WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:14.820 I'm coming to you from North Central Ohio, we share with you the voice of the Nazarene, a week by week venture into the Word of God sponsored by the Bucyrus, Ohio Church of the Nazarene, we joined our Pastor Reverend Ray LaSalle, and the voice of the Nazarene. 00:00:17.660 --> 00:00:59.990 We've been on a series about the Holy Spirit. And I'd like to encourage you to be with us next Sunday. Don't miss next Sunday, I want to talk to you about the Holy Spirit and marriage. And how the Scripture ties it all together. It's pretty phenomenal what God has in store to make our marriages work if you're married, and wish you weren't, be sure you're here. And if you're not married, and wish you were be sure that you're here, if you ever been married, you might, you might want to show up. And if you're hoping, well, anyway, just be here, bring a friend, bring some neighbors. 00:00:54.859 --> 00:00:59.990 And let's pack out the house. 00:00:59.990 --> 00:01:32.719 And let's talk about what God has to say about one of the most important things before he ever started the church. God started marriage. And I'm looking to see you next Sunday. David, who became king has been on the run for 15 years hiding out in caves and mountains, out in the wilderness. A lot of espionage and they're watching. They're trying to catch him trying to find him until he lost heart. 00:01:28.040 --> 00:03:58.219 And he lost his way nearly he despaired for his life, and heart gone broken. He screams out on a mountainside, I shall be anointed with fresh oil. It's that 92nd Psalm, verse 10. And no man had been anointed more than King David at all of divine scripture. And yet he's crying out to God anoint me with fresh oil. And I want to talk to you just for a few minutes about a fresh anointing. A lot of different things are mentioned in the Scripture pertaining to the Holy Spirit, I believe trying to give us a composite of the characteristics and the attributes of who the Holy Spirit is to us. Got to understand Abraham lived in the dispensation of God the Father, God was hard to find in that time, and only a few had ever gained an audience with God, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and when men would try to pray they would try to ride the shirttail of one of the few that had ever had an audience with deity. And then the disciples lived during the dispensation of God the Son, reached out and touched him and and knew him and talk with him and listen to him. You and I live in the dispensation of God, the Holy Ghost, and we need to be become acquainted with who the Holy Spirit is. You don't have to just scream at God over yonder you have the Holy Spirit right here beside you, to help you to get through the grind of everyday life. And so the writers portray Christ as has a wind, a mighty wind that blew and God only knows that we need a breeze to blow through the church, a wind coming from Heaven, to touch our hearts. On the day of Pentecost, that was a mighty rushing wind. Jesus told Nicodemus, the wind blows where it listeth and if you're beginning to feel that wind on the gable, end of your soul, Nicodemus, it's a wind of conviction, and you need to respond to the wind, it's the Holy Spirit. He's also portrayed as new wine, he's portrayed as a dove, the dove of heaven that winged his way from the glory realm and made his way from cloud to cloud and from hill to hill and landed on the shoulder of Jesus Christ, at His baptism. 00:03:58.909 --> 00:04:49.129 And then, today, I want to talk to you about oil representing symbolic of the Holy Spirit. Oil was mentioned more than 200 times in Scripture, probably the greatest lubricant is oil. He keeps machinery running for years and running smoothly. Now the viscosity can break down, it can become dirty, the filters can become clogged and David in his prayer said search me O God and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me. In other words, that I'm kind of needing an oil change and change the filters while you're at it and anything that's in the way. 00:04:42.860 --> 00:04:55.759 And so we need oil for the trip and for the journey because of the grind of life. Things run smoother when they're oiled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. 00:04:56.329 --> 00:05:28.430 A second thing about oil olive oil helps in beauty. Some of us need that don't we? To kind of soften the skin and to shine put a shine on our our countenance it'll stop the flaky skin there's a lot of flaky people and situations in life the world's become one great big cereal bowl with it's nuts and flakes and its fruits and some denominations have picked up on that, haven't they? And then oil tends to calm, troubled waters. 00:05:28.790 --> 00:06:00.800 It's been known in the past when a ship was in an awful storm trying to ride out the waves and they were about to lose. The deckhands would come and dump 1000s upon 1000s of barrels of oil on the rough waves and the troubled sea. It'll put a skim on the top of the water and the wind cannot find traction. And so things settle down. And nautical terms, it's called pouring oil on troubled waters. 00:05:55.339 --> 00:06:38.899 Some people have a gift at pouring oil, or in a room full of tension. And God only knows that we need the oil of the Spirit. And then again, oil is mentioned as medicinal for purposes. Those with breast cancer, they're finding now that olive oil reduces the risk of breast cancer, heart disease, a cook using olive oil seems to lower the risk of heart problems, diabetes using olive oil. Again, they're finding it lowers the rate of diabetes, high blood pressure, the same oil is also used for energy. 00:06:39.350 --> 00:08:11.569 Those rockets supply their weight to the pathless blue yonder, those submarines that are moving along the bottom of the ocean. And those great ocean liners that are riding the waves and the cars that move their way through all the concrete highway moving through because of having the oil and the energy biblically, it is used as that anointing. And I believe that the oil here portrays many of the attributes and the ways that the Holy Spirit is to us now begin to study the Bible. And here in First Samuel 16, God told Samuel, I want you to go down and I've got a king down there a Jesse's house. I want you to go down there and anoint him. And so he takes the horn of the apothecary and verse 13. And he anointed him in the midst of his brotheren, and the Spirit of the Lord came up on David, from that day forward, did you catch that? The Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. It was an anointing, then I was amazed to find that over in Second Samuel chapter two, verse seven. And then again in chapter five, verse three, that he was anointed again, and again and again. And there were multiple anointings. God knows that we need fresh anointing, it's not a one and we're done. 00:08:07.790 --> 00:08:23.389 It's not just to one more through there are multiple and fresh unknown, it's needed in the Christian life. Now I'm going to stop just for a moment speaking about Jesus Christ. 00:08:18.649 --> 00:08:36.379 Jesus Christ is not the full name of Jesus. It's not like Ray LaSalle. Jesus is his name. That word Christ is not a last name. 00:08:30.889 --> 00:09:13.610 The word Christ is his title. It means the anointed one. And you need to understand it's the anointed one that wants to give you and I a fresh anointing. You say, Well, Pastor, what is this neurone? Well, look, look at what it says anointing is when the Holy Spirit gives you supernatural stamina, discernment, insight, authority, ability to do what God has chosen you to do. You see, God has a calling for every one of us. There's a calling on everybody's life, pastor your call? Well, here's a thought. 00:09:14.509 --> 00:09:42.710 Your call also ever person's called. Now more vocation comes from the Latin word vocare. And it means to be called. And every person is called when a baby is born. God doesn't suddenly come up with a plan for that baby's life. What's wrong? This is the truth. God has a plan. God had a purpose. And that's why that baby was born. You say, Pastor, Why was I born? Let me answer. 00:09:42.769 --> 00:09:46.909 God had a calling. God had a plan. God had a purpose for you. 00:09:47.389 --> 00:10:09.110 And that's literally why you were born. Jeremiah said it like this speaking for God before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee. He had a plan for you and he said, I sanctified thee and I ordained thee. In other words, I had a plan. And that's why I created you. There are no accidental children. 00:10:10.590 --> 00:11:14.730 That's why I believe in the intrinsic value of human life, no accidental children. There may have been some adults who were immature and had an accident. But there are no accidental children. God has a plan. And here's what you need to understand you cannot fulfill God's plan for your life on your own. You need the power of the Holy Spirit, and the anointing of the spirit. To accomplish that plan, Charles Stanley said, We don't need more full time workers in the church. We need more full time workers in the marketplace for people need to hear. And I'm saying every person has a calling. And you need the power of the Holy Spirit for you and I to fulfill our calling in life. Five quick statements may be quick, but five statements. When God appoints you, he anoint you. He doesn't call the equipt He equips the called. First 00:11:14.730 --> 00:11:38.940 24. Faithfulness either call it the you also will do it when God appoints you he anoints you. Now Major Ed Thomas said I cannot he never said I could he can. And he always said he would. You say Well, Pastor, I don't feel sufficient? Well, you're in a real good place to be. When you don't think you're smart enough. And you don't think you're equipped enough. 00:11:38.940 --> 00:12:24.090 And you don't think you have it all together. That's when you have to lean into God and trust God, and realize you can't perform on your own. It takes the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Because he appoints and when he does, he annoints. And the second thing I want to quickly say God's anointing makes all the difference. The Bible said that Samuel, he came to anoint the first king whose name was Saul. Head and shoulders above all the other men of Israel. He seemed a perfect choice. He was a big boy. And when the Samuel came to him and had a look up to him, he took the vial of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him. 00:12:21.090 --> 00:12:52.440 And he said, is it not because the Lord hath anointed thee to be the captain? Then in verse six, he says, And the Spirit of the Lord will be up on thee, and thou shall be turned into another man, turned into another man. That's what the anointing does. The anointing makes all the difference, it makes it happen. You see, creation is God behind us. And Bethlehem is God with us. Cavalry is God for us. 00:12:52.440 --> 00:12:57.330 But Pentecost is God in us. 00:12:52.440 --> 00:13:15.149 God's anointing makes the difference. I can do all things through Christ, who strengtheneth me. So don't live your life on adrenaline. Live your life on anointing. It makes all the difference. And here's the third thing I'd like to say. 00:13:11.700 --> 00:13:50.789 God's anointing makes the impossible, possible. Matthew 19:26 says, with men this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible. You say, Pastor, I've got an insurmountable problem in my marriage. I've got an insurmountable problem in finances. Or I've got an insurmountable problem with my health. I've got an impossible situation with my in laws. How'd you know that pastor? Well, they told me little humor, very 00:13:50.789 --> 00:14:31.889 20. Now to him that's able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, it's God working in us. It's the anointing working through us. That makes it possible. I pastored for 20 years. But across the grand foyer and through the little narrow hall and to what we now call the Event Center. I came I think the last month of 2000 or rather 1992. I can't even remember the 19 hundred's, can you? Can you remember the 1800s? 00:14:25.950 --> 00:14:53.340 Well, anyway, we arrived to begin to pastor and things begin to happen. And the next thing you know, we made the decision to go to two services on Sunday morning. In the same Worship Center. We didn't have a lot of large parking and if you've ever been in that little circle hallway, I mean, it's a claustrophobic little circle. 00:14:54.090 --> 00:15:42.659 And as soon as we released the first crowd out, the second crowd was trying to come in and they were waiting for parking spots. And it was shoulder to shoulder of people leaving and people coming in that narrow hallway that circled the event center. Then finally, we decided to go to a third service. And I'd release the second service crowd out. And then here would come the Latter Day Saints. And they would press in and it was chest to chest and shoulder to shoulder not that we liked each other, it was just crowded. And by that time, the leadership of the church began to pray and begin to realize we needed we need more space. Now we could have put on the marquee. You know, buildings full go to hell. 00:15:37.649 --> 00:16:03.330 I mean, we could, I had a pastor meet with me or a layman meet with me from another church out of this town. And we met up here at Wendy's. And he said, the preachers trying to get new people to come, I think it's a horrid thing. We paid for the church, the churchs is ours, we hired him, and he needs to shut his mouth and quit talking about new people coming. 00:15:59.519 --> 00:16:06.299 He said, What do you think I said, just go out in the street and tell everybody where to go. 00:16:07.559 --> 00:16:50.190 If you don't want him to go to heaven, you don't want to furnish a doorway for him. Just tell him where to go. He was mad and he left. He didn't like me, nor his pastor. He's the one started the rumor pester us instead of pastor. But we were running three services. And they begin to pray. I didn't say anything. And they talked about building a new sanctuary building a grand foyer. Now, when I came nearly 31 years ago, we live from hand to mouth. I mean, financially, it was month to month trying to make it we would have a board meeting and there was $50 left budgets and weren't paid and income seemed down, what are we going to do? 00:16:46.769 --> 00:16:53.940 Well, just kicked the preachers brains out, that's best thing to do. Probably his fault anyway. 00:16:54.779 --> 00:18:08.369 And so it was rough sliding. And now suddenly we meet together and there's an excitement in the air, and people are talking about growing. And the next thing I know we bring in somebody to raise finances and funds for the building. And nearly a million dollars was pledged they told us now, you will not get 80% of this. Not hardly anybody ever gets 80% of whatever is pledged. So we're just telling you, this is what you have to operate on. But he was wrong. Not only did a million come in, but more than a million was pledged amazing innit. And but one guy donated a house or we could sell it to a farmer gave 20 acres of his wheat and sold it and brought in the proceeds. And people begin to give this way in that way cars and everything else and how God bless. And so they put up that grand foyer yonder second to none. And then if you look at the little sign in the back, it says seating capacity 975. Now I remember walking in here one evening, and I was walking down the aisle and I was saying God, now how am I going to fill this? 00:18:08.369 --> 00:18:12.630 And I heard a whisper behind me. 00:18:08.369 --> 00:18:26.970 I turned around nobody was there. But God seemed to whisper Ray I've I filled up the other building three times, you didn't, I did. And suddenly it dawned on me this is his place. 00:18:22.079 --> 00:18:30.180 It's his responsibility. I'm just a worker in the vineyard. 00:18:26.970 --> 00:18:49.950 We're all just fulfilling our calling it's the anointing of God that makes literally all of the difference. Then here's something else I want to point out God anoints you to help others God wants us to help others with their hurts. And their habits and their hang ups. 00:18:49.950 --> 00:18:58.980 So they're going to come with suitcases full of problems. You need to understand the church is not a museum. 00:19:01.269 --> 00:19:20.230 It's not a mausoleum is not even a monastery. Is that even a gathering for moralists. The church is a place for hurting, helpless, needy people. You want to come talk about hypocrites. 00:19:21.279 --> 00:19:47.109 We're all showing up just because we need help. Not none of us bragging on who we are, we just need all the God we can get. We didn't come because the church needed us. We came here because we needed the church I needed you and you needed me and people have found this to be a place where you can come you can bring your friends nobody's judging. It's not about how much money you've got in your pocket. 00:19:43.420 --> 00:19:58.569 how well your dress. It's not about your gems. It's not about any felonies that you've got on your record. You can come and be transformed and be helped. It's a place for the needy. The Bible said of David in First Samuel 00:19:58.599 --> 00:20:22.509 2, It said in everyone that was in distress, and everyone that was in debt. And everyone that was discontented gather themselves to him made him captain, and they were around 400. The reason we're here is because all of us need God and God to help us. And we're here to help others, and the anointing that's on my life, the anointing that's on your life. 00:20:22.809 --> 00:20:34.450 God is saying, I chose you to help somebody. It was never to exalt us, never to exalt you. 00:20:28.450 --> 00:20:54.759 It's all about him. I was reading in Isaiah this week, chapter 61, verse one, it says, The Spirit of God is upon me. Because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings not to beat people up. 00:20:49.000 --> 00:22:08.319 Not my job to check how many buttons is is on your blouse or your shirt. Not my job to check how high your high heel is or how wide it is or what color they are. I'm here to preach the good tidings, he said, to the meek, he sent me to bind up the broken heart and not break the hearts. For claim liberty, not put people in bondage open, the opening of prison to them that are bound. You see, it was the year of Jubilee was a year of new beginnings, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all that mourn, and on and on he goes, gives them the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. And then, Isaiah closes the book. And the mortician closes the lid on his casket and time rolls on. And one day Jesus Christ stepped away from heaven and into our world and put on shoe leather, put on skin begin to walk among us. And then he had a sermon to preach. Listen to his message, the first sermon that he ever preached. Pastor, What was Jesus first message? Right there in the book of Luke chapter four. 00:22:08.980 --> 00:22:28.539 Here's his first message. And by the way, verse 14 said, and Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit, if he needed the power of the Spirit, and the anointing of the Spirit, you and I need the death of heaven upon us, as well. Listen to his message, verse 18, if you catch it now, here's a great repeat. 00:22:28.990 --> 00:22:37.119 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he pointed and anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor, don't run them off. 00:22:37.720 --> 00:22:42.819 Send me to heal broken hearted. 00:22:37.720 --> 00:23:38.019 And people are hurting. And boy they don't need any meanness from the church, preach deliverance to the captives, the recovering of sight to the blind, to set it to liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And after that in verse 20, and he closed the book, he gave it to the minister and he sat down, closed the book and sat down, and the eyes of all the people in the synagogue, were upon him, watch this. He closed the book is that's down the eyes of everybody's on him. And then in verse 21, catch it. He said, This day is a scripture fulfilled in your ears. This very day, this fulfilled in other words, if you're here and you're needing deliverance, he said, I'm here. If you're broken, and you need mendon, a, I'm right here. It's fulfilled. 00:23:33.220 --> 00:23:38.019 I've arrived. I'm here for you. 00:23:38.019 --> 00:23:49.000 I've got a message for you. And it's a message of hope. If you feel like you're in bondage, and you don't know how to break free. Hey, I'm right here to break the bondage and the yoke. 00:23:49.000 --> 00:23:53.140 I'm the answer for everything. 00:23:49.000 --> 00:23:56.769 Now I'll close with this final point. We need fresh anointing. 00:23:53.170 --> 00:24:09.279 And I love that scripture. I shall be anointed with fresh oil. Do you know today's problems can't be solved with yesterday's anointing. Do you ever look at the Lord's Prayer? 00:24:05.230 --> 00:24:21.609 Give us this day our monthly bread didn't work that way does it? Babe Ruth said you can't win today's game with yesterday's homeruns. Need fresh anointing? 00:24:22.299 --> 00:24:49.839 I don't know what always happens. Maybe in the grind of life somehow we use up the oil maybe it evaporates. Maybe we leak because of pride getting in or unforgiveness getting in. I know what God is saying to me let things go. Just let the past be the past. Give it up, get over it. Live in the spirit of forgiveness. You say Pastor, how can I get more of God Hosea 00:24:49.839 --> 00:24:54.339 12 said, Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; 00:24:54.970 --> 00:25:02.559 for it's time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness. 00:24:57.609 --> 00:25:44.619 upon you. Well, how do you go about sowing and reaping? Well, if you want more of God, the starting place is prayer. That's a good place to start. Is it not? And then break up the fallow ground, what does that mean? Means loosen up the soil, it gets hardened. Do you know that our hearts, the human heart has a propensity to become hard and brittle. We get bruised a little bit, and we back off and we experienced some things. And if we're not careful, we become a little negative. Pessimist is just simply an optimist, it's optimist with a lot of experience. Am I going too fast? 00:25:46.900 --> 00:26:27.730 Sow some humility in your heart, that'll loosen up the soil that'll soften your heart. You know, if the ground is real hard, I can tell you what will soften the soil I've been in ministry for a number of years, I've just stood back and watched. I don't prophesy anything I just watch. The thing that will soften up the soil when it's hard, is a storm. And that lightning bolt flashes out of the heavens, and theres a rumble, and suddenly the clouds drop it's rain and the ground begins to soften. God can allow a storm to come into your home. 00:26:29.410 --> 00:26:38.140 God can get your attention. He allowed the storm he hurled a storm into the sea after Jonah. 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:50.319 Jonah didn't want anybody telling him where to go or what to do. But a storm came. Don't let it be a broken marriage. 00:26:44.529 --> 00:27:22.630 Don't let it be a death. Then he said we seek God. We start by praying. And of course we sow humility, but we seek the Lord, you say, Well, I want more God, let me ask you a question. What are you seeking? How are you seeking? How much are you seeking? Second Kings chapter four, verses three through seven is the story of a little widow woman. Her husband had died. She has no way to pay the creditors. 00:27:22.990 --> 00:28:39.670 And they're coming for their debt. And they're saying we're taking your sons, we're gonna put them in slave hood. And we're gonna make them work to pay off your husband's debt. And she rushes to her pasture and says to the Prophet, what shall I do. And the old prophet looked at her and, he said, what I would ask you to do is go and find you some vessels, borrow all the vessels you can get. I don't care if you have to go to the neighbor's, but get vessels many, not a few. And when you come back, close the door, and take that little vial of oil and begin to pour it in those vessels. And so she began to pour and the boys would line up another vessel and she'd pouring in and just kept flowing. She never ran out of oil. She ran out of vessels. And I'm telling you, the Holy Spirit's here for all of us. There's enough Holy Spirit to not only fill us, but if we'd go out and find all the empty vessels, people that are desperately in need, and they need God, we'd bring him in God would fill them to overflowing and it would flow on and on and on. When I went for coffee, I didn't say give me some coffee. 00:28:39.730 --> 00:28:51.250 You know what a vessel is, is a container. I said, I want a cup of coffee. If it just give me coffee, it burned me hit a burned my hand to burn my face. 00:28:47.650 --> 00:28:55.990 I didn't know I want to cup a container or you hear a vessel. 00:28:51.250 --> 00:29:14.859 When I go to the grocery store, I don't say I want a bunch of groceries. And they handed them I'm dropping them all over the place. I've got a sack, I got a bag. It's a vessel it's a container, would you fill up the container. And that's what we do. When we come into its service like this this morning. 00:29:10.150 --> 00:29:47.440 We're saying God, I'm empty, but I'll furnish the vessel, I'll be the vessel and if you fill me up, if you'll control my life, I'll give you the vessel just fill the vessel. Don't borrow just a few. And I want to tell you across all Crawford counting on beyond our empty vessels. If somebody would bring them in and load them up in their car and get him into the house of God, there's enough Holy Spirit in this building to fill every empty vessel and change the world in which we live. 00:29:47.650 --> 00:29:58.900 Thanks for being a part of the voice of the Nazarene. Visit us every Sunday at 9am with BNC's pastor Ray LaSalle. For more information regarding BNC visit Bucyrus nazarene.org.