Take
Heart
Sermon
for Covenant of Hope Ministries 2/3/2015
Good
afternoon, welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries. My name is Elder
Cal Jennings. We are normally posted on Sundays for sermons and
Wednesdays for studies. You can find these posted in the following
locations.
Ocean - Put Your Hand in the Hand
We all have
problems. Every single one of us. Some of our problems are more
serious than the problems of others but to us our problems are just
as important. God didn't tell us that life would be without problems
if we followed him. He just told us to take heart and trust that He
would get us through those problems.
Psalm 27:14 New International Version (NIV)
14 Wait for the Lord;be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.
Psalm 27:14 King James Version (KJV)
14 Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
“Be
strong and take heart.” No, this isn't referring to the ancient
Mayan and Aztec practice of cutting someone open and taking their
heart. ;) This is referring to definition 4 of the King James
Version Dictionary.
- The seat of the affections and passions, as of love, joy, grief, enmity, courage, pleasure &c.
Take
courage. Be of good courage. Trust in the Lord for all of your
needs. Sure, we may have troubles, but when you trust in the Lord,
your needs will be filled. You don't have to worry about whether or
not things will work out. You just do what you can and trust that
things will work out. That doesn't mean just sit back and do nothing
and everything will be dropped in your lap all of the time.
Sometimes we have to work on changing ourselves or changing
situations in our lives that are causing the problems.
Psalm 31:24 King James Version (KJV)
24 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.
When you
take heart and trust in the Lord, he will strengthen your heart. The
more you trust, the stronger your faith will become and the stronger
your heart of faith will be, The more faith you have the easier it
will be for you to take heart. Sometimes it may seem like things are
impossible but when you take heart, God turns those things around.
John 16:33 King James Version (KJV)
33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
One thing
that you should know about maintaining your faith and being able to
maintain it during something important that is occurring is to watch
the company who surrounds you. If you have a bunch of doubting
Thomas's around you, you're going to have trouble maintaining your
faith. Rev. Joel Osteen presented this passage concerning it.
Mark 5:21-43 New International Version (NIV)Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other
side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was
by the lake. 22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named
Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He
pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please
come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and
live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 And a woman
was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years.
26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many
doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better
she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up
behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she
thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”
29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body
that she was freed from her suffering.
30 At
once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned
around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 “You
see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered,
“and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.
33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and
fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole
truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed
you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
35 While
Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of
Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they
said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”
36 Overhearing[a]
what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just
believe.”
37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and
John the brother of James. 38 When they came to the home of
the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying
and wailing loudly. 39 He went in and said to them, “Why
all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.”
40 But they laughed at him.
After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother
and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child
was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha
koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”).
42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around
(she was twelve years old). At this they were completely
astonished. 43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know
about this, and told them to give her something to eat.
Footnotes:
|
As
Joel Osteen said, you can't have people around you mocking you and
putting you down when you're trying to do something important like
heal someone or raise someone from the dead. Even Jesus sent
everyone but Peter, James, John, and the child's mother out of the
room before he attempted to raise her from the dead.
Sometimes
people are just agitators and/or detractors. You don't need those
people around you when you're doing something that important. If
you're praying FOR someone, it's good to get them to understand that
there is no reason to doubt as well. The more doubt there is, the
more trouble you are going to have praying with the pureness of heart
that is needed for God to answer your requests. You need everyone
involved to be on board with you or the boat is likely to capsize.
That is why Jesus told us these things about praying.
Mark 11:24 King James Version (KJV)
24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.Matthew 21:21-22 King James Version (KJV)
21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
Yes,
you have to believe if you want to receive what you ask for. Let me
repeat that. You HAVE to believe if you want to receive what you ask
for. Believe that you have received it and it shall be done. Jesus
also said that we don't need to be too specific in what we prayed for
because the Father already knows our needs. That is what Jesus
taught us in the Lord's Prayer. Just ask that your needs regarding
something be filled and God will fill them. Let God worry about HOW
it's going to happen. You just believe it IS going to happen as you
pray.
Now,
let's bow our heads and pray as Jesus taught us when he said in
Matthew 6:9-13 King James Version (KJV)
9 After this manner therefore pray ye:Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Love,
Hope, Peace, and Christ be with you,
Elder
Cal Jennings
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