Wilderness is a place of spiritual wandering Where
you wonder if God is with you, where you wonder why this is happening to me, when is this is going to
end, where you wonder if the word spoken over your life by prophetic voices in your life are really
just bunch of people just made up their stuff Where a lot of times you wonder did you really
get delivered or you still need more deliverance? There's a lot of questions a lot of doubts.
Spiritual wilderness is usually a place where our feelings fade, our finances get dry, relationships
get sour and our experiences with God become extremely shallow. And we begin to have a lot of
questions and a lot of wonders. Wilderness is if you're taking notes i want you to write this down
"The warfare of wilderness" the first thing i want to mention is the warfare of wilderness. Wilderness
is not where the spiritual warfare begins but this is where God is preparing us for dominion. When
Israel was removed from Egypt through deliverance they went through a dry season before they entered
into the promised land. In the promised land is where they exercise their dominion, it's where they
walked in their victory, they drove the enemies out but in the wilderness is where God was developing
them, this was a dry place, this was a place where there was lack of water, there was lack of
provision there was a lot of struggles in the wilderness. Jesus similar thing happened to Jesus,
Jesus experiences a great feeling of the spirit at the river Jordan and the scripture says right
after that he goes to he goes to wilderness. Elijah has a great fire that comes, famine ends,
drought ends and then elijah goes for 40 days in wilderness, has a lot of questions to God
you know "Lord i don't want to live anymore you left me all alone" and so there's that
wilderness season. Moses gets this crazy you know drive "i no longer want to be part of the palace
because i you know got awoke to my calling" and and next thing that happens ends
up in the wilderness for 40 years. Wilderness is not strange to a spiritual
experience, wilderness is a part of spiritual walk with God. I believe that wilderness is
sandwiched between deliverance and dominion. Wilderness at dry time is sandwiched between your
deliverance and your dominion. The scripture says "and an evil spirit went out of a man and
went through dry places" somebody say "Through" Because demons go through dry places, so is
the delivered people go through dry places. We go through dry places we don't live in
dry places, we don't get defined by dry places and we should not anchor down our identity in dry
places, because it's something we go through, it's something not that we are living in. Can somebody
say Amen. Deuteronomy chapter 2 and verse 7 it says the following "For the Lord your God has blessed
you in all your work of your hand, he knows your difficult time through this great wilderness, these
40 years the Lord your God has been with you and you have lacked nothing." The width of wilderness,
the length of wilderness, it's interesting because Israel has went through wilderness 40 years,
and Jesus went through wilderness 40 days. And there is a verse in book of Numbers when the
spies came back from spying the land, and the bible says that they came back and numbers 14:34 it
says the following "According to the number of your days in which you spied out the land, 40 days,
for each day you shall bear your guilt one year namely 40 years and you shall know my rejection."
Spiritual wilderness can be shortened or extended. We don't determine if we go through it, we decide
how long we go through it. Spiritual wilderness can be shortened and it can be extended. Jesus said
that in the gospel of Matthew he said "if it not had been for the chosen ones, for the ones that
are elect" he says "these days" he says "the day unless the days were shortened no flesh would
be saved" So that tells me that tells me that there are evil days, dry days that can be
shortened or extended. Now let's look at Israel and let's look at Jesus, do the contrast. Israel
goes through the wilderness some historians in theologians say that their wilderness
experience should have lasted about 14 days. 14-day journey. These 14 days turned into 40 years
because Israel in their wilderness they all they did was complained. They used their wilderness
to whine. And therefore they extended it. Jesus goes through wilderness and he has doubts
thrown at him, Jesus is fasting for 40 days in the wilderness, surrounded by wild beasts,
lack of water and the wilderness Jesus was going through my friend, this is not like Pasco
wilderness or Nevada. When we drove through Israel and we saw the Judean wilderness that Jesus went
through, that thing is so dry there is absolutely not one green even a fake plant anywhere within
your sight. Even if you would find a hiding place in the cave it's still so hot, and for 40 days
he's being tempted, he's being bombarded with the demons and not once in 40 days was Jesus
whining. Instead he was warring with his mouth. He stood in the scriptures and guess what happened,
after 40 days that season ended. So let me ask you a question, when you are going through your
wilderness are you whining or are you worshiping? Because your response in the
spiritual wilderness determines how long that wilderness will be. No matter how
spiritual you are you cannot escape wilderness. But the real spirituality is not determined if
you go through wilderness, it determines how you go through wilderness. Whether you go confessing
or complaining, whether you go doubting or standing quoting the scriptures, whether you go based on
your feelings or you go based on the word of God the width of wilderness is within our hands.
We decide how long that wilderness will be by the kind of reaction that we choose to have. The width of wilderness. God is with you in
the wilderness even if you don't feel him. The width of wilderness meaning you are with God
but in the wilderness God is usually not felt. You don't feel God in wilderness, but you have
to get to know God in wilderness outside of your feelings. In fact we read in Deuteronomy chapter 2
verse 7 he says "these 40 years the Lord your God has been with you and you lack nothing. I
read the account of Israel being in Egypt and many times they had these questions- where is
our God? Why do we have no water if he's with us? Why do we have no meat and steak if he's with
us? And i want you to see this God said "I have been with you" he didn't say every other year he
didn't say i was there two years and then i took a year off, he says i've been with you all these
40 years in the wilderness. When you had no water i was there with you. When you had no food i was
there with you. When the enemy was coming close i was there with you. But we didn't feel you with us.
That's one thing you have to know about wilderness, in the wilderness you don't feel God, yet he's
still there. God has promised to be with you always. Till the end of age not till the end of
good season, not till the end of Trump's presidency, not till the end of your good time, not till
the end of your career, not till the end of your employment, till the end of age. But
God never promised that you will feel him. God never promised that you will always feel
him when he's with you. So that tells me that we have to stand assured on his promise of his
presence instead of our experience of his presence. Wilderness is a time where you don't feel
God, in fact one of the most frustrating things about wilderness is the fact that you
don't feel God, and you want to feel him so bad, but this is the time where you get to know God.
Not through the feelings but through your spirit. If you can renew your mind just with this "he is
with me, and God you don't owe my feelings nothing, God i am not going to put you at prison of my
emotions, God i am not going to make my emotions above your word, I trust that you are with me, I
don't feel you i don't sense you right now, God in fact, my mind is saying one thing, my circumstances
are dictating another thing, my emotions are risen against me, my feelings are fading, my finances
are dry, my relationships are sour and lord my experiences with you are shallow, but God i believe
you are with me. Your name is Emmanuel God with us. Lord the last thing you said before you left is
"lo i am with you always" I didn't believe you were you were bluffing, i don't believe you were
exaggerating, i don't believe you were throwing words on the wind. Your word you are a word so
you have an integrity in yourself. I believe that always part applies to me right now. If you can
get this through your head, through your spirit and through your soul, you can get through
any wilderness. When you can remind yourself he's with me, even when i don't feel
it, in fact how do you know you're in wilderness when you don't feel him. When your
favorite song is playing it doesn't click you're like i did it i tried to cry that tear,
i lifted the hand, i tried the hands like this, i went on my knees, i went to the front, i had the
pastor hit me and touch, the other one touched me, one hit me, the other one poured oil on my head,
the other one sprayed water. I mean i did the whole thing and i feel nothing. He must not be with
me the bible says "be still and know" it doesn't say be still and feel that i am God. God is not felt,
God is known. He is the person not an electric wire. You stick your finger in, yes he's power but he's
a person. But in the wilderness you don't feel him you know him. Can somebody say Amen. The width of
wilderness he says i am with you. You know it's interesting i was reading this more this week
in my devotional in the gospel of John chapter nine it says it says this verse "now Jesus
passed by and he saw a man who was blind" It dawned on me. Jesus sees me before i see him. That blind Bartimaeus is the blind man is kind
of like we ask sometimes, you don't feel like you see him, like where is God. Always remember God
sees you before you see him. In fact it was Hagar Hagar who had a revelation of El Roy and this is
the revelation of El Roy "i saw him who sees me" Meaning God always sees. God always sees you
God always knows you. And only then the bible says the blind man saw Jesus but remember
Jesus sees you when you don't feel him. He sees you when you don't see him. He sees you
if you don't sense him. He sees you. He knows you, and he is with you. But God absolutely owes
nothing to my emotional confirmation. In fact if he will always cater to my emotions
my faith doesn't have a chance to grow. Amen. The width of wilderness he's with me, i'm
with him. The next one is the work of wilderness. God is working in the wilderness behind the
scenes. God in the wilderness is not on the scene, he's behind the scenes. Which gets confusing
because we believe God is working when we see him in a spotlight, for example you got a
promotion "praise be to God God is good my friend" You found the girlfriend "To God be the glory
God is good all the time and all the time God is good" you got a job "God is good" your credit
score went up you got a house "man God is good" you got healing manifested in your body man
"my God is good" you're somebody you prayed for "God saved God is good" see we love when God
is working on the scenes in the wilderness. God does not work on the scene, he works behind
the scenes. It's kind of like this right now you see me on the scene, you see me in this
there's a spotlight, it would be foolish to say that that's all that is happening at HungryGen right now, is Vlad with the microphone. In fact this is only about five percent of what is
happening at this very moment at HungryGen. There is somebody right now that is sitting behind
the sound board that is controlling this sound. There is somebody that is watching the lights
right now that you see the lights. There's somebody else that is switching right now the slides, there
is there is two three people that are standing behind the cameras, there is two people that are
switching things for live stream, there's another person switching shots and then there's about
three or four people that are packing guns and protecting this facility. There's also people that
are working with children and there are those that are watching right now make sure that nobody else
walks into that room. There's somebody else that is walking around right now and checking different
things, there's somebody in the parking lot, there's so much stuff that is happening behind the scenes
that's not on the scene. And what happens many times during the wilderness is because God's
work is not seen we think it doesn't exist. Can God work behind the scenes? And he is working
behind the scenes. I want you to read what Job said Job had the same problem when he went through
a dry season, he didn't see God working and this is what Job said "when i go forward he
is not there backward i cannot perceive him when he works on the left hand i cannot behold him
and i turn to the right hand i cannot see him but he knows the way which i take and when
he has tested me i shall come forth as gold" I want you to see this Job realizes i can see
God but he still says "when he works on the left he works on the right" I want to tell you something;
God is still working even if i don't see it. Let me tell you how it happened with Israel, Israel always
doubted that God was working behind the scenes in the wilderness. For example the daily
needs of Israel and wilderness food they needed 3.3 and a half million
pounds of food. A quartermaster uh a master general in the army reported that Moses would have to
have a 1,500 tons of food each day that's two freight
trains each mile long. One million so 1,500 tons of food every
single day. There was no factories in wilderness. There was no Winco in wilderness, Costco
wasn't there, God fed people every day 1,500 tons every day behind the scenes. cooking they needed 4 000 tons of wood to cook their food. There is no wood in wilderness. It's called wilderness for a reason, especially if
you would go with- this is not Portland or Seattle where it rains and there's a lot of trees that was
provided for, water, a person's water requirement would be about 20 quarts approximately per day in
109 degrees Fahrenheit. 11 million gallons of water each day would be needed to drink, wash themselves
and clean dishes. That would be equivalent to a lot of trains They had no lakes, they had no Columbia river, they
had no ocean, few wells and some of them had bitter water. God was working behind the scenes. Space-
the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea in just one night. If they want if they would go on
a narrow part double file the line would be 800 miles long, that would take 35 days and nights to
get through. So there had to be enough space in the Red Sea three miles wide, so that they could walk
across 5,000 people next to each other in one night. Every time Israel camped they needed
an area 25 miles wide and 30 miles long. We don't think about those things but God was
working behind the scenes, they did not go through the Red Sea in 35 days they went in one night.
That means God split the sea three miles wide. See but the only thing you're thinking
is that i didn't have my steak tonight. You don't think about God working behind the
scenes. But i didn't get my dream car this month You don't think about God working behind the
scenes protecting you in that car that you're driving, and didn't get a car accident this month.
We don't pay attention to God working behind the scenes and a lot of times our volunteers feel
unappreciated because they are in the spotlight. But how is God also not feeling appreciated
because he's working behind the scenes and we accuse him for not being on the stage? Lord but
you're not doing this you're not doing this you're not doing this, this is the Majesty of wilderness
is God is working he's just not seen working. But just because he's not seen he
is still working behind the scenes and in fact if it wouldn't be for the volunteers
behind the scenes there will be nothing to see And i see all the volunteers like "finally somebody
acknowledge my presence" Come on somebody that's right can we give all a round of applause
to all the people working behind the scenes can we give a round of applause to the
Lord working behind the scenes in our life protecting us, blessing us, driving away the
enemy behind the scenes when we are not seeing where we are sleeping at night and fighting
witches with warlocks on our behalf, cancelling spells, cancelling witchcraft that has been
directed toward us and we're sleeping like a baby stopping car accidents that should have happened,
stopping sicknesses that should have happened, protecting us, guiding us, providing for us, can we
take a moment and say God i thank you for behind the scenes miracles, i thank you for miracles
that you are doing that i'm not seeing, behind the scenes miracles. Thank you Lord thank you Lord. I
was reading this week and i was seeing that Jesus said this "My Father has been working until now and
i've been working" Do you remember when God gave Israel a sabbath in the book of Genesis? Remember?
And the bible says he rested on the seventh day and God told Israel don't work on sabbath. In
the new testament God the Son did seven miracles recorded on the sabbath. In fact all the miracles
Jesus got in trouble with was because he did him on the sabbath. Jesus knew how offensive it will be
and so this this this week is our reading gospel of John, Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law on
the sabbath, he heals a man with the withered hand on the sabbath, he heals the blind man
on the sabbath, he heals the crippled woman on the sabbath, he heals another man on the sabbath,
drives out a demon on the sabbath, heals a laying man by the pool on the sabbath, and i said to the lord but
i thought that on the sabbath you took a day off? And i really felt i'm not sure how deep it is or
even accurate, this is just my personal revelation i felt like the lord spoke to my heart and he said
"Even when you're resting, i'm working. I'm always working. I'm working on your days off and i'm
working on your good days. I'm also working on your hard days, i'm working on your hellish
days, i'm working on the days where you're crying and i'm working on the days that you're
laughing. I'm always working." God took a day off because creation was completed. When sin came into
creation i believe God stopped taking days off Because on a Saturday you need his help, on Friday
we need his mercy, because on Sunday we need a miracle. Because some people they're laying on the
hospital bed right now and they they cannot wait till Sunday, they need God to show up on Saturday
and God stopped taking days off, why? Because today he's always working on our behalf. I just want to
let you know God is working. You may not feel like he is working, it might not seem like nothing is
moving right now, you actually may feel like things are going backwards, i want to tell you something
the scripture says in Romans chapter 8 verse 28 "For those who love God and are called according to
his purpose, all things work together" do you know why they work together? Because there's somebody
working them, it is God connecting, it is God attaching, it is God working behind the scenes. You
might be discouraged today that nothing is working, God is working and you don't have to see it to
know it God doesn't always have to be on the stage to be working God is so secure in himself he can
be working behind the scenes and he's not getting the credit he's not getting the acknowledgment,
he's not getting the applause, he's not getting a "praise you Lord thank you Lord" and God is
securing himself the same way Jesus created his first miracle behind the scenes, in fact, the main guy in charge of the wedding gave a credit to the wrong person because he did not see Jesus
working behind the scenes, and many miracles in our lives are behind the scenes miracles where
God was working behind the scenes because God is always working in your wilderness he is working
through your pain, he is working through your drama, he is working through your financial struggle, he is working in your wilderness. God is working. He did not get fired, he did not get laid off and
he did not leave his employment, he is working as my Father is working Jesus says so I am working.
He was making a reference there to a sabbath my Father is working but the jews remember that God
did not work on the sabbath, that was before the fall after the fall God went to work nonstop the
Scripture says "he who watches over Israel doesn't slumber or sleep" you know what that tells me God doesn't take breaks. You know what that tells me God doesn't clock off at four o'clock. You know
what it tells me God doesn't clock in at nine. You know what that tells me God doesn't slumber to sleep that means 24/7 God is watching over me. 24/7 God is working. amen the work of wilderness meaning God is working on my behalf. The word of wilderness in the wilderness to live by
the faith we must be ruled by the word of God but he answered and said "Jesus it is written men
shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" but Jesus was
quoting Deuteronomy chapter 8 verse 3 which says the following so he humbled you allowed you to
hunger and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know that he may make
you known that a man shall not live by bread alone but man lives by every word that proceeds from
the mouth of God" that tells me the only way to survive the wilderness is through the word of God which is faith. Faith is being ruled by god's word. feelings is being ruled by your senses. When Jesus
came to the pool excuse me to the well and he met a Samaritan woman the bible says she was married
five times, lived with the sixth man, and then she met the seventh one married five times that
speaks of us we're married to five senses humanity is controlled by five senses living
with the six number six in the bible is a number of a man that's fallen humanity, we have a fallen
humanity in us when until we meet the seventh man while being fallen humanity we are married to
five senses meaning we perceive truth through our five senses I see it I smell it I hear it
I taste it I touch it, these are the husbands many people have been married to the problem is you can't walk by faith if you are married to your senses when you meet
the seventh man Jesus Christ he is the word of God Jesus is the word made in the flesh. when you allow
Jesus to rule your life faith becomes a product or byproduct a result and fruit. There is no way
we can learn to walk by faith without being ruled by God's word. I'm not talking about having a bible
app on your phone I'm not talking about enabling notification where once a day they give you a
verse of the day and that getting that little spiritual diet. I'm talking about letting God's
the word decide was truth letting god's word overrule the feelings overrule my senses and letting
God's word be the one that we are subject to what wilderness spiritual wilderness does is
it throws off emotionally addicted Christians what wilderness does is it makes soft spineless
emotionally filled Christians panic and freak out but the lord does that on purpose because
it's not possible to know God without faith the faith is the currency of the spiritual realm.
God cannot develop faith until he allows us to go through places where our feelings fail and
what a better way for our feelings to fail than to put us through the wilderness where all of our
feelings that we relied on are simply saying god is not with you you're not gonna make it you're
crazy you're exactly what the other person said about you, this is look, look at your finances where
is the prophetic word that prophet that's a false prophet right there that that's not working that's
not working and your feelings are failing and so because that's all we have known because we've
been married to our feelings and our five senses we panic but this is the moment where God says
I led you through wilderness these 40 days so I can humble you. It takes humility to reject
my senses as the source of my food put it aside so I can humble you god says and so I can
teach you a man my woman cannot live by bread physical things what they hear what
they see that cannot be your life he says they must live by the word that comes out of my mouth.
God says I want to make you a spiritual person who has a soul instead of a soulish person who
lives by his senses wilderness is for that reason. I know it's painful but it's necessary to develop
a spirituality within you spirituality is not that you have the scripture memorized it's the
you are ruled by what God says not what you feel not what you see not what the enemy says
not what your circumstances say rule by word I know this is a 9 a.m service but the word of God is the source. Can somebody say Amen. To live by faith we must be ruled by God's word. To live by feelings all we have to do
is do nothing just live go through life as it is there's only one way to get through spiritual
wilderness and that is the way Jesus did satan came against Jesus and Jesus says he
didn't "thought the scriptures, he fought with the scriptures" a little secret when you're
bombarded in your mind in a spiritual wilderness do not fight the devil in your mind
fight the devil with your mouth verbally fight the devil how do you do that
by quoting the scripture until it changes the the direction of your meditation Joshua 1:8 says
do not let the book of the law depart your mouth it's interesting because after that it says and then let it fill your meditation and then you
will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success. When your mind is bombarded
you can redirect the train of your thoughts by opening your mouth and saying something
opposite in accordance with God's word. Another very important tip from Jesus's temptation
satan will use this scripture against you out of context the moment he sees you stand on
the word this is where he changes the tactic and he takes the word and uses it against you.
For example, he will take scriptures on communion and use it against you he will take scriptures about
condemnation, and use it against you he will take any scripture so this is where you have to what do
you do when the devil uses scripture against you you put on your armor helmet of salvation- I am
saved that means you can't hit me with that one you put on the breastplate of righteousness, i
am righteous devil you can't hit me with that oh you're a bad person uh that's not a conviction
that's condemnation why because conviction is specific on the condemnation in general and
conviction gives me hope condemnation makes me hopeless and conviction is from the holy spirit
and this does not sound so I'm just going to go ahead and put the breastplate of righteousness and
see if it sticks it's from god if it doesn't stick that means it's not from God the moment devil I'm
going to tell you one thing one of the biggest spiritual warfares you'll experience is when the
enemy will use the scripture to come against you scripture was used against Jesus do this and Jesus
says devil you took the scripture out of context and he says that's not and the devil still used
the scripture he did not Jesus still used the scripture he did not go to Koran he did not go
to another book while Quran wasn't written at the time he said he did not go to other books
and say well the bible can be trusted because the devil is using it so many people say well the devil is using miracles so that means we should stay away from miracles, there are demons that are
doing this and we should stay away from that just because there is a fake 100 bill I am not going
to tear all of my 100 bills, my friend if the devil uses the bible against you stick with the context
of the bible and put on the whole armor of God and say devil you can't hit me with my sword because
this is my sword and I'm gonna use that against you and the devil will run from you can somebody
give God some praise right now for God's word for the power of his word amen and the last thing that I want to mention is that in the wilderness, the worship of wilderness worship is the water. In the wilderness, it might not be found in the river of life's blessings but
it will flow from the rock of who God is the wilderness region in this peninsula where
Israel was going through for 40 years the Hebrews wondered generally, it was styled as the wilderness
of wanderings, it extended from the north to the south about 220 miles 250 miles and its width
point is about 150 miles abroad throughout this vast region of some 1,500 square miles there was
not one single river so this particular wilderness that Israel was in had no river but I want you to
find it interesting that uh they still found water I feel I feel like that's exactly what worship
is in our wilderness, worship is our water, worship is your water it keeps you spiritually hydrated. Do you remember when Jesus came to the woman at the well and he was talking about the
water and she was talking about the water and then he mentioned they start talking about
worship, because worship is your water, it's a water that God drinks from and it's the water
that refreshes you when you give it to him remember how Jesus says give me something to drink
God desires your worship and only one worthy of it and when you give it to God somehow it refreshes
you, how many times worship is not about us yet after worship, we feel better, and when we
take worship it corrupts us it turns us into uh monsters when we give worship it makes
us better people because we were created for worship, Isaiah says I created you for my
glory meaning we were created to worship god and in worshipping him we change because we
become what we behold, we become what we worship water is your worship, worship is your water but
this is the problem in wilderness is that you don't find water because there's no river well
that's why the enemy says you can't worship God because there is no river in wilderness in
other words there is no external life's blessings in wilderness therefore you can't worship
God but that's where the devil got it wrong because Israel found water in the wilderness
without rivers, they found it in a rock in normal circumstances you get water from the river but
when you go through wilderness you will not find your water, worship from the river of life you will
find your water from the rock of ages whose name is Jesus Christ that means if you don't feel like
you have a reason to worship God you have a cause to worship God which is God himself the water will
come from the rock when you stop worshiping God for what he did you can actually finally worship
God for who he is job did not have a river in his wilderness but the bible says his wife came and
says curse "God and die" what she was saying is "die dehydrated because there is no river in
your wilderness and he says woman you crazy should we only worship God because of what he does
in our life meaning should we only find water in the river I'm going to go find me a rock and
get water from there" and the bible says and Job worship God why because you can find your water
in the rock, if you don't have a river never let the devil stop your worship because you're going
through a dry season just because you're filing through bankruptcy God forbid you're going
through a divorce or somebody died in your family and the devil says well you can't worship
God no more why because look there is no river my friend in the wilderness you don't get your water
from the river, you get your water from the rock can somebody say amen! you get your water
from the rock, you were created to worship 60 of a human body is made out of water I really
believe that most of our prayer time supposed to be filled with worship most of our life our whole
life has to be dedicated to worship God. Worship is not a ministry it's an identity preaching is not
my identity worship I was created to worship I was called to warfare i was anointed to preach but my
real identity is a worshipper your real identity the same way your body your brain other organs in
your body are made out of water in the same way your spiritual man was created it has to be filled
like water fills your body your whole life has to be filled with worship and don't use the excuse
that well I'm going through a dry season, every river dried up everything that I used to praise
God for dried up, my friend in the wilderness there is the source of water that's not in the river but
it's in the rock meaning you begin to praise him for who he is you begin to praise him for his
character you begin to praise him now for who he is and water begins to replenish you as it
fills him comes out of him it replenishes you and this is the beautiful part about worship
is in the wilderness worship becomes a weapon worship becomes a weapon in psalm 149 verse 6
it says the following let the high praises of God be in their mouth praise God we're
about to have worship and then it says in a two-edged sword in their hands
worship songs and swords go together and then to do what not to just
dance open and shout but it says to execute vengeance on their nations
punishments on the peoples to bind see like when you are in deliverance, the devil
binds you but when you begin to worship to bind their kings with chains and their nobles
with feathers of iron to execute on them the written judgment dishonor meaning its
honor to worship, its honor to the warfare have few saints who finish bible school dishonor
have few believers who went through a university this honor has few saints who fasted for 40 days
and didn't break their fast with the cracka this honor the bible says has all his that means
you and I, my friend I want to tell you something there is a warfare that will be released a
weapon that will be activated when you worship that's why the bible says he will use the praises
out of the mouth of babes to silence the avenger that's why when David played instruments
he didn't even open his mouth he just and the demons were leaving imagine what
would happen if he would start singing he didn't even think the bible says he played
the instrument and demons were leaving already if he would sing, something else would shift
Paul and Silas sang in jail and the earth shook, we know that Jehoshaphat was
worshiping and got moved on their behalf Joshua went to the city that was locked up and
instead of throwing rocks at it, he lifted a shout Gideon went against an army with only 300 men,
no machines, no nukes, nothing no rockets the only thing they had is they had trumpets, and they had
empty vessels and burning torches because in the spiritual realm your weapon is your worship and
it makes it so precious your worship becomes so pure when it's in the wilderness why because you got
no reverse that's why it makes such a big deal to the devil when you begin to worship because
devil freaks out he said you should be whining you should be complaining you should be cursing
god and dying you should be dehydrated i thought that if I take you through wilderness I will kill
you by thirst where did you find water you said well I don't need a river to have water if I don't
have a river I'll find me a rock I will find God I will find his name I will find his nature
I will find who he is and worship him amen! the problem also with wilderness is that a lot of people unfortunately they find bitter waters remember when Israel found waters at Maura
it's when you begin to worship the wrong stuff I really believe every person here is
a worshiper the reason why some people have a difficult time worshiping God at church is
because they have a God at home that they worship oh I just don't like the song no
it's just because you're an idolater I can't lift my hands you know why it's nothing to
do with the song it's not because of your personality is so like calm and everything because
that's not how you watch football you're already drinking from water that's
bitter it's because you gave your worship to football, video games, something else you gave your
worship someone else, it's going to poison you it's going to hurt you, and then you come
to church and you're like I can't worship it's not that you can't worship it's a
you're already worshiping someone else my friend every person is worshiping the question
is not if you're worshiping the question to you is who are you worshiping and if you're not
worshiping who, then what you're worshiping and there are people who can't worship on
Sunday God, because they worship their family the worship today we have an American idol
it's called family and I'm going to tell you one thing we canceled our sunday night services
overall in the united states for the sake of family and we cancel Wednesday night prayer
meetings because of family well family nights you mean everyone on different tablets in
different rooms watching different tv-shows and today you look at the family
there are no family dinners no more there is no family no more left because time
you elevate something good to a place of God you will destroy it, it will destroy you, my friend
family is a beautiful thing but it's not supposed to be an idol that means we worship God with
our family we don't worship our family as god we worship God with our spouse we don't make
our spouse into a god we worship because that's called bitter waters of mara they'll
make you sick and they'll make you poisonous it's idol worship yes we might not have a good fat
buddha belly over there that we are worshiping we might not have some kind of a curtain that we are
bowing to but if you are doing exactly the same thing and you can't come to church because you are
worshiping football and because you are worshiping that, my friend I want to tell you something in
the wilderness you're drinking bitter waters and it's time to stop drinking those waters and
come to the living water called Jesus come to the living water called God and begin to give him
pure unadulterated focused worship somebody give God some praise this is not to condemn anybody
but I just want to encourage each one of you for God is looking for such that will worship him
in spirit and in truth god inhabits the praises of his people because God is looking for worshipers
God wants to drink from your water, he is coming to you, and to you, and to you and says do you have something to drink? Can you give me something to drink because I deserve this worship I made you
for this worship and if you give it to me I'll give it back to you if you give it to me you will
be refreshed you will be hydrated, you will have the strength to go on, you will have the strength
to go through, but "lord i cannot worship you because I don't feel like there is anything good
happening in my life" well if there's nothing good happening in my life that means the river's right
up begin to worship God who is good in your life right now and you will see water coming out of the
rock and as you would drink from that water good things will happen you don't worship God because you're good you worship God because he is good. you don't worship God because you're holy, you worship
God because he is holy. When you have nothing, when you have no reason, you still have a cause and
somebody's saying that that's the wilderness We're going to pray in just a moment
the worst part about wilderness for me is the wanting of wilderness, it's when what
God promised for me I can't have it here for example, God promised milk and honey but in the
wilderness there is no milk and there is no honey, there is only manna. God promised
he will use me to multiply bread, but in the wilderness, he doesn't even
let me turn stone into one piece of bread wilderness is a place of wanting, but we should
never let the wanting turn into weariness, weariness turns into whining and
whining turn into wickedness wanting should turn into waiting, waiting
should turn into worship and worship will turn into winning, amen! That's another sermon
for another day, but for now, let's rise to our feet every head bowed and every eye closed if you're here today and you do not know
Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior i would like to give you the opportunity
today to get right with the lord if you're saying whether it's my first time or
i've been coming for some time and i would like to give my life to the Lord today. When I count to
three i'm gonna ask you to just slip up your hand and we're gonna pray today that Jesus will come into your heart. If you're watching us on live stream and you would like to get saved, maybe
you just stumble upon this live stream you can do that as well you can just comment below
and say "I would like to give my life to God" if you would like to give your life to Jesus
when I count to three just raise your hand I'm gonna pray with you one, two, three. Thank you, i
see your hand, thank you I see your hand thank you let's pray I want you to stay with me say, "Lord
Jesus, I'm a sinner please forgive me of all my sin and wash me with your precious blood. I surrender
my whole life to you and from this day forward I promise to follow you all the days of my life
touch me change me and transform me in Jesus name.
