Sermon Tone Analysis

- This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David.

What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open: 8 “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close.

You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.

As we come to the close of another year, the older we get, the faster they seem to go, looking back, we’ve had some highs, some lows and some in betweens.

We’ve had people come, we’ve had people go, and we’ve had some that were just passing through.

We have ministry partners who continue to sow into the ministry.

We were faithful in the great commission and evangelized, we went door to door, to the mall, to parking lots and through our contacts.

We were faithful with our Bible study and we Experienced God.

The God Guys and God Girls had outings and activities and the church did an outing to an Apple Orchard.

The Ladies of Love were born and went on their first retreat.

The Intercessory Prayer ministry began and is still going strong, every week.

We showed ourselves to be responsible citizens, taking part in our community and registering people to vote.

We celebrated five years in existence and look forward to the next five and beyond.

We’ve been few in number, but we’ve been faithful and we’ve been blessed.

God doesn’t need a whole lot of people, He just needs a few willing, dedicated people to tell a dying world about a Saviour who died to save their soul.

Jesus chose 12 men to teach and follow him and a whole world was changed through their trials and tribulations.

The Ladies of Love were born and went on their first retreat

We’ve been few, but we’ve been faithful

It hasn’t always been easy, it hasn’t always been encouraging, in fact if I can be transparent and I can only speak for me, there were some times, I felt a little discouraged and frustrated, then I remembered God didn’t say the way would be easy, He said He’d be with me through it all.

There were days when I had to encourage myself in the Lord and there were days when he sent someone my way to encourage me.

All in all, 2017 was a wonderful year and now as we prepare to close the door on it and open the door to 2018, we do it with expectation and anticipation of what God is going to do in, with and for the Love Christian Center family as a whole and individually.

Family I’m here to tell you this morning the more you put into your walk with Christ, the more you will get out of your walk with Christ.

When you commit yourself wholly; completely to the Lord and His purpose for your life, you’ll find that God will open the windows of heaven and pour you out blessings you won’t have room to receive.

Our Scripture text is talking about doors.

Doors have many functions, they keep people and things out and they keep people and things in.

They can be decorative, functional, sliding, rolling, french, double, single, or barn doors.

They can be made of glass, wood, metal or composite material.

If you put a lock on them, they become security doors.

Our text says, “This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David.

What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open: ‘I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close.

You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me’.”

This message is from the one who is holy.

This speaks to the character of Jesus, the same Jesus who is the universal head of all the churches and because he is holy, he can’t help but be true.

Jesus is truth and the truth shall make you free and there is so much more that comes with that freedom, but that’s for another message.

This message is from the one who is holy.

This speaks to the character of Jesus, the same Jesus who is the universal head of all the churches and because he is holy, he can’t help but be true.

Jesus is truth and the truth shall make you free and there is so much more that comes with that freedom, but that’s for another message.

So, not only is Jesus holy and true, he has the key of David.

This speaks to his political character, David was a warrior and king and the Messiah came through the Davidic lineage.

In this passage, Jesus has left no doubt he is the one delivering this message and he says, what he opens, no one can close and what he closes, no one can open.

When God opens a door for you, you have to know, what’s for you, is for you and no one can stop the blessing of God in your life, except you.

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy.

We are busy working and doing and doing and working, trying to get ahead, trying to make ends meet, trying to help others, trying to be there for our family, trying to help our friends, trying.

We’re trying so hard that we give all we have and instead of getting our first, instead of getting our best, God gets what’s left over.

I’ve been at churches where when they are about to do the offering, they have them hold up their envelope, checkbook, phone, debit card, whatever they give with, they have them hold it up with their right hand and they say we want to give God what’s right, not what’s left.

We’re closing the door on giving God what’s left and beginning the new year by opening the door and giving him what’s right.

What is the right thing to give to God? Just everything we are and everything we have.

- “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

Jesus gave all that he had for you, isn’t it only fair that we do the same?

Now you may be saying what do I have, I can’t do what she does or he does.

Well each of us who are members of Love Christian Center have been given a spiritual gifts assessment, so you know what gift God has given you, and that’s what you give, that’s what God wants from you, it’s what He requires.

He doesn’t want what He hasn’t gifted you to give, just give back what he’s given to you.

Paul tells us in “The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body.

So it is with the body of Christ.

Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part.

Our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it.”

14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part.

15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body.

16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body?

17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear?

Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?

God placed you in the body with your gift to help complete the body, we need what you have to contribute and there is room for your gift.

In the old church they would say, there’s plenty good room.

Not only do we have plenty good room, we need your gift to help complete this body of Christ, to help carry out its mission, which is bringing the unchurched, unsaved into the body of Christ.

18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it.He placed you in the body with your gift to help complete the body, we need what you have and there is room for your gift.

In the old church they would say, there’s plenty good room.

Not only do we have plenty good room, we need your gift to help complete this body of Christ, to help carry out its mission, which is bringing the unchurched, unsaved into the body of Christ.

We need you wholly, we need you dedicated and we need you faithful to the service of the Lord.

We need you built up in your most holy faith.

We need you rooted like a tree, standing firm with the ministry, not potted like a plant ready to pick up and move when the wind starts to blow.

- “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

says, “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce.”

This is not just about money

And along with that God says in , “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce.”

Part of honoring the Lord with your wealth is the tithe, the 10% God said to give back so there would be meat in his house.

In this house we take very good care of the tithe that is given.

We stretch a dollar to the point that even with the few people we have, we have no debt, just monthly upkeep.

God has blessed us tremendously to accomplish much with little and I expect that and more in the years to come.

How can I say that?

Because we will continue to be good stewards over that which he has entrusted to us.

When you give God what is due him and are a good steward over what he has given you, he will bless the 90% you have and it will accomplish more than you could ever dream.

Try him and see.

If you’re not currently a tither, in 2018 try God and see won’t he bless you beyond what you could imagine.

Give him the first fruits of your increase and watch what he does with the rest.

God will open doors and opportunities you never dreamed of and all you’ll have to do is walk through the door.

says, “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce.”

This is not just about money

We spend way too much time trying to bust through and break down doors God has closed to us, doors that have been closed for our good.

Doors that on the other side have disaster, but we still want to see.

We think it’s someone trying to keep something from us, when in fact it’s God trying to protect us.

Get away from that door and go to the one God has opened for you.

Love Christian Center, God is saying I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close.

God has opened a door for us and my desire is that we’ll all walk through together.

And that we bring some more with us as we go through the door.

God wants to bless us and I can’t wait to see it.

Who’s going to see it with me?

God said you have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.

We have been few at times, but God said where two or three are gathered together in my name, touching and agreeing there I will be in the midst, and he has been.

We’ve been tired, weary, wounded, worn, in pain, sick and we still showed up, we still prayed, we still sang, we still preached, we still studied, we still evangelized, we still went forth, and because we still, God has seen, he’s been faithful, he’s opened doors and He’s blessed us.

We’ve had little strength, yet we obeyed His word and did not deny him and he has allowed us to flourish...