SCRIPTURAL REFERENCES
(Proverbs 14:4) “Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.”
(Proverbs 15:17) “Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.”
(1 Timothy 5:18) “For the scripture saith, thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.”
(Hosea 10:12) "Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you."
PREFACE SUMMARY
Beloved, Oxen are known to be powerful and hardworking creatures used to plow fields and transport heavy loads, but one of the downsides of working with oxen is their droppings, which can create quite a mess.
Some people use horses and they have been known to put diapers on them but they do not have the sure footing that oxen have and the reality is that both animals have droppings and you can tell where the oxen or horses have been plowing by all the dropping left on the plowed ground.
You can always tell where the oxen have been by the droppings left behind, and you can always tell where a pastor has been plowing the flock by the physical evidence left behind in his services which can be represented by tear stained altars, hairpins lying around from some woman's hair she just paid to have done in a beauty parlor and even tissues left in the seats.
Beloved, these tears are cries to God for deliverance, for themselves and their families. I have witnessed a young woman shouting while a huge man sitting beside her would be crying his eyes out.
In the context of our spiritual lives, the crib represents a storage bin to contain the harvest and it symbolizes our spiritual journey, and just as a farmer must contend with the mess created by oxen, we too must be ready to face the challenges of our spiritual path.
Throughout this message, we will discover that a church can only be as spiritual as its pastor or spiritual leader, and embracing the discarded tissues and tear stained pews is a physical sign of a pastor preaching the word in the demonstration of the Holy Ghost with heaven shining on their shoulders.
In summary, let me say that a trustworthy pastor plays a crucial role in leading by example and encouraging open transparency. In such an environment, we can journey together in faith, unencumbered by the need for perfection, and support one another through our struggles and challenges.
"LETTING GO OF THE OLD MAKES WAY FOR THE NEW."
(Luke 9:62) "And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put their hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
Beloved, this passage of scripture is a priceless lesson about the dangers of returning to old habits and the importance of staying committed to our faith, and throughout this message, I pray there will be a deep inward tug on your heart to answer the Lord calling men and women to come and follow him.
Notice that the ones being called begin to put up excuses, such as going back to bury their dead, and one of the men the Lord called, gave the excuse that he needed to return and say farewell to his friends.
Both of these men gave excuses that they had things to take care of before they could follow the Lord, and the last called, gave the excuse that he needed to go back and tell some of his old friends farewell.
This last excuse serves as a warning for us today, because many have gone back to see the friends in the old places where they used to go and ended up returning to their old lifestyles, forgetting about the change the Lord made in their lives.
To give an illustration, let's say the man goes back and enters a bar he used to visit to tell his friends he has chosen a new plan for his life: to follow Jesus, and let's say his friends in a drunken stupor congratulate him on his choice for a new life and tell him how proud they are of him, and without him knowing it, they set a drink before him, all the while keeping his ego going by asking him to speak about his new life.
Beloved, without noticing the trap, the man will be so wrapped up in the conversation that he begins to sip on the drink before him. When it is empty, the so-called friends will sit another drink before him, and he does not even catch on to what is going on till he is caught in their trap.
Let me share an incident that reinforces my belief in supernatural occurrences. After undergoing extensive dental surgery for crown installation, I was prescribed Lortabs for pain relief, and despite turning off my phone, I received a call in the early morning.
Beloved, curious, I turned my phone on to see who had called me, and to my surprise, found out that one of my ministers was at a sports bar. When I called the number back, he was speechless and scared to hear my voice. He explained that he had gone to the bar to witness to some people but realized his mistake.
This experience was a powerful wake-up call for him, reaffirming my belief that some things are beyond our understanding. I shared this with you because I know you also have an interest in the supernatural, and I thought you might find it intriguing.
Beloved, letting go of old habits, relationships, and patterns may be challenging, but it's a crucial step toward personal growth and development. By freeing yourself from your past, you create a space for new experiences, opportunities, and relationships to enter your life, paving the way for a brighter future.
We need only look at Lot's wife who looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt to realize just how dangerous it is to look back and attempt to relive our old life, because if we keep trying to correct the mistakes we made in our old life, we will not be capable of living where God intends for us to live in our present.
If you keep trying to relive your past, you will be unable to draw from your future and if your feeling stuck in your old ways, take a deep breath, let go of the old, and welcome the new with open arms remembering that every ending can be a new beginning, and every challenge is not just a hurdle but an opportunity to blossom and grow.
In summary, let me say that each of life's struggles can be used by God to enrich our spiritual journey, and our accepting imperfections in church life and the Christian community can create an environment that not only promotes spiritual growth, but also opens our understanding of God's grace and mercy.
"UNLEASH THE STALLED OX AND GIVE THE PASTOR HIS FREEDOM."
(Proverbs 15:17) and (Proverbs 14:4) paint a vivid picture of the challenges many pastors face in their ministries today, and notice how these scriptures state that if the fields are not correctly plowed and prepared for planting, the cribs that hold the grain will be empty.
(Proverbs 15:17), tells us that it is better to enjoy a salad where love is than a stalled ox (Pastor) and hatred therewith or in the midst, highlighting the importance of love and unity in the church, and can you imagine the mental strain on a pastor whose heart is to follow God and the burning vision in his heart being confronted by a carnal deacon board that is always against anything he attempts to do for the kingdom of God.
Beloved, I ask you to consider how many pastors are put in bondage by a deacon board that does not allow them the freedom to follow their God-given vision. These individuals, remind me of the Apostle John's reference to Diotrephes, a self-seeking troublemaker in an unnamed local church in the first century, can hinder the pastor's ability to lead effectively.
Notice how John in writing the 3rd book of John to his friend Gaius, mentions Diotrephes: 'I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. So, when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.'
Beloved, did you know that many of these so-called deacons and elders in the churches today are like Diotrephes, and like him, they are fighting against the very anointed pastors they are sitting under?
These elders remind me of how the Jewish leaders, once delivered from 70 years of captivity, placed more laws on the commandments of God, causing Jesus to rebuke them. He stated they lay grievous burdens on people's shoulders and would not lift one finger to remove them.
Beloved, please allow me to share a personal experience that illustrates the challenges faced by pastors, for I once encountered a jealous pastor, but despite his envy, I was blessed to lead a revival at his church that had a profound impact, reaching communities miles away.
When I planned a large-scale tent revival, this pastor organized a revival event at his church, even inviting an evangelist friend of mine from Indiana. To cut a long story short, within a few days, the evangelist showed up at my tent revival expressing his desire to minister with me. He explained that he sensed a lack of spiritual fervor at the church that had invited him, and he believed that the spirit would be present at my revival.
Let us reflect on the formation of many organizations and the rejection of what was perceived as 'moves of God' by several churches. Notably, these churches dismissed the spiritual movements led by influential figures such as William Seymour, William Branham, A.A. Allen, Oral Roberts, and Don Stewart, deeming them as not genuine moves of God.
Beloved, growing up, I could always tell where a pastor had been laboring to plow the ground and the results showed that they had spent time with God to receive a burning message in their heart to preach with such mighty deliverance that shook up communities.
These mighty outpourings of God's Spirit would touch whole communities even bootleggers who did not wait till the next morning but went to their business that night and got rid of their booze. These revivals was used of the Lord to convict men and women of ill repute causing them to kneel before God and give their hearts and lives to the Lord, with some later being themselves called into ministry.
Beloved, the main challenge we face today is not the wickedness and strength of the world, but the weakness of the church. This weakness is manifested in church leaders who have embraced a 'watered-down gospel which is a diluted version of the true teachings of Christ that allows the flesh to stay alive.
Beloved, this watered down gospel allows worldly desires, to remain alive, hindering the church from experiencing a decisive move of God. To truly experience God's presence, the church must die to the flesh, as no flesh can stand and glory in His presence.
Beloved, when Jimmy Carter was elected President of the United States and declared himself to be a born-again Christian, Hollywood produced a born-again soap, and a talk show host began discussing the concept of being 'born again.
In summary, let me say that it did not take long for apostacy and complacency to invade the sleeping church with pastors organizing revival meetings among themselves, rather than seeking the guidance of an anointed evangelist, and this shift, driven by fear of exposing their covered up sins to their congregations, underscores the importance of seeking spiritual guidance and the potential pitfalls of self-reliance in the church.
"BREAK UP THE FALLOW GROUND."
(Hosea 10:12) "Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you."
Beloved, fallow ground is land that has not been plowed for over a year. It becomes rigid, stubborn, and resistant to the seed, making it difficult for crops to grow and the only way to attempt to plow it would be to wet it down.
The soil needs to be plowed, weeded, and prepared to receive the seeds, and only then can the seeds be sown and grow into healthy crops, but this type of hard ground would be hard to plow without proper preparation.
We may have areas in our personal lives that have been neglected or left unattended, requiring attention and effort to cultivate and grow. The call to "break up your fallow ground" is a call to action, an invitation to take the necessary steps to prepare ourselves for a new season of growth and abundance.
Breaking up the ground is not an easy task. The plow's blade must cut through the complex and compact soil, causing it to cry in pain, and just like hardened or unplowed ground that cannot produce a harvest, a person's heart can become hardened and unresponsive to the Word of God, making it difficult for the seed of the Word to take root and grow.
It is time to allow the word of God to break up the deep sins that hide in the crevices of our hearts, but before it can happen, we must allow God's word to break us till none of us are left, and just as the farmer must break up the complex and compact soil, we must seek God to break up the hardness of our hearts, and we cannot do this on our own, and that is why we need other trusted believers to help us become accountable to ourselves and to God.
God is sick of the strife we find in many churches today and he inspired me to write this message because his coming is very near and the signs of the times are upon us, but even now we have people preaching a feel good gospel with some saying they have their free will to do and live however they want and they say their pastor told them they can never be lost.
They have their free will and they can climb upon a high rise building and jump off but when they do, another law is going to kick in which is the law of gravity and when they hit the hard ground, their going to encounter death as they enter an eternity they were not prepared for and it is in that setting that the law of Moses will be demanding payment accusing them of the death of the son of God.
In summary, let me say that what you believe had better be good enough to die with for you are going to die and death is an appointment that cannot be altered or changed, and if you die in your sins, you will stand before a sin hating God to hear the words, "Depart from me, I never knew you, cursed ye into everlasting fire and torment as the Angels of God cast you into a liquified lake of fire."
MY CONCLUSION
If the message has touched your heart, what would be wrong with closing your eyes and asking God to show you the plan he had for you before you were born? Then ask him to forgive you for your sins and ask him to come into your heart and live his life through you.
Beloved, did you know that God is waiting for you to surrender the rights to your life unto him, believing that Jesus who knew no sin was made sin for you if you believe that Jesus died on that Roman cross in your place, believing that God raised him from the dead, beloved you can be saved? (John 3:16) (Romans 10:9-10)
Right now, tell the devil that you do not want him or his dressed-up schemes, and pledge your allegiance to God and his kingdom, asking him to make your life count. You will find a God willing to forgive your sins and be a father to you like you have never known for your beloved; his unconditional love never fades.
Beloved, if you have once known the Lord and feel that you would like to get back into fellowship with him, all you need to do is repent and do your first works over, for he declares in his word that "He is married to the backslider."
I want you to know that our God is a restorer of the penitent, and you have not lost anything through those years but have received a good education that has helped mature you into a better person, and as we journey towards the end of our lives, we ought to strive to be completely emptied, having poured all that we can into the lives of those around us.
As we approach the end of this message, let us take a moment to reflect on the fact that our time on earth is finite. This realization should motivate us to make the most of every opportunity we have to serve others with love and compassion. We should strive to be the hands and feet of Christ, embodying His message of selflessness and generosity.
In summary, let me say that by pouring ourselves out for the sake of others, we can create a lasting legacy that will endure long after we are gone, so let us go forth from this message with renewed determination to serve those around us, to love with abandon, and to make a positive impact on the world. In doing so, we will be fulfilling our purpose and leaving a legacy that will be remembered for generations to come.
International Evangelist
Jerry W Hulse, Ph.D.
Miracle Life Church International
