I’m a Keeper of the Fire
FICC Big Bear Leadership Meeting 11-09-02
Pastor Jim Parisi
Isaiah 55:1,2 1 "Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
Do we realize that if we eat of the natural things alone of life will never satisfy us?
We can have all life offers us but still feel empty
Feeding this part of our being alone will just leave us wanting and hungry a few hours later? Like fast food, nothing there but expensive.
What the Lord is saying to Isaiah 55:1 is that He wants us to come and feed our soul to fill our spirit with His nourishment.
There is a divine empowerment that God wants to release to the church in the world today
He wants to pour His spirit unto His people, anointing them with the balm of His power and authority to do the works of Christ in this day
We cry out Lord, Lord, send your anointing send your power send your Spirit
He is ready He is willing He is able
But who is willing to pay the price for such a precious gift? Who is willing to live the life to house the presence of God?
Who is willing to set themselves aside for His will?
To be powerful and mighty in the Kingdome of God you have to be set apart from the worldly ways…. Called unto Him Only forsaking all other idols and gods
Look at the life of Samson in Judges 13: 5
Samson was called out from the womb ….in Judges 13: 5 For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines."
His mother took a Nazirite Vow from the womb … no wine…no unclean things …could she eat she was doing her part
She wasn’t to cut his hair She raised him as a Nazirite.
There was a great anointing upon Samson in a supernatural strength
The Nazirite Vow was his covering and protection….. it was designed to set him apart and keep him pure, to be used of God A vow of death to self
What is a vow… a promise, commitment or consecration to the Lord which can lead to greater anointing.
Isn’t that what we all want… to be used of God? To Use us for His precious will
Judges 14: 5 So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him. 6 And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand.
What kind of man was this Sampson.. He was to be a leader committed to the Lords will
BUT we see natural things got in the way …… many things .. Then came the last trial … A woman named Delilah
This is the problem in the church today and most Christians … Things get in the way… our lives are becoming cluttered diverting us from the our full potential in God
We begin with great power… Start off Hard and Strong then crash and burn
Like fireworks.. All big booms and a short flash and then gone...forever…. never to be seen again
Or we become so weak that a slight wind can blow us in any direction
Always trying to please others… forsaking what is true and written in the bible
You want power…. look in the book
The Delilah Spirit in the church today is bringing us down to a Sub - Human level
Making us compromise everything… our gifts and our callings… for the soft lap of luxury
We are tempted with riches fame and the comfortable life and acceptance from others
Compromising what is precious and pure before the Lord to appease the face of man
Just like Samson in Judges 16:17 we give in at one point to pacify the world appease the desires of others
Judges 16:17
that he told her all his heart, and said to her, "No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man."
Tell me what will kill you Samson…you can trust me… the just like the serpent in the garden …. We trust the world and not fear God
Or we fall into traps because we are not rooted and don’t know the word of God
We unwittingly violate Gods commandments
Too much TV ETC.ETC. Etc.. … we live false lifestyles not pleasing to God we compromise what we are and what we are to be
The world says ..Compromise once you will compromise forever,
You are doomed to fail ….by their standards
We believe in the forgiving and restoring faithful God
He can restore all loss even years of failure like the ones of Samson
We give into their pressures. We get to the point in our sin and folly that we don’t even know the Lord has left … Sin becomes familiar and we start to accept it
Look at Samson’s life ..instead of separating himself he was playing in delights lap
Sorry I mean Delilah’s lap
See it was her who pleased him not God
Jud 16:20 - And she said, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" So he awoke from his sleep, and said, "I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!" But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.
HE didn’t even know the Lord Left… Then they bound him and imprisoned him
If the church is power… then the enemy is the spirit of Delilah… we succumb to the spirit of this world …..We give our power away to fit in….so they accept us \
We go with them when they say Ohh come to happy hour .. When you should be saying noo noo come to church
We have all decorations of Christianity and none of the demonstration / smell sweet outside and stink like yesterdays garbage inside
We have pretty outward shells… get all made up like who???? … Delilah
And having no inward anointing.. No power burnt-out and shut-out
The enemy knows the potential power of the this church and is doing everything to stop it from manifesting in this earth … from fulfilling it’s call
The enemy will rob you of your blessing to keep you down and beaten
Compromise you to keep you week… and lay you in Delilah’s lap to lead you to ruin
The church in America today is talking skim milk
Instead of preaching the meaty substance of the WORD
What we live and say has no value or weight.
A church of power is born in FIRE
BECAUSE FIRE WILL PURGE ALL SIN AND BRING everything INTO THE LIGHT
The anointing will evade you if you are not prepared to recognize it when it shows up
You can’t have the power of the anointing if something doesn’t die first what’s going to die…YOU
One of the ingredients in the anointing oil is myrrh….. it was used to bury people
So Something has to die for something greater to live / a little seed dies for the great oak..
We scream Ohh Lord you are crushing me to death…….. that’s right let it happen
Just like the oil used to anoint with ….don‘t be frustrated when you are being squeezed
God is squeezing your ministry out of you …. Embrace the Olive Press for it is producing something great ……. something to be used of God
You never know when the Lord will call you Let’s look at another look at Elisha in
1Kings 19:19 So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Sha’phat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him.
We are called to follow…serve and bless… the servants of God (pastor)
Co labor to build the House of God that’s what Elisha did for Elijah
And in 2kings he got a double portion for a blessing
He was faithful…. and God could use Him
Jesus came to die
He came to rid this world of its pain
When he left….. he left us the Holy Spirit
The Power we need to go forward
Someone needs to spark the fuse
Who is willing to carry the Light….. who is willing to leave it all behind to become the keeper of the flame?
This is what we forget that here in the Los angles area the spirit of Pentecost broke out on Azusa Street 1906
This is where we can say that people were willing to release themselves to the Spirit of God and stoke the fire.
It changed a Nation let alone a world
What started out in a cave that little church in LA.
Ended up in the stained glass cathedrals of today DEAD with a pretty burial stone
One thing about fire it has to be stoked and tended
Want revival want the anointing to fall on you
Pray… give your life to God …. Consecrate yourselves and families to Him
The enemy is trying to steal your power …and are you going to let him?
Stand up and say I will serve my God no matter what
What greater cry then one who is serving the Lord
The time is now church…. the days are short
Who is going to say use me Lord use me?
Pour you Spirit on me Lord….. Use me
We have to Stop praying and living as children
And start praying and living as warriors
Start today By dedicating your life to the Lord……………….Amen!!!
