Walking Down God's Paths.

Walking on the other side of God’s open doors.

Last week I talked about

The distinctive call of God.

Grasping the handle on the door that God wants you to open.

I said that:- THERE ARE CERTAIN DOORWAYS THAT YOU WALK THROUGH THAT CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR EVER.

There is the doorway of your playcentre or Kindergarten where you enter the world of education and socialisation with your peers on a large scale.

God too leads us through particular doorways that can change your life.

It is one thing to receive the invitation to enter a new life - but the question comes up - having made the decision to follow God’s call in a particular direction - what happens next.

Perhaps as a result of last weeks sermon you were able to see some direction that God is calling you to go this year.

But having made that decision to go in a certain direction you may well ask - What happens next.

The first thing that happens to Moses - - is that he has doubts - actually it possibly is before he steps through the door - but he has doubts none the less.

His doubts are in the area of his ability to convince his own people and his enemies that God sent him.

God gives him the ability to do what he now cannot see himself doing.

Firstly he gives him miraculous signs -

read vverse 2-5

In Jesus ministry too God acts outside of peoples normal experience in such a way that grabs peoples attention.

In the gospels there are many examples of Jesus doing this - the feeding of the five thousand and the raising of Lazerus from the dead being two outstanding examples.

In John chapter 14 we read Jesus speaking of the holy Spirit:-

And I will ask the Father and he will give you another counsellor to be with you forever - the spirit of truth -

In verse 12 he reassures his followers I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

Who will do these things:-

jesus says anyone who has faith in me -

if we are living the life of faith we can expect to see spiritual evidence.

An outstanding man of faith is the life of the 20th century preacher Smith Wigglesworth - signs of God’s presence in his life followed him.

In Acts chapter 19 verses 11 and 12 he talks of the apostle Paul praying over handkerchiefs and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.

A woman came to him - and remember that this man of God had no great theological training he had been a plumber before entering into his ministry:-

The woman came and said "I would like you to pray for my husband. he comes home drunk every night,"

"To tell his story:

She opened her bag and bought out a handkerchief. I laid my hands upon it, prayed in the Name of jesusand gave it back to her. "What shall I do with it?" she asked.

"Place it upon his pillow," I answered.

"But he will be drunk."

"It makes no difference, he will have his drunken head on the promises of God."

She took the handkerchief and placed it on the pillow. he came home drunk.

he awoke in the morning and set off for the first saloon for a beer. Instantly he was convinced that there was poison in the beer. He said to the bartender, What have you done to the beer."

"I have done nothing to it," the man answered.

"I know you have. I wouldn’t take it for the world."

he went to another place, called for a glass of beer again, and was more convinced than ever that there was poison in it. He said to the man, "Why has all Liverpool agreed to poison me?"

He worked all morning and at noon, as usual, went to the saloon to get his beer for lunch. This time he was convinced that liverpool had agreed to poison him. He talked so much about it, he was asked to leave the place.

At night he was determined not to go home without the beer. This time he was so enraged at the people who served him the beer, convinced it contained poison, that they had to throw him out of that place.

He went home without a drink and his wife said, "My dear, why are you home so early?"

"You ought to pray for me," he said.

"Oh I am."

"But you know all Liverpool has agreed to poison me.

As he told her the story, she said, "Can’t you see how the grace of God has covered you today Can’t you see how you have been delivered?"