Episode Transcript
Speaker 1 00:00:04 So good. Well, it's great to be with you, um, this morning. Thank you for being here. Church, um, mark and Nita and some of our team are at Newton Abba and they have, uh, a great time from what we're aware of. We've seeing some pictures, they've sent some things through and packed house, uh, down in Newton Abba, which is just a great joy to see and, uh, praying that the Lord's word will come and speak to our hearts this morning, uh, as we open our lives, open our hearts for him to come and share with um, whatever he wants to share with us. Amen. Well, I wanna start off by um, I'm gonna say three words in a moment that is perceived across most of the world to be really dubious. Three words that many people in this world when they hear these three words cause a whole, a whole array of emotions.
Speaker 1 00:00:58 Three words that evoke anger and frustration. Three words that many will say are untrue. It's a lie and it's false. Three words that I believe God wants to bring to our attention as we start the year in 2023. Three words that many of you will have said before. Three words that many of you will believe, but three words that can cause a great deal of emotion. Three words that combine to make a statement, A statement I believe to be true, but so often a statement that is ridiculed, a statement that cause anger, a statement that many will find insensitive and hurtful. Here it is a short, simple sentence, three words which is loaded and fueled with difference of opinion.
Speaker 1 00:01:56 God is good. So good. Three words that can transform a life when they become words to a reality and a truth that sinks into a heart that suddenly believe that there is a God who is in every way. Good. There's a popular phrase, a popular slogan that's been used in Pentecostal terms and worlds and some of you may know it. You ready? God is good. An old all the time I thought you'd know you true Pentecostals here, aren't you? Hey, A slogan and a phrase that has been penned and used by washer leaders and preachers throughout the generations are phrase and slogan that me and you and many others have used many, many times. And a a statement that I believe of all my heart is so true. God is good all the time and all the time God is good. Not when things are just going great, but actually in the difficulties in the trials and in the problems of life.
Speaker 1 00:03:14 We still hold onto the truth that God, God is good. God isn't good just by what he brings to our lives, but is good because it's who he is. It's in his definition DNA and character that he is a good, good God. He's a good God who loves people, who loves the world. And we so often in our lives of experienced many people who will look at the chaos and brokenness of this world and will question the statement that God is good. How could there be a good God if there is so much pain, decay and evil that we so evidently see around us? Are you Christians just ignoring the brokenness that is here? Of course not. Of course we are not. But I would say this morning that even in the midst of great erosion and decay, that God is good, even in the midst of some of the most greatest battles and challenges that we will face and have faced God is good even when we don't know where the next bill's gonna come from.
Speaker 1 00:04:11 Even though the doctor report may not be good as Christians who have experienced the goodness and faithfulness of God, we can stand here and not pretend that life is always good, but to know that God is always good because the reality is, is life is hard, right? And here's the truth, life is hard, but God is good, so good and so kind that many of us in here have experienced his goodness and it has transformed much of our life so good that many of us have been brought from death to life. We once knew what darkness was. We once were in the pit and we have been plucked out and found to be in the hands of a good and loving God. Many of us and here we know that God is good because our experiences tell us that God is good. We know that God is faithful because our experiences tell us that God is faithful.
Speaker 1 00:05:09 But what about 2023, the year that it is ahead of us now we've just stepped into a new year. It's just a day, it's just a moment. Of course it is, but an opportunity and a chance for every single one of us together as the church, but as individuals to assess the goodness of God and to look at what it could mean for this year. The question I want to propose to all of us in the room today is what difference does the goodness of God make to your year 2023? What are the promises that the goodness of God invite you towards this year? What are the plans and dreams envision that the goodness of God invite you to step into this year? What are the faith adventures, the risk moments in 2023 that God's goodness could be saying if you would just believe it, you could see a whole new life take place this year.
Speaker 1 00:06:12 You see God is good and as much as we know the slogans and as much as we know the catch phrases, in fact many of us will know the apologetics that we have used to defend the character of God, that he is good and all loving and all kind of course we know those things, but I believe, I believe as have been praying and looking into what God wants to do this morning as we start, our first in-person gathering of 2023, is I believe that God wants to go beneath the surface this morning and he want us not to just be able to say that God is good, but for us to realize that his goodness means something for 2023 for your life. I believe he wants to go past surface level words of just being able to say God is good all the time.
Speaker 1 00:06:54 And instead to see a church that lives like God is good, that moves like God is good, that has faith to believe that God is good, that will take risks and go on adventures because they are holding fast to the truth and reality that God is good. What difference does the goodest of God make in your year this year? What difference does it make to the way you live and the way you speak? What difference does it make to the beginning of this year in January when you're thinking of the whole 12 months that ahead of you? What difference does the goodness of God mean for your life in 2023? Well, I truly believe it changes everything. A truth that isn't just a statement, a slogan or apologetic, but instead a truth that I believe God is wanting to grab our attention with us. We start and there's not many bad truths for us to start with is the that God is good for us to be reminded that God is good, it's who He is.
Speaker 1 00:08:02 Sam 119, a beautiful, beautiful chapter, very long verse 68, David says this of of who God is. He says, you are good and you do good. So teach me Lord. You see the goodness of God isn't just something that comes when things are going right, but the goodness of God is actually who he is. And I found in my life when I've gone through the difficult moments of my life, his goodness prevails often even greater because his goodness moves towards me in great trials and difficulties. You know, we don't serve a God who is distant to pain, right? We know a God who experienced pain and therefore moves towards it in his goodness. That means in the mountaintop, when we have testimonies to declare and in the valley of the shadow of death where we're crawling through our knees, the same God is good in every season.
Speaker 1 00:08:51 It means that we can stand firm at the beginning of the year going wherever I go and whatever comes my way, whatever twists and turns that this journey of the year ahead takes me on. I will remain confident of this, that I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. That's the truth that we can hold onto, right? That's a truth that can change our lives. The truth that can take us as a church on a journey, a faith journey, a journey of believing that God has a plan for the global church, but he has a plan for rediscover church. Amen. He has a plan for you and for I, he has a plan for our families as our children, our our parents, and our grandparents. No matter the season or age, no matter what we have gone through, we believe that his goodness has a plan for our lives.
Speaker 1 00:09:33 And I wanna bring to you this morning three invitations that I believe God is lay in before us at the beginning of this year. Three invitations, some of which I believe carry a promise on some of our lives, perhaps even on the church, but three invitations that I believe stem from his goodness come from his goodness and are available for your life if you are willing to accept the truth, not just the statement that God is good. If you are willing at the beginning of the year to say, Lord, I am here January, 2023 and although I've done it a hundred times before I start again afresh, my life is yours. I'm open and surrender on whatever you want for this year is what I want. That's what I'm bringing towards us this morning. That his goodness brings invitations to your life. Do you want me to go through them as I go or do you want to know all three Now you can choose.
Speaker 1 00:10:35 Go on. Interactive moment. All three. All three right now. Okay. Some of you at Eager Beavers look at this. The first invitation that I believe God wants to bring towards is an invitation that I brought in December when I was, when I was speaking, uh, on the Book of Revelation. And the first invitation that I believe is goodness invites us towards that we can experience to a whole new depth and revelation this year. Now hear me when I say this because the next word for some of you you'll turn off. But if you would just grasp, hold and realize that we can see a whole new revelation in our life in this year that will unlock everything to do with your existence, everything to do with your purpose and everything to do with why you were created. Here it is God's goodness invites us towards a greater level of intimacy.
Speaker 1 00:11:32 As some of you switch off there because you think that doesn't sound so powerful, Sean, surely it could have been like revival, it could have been renewal of the world, no intimacy. I have a feeling, a sneaky feeling that for some of us in this room this year, but specifically within our gatherings, that the Lord wants to increase our understanding of what it means to be close to the presence of God. I have a sneaky feeling that some of us, even though we have doubts and sometimes we even have this dubious nature towards Pentecostal circles, and I understand them, I have a feeling that God wants to reveal to us what it means to be close to the Lord like we've never been before in our lives. Hear that before us. And I know some of you have. You've followed Jesus and known him much longer than me.
Speaker 1 00:12:25 And I believe it's for you as well that this year can be a year where God's goodness allows us to personally and intimately know that which he is saying over our lives. So we can map out the year ahead of us with faith and confidence of the word of God that is established with in us. Friends, let me tell you my words or Mark words will not establish or sustain you this year. But if you can grab hold of the word of God, that is an everlasting word of God. If you can grab hold of the promises that he declares over your life at 2023, if you can decline any other offer other than this word to be the source that you will go to in difficult times, I promise you this book will sustain you. And it's this book that provides a beautiful intimacy.
Speaker 1 00:13:10 It provides a beautiful understanding and way of knowing what God is saying and what God is doing. But I believe it's His goodness first that leads us to know that what he is saying to lead us, to know his character, to lead us that he is, he is actually good. It's not just a statement, but he is actually good, his DNA is good and how we interact with a good God, how we see him and how we view him will determine and dictate how we live. 2023. Did you know that your view of God will determine how you live this year? For so long in my life, when I first got saved, I thought God was angry at me. I thought he was frustrated at me because when I went to the Bible, the words that jumped out were often the scary things about hell and judgment.
Speaker 1 00:13:52 And I used to read it in fear God. And there's nothing wrong necessarily with a, a good fear of God, which means we don't fear the world. In other words, we're living by the opinion of God rather than the opinion of man. That's a simple phrase. I'm understanding the fear of the Lord, but, but the fear of the Lord I had wasn't a healthy fear of the Lord. So when I went with God, I always assumed he was frustrated with me. I always assumed that God had just seen me in my last sin and had that in his mind and thinking, Sean, why, why'd you do it again? Why'd you get angry? Why'd you get frustrated? Why did you have that thought? Why did you do that? That was my perception of God. So I've gotta ask myself the question, did I truly believe that God was good in that moment?
Speaker 1 00:14:29 Friends, when we have the revelation, when we, when we are revealed by the spirit of God, that God in his character is good, it changes everything of our relationship with him because we realize that God cares and he loves and he has purpose and plan over your life for this year. And that's true over this church as well, that his goodness is wooing us towards come back to the fathers house, come back and be close with me. Allow yourself to know that I am good and I care and I love for you. You see, God's goodness is likely to have a profound impact on our prayer life. But can I even say this? God's goodness has an impact on even our emotional and mental health.
Speaker 1 00:15:16 Just stepped into some gray areas, haven't I? Let me show you what I, I learned as I was doing some research. There was a study in psychology in America across 1400 volunteers and they examined the prayers of two sets of people. Firstly, there was a group who believed God was loving and kind in nature. And then secondly, there was a group who believed God was distant and not relational as they examined the psychology and the psyche of how they were in their relationship with God. Here's here's a simple truth that they found. They found that those who believed God was loving and kind in his core and character whilst they prayed. There was an absolute stark contrast in the depletion of anxiety that was found in those who believed he was good.
Speaker 1 00:16:11 In other words, when we truly, truly believe God is good, it starts to shape and affect what's going on up here. It starts to realign the anxieties that creep honors in this world, that lay on our shoulders and try to restrict us. So often. Friends, I believe God's goodness is looking to come back to do some rewiring in the church, that we would believe that he is good all the time. His goodness invites us towards relationship and it invites us towards intimacy as a man called Eugene Peterson. Uh, he wrote the message translation of the paraphrase of the Bible. Many know that book the Bible? Yeah. The message. Eugene Peterson, uh, passed away only in the last few years, uh, an incredible pastor and he wrote a book called The Contemplate of Pastor. I was reading it in the summer and uh, he started to speak, he's speaking about intimacy effectively speaking about how this world is so busy like we are caught in the rat race all the time, nine to five work, work, work.
Speaker 1 00:17:22 We need to pay the bills. If we stop working, suddenly we won't know where the money's gonna come from. And he's speaking about this life that is consistently go, go, go, go. And he's effectively saying, is that the way the kingdom was designed to work in our lives is that how we should be Work is a good thing, but where's the healthy boundaries of what God's got for us? And is speaking a lot about the Sabbath and rest. One of the things that he wrote that really stood out to me was he was speaking about how he believes in the church. We have lost our language of intimacy between us and God, a fascinating claim to make, but he starts to break down three different languages that we learn and what culture puts its emphasis on within. Today, I wanna show you these three languages that he speaks about.
Speaker 1 00:18:07 The first language, uh, is this language that we learn when we are a a child, a baby. It's the language of intimacy. In fact, all three of these are probably learned within the first few years of life. They are languages that we've all learned, we've all experienced, we've all gone through. All of us will have a bias towards one or two, largely because I believe is around culture. But let me explain language of intimacy. This is the first language that we will ever, ever learn when we are born into the world and we, we arrive into this place when we take our first breath and we are comforted by the arms of our mother and father. Often when we start to journey in the home, we learn the language of intimacy and relationship. And this is the language which is passed between often parent and child.
Speaker 1 00:18:51 It's an incredibly rich language, but less than impressive in content. It's a language that often actually isn't understood by information or by by kind of understanding. But it's a language that is rich in its heart. The cues and cries of an infant do not pass. They are effectively nonsense, syllables. But to a parent, they may have no dictionary meaning or definition, but they are deeply intertwined between building trust, intimacy and love. We've all got that baby voice, haven't we? Let's be honest for a moment, right? We see a baby and suddenly our voice just changes when we speak to, to a baby. And the reality is, is because we understand that that language of intimacy means something. In fact, Eugene Peterson argues this is our primary language. This is the language that God gave us. First, it's the language that actually should define who we are in our relationship with God.
Speaker 1 00:19:49 We grow older and we move onto language two. Language two is a language of information. And we learn that everything has a name and a meaning. Doesn't it? The baby start to realize what a bottle is and what bed means and what uh, poo and a nappy, pooey nappy kind of means, right? We all, we all understand that and the baby starts to recognize and realize that that words have have meaning. We understand that dolls sleep, water, bottle nappy all actually means something. We move beyond relational and intimacy with persons, which we began and we move into an objective environment. We start to recognize that objects are everything and we have names for them. Language two is the dominant language that we have in schools, isn't it? We go to school and we learn A, B, C, D, we understand what things are, airplane, bus, car, tractor.
Speaker 1 00:20:36 We start to understand what language two is, language of information. Then we move on and we start to realize that we move from language two to language free, which is the language of motivation. And we recognize the power of words and the the reality that they can make a difference. Children start to realize what it means when parents say, eat your vegetables, right? Go to bed, stop, go move. We move beyond information, towards motivation and we start to recognize that our language motivates us to do things, but it also can be used to motivate others. I would say that in the last 20 minutes I have been using language two and three predominantly I've been using the language of information and the language of motivation. And the reason why perhaps that is, is because Eugene Peterson was arguing that we have lost our primary language, which is a language of intimacy.
Speaker 1 00:21:30 And I would argue one of the reasons why we've lost our language of intimacy we've got is because we have forgot of how good he is and what he means to our lives. We forgot the goodness of God in our prayer, the goodness of God in our own language, in our personal language, when we're behind the closed doors that nobody sees, how do we speak to God in that moment? Is it a language of information? Lord, I know this is who you are and I know this A language of motivation. Lord, please do this. Please do this, please do this. Or do we revitalize and renew in 2023? The language that first stems from our heart when we commune with God, which is not a petition or request, but it's from the overflow of our love and our life that says, Lord, before anything, I love you. You're a lover of my soul.
Speaker 1 00:22:25 You're the heartbeat in my heart. You're the reason why I've got breath in my lungs. Lord, I just wanna say this morning as I wake up before anything, I love you, there's been this toxic nature that has captured masculinity over the last 20 or 30 years that has depleted men from being honest enough to be able to say, Lord, I love you church. Can I ask that in 2023 before we are anything else, we are lovers of God. First, Lord, I love you because his goodness invites us this year to a greater revelation of intimacy. Secondly, his goodness invites us to vision. Who wants a vision for 2023?
Speaker 1 00:23:26 Does anyone know want to know what God says over 2023 for your life? Have you thought about that or have we just been so lost in the years? I know I have. It's so lost that New Year's comes around and you straight into it in January and we're all kind of pick up the hundreds of emails that some of you got in your inbox somewhere. Go, go, go. But what about just pausing the first Sunday of the year and asking for you? Now, you and God, God, what's your vision for 2023 for my life? What do you want to do in me and through me in 2023? What are some of the dreams, plans and purposes that you have for me to accomplish this year? What are some of the things that you're asking me to have faithful, to believe will take place this year?
Speaker 1 00:24:13 I, I'm not a good writer. I don't write things down often, but I have found in my life that God is always faithful to hearing the prayers. Even when I dunno, I'm praying. I can say with confidence and I'm not checked this with them. I I'm doing it again. So apologies em wherever you are. But um, with me, in my opinion at the beginning of 2022, me and m were praying lots of different things and believing for lots of different change moments in our lives. For, for 2022, we were hoping for things. We were asking what I can remember, conversations we would have in the cars, we were driving to places. Wouldn't it be amazing if God did this this year? Wouldn't it be amazing if this prayer was answered that we home for, for quite a while, wouldn't be amazing if, if we could just move into this season, this new season that we're going into, whatever it was, and Iwhenever wrote them down.
Speaker 1 00:24:57 I never believed it was God's vision for my life as such, it was just an off the cuff conversation. And I can say wholeheartedly that the end of 2022 as a move into 2023, everything that I longed for God to do personally in me, he has probably done even prayers that I didn't know I was even praying. He is fulfilled. Why? Cause God is good and he has a vision. He has a vision for our lives. He has a vision for what he wants to do in our hearts, in our lives. He has a vision for your life for this year. And before I, I get into some of this, the verse that I'm gonna read in a moment, I just wanna before so I don't forget. I want to ask you to think about something I wanna ask you practically. Now, here's an applicable moment that you can take away from this and do at home tonight or in the next week, no matter how many times you've done it.
Speaker 1 00:25:52 And no matter how many times you've prayed at the beginning of 2023, I want to encourage you to think about finding some time alone with God, getting a pen and paper out and asking him, God, what do you wanna do in my life this year? And write it down because I think some of us will be astounded and astonished when we get to the end of next year, 2023, to what he has done in our lives. I believe we'll be astounded by the goodness of God, of what he has accomplished in our lives if we would just not forget what the, the scriptures at all time. Do not forget the benefits of the Lord. Do not forget the goodness of the God. Have faith to believe that God will do something in our lives this year. And this isn't just some kind of hope message.
Speaker 1 00:26:29 This isn't just just a moment for us to feel good about ourselves. This is what I believe God wants us to do as a church because I believe if we don't write it down, if we don't seek, we don't ask. We may miss the things that God wants to do and I dunno about you, but I do not wanna miss that God's got in store for me this year. I don't wanna miss the plans and the purposes and the dreams and the visions that he has for my life. So in order for me to see that, I must be reminded of his goodness and I must know that he has a vision and a purpose and a plan for my life, but also for this church's life. He has a plan for our life. Shawn, you saying that his his vision and his purpose and his plans will always be good.
Speaker 1 00:27:05 No, I'm not. I'm not pretending that life won't be hard. I'm not pretending that you won't go through trials. I'm not defend pretending that the the valley of the shadow of death does not exist. I'm not doing that. We might walk through it this year. Some of us might go through some really tricky stuff. But I am saying this, that we can have faith to believe that the goodness of God will prevail in our life even in the difficult circumstances. I can believe this morning that us as a church can be rallied around the faith call that David said in Psalm chapter 27, which Andrew read out earlier when he says these words, I will remain confident in this, confident, not sure, not just a little bit, not maybe, but I will remain in every season, in every trial, in every difficulty, in every high and low.
Speaker 1 00:27:52 I will remain confident, confident in this in the beginning of 2023. I commit Lord to remain confident in this, that I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living in this land, in this side of life, in this moment of eternity. We know goodness is the common when Jesus returns. But I believe with all of my heart, there is goodness to experience right here, right now. I believe there's goodness written over some of your lives that you've not tapped into yet. I believe there's goodness and promises over this church. I believe there's goodness and promises for us to unlock and unravel. If we will remain confident in this, the goodness of God will prevail, that it will stand strong. I find it fascinating that when David himself wrote these words, he was having one of the worst seasons of his life.
Speaker 1 00:28:40 You read Sam chapter 27 at some point, and the first few voices, the first few verses of chord, it says, he is my life. I shall not fear, but it goes on to speak about how army is in camp around me. How there are people who are looking out to kill me, how there's people gossiping behind my back saying all kinds of things around me. And in the worst season of my life where I'm probably David at this moment, likely to be carrying in a cave desperate for his life to be saved, that people wouldn't walk in and his life would be over in a moment. In that moment he writes down the words that we see today, even in the valley, even in the trial, even in the challenge. I will remain confident in this, that I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord be strong and take heart of the words that proceed. His statement. You see, the faintness of heart and the trials of life are a common infirmity for humankind.
Speaker 1 00:29:43 We will experience them and we will walk at times on shaky ground. And the reason why I know this is because the man's words that I've just written and we've just read was the very same man who glue, who who slew Goliath yet years later is subject to the attacks of life. But by faith in the goodness of God, he could write down words that his soul needed. I will see, I will see it before it happens. I will vision to believe that it will make a way even when I think it's impossible. Friends, I believe there are giants that can be slain, mountains that can be moved and goals that can be reached if we would truly believe in the goodness of God. I believe it for you and I believe it for this church, not because life is good, not because I am good, but because he is good. And I will be confident in this, that I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the live in Romans 8 28. You all know it. And we know in all things God works for the goods of those who love him and have been called according to his purpose. Finally, I conclude with my final invitation that I believe God brings to us, and I believe God's goodness this morning for 2023 is inviting us to a word that we don't like using change.
Speaker 1 00:31:33 Change that God's goodness leads us to change. Now, there's two aspects of change that I believe God's inviting us towards this. She, the first aspect of change is this personal change is a change that hopefully all of us want in our lives, right? That we would by the end of 2023, be changed to be more like Jesus. Say man, anyone want that in our lives? Yeah. To become more of who he is. And I believe his goodness is inviting us towards that change that we would be able to see God's spirit through sanctification, work in our souls and our spirit to make us more like Jesus. A personal change that is intimate with him, that as we spend time with his goodness, he will rectify and work in our hearts and in our lives. And secondly, the second aspect of change that I believe God wants to bring to us, and this is one that is also just as scary, is that we will believe his goodness would lead to us changing the lives of other people.
Speaker 1 00:32:37 That as we carry his goodness into a broken world, lives will be transformed and changed. A question I ask myself quite regularly, and it's a question that always, if I'm honest, concerns me, is a question that's simply like this. When was the last time I led someone to the Lord? When was the last time I discipled someone on a one-to-one level and journeyed with them that I saw them go through not knowing Jesus and his goodness to knowing Jesus and his goodness? I was there baptized the person, raised them out of that war, journeyed with them throughout life, spoke the scriptures to them, prayed with them, pastored them, cared for them, learnt from them myself. When was the last time that happened?
Speaker 1 00:33:36 And I was asked myself that question, I'm always challenged by his goodness to wanna see more change in my life that by his goodness I would change to have the boldness and confidence that I can see that happen in 2023, amen. To buy confidence in this that I can have and know and experience his goodness that I will see change happen in other people's lives. Not because I'm good, because his goodness is shining through me. Friends, can I, can I say I feel for readers of a church? There are some massive risk adventures ahead for us and we will only see it come to completion if we truly believe in his goodness and truly walk our way in obedience to the Lord. But I believe it's gonna take place.
Speaker 1 00:34:30 Andrew, if you can come up, that's great. There's this amazing story in the book of Exodus. Anyone know the man called Moses? You know Moses, right? You probably should know Moses like he's a quite a big deal in the Old Testament. If you don't, that's fine. Moses is like one of the forefathers of of of really faith. He's an incredible man, did most incredible things. And so often when I read like the story of Moses, I just read over it and just think like, oh, it's really cool, but if it actually happened today, it'd be the weirdest thing ever. Wouldn't it? Like a lot of the things that he saw, like really, really weird. But it can happen. Like a lot of that stuff can happen. And it's fascinating that Moses himself, he knew the goodness of the Lord. And the reason why I know that is because Moses himself experienced the goodness of the Lord in this story that I'm about to tell you.
Speaker 1 00:35:18 But also what's fascinating is the two things that I spoke about prior, which is intimacy and vision are the two things that Moses was wrapped up in when he, when he encountered the Lord in the burning bush, wasn't he? That that God came in the burning bush in a supernatural experience and he gave Moses intimacy one-to-one relationship, come close, take off your sandals, step on holy ground. You know that's the truth of the Lord over your life, that the Lord wants you this year to step into holy ground. He wants you to step into holy ground where miracles can break out signs and wonders can come, chains can be ripped off your life. He wants us to step into holy ground, but in order for us to step into the holy ground, there are some things we have to take off. And for Moses, it was a sandals.
Speaker 1 00:36:02 He put the sandals to a side because they weren't worthy to be able to step into this place. And he stepped into it. And as he stepped into it there he met what is the goodness of God? In first, for first point, the intimacy of the Lord. He had community with God, C of God, he got is spoke with him face to face. He had a beautiful private relationship with at this moment only him and God could see. And there was this new revelation that Moses had of the revelation of intimacy that God had that I believe is a promise over our church that will experience when we gather together. But I'm praying even more so that you will experience when you're alone with God. Got that We don't just come into church services and have our fix of the presence of God, but actually the presence of God is even more intense when you're alone with him than when you're in this place
Speaker 0 00:36:47 That
Speaker 1 00:36:48 Worship becomes unadulterated and unfiltered. That we get to a place where we are so lost in wonder and awe of the majesty of God that nothing else matters in that moment, apart from being with him.
Speaker 1 00:37:03 And Moses is here at the burning bush and he's with God. And then what does God do? God speaks a vision over his life from his goodness. He says, Moses, I know you disqualify yourself, but hear the word of the Lord today. I am the great, I am the one who was and is and is to come. And I speak a new narrative over your life. And here's what I'm gonna ask you to do. If you would believe in my goodness, if you ought have faith and confidence that I will be true to my promises over your life, you will see this take place. And Moses, I I can't do that, Lord, you dunno. I, I've got all these things going on in my life. It's like just believe in the goodness of God, believe in it.
Speaker 1 00:37:41 Moses goes, can surrender to your goodness. I believe in it. I believe in your goodness. And he says, okay, you're gonna lead out the people of Israel from Egypt. You're gonna see all kinds of signs and wonders taking place. You're gonna see all these crazy things and he does it. And we have the plagues and the spliting of the Red Sea and all these crazy, crazy stories taking place. He leads the people out and now he's out in the wilderness, out in the wilderness for years. And what does he do? He continues the two things that God's given him by his goodness, he continues his intimacy and he continues to believe in the vision. He continues to believe that God's goodness will be seen in the land of the living. And he goes up to the mountain. And in Exodus chapter 33, there's this fascinating story. Put yourself in Moses' shoes for a moment. He d he prays the most scandalous and dangerous prayer that you probably find in scripture. And he asks God of something, he requests of him something to take place. And here's what he says, Lord, will you let your glory pass me by?
Speaker 1 00:38:41 Let your glory pass me by God's response. Intimacy vision is fascinating. Moses plead for glory. He's pleading for holiness, he's pleading for the extravagance. He's proven, he's pleading for the majesty to pass him by. What does God say back to him? He says, Moses, go over in the corner. I accept your request and I will allow my goodness to pass you by. My goodness is gonna come and it's it's gonna pass you by Moses. You're gonna experience my my goodness son, daughter, you'll experience my goodness in 2023. It's, it's gonna pass you by. My goodness is gonna come in in those quiet times with the Lord. My goodness is gonna come in, in a vision for your life for this year. My goodness is gonna come. It's gonna pass you by and it's gonna change you. It's gonna change you so you can be changed to make a change.
Speaker 0 00:40:00 There's
Speaker 1 00:40:01 Two things here. Moses reply to that. He goes into the cleft of the rock and it says that God's goodness passes him by. And as God's goodness starts to leave, Moses shouts out and screams something to the Lord, which is really significant. He says, Lord, don't let your presence leave me Lord, don't let your presence go away from me because it's your presence that distinguishes me from the rest. That's the words that he said. You can read it in in Exodus 33. In other words, your goodness is changing me. And now I want to take that goodness to change of us. You see holiness. Let your holiness passing by, let your glory passing by. And goodness, they are deeply interlocked. Friends, in 2023, if you wanna become a more holy person, here's the key. Get to know his goodness
Speaker 0 00:40:56 Because
Speaker 1 00:40:57 His goodness changes us. And from that place, it changes the people around us. His goodness leads the freedom to intimacy, to repentance, to visions and dreams. It leads to renewal and hope. It leads to light that burns away theros and it leads the change. Change in our own lives, but also change in the lives, changing the lives of others. For some of us in 2022, we've been caught in sinful patterns. As I say those words, some of you know exactly what I'm talking about when I say it. And here's what, what I'm here to say. I'm not here to tell you of how bad you are. I'm here to tell you of how good he is. And I believe some sinful patterns that have been taken root in your life are gonna be broken in 2023. I believe there's some addiction that's gonna be broken for good in 2023. Why do I believe that? Because God is good and he longs for it to take place in your life. If you will accept his invitation to intimacy, to vision, and to change, may the Lord bless his word, would you stand with me band? If you could come up as well, that'd be amazing.
Speaker 1 00:42:22 It's a beautiful song that many of you will know speaks about the goodness of God. And it speaks about those famous phrases that we read in the book of Psalms that we've been rooted in today that says, his goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life. And I believe God's goodness is pursuing and chasing us. And I believe we have at the start of this year an opportunity to declare his goodness. As we move into that which he has planned, I believe we have an opportunity to respond to his word and say, God, I heard you speak to me about about that intimacy stuff and I want that for my life. I want to know you more. I want to know you to ahol blow my mind with how close I can be. I wanna be like Moses speaking to you face to face in the mountain now I want that for my life.
Speaker 1 00:43:05 His goodness can lead you to a place. What you understand is vision for your life. And perhaps there's some things that the Lord's just saying to you that's going, I need to know what he has for my life this year. I need to know the plans and purposes, some of the hidden dreams that he wants to deposit in my heart, for me to be able to say yes and amen to your plans for my life for 2023. Perhaps it's changed and perhaps there's some things at the beginning of this year that you're going, Lord, I need to change in my life. I need this to be moved. I need this to be shifted. I don't want this anymore. And I know I've tried everything. I've tried New Year's resolutions and they don't work. I've tried all these things. I've tried to make it work myself, but I understand that if I want it to change and I want it to move, it's your goodness that we'll do it.
Speaker 1 00:43:44 Your goodness will break the yoke of bondage of sin and slavery in my life. I know it can happen. So change me personally. Perhaps you've, you've gone through that experience already and you are a changed person. There's not many things you're thinking about there for change. And instead your prayer is this, Lord, use me this year to change other people. I wanna see people baptized and saved. I wanna see disciples made. I wanna see the church advance and grow. I know you've gifted me and some of those gifts are buried away for whatever reason. But this is the year that I say yesterday meant to your goodness. And I call out all that you've deposited in me and I ask, use it Lord, for the sake of your kingdom. Use it for your mission. Use it for your growth. Use it for your expansion. I don't know what it is, but I know the answer to get there.
Speaker 1 00:44:32 And it's the goodness of God. He is good. God is good. Always good. Good to your life. Good to my life. Good to this church, good to your family, good to your children and your children's. Children's. Do we believe this morning that we have a God who is good? Could you say it with me? Church, would you say, God, you are good this morning. Tell him he's good. Let him know he's good. God, you are good this morning and we will sing of your goodness. We will praise you for your goodness. We will celebrate your goodness this morning. Because even when my heart doesn't believe it, even when the circumstances don't fit it, I will remain confident in this, that I will see the goodness of the Lord and the land of the living for you are good. You are good and you do good for all my life. You have been faithful and all my life you have been so, so good. And your goodness comes running after me. It runs after me into this new year. It runs after me into my workplace. It runs after me into my family. For your goodness and your mercy, follow me all the days of my life.
