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God Fights Your Battles · the new Jerusalem

• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm going to a time in the history of Israel where there was a king by the name of Ahab.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible says that he took over from his father Omri.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: And he reigned for 22 years over Israel.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible says that Ahab, the king of Israel, did evil in the sight of God, more than all the other kings of Israel who were before him.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible also says he took Jezebel from the tribe of Sidonians as wife and went and served Baal and worshipped him, which was one of her gods from her lineage.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: And he set up an altar of Baal, which he built in the city of Samaria, in the form of a wooden image.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible mentions all of this in 1 Kings.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: And it says that it provoked God to anger Ahab's actions and what he did more than any other kings before him.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: So you see, Ahab is the king, he's taken over, he's ruled for 22 years, he takes somebody as wife, he adopts her God from her lineage, and he makes a temple.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible says that God is provoked to anger towards Ahab.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: And this is when my most favorite person enters.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm by now, if those of you haven't got it, I'm talking about Prophet Elijah.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to tell you that Prophet Elijah is mentioned for the first time in the book of, as I said, 1 Kings, the 17th chapter, and he's not even mentioned before that.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: He just comes onto the picture with a bang.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: As I said in 1 Kings, the 17th chapter, and then he calls out a famine upon the land, saying that there would not be any rain nor any dew on the land except at his word.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, hallelujah.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: As I said, Elijah operated in some next level faith with God.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: And just to tell you how it pans out, the Lord sends him away from that place where Ahab is king, and he takes him to a place towards a brook at Charinth.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: And he tells Elijah that he tells Elijah to go there and he says that I will feed you day and night.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible says that he feeds him day and evening through ravens.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: They bring him bread and meat, the Bible says, and he drinks from the brook at Charinth.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: And as you know, because he had called a famine on the land, there was no rain.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And because of Elijah's word of no rain, the book, the brook also dries up.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: And then the word of the Lord comes to him again and says, Elijah, get up and go to this place called Zarephath or Zarephath, which is in a place called Sidon.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: And he tells him to go and dwell there.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: And God tells him that he has commanded a widow to provide for him.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: I told you Elijah had a very different relationship with God.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: Imagine that he comes onto the scene in the first first Kings, the 17th chapter, and he starts flamboyant faith.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: He starts with calling out a famine on the land.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: And then God tells him to leave the place and he leaves, and God feeds him through a raven twice a day, meat and bread.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: And then he sends him away from that the brook at Cherinth and tells him to go to Zarephat, where he has appointed or he has commanded a widow to provide for him.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_00: And Elijah, of course, obedient man of God, picks up and goes to Zarephat.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: And the Bible says that as he enters the gates, at the gates, rather, before he enters the city, he sees a widow who's gathering sticks.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: Now, some of you know the story, some of you don't, so pay attention.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: This beautiful morning, it's a lovely story.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: And he calls to her and he asks her for some water to drink because, of course, he must have traveled the distance, the brook had dried up, there's a famine in the land, he must have been thirsty.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: And she's going to get Elijah a drink of water.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: And as she is going, Elijah also calls out to her and says, Also get me some bread to eat.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: While you're at it, get me some bread.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm reading to you now from the book of Kings, the 17th chapter, the 12th verse.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: 1 Kings, the 17th chapter, the 12th verse, which says, But she says to Elijah, As the Lord your God lives, I have no food, only a handful of flour in a bowl, and a little oil in a jar.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_00: And behold, I'm gathering a few sticks, so that I may go in and prepare it for me and my son, so that we may eat it and die.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that's a tough one.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: The widow that God has commanded to provide for Elijah has nothing.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: So he meets her at the gates of the city and he asks for water and bread.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: And she turns around and tells him, As God lives, I have nothing but a little bit of flour in a bin and a little bit of oil in a jar.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: And as you can see, I'm gathering sticks because she was at the gates of the city gathering sticks.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_00: She's saying, I'm about to make bread for me and my son that we may eat it and die.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, I'm going to continue with what happens.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: Elijah says to her, Do not worry.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: Go do as you have said.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: But make a small cake for me first from it and bring it to me.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: And then after that, make some for yourself and your son.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_00: So Elijah is a powerful man of God.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_00: I already told you that.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: And God has told him that he has appointed somebody to take care of him, commanded a widow to take care of him, who will provide for him.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: And the widow has nothing.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: But listen to Elijah and listen to what happens and how the story pans out.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: Elijah says, That's okay.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: Go and do as you've told me that you will do, and don't worry.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: But from what you have, make some bread for me first, and then go and make for yourself and your son.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: And then he tells them the 17th chapter, the 14th verse, and you can highlight this in your Bibles, in your apps, and whatever you like to use as reference.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: Elijah tells him, For thus says the Lord God of Israel, the bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: So he tells the widow, the bin of flour will not run out, nor will the oil of the jar of oil run dry until the Lord sends rain upon the planet.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: Let me tell you how the story ends.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_00: The widow goes and she does as she was told by Elijah.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: So she makes a little bit of bread for him and comes and gives gives it to him.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: And then she makes some for her son and herself.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: And don't take my word for it.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: It's in the Bible.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: From the 15th verse onwards, 15th chapter on uh the 15th verse onwards.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: So she went and did everything in accordance with the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_00: The flower was not used up, nor did the jar of oil become empty in accordance with the word of the Lord which he spoke to Elijah.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, hallelujah! Hallelujah.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_00: So she went and she did according to what Elijah told her, and the Bible says, and she and he and her household ate for many days, and the bin of flour did not run dry, and neither did the oil, according to the word of Elijah.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: I want to think, I want to put things into a perspective for you this beautiful morning.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: First, I want you to consider the situation of the widow.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: These are different times, these are old times.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: The women never used to work, the men used to work.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: If she's a widow, she probably doesn't have a source of income.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: Plus, there's a drought in the land.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't say how old the son is, so maybe he was not working, maybe he was too young.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_00: And which is why the mother has reached a point where everything is at its end now, and she's making a little bit of bread, and she's going to eat it and give it to her son and prepare to die.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_00: What a situation.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: I'd like you to take a few minutes and put yourself in the widow's shoes this beautiful morning and just think about her situation.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_00: She has nothing left besides oil and flour.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: And she's met this man of God at the gates of the city, Zarafat.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: And she's ready to eat her last meal and die.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_00: That's a very different mindset.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: And if you understand that mindset, you'll know that there's it it's an end game situation.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: There's nothing beyond that.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: She has nowhere else to go, nothing more to look forward to besides this last meal.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_00: And only a mother would understand if she's preparing to feed her son his last meal and they're going to die together.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: That's a real difficult situation.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: But today, I as I said, I want to leave you with a perspective and I want to get you thinking through the word of God, and I'll give you the answers through the word of God.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: Two aspects in the situation between Elijah and the widow.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm getting straight into it.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_00: The first one did you ever think about why God picked this widow to help Elijah?
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: Do you think God did not know about her situation or her background and what's happening with her at Zeraphat, or that she has one son and just a little bit of flour and oil left for one last meal?
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: Do you think he didn't know that?
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: Let me tell you something.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: He is the beginning and the end.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_00: He knows the beginning from the end.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: He knows everything.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_00: And let me tell you this beautiful morning.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: Of course, he knew what was the situation with this widow.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: So I come back to the ultimate question again.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: Why did he pick the widow to provide for Elijah when she has nothing to provide?
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_00: Let me tell you.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: We heard last week from the book of Hebrews, the 11th chapter, the sixth verse, but without faith, it is impossible to please him.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: For he who comes to him must believe that he is, and he's a reward of those who diligently seek him.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: And here's my take on the situation.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: You heard this last week from Hebrews 11:6.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_00: And as I said, here's my take.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: God just wanted to please himself that day.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: He just wanted to please himself for the next few days, maybe, knowing fully well that this widow is going to come through.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: No matter what is happening with her, she is going to come through.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_00: And that's why, as I said, this is my take on the matter.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: He sends Elijah and appoints a widow who has nothing to provide for him.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_00: But God knew she had a little flour and a little oil.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: And he knew what is going to happen when Elijah goes and meets the widow.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: So you see, sometimes I want to tell you this morning that God picks you in a situation because He knows that you are going to come through.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: He knows your faith will hold fast.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_00: He knows.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: He knows you.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_00: He's made you.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: Don't second guess yourself.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: This beautiful day, this beautiful morning, on what your situation is.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: I want to be I want to tell you this.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_00: That he wants to be pleased by you.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_00: And Exodus 14 14 says, the Lord will fight for you.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_00: And you shall hold your peace.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: Not P-I-E-C-E, but P A E C E.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_00: Peace.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: Exodus 14.14 says, The Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: I want to tell you this morning, God knows everything.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_00: And whatever you're going through today, if you are, if you're not, praise God for it.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: But if you are going through something today, I would like you to believe that God knows how you are going to pass through the situation.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: And let me tell you, God knew.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: As Elisha prayed for Gehazi, for his spiritual eyes to open when they were surrounded by an entire army.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: Just as God knew.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: When Job lost everything.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_00: He lost everything.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_00: But God gave everything back to him sevenfold.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_00: Just as God knew then.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: I want to tell you this morning, he knows now.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: And from his word, from Exodus 14, 13, do not fear.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: Stand by.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: See the salvation of the Lord.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: Hold still.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_00: Keep your peace.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: The Lord will accomplish it for you today.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_00: That's the first.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_00: And here's the second I want to leave you.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: Leave you with.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sorry, the widow, I want to tell you this morning, gave what she had to Elijah.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, it seems difficult.
• 16:34
  SPEAKER_00: It looked even more impossible if you put yourself in her shoes where all you have is a little oil and a little flour for one last meal.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_00: But yet, I want to tell you this morning, and as I told you, there's a reason why God picked her because he knew she would come through.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_00: And as I said, I'm here to give you through the word of God the solution of these things that pop up in life.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: But yet, no matter what a situation she took from that little flower and that little oil that she had, and it needed an act for her to take and give to God that He could take and multiply.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: I know this is a difficult one for most people to understand, and that's giving to God.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: But I want to tell you this beautiful morning to me, it's an ultimate act of faith, a seed that you give to God for him to nurture and multiply, multiply that that tree may bear fruit.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm giving it to you from the word of God from the book of Luke, the sixth chapter, the 38th verse.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: From Luke, the sixth chapter, the 38th verse.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_00: It says, Give and it will be given to you.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: A good measure pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: For with the measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: Luke 6 38.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: It's the word of God, give and it will be given to you.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: A good measure pressed down, shaken together, running over will be poured into your bosom.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: Other versions have will be poured into your lap.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: I want to tell you this beautiful morning.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's difficult to understand, but you need to give to God for Him to take it and for Him to multiply it and then give it back to you.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: Just as the boy did.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_00: And wait for it.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_00: He gave back twelve baskets full of leftover.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: Imagine if the boy had held onto his five loaves and two fish.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_00: The same way the widow Azarephat gave God what she had.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: She had a little flour and a little oil, and she made some bread for Elijah and gave it to him first.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: And as the word of God goes in the book of 1st Kings, the oil did not run dry, neither did the flour run out.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: And he, she, and the household ate until God sent rain down on the earth.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: I want to tell you today what today, whatever point in life you are in, whatever is your situation, whoever you have around you as help, even if you are standing all alone in it.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: Remember this.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_00: Just as a widow at Zarephat, God will use your situation to show his salvation.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_00: He will use your situation to show you his salvation, to show the world his salvation, that he will accomplish for the one he loves, and that's you.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_00: Stand firm, be still, and see his salvation just as his chosen saw it.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_00: When he pulled them out of Egypt, he parted the Red Sea right in front of them, that they may see the salvation of the Lord, and they saw it.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_00: Same way.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_00: And remember that you need to give to God, you need to take a seed and give it to him, that he may be able to take that and multiply it back into your situation.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's not me, it's the word of God.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_00: This beautiful morning, I pray that God bless you and give you the wisdom to understand his word.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: That it may bear much fruit to you.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: I'd like to pray.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for this beautiful word.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you for your double-edged sword that does not go back until it has achieved what it has been set out for now.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you, Lord, that you've taken control of all our situations.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: This battle does not belong to us, it belongs to you.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_00: We will stand firm, stand our ground, hold our peace, look upon our situation, and we will see your salvation come through, Lord.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: Just as you did for the Israelites by parting the Red Sea.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_00: Just as you did for Job as you gave back to him seven times.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_00: Just as you did for anyone who takes a stand in your name.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_00: Just as the widowed Zarefat did.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_00: Neither did the flower run out.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_00: And she, Elijah, and the household could eat.
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you, Lord.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_00: Your word says that given and shall be given, pressed down, shaken together, and overflowing will be poured into people's bosom, Lord.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you for your word for watching over to perform it.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you, Lord, that you're filling people with your wisdom.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you, Lord, that you've given each and every one of us the seed that we may sow back, that you will take and multiply as your word has been released.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for this beautiful time.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for this beautiful, beautiful day which you have made, and we will rejoice and be glad in it.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_00: And I thank you, Lord, that you have taken control of everyone's situation, that they may see your salvation come through just because you love them, thank you for this beautiful time, thank you for this beautiful presence that people can feel in their homes.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: A beautiful calm.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Lord, that you're taking away some people's burdens.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_00: You're taking away the yoke and you're giving them your yoke because your yoke is easy, your burden is light.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_00: Hallelujah.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for this beautiful time, Lord.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name, I pray.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.