Sermon Tone Analysis

We’re going to pick where we left off last time.

We’ve been talking about *God turning our situation around*.

*Last time* we *took up* the story of the *3 Hebrew children*, *Shadrach*, *Meshach*, and *Abednego*.

*God turned their situation around*, *even though they were thrown into the burning furnace*, *God turned it around*.

*I) *Let’s just *look at the last ½ of this story*, *after they were delivered out of the midst of the* fiery *furnace*.

*DAN 3:27-30*

*A) **If you refuse to bow down* *to the attacks of the enemy,* *if you refuse to give in to worlds ways,* *if you stay strong to what the Lord says* in His Word, *God will not only deliver you*, *but He will even promote you*.

*II) *Turn with me to *1JOHN 5:14-15*

*A) **Oral Roberts* *used to say*, “*Something good is going to happen to you*.”

*1) **Some Christians* *would get upset* *with him* *for saying that*.

*(a) **They would say*, “*How does he know that something good is going to happen to me*? *He doesn’t even know me*.”

*(b) **Oral Roberts wasn’t talking to them*.

*(i) **He was talking to those who prayed* *and believed*, *those like the Apostle Paul*, *fully expected God to do something to answer their prayers*, *to intervene in their situation*, *and* *to do something about it*.

*2) **The HOPE and EARNEST EXPECTATION that filled Paul’s life* *was a result of close communion and fellowship with God*.

*(a) **Paul could display such confidence* *in spite of his current circumstances* *because he knew Whom he believed*.

*(i) **Paul said in* (*2 Timothy 1:12*) *“For I know whom I have believed*, *and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”*

KJV

*(ii) **Paul knew that God would hear and answer his prayers*.

*3) **The basic message to be learned here is* *IF YOU CAN PRAY* *YOUR SITUATION CAN TURN*.

*(a) **There is power in prayer*.

*(b) **If you want something good to happen to you*, *if you want to follow a lifestyle of HOPE and EARNEST EXPECTATION*, *then learn to pray*.

*(i) **Learn to have confidence* *that when you pray*, “*GOD HEARS*, *HEAVEN MOVES*, *and* *HELL SHUTTERS*.

*(ii) **Just as JOHN said in (1 JOHN 5:14, 15*), *“This is the confidence that we should have, if we pray, God hears and if He hears He answers*.*”*

*(c) **Learn to do* *as* the apostle *Paul did*, *“To pray* *and* *to tap into the limitless power of the Holy Ghost*.*”*

*(i) **Then* also *do as Paul did* *and* *give thanks to God Who always causes us to triumph*.

*III) **Jesus said* *in* (*Matthew 28:20*) *“Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world*.*”*

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*A) **In the mind of God*, *no situation in your life is ever over until you triumph over it*.

*1) **But remember that triumph may not manifest overnight*.

*(a) **If you will do as the 3 Hebrew children did* *and* *refuse to bow, you will not burn*.

*(b) **If you will stand your ground*, *and having done all to stand*, *then God will stand with you* – *even in the midst of the fiery furnace*.

*(i) **God and the Holy Ghost will go with you* *through any situation* *and* *over any obstacle* *until you are triumphant*.

*B) **In* (*HEB 13:5*) *God promised* *that He would never leave you or forsake you*.

*1) **God is willing to go to any length to see us through to victory*.

*(a) **He won’t give up* *or* *give in*.

*He won’t jump ship*, *even if the ship is sinking*.

*IF WE REMAIN FAITHFUL and* *STRONG*.

*(i) **If we will hold fast to our hope and earnest expectation*, *then God will do His part* *and cause us to triumph in every situation of life*.

*2) **God knows nothing of a* *win – a – few*, *lose – a – few* *philosophy*.

*(a) **I don’t follow that philosophy either*.

*(b) **Do you mean*, *pastor* *that you have never had any setbacks?*

*(i) **I didn’t say that*.

*(c) **You mean you never have any failures?*

*(i) **I didn’t say that either*.

*(ii) **We all go through setbacks*.

And *there are times that things don’t work out the way I want them to*, *BUT I’M NOT A FAILURE UNTIL I SAY I AM A FAILURE*.

*3) **The same is true for you*.

*(a) **YOU’RE NOT A FAILURE* *UNTIL YOU EXCEPT FAILURE AS THE FINAL WORD*.

*(i) **As a child of the Living God* *you have a right to triumph*.

*(ii) **Sure there are going to be setbacks*, *but never give up*.

*(b) **What if Thomas Edison* would have given up the *1st time* the *light bulb didn’t work?* *HENRY FORD 1ST CAR*.

The *WRIGHT BROTHERS 1ST PLANE*.

*C) **God is looking for this kind of attitude in His people today*.

*IV) *In Just the *last few minutes* of this message *I want to give to you what the Word* of God *says about* *turning your financial situation around*.

*A) *Turn with me to *MAL 3:10-12*

*1) **When we start talking about money* *and* *tithing* *many* Christians *shut you off*.

*(a) **They don’t want to here it*.

*The hardest thing* *for a Christian to do* *is to give their tithe to God*.

*(b) **They’ll walk in love*, *they’ll live a godly and holy life*, *but* *when it come to giving God our tithe we fight it all the way*.

*(i) **We don’t have a problem giving God the 2 or 5 dollars*, *but when it come to giving God 10%* *of our income* *we fall short*.

*B) **Yet since we received Jesus* as Lord and Saviour, *many*, *many* of the *promises of God* *hinge on this 1 spiritual principle*.

*1) **1st* of *He says* *in* (*V 10*) *to bring all the tithe into the storehouse*, *which in the church*.

*(a) **The storehouse* *was part of the temple* *or* *the place of worship*.

*The church* *is the NT temple*.

*2) **He also says* to *bring* *all* *the tithe*.

*(a) *The *word* “*ALL*” here is *better translated* “*WHOLE*.”

*(i) **We are to bring the* *WHOLE TITHE* *to God* *not just past of it*.

*(ii) **If you read* (*MAL 3:9 and 10*) *together* *you’ll see* that *Israel was cursed with a curse* *because they did not bring their entire tithe to the temple*.

*(iii) **We see the same thing happen in the NT* *with* *Ananias and Sapphira* when *they* *kept back part* of what they should have given.

*(b) **We open ourselves up to the attacks of the enemy when we hold back from God*, *when were not doers of the Word*.

*3) **This is the hardest thing for me to minister on*.

*But what kind of pastor would I be* *if I knew what was going to set you free from the cruse*, *and cause you to receive the blessings of God*, *and didn’t tell you about it*.

*C) **Well God says* *that the curse from the enemy* *WILL come upon us* *if we don’t tithe*, *but He also says that the blessings of God* *will come on us if we do*.

*1) *In (*V 10*) He *says*, “*Prove me, put me to the test, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it*.”

*(a) *Now we *usually think of this as financial blessings*, *and* *it* very well *does mean that*, *but He doesn’t limit it to that*.

*(i) **We could include* *healing* with this, or *God providing a job*, of *God protecting you from harm*, *or* even *delivering you*.

*2) **Now how can I say that?*

*(a) **Because God says in* (*V 11*) *that He would rebuke the devourer for our sakes*.

*(i) **If we tithe*, *God promises to rebuke Satan for our sakes*.

*(ii) **Unless you’re tithing you won’t receive God’s best*.

*(b) **Don’t be content with just barely being able to get a long*.

*3) **If you want your situation to turn around* *then begin to give God you whole tithe*.

*4) **When you do God will bless you above measure*, *above what you could ask or think*.

*WOLCC Sunday 6~/1~/1997*