"Beyond The Moment"
Pastor Albert Almore
Last Sunday we lifted up a scripture that caught my attention, that I want to launch from this morning. Deuteronomy 30:19 reads,
“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, THAT BOTH YOU AND YOUR DESCENDANTS may live;”
Deuteronomy 30:19 NKJV
God’s focus in this scripture wasn’t just on an individual. God’s focus was on the descendants, the generations to come.
📝 While we often think here and now, God thinks in terms of GENERATIONS.
📝 While we often think here and now, God thinks BEYOND THE MOMENT.
Today’s Message
BEYOND THE MOMENT
Genesis 17:7…
“And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants AFTER YOU IN THEIR GENERATIONS, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants AFTER YOU.”
Genesis 17:7 NKJV
Exodus 3:13-14…
“Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”” Exodus 3:13-14 NKJV
“Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial TO ALL GENERATIONS.’”
Exodus 3:15 NKJV
While we often think here and now, God thinks in terms of GENERATIONS.
📝 Thinking in terms of generations is greater than thinking in terms of your individual LIFETIME.
How not to think…
“Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Listen to this message from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: ‘The time is coming when everything in your palace—all the treasures stored up by your ancestors until now—will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.”
Isaiah 39:5-6 NLT
“‘Some of YOUR VERY OWN SONS will be taken away into exile. They will become eunuchs who will serve in the palace of Babylon’s king.’””
Isaiah 39:7 NLT
“Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “This message you have given me from the Lord is good.” For the king was thinking, “AT LEAST THERE WILL BE PEACE AND SECURITY DURING MY LIFETIME.””
Isaiah 39:8 NLT
What about your very own sons? What about their children’s, children? Are you not going to fight for that?
“In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ ” Then Hezekiah TURNED HIS FACE TOWARD THE WALL, and prayed to the Lord, and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.”
Isaiah 38:1-3 NKJV
“And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying, “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.”
Isaiah 38:4-5 NKJV
Hezekiah, you turned your face to the wall and pleaded for your life, but you wouldn’t turn your face to the wall and plead for your descendants, and the generations that were coming behind you. WHY? All because you couldn’t think, see, BEYOND yourself.
📝 Motion Church, as we look around, and as we see families of 3-4 generations in our midst, we should be encouraged! We should be encouraged, we should be excited, but we also should be burdened to STEWARD THIS MOMENT WELL.
Earlier we sang promises, and great is thy faithfulness, because we’re living in the promises of God. We’ve seen how great is thy faithfulness.
📝 We steward this moment well, by making sure IT DOESN’T STOP WITH US.
📝 • Share our STORY.
“O my people, listen to my instructions. Open your ears to what I am saying, for I will speak to you in a parable. I will teach you hidden lessons from our past— STORIES we have heard and known, STORIES our ancestors HANDED DOWN TO US.”
Psalms 78:1-3 NLT
“We will not hide these truths from our children; WE WILL TELL THE NEXT GENERATION about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.”
Psalms 78:4 NLT
📝 • Share our FAITH.
We must share our faith, how we put our faith in Jesus. Our anchor to the ground. Our hope & firm foundation. He’ll never let us down.
“Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, UNTIL I DECLARE YOUR STRENGTH TO THIS GENERATION, Your power to everyone WHO IS TO COME.”
Psalms 71:18 NKJV
“LET THIS BE RECORDED FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, so that a people not yet born will praise the Lord.”
Psalms 102:18 NLT
EACH GENERATION WILL ANNOUNCE TO THE NEXT your wonderful and powerful deeds.
Psalm 145:4 CEV
Here’s why this is important…
“So the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord which He had done for Israel. Now Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died when he was one hundred and ten years old.”
Judges 2:7-8 NKJV
“And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Heres, in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash.”
Judges 2:9 NKJV
“When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, ANOTHER GENERATION AROSE AFTER THEM WHO DID NOT KNOW THE LORD
NOR THE WORK WHICH HE HAD DONE….”
Judges 2:10 NKJV
📝 • Share our BLESSINGS.
“A good man LEAVES AN INHERITANCE to his children’s children...”
Proverbs 13:22 NKJV
“I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; AND YOU SHALL BE A BLESSING.”
Genesis 12:2 NKJV
📝 According to Genesis 12:2, there’s an expectation to BE A BLESSING with what we’ve been blessed with.
📝 Our church can be a blessing through what we’ll be calling our BEYOND FUND.
Simply put, our BEYOND FUND, transcends a BUILDING FUND. Because after the building fund….NOW WHAT?
Yes these funds will help us secure our church loan of 2.5 million dollars, but these funds will go beyond that.
BEYOND THE BUILDING FUND…
People are the big picture.
The unborn are the big picture.
Faith inheritors is the big picture.
A debt free inheritance is the big picture.
Community Development is the big picture.
Future Disaster Relief efforts is the big picture.
Social development is the big picture.
Economic development is the big picture.
Transformative Thinking is the big picture.
📝 It’s not about a building as much as it’s about who we’re BUILDING in the building.
“…upon this rock I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
Matthew 16:18 KJV
““Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can BUILD YOU UP and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”
Acts 20:32 NIV
Therefore encourage one another and BUILD ONE ANOTHER UP, just as you are doing.
1Thessalonians 5:11 ESV
📝 What the generations to come will learn in the building, will take them far BEYOND THE BUILDING.
In order to get there, we must live beyond ourselves and share our blessings. If a good man LEAVES AN INHERITANCE to his children’s children, then how much more can a collective group of believers leave behind when we put our hearts and minds to it?
“Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as A MEMORIAL to her.””
Mark 14:9 NKJV
📝 You aren’t remembered by what you KEEP. You’re remembered by what you GIVE.
HOW WILL YOU BE REMEMBERED?
While we often think here and now, God thinks in terms of GENERATIONS. While we often think here and now, God thinks BEYOND THE MOMENT. While we often think solely of ourselves, God is thinking of our children’s children.
“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Speak to Aaron AND HIS SONS, saying, ‘This is the way you shall BLESS THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. Say to them:”
Numbers 6:22-23 NKJV
““The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’”
Numbers 6:24-26 NKJV
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