The Hope of Christmas - Mighty God, Part 2

With everything that is happened this year.

It's easy to lose perspective and begin focusing only on the here and the now I'd like to suggest we take the opportunity this Christmas season because to look to be reminded of the amazing hope for us right now in the amazing future. God has promised us don't go away. Thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge with shipping Living on the Edge features the Bible to this daily discipleship program and were in the middle of a series called the hope of Christmas in this program.

Chips picking it up where he left off, working his way through a series of cycles to know if you missed part one of this message, maybe catch it later shipping revamped for online anytime ever Living on the Edge.or chips in Mark chapter 4 if you have a Bible.

Turner now. Let's join them for part two of this message, mighty God seen number three. First is the Lord of the natural world. Second, he's the Lord of the spiritual world. Now as you follow the text he goes back over the Sea of Galilee, to the other side and when he gets there. There is a Jewish ruler named Darius and Jerry us is desperate at this time Jesus popularity has grown significantly. So if you were to say as a Jew.

I believe Jesus is the Messiah, or I follow him. The religious leaders are going to kick you out of the synagogue because there there there there threatening the stability. But here's a ruler of the synagogue's little girl is behind when he gets out of the boat he comes and literally assess falls before him.

It's interesting when Jesus speaks the waves in the windfall before him. The demon falls before him, and now the leader of the synagogue comes before and it says little girls behind you. Please come help, and Jesus says yes and so he's walking but she's walking toward the home where the little girl is dying. He's he's swarmed and he stopped to touch me and you know Peter and James is what you need to touch him in the hundreds of people around here is a no no. I felt power virtue go out of and then you can see a little clearing some people step back and here this woman comes and she's trembling and she's at his feet and she confesses it was me and we learned she had issue of blood and for many many years.

The text will tell you exactly how many years a me over a decade.

She spent all her money trying to be cured, and now she's broke. She has no hope.

But she heard about Jesus she'd hurt him teach. She thought I could just come and touch the edge of his robe. I would be healed and she does and she is healed and member what he says to her daughter. Your faith has made you well to the disciples, you still have no faith, and so as is ready go. Some runners come from house to light little girls dead and about what unit is not like on cell phones and stuff so proximity is not very close is a good bit of time. She's dead. There's no use. Don't bother the teacher can imagine the look on that dad's face when his last hope was Jesus and now she's gone and Jesus turns to him and says don't be afraid only believe there must be something to faith and believing and trusting that Jesus has power over nature that has power of the spiritual world that has power over the physical world. In this bleeding woman and so he goes and by the time he gets there. I know it's a bit of time because mourners have already showed up and and and the culture they would come and sit on both sides of a wood whale one with when we mourn.

This is like people on oh, I'm so sorry I'm so sad they even actually have professional mourners and was a sign of really concern for family and Ellen and all: Jesus comes in. It was on the girls. Not that Jesus asleep. I start like Mr. Mott will know we've all seen she's dad, mom, dad, Peter, John, James, you will find come with me every else stay out here he goes in there will €12 girls lying there dead little girl, I say to you, arise. He has authority over life and death.

He's the all mighty God has authority over eternity over nature over demons over the physical life and health of people he's all powerful. Those disciples were experiencing the child that was born the son given by God has grown up and he is a wonderful counselor in his teaching, and now he has verified he is the Lord in the all powerful one over all aspects of life so they can trust him and he takes those three leaders and they get this experience and the Mount of Transfiguration and those of the three. He takes 20 praise because those three will lead the church for the movement that you're involved in that is spreading across the world like no other movement ever and they will have to believe that he is all-powerful and all wise to the point of giving their life and all three of those do accept John who gets exiled, and that's the hope of Christmas. God doesn't want to just give you wisdom for your decisions. He doesn't want to just help you work through relationships and follow him. He doesn't want to just get up and help you understand what to do with your finances or how to deal with a difficult employee or a boss or whether you should put your kids in this score. That score what your purpose for your life. He wants to be a wonderful counselor but he says look I'm an all mighty God. I want to powerfully supernaturally intervene in your life. I'm for you and I love you. Your body language.

At this point says I'd love to believe that but that sounds like it's you know that was then, can I tell you that same God is available in all powerful today.

I put a little summary for you and and the summary here is what God is done. Jesus is the mighty God, the Lord of the natural realm is a Lord of the spiritual realm is a Lord of the physical realm. The woman with the issue of blood and is the Lord of the eternal realm. Now here's what I want to do that.

That was then right, I will take just a moment and and walk-through into that each one of those that I can give you many illustrations on this but the most dramatic one that I remember it was shortly after member this tsunami occurred in Asia early to thousands and at the time I had the privilege of leading walk through the Bible and I arrived in India six days after the tsunami it was chaos everywhere. We did ministry in Indonesia and India, and I still remember getting in the and in the cab and the God of the big turbine you know he was a happen to be a Muslim and he just asked me who is your God types of why because ours are working right now if you got a good God that has more power we are start working in and we did a bunch of training and then we had about 200 bar leaders from all over India and parts of Indonesia and they came together for training and we did some sharing time some testimonies and this is hearsay. This is what I heard from someone who said to someone heard about something. Something like some crazy story. These are our guys, these are better. These are our employees. These are people that would take our teaching all around the world and teach multiple times in the week and so and testimony, guy from the bottom part near some near Sri Lanka said we we experience God's hand like I've never seen it miscible what happened.

He said will the week I was at a village in the church is near the village here in we saw this huge wave in the distance.

We got in front of the village and there was no hope. We just prayed and we ask God to spare us and we watch a wall of water come and go around their village just is just he said I just know that's one of those are like you, I can your body like doubting Thomas write about. I see that I believe the right so so the God that created the world could never violate what we would call the laws of physics for his glory and his purposes is that what you're saying. Of course he can, does he do it very often know it would be miraculous if he did, and if you can ask me why did you do that for other villages. I don't know when you get you your universe you get to make the rules, but this is his and his purposes and he is knowledge and and I don't understand, but I will tell you this is that God on occasion will supernaturally he can change whether he can change anything. He's got the second is spiritually the world is up for grabs an evil and good are fighting one another like never before. In dramatic ways correct for some of us if you live in the American cocoon you think while Christianity is dying in America, we got these radical people blowing up things all the world is turning to Islam. That sort of the American perspective.

Let me, I read an article, not the whole article. Obviously, but let me read a portion of a wall of Washington Post interesting piece it says think Christianity is dying. No, Christianity is shifting dramatically, while Christianity may be on the decline in United States. The world is becoming more religious not less well rising numbers of nuns. Those who claim no religious affiliation claimed the attention of today's pendants. The world tells a different story. Religious convictions are growing and shifting geographically in several dramatic ways. Today the Christian community in Latin America and Africa alone account for 1 billion people.

Asia is very similar.

Asia has double the growth of Christians to the population base you. There is a explosion Latin America, Asia and Africa. You have a picture here of God working in explosive ways all around.

Here's what's changed America and Europe have nearly dropped out. In terms of Christian growth. You are a part of the very tiny small negative growth in a movement that started by the all mighty God that is going around the world like never before and using technology like never before and getting it in language in tribes and tongues every year for the people of never heard about Jesus like never before. He is the Lord of the spiritual world.

He's the Lord of the physical world you know God will choose at times to supernaturally intervene in people's life and heal them physically by large uses doctors, uses counselors, uses medicine but what's happened is over time we get a little box and we think of God can do these things, but unconsciously you and I think well cause and effect, and I do this and this happens and I'm just asking do you believe that the God who is all powerful wants to and can intervene. Here's what I want to ask you, do you have a super natural worldview.

I'm not saying God heals everyone. In fact, there's lots of bad teaching in the prosperity movement or if you just believe something hard enough. That's all based on your faith.

I can open the Bible and show you people that were healed. They didn't have any faith in other people. It's because of their faith doesn't heal everyone all the time but I think in more conservative Bible oriented churches like ours.

What happens is you get a closed system. As Francis Schaeffer would say, and you just you think it's cause-and-effect.

And you know every problem is a doctor can do this or a medicine can do this and you don't really believe that God wants to or would intervene and supernatural ways is one guy said when God shows up. He shows off key. He wants to get glory wants to make his name great and that's behind why he does certain things at different times, but for some, we never ask nor do we expect a lady in the last service came up and she had cancer, breast cancer 14 years ago and they just found out three months ago that she has it again and they gave her treatment options and she goes with just just let me praying she said I I felt like God was telling me in this case a pray and ask me before you go through and that she was in her probably mid to late 70s I think she felt like the really very difficult treatment and she just that I came up to tell you I just had my mammogram. There's no cancer anywhere so got God answers you know there's something very interesting that each of these stories. Those fishermen were desperate but they knew it. That father was desperate and he knew it. That woman was desperate, you know, when you pray for supernatural intervention.

If your parent when one your kids is in ICU and the doctor say what we don't give any hope or friend Daniel sent me an email December 1, it says prayer changes things.

When Lisa and I served overseas are calling Maria partnered in Kazakhstan with the new believer name. I need when I need his brother died unexpectedly. She implored the family not to bury him immediately per Islamic tradition. She prayed and fasted for three days and on the third day her brother sat up in the hospital morgue and asked for a glass of juice. That's the power of prayer changes things to give another example.

And then there's two pictures of the people I love his last line. These are urban legends called from the Internet. Here's a picture of Ida and Maria and John in the lower hand corner. See, God wants to intervene and the hope that you have for every area of your life is there is wisdom available, but there is power available and I would challenge you on this day to not unconsciously think if you do this than God to do that I need to do ADC seek you were not saying at all that you shouldn't use all the wisdom doctors in all those things if you ask God to me, and I believe in counseling on Bennett, but if you ask God to intervene supernaturally in your marriage if you ask God to intervene in a wayward child of the ascot intervene in a health issue for the ascot to intervene and do something dramatic in your bosses heart. If you ask God to you. The God who created all listing of these people that you care about that. They always say no, they never want to come to Christmas this Christmas that you ask God I want to touch the hem of your garment. I believe I'm stepping out I'm not telling you that God is going to do something supernatural in ways beyond what you've never seen for everyone, but I am telling you that if you don't ask and believe in that way.

He never will want you to lean back because what we said is that in the days of Christ on the earth. He was the Lord over what nature the spiritual world. The physical world and the eternal world I've given you examples about he is that today I want you to lean back because I want to close our time with the reminder that that was the past.

This is today, but there is another day coming where God in the person of the Lord Jesus will demonstrate that he is all mighty Revelation chapter 19 gives us the close of human history like you to lean back. This is not a notetaking time. I want you to try and picture in your mind as I read this is the God who came to earth, who is the child who grew up to be fully God and fully man and who is the wonderful counselor and who is Almighty, who was Almighty and will be and if you're a follower of Jesus, his spirit dwells inside of you lean back.

As I read that I heard and then saw heaven opened, and behold, there was a white horse, the one sitting on it is called faithful and true, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. These clothes in robe that is dipped in blood in the name that is called by is the word of God and on his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, king of kings and Lord of lords, and then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it and from his presence.

The earth and the sky fled away, and there was no place found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne and the books were opened. And then another book was open, which is the book of life and the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done and then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.

This is the second death, the lake of fire and if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire and then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and the sea was no more.

And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, behold, the dwelling place of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be there God he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither shall there be any mourning or crying or pain anymore, for the former things are passed away and he who was seated on the throne said, behold, I am making all things new. And then he said to me write this down for these words are trustworthy and true. And he said to me, it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end and Jesus is introduced in the very first chapter is the alpha and the omega, the spirit of the living God, who is the Creator that has all power pass present and future dwells in you been listening to Jim's message, mighty God, one of his newest series hope of Christmas 700 years before Jesus was born.

The prophet Isaiah wrote to God's people to give them hope. Chip used a little bit of that text for this series because the hope. Isaiah wrote about is for us to. Here's what he said for those who live in a land of deep darkness a light will shine and they will rejoice for unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, the government will be upon his shoulders and he will be called wonderful Counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of peace. Now that's hope that'll keep you going this Christmas season.

God wants you to know he has a plan and it's a good one. You know this would be a great series to listen to every now and then with the chipping remap. It's always handy if you like CDs take advantage of the current discounts online that LivingontheEdge.org remember the MP3s are always free will chip before you come back.

We've been talking a lot about our year and match it.

We've shared some great testimonies and that's been a lot of fun but let me just ask you straight up because people want to know what he going to use this December match money for.

I mean that we say it's a huge part of the ministry's income for the year. What does it actually go for Dave. I think that's a great question number one what you're listening to right now is either a podcast and Apple are radio broadcast and that's gonna go out to well over a million people this week. What you may not know is that I do a monthly broadcast currently for pastors all over the globe and were helping train pastors in America that we have a focus to reach the next generation and there were creating resources for some of those very difficult issues with gender, sexuality, identity issues, we create small groups to get people in groups, whether it's a family or two or three men or three or four women are all Sunday school classes.

We are teaching the multitudes we are equipping small groups and then we have very specialized ministries were helping business leaders and key leaders disciple and make an impact in their sphere of influence. So Living on the Edge as a media and discipleship ministry that is committed to helping Christians live like Christians. In fact were training people to transform their world, not the world, their world and so that's what were spending the money on to create those resources to do the training to put on satellites to put on video to put on podcast to write books to do what ever we need to do to get God's word in the hands and then into the hearts of God's people, who in turn will live out their faith at home and church their neighborhood and their community so that people love God with all their heart and take the word of God to all the world. If that excites you, then this is the time to give to Living on the Edge. Great answer, but really covers the scope of everything Living on the Edge does year after year. We just keep building on the previous year's progress. So first I want to say thanks to our ministry partners who've helped us get where we are today.

We couldn't do what we do without the prayers and financial commitments of listeners like you and if you'd like to join the team and get in on what's happening. Just go to LivingontheEdge.org Donate on the app or give us a call at AAA 333-6003 that's AAA 333-6003 and thanks in advance for your generosity will chip in your message today. You talked about for specific realms that Jesus has command over what would you do a quick review of those for us. Absolutely Dave, this is what I want people to get the natural realm he speaks to the wind to the waters and they obey him in the spiritual realm, demonic forces, demons, principalities, powers, they are all under his command of the physical realm we see that he speaks or touches a little girl were racist. Someone from the dead, and finally the eternal realm. He is the sovereign God over all things now, the Scripture is very, very clear, and the eyewitnesses are overwhelming that this is the Jesus that came, who grew up in Nazareth, who had normal parents who started a movement with a small little group of people who made outrageous claims about himself, who fulfilled all the Old Testament prophecies who was crucified under Roman law arose from the dead, and for 40 days walked upon the earth in a resurrected body with over 500 eyewitnesses.

We now live in a day. 2000+ years later where the prophecies the words.

The mission of Jesus are literally rolling through history to its final destination which you heard me read in the book of Revelation. You can either look at circumstances, you can look at what other people were saying, or you can push all the way to the end and realize Jesus Christ is the mighty God, the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth, and there is an end to his story. We call it history but it's his story and he will make all things right and he is coming again my question is are you ready and he is coming again to make what has been wrong right. He will bring justice for everyone.

He's going to establish a new heaven and a new earth, and what he wants you to know is he doesn't want you to miss it. And he doesn't want you to miss your role in it as you think about hope as you think about what really matters. Can I ask you to lift your eyes and your heart beyond your circumstances or relationship or economics or political issues or world situations and realize you have a hope that can't change.

If you are connected to the Lord Jesus Christ by faith.

If you're his son or his daughter can I encourage application to open your Bible, I mean today and if you have any means at all to do it in the next 10 minutes and read Revelation chapter 22 I want you to let it sink in the reality and the hope you have and then let's you and me live out of that hope and love people, the ones that are easy to love and the ones that are hard to love and be like Jesus in our world go for if Living on the Edges making a difference in your life you'd like others to receive the same blessing we love to have you partner with us. Thanks to the generosity of a small group of friends of the ministry. Every gift we received between now and December 31 will be matched dollar for dollar to send a gift. Just go to LivingontheEdge.org Donate on the app or give us a call at AAA 333-6003 that's AAA 333-6003, let me thank you in advance for your support. Let's wrap this up for this program for Chip and everyone here, this is Dave Drewry saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge