In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of recognizing the appropriate time for different actions and emotions in our lives. He references Ecclesiastes chapter 3, which states that there is a time for everything under heaven. The preacher highlights the significance of weeping and mourning as a necessary response to our sins, rather than simply raising our hands and blessing God. He also encourages believers to have faith in God's promises and to persevere in building His church, even in the face of obstacles and discouragement.

Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold. You are welcome to make copies for your friends and neighbors. If you would like additional messages, please go to our website for a complete listing at www.charityministries.org. If you would like a catalog of other sermons, please call 1-800-227-7902 or write to Charity Ministries, 400 West Main Street, Suite 1, Efra, PA 17522. These messages are offered to all without charge by the free will offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry. Amen. Let's pray together. Yes, Father, we come in Jesus Christ's name, Lord. And Father, we worship you, Lord. We praise you, Lord. For each one of us that is here this morning, all that we are and any good thing that is tasted and experienced by us, it's because you make beautiful things, Lord, out of our lives. You bring beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the spirit of praise for the garments of heaviness. Oh, Lord. Father, this morning we just do ask in Jesus' name, Father, that you would make this a beautiful service because you're here and because you're speaking and because we're listening and longing and desiring to be like thee. Oh, to be like thee, like we sung this morning. Blessed Redeemer. Father, this morning I stand in weakness, fear, trembling before you, Lord. And I do ask in Jesus' name, Father, that you would have mercy upon me, thy servant, and touch this trembling heart and touch these lips, Father, my mind, my thoughts, my all that I am. Oh, Father, empty all the earthly that is within me, Lord. Fill with thy spirit, Father. For, Lord, I know that you have a will. I know that you have a purpose for this service, Lord. And, Father, we ask in Jesus' name that thy will would be done, that thy kingdom come in this hour that we're together here this morning, Lord. Father, we ask that you would just give utterance, give unction to your word. We preach not ourselves, but we preach Christ Jesus the Lord. Father, bless each one that has come today. Give us ears to hear, hearts to understand, and a will that is yielded to obey. Oh, we love you, Lord. How we love thy law. How we delight in thy commandments. Oh, Father, capture our hearts, our attention with who you are, Lord Jesus, and what you have for us today. We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated. Greetings to all. In the name of Christ Jesus our Lord. We're having a little different order this morning. We'll have the main message first. So, lest you think I'm going too long. So, God bless you this morning. And welcome each one. Open your Bibles this morning to Ecclesiastes chapter 3. Ecclesiastes chapter 3. And let's read beginning in verse 1. To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to break down and a time to build up. A time to weep and a time to laugh. A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together. A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. A time to get and a time to lose. A time to keep and a time to cast away. A time to rend and a time to sew. A time to keep silence and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate. A time of war and a time of peace. What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboreth? I have seen the travail which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. He hath made everything beautiful in his time. Also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice and to do good in his life. Also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor. It is the gift of God. I know that whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever. Nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it. And God doeth it that men should fear before him. That which hath been is now. And that which is to be hath already been. And God requireth that which is past. Let's stop reading there. A time and a purpose for everything under heaven. There is a time to be born. And there is a time to die. There is a time that God appointed that you should be born. And that I should be born. There is no accidents with God. We weren't planning for this child at this point. But God planned it. He planned the day of our birth. Job makes that very clear. As he is wrestling through his struggles and his trial that has come upon him. He had wished he wouldn't even been born. But he said there was a time that it was appointed. And there was a night in which it was said, A man child is conceived. Jeremiah, he knew it. God said, I have known you before you were even in the belly. And when you came out of the belly, I already had a calling on your life. Oh, brothers and sisters. The Almighty God has appointed a time for us to be born. And here we are today, year 2006. And we are alive. God brought us into this world for a purpose. There is a purpose to our birth. There is a purpose to our life. Even though it's but a short little shadow or a hand breath or a little labor. Oh, God has a purpose. As I looked at these verses, I had to ask myself the question. As I went down through these verses. Lord, what time is it for me? Is it time to be rooting out? Is it time to be tearing down? Or is it time to be building up? Is it time to be planting? What time is it for me? And what time is it for you? You know, everything in it's appointed time, in it's right season, is beautiful. But take something out of it's time, and it can be very unfitting. A word spoken out of due time can be very unfitting. Oh, but a word spoken in season, and in it's due time, can be just so right and beautiful. Lord, grant unto me the wisdom and the knowledge of your will. That I may know what time it is, and what you would have for me today. In this hour. Lord, grant unto us to know, as a congregation, what you would have for us in this hour. Where we need to pull out and root out, and pull down. And where we need to build. We would say the man is not very wise. Who begins to build while there is still a lot of rubble there. And he begins to lay a new foundation over a crooked, sinking foundation. No, it's time to root up those stones and get them out first. That old foundation. Then, when that has been done. Oh, then it's time to build. Lord, I want to know your wisdom. As to the time of my life. I believe I'm already 49 years old. Born in 1957. July 18. And I don't know the time of the day. My mama might. But that was the time for my birth. I don't know yet the time of my death. But the Bible says it is appointed. It is appointed. All of us sitting here. We have that appointment. And after death comes our meeting with God Almighty. And the great judgment. Lord, what's the appropriate time in my life today? I thought I might just look at this scripture. We would see if we would want to term it that way. A positive and then a negative. A positive and a negative. And yet, the scriptures are not negative. But those things that we should be tearing out. Pulling down. Putting off. And all of those things. And then, it's a time to build. It's a time to heal. It's a time to love. And I thought maybe. We would just go through these scriptures. And we would begin. With those things. Where he tells us. Throw it down. Root it out. And then look at the positives. Build. Love. Heal. So, if we can do that this morning. He says. In verse 2. There is a time to plant. And a time to pluck up that which is planted. And when I think of plucking up that which is planted. I believe in the sense of those who want to follow God. And who want to walk in righteousness and holiness. There were plantings in our sinful past. That we must reckon with. And those things. That were planted in the flesh. Will of the flesh reap corruption. And it is important. We understand this morning. That we need to lay the axe to the root of those things. And deal with them through repentance. And renunciation. And putting them off and away out of our lives. Or they will be like thorns in our sides. And they will be continually there hanging on us. Slowing us down in our Christian race. He says. That there is a time. To break down. Are there any strongholds in my life. And in your life. From your sinful past and my sinful past. That are standing there. Like a wall. That needs to be broken down. Well, it is possible this morning. Through acknowledging of that wrong planting. And owning it for myself. Not my dad's fault. Not because of the sin passed down to me. Not because of the school I went to. Not because my family situation was bad. But because I was a sinner. And am a sinner. And therefore I have sinned. And I owe that sin. And I repent of it. And I apply the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ over that sin in my life. And ask Him. To wash me thoroughly. Like David said in Psalm 51. Oh, wash me thoroughly. Or thoroughly from my iniquity. And cleanse me thoroughly. Wash me with hyssop. Don't let anything of it remain. I don't even want the smell of smoke anymore. I want it all to be gone. Break that thing down. And God isn't going to do it without your permission. They were praying over the young man. Trying to cast out the evil spirit. And the evil spirit spake. I have reason to be here. Oh, because this man loves his sin. He won't repent of his sin. And I don't know where to put all of those things. Sometimes people are in deep bondage. And there needs to be evil spirits cast out. Jesus did it in His day. The disciples did it in their day. But if we love that sin and are holding fast to it, I don't believe any man of God will be able to rebuke that evil spirit out. If you're an angry man, and you're holding fast to that bitterness and unforgiveness, and you won't let it go, I don't know of any man who can break the power of that thing and cast it out. If you love it and hold to it. And you could add any sin in there you wish. Anything you want. Verse 4, He says, There's a time to weep. There's a time to weep. And when I think of a time to weep, Oh, I think of mournful, mourning repentance. A time to weep. I have a few verses on that here somewhere. Here we are. A time to weep. God says, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in His Word, Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn and weep. You know, there's a time for weeping. There's a time where it's right. There's a time where it's appropriate. And God says, Don't! Raise your hands and bless me. You need to be weeping over your sin. You need to be afflicted and mourn. He says, Let your laughter be turned to mourning. But today, people just want to be happy. Make me happy. Make me smile. Make me feel good. Turn up the music. Turn up the volume. And let's just have a worship experience. And go out the doors the same way we came in. That's very sad, but I'm afraid that's a lot of what happens in many churches these days. And it can happen here. Oh, let's just lift up our voices and sing loudly. And let's really just bless the Lord and have a good time. But it's God saying, I don't receive the sacrifice of your praise of your lips. You're honoring me with your lips. But there's a problem in your heart. Oh, I want that you would see what season and time it is for you. And that you would see the seriousness of your sin. And you would weep and mourn over your sins. And repent. Oh, yes. Be afflicted and mourn and weep. Let your joy be turned to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord. What time is it? What season is it? To what purpose is it? Blessed are they that mourn. Yes, blessed are they that mourn. In a godly sorrow and a repentance that's not to be repented of. Oh, yes. Blessed are they that mourn. They shall be comforted. A time to weep. A time to mourn. Verse 5. A time to cast away stones. And when I thought of that verse, I thought of the scripture in Isaiah where he says, Go through. Go through the gates. Isaiah 62 verse 10. Prepare ye the way of the people. Cast up. Cast up the highway. Gather out the stones. Lift up a standard for the people. Is that our heartbeat? Go through. Go through the highway. Prepare ye the way of the people. Cast up. Cast up the highway. Gather out the stones. Lift up a standard for the people. The stones. You know, Those stones in a highway are not a good thing. Stones on the highway are dangerous. They cause people to stumble and fall. They cause accidents. They cause people to get off the highway because you have to swerve out of the way for those stones. Go through the highway. Cast up the highway. Gather out the stones. Are there stones in my life? Are there stones in your life? Stones. You know, stones. When we think of stones on a highway, they will slow down the travel. If you've ever traveled in Haiti and the roads are rough and there are stones on the highway, you have to slow way down and you have to be turning out and in this way and that and there's potholes. You just can't make much progress. Isn't that how it is in our spiritual life as a Christian? If there are stones on the highway, the highway of holiness, and there are stones of unholy things on the highway, what are those stones, Lord? What are they? You know, I can start naming stones and maybe I should name some stones that come to my heart and my mind. You know, a stone is a weight. Hebrews says, lay aside the weight that sin does so easily beset you. Stones of selfishness. Oh, stones of pride. You know, sins that are sins of the Spirit. They may be hidden to man's eyes. We may put on a big smile on a Sunday morning and oh, everything's wonderful, but there's a stone of unforgiveness in the heart. There's a stone of resentment. A stone of pride. Where I think less of my brother. Think highly of myself. But I think less of my brother or my sister. Cast up. Cast up the highway. Gather out the stones. In my life personally, in our life as a congregation, Lord, gather out the stones. Stones of unbelief. Stones of discouragement. Stones of judging my brother. Seeing a moat in his eye, but blind to the beam that's in my own eye. Many stones could be mentioned. What season and what time is it? For me today, is there any stones on the highway of my life? There's a time to cast away stones. There's a time when the Lord turns on His searchlight in our hearts and He shows us those stones. That is the time to gather them out. Lest we become accustomed to the stones. We don't deal with them, so we become accustomed to them. And every day as the time goes by and the Holy Spirit conviction becomes less and less and we just allow those stones in our lives. And soon it's normal. The stones were always there. And we don't even see them. We don't even recognize how it is slowing us down, how it is impeding our progress to go on with God. And we get used to the stones. You know, the people driving in Haiti and Africa and over there in Belize and wherever, all these many third world countries. They're accustomed to the stones. They're accustomed to the sharp hairpin turns. They're accustomed to all of those things. My, if they drove on a highway like the autobahn in Germany, they'd think, what has happened? My, what a highway this is. It would be pretty hard to go back on that with all the stones on it. Oh Lord, open our eyes. Where's the stones? Cast out the stones and lift up a standard for the people. You see, something else happens. When we allow those stones in our lives, we lower the standard. We lower the standard. Yeah, those stones are just part of who I am. I can't help it. I dealt with most of the stones. I got the big boulders out of the way. Ah, but the stones, well, we all have stones. And the standard is lowered. Amen? Standard comes down. Well, I'm not going to say anything about my brother and admonish him and encourage him to get those stones out because I have stones too. And so, the standard just goes down. Amen? Oh well, if we all picked our own stones at our own door, then everything would be taken care of and there's no need to admonish my brother. That is not scriptural. That's just the proverb of men. That's one of those things you've got to throw out the window. The Bible says, admonish one another, exhort one another, and so much the more, as you see the day approaching. Gather out the stones. Cast them away. Oh, and we cast them away. Reminds me of the days on the farm. We'd go out there in the field and we'd gather up the stones. We didn't just move them over to the next row. You'd pick them up and you'd put them on a wagon and you'd take them out of the field. And you'd take them down along the creek bank where the erosion is working on the banks and you'd put the stones in there where they'll serve a purpose. Those stones aren't going to show up back in the field next year. Oh, amen. Lord, help us. Gather out the stones. Don't just put them over in the next row so your brother can trip over it. The next verse he says... No, it's the same verse, verse 5. He says, there's a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. And this one, it really challenges my own heart. I didn't know if I'd even dare share it. Hardly. So, I just pray that what verses I share here and everything that just be... Lord would just bathe it in His Spirit and His love. And we hear what the Scriptures say. The time to refrain from embracing, I have to admit that's hard for me to do. That's hard to do. Matthew 18 says, If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. If he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church. But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. Romans 16, Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them. Don't embrace them. Don't embrace that one who refuses to hear the church. Let him be to thee as a heathen man and a publican. I wrote unto you, 1 Corinthians 5, 9, In an epistle not to company with fornicators, yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world or with the covetous or extortioners or idolaters, for then must ye needs go out of the world. But now I have written unto you not to keep company if any man that is called a brother, be a fornicator or a covetous or an idolater or a railer or a drunkard or an extortioner, know with such an one not to eat. For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judges. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person. Don't embrace that one. Put him away. Don't eat with such an one who's called a brother but will not repent of his sin. 2 Thessalonians 3, 6, Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly and not after the tradition which ye received of us. Withdraw yourselves. These are hard words. These are not easy. And they can be so easily misapplied. They can be so easily misapplied. So I say this with all carefulness. It's... We must be full of the spirit of the compassion and love of Christ in order to carry out these scriptures in a right way or we will make shipwreck of it. We will do it so wrong. But there's a time to refrain from embracing. Verse 6, he says, There's a time to get and a time to lose and a time to keep and a time to cast away. I think I should just make one more comment on the verses we did read. You know, and that is on the matter of scriptural, biblical excommunication in the church, in the brotherhood. That that is something that God has ordained to keep the body pure and holy and powerful that God can flow through. And leaven does leaven. A little leaven left in the body will cause the whole lump to be leavened. So there is a time for excommunication. There is a time when the scriptures must be fulfilled and carried out. But again, with much prayer and spiritual discernment and the wisdom and grace of God and the love of God upon our hearts. Going on now to verse 6, There's a time to get and a time to lose a time to keep and a time to cast away. Yes, a time to lose. What should it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? There's people who for the kingdom of God's sake have lost everything. Many who have just said, I'm done, I'm finished with good jobs, with financial security, with retirement plans and all kinds of things and have said, I am done. I want to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, all of us here this morning, if we haven't lost anything, I wonder what we've gained. Because if we haven't lost everything for Christ, how can we gain Him and how can we have Him? There's a time to lose. There's a time to cast away. And that can be very practical in our present day, even as a Christian. There's a time to lose my reputation today as a Christian. There's a time to speak for the Lord and let it be plainly declared whose child I am and who I belong to. And let the mockery come. That's all right. There's a time to lose money because we'll do what's right. Some who for their past sins, when they got born again and got saved, they had to go turn themselves in to the law. And let come what may. Now that I am free in Christ, it doesn't matter if they stick me in a prison house, because I'm free from my sins. I've been delivered. Hallelujah! Yes, a time to lose. A time to cast away. Oh, when I think of casting away, there's so many applications could be made. But those things that were once gained in me, I count them lost. I count them as nothing. I count them as dung that I may win Christ. And we cast it away. We cast it aside. Those things from the old life, ah, cast them away! Clean house! You know, you've heard it said. We had a house cleaning. We filled up that old burn barrel twice. And we had a fire. Ah, expensive things went in that barrel. Just like in the book of Acts, all their books of magic and all their curious arts, they brought them together and they burned them. It didn't matter what it cost. We're not going to put it on the garage sale to let somebody else be contaminated by it. We put it in the burn barrel and we cast it aside. Behind us, hallelujah! Cast it away. That goes right along with the next verse. A time to rend. You know, when I think of rending, what do you think of? You think of a garment, don't you? An Old Testament picture of repentance was to rend your garment and to sit in sackcloth and ashes before the Lord in repentance. But God said, there's something better. I want you not just to rend your garments, but to rend your heart. But a time to rend and a time to sew speaks of garments, doesn't it? Or the tent that they dwelt in, or something of a cloth. A time to rend. My mind goes back to a revival here. And a brother, as it were, rend his garments of his pleasure, idolatrous life that just consumed his life and was an idol to him and was his life. He brought his snowmobile suit up front here and put it in the burn barrel. Rend that thing. Put it in the burn barrel. That's something from the past. That was my old life. I lived for the winter days to come and the snow to fly so I could load up my snowmobiles on my trailer and head up to the mountains and have a great time. But the Lord Jesus saved me. He gave me a new affection and a new love. I'm done with those old things. I don't need them anymore. I'm not going to keep them hanging around. I don't want them to be hanging there 15 years from now for my sons and my daughters to pick up and look at. We're going to get rid of them. Put them in the barrel. Burn them. Rend them. I thought of the Babylonish garment. Aitken and the Babylonish garment. What do you think they did with that garment? Well, we'll just sort of keep it around. Well, we'll wear it for every day. Do you think? That speaks of my old, idolatrous, sinful life. I don't want any part of it. Rend it. Yes, some people have taken their old religious cloaks too. After they got truly saved and born again. And Renzo's too. Because it spoke of a hypocritical life. Like whited sepulchers on the outside looking religious and holy. But inside full of dead men's bones. And they don't want anything to do with that anymore. And they rend that thing. And get rid of it. You know, in a practical application here, this matter of rending the old garment, it has been said that one of the downfalls of our community has been the reused shops and the yard sales. And I believe there's some truth to that. And I share that this morning as a practical application to the word of God. Because there was a time in this community when just because it was a bargain doesn't mean you buy it and wear it. And the people were more careful in their attire and how they wore their clothing. Because there was more of a consciousness. And I believe the yard sales and the reused shops have broken that thing down. And today, you'll see people that on the Lord's Day are easily distinguished and separated under God, set apart. Very easily distinguished. But during the week, they're wearing bright colored T-shirts and all sorts of clothing that they would not have wore before. But it was a bargain. It was 25 cents at the yard sale. And so then there's a breaking down. And a wearing down. Yes, it's what's on the inside that matters. But a sanctified heart will not want to have an appearance of evil. Amen? Those things that we once were involved in that now we're ashamed of of our former conversation. We don't want to go back there. We're not going to keep those things hanging in the closet and just wear them for every day. Because we're a testimony. We are a living epistle known and read of all men. It is true. Yes, what comes out of our lives, what comes out of our mouths, what we speak, who we are. A time to rend. Yes. A time to sow. Amen. A time to keep silence. And a time to speak. Oh, to have the power of the anointing of the Spirit of God on our hearts. To be able to keep quiet. It was such a gracious, powerful testimony of the Lord Jesus that the men marveled. He opened not His mouth. He didn't defend Himself. A time to keep silence. A time to hate. How do we apply that? A time to hate? New Testament verses that come to my mind is where Jesus said, if you don't hate father or mother and your own life also, you cannot be my disciple. You cannot be my disciple. You cannot be my disciple. Yes, there's a time to hate. There's a time we have to choose between loving God and hating our flesh and blood relatives. It's what Jesus applied there. Or any person who will get in the way between me and God. To love the Lord God with all of my heart. With all of my soul. With all of my mind. Having no other gods before me. Yes, there's a time to hate. There's a time of war and a time of peace. And I believe some of these things, they're given as this is life. Not that we as Christians should be warring, but this is life. This is what men find themselves in in their labor under the sun. There's times of war, there's times of peace. Now, if we can go back again and just look at these verses very quickly. Oh, there's a time to plant. Now brothers, like we began, let's not start planting if the soil needs filling. You don't see the corn planter go after the mow board plow. Or ahead of it unless it's a no-till. But first it must be plowed. The fallow ground must be broken up. And then, after it's broken up and it is cultivated and the weeds that were growing there, Oh, they're all disked up and the soil is soft and loose and pliable and it's ready for planting. Isn't that a beautiful picture of the field? It's just all leveled and ready for planting. Oh, that's beautiful. And God says there's a time to plant. In Amos 9.14 He says, And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel and they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them. And they shall plant vineyards and drink the wine thereof and they shall also make gardens and eat the fruit thereof. And I will plant them upon their land and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God. Ah, beautiful promise. A time to plant. A time to plant a vineyard. A time to plant gardens. And when you plant, oh, you're planting in faith. And you know that the seeds you plant, that's the harvest you're going to receive after the Lord sends the rains. Hosea, he says, Sow to yourselves in righteousness and reap in mercy. Break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the Lord till He come and rain righteousness upon you. Oh, yes. Oh, it's time to sow in righteousness. All of those old sowings of the past life that have been dealt with and repented of, now sow to yourselves in righteousness. Yes. Sow. Sow. Sow bountifully and reap bountifully. Don't sow sparingly. Sow bountifully, just like we sowed in the flesh. We weren't ashamed to sow in the flesh. Why we ought not be ashamed to sow in the Spirit for God? Oh, it's a rich harvest coming. It's an eternal harvest. Sow to yourselves in righteousness. James 3.18, he says, And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace. Yes, there's a time to plant. Is it time to plant? Has the soil been plowed up and been broken up and the hard heart is just softened by the Spirit of God? I was just thinking of last weekend and the beautiful Word of the Lord coming to our hearts and just plowing on our hearts. What time is it, brothers and sisters? Is it time to plant? Is it time to sow to yourselves in righteousness? Verse 3, a time to heal. Oh, yes. Come, let us return to the Lord, for He has torn and He will heal us. He has smitten and He will bind us up. Let us return to the Lord. Hosea 6, verse 1 through 3, And after two days He will revive us, and the third day He will raise us up and we shall live in His sight. Then shall we know if we follow on to know the Lord. His going forth is prepared as the morning, and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth. Amen. A time to heal. Yes, He has torn. He has made us low. He has shown us our iniquities. He has shown us our sins. And we pined in our sins and we grieved and were burdened for our sins. And we wept and mourned and cried for certain days until the Lord came and delivered us and healed us. Oh yes, He will heal us. He will bind us up. Psalm 127, The Lord doth build up Jerusalem. He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart and bindeth up their wounds. Hallelujah. A time to heal. Jesus said, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor and He has sent me to heal the broken hearted. That's the ministry of our Lord Jesus. To heal the broken hearted. And then I thought of us. I thought of us Christians. In Christ's stead are we. That we should call the world to reconciliation to God and should preach the gospel of deliverance and the gospel of healing to the broken hearted. And then I thought, you know, it's pretty easy to deal with a wound in the body. A broken arm. Even serious wounds of the body. Oh, but how do we help those who have a broken heart? How can we minister the grace of God that would heal the broken hearted? Was it Paul who said, Or Titus, The comfort wherewith I have been comforted. Paul. Therefore he's able to comfort those. I thought of human relationships. I thought of where there's been a breach. Where there's been a misunderstanding. Where there's been a rift. Oh, Lord. Isn't it time to heal? Oh, isn't it time that we would seek out earnestly for healing in those areas? To heal the broken hearted. You know, one of the ways hearts are broken and wounded is by tail bearing. Words of a tail bearer, they're like a knife. They wound into the innermost parts of the belly. Oh. If I have gossiped about someone, let me go quickly and confess and repent so that there can be healing. If I've spoken evil of anyone, let me go quickly and repent lest the word come to them of what I have said and they are wounded. Healing the broken hearted. A time to heal. Yes. What season is it for me? Is there broken hearts in this congregation here this morning? Are you broken hearted as you listen to the tape? And you know someone who has deeply wounded you. But you know, maybe they don't even know it. Maybe I need to go with my wounded broken heart trembling in faith, believing God that if I share with my brother or my sister, they will hear and they will say, I'm so sorry I didn't realize that I hurt you so. Would you please forgive me? You know, maybe we're sitting here waiting for them to come. Maybe they are not even aware. Because what can happen is when we're hurting, we're more easily hurt. And we take something personally that we really shouldn't. Oh Lord, let that ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ flourish in our midst. That the broken hearted would be healed. And it's a time of healing. And a time to build up. Oh, a time to build up. When I thought of a time to build up, my mind went to so many different scriptures and so many beautiful examples. But I have to say this morning, probably the one that really is exciting to me is Nehemiah. Where the city was laid waste and it was ruined and burned with fire. And he went in there and he surveyed the situation. And he mourned and he wept remembering what it used to be like. And he bathed that thing in prayer. And then he made petition to the king. And he got the provision that he needed. Brothers and sisters, let us make petition to the king. He has all the provision we need. Oh, it wasn't finished yet. It wasn't over yet. There was opposition along the way. There was those who mocked him. There was those who were ministers of doubt and unbelief. Oh, you'll never do it. You'll never be able to do it. It's beyond repair. Just forget it. Throw in the towel, Nehemiah. It's no use. Oh, but he had heard from God. And he knew what the Lord had promised him. So he rallied together some support. Who will help me build? He had a vision and a purpose. And God raised up faithful men to build. Oh, they couldn't build quite as fast as he would have liked to because sometimes they had to have a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other. But they kept right on building. And when Sanballat's and his buddy came and said, oh, if a fox steps on it, it will fall over and mock them and all the things that it... There was a few times the building was stopped for a little bit. People sort of lost courage and hope, but then it got back on track again. And I believe, brothers and sisters, that's the Christian life. We need to believe God and believe the promises that He gave us. He said, I will build my church, the Lord Jesus said. And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will build. But we have to do it God's way. Remember, it's funny to try to build on the sand or the old rubble. So where are we this morning? What time is it? Is there some old rubble there that needs to be dug out yet? Well, then let's, by the grace of God, be honest with ourselves and with God and deal with that thing so that the foundation can be laid upon the Lord Jesus Christ, that solid rock. Not upon my own try to do better efforts or my own good ideas. Not upon my heritage, though I'm blessed and glad for my heritage, but no, that's not good enough. We need to go all the way back, not just to the Anabaptists, but we need to go all the way back to the Lord Jesus Christ. Because He's the one who said, I'll build my church. Oh, I'm grateful for faithful Christians along the way. I'm grateful for the Anabaptists who died for their faith and were willing to stick their neck out and get baptized in the midst of an apostate church and just a form of dead religion. I'm very grateful for those things, but brothers and sisters, in order for the pattern to come out right, we must pattern after the Lord Jesus Christ. We must. Yes, we can pick up some things along the way that are a blessing, and we don't want to discount that. But we just go back a little farther than the Anabaptists. We just go back a little farther than the founding of Charity Church. We go back to the foundation of the apostles and the prophets and Jesus Christ being the chief cornerstone, and there we build. Oh, and when the Lord builds the house, then it's going to be built. When we build it according to His plan and His principles and purpose. Is it time to build, brothers and sisters? Yes. He says in Isaiah 61, and we already read the verse over in the New Testament in Luke, but He says He has come to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, to comfort all that mourn, and to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give them beautiful ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called the trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified. Yes, the planting of the Lord. Every tree that my Heavenly Father has not planted, Jesus said, shall be rooted up. Anything that's built on any other foundation shall be rooted up, for there shall come a shaking to shake the heavens and the earth, and everything that can be shaken will be shaken. So if we're not built upon the foundation of Jesus Christ and the planting of the Lord, that plant shall be rooted up. Oh, but He shall be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified, and they shall build the old ways, and they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the way cities and the desolations of many generations. And in Isaiah 58, 12 He says, And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places. They shall raise up the foundations of many generations, and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwelling. Now that is an exciting verse this morning. And they that shall be of thee, our seed, our children, you know, for many generations, it was godless, it was wicked and evil, and there was no trace of any righteousness and love for God. But you, my brother, who have turned your heart, and you, my sister, who have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, He says, as you have turned your heart, He says, They that be of thee shall build the old waste places. Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations. This thing is going to be turned around in your life. You know, the family tree. All a bunch of agnostics and atheists and humanists. Ah, but then there comes a day when a brother hears the voice of the Lord, or a sister, and they respond to the call of God. And that whole family tree line is all changed from there on out for many generations. Oh, that should excite us to lay hold on the promises of God. And thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach and the restorer of paths to dwelling. Oh, that's beautiful. Let's read this again, one time through, and then I'll close. To everything there is a season, a time to every purpose under heaven, a time to be born, a time to die, a time to plant, a time to pluck up that which is planted, a time to kill, a time to heal, a time to break down, and a time to build up, a time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to mourn, and a time to dance, a time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together, a time to embrace, a time to refrain from embracing, a time to get, and a time to lose, a time to keep, and a time to cast away, a time to rend, and a time to sow, a time to keep silence, and a time to speak, a time to love, and a time to hate, a time of war, and a time of peace. And verse 11, He has made everything beautiful in His time. There's a lot more in this chapter. I missed a few, but I think I'll just leave it there. We're trusting the Lord for that. God bless you. Turn it over to Brother Emmanuel. Praise God. His Word to our hearts this morning. I thought of David's men. I couldn't find it quickly here, but when David was rising up there, maybe even before Saul was dead, I'm not sure, but there was men who came to him, and there was this one tribe of men, was it Zebulun? They were men who knew the times. They knew the times. They knew the right times. Oh, that God would give us some men who are able to discern the times that we're in and the seasons and such. That's where my thoughts went in. So I appreciate the message very much, and I'm very blessed and ministered to my heart. Very well. Thank you, Aaron, for allowing the Lord to use you. Share the Word this morning. I'd like to open it up for you if you have something to share. Maybe God has spoken to you about a time in your life. Maybe you're in a specific time. There's a time to tear down. There's a time to build. There's a time to die. There's a time to be raised up. So, to know the times for our life is important. Maybe someone has a testimony. Raise your hand, and I'll give you the opportunity to share. Hand over here. Others, get your hands up if you'd like to share. Now, the scripture that, or the man you were referred to, is in 1 Chronicles 12, 32, where it describes David's army, tribe by tribe. And it says, And the children of Issachar, who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do. Thank you, brother. I actually had that page, but didn't see it. Children of Issachar. Very good. Understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do. Praise God. A hand up here. I was very, very blessed by the message this morning. Thank you, brother Aaron, for your labor of love in the word. I remember brother Denny saying one time, after that particular hymn we sung, the thought, the spirit must have dropped in brother Denny's mind at the time was, what did it cost that hymn writer to pull those lyrics down from heaven? And when I hear preaching where it just speaks directly to my heart and soul, I know there's a price to be paid. We've come through a revival as a congregation that has been a unique one. It's not been a revival of hype, but it's been a revival of humility. And I think we're already seeing the fruit of that. It costs a great deal to hear preaching like this. It costs a great deal to have wisdom imparted from our elders. And as a congregation, the price that the Lord is asking each one of us to pay is the price of our flesh. Jesus has already paid the price for our redemption. But for sanctification and grace and worship and body life like we hope to experience, there's only one price left to pay, and that's the death of our pride. And that's what I wanted to share this morning I want to say a couple of things. God has been breaking me. Before the revivals, there were some themes in my life and place that the Lord says, I'm going to do something, and it's going to hurt. And I don't like those. In my quiet time, that theme became clear. But one of them has been anger and forcefulness. Two of those. And I recently went to work for Brother Luke Zimmerman and I've been very blessed to be working with him, but very humbled too as I realized the last time I did construction steadily, I was a much younger man. And in my pride, I thought I could just dive into this and swing a pickaxe and dig ditches and pour concrete. My back has just been killing me for about six weeks. And at first it was all about, well, Jeff, you're just getting older. but the Lord has been speaking to me. That's not the whole picture. It's Jeff, you're asking for holiness. And I want to show you that what worked as a young man, drivenness and anger and pride when you're facing an obstacle isn't going to work anymore. I want you to rest. I want you to let the joy of the Lord be your strength when my boss says, Hey, pour this concrete or dig this ditch. The old ways don't work as I go on with Christ. As an athlete, I could get angry about something and get the job done in a younger body. But as I get older, I realize that it doesn't work. If I have something that needs getting done, the joy of the Lord is my strength, not anger. It's so easy to justify anger. I could justify my anger as righteous anger. But God's doing a work. And He's humbling me and I'm thankful for it. I know He's doing a work on our congregation. I guess what keeps me pressing on through some of the sleepless nights and things like that is hope. God has a very good end for us in this revival of humility. Not just for myself, but I think as a congregation we're going to see grace given to the humble. And I'm looking forward to that season of reaping, even though right now it's a season of plowing and tearing down. I would say that just meditating on the times of the seasons and for the body here, I look at years past and times of great strengthening and God's moving and many people gathering in and times of discipling them. And then there came a time of sending them out. And now we're once again in a time of plowing like you said and working up the soil. We want to do it right. We want to do it right. We want to plow deep enough.