Welcome to From the Pulpit and Classic Sermons.
Each week we bring you a different message
from some of history's greatest speakers in the
Christian faith and powerful sermons for modern preachers
too.
This week we have Brian Long with his
message The Church That Will Stand in the
Coming Storm.
When he opened the meeting, Psalm 51, I
praise God for that.
Tonight we're going to turn to the Gospel
of Mark in Chapter 4.
You have your Bibles turned to Mark, Chapter
4.
And tonight the message is going to be
The Church That Will Stand in the Coming
Storm.
The Church That Will Stand in the Coming
Storm.
Mark, Chapter 4.
And beginning in verse 35.
And the same day when the evening was
come, he saith unto them, Let us pass
over unto the other side.
And when they had sent away the multitude,
they took him, even as he was in
the ship.
And there were also with him other little
ships.
And there arose a great storm of wind,
and the waves beat into the ship, so
that it was now full.
And he was in the hindered part of
the ship, asleep on a pillow.
And they awake him and say unto him,
Master, carest thou not that we perish?
And he arose and rebuked the wind, and
said unto the sea, Peace, be still.
And the wind ceased, and there was a
great calm.
And he said unto them, Why are ye
so fearful?
How is it that you have no faith?
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to
another, What manner of man is this, that
even the wind and the sea obey him?
Will you pray with me one more time?
Father God, I know that You've given me
this Word.
As I was praying for these meetings several
weeks ago, this is the first message You
gave me to deliver tonight.
And You called me specifically to deliver it
on the last night.
So Father, I tremble at Your Word.
Your Word says, You look to this man
who is broken and contrite and who trembles
at Your Word.
I pray tonight, Father, that there would be
a trembling at Your holy Word.
That we would hear from You, God, and
not from man.
Anoint our ears to hear what Your Spirit
is saying to us, Lord, in this hour,
in this generation.
And God, I pray that You would raise
up a church, a people, who will stand
in the coming storm.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Now, I believe with all of my heart,
coming a storm to this nation.
In the last days that will be so
fierce, few will be able to withstand its
fury.
A storm so black and so dark and
so widespread that everything that can be shaken
will be shaken.
The Bible says in Hebrews 12, in verse
25, See that ye refuse not Him that
speaketh.
For if they escape not who refused Him
that spake on earth, much more shall we
not escape if we turn away from Him
that speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook
the earth.
But now He is promised, saying, Yet once
more I shake not the earth only, but
also heaven.
And the word yet once more signifieth the
removing of those things that are shaken as
of things that are made.
And those things which cannot be shaken may
remain.
There's coming a day, brothers and sisters, when
God will shake everything that can be shaken.
And only what cannot be shaken will remain.
The Bible says in 2 Timothy 3, verse
1, This know also that in the last
days perilous times shall come.
The NIV says, but mark this, there will
be terrible times in the last days.
The New American Standard says, but realize this,
that in the last days difficult times will
come.
Luke's Gospel, chapter 21, and verse 10.
Our Lord Jesus, again speaking of the last
days, said in verse 10, Nation shall rise
against nation and kingdom against kingdom.
And great earthquakes shall be in diverse places
and famines and pestilences and fearful sights.
And great signs shall there be from heaven.
The Lord gave me this message before I
ever came here.
Great earthquakes shall be in diverse places.
And in my home state, last night and
the night before, my wife called me.
She said, Brian, the whole house shook.
And we woke up.
And last night, she said, the earthquake was
stronger than the previous night.
All the pictures on the wall were hanging
crooked.
And the whole house shook.
She said it sounded like the roar of
a train.
We've never had earthquakes, to my knowledge, in
Oklahoma.
I guess years ago they had one.
These are signs of the times, brothers and
sisters.
These are wake-up calls that the Lord
Jesus has given us in His mercy.
There's coming a day when everything that can
be shaken will be shaken.
There's coming a storm.
Who will ever stand in such a storm?
Can we withstand such a storm?
Now, we're all going to go through storms
in our personal and individual lives.
And while this message applies to those individual
storms, I'm not so much talking about that
tonight as I'm especially talking about a storm
that will affect the entire nation.
It's a storm that is so severe that
only one boat will not sink in the
midst of it, and that is the church
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
There's coming a day when many religious gatherings,
organizations, even big mega-churches, places that call
themselves churches, will shake and topple.
The rug will be pulled out from under
them.
Only what cannot be shaken will remain.
There are many churches that are built on
the foundation of man and the ways of
the world and a gospel of prosperity that's
no gospel at all.
It's a man-made gospel.
All of that is going to shake.
There's only one church that will not shake
in the coming storm, and that is the
church that Jesus Christ Himself is building.
It's the church that is founded on the
rock of Christ Jesus.
There's a people who are called by God
to lift their heads in the midst of
this coming storm because their redemption draweth nigh.
There's a church that will not sink under
the darkest of storm clouds and in the
midst of the most violent waves.
There is a church that will stand in
the fiercest of storms.
And this church will be characterized by three
God-given graces.
They are faith, hope, and love.
1 Corinthians 13.
It says, I wanted him to put this
up in a different translation here.
The King James says charity.
We know charity means love.
And now these three remain.
Faith, hope, and love.
But the greatest of these is love.
These three remain.
In other words, these are three things that
will not shake.
When everything can be shaken, is shaken, these
three will remain.
The church that is built upon these three
graces, faith, hope, and love, will stand in
the coming storm.
Now back to our text in Mark 4.
In the Gospel of Mark 4, we just
read about the disciples in this furious storm.
These disciples were having their faith tested.
Somebody said this, faith that is not tested
cannot be trusted.
All of our faith is going to go
through the fire.
Every single one of us.
If you're a believer, God's going to refine
your faith.
You're going to go through the fire.
Faith that's not tested can't be trusted.
They're about to have their faith tested here.
It's after a long day of teaching the
multitudes and of performing several miracles.
Jesus steps in a boat on the shores
of the Sea of Galilee and He says
to His disciples, let us pass over to
the other side.
And as they make their way out to
sea, suddenly, without any warning, a violent storm
arises on the Sea of Galilee.
The sky must have been black.
It was a dark night.
The winds were howling.
The waves were crashing against the boat.
The Scripture says the water was even coming
up over into the boat.
And the disciples were terrified.
And it seems, it appears, that the Lord
Jesus is not even concerned about them.
Because He's in the hinder part of the
ship asleep on a pillow.
What would you think if you were in
that boat?
Jesus is asleep.
And the storm has come.
And it's crashing against the waves.
And it's a fearful sight.
How many of us would have said, boy,
it sure is getting dark out here.
The winds are howling.
Sure hope somebody wakes up.
He's asleep on a pillow.
Finally, they can't take it anymore.
And they go and they wake Him up
and say, Lord, don't You care?
Don't You care that we're going to perish?
And Jesus Christ stands up and He rebukes
the wind and the waves.
And He says, peace, be still.
And the wind died.
And the sea became as still as glass.
And I'll guarantee you, not a single drop
of water dared move.
And not a single gust of wind when
Jesus speaks.
He is the King of kings.
He is the Lord of lords.
He is the King of the flood.
He rebukes the wind and the waves.
The disciples had their faith tested.
And their faith failed.
What is the first one we said these
three will remain?
Faith, hope, and love.
The church that will stand in the coming
storm is characterized by an unshakable faith.
They had their faith tested.
And it failed.
What would have happened?
First of all, I want you to see
what the disciples doubted.
They doubted the presence of Jesus Christ.
He was in the boat with them.
What would have happened had the disciples shifted
their focus from the fear of the waves
and the power of the storm to the
greatest truth of all, and that was that
Jesus is in the boat with us?
Can the boat sink when the Son of
God is in it?
Can the church fall and collapse when Jesus
Christ is the foundation of the church and
He's the one building the church and He's
in our midst and He's the head of
the body?
There's only one way to drown a man
and that's to put his head under water.
The Scripture says we are the body of
Christ.
Christ is the head of the church.
No one is putting Him under water.
No one's putting our head under water.
He is the head of the church.
Suppose those disciples would have taken their eyes
off of the wind and the waves and
the storm and said, hey, Jesus is in
the boat.
Let the winds howl.
Let the devil scream.
Let the waters crash against the boat.
Jesus is with me.
Let the storm rage.
It doesn't matter as long as Jesus is
with me.
One of my favorite poems was written by
Amy Carmichael and this is how it goes.
Thou art the Lord that slept upon a
pillow.
Thou art the Lord who soothed the furious
sea.
What matter beating wind or tossing billow if
only we are in the boat with Thee?
Hold us quiet through the age-long minute
while Thou art silent and the wind is
shrill.
Can the boat sink while Thou, dear Lord,
are in it?
Can the heart faint that waiteth upon Thy
will?
I want to ask you, brothers and sisters,
can the boat sink while Thou, dear Lord,
are in it?
Never.
He sits king of the flood.
He is promised to be with us always
even to the end of the age.
Psalm 46.
Let's look at this Scripture.
Psalm 46.
Do you doubt His presence?
I'll tell you when you'll be tempted to
doubt His presence.
And that is when you go through the
storm.
When you go through the storm and the
winds are howling and the waves are crashing
and you're hearing all these voices and what
you see looks very bad ahead of you.
Earthquakes, famines, pestilence, wars and rumors of wars.
All of these things.
And you begin to doubt the presence of
Christ.
You need to have a steadfast faith.
Remember, Jesus Christ promised to be with us
always even to the end of the age.
Psalm 46.
He says, God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth
be removed and though the mountains be carried
into the midst of the sea, though the
waters thereof roar and be troubled.
That's tsunamis.
Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.
Selah.
There is a river, the streams whereof shall
make glad the city of God, the holy
place of the tabernacles of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her.
She shall not be moved.
God shall help her and that ride early.
The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved.
He uttered His voice and the earth melted.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is our refuge.
Selah.
Come, behold the works of the Lord, what
desolations He hath made in the earth.
He maketh wars to cease unto the end
of the earth.
He breaketh the bow and cutteth the spear
in sunder.
He burneth the chariot in the fire.
Be still and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the heathen.
I will be exalted in the earth.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is our refuge.
They doubted His presence, and I want to
tell you that you will find peace.
Peace is not the absence of the storm.
Peace is the presence of God.
You will go through trials.
You will go through hardship.
You will go through heartache.
Peace is not found in the absence of
trial and pain.
Peace is found in the presence of God.
He's our peace.
He's our Prince of Peace.
But they also doubted His power.
They said, Lord, they woke Him up and
said, Master, don't you care we're going to
drown?
Don't you care we're going to perish?
And Jesus stood and rebuked the wind and
the waves, and they obeyed Him.
What a shock they must have got when
they saw the power of Christ.
But I think this is what grieves the
heart the most about unbelief.
They doubted His care.
They said, Lord, don't You care.
Don't You care?
You know, Charles Spurgeon said about this kind
of unbelief, he said it's to crown the
head of Jesus with thorns of the sharpest
kind.
To doubt that He cares.
Some of us are guilty of this same
sin of unbelief.
Lord, don't You care.
If we only knew the grief those words
bring to the loving heart of God, we
would never say them again, not even think
them.
The Father so loved the world that He
gave His only begotten Son.
Does He care?
Jesus went all the way to the cross
and died there for us.
Can you see Christ crucified on the cross
and shedding His precious blood for you and
say, Lord, don't You care?
He sweat drops of blood for us in
the Garden of Gethsemane.
Does He care?
Jesus bought you with His precious blood.
Will He now sell you to the storm
and surrender you to the storm?
A thousand times no.
He is our bridegroom who says that He
hates divorce.
Will He now divorce you and put you
away?
Never.
His name is faithful and true.
Will He now be unfaithful to you because
there's a storm that has come?
No.
Yes, your Father knows.
And yes, He cares.
And no, He is not sleeping.
The question is where, oh where, is your
faith?
These three remain.
This church will stand in the coming storm
as the church that has unshakable faith in
Christ and His presence.
Christ in His power.
Christ, and He cares for me.
Come what may, He cares for me.
He loves me.
He loves you.
But secondly, hope.
Faith, hope, and love.
All are part of the ship that will
never sink.
The church that will stand in the coming
storm.
Now, hope.
When the world talks about hope, it's a
hope-so kind of hope.
Somebody says, well, I hope I get that
job.
Or I hope the weather is nice tomorrow.
It's a hope-so kind of hope.
When the Bible talks about hope, it's a
know-so kind of hope.
It is an assurance.
And I want you to see this in
Hebrews chapter 6.
Hebrews chapter 6 and verse 11.
It says, And we desire that every one
of you do show the same gents to
the full assurance of hope.
Those two words together.
Assurance.
Hope.
The assurance of hope unto the end.
That you be not slothful, but followers of
them who through faith and patience inherit the
promise.
Now move on down to verses 18.
That by two immutable things in which it
was impossible for God to lie, we might
have a strong consolation who have fled for
refuge to lay hold upon the hope set
before us, which hope we have as an
anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast,
and which entereth into that within the veil.
He's saying this hope of ours is so
sure, it's like an anchor to the soul.
You know why it's so sure, brothers and
sisters?
Because our hope rests upon a God who
cannot lie.
It rests upon the Word of God and
the promises of God that come from the
mouth of God who cannot and does not
lie.
We have the hope of everlasting life.
Some of you have had loved ones.
Some of you have had children that have
gone on to heaven.
You have the hope that they are in
the presence of Jesus.
That is not a hope-so kind of
hope.
That is an assurance that they are there.
And because you know Christ, you will see
them again.
Hope, an assurance, an anchor of the soul.
God has told me in His Word He
cannot lie.
His Word is an anchor to my soul.
When you come to Christ, He gives you
the promise of everlasting life.
That's an assurance.
I'm saved.
He's preparing a place for us.
And He says, if I prepare a place
for you, I will come again to receive
you, so that where I am, there you
may be also.
An assurance.
Now what was the anchor, the hope, the
Word that these disciples had?
Jesus simply said, let us pass over to
the other side.
They had His Word.
When Jesus says we're going to the other
side, we're going to the other side.
We may have to go through some storms
to get there.
We may have to go through some earthquakes.
We may have to go through an economy
that shakes to nothing.
I don't know what we'll have to go
through.
I know we'll have to go through a
storm.
But I know this.
What will get us through the storm is
an assurance, a steadfast hope that is rooted
and grounded in the Word of God, the
promises of God, the anchor to our soul.
And that church that is characterized by unwavering
faith and hope that cannot shake will stand
in the coming storm.
But she'll only stand if she has the
third one.
Love.
Because it says these three remain.
Faith, hope, and love.
And the greatest of these is love.
That's the greatest.
These three remain.
Faith, hope, and love.
And the greatest of these is love.
The church that stands in the storm, the
coming storm, will shine with the love of
God shed abroad in her heart by the
Holy Spirit.
And this is what the disciples lacked.
You say, how do you know they lacked
love, brother Brian?
I want you to see this verse that
may seem obscure.
Look at it with me.
In verse 36, just after Jesus said, let
us pass over to the other side.
Verse 36 says, And when they had sent
away the multitude, they took Him even as
He was in the ship, and there were
also with Him other little ships.
Other little ships.
What are these other little ships?
We read this story, and oftentimes we don't
think anything about those other little ships.
We're thinking about the boat with the disciples
and Jesus in it in the midst of
the storm.
But you know who else is going through
the storm?
The other little ships.
And the other little ships don't have Jesus
in the boat.
Faith, hope, and love.
And what kind of love?
The kind of love that is not just
concerned about yourself, but is more concerned about
the other little ships out there that don't
have Jesus in the boat.
They're going to go through the storm.
How are they going to make it?
How are they going to keep from sinking?
They don't have a hope.
They don't have an anchor to the soul.
They don't have everlasting life.
The king who sits above the flood, he's
not in their boat.
What about them?
What about those other little ships?
The disciples cared nothing about those other little
ships.
They came to Jesus and they said, Lord,
don't You care that we perish?
He could have just as well said, don't
You care that they perish?
Folks, if Jesus is in your boat, stop
worrying about yourself.
Get your eyes off of yourself.
What about the other little boats that don't
have Jesus?
Going through the same storm.
Faith, hope, and love.
Do you care that they perish?
I'll tell you the church that is sure
to sink in the coming storm.
It's the loveless church.
The church that left her first love.
The church that no longer has a fire
burning in her heart of love and devotion
to Christ and no longer therefore has a
love for the lost.
The loveless church.
She'll sink.
She'll topple in the coming storm.
And in the last days, there's going to
be a whole lot of people who are
only concerned about themselves.
Look at these verses with me together.
He can probably flip them faster than I
can, so we'll look at them up here.
2 Timothy 3, verse 1.
This know also that in the last days,
that's what we're talking about, perilous times shall
come.
Next verse.
For men shall be lovers of their own
selves.
Covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful,
unholy.
Lovers of who?
Not God.
Lovers of who?
Not the lost.
Lovers of who in the last days?
Themselves.
2 Peter 3, verse 3.
Knowing this first, that there shall come in
the last days scoffers walking after their own
lust.
Selfishness.
Living for the lust of their own flesh.
Matthew 24, verse 10.
And then shall many be offended.
See, there'll be a lovelessness among the people
of God.
They'll be easily offended.
Then shall many be offended.
This is all in the context of Matthew
24, which is Jesus talking about the last
days and what is going to come in
the last days before He returns.
Then shall many be offended, and they shall
betray one another and shall hate one another.
Next verse.
And because iniquity shall abound, the love of
many shall wax cold.
Here's the temptation in the coming storm.
Because of the trials, the temptations, the storms,
the tragedies, all of this, people are going
to be tempted to turn on one another.
And you see it already in churches.
Biting and devouring one another when we're brothers
and sisters in Christ.
I've said this before.
I'm not talking about an ecumenical movement where
you try to have unity at the expense
of truth, the essentials of the faith and
the Gospel.
No.
There has to be not peace but a
sword when it comes to that.
But nitpicking and bickering over things that, listen,
put all of that in light of judgment
day and souls going to heaven or hell.
You know where a lot of bickering and
fighting and strife is done away with and
unity comes to the church?
It's when the church goes through persecution.
And people are dying for their faith.
And they don't have time to bicker and
backbite and complain and gripe and fight.
People are dying for their faith.
Listen, in the coming storm, people are going
to be tempted to only be concerned about
me and my family.
I'm saying to you, church, get your eyes
off yourself onto Christ and onto those other
little ships.
What do you suppose would have happened if
those disciples would have said, hey, yes, it's
a bad storm, but Jesus is in our
boat.
And He said, let's go to the other
side.
We're going to the other side.
My heart, my burden is for those other
little ships.
And they say, hey, little ships!
And they start reaching out to those other
little ships.
What would have happened?
I don't think they would have even had
to wake up Jesus.
He would have been awake.
He would have been by their side.
He would have said, I'll give you everything
you need to reach those other little ships
because we've got plenty of room in the
boat.
Brothers and sisters, just take this building as
an illustration.
Is there still room?
Look at the empty pew.
There's still room in the boat.
There's still room at the cross.
There's still room.
The question is do we love the lost
enough those little ships to bring them in?
To reach out to them in the coming
storm.
1 Corinthians 13 Beginning in verse 1.
Though I speak with the tongues of men
and of angels, and have not love, charity,
I am become as sounding brass or a
tinkling cymbal.
Without love, I am nothing.
Though I have the gift of prophecy and
understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though
I have all faith so that I could
remove mountains, and have not love, charity, I
am nothing.
And though I bestow all my goods to
feed the poor, and though I give my
body to be burned, and have not charity,
love, it profiteth me nothing.
Charity suffereth long and is kind.
Charity envieth not.
Charity vaunteth not itself.
It is not puffed up.
Does not behave itself unseemly.
Underscore this.
Seeketh not her own.
Is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil.
Love doesn't seek its own.
Love seeks for the good of the other.
Those outside.
Now, probably most of you have heard the
story of the Titanic.
That big ship that went down in 1912.
It hit an iceberg, it started sinking.
Do you know what one of the first
things they did?
When they knew that they had hit an
iceberg and this ship was going to sink,
they went down to the bottom deck and
they began to lock the doors on all
the lower class passengers.
You talk about cold hearted.
You talk about loveless.
Locking them in because they didn't think, well,
we won't have enough room for everybody to
get in the lifeboats, so let's lock in
all the lower class passengers.
Let them die.
Loveless, cold.
No compassion.
They immediately began to board passengers on lifeboats
and lower them down.
But most of the lifeboats were only half
full.
One lifeboat that was meant for 65 people
only had 28 on board.
Another one was meant for 40 people, but
they only had 12 on board.
Over 300 more passengers could have been saved
who were not saved because of selfishness and
empty lifeboats.
328 were later gathered up in life jackets
as they floated upon the cold water.
They died.
They froze to death in the freezing cold
water.
None had to die if only the lifeboats
would have been filled to capacity.
Out of all the lifeboats, only two went
back to rescue the perishing.
The rest just ignored the cries of the
perishing and were content to be saved themselves
and content to be in their half-filled
lifeboats.
My dear friends, are you content to be
saved in your half-filled lifeboat?
Singing our lifeboat songs.
Just trying to hold down the fort when
the perishing are crying out.
Crying out.
And without a Savior.
There's still room at the cross.
There's still room in here.
And I'm telling you tonight, God wants heaven
to be full.
I tell our people all the time, I
want to see every one of you in
heaven.
Not one to be lost.
Not one child.
Not one grandchild.
Not one of you be lost.
And I would say that tonight.
Oh, to see every single one of you
in heaven.
And that you have the same heart to
say of Ingram or whoever God's brought across
your path, oh, to see every one in
heaven.
Fill up the lifeboats because there's still room.
There's still room at the cross.
Now how do we shine with this love
of God?
It's got to be shed abroad in our
hearts by the Holy Spirit.
And Jesus commanded us.
Do you remember Jesus said this?
He said, while I am in the world,
I am the light of the world.
But He died.
He rose again.
He ascended into heaven.
And now what does He say, church?
You are the light of the world.
You are the salt of the earth.
You are the light of the world.
And a city that is set upon a
hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a candle and put
it under a bushel, but on a candlestick
that it gives light to all that are
in the house.
He says, therefore, let your light shine that
they may see your good deeds and glorify
your Father which is in heaven.
How do we shine?
We shine by sharing the love of God.
We talked about that all day today.
The compassion of Christ.
The love of God.
That's how you shine.
That's how you burn.
You burn with the love of God.
This church will not sink who is characterized
by those three God-given graces.
Faith, hope, and love.
She will stand in the coming storm.
When I went to Scotland, oh, what a
wonderful privilege to go to Scotland and Wales
and throughout the UK, but in Scotland I
was so intrigued by the lighthouses.
I'd never seen those before.
These big massive lighthouses that on the top
they would shine with a bright light because
that light would direct the ships into the
harbor.
But I didn't know this, that the lighthouses,
they have the big light at the top
to tell the ship when he's far off
where he's to come into, but there are
also lower lights.
And those lower lights have to be shining
and burning in order to direct the ship
into the proper channel as they come into
the harbor.
When those lower lights are not shining and
they're not burning, tragedy can happen.
Listen to this story that D.L. Moody
tells.
He says, On a dark stormy night when
the waves rolled like mountains and not a
star was to be seen, a boat rocking
and plunging near the Cleveland harbor.
Are you sure this is the Cleveland?
asked the captain, seeing only one light from
the lighthouse.
We're quite sure, sir, replied the pilot.
Well, then where are the lower lights?
They must have gone out, sir.
Well, can you make the harbor?
We must or we'll perish, sir.
And with a strong hand and a brave
heart, the old pilot turned the wheel.
But alas, in the darkness, he missed the
channel and with the crash upon the rocks,
the boat was shivered and many a life
were lost in a watery grave.
Moody said, Brethren, the master will take care
of the great lighthouse, but let us keep
the lower lights burning.
How do we keep them burning?
Pointing them to Jesus.
We shine with the love of God.
We shine with the love of Jesus and
this directs them into the narrow way.
The way is narrow, Jesus said.
It's straight and it's narrow.
And you direct them in the way to
the cross, to Christ by shining your light,
church.
Shine with faith.
Shine with hope.
Shine with the love of God.
One of my favorite hymns.
We were going to sing it until you
had us sing, Lord, I haven't heard that
one in years, so we're going to sing
that one instead.
Get it ready.
I'm going to read the words to let
the lower lights be burning.
Brightly beams our Father's mercy from His lighthouse
evermore, but to us He gives the keeping
of the lights along the shore.
Let the lower lights be burning.
Send a gleam across the wave.
Some poor fainting struggling seaman you may rescue,
you may save.
Dark the night of sin has settled.
Loud the angry billows roar.
Eager eyes are watching longing for the lights
along the shore.
Let the lower lights be burning.
Send a gleam across the wave.
Some poor fainting struggling seaman you may rescue,
you may save.
Trim your feeble lamp, my brother.
Some poor sailor, tempest-tossed, trying now to
make the harbor in the darkness may be
lost.
Let the lower lights be burning.
Send a gleam across the wave.
Some poor fainting struggling seaman you may rescue,
you may save.
Brothers and sisters, I want to ask you
one question.
Are any of these three God-given graces
missing or lacking in your life?
Faith in His presence, in His power, in
His care for you.
Faith, unshakable faith.
Even though you're going to go through a
storm.
Do you have faith?
Unshakable faith.
Hope.
Hope that is set upon the anchor of
our soul, the Word of God, who comes
from a God who cannot lie.
Love.
Are you lacking love?
Love for God.
Love for one another.
And love for those little ships that don't
have Jesus in their boat.
If any of those are lacking, I plead
with you, my dear friends, tonight to humble
yourself before God and admit that to God.
And those who come to God lacking and
empty and cry out, God will be sure
to fill.
He will strengthen our faith.
He will give us that unshakable hope and
peace that surpasses all understanding.
And He will fill you with His love
when He fills you with His Spirit.
The love of God is shed abroad in
our heart by the Holy Spirit.
Lord, fill me.
That I may shine with Your light.
Let the lower lights of this church be
burning.
Burning with the love of God.
Pointing people to the cross.
Pointing people to Christ.
Amen?
Let's stand to our feet.
I want you to bow your heads with
me as we pray.
Brother, I want you to get that song
ready if you would.
That's my favorite song.
One of my very favorites.
I've never run into a church that knew
that song.
You wouldn't believe this, but I grew up
a Catholic boy and that's the first time
I heard that song was in a Catholic
church.
Haven't hardly heard it since.
But the song is, Here Am I, Send
Me.
And I have one invitation to you, brothers
and sisters.
God said to Isaiah after Isaiah had that
awesome vision of God, of the Lord Jesus
Christ and all of His glory.
He was smitten by the light of Christ,
the glory of Christ.
He says, woe is me, I am undone,
I am a man of unclean lips, and
I live among a people of unclean lips,
and my eyes have seen the King, the
Lord of hosts.
God cleansed him of his sin.
He took the live coal and touched his
mouth and took away his sins.
Isaiah was forgiven.
Do you remember what happens next?
The Lord says, now who shall go for
us?
Who will go for us?
Whom shall I send?
And Isaiah was so close to God by
that time he overheard Him say, Whom shall
I send?
Who will go for us?
And He says, Here I am, send Me.
That's the invitation tonight.
As we sing this song, and you want
to respond to God, the altar is open,
these front pews are open, if you want
to kneel to God.
And I don't want you to come unless
you know the Holy Spirit is speaking to
you, unless you're serious about doing business with
God, and you say, Lord, I'm serious.
Here am I, send Me.
But first, strengthen my faith.
Let the hope of You, Lord Jesus Christ,
be an anchor in my soul and fill
me with Your love to overflowing.
Here am I, send Me.
That's the invitation, that's the appeal.
Now Father, I pray in the name of
Jesus that You would help us to take
seriously, Lord, Your Word.
If You are speaking to anyone here, and
I believe You are, I pray, God, that
You would give us the grace to respond
to You, Father, to respond to Your voice
calling.
Who will go for us?
Whom shall I send?
Father, we know there is a storm coming.
We know it in our hearts.
You've told us in Your Word.
You've given us so many wake-up calls.
And my God, I pray You would place
an urgency in our hearts tonight and that
we would respond now as You speak to
us, we would respond to Your voice in
Jesus' name.
Amen.
As we sing and You want to come
forward, please feel free to do that.
We're going to sing, Here am I, send
Me.
That You so loved the world, You gave
Your only Son.
That You're not willing that any should perish,
O Lord.
You're not willing that any should perish in
hell.
You gave Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ,
who laid down His life, who loved us
to the very end.
We thank You, Jesus.
With all my heart, I thank You for
saving me.
I thank You for rescuing me, Lord.
I thank You for saving me.
I thank You for everyone here who is
saved.
Thank You for saving us, O God.
Thank You for giving us the gift of
faith.
Thank You for giving us a hope, Lord
God, that is an absolute assurance that we
have in You of everlasting life, and even
when everything else is shaken, that can be
shaken, You remain unshakable, Lord.
And because we are hidden in You, we
shall remain unshaken.
I thank You for that, Lord.
I thank You that we're entering the church's
finest hour.
A time, Lord, when people are going through
storms, and a time when people will be
looking for hope, they'll be crying out for
answers.
God forbid that our lower lights burn out.
We ask You tonight, Lord, that let the
love of God be shed abroad in our
hearts, that we shine, that we burn.
Lord, I pray for Your church here to
burn brightly with the holy love of Jesus.
Jesus, let the lower lights be burning among
Your people here, that men, women, and children
all over this area of Wisconsin will see
it, Lord.
They will see the saints shining with the
love of Christ, and they will glorify You,
our Father, which is in heaven.
Lord, may Your love compel us to go.
We've heard enough this week.
We've heard, Lord.
Lord, we don't want to just sit and
stagnate.
It's time to obey.
The hour has come that You be glorified,
Lord Jesus.
So whatever You're telling us to do, Lord,
each and every one of us, because we
know there's no formula, we have to hear
from You.
We have to hear You speak to us
by Your Spirit and through Your Word.
But when You speak to us, Lord, let
us not hesitate.
Let us not hesitate.
Let there be no delayed obedience, but immediate
obedience to go, to shine, to share for
Your glory and honor.
Lord, there's still room.
There's plenty of room.
Give us Your heart for this world, the
lost.
I pray also, Father, for this precious church
that love for one another would prevail.
Oh, Jesus, that we would see one another
through Your eyes.
Oh, Jesus, I pray that You would unite
our hearts together as one.
That just as You said in Ezekiel, when
You breathed on those dry bones and You
raised them up to life, You raised up
a mighty army.
You don't need a vast multitude.
You only need a few here in one
accord who will turn this whole area upside
down for the glory of God.
Set a fire in our bones.
Put a fire in our hearts, Lord.
Bless this church.
Bless these precious people.
Cause Your face to shine upon them.
Glorify Your name in each and every life,
Lord, standing here, represented here tonight.
We praise You, mighty God, for what You
will do.
We praise You, Lord God.
You are the God of the impossible.
You're a mighty God.
You're mighty to save.
I pray Your anointing be upon each one
of Your children here, Lord.
I pray You bless them, Lord, with Your
grace and power, with Your love and Your
peace.
Lord, when all that is shaken and these
storms come, would You help us to lift
our heads and rejoice, because our redemption draws
nigh.
Let us never lose sight of You, Lord.
Keep our eyes fixed upon You, Jesus.
Thank You, Lord.
I commit this precious people, Lord, into Your
hands.
Thank You for the privilege of being here
these past several days.
It's gone so fast for me, so by
so fast.
I'm so blessed, God.
I thank You for this precious time.
I love You, Lord.
Thank You for so loving us.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Brothers and sisters, it has been such a
privilege to be with all of you this
week.
I really don't have adequate words to say
how grateful I am for all your love
and hospitality and kindness.
You have something here, church.
You have strong families.
Godly families.
That is a tremendous testimony.
That is a tremendous light to this world
today.
But I want to tell you, you've got
to shine with it.
Don't let it be just about you and
your family.
There's little ships out there.
They need to see these families.
They need to be invited in to sit
down at your supper table and to see
what it's like to be in a godly
home.
Open your doors.
Bring them in.
Because you do have something.
You have something to be grateful for.
I thank you.
I thank you for this time together.
And God bless all of you.
You've been listening to the From the Pulpit
in Classic Sermons series.
This week you heard Brian Long with his
message, The Church That Will Stand in the
Coming Storm.
Tune in next week to hear Denny Canaston
speak about the approaching wave of persecution on
From the Pulpit in Classic Sermons.