Watch “Immanuel is Mightier Than Ichabod” Jentezen Franklin, host of Kingdom Connection & Pastor of Free Chapel.
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connection well we want to wish you a
Merry Christmas thank you for watching
the program today I believe this message
is really going to speak to you and I’m
so glad to have my wife Charisse of 27
years we normally have all of our kids
we’ve got five kids but they’re all over
the place
and we couldn’t get them together but I
hope that you have a wonderful Christmas
and we appreciate you and love you merry
Christmas everyone let this message
speak to your heart
I would like to go to Matthew chapter
one and I want to read verse 21 and in a
moment we’re gonna come together and
conclude with a beautiful candlelight
service the first service was so
powerful so beautiful lives were changed
and I just sense that God is ready to
touch us again in a powerful way this
morning verse 21 and she will bring
forth the son and you shall call his
name Jesus for he will save his people
from their sins so all this was done
that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the Lord through the Prophet
saying behold the Virgin shall be with
child and bear a son and they shall call
his name Emmanuel which is translated
God with us there are two names that are
huge in the Bible one of them that I
want to highlight from the Old Testament
is reflective of the fact that there was
a name that was before Christ in the Old
Testament and it’s a name you don’t ever
want to name your children if you’re
having a child don’t name your child
ichabod number two don’t name him Judas
and don’t name her Jezebel if it’s a
girl but I was thinking about how that
in 1st Samuel chapter 4 there’s this
story and there’s a woman who’s giving
birth and it’s the worst day of her life
and here’s what’s taking place the Bible
said that the Ark of the Covenant was
stolen by the Philistines she hears the
news the presence of God the Ark of God
the favor of God has has been stolen not
only that but then another servant runs
in and says on top of that bad news your
father-in-law Eli the high priest the
man who stands before God for the people
he is dead he fell over and broke his
neck in a chair and he’s dead and then
on top of that a servant runs in and
says
even worse news your husband was killed
in the battle and now she has a baby and
that baby’s name
she decides to name it Ichabod and
listen don’t ever allow your present to
name your future it’s easy for you
sometimes to get in a bad season but you
don’t have to let what’s going on in
your present name your future she named
that child Ichabod and when she named
that child
Ichabod she went on to say because the
glory of God has departed from my life
it’s departed from my marriage it’s
departed from my family the presence of
God they’re no more good days there’s no
more happiness there’s no more joy in my
life
so just name that child what I’m
presently going through I’m going to
name this child
Ichabod the glory has to party and then
you fast-forward and you get into the
verse that I just read to you and it
says that the Prophet said that his name
shall be called Emmanuel which means God
with us and there are two names and in
that I see that there are two kinds of
spirits and you have to choose which
kind of attitude and spirit you’re gonna
take on you’re either going to have an
Ichabod spirit that says the glory of
the Lord has departed just give up don’t
have faith don’t have hope don’t have
dreams don’t believe that God’s gonna do
great things
it’s Ichabod or we can hear the message
of Christmas this morning that the real
message is Immanuel God is with us and
you have to choose you have to choose
between Ichabod the glory has departed
or Emanuel God is with us a spirit of
Ichabod says that life is going down
down down I’ve had setback after setback
and if you’re not careful you just start
taking on that kind of spirit and that
kind of attitude and you start acting
like nothing good and believing that
it’s just bad and you’ve just go around
with an Iike bad spirit when you have an
Ichabod spirit the glory has departed
the joy the hope the fun the happiness
you begin to look like a covergirl for
The Book of Lamentations you look sad
and you’re down all the time I’ve seen
people there’s a lot of Christians who
have a non victorious spirit they allow
life to to hit oh man we all go through
stuff and this is the point this is the
message of Christmas it’s not that if
you have Emmanuel God with us you don’t
go through the same things that other
people who don’t have God they’re gonna
go through – but we don’t go through it
with the same spirit when we get bad
news and when adversity and challenge
comes we don’t go through it with an
Ichabod the glory has departed this is
bad we go through it with Emmanuel God
is with us God is for us God is on our
side let’s give the Lord a praise right
now we’re gonna we’re gonna declare I
hear that in my spirit and I’m preaching
this morning I’m preaching this morning
in your life Emmanuel is mightier than
Ichabod you see if you’re not careful
you get that ichabod spirit life is just
a burden life is just the trial life is
just a hard thing you know in life is
hard and you just start taking on that
spirit we live in a world in a society
that is screaming Ichabod if you bought
my god every time you turn on the news
it’s politically Ichabod Ichabod the
glory has departed from Washington and
then it’s the economy Ichabod Ichabod
the glory has departed from the
greatness of America the glory has
departed from the educational system ABC
NBC woe is me are constantly saying
Ichabod Ichabod but that is not the
message
the church the message of the church is
Emmanuel God is with us whatever comes
whatever we face whatever happens
morally to this nation God is with us
the people of God let’s give the Lord a
big praise if you believe that
Emmanuel you know I’m concerned that the
church can take on that ichabod spirit
it’s almost like the church says the
glory has the party Oh where’s the
revival and all where’s the move of God
Ichabod they get it icky spirit if your
bond miracles are over and revival is
over and the move of God is over and
signs now we’ve got preachers holding
conferences saying that the Holy Spirit
is over and signs and wonders are over
but I’ve come to proclaim the message of
Christmas is Emmanuel the same god of
the book of Acts the same God who healed
the blind and opened the eyes oh come on
somebody he is still here and he’s the
same yesterday today and forever
somebody needs to hear that we’re not
called you know to go around with the
with the dull platoons marching in
syncopated beat Ichabod Ichabod we’re
just waiting on Jesus to come to get out
of here
Ichabod no it’s Emmanuel Emmanuel God is
with us that’s the message of Christmas
I used to teach children’s church before
I ever got to pastoring in Gastonia
North Carolina I was the children’s
church director and I always had to
break a lesson down and so in case
you’ve missed this whole point of this
sermon I’m gonna break it down I go
something like this once upon a time
there was a little fella named Chicken
Little he was a chicken and he was
pecking around in the barnyard and one
day an acorn fell out of the tree and it
hit him in the head and he started
clacking all over that barnyard the sky
is following the sky is falling and he
went to turkey Lurkey and turkey Lurkey
got all upset and he started screaming
the sky is falling in turkey Lurkey went
to ducky wucky and ducky wucky started
quacking all over that barnyard the sky
is falling Ichabod the glory has
departed and then ducky wucky y’all know
the story went to horsey horsey and
horsey horsey started bucking up and
running saying oh my god in a hissy Oh
Franny ki the sky is falling a acorn a
problem has hit in my life and it’s the
end of the world either God and horsey
warsi went too bossy the cow I’m
preaching now come on and bossy the cow
finally discover you got the whole
barnyard in an uproar over one little
acorn that has hit you in the head and
if you’re not careful a little acorn and
life will hit you in the head and get
you to thinking the whole kingdom of God
is about to collapse and fall down but
I’m here to announce it is not Ichabod
and just because you’ve got a problem
this hits you don’t you dare think that
he has abandoned you the message is this
I will build my church and the gates of
Hell shall not prevail against it it’s
not a kabob it’s Emmanuel come on get in
syncopated beat with Emmanuel God is
with us Emmanuel God is with us God is
with us I’m sure when when Joseph who
was dating a little Jewish girl from a
respectable family named Mary her name
was Mary classy family there in
Bethlehem he’s dating earth they agree
we’re gonna have a little arrangement
and get married and
the Bible said then an angel appeared to
her not to him appeared to her
overshadowed her with the Holy Spirit
she became impregnated with the seed of
God and then she goes off if you read
the story she goes off for three months
and nobody sees her she goes to see a
Lisbon and doesn’t come back until three
months later and he hadn’t seen his
girlfriend in three months and she comes
back and she’s three months pregnant but
you know an icky icky icky spirit came
on him
icky Bob the glory has departed this
relationship I mean he looks at her and
she’s showing and she says I need to
talk with you and he says obviously no
you don’t understand
I’ve been with an angel it’s not an
angel I think you’ve been with a devil
oh no this is a Nikki bod this is
Emmanuelle I want to say to some of you
who your life is in an upheaval and
everything seems to be going crazy what
I’ve learned in many years of journeying
with the Lord what I thought was Ichabod
was really Emanuel working he is in
control he has divine destinations for
your life he has a pathway a purpose for
your life and you don’t have to let even
when you’re going through rough times
keep any manual spirit God is with us in
your marriage keeping keeping Emmanuel
spirit not a NICU bod a way that we
don’t love each other let’s just quit
the glory has departed when you first
fall in love it’s ideal and then a few
months later you have after you get
married an ordeal and then if you don’t
get it fixed a few months later you get
to think and this is a raw deal and then
you’re ready for a new deal and it’s so
easy to say Ichabod we miss God but all
you you got to do is say Amen you al
give me your hand God is with us and
we’ll walk through this storm together
and if any two of us will agree
nothing can overcome us come on and give
the Lord a shout of praise if you’d
believe that’s the story of Christmas
say that name Emmanuel God is with us
look over at somebody and say you look
like you have Ichabod but I’m gonna
prophesy Emmanuel on you God is with us
I heard the story in closing of them of
a man who was sitting in first class on
an airplane the last row of first class
and you know if you’ve phoned that
there’s first class there’s a curtain
and then there’s economy class and the
curtain separates the Holy of Holies
there’s this guy sitting on the back row
of first-class section and they made a
mistake and the stewardess said sir I am
so sorry to tell you this but you’re
gonna have to give up your seat in first
class walk through the curtain and sit
on the front row of economy class now
you need to understand it’s just three
feet it’s just three feet and three
inches wider of a seat from first class
to economy class this guy went ballistic
he blew a gasket
he stood up he told the stewardess where
she would spend eternity he said I hate
this is the sorriest airline I have ever
seen
this is ridiculous grabbed his bags and
walk three feet demoted three feet from
first class to economy and had to walk
through the curtain to get there
humiliated in front of all of those
people he sat down
we can’t even hardly move three feet
into motion in humiliation and it not
just destroy us but think about Jesus
Bible said he considered himself equal
with God it was not he was not
vice-president he was not a junior
partner in the Trinity firm he was as
much God is God the Father he was as
much God as God the Holy Spirit he was
there when mankind was created and they
said let us make man in our image
Jesus was their all-powerful all-knowing
creator God it was Jesus the Father the
Holy Spirit and it was equal shared
power but he voluntarily said I
volunteer to be demoted and I won’t do
it for an hour or a minute I’ll do it
for 33 years I’ll go down I’ll be born
in a barnyard I’ll be demoted not one of
the most touching scriptures to me is
when it says they wrapped him in
swaddling clothes do you understand that
means strips of coffee and it literally
means used strips of cloth in other
words what would they have been used for
in a barn we we romanticize the stable
the manger that Jesus was born in but it
was not beautiful it was not lovely it
had the smell of livestock in urine and
filth and those rags that they wrapped
the trembling Jesus in were strips of
used cloth if that were not enough he
was demoted even more when he became a
full grown man and he washed the
disciples feet if that were not enough
the ones that he washed one of them
would betray him and the other would
desert him if that were not enough the
people he came to save would beat him
slug him and punch him and spit upon him
you talk about demotion you talk about
humiliation and all he did was moved
from heaven through the curtain to earth
they ultimately took him to the cross
and crucified him nailed him to a cross
why why he did it for you he did it
because you and I were filled with vile
deadly sin and the only solution was for
him to become that sin for him to take
my sin and there were so many of them
and take your sins every one of them he
took it and became that sin that vile
fill you talk about humiliation from
being equal with God the Father got now
he is sin hanging on the cross and he
did it for you and he did it for me and
I can’t get over it and I can’t rush
through the holidays and I can’t just do
the stuff and see the trees and take the
pictures I have to put everything on
pause and say Jesus I love you
Jesus I praise you Jesus I honor you can
we just stand up on our feet all over
this room and lift our hands toward
heaven we sing praises to your name
praises to your name for your name is
great and greatly to be praised
is your singing so good sing it
everybody we sing praises to you
come on sing it to a church always sing
praises soon
praises to your name
for your name
Jesus Jesus Jesus there’s just
gee
oh Jesus Jesus Jesus
proclaim
they were
but there’s
Oh
the
you may be listening to me right now and
you don’t you don’t know Emmanuelle is
with you I would invite you to pray this
prayer with everybody in this room and
those in overflow and those watching
streaming
let’s pray this prayer together and you
don’t have to Leo facing the future with
Ichabod on you saying the greatest days
are behind me
but you can say Immanuel God is with me
pray this prayer say Lord Jesus I give
you my life I surrender completely to
use you are the Savior who saves their
peoples from sin and today I surrender
my life I give you my future I believe
in you and I thank you that you’re with
me you are Emmanuel to me and today I
receive you as my Lord and Savior Jesus
be the center of my Christmas be the
center of my family be the center of my
home and my future in Jesus name make
the new year a year of increase seeking
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