"What Things?" By Brother Parrish Lee April 16th,
2017
Amen; you may be seated. What a beautiful day to come and worship Almighty God! Oh, the sun is out. It seems like winter is finally gone for good, but you never know. And so many wonderful smiling faces; people having the joy of the Lord on them. And, I do have to say something, I do have to say something: All of you young people that participated in the video, and it didn't go exactly like you planned, I have to tell you, that's something you're going to have to get used to. Whenever you go to do something for God, there's going to be some opposition. Whenever you go to do something for God, you have made yourself an enemy, but, I want to give you the promise that the Lord gave to us: That He is not unrighteous to forget your work and your labor of love which you show toward Him and the Saints (Hebrews 6:10). That's a promise. Just a little excited, this morning. So many things have happened. So many other people are excited. It's wonderful. Isn't it wonderful? I mean, I know how I feel about he Lord, you know, but, isn't it wonderful to know that you're not alone? Isn't it wonderful to know that you can turn your ear, and you can hear other people having that same joy of the Lord that you have? It's just something to say, “Amen, thank You, Lord.” Thank You, Lord. Well, as I get into the message, today, it's amazing how many people were able to preach the message to me before I was able to walk up to the pulpit. Beautiful songs, this morning, lifting up the Name of the Savior. And, if you ever think, “Well, I think they need to get his key a little bit better, a little bit quicker, I'll tell you the truth: God ain't concerned about that. He doesn't look as a man looks. According to the Bible, it says a man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). So, going into our message, today, it is simply titled, “What Things?” If we could have Brother Kenny Avellino, if he would come, and we're going to have him read from the Book of Luke chapter twenty-four, verses fourteen through twenty-one.
Luke 24:14-21 And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.
Thank you, Brother Kenny. If we could bow our heads for just a second: Almighty God, who is liken unto You? Who, God, scatters away evil with His eyes, and who loves us like You love us? Lord, we come before You, and we just say, “Thank You.” Before our very next breath, we just say, “Thank You, God, for all the kindness, all the goodness, all the grace, and the mercy that You have bestowed upon us.” We thank You, Almighty Lord. God, we thank You for two-thousand years ago, when You went to Calvary's mountain, and You hung there, and You died, and You shed blood for us, and then proved Your love by rising again. We thank You, Lord, that You are with us every day, as we go through whatever we go through. As we go to whatever we go to, You are there with us. Thank You for that, Lord. And thank You, Lord, for giving us a hope and a peace which passes all understanding. We thank You for the opportunity to worship Your name, and that You have allowed us to know Your name, and to speak it unto You in praise and worship. And we ask, Almighty God, that, as You have blessed already, us, in our lives, we ask that You add Your anointing to Your Word, that it would do exactly as You said, not to return unto You void, but to surely accomplish that to which You sent it. And, this we do, as we come and present ourselves to You, this we claim, in Jesus' name, and everyone said, amen. Amen. Happy Easter, everyone. Our theme for the month, from the Book of First Corinthians, chapter fifteen and verse number twenty:
1 Corinthians 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
Now is Christ risen from the dead, and we've talked about that this month, and it's actually something that we talk about all our lives. All our Christian lives, we put ourselves in remembrance that He is become the firstfruits of all those that slept. He paved the way for us. And, as Brother Kenny, he just read from the Book of Luke, chapter twenty-four, we see that there was a journey happening, and there was a few disciples, they were going on their way, and the Lord met them while they were on their way. And, what they said in verse number twenty-one, “But we trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.” Luke doesn't tell us exactly—he says Cleopas—but he doesn't tell us the names of all the disciples that were there at this time, as they were on their journey, but, you know what? He really doesn't have to tell us the names of all of them that there were. Because, you see, it's really similar, and all disciples face some things in the Lord. In fact, when we face things in the Lord, we get to that place—well, while we're waiting on Him, sometimes we forget that He's actually there already, walking with us, being with us, comforting us, and making sure things don't get any worse than what they are. It's easy to forget that. But, as it says in verse number fifteen: “And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.” They communed, and they reasoned, themselves, and you can imagine what they had to commune and reason together. One would say, “Oh, all the wonderful things that the Lord did when He was here with us.” And he said, “Well, you know what? I remember, I remember when that guy was sick, and his friends, they tore up the roof! They tore the roof up off the place, just to lower the guy down that was sick of the palsy. And, do you remember what the Lord did?” “yeah, I remember, I remember.” “The Lord, He looked at them, and He saw their faith, and He said to the sick, who had palsy, couldn't walk, 'Arise! Take up thy bed and walk.'” (Mark 2:1-12) And I can imagine the other disciple saying, “Yeah, that was a pretty special time, but I also remember when the Lord—we were walking down the road, there was a whole big multitude, but there was this blind man, over on the side of the road, and, as he called out to the Lord, I remember that the Lord, He stopped everything, and He walked over to the blind man, and asked him, what would you have for Me to do?” And the blind man said, “That I might receive my sight.” And He said, “Be it unto you, according to your faith.” And the Lord healed blindness! Not just somebody who couldn't walk, but somebody who never saw before! He healed blindness!” And I can imagine a disciple saying, “Yeah, you know, that's pretty special,” and it doesn't really matter whether it was the disciples back then, or the disciples now. We do the same thing. When we are faced with something, we tend to remember the things that the Lord had done for us. And we claim those things, knowing, for a fact, that, if He did it before, He can do it again. And, I can imagine that the disciples, as they went back and forth, and communing, and reasoning, that the other would say, “But, you know, I remember something even bigger than healing blindness: I remember when we were in the boat—don't you remember that time? We were in the boat, and there was that storm going on. Man, we thought the boat was going to sink. Remember? And the Lord was sleeping? We went over there and woke Him up.” “Yeah, and I remember, He asked us, 'Oh ye of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?' and He walked up, and He spoke to the storm, and the storm obeyed Him! That man controls the weather!” “Yeah, that's kind of hard to top, anybody that controls the natural forces. But I can talk about another one that was very precious. Do you remember that time when we walked over to that place, and there was all those people crying, and they were crying because that man's daughter, she was sick, and they told us she died. And the Lord said, 'She isn't really dead, she's asleep,' and we walked over there and He put everybody out that didn't believe, put them all out, and then He said, 'Young maid, arise,' and she woke up! And, then, remember, we kept going, and we saw a funeral procession. The only child, the only son, of this mom, who was a widow. Remember? They were on their way to bury him. And He went over to them, stand still, touched it, said, 'Arise,' and the young man rose up. Oh, and then, that other one, the other one he rose from the dead. You know, Lazarus. Something different about that one, though, because, remember, he knew that he was sick, but the Lord said that that death wasn't going to be eternal? Remember He told us that? And, when we got there, remember the stone was there, and everybody was crying. Remember? And He told them, 'Roll the stone away.' I know I remember. But He said something different to Lazarus. He said something different to him than what He said to the maid and to the young man. To Lazarus, He didn't tell Lazarus to rise; He told Lazarus to come forth. I always kind of wondered about that.” I can imagine the other disciple saying, “Well, I suppose He didn't really know the maid. And, He didn't really know that young man they were taking to bury, and He was delivering them, back to their houses. But, Lazarus, He loved Lazarus, so, I suppose the things that the Lord loves, are the things that He calls to come to Him.” And I can imagine the other disciple saying, “Yeah, that kind of makes sense.” What things? These things.
Luke 24:22-24 Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre; And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not.
So, they're saying that, “Yeah, these things.” They said, “We got there, and there was angels talking to us, and they said, 'He's alive. He's alive!' And we had to run and tell the disciples. 'Hey! The angels told us that He has resurrected!'” What things? These things. A little bit of a different account; same message.
Matthew 27:50-54 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
What things? Oh, yes, the earthquake happening. What things? Oh, yes, the rocks happening. What things? If we were to look in the other account, is says that the whole world went dark. What things? These things, and, truly he says, “Truly this was the Son of God. All of nature and creation itself bears witness. This must have been the Son of God.” And, I can imagine, as the graves were opened, and the bodies of the Saints, the Bible says, those whom the Lord raises, the bodies of the Saints, they went into, the Bible says, the holy city, they went and testified to them who wait on the Lord. And as they went in there, the Bible says, great fear fell on them all. I can imagine, I can imagine what they must have thought. The Romans, they must have thought, “Yeah, we finally crucified that guy, and got Him out of our hair. Now, now, maybe the Jews will quiet down.” And, I can imagine, I can imagine the Pharisees saying, “Finally, we done shut Him up! We delivered Him over to the Romans; they crucified Him; it's done! And we don't get no blame for it.” And, I can imagine what the disciples must have said, “Ohhhhhhh, nooooooooo! They crucified Him! He's, He's, He's dead! What do we do now? No more walking with us. No more miracles. No more power that comes down, and comes into our life! Now, what do we do?” And, I can imagine even the common people, what many of them must have thought: “Oh, darn! No more fishes and loaves. No more great entertainment by all His wonderful miracles. No more comfort; when He just speaks to us, we feel good. Aw, okay, that One's gone. Hey, what else is new?” I can imagine. But, He alone knew that He alone could lay down His life, and He alone could take it up again. And then, and then, He rose. And, when He rose, you know what they must have thought. The Romans, the ones who crucified Him, they must have thought, “Oh, there's some commotion going on in this little sector of the Jews. That little sector, where we were having problems, there's a commotion going on! I wonder what that's all about?” And the Pharisees must have thought, “Hey! These disciples of His ain't as scared as they were a few days ago. And, I know He died, but, according the guards that we sent out, it ain't that way no more! I wonder what's coming our way, next?” And the disciples thought, they had to think, “We saw Him! We saw Him, but this Lord is taking us to a place we ain't never been before. This is a part of faith we ain't never had to experience before. This goes past all of our known faculties. How is a man, how is it that He would die, rise again, and then come and be with us?” And, you know what His followers must have thought, “We saw Him, too, but, it's not the same. He's not going out trying to prove Himself to everybody any more. It's as if, it's as if He's commissioning us to do His will now. It's as if, that He's empowering us to listen to Him, and go out and follow Him and do what He says to do.
Luke 24:25-31 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.
What things? The women who went to go to the cemetery, they went to anoint His body, you know what she thought. She thought, “I went there just to anoint Him, and I thought that was the gardener, but He called me by name!” And, another disciple would have said, “I wouldn't have believed it, at all, but, when I saw Him, He said, 'Put your hand in My side. Put your fingers through the hole in my hand. Yeah, this man who was crucified and died, lives forever, and He bears the marks of love that He had towards me.” And another disciple had to share, “You know, we were in a room, and it was all locked, and, believe me, I know how not to let nobody in when I don't want them coming in. It was locked, and sealed up, and there He was, appearing in the midst. It's as if, when I want to keep Him out, He comes to me anyway.” What things? These things. And, if you will, somebody alluded to it a little while ago—Arman alluded to it, just a few days ago, we had a Good Friday service, and, after the service, we had a service. And, there they were: The believers and the worshippers in this little altar—they made it an altar. They made it into an altar of worship. And there they went and sang and praised, over an hour and a half, talking about the goodness of the Lord. And, if you will, just a couple of days ago, I was just sitting down at a meal with a few brothers, and they began to tell me, “Hey, you ever read in the Bible where it says, 'What things?'” And I was like, “Lord, You laid the same message on other people?” And the Lord let me know: “Of course; this is My message. This is not your message. I'm telling people these things.” And, then, even today, early in the morning—it might have been early in the morning when she went to the sepulcher—but it was early in the morning when one of the brothers shared, “How must it have been, halfway in the middle of the night, these women come banging on the door, saying, 'Get up, get up, get up! He's not there any more! The stone's been rolled away, and there was angels, and they told me He's risen!!'” That brother was sharing with me, I got a little happy about it! And then, another brother shared with me—I don't know, people just like sharing about the goodness of God—he just shared with me, “Hey, I only got one thing to say, 'I know that my redeemer liveth!' 'I know that my redeemer liveth!'” What things? These things.
Luke 24:5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, [the angels, speaking to the women] Why seek ye the living among the dead?
Why seek ye the living among the dead? We Saints, we Saints hear that same message: Why do we seek the living among the dead—in other words, don't bring negativity, and things of death, to the Lord, for He is a Lord of the living, not of the dead. When we come to the Lord, we must come expecting Him to answer, expecting Him to pour forth that which He said in His Word, “I am come to bring life, and that you might have it more abundantly.” What things? These things.
Revelation 21:3-5 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
What things? Our things. Our things. Every time He saves us, every time He delivers us, every time He comforts us, and all the times that He loves us. What things? His things that He gave to us to be our things. Amen. Give the Lord a praise.
|
|
|
|
