Outrageous Faith!

Thanks sir, if y'all would extend your hands towards Ben. Yeah. Amen,

So, Father, I thank you for my friend and Lord, I

just asked that you would bless the word that he has this morning. Father,

I asked that you would speak through him, Lord, that he would

just flow under the unction of your spirit. Lord, that you would increase

sensitivity to your leading to what's on your heart. Father, thank you in

advance for your word, for stirring faith, for stirring a hunger to believe

for the impossible. In Jesus' name, Amen, Amen, Praise God.

Right. I wanted to represent Justin well today, so I look for some

dad jokes and I couldn't find any that were funny, right, So I

missed it on that one. Amen. So interesting. Interestingly enough, when

Justin called me and asked me, he said, Hey, would you be

willing to teach? I said yeah, And then I started thinking through the

last few times that I taught here and I actually had to go back and

find them. It was on a series I started on the character of God,

right, the love of God, the loyalty of God. Because I

think in our church today and I'm not talking about here, I'm talking about

church in the Big Sea. We have missed some things about God and his

character and who he really is. We've got so centered on church and the

physical building that we forgot We come here for God, right, I go

glad. Four people got it. We come here for God right. Amen.

There was a lot of women's voices. That's all I'm gonna say.

Amen. I love you guys. So for those of you who don't know

me, my name is Ben Streebeck. I don't normally dress like this,

but thankfully my son Ethan and Paul up there are in my life and they

helped me look better than normal. Paul's spirit reached out to me and He's

like, it's okay to wear something other than a T shirt. So here

I am dressed for success. Amen, right amen, Thank you, Paul,

appreciate you, buddy, Ethan, thank you, sir. You know

I'm sitting there literally. For those of you who don't know me, uh,

we used to pastor a church up north, and I went through Karris

Bible College up in Willand Park and there was a period of my life where

I was just man, just hammering out sermons. I mean I had pages

and pages and pages of them. Because Lord said something to me when I

was in Colorado. He said, I want you to pastor. And for

those of you who don't know I grew up in church. For a lot

of folks, that's probably a good thing. Somewhere in my teenage years that

was not such a good thing. Some of you know what I'm talking about.

So in that you forgive me, I'm getting past some nervousness now because

I want to be authentic with you guys. Is that okay. One of

the things that I would challenge our old church, I would say, challenge

my heart. It was a phrase I used to use all the time because

I think, and one of the things I love about Justin and I love

about our church here is there's softness to the meat that you need. There's

softness to the meat that you need. A lot of times we look for

churches that will tell us what we want so that we don't have to change,

so that we don't have to be there. And the moment that changes,

we get this revelatory voice of God that says I'm supposed to go somewhere

else. See, it's easy for us to laugh about it. Do you

understand how absolutely tragic that is we as a church. Well, hear God,

I'm supposed to be here, and the next week your boss will walk

into your office and go, Hey, that promotion you've been looking for,

it's in Seattle. And then all of a sudden, I feel like the

Lord's leading me to Seattle. See's not so funny anymore, is it?

You said, challenge my heart? You said it out loud, So that's

what I'm doing. I'm guilty of the same thing, y'all. I really

am. So today I want to be authentic with you. Is that?

Okay? Thank you? Appreciate that from the back row if you brought your

Bible, and I'm a big fan of actual pages, so you'll hear a

unique sound up here. It's gonna be amazing. Not that I hate electronics

because I'm I'm under the adjustin anointing two. Okay, But my goal here

today for you guys, My purpose I want you to walk away with the

purpose that I have for you today is to encourage your faith. If you

would go to Romans twelve, it is a good chapter, I agree.

So I'm gonna start here. So this is the this is the intro to

what I'm gonna talk to about today. Okay, So don't get all excited

when I get done reading this and be like, Okay, we're done football,

right, don't do that. I got some more stuff coming. Okay.

So Romans, Chapter twelve, verse four, we're gonna start four for

as we have any members of one body, but all the members do not

have the same function. When I read the Word, when I read what

the Lord has in his scripture, I tend to think I read it a

little differently than most, and I think that's a good thing. I'm not

saying. I do not want you to walk away with today that what I'm

saying to you is the only translation of all the scripture that I'm going to

read today. Can I get an amen? And if you don't think that's

biblical, ask yourself why there are four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, lou

John written to the Jews, the Romans, the Greeks, and the rest

of the world. Are all of them exclusive of the others? No,

they all have their place right. So today I'm going to share with you

out of my heart. I want to help you see through my eyes what

the Lord see. What the Lord has helped me see in scripture is that

okay, And that's okay. If somebody comes up here tomorrow and teaches on

the same verses and sees it differently, is that okay? All right?

Verse five. So we being many, are one body in Christ and individual

members of one another. Verse six. Having then gifts differing according to the

grace that has given us, let us use them. Now this is the

part that a lot of people latch onto here, And I'm I'm actually combining

three or four sermons and gonna be really quick and skip over some stuff.

So I'm asking the Lord open your heart. Okay, if prophecy let us

prophesy in man, that's a little bit more blurry than I like. Thank

you, Jesus, let us prophesy Verse seven. Our ministry, let us

use it in ministering, for he who teaches, in teaching, he who

exhorts an exhortation. Now a lot of people pause there, right, because

I think somewhere in christiandom we established this business hierarchy brought I truly believe we

brought it from the business world. Right, that we have a board of

directors in the church, right prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists, apostles,

right and somewhere along the way, the Body decided the Body of Christ

not us, because we're more mature than that. Justine's taught you all,

Well, I'm talking about everybody else. The Body of Christ has decided that

we as a group have to fit in one of those five, right,

I mean, we got to be one of those five. If Justin's a

prophet, surely everybody here is a prophet. If you go to a good

teaching church, right, well, I feel called to be a teacher.

And maybe that anointing rubs off on you. But let me help you with

something today. There are a lot more things in the Bible than just those

five. They're a lot more, and I want to take one today.

I want you to I want you to see this one today. And this

is where I'm gonna This is my launching pad for today. Okay, keep

reading the same place. For he who gives give liberally. How many times

y'all, y'all come to church and people walk around with I got the anointing

of give money and money, and it's in scripture. That's right, that's

right, y'all asked y'all came, I love you, thank you. Can

I challenge your heart got a few less, that's time. I love it.

It's in scripture. There are people who's calling in life is to give.

And what does God say? And give like a chief skate? Noah

says, give and give liberally, cheerfully. Scripture also says, I'm not

gonna go there now, don't have time, don't give out a compulsion,

don't feel guilty, don't be guilted. And I'm saying from the platform,

don't be guilted into giving. If you need your money more than God,

keep it. God's good. He's not going bankrupt tomorrow. God said give.

And then what did he say after that? Listen to the crowd,

give a joy, give liberally, test him. That's what he said about

giving. Nowhere in scripture will you find give because I'm desperate. See that's

how I read scripture. I'm inviting you in to see how I read the

word. That's what he didn't say, right, he said, give,

test me in it? Right? All right, I'm gonna leave that one

alone because it's getting quieter and here in this Presbyterian church, all right,

let's keep going. Let's keep going because this y'all got hung on that.

Come on now, all right, keep going. I want to start.

I wanna, I want to. I want to be here. This is

where my launching pad is Verse eight. And he who exhorts in exhortation.

Did y'all know there are people called to the Body of Christ who are just

supposed to be encouragers. That's right, man? Where are all those people

at? Who's got that on their business card? Hi? My name's Ben

Streebeck. I'm called to the office of Encouragement. Let me tell you in

twenty twenty, the church could use some encouragement. Encouragement. Amen. So

that's my launching pat today. I want to encourage you today. I want

to to bring this to you. I want to encourage you on an old

message I used to call the audacity of faith, but the Lord wants to

change it. Today we're gonna call it the tenacity of faith. I heard

a sermon one time we went to Our family went to Eagle Mount Church under

Kenneth Copeland. I don't care what you think about him. He changed my

life. He helped me dress some things in my life. But his son

or his son in law, taught a series called Bulldog Faith, and it

did something to our family. Have you ever seen a bull dog latch onto

a bone. Do you ever try to take it from him? The body

of Christ needs bulldog type faith, right, I mean, bite down,

don't let go. I challenge you to come take it from me. Faith.

The Body of Christ has come to this place. We are so fickle

in what we believe. I listen, I'm just as guilty. I am

just as guilty. I am not standing up here telling you something I have

not had to repent from myself. But when we look through scripture, which

I'm going to highlight to you here in just a minute, I want to

encourage and bring out of you the bulldog that's in you, that latches on

the things. I am encouraged in my own heart when I see people get

healed. You know, one of the things that cancur is me. I'm

not gonna say more than that, but it's they're competitive. It's somebody who

is fighting disease for fifteen twenty years and refuses to blame God. Do you

understand how big that is? Just something that small people fighting cancer, fighting

disease, and in our week times of flesh, we do something incredibly stupid.

I mean, the spirit of stupid just comes out and hangs out with

us. We have the audacity to go, well, God needs to explain

that why hasn't he healed him. It's gonna be fun when we get to

heaven in those last days and watching all the people with all them questions stand

in front of God and be like, yeah you, yes, sir,

I love you. He has such a bigger picture of what's going on in

the world and I cannot. I am not. If you come up to

me afterwards and you want an answer it to why why won't we pray for

things? Certain things don't answer and certain things don't happen? Let me help

you. I don't have the answers for all of it, but that does

not change who God is. My inability to understand at God's level is okay.

That's why he's God and I'm not. And that's okay. And we

as the body of Christ, we have got to decide for ourselves that he

is God. That's a big statement, right. But if you go read

James Chapter one with Justin was reading just the other week? Was it last

week? He was last week? Yeah, he was reading it. I

promise not lying. Chapter one says that those who come to God must first

believe that he is. Does anybody else in this room think that's a weird

statement? Thank you for the honesty. That's a precursor. First. God

says, Hey, if you want to come to me ask for something,

you might want to believe that I actually am. Can you imagine justin?

This would actually do a good justin Joe, Hey, if y'all need something

from me, come up here and address me and make sure that I am

Justin. We look at him like he was weird, so we look at

him normally. I guess I think about this, y'all. I'm serious.

I want to share with you how I view the scripture. God says,

if you have something to ask of me, come to me and know that

I am. That is the start. How many of our prayers do we

start stepping into things and we go Lord, if you would just I pray

it. Don't I do it, I'm guilty, But if you would,

just if you would, if it's not too inconvenient, If you think I

cannot imagine living in my home where my two sons would walk up to me

and dinner time be like that, if you would only feed me. But

how many of us are worried about our next meal when he says in scripture,

I take care of the birds. I take care of the beasts of

the field. How much more do I love you? Right? I don't

have time to go to on the scripture, so I want to encourage you,

guys. I want to I want to open up just a little bit

of scripture to you. Is that okay? I want to. I want

to show you how I read it, and I want to encourage your tenasky

city of faith? Amen? All right, let's go to Daniel. Amen.

Daniel's good stuff. And y'all are gonna have to forgive me. Like

I said, I am doing the super abridged version of this, so I'm

only gonna talk about Daniel and David today, and Chad write me shout in

a bed go and I want to highlight. I want to read these stories

differently to y'all. Is that okay? Is that okay? All right?

If you don't have a Bible, you're forgiven. You can go to the

app on your phone. But I want you to lay word. I want

you to actually see these words. This is important. I think too often

we come to church and we hear somebody talk about something, and then we

just take it as Yeah, that's true. I don't want you to take

me like that. I encourage you not to take me like that. You're

never going to be able to stand in front of God and say yeah.

But Ben said, you have to know this in your heart. Scripture has

to change you and you have to let it. Amen, all right,

tenacity of faith. So here we go, Daniel one. So I'm gonna

kind of set the stage for you here verse seven. To them to the

chief of the eunuchs, gave names. He gave Daniel the name Beltazar,

Hannah, Shadrack, Michelle, Mishaq, and Israeah. I benda go verse

eight. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself.

I'm gonna start there and I'm gonna jump ahead a bunch, but I need

I need to read this one sentence to you when we start talking about the

things of God and faith. Daniel would not change who he is. He

said he would not defile himself. And this is important because if you may

or may not know, as we get down into scripture here and we jumped

down, we're going to go to two. Now. Chapter two. Nebuzer

is the king right was he was he a king of the Jews. What

now he is? Right? So he had taken people captive. He'd taken

some of the Jewish people captive, not all of them, but some of

them Daniel included. Right. So we have this, this reigning king over

the Babylons, who now has Daniel in his court, right, and chad

Rack and me shacking a bend to go, And he's having a dream,

and Nebuzzer has brought all his his wizards and soothsayers and dream interpreters in front

of him, and he wants an interpretation badly. I'll just say that,

all right. Two verse five. And the king answered and said to the

childians, my decision is firm. If you do not make known the dream

to me and its interpretation, you shall be cut into pieces, and your

houses will be made an ash heap verse six. However, if you tell

me the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards,

and great honor. Therefore, tell me the dream and its interpretation.

So let's set the stage here, right, this king who has the authority

in this nation to both take your life and reward you. Right, he

has come to his court and said interpret the dream for me, die or

become wealthy. Well there's an option, Okay, die or become wealthy.

How good are you really? Now? I highlight this again. I want

to show you how I read scripture. How many of us in this moment

would suddenly doubt the our ability to hear God? This is important. Kenneth

Hagen used to teach on One of the things that he believed was a danger

to the Christian Church was our inability to teach people how to hear from God

for themselves. This is important. We've come to a place in lots of

areas in church where if Justin doesn't personally give me a word, then I

can't hear God. But John chapter ten clearly says, my sheep hear my

voice. So is Jesus a liar? So right here the King has said,

translate it become wealthy, don't translate it. Die like this is how

I read scripture. I'm just like man, I don't like I'm I'm looking

in the mirror like. Okay, Lord, I think I hear your voice.

We'll find out soon, right, come on, let's be real.

Verse ten. The Childeans answered the king and said, there is not a

man on earth that can tell the king's matter. Therefore, no king,

no lord, or ruler, has ever asked such a thing of any magician,

astrologer, or Chldean verse eleven. It is a difficult thing that the

king requests, and there is no other one who can tell the king accept

the gods whose dwelling is not the flesh. Okay, so set stage again,

right, So this king has said, Richard death right. The court

has said, nobody can do this. King, Please reconsider the only person

that can tell you this is God. So let's put ourselves in this place

right. And now of a sudden, the court is pleading with the king,

Hey, this can't be done right. Daniel hasn't out Now you ever

thought about like that? He could easily agree with the with the court.

Yep, there have y' all thought about this. Come on, put yourself

in this place, a whole court, and they're saying, hey, it

can't be done right verse twelve. For this reason, the king became furious

and angry, and he gave the command to destroy all the wise men of

Babylon verse thirteen. So with the decree went out and they began killing the

wise men, and they sought Daniel and his companions to kill them. All

right, So this is the stage rat jump down to twenty four. This

is important. Therefore, Daniel went to I'm not gonna say his name,

right, the guy who's in charge, that's it, whom the king had

appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said that said

this to him, do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Take me

before the king, and I will tell the king the interpretation. I need

this to sink in. First of all, how many of us would have

been like you were right? Kill the rest of the Babylonians. Good call.

I'm God's man. I can come tell you like, I need you

to read this scripture differently because there is a character. There is a tenacity

of faith here that is not moved. Everybody wants to survive the Lion's den,

but nobody wants to go through what Daniel went through to have the character

to survive the Lion's dead. Right, this is Daniel. This is a

normal day for him. Hey, stop killing people. All go in front

of the king. I can hear God's voice. How many of y'all have

that kind of faith? That's okay? Be honest, I want it too.

I want to stand in front of God one day and him looking at

me like he did David and say that's a manner from my own heart.

David missed it a lot. We're gonna get into David here in a minute.

He missed it a lot. But you know what. His relationship started

in a field when he had nothing, and he was the same person in

the field as he was in the king as King. All right, let's

keep going. So this is the attitude Daniel has in court. And of

course, if you've read the rest of the story, he gets promoted.

He he tells him the dream, he gets promoted. He is now the

number two in Babylon, this man of God. Right, So if you

fast forward into I'll get my notes here chapter three, yep. So if

you read through down to forty six. I don't have time today, and

I don't want this to be what you remember, but it's important to touch

on The king actually fell on his face in front of Daniel, verse forty

six. And the King answered Daniel and said, truly, your God is

the God of gods, the Lord of kings, the revealer of secrets.

Since you could reveal this secret. The way I read that, I think

it's really important that you see that the king did not say, Daniel you

there's some things in here that we need to understand that the king actually saw

God. That's important to read. Amen. All right, Chapter three,

let's skip over there. I want to jump in here. It's important.

I know we all know the story of shadrack me shacking a bendigo. If

you don't fascinating story, I want to open up just a part for you.

But essentially, these were Daniel's right hand men and right after Nebukanazer had

built a golden statue and in the land he said, hey, decree,

everybody's going to bow to it. Right. Well, Shadrack Me shacking a

bet to go did not bow right. I'm giving the short version. So

the decree in here was if you did not bow, death super simple,

right. And this is fascinating as an Old Testament story and one people a

lot of people in the world wonder why we still read the Old Testament.

Do you know there are still people in the world that are challenged with deny

God and bow. It still happens. If we're not careful, it's going

to happen in America to some extent it already has. Have we not removed

the we knew we have correct? We knew, we have removed Christ out

of schools. We've pulled the Ten Commandments out of our schools, out of

our jail houses. Which is ironic, right, because those ten commandments are

actually pretty good rules, right. I mean, you shouldn't kill each other.

I don't even feel like an atheist would argue with that one. Right,

don't take your neighbor's things. I feel like that's a pretty good rule.

Right. Some people in America right now are questioning that one and getting

away with it. But even that's pretty good rule. Did they remove the

ten commandments? Or or do they remove God? We said it was ten

commandments, y'all. They don't care about the ten rules. They care about

where the rules came from. They care about where the rules came from,

because if I pull God out of your mouth, then I can make the

rules all. I'm going to leave that alone right there? All right,

here we go, all right? Verse sixteen, shatterick me shack in the

bed to go answered and said to the king, now, this is really

unique. This is where I want you to catch this. I want you

to see the audacity, the tenacity of faith that we need in the church.

They bring them in front of the king. Oh never, can Ezra,

We have no need to answer you in this matter verse seventeen. If

that is the case, our God, whom we serve, will be able

to deliver us from the fiery furnace, and he will deliver us from your

hand. Now that's a great I'm a pause. Doesn't that sound good?

That's all the parts we remember, right. I want to introduce you and

show you the part we forget as the church the next verse. But if

not, whole bunch of us in the church, just pull the ejection handle.

I need you to grab hold of this. We need this men,

We need you in the church. We need your tenacity, We need your

strength to stand up and say no. These three men standing from the king

who has the power and authority to kill them, and says, but if

not, let it be known to you, o King, that do we

need to not serve your gods? Nor will we worship the golden image?

You have said that up. Come on, y'all, these three men look

at the King and go, hey, no, our God will save us.

But even if he does, it know this. No, I love

the office of the prophet. I love the office of a teacher, pastor,

evangelist, apostle. But where are these men? Thank you Jesus,

some tenacity of faith, y'all. But if not, all right, let's

go to Daniel. Chapter six. All right, So Daniels still around,

right, Never Canezra has fallen, right, he's dead, new king.

All the same court, I'm short. I'm giving you the abridged version here.

Okay, all the same court. They still don't like Daniel. They're

like, hmm, we cannot fault Daniel. We're not gonna find fault in

him. So what do they say? But let's find fault and cause him

to cross his God. That's how we're catching Okay, So here we go

verse chapter six, Verse three. This is Daniel distinguishing himself above the governors

and set traps because of his excellent the excellence of spirit was in him,

and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. So the

governors and set traps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom,

but they could find no charge or fault. There's a whole sermon in here,

about Daniel honoring the king, but they could they could find no fault

in him concerning the kingdom because he was faithful, though, nor was there

any error or foul or fault found in him. Verse five. Then these

men said, we shall not find any charge against Daniel unless we find it

against him concerning the law of his God. I want to wake you up

for just a second. We are in America in twenty twenty three. People

are in the streets challenging what God says. I want to I want to

say something to you guys that there really spoke to me that I heard years

ago. In this I want to be such an influence in the world that

the people of the world know. The only way we're gonna get him is

if it comes concerning his beliefs, if they come for us in the church

in America. I want there to be enough evidence in my life to drive

a conviction. I'm gonna say that again. I want there to be enough

evidence of my life that God is in my life, that there is a

conviction. Say challenge my heart. I want you guys to think about this.

I love you enough. I want to tell you this and challenge you.

If they came for you tomorrow? Would they have enough evidence in your

life to convict you of being a Christian with the people you work with in

the workplace. Have a clue. Amen, we are going to be different,

arn't we? Church? Amen? All right? So come down verse

ten. Now, when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went

home and in his upper room, with his window open towards Jerusalem, he

knelt down on his knees three times that day and prayed and gave thanks to

before his God, as was his custom in the early days. Now,

this is really important because I've heard people read this passage before and it's almost

been read in a rebellious tone, like he knew the law, so he

went home and threw open the shutters and was like, watch me, I'm

praying. But that's not what that says. That says this was his custom

since the early days. A lot of times, y'all in church, I

feel like we have these moments of rebellious fortitude. Right. But this is

Daniel's character. I want to high his character to you. This is just

who he is. It's important that that whole line right there could have been

left out, but God added it as was his custom in the early days,

he is being himself. He's being himself so often that the people trying

to trap him knew that he was going to be himself and eventually get trapped.

He did not deviate, all right. So can I introduce you to

something else? I see in the scripture just from me? So the laws

put into effect, right, and he knows this, He knows it's out

there, right, he knows how he responds, he knows how he loves

the Lord. What you don't see in scripture is he had to go home

and pray about what to do next. All right, So let's set the

stage. Okay, h government comes to us and says, close the churches

for your safety. And how many people went home and prayed about it?

I see you. I told you I was gonna I was gonna read scripture.

How I read it? Right? Daniel did not go home and go

all right, Lord should I can't praying like you know? They want to

kill me, right, I'm gonna wait here until you talk to me.

Nope, he did not. He went home and was himself. Their law

did not influence his character. I want to be like that, amen.

Amen, And I'm humbled to say, I don't know if I am,

but that's my drive. Amen. Amen, all right, let's uh,

i'm'a skip a bunch here. Let's go to David. I can't leave this

subject without talking about David. This is just such and I'm gonna I'm gonna

do a lot of reading here, and I'm gonna pause because I want you

to I want you to see how I read scripture. I want you to

see it through my eyes, and I hope it ministers to you. If

it doesn't, it's okay. Football is still a great game. We love

it, but I hope it touches you. Okay, all right, we're

gonna go to first Amuel seventeen, David and Goliath. How many y'all know

the story of David and Goliath. Okay, David takes some rocks, he

hits Goliath of the stone, then we win. Woo. Right, there

is so much more to this story than just the action of hitting Goliath with

the rock. And I went to I want my spirits to come out.

I want y'all to hear from me. So here we go, first Samuel

seventeen. We're gonna start. I'm gonna start at verse twenty okay. So

David rose early in the morning. He left the sheep with a keeper and

took the things, and he went to Jesse. So he was taking food

and a bunch of other stuff to the camp. Okay. Took the things

and went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the camp as

the army was going out to fight and shouting for battle verse twenty one.

For Israel and the Philistines had drawn up in battle array, army against army,

and David left his supplies in the hands of the supply keeper, ran

to the army and came and greeted his brothers. Then as he talked with

them, there was the champion, the Philistine of goth Goliath by name,

coming up from the armies of the Philistines. And he spoke according to the

same words. So David heard them verse twenty four. And all of them

men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were

dreadfully afraid. I'm gonna pause here. I do not want to be the

church body that Christ sees that when a challenge arises, I run. Keep

in mind, y'all, as we read this story, David is standing among

the Israelites God's people? Were they not God's people? Just like David?

Okay, all right, here we go verse twenty five. So the men

of Israel said, have you seen this man who has come up? Surely

he has come up to defy Israel. And it shall be that the man

who kills him, the king will enrich with great riches, will give him

his daughter, and give him give his father's house exemption from taxes in Israel.

Okay, so forget for a moment that these are God's annoying people.

Let's throw that out the window. Right. All these people running in fear

are looking at each other and going, hey, y'all, don't forget.

We're gonna be wealthy, and we're gonna get to marry the king's daughter and

not have taxes. But we're all still running. This is I'm not making

this up. This is actually what's happening. I mean, taxes, no

more taxes, You get the king's daughter. I don't know if that's good

or bad. I mean they tossing in there. I don't know if it's

good or bad. Right, and you'll get great, great riches. Right,

you are gonna be set for life. Now here's one thing. I'm

gonna show you what I read in scripture. Did the armies of God have

the opportunity to do the same thing David did? Huh? That's important,

y'all, that's really important. So what was the difference character faith? David

was not responding in a moment, he was living a life of faith.

How many of us in church legitimately, and I'm not asking to raise your

hands, but think I want you to think through this. How many of

us want to live moments of faith? Do you know you were never called

to moments of faith? Do you know there's no get off the faith train

in your lifetime? Sorry, there is no get off the faith train.

Okay, all right, here we go. Then David spoke to the men

who stood verse twenty six, who stood by him, asking, okay,

wait a minute, what what she'll be done for the man who kills the

filose teams? Huh? For who is this uncircumcised, philtine philistine that he

should defy the armies of the living God. Listen to this boy's attitude among

soldiers, trained men of war. Whoa, whoa? What y'all a running?

But hold on that last part about he's gonna give us what only if

we kill him that one dude. That's it, that's all I'm making I

am not hearing, y'all. Right, that's all it takes for this dude

to die. The one out here is standing against the armies of God.

Somebody repeat that, because I didn't hear it. Y'all starting to see David

a little differently. Oh just wait, we can't even do a good part

yet. I love it. Verse twenty seven. And the people answer him

in this manner, saying, so shall it be done for the man who

kills Hey, y'all, David, We're not lying, tod. That's really

what's gonna happen. Ohm. God keep running though, so if you want

more, you gotta catch up right Verse twenty eight. Now Elib, the

oldest brother, heard when he spoke to the men. When who spoke to

the men? David? His brother is listening, and he hears David talking

to these men, right, and Elib's anger aroused against David. Why did

you come here? And with whom have you left the few sheep in the

wilderness. I know your pride and insolence of your heart, for you have

come down here to see the battle. What a coward. David is in

the middle of the army, going, wait a minute, what's the price,

y'all? Hold on, somebody repeat that? And his brother hears him,

and his brother's now mad at him. What did David actually say?

Nothing that hadn't been told to him. There's a truth here, y'all.

Let's go back to the church America twenty twenty three. Right, how many

people are getting upset at those who hold to the truth? Right, the

love of God changes hearts. See, we all people sit there and go,

why are we still talking about the Old Testament? Because it still applies,

It's still happening today. All David did was stand there and go,

that are uncircumcised to esteem? Who's standing in front of the armies of God?

Who can die good? I mean, he can die just like everybody

else. Why is everybody running and y'all gonna be wealthy? I just brought

cheese and food. All he is saying is the truth. And anybody in

that army could have been like, he's right, what are we doing?

All right? I'm showing you how I read scripture? Right? This is

I mean, and it's just amazing to me, all right, Verse twenty

nine and David said, man, what you complain about now? That's the

ad lib version? Is there not a cause? Then he turned from him

toward another and said the same thing, and these people answered him as the

first ones did this. Dude has literally got people passing him and he's trying

to grab him. Hold on, y'all, wait, we can win.

And his brother's mad at him. And David's not even fighting. He's not

even in this game yet. He's just a kid who's speaking of truth,

who refuses to back down, who was told something by God and said that's

it. Period. Dot also gonna point out one thing. This is verse

this chapter seventeen. I think it's important to highlight David was anointed to be

king in chapter sixteen. Not one time has that come out of his mouth

yet. Character all right, verse thirty three. Now, when the words

which David were speaking were heard, they reported in the Saul and they sent

for him. Okay, got a pause here, I got a pause.

David is making such a ruckus. He is making such a thing about this

now that there are people going, Man, we got to tell the king

about this kid. How many y'all are making such a ruckus about the truth?

Right, we are. Come on, we're believers, aren't we.

Amen? Amen? I love it man, Oh it just speaks to me.

All right. Then David said to Saul, so they went and got

him, brought him up Verse thirty two. Let no man's heart fail because

of him. Your servant will go and fight this philistine. I want you

to hear this. This is David accepting it. Right. David didn't just

walk into Saul and say hey, I'll kill him. I got him right.

That's how we remember the story. Read the first part. Let no

man's heart fail. The pastor David just came out. People read this story

is a battle implemented story. The Shepherd, which is another network for Pastor,

is in David and he says, hey, I don't want hearts of

Israel to fail. I got it. I want you to look at David

differently, and you wonder why he was anointed king over Israel. It was

not because he knew how to use a gun. It was because he cared

about God's people. All right, here we go, amen, I know

it's a lot. I want y'all think about this for a second, okay.

Verse thirty three and Saul, like many good Christian people said to David,

you are not able. You're not anointed, and you haven't had a

word, so you cannot go against the Philistine to fight with him for your

youth. And he is a man of war from his youth verse thirty four.

But David said to Saul, your servant used to keep his father's sheep.

And when a lion or a bear came, and I took him sorry,

and took him out of the flock. I went out after it and

struck it and delivered it from the lambs, delivered the lamb from its mouth.

I'm gonna pause there for a second, because y'all have heard this,

right, How many of y'all have heard this piece of the story. Right.

He goes and tells a kind of gives him his resume. Hey,

Saul, listen, love you dude, don't worry about me. I got

this. I have rescued lambs before. Okay, I want to share with

you how I read this story. We read this for just second, verse

thirty five. And I went out after it and struck it and delivered the

lamb from its mouth. Okay, what it did not say is and I

waited for the bear to drop it, hold on. It gets better,

It gets better, all right. And when it rose against me, I

caught it by its beard and beat it to death till I killed it.

Now. You can blow that off all you want, But there is something

in this boy in the field. Just I want you to picture this.

I want you to really picture this. Lamb's leaving, lion's running. Here

we go and he runs right, He's got a staff in his hand.

Y'all seen how good he is with a slingshot. Right, Nope, I'm

gonna take it. You got one chance to keep running, Oh you're coming

back, grabs it by its mouth and beats it to death. So this

dude walks across the field and nobody wants to kill him. Hm. I

got that. This is what he's telling the King of Israel. Y'all,

this is really important. Too many times we jumped to the moments of faith,

right, these actions because I'm guilty of it. Man, I grew

up young man in church. I wanted to slingshot something too, like that's

super cool, right, But listen to the heart of David. Not one

time yet has he brought up that he's anointed to be king. Not one

time is he talked about what God's ointed tend to do. That's important,

y'all. A lot of us in church are running around talking about what we're

anointed to do. Let me tell you something. I don't know who this

is gonna minister to. And I say this to you in love because I

love you and I care about you. If you have been called to pastor

a church and you are not pastoring the people around you right now, why

would God give you a church? Pastoring is not an office. It's a

heart. It is not a title you achieve and pick any of them.

I don't care what office you're talking about. We got to get out of

the thought process that I will do it when I get there, all right,

amen, mm hmm amen, I'm gonna give you amen, Amen,

all right, Verse thirty seven. Moreover, David said, the Lord who

delivered me from the Paul the lion and the Pau the bear, he will

deliver me from the hand of the Philistine. And Saul said to David,

go and let the Lord be with you. Amen, all right, And

I'm gonna skip over. I'm gonna end with this. I'm wrapping it up

right here. If y'all jump to verse verse forty five. I want to

speak to you, guys. I want you to hear me when I say

this. Some of you need this in your life right now. Then,

David said to the Philistine, you come here to me with a sword,

with a spear, and with a javelin some of you right now the doctor

has walked to you with your blood report, your X ray, your nurse's

report, and said, listen, death's coming. This still applies today,

y'all. I don't know who it is you're online. I don't know.

Somebody needs to hear this. You come to me with these things, But

I come to you in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God

of the armies of Israel, who you have defied verse forty six. This

day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you

and take your head from you. David youth, nobody in the army believed

in him. His brother didn't believe in him. He goes to Saul and

has to plead his case, right, I can do this, stands in

front of sickness, disease, death, oppression, and doesn't say, Hey,

I'm waiting for you to die. He looks a him right in the

face and says, now, I'm gonna kill you. I'm gonna take your

sword out, and I'm gonna cut your head off. This day the Lord

will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your

head from you. And this day I will give your carcass to the camp

of the Philistines, to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of

the earth. We are smacked talking full of right now. Some of y'all

need to smack talk the things of the devil. And this day I will

give you a carcass to the camp of the Philistines, to the birds of

the air and the wild beasts of the earth. That the entire earth,

not that the camp, that the entire earth will know that there is a

God in Israel verse forty seven. Then all this assembly will know that the

Lord does not save with sword and with spear, but for the battle is

who's. And he will give you into our hands. I said, he

will give you into our hands. Y'all, that is worth it. You

come up, I'm gonna do something super odd, super weird. I just

totally ignored all my notes. Thank you Jesus, the tenacity of faith,

y'all. David did not become this person. Daniel did not become this person.

Shaut Rack and me shatt in a bend to go did not become this

kind of person in a moment. They live this way. Hebrews chapter eleven.

God, go there, Go there real quick. It's in the New

Testament. For y'all that don't have a Bible, go there. This is

super good, y'all. Oh man, I love you guys. I'm hoping

my heart is for you. I hope you got that out of this message

today that I want you to stand firm. Men. I'm gonna talk to

you for just a second. The body of Christ needs you. We need

your tenderness, we need your hearts, we need your strength. There are

people in this room that I have come up beside that God. I mean,

they are fighting things in their body and have fought them for years,

like we read about in Rome's twelve. I want to encourage and stand with

you. There are people in this room that God has told them something told

them things about our economy and our finances and those kinds of things, and

who have been standing for over a decade on the word that God gave them.

That's faith that's latching on in a bulldog, and don't turn from it.

No matter what you see in the world. You hang on, You

grab tight to what God told you, and you do not let go.

Here's eleven. A lot of us know this is the faith Hall of Fame,

right, I'm just gonna skip around. Verse a by faith Abraham obeyed,

Verse eleven by faith Sarah, Verse seventeen by faith Abraham, twenty by

faith Isaac, twenty one by faith Jacob, twenty two by faith Joseph,

twenty three by faith Moses, twenty four by faith Moses. Y'all, you

can keep going, keep going. Here's what the Bible does not say by

anointing Moses, by opportunity Isaac. It says by faith. Book of Timothy

says, give the things of God to those who are anointed. Right.

No, it says, give the things of God to those who are faithful,

who will grab hold and not let go. Faithful man. I want

to encourage you, guys. I hope you I hope you've hurt my heart

today. But I want to open the front for just a minute, justin

if you'll, if you'll join me up here. I want to open the

front for any man in here. I'm not I'm not trying to segal out

women, but I want to pray for you men who want this tenacity,

this audacity of faith. Come on, that's okay, come on if you

want it. We need men who will stand strong. Come on. If

there's anybody who want to pray with us, bring them up. Amen,

come on, I'm gonna come down and join y'all. Two, we're gonna

join hands. Would you just pray over us as the leader of Cross Kingdom?

Father, I just thank you for a great word, Lord, I

thank you for strengthening us. And Lord, as these men are up here

and throughout the room. Father, I just asked right now that you would

cause a courage to rise up in sight of them that they didn't even know

was there. I asked that you would cause wisdom to rise up in them

beyond their years. I asked, Father, that you would cause a spirit

of wisdom and revelation to flow through them. Father, I pray that they

would be protectors over their homes, that they would shepherd their homes, that

they would raise their children as you raise us, Lord, that they would

be carriers of the ancient path. So, Father, would you cause a

fresh infilling over the men this morning. Lord, would you allow them to

see what you see or even now in this moment, Lord, would you

show them what they look like to you, not what the world has said,

not what other people have said. And Father, right now, in

the name of Jesus, I break every word curse spoken over every one of

these men, right now, starting from childhood, in the name of Jesus.

And I bless your spirits to rise up. I bless your spirits,

and I say, awaken, awaken from slumber in the mighty name of Jesus.

Lord, fill them afresh. Lord, Let boldness, Lord, a

spirit of boldness rise up. Lord, that tenacity, that bulldog faith that

he talked about. Lord, let that rise up. Increase the measure of

faith inside of them, expand their spirits for yours, and fill this house

with your presence, Lord, and fill their homes. Lord, low on

them. Lord, would you cause your breath to come and fill them afresh?

Right now, Holy Spirit and the mighty name of Jesus, would you

fill afresh right now in Jesus mighty name, I ask, and Lord,

I thank you. The marching orders are to charge hell, plunder hell,

and make disciples of all nations in Jesus' name. Amen, Thank you for

listening. For more messages and other resources, please subscribe to this podcast or

go to our website at www dot Cross Kingdom dot org