First Baptist Church of Highland Park

Rev. Dr. Henry P. Davis III: Hi, I'm Henry Davis, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Highland Park in Landover, Maryland. A Bible believing, Christ-centered, and Spirit-led congregation. I want to welcome you to our radio broadcast. And remember, there's power at the park.

You might turn in your Bibles to the 43rd chapter of Isaiah as our spotlight of messages was shared during this morning. And certainly we give God glory, honor, and praise for all things. Isaiah 43:2 is where we turn our spotlight. New Living Translation: "When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up. The flames will not consume you." Amen. You can read the rest at home. Amen.

The pressure didn't break you. The pressure didn't break you. There are seasons in life when it feels like everything around you is pressing in at once. Pressure from responsibilities, pressure from disappointments, pressure from loss, pressure from battles. Nobody else even knows you're fighting. Pressure. Nobody knows what your week has looked like. Nobody knows what mountains you've had to climb, what dark spaces you've had to deal with. They don't know anything about that.

When pressure piles up like that, people often assume that it is going to break you. And that's why we talk in this service: the pressure didn't break you. It wants to break you. It wants to destroy you. It wants to kill your joy. Matter of fact, it is my argument that in too many of our churches today, we preach too many patty-cake sermons. We make it seem as if you will not go through challenges. And we will. No matter who you are, you're going to have to understand that this world is going to be filled with twists and turns.

As a much younger person, I enjoyed roller coasters. I make the emphasis as a much younger person. But as you grow older, some of us do not maintain that same kind of joy. The reality is we're dealing with pressure. When under pressure, they expect you to quit, they expect you to collapse, they expect you to lose your faith. But if you're sitting in worship this morning, you are living proof of something powerful. And that powerful statement that we make this morning: the pressure didn't break you.

You've been through seasons where the waters got deep. You've walked through fires you never imagined facing. You carried burdens that felt heavier than your strength. And yet somehow, by the grace of God, you're still here. Oh, that's a great thing. You're still here, still praising, still glorifying God, still lifting up my head. And I said it this way, Brother Shepherd: still walking with a gospel swag. Diamond in the back, sunroof top, digging the scene with a gospel lean. You are still here.

Isaiah is speaking to Israel during a time when they would face exile, hardship, and uncertainty. But God wanted His people to understand something before the storms came. Storms will come, but storms don't have to wipe us out. The trouble may come, but my presence—that's God—is coming with it. We've seen it with government layoffs. We've seen it with high gas prices, the price of food rising. All of these things. God never promised life without pressure.

But He did promise a life where pressure would never have the last word. That's what we stand on this morning, whether in person or online. That's our reality, that pressure does not have the last word. And that brings us to the reality of this text. Isaiah shows us, in essence, three truths about surviving seasons of pressure. Number one: the waters were deep, but God stayed close.

We're grateful that God said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." We're grateful that the battle is not ours, but the battle is the Lord's. We're grateful that God can show up and out. Secondly, the fire was real, but it didn't consume you. I'm not saying you will not go through a challenge, but when you go through the challenge, you're not going through the challenge, Dr. Warner, by yourself. And we know about it. We can be in the fire, but the fire does not have to consume us. And we can come out victoriously. Matter of fact, we can come out and not even have the smell of smoke.

Thirdly, the same God who brought you through will carry you forward. Many years we talked about from the theme "faith forward." And we need to have a faith that is not faith backwards, but it is a faith forward. We are pressing, we are climbing Jacob's ladder. Every round, Dr. Yvonne, goes higher and higher. We are moving in a progressive way. That's the kind of God that we serve. A great God who keeps on doing great things.

The first point that I make: the waters were deep, but God stayed close. The prophet Isaiah said, "When you go through, when you go through deep waters, I will be with you." Notice something carefully. God does not say if you go through the waters. He says when. Because life guarantees moments when waters rise. Sometimes the waters are financial pressure, sometimes it's a health challenge, sometimes they are emotional battles or family struggles.

And you realize, Dr. Freddy Haynes is now on his way to the US Congress. He said there ain't no drama like family drama. And sometimes the waters represent seasons where you feel like life is pulling you under. But the promise of the text is not that the waters will stay shallow. The promise is God says, "I will stay close to you." Not that you only will be in shallow waters, but when you get to deep waters, you're not going to get to deep waters by yourself.

You get to deep waters with the strength and the assurance of a God who can walk you through. The promise: God will stay close. Israel would have remembered another moment when waters surrounded them. You remember that moment? Moses said, "The waters are surrounding us, but we're going to stop right here in the middle of the Red Sea and have a praise party. We're going to stand still and see the salvation of God."

At the Red Sea, Pharaoh's army was behind them and the water was in front of them. But when the waters rose, God showed up. And somebody listening to me this morning can testify when the waters got deep in your life, but somehow God kept you afloat. Oh yeah. I'm not going to give out, I'm not going to give in, I'm not going to give up. I'm going to keep on trekking. You thought the grief would drown you. You thought the stress would overwhelm you. You thought the heartbreak would sink you.

But God stayed close. Oh yeah, He stayed close enough and I feel like preaching this morning because I didn't preach last night, and so I'm laying it out there today. But God stayed close enough that the waters never swallowed you. And if you look back over your life, you'll discover something powerful. Here's the powerful message that you realize: the water didn't take you out. It revealed how close God really was. Oh yeah, the water tried, but God is right there.

And you know God is right there. God can bring us through. Ms. Elizabeth, you know what I'm talking about. When you were in that wheelchair and dealing with all the pain that you had to deal with, but God can meet us right where we are. He's an on-time God. Yes, He is. Secondly, the fire was real. Oh yeah, but it didn't consume you. Isaiah says right there in that second verse, "When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up."

Notice again, God doesn't deny the reality of the fire. The fire's real. The pain is real. The pressure is real. The adversity is real. You're dealing with stress. Every time I go in for my annual checkup, usually one of the questions the doctor will ask me, Denise, is, "Do you have any stress in your life?" Now, don't ask me that. And my wife gets on me all the time because she doesn't like my answer. But my answer: I say no. I live a stress-free life.

Listen, I'm going to have—I'm going to keep that. That's how I'm going to deal with whatever I'm dealing with. Even though I'm looking at a whole bunch of confusion out here in the parking lot, I'm going to be stress-free. I'm going to put it on Randy Williams. That's why he's going to find out some answers, him and Jerry Overby, some questions that I got that I'm not carrying stress. I release it. Come on, somebody. Amen. I release stress. Amen.

Sometimes the staff, they get a release of my stress. I'm not going to bottle it up, I'm not going to hold it in, I'm going to let it out. You feel so much better that way. Here it is: the fire does not have the final authority because fire has a limitation when God is present. This reminds us of the story in Daniel chapter 3. You know what it is, when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were thrown into the fiery furnace.

The king expected the fire to destroy them. But when he looked again, he saw something. He said, "Wait a minute, there are four men walking around there in the fire. I threw in three, but there's a fourth one in there. And matter of fact, I'm trying to identify who that fourth person is." Fire was real, but the presence of God made the difference. And the Bible says—oh yeah, I almost felt Marcus Cosby—the Bible says something remarkable happened.

They came out of the fire without even smelling like smoke. That's somebody's testimony right now. You don't look like what you've been through. Matter of fact, you don't even look like what you're going through. Because you read your Bible, you stay on your knees, you have a little talk with Jesus. God keeps encouraging you. Every time I open up the scripture, He's speaking a word to me that's encouraging me to keep on.

You walked through some fires. Fires of betrayal, fires of hardship, fires of disappointment. But look at you now. You came out with your faith intact. You came out with your mind still standing. You came out with your praise still alive. I didn't come into church today, Lawrence, with my head down. I came in lifting up my head and giving God praise. I give God the glory, the honor, and the praise.

Yesterday morning, about this time, I was in Midtown Manhattan. And my wife and I—and we were sitting—normally one of the things that we will always do when we go to New York is go to St. Patrick's Cathedral. It was really her practice, not necessarily mine. I went to New York a whole lot of times and I didn't go to St. Patrick's Cathedral. I went to a whole lot of other places in the city, but that wasn't necessarily one of my stops. But after I met my wife, she said one of the good things: "Look at all this commerce." Because St. Patrick's Cathedral sits right across the street from Saks Fifth Avenue.

Now you got Fifth Avenue shopping and you got Madison Avenue shopping. Madison Avenue shopping. Madison Avenue shopping. There's some folk in here who that just gets you excited: Madison Avenue shopping. And I don't have to buy anything. I mean, I really don't. I just enjoy looking and just soaking it in. I mean, I don't have to make purchases, although I make one or two. But I enjoy it. I just enjoy it.

But in the midst of all of this commerce is a church that's open all day. And people are coming in all day long, kneeling, praying, having a little talk with the Lord. These quiet moments in the midst of all New York City excitement. Prayers are being offered. Matter of fact, I walked into the back of St. Patrick's Cathedral and I saw they were blessing babies yesterday. And I said it's so wonderful, all this going on. And it lets us know that in the midst of all that goes on, a little talk with Jesus can make everything all right.

So I go into St. Patrick's and I fall on my knees and I pray. No, I'm not Catholic, but I serve God. And it's a holy place, because when you go to heaven, there will not be a denominational heaven for you. Come on, somebody. If you're Catholic, you better know Jesus. But you know, there's some Baptist folk that don't know Jesus. There's some Pentecostals that don't know Jesus. They can speak in tongues and cuss in English. Come on, somebody. Oh yeah, we've been around them. We've seen the ugliness of some folk in church.

I mean all the ugliness that you see is not in the street. I grew up with some guys and they would drink every day. And I would see them drinking and smoking, and then they would be sharing the same bottle. They just pass it down. And then they would be smoking. It'd be cigarettes and other stuff. And they pass it. They didn't keep it to themselves, they shared it with others.

You got a praise and your praise ought to be contagious. I read a book some years ago. The title of the book was The Contagious Congregation, which in essence says that every church ought to be catching. That when you walk out of here, somebody ought to feel: where you been? Who you been talking to? I've been to First Baptist Church of Highland Park. They're talking about Jesus down there and I gave my life to the Lord. And every day I'm trying to grow stronger.

The fire was real, but it didn't consume you. Third thing is the same God who brought you through will carry you forward. The power of Isaiah's promise is not just about surviving yesterday. It's about trusting God with tomorrow. I don't live in my yesterday. I live in my today and I'm going forward. Because the same God who brought Israel through the Red Sea, the same God who preserved them through exile, the same God who walked with them through hardship is the same God who promises to stay with them moving forward.

And the truth of the gospel is this: God's faithfulness doesn't expire. There is no expiration date on what God can do in our lives. Thank you, Jesus. And if God brought you through before, He can bring you through again. Do I have a witness in here? If He carried you through yesterday's storm, He can carry you into tomorrow's promise.

I was working, 10-year employee at IBM Corporation, and I walked into my boss's office and I told my boss, I said, "I'm leaving." He says, "Leaving for what?" I said, "I'm leaving." I said I was pastoring a church. My church was not a big church, it was no mega-church, none of that. No office staff, none of that. My first church could probably fit right here, just this area only. And if all of y'all showed up, it was a great day. I mean, this was it. I had a platform and I gave it my all.

Now, if I was looking at this many folk in my first church, I'd have been one happy Negro. But that was it. And my boss knew. My boss knew, he said, "You don't have a big church." I said, "No, I don't. I don't have a big church, but I got a big God." He said, "How you going to financially pull it off? You going from IBM, Big Blue. I mean, how you going to walk out of here?"

And I was one year married, baby on the way, going to school working on a doctorate because I heard Jeremiah Wright and Jawanza Kunjufu were going to do a group on Afrocentric preaching. And if y'all know anything about me, I'm as black as they come. Amen. I'm Kente 12 months out of the year. I mean, you can't contain me with 28 days. I mean, my blackness is here. I am black, proud, and loud. No shame. That's who I am.

And so I was working in New York, living in the Jersey Shore, pastoring in Ocean County. So if you know anything about Jersey, I'm going north, I'm going south. A whole lot of commuting. And now I will tell you that when I walked off that job, my wife gave me full support, and I had some other folk closer to me, they said, "You crazy." Yeah, I'm doing it though.

And I remember I got to a point that I was going to church and I would avoid the parkway, because that costs you money. And so I knew all the side roads to get to church. And I remember one day, Chairman of the Deacons, he walked in, he didn't even know. He says, "You left your job?" I said, "Yeah." He says, "How you making it?" I was like, "Faith." He reached in his pocket, gave me $50. You might as well have given me $500. I mean, I was some kind—oh, I said we're eating good today, we're eating good today with this fifty.

But I tell you what: had I not walked out then, I would not be standing here now. True story. When I left my first church, somebody said, "How much notice did you give them?" I said when I left my first church, it was Women's Day. It was Women's Day and my sister was the guest speaker. She didn't know I was leaving. I didn't want to because if I told her, it was going to mess things up. I just got to keep it quiet. And so I didn't even tell her.

She spoke, folk joined church that day. It was about eight people joined church that day. And then I got up and I said, "This is my last day." I'm serious. That was my last day. That was it. And the folk who loved me understood it. They understood it because my salary when I went there was $300 a week. There was no health benefits, there's nothing. $300 a week. Then I took a pay cut. I said, "All y'all got to give me is 250." And the reason I told them to give me 250, I said because I need to have freedom on Sundays just in case somebody else wants me to preach.

So we worked out a nice arrangement. And now that was 250 if we had it. So there would be some Sundays, church would be over, and they would be counting. And they come out and when they walk in slow, I knew the deal. "Reb, we ain't got it. We'll make it good next week." I said next week? That's seven days. I got to make it seven days.

But I tell you, when you go through challenges, when you make it through, and then people ask me today, "Who you going to preach for? What kind of church?" No, I don't need all that. Because I know where God has brought me from. And I know how God met me just by being faithful. You got to be faithful. The Bible says be faithful over few things.

I left my first church and then I went to Harlem. And I had a crowd. I had some mean Negroes in there too, but I had a crowd. But it was all relative training, developing, shaping. I'm trying to bring you through. Everybody in this room, you understand when God brings you through these rooms and these spaces. And you're able to look back and praise God for what He's done, praise God for what He's doing, and then have expectation of what God is going to do.

You put no limits on what God can do. Somebody who's listening to me today, God is trying to bring you through the pressure cooker. And you're going to come through that bad boy with your hands raised up. You're going to give God the glory. You are going to be the walking testimony. You are a commercial of the greatness of a great God.

You know I'm going to put some gravy on it. Not yet, Nate, but I'm coming. God can carry you into tomorrow's promise. The God who preserved you through pressure is the God who will position you—listen, Rev. McNeal—for purpose. And sometimes the reason God allows pressure is because pressure is what prepares us for the next level of our calling. Do I have a witness in here?

And that's why somebody in this room ought to give God praise. That's because the pressure tried to break you. Hallelujah! But look at you now. You're still standing, you're still believing, still worshipping, still trusting. The waters rose, but they didn't drown you. The fire burned, but it didn't consume you. The pressure came, but it didn't break you.

And if God kept you through all that you've been through, then you can walk into your future with confidence. Put your shoulders back, lift up your head. The same God who brought you through will carry you forward. And if there's anybody in this room who knows what God has kept you through, when you didn't know how you were going to make it, you ought to lift up your hands and give God praise. The pressure didn't break me!

Because when God is with you, the waters can't drown you. The fire can't destroy you. The pressure can't break you. Hallelujah! I love the Lord. He heard my cry, pitied my every groan. The battle is not yours, but the battle is the Lord's. I will praise His name! The pressure didn't break you. The joy of the Lord is your strength. Yes! Yes! Ain't He all right? Because every time, every, every, every, every time I turn around, He keeps on and on and on blessing me. Say yes! Say yes! Hallelujah!

The pressure didn't break you. Hallelujah! And because God said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." And I know it's too hard for you. It's too hard for me, but it's not too hard for God. Oh yeah. It's too difficult for me, but nothing is too difficult for God. The pressure didn't break you. And that's why we can come today and know the joy of the Lord is my strength. Woke me up this morning, started me on my—I don't know how you feel about it, but I give God the praise! I give God the glory! Hallelujah! Ain't He all right? The pressure, the pressure didn't break you. And I'm thanking God that He can bring you through whatever the challenge is. Come on, clap your hands, everybody.

You've been listening to the radio broadcast of the First Baptist Church of Highland Park in Landover, Maryland. If you want to receive a CD or DVD of what you have just heard, please call 301-773-6655, or visit us on the world wide web: fbhp.org. And remember, there's power at the park.