Whereas a stranger noise God bless you, wherever you are this evening. God bless you in the mighty name of Jesus. Good evening, and welcome. God bless you and strength in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. What is your day been like today? I hope you're well, I hope work hasn't been too pressurized. And I hope you're at home and you're comfortable. And you're just sitting back and you're just resting. May God bless you. And let's praise the Lord, as we go through the Scripture tonight. Thank you so much, and just waiting for people just to hop on the different social that we're on. But wherever you are, at this moment in time, may God bless you and strength for you. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, I pray your day has been well, it is 734 here within the UK. And we are just waiting for a few people just to drop on. People are saying Good evening, and wherever you are across this earth tonight, I pray that you will just grab yourself a bible we are living in very unusual times, very, very powerful times. We're seeing governments switching around we're seeing money markets crashing, we're seeing systems and the economy and just every area of life just just stretch beyond human understanding. But if you're, if you're with me tonight, and if you're staying with us, we're going to turn into the Old Testament. In a few moments, we'll turn into the Old Testament. And I'll give you that scripture written in a few moments. But we just want to welcome everybody as they're just jumping online, we give it a couple of moments. And as we just get all the hellos and goodbyes and good evenings and the good mornings. And how are you out the way as we just turned into the Scripture? I thank God for your life. I pray that you will find rest for your innermost being across this earth. Now, how do I put this let's let's get this out of the way first, let's just take it easy this evening. So all those that are joining us tonight, on Buzzsprout, Spotify, I Heart Radio, I can see everybody there. Thank you. God bless you tonight in the name of Jesus and Amazon music. Alexa, wherever you are at this hour in time, I pray for everybody that just jumps on and off of YouTube. And what is it here, there and everywhere. I pray that you will find complete rest for your innermost being. But as I said, and we were just waiting now we're just we're just pressing Yeah. Good evening. Good evening. Good evening, God bless you. And may God strengthen you, I'm sorry that I can't answer all these messages that come through, it's just me here. And I'm just working everything off that laptop. So I can't, I can't do what I can normally do when it's coffee and prayer in the mornings when the other guys are here. So I can't actually get to the messages that come through. But God is with you, and talk to one another on the socials. But if you are living within the UK, if you're in the, in the UK, at this moment, you're probably feeling very, very strange about life, you're probably looking at life and what you've looked at for many years, what we saw now I'm going back just before before COVID kicked in. Now the church before COVID was preaching it, and it well and the church now, after COVID is still trying to preach the same message before COVID. What really should have happened quite a number of years ago, the church and whatever way you look at IT administrators should have been following the signs and the signals that are in the world. And that have always been in the wild and use them as markers to preach and to teach and to deliver messages, according to the signs in the framework and the heavens above, on the earth beneath and what is happening in the political, political or areas of life. The finance markets, the social areas, and what is happening through just humanity. But what we have found, and the reason I'm speaking on SEO we are hopefully it'll drop into your heart and your mind in a few moments. The reason that there seems to be so much stress, and why I say stress and worry, if you are a believer, I would probably put a wager on it. I'll put it like that there are many of us really stressed and worried at just life itself. The pressures of life, living life, trying to get through. And the reason this has happened is not because we are weak in our faith, not because we don't believe it is generations go back a number of years. If you look at the preaching and the teaching, coming up coming up the timeline that we have today, what we have found over the last few years pre COVID before COVID There was messages out there of good success motivational messages. We've had messages of where your business is going to thrive you'll be a millionaire. So in into this you're getting here You're getting blessed, you're gonna have a bigger house, you're gonna have a, b, c, and d. And it was a massive band of this prosperity gospel that has been pushed for so much. In the prosperity gospel has been pushed for years and years and years. No one knew that this COVID was coming except God, no one knew what was going to hit the shorelines of this earth. No one knew what was going to happen, whether you believe in it or you don't believe in it, but what you can't get out of your mind and your vision on your understanding that we went into lockdown. So it's not so much COVID itself 19 It is the fact that we was locked down. Everywhere was locked, we see that we hear that we understand that. Now. When you when you take the preaching the preaching of the church, before lockdown, it was all hype. It was push, push, push, dancing, and shouting and praising God and everything's great. We're going into revival where there's gonna be a mess revival. But then we've had suddenly three years, three years of strict hard lockdown Procrustes stretches, you know, now we're in the the energy crisis, we're in awards, rumors of wars, if that now when I say the church, we have to say the church take the broader brush of that, if the church had looked at the signals, looked at the signs, the preachers and the teachers, if it had looked at what was coming at itself, the church and got into prayer and focused on the word, there won't be as many as there is today at this hour, including myself, sometimes dropping into about fair bit of worry about doubt, a bit of unstable ground, not because I'm weak in my faith, but because the generation and the preachers and the teachers in certain ministries that many have latched on to was the prosperity gospel, and suddenly you find out that Money does not buy a health. Money does not buy a mortality. Money does not buy a piece, when the governments in the world went into lockdown for the first time, you could feel the fear raging through the streets locked down lockdown, lockdown. And there are a lot of Christians and believers that haven't recovered from the fear button. Churches are depleting in numbers, we see that there and we are in that great falling away of areas and we're trying to connect via the internet. We're trying to connect other ways. So what we have is a is a large number of believers, Bible believing believers, I'll put myself in this bracket. I'm not worried I'll put my hands up to this. Sometimes fear and worry comes into the mindset and froze my mind not because I'm lacking faith, but because I've been brought up in a generation and preached to by generation and preached to by a certain ministry and a certain way and captured into the tele evangelists captured into all that sort of stuff, the mega church, the mega this mega that suddenly realize that the mega churches shut down quicker than the smaller churches. So what we're finding is that what the churches have been shouting out on and screaming out healing, healing, healing, healing, God's healing you God's healing, you COVID-19 comes and then suddenly, the doors are locked for fear of the Jews, fear of the leaders. So what I'm just trying to address, I'm not trying to get into the COVID Banner whatsoever. But it is the fear that the Aftermath The ripple effect that that has left, that has only been left because of what has gone before. COVID was the preachers and the teachers in a massive area of church, not preached walk in times, if the church would have preached n times, and look at the signals very clear signals, in certain data points around the world, looked at that prayed over that looked at Israel brought the Scripture and looked into every area of that our eyes would have been opened a long time ago. But we have been given a gospel peddled for cash, and suddenly were realized that the finance markets are crashing, we are suddenly realizing that the economy is crashing. So suddenly, finance doesn't give us what the prosperity preachers have told. So when we look in the Scriptures tonight, I want to just take us to a few places where these Bible believing writers experience hardships like never before. So I pray that wherever you are, do not worry. If you are at home tonight and you feel quite fearful. Don't worry if you feel doubtful, don't worry. If you feel really down in the skin that you're walking in. It's perfectly normal, because we are human beings and we are going to read a few texts. The first one and we're going to read from two, let's say a lot less than. So we're going to be in the old test and we're going to go to the book of Isaiah but the first place I want to turn us to is the book of two Corinthians chapter one. I would say this is the greatest writer that walked this earth his experiences through Christianity through following Christ took him through hajus moments. So when we talk about revival, we got to be very careful about how we use the word revival. I'm not against revival, but what I'm against is the false revival lists that are trying to make revivals happen. The Hyper church trying to make an atmosphere happen, to sell holy oil, to sell literature, to sell you a ticket to get into arena to receive Jesus, when that is not scripture. You can't you can't do that. So money suddenly comes into the arena of our lives and realizes that we the prosperity gospel does not give us what the preachers have told us. The healing ministries doesn't do what they say it's going to do. It has got nothing to do with does God prosperous? Yes, he does. Does God hate us? Yes, he does. But that's God in His timings. And that's very different to what ministries and preaching and teaching we've seen for such a long time. So this is why we are in a bit of a bit of a pickle within the UK church. While we're almost at a bit of a loss, because we've had a lot of transAtlantic preaching, come over to shore lines. It's been allowed to come in to ministries ministries. I've been copying a lot of transAtlantic preachers on the other side of the pond, trying to mimic and copy what they've been doing, when what they've been doing isn't really biblical. So when you copy something that's not biblical, the result you come up with is no miracle. What we should be preaching is n times where we sit right at this particular point, looking at the newspaper, looking at Israel, listening to the news, capturing what the world is saying, but then suddenly going okay, Lord, what do you say? So the Bible tells us in advance what the news channels are going to be predicting. The Bible tells us in advance what to expect, plagues, you know, plagues, wars, rumors of wars. So when we've had years of the cash rich preaching, your you are going to prosper in ways you never thought your business is going to accelerate. That was happening weeks and a few hours before a lockdown came. And many people were sowing into ministries, putting everything they had into ministries outside. The shorelines of the UK suddenly locked down comes, they have no money, the ministry is shut down. Suddenly, we are finding ourselves that we are in a crisis because we haven't followed biblical teaching. We have followed understandings, Simon, the sorcerer, as the way they deal with things. So now within the UK, what we have, what we have in the UK is not a church, that is faith less we have a church that is scrambling to really hold itself together, not because we are not faith, we are not filled with faith, because you are filled with faith because God gives the gift of faith. So we are we have been given faith but the majority of our lives, our heartbeats could be beaten more in slight fear on wonder of what's happening next. Rather than hallelujah, thank you, Jesus, I see what's happening. Because your Bible, your Word tells me, but I just want to show you and teach you a tour of a couple of places, just to show you that even the New Testament writers hit points of fear. But there are there are ministers and there are preachers out there that are telling us that if if you get a cold, you're not saved. If you don't type correctly, you're not so they're always pushing so much emphasis on money and healing. And it is more of a motivational drive rather than, than a scripture, line by line precept teaching. If the teachers are not taking us to Jesus, it's not of Jesus, if the church isn't taken us to Jesus, it's not Jesus. If the preachers, the teachers, the theologians, are not taking us to Jesus to the cross to God, the Holy Spirit, we need to question what am I actually listening to? Where is their teaching taking me? Is it taking me to the cross of Calvary? Is it taking me to the blood of Christ? Is it taking me to Christ? Is it taking me to and from Christ to the cross and then from the cross to God? If ministries are pointing consistently, to the Bible, to Christ, to redemption, to salvation, to justification to all the biblical fundamental points, and the ministers are preaching that that is a good ministry to follow. If a ministry is talking about cash, hailing all day long, you're gonna get a new leg. I'm gonna send you a prayer cloth. Just send me another few quid and I'll be alright so I'm going to get a new aircraft. Suddenly we find that what we will say we have been invested in ministry is on the other shorelines and cultural ministry is certain and there is a lot of tribal All ministries out there that you find that are very tribal, there are very they're like a tribe where the leader of the church, whatever that leader says, The It's fat, whatever that leader preaches, that's fact, whatever. If the leader says stand on one end, we've all got to stand on one end. But are the churches and all the leaders and the Dinham? Am I bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Because that is the fundamental truth is the preachers are the preachers, the theologians, the Gospel, orators, the ones that are delivering, are the Gospels being delivered? Or is it cash healing? Now I'm not got nothing against healing this is, please don't take this the wrong way. Because the Scripture says, Seek ye first the kingdom of God in His writers and everything else comes unto thee. What is really important is is, is I want to encourage you if you are fearful tonight, don't worry. If you are struggling sleeping tonight, don't worry. If you are finding it difficult to pray, don't worry, if you are finding it difficult just to concentrate him and get into church. Don't worry, because God has you. And it is not because of your fault. Being in the congregation, we have had too many preachers I'm going to keep on the back on the on the button of preachers and teachers, we ever got too many ministers that are bringing their own emphasis, their thoughts, their meanings, their motivational hype, there is a lot of hype. And what you find is hype doesn't bring freedom hype brings a feeling hype, and the adrenaline kicks into the body where music is played. When there's noise, there's the windows are gone out in the room, it's all dark, all this sort of stuff, when there's this big drive, and you've got to be careful of what is in that room, the Kundalini spirit? Is it the Holy Spirit of Kundalini spirit? Is it the jazz or bellick Spirit what is going on? So there has been a big drive out there and what has happened, as soon as COVID hit and all the doors turned you find even recently, even recently, you're hearing of healing ministries having to stop their services, because the leaders are not well, what is going on it messes with my mind all this stuff missing. I can't have that because I've got this account. Now, I just want to take you to Jesus, my my job, my calling is to tell you about Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is your healer. Jesus Christ is your salvation. Jesus Christ is the creator of Heaven on Earth, we're going to be looking at scriptures in a moment that talk about creation. They talk about strengthening, they talk about fear. And I'm going to read the Scripture. So let's get straight into this text. And let's read this for ourselves. So we can actually see this what is happening. So if you've got a Bible, if you turn if you can turn to two Corinthians, chapter one, two Corinthians chapter one, verse eight, now this is the text This is the text writer, expressing how he is as a believer, as a preacher, teacher, as a an evangelist as a gospel, given man, a godly man. So however, you want to look at this, you know, be careful, also a theology theology is needed. But what is actually theology theology is studying the nature of God and religious beliefs got to be very, very careful about theology. Because if I get too entrenched in the theory and the theology, I could quite easily missed the blessing because I'm looking and studying so hard, and my academic stretch can take over. I've got to be very careful that I do yes, systematic study, and that is very, very important that I study but above systematic studying and theology theology and above Christ ology as in the studying of what Christ does, Christ gives us revelation. So what Revelation does, it brings all of us into the same walk. It doesn't matter if we are educated or uneducated. It doesn't matter where we come from, it doesn't matter about our academic understanding, doesn't matter how we think if we think that we're great thinkers, if we think that we, we don't think it doesn't matter. That is the beauty of the Word of God, because it is of God. God has to reveal His Word to us. Yes, we read it because there are certain areas that we can read, and we can't and we can understand. But through the power of technology, all of us through brow through hearing doesn't matter. We can get the word of God and we can hear it, we can see it, and we can read it. So we all get the word through reading, and whatever means we get the word. But what's really, really important to me here is that my academic stretch will limit me As to what I understand theology through theology, because I am not a theologian. And studying theology literally blows my brains, because I am not a reader because I am not a, a one that studies and goes into the in depth studying of that it's not it. Now, this is really important. What I found through study is that I have to have systematic study, I have to have that as a believer. It's important because the Bible tells me, but when I start getting in an area of thinking, I haven't read, I haven't prayed, I haven't studied today, I've got to do this. I've got to read a Bible in a year. I can't even read almost a verse, a chapter in a year, you know, without struggling, and that might sound a little bit crazy, you know, to read the Bible in a year. It's no good just putting your eyeballs across the page. Am I believe in what I read? It's great. If you can read the Bible in a year and you're full, it follow the Bible plans? But am I following the bible plan? Because that's what they're all saying, Am I following what God wants me to read? God will reveal the Scripture. So what we are finding that we are in a very volatile situation within the UK, politically, financially, for the economy, economy, for church for religion, spiritually, so, so there is a lot of worry, there is a there is an undercurrent of worry, but there are a lot of people try not to display their worry and their fears and their doubts of what's happening. And you can see this through the the areas of atheism, humanism, you know, Christianity across every layer of every culture of every life, almost every household at many levels, there are people worrying under the under the do Dubeau of life under the duvet of life, but not expressing it, because they're frightened to talk about the worry, because if I if I talk about worrying my feelings, because before COVID, we was told through culture and through hurting that you had to be strong, and we have been driven very Darwinistic clee, very the survival of the fittest now what we are finding is, once that lockdown came, it brought us to a place of fear. The doors were locked, what we are going about to read in the Gospel of John, it says the doors were locked for the Jewish leaders, the doors were locked for what is on the outside. But I just want to read this great text, this great texts, these texts will encourage you, these texts will speak to you these texts will uplift your spirit. So if you're at home worrying about your future, your life, your children, your marriage, your your your your if you're going through a divorce, if you're approaching divorce, if you're getting married, not what I'm trying to say is if you are in an area living with your parents living at home, you're a single parent family, you've got a mortgage or in social housing, it doesn't matter where you are, because all of that, to be brutally honest, brutally honest, is meaningless. It has no value to that degree. The book of a clean clothes, the Aztecs makes it very clear. There are certain seasons. So don't worry, the Scripture says don't worry about the clothes you will wear, don't worry about the food you will eat, God will supply I got all my takeaway. But what we have had, we have had a different gospel to what we should have had. And now we are finding that there are many of us, coming to church, going to church, listening to live streams, and just saying to ourselves, actually am I saved? Why am I worrying so much? Why do I feel so fearful? Not because there is anything wrong with you, not because you are weak in the faith, but you haven't been strengthened we haven't had the Barnabas is in the pulpits. We haven't had the encouragers we haven't had the the Eddie fires, we haven't had the polls. We haven't had the gospel of John's. We haven't had the Matthew, Mark, Luke and Jonathan, the preachers to preach the gospel is interested in that there are certain generation of I would say old school preachers that God has called home. And when God has called them home, we've gone through a stillness of no real powerful gospel preachers rising. When you look across the platform, there are lots and lots of motivational, speaking, very eloquent, very fine thinking, looking Christian theologian, preachers and teachers, but who actually is bringing a message of salvation, of repentance, of Do not fear, do not worry. God is pushing you forward. God will encourage you, God will encourage you and God will encourage you will How did God How will God encouraged me? He will encourage you through the Word and this scripture is going to encourage you now so let's get let's get in and let's get read in two Corinthians Chapter One, two Corinthians chapter one, verse eight, and it's As we do not want you to be uninformed, now this has been happening. This has been happening, we do not want you to be uninformed brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experience in the province of Asia, we were under great pressure, far beyond our our own ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received a sentence of death. But this happened, that we that we do not rely on ourselves, but on God, who raised us from the dead. He has delivered us from such deadly peril, and He will deliver us again, on him, we have set our hope, and we will continue to deliver and he will continue to deliver us. So that reference if you turn to that reference tonight, I just want to read the scriptures out. I've spoken a little bit tonight, but I want to read the scriptures out to encourage you that this great new testament writer, this great powerful writer, the apostle Paul, this is what I'm going to read it again. And we're in two Corinthians chapter one, verse eight, through to verse 10, to verses of about of this great man that God used that God struck down the fire, refined and strengthened and took through the mill. But this is what he says, We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we have experienced. Are you experiencing troubles? Yes, Lord, that's according to the Word. And it says in the province of Asia, we were under great pressure, pressure. Are you under great pressure? Yes, I am looking far beyond our ability to endure is the pressure and the trouble far beyond your capabilities as a believer and a human being to endure, if you are at a stage where you are feeling so tired, so exhausted, so weary, you're going to bed but not sleeping very well. And you are finding that you are, you just cannot endure any more, you have reached a place of almost, I'm giving up, your body is weary, you're trying to feed the family or trying to look after yourself, you're rushing around, you're, you're doing so many things your brain is, is so active, it's almost shutting itself off, you're finding that your thinking is very different. You're finding that you're getting angry and frustrated, and then you're finding it you're almost exhausted the things you used to do, you can't do the same anymore. You're almost getting breathless, your lungs are tired, your bones are weary. That is because it is this the the very presence of where we sit in, in the timeframe of of the rapture of the church and everything that's going on. So when you look at political areas, when you look at finance, when you look at the stock markets, when you look at an everything that's happening, there is a crash that we've never seen before. These great towers are tumbling down these, these walls are falling that they're crashing, and you can see on the leaders of certain areas of of what we are looking at on the news, we are seeing these leaders, their faces are telling us 1000 stories, that suddenly all what they put their strength and their efforts in and that lip service into is crashing is falling quicker than they can get it to rise again. We are seeing leadership switched. We are seeing areas of political governance being being almost is getting embarrassing, you know we are stretched on every side to healthcare is stretched beyond number leaf. The finance markets are frozen in certain areas, certain areas of funding has frozen, there are only certain areas where funding is coming now, we're talking about the food crisis, we're talking about famines we were hearing about he holds the power to the button that could cut the gas, which struggling for electric be prepared for for shut down for lock downs. You know, humanity is tired and weary. So if you go back before COVID If you look before COVID What was preached from the pulpit, the majority of the preaching and the teaching was a transatlantic westernized style of motivational, tribal herding, manipulative, narcissistic way of getting the audience to buy into the pyramid selling, I will sell you oil. I will sell you holy oil. I'm not talking about barrels of oil. I ain't got barrels of oil in the church garden. I'm talking about holy oil. You can buy oil prayer prayer cloths, you can buy you can buy you can buy, but what you will find very clearly in the Gospel that Christ never charged for prayer. Christ never charged for salvation. Healing was never charged for Jesus didn't go well. I'll tell you what, son you can Pick up your mat, you can come and follow Me. But give us 50 quid and I'll make sure you're healed in my name in the name of Jesus. You will not find any of that in the Scripture. Everything was free, but the price has been paid. So when you look at this scripture tonight, I just want to address these areas of believers and people that may be seen on the fence of Christianity, not sure, on stable about church, everything is going on. And I'm not surprised to a degree because the church hasn't delivered delivered them the message and the message that should be delivered and should have been delivered. Many years ago, I would say at least 25 years ago, to the very kick point of was an entire message of where we sit revelational preaching from Revelation, you know, the preparation of the bride. There has been no preparation preaching of the Bride of Christ. It has been a hot message has been hyper grace, replacement theology, prosperity gospel, a manic healing, revivalist preaching, we've heard of grave soaking, frying yourself on graves of great preachers, all that sort of stuff, the wacky stuff out there, all that sort of stuff out there has suddenly come to a point where it doesn't work, because it's not of Christ. So now we are finding ourselves within the westernized church in quite a mishmash, a TATA like a washing machine experience of what is going on, homes, fragile, feelings, worries, doubts, everything, but I'm going to read again, and I'm going to read the scriptures back out. So let's get back in the Word. If you are feeling tired, if you are feeling weary, if you feel that you can't endure anymore, and you are exhausted, please do not worry. Because the Scriptures tell us all about this. Be prepared for that because we are living in times, to be expecting what we feel and what we see and how we are. We are human beings. That's what we've got. Remember, we are human beings. We are sinners saved by grace. We are blood washed, sanctified, and we have fear in our makeup. And this is a really interesting, and almost a sobering and a text that will bring any one of us that is struggling with fear, anxiety, doubt, you know, all that sort of stuff, been in a church, listening, been listening to the preaching for years and years and years and found what they've been preaching hasn't changed my house whatsoever. If anything, debt has got heavier fear has got heavier, the mortgage payments have got behind. We've lost the house, I've lost a car, I've lost a job, I got sick, I got a disease, I got struck by COVID. We lost family through COVID. We lost this we lost that. There was accidents, there was this there was at the complete opposite to what it was being preached pre COVID. The church wasn't prepared because the church was bang in a message out of money, healing, prosperity, hyper grace, we will sell you you buy from us. But this is what the great New Testament writers were going through. We do not want you to be uninformed brothers and sisters about the troubles we have experienced in the province of Asia, where you are under great pressure and far beyond our ability to endure so that we despaired of life itself. This is the apostle Paul telling you and telling me that I hit trouble. I could not enduring it. And there was a point that the Scripture tells us this is what he said, so that we despised of life itself. It got so hard to us. It got so damning. It got so stretching, enduring, we couldn't endure anymore. We were tired beyond tired, we will weary beyond weary. We are reading about the writer, the great Apostle Paul. And it says so that we despaired of life itself. First nine of two Corinthians chapter one, indeed we felt we had received a sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves. That is the key line. We cannot rely on ourselves. Paul said all this happened so that this would happen. So all the fake preaching and teaching would come to the point and the realization that that Do not get me through, because that fake preaching and teaching and the prophetic prophecies that have come out that haven't come into fruition, and have you had prophecies over your life and your life hasn't changed. You know, you've had a word this has happened that's going to happen and it's not come into being, then who do we question? This is really important. But this happened, that we might not rely on ourselves but on God. We have to rely on God rely on God. Let's go a little bit further. It says, He has delivered us from such deadly peril, and He will deliver us again, he has delivered me and he has delivered you. He will deliver you again and he will deliver me again. He will set me free again, and he will set you free again. If there's troubles in your life, just pause and brief. Okay, God, there's trouble. I think we need to understand that we are humans. And we've been a human being comes trouble with family comes issue with work comes problem with breathing and walking this earth comes many trials and many testings. So we are in a new press at this moment. And God is telling me to tell you and to tell me more trust in God. Trust in His Word. This, this scripture that we are looking at tonight is about the apostle Paul, the great writer of the New Testament, He says we even despised life itself, we was given a sentence of death, we could not endure. And the reason for this, and now I've come to understand is that we do not rely on what the world and the fake church and preachers out there are telling me because that is like building on straw. That is like building on sand. The rain came the storms rose, the the streams rose up, everything happened. And it crashed against the house, excuse me. And the house fell with a great fall because I built on sand. But the one that builds upon the rock, he is our rock and he is our Redeemer. What I love about following Christ, it is this simple. It's about following Christ. It's very important that I get to church, and I have fellowship with believers, brothers and sisters have like mine brothers and sisters, that will encourage me. Pray for me speak the word over me. I don't want people around me that are religious and call in a a drum skin that is always pointing the finger on condemning and bring in a harsh word that is not from God, but it's from their opinions. What I want around me are for that will carry me as we looked at the other day, for that will carry us on each corner of the mat. Get a take us up the staircase of life. As the Scripture says the four friends took their friend up up onto the roof of the house, tore the roof opened and lowered their friend into the presence of Jesus. That's what we need. We need people around us that will carry us when we can't get off the mat of life. We need people around us that that can't and will not condemn us for the way that we feel because I can't walk right today. I don't think right today. I've got something wrong today what you want and what I want are people around us that will never, never leave outside. But we'll always be there for us when we say You know what? I need some help. I need some guidance. What we don't want is opinionated religious people trying to put their views on our lifestyle. When you're not living in my shoes, my friend. We've got to make sure that we got people around us that are encouragers strengtheners ones that are shepherds that will lead us and shepherd us and guide us with love with authority with the word and with forgiveness and get us to Jesus and leave us at the foot of Jesus. Let me read this again because I want to get get reading a little bit more. This is coming from two Corinthians chapter one, verse eight to verse 10. For we do not want you to be uninformed brothers and sisters about the troubles we experience in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure far beyond our ability to endure. So that we despised of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we have received a sentence of death. But this happened that we will not rely on ourselves but on God who raised the dead. He has delivered us from such deadly peril, and He will deliver us again. On him, we have set our hope on him, we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, that's really important. For me as a believer, I set my hope on him. Now, let's turn to let's go to the Old Testament. Firstly, let's go to the Old Testament. Now let's go straight into the book of Isaiah. Let's go to the book of Isaiah chapter 40. Now this is about this, this text this chapter is about comfort is about strengthening is about the reliance of God. And I just want to read a few areas. And it's also it's interesting because it talks about creation. But firstly, I just want to get us to right we're in Isaiah chapter 40, verse 29, through to 31. These are the main texts that I believe that are going to penetrate your very soul tonight. And God is telling you, do not worry. Do not worry because you're worrying. Do not worry about your family, do not worry about your financial, do not worry about yourself, do not worry about your health, do not worry about your relationships, do not worry about the future. Don't Don't keep looking into the future and trying to navigate your way to the finish line. Faith, we are living in times of extreme endurance, extreme stress. It's taken faith. It's taken faith to dig in the Word of God. Let's read right Isaiah chapter 40, verse 20, of 29. For He gives strength to the weary and increases the power to the weak, even use grow tired and weary. And young men stumble and fall, verse 31, of Isaiah 40. But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow, find the word in there is hope. Look at what that says verse 31. What am I aware of I just come from I've come from the New Testament, what is it say? Our hope is in God. My hope. Whether I'm in the old or the New Testament, my hope has to be on God. It's very difficult trying to speak about articulate, verbalize quantum fi, bring to the human understanding, through my psychological process in the way that I'm wired, what actually is hope? What actually does that mean? So let's read the Scripture again. First 29 through 31, he gives strength to the weary Are you weary? Thank you, Jesus, He increased his power to the weak. are you weak? Thank you, Jesus. It says even the youth grow tired and weary. And it says there very, very clearly. Even the youth grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. Are you hoping in the law tonight? Are you hoping in the King of kings and the Lord of lords? It says But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint. Thank you, Jesus. He gives strength to the weary, he increases power to the weak. Even the youth grow tired and weary. And the young men stumble and fall, verse 31, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint. I love the Scripture. The scripture really addresses the person that can feel weary and tired, is broken. That is troublesome. The believer, the believer, and it says let's just back up a little bit more. Well, we're moving Okay, so it's just back up. It says verse 21, of Isaiah chapter 40. Do you not know Have you not heard? He has been Have you not been told from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was found? Did he is in thrown on the circle of the earth. And it is, is people who are like grasshoppers. I love this bed it says, He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. Thank you, Jesus first 25 of Isaiah 40. The reason I'm bringing this, this is about creation, this is about God. And when you and when you study creation, when you start to look at creation, and you really study Genesis, because Genesis is a very foundational place to start reading and start looking. Because what happens is, when I understand well not completely understand, but when I when I get to the position of believing in creation, and seeing the formation of creation, because when I get to that point, I understand the power of the spoken word of the Word of God, when I understand the power of creation, and how power, how much power there was in God's voice and God's direct speech and how God commanded. So when I, when I look at the power of speech, the power of creation, and the power of formation, and then then in obviously, as well, you'll find quite simply, you find what we call quantum physics and, and everything about creative and, and what we see that he's very visual through central perception, which is the basic understanding of what brings to this table into to our vision and our format. What brings this mic what brings, you have to have certain things through science and through physics, and that is space, time and matter. And when you understand what space time and matter is, and you understand that it's in the book of Genesis, because God speaks here, you have space, you have time, and you have matter. And when that is put together and God's power and God's word is over that you find that from nothing comes everything. The test tube can't fathom got out. Science and quantum physics and, and, and mathematics and, and all the equations under the sun cannot find the formula for when God said, Let there be light. And there was. So as a believer, if I want to get stronger in my faith, what do I do? I study creation, because what creation does, it teaches me very clearly about creation, redemption, salvation, justification, the plan of God, the formation of God, it talks about mortality, it talks about, about listening to the correct word, because God told them very clearly do not take from that tree. So God gave clear instruction. So we have obedience, we have everything in Genesis. So Genesis is a very important book for any believer to start reading and start studying because there are fine, once I get a bit of a bit of an overlay, and an overview of what we call creation, when I get a bit of an overlay of that, what I find is that, that it strengthens me through the rest of the 66. Books are the Word of God. So creation, if creation is preached, and taught, in conjunction with Revelation, the first and the last book, so I have the create the creative side of of humanity, and the universe's and everything. But then it also if I look in a book of Revelation, I see the beginning and I see the end, I see the beginning and I see the end. It's important. I know the beginning to a degree and I know the end to a degree, and then the bits in the middle, the stuff in the middle will come into being because I have a foundation in Genesis, but also I have revelation in Revelation. So that's really, really important that I know what Revelation has, has an overlay over revelation has not been preached for years in churches because it's the scary book that we don't want to go into like the book of Job. You won't find a revivalist preaching out of the out of the the Old Testament the job, you will find them picking up scriptures like I am wonderfully and fearfully made. You can do anything God shall supply all my needs, according to their riches and glory. You don't find a preacher that is preaching a gospel where he says, Oh, that he slay me, I still will praise him. Even though everything has been stripped from me. Even though my business has been taken, even though my family have been taken off the Earth, I will still praise him you don't get a preacher or teacher. A revival is preaching that message. You don't you won't find that. But if I get an understanding of revelation and creation, if I if I bring them two together and I study those books, what I find is that I have creation, I have a foundation and with a foundation I have revelation, and we have revelation and foundation, suddenly my hope on the in between bits, the rest of the 64 books that the 64 books the to One to One then the end, you know, and then the rest of the 66, in conjunction, which leaves 64, I find that the 64, I start to come inward on that. So if I start in Genesis, look at Revelation, and talk and look at end time, what's going to happen in in the rapture, and what was happening at the beginning. And when I, when I get a balance and get a bit more of an understanding, say, God, help me give me revelation in Genesis law, but also give me revelation in Revelation helped me to understand so I can see the beginning, and I understand the end. So then I will find myself not in a bit of a pickle that I'm in now worrying and stressed out, you know. So it's important to get the fundamental points out there to understand that if I study Genesis, I'll have a strong foundation. If I study revelation, however, I'll be having a revelation of what is to come. And God will reveal that the New Testament writer writes very clearly, as I write this, I am having revelation or knowledge revealed to me as I write. So we have read tonight from the book of two Corinthians chapter one, where the apostle Paul writes that we despaired of life itself, we was given a like a sentence of death. But then he said, in the Old Testament, but it's not because so that we can rely on our self. It's so that we can rely on God, and our hope is on him. What have we just read here in Isaiah 38, it says, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, it is God all the way through. Now, we're going to bring this to a close and there is no way to bring this to a close. But if you wanted to read if you wanted to jump into the New Testament, and just to look in the Gospel of John, if you turn to the Gospel of John, again, oh, I'll read this very quickly, is in the Gospel of John Chapter 20, verse 19, on the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, the doors were locked for fear of the Jews. And the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. After he said this, he showed him his hands on his side, the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again, Jesus said, Peace be with you, as my father has sent me, I am sending in you, and he breathed on them. And then he said to them received the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone, their sins, their sins are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. What I want to just leave you with tonight is in the Gospel of John Chapter 20, verse 19, it says this on the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together when the believers was together, was they gathering for revival service? No. Was they gathering together for a healing meeting? No. What was they gathering for they was they was gathered together, because of the outside environment was so fearful, and they was gathering to be safe. So when you look at this, it says the doors were locked. The doors were locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. Jesus comes in. Jesus comes in to our situations, he comes into our lockdown thoughts, he comes into our place where we are locked down. We have read a scripture about the New Testament writer that said, we even despise life itself. We was given a sentence of death. But that was so that we would not rely on ourselves, but that we would rely on God, I pray that myself, and you could brothers and sister, sisters, atheists, and agnostics, theologians, whoever you may be on the other side of that camera. I believe God is working in you. I believe God is calling you. I believe God is drawing you. I believe His work. God is working through you. I believe your eyes are being open to the Gospels. I believe God is drawing you to his side like never before. God is with you. And Paul said, so that not that we would rely on ourselves, but we would rely on God because our hope is in Him. Isaiah 40 says, Our hope comes from the Lord. Everything comes from the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. God is with you, wherever you are tonight. God will strengthen you and God will draw you forget about the fabric of the buildings, because what we found in locked down. The church was locked down. Jesus was not furloughed. God was not furloughed. God was not sitting back thinking, Oh, Boris, you've locked the key, what am I gonna do? Oh, dear me, the kingdom of God cannot be locked down. The kingdom of God cannot be locked away, the kingdom of God is within you belong to the king's domain, you are a child of the King, not of this earthly king, and the monarchy and the systems, you belong to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. I pray that wherever you are tonight, you will find rest in your worry, you will find joy in your fear, you will find hope in doubt, it's not about getting into the box of the four walls of the church. It's important, but I don't put the weight, and my strength on the bricks and the mortar, and the fabric and the envelope and the frailty of the building. I put my hope in the God that created the fabric of this building, I put my hope in the God that created the world I put my hope in God. Yes, the Bible says Do not forget the gathering together of the saints. But I can do that in a field. I can do that in a in a in a in an office space. I can do that wherever. Because what does the church what does the gospel say about the church? Jesus says, I am the head of the body, that is the church? Do you belong to the body? Or do you belong to religious system? Do you belong to the creator of Heaven on Earth? Who stretches out the universes as we speak? Do you belong to the God that put the stars in the heaven? Or do you belong to a systematic theological process wrapped up in Darwinism and fear and trying to deliver a message that is hyper grace, hyper, hyper everything, but nothing to do with n time preaching? Creation, the birth, the death, the resurrection of Christ, we serve a God that calls are things that are not as though they are you have been created and brought into existence, not by the biological process of your parents. You have been brought into this world because of God decided to do so. And you belong to him. I pray that wherever you are, and there are lots across the earth tonight, across the socials, and in the world of podcasting, I pray, whether you're you capture their Spotify, Amazon music, Alexa I Heart Radio, through the social networks, YouTube, you know, all the platforms that we push out on. I just want to encourage you now if you are fearful, don't worry. If you are doubtful, don't worry. If you are tired, don't worry. You are a human being created by the creator of humanity. If he and you and me believe in the Creator, and we understand he created humanity, He knows our human frailty. Humanity is proud. Humanity is thin humanity is is always edgy and almost gritty, but with the power of God, living in the skin that you're in, walking by faith, getting into the Word of God, because that's where it is. It lies in God. If God wanted us to worship these walls at the church, he would have wrote that, and put that in the Word of God. But He says, Be a worshipper of me. Not the stones, not the fabric. It has its place, and it has its purpose. But what is its place? And what is its purpose. But above the fabric above the preachers above the teachers above the ministers, above the denominations is who? God who is stretching out the heavens, and he is stretching them out and pinning them back like a tent so that we can live under them. He's on the outside of creation. He's on the outside of time. He's everything. And here's your God. Have a wonderful evening. Wherever you are, I pray that you will find rest for your innermost being. Do not, do not worry about worrying. I pray that you sleep well tonight. There's the Scripture writer writes. May your sleep be sweet. God bless you. We'll see you very soon. Take care. Never give up. Keeping the Word of God. When I say keep it Maybe we haven't been in the Word of God, as much as we think we should have been. All of us, myself, leaders, preachers can never get in the Word of God enough. We keep in it, we keep in it, we keep in it. So I pray that wherever you are across this afternoon, whatever the time zone is, in your world that you are walking, we are at 834 within the UK here, wherever you are, I just pray that you will just have your hope in God. Not in the church, as we know, but in the head of the church and who's that Jesus Christ. Put your hope for everything you've got. Put everything that you've got your innermost, everything, put it on the king, lay on the King of Glory, lay on the God of grace, lay on the cross of Calvary, because that's where you'll find Christ. Christ is for you and not against you. God bless. We see you soon in Jesus name. Amen. Thank you for listening to never give up. Never give us never give up. Never give up. Hallelujah. God bless everyone. Jesus Thank you for listening to Elim church Swanleys latest podcast. You can find us on Buzzsprout, Spotify, iHeart radio, Googleplay, Alexa, Mixcloud, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.