The Hidden Life | Lynne Hammond | Living Word

there's been this word that got ahold to me in my prayer closet about three weeks ago and it was this word and it's the word develop and so I looked it up to find out what develop means and it means this to unfold gradually in detail and the example that it gave in the dictionary was to place exposed photographic material in Kimen chemicals to produce a visible image the the Millennials don't even know what I'm talking about it means to acquire gradually to come into being very gradually by a process to change the structure of something develop and so we live in an age of social media the world of the Internet the snap upload world where you snap it now and you upload it and in microseconds somebody can have exactly what you're doing at this moment in Australia right but I was raised in a different era I was raised in the pre-internet world Millennials call me they say about us if you are my age 73 next month that we were raised in the dinosaur age but I actually knew a planet before social media and I'm glad that God chose me and that he anointed me and he appointed me and he catapulted me into my destiny before social media I actually learned the voice of God and the hand of God before there was ever filtering now I read these statistics and I was it's they're staggering nine hundred and fifty million people on Facebook five hundred million on Twitter and the most widely viewed YouTube channel has six point nine billion views and of course we know that the most prominent hashtag ever in the history of all of this is hashtag selfie I mean last night pastor Macklin will you I had to preach last night in Wisconsin and he went over there with me and you know after the service it took as almost as long after the service for the selfies to take pictures as it did the whole service that is because the world is possessed with me me myself and I now actually in the epistles I believe it was Paul that said he actually told us that he said that there would come a day in the last days that the world would become more selfish and more self-centered I just didn't know that outworking of that would actually be how it looks today with selfie so everybody loves me me not me but me meaning me me myself and I well so I was born in the day and was raised in the day I remember the year that the Polaroid camera came out and oh boy my twin sister and I we had to have a Polaroid camera for Christmas because you could get a picture in three minutes that was an invention in our day because before that that was the 35 millimeter film deal it was a little roll in you opened the camera up and you put this roll in the camera and you take pictures and when you finish you're hoping that the pictures are not all the floor or your feet or the ceiling and so then you take that roll out of the camera and you put it in an envelope and you take it over to the drug store now we had a specific drug store that we went to because most of them it took two weeks to get your pictures back but there was one and there was always a line there because you could get your pictures back in six days so you put your you put your pictures in the envelope and then your film went away and it disappeared for six days it went to a place where film is developed it was a dark room and each picture went through nine chemical processes and oh you did not dare open the door prematurely or the image was distorted or was non-existent because if you didn't have it in the darkroom and all those things didn't happen it wouldn't project the right image you needed the right image it didn't project the picture that you minute to be and that process was called development so that the precise and correct image would be projected on your paper in christendom the darkroom is could be called the secret place of the most high and under the shadow of the almighty in Isaiah chapter 26 we won't look at the scripture but it says this the Prophet is saying this come my people it says enter your chambers and shut the door behind you and hide yourself and so we see in that chamber we know that one of one of the things that they talked about there in the commentary was that that chamber was part of the temple and it was where all the treasures were all there in that place all of the resources all of the valuable things everything that's going to fit you out all the benefits all the prizes were in that chamber and in that chamber is where you see vividly very vividly in that chamber whereas before things may have just like the dark room where things were like hazy and they were not clear in that place everything could becomes clear uncertainty become certainty closed in places become open places and then a clear and a right correct image is projected all right sometimes actually this is really actually what happens in the presence of Jesus when it's you and him now you remember that Jesus actually practiced this I was reading instances today in the in the New Testament and Jesus it said in a great while before day Jesus left everybody and went out to a deserted place and stayed there all night so he not only practiced hiding away himself or they hidden life he taught it to his disciples also he said go into the inner room close your door and pray to your father in secret and your father who sees what is done so something's actually done there something happens there something happens between you and God there and the Lord will reward you openly so Jesus taught this also now in that process of being in the secret place of the Most High in this development stage you are transformed conformed transformed into the image of Jesus which is where we're going as the church for people to see Jesus we have to be like Jesus and so he takes his a projector system and he forges his image on to us in that place over a period of time he takes us into that secret place to develop us now we live in a world like I said of snap upload equals destiny that's where we actually live and there is no one no one in the body of Christ this is going to get into the fullness of their call they're not going to get into the niche that God calls them to or there are their destiny without this process of going to the secret place and in our world today we you've noticed that I'm sure we love to snap and upload and sometimes you hear Millennials say oh I don't need to grow I'll grow I'll grow as I go along I'll grow as I go along in fact I in what birth this message in my heart was I heard a pastor recently and he was saying that somebody had left the church because the the person said that the leader or the pastor or somebody that was in leadership didn't discover their gift didn't discover their gift if you settle for a man to discover you a man to market you then you would be put in maybe this position you don't have any light on the inside of you so what image would you project to the world and that would be you do you know you know this is like Hollywood this is the way Hollywood is is that you go out to Hollywood somebody discovered you somebody markets you there's no light inside but God will always make sure that the light that is in you is greater than the light that is on you amen and I I think I said this another time I don't remember him when or if it was here but I wondered about this why is it with so much Christian sermons Christian YouTube Christian worship Christian radio Christian TV Christian everything across the world why is it then that the world is in so much bondage why is it that we as pastors see people after 20 years they come into the church 20 years ago and there's they've been there 20 years and they're the same as they were 20 years ago and basically nothing has changed what is that you know there's a whole lot of gifted people in the world very gifted people but you know what God loves gifted people but he doesn't need gifted people he needs anointed people people with burden removing yoke destroying power because you know what again a gift will fill a room a great gift will stir people a gift will turn people's heads is that true but the anointing is burden removing yoke destroying power and there's way a difference between the anointing and a gift the only way that you receive burden removing you're destroying power is for God to get on you and God to be in you and you projecting him not yourself and that process does not happen overnight it is a process it comes by you coming to him and coming to him and coming to him you keep developing keep clot keep inclining your ear to him keep seeing him keep preparing you need to know the voice of the Good Shepherd for your own self not just through somebody else I was noticing as I was reading this week and Matthew the tenth chapter and the first verse and we won't need to turn there because it's just a few words the first thing that Jesus did the very first thing when he got all of his disciples the Bible said he called them to himself he called him to him he called me he said you you come to me why did he say you come to me because their whole life their ministry their call their destiny is going to be defined in him and no other place and you have to keep coming to him it is a process probably longer than nine processes of the dark room probably way longer in fact I find that I will be 73 next month and I find that you in all of this time you don't you haven't arrived and it is only God that can develop you and so God is really looking for anointed people not just gifted people to parade around amen God is looking for those who are going to that place continually so that God can develop them I remember years ago we first started the church and we were really busy church planting is a busy job and I can remember as I was getting caught up in the busyness of ministry and the building of ministry the Lord said this to me I'm not looking for you to build a ministry I am looking for you to become a person just like me that's what he said so in the Bible we see something very interesting and through the years I've actually watched this I call it the comings and the goings of Scripture come to me come to me hide thyself and then you go come to me and then you go and we can see this and look the first chapter maybe we would look at a scripture just so we could say that we did and Luke chapter 1 and verse 76 y'all are just the greatest you know that don't you now this is Zechariah and of course he's the father of John and John and was born and on the eighth day they had a bread he was circumcised on the eighth day and at that time we we know under Judaism on when a child is circumcised or that bread happens the child is named on that day and so they're trying to figure out John's name and actually it was really really good because the Lord had already told the mother and father his name but the it the Bible says that Zechariah the father was filled with the Holy Ghost and he began to prophesy over the child now I want you to listen to what this is this is his father prophesying over him verse 76 and you little one shall be called a prophet of the most high for shoot you shall go on before the face of the Lord to make ready his way to bring and give the knowledge of a salvation to his people in the forgiveness and remission of sins because of and through the heart of tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God a light from on high will dawn upon us and visit us to shine upon us and give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death to direct and guide our feet in the straight line unto the way of peace and the little boy grew and became strong in spirit and he was in the day in the wilderness until the day of his appearing notice that he was in out in the desert until the day of his appearing so when he prophesied over him there he goes then he disappears into the secret place now remember what Jesus said about John he said about John the Baptist he said John the Baptist he was the greatest prophet that ever lived the reason he was the greatest prophet and what he is going to be prepared for on that backside of the desert is he is being prepared to speak forth and to bring forth a highway he is going to actually if you could see it in the spirit realm he's going to cut a road for the coming of the Lord that is his mission to do no one has ever done that before or been required to do such a thing this is going to take an anointing out of heaven and so what does he do he goes over into the desert until he hears the Word of God then God said to him well it's time so he told him to go and he said you appear before Israel and announced the coming of the Lord and he left the desert where he had been hidden away with God and he developed enough in that process of time to where he could stand in the height of the office that God had called him to there was no way that he was going to snap up load equals destiny it was not happening he would have had nothing to give God had to work that in him if you go through the Bible you will see the others just like him Moses 40 years in Midian before leading the nation Elijah remember what he did he spoke a drought and the drought came so then after he spoke the drought it's time for the drought to be over the Lord said to him get over to Zarephath and wait hide thyself there you go over and hide yourself over there and I'll come get you when you're ready how long was he over there three and a half years he was in there friend and then the Bible says the word of the Lord came to him and said get up and go over and break the drought what broke the drought the anointing and the power of God that was on him that he was being prepared for over the three and a half years that he I told you how I didn't have a new message same message just different words to it all right now we'll look at my favorite one and actually who I is is Paul so Apostle Paul now he had the most miraculous conversion I love to read his conversion it's the most amazing thing and I read it from different translations then I go over and I watch him prophesied to kings and tell of his conversion and what that conversion looked like well you know that he Jesus appeared to him the Bible said it was a light out of heaven but if you read verse 17 of Acts chapter 9 you'll find out that Jesus actually appeared to him well you would have thought that would have been enough to qualify him so that he could just get up and go full steam in the plan of God of right in two-thirds of the New Testament and being up probably one of the greatest apostles are probably the greatest apostle other than the twelve of all of them you would have thought that would have been enough but that wasn't enough after he had that conversion he went different commentaries say different things some say twelve some say thirteen some say fifteen years he went over to Arabia there by himself hid himself away there he received such light and such revelation of God God prepared him to meet the world over there he prepared him for his call you what Martin Luther said about him Martin Luther says his words are so powerful Paul's words they're like hands and feet that grip the heart and where they're still today after all these years still gripping hearts so we see why was this why was he so anointed why was he so powerful why was it I'll show you I'll give you another scripture Philippians chapter 3 Philippians chapter 3 y'all y'all y'all out there dollar souls quiet tonight G Philippians so you know where I'm going with all this don't you you do all right now here's Paul here's Paul this is what he said about himself Philippians 3 and verse 10 for my determined purpose what was his center what was his objective what was it what was it that was his purpose what was his purpose we see the purpose right here for my determined purpose is that I may know him and that I may progressively become more not notice of progression more deeply and intimately acquainted with him perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of his person more strongly more clearly and that I may in the same way come to know the power of the resurrection and that am I so share in his sufferings as to may be continually transformed into his likeness and unto his death I'm going to have that because I made this my purpose right here to know him now notice there could have been so many things think of his ministry he could have had his purpose be healing the sick what a high and lofty purpose what an amazing purpose heal the sick he could have had the to win souls his purpose and his objective he could have had going to the nation's he could have had seeing people raised up in miracles and signs and wonders but that was not his purpose his purpose for his life was to know God because Paul knew he knew that to the degree you know God is to the degree that you will give him out yes that's right to the degree that we know him is actually the degree that we are going to give him out if you fast forward into his life and when he was talking to King Agrippa over in acts the 26th chapter he said I am a happy man this was at the end of his life he said I am a happy man now if you just consider the adversity the trials the tribulations the beatings the scourge --is that happened to him the imprisonments seems like he should have said I'm so disappointed I'm so mistreated I'm so oppressed Oh God you don't know what I've been through he said I am a happy man that was because he went into that secret place and you know what the Bible said about Paul it said I travail that Christ be formed in me i travail and cry out to God he saw the intensity of what it could look like for a man or for a woman to be made in the image of Christ and to be projected to the world he saw that and he said that would be my purpose that is what I want that is what I must have that is my purpose and nothing else just to know God and the wonders of him progressively he said it was going to be a progression now we're going to look at this last one here just I want me to go in 29 minutes Hey all right this one is a very interesting one over in for Samuel the sixteenth chapter and we know that Samuel the Prophet is going to Jesse's house David's father and he's holding his the Horn of oil because God told Samuel to go over there to Jesse's house and to anoint the next king of Israel and so he's gonna go over there and and so we read up from verse 7 but the Lord said to Samuel not look not on the appearance nor at the height well before this he's consecrated the whole house he's done a whole sacrifice with everybody he's brought all of the seven sons in the wealth six of them in here and the first one they looked at and of course everybody knew that the firstborn he is the one to get the anointing to be king but his interesting here that that was not the one that God chose so it says in verse six and when they had come he looked on ELab the oldest son and said surely the Lord's anointed is before him but the Lord said to Samuel look not on his appearance or the height of his stature for I have rejected him for the Lord sees not as a man sees for the man looks upon the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart so then Jesse called a minute AB the second one and may he made him pass before Samuel but Samuels is said neither has the Lord chosen this one o sit then Jesse made Shama pass by Samuel said mmm nope not this one either does he well you know kinda he said that Jesse made all seven of the sons pass before Samuel and Samuel said to Jesse the Lord hasn't chosen any of these oh dear none of them qualify for the anointing of God to be the king of Israel none of them so he says hey got any more so Jesse win and brought David and he said yo I've got one more but he attends the sheep now this is very interesting if you've ever studied the life of David and not very many people know this David was we totally rejected by his family and the reason that he was is because his great-great grandmother was Ruth and she was a Moabite now right after David was born the Sanhedrin passed laws in Judaism that said no one could be of royalty or in the eldership of Judaism who had any kind of lineage other than to be from the line of Jacob and so he had Moabite in his lineage from his great-grandmother Ruth and so he was totally rejected by the family and he was put out in the pasture to develop sheep it was totally rejected and so Samuel said yep this is the one now here is somebody unappreciated uh applauded unrecognized overlooked the absolute nobody that nobody noticed and the Lord said yep that's the one and so he anointed him then Samuel took the Horn of oil and anointed David in the midst of his brothers and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward and Samuel rose and went to Rama or back to his home there where he lived so we see that God anointed him to be king but this was not a snap upload hashtag new king of Israel and if it had been it would have been bad because it was 20 years before he was crowned king and so where was David all that time he had twenty years of living in seclusion out in the fields out in the pasture with the Sheep out along the meadows by the cool water streams singing and worshiping God he had not one thought I'm going to receive a Grammy or a Dove Award that was not in the picture at all in fact he was out looking for a relationship with the real dove amen so that's what he did he was out there so God is developing him to be a king he had all of the goods God had all of the goods he knows everything about kingship he knows the protocol of the palace so out here in this place he is actually being marked by God God is putting his hand upon this man over and over and imprinting his kingship upon him for him to be king and rule and if you know anything about Judaism that rule of David all the way down through Judaism will be the way that even the millennial reign the whole kingdom in Israel the earthly kingdom is set up by that that was established through David and through the laws of David when he was king I bet you didn't know that and so God is out developing him he's developing in character he's developing him in faithfulness he's developing him and I don't know commitment he's developing him into not being offended all of these things that he this is a process that he's going through God and David or in the secret place and they are developed God is developing him to become who he already is the king of Israel God is developing him to become who he already is God is developing you to become who you already are praise the Lord and it's very interesting about God he doesn't need anyone to find you when it's time for you to be appointed and put in your position whether it's in the job the workplace or the school wherever it is God doesn't you don't need to advertise yourself I don't care if you're over in Papua New Guinea where there's no social media hey if God needs you he knows where you live he knows where to find you and we could see it here from this scripture amen it's true and so it's a lesson for all of us so you can see we as the church have a ways to go and we cannot as as church as God's people stop somewhere and stagnate and say oh well I I have it all I have it all I'm I know that I have that information I already know that I know that Jeff yeah I read that about Samuel I already read it one time and yeah that would be the trouble right there you read it one time so times like what we had here tonight for just a few moments are so valuable in your development I think God that we could have it here all together in a corporate setting I think God for that but I want to be who God calls me to be I want to be able to stand before the world and said God you got all out of me everything that you wanted you rung it to be a light to the world not that I have a shine but that God would shine through me to a sick and a dying world and so it is that each one of us ameesha in a costume anata we must continue we must move forward for America da and tell the story and taschek a model of Tosa for you if you are building a house you don't just continually work on the foundation and work on the foundation and work on the foundation no you keep building you building until you have a superstructure building and building and that's where we are today is that we must continue on building and building and building because this is the generation of people of all other generations we will stand in the highest development of the life of Christ than any other generation before us so we must continue on to develop we must not be satisfied just to have the first things they the forgiveness of sins and the baptism in the holy spirit which all of those things are good and all of those things they are steps and they were in the process all the initials of faith we we must have those but we cannot stop there we must move on into the fullness of God we must move on into who he says we're going to be we must be cold labourers with him in the earth for this time and for this hour and so it's going to take each one of us in our place don't say I don't have time I don't have any time no one has any time you have to make time it's the most important thing you have no idea what God has got for you but it is not going to be a snap upload equals your destiny it won't be that hallelujah and so father right now I pray for each one of these as we have all of eternal life at our disposal for you to cause us to excel and to abound Oh father you can go way way above you said what we could dare ask or even think and Paul prayed that we would know the depth in the height the length and the breadth of you and so father my heart tonight is toward all of these Lord we don't despise our schooling we don't despise the development we love our preparation Lord every detail of it we know how important it is and so father I trust you this night I trust you father to knock on the door in the heart of every person here and to call us to yourself make yourself known make all of heaven known to us that your dear presence father your dear presence we would know we want to thank you we want to praise you for this wonderful hour that we are ruling and reigning with you in the name that is above every name amen I think it's on in just a moment we'll see if a fermion sigh clothes just stay for rubato and dark oriental just under status test or a metadata stun but when you hear the words come up hither come up to the throne of God there is a place that you must abide there is a place where you and I walk together and I remain at your side constantly calling you to your upward place making everything clear everything clear not hazy for many in this room have wondered about things that would truly they were before the Lord for a short while and there was a snap and upload to your spirit and you go what was that Lord what was that if you will yield yourself go to the hidden life all of those things will come clear in your heart and then when it's time for you to move into that very niche that belongs to you that no one else can fulfill no one can fill that niche except you in the master plan only you can fill it the Lord is waiting he's waiting thank you Father in Jesus name Amen how many of you will say tonight I'm going to give him more time yes I'm going to find the time because I'm gonna be who Jesus says I need to be I'm in

Channel: Living Word Christian Center

Views: 11,323

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Keywords: Living Word, Mac Hammond, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, Minneapolis, Faith, Grace, Jim Hammond, Jamey Hammond, Vision, Word of Faith, Love, God's Love, You Are Blessed, Jesus, Healing, Church, Sermon, Online Church, lwcc, living word mac hammond, jesus, christ, living word christian center, lynne hammond, the hidden life, life

Id: iQD9CeUdc_k

Length: 45min 28sec (2728 seconds)

Published: Mon Aug 20 2018