Crossing The Line
Judges 6:1 & 6 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. 6 And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
I have been hearing something in my Spirit this week
I keep hearing: It's time to Cross the Line.
You've crossed the Line: I'm sure you've heard that phrase used, I know I have, It usually means that you have crossed a boundary, it may be a boundary of acceptable behavior, or it may be that you have said something that violated or crossed that boundary,
it may be that somebody has acted inappropriately toward you & crossed the line and lost your respect.
When I was a child, sometimes at the point of confrontation one kid would draw a line in the dirt and dare the other kid to cross it.
If the challenge was accepted and the line was crossed it meant you were committed, No turning back now, no more words it's time to fight.
There are many Lines in this world: Boundaries if you will, some invisible yet no less real, There is a line where water turns into ice. Or water turns into steam, there is a line where speed catches up to sound and penetrates a barrier called the sound barrier.
There is a line between right and wrong, good and bad. There is a line between true and false and there is a line between pure and perverse: (And there is a line between spectator and participator)
This is what I call the Line or point of no return.
Every Pilot knows that Take-off and landing can be the most dangerous points of any flight; Every Pilot knows that there is a time during the take-off procedure that is called the point of no return,
all though there is no visible line on the runway
the pilot knows it is there. "it is just before lift-off, "
At that point, the aircraft is going at such a speed
that it has to reach for the sky. The plane has to be airborne even if there's an emergency on board.
At this point there is no turning back, you can't change your mind, you can't decide you don't want
to go, at this point to try and abort would be certain death. [At this point instead of saying: We have just passed the point of no return] (You may more likely hear the pilot say: We're committed) Which means the same thing (we're in it all the way: We've come to far to turn back) either we fly or we crash, there's
no in between, there's no middle ground)
We have crossed the line.
So many times we have people in the church that enjoy the service, they want to come to church when they feel like it, and they even contribute sometimes,
(but there is a major difference between a contribution and a commitment.)
When I think about commitment, I think about the chicken and the pig who are walking down the road together and they come across a restaurant,
the chicken looks at the pig and says
(I'm hungry, the pig agrees, I'm hungry too).
Then the chicken says: Hey I'd like some
ham and eggs; I'm willing how about you?
And the pig looks at the chicken and says:
Are you crazy, for you it's just a small contribution but for me it's the whole hog.
The point I'm making is there are a lot of people in the church who are willing every now and then to make a contribution, but not that many who want to go whole hog, not that many who are willing to commit.
I come to you today under the anointing of the Holy Spirit to tell you that God is calling his people to commitment: God is not looking for half hearted,
half baked, half in and half out, half up and half down, maybe yes and maybe no Christians:
This is the time to declare your-self, this is the time to make your calling and election sure, this is the time to cross the line. Shout , I’m Crossing the Line…
I am sorry to say That This is a line that many Christians never cross:, They go to church, they sing and shout, speak in tongues maybe even dance once in a while and yet never cross the line, (That line I'm speaking of is the Battle line) it is the place of commitment, it's where words are not enough, it's, where we put up or shut up, it's where the war is being waged, It's where you're “all in”, no turning back, you've passed the point of no return) You can't back up or back down, there's no surrender, no retreat.
( Throughout the scriptures God shows us men and women who crossed that line.: They left the safety behind them and got down onto the battlefield )
Debra one of the Judges of Israel crossed that line) (Elijah crossed that line) Either Fire Would fall on that mountain, or he would die on that mountain.
David crossed that line, When he faced off with Goliath (Either he was going to kill Goliath or die trying) 1 Sa 17: 1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah,
And pitched between Shochoh and Azekah,
In Ephes,da,mim. Which means, Boundry' of Blood
Gideon had crossed the line between
weeping and reaping, between dreading and doing.
While the children of Israel were hiding from the enemy, in the strongholds and caves and dens in the mountains , Gideon was breaking through and taking what the enemy had marked for destruction.
Our text finds Gideon threshing wheat,
which means he had harvested what he had sown.
Time and time again God had pledged himself to be the helper and strength of his people Israel, He ,was their rock, no enemy could resist them, it did not matter how big or how strong, with God as their rock there was no battle that could not be won.
On the other hand, when they were in disobedience and rebellion to God and His word, even the smallest and weakest adversary became a source of defeat and humiliation, like the city of Ai, a small city no threat, no sweat with the God of Israel as their rock.
The Problem was they had forsaken their rock, through Achan' s sin of disobedience and theft,
they had Lost the help of their rock.
Joshua 6:18 And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.
Deut 32:30 How should one chase a thousand,
and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them. and the LORD had shut them up.
Time and time and time again the record goes, that Israel would forsake their rock, and experience the oppression of the enemy and eventually return to God and receive his help and deliverance.
When God was their rock victory was assured,
their righteousness gave them boldness against their enemies, and so it is that righteousness and Holy living produces Boldness against the enemy.
Pr 28: 1 THE WICKED FLEE WHEN NO MAN pursueth: but THE righteous are bold as a lion.
So here are Gods People,,, Instead of subduing nations and tearing down strongholds they are hiding from the enemy (why?) Because of sin in their lives)
And here is the problem that we so often face,
Just like the children of Israel, we would rather retreat than repent, we would rather back up,
slack off, let up, sneak off and hide out, Than to come clean with God and admit that we have been stubborn, selfish, rebellious, uncommitted and unconcerned.
For 7 Years Israel gave up their rightful harvest because they were not willing to repent.
I am sure they would dream about and talk about their harvest and sing and dance in anticipation of harvest time and how “next time” they were gonn'a stand their ground and drive off the invaders; but when the time came they were not willing to cross the line, they would stay hidden in their caves and dens.
God is sending this message to help us to cross the line, to come out of our hiding places, to leave the comfort of our caves of self-preservation, to engage the enemy (to get out of the stands and on to the field).
Jesus Said: The fields are white already to harvest, and countless thousands are perishing at the hands of the enemy because so many s people are living such weak, shallow, selfish, stubborn, and carnal lives.
Instead of confronting the enemy and bringing in the harvest, we are too often found hiding out in the caves of self-indulgence, and the strongholds of fear and doubt and self-preservation.
How long can we sit back and hide out while thousands of souls are being swept into an eternal hell.
How long can we be at rest in our caves of self-preservation, comfort and convenience while our loved ones are being destroyed by enemies of lust, perversion, drug addiction, Alcohol, covetousness, greed? by demons of homosexuality, lesbianism and sorcery and witchcraft?
The enemy is never really too concerned about our sowing, our singing, our dancing and shouting,.
All of Our preaching and teaching doesn't Really bother him as long as we stay hid out in Our caves,
as long as it stays inside the 4 walls of the Church,
as long as nobody gets saved, or healed, or delivered, as long as no marriages are restored or broken homes are mended, as long as no one is filled with the Holy Ghost and there is no conviction of sin. As long as our prayers are selfish and shallow.
But I believe right now that there is a different breed of Christian rising up, I do not believe that we can sit idly by while the devil wreaks havoc in the lives of our loved ones, our country and our communities.
We are Crossing the Line. We are taking back our inheritance, our children, our communities our health, our families, the presence and the glory of God in our midst, and the power of the Holy Ghost.
Exe 32: And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount.
This is talking about when Moses came down from the mountain with the Ten Commandments and saw the people had turned away from God and worshiping a golden calf. And Moses was angry with Aaron:
Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?
Moses is asking Aaron (what kind of horrible torture did these people put you through to force you to do such a wicked thing?) And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief. Aaron says” It’s not my fault (You know how mischievous these people are.) For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we would not what is become of him. And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me:
then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf.
Then here is what Moses did: And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strewed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.
Now I want you to see what Moses did: It is almost too violent, too aggressive, and too intense to believe
Verses 26-27 Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.
Moses Called for a separation: He demanded that those that were for God would make their choice clear.
He demanded that those who chose the Lords side would take their swords and slay everyone who chose to stand against God. And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. See this is the point: There is no gray area
You are either on Gods side or you are on the devils side and I know that's not popular, but it's true.
Jesus said: Mt 12 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.
The same thing Happened on Mt Carmel, After the fire fell they took all the false prophets and slew them at brook Kishon. The point is: You must choose a side, There is no neutral, You can't be in the middle, There's no gray area, no such place as almost saved.
If you are born again: If you have not accepted the sacrifice of Jesus blood to cleanse you from your sins, and you have not asked Jesus to come into your heart, Then you are not saved, you are not born again, you will not go to heaven, you will be lost eternally, and you will spend eternity in the place the bible calls hell.
We are all going to spend eternity somewhere and it's either going to be Heaven or Hell, There's no such thing as purgatory and there's no such thing as reincarnation. You get one shot at this.
When you take your last breath and your heart
strikes its final beat, you are going to wake up either
in heaven or hell. I believe the Holy Spirit is urging us today to cross the line: To take the Lords side to stand with Jesus, To stand for Jesus, To stand against sin and darkness, To come out from among them and to be ye separate and Holy unto God.
I know that we are living in perilous times, and
I know that it is getting hard to see the lines anymore, and I know that even in the church, the church in many cases has been guilty of blurring the lines;
but the bible is clear.
2 Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them,
and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
No more middle ground. We’re crossing the line.
Shout it three times, We’re crossing the line.
We’re crossing the line. We’re crossing the line.
Special thanks to a great man of God and a wonderful friend, Pastor Terry Sisney.
My name is William Poovey, and I pastor at Bethel Church in Olar, SC. I have been a long-time user of Sermon Central and truly appreciate its content and contributors. Some of the best sermons I’ve ever preached have been reworked material from this website. As you use the material from my sermon bank, understand that it is work that has been done from not just myself, but from hundreds of other pastors as well. If you see part of your message, or a lot of your message with my name on it and this upsets you, please email me and I will quickly respond and cite you as the main source. My intent is not to claim someone’s work as my own. I am disclaiming up front that I use the resources from Sermon Central and appreciate the tool. I simply want all those who use my work to know that some of these messages were inspired by the Holy Spirit working through other pastors. Because I do use the messages of other pastors I waive all claims of originality or origin of creativity for the messages posted under my messages. I pray God blesses your preaching ministry for the glory of His Kingdom.
Respectfully,
William Poovey
