GOING HIGHER PART 28- REPAIR YOUR ALTAR: PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE, SPECIAL RCCG ONLINE SUNDAY SERVICE, 22ND AUGUST 2021
SPECIAL RCCG ONLINE SUNDAY SERVICE
TOPIC: GOING HIGHER – PART 28
MINISTERING: PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE
DATE: 22ND AUGUST 2021
BIBLE TEXT: 1 KINGS 18: 10-35
Let Us Pray!
SONG
I have a Father
Almighty Father
He is King of Kings and Lord of Lord
I have a Father
Hallelujah
… Repeat!
OPENING PRAYER
Father Almighty – The One who was, the One who is, the One who is to come; the Unchangeable Lord – We worship You.
We Thank You for all You have done for us Particularly since we started this Series (Going Higher).
Thank You because day after day; You have been lifting us Higher and Higher – We are Grateful.
And we know that You will continue to lift us Higher – So Please accept our worship in Jesus Name.
Continue with us as we continue in our Series (Going Higher).
In Jesus Mighty Name we have Prayed – Amen.
Praise the Lord – Hallelujah!
Well, wave to one (1) or two (2) People and say: Good Day and God Bless You.
We will be looking at 1 Kings 18: 30-35 as we speak on “GOING HIGHER – PART 28”.
And if you want to give it a Sub Title; you want to call it: “REPAIR YOUR ALTAR”.
30 And Elijah said unto all the People, Come near unto me. And all the People came near unto him. And he repaired the Altar of the LORD that was broken down.
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the Number of the Tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the Word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy Name:
32 And with the stones he built an Altar in the Name of the LORD: and he made a trench about the Altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in Pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and Pour it on the burnt Sacrifice, and on the wood.
34 And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
35 And the water ran round about the Altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
Here we find Elijah demonstrating to every Man Present that he was a Man of Great Faith!
He was about to offer a Sacrifice to God and he was going to ask God to send down Fire from Heaven.
And it looks as if he decided to make the situation absolutely impossible for God by making sure that there was Plenty of water round the Sacrifice.
Why did he do this?
Oh, we could spend a whole Sermon discussing that.
- Maybe he want to do it to let everybody knows that there is no fire under the Sacrifice – I am not Pretending that there is no fire there; you too can see that I have Poured in water until the whole Place is overflowing with water.
So, if I Place any fire under; by now the fire will be out.
- The Second Thing of course is that he is a Man of Great Faith.
Some People have said that:
I. When God wants to be Wonderful; He starts with a Problem.
II. And when He wants to be Miraculous, He starts with an Impossibility.
In other words: The Bigger the Problem, the Greater the Glory that God will get out of it.
So I’m saying to all of you who thinks that you have a ‘Big Problem’; in the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ; your Testimony is going to be ‘Big’ – Amen!
But the aspect that I want to focus on for the next few minutes is the issue of the Altar!
- Because the Bible says here that: Elijah repaired the Altar of the Lord that has been broken down.
They have not been worshipping God for quite a while; and so the Altar of God has been badly damaged and then he built a New Altar in its Place.
What is an Altar?
- The Altar is the Meeting Place where God meets with Man.
Genesis 12:7 – We hear about Abraham suddenly finding himself in contact with God.
And what did he do? – He built an Altar!
- An Altar is where Man Calls on God.
Genesis 12:8 – The same Abraham built an Altar and called on God.
An Altar therefore is a Place where you Call on the Name of the Lord – Genesis 13: 1-4.
- An Altar is a Place where God receives Offerings and makes Covenant with Man.
Genesis 8: 20-22 – When Noah came out of the Ark; he built an Altar, Presented an Offering to God, God received the Offering and made a Covenant.
And said: I will no longer wipe out the world with water.
He made a Covenant – He said that as long as the Earth remains: Seedtime and Harvest; Day and Night; Hot and Cold will not cease.
… It was at an Altar!
That is why anyone who has any sense at all – They give Priority to the Altar.
Genesis 13: 14-18 – Whenever Abraham move from one Place to another; the first thing that he does is to build an Altar.
… I want a Place whereby I can be in contact with God.
Now, when we talk about the Altar: There is the Physical Altar as you have in a Church Settings.
But the Altar that God is interested in most is the Altar in your Heart! – An Altar that you can carry about: Anywhere you go; Day and Night!
That is why in Joel 2:13; God said: Rend your heart; not your dress.
God said that the Altar that I am interested in is the Altar in your Heart.
Matthew 5:8; it is written: Blessed are the Pure in Heart for they shall see God.
If the Altar of your Heart is Pure; God will Pay you a visit.
That is why David said in Psalms 108:1 – He said: My Heart is fixed within me; I will Praise the Lord.
When David went astray; he cried to God in Psalms 51:10 – Create in me a Clean Heart.
… Help me repair the Altar that is in my Heart.
That brings us to the Big Question: How is the Altar in your Heart?
Today or as you are reading on the Label of DMC: You are going to do some serious Checking – Is the Altar in my Heart in Good Condition?
You see in 2 Corinthians 13:5; the Bible said: Check, are you still in the Faith?
Check, is the Altar in your Heart in Good Condition?
1 Corinthians 10:12 says: If you think you Stand, take heed less you fall.
If the Altar is Strong, if it is still okay with God; the Bible says: Take heeds!
You need to check this Day as it is written in Revelations 2: 1-4 – Are you sure that you have not left your “First Love”? Is your Altar still okay?
Because according to Revelation 3: 15-16; you may need to do a little bit of Checking – Am I as Hot as I used to be? Or am I now Lukewarm?
Because you need to check that the Altar in your Heart is in Good Condition otherwise you don’t find yourself like the case of Samson in Judges 16: 1:21 (End).
You know how this Mighty Man of God slowly (Very, Very slowly); little Steps at a time lost Complete Contact with God.
And when he got up and said: I will go out as before; he discovered that the Altar inside him has been destroyed.
He couldn’t go out as before because the One he used to meet at the Altar had gone!
Several Years ago; I think I have taught you about how the enemy will attack a Strong Man – He won’t come direct, he won’t come face to face; he will come from behind.
And I gave you the illustration of a leaking tank – You filled the tank of your car with fuel enough to go at least from Lagos State to Ibadan (Capital of Oyo State) (Both States in Nigeria) and then there is a little hole in the tank.
And as you are driving; just one little drop of fuel – One drop Per Second, Per Second and all of a sudden, you get halfway and you discovered that your tank is empty.
You used to Pray Nonstop for two (2) or three (3) hours – Well let us say one (1) hour and then now you Pray for fifty nine Minutes (59 mins) and you say that there is no much difference between 59 mins and I hour (60 mins).
… Only just 1 minute!
And then 59 mins becomes 58 mins and then 57 mins and before you know it; we are talking of 27 mins, 17 mins and then 7 mins.
Where is your Relationship with God? – Check your Altar!
Because you will need to repair your Altar before you can Pray the Prayer that will bring Fire down – That is the Point!
The moment you discovered after a “Thorough Self Examination” that the Altar in your Heart is no longer as it used to be – RESTITUTE urgently
I will advice you to Study the Book of Joshua Chapters 7 and 8.
You see: In Joshua Chapter 1; God Promised Joshua in Verses 1 to 8 that: There is Nobody that will be able to Stand before him all the days of his Life; that anywhere the sole of his feet shall touch, He (God) has given it unto him (Joshua).
And then come Joshua Chapter 7 – And Israel fled before the enemy.
Then Joshua fell on his face and said: What is going on?
That is what you should do – Check what is wrong with the Altar in my Life!
God spoke to him – There is a Problem with your Altar and unless you Restitute, I am not going with you anymore.
Immediately, Joshua restituted and then in Joshua Chapter 8, he went ahead and conquered just as God Promised.
You see because God made a Promise in Jeremiah 3:22 – He said: Ha, if you will return unto Me, I will heal your Backsliding.
In Hosea 14:4, He said: I will heal your Backsliding, I will love you Freely.
If you are willing to repair the Altar, God said that we can come back together and begin to have Fellowship as we used to be!
… That is the first thing that you should do – Repair the Altar!
- After you have repaired the Altar; you then put something on the Altar!
Elijah repaired the Altar and then he Presented his Offering on the Altar.
Probably before we go on to putting something on the Altar; let me remind you of a Story that I told you Years ago about the issue of Restitution because many of you now don’t seems to want to hear anything about Restitution again.
But if you found out that you are not making Spiritual Progress; it is most likely because you need to Restitute your Ways!
I told you that I went to the University of Ibadan (Oyo State, Nigeria) to go and Minister.
When we got to to Ibadan (Capital City of Oyo State Nigeria); that evening, I branch at a Petrol Station to buy fuel so that I can get up very early the following morning and head to Lagos.
The following morning, I started the car – The car will start but as I try to move, the engine will cut off and stop.
To cut a long story short; the Engineers at the University of Ibadan Campus take a look at what is happening, they said sorry sir, there is water in the Carburettor.
Apparently, where we went to buy fuel, they were selling fuel mixed with water.
Sir, what do I do?
Sir, you are not going to go in a hurry. We have to put down your fuel tank, we have to drain every bit of fuel in the car and then separate water from the fuel and then put the fuel back and then go on your way.
… Until they did that; I was stuck up there.
Is there water mixed with the fuel of your Life? Have you something in your Possession that is not rightfully yours?
You must Restitute your Way or else the engine won’t start. If it starts, it is not going to work.
After you have restituted your way; when you have Prepared the Altar; then you put something on them.
Why? – Because from the Scriptures, the Fire of God never falls on an “Empty Altar”.
I am going to give you several examples very quickly – I will just give you the Bible Passages and you will go ahead to read it yourself.
When God’s Fire falls, there must be something that the Fire must fall upon:
- Genesis 19: 23-24 – The Fire of God fell on Sodom and Gomorrah and there were People for the Fire to consume.
- Leviticus 9: 18-24 – Aaron made an Offering to God and the Fire of God fell on the Offering.
- 1 Chronicles 21:26 – David Presented an Offering to God and Fire fell.
- 2 Chronicles 7:1 – Solomon Presented an Offering to God and Fire fell.
- 1 Kings 18 – Elijah Presented an Offering to God and Fire fell.
- In 2 Kings 1: 9-12 – We have an interesting case here.
Elijah was sitting on a Hill and a King send fifty (50) Soldiers and their Captain to go and arrest him. And when they got there, they said: Man of God, come down.
He said: Hey, you know I’m a Man of God and you want to arrest me?
They said: Yes.
Then he (Elisha) said: I make you as an Offering to God.
And Fire fell twice in one day – But each time, there was something for the Fire to fall upon.
- Then that beautiful one in Acts 2: 1-4.
On the Day of Pentecost, when the Apostles gathered together in the Upper Room – Oh, the Fire of God fell and it fell on everyone of them.
The Fire will not fall on an Empty Altar!
Which brings us to the Conclusion: Will you love to have a Taste of Heavenly Fire?
All you have to do is simple according to Romans 12:1 – You Present yourself as a Living Sacrifice on the Altar to God.
We sing a Song in the days gone by:
Holy Ghost Fire
Fire fall on me
Holy Ghost Fire
Fire fall on me
As on the Day of Pentecost
Fire fall on me
As on the Day of Pentecost
Fire fall on me
I’m sure that many times when we sing the Song; the Almighty God will sit down in Heaven and Smile – You want my Fire to fall on you; are you ready for it?
I. Because if the Fire falls on a Sinner, it will consume the Sinner.
… Ask those of them in Sodom and Gomorrah and they will tell you.
II. But if it falls on a True Child of a Living God, who has surrendered all; Power comes.
… And we will be hearing more of this later on.
So today, if you are not a True Child of God; Please don’t Pray that the Fire of God will fall because if it falls and there is sin in your Life, it will be trouble.
But if you are a Child of the Living God and you are hungry for His Power; and you want a Taste of Him; repair the Altar of God in your Life, Restitute your Ways; then lay yourself on the Altar and Call on Him and His Fire will fall!
ALTAR CALL
So, those of you who are not sure if the Fire of God will fall today it will not consume you; you are not sure of your Salvation or you are not sure that the Altar of God is Properly Prepared. But you want to cry unto Him for Salvation or for Restoration – Wherever you are now or reading now on the Label of DMC; will you bow your Head and cry to Him for Salvation or Restoration or the Grace to Restitute.
I am willing to join my Prayers with yours and the Almighty God will answer us.
So, if you want to give your Life to Jesus Christ or you want to be Restored to Him; Please bow your Head now and cry to Him and I will Pray in a moment.
PRAYER FOR SALVATION AND CLOSING PRAYER
Thank You Almighty God – Thank You for Your Words my Father and my God; Thank You because You are there in Heaven, watching over everyone of us.
You know those who are hungry for You Lord; those who are saying Please save our Souls.
Please answer them Oh Lord, save their Souls today, let Your Blood wash away their sins and from now on, each time they call on You, Please answer them by Fire.
As for those of us Lord God Almighty who were hot for You once but have become lukewarm; Please restore us Lord.
And as we spread ourselves unto You on the Altar – Surrendering completely to You; send the Fire, heat us up again so that all will be well.
In Jesus Mighty Name we have Prayed – Amen.
Praise the Lord – Hallelujah!
Now, I rejoice with those of you who has given your Life to Jesus Christ.
I will love to hear from you – I want to know your name, your Address and your Prayer Request so that I can continue to Pray for you.
As for those of you who are just coming to Christ; you look for a Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) near you – Go there and tell the Pastor there that you have given your Life to Jesus Christ and he will tell you what to do next.
God Bless You – Amen.
As for those of you who are True Children of God and we know that we have Restitution to make; I hope you will cry to God today or as you read on the Label of DMC: And cry to God for the Grace to Restitute your Ways so that your Fellowship to God will be fully restored again.
God Bless You – Amen
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