Going Beyond Freedom

Freedom is overrated what you mean by that pastor. Glad you asked in the freedom can be invaluable, but freedom is only as valuable as what we use it for the gospel of John chapter 8 verse 36 tells us that if the sun has set you free. You are free indeed.

What is the purpose of this freedom why did God save you in the first place hello and thanks for stopping by for this too is the addition of Destin for victory with pastor Paul Sheppard. Some people believe freedom means being able to do as they please. But that's not the way God defines today pastor Paul offers an inside look at what freedom in Christ is all about. Stay with us now. But remember, you can always go to pastor Paul.net to hear any recent Destin for victory message on demand.

That's pastor Paul.net right now, here is Pastor Paul. Today's Destin for victory message. Going beyond freedom. I want to take advantage of what's going on in our world today, and I want to use it as a springboard to launch into a series of messages that I'm entitling the journey toward fulfillment.

Now let me put a timestamp on this.

I know that this message will be heard for months and years to come.

So I need to put a timestamp on it. I am delivering this message in May 2020 when the world is captivated and challenged by a pandemic known as cold. 19. It has devastated so many people there are many many people who have died worldwide because of this pandemic. Many, many more are suffering and trying to recover from COBIT 19. These are challenging days in our world and especially here in America as I speak at this particular time we have lost over 60,000 lives in America. Due to this pandemic just in the past few months and we don't know where it's going to in our healthcare officials are doing all they can. Medical scientists are doing all they can to come up with something that will get a hold of this virus and we who are people of faith continue to pray that God will use it while at the same time deliver us from it, but why we are dealing with this pandemic. If you like me are someone who believes God uses tragedies even though he doesn't will them, he uses them. I want to join me in prayer that God is going to use this to really speak to people about the need that they have, to trust him. So in this time of this pandemic. I wanted to point out the fact that we are having cries here in America. In May 2020 we been under what they call shelter in place rules in many states throughout America for the past several weeks we've been sheltering in place. Lots of businesses have shut down malls have been closed sporting games are not taking place. There is so much that is changed about our life and lifestyle. Just in the past few months really is tough to remember what normal use could be because right now there are few choices of what we called normal and there are cries around the country where people are saying we need freedom and the sad thing is, many of these protest in the streets and at state capital buildings in such their protesting, wanting to go back to business as usual without having a real sensitivity to the fact that unless they're willing to practice the guidelines that we been given shelter in place social distancing things like that it will go back to business as usual and we don't maintain a sensitivity to those things and aren't willing to change our lifestyle to accommodate the need to prevent this, viruses continued spread all we're doing is inviting a fresh wave of the virus into our society.

And that's not going to help us at all. And as I've been watching the protesters and they been using the term, you know, flee Virginia free Michigan whatever state therein. They want to be free and as I've been thinking about this as a pastor I'm always looking at spiritual lessons that can be learned even in natural events and so when it comes to what we're dealing with.

In today's world this whole business of reading people and people crying out demanding freedom.

I thought you know what there is something the body of Christ needs to learn about this concept of freedom so I want to share with you as I open up this particular sermon series.

Here's the first thing I want you to note freedom is overrated what you mean by that pastor. Glad you asked. Indeed, freedom can be valuable, but freedom is only as valuable as what we use it for. In other words, freedom is not an end to itself. Ideally, freedom is a means to an end. What is the end. The end is that we find God's purpose for freedom and I wanted to take advantage of this cry for freedom that's going on throughout the country these days to say to the body of Christ. Let's take some time and examine why we as people of God need to be free. What does God give us freedom for why has God saved us. For instance, have you ever stopped to ask yourself why did I get saved.

Why did the Lord send his son to save me. Well I think some folk would say because I need the Lord I'm a sinner and I need to be saved right so he saved us from our sins, but to what end, what is the end result of being say. For some people it will be well so that I know the Lord personally.

So when I die one day. I won't be lost eternally.

I will spend eternity in the presence of God. So in some people's minds. He saved me to take me to heaven will bless your heart. I want to say that heaven is a benefit of salvation, but heaven isn't the reason for salvation.

God saved us, not only so that we could go to heaven when we die, but so that we could live a life of purpose and fulfillment. While we live here and now.

So I want to do is spend some time with you examining the purpose for your salvation in mine and examining why God has given us the gift we call freedom because the me tell you something, just like people are saying we want to be free to go back to business as usual and many of them are not prepared to follow the guidelines that will keep us protected as we go back to trying to enjoy freedoms we had gotten used to.

In the same way some of us who are saved really aren't taken advantage of. Why God saved us in the first place, and I trust you're going to be challenged. As I go through this being with you in the word of God to begin to answer the question why does God want us to be free. I want to take you back to the days of Moses. You are Bible readers, you know very well that the second book in your Bible, the book of Exodus is a book that begins to discuss with us. The fact that God's people were in captivity for hundreds of years in Egypt, and God in the fullness of time raised up a man named Moses called him and said I'm going to send you to Pharaoh and I want you to tell Pharaoh to let my people grow, and so you know who are Bible readers that Moses was faithful. He went to Pharaoh and he declared you are in a free God's people and then fellow. Of course, had a hard heart and got God made sure that he constantly hardened his heart because God wanted to show his people, the extent to which he was willing to go in order to set us free from any bondage in our lives.

And so after many words from Moses. Eventually, you know that Pharaoh loosed his grip and he allowed the slaves of Israel to leave Egypt. Moses led them out of town led them to the banks of the Red Sea and then after Pharaoh had a change of heart and said you know what I can little bit free labor go. I'm going to go recapture these folks and attempted to do so. It took the Lord to keep him from getting to them. But while they were in pursuit and with mountains on either side. Israel was stuck in a place where all they could do is trust God.

How do we get past this Red Sea. How is God going to work this out.

Some of us have lived a Red Sea experience where you have some more evil side and something behind you and you don't know which way to go, must testify when there was no way God made a way out of no way be right back with more of today's destined for victory message pastor Paul Shepherd, senior pastor, destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California to listen to any pastor Paul's recent broadcasting.

Be sure to stop by Pastor Paul.net any time to listen on demand. That's pastor Paul.net. You can contact us for prayer or make a safe and secure donation to the ministry online pastor Paul Joyce in the studio right after today's message but McNellis joined him for the rest of the message going be on freedom and that's what happened to Moses, God used them to part the Red Sea. He and these people now when not talking about just a middle company of folks were talking about. Approximately 2 million people who left Egypt and crossed the Red Sea on dry land. As God parted the waters they crossed on dry land. It was only after they got to the other side of the Red Sea that the water cave-in again and destroyed Pharaoh's army was all about about God was showing his people. When I have fulfillment for you when I have purpose for you when I have destiny for you. There was no one and nothing that can prevent you from experiencing it. Watch this except you. Nothing else can keep you from reaching your place of fulfillment, but you and so I want you to think about what happened when they got on the other side there now free from Pharaoh's army has drowned.

Egypt is a memory now they all in a place where Israel can move toward fulfillment. Now what was fulfillment for them fulfillment for them was God had promised them hundreds of years earlier through Abraham that he was going to take his people to our place. He had promised them. We call it the promised land. So what was the Exodus from Egypt about it was about freeing people to the end that they will experience the promised land gotten just free them from Egypt so that they could hang out in another place he promised to free them so that he could deliver them into a place of promise and fulfillment. My brothers and sisters. Here's what I want to say to you as I open up this series, I am not giving you this series so we can talk exclusively about history mainly the history of the Exodus.

I want to talk to you about how the Exodus of Israel from Egypt is a shift of your thinking so that you can apply the lessons learned there to your own life. The Bible says things written a forehand were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. So I want to to think about these people. They come through the Red Sea, miraculously, some of you. God saved you. Miraculously, God brought you out of some stuff miraculously so we all have testimonies where if you would see me before I got say you would never believe I'm certain appeal of zoom service or watching Pastor Paul preached today you would never think I would be a child of God you would never think I would go to church. You would never think that I was interested in the things of God but God brought me a mighty long way and I am free by the grace of God. Well, thank God that you're free but my question is why did God for you not answer free now just say, is there anything else for you and the answer is absolutely yes. And so I want to walk through Israel's experience with you and I want to plug in your life and you gonna learn a lot of things. Now these people were successful in getting through the Red Sea, God parted the water and brought him through but you know what happened when they got on the other side you immediately. Saul that they had no understanding of why God brought them out. Nor did they have an understanding of what it would take to get to the place of fulfillment soon as they got onto the other side, they began to murmur, they began to complain, they began to rebel. They began the practice on belief. They said where is the water over here and that was bitter water and they complained and murmured. Instead of saying wait a minute.

God didn't bring me this far to let me die of thirst instead of that they declared city. I know I shouldn't follow Moses because the water over here isn't something you can drink when your heart is not aimed toward where God is taking you.

It's easy for you to find fault with where you are. Some of us right now are spending our days even in this crisis that we're facing here in May 2020. Many of us are spending our days complaining, just like the protesters without saying, Lord, what are the opportunities what are the things you want to do in my life for me, throwing me with me even during this time of shelter in place even during this time of COBIT.

19. Even during this time, when it's not clear where were going to go as a society how life is going to change.

We need to be saying Lord tell you what you lead us and will follow you. Our life is changed as we've known it, but it doesn't matter as long as we know we're following you were going to be all right.

I want to speak to some of you right now because right now you're showing more that you are like that generation that Moses led out of Egypt than you want to admit. But this word comes not to condemn you, but it does come the conviction. Some of us have been spending our time complaining some of us have been spending our time murmuring some of us have been spending our time saying this doesn't make sense and I don't understand why this or that is happening instead of cursing the circumstances as they are.

We should be thanking God knowing that God we don't know where you're going to take us. But you already know we're going to follow you as you lead us and those of us who are willing to do that are going to see that freedom is good, but it's only as valuable as what we allow it to take us to so brothers and sisters. First of all I want to understand freedom is overrated God and for you.

Just so you could try to figure out how to create something in your life.

He knows why he saved you he knows what he's doing in your life even knows why he's allowing us to go through COBIT 19 and so you and I need to make up in our minds tell you what the Bible said all along were supposed to walk by faith and not by sight. Let me get my eyes over the circumstances and let me put my eyes on the one who led me this far and promised to take me all the way to fulfillment these people murmured and complained as a result, you know what happened to that first generation that Moses led they came out of bondage. But they never went in to fulfillment.

So thank God you and I are saved.

We've come out on sin. We've come out of spiritual bondage. But my question is where you going from here. I will about you, my brothers, my sisters, my answer is, I'm not satisfied with just having come out.

I want to go in. I want to go in to things I've never seen before.

I want to go in to spiritual fulfillment. I want to go in to the purposes of God for my life as I bring this message I'm in my early 60s, but I decided that until the Lord calls me home and I'm hoping that that will be any time in the next 25 years or so until the Lord calls me home. I got some stuff I want to go into. I want to go in the fulfillment I don't know how you feel about it but I'm not prepared to live the rest of my life in mediocrity. I want to experience God's best for my life. These people were okay to be mediocre. Let me show you how.

Okay, they were after they complained about the water and God bless Moses to give them clean water. Then they just found another thing to complain about. Where is the food over here and God said, all right, I'm going freedom from heaven and you know the story how they woke up in the morning and found Manna on the ground.

Manna means what is it I love you been through it sometime got a let you go for what is it faith you will know how you're making it, but you just make it you don't know how things are going well and you haven't collapsed altogether.

But God is sustaining you in ways you don't fully understand. I'm sure some of us could justify adjusting this time when life is changed so much around us somehow or another we are still doing just fine. That's because our God is the God of Manna. Sometimes he blesses you and you don't even quite understand how these blessings you just given you what you need to make. Thanks so much for being here for today's destined for victory message. Going beyond freedom. As promised, Pastor Paul has jointly from his studio in California.

While I don't need to tell you that the holiday season is upon us pastor and although this year will certainly be a bit different than others. There will be plenty of things we vying for attention this year. This is always a very important time for ministries like destined for victory, but especially this year with all the we've experienced with a great thank you gift for all those who can make the very best gift this month. It's a great and timely message from you.

It's on DVD.

It's called refocus. Tell us a bit about this message. Until recently I was going to present a very different message for our year-end gift and it was going to be a good one, but as the year began to wrap up. I was experiencing some things and I went to the Lord said, Lord, I need you to help me get my focus back in order and as I processed and prayed and the Holy Spirit spoke to me. I ended up thinking you know what this is and just for my benefit.

I need to share this with my audience and as a result, I have recently decided to change that message and I'm presenting the message entitled, refocus that is going to help people work through the challenges that have been born out of this pandemic and some of the frustrations we've all experienced and I'm giving three very practical steps as to how we need to address these matters. You know I'm learning in my life these days that emotional health is every bit as important as physical and spiritual health. And so this message is going to help.

I think a lot of people and I trust that donors this month will not only be a blessing to us through their generous gifts, but they will be blessed by hearing me unpack this theme and help us all get ourselves refocused. As we look ahead to the year to come. That is a great reminder Pastor Paul and now is the best time for all of us to begin thinking that way as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ and get ready for a brand-new year for your best gift right now to destined for victory. Would love to send you a DVD copy of Pastor Paul's message refocus. That's refocus a DVD from Pastor Paul in our gift to you by request for your best gift to Destin for victory in December. Call 855-339-5500 to give over the phone or visit Pastor Paul.net to make a safe and secure donation online.

You can also mail your gift to Destin for victory PO Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538. Let me tell you my brother, my sister, if you want to journey toward fulfillment in your life you're going to have to get your butt out of the way. I don't mean your BU TT don't charge me would be all the while I'm preaching. No, I just mean your BU T Norden negative conjunction your negative perspective on what God wants to do in your life that's next time. In Pastor Paul Shepard's message. Going beyond freedom. Until then, remember he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion in Christ, you are destined for victory