When You're Going Through, I'm Gonna Be With You

The speaker is discussing a passage from the book of Isaiah, specifically verses 1-5 in chapter 43. They emphasize that God is with us during difficult times and will protect us from harm. They also mention that many people today have rejected God's ways and are suffering as a result. However, they believe that through the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, God's restoration is still available to us. The speaker encourages listeners to have faith and take action, rather than being stagnant. They remind listeners to focus on God rather than the challenges around them. They conclude by saying that to reach our destination, we must go through storms and difficulties, but God is always with us. This morning I ask you again to go with me to the book of Isaiah, focusing once again on chapter 43, and this morning I would like to specifically share with you verses 1-5. For anybody who's reading the word from the King James Version, it is the one that I'm basically reading from, I hope that there will be some paraphrasing because I want to clarify the word of God at least for my understanding and for your appreciation, so there may be some nuances that take us out of the references that oftentimes reminds me of Shakespeare. Let me begin at verse 1. But now, thus says Yahweh, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel, fear not, for I have redeemed you, I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, neither shall the flames scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for you, since you were precious in my sight, you have been honorable, and I have loved thee, I have loved you, therefore will I give men for you and people for your life. Fear not, for I am with you. May God bless the hearers of his word, and may he bless us to comprehend it in a way that we can apply it and walk in his perfect will. I pray that God will speak to us, that we may hear him, that he will show himself to us, that we may see him, and that he will glorify himself within us, that we'll be about his business as the full-grown sons and daughters of the Most High God. Amen. This morning, from those verses, the thought that was given to me, and it's one that I speak to myself, and I hope that it edifies you as well, but the thought is this. This is the Lord saying this unto us. When you're going through, when you're going through, when you're going through, I'm going to be with you. When you're going through, I'm going to be with you. Let that marinate and stick within your heart, your soul, your mind, and strength. When you're going through, I'm going to be with you. As I mentioned on last week, when we review chapter 42 of the book of Isaiah, the prophet writes about Yahweh's open rebuke of his people, as they have openly rejected him and defiantly refused to govern themselves accordingly, and they have failed to walk in his perfect will. And I would submit that in the year 2023, we're still suffering from that. We're still embedded, if you will, in this situational awareness, in this situational awareness that we have openly rejected the Father through the Son Jesus Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit, and we have decided that no, God's way is not necessarily applicable to me and to my life and to my finances and to my health and to my relationships and what have you in 2023. So we're, in much respect, no different than the Old Testament church. But as we move to chapter 43, Isaiah gives us the good news of transparency, transition, transformation, and transfer. We talked about it last week. And he gives us this good news, this gospel, when he says, but now, hallelujah, Yahweh's speaking to us, but now, I have created you, I have formed you, I have redeemed you, I have called you by your name, and you are mine. This morning I submit to you that through the blood of the Lord Jesus and the comfort of the Holy Ghost, I believe that the good news still prevails in June of 2023, and yes, we can proclaim as well as Prophet Isaiah, but now, hallelujah, in the beginning, I created you by the word, I formed you with the blood of Jesus, I have redeemed you by faith, I have called you by name, and by grace, by God's amazing grace, you are mine. Just to add on, and when you're going through, hallelujah, I'm going to be with you. When you're going through, I'm going to be with you. In this hour, I believe the Holy Spirit would have us to hear and comprehend through the prophetic and timely message of the Prophet Isaiah, that in this era of God's great revival, the Father is pouring out upon us even more the mercies, the tender mercies of his restoration. And this morning, I'm just here to publish and to proclaim that there is something better than reparation. I know that tomorrow we'll be celebrating, I should say, later on this month, we'll be celebrating Juneteenth, and I just want to say to all of us that there is something better than reparation. This morning, we have his restoration, there is something better than somebody else giving me some money when I find the prosperity of God. So again, when we are going through, the Father is reminding us, but now, I'm going to be with you. So we look back at the text, and we go to verse 2, and Prophet Isaiah preaches to us this morning, and he declares, when you pass through the waters, I will be with you. And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, neither shall the flame scorch you. In this season, hallelujah, of the Father's revival and restoration, know here that the word does not speak to if. No, no, no, it doesn't speak to if you pass through the waters, if you walk through the rivers, or if you walk through the fire. The prophet does not suggest if. Hallelujah. The prophet says, when, my God, my God, when you pass through the elements of life, the waters, the rivers, and the fire, hallelujah, I'll be with you. Hallelujah. He's still with us. Hallelujah. He said, I'm going to send you another comforter. Thank God for the paraclete, the helper, the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, hallelujah, we're not alone. He has not, Jesus I'm speaking of, Jesus has not left us comfortless. We have the Holy Spirit that has been invited into our presence already. I know, I know, I know it may be difficult for us to accept at times, especially as we are confronting the perilous elements of our world and our times, but in the Father's creative act of restoration, yes, we're going through the same things. Of the waters and the rivers and the fire. But while we're going through, God is saying, I've got an end game. I'm singing restoration. Hallelujah. He's singing reconciliation. He's seeking and singing revival. And yes, so we don't forget about this, that even when we're going through, He's still requiring for us to do something. He's still requiring us to pass through it and to walk through it. Hallelujah. I'm reminded that old Deborah, several weeks ago, she preached about inertia. Hallelujah. The Ecclesia, the Ecclesia often is plagued by the spirit of inertia. And we often are hearers of the word, but at the same time, we ain't doers of the work. Hallelujah. The word needs to go to the work. Hallelujah. Faith without works. Hallelujah. Faith without works is dead. Faith without taking advantage of the wisdom of the doctors, it can lead to death. Faith without taking advantage of interest compounded daily with your investments, it can lead to financial death. Faith without wisdom. Because many people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge because they have rejected knowledge. When we are walking, we claim by faith, but without wisdom, it will lead to death. Faith without taking advantage of the diet that God has prescribed and placed on the menu, it leads to physical and to spiritual death. Sin that came in because of improper diet. That's why we're still suffering from heart disease. He said to his people, these people worship me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. That's why we're suffering from heart disease. But now, hallelujah, I believe that in this hour, the Father is speaking to the Ecclesia to snap out of it. Snap out of it. Snap out of it. Snap out of this mind control. Oftentimes, we're so focused on the perilous elements around us. Whatever the waters represent to you, whatever the rivers represent to you, whatever the fire represents to you, just snap out of it. Don't focus on the elements. Hallelujah. Focus on the Creator who made the elements. And he can speak to the elements as he spoke to the elements and brought them into existence. He will speak to them again while we're going through. So snap out of it. Snap out of it. All foolish things who have bewitched you that you should not obey the truth. And we know that the truth is in Jesus. All foolish. Hallelujah. Church people who have got your mind twisted that you should not obey the truth. That means you got to go from one word to the other. The good news this morning, hallelujah, comes to destroy the yoke and the spell of inertia. The yoke and the witchcraft, the mind control of inertia. The anointing comes to destroy the yoke and the spell of inactivity. The yoke and spell of not doing what God already told you to do. The yoke and the spell of itching ears but no evidence of fruit. Hallelujah. You've got to move from word to words. So we've got to snap out of it. Snap out of it and recognize in this era of God's great revival and his restoration that to get to, we've got to get through. To get to, we've got to get through. To get to, we've got to go through the storm and the rain. The torrent, the torrential rains of life will come. The traumatic winds of life will blow. And yet through it all, I'm reminded of Bishop Ignatius Senior. He would remind us and preach, but that's all right. The winds will come, hallelujah. The winds may blow, but that's all right. Hallelujah. Some of us, hallelujah, who are on the line, we can remember so fondly, hallelujah. The deacon would say, testimony service is yours until you cutting up, hallelujah. And during testimony service, one of the saints could stand up and sing a song. And I'm thinking this morning of a song and it would go basically, that's all right. That's all right. That's all right. That's all right. As long as I know I got a seat in the kingdom, that's all right. And then they would go on and some of them would say, you can talk about me as much as you please. The more you talk, the more I'm going to bend my knees because I know I got a seat in the kingdom. That's all right. And I'm so glad to have been brought up around some people who were sincere. Everything wasn't perfect, but they were sincere. And the saints that I grew up with, they had a different disposition, a different countenance, a different air of faith and confidence. They had a different swag, if you will. They're pulling it to a God of restoration that even though they were going through, hallelujah, they were going to get to. They knew that they were going to make it, hallelujah, because God said so. And even when the resources seemed to be limited, they knew that they were connected to the source of God who is unlimited. And their lives, their lives, at least to me, their lives represented and embodied the message of prophet Isaiah to God's redeemed people. Going back to verse 2, when you pass through the waters of an oppressive system, if you will, I will be with you. And when you're passing through the rivers of organized injustice inside and outside of the church, they shall not overflow you. And when you walk through, if you will, the fire of poverty and the fire of ignorance and the fire of illness and diseases, when you walk through the fire of dangers seen and unseen, I believe that the saints could hear the great Jehovah saying, you shall not be burned. Neither shall the flame scorch you, for I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Since you were precious in my sight, hallelujah, you have been honorable, and I have loved you. Therefore I give men and I'll give women, I'll give people for you and people for your life, fear not. I'm so glad to know some saints, hallelujah. They've got this kind of swag and they can go into a hostile work environment, if you will, and with them they carry this message. Fear not, for I am with you. Hallelujah. Family, I believe that back in the day, I believe, hallelujah, that back in the day where they encouraged and lifted the saints in their sincerity and in their boldness is this thought that when you are going through, the Lord promises, I'm going to be with you. I'm going to be with you. When you're going through, I'm going to be with you. I'm not going to leave you. I'm not going to forsake you. I'm going to be with you. Fear not, for I am with you. And the redeem of the Lord, I'm not talking about any particular race. I'm not talking about any particular socioeconomic, hallelujah, level. I'm not talking about your education and your degree. I'm just talking about the redeeming of the Lord. It's now, hallelujah, time for the redeem of the Lord to say so and in our faith to declare with a steadfast hope, harmonized in the wisdom of Christ, that to get to, we still got to get through this. Get to, we still got to get through. Hallelujah. I heard him say to me this morning, but what sayeth it? Hallelujah, the word is near you, even in your mouth and in your heart. That is the word of faith which we preach. But what sayeth it? I believe that David had that experience, but what sayeth it, David? The word is an idea. And so he penned these words that we find in Psalm 23, and David says, the Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the path of righteousness for his name's sake. Yay, hallelujah. And this is why we got to get to by going through. Yay, though I walk. No spirit of inertia here. No spirit of inactivity here. Yay, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Hallelujah. I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. And I like this part here, y'all. You prepare a table. God, you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house. I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Hallelujah. This morning, in my christological mind, I believe that David is saying to us that the Lord told him, David, when you're going through, I'm going to be with you. When you're walking through the valley of the shadow of death, I'm going to be with you, and not only just be with you, hallelujah, because it goes on to verse 5 in Psalm 23, I'm going to prepare a table for you. Oh, thank God for Jesus. I'm going to prepare a table for you. I mean, it goes on to say, not in the absence of your enemies. That's not what the verse says, but it says, I'm going to prepare a table before you in the presence of your enemies. And I hope that the ecclesia is listening along with me this morning. Family, we got to get through to get to, we got to get through to get to the prepared table. Family, our Father is a God, a great God of restoration, not only now, but also in the eternal world to come. But even in this life, He is preparing a table for us in the presence of, hallelujah, folk who don't like us, folk who can't stand us, folk who are talking about us, but He's still going to prepare the table. And family, I don't know about you, but in the perfect world, I just want to be in this perfect world, but I'm not talking about outside of the world, but inside of this perfect world, family, I want it all. I want it all. I want it natural and supernatural. I want it in the spirit realm and in this realm. And I don't know about you, and I hope you want it too, but in this life, I want abundant health. And I want abundant safety and security. I want life and life more of abundant labor as I go through to get to, hallelujah. I want a seat in His kingdom. I want a seat in His kingdom. In Jeremiah chapter 30, verse 17, that particular prophet, he wrote this in terms of restoration. And so if there's anybody on the line who may be suffering from any type of illnesses and sickness, hallelujah, chapter 30, verse 17, Jeremiah said this, For I will restore health unto you, and I will heal you of your wounds. I'm so glad that the writer said that by his stripes, talking about Jesus, we are healed. I'm so glad that we're with a God who can restore our health, and He can apply His healing balm on our wounds. Because He knows, He knows, He knows, in this life, we take some bumps. In this life, we bear some bruises. Hallelujah, the life that we have. In 23, we engage often the perilous elements of the waters, of the river, of the fire. In this present world, it's a struggle, family. We're not trying to discount the struggles. We fight not against flesh and blood. We fight against an organized system of spiritual crime and the dawn, hallelujah, if your will is Satan himself. However, we've got some good news, family. Because of our personal relationship with Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide. And because of our personal relationship with Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is peace. The word comes today and proclaims it again. That even in sickness, when you're going through, I'm going to be with you. You can be in the hospital, but I'm going to be with you. You can be in the nursing home, but I don't want to be with you. And as I try to bring this message to a close, help us Holy Ghost, we go to Psalm 51. We read the words of David as he gives us his personal testimony. After the prophet Nathan came to David and told him about his indiscretion with Bathsheba, David put himself on blast. And he composed his own personal prose, if your will, a song of transparency, transition, transformation, and transfer. He writes a song that actually flows out of his own personal transgressions and trauma and despair. And we read in Psalm 51, he says this, have mercy upon me, O God, according to your lovingkindness, according unto the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions, wash me, through me from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against me, O you, have I sinned, and done this evil in your sight, that you might be justified when you speak, and be clear when you judge. Behold, I was shaped in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, you desire truth in the inner part, and in the hidden part you shall make me to know wisdom. Purge me with this up, and I shall be clean. Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which you have broken may rejoice. Hide your face from my sin, and blot out all my iniquities. And I love, as we go to verse 10, create in me. It's personal now, create in me. Create in Averdeen. Create in whatever your name is, or the only like. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a light spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free spirit. Then will I teach transgressions your ways, and sinners shall be converted unto you. My dear family, my dear brothers and sisters, to the saints of the Most High God, as we look up to the Word, and look into ourselves by grace through faith, fear not. For the Father, the Son, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, they are with us. They are with us to help us to get through as we get to the table. They're with us to help us get through what we need to get to so we can get into this beauty of holiness. And when you're going through, just remind yourself, when you're going through, I'm gonna be with you. Just remind yourself when you're going through, hallelujah, I'm gonna be with you. Amen. Amen.