The Uncut Version

If you enjoy watching movies, or if you enjoy watching film, or if even, if you're an editor, you will know that there are times when the editing process when you will need to cut out certain scenes from the film. That's called the uncut version. The uncut version is the time where you will go through and check if the lighting is okay, if the lighting isn't, okay, and that's saying you may throw it out, you'll check to see if the actors have done their best in that particular scene and if they haven't, you may cut that out because you want to make sure when the film goes to Market, you are giving the best product possible. In fact, millions of dollars are spent in the editing process. To make sure that when things go to the general public, they are perfect. They are perfect. And so they go through an uncut version and then there's the cop version. And if I was downstairs, speaking to the Youth and Young adults, I'd ask you to turn to your neighbor and say which version did you bring to church?

Did you bring the cut version? Or did you bring the uncut version? Did you bring the version to church? That tries to show out best then hide? Maybe our weaknesses, or imperfections? Or did we come recognizing that? We serve a God? That says blessed are the poor in spirit for they shall inherit. The kingdom of God today was going to be talkin about the uncut version as it comes to the gospel. So I'll invite you to turn your Bibles with me to Exodus chapter 20. Exodus chapter 20 and as you turn your Bibles, they're obviously Exodus chapter 20 comes after Exodus chapter 19 and in Exodus chapter 19, we see the people of God that's there at the foothills of Mount Sinai and God has just shown up in a powerful way. There was thunder and lightning and a sound of a trumpet and it was undeniable that God was there. Other times in your life, when you knew that God was with you, that you knew that it could have only been God, that did what he did in your life. And as they're on the foothills of those that mountain, God gives them Specific Instructions. Firstly he gives them the Ten Commandments that's spoken at that time later on. It would be placed on tablets and then off to the Commandments a give it given. He says I want you to build me an Ulta. An Ulta where the sacrifice would be laid in the, the blood of the Lamb will be pulled out. You see, you can't have the Commandments without the blood. Because some people want to serve God just with the Commandments but not with the blood but you need both. Amen. You need the altar of stone and the Altar and all the tablets of stone that represents the Commandments you need both storms to follow God. And so he gives the instructions in. Exodus chapter 20 and will be reading those 24 as we look at this idea of building an altar. Firstly. He says you shall make an altar of Earth. There were 20. Oz. One was sometimes made out of Earth for me and you shall sacrifice on it. You're blonde, offerings, annual peace, offerings your ship and your oxen, in every place. What everyone in every place where I cause my name to be remembered, I will come to you and bless you. You see God wanted them to realize that they wouldn't be able to stay at Mount Sinai forever. They going to go through a desert. But whenever they built, the Ulta whatever place, they built it, God would show up. Are you glad that God will show up? Not only at your mountains, but also, when your deserts that God will show up in every place and some of us and all of us actually have come from every single place and I'm just poking geographically. Some of us have come from the place of the spare. Some of us have come from the place of her. Some of us have come from the place of rejection. Some of us could have come from a place where we were betrayed, but God says, if you build up an ulcer in that place, I will show up. I will come to you at that place. I'm so glad we serve a God that can show up in every place not just at the mountains, but also in all deserts a man until God says, I'll show up in every place where you build an altar for me, but then he says in verse 25, But then God gives instructions as to what kind of Alta he wants. Verse 25 says, if you make an altar out of stone, you shall not build it out of cut stones for if you will your tool on it. You will profane it, you will profane it.

God gives important promise. He says that when you make the Ulta, I want it on cuts. And so I thought it was stration here of. This may be the kind of rock that would have been there in the wilderness as it's coming up. God will not only we said meet you in your mountains, but he'll also meet you in the desert. And there is a Temptation that when God gives us instructions. We want to improve it. We want to improve our God says through this. And we say we've got maybe a better idea. So thank you for this. Thank you. These are out amazing, Sid l and an amazing wife. All right.

So, God says, I want you to choose a rock. That is uncut. And this rock doesn't look like anything special does. It looks very playing. You seen many rocks like this before. This is a common Rock, but God says, I want you to use a common Rock for an uncommon purpose. And show out temptation is. That when God gives us an answer to prayer. It may not come in the form. We hoped. Have you ever prayed for something? But you said, God, I want you to answer my prayer this way, and if you bring me this, I'm going to try to improve it.

Have you ever tried to improve our? God has given? Have you ever tried to say God? This isn't good enough. It's good, but I need a version 2.0. and so, we Grab out tools and we begin to improve. God, I I know that you asked for a type of whatever comes in my increased, but I just want to improve it a little bit. God. I I know I know that you have given instructions as in your Ten Commandments, but maybe 8, instead of 10 is enough. I just want to improve it a little bit. and God says, maybe what you're praying for and your expectations of your prayer. Is so limited that I actually want to exceed your expectation, that what you think is coming, I can use for an unexpected purpose. In fact, I have that on the screen, This Promise in this idea.

The same. God, who met you. I don't think that one's it. Yes. Yes. It is the same God who met you on your mouth? And thank you. It team that met you on the mountain promises to reach you in your deserts. He promises to reach you in your desert. Is it possible? That is God, reaches us in our visit. That we think God can do anything in that dry place. If you've ever been to a desert, you know, there's no vegetation hardly any vegetation, hardly any water, you know, when the desert place there is, it's very Barren. And some of you are coming from a Barren place. Maybe your bank account to Barren a man. Maybe you're coming from a Barren place of a relationship. Whatever it is. It's a baron. And his dad was saying, God. Can you meet me in this place? A few months ago? I had the opportunity to go to the buy and it was from Ministry purposes. But you know that about 50 or 60 years ago in the buy, it was just the deserts and they've been able to build skyscrapers and five-star hotels and they've been able to cool down a desert where people come from all over the world to be there. And God is saying, in the desert. Place. I can meet you in the desert place. I can find you, but the stone needs to be on cuts, the still needs to remain on Cut, and God says, I can build something for you. Even in a desert Place. Sometimes we want to improve on what God has given us, but don't let your environment stop you from building an altar to God. Amen. Some of us are in the desert and that stopped us from doing what God wants us to do. But God is saying, don't let your environment. Dictate your worship to me. Build me an Ulta. Even in your desert places, But what kind of ultra does he wants? He wants an Ulta out of uncut Stone. Just like this. These are lights would have brought this Stone and use these kind of storms possibly to build an ultimate. How are these Stones formed? Well, in a desert with mountains, they would have these things would have been very common because in a desert, the fahrenheit, during the middle of the day, can go up to 110 degrees Fahrenheit and at night it can get as low as 36 degrees Fahrenheit. There's a constant, fluctuation of the temperature and because of that fluctuation, that puts stress on the Rock and The Rock begins to the strata on the Rock begins to fall. And as that strata tumbles down the mountain, it begins to break and it begins to shatter. And then you have these rocks at the bottom of the mountain. Have you ever felt that there has been uncertainty in your life through fluctuation, that is causing certain things in your life to follow. And because of that stress. There's certain areas about life that a tumbling down the mountain and now they've crashed, and they just sitting there and you saying, God, what can I do with this? What can I do with my Brokenness? And God said, you can use it to build an Ulta? You can use those broken pieces of rock to build an Ulta. Some of you through uncertainty, have had stress. Has it. Have you ever met someone? That's uncertain? One day, they this way, they hot the next day they called and you think it's your fault, but it's just because they unstable, they are uncertain. Some of you may have met and uncertain person that told you one day there with you. And then the same day, they broken up with you. I'm certain of what they wants. Uncertainty can bring stress uncertainty can bring stress and sometimes that uncertainty isn't just another people. Sometimes we become uncertain. What would happen if we just had a consistent life? What would happen if we just showed up to work on time every day and gave our best rather than maybe complaining about? I would, what would happen. If through uncertainty, we said. I'm going to be more certain maybe for some students. Imagine every single day, you go to school. You say, God. I'm just thankful that I'm here at Takoma Academy. I'm so blessed to be here and I'm going to give my best to that off at Trinity. And as a result of that, maybe we will even through that certainty be able to do things that we never expected. Some of us are failing in our lives, because a fluctuation and not sticking to something and finishing it. So many people are good at starting things, but very few people are good at finishing things. And as a result uncertainty kicks in, and we're under a lot of pressure. And so, we come along once again, and we try to improve what God has given. Some of us come with a uncut version and say, God. I'm not good enough.

God these things in my life. I want to change. Why did you make me like this. I want to change who I am. And so many people are frustrated and depressed, because they're not happy with who they are. And if God says, if I wanted you to be like someone else, I would have made you like someone else. But I made you like you because if you don't fulfill your mission, if you don't feel your unique calling if you try to be like everyone else Society in this world will suffer because God has a specific calling for you. That's why I made you this way. Don't try to improve what I've created. But you got to put it at the altar.

Maybe the reason why sometimes God doesn't meet our expectations is because he wants to exceed our expectations.

Sometimes, it's rock isn't what we expected, but God wants to exceed it. When I was studying at Andrews University, I had the opportunity. In fact, the person that used to drive me down is sitting right there to visit my uncle in Georgia. And so we used to drive down. Thank you, Alan, for all the, all those trips down. We used to drive down all the way from Andrews to Georgia. And, and while I was there, my uncle who was a professor at Southern Adventist University, would have his students come to help him in his yard. Maybe it was a good way to get agreed. I don't know, but but that's what he used to do that. I know that they loved him as well, but they were there and they would help. And I would visit him. And on this particular day. He had a student there and I don't know how I ended up with a broom and they ended up with the lawn mower. But we were mowing his lawn and I was sweeping the grass clippings. And the person that was mowing the lawn came to me and said, would you like to mow the lawn?

And she was so pretty. Her name was Christina. I said I said almost the lawn. I'll dig a hole. What do you want? Girl? I'll give you a I'll give you a ring. Girl. What do you want? I'll do anything. And so I grab that lawnmower. And I began to mow that lawn. But I never expected that the person that I was mowing the lawn with Would One Day become my wife. Cuz God wants to exceed your expectations if my wife and I wonder sometimes if we minimize the things that God wants to do in our lives, that Elisha was actually taking care of animals before Elijah came past. If you do the little things will, God can bless you with a lot. But because we don't like the common things because we want to improve the common things. God says I can't do anything on coming in your life until you appreciate what I've given you, when you appreciate what I've given you, I can do much and I can build an altar but allow God to work in your life in the little thing and he can make it much. But then I never thought God wanted to exceed my expectation, that the place we got married right here, Christina, and I I never thought that when we went to Australian pasta, tap would come to Australia a year. Later. And then call us to Sligo church and I never thought the same place. I would have got married in the same place. I'm preaching now because God wanted to exceed my expectations. I never thought that he could do that. But he, he had a bigger thing in mind for me. And I wonder sometimes if a prison too small and God says, don't pray. The little prayer. I want to exceed your expectations in life. Don't treat it as an uncommon thing. I want to build an altar for you. God says, don't come with a cut stone. Come with uncut Stone.

and those stones in essence, represent, each of us 1st, Peter 2:5 says, You also as living stones are built up, as a spiritual house for a, holy priesthood to offer up. Spiritual sacrifice is acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. This same word for stone in the New Testament, is the same word for stone in the Septuagint. It's the same world. And God is saying you are a living Stone, but you don't like who you are. So you're coming and you'll try to improve what I've created.

God is saying you are the living Stone and I want you to come. I'm cut to me. I want you to come just as you are because only when you come just as you are, will I be able to build my Ulta? Don't try to improve what I've created. Only by allowing the lamp to come on. That Ulta. Can we totally be changed by his grace? What version have we come with today? Have we come with a cut version or the uncut version to God? God doesn't need any more cut Stones. He needs uncut, Stones, stones, that are willing to depend on him, stones, that are realizing that we are weak, but he is strong stones that don't try to cover up their weaknesses, but come to God and say, God, I'm broken. But through my Brokenness, build an altar out of my life and through that. God says, when you build that kind of Alta, I'll be able to meet you. Right where you are. I wonder if God's people were able to get together and we said, God, I want to just come. I'm cut. I'm tired of pretending. I'm trying to. I'm tired of being something that I'm not when we come on, God will say. Now, my power can be released upon the altar of sacrifice. It's amazing what God can do through on Cuts people. That's why I love Sligo because you can come just as you are. That's why I love Sligo because you can come on Cut just as you are. It doesn't matter what your background is. It doesn't matter who you are or where you're from, you can come and uncuff. And by the grace of God, we can build an altar in this place that sees the power of God Unleashed in each of our lives, but we come on Cuts just as we are. There was a nursery rhyme that you may all know.

It goes like this and I shitted about four and a half years ago, Humpty Dumpty, sat on the wall. You remember this right? Humpty Dumpty, had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty together. Again. I want that sometimes, without broken pieces that we try to be like the king's horses and King's Men that try to put Humpty together again, and it's impossible, we can do it. But God says what the king's horses? And what the King's Men cannot do, I can do a man. I can take the broken pieces and put it together to create an Ulta for me and they some of us that are under immense pressure because our lives are broken and there is something that the doctors have shared with us and it's caused us to be broken. There is some things where it's easy to build a holster in the home, but how do you build an old? Turn the hospital. As we just heard Someone's Child, just passed away. How do you build an Ulta? When your child? It's only a few days old has passed away. It's easy to build an altar in the home. But how do you build an altar in the hospital? It's easy to build an old. So when you're walking in nature and it's a beautiful day today, but how do you build an altar when you're not walking, but you're at work and your boss doesn't appreciate what you do, when, no one gives you a, no one gives you. No one gives you a smile. How do you build an altar that it's easy to build an Ulta? In the comfort of our bent, but how do we build an Ulta in a bed of betrayal? How do you build an altar in that place? And God says, I want you to build an Ulta even in your desert places even in the places that seem like they ugly, the deformed. If the disfigured God says, I can bring the uncut Stone together and I will place my sacrifice upon that kind of Ulta. And I'm so glad that Jesus says, I'll Place My Sacrifice in an altar of my broken on my uncut Stones. Is there anyone this morning that may have a problem that is so big for them that they feel stressed. That they feel like I can't take it anymore. In fact, I have the point here on the screen. Allow the problem to point you to your higher power. Sometimes God will give you a problem so that it can point you to a higher power which is him. Sometimes. I'll stress will lead us to our Savior sometimes out challenge will lead us to our Christ. Amen. Allow the stress in the problem to point you to your savior. I'll finish with this final illustration. As you know, I don't like Ikea. You remember, I said that with you. Some of you like a for those that love Ikea, I don't want to offend you. Some of you know, I don't like Ikea because I want to order the bed for $495 one bed equals 495. I Was A Bachelor then I was excited about my bed cuz I've never owned a queen-size bed before and I always had a bed when my legs stuck out at the end. I was excited about this bed. The bed comes from Ikea. And instead of being a bet, it was 1,000 pieces that made up a bit. You know, if you wanted anything from Ikea, you know what I'm talkin about. I didn't order a thousand pieces of a bed. I ordered one bed. And sometimes life is like that sometimes life feels like it's a thousand pieces. And God says who said I'm going to give you something. That is complete and finished. Faith is a process. Faith is a process. It will take time. You'll have to bring one rock here and run Rock here. It looks unbroken, but you're putting it together and it will make an altar. And God can take your broken pieces and turn it into a masterpiece and allow his safe. The savior of the world to come under Ulta and through his power. Through his grace, the Ulta becomes a place of worship. My prayer this morning is that you will be able to create an altar out of your broken pieces because when you dedicated to God, he says he'll meet you in that place. That is my prayer. Amen.