READY THE VESSELS

FAITH GIVES THE LAST DROP. “Small… But Chosen.”

FAITH GATHERS EMPTY JARS.

FAITH GATHERS EVERY JAR.

FAITH GATHERS CRACKED POTS.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 2 Corinthians 4:7

Your Blessing Flows Through The Cracks In Your Broken Vessel.

“God Only Anoints The Authentic Self.”

God Didn’t Choose You In Spite Of Your Cracks.

He Chose You Because Of Them.

That Ensures No One Will Ever Compliment The Vessel.

It’s The Oil That’s Valuable.

If The Value Is The Oil Inside, Then Any Vessel Will Do!

Sometimes... It’s Good To Feel Empty.

Sometimes… It’s Good To Feel You’re In Need.

Maybe… You’ll Remember You’re Not The Source.

The Woman took her needs to the man of God,

Because He Was The Man OF GOD.

Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33

Living On Leftovers.

Living From Fullness, Not From Measure.

SHUT THE DOOR

But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Matthew 6:6

We’re So Busy Praying For More, More, More...

And God Says Pour, Pour, Pour.

The Oil Became More When It Was In Motion.

The Vessels Were Only Filled After They Were Prepared.

Only Empty Vessels Could Be Filled.

When The Vessels Are Ready, The Oil Will Flow.

KEEP ON POURING

What You Have Is What You Need.

The Oil Only Flows When It’s Poured.

The Enemy Can’t Steal Your Oil

The More you POUR, the More it FLOWS.

It Becomes more as it is Poured…even if feel Not Enough,

Pour what you have while you wait for what you want.

Bitterness Keeps You From Pouring What You Have While You’re Waiting What You Want.

Bitterness Always Stops Your Flow

Pour For The Lord, Not For The People.

2 Kings 4:1-7

The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.” 2Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.” 3Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.” 5She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. 6When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.” But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing. 7She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.

God Is Into you!

God Formed the World

… Before He Filled it.

God Won’t Fill

… What Hasn’t Been Formed!

We Minimize Our Supply

CHECK YOUR OIL

The Enemy Wants You To Despise Your Oil.

… Because He Can’t Steal Your Oil.

Oil is symbolic God’s Holy Spirit / Empowerment! / Joy!

Elisha Learned From Elijah’s Cloud. (1 Kings 18)

Size of Your Cloud doesn’t Determine Size of Your Miracle.

It’s Not the Amount of the Oil…

“It Might Not Be Much....But It’s Not Nothing!”

The Oil Didn’t Become MORE… Until she POURED IT.

POINT: When you feel POOR, you don’t POUR.

NEED Seems --- SO BIG compared to YOUR SUPPLY.

When You Call the Supply Nothing, It doesn’t Multiply.

The Miracle is Hidden In What You’re Overlooking!

JERICHO OR JESUS. Pastor David Rathel 07.22.18

Joshua‬ ‭5:13-15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

13“Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” 14“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” 15The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.”

DON’T LOOK BACK - Pastor David Rathel 07.15.18

Luke 9:62 Jesus replied, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Luke 17:32-33 Remember Lot’s wife! 33Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.

Genesis 19:17

As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said,

“Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”

Genesis 19:24-26

24Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

Out Alive - Not Everybody Makes It Out Alive. Pain Greater Than Fear

Become Behold - You Become What You Behold. Leave - You Can’t Leave Something While Staring At It.

Anchors - Sin Always Creates Anchors That Stop Your Future. Farther Tyan Go Sin Longer Stay. Pay More Than Can Pay

Forward - Forward Is The Fear. Forward Is The Answer. Fear Of Looking Forward.

Ephesians 4:22-24

22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;

23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Philippians 3:13-14

13Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

FISH OUT OF WATER - Pastor David Rathel - July 8, 2018.

REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE

James 1:6-8

6the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

James 1:14-17

14but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. 16Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. 17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

REMEMBER WHAT YOU NEED.

Galatians 5:16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

Psalm 73:16-17

16When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply 17till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.

Luke 10:41-42

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed--or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."

DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT.

1 Samuel 17:47

All the people gathered here will know that the Lord doesn’t need swords or spears to save people. The battle belongs to the Lord,

Ephesians 5:15-20

15See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

17Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

1 Peter 5:6-8

6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 8Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

What is right and what is wrong?

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 ESV

If everyone in a society agreed on right and wrong that society would be completely free.

“If you stick with this, living out what I tell you, you are my disciples for sure. Then you will experience for yourselves the truth, and the truth will free you.” -John 8:31-32 MSG

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” -Matthew 22:36-42 ESV

Love God

Love People

Love Truth

Be Free

HOME IS WHERE THE

PRESENCE OF JESUS IS

“WHEN JESUS HAD AGAIN CROSSED OVER BY BOAT TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE LAKE, A LARGE CROWD GATHERED AROUND HIM WHILE HE WAS BY THE LAKE. THEN ONE OF THE SYNAGOGUE LEADERS, NAMED JAIRUS, CAME, AND WHEN HE SAW JESUS, HE FELL AT HIS FEET. HE PLEADED EARNESTLY WITH HIM, “MY LITTLE DAUGHTER IS DYING. PLEASE COME AND PUT YOUR HANDS ON HER SO THAT SHE WILL BE HEALED AND LIVE.” SO JESUS WENT WITH HIM.”

MARK 5:21-24

“AND A WOMAN WAS THERE WHO HAD BEEN SUBJECT TO BLEEDING FOR TWELVE YEARS. SHE HAD SUFFERED A GREAT DEAL UNDER THE CARE OF MANY DOCTORS AND HAD SPENT ALL SHE HAD, YET INSTEAD OF GETTING BETTER SHE GREW WORSE.”

MARK 5:25-26

WE ALL NEED TO MAKE OUR HOME IN THE PRESENCE OF JESUS

“WHEN SHE HEARD ABOUT JESUS, SHE CAME UP BEHIND HIM IN THE CROWD AND TOUCHED HIS CLOAK, BECAUSE SHE THOUGHT, “IF I JUST TOUCH HIS CLOTHES, I WILL BE HEALED.” IMMEDIATELY HER BLEEDING STOPPED AND SHE FELT IN HER BODY THAT SHE WAS FREED FROM HER SUFFERING.” AT ONCE JESUS REALIZED THAT POWER HAD GONE OUT FROM HIM. HE TURNED AROUND IN THE CROWD AND ASKED, “WHO TOUCHED MY CLOTHES?”

“YOU SEE THE PEOPLE CROWDING AGAINST YOU,” HIS DISCIPLES ANSWERED, “AND YET YOU CAN ASK, ‘WHO TOUCHED ME?’”

BUT JESUS KEPT LOOKING AROUND TO SEE WHO HAD DONE IT. THEN THE WOMAN, KNOWING WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HER, CAME AND FELL AT HIS FEET AND, TREMBLING WITH FEAR, TOLD HIM THE WHOLE TRUTH. HE SAID TO HER, “DAUGHTER, YOUR FAITH HAS HEALED YOU. GO IN PEACE AND BE FREED FROM YOUR SUFFERING.”

MARK 5:27-34

WHEN WE MAKE OUR HOME IN JESUS

IT HEALS OUR BROKENNESS

“WHILE JESUS WAS STILL SPEAKING, SOME PEOPLE CAME FROM THE HOUSE OF JAIRUS, THE SYNAGOGUE LEADER. “YOUR DAUGHTER IS DEAD,” THEY SAID. “WHY BOTHER THE TEACHER ANYMORE?” “OVERHEARING WHAT THEY SAID, JESUS TOLD HIM, “DON’T BE AFRAID; JUST BELIEVE.” “HE DID NOT LET ANYONE FOLLOW HIM EXCEPT PETER, JAMES AND JOHN THE BROTHER OF JAMES. WHEN THEY CAME TO THE HOME OF THE SYNAGOGUE LEADER, JESUS SAW A COMMOTION, WITH PEOPLE CRYING AND WAILING LOUDLY. HE WENT IN AND SAID TO THEM, “WHY ALL THIS COMMOTION AND WAILING? THE CHILD IS NOT DEAD BUT ASLEEP.” BUT THEY LAUGHED AT HIM.”

MARK 5:35-40

“AFTER HE PUT THEM ALL OUT, HE TOOK THE CHILD’S FATHER AND MOTHER AND THE DISCIPLES WHO WERE WITH HIM, AND WENT IN WHERE THE CHILD WAS. HE TOOK HER BY THE HAND AND SAID TO HER, “TALITHA KOUM!” (WHICH MEANS “LITTLE GIRL, I SAY TO YOU, GET UP!”). IMMEDIATELY THE GIRL STOOD UP AND BEGAN TO WALK AROUND (SHE WAS TWELVE YEARS OLD). AT THIS THEY WERE COMPLETELY ASTONISHED. HE GAVE STRICT ORDERS NOT TO LET ANYONE KNOW ABOUT THIS, AND TOLD THEM TO GIVE HER SOMETHING TO EAT.”

MARK 5: 40-43

THE PRESENCE OF JESUS BRINGS

LIFE INTO THE MOST

HOPELESS OF SITUATIONS

“AND I HEARD A LOUD VOICE FROM THE THRONE SAYING, “LOOK! GOD’S DWELLING PLACE IS NOW AMONG THE PEOPLE, AND HE WILL DWELL WITH THEM. THEY WILL BE HIS PEOPLE, AND GOD HIMSELF WILL BE WITH THEM AND BE THEIR GOD. HE WILL WIPE EVERY TEAR FROM THEIR EYES. THERE WILL BE NO MORE DEATH OR MOURNING OR CRYING OR PAIN, FOR THE OLD ORDER OF THINGS HAS PASSED AWAY.”

REVELATION 21:3-4

BIG IDEA:

HOME IS WHERE THE PRESENCE OF JESUS IS, AND THE PRESENCE OF JESUS IS WHERE YOU NEED TO BE!

WHEN WE PLACE OUR IDENTITY IN ANYTHING OTHER THAN JESUS, WE ARE IN NEED OF REDEMPTION.

Ephesians 5:1-2 says,

“FOLLOW GOD’S EXAMPLE, THEREFORE, AS DEARLY LOVED CHILDREN AND WALK IN THE WAY OF LOVE, JUST AS CHRIST LOVED US AND GAVE HIMSELF UP FOR US AS A FRAGRANT OFFERING AND SACRIFICE TO GOD.” - EPHESIANS 5:1-2

Here is what Jesus says when he describes a blessed person:

HE SAID: “BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT, FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO MOURN, FOR THEY WILL BE COMFORTED. BLESSED ARE THE MEEK, FOR THEY WILL INHERIT THE EARTH. BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS, FOR THEY WILL BE FILLED. BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL, FOR THEY WILL BE SHOWN MERCY. BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART, FOR THEY WILL SEE GOD. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS, FOR THEY WILL BE CALLED CHILDREN OF GOD. BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO ARE PERSECUTED BECAUSE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. BLESSED ARE YOU WHEN PEOPLE INSULT YOU, PERSECUTE YOU AND FALSELY SAY ALL KINDS OF EVIL AGAINST YOU BECAUSE OF ME. REJOICE AND BE GLAD, BECAUSE GREAT IS YOUR REWARD IN HEAVEN, FOR IN THE SAME WAY THEY PERSECUTED THE PROPHETS WHO WERE BEFORE YOU.” - MATTHEW 5:2-12

A BLESSING IS NOT SOMETHING WE ARE GIVEN, IT IS A STATE OF LIVING.

“BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT, FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.”

When Jesus gives the invitation for a lifestyle of being poor in spirit, he is saying that every day we must approach God being aware of two things:

1.) We must approach God fully aware that we have nothing to offer.

2.) We must approach God fully aware that He has everything that we need.

“BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO MOURN FOR THEY WILL BE COMFORTED.”

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 says,

“THEREFORE WE DO NOT LOSE HEART. THOUGH OUTWARDLY WE ARE WASTING AWAY, YET INWARDLY WE ARE BEING RENEWED DAY BY DAY. FOR OUR LIGHT AND MOMENTARY TROUBLES ARE ACHIEVING FOR US AN ETERNAL GLORY THAT FAR OUTWEIGHS THEM ALL. SO WE FIX OUR EYES NOT ON WHAT IS SEEN, BUT ON WHAT IS UNSEEN, SINCE WHAT IS SEEN IS TEMPORARY, BUT WHAT IS UNSEEN IS ETERNAL.” - 2 CORINTHIANS 4:16-18

When we mourn we recognize that God is above it all and if we lift our eyes to Him, we will be comforted.

Jesus continues by saying,

“BLESSED ARE THE MEEK, FOR THEY WILL INHERIT THE EARTH.”

“BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS, FOR THEY WILL BE FILLED.”

When we are hungry and thirsty, whether physically or spiritually, we are reminded of our need for something outside of ourselves.

My question to you is: What are you hungry for?

“BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL FOR THEY WILL BE SHOWN MERCY.”

“BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART- FOR THEY WILL SEE GOD.”

“BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS, THE PERSECUTED, AND THE SLANDERED.”

BIG IDEA:

YOU SEE, ALL OF THESE BEATITUDES ARE OUR TRAIL MARKERS ON A JOURNEY OF REDEMPTION.

1 Corinthians 1:27 says,

“BUT GOD CHOSE THE FOOLISH THINGS OF THE WORLD TO SHAME THE WISE; GOD CHOSE THE WEAK THINGS OF THE WORLD TO SHAME THE STRONG.” - 1 CORINTHIANS 1:27