The Power of an Open Mouth

Introduction

Background

God has commissioned Joshua to do a job which was to lead the children of Israel into the promise land. Before they could get to Jericho they had to deal with Jordan…. Before they could get to Jericho, the first stop on their conquest of the Land of Canaan, which was the land that was promised by God to Abraham, they had to go THROUGH the Jordan River… Before they could get to their destination, they had to go through something.

Beloved of God, how can we ever expect to get the the place of God’s will for our lives, and not expect to go through something to get there. Any time you are on course to the thing or place that God has destined for you, you must prepare yourself to go through something. Child of God, going through something is a very peculiar thing because going through doesn’t always feel good or look good, but when you’re a child of God going through is made possible because God is with you. When you consider the background of the text, God commands Joshua to tell the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant to go ahead in front of the Children of Israel, and he tells them, “when you step in Jordan the waters are going to part and Priests I need you to stay still, don’t move, until the children of Israel has crossed over… Now you have got to realize something. The Ark of the Covenant was a wooden chest overlaid with gold that contained the tablets of the law. The Israelites believed the Ark of the Covenant was symbolically God’s Throne- literally representing God’s very presence in the Earth… In other words, God was present in the waters of Jordan while the children of Israel was going through the Jordan River. Child of God, I want to encourage you and tell you that God is present while you going through what you are going through right now. Whether you're going through in your health, going through in your family, going through in your finances, whatever you’re going through, God is present, He was there before you even got in it. And he’ll be there all they way till you come out. Do me a favor for the first time and tell your neighbor, just go through.

The Children of Israel comes out of the river and Joshua tells 12 men to take a stone out of the river as they are passing over. Why Joshua do we have to take stones out of the river as they pass over, Joshua says that these stones shall be as a memorial forever. In other words, he says that the stones that was brought out of the river would be a testimony of how God brought them safely through.

Child of God, I know that it’s not popular, we have gotten fancy. We have praise teams and praise and worship. That’s all well and good, but I remember the time when we used to have testifying service, we used to be able to tell of the goodness of the Lord. We could tell how God delivered us from cancer, how God brought us through dangers seen and unseen. We used to be able to tell of how God saved us and delivered us from the jaws of sin. I wish we could go back to it sometime, but Saints of God, you don’t need a special moment to tell of the goodness of God. The scripture says that Joshua tells them that the stone would be for their children when they asked what the stones mean. They could let them know that the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; and theses stones shall be for a memorial. You don’t need a special moment to tell of the goodness of the Lord, when you with your family, sitting at the dinner table, when you’re at the job, when you’re on the phone with your gossip buddy, go ahead and tell them about your stone, tell them of the goodness of the Lord. Go ahead and talk to you neighbor the second time and tell them, “neighbor, I don’t have time to tell you my whole testimony, but I just want you to know, God has been good to me.”

The come out of the River and the bible says they make camp at Gilgal. When they made camp at Gilgal, the bible tells us that God commands Joshua, to circumcise the children of Israel. He does this because those individuals that was born in Egypt was circumcised but those that born in the wilderness was not circumcised. I need the Children of Israel to be circumcised. I don’t have to get into the technical terminology of what circumcision is, we pretty much know it, but what I will say is that it is that circumcision was a covenant to God in which you had to cut some stuff off in order to please God.

Child of God, may I submit to you that if we are going to fully please God in our Discipleship, we must cut some stuff off. You got to understand these were not boys, these were men they should have been cut by now, but the didn’t so now they must cut before they can enter into Jericho. Well, Pastor, wouldn’t that mean it would hurt. These were grown men being circumcised, YES IT HURT. But think about your life, how many of you have something that you should had cut off a while ago. You know you should have dropped that negro a long time ago, now you have kids with him, he done met you family, he sitting at your house eating all your food, you should have let him go a LONG TIME AGO. Sure enough, it will hurt but as the old saying goes, “better late, than never.” We have to cut somethings off in our lives if we are going to make this journey with the Lord. The fact of the matter is somethings just can’t go where God is trying to take you. You can’t go anywhere holding grudges, unforgiveness, malice, hatred, lust, and pride among other things. You still mad about what happened in the past, GET UP, GET OVER IT, AND MOVE ON!!! Talk to your neighbor for the third time and tell them, CUT IT OFF!!! Now we find ourselves at our text. Joshua and the Children of Israel have made camp outside of Jericho.

Body

Move #1: We have to follow God’s strategic plan

God have given instruction to Joshua and the children of Israel. He tells Joshua that seven priests would carry a trumpet, then the ark of the covenant will follow, followed by the children of Israel. The armed guard would lead, and the seven priest would blow the trumpet. Sure enough the battle strategy must had seemed strange and ridiculous to the inhabitants of Jericho but Israel was to learn from the outset that the campaign for Canaan would be successful only if it is fought at the direction of God. Saints of God, we must understand that if we are going to have what we want to have, possess what we want to possess, shift into the place that we want to shift into, we will have to do it in God’s will and in his way. The fact of the matter is if we knew what was best for us, we wouldn’t need Jesus. We wouldn’t need the Holy Ghost if we knew how to take care of ourselves. I know you are a go-getter, a hustler, a entrepreneur, but if you don’t follow God’s plan you will not find good success. Remember from last week, that is what God tell Joshua when he commissioned him to lead the children of Israel, as long as you are following my plan, and my direction you will prosper and find good success. Proverbs 3:5–6 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he shall direct thy paths.” Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” You have to follow God’s strategic plan for you life, if you are going to see walls fall down in your life. This includes moments when we don’t even understand what God is doing in our lives. If you haven’t been there, just keep on living. You’ll reach a moment in life, where you don’t know what God is doing and you are just trying to hold on the best that you can. Can anyone really give the purpose of telling the Children of Israel to do it that way, I can’t. But what I can say is I’m reminded of what God tells Isaiah in Isaiah 55:8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, Neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.” When we can’t trace God, we still must trust him he has a plan in motion, he knows what end. He tells Isaiah in Isaiah 46:9–10 “For I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times the things that are not yet done, Saying, My counsel shall stand, And I will do all my pleasure:” God is saying that he knows the end from the beginning and he will do what he wants to do and can’t nobody stop him. When you follow through on God’s plans, I don’t care who and what gets in the way, God will cause things to happen in your favor. Tell somebody, God is about to make something happen for me. And that is because you stayed with God’s strategic plan.

Move #2: Move in Silence

Joshua lines them up and tells them to walk around the wall. He tells the guards to line up first, then the trumpet blowing priest, then the ark of the covenant and then the people of God. But there is a specific instruction that he tells them to do. Joshua has told them that God is going to give them the city, BUT when we start marching around the wall, I DON’T WANT YOU TO SAY ANYTHING. Do not make a solitary sound, I just need you to be quite and walk. Somebody missed this. He tells them the city is going to be stop one on our conquest of the Land of promise, but don’t say a word until. I tell you somebody else missed it!!! He says to the Children of Israel I need you to move in silence.

Child of God, can I submit to you that one of our problem is that we speak too quickly? We are so eager in life, naturally and spiritually. It’s just human nature to want to say something, but God says to you today, you have to learn to move in silence. Everybody can’t know what God is doing in your life, right now. Somethings God wants to do in private and show you off in public. Don’t you know that it is not wise to talk too much. Proverbs 10:19 “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: But he that refraineth his lips is wise.” Proverbs 21:23 “Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.” Proverbs 13:3 “He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: But he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.” You can not talk about everything. Some of us need to go through a silent season. Saints, that scriptural, because Ecclesiastes 3:1, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” and verse 7b (Ecclesiastes 3:7) “A time to keep silence, and a time to speak;” . I think we get it mixed up, we talk when we should be quiet, and we are quiet when we should say something. A lot of us wonder what God is doing in our lives, but can God trust you to keep quiet, even when you want to say something? Can God trust you to hold your peace, when you want to open your mouth? The truth is the reason God hasn’t shown some of us the direction that we are headed in, is because he can’t trust us to not tell the whole world. Don’t you realize God moves in silence sometimes. Tell somebody move in silence. You wouldn’t have to worry about everybody downing your dreams or goals, if you wouldn’t tell everybody your dreams and goals. I believe some of us need to receive the Spirit of HUSH!!! Tell somebody hush.

Move #3: It’s time to Shout (Make some noise)

They begins to march around the wall. Day 1, they marched, didn’t say anything, and go back home. day 2 they marched and went back home..... Day 7 seven they march around the wall the first time.... And when they marched around the wall the seventh time, Joshua tell the Children of Israel, SHOUT! For the Lord have given you the city. You have to realize that the wall of Jericho was supposed to be impenetrable it was supposed to be able to withstand any attack from intruders. But the moment the Children of Israel opened their mouths and shouted something happened. The impenetrable became penetrable, the impossible became possible, just because they opened their mouths. What a minute...... I need you all to see this, they marched around the wall 7 days, and on the 7th day they marched 7 times, Now I am sure most of us know by now the 7 is the number of completion. This means that they couldn’t shout until they had completed what was told to them. The time for being quiet was complete, the time for being quiet was over, NOW WAS THE TIME TO MAKE SOME NOISE. I came by here to 716 Lisbon Street, Clinton, NC, 28328 to Union Grove Church of Christ, Disciples of Christ, to tell everybody that the time for being quiet is over. The time for holding it in is over, it’s time to shout. You can be cute if you want to, you can be pompous and pious if you want to, go ahead on and sit there with your dignified self. But I need some walls to come down in my life. and the Power is in my open mouth. I just got to shout now. There’s power in your mouth, I know you say pastor, I ain’t never done it, but I got a Word from the Lord, if you want to get something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. Find somebody near you and tell them there’s power in an Open Mouth. It’s time to shout!!! Let me help you.

Psalm 5:11 “But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: Let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.”

Psalm 32:11 “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: And shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.”

Psalm 35:27 “Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: Yea, let them say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, Which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.”

Psalm 47:1 “O clap your hands, all ye people; Shout unto God with the voice of triumph.”

Isaiah 12:6 “Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: For great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.”

Conclusion

I got to close but maybe, You need another witness,

I’m reminded of Paul and Silas in prison. They were chained and locked up, they were being held, but they said let’s open our mouths, someone prayed and someone sang, they opened their mouths and in that moment, the bible said that at Midnight, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praised to God. I don’t know who did what, but what I know is that they opened their mouths and when they opened their mouths something happened. The walls of the Prison fell down flat. I’m just trying to tell you that there’s power in an open mouth. Maybe you need one more witness.

Come here Blind man, by the name of Bartimaeus. He was blind and could not see. But he heard that Jesus was passing by. and the Bible says, that he shouted with a loud voice, Jesus, thy son of David, have mercy on me, he won’t worried about being cute, he wasn’t worried about getting on someone’s nerve because when they told him to be quiet the bible says he got louder. He shouted till Jesus stopped in his tracks and said who is that calling me, bring him to me. Jesus asked him what can I do for you, Bartimaeus said, that I may receive my sight. Jesus healed him, but it was all because Bartimaeus, opened his mouth.

I don’t know who needs to hear this but there’s power in your open mouth. I don’t know what your wall is, I don’t know what your dilemma is. It may be in your family, it maybe in your job, it may be in your marriage, it may be in your relationships, but I’ve come this way to tell somebody, the wall can come down. I know you don’t see how, but it can come down, all you have to do is open your mouth. Who cares what folk think, who cares how folk feel about it, they can’t give you what you need. I’ve been quiet long enough, I been cute long enough, I’ve tried everything else. NOW!!! It’s time to OPEN MY MOUTH AND SHOUT!!! If someone have to move, let them, but don’t hold your peace, because once you shout, watch things change, once your open your mouth, watch things turn around, once your open your mouth, watch things get better. WHY??? Because there is power in an open mouth. Don’t you know that the bible says, life and death is in your mouth.

Good afternoon everybody! May the Lord God bless you real good, but whatever you do!!! Don’t let nothing shut you up, Open your mouth and say something!!! There’s power in an open mouth.