Latest / Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons / Access to the Kingdom of God pt 3

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Access to the Kingdom of God pt 3 · Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons

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Welcome to NECF Sermons. Each message here is
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designed to uplift and strengthen you in your
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walk with God. Don't miss out. Stay with us until
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the end for a rewarding experience. Let's dive
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right in. Acts chapter 1. It says, but you. shall
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receive power, chapter 1, verse 8, when the Holy
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Spirit has come upon you. And you shall be witnesses
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to me in Jerusalem. Hallelujah. And in all Judea
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and unto the ends of the earth. Hallelujah. This
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is our reality, that we have access to the fullness
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of the Spirit of God and we move and live our
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life by the influence of this Spirit. Matthew
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16, verse 19, Jesus was speaking particularly
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to Peter. He says, I will give you the access.
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And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of
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heaven. And these keys refer to access. And we
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concluded that this access is what? It's the
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spirit of God. Hallelujah. And I will give you
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the access into the kingdom of heaven. And this
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access comes with authority. And the authority
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enables the believer to bind and to lose. And
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whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.
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And whatever you lose on earth will be lost in
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heaven. Hallelujah. And then from the previous
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teaching, we saw and examined some practical
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examples from the book of Acts of men who leave
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the earth and exemplify these realities. We saw
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the life of Stephen. Stephen was a man of like
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passion as ours. He was a man full of the spirit.
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We saw the story of Philip and also Ananias,
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who by the power of the Holy Spirit manifested
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this reality. They manifested the kingdom of
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God by the preaching of the gospel accompanied
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by signs and wonders. Hallelujah. And we say
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that this is also our own reality. Amen. In our
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own day, in our own time, there is a demand of
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heaven upon us that we also demonstrate same
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power. As we see in scriptures, these are not
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just fairy tales. Hallelujah. These are not just
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stories for men that have lived and have died.
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But it is your reality. It is my reality. It
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is our reality that will bring heaven on earth.
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That will bring about the realities of the kingdom
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of heaven on earth. That by the preaching of
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the gospel, healing takes place. By the preaching
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of the gospel, chains are broken. By the preaching
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of the gospel, We perform miraculous signs and
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wonders. And this is not for some specific set
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of people. But it is the reality of every believer.
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Hallelujah. So long as you believe. The Bible
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says in Mark chapter 16. Mark chapter 16. Mark
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chapter 16. Says he who believes and is baptized
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will be saved. But he who does not believe will
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be condemned. Verse 17. And these signs, what
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signs? The signs of all the things we see. So
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these signs will follow him that believe. In
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my name, they will cast out devils. They will
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speak with new tongues. And they will take up
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servants. And they drink anything deadly. It
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will by no means hurt them. They will lay hands
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on the sick. And what will happen to the sick?
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the sick will recover. Hallelujah. Now let's
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see another example. In Acts chapter 9. Acts
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chapter 9, verse 31. Example of a man of like
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passion as ours. This is not an angel, but it's
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for men. Acts chapter 9, verse 31 to 35. When
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the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee and
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Samaria, had peace and were edified. And walking
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in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the
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Holy Spirit, they multiplied. Now it came to
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pass, as Peter went through all the parts of
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the country, that he also came down to the saints
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who dwelt in Lydda, where he found a certain
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man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight
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years and was paralyzed. And Peter said to him,
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Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise and
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make your bed. Then what happened immediately?
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The Bible says he arose, right? Arise and make
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your bed. Then he arose immediately. So all who
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dwell at Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned
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to the Lord. This is the effect of what? was
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done. Hallelujah. The pointer to this sign is
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the redemption of the souls of men. Amen? Further
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on. At Joppa, there was a certain disciple named
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Thabitha, which is translated Dokas. This woman
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was full of good works and charitable deeds which
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she did. But it happened in those days that she
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became sick and died. When they had washed her,
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They laid her in an upper room, and since Leda
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was near Joppa, and the disciples heard, hallelujah,
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they heard that Peter was there, they sent two
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men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming
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to them. Then Peter arose and went with them.
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And when he had come, they brought him to the
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upper room, and all the widows stood by him,
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weeping, showing the tonics. and the garments
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which Doca has made while she was with them.
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But Peter put them all down and knelt down and
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prayed, and turning to the body, he said, Tabitha,
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arise. He spoke a word. He said, arise. And she
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opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she
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sat up. Then he gave her his hand and lifted
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her up, and when he had called the saints and
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widows, he presented her alive. Verse 42. And
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it became known throughout all Joppa. And many
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what? And many believed. Hallelujah. That is
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the essence of the signs and wonders. That men
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will believe. And many believed on the Lord.
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So it was that he stayed. It was that he stayed
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many days in Joppa with Simon Etana. Hallelujah.
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So Peter here is another example of God walking
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through ordinary men. Hallelujah. God walking
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through ordinary men, men like you and I, God
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walking through ordinary men to do extraordinary,
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supernatural work on the face of the earth. And
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I want to bring to our remembrance as well as
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we've sung and we've prayed that this is your
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heritage. Hallelujah. This is your heritage.
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This is your heritage. This is all that you have
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received by the Spirit when you believed. The
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same Peter. A man of, a frail man. If you look
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through the story of Peter, you will see that
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Peter was a weak man. Amen? But at the receiving
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of the Holy Spirit, there was a new man. Let's
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look at instances. Luke 22, verse 54. Where he
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denied Jesus. Luke 22. Yes. Having arrested him
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when Jesus was arrested, they laid him and brought
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him into the high priest's house. But Peter followed
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at a distance. Now when they had kindled a fire
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in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together,
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Peter sat among them. And a certain girl, seeing
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him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at
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him and said, This man was also with him. But
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he denied, saying, Woman, I do not know him.
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He denied knowing Jesus. And after a little while,
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another saw him and said, You also are of them.
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But Peter saw, Man, I am not. Then after about
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an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed,
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saying, Surely this fellow was with him, for
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he is a Galilean. But Peter said, man, I do not
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know what you are saying. Immediately while he
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was still speaking, the rooster crowed. Hallelujah.
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Not only after that, Jesus died and Jesus rose
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again. And we see another instance where Peter
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gave up. In John chapter 21, verse 1 to 5. After
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the resurrection, Peter said, I go out fishing.
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John chapter... Chapter 21 from verse 1 to 5.
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I'm just trying to show you a level of inconsistency
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in a man. After these things, Jesus showed himself
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again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
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And in this way, he showed himself. Simon Peter,
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Thomas, Carl the Twin, Nathaniel of Cana in Galilee,
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the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples
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were together. Simon Peter said to them, I am
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going fishing. They said to him, we are going
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with you also. They went out and immediately
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got into the boat. That night they caught nothing.
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But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood
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on the shore, yet the disciples did not know
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that it was Jesus. Then Jesus said to them, children,
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have you any food? They answered him, no. And
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then we read on, we read on, we see where Jesus,
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you know, correcting Peter and bringing him back
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to his senses and reintroducing to him the purpose
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to which he has called him out. Hallelujah. Now,
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I want you to understand that this is a Peter
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that was weak, frail, all right? When we look
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through history in scriptures, we discover that
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all the men that did extraordinary things on
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the earth are ordinary men ordinary lives. Hallelujah.
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But when the Spirit of God had come upon Peter,
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when we read Acts chapter 2, after the Pentecost,
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we see the power that began to operate in Peter.
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Hallelujah. The Bible says in Acts that we read
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verse 1, verse 8 talks about power, alright?
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Power coming into a man when the Holy Ghost arrives.
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Amen? And this is the same Peter that we see
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moving from place to place. operating in the
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supernatural because the Holy Spirit has induced
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such a man. Hallelujah. So also is the reality
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of a man, regardless of your experience in life,
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regardless of your shortcoming, the moment you
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believe in the Word of God, the moment you come
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into relationship with God and His Spirit indwells
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you, it comes with power. Hallelujah. And that
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power is not only for you to live, above sin,
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but it's also to manifest the power of the Holy
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Spirit in signs and wonders. Hallelujah. So in
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Acts chapter 9, we see the essence of the miraculous
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signs. It's not only to meet the needs of the
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saints, but most importantly, to lead men to
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Christ. Most importantly, to lead men to Christ.
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And for us to effectively do that in our generation,
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we cannot neglect The supernatural. Hallelujah.
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We cannot attempt to neglect the supernatural.
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We cannot deny the operations of the supernatural.
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I said this the last time. I said you're born
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again is a supernatural experience. You didn't
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become born again by any human calculation. But
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it is the will of the spirit. It is the workings
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of the spirit in the man that regenerates him
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into who he is. Then we'll begin to see the power
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afloat in your life, the transformation of your
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character, the transformation of your ways. We
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begin to see boldness in you. This is a supernatural
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experience. And for you to deny the supernatural
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in signs and wonders is equally to deny the salvation
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that is a supernatural activity. Hallelujah.
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So to attest to the supernatural work in you,
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We expect, God expects upon us that we go out
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there and manifest the fullness of His Spirit
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as we go about preaching the gospel in our daily
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lives. Hallelujah. So, several scriptures will
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see records. And why do we have these records?
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Romans chapter 15, verse 4. Romans chapter 15,
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verse 4. I'll read from the Amplified. It says,
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for whatever was written in the earlier times,
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was written for what? For our instructions. Instructions
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here means for our teaching, for teaching. So
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that through endurance and the encouragement
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of scripture, we might have hope and do what?
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And overflow with confidence in his promises.
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Hallelujah. So all the records of the things
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we see in scriptures is not just to give us a
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theological knowledge in our head. But the essence
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is for our instructions. The essence of the practicals
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we see in scriptures is that we will believe
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in the gospel message, is that we also will be
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empowered with faith to do equally the same.
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So that through endurance and encouragement of
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scripture, we might have hope and overflow with
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confidence in his promise. It therefore means
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that those historical facts recorded for us in
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the Bible are not just for fun. Hallelujah. They
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are not just for fun. They are for us to learn
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from them. They are for us to see what God is
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doing and also partake in what God has been doing.
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Hallelujah. It's for us to learn. It's for us
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to believe. And it is for us to practice. Because
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God has not changed his ways. He has not changed
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his plan. God is the same yesterday. He is the
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same today. And forever he will be. Hebrews 13
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verse 8 talks about the consistency of who God
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is. In Jesus Christ, he is the same. Yesterday,
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today, and forever. So since we equally have
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the same access. Because these men we read in
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scriptures are men that have access to the authority
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that is in God. These are men that have access
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to all the resources that is in Christ. So since
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we equally have the access to the kingdom of
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God and all the resources that has been made
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available to believers, as seen in the examples
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we've read, why don't we also experience these
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tremendous manifestations in our daily lives?
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Why don't you, the believer, manifest tremendously
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the works of the Spirit in our individual lives.
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We've looked at the life of Peter or the life
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of Stephen and we say that Stephen was not among
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the apostles. Stephen was what we call a church
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member. And then we see tremendously how he was
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full of the Spirit and then he operated in the
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fullness of the Spirit. We saw the life of Philip
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as well, who was not part of the apostles. He
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was what we would call a church member, but we
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see tremendously the walkings of the Spirit of
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God in him. We see Ananias, who was not even
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part of the apostles, but we see how powerfully
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he walked in the dimension of the Spirit. And
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all the promises of God in Christ are yes and
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they are amen. That is 2 Corinthians 1 verse
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20. That is they find their fulfillment in Christ.
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All the promises are encapsulated in Christ.
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For all the promises of God in him are yes and
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in him amen to the glory of God through who?
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Through us. Meaning that we find the fulfillment
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of all of God's promises in Christ. And we have
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Christ in us. Hallelujah. We have the totality
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of God in us. The same God that was in them is
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the same God that lives in you, the believer,
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today. So what do we expect? We expect to see
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the fulfillment of all that the scripture has
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said about the believer. In Mark chapter 16,
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verse 15 to 20, that we read earlier on, it says
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that signs are to follow those who believe. As
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they go about preaching the gospel, signs and
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wonders will follow. All these signs will follow
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those who believe in my name. They will cast
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out devils. They will speak with new tongues.
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Verse 18, they will take up serpents and if they
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think any deadly thing, it will by no means hurt
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them. They will lay their hands on the sick and
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they will recover. Verse 19. So then after the
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Lord had spoken to them, he was received up into
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heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
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Verse 20. And they went out. Hallelujah. They
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went out what? They went out to preach. And we
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see that they went out to preach everywhere as
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instructed. And the Lord walking with them. Confirming
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the word. They spoke. Through what? Accompanying
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signs. Hallelujah. Do we experience this supernatural
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in our daily lives? Probably we are living. Contrary
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to the instruction of going out. Therefore it
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is difficult. To live and experience this in
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our daily lives. Because this is an empowerment.
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In Acts chapter 1 verse 86. You shall do witnesses.
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Hallelujah. So if you are not a man and a woman
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that is going out at all times, looking for opportunities
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to preach the gospel, it means that you're going
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to limit the flow of this power that is resident
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in you. So we ask ourselves, why do we often
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not see much of this manifestation in our lives?
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And on Wednesday, we say that because there is
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what we call the flesh. Hallelujah. Often are
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carnally minded and do not walk in our nature.
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Because we are often carnally minded and not
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walking in our nature. That is walking in the
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spirit. Galatians chapter 5 verse 16 to 18. Galatians
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chapter 5 verse 16 to 18. I say then walk in
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the spirit. And you shall not fulfill the lust
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of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the
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Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. And
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these are contrary to one another, so that you
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do not do the things that you wish. Verse 18.
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But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not
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under the law. Hallelujah. So verse 16 and 17,
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we will see, two contradicting influences over
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a man's life. Now, we're not saying that the
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spirit and the flesh coexist. Amen? The spirit
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and the flesh cannot coexist in a man. But there
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is two, there are rather two contradicting influences
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in a man. Hallelujah. We established last time
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that all of us are a product of influences. No
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man is neutral on earth. All of us are a product
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of influence. And we choose what influences us.
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So what did we see was the flesh. We said in
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the Greek, the word is translated from a Greek
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word, I don't know whether I pronounced it correctly.
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And in our study, we saw that this word could
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mean two things. First of all, It means, it can
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mean the physical body, the physical flesh, the
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physical body, flesh, flesh and blood, flesh.
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And it could also mean a nature, a spiritual
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nature. And the context of his usage in this
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passage, the flesh does not mean physical body.
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Hallelujah. So what the Galatians... 5 verse
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16 is talking about is not a struggle between
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the physical body and the spirit. Your physical
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body is not in struggle with the spirit of God.
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Because your physical body is actually the temple
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of the spirit of God. It is God's desire to dwell
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in your physical body. So your physical body
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is not a crime. Hallelujah. It's not anti -God.
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So sometimes we want to mutilate our bodies because
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we think that the body is not behaving the way
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it ought to behave. No. There is an influence
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that influences the body. Hallelujah. So when
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we don't see the things we ought to see, it means
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that there is an influence. And that influence
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is what we call the flesh. A spiritual nature.
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It is that nature without the influence of God.
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It is also called what? The world or worldliness.
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It is also called in our translation, the carnal
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nature, the sinful nature, the old nature, the
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sinful mind. It is also called the evil nature
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and many other words used in describing this
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nature. We say that flesh refers to a thinking
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pattern. It influences the thinking pattern of
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a man. A thinking pattern that is different from
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what is of God. It is actually independent of
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God. And this nature is against God. This flesh,
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or what we call the carnal nature, is against
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God, is in opposition to God and all the things
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of God. This nature will not prompt you to pray.
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Hallelujah. This nature will not influence you
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to do the works of evangelism, to go to preach
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the gospel. Even if we attempt to preach the
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gospel, this nature will corrupt it. The focus
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of flesh itself, it doesn't bring glory to God.
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And sometimes the flesh can parrot itself in
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seemingly, you know, godly way. Hallelujah. It
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can be in form of pride. It can be in silent
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activities of men that can easily be contradicted.
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to the workings of the spirit. Flesh can actually
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preach, but the ends is not for the glory of
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God, but is for self -aggrandizement. Hallelujah.
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So flesh is an influence that operate in men.
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And we saw the manifestation of this flesh. We
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saw that it is obvious in verse 19 of that Galatians.
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He says the manifestation of the flesh are obvious.
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Now the works of the flesh are what? Are evident.
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Which are what? Sexual immorality, adultery,
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fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry,
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sorcery, hatred, contentious, jealousies, outbursts
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of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,
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envy, murders, drunkenness, rivalries, and the
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like, of which I tell you beforehand, just as
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I told you also, that those who practice such
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things will not inherit the kingdom of God. Hallelujah.
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So the believer has no sinful nature in him.
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That's one thing that we need to establish. That
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in the believer, alright, in the believer, the
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carnal nature does not exist. In the believer,
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the sinful nature does not exist. The flesh cannot
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be found in the believer. Because at salvation,
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the believer has crucified the flesh. It is not
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your nature. The believer does not carry in him
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the nature of the flesh. Because the flesh and
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the spirit cannot coexist in a body. Amen. 2
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Corinthians 5 verse 17 in the Amplified. 2 Corinthians
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5 verse 17. He says, therefore, if any man is
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in Christ, that is, he is grafted, he has come
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into union with Christ. He is joined to him by
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faith and in him as Savior. He is what? He is
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a new creature. He is reborn, renewed by the
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Holy Spirit. The all things, now these all things,
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It's referring to that nature. It's referring
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to that carnal nature. It's referring to that
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sinful nature. Old things. Not A -L -L, but O
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-L -D. Old things, right? Old things. The previous
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moral and spiritual condition. Any man that is
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not born again is in that moral and spiritual
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condition. But a man that is born again, the
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old things have what? Have passed away. The old
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things or the old man or the old nature has died.
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He has passed away. Behold, new things have what?
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Have come. Why? Because the spiritual awakening
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brings in what? A new life in the man. Hallelujah.
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So the believer has a new man in him. All things
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and their manifestations, as we see listed in
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Galatians 5, that nature, the nature that produces
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these activities that is obvious to the eyes
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to see, have what? Have passed away. So what
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does it mean to a believer? If you see this manifestation
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happening in your life, it is illegitimate. It
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means that you are acting beyond yourself. It
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means that you are not living commensurately
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to your nature as the new creature. Galatians
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5 verse 24 further emphasizes the reality of
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a man in Christ. It says, and those who belong
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to Christ Jesus have what? They have crucified
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what? Is it that they were crucified or they
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have crucified? It's a past tense. It is a reality
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of the believer now that a man in Christ has
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crucified that sinful nature, that nature we
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refer to as flesh, that source of influence that
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is anti -God has been crucified together with
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their passions and their appetites. So the desires
31:08
of that nature has been crucified to the cross
31:10
of Christ. And there's a new nature in the believer.
31:17
So it becomes unnatural for man that is in Christ
31:23
to behave beyond his nature that is a new creature.
31:31
Romans chapter 6, verse 1. Father emphasizes
31:35
the reality, your reality and my reality in Christ.
31:41
What shall we say to all this? Should we continue
31:46
in sin and practice sin as a habit so that God's
31:51
gift of grace may increase and overflow? Certainly
31:56
not. How can we, the very ones who die to sin,
32:02
who died to that nature, that sin nature, how
32:05
can we, the very ones who died to sin, continue
32:08
to live in it any longer? Oh, are you ignorant
32:14
of the fact that all of us who have been baptized
32:18
into Christ Jesus, now this baptized into Christ
32:22
Jesus is not referring to water baptism. It refers
32:26
to all of us who have believed in Jesus Christ.
32:30
who have participated in his death. Verse 4.
32:35
We have therefore been what? Been buried with
32:39
him through baptism into his death, so that just
32:41
as Christ was raised from the dead through the
32:45
glory and the power of the Father, we too might
32:48
walk how? What should be our habit? That we might
32:51
habitually walk in a newness of life, abounding
32:56
in what? The old man and his practices and his
33:00
ways. For if we have become one with him and
33:08
this union is a permanent union. Hallelujah.
33:14
If we have become one with him, permanently united
33:17
in the likeness of his death, we also certainly
33:22
be. One with him and share fully in his likeness.
33:27
We share fully in the likeness of his resurrection.
33:30
Verse 6. We know by knowledge that our old self.
33:36
Which old self are we talking about? The carnal
33:37
nature. The old nature. The sinful nature. The
33:41
carnal mind. The sinful evil nature. Our human
33:44
nature. That nature. Without the spirit of God.
33:49
Was what? Was nailed to the cross with him. In
33:53
order that our body of sin might be done away.
33:56
So that we will no longer be slaves to sin. So
34:01
our influence, our source of influence is not
34:04
to that old nature any longer. This information
34:08
is important for the believer. If you will walk
34:12
in the fullness of the dimension of the spirit
34:14
of God. We know that our old nature has what?
34:18
Has been nailed to the cross with him. In order
34:21
that our body. of sin might be done away with
34:25
so that we will no longer be slaves to sin, verse
34:27
7. For the person who has died with Christ has
34:33
been freed from the power of sin. We have been
34:37
freed from this nature, from this rebellious
34:40
nature. Now, if we have died with Christ, we
34:45
believe that we will also live together with
34:48
him. If we've died with him, It means that we
34:50
are alive with him because Jesus is alive. Hallelujah.
34:53
Because we know the self -evident truth that
34:57
Christ, having been raised from the dead, will
35:00
never die again. Death no longer has power over
35:05
him. For the death that he died, he died to walk
35:10
to sin. Ending is power. That is why when you
35:16
receive the Spirit, you receive power. Because
35:19
Jesus has died to sin, ending his power and paying
35:24
the sinner's debt once and for all. Hallelujah.
35:29
And the life that he lives, he lives, that is
35:34
Jesus, to glorify God in unbroken fellowship
35:38
with him. Verse 11. Even so, because Jesus lives
35:42
in you, even so, consider yourself to be dead
35:46
to sin. and your relationship to the all nature
35:49
broken. Consider yourself disassociated and disconnected
35:54
to that all nature that is a limitation to the
35:57
flow of the power of God in your life. But alive
36:01
to God in unbroken fellowship with him in Christ
36:04
Jesus, because we've come into union with him.
36:09
Therefore do not let sin, this comes with the
36:12
will of a man, by the power of the Spirit of
36:15
God, in relationship with the Spirit of God.
36:17
Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal
36:21
body. Now, this body now is a physical body.
36:24
We don't give room for our physical body to conduct
36:28
itself, to obey the passions of its lust. Do
36:35
not go on offering the members of your body to
36:39
sin as instruments of wickedness. But offer yourselves
36:44
to God in a decisive act, as those alive who
36:48
have been raised from the dead to a new life.
36:52
And your members, all of your abilities, sanctified
36:56
and set apart as instruments of righteousness,
37:00
yielded to God. Verse 14. For sin, hallelujah,
37:06
this is your reality. Amen? This is the truth
37:11
that concerns you. It says, for sin will no longer
37:16
be a master over you, since you are not under
37:20
law as slaves, but under what? The unmerited
37:25
grace as recipients of God's mercy, favor and
37:31
mercy. Hallelujah. We are not under the flesh.
37:35
We are not under the control of the nature of
37:38
sin. But we are under the control of the Spirit
37:41
of God. Therefore, it is illegal for sin to have
37:45
power and control over us. Romans 8, verse 1.
37:59
Therefore, there is now no condemnation. No guilty
38:09
verdict to punishment, no punishment for those
38:12
who are in Christ Jesus, who believe in him as
38:17
a personal Lord and Savior. Well, Jesus is a
38:23
Savior of the world. I don't know how personal
38:25
the salvation is anyway. For the law of sin of
38:30
life, which is in Christ Jesus, the law of a
38:33
new being has set you free from the law of sin
38:37
and death. That is, you are no longer under the
38:40
influence of sin, the nature of sin. Hallelujah.
38:47
For what the law could not do, that is, overcome
38:51
sin and remove its penalty, its power, being
38:54
weakened by the flesh. What is the flesh? Man's
38:59
nature without Holy Spirit. God did. He sent
39:03
his son in the likeness of sinful man. As an
39:07
offering for sin. And he condemned sin in the
39:11
flesh. He subdued and overcome it in the person
39:14
of his own son. So that the righteousness. So
39:19
that the righteous and just requirement of the
39:22
law might be fulfilled in us. Who do not live
39:25
our lives in the ways of the flesh. Guided by
39:29
holiness. And our sinful nature. I prefer that
39:33
it should be the sinful nature. Because the sinful
39:36
nature is no longer the reality of the believer.
39:38
Hallelujah. So we are no longer guided by worldliness
39:42
and the sinful nature, but live our lives in
39:46
the ways of the Spirit, guided by His power.
39:51
For those who are living according to the flesh,
39:54
what do they do? They set their thinking pattern,
39:58
their mind on the things of the flesh, which
40:02
gratify the physical body. But those who are
40:05
living according to the Spirit, what do they
40:07
do? They set their mind on the things of the
40:11
Spirit, His will and His purpose. Now the mind
40:18
of the flesh is death, now and forever, because
40:23
it pursues sin. But the mind of the Spirit, which
40:26
is in you, which is in me, is a life and peace
40:30
of God, the spiritual well -being that comes
40:32
from working with God, both now and forever.
40:37
The man of the flesh is actively hostile to God.
40:42
It is not in agreement to the things of God.
40:45
It is not in agreement to everything that the
40:49
Spirit of God will do. It does not submit itself
40:52
to the instructions of God. It does not submit
40:55
itself to the guiding principles of God's love,
40:57
of God's word, since it doesn't have the ability
41:00
to do that. Verse 8. And those who are in the
41:05
flesh, those who are not born again, those who
41:09
are in the flesh, living a life that caters to
41:13
sinful appetites and impulses, they cannot please
41:16
God. Hallelujah. They don't have the ability
41:19
to bring glory to God. They don't have the ability
41:22
to bring honor to God. Verse 9. However, you
41:28
and I are what? Are not living in the flesh.
41:34
Hallelujah. The believer is what? He's not in
41:37
the flesh. He's not controlled by the sinful
41:40
nature. But by what? By the Spirit. If in fact
41:44
the Spirit of God lives in you, though the Spirit
41:46
of God lives in you, He lives in the believer,
41:49
directing and guiding him. But if anyone does
41:52
not have the Spirit of Christ in him, he does
41:55
not belong to Christ. He's not a child of God.
42:00
Verse 11, verse 10. In Christ, if Christ lives
42:04
in you, though your natural body is dead because
42:08
of sin, your spirit is alive because of righteousness,
42:11
which he provides. Verse 11, the last verse here.
42:14
And if the spirit of him who raised Jesus from
42:17
the dead lives in you, he who raised Jesus Christ
42:20
from the dead will also give life to your mortal
42:22
bodies through his spirit. Who what? Who lives
42:26
outside you? Where does he live? He lives where?
42:30
In you, how? Permanently. Hallelujah. So, your
42:37
nature is a new creature. Your nature is the
42:41
nature of the Spirit of God. You have the ability
42:44
to live in accordance to the Spirit of God. You
42:48
have the capacity in you to obey God. You have
42:51
the ability in you to live above the activities
42:54
of a nature that is not yours. Because there
42:59
is An ability in you, the Spirit of God, to live
43:02
that out. Nevertheless, nevertheless, this is
43:10
our nature. Nevertheless, the believer can be
43:14
influenced externally to act beyond himself.
43:20
The believer can be influenced externally to
43:24
live a life that is not his nature. When your
43:29
focus and your meditation is not in the spirit,
43:32
you will act in nature that is not you. And this
43:38
is the foundation. This is the cause of the problem
43:41
of the believer of today. It is possible for
43:46
you, a believer, to see the manifestation of
43:49
the self -life in your conduct. This way, You
43:54
cannot effectively manifest the kingdom of God
43:57
while under the influence of the flesh. I said
44:01
it last time. I said it is impossible. It is
44:04
impossible to manifest under the influence of
44:07
the flesh. And we saw the example of the Corinthian
44:11
church that are full of the spirit. They lack
44:16
no good thing. They lack no manifestation. But
44:19
we had horrendous activities happening in the
44:22
church. That a man sleeps with his father's wife.
44:27
They take each other to court arbitrarily. They
44:31
are not living in love. This church is alive.
44:36
Paul called them carnal. He called them carnal
44:41
men. Are they not living as carnal men? Even
44:44
though they are not carnal, but he used the word
44:47
carnal. This flesh that is their natural men.
44:52
They're living as natural men. Even though they
44:55
are supernatural men. Because they allow an influence
45:00
that is not them, their nature, to guide and
45:02
conduct their lives. So the believer can be influenced
45:07
by the world. The believer can be influenced
45:13
by the world and the men of the world. When we
45:19
talk about the world, we talk about a system
45:20
of the world. And this system of the world is
45:22
made up of men. Nobody is above influence. All
45:29
of us are a product of influence. And the believer
45:34
can be influenced by the world and the men of
45:36
the world. Through his association with them.
45:42
Through your association with the world, you
45:45
can be influenced by the world. By what they
45:53
say, they can influence you by what they say.
45:58
By what they do, they can influence you by what
46:01
they do. How do we have access and associate
46:06
with ourselves in the world? Through the media.
46:11
And in our direct relationships. 1 John 2 verse
46:16
15 talks about Loving the world. 1 John 2, verse
46:26
15. Do not love the world of sin that opposes
46:40
God and his precepts, nor the things that are
46:45
in the world. If anyone loves the world, the
46:49
love of the Father, It's not in him. For all
46:58
that is in the world, the lust and essential
47:01
cravings of the flesh and the lust and the longings
47:05
of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, pretentious
47:09
confidence in one's resources or in his stability
47:12
of earthly things. The Bible says that these
47:17
do not come from the Father. But they are from
47:20
where? They are from the world. Verse 17. The
47:25
world is passing away and with its lust, the
47:29
shameful pursuit and ungodly longings, but the
47:33
one who does the will of God and carries out
47:35
his purpose, he lives forever. Hallelujah. So
47:41
we must examine our relationship with the world.
47:45
We must examine Our contact with the world. Because
47:49
we are in the world. Amen. But we are not of
47:53
the world. And our contact with the world can
47:58
determine the level of influence we have. And
48:02
the world system has a way of meeting us at every
48:06
point in time. Through the things we see. Through
48:10
the things we hear. Through the things we take
48:14
in. Through the desires that we can allow it
48:19
rise up from our heart. Hallelujah. You see,
48:25
Jesus was tempted because he was hungry, right?
48:31
If Jesus was not hungry, do you think the temptation
48:33
of hunger will be effective? Do you think the
48:36
devil will have a place to tempt him? If you
48:41
didn't eat rice, no matter how they press your
48:43
stomach, We will not see our father rise. Amen.
48:52
So, it means that the world can influence us
48:57
and create desires even in our hearts. And these
49:02
desires become the foundation by which we become
49:05
receptive to the leading of the world. Hallelujah.
49:12
Nobody is above influence. 1 Corinthians 15,
49:27
verse 33. 1 Corinthians 15, 33, 34. He says what?
49:59
Do not be deceived. Bad relationships. What does
50:04
it do? It corrupts. It corrupts, right? Verse
50:11
34. Be sober -minded, be sensitive, wake up from
50:15
your spiritual stupor as you ought to and stop
50:18
sinning. For some of you have no knowledge of
50:21
God. You are disgracefully ignorant of Him and
50:24
ignore His truth. I say it to your shame. Hallelujah.
50:34
So we say that a believer It's walking in the
50:40
flesh when we see him conducting himself in a
50:43
nature that is not the nature of God. It means
50:47
his imaginations. It means his thoughts. It means
50:52
his words. And his philosophy are independent
50:57
of the spirit of God that lives within him. We
51:03
see in church, suddenly we begin to see that
51:05
even your dressing changes. we begin to see that
51:09
even the words you speak are no longer full of
51:12
grace. We begin to see that even in your dealings
51:15
with people around you has changed. It means
51:19
that you have allowed an influence that is not
51:22
your nature. Hallelujah. So to see the kingdom
51:28
of God in full manifestation in our lives and
51:31
ministry, we must allow the spirit of God to
51:35
influence our lives and not the flesh. Galatians
51:42
5 verse 16 says, but I say, I'm ready to amplify
51:44
it. It says, I say, walk and live habitually.
51:49
Walk and live habitually in the Holy Spirit,
51:53
responsive to and controlled and guided by the
51:59
Spirit. I love this emphasis. Then what will
52:04
happen to you? You will certainly not gratify
52:08
the cravings and the desires. of the flesh, of
52:12
that human nature without God. And this human
52:15
nature without God lives in men of this world
52:18
that are without God. And if you associate with
52:21
these men that live in the world without God,
52:23
they have the tendency of influencing your conduct
52:26
in the natural. Therefore, we see you not doing
52:29
the things that God wants you to do. Suddenly
52:38
you cease to come to church because you have
52:40
accompanied yourself with people that don't honor
52:43
and dignify the things of God. Suddenly we see
52:47
you, you no longer speak in tongues because you've
52:50
been around people that they turn the things
52:54
of the spirit into joke and comedy. Suddenly
52:57
you begin to downgrade and devalue the people
53:00
of God. Then we see you cease to be blessed by
53:05
men of God. Suddenly we begin to see you running
53:09
away from the men that used to be your company.
53:13
Suddenly you cease to have desire for prayers.
53:16
You no longer have passion for the world. We
53:19
no longer have desire to see that men and lives
53:22
are won for Christ. This in itself is a litmus
53:28
test to the influence that you've exposed yourself
53:31
to. And sometimes this influence is not far from
53:35
you. This influence is in your hand and it's
53:38
in your pocket. When you enter your blanket,
53:41
it hawks you. Some of us, we sleep with our phones
53:44
on our chest. Do you know that you can easily,
53:50
you can easily be scrolling unnecessarily on
53:55
statuses and on the media, social media, for
54:00
hours. You don't know that you've done three
54:01
hours. And the moment you just kneel down to
54:05
pray, you go into the spirit. Listen, let me
54:14
tell you, right? It's not natural. It's not natural.
54:20
It means that you need a brother to lay hand
54:24
on you. To hold you. To pray with you. to come
54:31
out of that, that you will walk in your nature.
54:35
That is why you need brethren around you to encourage
54:37
you, to strengthen you, to encourage you. Hallelujah.
54:42
We walk by the Spirit, by being obedient to the
54:46
written word. 2 Timothy 3, verse 16. 2 Timothy
54:53
3, verse 16. You see, the written word is inspired
54:57
by the Spirit of God. The spirit of God will
55:00
always lead us to the written word. All scripture
55:02
is God breath. That is, it's given by divine
55:05
inspiration. It's profitable for teaching, for
55:09
instruction, for conviction, for correction of
55:12
error and restoration to obedience, for training
55:16
in righteousness, learning to live in conformity
55:19
to God's will, both publicly and privately, behaving
55:24
yourself how? Honorably with personal integrity.
55:28
and moral courage. We get led by the Spirit of
55:32
God when we exalt the written word, when we read
55:35
the written word, when we study the written word,
55:39
when we are taught the written word. We will
55:43
become familiar with the mind of God and easily
55:47
know when He gives us instructions. We become
55:52
familiar with the leading of the Spirit of God
55:56
when we give ourselves to the Word of God. We
56:00
cannot walk in the Spirit unconsciously. See,
56:03
walking and being influenced by the Spirit does
56:07
not happen. It's not magic. It's not witchcraft.
56:12
We walk in the Spirit consciously by deliberately
56:17
giving ourselves to the written word. The Spirit
56:20
of God cannot walk in a man effectively that
56:23
has not known the pattern of the mind of the
56:28
Spirit of God, which is the written word. And
56:31
sometimes we think that the habits we see in
56:33
our lives, we can break off habits, bad habits,
56:38
ungodly habits, by strong will and determination.
56:46
It's not by strong will and determination. It
56:50
is by the Spirit of God, by the Word of God and
56:53
by prayer. Strong will and determination cannot
56:57
deal with the activities of the flesh. It is
57:01
only the spirit of God that does that work. The
57:06
word and prayer. So the believer must prioritize
57:12
his fellowship with God in the word and prayer.
57:16
This is the foundation for manifesting or the
57:20
foundation for the believer to manifest the spirit
57:24
of God in his daily living. Hallelujah. This
57:28
becomes The foundation to seeing in every single
57:34
moment, in every single day. You are walking
57:37
in the fullness of the Spirit of God. I want
57:41
you to just close your eyes and speak to God
57:43
at this moment. We appreciate you being here
57:48
today. We hope you carry this word with you throughout
57:51
your week. Don't forget to check the show notes
57:54
for additional insights. Stay connected with
57:57
us through our website. or follow us on social
58:00
media. If you are encouraged, share this message
58:04
with someone you care about. Until next time,
58:07
stay blessed.