Behold the Lord!
Preached by Apostle Aje Pelser
Harvester Reformational Church, Cape Town

When we behold the Lord, it releases glad tidings to strengthen our resolve and continue the work of the Lord.

Scripture Reading:
Isa 40:9 O Zion, You who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
Isa 40:10 Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him.
Isa 40:11 He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.

Here are the glad tidings that strengthen our resolve:
1. Focus on the glad tidings amidst the chaos. Our message is good news to those who are perishing, to those who are thirsty and hungry for righteousness. Find those who draw from you and who value your good news and feed them abundantly until they are strong enough to feed others.
2. Position yourself on the Mountain of the Lord. This is the church. Understand that the church is Mount Zion in the new covenant. Hebrews 12:22-24 helps us to understand that we have come to Mt Zion already by faith. Church on earth is portal to the church registered in heaven, the Church of the Firstborn.
3. Shout! Lift your voice with strength. When God tells you to shout, don’t do it half-heartedly! Jericho’s walls didn’t fall down to a half-hearted whimper. Wait till you have faith for something then shout the shout of faith and victory. God has told us to occupy and conquer on all levels. Then we can take what He is giving boldly.
4. God prepares you for something, then you can be confident. Sometimes Christians are over-confident, and they lack preparation for something. When you are waiting for God’s promises, take the time to prepare and learn all you can about the thing God has told you to do, or the gift and talent He has given you. Because the time will come when it prospers wherever it turns. In the meantime, sharpen your skills, hone your gifts and don’t waste time by worrying about to something you can’t change. Redeem your time and leverage it to get equipped.
2Co 5:5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
2Co 5:6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord.
5. Fear Not. Be not afraid. However you put it, the point is that God commands fear to go. God has not given us a spirit of fear:
2Ti 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
6. Behold the Lord! Look at the Lord in the midst of your storm. See Jesus as the answer in all tings. Go to the word as your guide and check in with the Hly Spriit who is always with you as a Helper and Comforter and Friend. He is the best friend you’ll ever have and will lead and guide you into all truth.
7. God will come with a strong hand to help you. The world says no one is coming to help you. We have better news, God is coming to help you with s strong hand. Watch, stand and see the salvation of the Lord. He has a plan and He has a network, He has a kingdom of angels and all the resources for your next big challenge, as long as you remain in His will for your life.
Spend some time learning to understand His will and His new Covenant. When you start to align your will with his, the world starts to react differently to you. You begin to see divine connections that you never saw before, and God starts to build your network His way with His kingdom ways.

8. His arm shall rule. Our occupation is rulership and not defeat! Find out how to rule and reign in this life with the Lord. If you are feeling defeated right now, don’t feel bad. If you can recognize defeat, ask God to rule in that area and let His arm lift you into a victory. I often tell God: “do something amazing Lord and I will praise You!” And you know what? He always does!
9. His reward is with Him. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. He will open windows of opportunity for you and help you in ways you can’t imagine. The Holy Spirit is such a strong force, and He unlocks the hidden treasures of darkness for you.
Isa 45:3 I will give you the treasures of darkness And hidden riches of secret places, That you may know that I, the LORD, Who call you by your name, Am the God of Israel.

That sounds a bit ominous, but read it this way:
I give you the secrets to unlock things that have been forgotten, obscure and hidden before. Let My Spirit bring you out of obscurity so that you can arise and shine for My light has come, and My glory has arisen over you!

10. He will feed His Flock! God leads us to green pastures, still waters and He restores our souls! Your Word is bread to my soul! The Words that Jesus speak are Spirit and they life! Jesus is the bread of life.

Jesus is a Good Shepherd. There’s none like Him. His sheep hear His voice. He leads them in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
11. His arm that saves and delivers is also the arm that gathers and keeps us safe. God is gathering His flock in the last days.
He is a gentle leader as well. This is good news, because it gives you grace space to grow. Those who are young refers to pregnant ones, who are carrying young. God knows you are busy creating something.
Something is about to be birthed in you and it should be treated gently, like a mother with her young. Be gentle towards those who are getting born again and take through the phases of Christian growth slowly and with great care. Love is an amazing comfort during the stages of birth. The same applies to helping someone find their Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. People are scared of spiritual things and don’t know how loving God the Father can be. They have all sorts of wrong images of Christ and His Church because of past hurts and religious misrepresentations of our Faith. It’s time to change that and the best way is the reveal the love of Jesus and the love of the father in faith and patience during the birthing process.