Worship Through Imperfection | Pastor Paul McGee

Welcome to the first Apostolic Church podcast.

Our church mission is to love as God loves showing compassion

every soul, thus winning those souls and equipping them to be

sent out to plant and to harvest.

Thank you for joining us today and we hope that you are blessed

by today's podcast. Greetings in Jesus name this

morning. Amen to everyone and sound my

voice. You can be seated this morning

for a little bit here today before we get started here this

morning. Glad to have each one of you A

man thankful for those who over the our absence of that filled

in Bishop filled in on a couple occasions.

I'm losing papers here. Amen.

And we thank him for doing that. And Brother Mason, of course,

ministering last Sunday night to our graduates.

Such a great time. Brother Zach.

Haven't had a chance to listen Brother Zach yet.

Hear that on Wednesday that took care of things, but I know that

it was no doubt good. I did have a chance to finally

listen to Bishop. Amen on the family table, Amen.

Which was excellent, Amen. And thankful for the Lord,

speaking through him, Amen. Aren't you thankful for the

Lord? Amen.

Thankful for people that can fill in.

I was up at the school actually this week and the principal up

there asked me if there was anybody, if I had anybody that

was in the bullpen whenever I was gone that could take care of

things. I said absolutely said have

probably about 5:00 or so individuals that can do that.

And so I'm thankful that I have that.

You know, I've said that a gazillion times, right?

So I'm tired of hearing it. Well, get tired of it because

I'm probably going to continue to say it over and over again.

Amen. Thankful that people can fill in

and this thing isn't just dependent upon one person and

it's times when different ones, ones of us are gone that that's

proven, Amen. That this is a collective effort

and that there's other people that can take up the slack,

Amen. And grateful for that, Amen.

I'm having this iPads like yelling at me here today for

whatever reason. So if it goes S, we'll just go

on, Amen. Hallelujah.

We're going to be turning to the book of first Samuel.

First Samuel chapter #12 Thank you for God's protective hand.

Yesterday was the closest I ever came to having a motorcycle

wreck. I was headed over to gather eggs

at my sister's house. She's on vacation right now.

And so I thought, well, I'm just going to do that egg collection

on the motorcycle. And so I went over and I turned

at the junction to head toward Owensville.

And as I was getting closer to Owensville, there were three

cars that were traveling together.

And at the time that this occurred, I would guess that

that maybe they were 500 feet or so from me in the middle car

pulled out the pass and I grabbed that both front and back

brakes and brought her down quick so that I wouldn't go

flying through the air, Amen. And so I'm thankful for God's

protective hand, Amen. And and giving me the ability to

react quickly, Amen. And so thankful to the Lord for

that because I guarantee you at the impact, if they were going

60 and I'm going sixty 120, there would been a lot of feet

that I would have traveled airborne, Amen.

And thankful to the Lord, First Samuel chapter #12, Amen and

verse #19 and I'm going to read today, we're going to read from

the KJV and then I'm going to read from the home and Christian

standard Bible from where my inspiration came from in the

month of April. All right, this is kind of back

from April. I keep AI keep just like a

little composite notebook. Whenever I read my Bible, I mark

in my margins, but I also write if there's a scripture that

touches me in some way, I, I just begin writing on it.

All right, as far as what I have read, and so I keep that

composite notebook and I go back through there.

Fred, I could hand it to you and you'll see where I went back and

wrote the title of the sermon and when I preached it, you

know, this is a lot of things comes birthed out of.

Again, I've told you before reading my Bible, I don't

necessarily go looking for sermons.

They come find me, all right, just by reading the word of the

Lord. So I'm going to read from the

KJV and then I'll read from the HSSBHCSB.

All right, The Bible says in First Samuel 12 and verse #19

And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants

unto the Lord thy God, that we die not, for we have added unto

all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.

Samuel said unto the people, Fear not ye have done all this

wickedness, yet turn not aside from following the Lord, but

serve the Lord with all your heart, and turn ye not aside.

For then should ye go after vain things which cannot profit nor

deliver, for they are vain. If you'll bear with me and to

the mission, you might just go back through those so they can

see where we're at here in the other version of the Bible,

verse 19, it says they pleaded with Samuel, prayed to the Lord

your God for your servants, so we won't die, for we have added

to all our sins the evil of requesting the king for

ourselves. Verse 20, Samuel replied, don't

be afraid, even though you have committed all this evil, don't

turn away from following the Lord.

Instead worship the Lord with all your heart.

The King James says serve, worship.

They're interchangeable. Really.

If you'll remember, whenever the adversary was tempting the Lord

in the wilderness, the Lord's response to him at one time says

you're going to worship the Lord with all your heart, Him only

shalt thou serve. And so paralleling worship was

serving. And so he says, instead worship

the Lord with all your heart. Verse 21, Don't turn away to

follow worthless things that can't profit or deliver you.

They are worthless. Amen.

With the help of the Lord this morning I want to minister this

worship through imperfection. If I can make it more personal,

it'd be worship through your imperfection.

Worship through your imperfection.

Amen. Let's go to the Lord in prayer

today. Father, I thank you again,

y'all, for the opportunity, Lord, to be in this house.

We're thankful, Lord, for those who have gathered together.

God, we turn our thoughts and our attention, Lord, toward your

word now. Let something in these pages of

Scripture, Lord, be inspiration and guidance and direction, God,

for our lives will not fail to thank you, Lord, for what you

accomplished through your Word. It's established and forever

settled in heaven. God, let it become settled in

our hearts and lives today and will not fail to thank you,

Jesus, for what you do in the name of Jesus Christ, that I

pray, Amen. Everyone say Amen.

You may be seated this morning. Amen.

Good to have Danielle with us this morning.

Her. And of course, Jessica was here

last week too. And Tatum, we don't want to

forget Tatum and her friend Allie.

They're both 6:00 today that I mean, not today, but they are

both 6. And Allie is a little taller

than Tatum. I learned all of that before

church, Amen, this morning. And so we're glad even to have

each one of them today in the House of the Lord.

Amen. First Samuel chapter #12 The

verses that I read in your hearing, there were some things

that occurred or happened prior to those 3 verses that got them

to this point of pleading with Samuel that he would pray for

them. They didn't just start from the

start line as that, but there was some things that happened

that got them to the place that they would request prayer from

Samuel and that Samuel would answer them back and give them

the advice that he had given and that they would take some

credence in Samuels advice. There were some things that

occurred for the whole nation of Israel at this time.

They are during a time of transition.

In many ways they have been for I think of the Scripture at

different times tells us like 430 years.

I believe it was was the time of the judges when they would have

various different judges that would serve and judge and

instruct and help them in their walk and relationship with God.

But the children of Israel had come to a place in their

journey. Brother Rhys that they asked if

they could have a king over them.

Prior to this time, even when they had even a judge, they

still operated under a theocracy, meaning that they

were God governed, God directed right.

Even having a judge, they knew that their true help and

guidance came from the Lord. But now they were asking for a

king. And one of the reasons why they

did this according to scripture, they said, we ask of a king

because we wish to be similar or like the other nations that are

around us. We, we, we would like, they have

kings and they have people to serve over them and give them

direction and they look to them and we, we would like to have a

king as well. Number one, and and this is not

part of my notes, but Please note well that you have one foot

on a banana peel, maybe one on solid ground when you're wanting

to emulate the culture around you rather than what?

God has called you to be all right, Amen.

But But that said, no, we, we would like to have a king and,

and so all of this is going to take place.

God grants their wish, Amen. Sometimes God.

Gives you what you ask when it's even not what you need because

you're so consistent in your asking.

He says, I'll give it to you and let you see for yourself.

While it had been best not to have it.

And so God allows them to have a king none the less.

And so as a result of all of this, the time of the judges is

coming to an end. The time of their involvement is

coming to the end because they're going to have a king

now. And so Samuel has been a judge

in Israel for years. We understand in Scripture, in

the beginning of the book of Samuel, it was this boy that

Hannah had prayed to God for, whose womb was shut up and by a

miraculous moving of God, opened her womb and allowed her to have

this boy Samuel. And she made a a, a, a, a.

Deal, if you will, with God. If you'll give me a son, I'll

turn around and give him to you. And as the number of his days

would grow older, he was probably somewhere around three

or four years old whenever she went to the temple.

And he dedicated that child unto the Lord, and said, He is yours.

And Samuel lived at the House of God.

He, he, he was there. It was there at the House of God

that he learned the voice of God.

He became acquainted with the word of God.

He became very instrumental in the history of the nation of

Israel. As a matter of fact, there are

different areas you can read in Scripture.

The Bible says that Samuel served the Lord Amen.

In this capacity would be in some aspect all of his days.

And so he had given much of his life.

If you think for a moment, it was Samuel that was instrumental

in getting the nation of Israel's first king, which was

was solved. It was, it was Samuel who

advised Saul during his kingship.

It was Samuel who then anointed their second king, David.

So very well, at least we don't know the exact number, the

Scripture doesn't say. But no doubt for at least 40 or

so years, Samuel had served as a judge.

And now he stands before the nation of Israel with this

request of a king. And that has been granted.

And he's basically telling them this.

He says I'm standing before you now.

I've served you as a nation for years.

I've given up my time, I've given up my resources.

I stand here before you as an old man, the Bible, you can read

the verses of Scripture before I text.

He says I'm a grey headed man right now.

I've I've seen you as a nation in your UPS and I've seen you as

a nation in your downs. I've seen you in your successes

and I've seen you in your mistakes.

What he's saying is I've been around the block a few times.

This isn't my first rodeo. I've I've been in a place of

observation of this nation for many years.

And so and he says prove me now, if you will, all these years

that I have served you and given to you, have I ever taken

anything from any of you and not repaid it back to you?

Have I ever defrauded any of you?

Have I ever taken a bribe among any of the people?

Have have I done any of these things to you during my time of

being a judge and rulership before you and the people

answered with a resounding no, no, Samuel, you, you've always

been honest and you've always been true and you've always

looked out for our best interests and you've not taken

advantage of us. And and so Samuel is really just

building a stage right here. If that is your observation of

me, if that that's your concept of me all these years that I've

served you, that I've been honest and true to you.

He says, then listen to what I got to say right now.

If I've never done you wrong, then listen to what this Gray

haired old man has to say right now.

You're you're telling me that that I'm honest.

You're telling me that I I'm dependable.

You know what Samuel was doing. He was underscoring his own

credibility among the people. He says listen what I got.

Let my years of experience of what I've observed concerning

the righteousness of God concerning you all what his

righteous acts. Let me, let me please recall and

recount. Amen.

Some things to you. He says if you will remember

everybody, just stay with me. It's going to take me just a

little bit. He says if you'll remember, you

were a people that for 400 years was enslaved by Egypt and it was

God. And he underscores that it was

God that advanced Moses and Aaron to come alongside you and

be your deliverers. And after you were delivered, it

was just a short time that at the base of Mount Sinai, you

were creating a golden calf and you were, if you will, avoiding

God and going toward false gods. He said, I understand that it

was you during your wilderness journeys that it seems like day

in and day out, there's complaint, there's grumbling

about the conditions. You're saying you're lacking

food, you're lacking water. And yet God is providing.

He said, I understand that it's you, some of your ancestors that

refused to even go and to the Promised Land whenever God had

promised it unto them. He says there were times that

you forgot God. He said, I'm telling you, if you

trust me, listen to what I'm telling you.

He said there were times that you forgot God.

And God then would turn you over to an adversary.

He, he would turn you over to Sisera or turn you over to the

Philistines, or turn you over to the Moabites.

And then you would cry out to God again, wanting some help,

needing something, and he would deliver you.

He had great leaders and other judges over you besides me, like

Gideon and Jetta and Samson, that led you through some

difficult times and hard times. And yet after the deliver would

pass on and some would die, many of you fell back into adultery

and other practices, he says. I know because I've been around

for a while that Israel isn't a perfect nation and Israel isn't

made-up of perfect people and that the time of the judges of

repenting and being right with God and falling away from God

and repenting again, it's still in our rear view mirror.

I know that. I know that you have sinned

repetitively and you have added mistakes to mistakes and even

asking for a king to rule over you.

That has been an additional mistake because you desire to be

like other nations, he says. I know where you're at right now

because right now you are feeling a little bit helpless.

You're feeling a little bit like as a nation and a people, we

just seem never be able to get it right.

We're always making mistakes, we're always falling over our

own feet. I know, I know you're feeling

like maybe somewhere along the way that God is just going to

snub you out all together because of your consistent evil.

And so when the people hear all these words of an aged, Gray

headed judge that they trusted and had credit, they begin to

cry out. The Bible says Samuel, pray for

us. Pray for us so that we won't die

because we might have made the the cardinal mistake right now

asking for a king when God was our king.

Pray for us so that we won't die because Samuel, we've done it

again. We've messed up again.

The Bible says they told Samuel we've added to our sins.

Do you understand what they're saying, folks?

In order to add to sins, you've already had to sin.

You got to add to something that's already there.

Since we we've added to our sins, we're adding to a list of

a long line of mistakes that even our ancestors have made.

This isn't our first offense. This isn't the first time that

we've loved up. But that old Gray headed Samuel

arose when they made that plea and that request, who had seen

all these things and observed all these things?

And he began to open his mouth and spout some words of

encouragement. The first thing that Samuel said

to that people, he said fear not, fear not.

I know it feels like you've tipped the scales.

I know it feels like you can't do anything right, but don't be

afraid, the old aged man says. And then he continues and says,

you have done all this wickedness.

If I'm the people, I'm like, woo Hoo, wait a minute, Samuel.

I mean, I felt pretty good when you started out with the fear

not, you know, I was I was feeling really responsible about

everything and feeling really down on myself and feel like,

you know, you're just a born loser and all this stuff.

But when you told me fear not, you know, I felt some of the

weight lift off my shoulder like I could stand a little taller

again and said, but then you followed up with you have done

all this wickedness. Where are we going here, Samuel?

You tell me, fear not, but then you tell me, y'all, I'm

responsible. I have done all of this witness

and all this mistake. And Samuel, you're you're

agreeing that I've done something wrong.

Samuel, you're giving me ownership of my mistake.

How's that supposed to make me feel better?

I mean, you, you're just pointing out.

Yeah, you lied. Yep, you cheated.

Yep, you've been unfaithful. Yep, you revealed.

Yep. You've been disobedient, Samuel.

You may not have understood us, but we asked you to PRAY.

Pray for us, not PREY. Prey on us.

Samuel the age man, though sense of fear not you have done all of

this wickedness and then he follows it up with this, he

says, but don't stop following the Lord.

He says you've lied, you've cheated, you blundered, you've

denied. But don't stop following the

Lord. You've made mistakes more times

than sometimes. You've got things right, but

don't stop following the Lord because the mentality of

humanity and the tactic of our adversary, what he wants to use

on us is this is that if you make a mistake, if you blunder,

if you mess up, then you got to separate and get away from God

because you're not worthy. There's shame, guilt and all

that stuff and you just got to run.

That is what your adversary would like for you to do is take

your mistake and leave God. Take your phobia and leave God.

But the aged man says this isn't my.

That first time around the block, you don't need to somehow

flub up and then leave God. You need to flub up and stay

with God. You need to make your mistake

and stay tethered to the map. Someone say, man, I'm telling

you today it is the aspect of the adversary to have you just

fall if you will, and trouble yourself with your mistake and

say, you know what? I just can't worship the Lord

anymore because I fluffed up. I can't worship the Lord anymore

because I did XYZ or whatever. Honey, that is the mindset of

the adversary. He's trying to separate you and

get you away from the very thing you need.

Honey, when you make a mistake you need.

That's when we need God the most.

When you flub up, that's when we need God the most.

Someone came in. Samuel was urging him.

He's a man of experience. Gray headed a node.

Don't leave. God, because you've made a

mistake doesn't mean you have to abandon God.

Making your mistake emphasizes your need.

For. God.

He says, I'll tell you what you do, Israel.

You take your own sinful carcass into the presence of the Lord,

and you worship or you serve God.

Right in the middle of your mess, you worship God.

Even if it's a mess you've made, you worship God.

You know what Samuel was trying to tell them?

You can worship God amidst your imperfection.

You can worship God even though you don't have it all together.

You can worship God although you don't know the the answer to

every question. You someone say, man, Samuel is

very he's very tactical in this. He's not excusing listen, he is

not excusing the fact that they send he said you did all this

wickedness. He's he's owning that for them.

He's he's not closing his eyes to it.

You did what you did, but in the same moment, he's also saying, I

can't ignore the fact that you can also still worship.

You made the mistake, but you can still worship.

Someone say Amen John 4 right. Jesus says I must need to go

through Samaria. Samaritan's a mixed greed breed

of people, Jew and Gentile, looked downed upon by the Jews,

called dogs, didn't have much dealings with them.

But Jesus says I must need to go through Samaria and he goes to

the well which was Jacob's well. Think the Bible says that the

6th hour was it of the day and he's there and a woman who was a

Samaritan meets him there and they begin to have conversation.

The one with the other about drawing water in the world that

they are at. Jesus speaks to this Samaritan

woman who the Bible says he asked her.

He says call your husband. She says I don't have a husband.

He says you've rightly said you don't have a husband, said for

you have had five husbands and the one that you're with now is

not your husband, as you've rightly said.

And so whenever they came to this conclusion of what's going

on, let's back up and say this. She's made a few mistakes.

She's made a few mistakes. But you know what Jesus begins

to talk to her about? He says they that worship God

must worship Him in spirit and truth.

And the time cometh that the fathers.

Seek of true worshippers, he starts.

He learns about all this, and then he starts talking to her

about worship. Why?

Because he's indicating that sincere worship is something

that God is seeking irrespective of our past sins.

Someone say, man, you know what Jesus is conveying to her.

I know you have a flawed life, but God is calling you to true

worship. Jesus is saying, just like

Samuel had said, you've done all of this.

You've had five husbands and the one you're with now is not your

husband. You've had broken relationship

after broken relationship. But you know, the urging of

Jesus to this woman is in the middle of all that worship God

because listen, we've looked at this before, but let's remember

it. Worship doesn't have anything

really to do with you and your status.

Worship has everything to do with the object being

worshipped, in this case being God and his status.

What does that mean? That means my life can be a

mess. But he's still deserving of

worship because worships not about me, not about where I am,

not about where I am in life. It's about who he is.

And as far as I know, he changes not.

There's no variableness in him. There's no shadow attorney.

So it don't matter where I am. He's still who he is.

And you can worship in your perfection.

Perfection. The one who is still perfect.

Yeah. Look at it, look at the

scripture. John 4 verse seven, Brother

Mason. John 4, verse seven.

There come with the woman of Samaria to draw water.

Jesus saved to her, Give me to drink.

Verse 9. Then saith the woman of Samaria

unto him, How is it that thou being a Jew?

I wouldn't say Jew. Ask a strength of me, which am a

woman of Samaria, for the Jews have no dealings with the

Samaritans. Now, when the Lord first started

conversation with this one, he didn't cut to the chase, to all

the negative aspects of her life.

He didn't, he didn't confront all those things.

He could have started there like, well, you really messed

up. He didn't start there, though.

He could have started harping on all of that, but he didn't.

So what caused the confrontation here or or this meeting here?

It's not so much that Jesus asked for something to drink,

but it's that she recognized he was a Jew that was asking from

her a Samaritan, something to drink here many times in that

day their. Their.

Robes a lot of times distinguished who they were and

gave them distinction even between occupations, like a

Carpenter robe could be different.

Amen. Jews, gentiles, all these

things, their robes told a story on their life.

This woman knew who he was, no doubt had seen some indicators

this is a Jew. And when she learned that he was

a Jew, it made her uncomfortable when she realized he was a Jew.

But her response to this realization made a difference,

because she didn't hide. She didn't take her water pot

and go home. She kept conversing until

finally she says in verse 15, what does she say?

They've been talking about this well in this water.

She's talking to a Jew. She says, Sir, give me this

water he's talking about. I got water to drink of.

It would be a well in you springing up into everlasting

life. She says Sir, give me this water

in that statement, Sir, give me this.

She is illustrating that he has something that she don't, not

only that that he has the ability to share.

Something with her that she don't have worship and all

throughout the Old Testament, worship was basically this.

Most times when you read about worship, it's always somebody

falling down prostate before the Lord bowing.

It's always illustrated in that there's the bowing that.

That's the the the the. Bodily demonstration of worship.

And when you do that, whenever two people come together and the

first one to do that was doing this, I'm acknowledging that

then this person is more superior.

Than I am that's worship this woman says you got.

Something I don't. You you, you're superior because

you have. It you know what she was doing

in the moment of her statement. Sir, please give me this water.

She was a woman that had six men in her life at one time.

But in the middle of her imperfection, you know what

she's doing, Brother Malone. She's worshipping.

She's worshipping, she's admitting.

She's she's aspiring to do better, but she's worshipping

through her own imperfection. Jesus tells of another story in

scripture. He tells he actually shares a

parable, the parables of the Pharisee and the publican.

He says that they both come into the temple and they are praying,

and that the Pharisee is is somewhat, well, not somewhat, he

is quite. Self-righteous, Amen.

As he hollers out to the Lord and says, the Lord, you know, I

fast so many days a week and I give of this and that, and I'm

not like some other people. I'm not like some other people,

you know, like this publican over here, you know, other

people like extortioners and unjust and adulterers and even

this publican. Huh.

So even in this Pharisee's words, he's trying to group that

the tax collector or this publican that he has a flawed

character. He he just like the adulterer

and the unjust and the extortioner.

He's just like all those people. Amen.

He's just kind of throwing him in with.

All of that group. But the publican or what's other

known as as the tax collector, the Bible says that he stood

afar off and he's beating his breast and his chest.

He doesn't even. Have the will to lift his eyes,

but he cries out and says, God be merciful to me, a Sinner.

You know what he's saying is I don't have it all together.

I've made some mistakes, I've had some flub UPS, I've made

multiple errors, but be merciful to me God.

Then the Bible says that Jesus said in that parable, he said

those that are exalted, they will be made abased, but those

that are abased, they will be exalted.

What's he's referring to? He's saying that Pharisee came

in high and mighty. He said, but that publican came

in bowing, He came in abased. He came in worshipping.

He didn't have it together, but he was worshipping through his

imperfection because worship doesn't depend upon his status,

it depends upon mine. Oh yeah, other places in

Scripture this bears out even yet again, not just in the New

Testament, it's also in the Old Testament as well and in the

New. But another story that you might

be familiar with is Mark chapter #5 The Bible says that Jesus is

on his way to Gadara or the Gadarenes.

Amen. There is a man who the Bible

says is the demoniac of the Gadarenes.

This man is known for living among the tombs.

I mean, I know some people want water for property, you know, by

the ocean or a river. This guy is like the tombs.

That's what I mean. How morbid can you be for a

place of residence? He says he's going to live among

the tombs. The Bible says that he could not

be down with fetter or chains of times.

They tried, but he would pluck them asunder.

They could not remain upon him. Or keep him.

Bound. And so this is this man's

condition. He's a demoniac.

He cuts himself. The Bible even says he's a

cutter. They can't keep him bound, and

he lives among the tombs and the Bible.

Says whenever Jesus showed up on the property and had

conversation with this man, he asked the unclean spirit, Amen.

What is your name at the spirit said, my name is legion, for we

are many. Someone say Amen now legion.

Not too long ago, I I listened. To Pastor Harold Hoffman.

He just died recently and I wanted to listen to the last

sermon he preached. I don't know.

It's just one of those things. What's the last thing that

someone says? The last chance they had before

they died. And he spoke about this just a

little bit in the sermon. He said a legion.

Many of us know this legion is a military, Roman military

detachment of soldiers or an army.

It can be anywhere from 4000 to 6000 soldiers.

So when this man says, my name is legion, for we are many.

Quite possible then if at the least #4000 unclean spirits

inhabited this man. Follow me here for a moment.

We read in the book of Matthew that if a person has a singular

unclean spirit and that spirit is bound and cast out, and that

spirit walks through dry places, the Bible says, and then says,

I'm going to go back to the place where I was cast out.

See in it swept and garnish and not refilled and occupied by

something that that spirit will take with it seven other unclean

spirits and inhabit the vessel that it had before.

So that whenever it comes back now there's not just one unclean

spirit, but there are 8 unclean spirits.

The one gets the seven. Now watch me if eight then

spirits get cast out and they walk away and come back then to

the place where they were cast out not being filled.

The 8 get 7 Does everybody follow me 8 * 7 is 56.

Then you have the seven original ones that were there.

You have 64 unclean spirits. If the 64 get cast out, then you

got. Each one of them getting 7

within the original 64. That's 512.

This thing grows exponentially. What I'm saying is this the man

at Gadara? This wasn't his first mistake.

Honey, you, you, you've done some playing around to

accumulate at least 4000 spirits.

Come on, hear me. You've done some playing around

to accumulate that many spirits. You've added sin to sin,

transgression to transgression. You flubbed up repeatedly.

But the Bible says in Mark 5-6 that whenever that man filled

with 4000 spirits saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped him.

Why? Because you can worship in the

middle of your imperfection. You can worship in the middle of

your mistake. You can worship even though you

don't have it all together because it's based on God's

status and not your status. You can.

Somebody needs to rise on this Sunday morning, lift up hands,

give all and glory to God because he's worth it.

Whether or not you're walking where you need to be, God is

worthy of it, Samuels tell them you don't need to leave God over

this. You need to worship God through

this. Don't you think for a moment

Samuel is an age man is looking at case studies through the

years that he served. I've seen people make mistakes

and leave God. I've seen that Israel, I've seen

that Israel, he said. But that don't need to be your

choice. You know, I because I've also

seen people make mistakes and still raise hands, lift voice,

bow in the presence of the Lord. And you know what, they're still

there. They're still there.

Listen, folk, here's the trace, he said.

Don't do that. Don't leave God, because if you

do, you're going to go to other things, vain things, worthless,

meaningless things, he says, that can profit you nothing, he

says. So do you want to take your

mistake and your sin and then gravitate towards something that

can't help you out of your sin and out of your trouble?

It's worthless, he says. But if you keep worshipping God,

at least your position close to someone who has eyes and sees,

has a mouth that could speak, has ears in someone, say Amen.

The accuser of the brethren that accuses day and night, the Book

of Revelation says he's wanting to do his job well.

He wants you to forfeit and say, well, I'm disqualified to

worship. There's no such thing as being

disqualified to worship God. There could someone off the

street right now, today that has had one of the most hellish

lives come in here and bow and worship the Lord, and nobody

around here should bat an eye because it don't matter.

Who you are, what you are or what you've done, Everybody has

the opportunity to work. I can't believe they're up there

worshiping because of XYZ. It's not about them.

It's not about him. God, listen to me this morning.

God would rather have you worship him in your imperfection

than abandoned him altogether. Don't throw him the towel.

Don't let the doors hit you as you go out and say I'm finished.

No, no, no. Come back on Wednesday.

Come back on Sunday morning, come back on Sunday night and

get in a posture of acknowledging God to be God.

Let me ask you really, what options does this demoniac man

have? His only hope was to worship

through his what would probably have been several wanderings,

several mistakes. I'm urging someone in this place

today. You need to learn to worship

through your wanderings. Come to the Pew and stack your

mistakes next to you and worship.

Because if at least 4000 spirits couldn't keep a man from

worshipping, why should we allow our mistakes and failures to

keep us from worshipping? In scripture?

I'm hurrying alone. Even Saul, the one that was

anointed to be Israel's first king, he made a grave mistake.

He made more than one mistake. But there's one in particular

that seemed to be marked pretty indelibly upon what he could or

could not do. Then for the Kingdom, he

blatantly disobeyed God. Bible says he's instructed to

the Lord go in battle against the Amalekites and utterly

destroy all of them and all of their livestock and everything

that would even pertain unto them.

Many of you know the story, but the Bible bears out that instead

of utterly destroying everything that he kept from some of the

best in choice for the livestock even kept the king Agag and this

was an error on his part, an error that scripture points out

an error that kept him from continuing as king over Israel.

As a matter of fact, the scripture says that the Kingdom

would be stripped would be stripped from him.

You can read of it in first Samuel 15 be stripped from him,

but it's even in this instance and I'm going to read it to you

this morning that Samuel, the one in who in verse 12 who is

speaking to the nation. Fear not you have done this

wrong. Don't abandoned God that Samuel

even had to embrace his own words that God had spoken to

Israel. Follow me here looking for

Samuel chapter 15 Brother Mason. I don't remember if I put this

up there, but if not, please follow along in verse #24.

So all of this has happened. Saul has made a great mistake.

So the verse says in verse 24. And Saul said unto Samuel, I

have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of

the Lord. This sounds very similar to the

nation of Israel to Samuel a few chapters earlier.

And by words, because I feared the people and obeyed their

voice. So he obeyed the the voice of

the people rather than the voice of the Lord.

Saul did, he says, Now therefore listen to him, I pray thee,

pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the

Lord. And Samuel said unto Saul.

I will not return with thee, for thou hast rejected the word of

the Lord, and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king

over Israel, he said. You've made a mistake.

Your mistake has had a consequence that you can't.

Serve in a capacity that you were going to serve in.

And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid upon the skirt of

his mantle. And it rent.

And Samuel said unto him, The Lord, have print the Kingdom of

Israel from thee this day, and have given it to thy neighbor of

dying. That is better than thou.

Verse 29. And also the strength of Israel

will not. Lie nor repent, for he is not a

man that he should repent. Verse 30 Then he said, Saul

saying, I have sinned yet honor me now I pray thee before the

elders of the people before Israel, and turn again with me,

that I may worship the Lord thy God.

Look at verse 31. So.

Samuel turned again after Saul and Saul worshipped the Lord.

This aged old man had told Israel you all sinned, but don't

abandoned God. But then someone that he had

laid his hands on through the instruction of the Lord, someone

he had had his hands on, made a mistake and then is asking

Samuel, turn with me, will you stand for me?

But I know you're like always. You're like just the standard

illustration, right? He's like, Samuel, I sinned,

I've dishonored God. Will you turn with me so I can

worship the Lord? Samuel says, I'm not doing that,

You rejected God. I believe in the moment that

Samuel is saying all this and verse 31, something comes back

to him that Saul's worship isn't based on Saul.

First he said, no, I'm not. I'm not turning.

You reject it. You made a mistake.

I'm not turning with you, for you can worship.

Something clicked in and says Saul.

Samuel's mind said wait a minute, worship isn't about him.

And so by verse 31, when Saul implores again, will you turn

with me? Samuel says, yeah, I'll turn

with you because it doesn't matter what you've done.

Nobody's disqualified from worship.

Gone. So there's some things you're

not going to be able to serve in anymore, but worship isn't one

of them. There's some things that you're

not going to be able to do anymore, but worships out one of

them. You go on and do what you do.

You can worship, you can't. You can't acknowledge God.

You can't. Someone say man, God, I know

you're upset over his failure. I know his disobedience strips

him from the Kingdom. But I know, I know it doesn't

disqualify him because in all of this, nothing about you has

changed. Folks.

I'm glad that God doesn't vary as we vary.

I'm glad that there's not times that he abdicates his throne and

gets off of it because we've, you know, abdicated our places

being faithful people to Him. No, he is what he is and he will

remain as he remains someone say man, where else where else would

he go? Everything else is is useless.

Everything else is vain. You can stay with me today.

I'll try to come to a close best of my ability.

So Samuel tells Israel, he says you, you need to keep your

connection with God, because if you have been sinning, you have

made mistakes and you've been entangled by all the antics of

sin, then there's nothing else that you can.

You realize this this morning, don't you?

There's nothing else that you can turn toward and follow that

can deliver you. They could turn from God and and

go to Bell or Ashtura false gods, but those gods can't

deliver them. They're like the Psalms 15 says.

These gods that people make, they have eyes and ears and

noses and mouths and all these things, feet, but they can't

hear, see, speak, talk, help deliver.

So they're they're listen. When it comes to deliverance,

there isn't a Plan B. There's not a substitute.

There's not another option. God is the only one that can do.

What you need done, in fact. Listen, folks, if you've made

mistakes, you're better off attempting to worship God in

your imperfect state, then going headlong after other things that

could never benefit you, never help you, never deliver you.

Here's what I know in my years of experience upon this earth,

that too many people have allowed their mistakes and

sometimes their momentary failures in their minds to

disqualify themselves from worshipping God.

But I'm here to tell you today that worship isn't preserved for

the perfect No, it's not. It's not reserved for them.

The the demoniac of Gadera should demonstrate enough to us

that there's no amount of imperfection that can disqualify

you from worshipping God. What God does desire is your

sincere worship, not your perfection.

Some of you have flipped up because you think you got to

approach him with perfection. Wrong.

Approach him with sincerity to see that consequences pass.

For me, Yes, so meant that it has consequences, but it doesn't

have to sever. Your ability for worship, all of

our failures, they don't change God's consistency and God's

faithfulness. If anything, we're going to open

these altars. If anything, recognizing again

our failure should draw us closer to God.

Allow it to draw you closer to God rather than building a

barrier to worshipping God. What are you saying this morning

to me? I'm saying this.

You can approach God with your struggles.

You can approach God with your failures.

You can approach God with your mistakes.

Knowing what? That he welcomes us as we are

because worship is about him, the perfect God, not about your

perfection. We and bow our heads in this

place today. Somebody might be going through

this time right now where they feel like they've been subpar

concerning the relationship with the Lord.

There could have been someone this morning that even question

about coming to church because they've made some current and

recent mistakes and shame and guilt was filling their life and

and that's appropriate, but it should not keep you from coming

into his presence because he's still worthy.

You might have thought this morning.

I thought about not coming just because X&Y&Z.

Sure, ma'am, let me be a Samuel today and say don't abandoned

God, Don't abandoned God. I've done wrong.

You've done wrong. I'm not excusing that.

But we're not ignoring the fact that you can worship.

Please don't think that this is a congregation of perfection,

because you'd be gravely wrong. This is a congregation of

imperfection that humbles themselves to worship a perfect

God. So the call is whosoever will,

whatever stage of life you find yourself in, whatever error you

may find yourself, come to him. Don't abandoned him because

there's nothing outside of Him that can deliver.

There's none outside of him that can help.

There's none outside of him that can set you free.

So bring your mistake, bring your struggle, bring your

failure to the Lord and worship him.

This altar is open. I wish as many as could we could

come and worship today, right? We could bow down.

We we could acknowledge him and and the all who he is, right

God, I'm imperfect. And I come with a voice of

sincerity. Today I've done wrong, I've

sinned, I've made mistake. But you're still God.

You're still the ruler of the universe.

You're still the creator of all beings.

You're still God. You're excellent.

You're altogether lovely. You're everlasting to

everlasting. I said silly worship you in the

middle of my failure. I said silly worship you in the

middle of my mess. It matters.

I don't care what the trajectory of your life is look like.

I don't care what a has happened between A&B, you might had an A

moment you was here, now it's B you're here and then between

there's been a lot of mess. That's all right.

You can still worship whoever you are.

You can still worship and God is well pleased with somebody that

recognizes His superiorness and He's the only one that can help

you where you are. He's the only one that can

deliver you. He's the only one that can free

you. Don't waste time on vain things.

Don't waste time on worthless things.

Don't waste time on meaningless things.

It's in God, and you're not disqualified from worshipping

Him. Let's talk to Him right now.

Oh, He has a ear that draws near to the voice of sincerity.

Yes, he does woo. Oh yes.

It's not about me, God, It's about you.

Thank you, Lord, for allowing this space.

Still, I know, Lord, there's some things in my life that may

disqualify me from some things, but it will not disqualify me

from worship. And I'm going to take advantage

of it. I'm going to honor you.

I'm going to lift up my voice and say you are God and I am

not. You are God and I am not.

Thank you for listening. If you would like more

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