we all we all will come together on may the 9th to become as brothers and sisters and worship you father in spirit and in truth but father blessed south union father bless the body here father give us our long life father we have gone through this endemic disease that are hurting and killing so many fathers but you have spared us the body of christ to be able to see each day as we live father go with his father but not from your presence we ask all these blessings the wonderful counselor the prince of peace let us all say amen you

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Length: 116min 27sec (6987 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 18 2021