The Will of God for the Weak

Carter Conlon from the historic Times Square Church in New York City.

You are the entire army of God. You are suicidal you can get out of bed you are afflicted you use hearts are broken, you are the end time army of God is the Lamb of God welcome weekly addition of a call to the nation with Connor, there are many people living today who feel there at the end of their strength, they feel they can't go on. But in today's message wants you to know there is good news for you the will of God is for you and Carter will share a very personal testimony that he believes will become a blessing to your heart.

Here's Carter with today's lesson of how I'm going to be speaking on the message called the will of God for the week that's built W EA K the will of God for the week.

In Romans chapter 7 there's a part of the human condition or pulses. I know what to do is read fact, I even delight in my inward parts in the thought of actually doing it.

In other words, I I see what God wants me to be.

I understand at least a measure I see a slight picture of what he wants me to do or wants me through my life. But how to perform it pulses that I don't know is that I find myself longing to do things I'm supposed to do but then I find myself doing the things that I know I'm not supposed to do and pulses that I am encased in the body of death that's I'm paraphrasing but that's essentially what he said. I'm encased in death, who will deliver me from the body of this death, and he concludes his thoughts by saying thanks be to God through Jesus Christ. Now I'm going to explain a little bit of that when it talked about the will of God for the week. I want to share some good news with you that the will of God is for you.

I want you to hear me.

I want you to hear me with your best year and I want you to let the words of God go right down into your heart. Turn with me now to John chapter 6 in the New Testament John chapter 6 and then were going to go to John chapter 11 John chapter 6, verse 32 then Jesus said to them, most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my father gives you the true bread from heaven for the breadth of God is you comes down from heaven and gives life to the world and they said to him, Lord, give us this bread always. Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. He who comes to me shall never hunger you believes in me shall never thirst me say it again, I am Jesus said the bread of life. You comes to me shall never hunger you believes in me shall never thirst. I go with me to John chapter 11 beginning at verse 23 now this is a scenario where a man that Jesus loved, had died instead of coming to him when he was sick, he actually waited until he had died and was actually dead for four days and the sister of the man came to him, Martha said to Jesus in verse 21. If you'd been here, my brother would not have done this type of a person that says if you come sooner.

I had hoped back then, but I don't have hope. Now leave now.

I know that whatever you ask of God, he will give it to you. Jesus said to her, your brother will rise again.

Martha said to him, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day. In other words, I have no hope for the present. But I have hope for the future.

I noticed a day coming that those in the griever to hear your voice and were all going to rise up and meet you in the air since type person. This is not my only hope is for then I have no hope for right now. But Jesus said to her. In verse 25 I am the resurrection and the life memories that I am the bread. I am the bread that God sent down from heaven if it will ever partake Simi will never hunger, and he will never thirst. And in verse 25.

This is on the resurrection and the life you believes in me, though he may die. You shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.

Do you believe this, I am the bread of life.

I am the resurrection, hear these words again.

Whoever believes in me, though we may die, shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this. I spent a considerable amount of time talking about the first Temple. This first Temple that was given by the pattern of the Holy Spirit to David to give it to his son Solomon. Solomon built this temple. Remember we talked about the work of God going on and in silencing that in the temple. Now in second Chronicles chapter 5 in verse 10, there's something interesting happens now the ark of God is always represented.

The victory of God right when the when the children of Israel brought the ark of God into the camp there was always this incredible shout, and it it represented the presence of God going with his people and the battle of even caused enemies fear even the Philistines one times is all what we really do the ark of God has come into the camp. The presence of God has come into the camp and inside that ark. The Bible tells us were the tablets of the Commandments were given.to Moses on Mount Sinai.

There was the manna which God supernaturally provided for the people through their wilderness journey. This is the bread of heaven. Basically it was like out a way for like coriander with honey and and with the people aided it was total complete undernutrition.

You didn't need anything else but manna in the people survived on it for many many years in the wilderness and also in that ark was the staff of Aaron and remember there was a dispute one time of who really is the who's the priest of who's really call of God and in the Lord said bring all every everyman's staff and lay them in a pile before that the tabernacle and the so they did that, and the Lord said I will show you who belongs to me. Now these are all dipsticks.

These are all just just ask the people use their shepherd's staff is what the other been long dad there there dry. There's no moisture in them they laid them all in this pile, and in the morning. Aaron's rod had but it may sick I mean out of a dead stick comes comes comes life comes foliage probably is fruit on that staff do as well. It was an absolute miracle of God. So all of these things are, I put inside the ark as a reminder of who God is. God requires us to obey the law at that time, God promises to be our provision promises to be the bread that will sustain us.

God promises to be the want to gives us life, even when we die. Even when were a place of death and darkness are just beyond fruit bearing this.

This is no possibility that our lives are going to bear the fruit that we feel is the will of God or the God requires of us know when the ark is brought into the temple, something strange happens at this particular time.

A lot of people just Passover and don't even stop to think about it what it says when Solomon brought the ark into the temple and they put it behind the curtain in the most holy place where the Shekinah glory of God would sit on top of the ark, but that holy manifested presence of God so powerful, so pure, so holy that if you went behind that curtain and you weren't properly prepared. It was instant death to step into the presence of God. Now interestingly enough, in chapter 5 in verse 10, the Scripture says nothing was in the ark except the two tablets which Moses put their at Horeb, when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel when they come out of Egypt so this makes it really interesting. So it garners the question what happened to the bread and what happened to this staff that you know there you don't realistically the ark and the temple represented the law. It was just like it was it was an Old Testament covenant with the people have to come into the presence of God and make promises to him. Remember that you did make promises to God and the inherent problem of man from the time of the garden of Eden Genesis was the ingesting of this sin nature. The satanic nature that says I can be as God is. Or I can be a judge like God is and I can know what's good and I can know what's evil. I don't need God in a sense, live a holy life.

I can choose what's whole can choose what's right.

That's what we see, of course, happening in our generation through the lives of those who have no living real relationship with God and soul in that in this particular Old Testament temple there would be a river of blood literally people would be coming in the be bringing in their goats and their lambs in the turtledoves or whatever. This financial situation was, or the social standing and they they would be offering these things for their sin, promising that they were going to try to do better. Like many people as you you promise you promise. God give you what you're in a prayer meeting and you're just waiting for the chance to make another promise.

I promise you, I'll try to get out of bed. I promise you try to stop doing drugs that I promise you and and every week you come in, or maybe every year. Maybe it's been years. As you come in and the longer you go, just like the apostle Paul. You could say I'm just so weary of making promises I can't keep. It's it's hopeless.

You don't even know why some cases are still instilling this affirmative because your voice is no more than a whisper in the dust in your face is no bigger than the smallest mustard seed that's available in this in this particular season that were living in wonder why you're even here, you just your hanging on by a thread here on the edge, and in many cases of committing suicide. That's why the Lord is as burdened us to pray for those that are losing heart and losing hope. And so the question arises now why did God remove the bread and the staff from the ark and why was it only the law left in the ark and I I believe first of all because it was the temple and the religion of that time represented the old covenant represented are our attempts to make promises to God are our attempts to be godly in our own strength are our attempts to obey the will of God by anything any amount of strength or pulling up our bootstraps that we could muster know there's a lot of theories I took time to read about this and there's a lot of theories about what happened to the manna and what happened to the staff and and some of the theories are interesting and some are ridiculous now.

Some suggest that the Philistines stole the manna and the staff when the captain of the ark under the priesthood of Eli, I rather doubt that because they the judgment of God was so severe on them and there's the fear of God so gripped them it would be obvious they would return obviously with the ark. Anything that that it associated with it to save themselves, really. Others suggest that a careless priesthood may have taken it out of the ark and some suggested it was stolen.

Others suggest that the brand and the staff out never were put in the ark in the first place. Interesting. Some of these theories. But there's one that really caught my attention and I just want to read it you about where did the bread go and where did the staff go white. Why, after all these years of association with the ark really suddenly taken away.

Now the tablets represented the law the rod in the manna represented the supernatural provision of living in relationship with God. Remember that the law, the tablets represented my my requirement as it is for obedience or for holiness to look to live a godly life. The manna represented the provision of God number. I am the bread.

I am the bread of God.

I am the bread of life and the good rod represented the, the, the supernatural life. The supernatural provision comes from living in relationship with God, the law with each sample were both doomed to fail. There would be a day coming when one stone would not be left upon another of the system, not just the temple. The whole system when Jesus came into Jerusalem, near the end of his three year ministry on the earth.

The final three years of his life on the earth, and he cursed the fig tree I have always believed he was cursing the whole system of human effort in human covering number in the garden of Eden. It was Adam and Eve are covered in fig leaves when they embraced this thinking of Satan that I can I can cover myself I can procure and produce righteousness in my own strength. You think of how ridiculous Adam and Eve must've looked at how ridiculous human effort looks in the sight of God. When we tried to be godly without God, and God knows it's impossible.

The problem is, humanly speaking, humanity doesn't know it's impossible. So we keep making promises and we keep getting more discouraged and we come back into the presence of God, and we confess our sin we we say were going to do better and we tried to do better, but the whole system of of you and I making promises to God was doomed to fail.

That's why there needed to be across and supernatural life and provision were removed from that old system, only to be returned at the cross. I really believe God took them out of the ark.

I really believe the hand of God. However, he chose to do it removes the bread and remove this promise of of life coming from death because it was only going to be returned to Jesus Christ.

It was going to come back after the old system that failed the bread which Jesus said I am the bread of life in the resurrection of Ms. light from the dead were both going to come back by God's design through Jesus Christ both sank God, thank God nothing nothing nothing in the Scriptures happens nothing in biblical history happens, but by happenstance. It's all orchestrated by God. It was all leading to one conclusion.

There's there's no hope for me.

There's no hope for you.

Apart from divine life through Jesus Christ.

Apart from the covering of his blood. Apart from the forgiveness of our sins. Apart from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

There really is no hope for the future is going to go back to the question, what is the will of God for the week want to share with you an experience that happened to me. I have been a believer now for about 43 years and about roughly 30 something years ago left full-time employment and they went into full-time ministry and we we bought a church and we renovated the church and we were we were started. The food bank and we were reaching out and I was preaching like a house on fire. Fasting doing everything I knew to do to took to be a good pastor to be a good Christian to to serve God and to serve the people. But one day I ran out of gas on never forget that they I just ran out of physical strength.

No other way to describe.

I remember coming into the terms of the churches is in revival really only the people are shouting.

There's lots of good things happening, people are coming from miles and miles and miles away to come to the experience and presence of God, but I just ran out of strength I ran out of gas and I was standing in the front of the church used to stand past the trees and myself and smothers in the front row and then Sunday morning like I couldn't even sing. I was so weak I couldn't sing I couldn't lift my hands. I couldn't pray I could hardly speak. And as I stood there. The thought came into my mind.

I'm finished, I'm done. I'm at the end of strength I can't do this anymore and I was standing there are numbers due to preach, probably in 15 minutes or so on. I thought how my going to tell the church that I'm I'm done I can't do this.

I just I have no strength left anymore. It was at that point when my my mind I was I was thinking about how my going to tell the church. This I heard a voice and audible voice is generally her divorce one time in my life, but it's lest you think I'm one of those guys and slid by voices and dreams are not unlit by the word of God and God's always spoken to me. All my Christian life through his word or through strong impulses in my heart most often when I've been in his work.

That's how I know the voice of God.

But this time was an audible voice was Nata. It was not an impression on my heart. It was not something I was thinking in my mind it was somebody actually spoke to me. I don't know who it wants. Was it an angel was it was in the spirit of God.

I have no idea what it was a voice it was but 5 inches from my right ear and in the midst of my deepest despair. This voice said these words, I have come to help you.

It was in a whisper was like contact got is clear is that it is so startled me that I jumped and I looked over my shoulder to see who it was who was speaking to me and there was nobody there was nobody even close to me but couldn't spoken those words but yet I heard them and heard them audibly spoken in my ear no more than 5 inches away from my ear in the strength of that word in the in the sudden sense of the infusion of God's help and power. I got up into the pulpit and preach that morning and never turned back. Not in my strengths, but in the strength of God from standing in front row unable to go into the pulpit, unable to sing unable to raise my hands, unable to pray. I have traveled over most of the world and preach the hundreds of thousands if not millions of millions of people.

By this time, and I think God did this day that I don't know who it was but God sent a messenger to me and he spoke into my ear. At the weakest time.

Perhaps of my life when I was ready to give up and not go forward, and he just simply said I've come to help you six little words and change my future and it's over 30 years ago and I've been everywhere. Believe it or not I have been sent to get you. I know that in my heart I know what I'm called to do.

I am the voice from God as his messenger to you saying on God's behalf. I've come to help you. I've come to God is speaking to you. I've come to help you get out of your weakness and struggle. Trial your self-loathing your tendency to want to commit suicide. Your fear of crowds. Your dependency on drugs. Whatever it is that you're going through with whatever has caused you to say I all and asking God is to take my life know he won't answer that prayer is that I've come to give you life and come to give it to more abundantly. You can't ask God for what he clearly said he didn't come to give you you won't answer that prayer and thank God he won't answer those come to give you life is going to help you on your part. You have to just do what I did and you simply get up and you move towards that first place that God has put before you the first place. I had to go in that place of weakness was into the pulpit and speak to the next 30 minutes I was the first thing he didn't show me he didn't show me India he didn't show me Africa I did show me the civil wars is going to be sent to help. He really didn't show me myself standing in the in the house is a prime ministers or presidents or kings or whatever they are. Didn't show me any of that. He just showed me the pulpit that was right before me. You see, that's where it begins it begins at the beginning and end for you time to just get out of bed to put it that way is as the first think it's time to go to your kitchen, open your Bible and start reading it you start at the beginning I feel in my heart that God has called me to call this last day weekend Army into a place of strength that only God can give. It's not about obeying the rules anymore. You will instinctively do it because God promised to write his lawn your heart, you will have to read it to obey it. It'll be inside of you is that I am the bread.

I am the bread the bread that was maybe taken from the ark in little system. I am the bread that's come down and if you partake of me you won't be hungry anymore and you will be thirsty anymore. The promise of Christ is that I will satisfy your desire. I will strengthen you with the strength that you can't get anywhere else. But for me the promise of Christ is that I am the resurrection and the life. Even if a man die, yet you shall live. Do you believe this, you see that was the promise to the rot of Erin. Even if your dad and try like an old stick and you know there's no hope of producing life apart from God. As you come and you lay that down before me and before the morning comes to be blossoms in your life. Every food in your life will be done supernaturally, not by human effort, not by making promises to me by making promises to me, says the Lord by my promises to you is to be God to you is to be strength you to be like you to raise you from the dead, so interestingly I wrote this up in my notes last night is amazing. So your again just telling you on God's behalf. Dad and trust Jesus for your strength and for your life.

Make anymore promises to God. You can't keep them.

Promises to be like you promises to give you your life that you can't possibly bear in your own strength. He promises to be Brandon supplies and and water that causes you never thirst again. That is the promise of God that is due the end time Army is going to be you are the end time Army of God. You are suicidal you can't get out of bed addicted. You are afflicted, you who hate you you are you was hearts are broken, you are the end time Army of God hallelujah to the Lamb of God hallelujah.

I'm not just trying to scare you make you happy. I have a word from God for you. You are the end time Army of God not just come to help you. I can't lift you up, but I can tell you who can, if you will just go forward just go forward. I couldn't see any more than the 12 feet in front of me that Sunday morning but I went forward in the strength of God preach the word that God had given me. I've never looked back. Ever since father in Jesus name. In Jesus name I ask God to raise up your people raise up your insurance Lord raised up God. We are we are hungry we are thirsty we recognize we can't bear fruit on our own. None of us can put we recognize what was taken from the ark in Solomon's Temple was given back at the cross when you were racing with our captivity Shower this life nourishment is who we are.

This is who you are is what you've asked us in this generation. You been listening to Carter Conlon from Times Square Church in New York City.

For more information and resources to help you in your walk in Christ. Log on to TSC.NYC TSC.NYC, be sure to be with us next week for a call to the nation with Hunter,