Faith Hope And Love
Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
Scripture reading
Scripture reading
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: Behold, thy King cometh unto thee: He is just, and having salvation; Lowly, and riding upon an ass, And upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, And the horse from Jerusalem, And the battle bow shall be cut off: And he shall speak peace unto the heathen: And his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, And from the river even to the ends of the earth.
11 As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.
12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: Even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;
13 When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, And raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, And made thee as the sword of a mighty man.
Intro
Intro
If I were very much of a singer tonight I would have opened with that song Bishop and Sis. Dunigan used to sing, I’ve Got Hope
So forgive me if you would but I am going to save you from that punishment and instead I am going to just teach you on a simple topic
Faith Hope And Love
12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: Even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;
There are really only two types of people in this world
Not rich and poor.
Not educated and uneducated.
Not Republicans and Democrats.
Firstly there are sinners
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
David Confessed in
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; And in sin did my mother conceive me.
And Paul once again described the struggle that we all face as humans
19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
So born inside each one of us is this human nature
Every one of us entered this world with a fallen nature.
No one has to teach a child to be selfish.
No one has to teach us pride, jealousy, or anger.
It is born into us.
That is the tragedy of humanity.
But there is another kind of person.
Not just sinners…
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
3 And gathered them out of the lands, From the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
4 They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; They found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, And he delivered them out of their distresses.
7 And he led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a city of habitation.
8 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, And for his wonderful works to the children of men!
So There are redeemed sinners.
People who have encountered the grace of God.
People who have discovered faith in Jesus Christ.
People who have become prisoners—not of fear, not of guilt, not of shame—but prisoners of hope.
The moment you become a prisoner of hope, you also make a decision about who your Master is.
Jesus made it very plain.
Matthew 6:24 (KJV)
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
You cannot belong to two kingdoms.
You cannot pursue the values of the world while pursuing the values of the Kingdom of God.
You cannot love the spirit of this age and love the Church of the living God with the same affection.
They are like oil and water.
No matter how hard you stir them together, eventually they separate because they are different by nature.
Now I realize that’s not a popular statement in our culture.
We live in a generation that celebrates inclusivity almost above everything else.
Our world believes that every belief system should blend together, that every lifestyle should be equally affirmed, and that every conviction should eventually give way to compromise.
But hear me carefully.
The Church should absolutely be inclusive in its invitation.
The Gospel is for whosoever will.
Every race.
Every background.
Every social status.
Every broken life.
Every prodigal.
Every addict.
Every sinner is welcome to come to Jesus.
But while the Church is inclusive in its invitation, it cannot be inclusive in its doctrine.
The doors are open to everyone.
The standards of God’s Word are not negotiable for anyone.
Jesus never lowered the standard to welcome people.
He welcomed people so He could raise them to the standard.
The Church has never been called to resemble the world.
The Church has always been called to transform the world.
Because redemption is not God joining our way of life.
Redemption is us surrendering to His.
Once again Zechariah 9:13
12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: Even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;
What theologians agree on this is that the Bible is saying that If you feel the weight of your failures,
don’t look inward
Dont look at all of your short comings
Dont point out all of your mistakes
—look upward.
Look to Jesus Christ.
He is the one who was crucified for your sins and raised again so you could be justified.
Hold on to the hope that is still inside you.
Let that hope grow into faith.
Let your faith bring you to the cross, where the blood of Jesus washes away every sin.
And through His blood, you can come boldly into the presence of God.
But it all begins with hope
Everyone say hope
I have stood at the side of hospital beds.
I have stood with families as they’ve received reports from doctors, and I’ve heard bad news. I’ve sat in the waiting rooms and I’ve consoled them. It is a helpless feeling, knowing that you don’t have the power to change anything.
Jesus Christ has all power.
And if you don’t think you need prayer, the day is going to come when your need for prayer will become so obvious. You need prayer right now, even if everything is going good. But the day will come when there will be no doubt—you need prayer.
I have stood there, and I have been anchored there because I believe.
Now, I have watched God raise people up off of hospital beds. I’ve watched God deliver people. But I have also seen people die in spite of all the prayers we prayed.
And it is in those moments that something inside of me says, “Do not give up. Do not give up.
I don’t want to give up on one soul as long as there’s hope.
Now, there can be a difference.
You can lose hope without losing your faith.
You can say, “I believe,” even though I don’t have much hope in this situation.
And the opposite is also true.
You can have hope without faith.
You can say, “I don’t know if that’s true, but I really, really hope it is.”
So there you see the difference between hope and faith.
And I believe that as long as somebody is breathing, there’s hope.
One writer defined hope as an optimistic expectation that something good is going to happen in the future. It is the anticipation of a favorable outcome.
Hope is built on expectation.
It is looking toward tomorrow with the belief that something better is ahead.
But hope also carries with it a measure of uncertainty.
You want it to happen.
You long for it to happen.
You believe it could happen.
But you don’t yet possess it.
That is why hope is always reaching forward.
Hope says, “I’m not there yet, but I believe there’s something waiting for me.”
That’s why we say:
“I hope my children come back to God.”
“I hope revival comes to our city.”
“I hope this sickness is healed.”
“I hope my family is restored.”
Hope keeps praying.
Hope keeps believing.
Hope refuses to quit.
As long as there is hope, there is still a reason to keep going.
But then comes faith.
Faith is different.
Hope looks toward what might be.
Faith lays hold of what God has promised.
The writer of Hebrews said:
Hebrews 11:1 (KJV)
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Notice the very first word:
“Now.”
Hope points to tomorrow.
Faith begins today.
Faith takes what hope has been longing for and says, “I believe God is doing it right now.”
Faith gives substance to hope.
Faith gives evidence where there is no visible proof.
Faith says,
“I can’t explain it.”
“I can’t prove it.”
“I can’t see it with my eyes.”
“But I know God is at work.”
There comes a moment when hope becomes conviction.
Something shifts.
I felt that shift while we were worshipping tonight.
Did anyone else feel it?
There came a moment when people stopped merely singing words and began connecting with God.
You could sense the Holy Ghost moving through this congregation.
You could feel faith begin to rise.
Some people walked into this service hoping God would move.
But somewhere during worship, hope gave way to faith.
They stopped saying,
“I hope God touches me tonight.”
And something inside them began to say,
“God is touching me right now.”
They stopped saying,
“I hope God answers my prayer someday.”
And faith began declaring,
“My answer is already on the way.”
They stopped saying,
“I hope revival is coming.”
And began believing,
“Revival has already begun.”
That is the difference between hope and faith.
Hope expects.
Faith possesses.
Hope looks ahead.
Faith reaches out and receives.
Hope says, “Maybe God will.”
Faith says, “I know He can, and I believe He is.”
And when hope grows into faith, impossible situations suddenly become opportunities for God to reveal His power.
That is where miracles begin.
Faith
Full Assurance In The Holy Ghost
My friend let me remind you tonight that there is nothing impossible for God
We may look at our situation and see all of the difficulties
All of the loops we are going to have to go through just to make it happen
But there is nothing
Everybody say nothing
There is nothing that is too hard for God
And when we begin to blend our hope with faith
Come on the impossible becomes possible
We began this year on a hot streak baptizing 4 people
But 4 isn’t enough for me to be satisfied
We can’t stop reaching till heaven comes
1 After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
2 Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.
3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
4 For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.
5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
6 When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
7 The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.
8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
9 And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.
10 The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.
11 He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.
12 Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?
The Bible says there was a certain man which had an infirmity 38 years
And when Jesus saw him lie, and knew it had been a long time in that case
It doesn’t take to long for Atrophy to begin to set in to your muscles
You start to lose the strength you once had
And this man we know to have had this disease 38 years so by now there was most likely a physical disfigurment
Jesus turned to him and said will you be made whole?
Notice he didn’t ask him if he could, he said will you
But the part of this scripture that stings me to the core is his response when he said there is no man to to put me in the pool
You listen to this preacher tonight
Acts 2:38 says in order to be saved you must repent be baptized in Jesus name and filled with the holy Ghost
I don’t care if it’s 1 o’clock in the morning and you decide you need to be baptized you give me a call
I begin to think of this story and somebody had to bring him to the pool
Somebody had to lay him on the porch
But when it came time to get in the water he was left there to fend for himself
I believe we are going to see a great move of God, but it’s going to take some men and women not just getting them to the porch, but putting them in the water
Faith is the substance of things hoped for.
Hallelujah!
Because of that, we have a way of tying ourselves to that cause.
Christianity is the most amazing thing you’ve ever seen. We are people who, when we should be laughing, we’re crying. And when we should be crying, we’re laughing. Sometimes we’ll do both within the same few minutes.
We are a different kind of people.
There are people who come to our funerals dressed in black, ready to cry and wail. But when they walk into a service for a saint of God—someone who has been washed in the blood of Jesus and filled with the Holy Ghost—they may feel sorrow around the edges, but if they stay very long, they’re going to find joy in that house.
Why?
Because the Bible says we do not sorrow as others which have no hope.
When I die in Jesus Christ, that’s not the end.
That’s a promotion.
These legs that can’t jump now—they’ll jump on the other side.
These lungs that are failing me—they’ll work perfectly on the other side.
This body that has held me prisoner all these years—I’ve been waiting my whole life to be free from it.
I want to see Jesus.
I plan on seeing Jesus.
Death is not the end.
The Psalmist declared,
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” (Psalm 116:15, KJV)
Brother, that’s why we do what we do.
I praise Him on Sunday night because when I die, I want to die speaking in tongues.
My faith is in God.
My hope is in God.
I’m wrapped up.
I’m tied up.
I’m tangled up in Jesus.
Paul said,
“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ…” (Ephesians 3:1, KJV)
I’ve made myself a prisoner.
We are unlike anybody else in this world.
Think about Paul and Silas.
They were thrown into prison.
Their execution seemed inevitable.
Midnight had come—the darkest hour of the night.
That’s the time most people would cry.
That’s the time most people would complain.
That’s the time most people would plead their case and proclaim their innocence.
But that’s not what they did.
They were prisoners of hope.
They were prisoners unlike any the world had ever seen.
They were prisoners of Jesus Christ.
And when you’re a prisoner of Jesus Christ, you think differently.
I can almost hear Paul saying,
“Brother Silas, this seems like a good time to praise God.”
The world looks at that and thinks you’re crazy.
But I’ll tell you something.
You don’t praise God only when everything is going well.
You don’t praise Him only when you’re standing on the mountaintop.
One of the greatest times to praise God is when your life seems to be falling apart.
Hallelujah!
There are people here tonight whose lives feel like they’re falling apart right now.
That’s a good time to praise God.
Some of you feel like you’re locked up.
You feel tied up.
Praise Him anyway.
The Bible says He opens the prison to those who are bound, and He comforts those who mourn.
Praise Him in the middle of your financial struggle.
Praise Him in the middle of your sickness.
You need a Paul and Silas midnight moment.
You need to say, “This feels like the perfect time to glorify God.”
When your family tells you to backslide—praise Him.
When people think you’ve lost your mind because you’re sold out to Jesus—praise Him.
When bad news comes your way—open your mouth and declare,
“Yes, Lord!”
You don’t just praise Him when everything is going right.
You praise Him at midnight.
You praise Him when the prison door is shut.
You praise Him when you’re bound and you can’t see a way out.
That’s what a prisoner of hope does.
That’s what a prisoner of Jesus Christ does.
We’ve talked tonight about hope.
Hope is what keeps you from quitting.
Hope says, “God isn’t finished yet.”
Hope keeps you praying for your family.
Hope keeps you believing for revival.
Hope keeps you coming back to the house of God one more time.
Then hope grows into faith.
Faith is no longer saying, “Maybe God will.”
Faith says, “I know God can, and I believe God is working even when I can’t see it.”
Faith gives substance to what hope has been reaching for.
But Paul said there is still something greater.
1 Corinthians 13:13 (KJV)
“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”
Why?
Because hope belongs to today.
One day our hope will become reality.
The day we see Jesus face to face, we won’t have to hope anymore.
Faith belongs to today.
One day faith will become sight.
The things we’ve believed for will no longer require faith because we will stand in His presence.
But charity—God’s kind of love—never ends.
Love is the one thing that crosses from this life into eternity.
We will never stop loving Jesus.
We will never stop worshipping Him.
We will never stop rejoicing in His presence.
That’s why Paul said the greatest of these is charity.
Hope gets me through the valley.
Faith keeps me standing in the battle.
But love is what keeps me connected to Jesus.
I don’t serve Him because I’m afraid.
I don’t serve Him just because I want heaven.
I serve Him because I love Him.
Jesus said in John 14:15,
“If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
Love changes everything.
Love makes prayer more than a duty.
Love makes worship more than a routine.
Love makes holiness more than a list of rules.
Love makes obedience a privilege instead of a burden.
When you’re in love with Jesus, nobody has to force you to praise.
Nobody has to beg you to pray.
Nobody has to convince you to be faithful.
Love does what obligation never can.
So let me leave you with this.
Be a prisoner of hope.
Don’t let go of your expectation.
Walk in faith.
Believe God before you ever see the answer.
But above everything else…
Love Him with all your heart.
Because hope will carry you through the night.
Faith will carry you through the storm.
But love will carry you all the way home.
And one day, when hope has become reality…
When faith has become sight…
Love will still be standing.
And we’ll spend eternity loving the One who first loved us.
That’s why Paul said,
“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”
“Hope got me to the altar. Faith kept me through the trial. But love is what’s going to keep me walking with Jesus until I see Him face to face.”
