Intro: If you have your bibles, I want you to look in the depths of the Old Testament, to be precise in the book of Ezekiel.
Many of you have been the topics of conversations a number of you have been the main topic of some very serious discussions. There have been some people discussing you. And in the discussion some questions arose, question such as how in the world did they endure so many different experiences, hardships, difficulties, really how did they encounter so many problems and adversities in the years past and yet you are still here.
Some of you don’t have to go back that far, because there have been some of you that have been through some major transitions just on this last month and you really don’t know how you made it. How is it that some of you survived the car wrecks, some of you experienced physical assaults and attacks on your health?
Some have experienced some things that nobody knows about but you and God, some inner hurts, some inner pain, and even some love scars. And the question has gone out, how in the world giving all that you have been up against, after experiencing the university, of hard knots, how is it possible that you are still in your right mind and you are still alive in the land of the living.
Others raised the question, how is it possible that they have endure great stress, how is it that they have handled these problems of such a serious and extreme nature, how it is that you have been under so much extreme pressure and such great stress, and you have not taken a leave of your senses, someone may ask how is it that they have been under such tremendous distress and have not yet been institutionalize at some center for the mental insane.
The reason some of you are still in their right mind I submit to you that the answer is found in the four last words of our text. The four last words of our text tell us, even though you been through hell and high waters the real reason that you have made it is because the Lord was there.
Saints my soul leaps with joy just to be able to mention these words to you “The Lord Was There” it’s been ruff sometimes, your way may have got dark sometimes, some people counted you out, some people had wrote you off, but what they didn’t know is that you was never in the situation by yourself. What they didn’t know is that the Lord was there. I wonder will you turn to somebody and tell them I’m still here because the Lord was there X3.
My brother’s and sister’s I believe that while we were going through our calamities and our tribulations, I believe that there is a tendency, a propensity, a predisposition, a issue on our part that we have spent too much time dwelling on who was not there. I believe that there is a strange proclivity, a strange inclination and tendency on our part, that we focus to much on who didn’t come through, who didn’t show up and who let me down when I so desperately needed them. I believe that we’ve been too busy concentrating on the haters in our lives. But want to I submit to you this morning to stop focusing on those who was not there, and start focusing on who was there.
I suggest to you that we need to stop looking to those who really had no power to help you in the first place. In fact, I’m glad that some people didn’t show up, because if they would have been there, they might’ve said the wrong thing, given me the wrong advice, pointed me in the wrong direction. Because the truth of the matter is if you have the Lord on your side and then you could recite Romans 8 and 28 no matter how bad the situation is you can say: and we know that all things work together for the good of them that love the God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
So for the people that didn’t show up, so for the people that didn’t respond, when I was sick, when I was hunger, when I was homeless, when I was thirsty, when I was broke, when I was lonely, when I was sad, when I broke and broken, for those of you that didn’t show up in the time of need I want to say thank you, because the Lord was there.
And can I drop this in your spirit? The God that I serve knows when to show up. Let me call some witnesses to the stand. Come here Abraham, I read Abraham how you took Isaac the mountain of Mt. Moriah to slay him, can you tell this audience what happen. When I was prepared to slay my son I heard a voice from heaven call my name twice Abraham, Abraham, I knew that it had to be important because he called my name twice, the voice said I know that you fearest me, and when I looked up there was a ram in the bush. And I know that it was only because the Lord was there.
Come here Daniel, do you all remember when Daniel was in the lion’s den to be devoured by the lion and God changed the lion growl into music, it was only the Lord was there. Come here Shadrach, Meshach, and you to Abednego. You all do remember the three Hebrew boy that was in the fiery furnace, yes (Give their names) they were thrown and somebody said did not we throw three men in the fire and somebody said yes, and then somebody else said well I see four men in the fire and the fourth one looks like the Son of God yes the Lord was there even in the fire. And I believe that I can get about fifty of you all who has had some trials and some tribulations to say, in your situation, when I’m going through Yes the Lord is there. He was there in the sickness, he is there the my lowest hour, He’s there when I’m tired, he is there when my best friend has left me, I can truly say that the Lord is there. In fact the scripture says that “the eyes of the Lord is everywhere, beholding the evil and the good”. David said if I make my bed in hell he’s there or if I make my bed in heaven he’s there. Yes he’s everywhere. You need to think about that because the very next time you think about sinning, the next time you starts lying, know that God is there, the next time you prepare to fornicate, know that the Lord is there. Think about that the next time you’ll about to say something that you know that you know isn’t true, think about that when you begin to keep up confusion you need to know that the Lord is there and he’s keeping record on every good and evil deed that we do The Lord Is There.
I remember one time that my mother had become very ill and my sister call the ambulance just so they could rush her to the hospital to see the doctor and the reason that they called the ambulance is because they were not there, but I remember my grandmother said yall wait a minute because my doctor is already here and she begin to call on Jesus and while she was calling he was already there. [THE LORD WAS THERE]
So here in our text it opens up by giving us an interesting episode about the people of the nation Israel, our text tells us that God is anger and disturb with Mt. Seir [and if you don’t know let me tell you that Mt Seir was known for their evilness, and God was sick of it, just like God is sick and tired of our evilness. People wondering why they are always sick
God is tired of our evilness; we are wondering why so many are dying off it is because of their evilness and God is sick and tired of it. And God is trying to give us another chance to straighten our lives out, but we are taking it for granted. God was so angry that he told the man of God by the name of Ezekiel, he said Ezekiel prophesy against Mt. Seir.
You see Mt. Seir was the nation of the people of Edom, or the Edomittes if you please. And God was upset with them because of the way that they were treating and abusing his people. And another reason God was upset with Mt, Seir was because they had evil intention for the people of Israel, he was anger with them because they had hard heartedness against his people.
And men and women of God I need to tell y’all this morning that God is not please if we are not standing up for righteousness, God is not please if we know the way of righteousness yet we go in another direction. God is not pleased when we call ourselves brothers but we can’t shake one another hands. God is not please when we don’t recognize everything that we know God has taught us, every place that we been God kept us and everything that we have God gave us, and yet we go opposite to his will.
The Edomites coveted the land of Israel. Down through the generations, the Edomites always believed that the land of Israel belonged to them. As they saw it, the only reason their nation did not possess the land was because Jacob had stolen it from their forefather Esau. Thus the Edomites sought every opportunity to either conquer Israel or to lay claim to some of its land.
The Edomites ignored a very significant fact: after Esau sold his birthright, God had compassion on him and led him to the land that surrounded Mount Seir. But God’s mercy and compassion to the Edomites down through the centuries mattered little to them. They still hated Israel and coveted its land. They continued to choose the wealth of this world over God and His plan for it.
And as a consequence of the Edomites’ covetousness and greed, the LORD would judge them. And His justice would be perfect. The Edomites would reap exactly what they had sown. They had sown anger and envy; therefore, they would reap anger and envy.
And the judgment would honor the LORD’s Name. Through the judgment of Edom, God would make Himself known among the Israelites. And if I have gleamed anything from this passage of scripture, it would be that we must be careful how we treat the people of God. And we’ve got to be careful how we treat one another as men. And I don’t care what you think that they are doing wrong it’s not your job to try and straighten them out because they don’t belong to us, but they belong to God. Because when you mistreat one of God’s children the only thing that you are doing is bringing down God’s wrath upon yourselves. Let me prove it to you the bible says in Matthew 18:6 “ but whoso shall offend one of the little ones which believe in me, it would be better for them to hang millstone around there neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea,
Let me close this thang here, now some of you know that the Lord has many names and these names express who he is too us. Help me if you will.
Some of us call him Jehovah: ZUR (God Our Rock)
Ya Wadood – (O-Loving)
Ya Mujeeb (O Hearer of Prayer)
Yahweh (Self-existent One)
El Shaddai (God All Sufficient)
JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU (The Lord Our Righteousness)
Jehovah-Rophe (Lord Who Heals)
JEHOVAH-SHALOM (The Lord Our Peace)
But I personally like JEHOVAH-SHAMMAH (The Lord is There) Why Spies
Because he’s always there:
When I’m sick he there
When I’m lonely he’s there
When I broke he’s there
When I’m friendless he’s there
When I’m mistreated he there
When I’m abused he’s there
When I’m accused he’s there
When I’m lied on he’s there
And as I was sitting in my office this morning and a brother that told me that he wanted to testify because he heard me talking about he was there, he told me that he was trying to hold his peace but he couldn’t because when he heard me talking about the Lord was there, he said please let me testify. So I said come on brother and testify now. 1st of all who are you? He said my name is David and I was standing before a mighty giant four or five times my size, and all I had was a 5 smooth rock and a sling shot in my hand, and they tried to put Saul Armour on me but it didn’t fit right, but the I slayed the giant and the only reason that I was able to conquer him was because the Lord was there.
Another brother said hold on Pastor, don’t leave me out, I need to testify how my brother mistreated me, they through me in a pit, they sold me into slavery, and I got thrown into a prison, but I made it to the palace only because the Lord was there.
And there are some you that are sitting here in on the live that have been through some hard times, some of you have been to doctor after doctor, and surgery after surgery, and the only reason that you made it through is because the Lord was there, some of you have lost love ones and in those darkest hour of the night, and when you had time to really think about it, you broke down in midnight tears and the only way you made it out is because the Lord was there.
Some of you may be wondering why I’m shouting like I am, well let me tell you why. Over 20 years ago they told us that Dr. T, had cancerous tumors and they started treating her for them and then later on they told her they told her that she had sys on her ovaries and then they started treating her for that and then finally they told her that she ulcers and then they started treating her for that, but then God told her to go and take a pregnancy test and nine months later, that tumor, that sys, and that ulcer came out and we named her faith. What are you saying Pastor they could have killed my baby but God was there all the time.
And some of you been dealing with some issue and the doctor said you wasn’t going to make through, but through many toils and snares you made it through, and the reason you made it through is because THE LORD WAS THERE. Is there anybody here that will testify that the Lord was there if you are here just lift your hands, and tell somebody that the Lord
was there.
He was right there, right in the nick of time. When God was looking for somebody to go down the Lord was right there. Momma couldn’t go, daddy couldn’t go, sister or brother couldn’t go but the Lord was right there.
The Lord was there for the Israelites and he’ll be there for you.
He was there for:
Moses: when he had to face Pharaoh
Abraham: when he had to go to Mt. Moriah
