would you bow your heads with me god of grace and God of glory once again we thank you for the total sufficiency of your son and our Savior thank you for the sacred space called sanctuary where we gather as brothers and sisters of the faith to worship you and to hear what the Spirit has to say to the church so speak to us now use my mouth to speak your words breathe on me breath of God fill me with life anew that I may love what now just love and do without dusty in the matchless marvelous majestic name of the master we pray amen we give all honor to the Spirit of Christ would you help me appreciate my brother my friend your pastor the wonderful leader of this the Alfred Street Church dr. Howard John Wesley celebrate him this morning we thank God to come into the entire pastoral staff to all of the leaders to all of you who are disciples of Alfred Street to all of you my brothers and sisters and Christ and in creation ladies and gentlemen the Lord our God is good he is worthy to be praised I want to thank my friend dr. Howard John Wesley one more time for inviting me to come and share here at the Alfred Street Church I've been preaching at this church since the early 90s when I first came here under the leadership of dr. John O Peterson and to see how this pastor continues to grow this church and continues to have such input and impact on this community is such a joy to my heart and I am thankful for how the Lord is blessing this surgeon using this church this worship has been incredible the beginning on last night with these men who have just been singing their hearts out we bless God for them on today and so we thank God for all they tell me y'all got them everywhere downstairs overflow all kind of places and so we thank God for all who have shared with us in these four services if you have a copy of the word of the Lord would you stand with me and take it and go to the Gospel of Mark and the eighth chapter Gospel of Mark and the eighth chapter this sound man can I get just a little bit more right here just a little this is the last mile of the way when I've gone the last mile of the way I need all the help and get you yeahyou blessing my sanctified soul right right there all right thank you so much Mark chapter eight I'm going to begin reading at verse 22 they came to Bethsaida and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him he took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village when he had spit on the man's eyes and put his hands on him Jesus said do you see anything he looked up and said I see people they look like trees walking around once more Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes then his eyes were opened his sight restored and he saw everything clearly Jesus sent him home saying don't go into the village amen you may be seated in the very presence of our God I want to preach this morning of this afternoon that the spiritual guide with this thought in our minds the right touch the right touch when I was in seminary in the year 1987 my first year had what was then called the Virginia Union School of religion now the Samuel DeWitt Proctor school of religion at Virginia Union University my New Testament professor was a gentleman by the name of dr. Boykin Saunders y'all keep taking up my time with all of that dr. Sanders is still the professor there at the seminary and I shall never forget my first year my first semester probably my first month dr. Sanders took great joy in demolishing your Sunday school theology you took great joy and delight in watching the perplexity on your face as he began to take apart your Bible and pick apart your Jesus one of the things that he taught us early on about the synoptic Gospels was that the synoptic Gospels might have the same stories but they're not necessarily in the same order because these Gospels as you well know were written after the resurrection of our Christ they were written to particular people in particular contexts by particular people dealing with particular issues and oftentimes dr. Sanders would say to us what the writer would do in redacted form would be to take certain miracle stories and insert them after certain teaching stories to bring a highlight to something Jesus had just taught he would oftentimes or they would oftentimes put a miracle story either right behind or right in front of something Jesus is going to teach or something that is about to occur and that miracle story would be something greater than just another example of the supernatural power of Jesus but to the first century Church it would model a message that they needed to hear such as the case of the story that I read for you today this story is not something as simple as us showing once again the Jesus has the power to open blind eyes it's not as simple or superfluous or surface as just giving us another example of the majestic power of the master and the Messiah but when you put this story in the first century mind and see where it is placed it is placed after a story and before another story that would give a message to the first century and to us sitting in here today the story before this one is the feeding of the multitude stick with me if you know the story when the feeding is over the Bible declares they got 12 baskets full of leftovers they get on a boat but the problem is they get on the boat and in haste they leave eleven and only have one basket so you have twelve hungry brothers who are very hungry looking at one basket to feed all of them when you read the story you discover that they begin to have a dialogue back and forth about how in the world they're going to make it and how they're going to fill their stomachs how they're going to satisfy their appetite when it's twelve of them and only one basket Jesus says to them watch this how is it that you've been with me all of this time and you still act like you don't know who I am how is it that you were just with me on this watch this on the seashore and you watch me feed more than there are of you starting with less than you have in the basket if you really knew who I was you would not be panicking you would simply say Jesus the same thing you did on the shore who we need you to do it again on the boat and the story ends with Jesus raising this question do you still not understand in the Greek that word is scope I do you still not see it and the next verse starts a story about a man who can't see come to me after that story when the man gets his sight the story after the sight miracle is Jesus saying to the disciples who do men say that I the Son of Man am don't miss it y'all know the story they said some say you're Elijah some say you're Jeremiah or one of the other prophets Jesus said cool in a gang but who do you say that I am and Peter speaks up and says remember thou art the Christ the Son of the Living God Jesus as flesh and blood did not reveal that to you but such is my father in heaven don't miss the as the story before the miracle Jesus says why can't y'all see the story after the miracle is what happens when you can see the story before the miracle Jesus said y'all don't know who I am the story after the miracle Peter says I know exactly who you are and nestled between the two is the story of a man who's blind so that did the first century Church it was a message of the danger of being in his presence but not seeing his person it was a message to the first century Church that it's a terrible thing to be around him but KCU it's a terrible thing to be around him but don't know who he is it's a terrible thing to be around him but act like you don't understand his identity and this story is inserted to show us how you get not just your sight but your vision to know exactly who Jesus the Christ really is and I thought I would reach this this morning beloved because there are many people in the church who are in his presence but don't know his person there are many people in the church who around him but their activity proves they don't know him because if I could just give you a description from the text when you are blind you have to go where other people lead you when you are blind you are defined and confined by other people's vision when you are blind you are led where people want you to go you don't have your own eyes you don't have your own vision you don't have your own direction you don't know how to say no you don't know what to stay away from you don't know who to stay away from you are just led where other people leave you and the text says that had come to Jesus now I know many of you when you heard the title the right touch you automatically assume that that meant Jesus and it does what is a little deeper than that and the reason I called it the right touch West is because Jesus is neither the first or the only person to touch him he's bi which means if he's been blind he's been led by other people if he's been laid that means other people have had their hands on him so other people have touched him but could not heal him because it matters who puts their hands on me okay okay other people have touched him but it could not cure it because every touch cannot transform you every hand cannot heal you and every contact cannot kill you prieser and the problem with many of us is who we're letting the wrong people put their hands on us and because the wrong people are putting their hands on us who we are walking away the Oba lies it matters who puts their hands on you now if I could go into the context of the text that means that sometimes the hands we allow on us in the first century it would have been Jewish hands that could not help them it would have been Roman hands that could not help them and in this modern day it is this new spirituality in this modern day it is life coaching in this modern day it's Aliannah fixing your life Oprah fixing your life Steve RV pixie out and got quiet and the problem with many of us is that we're listening to life coaches we're reading books who have hands but can't help you you got too many churches who are having the wrong hands too many churches are touching fopen ain't changin nobody who we're touching them with cotton candy sermons we're touching them with music that's cute but not correct we're touching them trying to be seeker friendly we're touching them looking more like a club in a church and they're leaving out the same way they came they come and shout but leave jack up because we touch them but don't transform them so we all been getting the wrong touch you've been getting touches that you thought would make you somebody so you've got touch with marriage and you weren't ready for it you got touched with a job thought that would make you somebody you got touch with education thinking success who would define you but today I came to declare that there is another touch that you need in order to have vision and it's the touch of Jesus Christ everybody else can touch you and you'll never change but if Jesus puts his hands on you no opal put it this way he touched me oh he lets me and all the joy that Bloods not so something happened and now I know he touched me made me whole y'all sit down come on now how do I get the touch watch this watch the question how do I get the touch that will ignite my vision did you get that how do I get the touch that's going nightmare I've got three quick things and then we going to eat his first thing the first thing the Texas will have to teach us is that if you're going to move division you have to be connected to the proper people relationship means everything who you are connected to has everything to do with everything when you go to the book of beginnings and read the book of Genesis you will discover that God puts a whole lot of stock in relationship come here can I prove it to you have you ever found it interesting that God says in the book of beginnings it is not good for man to be alone that always tripped me out for just because he had God so how can he have God and God claim he's alone I don't have time to preset this is our power and so but if you read the Bible the Bible says that God says let us make man in our image and after our likeness watch this and then after that it's just not good for man to be alone I will make him a helper suitable now let's pick that out of the marital interpretation and just put it into the relationship good interpretation because what trips me out how it is that if you read the text after God makes the statement I'm going to make him a helper God does not create evil and the text says that the animals paraded before Adam to see what he would name them and then almost parenthetically the Holy Spirit put in there but there was not a suitable helper found amongst them y'all won't miss it then God would cut them to sleep if I pull over and I keep the motor running will y'all let me pull over you never get to your blessing till you stop messing with the Beast I don't have time to preach that I don't have pretty I don't have time to preach that I'll have time to preach that and so and so God then create II don't miss the point I'm trying to make is that God knew Adam had God but God knew that there were some things Adam needed that God would provide but God wouldn't do y'all missed that one relationship is everything you've got to be connected to the right kind of people and the text gives us a description of who those people are you need people in your life who will make themselves enemies to your weaknesses you need people in your life who are so committed to you being all that God wants you to be that they will agitate you until you get out of anything that is beneath your purpose value and potential for each boy here's what I love about this text everybody that brings the man that Jesus can see don't miss this they bring the man to Jesus because they want the man to have what they have sight y'all are missing this they bring the man to Jesus because they want the man to be able to have the same use of the resource they have get away from people who want to keep you beneath them and don't want you to elevate like they have elevated you need people in your life who want to share what they have and share how they got what they got and help you get up and get rid of the crap mentality get rid of the haters get rid of all the jealous father and you find you somebody who can help you know how they got it and want you to have they make themselves enemies to your weaknesses Oh No and here's nothing I love about these kind of friends I'm almost done what I love about these kind of friends is that watch this I love this then we they will initiate the intervention of intercession without your invitation I'm gonna come get you they yeah yeah he told me take my time I'm a great guy he they will initiate the intervention of intercession without your invitation is in the text intercession is when I take the issue of the problem of somebody else selflessly to the presence of the Lord so they bring this man's issue to the feet of Jesus that's intercession but nowhere in the tanks do I see where the man has to be brought no end effects as it says they brought him because the man said will you take me to Jesus nowhere in the text because it said they brought him because the man said I need y'all to find me Jesus they of their own initiative the Greek word for brought there is a strong word in the Greek corn in your text it almost implies they dragged it almost implies they gave him no choice I need friends in my life who don't wait till I ask for prayer to pray for me I need friends in my life who are so in touch with the spirit that the Spirit can put me on their mind and they start praying for me sometimes without me even knowing it do you know how you got delivered from some stuff somebody prayed for you do you know how you got out of some stuff somebody prayed for you do you know how some stuff got blocked that you weren't smart enough to walk away from somebody prayed for you and I think on alfrid street corner in Alexandria somebody ought to just wave your hand as they got thank you for praying mama thank you for praying daddy thank you for praying grandma mothers I give up praying friend Oh church put it this way somebody prayed for me had me on their mind took the path and prayed for me I'm so glad you need friends who pray for you even when you're not asking for bread I gotta keep going I gotta keep looking you're gonna get your vision you got to be connected to the proper people secondly if you're gonna get your vision you gotta learn how to be patient with the process you listen this is very treatable you cannot microwave maturity this new preacher that wants to be an overnight sensation is absolutely fooling him or herself I travel all over the country as your past does and you know what gets on my last nerve Thank You Holy Spirit for keeping my tongue because I remember that wasn't I might have said had a whole different way at Bethel but whatever gets on my nerves when young preachers will approach me and they don't ask me what books I'm reading they ask me who made my suit as if you even got the money number one [Applause] to pay for the suit I have our number two as if when I was your age I was wearing suits like this but they're so anxious and thirsty to be on top that they don't appreciate the process it takes for God to make you into the man or woman of God that God wants you to be anything you get quick you ain't gonna keep and it's not just breeches this is Holman lineal this whole millennial generation they don't want to work for anything they want everything quickening right now sooner than not yet which is why they're going to these churches with these preachers who are pimps parading as preachers talk about I'll give you a check in seven days or if I lay hands on you you don't have accelerated yet cancellations I'm not there's gonna be a check in the mail in 14 days they're going to these churches who are teaching them that God is some kind of infinitesimal Santa Claus who hopscotch is down from glory to give you what you won't own a silver better the devil is a liar God will take you through some stuff to make you and mold you into who he wants you to be and you've got to appreciate the journey as much as you appreciate the destination here we have a process I got to go here we have process here we have process what thrusters in the decks in the process in the process of God getting you where he wants you to open your eyes for vision here it is there's going to be a season of separation going on like this see I'm in the text why sex Texas the people brought in and Jesus cooking come back the people brought him Jesus took the people brought him Jesus took him jesus took him from the people that brought it when Jesus took him he didn't invite the people that brought him but when Jesus took him he took him from where they brought him and who he brought who brought him Jesus disconnected him from the people that brought him what's this because they're only assignment was to get him to Jesus not to go with him where Jesus is taking you and the mistake we often make is trying to keep people permanent who were intended to be transitional you can oftentimes make the mistake of trying to keep people around longer than their assignment was supposed to be in your life and that's when you get in trouble because the only people who should be in your life are people who have an assignment for your life if you don't have an assignment for my life there's no reason for you to be in my life hee-hoo this is gonna be bad grammar buddy's good gospel Oh do you need to be took from spent bad grammar but is good gospel who do you need to be took from now I need to balance it and have integrity to the text because normally when we hear this kind of thing you need to be disconnected from people it's normally followed it's lesson is neo-pentecostal day of preaching it's normally followed by get away from them because their demonic tear away from them because they got spirits get away from them because you don't want them spirits around you doesn't dumbest thing I've ever heard if I'm mature in the faith you ain't got no spirit that can jump on me I mean that's just that's just my opinion that is my opinion but you knows only what we hear get away from them you don't want this period on you get away from them their demonic now that might be true but that's not the truth of this text the truth of this text is a harder check test a harder test West because in this text Jesus disconnects him from people who have been healthy for you oh this isn't disconnect from jacked up or dysfunctional people this is a disconnect from people who want him to be delivered see you have to be mature enough to know how you need sometimes to have seasons of solitude where you even separate from people who mean you good Jordan got quiet now you have to want what the Lord has for you because sometimes he cannot speak to you because you got too many other voices in your ear sometimes he cannot give you vision because you got too many opinions you're listening to and you have to be smart enough sometimes to disconnect from people who are healthy for you but cannot go with you watch this because if they go with you they love for you might become your stumbling block what you mean because Jesus is gonna spit on him and if I love him like I love him I might try to stop the process because I don't think he needs to go through that you've got some people who love you so much that they'll see what you're going through not knowing you've got to go through it and do everything they can to talk you out of it and you'll miss your we are single cuz their love became your obstacle wow you got some folk that love you too much [Applause] who knew you need to get a quiet time from my pantry and so Jesus separation and then Jesus says to him do you see anything is it gonna get good I apologize Wes if they tip the pews out I'll send a check I'm lying but plus [Applause] I'm done in ten minutes but these next two minutes gonna get crazy Jesus says do you see anything homeboy says I love the rustic language of the King James and I've seen men but it look like trees walking geez they're women what she didn't say that that's my interpretation yes I'm a man I didn't ask you what you see ask you don't you see you're answering what you see well and you're answering it in such a negative because you are so consumed by what's not still right that you don't know how to affirm what's better than it used to be you round here talking about I see but it ain't right but you ought to be saying at least I can see something because before the day I couldn't see anything and that's my question to you I know everything's not right in your life but do you see anything I know you can't pay all your bills but do you see anything I know your marriage is still struggling but do you see anything I know your child is still crazy but do you see anything I know your friends are still fickle but do you see anything I know you can't find a job but do you see anything they sleeping under a bridge you're not sleeping in a cardboard box you got a good night's sleep you know your name you've got the judgment to you see and somebody ought to shout today because your life might not be perfect but at least you have progress come on shake somebody's hand tell them it's better than it used to be it's better than it needs to be I know it's not perfect but I thank God it's better [Music] I'm done so she said this a women I got touched you again got touched you again because if I leave you looking like this seeing men but looking like trees you might treat me in like trees and trees like people I can't leave you like this because you might run the risk of treating objects better than you treat people god that's a whole nother sermon so Jesus touches him again and the Bible says he saw everything clearly I'm done there's gonna be concrete concrete evidence of your clarity here's how you know you got vision you ready Jesus gives him one in the New International Version gives him one command but if you go back to the original Greek quantity of text there are really two commands it's in the King James they're two commands Jesus really gives him the first command is in the New International Version where Jesus says go home don't go back to the village now they bring him out of the village so exegetically we already know that the village they brought him out of is not home because Jesus says go home don't go back to the village the village they bring it out of is Bethsaida Bethsaida in biblical days was a cursed place so Jesus says now that you can see don't go back to places beneath your value now that you can see don't go back to places that will bring you back down to who you used to be he said I forgave you when they brought you out of there because you just had to go where people led you but now that you can see her when they try to lead you you can tell them I ain't going back there see when you've got your vision you say there's some things I'm never going back to I'm not going back to being that needy I'm not going back to being that thirsty I'm not going back to being that insecure I'm not going back to being that depressed I'm not going back to being that discouragement there's something Voivod the command that's not in the new international version that's in the original in the King James is when you say it and don't tell nobody where women jeez women women I've been blind I can see and you telling me don't tell how about it I ain't going what you think I'm going you think I'm going when the Lord has done something for you that you've been living with and delivers you how do you keep it to yourself that's a good shout that anyway I'm going doctor Mao Jones used to always accused me of being too analytical and here I go again here was my question with how do I even hide the fact [Applause] but I can now see cuz I don't have to tell nobody all they've got to do is watch how I walk because stuff I used to trip over I step over stuff I used to stumble over I walk around because the evidence of transformation ancient tongues an angel shouting it's the way you walk when your lifestyle is better that's the evidence of your change when your lifestyle is get up that's the evidence of your transformation the old folks said when you see me walking right the evidence that the Lord is using I'm sorry I kept y'all too long I'm done this is not a miracle of first things this is evidence of a get back this ain't evidence of Jesus giving him something he's never had this is evidence of Jesus giving him something that he lost can I prove it to you do you see anything I see me but they look like tree if he was born blind he wouldn't know what a man looks like if he was born blind he wouldn't know what a tree looks like the only reason he knows it is because he's seen it this ain't Jesus giving him something he's never had it's jesus giving him something back he lost and I'm done is there anybody in here today who can say I want it all back I want my show come on let's hit D flat I want my joy back I want my mind back I want my piece back I want my family back I want my children back I want my vision back I want my smile back I want my business back I want my finances back is there anybody in here who can say I want it all back everything I messed up everything I got taken away from me everything that got snatched from me the Lord can give it all back now there's something I don't want back but if the Lord gave it to me I'm telling him give it all back I'm ready to treat it better I'm ready to manage it better I'm ready to do better and is there anybody in this room today who could say I haven't smiled in a long time but I want my smile back up ever been positive in a long time but I won't positivity back up I want my joy back up afternoon Albert Street may the Lord God bless you real good but is there anybody in here who can help me close this sermon and olio people if you want it all back wave your hand if you want it all back yep but joy if you roll it all back I promise it it's the last time it was you take one neighbor by the hand and tell your neighbor that was the wrong neighbor and only other side with the arms around your neighbor say commander uncle Rockland and Sikkim make a man rock and come neighbor I feel like I need a few witnesses who know the Lord will give it back to you the Lord will restore it to you the Lord will fix it for ya because we gave me back my life I lost my life in the Garden of Eden ha ha told Calvary to give me back my life and if you ain't got nothing else the order shout cuz you got your life back the order shout does it got salvation back warning who won't he do it won't he do it won't eat fight so battles only make your enemies your footstool won't he give you joy in sorrow won't he give you hope for tomorrow when he's right out here holy won't he won't tony'll only one he was holding because I know i'ma get it all back because I know he's gonna bless me again imma give him the brain but everything I did back yeah inhale retreated a who's inside no Lord restored to life and you thank you Lord that he restored Jojo [Music] and wave your hand until dawn thank you then I got my sight back thank you I got my vision [Music] and I once was blind but now I see I found your neighbor [Music] [Music] have you mind [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] yeah [Music] [Applause] you