Our Everlasting Father, Pastor Wendell Williams

Sunday, June 20, 2010     Our Everlasting Father     Pastor Wendell Williams 

Praise the Lord…Praise God…

As we share a Word with you [today] on Father’s Day… we share this Word in light of the realities that in the earth there are no perfect fathers. [There are] a lot of good dads and some not so good dads… [and] we have found that on our best day we are still not God. BUT I want to encourage you that there is a God… He is a good God… He is a great God. Paul writes of Him [and says] that He is the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ… Father God… and we are blessed to be His children. Amen!

Let us pray…

Father… thank you for your Word… and your love. Thank you for Jesus… thank you for the Holy Ghost. Thank you [Father] for your divine appointments… thank you for your mercies which are new every day.  [Us] natural fathers may try to put bread in the breadbox every day [and] something in the ‘fridge’ every week BUT You give us mercies that are new every morning. Thank you… thank you for Jesus… thank you for your presence here [now]… thank you for your determinate will and for our future that lies out ahead in you. We thank you [Father] in Jesus name… Praise the Lord!

This little note says, Knowing God the Everlasting Father- God is our Creator! He is our Lord [and] our Judge… He is all of those BUT the description that is more difficult to grasp is God as our Father forever. For those that have had imperfect human dads… which is all of us… it is hard to get our minds around the notion of a flawless father [who is] all wise, all loving [and] all powerful… BUT that is exactly who and what God is! Our challenge is to know Him and love Him… to serve Him and open our souls to Him. The bottom line is [that] when our spouses… children… friends and neighbors catch a glimpse of God’s life and character working in and through us… their appetites for God are wetted. That means that they see God working in [you]! They may first wonder what in the world was happening to them… turn to your neighbor and say, “What in the world has happened to you?” [Now] you need to work with me… PJ’s little sister… “What in the world?” If they looked at you [like] [Pastor demonstrates] “Nothing has happened to me…” then today is your day for something to happen to you! Praise the Lord!

If you would turn with me [this morning] to the Book of James… in the white Bible it is page 1072… the Book of James [chapter 1]… I know that most of you have the Books of the Bible memorized [and] you don’t need me to tell you that BUT for the one or two of you who may need that allow me to give you the page number.

The original term for family was ‘Father’s House’. When we understand this thing called [if you will] ‘church’ or ‘family’… it was about a Father developing something that would reflect Him so that His legacy could continue on. ‘Father’… for example if you consider Israel… the nation of Israel in its construction [and] in its development [and] in its actual geographic location… the Father was so intent on having the people called unto Him… which overtime we get to be a part of that… engrafted to the spirit of Israel [if you will]… to His beloved nation… to His beloved people… we all get engrafted in… He put them at a certain place so that they could be preachers and sharers of the name and the legacy and the message of the Father. The Father wants His house built up… His family expanded [and] that includes you! Part of our desire [and] our passion… we shared that on Wednesday [and] I do extend again to you an invitation [that] if you have never attended and have not attended [and] don’t [just] have it ‘dialed in’ on Wednesday… if you are able to come on a Wednesday… I want to encourage you to make it a point to make Wednesday part of your weekly time [to come] to fellowship and attend the church service [here] at Good Ground. I believe that it is more important… I don’t think that I am looking at anybody that only had… unless you are fasting… one meal this week… or a meal every other week. You say, “Pastor, just go ahead and preach the message about Father’s Day…” or one meal a month. Turn to your neighbor… find a neighbor and say, “It looks like you had a meal or two lately!” “It looks like you have had a meal or two lately!” Find another neighbor and say, “You look like you really had a meal lately!” [And] now ask them the question, “Did you eat it in the church… in the House of God?” Well…

Before I go to James let me read this to you… the Book of Hebrews [chapter 2] from the Message Bible. It reads this way speaking of the Father’s desire to build a family:

It makes good sense that the God who got everything started and keeps everything going… now completes the work by making the salvation pioneer [Say, ‘Jesus’] perfect through suffering as He leads all of these people to glory. Since the One who ‘saves’ and the ones that are ‘saved’ have a common origin [say, ‘Father’]…

Alright… I am now preaching… that means that you [now] interact! Does everybody have it? Don’t worry about what we are talking about [just] jump in now! Let the [whole] church say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the Lord!

… Since the One who ‘saves’ and those who have ‘saved’ have a common origin [say, ‘The Father’]… Jesus doesn’t hesitate to treat them as family saying that I will tell all of my good friends… my Brothers and Sisters… all that I know about You! I will join them in worship and praise to You! [Who is the ‘You’ there? It is the Father… it is Jesus speaking to the Father about the message that He is going to share with you and I… His Brothers and Sisters]

Again the writer of Hebrews says… He [speaking of Jesus] puts Himself in the same family circle when He says, ‘Even I live by placing My trust in God’! Who is Jesus speaking of? ‘The Father’… One more time, who is Jesus speaking of? He is speaking of placing His trust in the Father… the Father of Lights. When he taught them and He asked them… the Our Father… how do we know how to pray? He said ‘pray this way… do what I do!’ Our Father… who art in Heaven… He began to lift up the name of the Father… He didn’t shrink back [like] “I don’t know how to… who do I talk to? I am not really sure… I am not sure of who I am… I am not sure of where I came from…” Jesus didn’t blink or ‘bat’ an eye [or] hesitate [or] stutter. He said [if] you want to pray [then] pray this way, “Our Father…” He made it plural when He said, “Our Father…” He said that it was ‘our’ Father… He is MY Father and He is YOUR Father… therefore leave us to pray to OUR Father. He identified the location of His [and] OUR Father… He IS in Heaven! You have a ‘Father’… glory to God! I don’t know what you think about your daddy… I know what I think about mine… I don’t know what he did or didn’t5 do BUT I tell you now… break that horrible [that terrible] father in the house absentee… you have a Father [now]! Be encouraged! Somebody loves you [and] cares for you… He sent His Son for you! You have a Father [now]! You can be mad at the ‘earthly one’… totally ‘tore up’ about the ‘natural one’… BUT I tell you… You have a Father! I am going to give you an opportunity to… right now… in this moment… you have been ‘tore up’ about your father… you may be celebrating your father… BUT right now those issues [and] that hatred [and] that breaking [and] that hurt… that disappointment… whatever he did… he deserted you… that father… that guy…. In Jesus name let him go! Let him go! Sister McLean… how are we doing? Let him go! We got him… you did good… you let him go [didn’t you]… your father… in Jesus name.

Say it with me, “I release my father… good or bad… known or unknown, I release him… whether he helped me or hurt me I release him. I bless him [and] I commend him whether I know where he is… alive or dead… I bless him… in Jesus name… because I have a Father who knows my name. He knows where I am at… He knows my need… He is a Father that loves me [and] cares for me. He doesn’t abandon me!” When my natural father leaves me he abandons me BUT God… the Father of Jesus Christ… He will bear me up! We have a Father, hallelujah! Be healed in that father wound… be made whole in that place where you were wounded and ‘tore up’… be made whole! Be blessed… we have a Father.

He says here… and yet again [Jesus repeating] I am here with the children that God gave me. Since the children are made of flesh and blood it is logical that the ‘Savior’ took on flesh and blood in order to rescue them by His death. [So] if you are unsure of a ‘Who’ Jesus is or ‘What’ He did or ‘Why’ He came… [then] you hearing answers to those questions. They may [perhaps] be conscious questions… and perhaps they are unconscious questions… perhaps they are something that has streamed through you religious background… from whatever community that you might have come from. If you have ever wondered, ‘Why Christmas?’ … If you have ever wondered, “Why Easter?”… If you have ever wondered why we celebrate ‘spit and sweat’ it is because THIS ONE came from the Father… from the realms of Heaven. He took off [if you will] that dimension of glory known as the Son in the Heavenly realm and He came to Earth [and] He put on ‘flesh’ so that He can identify with you! I know that you think that you can talk to your dog and that your dog understands you… or that your cat knows what you are about… I have somebody [here] who has [got] a turtle… and the turtle can look at you and know what you are thinking BUT I am telling you that they don’t really know! They might [kind of] feel! They have [got] a soul [if you will] and they might have some sense of consciousness BUT they don’t know like Jesus knows! That is why He identifies with you and I… clothed with flesh… and He is trying to convince you through the preaching of the Word of God that He truly knows! I have children that I don’t always know! I thank God that I have a Father who always knows!

Jesus goes on and he says… And yet again I am here with the children that God gave me. He says again… Since the children are made of flesh and of blood that it is logical that the Savior took on flesh and blood in order to rescue them by death… By embracing death [and] taking it unto Himself He destroyed the devil’s hold on death and freed all who cower for life… scared to death [of] death. That is why the Father sent the Son… to get you and to bring you back from the place of lost to found… of no family to family… to bring you from a place of no name to a name… The Father’s House! Praise the Lord!

The three things that I want to give you in the next two hours [kiddingly] that I have to preach to you… and they are very simple:

1)     The Father God is a good God

2)     Father God is a liberal giver

3)     Father God is an expectant giver

He is good… and He is liberal… and He is expectant!

James 1:17-18:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of Lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning…

The first thing that you hear is that there is a good God that has perfect gifts and that they come from above and they come down from someone called ‘the Father’ He is ‘the Father of Lights’… He is not the ‘god of darkness’… He is the ‘Father of Lights’. Say this with me, “He is the Father of Lights”… within whom there is no variation or shadow of turning… In other words you can always spot him! Somebody who is in the shadows you don’t quite know. Some kid who is wearing a ‘hoody’ you don’t quite catch his face BUT this one stands right out in the light! [Amen]

… Of His own will He brought us forth by the Word of Truth that we might be a [kind of] first fruits of His creation… or creatures. He did that by His own will! Now go back up to verse 5… so the first thing that I want to establish in your thoughts and in your understanding is that God is a good God… say it, “God is a good God!” Verse 5 says:

⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

God is a good God and God is a liberal giver… liberal… out-flowing… easy to release… wanting to give… flowing out… more than enough… not stingy… not holding back… flowing. Somebody didn’t turn off the faucets… [liberally] your bill is going up… didn’t turn off the lights… [liberally] your bill is going up… this is a liberal, giving God [amen]! The falls, they turn those on and off… that is not liberal… they never turn off Niagara Falls [and] that is liberal [amen]! Liberal… get the image in your mind… God is a liberal giver!

Lastly, God is an expected giver… go with me to Hebrews 2:10 [page 1063] reads this way:

The portion before that says [that] He will be the first born of many creations… in one place it is called ‘the first born from the dead’. Here, in Hebrews 2:10 it says:

⁰ For… This is the New King James version of what I originally read from the Message Bible and it says…

⁰ For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

So here you see that this is a God who would send the One Son [Jesus] to get the many sons [you and I] and bring us back to glory. Here is how it works:

Everything that we have been taught works based on a pattern and works on a principle in God’s Word. In other words when you look inside a scripture you see patterns and when you see patterns in scripture you begin to see that there are certain sequences [or] ways that God does things. These sequences [or ways] are patterns! The ways that God does things… He always bases it upon a principle in His Word! Say this with me, “Patterns and Principles!” If you are writing it down… patterns is P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S! You say, “Pastor, you are going pretty fast!” I am… you are all looking at me [like] ‘I thought that we were supposed to be done at 11:15?’

Patterns and Principles!  

What is a principle? One of the principles is called ‘the Genesis Principle’… it is called ‘the Principle of Seed Time and Harvest Time’… [and] it simply says that every seed reproduces after its own kind. ‘Every seed reproduces after its own kind’ is a principle in the Book of Genesis… in other words that is how God decides that He is going to do things! Every seed that is sown produces after its own kind… [that] is one of God’s essential principles. That is a pattern that we see throughout scripture. Another principle is… ‘As you sow… so shall you reap!’ That is a principle in God’s Word!

Go with me to John 3:16 [if you would]… everybody knows it… page 940 in the white Bible [in case you are wondering]:

I just told you [that] as you sow… so shall you reap… that is one of the principles in God’s Word. Prior to that I read you a verse from Hebrews 10. In essence Hebrews 10 says The Father sent the one Son so that He could bring the many sons back to glory… did you hear me? John 3:16 says this:

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Glory to God! So… what in the world is the connection? Have you been ‘tracking’ with me? Let’s connect the dots! The Father sent the one Son [Jesus] to rescue [you and me] the many sons so that He could bring us back to glory! The Father is a good investor! He sent the Son [Jesus] to get you! How good is He? The Bible says for this cause was the Son of God manifested… so that He could destroy the works of the devil! What were the works of the devil? [Examples] When he had you confused… beat down… in bondage! Jesus came to break you out of confusion… break you and build you up from your ‘beat-down’… and get you delivered from your bondage! That is the good news! Jesus came to set you free… He who the Son sets free is free indeed! How free do you want to be? I would want to be free! Now… you might want to hold on to your [little] bondage… your [little] pocket-book… your [little] nasty [something]… BUT I tell you that I would rather be free! The Bible says [that] for that cause was the Son of God manifested. That means He was born of a virgin… it was a predetermined plan! I remember that before the world was framed Jesus was already on His way. [I mean] that before you were a twinkle in [your] daddy’s eye you were already somebody and God knew your name! God had a plan before you broke-forth into the planet! That is how good [that] God is! He knew that you were going to be ‘tore up’ and ‘crooked’ BUT God sent Jesus anyway! Why we were yet sinners [and] messed up… God still sent Jesus! They didn’t get it [Ralph]! When you were worshipping at the wrong throne… He sent Jesus! When you were idolizing the wrong God… He sent Jesus! When you were ‘tore-up’ and misdirected He sent Jesus! When you were in the ‘Pig Pit’… He sent Jesus! That is how good God is! You [ain’t] got to be good enough… He is good enough for all of us.

The Bible says this… God gives Jesus… Jesus gets you… Jesus gives you to the Father! That is ‘seed time’ and ‘harvest time’! Isn’t that good?

Father God is an expecting God… go with me to Matthew 25… I will tell you the highlights starting in verse 14 [page 876]… the parable of the talents. In a nutshell here it is [I have included the entire text]

The Parable of the Talents

   
¹⁴ “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. ¹⁵ And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. ¹⁶ Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.¹⁷ And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. ¹⁸ But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. ¹⁹ After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 
²⁰ “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ ²¹ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ ²² He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ ²³ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 
²⁴ “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’ 
²⁶ “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. ²⁷ So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. ²⁸ So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. 
²⁹ ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰ And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

The Parable of the Talents…

One servant had five talents… another two… and another one. The bottom line is that the one who had five talents invested… and he got five more; the one who had two talents invested and he got two more… the one who had one talent buried the talent. The story goes on to tell us that the man went on to a far country… travelled to a far country… He came back to the servants and said, “Ok, tell me what the deal is!” The one that had five said, “Master, you gave me five… I invested so I got you [that] five and five more!” He said, “You are blessed… enter into my blessing!” The one who had two… “I have the two that you gave me… I invested it… I got you two more!” He said, “You are blessed… come on in!” [And] then to the one who had one [talent] he said, “OK, tell me what you did! Where is my increase? Who did you invest it with? Bank of America… the Stock Market… What did you do with the one?” “Um… You was gone and I remember somebody said that you are not that happy when things don’t go your way so I wanted to at least guarantee that the one you gave me… you are going to get back… so at least I didn’t mess you up!” He said, “Mess me up… you didn’t help me at all!” He called him a ‘lazy’, ‘shiftless’, ‘good for nothing’, ‘prideful’ servant. He took the one that he had and gave it to the one who had the most… then throw this one [lazy man] into the Lake of Fire… something like that!

The bottom line is this… on that story: God is an expectant giver. We know that:

a)    God is a good God

b)    God is a liberal giver

BUT God is also an expectant giver… [so] what God gives us… He expects us to do something with.

Go with me to Proverbs 10:22 [page 567]…

The Word of the Lord says this:

²² The blessing of the LORD makes one rich, 
      And He adds no sorrow with it. 

Not only is God a good God… not only is He a liberal giver… BUT He is an expectant giver as well. He is a good investor… He is the Father of Lights. Here we see this… and it says to us that God [the Father] is a good God… He is a God that blesses us. The blessings of the Father… the blessings of the Lord… the Bible says here in Proverbs 10:22… make it rich and add no sorrow with it! The NIV says… the blessing of the Lord brings wealth and He adds no trouble to it! I love this word ‘blessing’… it means prosperity… it means benediction… it means liberal. Just like we read from James 1 it means to present… He wants to present and cause us to be made liberal. The blessings of the Lord are liberal. The phrase ‘make it rich’ means it causes to accumulate… causes to grow. This is the character [and] the nature of a giving, good Father God. He is a good God! Can you say, “Amen?” Praise the Lord!

I like this part… it is interesting because my approach to this word sorrow is always been… and I have learned some lessons in business… If you give somebody a gift… we bought Monica a dishwasher… you may have heard that her dishwasher died [or] her washing machine died… and she was about to get all of her ‘babies’… a ‘boat-load’ of them [coming up]… BUT the washing machine died and gave up. So… what did we do? The Elders and I figured out… took a blessing… went to Sears… worked it out [happened to be Ernest Guneratnam’s dad]… it was great! We got a washing machine… to wash the most laundry with the least amount of water! We could have [just] got that and done that and mama [Monica] would have been happy… “As long as it gets the clothes wet and gets the dirt out” BUT we thought… “We need to get an extended warrantee. If something happens we need to make sure that mama is taken care of… that she doesn’t have to pay anything!”  That is the way that we approach and I approach this portion that says… the blessing of the Lord makes it rich and adds no sorrow… I don’t want you to have… One of the definitions of sorrow is this: toil… grievous… labor. The blessings of the Lord doesn’t bring you grief… it doesn’t bring you added labor… it doesn’t bring you sorrow.

BUT here is one definition that really stuck out: As we were ministering to men up on the mountain on the subject of sexual idolatry one of the definitions of the word sorrow is idol…   I-D-O-L. The blessings of the Lord comes to you… and it doesn’t bring to you an idol. It doesn’t become an idol! You get ‘blown-up’ and blessed ‘out of your mind’… you don’t start to ‘bless’ the ‘blessing’… you don’t start to ‘love’ the ‘blessing’… you begin to pay worship to the ‘blesser’. It doesn’t get you opportunity! If it gives you opportunity you don’t have to take it… take the ‘blessing’ of God… and begin to worship like “This is mine!” “I worked hard for that!”

The Bible says that He gives you the power to give wealth. You say, “I got my own education… and I got my own wealth!” BUT without God you wouldn’t have had a mind [that] would [even] think a peanuts worth… it is God that did it! God didn’t intend for you to take what you got and make it an I-D-O-L instead of Him! He is God and not an idol! He is the Living God… the only living God… no other idol is going to talk to you… save you… heal you! Your money on your death bed ain’t going to help you. Its over! Talk to Howard Hughes! It is over… O-V-E-R.

The Bible says that the blessing of the Lord maketh rich… so when He gives you five [then] you have got to do something with it that blesses back the Kingdom. When He gives you two you have got to do something with it. The Father God is a good God and a liberal God… giving you liberal opportunities to be blessed and to be a blessing. We use the word conduit around her… the word pipe… it means that you are a pipeline and that you get yours… you get wet in the process of directing that which God gave you to direct. It is not yours to keep and hold up… if that were the case [then] you would be ‘the Dead Sea’ and not ‘the Sea of Galilee’… glory to God! God didn’t intend for you to hold it all… or keep it all. If you keep it all long enough… can it… put it in the thing… then it starts to stink. I would rather have fresh corn than canned corn!

I am going to get out of your way [in a minute]… it is Father’s Day and maybe you will give me a present… I don’t know…

God does not want you to be sorrowful in this relationship with Him… He wants you to be blessed… and blessed forever more. The devil wants you to be deceived in thinking… he came to kill, steal and destroy your understanding [and] your experiences in every possible level. BUT Jesus says I came to give you life! One of the definitions of life is revelation and to bring you out of darkness into the light! Revelation says look… here is an understanding that you need, should and can have. You don’t have to be ‘tore-up’ if you have [got] something… you don’t have to be a victim if you have [got] something. I can make you more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ who loves me… this is God’s Gospel!

I cannot preach any harder than this… your faith has got to connect somewhere here. Somewhere [right along this spot] you have got to start saying, “You know what? I think that I believe in Jesus!” Somewhere in the moment you have got to say, “You know what? I think that it is true for me because I will know!” Right now you are going, “Humm… huh” BUT you need to step over! It is alright.

Galatians 6:7 says:

⁷ Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. ⁸ For he who sows to his flesh

Here is a principle… as you sow [then] so shall you reap. This is a principle in the Kingdom… it is a principle in the earth… and the pattern is [that] you sow… and so shall you reap… that is the principle. [So] watch what you sow… and every seed will produce after its own kind… that is the pattern…

 ⁸ For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. ⁹ And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

Well doing is real simple… doing it God’s way! It is real simple… that is how it applies to us. If I do it God’s way then I am going to get God’s results. I can do it my way… if I do it my way then guess what I am going to get? I am going to get it the way that my way goes. I would rather have God’s way than my way any day! There is a Bible verse for that. The Book of Isaiah says that God’s ways are higher than your ways! If you still want to hold onto your ways then go ahead. It says God’s thoughts are higher than your thoughts! You say, “I have got deep thoughts!” “Deep thoughts- by John Handy” You can have your deep thoughts… God doesn’t mind if you are a deep thinker. In fact He says, “If you are so deep then come up and reason with me… I will have Job talk to you!” Job was asked by Him that question… “Excuse me… did you span Pleiades into the horizon of the sky? Did you put the belt on Orion? And how about the [big old] whale… and the way of the man. Would you truly understand…?” Excuse me Lord, let me ask you one more question, “Do you truly know the intricacies of the DNA molecule that they are still stumbling over and discovering today? Do you truly know [Father]…?”  Let me ask you just one more thing… Do you understand that the universe continues to expand…. Because the Father spoke in the beginning… He spoke and His Word has never failed… therefore they just realized with the Hubble Telescope that it continues to expand beyond the current understanding. “Do you my brother [Job]…” “Father, I rest my case!” Job realized that when God asked him those same questions that he [Job] didn’t have any answers, How many answers do you have? NONE! NONE… say Jesus… no answers… say Jesus. Who is like our God? No one…

The bottom line is lets learn how to give like God. God gave something much more valuable than money… He gave his whole heart… His whole life to you… and when He gave us Jesus He gave us everything… what more could He give? Praise the Lord!

Pastor Dona comes to take an offering as Pastor Wendell begins to announce the opportunity for an altar call.