What A Mighty God We Serve

Hallelujah! Go ahead and reach around and grab your Bible and turn with me to

Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 32.

Jeremiah 32 · chapter mention

It's been a long week, been a beautiful week, but it's been a long week out on the

mountain at the senior adult youth camp. The only difference in the senior adult

and the kids is we got to haul them around on golf carts. Can you take me to

the bathroom? Sure, get on. Yeah, yeah. Then some of you, they start to come off

the hill. Those of you familiar in the girls cabins are upon the hill, upon the

ridge and they had to walk down to the cafeteria. So you go up to get them in

the morning and say, no I can get down just make sure you're out there and help me

back up. Okay, we'll give you a ride. So, but in that, our very own pastor Terry,

Terry Bowden, took first place in the woodworking. Beautiful candelabras he

turned out on his woodlay. Second place in acrylic oil painting. Amen, with a

beautiful barn and carriage portrait. Amen, talented. Yeah, played the guitar,

song, help them lead singing on the porch, played the trumpet and worship. Man of many

talents and our very own. Amen. That right there is where your group, Pastor Terry,

should have just said, woo yeah, woo Pastor Terry. That's your, that's your Q light

bears right there. But I know how you feel, brother Terry, I know how you feel.

That doesn't mean they doesn't love you. They do. Amen. With that said, I'm tired,

been a long week. So this shouldn't take over, I don't know, 30, 45 minutes maybe

and we'll, we'll get going. Amen. The Lord is good. I just so wasn't worship

refreshing today. Amen. Just let them know how much you appreciate them leading us

and and worshiping in music and surrendering their talent. It just, I

really, I really feel good after worship. I don't always feel good after worship.

I should, but I don't always. Amen. Do you? That's the reason it's called a

sacrifice of praise. I've never seen a sacrifice that was comfortable. Well, I'm

not gonna preach on that. Let's move on. Jeremiah chapter 32. I have, I'm gonna, I'm

Jeremiah 32 · chapter mention

gonna read verse 16. You just hold right there, brother Hunter. I'm gonna read

verse 16 and we'll move forward. Now, when I had delivered the evidence of the

purchase unto Barak, the son of Neriah, I prayed unto the Lord saying, ah Lord God,

behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth and by thy great power and

stretched out arm and there is nothing too hard for thee. Thou showest loving

kindness unto thousands and recompense the iniquity of the fathers into the

bosom of their children after them. The great, the mighty God, the Lord of Host

is his name. Great in counsel and mighty in work, for thine eyes are open unto all

the ways of the sons of men. You need to circle that, highlight it, underline it, do

something that your attention is drawn for your eyes are open unto all the ways

of the sons of men to give everyone according to his ways and according to

the fruit of his doings. I preach this on different occasions and some of you that

are, if you've marked it, just go ahead and put today's date back because I'm

gonna preach it again. There are times when I just need to remind myself of how

mighty God is. I just need a refresher, I need a reminding and what that mighty

power looks like to me, toward me and and when I'm when I'm in that state this is

where the Lord takes me and he just reminds me and it's a pleasure for me to

get to remind us together again and again of what a mighty God we serve. Amen.

Lord, I love you. I thank you for your word. I thank you for your presence that's

in this house today. For truly Lord, you are near us because you do dwell and

inhabit within the praises of your people and Lord we have lifted our

voices, we've lifted our hearts to the goodness of your grace toward us and we

praise you for all things. In Christ's lovely name and the church said, amen, just

tell you neighbor, he is mighty isn't he?

Again, I just want to remind you of how great God is. We sing the old chorus

sometimes, how great thou art, amen, the old song. It is a staple and it always

serves as a reminder up to the greatness of God and I think one of the reasons we

need to be reminded of God's greatness is because simply of the world in which

we live and by virtue of that being we're so accustomed to being in

control of everything about our lives until things arise that we can't control

and then we kind of fall apart. We just go to pieces unless we know that the

things that we cannot handle, God can and when you realize that God can then you

don't fall to pieces hardly as much. You may lose a half your mind but you don't

lose all your mind. You know when things arise that's just because of our human

nature and how we respond. God knows us in our frailty, amen, he knows we are not

infinite but he is. Hallelujah, amen, we're just simply flesh but God is

great in his goodness and wonder and all of the uproar of today's world events

and all that is transpiring in your own home. I've heard many prayer requests

this morning. We're going to pray for all those having surgeries this week

before we leave because there's several of you and some that are not

here today that are going in for procedure and I want you to stand in for

them because I know God can be with them and I know God is able to watch over

them and there's a question posed in Genesis that says is there anything too

hard for the Lord? Is there anything too difficult? Is there anything beyond him?

And when we think about that question we have our answer here as

Jeremiah would say there is nothing too hard for you, amen, and as a reminder

today no matter what you're going through circumstance, situation, trouble,

problem, it doesn't matter, illness, sickness, I want you to know today that

there is nothing too hard for the Lord. In your strength, in your might, in your

capabilities, yes things get beyond us. They get beyond our control. They get

beyond our being able to remedy them but I want to remind you today don't panic

God is still large and God is still in charge. He's still on the throne of heaven.

The earth is still his footstool, hallelujah, and the will of his being is

still expressed on the face of this earth so when we think about it what a

mighty God we serve. Now when you think about mighty God it is the Hebrew word

El Gabor, amen, which means power and strength and it belongs to him and we see

that description as Isaiah would tell us in 9 and 6 for there's going to be a

child born unto you and his name shall be called wonderful and counselor and he

makes that declaration of mighty God that's who he is and that's what he's

been expressed to humanity for. He is wonderful, full of wonderful, of all and

all that he does and the love that he has toward us and he is our counselor

which we'll talk about just a little bit later but also know that he is our El

Gabor, he is our mighty God, he is our strength, he is our hope and he is our

purpose and he is your resolve because when you are unable he is able,

hallelujah, when we are inadequate he's far above adequate to take care of every

situation, trial and as we look as Jeremiah the prophet is penning here he

begins to speak as the Lord would move upon him and he would pray he's lifting

his heart to the Lord he's been instructed to buy a piece of property and

go through the format of prophecy knowing that the Lord is not finished

with them yet to let the people know that God is not done with Jerusalem let

them know God is not finished with Israel he's still gonna have his hand

upon him and there's a day coming when you'll have harvest in this land again

you will be brought back God's not gonna forsake you you're gonna go even though

you strive against the enemy that's coming against you you're still gonna

be carried away but he's gonna bring you back somebody needs to know that today

you may feel like you've been carried away but hold on proof is in the pudding

and God is gonna bring you back he's gonna bring the reality of hope into

your life he's gonna bring a reality of all things possible into your life and

he begins to pray oh Lord God that's like a saying wow God you're awesome

he's just beginning to pray God how mighty you are how great you are I stand

at all of your greatness and and he begins to do a little descriptive work

behold thou hast made the heavens and the earth now when we think about how

mighty God is first thing you need to realize is that God is mighty in

creation man can do a lot of things we can create a lot of things but what we

cannot do is create our world in which we are living and God is the only one

and when I begin to think I was writing the more here the other day

happened brother Ken Mothiard and and I began to think about the scripture and

we've we've preached it and we've heard it the phrase but God how that things

are looking bad and crisis is coming up but God intervenes and things turn and

things make a change and and I begin to think about but God hallelujah when they

were at the Red Sea but God parted the sea amen when the floods opened up the

face of the deep opened up in a flood cover the earth every time I see a flood

and I see lives lost my mind goes back when the world the whole earth was

flooded up but God hallelujah put a rainbow in the clouds hallelujah all

that we see is simply a reminder of how all struck we should be at the

mightiness of God and when I begin to think about but God but as I took

another lap around my square section up there on side of the hill hit a few

chug holes in my backs already out and I come down the hill I begin to think

about those but God moments but then my mind went to a phrase that declared only

God hey there's but God instances but there's times in my in your life that

it's only God it's not but it's not that he intervenes it is because that he is

and it's the only reason that we are here is because God only is able to do

all that we require and all that we create I'm here to tell you only God can

create it would be out of chaos that God would speak order only God can do that

in your life he alone is able to take the chaos of life and bring it into

order and as I made another lamp I almost got off and ran I begin to thank

God how many times in my life it was only you it's not but you know that

contravening word at the interjection there that prepositional phrase but

which declares that everything that comes after that little three-letter word

wipes out everything that was before it hallelujah and when you hear how trouble

comes and how the enemy comes in like a flood but God raise up a standard and

the standard erases the enemy presence before but even before the bud is the

only hallelujah in the beginning was God and only God well hallelujah and it

lets me know how mighty he is and who his being is that I who am lonely me can

create it only God is able well glory whoo about had a spell mowing the yard

I'll tell you if you want to have close encounter of the God kind volunteer for

the mowing team see brother Ken get signed up because after you hit about

four of those holes up through there you're already in a prayer mode you're

praying God let me see the next one it jar your kidneys plumb through your teeth

because you're in a hurry it's not a leisure deal there's four acres out

there that's got to get good you got to get it done before the day gets gone so

you're wide open and you got to set up on the edge of your seat got to have your

back still if you cannot it's not like mowing at home we wait to you in your

holder and you're just easing around oh you're throwing grass and you sweet tea

gets all covered up with it and it gets sticky so you have to stop at the

trailer to get a little sup what's that mean not one thing to anybody that's

never wrote it where's my witness is that yeah hello so I'm preaching to some

this morning so you're in a prayer mode by the time you get finished you're in

tune with God you've been talking to him and before you know it you get over and

past the holes and the gaps and the dips and the dodges and you begin to think

about just how good God is and you begin to think about the blessings of the Lord

and then you that he'll just drop something in you like that right there

only it's only me my lord I'm telling you I was concentrating on but God and

how God has turned around a lot of situations but then when he dropped that

word on me it's only me oh my lord it isn't a buddy's only hallelujah only God

is able and I think about how mighty he is and how he is mighty in creation thou

has made the heavens and the earth you can almost hear you can almost hear

Jeremiah sigh to the wonderment of God's glory and the handiwork of his might he

he's in the midst of a prayer a petition and it's just as he goes to his knees he

takes a good look around then we're talking about a man who's been in the

prison we talk about a man who's been billified and just really beat down

because he's just simply saying thus saith the Lord we're talking about a

man who is the weeping prophet we're talking about a man who was sent down to

the potter's house we're talking about a man who give up and said God I'm not

ever gonna preach another word I'm gonna zip my lip and I'm keeping it shut they

don't want to hear what you've got to say anyway and he puffed up and pouted

and sat down on a stump but he couldn't sit there long because you see the words

not in your mouth the word is in your heart and the longer he sat and the more

it began to burn he leaps to his feet to proclaim thus saith the Lord he's in a

bad time in a rough time of Israel's history he's prophesying captivity he's

prophesying the enemy's victory but know this he didn't just leave them there he

says so as the Lord has spoken there is a day coming when there will be harvest

again oh my god there's a day coming when harvest will come again fruit and

blessing and as he bows to pray he just gets a glimpse of God's glory and he's

reminded man what a mighty God we serve when you bow next time don't just go

down and total humility but as you're getting to your knees just take a good

look around and how good God is oh Lord totally overwhelmed with no other way to

describe it he just simply says ah it's like mowing that yard and it hot you

stop in the shade on the other side and in your tumbler cup you got some good

cold water and you turn that ice water up and you take a big swig you go amen

his spirit so thirsty he gets down to pray and he says oh Lord you are good

amen and the wonder you have with your outstretched arm you have created the

heavens and the earth and we got to know that when we have that equivalency

within us it's wow God you are good I want to tell you something this morning

don't fail to be amazed at God's creative acts we're about to move into

my most favorite season of the year I wish it could be fall all year long I

prefer the pastel colors I prefer the earth tones over the pastels of spring I

should say I just look the the earthy tones of the maroons and the red and the

brugate yellows hey man it's fall begins to take over I love to sit on a deer

stand on a good frosty good heavy frosty morning before all the leaves are on the

ground and when you see it and you're watching and the frost begins to melt

leaves will gently let go and begin to make their way to the ground and they

begin to stack up in the woods and I begin to thank God how wonderful you are

and I sit in amazement at the goodness of God's creation knowing that when I'm

under that same tree in the spring waiting for an old thunder chicken to

fire off and I'll begin to see the buds begin to come back out on the leaves and

the bright brilliant green begin to take over and the purples and the yellows and

the brilliance of the reds of flowers begin to bloom I again say oh God how

awesome you are look today know that there is a seasonal process to your life

you may feel like you're in the fall or the winter but can I tell somebody today

that God's creative work it's not done with you and your life he's bringing it

full circle

Job said he hangeth the world on nothing gave it a spin and told it to keep on

spinning and it's gonna keep on spinning he's never gonna tell it to stop spinning

the scripture says that seed time and harvest will go on forever you don't

have to wind it up like an eight-day clock he didn't have to tension on the

spring he put it in motion and it will remain in motion let me tell you

something he's put you in motion as well and know this he that began a good work

in you is also able to complete it what are you saying I'm saying don't quit now

just stand in the hall of a mighty God who watches over your everyday life the

psalmist said in 147 for he created the stars and he calls them by name well I

did just a little quick worldwide web search to see how many stars there were

you can ask that thing anything it'll give you an answer which turn on I don't

know better guess than what I had but just in our galaxy alone they estimate

200 billion trillion not 200 billion 200 billion trillion stars in our galaxy

well what is that that's 200 with 21 zeros following that's 200 with 21 zeros

it's 260 just to get a perspective that's the Milky Way galaxy and that's

just one

hallelujah baby preach with me I love it

do you think our God is mighty and it's not look the psalmist said it's not just

they're out there but he knows them by their name now let's get a little

something in perspective I might could call about 40 to 60 of your names when I

see you but your face come to me at Walmart Oh brother how you doing you

know that I'm drawing a blank if I call you brother or hey sis you say pastor

don't know my name for nothing but I know your face hello he not only knows

our faces but he knows our name and he knows that we have been fearfully and

wonderfully made because he has made us so the next time you feel all alone

remind yourself that you're not you're not sold out by his voice by his arm

you got to understand there's no committee that was in question or

convened he just created he's mighty in his compassion look what he says thou

show us loving kindness under thousands

you and I we all have a compassion limiter switch

I say you and I we all have a compassion limiter switch now most all of us have

empathy without a limit we all see people's problems we try to

understand their problems but empathy don't always give away to compassion

compassion takes it to the next level we see people's problems we understand

their problems and we are in effort trying to search out a way to help the

problem now that's where our limiter kicks in we limit it at the line of help

we all like to think we're very compassionate but I think we're more

empathetic than we are compassionate because I mean I'd love to be able to

when I pass individuals on corners with their signs I'd love to tell you that I

never passed one up without putting something in their hand no I'm not that

compassionate well pastor how do you expect us to be sometimes it's do what I

say not what I do

as I endeavor at the greatest of my ability to be the perfect example before

you I fail I fail do I have empathy yes I do but the on the other side of me

saying you look healthy get a job

if I see you fire up a smoke and dial on your cell phone my compassion is even

left with empathy I got to help myself somebody say help him Lord help pastor

move on he's taking too long

what I'm saying is we have compassion limiters God does not to thousands he

has compassion he not only understands and empathizes with you and I but he

suffered the Lord suffered beyond anything that you and I could ever

suffer crucified I've not been crucified so he not only has him but the but he

has compassion Matthew 14 14 Jesus went forth and he saw a great multitude and

was moved with compassion toward them and he healed their sick compassion our

limiters are because of prejudice hurts from past accusations and limits arise

and I know that we all try to be as compassionate as possible but there have

been those times and will be other times that we failed toward others but if you

got just an extra moment or two I want us to go to Psalm 136 if you'll just

indulge me for a few minutes to read this to us his mercy never fails his

mercy his compassions are new every morning Oh give thanks unto the Lord for

he is good for his mercy endures forever give thanks unto the God of gods for his

mercy endures forever Oh give thanks to the Lord of Lords for his mercy endures

forever to him who alone do with great wonders for his mercy endures forever

to him that my wisdom made the heavens for his mercy endures forever to him

that stretched out the earth above the waters for his mercy endures forever

there's 26 of these there's 26 of those descriptives of God's compassion and

God's mercy 17 to him which smoked great kings for his mercy endured forever

18 and slew famous Kings for his mercy endures forever 21 and gave their land

for an heritage for his mercy endured forever 24 and hath redeemed us from our

enemies for his mercy endures forever 26 Oh give thanks unto the God of heaven

for his mercy endures forever there's no end to his compassion and we in our sin

crucified his son his only begotten but his mercy endures forever and his

compassion for us in our failures are forever

only God creates and only God can cleanse of sin only God only God can

cleanse he's mighty in his counsel it's estimated 282 billion dollars a year in

the u.s. alone is spent toward mental wellness

282 billion dollars a year

why because this world that we're in is torn up and we don't have the answers

and people need help

you hear you pastor this morning oh there was a day when I'd preach it so hot

and hard that God's all you need and he is but then I turn around say if you're

going there you're wasting your time and money but you're not

there are times that we need places when we don't know how to help ourselves that

others that are trained and educated in the way of humanity can help us get back

on track they can help us see straight but they do not trump the counsel of

God's Word but sometimes we got to get our mind on straight enough to even see

the word to hear the word because we're so tormented people are so tormented by

the aspects of daily life relationships in their homes on their jobs many are

paralyzed unable to function in society and if we can help one another we should

help each other 282 billion dollars

in the u.s. alone that's not globally that's the u.s.

people searching for help but God is mighty in counsel

hallelujah he'll never steer you wrong amen he'll never lead you off track

you can you can look through scripture and see how God counsels when you're in

unrecognizable situations with no escapes seeming possible he's going to

counsel you to do something that is contrary to what you're feeling we

search for the escape to run to flee but the Lord says stand still see my

salvation see what I will do for you see how I'll deliver you he would counsel

and Abraham to fear not for out of thee from you Abraham to a Joshua he would

say be strong and courageous as I was with Moses so shall I be with you and

there's no man gonna be able to stand in front of you and stop you because I'm

with you to a Paul he would say and this I think we can more of us can relate

with the Apostle Paul in his dilemma than we can with an Abraham or with a

Moses or with a Joshua because you see Paul had a physical condition that he'd

been praying for healing and deliverance and trying to get help trying to get set

free and he said I know I prayed through three times and I still got this thing

then he's praying and he hears the Lord speak to him my grace is sufficient for

you in weakness do I manifest my strength now you see that's where most of

us live I'm not standing in front of a Red Sea in an Egyptian army but

sometimes I get afflicted old flesh gets bound up and I've prayed and it doesn't

get any better hello anybody I've got problems and issues and situations and I

know I've prayed through not till I got finished but I touched heaven and it's

still the same and by faith I get up the next morning like we all do but to know

that his grace is sufficient no greater counsel stand with me I'm

closing

and I think what's best for us all to know

as we don't know what we don't know what's in front of us I want you to know

that God is mighty in compensation he said he's going to give to everyone

according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doing is what Jeremiah

said

you can't out give God

I have learned

to sow my way out of my greatest needs what does that mean that means when I

have a financial need I give

because you cannot out give God and he's mighty in compensation that's the reason

when you tell people well I'm a tither well what's that mean you said well I

tithe I give to the Lord 10% of my gross unless you're one of those net tithers

ask me about that sometime I got a story for you I'm a gross tither they say you

mean to tell me you you give 10% yes I do matter of fact it really gets them

when you tell them I've been known to do even better than that well how you make

it now I said ah therein lies the testimony y'all do more with my 90 than

I can do with the whole hundred percent of it

and they just I say you'll never figure it out so don't even try that's just the

way God works his math doesn't add up when you're trying to add subtract he's

trying to multiply and divide so we're behind you can't out give him but he

will reward you

you work all week some of you don't get what you deserve but you get what you

agreed to take

but you'll never be compensated like faithfulness to God he will supply all

of your need according to his riches to the Ephesians in the sixth chapter

nearing the end Paul wrote this finally my brethren be strong with the Lord and

in the power of his might his heights unscalable strength is immeasurable

greatness far surpassing our imagination

his glory is all illuminating his mercy is far exceeding power unlimited his joy

unspeakable his holiness is untouchable he's holy his mercy undeniable and his

grace always available father I love you this morning

when I'm down when I'm out when I'm discouraged

may I be like Jeremiah and just kind of take a good look around me and see how

mighty you are and what I see is impending chaos in my life and I'm

alarmed but that you are not alarmed but are in control and may I forever be

dependent on your mighty hand because in my chaos you can step in and

create calm

when I'm so down and I'm so out

your loving kindness extends to me

when I don't know what to do don't know which way to go in life don't know what

choice to make you are my counselor

and for every time Lord when I thought I couldn't make it

you supplied you supplied when we didn't have enough you saw that we had more

than enough

threatening to come take my home you make a way out of it

you make a way and I love you for it