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Serving Through Pain | Pastor John Harke | Faith Church · Faith Church Podcast

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How many are ready for God's Word? Do I have
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permission to preach tonight? Praise Jesus. I'm
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going to preach tonight. I will tell you something.
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That trip to Auschwitz -Birkenau, and I know
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that with Dennis and Linda, I don't pronounce
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it right, but I'll do my best. But anyway, it
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was a life -changing experience. For me, I wept
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many, many times in those three or four hours
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that I was there. And it had a very impactful,
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simply because, not because I'm really, you know,
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that I want to look at evil things. It's just
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that sometimes in America, we have a tendency
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to live in a bubble. And because we have a tendency
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to live in a bubble, we don't realize how evil
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evil is. And that is why I feel like our call,
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the call of the church, is to destroy the works
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of the enemy. Can I hear an amen for that right
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now? Listen, I want you to turn with me to the
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book of Genesis, Genesis chapter 15, verse 15.
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I'm going to read out of the NIV tonight in a
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moment, but it's going to take me a few minutes
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to go there. I'm going to mention something that
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over the last couple of months, you know, it
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was probably two months ago, at our home, we
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have a large living room kitchen. and then there's
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like a den, and then there's another bedroom,
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and that den that is kind of my prayer room,
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my library, is where I sit and I study and work
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on my calendar, do everything I do in that room.
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And Meliana, you know, she rarely comes in there.
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It's not that it's off limits. There's no door.
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She can walk right in anytime, but usually she's
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in the living room or the kitchen, and I got
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up to get a bottle of water, and I walk out in
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the living room, and she's crying. She's, and
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my wife doesn't cry very much. She's not that,
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she's not sensitive, but that's not like her
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nature, and she was crying, and I said, honey,
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why are you crying? What had happened is, because
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in our world, in our circle, in our prophetic
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circle, there has been an attack, and there has
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been an attack and abuse on the prophetic. Where
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different ministers and ministries, before they
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go to a church, they would study the social media,
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the Facebook, the Instagram, a person's profile.
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Excuse me, my wife needs the language. A person's
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profile. They would then write some highlights
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down. And then what they would do is rather than
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being led by the Spirit of God, Sister Linda,
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this is exactly what they did. They would tell
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people their address, where they were born, all
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these kinds of things. Not based on the word
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of knowledge or on prophetic gift, but based
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on information that they got from social media.
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Come on. And my wife... We found that out. My
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wife was weeping because they showed a video
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of a lady who really believed that this was a
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word from the Lord and was weeping and had traveled
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all across the country, but all it was is something
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of information given by that minister. from a
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leader. And I don't want to mention names tonight,
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but I will tell you something right now. When
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Miliana shared that, that grieved me. That grieved
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me deeply. Because, you know, where's the fear
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of God? Where's the fear of God? Where's the
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fear of God? That God's people are not meant
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to be abused. Come on. They're not meant to be.
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And then where emotionally are you fractured
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that you've got to make up a prophetic word to
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prove that you hear from God? You either hear
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from God or you don't. You follow what I'm saying?
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And so I went into an in -depth study of the
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life of Joseph, and the Lord said this to me.
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He says, I want to raise up Joseph -like prophets
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in this generation. I want to raise up Joseph
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-like prophets in this generation. And when I
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look at this, in a moment, I'm going to get to
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Genesis 15, chapter 50, verse 15. Before I do
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that, I'm going to have to lay some groundwork
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of where I'm going tonight. And because I look
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at Joseph's life, and it seems like, no, it's
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not like a life I want to live, but it's a very
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powerful one because you think about this. You
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know that our warfare, the warfare that we have,
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the things that we go, sometimes isn't what happens
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outside the home or outside the church. It's
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on the inside. That many times the warfare is
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not on the outside, it's on the inside. The attack,
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not necessarily from the outside, but on the
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inside. And what do they attack on the inside?
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They attack the dream. The dream from God, the
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God dream. And in Joseph's case, And he didn't
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get attacked by the Amalekites or another nation.
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It was his own brothers that were jealous of
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his dream. And I have to say something to you.
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When I look at Joseph's brothers, you know, whom
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God actually birthed the tribes of Israel out
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of, these guys were a mess. I would have kicked
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them out of my church. Come on. I would have
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kicked Judah out of my church. I would have kicked
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Reuben out of the church. I would have kicked
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Levi out of the church. I would have kicked them
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all out of my church because these guys are a
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mess. I would never ever want to even have any
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dealings with these people. They simply, one
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of the things that they did to Joseph is, you
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know, because they don't like his dream, they
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want to kill him. Reuben says, let's not kill
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him. Let's throw him in a pit. Come on. You know,
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and then sell him to Ishmaelite slaves, right?
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So they got to somehow prove, you know, because
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they got to tell their father Jacob, you know,
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where's Joseph? So they've got to make up a lie.
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And so they actually take his coat of many colors.
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They cut it up and they dip it in goat's blood.
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Come on. And because they don't have DNA testing
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in those days, they can't prove, they can't tell
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between goat's blood and human blood. And they
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present the coat of many colors to their father,
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Jacob, and watch him weep over a lie. You've
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got to be messed up psychologically. You've got
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to be twisted in your conscience to let something
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like that. There must be a depth of bitterness
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and hatred that you would allow your own father
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to weep for a lie. Come on. And Joseph experiences
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this. And then, Joseph, what happens, ladies
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and gentlemen? And then, of course, he gets sold
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into slavery. And then all of a sudden Potiphar,
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they bought him. God raises him up. God blesses
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him in Potiphar's house. And then he's accused
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of raping a woman he never touched. You know
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what I'm saying? And it is like, I mean, what
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God? You got a target on this guy? You got a
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target on this guy? Because every time he tries
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to do something right, he gets attacked. And
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then we find him in the prison. We find him in
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prison. And I'm thinking in my mind, there's
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something I need to share with this body. Here's
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what set Joseph apart. It's not that he suffered
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personal attack. It's not that he suffered attack
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from the family. It's not that he was mistreated
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or misrepresented or even accused of things that
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he didn't do. That happens to every single person
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at one level or another. The thing that set him
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apart is this. Here he was in a prison. And he
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could have just sat back and said, listen, is
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this what I get for serving God? Is this what
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I get for doing everything? Is this what I get
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for standing for morality? Is this what I get
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for getting a dream? I didn't make up this dream.
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You are the one that gave me the dream. Is this
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what I get for doing everything right? Come on.
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He could have wallowed in his change and wallowed
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in his bitterness and wallowed in resentment,
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ladies and gentlemen. But this is what set Joseph
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apart. And God, and we're not a large crowd tonight,
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but God wants to set every single person in this
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house apart. That we're not like everybody else.
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Come on. We go through the same things, but we
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react a lot differently than everybody else.
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Come on. Here he is sitting. Actually, Psalms
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says that he was in a dungeon. He was in chains.
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He was locked up with fetters. I mean, he was
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suffering. But what I love about Joseph is this
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one thing. Here in the middle of his prison,
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he still served. Come on, church. Are you hearing
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what I'm saying? And this is something we have
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to understand, young people. There are moments
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when we feel like we're in emotional prison,
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in a physical prison, in a spiritual prison.
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But here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to
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still serve when I'm in the prison. Are you hearing
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me? You're hearing me? Because we all find ourselves,
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I'm going to serve when I'm depressed. I'm going
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to serve. Kathy was at church today. She just
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lost her husband. Come on. I'm going to serve
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when I'm grieving. Come on. I'm going to serve
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when I'm suffering. I'm going to serve when I'm
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going through something. Come on. Because what
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happens is if I only serve when things go well,
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then my serving is conditional. But I'm going
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to serve in the middle of my pain. I'm going
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to serve in the middle of my sorrow. And I'm
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going to serve when I don't understand. I'm still
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going to serve. I'm going to serve people because
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how you serve God is to serve people. It's how
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you serve God. Because we think that worship
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is just lifting our hands, listening to Pastor
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Darren saying, I can do that all night. But really,
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there's another form of worship is learning how
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to serve when I'm suffering. And here he is suffering,
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but he's got this prophetic gift that he's carrying.
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He's got this ability to dream and this ability
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to interpret dreams and ability to hear from
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God. Because a lot of people want to serve in
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the palace, but they don't want to serve in the
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prison. Oh, come on. You follow what I'm saying?
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They want to serve on the platform, but they
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don't want to serve in the children's church.
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I'm just telling you. I'm not talking about this
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church. I'm talking about the church down the
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street. Come on. You know what I'm saying? I
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want to serve in Lincoln, but I don't want to
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serve in Petersburg. Come on. You know what I'm
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saying? Think about this. I want to serve when
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it's comfortable. I want to serve when I get
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appreciated. I want to serve when I get an offering.
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I want to serve when I get accolades. I want
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to serve when I get affirmed. But not Joseph.
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Because if Joseph served based on conditions,
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he would have never interpreted the dream from
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the baker and the cupbearer. But he decided to
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serve. Because I can tell you something. I have
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found this out. I get healed when I serve. I
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get excited when I serve. Pastor Darren mentioned
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about people being weary. Sometimes I get weary.
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Even Jesus got weary from the journey when he
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journeyed before he met the woman at the well.
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It says that Jesus was weary from the journey.
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It's not a sin to be weary. You're human when
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you're weary. But what made him come alive, what
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made him come alive is not the miles of walking
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all day. What made him come alive when that woman
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came alive that he served. Come on, are you hearing
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me? Because I'm telling you, ladies and gentlemen,
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the way spiritual boredom, worriness, all the
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things that we struggle with, that this is what
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happens. It's cured when I serve. Come on. Now,
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Joseph decides to serve the cupbearer and the
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baker. And, of course, he gives the baker the
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word. It comes to pass the baker is murdered,
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died. He's died in prison. Then the cupbearer
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is released just like Joseph prophesied. And
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when he was walking out of prison, Joseph says
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to the cupbearer, remember me. But he's not remembered.
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At that moment, you could have shut down. Because
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you've got to ask yourself this question. Am
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I serving to be remembered? Or am I serving to
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love people? I'm serving to love people. Not
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whether I'm remembered or not. Whether you forget
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me, it doesn't matter because God does not forget.
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You follow me? So at that moment, but there's
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something I know that I love about this whole
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narrative. And I'll get to Genesis 50 in a moment.
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But even though the cupbearer had forgotten him,
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his dad thought he was dead. There was a God
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that remembered him. And God puts the king asleep.
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And God puts Pharaoh asleep. And when he puts
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Pharaoh asleep, With Pharaoh, with all his access
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to his wise men and his prophetic voices that
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he has access to, nobody can interpret the dream
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of Pharaoh. Until it gets to be so, so intense
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that the cupbearer opens his mouth and says to
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the Pharaoh, oh king, forgive me. Because while
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I was in prison, come on, I met. A Hebrew slave.
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Everybody say a Hebrew slave. Interesting. Because
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this is exactly what I know. You know that people
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in this room, people in the world, sometimes
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when they're desperate to hear from God, they
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don't care where you came from. They don't care
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about your background. Because when I was in
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D .C., when they asked me to prophesy over them,
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they didn't ask me where I was from. They didn't
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know I was an ex -con. Come on. They didn't know
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that I was in jail. All they knew is they heard
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that I hear from God and they wanted me to prophesy
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over them. Church, I pray that we would get a
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reputation. Oh, come on. That we would get a
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reputation in this community and all the other
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churches that you get a reputation that we hear
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from God. Come on. You follow what I'm saying?
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Because right now, we need a reputation that
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we hear from God. Because right now, I'm telling
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you, especially on the West Coast, and I'm out
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on the West Coast a lot more than I am out here
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in the Midwest or the South or the East Coast.
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I'm on the West Coast the most. And out on the
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West Coast, people are questioning the reality
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because of what happened in Bethel, what's happened
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in all this prophetic movement. But I'm going
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to tell you, there are men and women that stand
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for righteousness and hear from God. Come on.
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And so, show the cupbearers why there was a Hebrew
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slave. And he told me, he told me the dream,
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and everything he said came to pass. Oh, come
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on. Very powerful. Pharaoh is so desperate, even
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though culturally Egyptians don't like Hebrews,
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especially a slave, especially someone in prison.
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He didn't care, and he immediately brings Joseph
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out. And there's something about this moment
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where now Joseph is standing before Pharaoh.
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Now, there's no promise of release. There's no
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promise of redemption. There's no promise of
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justice. And he hears Pharaoh say, I heard it
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said of you. Everybody said that. I heard it
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said of you. I don't always agree when people
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say, I don't care what you think. I don't always
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agree with that statement. Because I want it
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said of me. Now, notice where this comes from.
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This does not come from a brother. This does
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not come from a father. It doesn't come within
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the household. It comes from a leader, a king
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of a nation. It comes from the world. Because
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we've got to ask ourselves, what is the world
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saying about the church right now? Are you following
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what I'm saying? Does the church have a reputation
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that they hear from God? Come on. Unfortunately,
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they don't right now. But Paul made mention,
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and I want you to write this scripture down,
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and I don't want to mess this up, so I'm going
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to turn there, and I'm going to read it because
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it is actually, Meliana, one of the most powerful
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statements in scripture. And it says, And Ephesians
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chapter 3, ladies and gentlemen, verse 10, and
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it says this. It's so powerful that through the
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church. Everybody say through the church. Everybody
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say through the church. It didn't say through
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the government. It didn't say through the education.
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It said through the church. I got there. Praise
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God. It says, to this intent that now the manifold
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wisdom of God. Everybody say the manifold wisdom
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of God. How many want to release the manifold
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wisdom of God? Now, listen what Paul says. This
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is a promise. To the intent that now the manifold
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wisdom of God be made known by the church. It
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didn't say by Trump. Didn't say by Biden. Didn't
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say by Illinois. It didn't say by some leader.
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It said by the church. That the wisdom of God,
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the manifold wisdom of God would be made known
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through the church. Now let me ask you right
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now, is the wisdom of God being made known through
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the church right now, today? Because honestly,
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Meliana, who I don't go on social media, but
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she's now my journalist, my reporter, my newscaster.
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But right now, even much of the church is embattled
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over false prophecy and the reality of the prophetic.
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That doesn't sound like the manifold wisdom of
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God being made known through the church. Listen,
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it's his intent that the manifold wisdom of God
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would be known through the church to the principalities
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and powers in heavenly places. Oh, I get fired
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up with that. I get really fired up with that.
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So that is why Pharaoh said to Joseph, I heard
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it said of you. Come on. I heard it said of you
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that when you hear a dream, you can interpret
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it. What's being said about us? What's being
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said about us? Come on. Not what's being said
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by our spouses or our immediate family, but what's
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being said by the world. I want the community.
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What is being said about faith assembly in the
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community? I want the community and I want my
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brother's church over there downtown and all
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the churches that are representing what's being
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said about your home church. That it said, oh
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yeah, I heard it said of you. That when you hear
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a dream, you can interpret it. That you hear
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from God. Is there anybody that want to demonstrate
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the manifold wisdom of God to this generation?
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I heard it said of you. That when you hear a
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dream, you can interpret it. Now, when he said
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that, You've got to understand something. Joseph
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has gone through hell, literally, 13 years of
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it. He's been thrown in a pit, lied by his brothers,
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abused, misrepresented by an evil woman, and
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now he's standing before Pharaoh. And the ball
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is in his court. He's now given permission by
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the most powerful man of an empire that could
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change his life overnight. You know why I know
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that Joseph is a real prophet? You know why I
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know he's not false? Because you know what a
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false prophet would do? Oh yeah, I can really
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hear from God. I've got this reputation. But
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before I hear from God, I want you to go arrest
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my brothers. Before I hear from God, I want you
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to put Potiphar's wife in prison. And then what
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I want you to do is I want you to set me up with
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a mansion in Maui. Come on. And then I want a
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private plane. Then I'll interpret your dream.
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Joseph didn't do any of that. Come on. Because
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he understood, freely have I received, freely
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do I give. Come on, you follow what I'm saying?
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That I'm not going to prostitute the gift. The
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gift's not for sale. The gift is not for my own
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gain. I'm here to serve you. Come on, whether
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you release me from prison or not, whether you
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do something for me or not is not the issue.
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You are a tormented soul that need to hear from
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God. God's given me this gift, and I'm going
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to serve you whether I have to go to prison,
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back to prison or not. Are you hearing what I'm
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saying, ladies and gentlemen? See, that's the
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kind of people God wants to raise up. That you
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can't buy me. I'm not for sale. Because my integrity
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is more important than my promotion. Come on.
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Oh, come on. And so, and then all of a sudden
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when he says that, he says, yes. He says it.
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Here's the thing. He says, I can't. That's what
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he says. I can't. That's his first response.
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I can't. I get that. What do you mean you can't?
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You know, I can't. That's what he says. I cannot
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do it. That's what he says. But then he says,
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but God will. Everybody say, I can't, but God
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will. Church, when I say I can't, but God will,
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I don't have to look at Facebook to get a prophetic
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word. Are you hearing what I'm saying? I can
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prophesy, but God will. I can't give a word of
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knowledge, but God will. I can't heal anybody,
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but God will. I can't walk in a word of wisdom,
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but God will. Oh, come on. I'm just going to
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be an open vessel because I know that if I'm
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willing, He's willing to use me in the middle
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of my brokenness, in the middle of my prison,
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in the middle of my struggle. Can I get an amen
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right now? There's going to be an impartation
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tonight in this room. I can't, but God will.
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And God did. With Joseph not knowing that there
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was going to be a promotion or not. He interpreted
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the dream before he was given an offer. But listen
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to this. At that moment, he not only interprets
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the dream, He gives Pharaoh a strategy to save
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the nation. Because not only do I need a prophecy,
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I need the strategy how to fulfill the prophetic
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word. You follow what I'm saying? Because people
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can prophesy, oh, you're going to have this great
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ministry, or you're going to have this, or you're
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going to do this. But how? Give me the practical
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ways of how to. And what set Joseph apart of
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any... any prophet in human history, and they
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were great throughout Scripture, what set him
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apart is that he not only gave Pharaoh the word,
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he gave Pharaoh the how -to implement it to save
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his nation. Oh, come on. And when he did that,
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Pharaoh and his men are sitting there stunned.
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Come on. And because he looks at him in one second,
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he says, what is he doing in a dungeon? I'm going
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to bring him out of the dungeon. I'm going to
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put him in the palace and make him the prime
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minister of this nation. Come on. Just like that.
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Something happened. Because, and I'm going to
26:56
get to Genesis 50, verse 15. I am. It takes me
27:00
a few minutes. But he also gave Joseph a wife.
27:07
Please don't forget what I'm going to tell you.
27:12
And Joseph has two sons. And in Genesis 41, verse
27:18
15, it says, Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh
27:22
and said, it's because God made me forget all
27:29
my troubles and all my father's household. That
27:33
spoke to me. Because I'm sure around here, And
27:39
some of you who have been to church for a long
27:43
time, you've heard messages about forgiveness.
27:47
About forgiving our sister or our brother. That
27:51
it's very, very important. I believe I'm still
27:55
married after 41 years because of the power of
27:59
forgiveness. Come on. Honestly. You forgive your
28:04
spouse. You forgive those that hurt you. We all
28:09
know that. But I've recently become aware of
28:13
something, because has this ever happened to
28:15
you? Where you've been in a conflict with somebody,
28:19
and all of a sudden, in the middle of that conflict,
28:25
they bring up something out of your past. Has
28:30
that ever happened to anybody in the room? Of
28:32
course, the rest of you are lying. Come on. This
28:37
happened to me, you know. That, oh, I thought
28:41
you forgave me. But then when there was a conflict,
28:47
something out of your past in the conversation
28:52
was brought to surface. Well, when I see that,
28:56
and I see a person do that, this is exactly what
29:00
goes through my mind. Because, see, we talk about
29:03
forgiveness, and we should. But we don't talk
29:07
about forgetting. Because forgiveness doesn't
29:14
mean, Pastor Darren, I'm sorry. Or he doesn't
29:18
mean, Father John, I'm sorry. I calculated. We
29:22
made a mistake this morning. 1998 is when we
29:26
met. That's, what, 28 years ago. That's a long
29:31
time. I don't think we've had a conflict in 28
29:35
years. We might have. You know, that's good.
29:39
Right, that I'm aware of. Come on. Yeah, go camping
29:42
with me. Go camping with me, he just said. Come
29:45
on. Then we're going to have a conflict. Yeah,
29:48
that's probably because he showed me in the storm.
29:50
And I was making my wife jealous because there
29:53
was northern lights. He should have gone with
29:54
me, you know. But anyway. We have conflict with
30:01
people. In the midst of the conflict, in the
30:03
midst of the argument, there's something out
30:05
of your past they say. And doesn't that kind
30:09
of shock you? Because what's the first thing
30:13
you think? Well, I thought you forgave me. See,
30:18
what's amazing about Joseph is what made him
30:22
such a dynamic leader. Not only did God give
30:28
him the ability to forgive his brothers, because
30:30
when he became prime minister, he didn't go after
30:32
his brothers, and he didn't go after Potiphar's
30:34
wife. What made him such a powerful voice and
30:41
leader... Is his ability. See God doesn't wipe
30:45
away our memory. He still had those memories.
30:48
Of being thrown in the pit. He still had those
30:50
memories of being in prison. He still had those
30:52
memories of going to court. And being accused.
30:55
God doesn't erase our memory. But what happens
30:59
is. This is exactly what happens. What happens
31:02
is, ladies and gentlemen, God gives us the ability
31:04
that it's not rehearsing in our mind every time
31:08
there's a conflict because we really have already
31:10
settled it in our soul. We really have forgiven
31:13
and we really have forgotten. And I feel like
31:17
there's someone here tonight. I don't know who
31:19
you are, but God wants to give you a gift. That
31:22
same gift that Joseph who had the ability to
31:26
forgive and forget all his troubles in his father's
31:30
house. God wants to do that to you. Come on.
31:33
Because we've all had trouble. We've all had
31:35
trouble in our past. We may even have trouble
31:38
in our present. But there's a God of heaven that
31:41
forgives and causes us to forget that we don't
31:44
walk around looking for revenge. We don't walk
31:48
walking to get even. We don't walk around to
31:50
get back. And that leads me now after 31 minutes
31:54
to my text. And I don't have time to go into
32:01
the rest of the narrative of Joseph's life because
32:04
there's so much. But listen to this. Genesis
32:10
50 verse 15. He restores the brothers. But listen
32:17
to this. It says, when Joseph's brothers saw
32:20
that their father was dead, they said, perhaps
32:25
Joseph will hate us. And may actually repay us
32:30
for all the evil which we did to him. Oh, come
32:33
on. Church, when I read that, when I read that,
32:41
and I've read it before. It's not that I haven't
32:44
read it, but I didn't read it. I read it, but
32:48
it didn't register. I read it, but there was
32:51
no revelation until recently. And this is exactly
32:55
what went through my mind. This is exactly what
32:59
I want to communicate these few verses that I
33:01
have in the time remaining here tonight. That
33:05
here are people who have been forgiven. There
33:09
was no indication that Joseph did everything
33:13
in his power. Everything within his rulership
33:17
to take care of his brothers. But they assume.
33:26
That as long as Jacob's alive, they're protected.
33:32
But now that the father is removed, Joseph is
33:39
not going to protect them anymore. He's going
33:44
to punish them. Church, that means that they
33:50
never felt forgiven. They never knew that they
33:58
were truly forgiven. So now that they believe
34:06
that they've never truly been forgiven, now they're
34:09
walking around with guilt. Now, can you imagine?
34:19
Now, now they've actually have become men. They
34:24
have become people who have not come to grips
34:28
with their past. They haven't forgiven themselves.
34:36
And because they haven't forgiven themselves,
34:39
they assume that Joseph hasn't forgiven them
34:42
either. Now church, if I had more time, this
34:47
is exactly what I'd do because there's a theological
34:49
term called Christology. It's where we look at
34:53
Old Testament characters like Abraham and Moses
34:57
and others and David, and we connect them that
35:01
they are types of Christ. Well, when you look
35:03
at that statement, Christology, Joseph is the
35:08
perfect type. Here was Israel who was forgiven.
35:11
Come on. Here were people that were forgiven.
35:14
And there's people sitting in churches that God
35:17
has already forgiven, but they're still not free.
35:20
Come on. God has already redeemed them from their
35:23
past, but they're still not walking in freedom.
35:26
They're still in a place of condemnation. They're
35:29
still in a place of guilt of what they have done
35:33
or what they are doing. I want to tell you that's
35:36
a lie. Come on. That's a lie. And they assume
35:39
that the only reason they're still alive is because
35:42
of someone else. Can I tell you something right
35:44
now? Everybody in this room who has accepted
35:47
Christ as your Savior is fully forgiven and fully
35:51
redeemed and fully restored. Can I hear an amen
35:55
right now? I have things that I'm ashamed of.
35:59
I have things in my past that I can't repeat
36:02
over this microphone. But there is something
36:04
called the blood of Jesus. There is something
36:07
called the Christ of Jesus. There is something
36:10
that he did that redeemed me from my past. You
36:13
may have not forgiven me, but he forgave me.
36:16
Come on. They're thinking. They're actually living
36:22
a lie. They're actually. They have outward freedom,
36:29
but inward bondage. But listen to this. So they
36:35
sent word to Joseph saying, your father has left
36:40
these instructions before he died. Oh, can I
36:47
tell you that Jacob never left. instructions
36:54
to the brothers. They made that up. Why do people
37:02
lie? Why do you lie? Why do I lie? You know why
37:10
we lie? Self -preservation. We think that the
37:17
lie is going to protect us. Which is a lie. It's
37:24
the truth that sets us free, not the lie. So
37:28
in order to, for their own self -protection and
37:32
preservation, they decide to lie. And when I
37:38
hear, when I find out people who lie, it's because
37:43
they're more afraid of the truth. And that's
37:48
what we call deception. Come on. They're deceived,
37:52
thinking that, well, I'll make up this lie and
37:55
that will protect me. Which that's not the way
37:59
of the kingdom. So, here's the moment now. Because
38:05
they can't imagine, they can't imagine living
38:10
in a place where there's no revenge. There's
38:13
no, you know what, I've already forgiven you.
38:17
You're freely forgiven. They can't imagine that.
38:20
Because then this is what it says in verse 17
38:23
of Genesis 50. Very, very powerful. This is what
38:27
you are to say to Joseph. I ask you to forgive
38:32
your brothers their sins and the wrongs they
38:36
committed in treating you so badly. Now, please
38:40
forgive the sins of the servants of the God of
38:43
your father. Now, listen to this. This has changed
38:48
my life. When their message came to him, Joseph
38:55
wept. Say it with me, Joseph wept. Say it again,
39:03
Joseph wept. Let's be honest. The brothers were
39:16
the problem. Get over it, guys. You're making
39:26
up lies. You've been fully restored. I brought
39:29
your family out of Palestine. I've provided for
39:32
you. There's nothing that I have done to harm
39:36
you. Come on. And now you're thinking I'm going
39:38
to hurt you. And Joseph weeps. And when I've
39:46
read that in the past, I'm assuming that He's
39:52
weeping over his brother's condition. And that
39:54
is partly true. Because honestly, I do want to
40:00
be the kind of leader, the kind of prophet that
40:02
weeps over people that are hurting. I can't not
40:07
acknowledge the fact that this is what they think.
40:11
That I don't want to be insensitive to their
40:14
need for redemption and forgiveness. Come on.
40:17
Even though that all forgiveness and redemption
40:19
has already been paid for. He weeps. But I've
40:25
never seen this before. I don't believe, Dennis,
40:30
that Joseph just wept for his brothers. I believe
40:34
Joseph wept for himself. And I'll tell you why.
40:40
I believe because, see, Joseph's the leader.
40:44
How many leaders in the house? How many leaders
40:47
in the house? Everybody should raise your hand.
40:49
You're leading somebody. You're leading something.
40:52
See, we're leaders. We're leaders. And see, as
40:55
a leader, this is why I believe Joseph Webb.
40:58
As a leader, I believe Joseph was not only weeping
41:02
for his brothers, but he's weeping himself because
41:04
this is exactly what's going through his mind,
41:05
I believe. That what kind of leader am I? What
41:12
kind of person am I? What kind of brother am
41:16
I? What kind of prophet am I? What kind of prime
41:20
minister am I that all of a sudden that you don't
41:25
feel forgiven? What have I projected? What have
41:31
I said through my body language, through my words,
41:35
or through my silence that you're now walking
41:38
around with a chip on your shoulder? He weeps.
41:43
And I think that sometimes what happens is that
41:46
we don't weep enough. We don't cry out enough.
41:50
Because let me just tell you right now. I'm weeping
41:54
for Iran. Come on. I'm weeping for Venezuela.
41:58
I'm weeping for the nations of the earth. Come
42:01
on. Because I have a friend of mine who is in
42:04
northern acquaintance of ours. He's a missionary.
42:09
And he's in northern Iraq. He's smuggling Bibles
42:13
into Iran. Come on. He's in harm's way. He's
42:17
ISIS. The Kurds are protecting him. And it's
42:21
absolutely crazy. And people get all upset that
42:26
we attacked Iran because of our gas prices. Come
42:30
on. That our gas went up. How terrible. What
42:34
a terrible leader. But do you realize that you're
42:38
not going to hear this on the news. My friend
42:40
told, I heard this, that 80 ,000 Iranians that
42:45
wanted freedom were murdered by the government.
42:49
Are you hearing what I'm saying, ladies and gentlemen?
42:51
And everybody's up in arms. And you know what?
42:55
That's an injustice. Come on, are you hearing
42:57
me? When is the last time we weeped for the injustice?
43:01
When was the last time? But people are all upset
43:04
about gas prices. Come on. We've got to put things
43:07
in perspective, ladies and gentlemen. We're talking
43:10
about human life here. I don't, I don't, I mean,
43:14
I travel a lot. It's expensive. It's hard. It's
43:20
hard for Americans. I get it. But at the end
43:22
of the day, we're more upset about our convenience
43:25
than we are the death of our brother or our sister.
43:28
Where are the tears of the prophet? Where will
43:31
we weep like Joseph? And so Joseph weeps. And
43:37
when he weeps, this is exactly what happens.
43:43
He weeps. Verse 18. His brothers then come and
43:48
throw themselves down before him. We are your
43:52
slaves, they said. But you have to understand,
43:56
Joseph doesn't want them to be his slaves. I
44:05
want you to be my brother. You know what I appreciate
44:11
about Pastor Darren Palmer? and Pastor Cammie
44:17
Palmer is they didn't come to Lincoln to raise
44:23
up a congregation to fulfill their vision. They
44:28
came to Lincoln to serve. The congregation, our
44:38
congregation aren't our slaves. They're our brothers
44:43
and our sisters. Yes, we have a hierarchy of
44:46
honoring the pastor in leadership and the five
44:49
-fold ministry that God sends. But people aren't
44:54
slaves to respond to every one of my whims. Come
44:59
on. You follow what I'm saying? And they bow
45:02
down and say, we are slaves. And I love what
45:05
Joseph does. Because you know what I'm saying?
45:07
Because you have that kind of power that Joseph
45:10
has. You can easily get corrupted by that kind
45:13
of power. Because power can corrupt people. In
45:17
fact, when people, you never know how people
45:19
will react until they're given power. And what
45:22
set Joseph apart, here he was given power. Pharaoh
45:25
wasn't running the nation. Pharaoh wasn't running
45:27
anything. He was just worried about what he was
45:30
going to eat that night. Joseph was doing everything.
45:32
But Joseph did not use the power, his power to
45:36
corrupt people or for his own gain. And that
45:40
says that he was a righteous man. Are you hearing
45:42
what I'm saying? Because the church wants power,
45:44
Darren. But guess what? Are we going to use that
45:47
power for our own permission? Or are we going
45:50
to use that power to serve other people? Can
45:54
I hear an amen right now? So at that moment,
45:58
he says to them, but Joseph said, don't be afraid.
46:03
Am I in a place of God? Because you think about
46:07
this. This is what grieves me, Miliana, about
46:12
the prophetic movement and what's happening.
46:17
You know, and a lot of times these certain prophets
46:21
that I won't mention, that they've elevated them
46:24
in the place of God. And I do believe in honoring
46:31
the five -fold ministry. Next week we have a
46:34
man who's got a Ph .D. from AGTS. He's in the
46:38
office of a teacher. We will elevate him. We
46:41
will bless him. We're going to take care of him
46:44
as he's coming to our church because they don't
46:47
need a prophet. We're a very prophetic church.
46:50
Everybody prophesies. It's a very, very prophetic
46:54
church. Everybody that comes in the room just
46:56
is prophesying. I get that. And we need that
46:59
type of thing. But we didn't need another prophet
47:02
to come to our church. We need a teacher. Because
47:04
I want the church to be well -rounded. I need
47:07
a teacher because I need a teacher to correct
47:09
my theology sometimes or keep me right on track.
47:12
Come on. Are you hearing what I'm saying? That's
47:14
why we bring the five -fold ministry in. But
47:17
ladies and gentlemen, I love what Joseph said.
47:19
He said, am I in the place of God? In other words,
47:24
because he had an opportunity as a prime minister
47:26
and as a leader to escalate people's guilt. Can
47:36
I say this to you? Over the almost five years
47:42
now that my wife and I have pastored this church
47:48
in Tucson, we've had conflict. In fact, we've...
47:56
Called leaders over to our home. We brought correction.
48:00
I don't really like that. I think Meliana, if
48:03
there was a tenth spiritual gift, Meliana would
48:07
have the gift of correction. You know what I
48:12
mean. And so anyway, she corrects me every day.
48:16
Come on here. But I do the same thing. I want
48:22
to just make her, she wants to make me better
48:24
and I want to make her better. But anyhow, there's
48:30
an opportunity for Joseph to escalate the brother's
48:34
guilt. Because I found this out. When people
48:41
are in a place of vulnerability and guilty and
48:44
feel condemnation, do we escalate their guilt
48:48
or do we alleviate it? And great leaders, and
48:56
I've been around some great leaders, they don't
48:59
escalate the person's guilt. They look for a
49:02
moment to redeem them from their guilt. Can I
49:05
hear an amen? And that's what he did. He said,
49:08
am I in the place of God? But listen to this.
49:12
But you, because in other words, he acknowledges
49:17
their wrongdoing, but he refuses to weaponize
49:20
it. Because if you do something wrong to me,
49:25
I can weaponize that against you. And we do have,
49:31
and this is why I do not like what's happening
49:35
in the body of Christ from Eliana. Something
49:37
was at fault. Then this is what bothers me. It's
49:42
not that certain false prophets or prophets have
49:46
gotten exposed. I get that. God will do that.
49:49
But I'm worried about the ministries that have
49:52
exposed them. Come on. Are you hearing what I'm
49:55
saying? And they've exposed them to the world
49:58
or exposed them to the rest of the church because
50:01
what they have done is they have used what they've
50:04
done wrong as a weapon against them not to see
50:07
them redeemed and restored. Come on. I'm worried
50:09
about them. Nobody knew you on social media.
50:13
You didn't have a platform. You didn't have a
50:16
YouTube channel. You had nothing. You were just
50:18
sitting in a pew twiddling your thumbs, and now
50:21
so -and -so sins, and now you have a million
50:23
views on your YouTube channel because someone
50:27
else has sinned. So that means you have to continue
50:29
to make up content in order to get a platform.
50:34
Instead of going to the Word of God and doing
50:36
what the Word of God says, love covers a multitude
50:39
of sins. If your brother sins, go to him. If
50:42
he doesn't repent, then go bring a brother. If
50:44
they don't repent, then go bring him before the
50:47
whole church. Come on. Instead of doing Matthew
50:49
18, 18. And so what happens, what I love about
50:52
Joseph is Joseph doesn't use what his brothers
50:55
did. He acknowledges the wrongdoing but doesn't
50:58
weaponize it. Come on. And how many understand
51:01
that that's how we are to be? Can I hear an amen
51:03
right now? Now, notice this. He says this. You
51:11
intended to harm me, but God intended for the
51:15
good to accomplish what is now being done, the
51:18
saving of many lives. What God meant for evil,
51:24
God turned it around for good. Last verse. So
51:29
then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you.
51:33
This is amazing. Don't be afraid. I will provide
51:37
for you. And he reassured them and spoke kindly
51:43
to them. Don't forget what I'm going to tell
51:49
you. How many have ever had a conflict with someone?
51:59
Thank you for being honest. Almost all of you
52:02
raised your hand except the two teenagers over
52:05
here. They must be perfect. But I want to tell
52:15
you something. When conflict is not fun, I don't
52:24
enjoy it. I think Meliana likes it, but I don't
52:30
like it. I'm teasing her. How many know that
52:37
when there is conflict and you have to face someone
52:41
that you have to talk about things to? Difficult,
52:44
what we call difficult conversation. How many
52:48
know that the emotional temperature in the room
52:50
is pretty intense? It's not like Darren on the
52:55
piano soaking in the presence of God. Come on.
52:58
It's not like that. It's intense because it's
53:03
as if the emotional temperature is way sky high.
53:07
Come on. It's been my experience over my short,
53:14
I'm going to be 64 in September, and Malian and
53:19
I will be, it'll be next year that we'll have
53:23
been 30 years traveling and we'll be in ministry
53:26
full time now for 30 years. It'll be next year.
53:32
And it's been my experience because how many
53:36
want to be great leaders? How many want to be
53:39
a great leader? I mean, you want to be a great
53:42
leader. I want to be not only a great leader,
53:45
I want to be a great father. I want to be a great
53:47
husband. I not only want to be a great communicator,
53:50
I want to be great in everything that God called
53:53
me to do. Are you following what I'm saying?
53:56
And I've discovered something. I've witnessed
53:59
something, especially with my spiritual father,
54:02
Dr. James Morocco, who has 900 church plants
54:06
now and a $40 million budget. That's what ran
54:13
through their ministry last year. But what Joseph
54:19
does when he says to them, don't be afraid. I
54:22
will provide for you and your children and reassured
54:26
them and spoke kindly to them. Now, they're guilty.
54:30
They did wrong. They know that. But what Joseph
54:35
does is he lowers the emotional temperature in
54:39
the room. Because I've tried this. I've done
54:47
this with my wife. It works. When the emotional
54:54
temperature rose up, And usually because I did
54:59
something wrong. Come on. Or she misunderstood
55:03
or assumed something. I've noticed that it really
55:07
works because the natural thing is to get defensive.
55:15
And the natural thing is to defend your right.
55:18
Come on. You're wrong, I'm right. That usually
55:24
doesn't go anywhere. That doesn't work out very
55:26
well. But when you lower the emotional temperature
55:31
in the room, all of a sudden, you and the person
55:36
that you're in conflict with or has a conflict
55:39
with you starts to think clearly. And everything
55:45
changes. That's why Joseph reassured them and
55:51
spoke kindly. To them. Oh my gosh. Because this
55:57
is the thing. If you were here this morning and
56:04
during my sermon, I mentioned that Saul went
56:08
and sought a medium. You were in the big metropolis
56:14
of Petersburg doing what God called you to do.
56:20
Serving. When Meliana was using that example
56:29
of Saul going to see a medium, my wife, because
56:34
of her broken English, some of you that weren't
56:36
here this morning, you know what she said from
56:40
the pulpit? Media! They went and saw a media.
56:46
And I'm sitting there, and now I want a conflict.
56:51
Come on. So I can't do that. I can't correct
56:55
her in front of the church. And so I walked up
56:59
with my iPad with the scripture so she could
57:02
read it. And I pointed to it. And then I sat
57:07
back down. I said, oh, gosh. Oh, gosh. You know,
57:12
because English is her second language. Then
57:16
I went back. And looked up the root word for
57:21
medium. And the root word for medium, brother,
57:25
is media. And in my wife's broken English, she
57:32
was originally right. Come on. She had the right
57:35
interpretation. And I can tell you this. The
57:39
media is not going to lower the emotional temperature
57:44
in the room. And what we need in America is more
57:52
prophetic voices and more people that hear from
57:56
God that know how to walk in a room and lower
57:58
the temperature. In order to speak kindly to
58:03
people, to treat them with dignity, honor, and
58:05
respect, and change the atmosphere so people
58:08
can think clearly. Can I hear an amen right now?
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How many in the house believe God spoke to you
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tonight? Raise your hand right now. Lift your
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hands toward heaven all over the house tonight.
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Father, we thank you for your word. It's a lamp
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unto our feet, and it is a light upon our path.
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I thank you for what you're doing even right
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now by the power of the Holy Spirit.