Transcript: Christian Renewal through Isaiah 52: A New Lease on Life

The Christian people find themselves more and more in bondage in this day and age. The things in this world, the cares of life. See, we find ourselves, you know, bound by fears Bound by worries about what the future holds Worries about, you know, viruses or economies Or political things or whatever And we get bound up and we're filled with fear But God doesn't want us to be slaves to this world He wants us to be free He wants us to live free In the power of God Being overcomers And see Israel Knew what it was to be slaves But they also knew what it was To have a new lease on life To be set free And I believe right now it's time for the church and the living God to come and get a new lease on life. We've been living in fear. We've been living in torment. We've been living in... Satan and his forces and all the things in this world have been squeezing us too much. It is time for us to break free of the bondage and get a new lease on life. I love what Isaiah says in Isaiah 52, starting verse 1. He says, Awake, awake I love it It was so nice he had to say it twice Awake, awake See these are Great words from the church of the living God In this time It's time for the church of the living God To wake up It's time for the church of the living God To wake up because we've been asleep too long He says Awake, awake and put on thy strength. Nehemiah, another prophet of God, wrote in his book in Nehemiah 8 and 10, he wrote these words, Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. And that's true. The joy of the Lord is our strength. You ever wonder why you feel so defeated? You ever wonder why you feel so down and defeated? when you're defeated, when you feel down, when you feel discouraged, I want you to praise the Lord that day. Think about it. Because the joy of the Lord equals strength. That's what it comes down to. The joy of the Lord equals strength. I love that. He says, Mosiah, put on thy beautiful garments. That's beautiful. Put on thy beautiful garments. we are the children of the king and you know what happens we reap the benefits of being a child of the king hallelujah but see so often the church of the living God we live so poor when we've got so much we have a defeatist attitude all the time oh well we can't do that oh well that's just too hard oh that can't happen that can't happen why can't anything happen is anything too hard for God no there is nothing that is too hard for our God so why do we live in the fetus attitude all the time it's time for us to wake up and realize we are the children of the most high and we need to start living that way Hallelujah. Put on thy beautiful garments. He says, O Jerusalem, the holy city, for henceforth thou shalt be no more come into thee, uncircumcised and unclean. Literally meaning God will protect his people from the enemy. Hallelujah. No weapon formed against you shall prosper. but why do we accept the things of the enemy into our lives we hear things happening well this is what's going on don't accept it reject it say I believe in God I believe God is going to prove you wrong and God is going to give me a miracle by the time next time I come in here that I am going to be healed in the name of Jesus and then you will be wrong and then you will have to give an account to God and you will have to give praise to God because you are wrong and God was good all the time. See that's the point. We don't need to accept what somebody else says. Why do we accept what everybody says? We need to branch out our faith and begin believing in God. Because God said it. No weapon formed against you is going to prosper. And we sit and we say, well, weapon, oh, well, that must mean, you know, guns or arrows or whatever. No. No. No. Satan uses fear, doubt, pain, torment. He uses all these things as weapons against us. and we need to stand up against him. We need to raise up a standard against him. That's what we need to do. I love what he says in verse 2 here. This, of course, is talking to Israel, but it works for us in this generation as well. Verse 2 says, Shake off or shake thyself from the dust, if you will, because Israel needed to shake off the dust of their wandering in the desert. That's beautiful because so often what happens is when we go through the valley and the desert and all this type of stuff, we carry the desert dust with us. Think about what I saying here You gone through something difficult Maybe it's been sickness or disease or maybe it's been past heartaches or troubles or trials or tribulations or whatever. And you've had those things in the past. Maybe it's past sins. Whatever the case may be, you go and you don't shake those off. You carry them with you. It's time to shave off the dust. Those things that happened in the past live in the past. If God has brought you out, don't bring the dust with you. Shake it off. Hallelujah. I love it. Shake thyself from the dust. Literally come out from among the world and be separate. And then I love what he says. Arise and sit down. Wait a minute, what? I want you to read those words. Read them. Arise and sit down. Does that make any sense at all? Arise and sit down. Think about it. Arise and sit down. Okay, stand up, sit down. Stand up, sit down. Does that make sense? It doesn't really make sense. What was God saying? He was saying, arise, get away from this world, and sit down in holy places. That's what he was saying. But often what we do, we don't arise and get away from this world, if we stay in the world and try to sit in heavenly places. We can't do it. You can't live in a world and sit in heavenly places. That's tough. Now, that's tough, people, because we don't want to think about that. because we want to have one foot in the world and one foot in the church and think we're okay. That's not going to work. It's not going to work. If you can't live in the world and live in the church too, it doesn't work. You can be either all for God or all for this world. You can't be half and half. It doesn't work. That's why he said arise and sit down. Arise up, get away from the world, and sit down in the presence of the Almighty. I love it. Ephesians chapter 2 and 6 tells us this. He has raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. We need to sit together in heavenly places. And that's not sitting on a pew on a Sunday morning. And I appreciate you being here. That's not what I'm talking about. What that is talking about is a mindset that is God first above everything else. That's the kind of mindset we have to have. I love what he says here. O Jerusalem, loose thyself of the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion. See, they were captive. Israel was captive. in slave bondage slave to Egypt the church of the living God has been captive to this world now maybe some people would say oh no that's not true that's not true the church of the living God is not captive to this world we don't think the church of the living God is being held captive by this world just look at our political society and the way they are dictating to the church of the living God you think that's not being held captive you think that's not being held captive the way they're putting up laws and saying things like well you're going to do this and you're going to do this or thus you're going to have to do this you know that's being held captive the church is being held captive by the world it's been held captive by the world by a true tool and it is time for the church to come out and stand up. We cannot just keep doing this. We cannot just keep allowing the world to penetrate the church. Someone once said these words, and if you get nothing else today, I want you to get these. This is beautiful. If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for everything. And that's the point. So we must stand for God and His Holy Word. Otherwise, if we don't, we're in trouble. Verse 3 says, For thus saith the Lord, ye have sold yourself for naught. God is explaining here something very special. And it was simply this, that he didn't get anything from Israel being enslaved. That's what he meant by, you sold yourself for nothing. In other words, I didn't get anything out of your enslavement. God doesn't get anything when he has to punish us. It doesn't make God happy, but like a child. You remember when you were children, those of you that are older? You remember when you were children, you had to be punished by mom and dad? You know? I got punishment, Lord not wanted. Yeah. And the point is, what was the punishment for? Was it because mom and dad just wanted to be mean? No. It was because they were trying to make us better, you know, adults. So that we could grow up and be better people. And that's what God does. Why did God allow them to get Israel to be enslaved? Because they had rejected God. They said, we want to do what we want to do. And so God said, okay, I'll take my hands off and see what happens. And when God takes his hands off and takes the power away from us, we are helpless and thus we end up enslaved. And that's the point. See, God didn't get anything. God doesn't get anything from having to punish us. It hurts him. But he has to do it. Just like a dad or a mom. when they have to punish their children. It hurts them, but they have to do it. It's for their own good. I love what he says here. And ye shall be redeemed without money. That's beautiful. We have been redeemed without money. Jesus died on a cross of Calvary for your sins and mine Now all we have to do is accept the gift of salvation That's all we have to do. We don't have to pay anything. I'm thankful for that. The price was already paid. It wasn't paid in money. It was paid in blood. By Jesus' blood sacrifice for you and for me. We can be part of the family. And it's all free. Hallelujah. Verse 4 says, For thus saith the Lord God, my people went down aforetime into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them without cause. Now, I want you to read this, because this is talking about Egyptian bondage. Okay? This right here is talking when they were held captive by the Egyptian people. But what does it say here? They were oppressed by what? The Assyrians. Kind of sounds strange, doesn't it? Kind of sounds like maybe God's word is not quite lining up, right? Because the Assyrians and the Egyptians are two different people. so how can you be captive by the Egyptians and the Assyrians at the same time so God's word must have lied right God's word must have lied I'm going to share something with you that maybe you didn't know I didn't realize this until I studied it and it was like wow it blew my mind and it is simply this about the turn of the century there was an excavation and they uncovered documents of things that was at this time of the Egyptian enslavement of Israel that Pharaoh the Pharaoh of Egypt had Assyrian descent so the Assyrian talked about here was the Pharaoh God's word doesn't lie many generations that studied that phrase there thought wow that must be a lie until they uncovered the truth in an excavation they found the truth God's word doesn't lie people it doesn't lie they were oppressed by the Assyrian by Pharaoh and his people and people of God are being oppressed but they will not be forsaken by God because I want to share with you something the children of Israel were in Egyptian bondage but they were not forsaken by God think about it when Moses came into the land and the plagues came upon them, the Egyptian people, or the Israeli people, I should say, were not touched by the plagues. When the death angel came through the land, the Israeli people were not touched by the death angel. And when Pharaoh finally got so sick and tired of all the stuff, he said, get out of my land, and Moses began to take his people out to the promised land, They came to the Red Sea and they saw the miracle of the Red Sea parting. And they went through on dry ground. They saw the power of God because God had not forsaken them. The oppressor may oppress, but God does not forsake his children. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. I love it. This is beautiful. God's chosen people brutally and cruelly treated in Egypt and many of God's people around this world are being persecuted right now. But God is still God and God is still on the throne. Oppressed but not forsaken. Hallelujah. The final verse that I want to share with you is verse 6 and it is this. It says, therefore my people shall know my name. Hallelujah. My people shall know my name. They shall know the name Elohim. Elohim. The living God. Not the dead God. The living God. They shall know the name El Shaddai. God Almighty. They shall know the God Jehovah Jireh. The Lord will provide. They will know my name. And then he says, therefore they shall know in the day that I am he that does speak. And behold, it is I. Hallelujah. I want to share with you. You've got to believe that it is him. It is God. He is the one that will bring you out. Of anything that you're going through. Of any kind of bondage. Of any kind of disease. Of any kind of torment or trial or tribulation. Anything that you're going through. God will bring you out. Why? Because the same God that spoke the world into existence. Is the same God that created you. Hallelujah. The same God that spoke in the burning bush is the same God that speaks to you. Hallelujah. Because the same God that walked with the Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace is the same God that walks with you daily. The same God. The same God. that opened blinded eyes that unstopped the deaf ears that made the cripple to walk that made the leper to be clean that same God is the same God that heals you today in 2021 there is nothing beyond his capability, he's the same God hallelujah hallelujah he the same God he doesn change He always the same So I say this today and I ask you this Are you living on your new lease in life? Are you living in a new lease in life? Or do you find yourself still hovering in the Egyptian bondage? the cares of this world seem to hover over top of you like a dark cloud you see all the things going on and it just hovers over top of you and it makes a darkness over you and you just live in fear and tremble are you living in doubt, fear, regret, disappointments living in those past mistakes that you made I say today come out of the bondage and live free. Get a new lease on life. It is here for you. It's available to you. You've just got to accept it. You've got to say, God, help me bring these chains, set me free, and hope you live free in a new lease on life. It's available. It's available. You've just got to reach out and touch it. Just got to reach out and grab it. let's bow our heads before the Lord this morning as we just look at our own eyes for a moment for those of you who looked at here in this house today in God's house right here those of you that are watching the video wherever you're watching it I want you to examine your life for just a moment and I want you to think about your life are you living on that new release of life? fear, doubt, past mistakes the cares of this world all the things that is going on in this world none of it bothers you because you're living in a new lease of life or would someone be honest not to me, but to God as you examine your life and would you say you know sometimes the cares of this world sometimes the doubts and the fears and the different things in this world, it began to creep in on me and I began to feel that dark cloud hovering over top of me and I need to be delivered. There is nothing, and I want you to understand this, there is nothing, nothing to be ashamed of to admit that. We all have trials. We all have tribulations. We all go through things. Would you be honest to God, not to me today, but to God and would say, God I need you to help me live on a new lease of life would you raise up a hand today hands going up I appreciate that hands going up all over the house that's beautiful all over the house that's beautiful awesome awesome maybe you're watching the video and wherever you're at watching that video I want you to raise up your hand if you feel that same way raise up your hand I don't care if you're with your family or friends or whatever I want you to raise up your hand and say God I need you to help me Father God you saw these hands Going up today In this house those watching the video You saw the hands Honest people saying I live With that dark cloud sometimes Hovering over top of me and I need it out Father God I pray right now In Jesus name That you will come down in resurrection power That you will come down In the power of the almighty Of Jehovah Jireh The Lord will provide And you will wipe away all of those dark clouds of fear and doubt and trembling and you will wipe it away, Father God. You will wipe it away. That they will be sin free. That Satan will not have power on us anymore. That it will be wiped clean in the power of God. Father God, just wipe it away. Father God, just wipe it away. Right now in Jesus' name. Wipe it away. That they will be set free. That your people will be set free in the power of God. That they will have no problems anymore. That they will live that new lease of life. Father God, make it so. Father God, bring to them the joy of the Lord, which is our strength. And that when Satan comes in like a flood, we will raise up that standard against him. And we will live for you. Like the Israeli people lived for you. Father God, give us the promised land experience in our life daily. That we will be able to see the miracle and the blessing of God. I pray it right now in Jesus' name. Father God, I thank you for giving us that new lease on life. I thank you, Father God, that you love us and you care for us. Father God today I pray for those ones that are going through troubles Father God heal them heal them right now give them the miracle set them free and help them to live free Father God we love you today we thank you today we praise you today for your worth of our praise. And now, Father God, as we dismiss, Father God, I ask you not to dismiss us, but Father God, I ask you to go with us. Father God, keep us safe. And Father God, bring us back safe into your house next time that we might share together, worship together, and be able to share the blessings of God with each other. That, hey, this week I had a miracle. This week I had a blessing. this week God touched me I've been living on this new lease of life make it so Father we thank you we praise you in Jesus name we pray Amen Thank you.