Summer Season of Rest - July 11 - Robert Madu

[Music] [Music] hey city lock we're right in the middle of our summer season of rest and there is a word for you tonight I know we're not at church we're not in the building but we are connected by the Spirit of God the presence of God in the purpose of God our good friend pastor Robert Madhu he's gonna deliver a word and it's going to be life-changing so sit back enjoy the word I'm gonna come back in a few minutes and pray with you and just allow this word to bring expectation and strength in your life be blessed come on can we give Jesus a big standing ovation I pray this morning oh come on city life you could do better than that come on can we lift up the name that is above every name come on just take a moment and let them know how much you love home god we bless you today we magnify you have your way in this place amen but would you do me a favor before you take your seat before you take your seat would you look at your neighbor get in their face get in their personal space and just say neighbor I got a feeling this is gonna be a good service come on just in case that neighbor was stuck up didn't want to talk to you find you another neighbor come on find you another neighbor come on say other day but you're my second option but I want you to know I've got a feeling this is gonna be a good service come on if you believe it give God one more handclaps of praise and then you may be seated in the presence of the Lord is anybody excited to be in the house of God today I'm telling you I woke up ready to come into the house of the Lord it's always good to have your face in the place when you're in the house of God but it is certainly an honor and a privilege to be back and city life come on somebody I've adopted myself into the city life family so I just hope you know you got a chocolate cousin from Dallas Texas hey Robert madhu and it is certainly an honor to be back to say the least especially to see where God has taken this church it's amazing still pastor Tony I think last time I was here y'all still had two services and now you're at three services come on somebody going from glory to glory from strength to strength and man it is amazing to see what God is doing here I pray you never take it for granted I'm pretty never take your pastors for granted who I think are two of the greatest people on planet Earth not just leaders but people come on would you help me thank God for pastor Tony and Casey from who they are come on y'all could do better than that I'm talking about your pastors come on I'm talking about your passes come on we just take a moment and let them know how much you love them how much you appreciate them come on just make them get in Barriss than getting red in the face amen amen everything rises and falls on the backs of leadership and you're blessed with great leaders and they're great people and I've even had the privilege to see just how they even Minister outside of this place because God is not just giving them to you but literally to the body of Christ at large and I pray that they're always celebrated right here in this church I'm honored to be back I don't want to assume that everybody's heard me preach but like I said I'm from the great country of Texas and haven't imbalance my entire life Dallas the home of God's team America's Team come on somebody the Dallas Cowboys another reason why I love your pasture come on somebody married to the finest woman on the planet we'll actually celebrate five years of marriage next week and we're excited about that and I do not go anywhere without her blessing and especially in this season of our life we have a two-year-old daughter and a one-year-old son and I won't be that parent you know some parents always put up pictures of their kids you ain't gotta worry about me doing that it's about me preaching Jesus not you seeing my children so you gonna worry about that we good we good we good we good actually that's not true I don't put my kids on every screen up in here hey come on city life I made that that is that's my baby girl on the left her name is Everly Adair Madhu we call her evey she is the reason that I pray more and I have a shotgun that's my son on the right my manchild my namesake my legacy Robert Madhu the third and put up their pictures everywhere because I think fatherhood is the best hood there's nothing like being a dad in fact I really believe it because we're having baby number three this October how about surviving three kids under three pray for your boy pray for your boys a friend of mine said Robert do you know what causes that don't you I said I do and I'll tell my wife every night we just have one night where we just talk and connect emotionally but she don't listen so that's why we have her but now let me get to the Bible Matthew chapter 13 Matthew chapter 3 I want to look at verses 13 through 17 today and also Matthew chapter 4 verses 1 through 11 and I've really been given a mandate and a directive from the Holy Spirit to preach what I'm gonna share to the body of Christ and I really feel like this isn't just some random sermon but this is really a word for somebody in this season and it's going to give clarity and perspective why you're facing what you're facing right now Matthew chapter 3 starting at verse 13 and we'll go down to verse 17 and then we'll go to Matthew chapter 4 verses 1 through 11 won't you have it won't you say yeah if you still need some time to find and say hold up oh that was a desperate hold up I'll give you some time Matthew chapter 3 verse 13 it says then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him and John tried to prevent him saying I need to be baptized by you and you're coming to me but jesus answered and said to him permit it to be so now for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness then he allowed him when he had been baptized Jesus came up immediately from the water and behold the heavens were open to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon him and suddenly a voice came from heaven saying there's is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased it's exactly how God sounded that day by the way just in case you were wondering Matthew chapter 4 Matthew chapter 4 verse 1 it says then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil and when he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights just let that number hit you in the face for a minute there forty days and forty nights come on city life that is a long fast so really long fast earlier this year I did a 21-day Daniel fasts and four days into the fast I was convinced that Daniel eight chick-fil-a and I don't want anybody judging me I struggle to fast for minutes but Jesus fasted 40 days and 40 nights and I love when the Bible is just blatantly obvious it says afterward he was hungry I bet he was was 40 nights with no food verse 3 says now when the tempter came to him he said if you are the son of God command that these Stones become bread but he answered and said it is written man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God then the devil took him up into the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him if you are the son of God throw yourself down for it is written he shall give his angels charge over you and in their hands they shall bear you up lest you dash your foot against the stone pause timeout did you really just read Satan is quoting scripture to Jesus this is for free this isn't even a part of the message today but I just want you to understand that how you approach and how you apply the Word of God to your life is critical because if you have the wrong approach or the wrong application of the Word of God you can actually manipulate scripture to say whatever you want it to say and you get on the slippery slope of adjusting the Word of God to fit your life instead of adjusting your life around the Word of God come on somebody I'm already preaching in here today Jesus interpret Scripture which scripture and it says it is written again you shall not tempt the Lord your God first say it again the devil took him up on an exceedingly high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and he said to him all these things I will give you if you will fall down and worship Me then jesus said to him away with you Satan for it is written you shall worship the Lord your God him only you shall serve then the devil left him and behold angels came and ministered to him can you say Amen and man this is this service I'm gonna preach not long probably about six and a half hours just using this as a subject the water and the wilderness the water and the wilderness would you look at your neighbor one last time and say neighbor it's about the water and the wilderness come on let's pray father thank you for your word I know the grass withers the flower fades but your word shall stand forever speak to us today God we'd not gathered here today at a religious routine or to be entertained we have come to be drastically changed speak to us so clearly and when we leave let us say it was so good to have been in the presence of Jesus and someone who loves Jesus a man say a man again the water and the wilderness city life this year I will celebrate and commemorate 13 years of full-time ministry 13 years of full-time itinerant ministry a man for the last 13 years I've had the incredible privilege and opportunity to travel around the world and preach the gospel the good news about Jesus for 13 years it's hard for my young mind to even believe that it's been 13 years because I first started coming to the church I'm a part of in Dallas Texas when I was just three years old I preached my first sermon when I was 16 single scrawny still living at home with my parents now I'm happily married and 33 three kids one dog and no cattle one mortgage six chest tears I'm a grown man now people look back in my 13 years of traveling there is a question that I've often been asked and it is a question based on an assumption it'll generally happen after service especially my father is traveling with me somebody will come up to me and say hey Robert how long has your father been pastoring a Robert how long has your dad been preaching some people shock I let them know that my father is not a preacher my father is a firefighter for the last 32 years my dad Robert Madhu senior has been fighting fires for the city of Dallas for the last 32 years come on shout out to all our first responders in 32 years now my father and I we have the same name distinctly different callings the same name totally different vocations I think that's imperative for you to note this morning because in the unlikely event that your house should catch on fire and you were to be trapped inside of that house that caught on fire and for whatever reason you could only call one Robert Madhu to get you out make sure you call the right Robert okay make sure you call the right Robert don't get me wrong both of us will do our best to make sure you get saved Church joke somebody I'll get that tomorrow neither one of us would want you to experience the flames however how we accomplish that objective will be totally different okay my father Robert Madhu senior who's a fireman he's going to jump on a fire truck go inside the house and rescue you from the flames my approach gonna be a little bit different okay I'm just gonna grab a microphone and I'm gonna stand outside a considerable distance away from you that's trapped in the fire and I'm just gonna encourage you I'm gonna encourage you and I'm gonna say something like consider pure joy my brother whenever you face various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces perseverance and perseverance [Music] I know you're in the fire right now that's what your coming out ask your cold on the Kitsch to shall be able to prosper keychain trapped in a fire [Music] in a fire - I said but he get you out - all I'm saying is I'm a preacher not a firefighter anyway that was fun and um some of my some of my greatest mirrors as a kid was when I would visit my dad at the fire station okay you understand when you're a little boy and your dad is a fireman and get to visit him at the fire station ladies and gentlemen the fire station - a little boy is like bisley without the ticket prices okay it is a Legoland without the lines I vividly remember running around the fire station I'm trying on the uniform I am pretend driving the fire truck I remember kids at school would be like hey Robert I got a new fire truck for Christmas I'm like that's cute I Drive one hashtag dream bigger I mean it was awesome home hits but I will never forget but every city life I will never forget the day I'm a kid I'm visiting my dad at the fire station I pretend driving the fire truck and all of a sudden without warning I hear on the intercom engine 26 five-alarm house fire in 226 five-alarm house fire and all of a sudden my father went from laughing and smiling and be pretend driving the fire truck - all of a sudden in his Nigerian poise saying son get up now he picks me up throws me out of the seat - my mom immediately firemen started coming out of the crevices and the corridors of the fire station like ants escaping an ant bed that had just been stepped on I saw two firemen who were playing ping pong they threw the paddles in the air and started putting on their gear one fireman was eating a turkey sandwich he stopped mid bite of the turkey sandwich and jumped on the fire truck and in no less than three minutes the same fire truck I was pretend riving was now peeling out of the parking lot and the same siren I was pushing for my entertainment was now being pushed for an emergency because time was of the essence and destiny was on the line and I will never forget the look my father's face in the immediacy of the moment as he had to quickly transition from a moment of fellowship with his son to now racing to put out a fire then he didn't start I share my childhood memory with you today in a feeble attempt to accurately articulate the tone and the tension of what is happening in Matthew chapter 3 with Jesus baptism and in Matthew chapter 4 with Jesus temptation and I need you to feel the whiplash of our Savior this morning because in chapter 3 with his baptism he's in perfect fellowship with the father but in chapter 4 with his temptation he is racing to put out a fire that he did not start but was started in the book of Genesis when Adam and Eve were disobedient and ate of the forbidden fruit and got Humanity in the mess that it is in today and the tension is in his transition from Matthew chapter 3 to Matthew chapter 4 can you put on your scuba gear because I'm gonna go deep today if you can roll with your boy okay one things I want you understand at the onset is that the chapter vs. the chapter verses in the number of verses that are printed in your Bible although sometimes they can be helpful sometimes they can actually be a hindrance and stop you from getting the context of the text that you're reading so if you're not careful you'll do what I've done for years which is to read about Jesus baptism Matthew chapter 3 pause for a commercial break and then read about his temptation in Matthew chapter 4 and you'll be tempted to look at these two events as isolated events that should be viewed independently but I submit to you today these two events were never supposed to be viewed independently but rather interdependently because God has actually given us biblical Blue's Clues as to what you're gonna face as a believer that God is just letting you know that if you're gonna live a life of faith there was a trajectory that your life will go through all I came to tell you today is that there was a connection between the water and the wilderness the water and the wilderness the water and the wilderness okay maybe I read the wrong version Scripture today and I shouldn't read Matthews account maybe I should've read my boy Marky Mark's account cuz look at how mark puts it in mark chapter 1 verses 9 through 13 mark puts it like this he says it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan and immediately coming up from the water he saw the heavens parting and the Spirit upon him like a dove then a voice came from heaven you're my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased verse 12 says immediately immediately no chapter break no pause immediately the spirit drove them into the wilderness and he was there in the wilderness forty days tempted by Satan and was with the wild beast immediately Jesus went from the water to the wilderness it is that immediately that irritated me this entire week because I'm trying to figure out how in the world one moment he's being baptized the next moment he's in a battle one moment he is in cohesive community the next moment he is in complete isolation one moment he is in total comfort the next moment he is in total conflict one moment he's getting a word from heaven the next moment he's getting a word from Hell one moment he's in the water experience God's presence the next moment he's in the wilderness facing real warfare come on don't act like you ain't never been there before how in the world is it on Sunday you experience God's power and presence but on Monday it's like the enemy puts a laser beams from Hell on your forehead one moment you stepping out in great faith the next moment fear has gripped your heart one moment you want to pray for your enemies and become to your haters the next moment you want to speak to them in a tongue that needs no interpretation come on somebody does anybody know what it's like to make the transition from the water to the wilderness the tension is in the transition why is it city life that on the pathway to your purpose then in route to your destiny that the GPS system God's positioning system will always tell you start on water Road then make a sharp right turn into the wilderness you always go from the water to the wilderness before I talk about what happened in the wilderness I first want to talk about what happened in the water and I need you to understand today that Jesus baptism was a big deal how many know it was a big deal in fact I'll tell you another big deal that fifty-one people got baptized in this church on Wednesday how many know that is a big he'll if you hadn't gotten baptized yet get baptized what's wrong with you if you put your faith in Jesus you gotta get baptized Jesus got baptized you know you're cray-cray self has got to get baptized this is a significant moment I found it intriguing of the four Gospel writers Matthew Mark Luke and John who put pen to paper to discuss the life of Jesus only two of them discussed Jesus birth Matthew and Luke mark and John don't even deem it necessary to discuss the birth of Jesus come on you know you gangster when you skip Christmas okay they don't even talk about his birth but all four of them talk about what happened in the water and what happened in the wilderness all four of them said you cannot miss these profound moments I know Jesus baptism was a big deal because the Bible says when Jesus got baptized that immediately the heavens opened up the heavens opened up come on you know when the heavens open up that the atmosphere has just shifted you know when the heavens opened up you're gonna get a word and a declaration from heaven you know when the heavens open up your life is gonna change forever come on I got the strange suspicion that's why you came to church today not so we could have a cute church service you hear an inspiring message and sing songs off a screen like it's Christian karaoke and go home and do nothing but is there anybody in here that came to feel the heavens open up so you can experience God's power come on can we just take a phrase break and give God some praise happens oh come on y'all ain't never been through nothing well if you've been through some hell sometimes you know you'll be quiet you think God I mean the heavens open up oh yeah that's why I came I didn't come to see your outfit I need the heavens to open up in my life when the heavens open up something is going to happen I know Jesus baptism was a big deal simply because of who showed up at the baptism because for the first and only time in the New Testament the entire Godhead the whole Trinity made a cameo appearance at the exact same time Father Son and Holy Spirit cuz you got got the father making a declaration from heaven you got got the son being baptized in the water and you got the Holy Spirit descending like a dove come on when the whole Trinity shows up this is a big moment I know Jesus baptism was a big deal simply because of what the father was declaring over the son see the father was not giving a random word the father was declaring a truth that has to be the anchor in your soul whenever life comes against you the father was declaring something that you have to know that you know that you know no matter what you're facing today and that truth is this I am loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me I am loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me I am loved I am a child of God and I'm gonna say it do you get it and he is pleased with me I am loved I am a child of God and he is pleased with me how many you know that truth right there will change your life forever okay like 13 of you know what the rest are you gonna find out in a minute I'm telling you once that gets anchored in your soul it will revolutionize your life that will change the way you walk into a room the day you know you are loved you're a child of God and he is pleased with you in fact I want to give you a dare free country but I'm gonna give you a dare city life every morning you wake up every morning you wake up before you brush your teeth just go to the mirror and say to yourself with just thank you breath I loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me that would be a great way to start your day if you're thinking about getting to face that - I wouldn't but if you want to anyway I have a suggestion of what you should put on your forehead you should put I am loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me next time you go to Starbucks and the barista says what name should I put on this drink you are I got three I am loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me next time you're on Instagram or Facebook or Twitter or snapchat and you ain't getting the likes or the comments you thought you were gonna get on that particular post I dare you to cut off your smart device that's making you stupid and just declare to yourself a little for other people's likes because I'm already loved I'm a child of God [Applause] that truth will change your life forever what if what if what if what if you filtered every circumstance every negative comment from other people through that transcendent truth that you're loved you're a child of God and he is pleased with you you would lose your joy so easily if you were confident in that come on so you would walk into church looking constipated like you've been sucking on limits if you knew you were loved you're a child of God and he is pleased with you that truth is a game-changer but hear me city life that's where most believers stop though most believers stop at the water don't get me wrong the waters a significant place because the water is a place where your identity is confirmed yeah the water is the place where you find out who you are and who you are note when the father made this declaration over the son this is before Jesus has done a single miracle he has not walked on water yet hadn't healed anybody yet hadn't cast it out one demon yet hasn't taken the two fish and five loaves multiplying it maybe the first Red Lobster yet had done that had been to the cross hadn't even gotten up from the grave and yet the father still says you're loved you're my child and I'm pleased with you how he ain't done anything I know but this has nothing to do a performance everything to do a proximity and relationship to me you are still loved you are still my child and I'm pleased before you ever perform now the walls are significant and we love the water cuz you leave a service like this you me feeling real good like wow did you hear the preacher today I'm loved I'm a child of God and he is pleased with me and you feel real good in the water but I felt the need to warn you that right after the water you will walk straight into the wilderness right after you hear the voice from heaven hear me you will hear the voice from Hell and this leads us dazed and confused as believers because we've almost been programmed and conditioned to think that once I have the approval of heaven I won't have an attack from the enemy oh yes this ideology is even sometimes promulgated from the pulpit to the point that we have relegated God's approval to a bigger house a better car a promotion oh I got a check in the mail God must be pleased with me and we haven't relegated it to blessing and don't get me wrong I'm off a blessing I'm a blessings on blessings on blessings on blessings I believe God wants to get a blessing to you so he can get a blessing through you I am all for blessing but the life of Jesus is proof positive that the approval of heaven does not absolve you from an attack from the enemy it's a matter of fact I'll go further to say that the reason why some of you are facing what you're facing right now hear me is simply because God is pleased with you yeah you didn't do something wrong you did something right that's why he'll is coming against you conversely the reason why some of you life is perfect and you just tiptoe through the tulips and kool-aid coming out of your water fountain might be because your life is stagnant and you haven't upset the kingdom of darkness but when you start saying I will take a stand and be a light in the midst of darkness will you say I'm gonna be pure and the culture that's perverse will you say I'm gonna be a part of the body of Christ that says you don't matter what color of skin you got the blood of Jesus unites us all when you start saying as for me in my house we will serve the Lord and kicking demons out of your house he'll get too nervous and Satan starts to sweat it is the smile of heaven that attracts the scowl from hell that'll tweet I said it is just smile of heaven that attracts the scowl from Hell and all I'm telling you today has received a smile but don't get shocked when you get the scowl from Hell I was studying this text and I'll tell if I was Tony I don't like this message when I started studying it not like this at all I don't want to go from the water to the wilderness I'll tow God if I can pick it I would like to have my water experience in the wilderness yes this how we talk I told him I said give me my water in the wilderness maybe I got too much imagination but I feel like this text would have read a whole lot better if it started off in the wilderness can you see it if you start off in the wilderness and as soon as Satan rose up on Jesus it says you are the son of God then let a loud voice come from heaven and let God the Father interrupts Satan in the middle of him talking and say what you mean if he it's just honey God he is the son of God cuz I already said he was the son of God Satan i'ma tell you right now you better put some respect on Jesus names you better put some respect on his if you don't put some respect on his name all three of us Father Son and spirit bout to mess you up as a matter of fact let there be water and then water shows up in the wilderness and the whole Godhead takes Satan by the throat and just start drowning him in the water so my I wish you would say if one lifeless body is floating in the water that's what you call John the Baptist say we're ready for the baptism now just think every better like that but it will not happen hear me it will not happen you will not get the luxury of your water experience in the wilderness because God has this uncanny ability this profound proclivity to take you from the water to the wilderness from the water to the wilderness from the water to the wilderness from the water to the wilderness from the water to the wilderness I'm gonna say it till annoys you from the water to the wilderness and the water now I want you to hear my voice in your head tomorrow's you point your coffee going from the water to the wilderness but the water it is God's system he takes you from the water to the wilderness home you do know in our text today that John baptize people in the hello and uh but when they asked John who he was he said I'm a voice crying out in the crying out prepare the way of the Lord what is the way of the Lord he'll take you from the water to the wilderness from the water to the wilderness from the water to the now I see why the children of Israel had to go through the red sea because the Red Sea is comprised of water and the water is the place where your identity is confirmed and Pharaoh thought they were just slaves but they were not just slaves they were loved they were children of God and he was pleased with him and when you are God's child there is no stronghold there was no bondage there is no addiction that can ever hold you down come on somebody because whoever the son sets free is free indeed that means Moses had to lift up his stand Charlton Heston if you old school and split the water and they didn't go straight to the promised land they went from the water to the they were in the wilderness 40 years Jesus was in the wilderness 40 days God always has this system taking you from the water to the wilderness I don't want to sound like a broken record today and I hope I'm not bringing my own presupposition to this biblical passage in pericope but I told you earlier I got three kids two year old one year old one in the oven and because my kids are young birth is not too distant of a memory to me so I don't even like to pose posit and postulate today that even the way we entered the earth is just a microcosm it's just a mirror of this transcendent truth that God always takes you from the water to the wilderness I wish I could preach it like I feel it come on you do remember how you were conceived right you do remember how you were conceived right you were conceived in your mother's womb identity confirmed in the world.we having a boy huh we're having a girl and then it funny in your mother's womb you were surrounded by so much so that when your head got too big and your birth was imminent your mama looked up over the dining room table and said oh ma just broke and rushed to the hospital and do you remember your first birthday do you remember how you entered the earth how did you come into the earth did you come to the earth laughing no did you come to your singing no did you come to your dancing no did you come to your rapping started start from the belly now I'm here no no no that's not how you came to the earth no baby came into the earth like that every single baby around the world comes into the earth just like this and the silly pears look at a baby that's screaming at the top of his lungs and we smile and they look at us come out and I am convinced in me city life I am convinced that if you could translate and transcribe the cry of every newborn baby the caption across the screen would read what you mean welcome to the world don't you mean welcome to the spin your entire life grappling with the weight the complexity and the frustrations of the wilderness that you were born in to learn in my life to be quick to love not quick to judge because you don't know the wilderness that some people were born into the wilderness is a real place it is the heat of the wilderness that seeks to evaporate your experience from the water and it can leave you with daunting questions like Who am I and how I'm gonna deal with what's been placed in front of me the question you got to ask yourself before you leave here today is how are you gonna handle the temptations that will face you when you're in your wilderness how you gonna handle it some of your shot that I even ask the question you're like Oh Robert how bad if you ask it's such a question I'm a child of the Most High God that I floated in the room today I had communion for breakfast why I speak in tongues more than I speak in English what does this wilderness that you speak of why I'm in church today I know but this is the water tomorrow you got to go to work that is the wilderness tension is in the transition I'm almost done but I want you to see that the same spirit the same spirit please don't miss this that descended upon Jesus in the water is the same spirit that led him into the wilderness the spirit led Jesus into the wilderness so that means the wilderness is not the problem that the Spirit led me there the problem is who is in the wilderness post it up waiting for you to get there Satan was already in the wilderness posted up waiting for Jesus to get there and he did not open his mouth nor clear his throat until after he watched him fast 40 days and 40 nights but he was already there watching him the whole time this is what the enemy does he waits he watches and he attacks this is what the enemy does his tactic he waits he watches he's the original creeper and then he attacks is what he's always done he did it as a serpent as a snake and the Garden of Eden what did he do he slid it up in there in the Garden of Eden the original whole food market and he said up in here and he weighed it he wants and he attacked as a snake who'd is gonna miss some of you up I'm gonna forget I wash in Discovery Channel and they did a special on snakes and almost changed the channel because I don't do snakes but I'm glad I kept watching cuz they said something that blew my mind they said the snakes are one of the only species that never blink this is a snake they don't Blake they just watch and they wait for an opportunity to attack I watched another special they did on snakes and this was about a lady that had a pet snake she had a pet a pet a pet hey the animal that Satan chose the manifest himself this was her pet that's a different kind of cray cray and she ran into a problem because her pet snake refused to eat the snake stopped eating for several weeks several months actually would not eat out of cause and concern she takes her snake to the veterinarian she's I have a problem she said my snake refuses to eat the veterinarian looked at the snake look at the woman looked at the snake looked at the woman then began asking her a litany of questions she said ma'am by any chance have you been sleeping with your snake the lady said yes I have I got to be honest he's a Python he's not poisonous but there are some nights I let him slither in the bed with me I love you all shot like there aren't other humans who have slept with snakes that's a different sermon for a different day I digress but she said well man while sleeping with your snake hey ever woken up to your snake right next to you and stretched out beside you Blake said yes as a matter of fact the other morning I woke up and my snake was right next to me and it was stretched out beside me veterinarian said hmm said ma'am I have some good news and I have some bad news so the good news is your snake is not sick she goes well thank you Jesus said the bad news is the reason your snake refuses to eat is because your snake is preparing to eat you she said the reason your snake has not eaten for several months is because your snake is strategically orchestrating its digestive system to have enough room for you she said the reason you wake up to your snake right next to you and stretched out beside you is because your snake is sizing you up and it's trying to see how big it has to get to swallow you home ladies and I think that's how some believers act as it relates to the attack of the enemy you think the enemy likes you're in the house of God today lifting up holy hands in spite of the hell you've been through you think the enemy like that you're hearing the Word of God know he is watching and he's waiting and he's trying to attack but how many are thankful that he's already been defeated because of what Jesus did on the cross so he can keep watching oh but I'm gonna be who God has called me to be I'm gonna do what God has called me to do come on somebody give up some [Applause] people watch it keep on watching I'm gonna trust them even in the wilderness you can deal with the transition from the water to the wilderness how many know if you're gonna win the war on the women is you can't just shout you need a strategy you strategy so I'm gonna do what no preacher does before I ever preacher we're closed right now and have you shouting but I'm gonna give you four points in four minutes and bless the note takers for things you got to remember in the midst of your wilderness number one you're gonna win the war in your wilderness you got to know where you are got to know where you are notice when the enemy launches his attack on Jesus this is at the beginning of his ministry you just made the announcement this is the son of God it's his inauguration and right at the inauguration comes temptation right at the beginning comes a battle you know the enemy loves to battle you at the beginning of the thing anytime you get ready to start something set your timer the enemy will attack come on somebody knows what I'm talking about getting ready to start a ministry expect an attack getting ready to start a business expect an attack he loves to battle at the beginning some of you were wondering why seems like from the day you were born all hell was coming against your life it was cuz the enemy knew the destiny that was on your life he tried to stop you at the beginning not just at the beginning he's always attacking but there are seasons where the attack is more intense he did it with Jesus at the end at the very end he's on the cross and the enemy attacks through a subtle voice in the crowd who shouted out he saved others how come he can't save himself trying to get Jesus to come off with a cross and abort his assignment because he was right on the edge of our Redemption how many know sometimes it's right when you're at the finish line that the enemy attacks you the most that's why you can't quit that's why you can't give up one more step that you gonna be right there where are you if you don't know where you are you'll never know your pathway to freedom number two you're gonna win the war in your wilderness you have to know that the word is your weapon the word is your weapon with every attack what was Jesus response it is written it is written it is written he spoke the Word of God found it intriguing in the water the word came over Jesus in the wilderness the word came out of Jesus church people today we get it twisted when we're in the wilderness you know we want we want a word over us I've seen you you come to church with your arms folded like the preacher better have something to say today cuz I am in the wilderness but in the wilderness can I tell you you need more than a good sermon you need more than a word over you you better have some word coming out of you to fight back the enemy come on and it can't come out if you've never put it in eat the Word of God I'll tell you what God made his real to me when I went to Israel I'll never forget when I went to Israel I had an incredible conversation with a camel in Israel I think they have a picture of it I talked to this camel and so yeah there it is I talked to that camel and I asked him I said keep it 100 I said you live in the wilderness how do you survive camel said something to blew my mind he said Robert the way I survived he said whenever I sit down to eat or feed I'm able to take in large amounts of water and vegetation at one City he said I'm actually able to take it more than I need someone saw that I store it in my body he said that's the humps you were just riding on so he says I'm going through the wilderness it doesn't matter how the wilderness is around me cuz I always got something in me I can pull back from that's gonna sustain me in the midst of the wilderness word your weapon number three you're gonna win the war in your wilderness you got to know what is that stake y'all can play softly or make this sound a whole lot spiritual and let them know that I'm about to land the play you got to know what is that stake what does that stay can I tell you say like wow because Jesus made decisions with my destiny in mind he made decisions through the lens of his love for Humanity he knew what was at stake he was not just thinking about Sola to cross when he got up from the grave he was thinking about us in the water and in the wilderness here's how know he was thinking about us in the water the fact that he got baptized in the first place why is Jesus getting baptized you know what baptism is right baptism is an external expression of an inner commitment this is when I go on this water the old me is dying but the new me is coming up out of the water why is Jesus getting baptized there's no old hymn to go on the water this is the perfect son of God it's my John the Baptist art of stuttering at the baptism he's like did you want me to baptize you to baptize me come on this baptism makes no sense this is LeBron James asking you for dunking tips yeah this is a Dale asking you for voice lessons I mean this is our president asking you for spray-tanning tips like this makes no sense getting baptized then I remembered I remembered Jesus did not come to earth to just die the death that we were supposed to die he came to earth to live the life that we were supposed to live he was our perfect example he says John you gotta baptize me because this isn't just about me this is about those who are coming after me so they can have hope to know that you don't have to be defined by your current circumstance there can be a new you when you're your wilderness don't you forget what's at stake that the decisions you make today will determine the stories you tell tomorrow and before it's the last one you're gonna win the war in the wilderness you got to know where your help comes from come on somebody's there anybody here that knows where your help comes from your help comes from the Lord I love it the enemy tried everything he do how to try he even tried to take his worship that was the last attack and that's what the enemy really wants is your worship come on some of you experienced it today you didn't want to lift up your hands cuz the enemy was reminding you of what you're going through but can I tell you if you can lift up your hands in the wilderness and say God I trust you in spite of what I'm going through come on don't let the enemy take your worship when you're in the wilderness don't let it make sit there with your arms folded and your lips in because your breakthrough is when you open up your mouth and say god I don't like what's going on around me but I know you love me I've no greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world come on somebody if you know where your help comes from would you get up on your feet and give our God some praise in this place today my help comes from comes from the Lord would you bow your heads let me pray for you father day I thank you for your word god I pray in the midst of the laughter in the midst of everything today that your Holy Spirit speaking to your people god I thank you that no matter what season we're in especially in the wilderness we can handle the live from Hell if we'll just hold on to the truth from heaven the truth from heaven is we are loved were your children and you're pleased with us god I pray for my brother I pray for my sisters in the wilderness right now yeah and his voice seems so loud in their ear god I pray they would hold on to your truth they're not what they're facing they're not the temptations coming against them they're your child heads bowed eyes closed all over this place just real quick feeling here today and you've never made that decision to say Jesus my life is yours it's one thing to be in the wilderness and to be a child of God and have the enemy come aloud in your ear it's another thing to have never made their first decision say god I'm tired of doing life on my own I surrender my life to you if s you it's about out of clothes very quickly if their shoes say you know what I know I need to surrender my life to Jesus I just want to include you in this closing prayer she won't just lift up your hand forever you are saying I need to give him my life forever you are yeah I see those hands maybe need to rededicate recommit in your life to him just right where you are lift it up yeah hands going up all over this place today yeah that's why you had to be here today right where you are can we pray this prayer is one big family just before pastor Tony comes have you lifted up your hand I want you to pray this prayer but we're all gonna say it as one big family say dear Jesus thank you so much for dying on a cross getting up from the grave for me Lord I know you took my place so my response is to surrender all of me for all of you come into my life make me brand new from this moment forward my life is yours in Jesus name Amen amen come on give God some praise today I know you enjoyed the word tonight let me pray with you father I thank you for your word I thank you for your people father we don't have to be at a building father to hear the Word of God we can hear it through a speaker through a phone through computer and it can just rejuvenate and speak to our spirit I pray father that tonight the word comes alive it challenges and it changes it causes crooked places to become straight father I know father you're doing an amazing work in every believers life and there's great purpose in their future so I cover them tonight I bless them in the mighty name of Jesus amen and amen I love you we'll see you Sunday it's gonna be a great day of worship bring someone with you god bless

Channel: citylife church

Views: 4,634

Rating: 4.9534883 out of 5

Keywords: ministry, citylife church, church, citylife, multicultural, diverse, kaci, pastor, stewart, Florida, fl, tony stewart, Pastor Tony, kaci stewart, tampa

Id: PatTO6-s_Ew

Length: 48min 24sec (2904 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 11 2018