RCCG SERMONS: GOING HIGHER – PART 45 PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE
TOPIC: GOING HIGHER – PART 45
MINISTERING PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE
DATE: 9TH JANUARY, 2022
BIBLE TEXT: 1 KINGS 19: 1-3
Let Us Pray!
SONG
Immortal God
Invincible God
Immortal God
How Great thou Art!
… Repeat!
OPENING PRAYER
Father Almighty, Immortal, Invincible, the Only Wise God; we bless your Holy Name.
Please, accept our Thanks in Jesus Name.
Thank You for the Salvation of our Souls and Thank You in Advance for those You are going to save today.
Please, accept our Thanks in Jesus Name.
Father, Please lay Your Hands on us and let this Day be a Day of another Miracle.
In Jesus Mighty Name we have Prayed – Amen!
Praise the Lord – Hallelujah!
We will continue with our Series on Going Higher – Now, we are moving on to Part 45 (Going Higher – Part 45).
Our Bible Text will be: 1 Kings 19: 1-3.
1. And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the Prophets with the sword.
2. Then Jezebel sent a Messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy Life as the Life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
3. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his Life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
Here is another loaded Passage that we could spend a lot of time on but we will just continue with the little God wants us to discuss here.
Elijah arrived at Jezreel, sat down in his house and was enjoying the Victories that had happened.
I. Oh, he had just called down Fire from Heaven.
II. He had brought National Revival.
III. He had Prophesied and Prayed that there will be Abundance of Rain – The first time in three and half Years.
IV. He had outrun the Chariots of the King.
… He was very happy!
But then a Message came from the First Lady of the Land and said that I heard what you did on Mount Carmel; I swear to you by my gods – By this time of tomorrow, you will be like one of the Prophets that you killed.
And Elijah, the Great Man of God; the Man who dared four hundred and fifty (450) Prophets of Baal ran from a Woman.
I know that a lot of People has said: How could that be? – Elijah was a Wise Man!
I have told you Man of God again and again: Don’t fight with a Woman. If a Woman says that she is going to deal with you, run!
If you learn to run today, you will be alive to fight tomorrow!
The African Elders has a Proverb: The Man who knows when to fight and when to run is the one they call a Champion!
… That is the saying of the Elders – You must know when to fight and you must know when to run!
And when Jezebel said I’m coming for you; Elijah did the Right Thing – He ran!
I Pray that the Almighty God will give everyone of us the Wisdom to be able to know when to Stand to fight and when to run.
Satan is a “Fallen Angelic Being”.
Isaiah 14: 12-15 says:
12. How art thou fallen from Heaven, O Lucifer, son of the Morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the Nations!
13. For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into Heaven, I will exalt my Throne above the Stars of God: I will sit also upon the Mount of the Congregation, in the sides of the North:
14. I will ascend above the heights of the Clouds; I will be like the Most High.
15. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
He (Satan) doesn’t sleep, he doesn’t get tired because he was created an Angel!
Thank God that our God neither Sleep nor Slumber – Psalms 121: 1-4.
Our God, the One who keeps us, our “Heavenly Bodily Guard” doesn’t Sleep, He doesn’t Slumber because He is never tired – Isaiah 40:28.
Because God created All – He created even the devil and so He can checkmate the devil anytime.
That is why God said in Isaiah 54: 16-17 – He said that I am the One who made Wasters to destroy. But if you are my own, there is no weapon fashioned against you that will Prosper.
One day according to Revelation 20: 1-3; Satan will be imprisoned for one thousand (1,000) Years.
… But that day has not come yet!
So for now, out of the Infinite Wisdom of God; Satan is still allowed to roam free. He is allowed to go and come as he Pleases – Job Chapters 1 and 2.
So, it is expedient that every Christians should know how Satan operates:
When he (Satan) knows that he has been defeated; he may depart for a while.
Luke 4: 1-13 – When he tempted the Lord Jesus Christ three (3) times and the Lord defeated him.
The Bible said that he left Jesus Christ for a while – He didn’t go Permanently!
Which brings us to a very serious Lesson for all of us who are Christians.
There is a Song that we sing:
Christian! Seek not yet repose,
Hear thy Guardian Angel say;
Thou art in the midst of foes;
Watch and Pray.
Probably, the Most dangerous Period in a Christian’s Life is immediately after a Victory!
This case of Elijah will tell us because we are talking about Going Higher.
And if you are going to “Go Higher”; it means that you are thinking of Finishing Well, Finishing Strong.
Elijah had a series of Miracles and so should be settling down now for Celebrations.
That is why I always warn People when you say that you are celebrating; maybe you should be Praying!
Oh, I am 50 Years Old and People are eating and drinking.
Let them eat, let them drink; you the Celebrants Fast and Pray because it is after a Victory that your Guards are down.
You just defeated Satan and he said: Alright, keep rejoicing; I’m around the corner.
I am not eulogising the devil; I am only warning you – Christians seek not yet repose!
I will give you examples to illustrate:
1. Let us consider Moses.
Exodus 14: 21-28 – Moses lifted up his hands, the Red Sea Parted; he lifted up his hands, the Red Sea came together – All Generational Enemies gone and there was Thanksgiving Service – Exodus 15: 1-21.
I mean Moses composed a Song improntu and everybody was singing and dancing; Miriam brought out her Tambourine – There was singing and dancing!
Then Exodus 15: 22-26 – The People came to Marah and the water was bitter.
And all those who are singing: Oh, there is No God like our God; Moses, Oh what a Wonderful Leader you are; they turned against Moses – You mean that you brought us here to kill us with thirst?
2. Consider Joshua.
Joshua 6: 1-27 – Just with a Shout, the Wall of Jericho fell.
Ha, what a Great Leader you are, he can hear from God, he knows how to direct us, Oh we have never had it so Good – Not even in the days of Moses.
And what happened – Immediately after, not ten (10) Years later in Joshua 7: 1-12.
They came against a Small City called Ai and Joshua said that we took Jericho off with a shout; what is Ai?
And the devil was waiting and Israel fled before the enemy.
By the time we got to Verse 12 (Joshua 7:12); God said to Joshua that I am not going with you anymore.
Ha Lord, in Joshua 1: 1-8; You said that You will be with me all the Way and Nobody will be able to Stand before me anywhere I go.
God said: I said so before but I am the Almighty – I can say that I am not saying so anymore.
Why? – Because while they were celebrating the Victory at Jericho, somebody had already offended God.
Hey, look at Money, look at Garment? – Following Joshua will lead to Prosperity!
… Christians, seek not yet repose!
3. Let’s consider Gideon.
Judges 7: 1-end – Gideon defeated an enemy that the Bible described as Grasshoppers, a Multitude – They were like Grasshoppers (Difficult to count).
And he defeated them with only three hundred (300) Chosen Men.
… No Problem, I know how to catch you, the devil seems to say!
In Judges 8: 22-27; the People came to Gideon – What a Great Leader you are. Come and be our King and you and your children rule over us.
Gideon said: No, I’m not going to rule you – It is Only God who will rule over you.
The devil said: You dodged that blow, I have another one!
And suddenly Gideon said: I don’t want to rule over you.
Just give me the “Golden Earrings” that you took from the enemies, I will use it to make an Ephod – Something that the Priest can wear whenever they come into the Presence of God.
… It sounds very Good!
And the Bible says that the Ephod became an Idol and a trap for Gideon and his family.
… Christians, seek not yet repose!
4. Now, I don’t want to talk about Samson because you all know the Story very well.
This Man finished one thousand (1,000) People with the jawbone of an Ass.
And it wasn’t long after that Delilah came and caused him to be destroyed.
5. Let us take the case of David.
In 1 Samuel 17: 1-54 – This “Unknown Shepherd Boy” burst into the Political Scene of the Nation and wiped out the one who has been terrorising the Nation.
… And everybody shouted and Praised him.
In 1 Samuel 18: 1-5 – He became Promoted as “The Chief Warrior” and the Bible said that he was accepted by the Soldiers – Hey, you are our Leader.
But then in 1 Samuel 18: 6-12 – As they were celebrating, singing; they sang a Song that said: Saul has killed his thousand; David has killed his ten thousand.
The King said that: Is that so? We shall see!
During the celebrations, the devil created a Problem for the Celebrant – A Problem he had to deal with until the father in-law died.
6. You can consider Daniel.
Read Daniel 1: 1-20 – Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego; they refused to eat the King’s meat and they ended up becoming the best of all the Wise Men.
The devil said: Fine, you refused to defile yourself? No Problem. You won the contest, Congratulations!
A few days later, the King had a Dream and forgot the Dream – Daniel 2: 1-end.
And what happened, the King said that: I had a Dream, I forgot my Dream. If you Wise Men can’t tell me my Dream and the Interpretations, you are all dead!
The devil was not after the Wise Men of the Land; he was after Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego – Those who refused to succumbed to the King’s meat, those who said that we will not defile ourselves.
I can go on and on but Probably, I will take one more example from the New Testament.
7. Matthew 16: 13-19 – Jesus Christ turned to the Disciples – Who do the People said I am?
Oh, some said that you are this and that.
Okay, who do you People (Disciples) say I am?
Peter said: You are the Christ.
Jesus Christ said: Congratulations, you can hear from God.
It is not Flesh and Blood that revealed that to you! – Boy, you are Great!
Immediately, in the same Matthew 16: 21-23; Jesus Christ began to tell them about what was going to happen and the devil entered into the same Peter and said alright, tell Him that you are not going to die.
The Bible even said that he began to rebuked the Lord – Can you imagine that?
Fortunately, the Lord knew what was going on and turned to Peter – Get thee behind me Satan. You are not saying the things of God but the things of Men.
In Conclusion:
1 Corinthians 10:12 says: If you think you Stand, take heeds less you fall.
Ephesians 6: 10-13 says: You are not wrestling with Flesh and Blood; you are dealing with Forces that don’t let go easily.
Having done all; Stand! – When you feel that you have won a Victory, Stand!
1 Peter 4:7 – Great Warning. It said that the End of all things are at hand. Be Sober, Watch and Pray!
Meaning what?
I. The Closer you are to the Goal, the more careful you must become.
II. The Older you get in the Lord, the more careful you must become!
III. The Higher you climb Spiritually, the more careful you must become!
The Elders have a saying – They say that: When an Ant falls, we don’t hear the Sound; when a cockroach falls, the Ground doesn’t shake but when an Elephant falls, the shaking is felt both on the farm and in the house.
My Prayer for all of you here or reading now on the Label of DMC is that you will become Great – Amen; God will take you to Great Heights – Amen.
But Please, the Higher you go, the more careful you must become!
Then of course you will say: Wait a minute – If the situation is that tough for those who are Giants in the Faith, what of those who has not even started the Journey?
That is why you need to run to Jesus Christ because as far as Satan is concerned; if you are not on the side of the Lord with Him backing you up to give you Victory after Victory; then you are just ready to be destroyed anytime.
ALTAR CALL
If you have not given your Life to Jesus Christ, do so now – You are dealing with a Force that is never tired, that is never going to let you go.
The Only One who can Support you and give you Victory is the One who also doesn’t Sleep and doesn’t Slumber.
So, if you want to give your Life to Jesus Christ, call on Him now and I will Pray for you and the Lord will save your Soul.
Thank You Father!
PRAYER FOR SALVATION AND CLOSING PRAYER
And so my Father and my God, once again we want to say Thank You.
Thank You for “Timely Warning”; Thank You that those of us who are Your Children, who are already becoming careless; we will cease to be careless.
As for those who are coming to You now, my Father and my God for the first time, Please receive them, save their Souls, let Your Blood wash away their sins and take them into the Family of God and begin to give them Victory upon Victory.
In Jesus Mighty Name we have Prayed – Amen!
Praise the Lord – Hallelujah!
And those of you who has just given your Life to Jesus Christ; I rejoice with you now.
With God on our side, you can also become More Than a Conqueror – Amen.
And I Pray that you will never fall into the trap of the devil again – Amen.
Let me have your names, your Address and your Prayer Requests and I Promise you that I will be Praying for you.
And then look for a Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) near you. Go to the Pastor there and he will tell you what to do next.
God Bless You – Amen!
Thank you so much for staying all through to read.