From the the book of Judges at the
beginning it is, you get the fifth book
of Moses, then Joshua and then you find
the book of Judges, chapter 13.
Verse 22, from there, And
Manoah said to his wife, we shall surely
die because we have seen God.
He said to his wife, we shall surely
die for we have seen God.
We'll read this far.
Now I'd like to briefly recount the story
of Manoah and his wife.
Manoah was the father of Samson, that mighty
man of strength.
And in this chapter, we are told the
story of Manoah and his wife.
And if
we
read right at the beginning of the same
chapter, verse one, we read that the children
of Israel did evil in the sight of
the Lord, and the Lord delivered them into
the hands of the Philistines for 40 years.
You will never get away with doing wickedness
without God in heaven taking notice.
Always, when the children of God went into
wickedness, God observed it and said, well, this
will be the consequence and all the nations
of the earth need to understand that.
Let every politician understand it too.
I was sad when after having been invited
to preach in jails in the Johannesburg area,
I was told how difficult it is to
get into the jails.
You can go from one office into the
other through this door, through that door, and
it can take ages.
But I hear that a Muslim can arrive
in his fancy car, and as he gets
out, he is escorted to wherever he wants
to go to in the prison.
Do you see?
Do you have eyes to understand what is
happening in our country, or is it just
that your brains are lost in a forest?
You need to be aware of what is
happening to us.
Take off then, take off the clothing that
you have, put on these white jalabas and
these special caps.
God always sees what
is
happening in South Africa, and in Africa, and
the rest of the world.
And God will always give consequences to sin,
He will provide His results to our wickedness.
But you will find that in any age
of great wickedness, there is always the remnant
of true believers, those who are not swept
downstream, where God is able to use a
select few, and is able to use them.
Now, in the tribe, within the tribe of
Dan, there was a man whose name was
Manoa.
His wife was barren, and they had no
children.
The Lord appeared to her and said, Indeed,
you are barren and have no children, but
you shall conceive and bring forth a son.
Now, therefore, please be careful not to drink
wine or similar drink, and not to eat
anything unclean.
Eat nothing that is defiled.
Now, you have heard today, it is called
Mother's Day.
Manoa had his wife, who was barren.
God heard the cry of his children.
He saw the children of Israel being under
the heel of the Philistines, of the enemy.
And the Lord God said, I will work,
I will raise up a man through whom
I will conquer the Philistines.
He will start, through him I will start
to overcome the enemy.
He was just
the
beginning, the start of the answer that would
conquer the enemy.
God said, I will work, I will raise
up a man through whom I will conquer
the Philistines.
He was just the beginning, the start of
the answer that would conquer the enemy.
He was just the beginning, the
start of
the answer that would
conquer the enemy.
Otherwise, I will rise up against you on
Judgment Day and accuse you.
Samson began with the work of routing the
Philistines.
And the Lord worked after Samson through others.
He continued raising up those until finally he
raised up David, who vanquished the Philistines.
That was their knockout blow.
But Samson started it.
God looked around and said, I seek a
man, I seek a woman who will bring
into this world a hero.
And he found the wife of Manoah, Manoah's
wife being barren.
The angel of the Lord appeared to her
and said, indeed you are barren, but you
will conceive a son.
And therefore, I don't want you to drink
wine or anything similar which makes a person
drunk or anything defiling to eat.
God wanted the child in her to be
sanctified while still in her.
And the Lord was there with his sanctifying
hands creating and molding and bringing this about.
Today is Mother's Day.
Now I ask you mothers, you who have
maybe a long time ago given birth, or
maybe you are still to, or maybe you
are pregnant.
During this time of pregnancy, what did you
eat?
What was it that you took into yourself?
The Lord said, don't drink wine or any
similar drink which is intoxicating, for I want
to work through this child.
And don't eat anything unclean.
You understand, you mothers?
Now I ask you mothers, you who have
maybe a long time ago given birth, or
maybe you are pregnant.
And therefore, I ask you mothers, you who
have maybe a long time ago given birth,
or maybe you are pregnant.
And therefore, I ask you mothers, you
who have maybe a long time ago given
birth, or
maybe you are pregnant.
You mothers, you might complain about the rebellious
nature of your child, that it gets drunk,
it is immoral, etc.
What did you do?
What did you eat?
What defiling thing did you do perhaps in
contacting the occult, talking to the spirits?
In other words, initiating your child into the
world of wickedness because of your sin.
Why don't you start, you come to the
fountain, you confess your sins first.
And you wonder why?
Why your child is so obstinate?
Why is your child so disobedient?
Why is your child so evil?
Mother stay, it's the time for you to
think, you mother, and repent of all the
evil that you've done in your life.
I was just stressing the point that some
women, when they expect the child, they simply
impossible.
The devil is let loose, and he knows
why.
He is inspiring the child.
He is influencing the child.
The devil wants the child in his hands,
that he'll mold it according to his ways
and purposes.
The devil wants the child in his hands,
that he'll mold it according to his ways
and purposes.
Maybe you smoked.
It made your child then to smoke.
Eating what is defiling, your child does the
same.
If you want your children to come to
the Lord, your school children to repent and
get converted, then you come to the Lord,
you repent of your sin to save your
children.
I don't know what you are saying.
Understand that you mothers, all you mothers to
be, that when you eat what is defiling,
in other words, maybe you took into yourself
something sinful, maybe you listened to some wicked
advice, something which was a lie, you took
it in, it's defiling.
She had thought this man who gave her
this news, this angel, to be just a
man of God.
She was outside at the time, then she
came in and went to her husband and
said, a man of God has appeared to
me.
He has said that I will conceive, and
this is how I am to behave, what
to do while expecting.
And she said, this is in verse 6,
that the countenance of this man, his countenance
was that of an angel of God.
It was awesome.
I didn't ask him where he was from,
and he did not tell me his name.
But he said to me, behold, you shall
conceive and bear a son.
Now drink no wine or similar drink, nor
eat anything unclean.
For the child shall be a Nazarite.
Nazarite to God from the womb right till
death.
Sometimes this was a position for part of
a person's life, but with him it was
to be from being in his mother's womb
right till his day of death.
Do you notice mothers, this being Mother's Day,
that God began by speaking to the wife
of Manoa?
Do you hear that?
Blessed is the man, blessed is the husband
who has a wife who is in contact
with God, to whom God can speak.
So the wife went to Manoa and she
explained it all to him.
When Manoa had heard this, he had his
time of prayer.
And then he besought God, he looked, he
sought God and prayed to the Lord.
Pleading with God.
He pleaded with God in prayer and said,
Oh Lord, please let the man of God
whom you sent come to us again and
teach us what we shall do for the
child who will be born.
My, what a couple!
When the man heard that his wife would
conceive, he went and he sought God's face.
He says, Oh God, reveal yourself to us
once again and teach us how to bring
up this child.
What an amazing couple!
When he hears of what the Lord spoke
to his wife, he goes to the Lord
in prayer and says, Oh my Lord, please
teach us how we are to bring up
this child.
Oh Baba, we need mothers and fathers like
that.
Not that we just bring into this world
offspring who are worldly, offspring who will drink
and who have no sense of God and
who belong to this world and are political
or fighting who are political or fighting for
their tradition, their culture instead of the heavenly
culture, the only real one.
I'm saddened when I see kings and leaders
of groups of people who are fighting for
worldly things.
I'm saddened when I see kings and leaders
of groups of people who are fighting for
worldly things.
who are fighting for worldly things.
I'm saddened when I see kings and leaders
of groups of people who are fighting for
worldly things.
It's not
long
ago, in this year of 2003, that there
was a ceremony by a leader of a
group and his getting his whole tribe together
saying let's pray to for the spirit of
rain to grant us our wish for rain
and they had a certain occult ceremony for
the rain to come there was a Christian
who went there said he heard the most
filthy vile and blasphemous talking and it hasn't
rained since that time.
And one wonders if one has leaders who
lead their people into the pit into darkness
one can only say oh God show mercy.
But Manoah was not of that category.
He wasn't of that class of people who
belong to Balaam and lead people into darkness
the blind leading the blind Manoah went
to
God and he pleaded with God he said
Lord I know how our people bring up
their children but I want to hear from
you give us direction how to teach this
child so that it would become a fighter
for you one who would conquer the enemy.
And then it says in verse 9 that
God listened to the voice of Manoah and
the angel of God came to the woman
again as she was sitting in the field
but Manoah her husband was not with her.
And then the woman ran in haste and
told her husband and said to him look
the man who came to me the other
day has just now appeared to me.
And then it says Manoah arose and followed
his wife.
Isn't that amazing he followed his wife.
You see you ladies you wives be men
of God.
Grasp hold of the mysteries of heaven.
I remember I
remember the now deceased Mr Dube who stood
up in front of a group of men
and said men I want to testify to
you that I followed my wife because she
has followed the Lord and what she does
is of the Lord.
If you women want your husbands to be
able to follow you hear from God be
a man of God.
Manoah followed his wife.
And she led him to the angel of
the Lord.
You wives are you able to lead your
husbands to God to lead him to the
Lord Jesus so that he stops with his
drunkenness his immorality.
Otherwise he'll come and give you aids and
bring wickedness to you.
It's not a disgrace if you've got a
godly woman and she does the right thing
to follow her.
You're a fool if you don't do it.
On the same line I say you're a
fool if you follow her if she leads
you into the wrong thing.
Manoah arose and followed his wife who led
him to this man.
And he arrived then at this man.
And he asked are you the man who
spoke to my wife.
Literally he said did you speak to this
woman.
And he said I am.
May I just test whether you are blunt
or whether you are sharp.
Manoah asked this man is it you that
revealed yourself to this woman.
And he said I am.
Who was this angel.
If you haven't known up till now who
this man was now you should.
I am.
Who as I am.
That's God himself.
That's God's name.
This wasn't just a man of God.
The so called angel of the Lord.
As I am.
The Alpha and Omega.
Was the Lord Jesus Christ himself.
It's the same man who stood before the
Pharisees and scribes.
And then when they questioned him he said
I am.
He asked him what is your name.
Verse 18 verse 18.
I'm just making it brief and summarizing on
purpose.
The angel of the Lord said to him
why do you ask my name.
Seeing it is wonderful.
Or seeing it is a secret.
Yes.
Now it's very difficult to translate that Hebrew.
Most translations if I say most I don't
know.
But a number of translations say it's a
secret.
Why do you ask my name.
That's a secret.
You can if must be interpreted as wonderful
as well.
The matter of Jesus is a secret.
It's a mystery.
The gospel is a mystery.
It is a mystery to many but to
those being saved it is open and clear.
And when it's open and clear then it's
wonderful.
In the Old Testament when it refers to
the angel of the Lord it refers to
the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's not the same in the context of
the New Testament.
Manoah then took a young goat and some
grain offering to offer it upon the rock
to the Lord.
For he had wanted to offer it to
the angel of the Lord but he said
no you take it to the rock of
the Lord.
And then as he made this offering and
set alight this offering unto God the angel
of the Lord did a wonderful a wondrous
thing in front of Manoah and his wife.
He did something astonishing and marvelous in the
eyes of Manoah and his wife.
For as the flame was going up from
the altar of the rock the flames were
rising up towards heaven.
And our Lord did an amazing thing.
He entered into the flame and ascended into
heaven.
As Manoah and his wife were watching this
they fell both of them to their faces
on the ground.
Fell on their faces they didn't see him
again.
And Manoah understood that this angel of the
Lord was God.
Then Manoah said to his wife we shall
surely die for we have seen God.
What a meeting with God have you ever
met with God?
This is how Manoah and his wife met
with God.
Enoch if I'm not mistaken was 300 years
old when he bare a child.
And from that day on he walked with
God.
He walked with God.
How many children have you brought into this
world?
Are you walking with God?
For Enoch one child was enough and he
walked with God.
Enoch was walking with God.
He was walking with God.
How many children have you brought into this
world?
Are you walking with God?
For Enoch one child was enough and he
walked with God.
How many children have you brought into this
world?
Are you walking with God?
For Enoch one child was enough and he
walked with God.
How many children have you brought into this
world?
Are you walking with God?
For Enoch one child was enough and he
walked with God.
But Enoch when his first child was born
it was a meeting for him with God.
And he walked with God ever since that
time.
Continuously.
You who belong to the devil you will
be with the devil condemned into hell by
men like Enoch in hell forever.
But Manoah and his wife before the child
was even conceived they met with God.
There is no sense in living in this
world if you don't walk with God.
Not that you peep through holes when girls
are in the bathroom.
Peep into the windows.
Sinning going from one sin to the other.
You are worse than a beast.
We are made in God's image to walk
with God.
And nothing else.
Every day and every hour of our lives.
But Manoah and his wife before the child
was even conceived they met with God.
There is no sense in living in this
world if you don't walk with God.
Not that you peep through holes when girls
are in the bathroom.
Sinning going from one sin to the other.
You are worse than a beast.
You have your love affairs, you meet around
corners.
You are like the beast of the field.
Better is the beast of the field which
eats grass than you.
Now that was just the introduction.
That was for you who don't know the
story of Manoa and his wife.
Now get to the heart of the matter.
From the text I originally read, we shall
surely die when Manoa said this to his
wife, for we have seen God.
All were the words, that was the words
of someone who had met God, who had
seen God.
And how is that?
What did the people who had met the
Lord say when they returned?
They sang pop music, Christian songs.
They sang and danced.
Like the world, you say you're saved and
you're like the world.
When I went overseas, I had some of
my children with me.
One of them, the oldest one said that
she went into a shop.
Sorry, it was the child, my grandchild, it
was the child that went into a shop.
The lady there was selling things.
And even if you didn't, that's for the
whites.
It was just about the red toenails.
And Dirk's little son, he went straight for
her feet.
He put his finger on the biggest toe
when he touched it.
It was a historical day.
He had never seen such a thing before.
He didn't know what it meant.
It was quite interesting for him.
And then we claim we have met with
God.
Well, if you say it's red because it's
symbolic of the blood of Christ that has
cleansed and sanctified me, then I'll just keep
quiet, look at you, and will behold your
life.
Billy Graham said when he was a young
man, people came sobbing to the altar, accepting
Jesus Christ.
Nowadays, they do it with a smile on
their faces.
Billy Graham said when he was a young
man, people came sobbing to the altar, accepting
Jesus Christ.
But Manoa said to his wife, We shall
surely die, for we have seen the Lord.
He had seen the Lord enter into the
flame, ascending into heaven.
Who is like our Lord Jesus?
Who doesn't want to serve the Lord?
He who is the hero of heroes.
Senseless is the man who spurns him.
Why should Manoa have feared so greatly in
telling his wife that they would die?
Dear friends, when we are confronted by the
purity and holiness of God's presence, then
we recognize that it is only mercy and
grace of God that we are not blotted
out.
Wasn't it God himself when he met with
Moses, and Moses said, God, show me your
face.
God said, Moses, show
me your
glory.
God said, Moses, you cannot see my face,
for no one can see my face and
live.
That's what God said himself.
You shall not behold my face, for no
man can behold my face and survive.
Another man who met with God, Gideon, that
warrior of the Lord, also said after meeting
with the Lord, I am going to die,
for I have seen the Lord.
And in our time, when the Holy Spirit
convicts us, and we catch
a glimpse of God's awesome presence, and
the awfulness of sin, we can't
but tremble in God's presence, fearing him, and
just pleading for grace to stay alive.
For his presence brings fear, and for you
see your sins.
Then you'll do as Manoa and his wife
did, fall upon your face.
Manoa had thought that that was the end
of their lives.
If you meet with the Lord God himself,
with Jesus Christ, it's not the same as
meeting with de Klerk, or Favut, or Mandela,
or Mbegi, or Saddam Hussein, or Bin Laden,
or Bush, or Blair.
For they too will have to stand before
this man who rides the clouds and the
flames of fire.
Where do you stand regarding this one?
This one who did a wondrous thing in
the sight of Manoa and his wife, and
entering into the flames he ascended into heaven.
I lack
the
ability and the expressions to depict and to
carry this across, this meeting with God.
This is something that is mysterious and hidden
from those who are being destroyed, but to
those being saved it is the power of
God.
Manoa said to his wife, we shall die.
His wife said to her husband, she said
to him, I don't think that he's going
to kill us, for didn't he promise us
a child?
And should he have wanted to kill us,
he wouldn't have accepted the burnt offering and
the grain offering that we brought to the
rock of the altar.
And I say Manoa, you would have died,
but you lived because of him who entered
into the flame, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Moses too, wanting to see the Lord, was
told, no man can see God's face and
live.
But Moses, here is the rock.
There was a cliff in the rock.
There was a cliff in the rock in
which God hid Moses, covering him with his
hand, and he said, Moses, I will pass
by and you will just see the trail
of my glory, so that you shall not
die.
Who is the eternal rock?
It is Jesus Christ.
Do you want to be hidden in the
cleft, in this wound of the Lord Jesus,
in his sight, so that you would not
die?
We are going to pray now.
Those of you who truly say, rock of
ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself
in thee.
You want to be hidden in the wound
of the Lord Jesus, protected in him.
Stand with me in prayer, identifying in this
prayer.
If you do not, feel free just to
go, disassociate yourself from this.
You may just remain seated.
But if you, you say on this Mother's
Day, you say, rock of ages, I hide
myself in you, then you may stand with
us in identifying in this prayer.
Our God, you who have always existed, and
the one who is, and the one who
always will be, we ask you to hide
us in the eternal rock, that we may
not die, but live because of you.
Lord Jesus, the things that belong to you
are marvelous.
And you are wondrous that you should bring
us and unite us with the holy of
holies.
And Elijah saw you.
And Isaiah who said, as he heard the
seraphim saying, holy, holy, holy, said, woe is
me, woe is me.
For I am a man of unclean lips.
And when he saw your holiness, your purity,
he was as a dying man.
And was helped only by that flaming coal
taken from the fire which scorched his lips,
healing him of all unclean things spoken.
Work in our myths, Lord, that we wouldn't
just be people who have come to a
service, but people who have met with God.
Those who have been healed by Jesus.
Lord, let your grace be multiplied to us.
Amen.