Latest / Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons / Access to the Kingdom of God pt 2
Transcript
- 0:01Welcome to NECF Sermons. Each message here is
- 0:06designed to uplift and strengthen you in your
- 0:09walk with God. Don't miss out. Stay with us until
- 0:13the end for a rewarding experience. Let's dive
- 0:17right in. Just appreciate God that you are part
- 0:24of this plan of God. You are part of this plan
- 0:27of God. Just open your mouth and pray. Just pray
- 0:29for some minutes. Pray, pray, pray. And thank
- 0:33God that you are part of this plan of God. That
- 0:36from the ages past, God has you in mind. He has
- 0:39me in mind. He has all of us in mind. And he
- 0:42has brought us into this plan. And this plan,
- 0:46we see, is a promise. And this promise is a spirit
- 0:51of God that has been given to us. Hallelujah.
- 0:55So just thank God. Thank God for this reality.
- 0:57That you are not a spectator, but you are a participant.
- 1:00You are a fellow heir with other believers of
- 1:03this promise, the promise of God. Hallelujah.
- 1:08Say, I have access to the kingdom of God by the
- 1:11spirit of God. I have access to the kingdom of
- 1:16God. I have access to the kingdom of God by the
- 1:22spirit of God. I have access to all the resources
- 1:26of the kingdom of God. I have access to all the
- 1:31resources of the kingdom of God. I therefore
- 1:36manifest the kingdom of God. I therefore manifest
- 1:40the kingdom of God. I preach the gospel in the
- 1:45demonstration of the Holy Ghost. I preach the
- 1:50gospel in the demonstration of the Holy Ghost.
- 1:55I walk in signs and wonders. I operate in the
- 2:01gifts of the Spirit. My life reflects the Spirit's
- 2:06lifestyle. My life reflects the Spirit's lifestyle.
- 2:14I manifest the fruits of the Spirit because I
- 2:19have access to the kingdom of God. Hallelujah.
- 2:23And this is our story. This is our song. And
- 2:29this is our reality. Hallelujah. We're looking
- 2:33so tired. Is it because it's evening? Amen. Is
- 2:39your spirit tired? Can the spirit in you be tired?
- 2:43Hallelujah. Amen. So I just want you to just
- 2:47be alive as we look into, you know, the things
- 2:50that are ours in Christ Jesus. The summary of
- 2:55everything that we said we have. is what we see
- 3:00in the Spirit. Jesus Christ has given us by the
- 3:06virtue of his death, his burial, and his resurrection.
- 3:08So we have access to all the resources. And what
- 3:14we do when we study the Word of God is that we
- 3:17learn what Christ has done in this world. We
- 3:20learn what Christ has done. Hallelujah. In salvation,
- 3:25we don't need fullness of knowledge. to be born
- 3:29again. We just have to know that Jesus has died
- 3:31for our sins and we believe and we are saved.
- 3:34But once we come into this, you know, this reality,
- 3:38we'll begin to learn what God has done. We begin
- 3:42to understand our identity. We begin to understand
- 3:45the resources. We begin to understand our privilege,
- 3:49our privileges. We begin to understand our responsibilities.
- 3:53We begin to understand, you know, the desire
- 3:57of God. for our conduct as believers. Hallelujah.
- 4:02Now, you don't become transformed before you
- 4:04are saved. That is not how it happens. Amen?
- 4:08You can come to God the way you are, from wherever
- 4:11you are. Hallelujah. But the moment you become
- 4:15a believer, we begin to see a transformation
- 4:17in your life. So what we expect is that the Spirit
- 4:20of God that lives in you, beginning to walk.
- 4:25a new lifestyle in you because there's a new
- 4:27occupant in you. Hallelujah. So we see that the
- 4:32access to the kingdom of God, you know, enables
- 4:35the believer to be a witness. So the walking
- 4:39of the spirit in the believer enables the believer,
- 4:43empowers the believer to become a witness. Acts
- 4:47chapter 1 verse 4. Acts chapter 1 verse 4. We'll
- 4:53continue from our teaching on the access, access
- 4:56to the kingdom of God. Acts chapter 1, verse
- 5:014 to 8. And being assembled together with them,
- 5:06commanded them, okay, and being assembled together
- 5:10with them, he commanded them not to depart from
- 5:13Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the
- 5:16Father. Hallelujah. And we, we saw in Ephesians
- 5:203 that we are part, we've enjoyed, we are partakers
- 5:22of this promise. They should wait for the promise
- 5:25of the Father, which he said to you, which he
- 5:28said, for John truly baptized with water, but
- 5:31you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not
- 5:33many days from now. Therefore, when they had
- 5:36come together, they asked him saying, Lord, will
- 5:38you at this time restore the kingdom of, kingdom
- 5:43to Israel? And he said to them, it is not for
- 5:47you to know. Times, or seasons which the Father
- 5:50has put in his own authority. But you shall receive
- 5:54what? You shall receive power. Okay? So the Spirit
- 5:59of God in us is power. When the Holy Spirit has
- 6:03come upon you, and you shall be what? You shall
- 6:07be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea,
- 6:13and in Samaria, And to where? To the ends of
- 6:20the earth, to the outermost part of the world.
- 6:22Hallelujah. So the first thing we see the Spirit
- 6:27produces within the Christian is what? It's power.
- 6:31Okay? It's power. And power enables the believer
- 6:35to act. Alright? Power enables the believer to
- 6:41do what? To act. It enables the believer to function.
- 6:45So the Holy Spirit walking in us gives us an
- 6:49ability. It gives us an ability, gives us an
- 6:52authority to act. The Spirit grants a believer
- 6:57access to the authority of God to legislate on
- 7:02behalf of God, to be a witness for God. Hallelujah.
- 7:06We have the ability or the authority to be witnesses.
- 7:09All right? So anything we say later on, I'm just
- 7:12making a recap of what we saw on Sunday. We said
- 7:15also that anything that God will do on the earth,
- 7:17he does it how? How does he do it? He does it
- 7:21by the spirit, right? But through us, through
- 7:23men. Not just any man, but through a man that
- 7:27is born again, a man that has come to believe
- 7:29in Jesus Christ. So God walks on earth by his
- 7:34spirit, okay? But he walks by his spirit through
- 7:38men. So the agency by which God manifests The
- 7:42works of the Spirit on earth is through men.
- 7:45We read in 2 Corinthians 2 about how God diffuses
- 7:52the knowledge. 2 Corinthians 2, verse 14 and
- 7:5615. 2 Corinthians 2, verse 14 and 15. Now thanks
- 8:04be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ.
- 8:11who always leads us in triumph in Christ. And
- 8:14through us, he diffuses the fragrance of his
- 8:20knowledge in every place. This is the work of
- 8:24the Spirit in the believer. You know, he diffuses
- 8:27the knowledge of his... Verse 14, give verse
- 8:3414 again. Yes. He diffuses... The fragrance of
- 8:41his knowledge, not in some few places, but in
- 8:43every place, in every place. Hallelujah. For
- 8:48we are to God, the what? The fragrance of Christ
- 8:52among those who are being saved and among those
- 8:56who are perishing. So God uses ordinary men like
- 9:02you and I to do supernatural work on the earth.
- 9:07He does supernatural work on earth, not through
- 9:10angels, but through men, but through you and
- 9:13I. We are God's system for his work on the earth.
- 9:22Through us, God does his work on the earth. Hallelujah.
- 9:26And God bypassed our frailty, right? Our frailty
- 9:31simply means our human limitation. Now, we're
- 9:35not talking about sinfulness here. Okay? Because
- 9:38first of all, for us to be useful to God, first
- 9:40of all, he create a capacity in us. And the capacity
- 9:43is that he take away our sin. In his death, his
- 9:47burial, and his resurrection. Hallelujah. Then
- 9:50he places his spirit in us. So the spirit of
- 9:53God in us is what gives us what? The strength
- 9:56and the ability, not relying on our strength,
- 9:59but relying on the strength of the spirit of
- 10:01God in us to do the work of God. Because the
- 10:05work of God cannot be done by the flesh. The
- 10:08work of God cannot be done with the wisdom of
- 10:11men. The work of God can only be done by the
- 10:15Spirit and by the wisdom of God working in men.
- 10:19Hallelujah. Now let's look at an example of a
- 10:23man. A man, we saw an example on Sunday, of Stephen.
- 10:29A man of light passion like us. who was able
- 10:37to do great and mighty works because he has the
- 10:41Spirit of God in him. Hallelujah. And I believe
- 10:44that God is also looking up to us in this dimension
- 10:48that we will cooperate with him, okay, to bring
- 10:53about his plan and his purpose on earth. Acts
- 10:56chapter 8, verse 1. Acts chapter 8, verse 1.
- 11:02Acts chapter 8. Acts chapter 8 verse 1. We're
- 11:10going to see another example. Now, Saul was consenting
- 11:14to his death. Who's death? To Stephen's death,
- 11:18right? At that time, a great persecution arose
- 11:22against the church, which was at Jerusalem. And
- 11:26they were all scattered throughout the region
- 11:28of Judea and Samaria. except the apostles. Verse
- 11:342. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial
- 11:38and made a great lamentation over him. As for
- 11:41Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every
- 11:46house and dragging off men and women, committing
- 11:49them to prison. You know, later on, Paul will
- 11:52say that he did this in ignorance. Because as
- 11:56far as he's concerned, this is the work of God.
- 11:58He was zealous. Paul was not a non -challenged
- 12:03person. Amen? He was not a non -challenged person.
- 12:07Even in ignorance, he was serious in ignorance.
- 12:10To tell you that God will not work with somebody
- 12:12that is not serious. Hallelujah. I'll tell you
- 12:18some people that if you are doing crime, we know
- 12:20that you are serious by your attitude to everything.
- 12:25Hallelujah. Even in the world, we see Paul, he
- 12:27was doing it with all of his mind. And when there
- 12:30is a diversion to his direction, what do we see?
- 12:33We see the same equal measure of grace, of what?
- 12:37Of vigor, of strength in the work of the ministry.
- 12:41Hallelujah. So, God demands this sense of fervency
- 12:47from us as we give ourselves to his service.
- 12:49Hallelujah. Verse 4. Therefore, those who were
- 12:54scattered went everywhere. They went everywhere.
- 12:59And when they ran away, what were they doing?
- 13:01They didn't give up on their faith. They were
- 13:04preaching the word. Verse 5. Now, this is a matter
- 13:09I want us to consider. Then Philip went down
- 13:12to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to
- 13:16them. And the multitude with one accord. He did
- 13:27the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing.
- 13:32What did they see? They see the miracles which
- 13:35Philip did. Now, when we read about Philip in
- 13:38the Bible, oftentimes we think that Philip is
- 13:41a very special man. You know, he's a very special
- 13:48man and his anointing is a special anointing.
- 13:52But what I want to bring to our notice is that
- 13:55Philip... is equally as empowered by the Spirit
- 14:00of God as you are. Are we together? Now let's
- 14:04look at what he did in verse 7. It says, For
- 14:06unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came
- 14:10out of many, not few, who were possessed, and
- 14:17many who were paralyzed and lame and were healed.
- 14:24And there was a great joy in which city? In Samaria
- 14:28because of the work that Philip did in Samaria.
- 14:32Hallelujah. So there are some certain things
- 14:36that I want us to note about Philip, okay? That
- 14:39Philip was not one of the apostles. Remember
- 14:42also with Stephen, okay? That he was not one
- 14:47of the apostles, but he was a disciple of the
- 14:51apostles. What we call today in court, he was
- 14:56an ordinary church member. There's nothing like
- 14:58ordinary church member. But to speak in our language,
- 15:00he was a church member. All right? No man is
- 15:04ordinary here. Hallelujah. Nobody here is ordinary.
- 15:07All of us are valued and are powerful equally
- 15:11because we possess the Spirit of God in us. Hallelujah.
- 15:16So he was not one of the apostles, but a disciple
- 15:20of the apostles. He was a church member. But
- 15:25what we see is that he was full of the Spirit,
- 15:29was full of the ridiculous, and of good character.
- 15:33How do I come to know that he is of good character?
- 15:36Chapter 6, verse 3. He was among those who were
- 15:39selected to share food in chapter 6. Acts chapter
- 15:426, verse 3 to 5. Therefore, Brennan, seek out
- 15:47among you seven men of good reputation. All right?
- 15:52If we make this call in any safe and say, please,
- 15:55we need five men of good character to come out.
- 15:59Choose among you seven men of good character.
- 16:03Will your friend point it out? Your housemates,
- 16:09will you vote for them and say, this person is
- 16:11a man of good character? After you cook food
- 16:16and then you carry the entire pot to your room.
- 16:22Amen? And then you come here and then we are
- 16:27shouting hallelujah together. Will your friend
- 16:31say you are a man of good character? Will your
- 16:35wife say you are a man of good character? Will
- 16:36your husband say you are a woman of good character?
- 16:39Will even your children say you are a man or
- 16:41a woman of good character? Hallelujah. Because
- 16:45a spirit indwelling in you should produce a character.
- 16:49Hallelujah. So see, They asked them to choose
- 16:52men of good character. All right? Therefore,
- 17:01brethren, seek out from among you seven men of
- 17:03good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and
- 17:06wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
- 17:10But we will give ourselves continually to prayer
- 17:13and to the ministry of the Word, and the same
- 17:17please the whole multitude. And they chose Stephen,
- 17:21a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and
- 17:24who? And this same Philip. Prochorus, Nicanor,
- 17:29Timon, Parmenas, Nicholas, a proselyte from Antioch.
- 17:35So this means that for him to be of good character,
- 17:39he followed duly the teachings and emulates the
- 17:44lives of the apostles. Because this is what produces
- 17:48the result in his life. It means that he follows
- 17:50the teachings and emulates the lives of the apostles.
- 17:58Was it not from Philip's life that he was passionate
- 18:01and intentional about the preaching of the gospel,
- 18:05regardless of persecution? They chased them here,
- 18:08they ran away, they moved to a new town, and
- 18:11what? They continued the business of preaching
- 18:13of the gospel. Hallelujah. We are not so sure
- 18:17whether if we leave Cyprus. Some of you, we want
- 18:22to establish you to a point that we are sure
- 18:23that when you leave Cyprus, wherever you are,
- 18:26we know what you will be doing. Hallelujah. But
- 18:30sometimes, you know, people when they leave an
- 18:31environment, when they change the environment,
- 18:34their lifestyle changes. And their conduct changes.
- 18:39And they forget that they are ministers. Hallelujah.
- 18:44I was talking to a brother that left here for
- 18:46quite a while. yesterday on the phone and I was
- 18:49asking him, I said, do you remember, do you still
- 18:52remember who you are? That was what I keep asking
- 18:54him. Do you still remember who you are? Do you
- 18:56still remember that you are a minister of God?
- 18:58Do you still preach the gospel? He said, this
- 19:00year has been a very difficult year. I said,
- 19:03it means that you've not been living the life
- 19:05that we've taught you. It means that you've not
- 19:07been living according to your identity that we've
- 19:10been teaching you for all the years that you've
- 19:11been here. You've been here for over seven years
- 19:13and we expect you. So it was a time of admonition
- 19:19and encouragement. Hallelujah. So for all of
- 19:23us, we see in the life of Philip that he was
- 19:26passionate. He was passionate about the work
- 19:30of preaching the gospel. He was intentional.
- 19:34Regardless of the circumstance of persecution,
- 19:36he didn't give up. He did this. How? How did
- 19:40he do it? In the demonstration of the power.
- 19:44Of the Holy Spirit, verse 5 to verse 8, Acts
- 19:488, we'll see the way he demonstrated it. Healing
- 19:51of the sick, casting out of devils. Particularly,
- 19:58you know, we see verse 5, verse 6. Verse 5, the
- 20:04Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached
- 20:06the Christ to them. He preached Christ to them.
- 20:09All right? And there was a change. A multitude
- 20:12heeded the things. spoken by Philip, and hearing
- 20:15and seeing their head and their soul. Amen? So
- 20:19that is how our ministry should be. People should
- 20:22hear and also see. All right? The demonstration
- 20:27of the Spirit of God practically in our lives.
- 20:32For unclean spirits crying out with a loud voice
- 20:35came out of many who were possessed, and many
- 20:38who were paralyzed, lame, and lame were healed.
- 20:41And there was great joy in that city. Hallelujah.
- 20:47I want to look at verse 12. Verse 12. But when
- 20:51they believed Philip, as he preached the things,
- 20:54what did he preach to them? He preached to them
- 20:58the things concerning who? Concerning the kingdom
- 21:02of God and the name of Jesus Christ. All right?
- 21:08Things concerning the kingdom of God. That and
- 21:11they is which is, right? Because the things of
- 21:15the kingdom are not different from the things
- 21:16concerning the name of Christ, the name of Jesus
- 21:20Christ. So preaching the things concerning the
- 21:23kingdom of God, which are in the name of Jesus
- 21:28Christ, and we see both men and women were what?
- 21:33Believed. Hallelujah. Both men and women believed.
- 21:37Amen. Also, Philip hears and understands the
- 21:42leading of God always. This means he was so intimate
- 21:47with God and his devotion that he can hear and
- 21:51know the voice of God and also act in obedience.
- 21:58This is not for special men. This is not for
- 22:01pastors. This is not only for leaders. When you're
- 22:03a leader, then now you need to learn how to hear
- 22:05God because you have a people you already didn't
- 22:07know. This should be the life of every believer.
- 22:10That you ought to learn to know the voice of
- 22:13God, recognize the voice of God, and live in
- 22:16obedience to the voice of God. Because that is
- 22:19the only man, this is the kind of man or woman
- 22:21that God will use. If a man and a woman or a
- 22:26woman does not hear, does not understand when
- 22:28God is speaking, how can you do the will of God?
- 22:32It's impossible. But we can see it practically
- 22:35in this man's life. Being a church member. Being
- 22:42a disciple of the apostles. In Acts 8, verse
- 22:4526. Let's look at verse 26. Now an angel of the
- 22:53Lord spoke to Philip. An angel of the Lord spoke
- 22:55to him. Which means that this man was having
- 22:58supernatural encounters. Amen? It's not strange
- 23:02to him to have an encounter with the angel of
- 23:06God. And the reason is not for you to tell us
- 23:09that you have an encounter with an angel of God.
- 23:11Hallelujah. It's not to add to your CV of spiritual
- 23:15rankings. But rather it's to the end that you
- 23:19do the work of God. That is the essence. That
- 23:23is the essence. So we see here there is an angelic
- 23:27encounter. Now an angel of the Lord spoke to
- 23:29Philip saying, Arise and go towards the south
- 23:33along the road which goes down. from Jerusalem
- 23:37to Gaza. This is desert. So he arose and went,
- 23:44and behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great
- 23:48authority under Candace, the queen of Ethiopians,
- 23:51who had charge of all her treasury, and had come
- 23:54to Jerusalem to worship, was returning and seated
- 23:58in his chariot. He was reading Isaiah the prophet.
- 24:02Then the spirit said to him, to Philip, go in
- 24:04here and overtake, see. Look at the way the angel
- 24:07was speaking to him. He moved in obedience. He
- 24:10reached a certain place. The Spirit of God kneels
- 24:12down to him. All right? Then the Spirit said
- 24:17to Philip, Go near and overtake this chariot.
- 24:20So Philip ran to him and heard him reading the
- 24:23prophet Isaiah and said, Do you understand what
- 24:27you are reading? And he said, How can I unless
- 24:31someone guides me? And he asked Philip to come
- 24:35up and sit with him. Hallelujah. So we see that
- 24:39he understands the leading of God, which means
- 24:43that he has an intimate relationship with God,
- 24:46which means that he's able to know the heart
- 24:48and the heartbeats of God at every time, at every
- 24:51season. That should be the aspiration of every
- 24:53one of us in this house. You don't need to just
- 24:58be running to pastors to hear God for you. Pastors
- 25:03are not native doctors. They go to consult. Hallelujah.
- 25:09They are not native doctors. Some of you think
- 25:12that when you come with the gifts, then there
- 25:14will be clarity on your issue. No. Every man
- 25:18and woman that has a spirit of God has the potential
- 25:22to hear the voice of God. Hallelujah. So the
- 25:27goal of our church meetings is to train us in
- 25:31hearing and understanding the ways of God that
- 25:35we'll know when God is speaking. We'll know when
- 25:38God is leading us. We'll know the will of God
- 25:41every time, every season, and we'll live in obedience
- 25:43and doing the will of God. Hallelujah. So Philip
- 25:48is not only, you know, trained in hearing and
- 25:52knowing the voice of God. Philip also understood.
- 25:56The Word of God. Because you cannot know the
- 26:00voice of God without the Word of God. Hallelujah.
- 26:05He didn't only know the Word of God, but he was
- 26:08skilled in what? In preaching the Word of God.
- 26:12It means he learned well from the apostles. Hallelujah.
- 26:19It means that in the course of the teachings
- 26:21on their services and their meetings, he was
- 26:24there taking notes. and going over to study to
- 26:27check. When he has questions, he's quick and
- 26:30eager to ask questions. It means that he was
- 26:34studious. He understood. See, there is a specific
- 26:37doctrine that was given to the apostles. There
- 26:39were no many doctrines. There was a specific
- 26:41message that Jesus handed over to the apostles.
- 26:45And from the apostles, we see the continuities
- 26:47of that to the church and down to us. Hallelujah.
- 26:52So the message of the gospel will always tell
- 26:55you, And it's historical. And it's apostolic
- 26:58in nature. Hallelujah. Meaning that you can trace
- 27:01from Jesus' teaching to the apostles and down
- 27:06to us in our generation. So if there's any distortion
- 27:09along the way, you can easily know that this
- 27:12is not the message of the gospel. Did Jesus teach
- 27:15it? Did the apostles teach it? How about the
- 27:19early church? Do we see them practice those things?
- 27:21And that formulates The foundation for our own
- 27:24experience is us also as Christians. Hallelujah.
- 27:29So Philip understood it. In verse 35, we see
- 27:32his response. From verse 34. So the Enoch answered
- 27:40Philip and said, I ask you, of whom does the
- 27:44prophet say this of himself or of another man?
- 27:48He didn't begin to breathe about the bush. and
- 27:51began to tell him stories and fairy tales. Right
- 27:54from that scripture, that is a skill. And where
- 27:57do we see this skill from? We can see it in Jesus'
- 28:00teaching, teaching ministry. Hallelujah. We can
- 28:04see that in the way the apostles also taught
- 28:05the scriptures. From this scripture, he interpreted
- 28:09to the Ethiopian things concerning Jesus Christ.
- 28:15Then he opened his mouth, verse 35, and beginning
- 28:18at this scripture, Obviously, we cannot see Jesus
- 28:22here. When you read, you will not see Jesus here.
- 28:25Amen? But with the understanding of the interpretation
- 28:29of the books of the old, and all the things we
- 28:32have written from Genesis to Malachi were concerning
- 28:34Christ, were concerning the promises, were concerning
- 28:37the work of God, were concerning what God will
- 28:39do in Christ, Philip opened his mouth and beginning
- 28:42at this scripture, preached who? He preached
- 28:46Jesus to him, not Miraculous. Amen? Not leadership
- 28:52because, ah, you can say this one maybe is a
- 28:54political power. You know, he has political power.
- 28:59Then I think the message that will feed this
- 29:01man is leadership. No, no, no, no. He preached
- 29:04to him, Jesus. Hallelujah. He preached to him,
- 29:09Jesus. Now, as they went down the road, they
- 29:14came to some water. And the Enoch says, see,
- 29:16here is water. What he hinders me from being
- 29:19baptized. Then Philip said, If you believe, you
- 29:22see, if you believe with all your heart, you
- 29:26may. And he answered, I believe that Jesus Christ
- 29:30is what? That means that in the course of all
- 29:32this explanation, he was able to preach Jesus
- 29:35and tell him that Jesus Christ is the Son of
- 29:37God who came on earth and he died for our sins.
- 29:40And when we put our trust in him, we will be
- 29:43saved and receive the gift of the Spirit of God.
- 29:46That is the conclusion of the message. And he
- 29:48said, I believe that Jesus is what? He's a son
- 29:51of God. Hallelujah. So he was killed in what?
- 29:56In handling the word of God because he learned
- 29:58from the apostles. Amen. And of course, we see
- 30:03the experience of the supernatural. Verse 39,
- 30:06verse 40. And other verses we've read. Now when
- 30:09they had come out of water, the spirit of the
- 30:11Lord. Verse 39. Now when they have come out of
- 30:14water, the spirit of the Lord. Caught Philip
- 30:16away so that the Enoch saw him no more. And he
- 30:21went on his way rejoicing. Who was rejoicing?
- 30:24The African. He went. The African went rejoicing.
- 30:29This is the first record of the gospel coming
- 30:32to Africa. And it didn't come by a mighty apostle.
- 30:36It came by a church member. A member of the church
- 30:40that the apostles were pastoring. Hallelujah.
- 30:44This was the first circle we have of Christianity
- 30:46in Africa. Not the one from Europe. Not the one
- 30:50from America. But this is the first time Africa
- 30:53came in contact, as we can see in recorded scriptures,
- 30:55that the gospel came to Africa. Hallelujah. And
- 31:00today, we see how the evidence of this work,
- 31:03of the work of God, even in our own lives, even
- 31:06in our continent. Hallelujah. So, he experienced
- 31:11the supernatural. which means that the supernatural
- 31:14is for every man. The supernatural experiences
- 31:18is for everyone that believe. For those who believe,
- 31:23these signs shall follow them. And you believe,
- 31:26so signs and wonders should follow. The miraculous
- 31:29should be normal. The supernatural experiences
- 31:32should be normal. There should be strange happenings
- 31:36in our midst. Hallelujah. When you experience
- 31:40the supernatural, it's not a strange occurrence.
- 31:44It should be the normal experience of the believer.
- 31:48Not once in a lifetime. Not once in a lifetime.
- 31:53The supernatural experiences can be always. That
- 31:58should be our normal disposition. That should
- 32:01be our normal encounter and normal experiences.
- 32:05Not only during catatismus. You know why many
- 32:10a times you feel the move of God during Catholicism?
- 32:12Because you prepared for it. Amen? You fasted.
- 32:17You prepared your mind. You put away your schedules.
- 32:19You adjusted yourself. You bought a brand new...
- 32:22If you put your effort up to this, you must have
- 32:25revelation of the word of God. You arrange your
- 32:29day. Amen? And you are set ready for the supernatural
- 32:34and the word of God comes and then you begin
- 32:36to speak in tongues. You give word of... That
- 32:38should be our normal default, brethren. Hallelujah.
- 32:44Every Sunday should be a supernatural service
- 32:46because we have supernatural sons and daughters
- 32:49of God gathered together for a supernatural relationship,
- 32:52for a supernatural fellowship. That should be
- 32:55a norm in our midst. So when a believer walks
- 32:57into this place, he knows that God is here. Hallelujah.
- 33:01And the message is preached and healing happens
- 33:05in our midst. And the unbeliever receives the
- 33:08message. And the unbeliever believes in the message
- 33:10of the gospel. Hallelujah. Supernatural is our
- 33:15experience. And this experience should be always
- 33:18in our homes, in our houses. It should be our
- 33:23normal experiences. Hallelujah. Now there's another
- 33:27man, Acts 9 verse 10. There's another man who
- 33:31will see examples. Why are we looking at examples?
- 33:34We're looking at these examples to stay us up,
- 33:36to stay on faith from us. To know that if this
- 33:40can happen to ordinary men, these records were
- 33:44recorded for us. That we, by them, will do what?
- 33:48We'll learn, alright? That faith will be stayed
- 33:51in us. That these are ordinary men doing extraordinary
- 33:54things. Hallelujah. And you, an ordinary man,
- 33:58can do extraordinary things. Because the Spirit
- 34:01of God that is in them, It's still the same Spirit
- 34:04of God that lives in you today. Hallelujah. Acts
- 34:09chapter 9 verse 10. Acts chapter 9 verse 10.
- 34:13We see another man, a disciple, not an apostle.
- 34:17In fact, this man is almost unknown in Scripture
- 34:20until this particular work that he did that we
- 34:23now come to know him. Now there was a certain
- 34:29disciple at Damascus named Ananias. Not the Ananias
- 34:33and Sapphira. Amen? Not that one. This is a different
- 34:37Ananias. Now, there was a certain disciple at
- 34:40Damascus named Ananias. And to him, we see, the
- 34:45Bible was very clear about who he is. He is a
- 34:47what? He is a disciple. Okay? They don't used
- 34:51to call them church members. They used to call
- 34:53them disciples. He is a disciple. He is a believer.
- 34:58And to him, the Lord said in a vision, So God
- 35:02can speak to anybody to do a work for him. Hallelujah.
- 35:06So the Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias,
- 35:11and he said, here I am, Lord. So the Lord said
- 35:14to him, arise and go to the street called straight
- 35:17and inquire at the house of Judas for one cold
- 35:21soul of Tarsus, for behold his brain. And in
- 35:28a vision, he has seen a man named Ananias. So
- 35:31God told Paul about Ananias in a vision. And
- 35:35God spoke to Ananias in a vision about Paul.
- 35:39Amen. And in a vision, he has seen a man named
- 35:44Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him
- 35:47so that he might receive his sight. Then Ananias
- 35:52answered, look at the dialogue. This was a dialogue.
- 35:56Say, Lord, I've heard from many about this man
- 35:59who How this man has been terrorizing Christians.
- 36:03How he has been working with Boko Haram, Al -Shabaab,
- 36:07and all the terrorist organizations. How that
- 36:11he has done so much harm to the saints in Jerusalem.
- 36:16And here he has authority from the chief priest
- 36:18to ban all who call on your name. But the Lord
- 36:21said to him, Go for he is a chosen vessel of
- 36:24mine to bear my name before Gentiles. kings and
- 36:29the children of Israel. For I will show him how
- 36:33many things he must suffer for my sake. And Ananias
- 36:39went his way. See, Ananias did not even argue.
- 36:43Right? He knows with certainty this is the work
- 36:47of God. This is the will of God. This is the
- 36:50word of God. He understands that this is the
- 36:52word of God. You understand that this is what
- 36:54God wants. See, this must be a man that understands
- 36:58the ways of God. This must be a man that has
- 37:01been working intimately with God. Hallelujah.
- 37:06And he is not among the apostles. He is a certain
- 37:09disciple. Like you, like I, like any other person
- 37:13in this place. Like any other person. He enjoyed
- 37:21the supernatural. He enjoyed a supernatural walk
- 37:25with God. In his dialogue, in his conversation,
- 37:28we can see that he's a man that understands the
- 37:31works of God. He walked with God. He communed
- 37:33with God. He has a fellowship with God. And we
- 37:37see how God used Ananias, a disciple, to minister
- 37:40to Paul's needs. The great apostle Paul. He was
- 37:46not apostle Peter or apostle John or any of the
- 37:50big apostles, but a certain disciple. Hallelujah.
- 37:55So you're not too small for what God will do
- 37:57or for what God is doing. Hallelujah. You're
- 38:02not too small for what God is about to do in
- 38:04this generation or what he's doing in this generation.
- 38:08Hallelujah. So why do we find it so difficult
- 38:12or impossible to manifest the Spirit and the
- 38:16giftings, the signs and wonders and the miraculous?
- 38:18Have you asked yourself? Why do we find ourselves
- 38:24not having similar experiences? Is it that the
- 38:30Spirit of God has changed his mind concerning
- 38:33his work in men? Is it that God is no longer
- 38:36working? Some people concluded that the Spirit
- 38:38has ceased to function this way. That God only
- 38:43operated for a certain time, then now is no longer
- 38:45the time for that operation, for those kind of
- 38:47operations. As though unbelievers have changed.
- 38:55As though unbelief has changed, has been reformed.
- 39:01Do you know that the unbelief of today is more
- 39:04even difficult than unbelief of before? Technology
- 39:08has come to suffocate the unbelief of today.
- 39:12Traveling from one place to another has affected
- 39:16the unbelief of today. People have exported all
- 39:20kinds of lifestyle from one. The world has become
- 39:22a global place. So also wickedness has been globalized.
- 39:28So if these men will need the help of the Spirit
- 39:31of God, the demonstration of the Spirit of God,
- 39:34the demonstration of the power of God in order
- 39:36to reach their generation, we need that even
- 39:39more in our generation. Hallelujah. Because the
- 39:43enemy has become more crafty. He has become more
- 39:46sophisticated. with information, with knowledge,
- 39:50and men have become more empowered to do evil.
- 39:54So we also that must confront our own generation
- 39:56must rely on the sophistication of the Spirit
- 39:59of God to reach our own generation. Walkings
- 40:04of the Spirit or the demonstration of the Spirit
- 40:06is non -negotiable for the believer of today.
- 40:12Hallelujah. It's non -negotiable. Through the
- 40:17level of technological advancement, artificial
- 40:20intelligence. Brother, if you don't have the
- 40:23spirit of God, you consult AI. Amen? AI will
- 40:31become your Lord and Savior. So why do we find
- 40:38it difficult? Because God is same yesterday.
- 40:41Is it easy? Same today. And forever. And we have
- 40:47the same access to the kingdom of God as these
- 40:50disciples had in the book of Acts. Why don't
- 40:53we see this manifestation through our lives?
- 40:58The reason is simple. Because we are often carnally
- 41:02minded. And we are not working in the spirit.
- 41:08We are preoccupied with carnal things. Carnal
- 41:12in the sense that we are preoccupied. by physical
- 41:15things. The world has been arranged in such a
- 41:19way that enables us to focus on physical and
- 41:25material things. So we negate the spirituality
- 41:29of our identity. Even our spirituality has been
- 41:35tailored into material things. So when we come
- 41:38to church, the only thing we are thinking is
- 41:40material things. So, The carnal man of today
- 41:45is in church. And his carnality has been rebranded
- 41:52into spirituality. That even his prayer, if you
- 41:54pray for one hour, 90 % of what you pray for
- 41:57is his carnal needs. A new job, a new house,
- 42:01a new car. You know, my education. Now, we're
- 42:07not saying these things are wrong or these things
- 42:08are bad. But a man that will manifest the kingdom
- 42:12of God. must be different. Because you know what?
- 42:16The Bible says that even the hidden, God knows
- 42:19that even the hidden, what do they do? They need
- 42:22these things, right? God knows that you need
- 42:25them as the hidden do. So we cannot be worried
- 42:29and moving on about these things. Hallelujah.
- 42:34So, in Galatians 5 verse 6, Paul would tell the
- 42:41Galatians to us. To walk in the spirit. I hope
- 42:45I have some time, yes. Galatians chapter 5 verse
- 42:4916. Galatians chapter 5 verse 16 to 18. I say
- 42:57then, walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill
- 43:04the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against
- 43:11it. things of the spirit against the spirit and
- 43:15the spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary
- 43:19to one another. You see, the reason why the believer
- 43:23of today is finding it difficult to manifest
- 43:25is because the flesh and the spirit cannot coexist.
- 43:29There cannot be two influences in your life.
- 43:32It's either you are influenced by the spirit
- 43:35of God or you are influenced by the flesh. But
- 43:39one thing we want to do is I want to do the flesh.
- 43:41I want to do the Spirit. I want to manifest God.
- 43:44It's not possible. It's impossible. These are
- 43:50contrary to one another so that you do not do
- 43:52the things that you so desire to do. What are
- 43:55the things you so desire to do? The things of
- 43:57the Spirit. Hallelujah. You so desire to do the
- 44:02things of the Spirit. But if you are led by the
- 44:06Spirit, you are not under the law. All right?
- 44:13The word work in verse 16, the word work is a
- 44:17word peripatio. From the Greek, peripatio, P
- 44:23-E -R -I -P -A -T -O. P -E -R -I -P -A -T -O.
- 44:30It means, in this context, it means to regulate
- 44:34one's life or conduct oneself. So what he is
- 44:39saying is that we should regulate our lives and
- 44:42we should conduct ourselves by the Spirit. That
- 44:46is, we should allow the Spirit to regulate and
- 44:48conduct our life. That is to say, let the Spirit
- 44:51inspire your living on the earth. And how will
- 44:56we know that the Spirit of God influences your
- 44:58living on the earth? It's by your conduct. For
- 45:04instance, The Spirit cannot lead you to do something
- 45:08that will harm your brother or your sister. So
- 45:10when we see you harming your brother, we know
- 45:12that this one is not by the Spirit of God. Hallelujah.
- 45:16So our lives must be regulated, must be led by
- 45:20the Spirit of God. And then verse 16 and 17 shows
- 45:28two contradicting influences over a man's life.
- 45:33The Spirit And the flesh. Hallelujah. Two contradicting
- 45:37influences. The spirit and what? And the flesh.
- 45:41Now, when we talk about the flesh, we're not
- 45:42talking about your physical body. Alright? The
- 45:46word flesh here is the word sarx from the Greek.
- 45:54Sarx. S -A -R -X. S -A -R -X. And this word can
- 46:00mean two things. First, It can mean the physical
- 46:03body of a man, all right? And it can also mean
- 46:08a spiritual nature. So contextually, in this
- 46:12verse, it is not referring to your physical body.
- 46:16Your physical body is not anti -God. You hear
- 46:20what I'm saying? Your physical body is not anti
- 46:24-God because God wants your physical body to
- 46:25manifest on earth. Hallelujah. So your physical
- 46:29body is not in opposition to the spirit of God.
- 46:33So, but then there is an influence we call the
- 46:37flesh. The flesh in this context does not mean
- 46:40your physical body. It refers to a spiritual
- 46:43nature. A nature that is spiritual. Because the
- 46:47spirit and flesh are two forces that influences
- 46:51the life of the man. Alright? It is the nature
- 46:56without the influence of God. Flesh is a nature
- 47:02of the influence of God. It is also called the
- 47:08world. Right? It is also called the world. Or
- 47:14you can say worldliness. It is also called the
- 47:18carnal nature. It is also called the sinful nature.
- 47:25Sinful nature. Some translation you see to use
- 47:29the oiled nature. Some translations will use
- 47:35the word sinful mind or evil nature. Hallelujah.
- 47:44So there are two influences. The carnal, or what
- 47:47we call the flesh, the old man, sinful nature,
- 47:51and also what? The spirit of God. So flesh refers
- 47:59to the thinking pattern. Flesh, first of all,
- 48:01is an ideology. It refers to the thinking pattern.
- 48:06That is, it is ideological but spiritual. Or
- 48:09let me say it is spiritual but ideological. Because
- 48:14it is in the mind of man. Alright? Different
- 48:18from what is of God. It is a mind that thinks
- 48:23independently of God. That the influence is not
- 48:27of God, but it's of this world. This nature is
- 48:31in enmity against God. That for a man to think
- 48:37or to live independent of God is living in the
- 48:42flesh, is living under the control and influence
- 48:44of the flesh. And this nature called the flesh,
- 48:48the human nature or the sinful nature is actually
- 48:53in opposition or in enmity with God. Romans 8,
- 48:57verse 7 talks about that kind of life. Romans
- 49:018, verse 7 to 8. Because the carnal mind, what
- 49:08is the carnal mind? That is the flesh, the sinful
- 49:11nature there. The carnal mind is enmity against
- 49:15God. What does it do? It does not subject to
- 49:19the law of God. That is the law of the spirit.
- 49:21That is, it does not subject to the spirit of
- 49:23God. That means that it is not influenced by
- 49:25the spirit of God. It cannot be. Hallelujah.
- 49:32Was it? So then, those who are in the flesh,
- 49:37those who are in the flesh cannot do what? Cannot
- 49:43please God. Those who are in the flesh cannot
- 49:47please God. Hallelujah. So, the mindset is influenced
- 49:54not by God. The thoughts, you know, our brother
- 50:01read to us in 2 Corinthians chapter, is it chapter
- 50:0410? Is it chapter 10 you read from? That talks
- 50:07about the weapon, right? Let me check. Help me.
- 50:2110 .5, right? I remember. 10 .5. 10 .4. Is it
- 50:281 Corinthians? Aha. Because I'm seeing something
- 50:32here. 2 Corinthians 10. When he was leading us
- 50:36to pray. 2 Corinthians 10. Verse 4. It says,
- 50:41for the weapons. No, look at verse 3. Say, for
- 50:44though we walk in the flesh. Right? We walk in
- 50:48the physical, this flesh, the first flesh here,
- 50:50is we walk in the physical body. We do no war
- 50:54according to the flesh. For the weapons of our
- 50:57warfare are not what? Are not in the flesh, are
- 51:01not carnal, but mighty in God for what? For pulling
- 51:08down of what? Of strongholds. Casting down what?
- 51:14Arguments. Now, this is the flesh. Arguments.
- 51:18thoughts, arguments, thoughts, impressions, and
- 51:24every high thing that exalts itself against the
- 51:27word, the knowledge of God, and bringing thoughts,
- 51:32every thought into captivity to the word, through
- 51:36obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish
- 51:39all disobedience when obedience is fulfilled.
- 51:42Hallelujah. So, It's a life influence. The thought
- 51:48is influenced by, you know, this nature. You
- 51:54know, whenever you see people think cooperatively,
- 51:56right? Whenever you see people have a certain
- 52:00manner of life, they carve for themselves a certain
- 52:03ideology, a certain mannerism, united in an ideology,
- 52:08there's always a spirit involved. I can tell
- 52:13you that some of the philosophies and some of
- 52:14the ideologies we study in school, they are actually
- 52:16spiritual ideologies. Because for you to see
- 52:20men come together, having the same mind, the
- 52:23same thoughts, I can tell you that the spirit
- 52:25is involved in that organization. Remember those
- 52:30men that gathered that they want to build an
- 52:31altar, a tower. Do you think that they just sat
- 52:36down and then thought that they just want to
- 52:37go against God? There is a spirit that would
- 52:40that's involved in that union. Hallelujah. Please,
- 52:44let's have attention here. Okay? So, we must
- 52:56beware that there is a thought pattern that sponsors
- 53:04the things we see around and about us. Some movements
- 53:09we see around are not just political. And we
- 53:13as believers must be careful before we join things
- 53:15that we don't know. You go to an organization
- 53:17and they have certain beliefs. Oh, we are here.
- 53:22Some of those beliefs, they put them under this,
- 53:25you know, they look good. You know, it's anti
- 53:29-racism, for example. They call them in this
- 53:31way, you know, or women's rights, you know. equity
- 53:39and inclusion. Or the one that I've been studying
- 53:44recently is about environmental, what do they
- 53:48call it? Protection and sustainability. And we've
- 53:52written a lot of academic work in this sphere.
- 53:55But in the core of those ideologies, there's
- 53:59a spirit sponsoring it. Because oftentimes, it
- 54:02brings an ideology and a thought pattern that
- 54:04seems to exalt the self above God. So we, as
- 54:09we study, we open our eyes. We know that this
- 54:13is of God. This is not of God. And we know the
- 54:16extent and the limits to which we can go as believers.
- 54:20Hallelujah. But unfortunately, some believers
- 54:22have become activists, pursuing and propagating
- 54:25these ideologies, even without knowing the origin
- 54:27and root of those ideologies. He raised up your
- 54:30hand, he said, black lives matter. Do you know
- 54:32the root? Do you know the ideology? Do you know
- 54:35the drive of that philosophy? Before you say,
- 54:40I'm an activist for this, make sure that it is
- 54:42the Spirit of God that is inspiring your activism.
- 54:47Hallelujah. So that we can live our lives effectively
- 54:50and not just trying to follow trends because
- 54:53we want to be trends in this world. Hallelujah.
- 54:56So the manifestation of the flesh is plain and
- 54:59obvious. The scripture is not hidden concerning
- 55:01the manifestation. Galatians 5, verse 19 to 21.
- 55:09Galatians 5, 19. Now the works of the flesh are
- 55:15what? They are evident. It means that if you
- 55:18see flesh in manifestation, you will know. It
- 55:22means that if we enter this hall and we see somebody
- 55:24behaving, Pastor Victor will say that he has
- 55:27been going somewhere. Now this action, the way
- 55:33you see this sister is dressing like this, the
- 55:35way you see this brother is dressing like this,
- 55:36he has been going somewhere. And it's true. You
- 55:39copy it somewhere. Everybody is a product of
- 55:42influence. Hallelujah. Everybody is a product
- 55:48of influence, good or bad. So, when we see, we
- 55:53know, wherever we know the source, we know where
- 55:58this behavior is coming from. We know where this
- 56:00ideology is coming from. When you talk, we know
- 56:03the inspiration of your speech. Whether it's
- 56:07of God or it's of the flesh or it's of the world.
- 56:11So, the works of the flesh are evident. The goodness
- 56:15says they are plain. They are not hidden. Some
- 56:19translations will say they are clear to see with
- 56:22the eyes. How do we know the manifestation of
- 56:26the flesh? First, in adultery, sexual immorality.
- 56:30That is the first display we see, at least given
- 56:33to us, right? Fornication. adultery, okay? Can
- 56:38you give me this text in NLT? Do you have NLT?
- 56:44Yes. When you follow the desires of your sinful
- 56:48nature, I don't like the way they say your sinful
- 56:49nature. When you follow the desires, they should
- 56:52have just put, if you follow the desires of the
- 56:54sinful nature, okay? The results are very clear.
- 56:59Say the sinful nature is not my nature. But I
- 57:03can follow it if I want to. Yes. It's not your
- 57:07nature. We'll see it subsequently. When you follow
- 57:10the desires of the sinful nature, the results
- 57:13are what? They are very clear. We'll see what
- 57:15is manifesting in your life. And some of you
- 57:17are here, oh, you begin to see this list. You
- 57:19begin to see yourself in the list. Sexual immorality.
- 57:25All right? And you are in church. You are speaking
- 57:28in tongues. Impurity. You are going out for evangelism.
- 57:33You are lusting. It's lustful pleasure. The next
- 57:35verse. Idolatry. Okay? Sorcery. You know, they
- 57:43say they digitalize sorcery and idolatry. They
- 57:48call it horoscope, right? They call it, they
- 57:52say, what is your star? They used to call it
- 57:54zodiac, whatever. You're a believer, you're looking
- 57:59for zodiac sign. And you think it's a trend.
- 58:06You don't know that that is for them. It's real
- 58:08for them. And you think it's a trend. For you,
- 58:10the believer, your zodiac sign is Christ. Do
- 58:15you understand? Your nature cannot come from
- 58:18any moon or from the stars. Your nature is in
- 58:22Christ. How can a believer be looking for somebody
- 58:26to read him here in this place? They read him
- 58:28a cup of coffee, right? Yes, they do it here.
- 58:32Somebody will take coffee and then they... They
- 58:35turn it and they'll read to you like they tell
- 58:36you all the things. And some who can read from
- 58:39your palm. That is witchcraft. That is a manifestation
- 58:46of what? Of a life outside Christ. Quarreling.
- 58:51This one is familiar, right? It's here. It's
- 58:55not supposed to be here. But it can be here.
- 58:58Hostility. Jealousy. Alright? You know me, I
- 59:02have this. We see it in our blood. In our family,
- 59:05we have anger. It's in our blood. You know, we
- 59:09can easily get angry. When my father get angry,
- 59:11I took it from my father. Of course, you are
- 59:16influenced by what you see around you. Outbursts
- 59:19of anger. Selfish ambition. What motivates your
- 59:24ambition? Is it self? Selfishness. Distinctions.
- 59:27When you are in thought, you are in guru. But
- 59:29any group, any team you enter, you cause division.
- 59:33You leave media, you enter evangelism, you cause
- 59:35division. Why is it every time you enter there
- 59:38must be a problem? And you think everybody is
- 59:40bad. You are the one that is operating with another
- 59:45ideology. It's an influence that you are attending
- 59:49to that is manifesting the result that we see.
- 59:52Next verse. Envy. Alright? And drunkenness. And
- 1:00:02then you like going to parties, wild parties,
- 1:00:05parties that does not align with the purpose
- 1:00:06of God. Somebody will tell you that when his
- 1:00:10mind is too occupied, he goes to cloud nine to
- 1:00:17calm down himself. That's his own fun. That is
- 1:00:21his own way of recreation. The believer's recreation
- 1:00:26is in the spirit. Hallelujah. We are spiritual
- 1:00:31beings. Amen. And ETC, right? Other things like
- 1:00:36this. There are many. The Bible is not for this
- 1:00:38list. So they just put an like like this. Let
- 1:00:42me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone
- 1:00:45living that sort of life will not inherit the
- 1:00:48kingdom of God. Hallelujah. That is a big issue.
- 1:00:53So it is impossible for you, a believer, to see
- 1:00:56this manifested in your conduct as a believer.
- 1:01:00You are living in immorality and all sorts of
- 1:01:04things and then hope that you will manifest effectively.
- 1:01:08It's impossible. It is practically impossible
- 1:01:13to live under the influence of the flesh and
- 1:01:16manifest. It's impossible. These two cannot work.
- 1:01:24You cannot effectively manifest the kingdom of
- 1:01:26God while under the influence of the flesh. It
- 1:01:29is what? It is impossible. The Corinthian church
- 1:01:38is a practical example for us, right? Practical
- 1:01:43example, 1 Corinthians 1 verse 4. 1 Corinthians
- 1:01:491 verse 4. We see that this is a church that
- 1:01:53have experienced the mighty power of God. I thank
- 1:01:57my God always. concerning you for the grace of
- 1:02:02God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that
- 1:02:05you were enriched in what? In everything by him,
- 1:02:09in all assurance and all knowledge. Even as the
- 1:02:16testimony of Christ was confirmed in you. So
- 1:02:19these are believers. So that you come short in
- 1:02:22what? In no ritual, in no gift. eagerly waiting
- 1:02:27for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- 1:02:29So these men are born again, and the Bible says
- 1:02:32that they lack in no gifts. This is an entire
- 1:02:35church that lacks in no gifts. Now, let's see
- 1:02:39their lifestyle. Move to verse 10, same chapter.
- 1:02:45Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of
- 1:02:51our Lord Jesus Christ. That you all speak the
- 1:02:54same thing, which means that there's division
- 1:02:55in these thoughts. The Spirit of God is not the
- 1:02:58author of division. That you speak the same thing
- 1:03:07and that there is no division among you, but
- 1:03:10that you be perfectly joined together in the
- 1:03:13same mind and the same judgment. For it has been
- 1:03:18declared to me concerning you, my brethren, you
- 1:03:21call them brethren, by those of class household,
- 1:03:25that there are contentions among you. Though
- 1:03:28this looks like the list we read earlier on,
- 1:03:31that there's contentiousness among them. All
- 1:03:33right? Now let's move to chapter 3, verse 1 to
- 1:03:364. Chapter 3, verse 1 to 4. If your Bible is
- 1:03:40like my own, the topic they wrote there, the
- 1:03:43people that printed this Bible. They wrote the
- 1:03:47topic, they say, sectarianism is canon. Verse
- 1:03:531. And I, brethren, could not speak to you as
- 1:03:55to spiritual people. Are they spiritual people?
- 1:03:59Are they spiritual people? Yes. All right. They
- 1:04:02are spiritual. What makes them spiritual? Because
- 1:04:04they are born again. So it means that a born
- 1:04:06again Christian, you know, this is not a good
- 1:04:10sentence, right? A born again Christian can live
- 1:04:14in sin. That's what we're trying to say. Okay?
- 1:04:19A born again Christian can live in sin and it's
- 1:04:22not the will of God for you. It means that you
- 1:04:25cannot experience, you cannot manifest the power
- 1:04:27of God. Hallelujah. It doesn't mean that the
- 1:04:33power of God is not there, but you cannot bring
- 1:04:35it out because you are influenced by another
- 1:04:37force that is outside you. And I, brethren, could
- 1:04:42not speak to you as preachers. But as to carnal,
- 1:04:47are they carnal? They are not carnal. But he's
- 1:04:49referring to them as carnal because of their
- 1:04:51conduct. As to babes in Christ, I fed you with
- 1:04:56milk and not with solid food, for until now you
- 1:04:59were not able to receive it. And even now you
- 1:05:02are still not able, for you are still carnal.
- 1:05:07That is not Paul speaking in alignment to what
- 1:05:12the identity is. But he's, speaking based on
- 1:05:16their conduct. For where there are envy, strife,
- 1:05:21divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving
- 1:05:25like ordinary men? For when one says, I am for
- 1:05:30Paul, another, I am Apollos, are you not all
- 1:05:34carnal? Chapter 5, verse 1. Chapter 5, verse
- 1:05:391. Chapter 5. Verse 1. It is actually reported
- 1:05:53that there is a sexual immorality among you and
- 1:05:57such sexual immorality that even sinners or unbelievers
- 1:06:02cannot do. And what is it? That a man will sleep
- 1:06:08with his father's wife. Imagine this kind of
- 1:06:13thing and he's in the church. and you are puffed
- 1:06:16up, and have not rather mourned that he who has
- 1:06:20done this deed might be taken away from among
- 1:06:22you. For I indeed, as absent in the body, but
- 1:06:27present in the spirit, have already judged, as
- 1:06:30though I were present with him who has so done
- 1:06:35this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
- 1:06:38when you gather, when you come together, together,
- 1:06:43Allow with my spirit, with the power of our Lord
- 1:06:45Jesus Christ, deliver such one to opposition
- 1:06:48for the destruction of the flesh. What flesh?
- 1:06:54Okay. That his spirit may be saved in the day
- 1:06:58of the Lord Jesus Christ. Your glory is not good.
- 1:07:02Do you not know that a little leaven leavens
- 1:07:05a whole lump? Therefore, pour out the whole leaven
- 1:07:08that you may be a new lump. This is a parable
- 1:07:11he's speaking here. that you may be a new lamp,
- 1:07:14since you truly are unleavened, for indeed Christ
- 1:07:17our Passover was sacrificed for us. Therefore
- 1:07:21let the feast not with all leaven, nor with the
- 1:07:27leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the
- 1:07:30unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote
- 1:07:35to you in my epistle not to keep company, look
- 1:07:38at this, not to keep company with the sexually
- 1:07:40immoral people, Yet, I certainly did not mean
- 1:07:45with the sexually immoral people of this world
- 1:07:48or with the covetous or extortioners or idolaters
- 1:07:51since you will need to go out of the world. But
- 1:07:55now I have written to you not to keep company
- 1:07:58with anyone, name what? Let's read verse 11 together.
- 1:08:03Let's look up. Let's read verse 11 together.
- 1:08:06Is it up? One, two, go. But now I have written
- 1:08:10to you not to keep company. Would anyone name
- 1:08:14a brother, put over a sister, who is sexually
- 1:08:18immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler,
- 1:08:24or a drunkard, or an extortioner, not even to
- 1:08:27eat with such a person? This is your Bible. If
- 1:08:32it's not in your Bible, then your Bible has been
- 1:08:34rebranded. For we have, for what I have to do,
- 1:08:39okay, rather, For what have I to do with judging
- 1:08:43those who are outside? Do you not judge those
- 1:08:47who are inside? But those who are outside, God
- 1:08:50judges. Therefore, put away from yourself the
- 1:08:53word, that evil person. Hallelujah. So, you see,
- 1:08:58this and the things we will continue on Sunday.
- 1:09:02But I want you to understand, right? That there
- 1:09:06is an influence that we can give ourselves to.
- 1:09:10that will limit us. And let me tell you, we'll
- 1:09:12see one day how this kind of lifestyle influences
- 1:09:14us. And we'll see what God has done to this lifestyle.
- 1:09:18Hallelujah. So can we open our mouth and begin
- 1:09:20to pray? I don't know how much of God's word
- 1:09:25you've seen with your eyes, but I want you to
- 1:09:30pray for yourself. We appreciate you being here
- 1:09:35today. We hope you carry this word with you throughout
- 1:09:38your week. Don't forget to check the show notes
- 1:09:41for additional insights. Stay connected with
- 1:09:43us through our website or follow us on social
- 1:09:46media. If you are encouraged, share this message
- 1:09:50with someone you care about. Until next time,
- 1:09:53stay blessed.