CRANK ER’ UP I’m a NASCAR fan. I’m not fanatical about it, but there is one thing about it that I really enjoy. That’s when they focus one camera on one particular part of the racetrack and just let you watch and listen as the cars go by. The announcer says, “Crank er’ up,” and lets you enjoy for a few minutes. Psalms 80:2, “Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.” II Peter 3:1, “This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance.” Notice the 2 words in these 2 passages: “stir up”. God wants us to be stirred up. He also wants us to know how to stir up ourselves. How many have seen these automatic bread makers? This is what you do: you take the ingredients and put them in and then you program it. Then, at a certain time, it will kick on and make bread for you. You put in the flour, salt, water, oil, yeast, and egg, program the thing, and walk away, and it begins to knead the bread and stir up the ingredients. It stirs itself. I wish that Christians would learn to stir themselves. We need to learn to stir ourselves up. Years ago before they used a battery to turn over the engine of a car they would use a crank. They would put it in the front of the car and they would turn that crank like this *** till the engine started. It worked a little bit like a music box, or a clock, or a wind up toy. A pull rope on a mower or chain saw works the same way. You crank it to get it started. You’ve seen the old fashion gliders that they make out of real light wood. It has a propeller on the front and a rubber band that runs all the way to the tail. You turn that propeller and it winds that rubber band up. What you are doing is cranking that propeller up so when you let it go it takes off and flies high. God wants you to learn to crank yourself up. You have a propeller. You need to twist that rubber band down inside yourself and you need to learn to get yourself going. He wants you to crank yourself. If you can’t get cranked up at FMBC, with all that God is doing, you have a broken crank. Many folks around here try to get you cranked up for Jesus. Your SS teachers, your Kid’s club leaders, Teen leaders, Jr. Church leaders, when they stand and teach you about Jesus they are trying to get you cranked up for Jesus. When the messages are preached from this pulpit on Sunday morning, we are trying to crank you up for Jesus. When Chris teaches on Sunday evening, he’s cranking you up for Jesus. All the folks who stand and preach and teach the Word of God and testify are cranking you up. Now let me ask you a question: Who cranks up the Pastor? Who cranks up the youth leaders? Who cranks up the SS teachers? THEY LEARNED TO CRANK THEMSELVES! Most of you are good people when you’re around the Pastor, when you’re around the SS teachers, and youth leaders. But it’s when you’re away from those who get you cranked up spiritually, that’s when you get into trouble. So what you’ve got to learn to do is crank yourself. I have a crank on the inside. You can’t see it. So I have something that will give you an idea as to what’s on the inside. ***Crank*** I have a crank on the inside of me and everyone of you have the very same crank on the inside of you. Any body can get excited about the things of God, they just have to want to get cranked up. #1. YOU NEED TO LEARN TO GET YOURSELF CRANKED UP. The great men in the Bible knew how to get themselves cranked up. I Samuel 30:6, “And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.” You know what David did? David got himself cranked up. David was a self-cranker. David knew how to get cranked up, and if David needed to get cranked up, so do you. The automatic bread maker stirs itself. It makes bread when nobody else is around. Hey, can you make something happen for Jesus when there’s nobody around to crank you up? What are you like when you’re away from those spiritual people who crank you up? Is the automatic bread maker a better Christian than you? You need to learn to crank yourself up. David did. There’s a story in the Bible about Elijah. He came to a battle where he was going to have a show-down with 450 false prophets of Baal. They were both going to put a sacrifice on a altar. The prophets of Baal were going to pray to their god that their god would send fire from the sky. Elijah would do the same. The false prophets were up first. They begin to pray that their god would send the fire and consume the sacrifice, but nothing happened. Elijah said, “What’s wrong? Is your god on vacation? Maybe he can’t hear you.” Nothing happened. Elijah said, “It’s my turn, step back.” He put his sacrifice on the altar and said, “Lets spice this thing up a bit, give me a barrel of water.” They poured a barrel of water on it, then another, then another, 12 barrels. They soaked that thing down. As Elijah was getting ready to call fire down one of those false prophets said, “That’s not going to work, it has water all over it; you can’t do that.” Elijah said, “I’m not the one that’s going to do it.” He began to pray. He was outnumbered, his altar and sacrifice were all wet, but on the inside he started getting cranked. He started praying and all of a sudden the clouds rolled back and out of heaven came fire and consumed the sacrifice, the altar, and all the water. Elijah got cranked. He had to crank himself. At that time there was a king by the name of Ahab. Ahab had a wife named Jezebel. Some of you men used to be married to her. Right after Elijah had prayed fire from the sky, he killed those 450 false prophets. Ahab panicked. He had to run home and tell Jezebel what happened. So Ahab jumped in his chariot and took off as fast as he could go. Elijah said, “I’d like to be there when Ahab gets there”, but he had no chariot, so he took off running. Now how in the world is he going to run and be there when Ahab gets there? He cranked himself up. He beat the chariot to town, and when Ahab rolled in there was Elijah leaning against the wall, “How you doin?” The people in the Bible got themselves cranked up. You need to learn to crank yourself. Paul cranked himself. The Apostle Paul had been beaten and thrown in jail. It was midnight. It had been rough for him. Paul decided at midnight that it was time to get himself cranked up. At midnight, in jail, all beat up, “I heard an old, old story, how my Saviour came from glory.” The other prisoners said, “Hey, what are you doing? Shut up.” Paul said, “No, I’m not going to shut up, I’m getting cranked up for Jesus.” It didn’t matter where he was, he could get cranked up. Jesus cranked Himself up. Matthew 28:1-6, “In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.” Jesus had been crucified on Calvary and He died. The devil said, “I got Him. I got Him. The Son of God, He’s dead, and in the tomb, lets party.” He was throwing a party for all the imps of hell. They partied all day and all night. “We got Him. The Son of God is dead and in the grave.” They partied all day – day 1; they partied all day – day 2; they partied all day – day 3. All of a sudden something happened. The Bible says there was an earthquake. That was Jesus getting cranked up in the grave. He was getting cranked up because He was coming out of there, “up from the grave He arose”. Oh yeah, Jesus cranked Himself. There were many great men in the Bible who cranked themselves. Let me ask you a question: Are you cranked up at all? Do you have any crank inside of you? What a privilege to be saved. Not only did great men in the Bible learn to crank themselves: #2. IF YOU CAN CRANK YOURSELF, GOD WILL USE YOU TO CRANK UP OTHERS. You know the story of the 3 Hebrew boys in captivity in Babylon and King Nebuchadnezzar. The king told Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, “If you don’t do what I want you to, I’ll have you thrown in the fiery furnance..” I said if you can crank yourself you can help crank others up. Out of these 3 boys there had to be a spokesman. Listen to what he says in Daniel 3:17-18, “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” Shadrach stepped up to the king and said, “I’d rather burn than bow. You don’t have to throw me in the furnace I’ll do it myself.” The other 2 said, “Amen, I’m going with him.” He got himself cranked up and he got the other 2 cranked also. They threw those 3 boys into that burning fiery furnace and the king went over there and looked in and said, “What’s happening in there. There are 4 of them in there. Who’s the 4th one?” It’s Jesus, He’s cranked up too! You see, if you can crank yourself, you can crank somebody else too. David desired to have a drink of water from the well in Bethlehem, but it was surrounded by a garrison of Philistines. II Samuel 23:15-16, “And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord.” There was a spokesman of the 3 mighty men. Someone stepped out first. One of those fellows pulled his sword and he started strutting around and got himself all cranked up and started toward the well. The other 2 said, “Where you going?” “I’m going to get King David a drink of water.” “Not without us you’re not.” ***David & Goliath… David got cranked up. The 3 mighty men got cranked up. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego got cranked up. If you can crank yourself, you can crank somebody else. Are you always looking for someone to crank you up? Somebody needs you to crank them up. Let me explain something to you: serving God is caught more than it’s taught. You catch it. You catch the spirit of the thing. You say, “I want to get involved. I want to do something for God.” Hey, is anyone catching the right spirit from you? #3. THE HOLY GHOST IS ALWAYS CRANKED UP. He’s always ready to go, always ready to do something for God, but you’ve got to cut Him loose. The Holy Ghost would like to get you excited and get you involved, but some of you are holding back. The day you got saved you received the same Holy Ghost as I did. He’s inside of me just like He’s inside of you. Acts 2:2-3, “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.” Do you know what happened? The Holy Ghost got them all cranked up. They surrendered to the Spirit of God and He got them all cranked up. The Bible tells us the Holy Ghost is like fire. Some of you need to get fired up for God. Cut the Holy Ghost loose in your life. Get excited about the things of God. Some of you sitting there never one time said, “Amen.” Why don’t you open your mouth for God? What are you afraid of? “Oh, I’d be embarrassed.” If you won’t embarrass your flesh for God the Holy Ghost will never dominate your life. In Acts they all got cranked up and turned the city of Jerusalem upside down. Knowing Jesus and serving Him is more exciting than anything I’ve ever experienced, and He’s more exciting than anything you’ve ever experienced also. I’m glad I’m saved. I’m glad I get to preach. I’m glad I have the Word of God. I’m glad I get the chance to get cranked up for Jesus. I’m a full fledged Jesus freak. I’m not afraid to stand up and wave my Bible. Woooo *** meeting*** Some of you have never stood up and waved your Bible anywhere. I want to get fired up for the things of Jesus. I want to get cranked up. I said if you can get cranked up you can crank others up. Getting cranked up isn’t just for the healers, feelers, and squealers, it’s for us Baptist too! “Preacher, how in the world do we crank ourselves?” Thanks for asking. #1. When somebody else is trying to crank you up – let them. If somebody is trying to get you excited about Jesus, go ahead and get excited about Jesus. If somebody is trying to get you excited about salvation and the Bible and church, you let them crank you up. You’ll never be able to crank yourself if you don’t let others crank you. #2. You have to know what motivates you. You have to know what will crank you up. For all of us it maybe something a little bit different. For instance: Everyone needs to find a sermon that cranks you up. Get yourself a sermon that cranks you on CD, or cassette, or paper, and anytime you need cranked you listen to it or read it and let it go to work on you. Maybe it’s a song that cranks you up. “I’ll be back; The Midnight Cry; It Is Well; It’s Still The Blood, etc.” If it is, use it. Maybe it’s a verse that cranks you up, like Isaiah 40:31, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Maybe it’s John 3:16, or Romans 8:28. Use it. You have to know what motivates you. Maybe it’s a story. Maybe it’s an occurrence, a happening in your life that cranked you up like your spouse or child getting saved. The Word of God will crank you up. All you have to do is get in there and start reading. Read Psalm 119, that will crank you up. Do you understand what I have right here (hold up Bible). I have God’s very Word, the KJB. Do you have one? Let me see it. Get it up in the air. You have the Word of God in your hand. God is speaking to you through it as if it were an audible voice. Woooooooooo. Look at it. Love it. Don’t ever be ashamed of this Book. Everywhere you go, lift it up. It’s a royal Book written by a perfect God. Let the Word of God motivate you. I’ll tell you something else that will motivate you – soul winning. Soul winning will get you cranked up. When somebody gets saved I’m ready to charge hell with a squirt gun. Some of you, if you don’t breathe soon you’re going to die. You’re going to have to breathe. Cranked people are thinking people. Some of you need to remember what God did for you. He pulled you straight out of the destiny of hell and put you on the road to Heaven. If that doesn’t get you cranked up you’re just ungrateful. Now, there are some things that will hinder you from getting cranked up. There are people who will try to stop you from cranking. When you spend your time with people who don’t want to be cranked, they’re going to get your crank out of your hand someday and you may never get it back. Some of these preachers are always trying to get my crank. “Na na na na na, you can’t get my crank. Na na na na na.” Some of you girls have a boy friend and he doesn’t have a crank, he’s a deadbeat – dump him. Some of you fellows have a woman, she has pretty hair but she ain’t got no crank. She’s dead, she’s not going to make a good mother for your children or a good wife for you. People who criticize and gossip will hinder you from getting cranked. The people they criticize are the ones who are cranked. Heartache will keep you from getting cranked. Worry and stress will keep you from getting cranked up. God will provide! Satan is always trying to hinder you from getting cranked up for Jesus. One more story and I’m through. There was a Catholic man who was lost and on his way to hell when a Baptist preacher stopped by his house and won him to Christ. The priest found out about it and went by to visit the Catholic man. When he entered the house he saw a KJB sitting on the coffee table. The priest got real frigidity, he’s not use to being around the Word of God. He wasn’t even use to being around real men. That wasn’t nice. The priest said, “What do you have there?” The man said, “That’s the Word of God.” The priest said, “Let me tell you something about the Book. The Book is compared to milk, and if you’re going to drink milk I’ve got to serve you because I’m the milkman. You’re not to serve yourself, you come to me.” And the brand new Baptist convert said, “I hate to tell you this priest, old boy, but I decided to get my own cow.” Wooooooooo. Hey, I’ve got my own crank and you can’t take it away from me. You need to get cranked up. Every youth department needs a cranker. Every Sunday school class needs a cranker. Every church needs a cranker. If you’re friends won’t get cranked up, you get cranked without them. Can you get cranked up about Jesus? Can you get cranked up about the Bible? Can you get cranked up about your salvation? Can you get cranked up about the things of God. Lets get cranked up. Lets get cranked up for Jesus. |
| Pastor Hagen |
| To conctact Pastor Hagen call 1-717-355-0661 |
| But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 |