THIS IS THE TIME OF THE LORD'S FAVOUR - GOD WILL TURN YOUR SITUATION AROUND
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OUTLINE
1. THE LORD IS BRINGING US INTO A TIME OF FAVOUR WHERE OUR PRAYERS WILL BE ANSWERED AND WE WILL RECEIVE THE HELP THAT WE NEED FROM THE LORD . THE EARLY CHURCH EXPERIENCED SUCH A TIME OF FAVOUR . AFTER A SEASON OF PERSECUTION THE LORD GRANTED PEACE TO HIS PEOPLE. AND THEY GREW DURING THE TIME OF PEACE AND WALKED IN THE FEAR OF GOD . THE HOLY SPIRIT COMFORTED THEM AND HEALED ALL THE WOUNDS IN THEIR HEARTS.
2. THE LORD WANTS TO TURN OUR WILDERNESS INTO A BEAUTIFUL GARDEN . HE WANTS TO COMFORT US AND HEAL OUR BROKEN HEARTS. HE DOES NOT WANT US TO LIVE IN FEAR OF THE ENEMY.HE WILL REMOVE THE CUP OF AFFLICTION FROM US AND GIVE IT INTO THE HANDS OF OUR ENEMIES.
3. THE LORD WILL POUR OUT HIS SPIRIT UPON US AND CAUSE US TO BECOME CHANNELS OF BLESSING AND HEALING TO OTHERS.HE WILL CAUSE THE BROKEN DOWN AREAS OF OUR LIFE TO BE REBUILT. HE WILL GRANT US DOUBLE HONOUR FOR ALL THE SHAME AND HUMILIATION WE HAVE FACED.
4. THE LORD WANTS TO BE GLORIFIED IN OUR LIVES . HE WANTS TO USE US AS A SPLENDID CROWN IN HIS HAND. HE WANTS US HAVE A NEW NAME. HE WANTS TO CHANGE OUR REPUTATION AND WE WOULD BE KNOWN AS BLESSED PEOPLE.
5. THE LORD WANTS US TO RISE AND SHINE. HE PROMISES ABUNDANT PROSPERITY TO ENABLE US TO BUILD HIS KINGDOM . HE WILL GRANT US FAVOUR WITH AUTHORITIES AND SEND US ABLE HELPERS TO FULFILL OUR TASK. HE WILL CAUSE US TO GROW INTO A MIGHTY NATION.
6. GOD BLESSES US AND DELIVERS US FROM OUR SUFFERING AND HE HEALS OUR MEMORIES . HE MAKES US FRUITFUL IN THE SAME LAND WHERE WE FACED AFFLICTION AND PAIN. HIS DELIVERANCE CAN COME AS A SURPRISE AND LOOK LIKE A DREAM .WE MUST EXPECT MIRACLES TO HAPPEN IN OUR LIVES.
7. THE LORD WANTS US TO CELEBRATE WITH JOY AND HAPPINESS WHEN HE TURNS OUR CAPTIVITY. WE SHOULD NOT CONTINUE TO BE IN MOURNING ALWAYS.
THE MESSAGE
THIS IS THE TIME OF THE LORD'S FAVOUR - GOD WILL TURN YOUR SITUATION AROUND
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1. THE LORD IS BRINGING US INTO A TIME OF FAVOUR WHERE OUR PRAYERS WILL BE ANSWERED AND WE WILL RECEIVE THE HELP THAT WE NEED FROM THE LORD . THE EARLY CHURCH EXPERIENCED SUCH A TIME OF FAVOUR . AFTER A SEASON OF PERSECUTION THE LORD GRANTED PEACE TO HIS PEOPLE. AND THEY GREW DURING THE TIME OF PEACE AND WALKED IN THE FEAR OF GOD . THE HOLY SPIRIT COMFORTED THEM AND HEALED ALL THE WOUNDS IN THEIR HEARTS.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 49:8-13
This is what the LORD says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances,
to say to the captives, �Come out,� and to those in darkness, �Be free!� "They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill.
They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.
I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up.
See, they will come from afar— some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan."
Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; burst into song, O mountains! For the LORD comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.
Psalm 102:13
You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come.
Acts 9:31
"The church then had peace throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, and it grew in strength and numbers. The believers were walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. "
2. THE LORD WANTS TO TURN OUR WILDERNESS INTO A BEAUTIFUL GARDEN . HE WANTS TO COMFORT US AND HEAL OUR BROKEN HEARTS. HE DOES NOT WANT US TO LIVE IN FEAR OF THE ENEMY.HE WILL REMOVE THE CUP OF AFFLICTION FROM US AND GIVE IT INTO THE HANDS OF OUR ENEMIES.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 51:1-22
"Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance--all who seek the LORD! Consider the quarry from which you were mined, the rock from which you were cut!
Yes, think about your ancestors Abraham and Sarah, from whom you came. Abraham was alone when I called him. But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.
"The LORD will comfort Israel again and make her deserts blossom. Her barren wilderness will become as beautiful as Eden--the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found there. Lovely songs of thanksgiving will fill the air.
"Listen to me, my people. Hear me, Israel, for my law will be proclaimed, and my justice will become a light to the nations.
My mercy and justice are coming soon. Your salvation is on the way. I will rule the nations. They will wait for me and long for my power.
Look up to the skies above, and gaze down on the earth beneath. For the skies will disappear like smoke, and the earth will wear out like a piece of clothing. The people of the earth will die like flies, but my salvation lasts forever. My righteous rule will never end!
"Listen to me, you who know right from wrong and cherish my law in your hearts. Do not be afraid of people’s scorn or their slanderous talk.
For the moth will destroy them as it destroys clothing. The worm will eat away at them as it eats wool. But my righteousness will last forever. My salvation will continue from generation to generation.
"Wake up, LORD! Robe yourself with strength! Rouse yourself as in the days of old when you slew Egypt, the dragon of the Nile.
Are you not the same today, the one who dried up the sea, making a path of escape when you saved your people?
Those who have been ransomed by the LORD will return to Jerusalem, singing songs of everlasting joy. Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will be overcome with joy and gladness.
"I, even I, am the one who comforts you. So why are you afraid of mere humans, who wither like the grass and disappear?
Yet you have forgotten the LORD, your Creator, the one who put the stars in the sky and established the earth. Will you remain in constant dread of human oppression? Will you continue to fear the anger of your enemies from morning till night?
Soon all you captives will be released! Imprisonment, starvation, and death will not be your fate!
For I am the LORD your God, who stirs up the sea, causing its waves to roar. My name is the LORD Almighty.
And I have put my words in your mouth and hidden you safely within my hand. I set all the stars in space and established the earth. I am the one who says to Israel, `You are mine!’
"Wake up, wake up, O Jerusalem! You have drunk enough from the cup of the LORD’s fury. You have drunk the cup of terror, tipping out its last drops.
Not one of your children is left alive to help you or tell you what to do.
These two things have been your lot: desolation and destruction, famine and war. And who is left to sympathize? Who is left to comfort you?
For your children have fainted and lie in the streets, helpless as antelopes caught in a net. The LORD has poured out his fury; God has rebuked them.
But now listen to this, you afflicted ones, who sit in a drunken stupor, though not from drinking wine.
This is what the Sovereign LORD, your God and Defender, says: "See, I am taking the terrible cup from your hands. You will drink no more of my fury. It is gone at last! But I will put that cup into the hands of those who tormented you. I will give it to those who trampled you into the dust and walked on your backs."
3. THE LORD WILL POUR OUT HIS SPIRIT UPON US AND CAUSE US TO BECOME CHANNELS OF BLESSING AND HEALING TO OTHERS.HE WILL CAUSE THE BROKEN DOWN AREAS OF OUR LIFE TO BE REBUILT. HE WILL GRANT US DOUBLE HONOUR FOR ALL THE SHAME AND HUMILIATION WE HAVE FACED.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 61:1-11
" The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, because the LORD has appointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to announce that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed.
He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the LORD’s favor has come, and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies.
To all who mourn in Israel, he will give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, praise instead of despair. For the LORD has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for his own glory.
They will rebuild the ancient ruins, repairing cities long ago destroyed. They will revive them, though they have been empty for many generations.
Foreigners will be your servants. They will feed your flocks and plow your fields and tend your vineyards.
You will be called priests of the LORD, ministers of our God. You will be fed with the treasures of the nations and will boast in their riches.
Instead of shame and dishonor, you will inherit a double portion of prosperity and everlasting joy.
"For I, the LORD, love justice. I hate robbery and wrongdoing. I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering and make an everlasting covenant with them.
Their descendants will be known and honored among the nations. Everyone will realize that they are a people the LORD has blessed.
"I am overwhelmed with joy in the LORD my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom in his wedding suit or a bride with her jewels.
The Sovereign LORD will show his justice to the nations of the world. Everyone will praise him! His righteousness will be like a garden in early spring, filled with young plants springing up everywhere. "
4. THE LORD WANTS TO BE GLORIFIED IN OUR LIVES . HE WANTS TO USE US AS A SPLENDID CROWN IN HIS HAND. HE WANTS US HAVE A NEW NAME. HE WANTS TO CHANGE OUR REPUTATION AND WE WOULD BE KNOWN AS BLESSED PEOPLE.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 62:1-12
"Because I love Zion, because my heart yearns for Jerusalem, I cannot remain silent. I will not stop praying for her until her righteousness shines like the dawn, and her salvation blazes like a burning torch.
The nations will see your righteousness. Kings will be blinded by your glory. And the LORD will give you a new name.
The LORD will hold you in his hands for all to see--a splendid crown in the hands of God.
Never again will you be called the Godforsaken City or the Desolate Land. Your new name will be the City of God’s Delight and the Bride of God,for the LORD delights in you and will claim you as his own.
Your children will care for you with joy, O Jerusalem, just as a young man cares for his bride. Then God will rejoice over you as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.
O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen on your walls; they will pray to the LORD day and night for the fulfillment of his promises. Take no rest, all you who pray.
Give the LORD no rest until he makes Jerusalem the object of praise throughout the earth.
The LORD has sworn to Jerusalem by his own strength: "I will never again hand you over to your enemies. Never again will foreign warriors come and take away your grain and wine.
You raised it, and you will keep it, praising the LORD. Within the courtyards of the Temple, you yourselves will drink the wine that you have pressed.
"Go out! Prepare the highway for my people to return! Smooth out the road; pull out the boulders; raise a flag for all the nations to see.
The LORD has sent this message to every land: "Tell the people of Israel, `Look, your Savior is coming. See, he brings his reward with him as he comes.’
" They will be called the Holy People and the People Redeemed by the LORD. And Jerusalem will be known as the Desirable Place and the City No Longer Forsaken. "
5. THE LORD WANTS US TO RISE AND SHINE. HE PROMISES ABUNDANT PROSPERITY TO ENABLE US TO BUILD HIS KINGDOM . HE WILL GRANT US FAVOUR WITH AUTHORITIES AND SEND US ABLE HELPERS TO FULFILL OUR TASK. HE WILL CAUSE US TO GROW INTO A MIGHTY NATION.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 60:1-22
"Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all the nations to see! For the glory of the LORD is shining upon you.
Darkness as black as night will cover all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the LORD will shine over you.
All nations will come to your light. Mighty kings will come to see your radiance.
"Look and see, for everyone is coming home! Your sons are coming from distant lands; your little daughters will be carried home.
Your eyes will shine, and your hearts will thrill with joy, for merchants from around the world will come to you. They will bring you the wealth of many lands.
Vast caravans of camels will converge on you, the camels of Midian and Ephah. From Sheba they will bring gold and incense for the worship of the LORD.
The flocks of Kedar will be given to you, and the rams of Nebaioth will be brought for my altars. In that day I will make my Temple glorious."
And what do I see flying like clouds to Israel, like doves to their nests?
They are the ships of Tarshish, reserved to bring the people of Israel home. They will bring their wealth with them, and it will bring great honor to the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he will fill you with splendor.
"Foreigners will come to rebuild your cities. Kings and rulers will send you aid. For though I have destroyed you in my anger, I will have mercy on you through my grace.
Your gates will stay open around the clock to receive the wealth of many lands. The kings of the world will be led as captives in a victory procession.
For the nations that refuse to be your allies will be destroyed.
The glory of Lebanon will be yours--the forests of cypress, fir, and pine--to beautify my sanctuary. My Temple will be glorious!
"The children of your tormentors will come and bow before you. Those who despised you will kiss your feet. They will call you the City of the LORD, and Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
"Though you were once despised and hated and rebuffed by all, you will be beautiful forever. You will be a joy to all generations, for I will make you so.
Powerful kings and mighty nations will bring the best of their goods to satisfy your every need. You will know at last that I, the LORD, am your Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel.
I will exchange your bronze for gold, your iron for silver, your wood for bronze, and your stones for iron. Peace and righteousness will be your leaders!
Violence will disappear from your land; the desolation and destruction of war will end. Salvation will surround you like city walls, and praise will be on the lips of all who enter there.
"No longer will you need the sun or moon to give you light, for the LORD your God will be your everlasting light, and he will be your glory.
The sun will never set; the moon will not go down. For the LORD will be your everlasting light. Your days of mourning will come to an end.
All your people will be righteous. They will possess their land forever, for I will plant them there with my own hands in order to bring myself glory.
The smallest family will multiply into a large clan. The tiniest group will become a mighty nation. I, the LORD, will bring it all to pass at the right time."
6. GOD BLESSES US AND DELIVERS US FROM OUR SUFFERING AND HE HEALS OUR MEMORIES . HE MAKES US FRUITFUL IN THE SAME LAND WHERE WE FACED AFFLICTION AND PAIN. HIS DELIVERANCE CAN COME AS A SURPRISE AND LOOK LIKE A DREAM .WE MUST EXPECT MIRACLES TO HAPPEN IN OUR LIVES.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Genesis 41: 51-52
"Joseph named his older son Manasseh, for he said, "God has made me forget all my troubles and the family of my father."
Joseph named his second son Ephraim,for he said, "God has made me fruitful in this land of my suffering."
Psalm 126:1-6
"When the LORD restored his exiles to Jerusalem,it was like a dream!
We were filled with laughter,and we sang for joy. And the other nations said,"What amazing things the LORD has done for them."
Yes, the LORD has done amazing things for us!What joy!
Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert.
Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.
They weep as they go to plant their seed,but they sing as they return with the harvest. "
7. THE LORD WANTS US TO CELEBRATE WITH JOY AND HAPPINESS WHEN HE TURNS OUR CAPTIVITY. WE SHOULD NOT CONTINUE TO BE IN MOURNING ALWAYS .
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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Isaiah 14:3-7
"In that wonderful day when the LORD gives his people rest from sorrow and fear, from slavery and chains,
you will taunt the king of Babylon. You will say, "The mighty man has been destroyed. Yes, your insolence is ended.
For the LORD has crushed your wicked power and broken your evil rule.
You persecuted the people with unceasing blows of rage and held the nations in your angry grip. Your tyranny was unrestrained.
But at last the land is at rest and is quiet. Finally it can sing again! "
Psalms 30:11-12
"You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing.You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy,
that I might sing praises to you and not be silent.O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever! "
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