Mark The Spot | Dr. Matthew Stevenson III

Mark the Spot

In this sermon, the speaker talks about the story of Abram in Genesis chapter 12 and how it relates to our lives today. He emphasizes the importance of following God's instructions and being careful who we take with us on our journey.

Following God's Instructions

• Abram followed God's instructions, but Lot went with him.

• We can't build something like they're going to stay. Be careful who you take with you.

• Age doesn't matter when it comes to getting the victory. Get rid of your calendar.

Possessing the Promise

• God promised Abram a land that was occupied by someone else.

• Don't be afraid to fight for what God has promised you.

• When we think we have arrived, we stop paying attention to instructions.

Being a Changed Person

• The trauma of being a changed person when God demands things in your character.

• God will give you instructions before you're done changing.

God's Instructions for Change

In this section, the speaker discusses how God wants people to change and that change must happen internally before it can manifest externally. He emphasizes the importance of following God's instructions in order to experience supernatural miracles.

The Importance of Following Instructions

• Every miracle in the Bible was preceded by an instruction.

• Those who are not teachable never experience supernatural events in their lives.

• Jesus gave instructions to those who needed healing or provision, as teaching leads to miracles.

The Trauma of Change

• People often get stuck and desensitized to instructions after experiencing trauma from having to change.

• Change is inevitable if one wants to walk in their calling, including changes in character, mentality, conversation, and opinions.

Understanding the Altar

In this section, the speaker discusses the significance of altars in the Old Testament and how they relate to marriage and worship. He notes that many people do not understand what an altar truly represents.

Themes of Altars

• Altars were a consistent theme throughout the Old Testament.

• Altars were a place where hearts were in conversation with God.

Marriage and Altars

• Many marriages fail because couples only go to the altar once for their wedding but do not continue going there for support throughout their marriage.

Worship at the Altar

• While free expression is allowed during worship at church altars, many people do not have a true understanding of what they are doing when they come forward.

• The altar was a place for confession and conversation with God.

The Importance of the Heart in Prophetic Ministry

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of protecting and guarding one's heart through prophetic ministry. He explains that prophets protect, defend, warn, guard and rebuke the heart. Without prophets in a local church, hard hearts will persist.

The Role of Prophets in Protecting the Heart

• Prophets protect, defend, warn, guard and rebuke the heart.

• A local church without prophets will always have hard hearts.

• God is contending for your heart just like an idol is contending for it.

Building an Altar to Hear from God

• Every place a man built an altar before God stopped talking to them.

• Anxiety is a matter of the nervous system reacting to what it does not know.

• At every altar built by man, God said something about the future and called out his name.

Obedience Requires Effort

• Favor does not mean you get to be lazy or avoid work.

• Obedience requires strength and sometimes strain on your psychological self, emotional self and relational self.

• Some instructions from God may make you lose relationships or require you to adjust your priorities based on what God is saying.

Understanding the Heart

• The heart has eyes ears and cabinets where things can be stored.

• Deception comes from a matter of the heart rather than being mental.

• An altar was built because a man saw something about God that he didn't believe before or was insecure about.

Understanding the Concept of God

In this section, the speaker talks about how there are many facets of God that we cannot fully understand. He also discusses how altars are used to mark a spot where God has revealed himself and given instructions.

The Facets of God

• There are more facets of God than we can comprehend in our lifetime.

• Altars are built to mark a spot where God has revealed himself and given instructions.

• Altars must be named so that anyone who claims it can be held accountable.

Obedience and Building an Altar

• Before constructing an altar, one must receive instruction from God.

• Everyone's obedience level is different, but it is necessary for building an altar.

• People with a short leash have more authority because they are closer to their instructions.

Fighting and Battling

• An altar indicates a war or battle.

• Your fighting capacity qualifies you for what's in your future.

• Boundaries are necessary to avoid overextending yourself.

The Importance of Studying the Bible

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of studying the Bible and having a reservoir of scripture in one's heart to help navigate difficult seasons.

Studying the Bible

• The speaker lists various ways to engage with scripture, including meditation, study, declarations, and decrees.

• Studying scripture helps change one's mind and prevent negative thoughts from taking root.

• Christians should have enough scripture in their hearts that it comes up naturally in times of need.

Having a Reservoir of Scripture

• The speaker shares how having a deep reservoir of scripture helped them navigate difficult times during 2020.

• Christians should ask the Holy Ghost to fill their hearts with scripture to help them survive hard seasons.

• Without a reservoir of scripture, difficult situations like divorce or illness can claim territory in one's soul.

Devotion vs. Depression

In this section, the speaker discusses how devotion and depression both aim at how we spend our time and encourages listeners to prioritize devotion over depression.

Devotion vs. Depression

• Devotion is the deliberate discipline of spending time with Jesus every day.

• Prioritizing devotion over depression can help prevent mental health issues from escalating.

• Depression aims to keep us stuck in negative thoughts and behaviors while devotion encourages us to seek God and grow spiritually.

Devotion and the Altar

In this section, the speaker talks about the importance of devotion and how it can help individuals get their soul under subjection. The speaker also emphasizes the significance of the altar as a place where God meets people.

Types of Devotion

• There are different types of devotion - morning, afternoon, and nighttime.

• The speaker prays for deliverance over the listener's devotion life.

Importance of Devotion

• Devotion is about learning God's name and remembering where He met you.

• The altar is all about coming to God, and He will meet you where you're at.

• God is patient with us even when we are rebellious or disobedient.

Vows

• Vows are not just limited to weddings but can be made between two people who need support to obey God.

Importance of Making Vows

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of making vows and committing to them. He explains that every "yes" given to God in worship is a new assignment and instruction, and encourages listeners to have a permanent commitment to something bigger than themselves.

Reasons for Staying Alive

• It's important to know several reasons why you want to stay alive.

• You need to commit to certain things that you will do for the rest of your life.

• Having a permanent commitment to something bigger than yourself is crucial.

Understanding Your Purpose

• When something is outside of its purpose, it becomes inevitably abusive.

• You can't build if you don't know who you are.

• You need a revelation of your reason for being.

Importance of Keeping Vows

• Keeping vows is crucial, whether in marriage or other areas of life.

• Knowing how to keep a vow requires having a revelation of covenant.

The Role of Helpmates

• Women and the Holy Ghost are two things in the Bible that God called "help."

• Men should seek helpmates who have the Holy Ghost.

Choosing the Right Partner

In this section, the speaker talks about the importance of choosing the right partner and how it affects one's future.

The Head of the Woman

• A woman needs a head that can see to secure her future.

• One should not marry someone who cannot see as it will affect their future.

Marrying the Right Person

• It is important to marry the right person and not fall into covenant with the wrong one.

• Having a helpmate and a head is crucial in marriage.

Unprotected Lives

• Many women are married, have sex but are unprotected in their lives because they are married to men who cannot protect them.

Women Being Escorted to Altar

In this section, the speaker talks about why women were escorted to the altar from one man to another.

Symbolism of Escorting Women to Altar

• Escorting women from one man to another was symbolic of their departure from their father's stewardship into their husband's custodianship.

Leaving and Cleaving

• The Bible instructs men to leave and cleave but never tells women to do so because if something goes wrong, they can always go back home.

Unfathered Women Wanting Sex and Husbands

• There are many unfathered women in Christendom who want sex and husbands but lack guidance on how to choose wisely.

Lessons at The Altar

In this section, the speaker talks about the lessons learned at the altar.

Lessons Learned by Isaac

• The altar was a classroom where Isaac learned how to be an offering.

• Learning how to crucify oneself and yield oneself is crucial in obedience.

The Ram in The Bush

• The ram in the bush was Jesus who appeared throughout all 66 books of the Bible.

The Importance of the Altar

In this section, the speaker discusses the significance of worship and how it leads to a conversation with God. He emphasizes that staying at the altar is important for one's spiritual growth.

Worship as a Conversation with God

• Worship is how God asks questions.

• When we worship, we start a conversation with God about what we want and where we're going.

• Staying at the altar is important even when things get tough.

The Altar as a Place of Exchange

• The altar is always about exchange - you bring something, and God responds.

• When you come to the altar, it's about provision and what will happen to you as a result of what you brought.

• Staying at the altar can lead to changes in your life.

The Altar as a Path for Generations

• Men built altars throughout history, and God talked about generations that would come after them.

• The altar is also a path for whatever is supposed to come out of you - whether it be people or principles.

Surrendering to God

In this section, the speaker talks about surrendering oneself to God and trusting in His timing.

Trusting in God's Timing

• No bullet points available.

Surrendering Yourself to God

• No bullet points available.

The Importance of the Altar

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of going to the altar to bring forth fruit and receive God's endorsement. He also highlights that the altar can be both a quiet and noisy place, and that it is a place of fire.

The Altar as a Place of Decision Making

• The speaker expresses his frustration with people who do ministry for personal gain or because they are bored, rather than out of genuine calling.

• He notes that Samuel went to an altar at the end of his days to ask if he had wronged anyone, and dark clouds came when no one could answer him. However, after Samuel disappeared, people went up in praise.

• The speaker emphasizes that sometimes it takes coming to the altar to make the right decision.

The Altar as a Place of Confirmation

• Elijah confronts indecision at an altar in 1 Kings 18. The speaker encourages listeners not to be double-minded but instead take authority over their decisions.

• He notes that confirmation is not bad but rather a function of grace and ministry of the Holy Ghost. He shares how he received confirmation from God through a poor man on the street when he was called to preach.

Conclusion: Changing Altars

• Sometimes it takes coming to the altar to make decisions or receive confirmation. Abram's name was changed only after he went there, and fire never fell from heaven until men changed altars.

The Importance of Digging a Well for Praise and Worship

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of putting in effort to praise and worship. He explains that it requires work and effort to teach oneself what to do.

Clapping Hands as an Instruction in Psalms

• Praise is external, while worship is internal.

• Clapping hands is an instruction in the Psalms, which teaches one how to use their hands.

• In praise and worship, clapping hands is a body activity that trains the body.

Different Expressions of Worship

• Yada means receiving with extended hands.

• Lifted hands mean surrendering without defense or resistance.

• Halal means embarrassing oneself or coming out of one's personality for the sake of praise.

David's Example of Embarrassing Himself for Praise

• David embarrassed himself by halaling during his inauguration, even though his wife was ashamed of him.

Overall, this section emphasizes that praising and worshipping require effort and training. It also highlights different expressions of worship such as clapping hands, lifting hands, and halaling.

David's Explanation

In this section, David explains to his wife that it was the Lord who took the throne from her father and gave it to their son. He emphasizes that when seasons change, there is only one appropriate response: to learn how to hack a fool.

Learning How to Hack a Fool

• When positions change, there is only one appropriate response: learning how to hack a fool.

• Seats changing means that reasons change.

• The appropriate response when seasons change is to learn how to hack a fool.

The Power of Minstrels

This section discusses the importance of minstrels in opening up people's clarity about the future. David says that certain aspects of scripture are closed until they are put on music.

Minstrels and Prophecy

• Minstrels open up people's clarity about the future.

• Certain aspects of scripture are closed until they are put on music.

• Pray for writers' block off of you in Jesus' name.

Assume the Position

This section emphasizes the importance of assuming the position and teaching your body what to do. It also highlights that sometimes you have to tell your body what to do even when it doesn't feel like doing it.

Assuming the Position

• Whatever you have to do, assume the position.

• You're not coming out of addiction or depression until you can tell your body what to do when it doesn't feel like doing it.

• Train people in the gifts.

Prophesy and Worship

In this section, the speaker talks about prophesying according to the proportion of faith and how an effective gift is not just hearing from the Lord but also teaching oneself to stop thinking and listen. The speaker also emphasizes the importance of worship in prophesying.

Importance of Worship in Prophesying

• The spirit of Prophecy is the testimony of Jesus according to Revelations.

• Sometimes, one needs to praise without thinking about it.

• Worship can be therapeutic.

Prophesying According to Faith

• One should prophesy according to the proportion of their faith.

• An effective gift is not just hearing from the Lord but also teaching oneself how to stop thinking and listen.

Personal Experience

• The speaker shares their personal experience with worship as therapy.

• They mention that some people still need therapy.

This section was relatively short, so I combined all related points into one section.