Kerwin Baptist Church Daily Sermon Broadcast

Welcome to the Kerwin Baptist Church broadcast today. I have sent to Babylon and have brought down all their nobles and the Chaldeans whose cry is in the ships. I don't have time to give you a lot of the history here, but God as he begins to speak to his people, he lets them know that, let me tell you something, I've done some things for you and I did it for your sake. It's been for your good and you will find out later in the passage it was for their good and for God's glory. And that's everything God does. Everything God does in your life is for your good and for his glory.

And when you realize that and claim that promise, it'll make you look at trials differently. Because if God's allowed it in your life, or even if God's done it, it's for your good and it's for God's glory. You say, but it isn't good. He didn't say it was good. It's for your good. He didn't say you're going to enjoy it. He said it's for your sake.

Okay? Now look at verse 15 if you would. I am the Lord, your holy one, the creator of Israel, your king.

Thus saith the Lord, which maketh a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters, which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power. They shall lie down together. They shall not rise. They are extinct.

They are quenched as tow. Notice verse 18. Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

Now wait a minute. In verse 16 and 17 he reminds us of what he did. And then in verse 18 he says remember not the former things.

Seems a bit contradictory. Look at verse 19. Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth. Shall ye not know?

I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Let's pray. Lord, I love you.

I need your help today. And Lord, I pray that you'd help as I share my heart with these precious people in front of me. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. I looked at this passage and realized as God was talking to his people, he was telling them this. I'm going to do a new thing. But there are some things you need to understand.

There are some things you need to know before I do it. And I always look at God's word that way. Some of God's word is for us to establish doctrine. Some of God's word is for us to establish danger. He says all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, which is what you should believe for reproof, which is what you shouldn't believe or what you shouldn't do. Doctrine is what you should do and reproof is what you shouldn't do. And so he goes on with, listen, some I'll get my doctrine from, some you get reproof.

You're told hey this is a danger, some we're just given instruction in righteousness. But notice this passage, God always has a purpose. And here he says I'm going to do a new thing, but why did he tell them the things that he told them before he did it?

So let's notice, number one, and I'd just like to share my heart with just a few minutes this morning here at Kerwin. For God to do a new thing, for us to have a new beginning in a sense, number one, you need to know who I am, God says. You need to know who I am. Before I do this new thing, God says you need to make sure you know who I am. So he begins in verse 15, he lets them know to be clear. He says I am the Lord, your holy one, the creator of Israel, your king.

So he gives them four things. Before he even does a new thing, he makes it clear first you need to know who I am. Notice first he says I am the Lord, this is the word Jehovah, means self-existent. Notice secondly he says your holy one, this word is a Hebrew word called Kaldashe.

And it means this, it means sacred or sanctuary. He said I am your creator. You say well that means obviously he created it and made it. Well that's true, but notice what he said, I'm the creator of Israel. Not only did he create these individuals because he's God, but that word creator here literally means a dispatcher. In other words I didn't just make you, I'm directing you. And he says this, I am your king. This is the Hebrew word Melek and guess what this means, it means king.

So I just wanted to impress you with that knowledge. So preacher what's your point? Well he says I am the Lord, that means he is the champion. He is the center of everything we do. He said I am your holy one, that means he is our covenant.

He is our counselor. He says I am your creator which means he's our creator but he's also our captain because he dispatches us wherever he wants us to go. And then he says I am your king, that means he's in charge.

He controls. So God says before I do a new thing you need to understand and know who I am. So before God does another thing here, a fresh thing here, a new beginning here, you and I need to understand who he is. Because if you and I don't know who he is we're going to doubt what he does. Don't think as a pastor I haven't doubted. Don't think as a pastor, Lord I prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and Lord. Alright Lord I feel like that's what you need us to do and the moment you do it, well Lord I thought you told me why are they so, why don't they like me, why are they upset. You can doubt unless you understand and know who he is. Notice the second thing he says, number two he says you need to know what I can do.

You need to know who I am and you need to know what I can do. Notice verse 16. Thus saith the Lord which maketh a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power.

They shall lie down together, they shall not rise, they are extinct, they are quenched as tow. And I say well what is he saying here, well we know he is telling them what he did, he is talking to the children of Israel and he's getting ready to do a new thing. So he reminds them what he had already done for Israel and as you think back as he's referring here to literally the exodus out of Egypt and as they go to the waters of the Red Sea. He says first here that I made a way in the sea which means I parted the waters then he says this a path in the mighty waters. You say well that's the same thing, no he is saying that I parted the waters but as you walked all the way across I kept the waters back.

Not just waters he says but mighty waters and I'm going to make a point about this. Verse 17 which bringeth forth the chariot, this bringing forth means that literally he took Pharaoh's army, he brought them exactly to where he wanted them to be. He brought them forth, the army, the power, the chariots, the horses, notice this they shall lie down together, he killed them all together.

Put the water right back on them. That's why I know, listen he said that God says I held back the mighty waters that means that those waters were fighting to close back down. And God parted them and held them and then as soon as Pharaoh's army was exactly where God wanted them, God removed his hand.

Here's the deal, everybody says and I have too, this is just a thought, you know how I look at scripture and I enjoy it and I love it. But we always talk about the fact that God drowned Pharaoh's army and all, do you think God really did? Now listen to me, I know they drowned and they were killed but did God really just kill them? Listen to me, God held back those waters for the children of Israel. God didn't have to kill anybody, he just removed his hands. The waters are what, they're the ones that walked in the middle of the sea. God didn't have to drown anybody. He had done what he was supposed to do for the children of Israel, he just removed his hands and those waters just automatically, nature, killed them all. But that's another whole thought.

It's true though, isn't it? So when you say alright preacher, what does all these verses mean? You need to know what I can do. Well the Bible says here that obviously God said I'll make a way in the sea, that means he provides. It says that he made a path in the mighty waters, that means he prevails. But then if you notice that Pharaoh's army brought him right to where they needed to be, God protects. God said before I do a new thing, you need to know that I have power to provide, to prevail, and to protect. But you need to know that before I do a new thing. And if you doubt that, God might not. So you need to understand this.

Notice number three, you must be willing to go forward. You must be willing to go forward, look at verse 18. He said remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. You say well preacher, like you said he just brought back things that he had done, he's reminding them of the past, and then he tells them hey, remember ye not the former things and don't consider the things of old. Well you gotta understand this word remember here in the Hebrew literally means to make mention of or to be mindful of. What he is saying here is don't spend your time dwelling on everything that God has done. You need to know what God has done so that you can now look forward with confidence. We don't remember what God has done so that we can just stop and keep looking at the past because God did it. No, we see in the past that God did it, but don't stay mindful of that.

Don't let that control your mind now. You need to look ahead because if God did that then, imagine what he could do now. And then he says this obviously, he says consider not the things of old or the former things. This word consider means to separate mentally.

Former means things that were before. And then he's saying this, you need to learn to mentally separate that okay this happened and you know what when you need to realize and remember that God is able, you can remember hey he did this in the past but you need to separate that mentally. You don't live in the past, you take that knowledge to use for the future.

Everybody understand that? God's been really good to Kerwin Baptist Church. But if God could have done that these past 78 years, imagine what God can do the next 50. Now even if I'm alive, I'm not going to be with you for the next 50. Now you know I might be a member still. I doubt it because Lord knows if one of my staff becomes the pastor I'm leaving.

I'm going to tell you that right now. Especially Ben Perkins if he becomes the pastor. Ben's like I'm going to leave before I become the pastor of this church. Listen to me, if God did that then, if you look back to our history wow, but that's not there so that we can just look back and say and this is what this passage means, things were better for us in the past. Now there might be things you prefer about the past. There are some things I prefer about the past. But that doesn't mean that I have the right now to live in the past. It means if God did this in the past you can appreciate it and enjoy it all you want to.

But the only reason God did those things in the past is to bring you where you are now so that you can then look forward and when you know God wants to do a new thing and you begin to doubt him you begin to think no but God did this back then I know that I can trust him to do this now. So you have to be willing to move forward if you're content to stay there well then God can't do a new thing. But you've got to be willing to move forward.

Now I'm going to tell you it's not always easy it's uncomfortable sometimes to move forward. But that doesn't mean bad change. And you remember years ago I preached here that change isn't wrong the wrong change is wrong. Life changes. You say well I don't agree with change. You don't look the same now you did 10 years ago. You're changing.

Well I don't like the change I don't like adding this. Well you changed. You didn't have as much nose hair five years ago. Your ears didn't look like Chewbacca five years ago but you know what?

They do now. Things change. Okay I don't know how I came up with all that I don't know I need to get on the point. You have to be willing to go forward. Number four almost done.

You must be willing to be part of it. Now I love this is my favorite part of this. Now there's still two more after but they're not my favorite. Look at verse 19. Behold he says I will do a new thing now it shall spring forth and then he asked this question. Shall ye know it?

Now that struck me a little different. Because he's just been he's been making statements this whole time and all of a sudden he asked he engages them he asked them a question. Shall ye know it? So I said well I got to understand what this word know means and then you know what this word know means? It means to be acquainted with. What does it mean to be acquainted with? It means this God's saying are you going to be part of it?

Or are you not? I'm going to do a new thing. It's going to spring forth. Are you going to be part of it?

Shall ye not know it? And dear friend I'm here to say listen I believe it on my heart God wants to do a new thing here at Kerwin Baptist Church. Not a new thing that takes us down a different direction than we've been traveling. God's been too good to us on this direction for us to start changing. God's been too faithful to this church for us to become the kind of church that we are not. Listen God's been too faithful. There's enough of those choices out there. Listen God's made us who we are.

He's been faithful to us. We ought to continue to get better and grow better and not be content. But it doesn't mean that we need to change all kinds of directions of things. Let me tell you something.

God wants to do a fresh thing in you. But you have to be willing to be part of it. You know a better attitude.

You're not going to be part of anything. You can convince yourself how right you are about however many things you want. And that's what we humans do.

We convince ourselves we're right about things. But listen God's going to do a new thing. He wants you to be a part of it. And I'm asking you as a pastor. Listen I'm asking God as good as he's been to give us a new beginning. God give us a new touch, a new vision, a new energy, a new strength. And give us a new burden. And God help us to get back out and do some of the things that we used to do and know we should do. And give us a new faithfulness and a new commitment and a new attitude about things. I'm asking you on the 8th year. It might not be your 8th year or whatever. I'm asking you on the 8th year of my pastorate.

Would you let some things go? That's been bothering you for a long time. You get around individuals and people long enough including a pastor. You can get agitated with some things.

Don't think that would shock me. I'm shocked at how nice you are to me. I'm being honest with you. Because really the horror stories I hear from pastors.

Kerwin's been wonderful to me. But I'm human. And I'm not just human. I'm beyond human. I was raised by Dan Haughtry.

So who knows what might take place day to day. But you've been patient. You've loved me. You've prayed for my family. You've prayed for my children. Which means the most to me. You've been good to my family.

You've been good to me. This has been a very easy church to pastor. Pastoring's not easy.

But this church makes it as easy as it could possibly be. I'm just asking if there's some things that have built up and I don't like that. Would you consider allowing God to give us a new beginning today?

Would you consider? It doesn't mean that you might not be right. It just means could we make the greater good and can we make God's new work that he wants to begin. And all the people God wants to reach and different things. Could we make that bigger than us and could we just have a new start?

Now I don't know a lot of that but if there is, listen, you would know. Like I said, you might be right. I wouldn't blame you one bit. I don't even like myself half the time. But I'm saying with individuals or even with your pastor, maybe today we could just push the reset button. Say it's time for a new beginning. I'm going to let that go.

I don't really like it and I don't really but you know what God for your sake and for your glory. I'm going to reset that. You have to be willing to be a part of it. Now notice this. He says if you're willing to be a part of it, notice these two things he says he's going to do. First he says I will do a new thing. That word new literally in the Hebrew means this, fresh. It means fresh.

It doesn't mean that he's going to all of a sudden we're just changing. He said I'm going to make it fresh. In other words, listen, there's a fresh touch. There's a fresh anointing. I'm going to do something fresh. I'm going to do something greater than what was done.

I'm going to go above and beyond and further. Didn't God even say that he's given us life more abundant? More abundant than what?

More abundant than before. That means God never looks back as if it was better back then. God's always looking ahead.

He says I will do something fresh. Now let me tell you, and I love this, just a couple minutes done. I know our time but listen, I've only been preaching for 21 minutes.

I've watched it. 21 minutes, that's not long at all. It's my anniversary. I've got to hang that picture somewhere in my presence. So listen, you need to give me 10 more minutes. No, it's not going to take 10 more minutes. Don't change that plaque, by the way. You leave it. That's Brother Joe's picture. That'll be precious to me and I've joked about it but I will. I'll keep that.

That's honorable that Brother Joe would be that thoughtful and considerate to give that to me and I miss Brother Joe when he's not able to be here. Look at this. He says I'll do something fresh. Look, in this passage, just these verses we've read, look at these two things God did. First he says I will make a way in the sea and a path in mighty waters. Then at the end, notice if you would down to verse 19, he said I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Are you looking at me? That means in one situation God put dry ground in the middle of water and in the other situation God put water in the middle of dry ground.

Have you ever seen that? It's like God's like I don't care where you're at, what you need. If you need that, I can do that and if you need that, I can do that. Maybe your life's dry right now and you need some streams in that desert. I can do that or maybe life's overtaking you right now and I can hold back those waters for you to get through on dry ground.

Whatever it takes, I can do a new thing. Listen, what if, what if I'm traveling in the desert and I'm saying boy it sure would be nice to have a stream somewhere I could get a drink. But you know I look back and let me tell you what God did in the past. God took a sea and he pulled the waters back but that doesn't help me right now because I'm in the desert. That's what God means I'll do something fresh. You see right back here, they needed the waters to part. They needed dry ground to walk on. But way over here in the wilderness and in the desert, they needed a stream or a river in the middle of dry ground.

Wherever you're at, God has what you need. You got to be willing to be part of it. He said I'll do something fresh. Notice secondly he says I'll do something fruitful. This little phrase he says now it shall spring forth and I thought well that has to be like a spring of water. We're talking about water here. I looked it up and as always I'm wrong. You know what this word spring means?

It means to grow, to sprout. Now can I tell you where a really hard place to grow something is in the middle of the desert. But that's why God put the river there. You see God didn't just put it there just to show you he could do something.

He always has a purpose. He said I'm not just going to do a fresh thing. I'm going to do something that bears fruit. You see I'm going to put that river in that desert because you need to grow something. I wish I had time to develop all this.

My time's gone this morning but you're like well it probably didn't hurt. It's not good as it is. Probably not going to get any better. Number five, you must be willing to follow. You must be willing to follow. Look at verse 19. Behold I'll do a new thing. It shall spring forth. Shall ye not know it? Will ye not be a part of it? Notice this. I will even make a way in the wilderness. It's this. God I trust you.

I'll follow you. Yeah but there's no way in that wilderness. I mean that's ground that you can't travel. You can't just take off and journey through that. God said he would make a way. But what you and I have to do is not be able to understand it or to justify it. We just need to follow. And notice number six. We must be willing to follow by faith.

This is what he says. I will even make a way in the wilderness. And guess what that includes? Even rivers in the desert. It means this that okay God said go here I'm just going to follow. You and I have to have enough faith that even when we enter deserts in our life we must have faith as we follow that if God has to he can put a river right in the middle of a desert. God's grace is sufficient.

He said that every need will be supplied. And you and I we don't just need to follow. I know a lot of Christians that are following God but they don't have much faith.

It means as I follow you. Listen to me as you follow God in the wilderness there's going to be some times that things are going to come up and you're not going to understand it. Oh wow I must have turned wrong. God must be leading me wrong. I must have missed something somewhere because if I was in God's will this wouldn't have happened.

Oh don't get nervous. I know that as you're journeying through the wilderness and you're following God you've ended up in a desert somewhere. But you have to have faith that God can put a river there if he has to. God said if you do these things I'll do a new thing. A fresh thing. And I'm ready for it. I'm ready for it. I might not be tomorrow but I'm ready for it today. I want you to see this quote that I found.

And I'll close this morning. I thought this was interesting as I was kind of looking up this passage. I found one quote and I don't know who put it. So I wish I could give credit to it. But I thought this was interesting.

Look at it with me if you would. God promises to do yet greater things for them than he had done in the days of old. So that they should not have reason to ask in a way of complaint like Gideon did. And you go back in the Bible this is exactly what Gideon said. Where are all the wonders that our fathers told us of? You've always talked about the past and how great things were. Where's all that? Listen look at this phrase.

He's talking about this particular instance here in Isaiah 43. So that they should see them repeated? No. That they should see them? That they should see them outdone. We've had some fantastic days. Many of which I wasn't part of.

Some of them I was. But I don't want to just see God repeat it. I want to see God outdo himself. God did not tell us about the past so that we could just see him repeat it. Because of what he had done.

So that we could see him do greater. Lord I love you this morning. And God I guess it's a little bit desperation of a pastor asking his people to join me as we try by faith to follow where God has led. I certainly don't understand and Lord I still have my questions and my concerns and all those things. At some point Lord I have to just follow.

And at some point of following I have to just follow by faith. At some point the rivers weren't there in the desert but eventually that's exactly what you did. And God we need rivers in the desert right now. We need a path in the wilderness. We need the waters to part. We need you to provide. We need wisdom.

We need all kinds of things. And Lord I just want to thank you for everything you've done. We will never overlook that. We will always praise you for what you have done. Lord I want to be part of it and I want to be willing to go forward. And God I want to see you do a new fresh fruitful thing here at Kerwin Baptist Church.

And we're asking you to do that. Thank you Lord for this church and these people. What a blessing they are to me.

Thank you for listening today. We hope you received a blessing from our broadcast. The Kerwin Baptist Church is located at 4520 Old Hollow Road in Kernersville, North Carolina. You may also contact us by phone at 336-993-5192 or via the web at KerwinBaptistChurch.com. Enjoy our services live and all our media on our website and church app. Thank you for listening to the Kerwin broadcast today. God bless you.