AS WE PREPARE TO TURN TO THE WORD OF GOD TODAY. I HOPE THAT THE TESTIMONY OF YOUR LIFE IS, THAT GOD HAS BEEN FAITHFUL TO YOU. I REALLY BELIEVE TODAY THAT IF YOU'LL STOP LONG ENOUGH TO TAKE A GOOD LONG HARD LOOK AT SOME THINGS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN YOUR LIFE, THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT YOU'LL SEE, THAT GOD'S BEEN FAITHFUL. NOW, WE SHOULDN'T BE SURPRISED BY THAT, THOUGH WE OFTEN ARE. BECAUSE MANY TIMES WHEN WE LOOK AT THE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD, WE LOOK AT IT IN COMPARISON TO HOW WE HAVE BEEN FAITHFUL TO HIM. AND LET'S JUST FACE IT TODAY, WE'VE NOT BEEN AS FAITHFUL TO HIM, AS HE HAS BEEN TO US. WE HAVE FAILED HIM MANY TIMES. GOD HAS NEVER, NOT ONE TIME, FAILED US. TODAY, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE, I THINK THERE ARE SOME FOLK THAT JUST NEED THAT LITTLE WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT. THAT IN THE MIDST OF WHAT YOU'RE GOING THROUGH, GOD IS GOING TO REMEMBER YOU. HE IS GOING TO BE FAITHFUL. SO TODAY, I WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT, "A GOD WHO IS FAITHFUL." I WANT TO DO THAT FROM OUT OF 1ST CORINTHIANS, CHAPTER 10, ONE VERSE OF SCRIPTURE, VERSE 13. IN THE MIDST OF ALL THAT PAUL IS SAYING HERE, IN HIS LETTER TO THE CHURCH AT CORINTH, HE GIVES US THIS LITTLE WORD THAT TELLS US THAT GOD IS GOING TO BE FAITHFUL. SO TURN WITH ME TO 1ST CORINTHIANS 10.13. AND READ THIS ONE VERSE WITH ME AND LET IT SPEAK TO YOUR HEART TODAY. PAUL WRITES, "THERE IS NO TEMPTATION TAKEN YOU BUT SUCH AS IS COMMON TO MAN. BUT GOD IS FAITHFUL, WHO WILL NOT SUFFER YOU TO BE TEMPTED ABOVE THAT, THAT YE ARE ABLE. BUT WILL WITH THE TEMPTATION ALSO MAKE A WAY TO ESCAPE. THAT YOU MAY BE ABLE TO BEAR IT." NOW, THAT'S JUST ONE VERSE OF SCRIPTURE AND THAT VERSE OF SCRIPTURE CAN SPEAK TO US OF MANY THINGS. I DON'T HAVE BUT JUST A FEW MOMENTS THIS MORNING, SO I CAN'T TALK ABOUT ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT THIS SCRIPTURE MAY BE ADDRESSING. YET, I CAN TALK TO YOU ABOUT THIS AND THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT I WANT YOU TO HEAR TODAY. EVERYONE OF US TODAY ARE GOING THROUGH THINGS, AND WE SAY THAT QUITE OFTEN, I KNOW. BUT WE ARE GOING THROUGH SOME THINGS AND IN THE MIDST OF THOSE ADVERSITIES, HUH, I DON'T KNOW ABOUT HOW IT IS AT YOUR HOUSE, BUT AT MY HOUSE EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, WHEN WE'RE GOING THROUGH SOME THINGS, WE NEED A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT. WE NEED TO BE REMINDED OF GOD'S WONDERFUL PROMISES TO OUR LIVES. BECAUSE THAT'S HOW WE MAINTAIN OUR HOPE AND OUR FAITH, OUR TRUST IN HIM. TO REMIND OURSELVES THAT GOD HAS SAID SOME THINGS TO US. THAT HE HAS MADE SOME WONDERFUL PROMISES TO US. AND THEN WE BUILD ON THOSE PROMISES BECAUSE GOD'S TRACK RECORD WITH US IS, THAT HE HAS NEVER FAILED US. YOU CAN DEPEND ON SOMEBODY WHO'S NEVER FAILED YOU. I KNOW THE HUMAN RESPONSE IS TO SAY, "BUT PREACHER, THERE'S ALWAYS A FIRST TIME." THAT'S RIGHT AND WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THINGS OF THIS EARTH, THAT RULE APPLIES. BUT WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT GOD, GOD NEVER FAILS AND GOD NEVER WILL FAIL. YOU SEE, WHAT CAUSES US TO FAIL AT TIMES ARE THE OBSTACLES THAT GET IN OUR WAY. EVERY ONE OF US ARE GOING TO FACE THINGS THAT WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT. WE DON'T HAVE SKILLFUL ENOUGH HANDS. WE DON'T HAVE A BRILLIANT ENOUGH MIND. WE DON'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO RISE ABOVE THE OBSTACLE OR THE HINDRANCE. BUT WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT GOD, YOU HAVE REMIND YOURSELF. THAT IF THERE IS AN OBSTACLE THAT GETS IN GOD'S WAY, HE JUST MOVES IT OUT OF THE WAY. BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING THAT CAN WITHSTAND THE POWER OF GOD. THAT'S HOW HE'S ABLE TO BE FAITHFUL. EVEN IN THE MOST EXTREME OF CIRCUMSTANCES, GOD IS FAITHFUL. HE SAID HE WOULD NOT ALLOW ANYTHING MORE THAN WE WERE ABLE TO BEAR TO COME OUR WAY. SO IF YOU'RE GOING THROUGH THE MOST DIFFICULT TEST OF YOUR LIFE THAT YOU'VE EVER GONE THROUGH, WELL, MAYBE THIS WILL ENCOURAGE YOU A LITTLE BIT. AS YOU GO THROUGH IT, GOD IS SAYING, YOU'RE ABLE TO GO THROUGH IT. SO DON'T LOSE HOPE IN THE MIDST OF THAT SITUATION. DON'T LET THE SIZE OF YOUR DIFFICULTY DICTATE TO YOU GOD'S PERFORMANCE. BECAUSE AS YOU'RE GOING THROUGH IT, GOD IS SAYING YOU'RE ABLE TO BEAR UP UNDER THIS LOAD. YOU'RE ABLE TO GO THROUGH THIS SITUATION. AND THEN REMIND YOURSELF, THAT AS GOD SAID HE WOULD NOT LET MORE COME UPON THEN YOU WERE ABLE TO BEAR. HE ALSO SAID, HE WOULD MAKE A WAY OF ESCAPE. IN OTHER WORDS, WHEN GOD KNOWS YOU HAVE COME TO YOUR BREAKING POINT, GOD WILL DIVINELY INTERVENE TO MAKE A WAY FOR YOU. NOW WHEN YOU READ THIS PASSAGE OF SCRIPTURE, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU UNDERSTAND THAT THIS SCRIPTURE IS IN CONTEXT WITH SOME OTHER THINGS THAT GOD IS SAYING. AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT WHAT GOD IS SAYING IN THE PREVIOUS 12 VERSES, YOU'LL UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE SOME EXPECTATIONS THAT GOD HAS OF HIS PEOPLE. HE REFERS TO ISRAEL, AND ISRAEL'S FALLING, THEIR FAILURE. ONE THING WE CAN LEARN FROM ISRAEL IS, IS THAT ISRAEL FAILED IN 5 MAJOR CATEGORIES. I'M GOING TO GIVE THEM TO YOU VERY QUICKLY BECAUSE MANY TIMES WE FAIL IN THESE SAME WAYS. FIRST OF ALL THEY COMPLAINED. THEY WERE A MURMURING GROUP OF PEOPLE. IT SEEMS LIKE EVERY TIME GOD WOULD PERFORM A MIRACLE, THEY WOULD FOLLOW IT UP WITH A QUICK WORD OF PRAISE AND THEN FALL RIGHT BACK INTO THAT MURMURING ATTITUDE. REALLY TODAY, WHEN YOU STOP AND THINK ABOUT IT, WHAT DOES COMPLAINING DO FOR US? I'VE OFTEN SAID, "NO SENSE TO COMPLAIN BECAUSE IT DOESN'T HELP. IT DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING." SOME HAVE SAID IT MAKES US FEEL BETTER TO COMPLAIN. DOES IT REALLY, OR DOES IT MAKE IT WORSE? BECAUSE AS WE COMPLAIN IT'S A WAY OF REMINDING OURSELVES OF OUR SITUATION. IT MAKES THE SITUATION LARGER THAN IT MAY BE. ISRAEL COMPLAINED, WHAT DID THEY HAVE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT? NOT A THING. AND NEITHER DO YOU AND I. YOU SEE, WE CAN RECOGNIZE TODAY THAT IT CAN ALWAYS BE WORSE THAN IT IS. AND COMPLAINING, MANY TIMES WILL MAKE IT WORSE. WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT, BECAUSE WHEN YOU LOOK AT HOW GOD HAS TAKEN CARE OF US, WE HAVE NOTHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT BECAUSE GOD HAS TAKEN CARE OF US. AND I REMIND YOU OF THAT, OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN IN THIS SERVICE, BECAUSE I WANT YOU TO STOP LOOKING AT YOUR FAILURE, STOP LOOKING AT YOUR SITUATION AND START LOOKING AT A GOD WHO NEVER FAILS. HE HAS BEEN FAITHFUL TO YOU. ANOTHER AREA THAT ISRAEL FAILED IN IS THAT THEY FOLLOWED AFTER FALSE GODS. HOW OFTEN DO WE DO THAT TODAY. OH, WE DON'T LABEL THEM AS A GOD, BUT YET THEY ARE THINGS THAT WE PUT AHEAD OF GOD,  THEREFORE THAT'S WHAT WE ARE DOING. WE ARE MAKING THEM A GOD TO OUR LIVES. ANY TIME YOU PUT SOMETHING AHEAD OF THE LORD, THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE DOING. WE DON'T RECOGNIZE IT SOMETIMES, BUT WE NEED TO, BECAUSE IF WE COULD RECOGNIZE IT, WE MIGHT PREVENT IT FROM HAPPENING. WE DON'T WANT TO FAIL GOD IN THIS RESPECT. THEY ALSO WAVERED IN THEIR FAITH. OH, TODAY, WE CANNOT AFFORD TO WAVER IN OUR FAITH. YOU SEE, A DOUBLE MINDED MAN IS UNSTABLE. FAITH AND DOUBT CANNOT INHABIT THE SAME PLACE. ONE WILL CANCEL OUT THE OTHER. IF YOU HAVE FAITH, YOU DON'T HAVE ANY DOUBT. IF YOU'VE GOT DOUBT, YOU'RE WAVERING IN YOUR FAITH. WE CAN'T AFFORD, IN THIS DAY OF TESTING AND TRIAL, WE CANNOT AFFORD TO WAVER IN OUR FAITH. ANOTHER THING THAT THEY DID, WAS THEY LUSTED AFTER THE THINGS OF THE FLESH. NOW I JUST ABSOLUTELY DON'T HAVE TIME TO DEAL WITH THIS IN THE MANNER THAT IT OUGHT TO BE DEALT WITH. BUT OUR FLESH, WAY TOO OFTEN, DRIVES US TO THINGS THAT EVENTUALLY INCREASE THE LOAD OF OUR BURDEN. CREATE MORE PROBLEMS THAN WE WERE DEALING WITH. AND BRINGS CONSEQUENCES TO US THAT WE SPEND, SOMETIMES, A LIFETIME TRYING TO OVERCOME. ALL BECAUSE OF THE CRAVINGS OF THIS WEAK FLESH. YES, THE FLESH IS WEAK. THE SPIRIT IS WILLING, BUT THIS FLESH IS WEAK. AND LET'S FACE IT, MANY TIMES, WE GIVE IN TO THE WEAKNESS OF THE FLESH. THAT WILL GET US IN TROUBLE EVERY TIME. AND THEN FINALLY, THEY DISOBEYED THE COMMANDS OF GOD. NOW THIS IS PERHAPS WHERE I OUGHT TO SPEND THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF TIME. BECAUSE WE CANNOT ENJOY ALL THE BLESSINGS OF GOD IF WE'RE LIVING IN DISOBEDIENCE TO HIS COMMANDS. WHEN GOD COMMANDS THINGS OF OUR LIVES, HE IS DOING SO, BECAUSE TO LIVE ACCORDING TO GOD'S COMMAND IS TO LIVE IN A LIFE WHERE WE ARE FREE FROM SO MANY THINGS THAT WOULD COME TO BURDEN US DOWN. THINK ABOUT IT. TO LIVE IN DISOBEDIENCE TO GOD IS TO COMMIT SIN. WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF ALL OF OUR TROUBLES TODAY? IT IS SINFUL LIVING. SO TODAY, IF YOU WANT TO STAND ON THE PROMISE OF GOD'S WORD THAT SAYS, GOD IS FAITHFUL. THAT HE WON'T ALLOW MORE TO COME UPON YOU THAN YOU CAN BEAR AND WHEN THAT MOMENT COMES, HE WILL MAKE A WAY OF ESCAPE. THEN I SUGGEST YOU TAKE A LOOK AT THESE 5 AREAS OF LIFE. MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE RIGHT, BECAUSE IF THEY ARE RIGHT, YOU CAN DEPEND UPON THE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD. IF THERE'S A CONTINGENCY TO HIS PROMISE, THAT'S WHAT IT IS TODAY. SO LIVE ACCORDING TO GOD'S COMMANDS AND YOU CAN STAND UPON THAT PROMISE BECAUSE GOD WILL BE FAITHFUL TO YOU. I HAVE TO QUICKLY CLOSE WITH A WORD OF PRAYER TODAY. HEAVENLY FATHER, RIGHT NOW, SPEAK TO OUR HEARTS. MAY YOUR HOLY SPIRIT REVEAL TO US THOSE THINGS THAT WE CAN CHANGE, IN ORDER TO ENJOY MORE OF YOUR BLESSINGS AND STAND FIRMLY UPON YOUR PROMISES. HELP EACH ONE I PRAY, IN JESUS' NAME, AMEN.