(2019 Atlanta) 5. Preserving Our First Love

through the centuries from the beginning of from the day of Pentecost onwards the Church of Jesus Christ has gone through many ups and downs for example even in the first century churches that started with tremendous power and were flaming witnesses for Christ declined pretty soon the church in Ephesus for example is a great example example of that there's no church where any apostles stayed for as long as Paul did in Ephesus imagine having an apostle like Paul preaching in your church every Sunday for three years and not only every Sunday but every day of the week special meetings in different houses and there were amazing miracles there let me give you a little history of the church in Ephesus turn with me to Acts of the Apostles and chapter 19 it says here that Paul came to Ephesus and he found some disciples and I believe he went to one of their meetings and he heard these disciples share and it must have been pretty lifeless and at the end of the meeting he asked them hey did you guys receive the Holy Spirit by the way why is this meeting so dead that's why I asked him did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed what type of conversion is yours and then he realized he said we have not even heard about the Holy Spirit and now listen to this answer we got to read scripture carefully you didn't hear about the Holy Spirit verse 3 into what then were you baptized you know there are people today Christian I think they are believers but they haven't understood the Scriptures properly mostly in a Pentecostal group called Jesus only they baptize in the name of the in the name of Jesus Jesus commanded Matthew 28 verse 19 20 baptized disciples in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit is so clear you cannot be mistaken in every translation of the Bible it says that but these folks do not baptize in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit they baptize in the name of Jesus Christ and their excuse for that is in the Acts of the Apostles it says they were baptized in the name of Jesus I want to tell you a simple principle of Bible study having been a for a Bible teacher for nearly 60 years and that is never get a doctrine from the historical sections of Scripture if you want to get a doctrine get it from the teaching sections of Scripture the Bible has got historical sections and teaching sections 1 Kings 2 Kings Chronicles this is history a lot of Genesis not exodus is history Acts of the Apostles is completely history it's not a teaching book teaching is episodes even in the Gospels there's a historical part and a teaching part everything that Jesus taught is teaching everything else what Jesus did is history and don't confuse the two a lot of confusion and Christendom and false teaching has come because they take the teaching sections of Scripture and make it a doctrine for example on the day of Pentecost they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and they all without exception they all spoke in tongues all 120 of them is that history or is it a doctrine I read it as history but when people make it a doctrine you know what happens they say every believer must speak in tongues when they are filled with the Holy Spirit that's a wrong doctrine it's a false doctrine if you want to know the teaching section on speaking in tongues don't go to Acts you go to 1 Corinthians in Chapter 12 and there it says very clear the Holy Spirit gives different gifts to different people verse 7 to each one is given the manifestation of spirit for the good to one word of wisdom to another word of knowledge to another faith to another gifts of healing to another miracles to another prophecy to another distinguishing of spirit to another 1 Corinthians 12:10 tongues to another interpretation tongues it cannot be clearer than that that is teaching that to another tongues to another interpretation to another healing to another miracles to say that everybody must speak in tongues is almost the same as saying everybody must do miracles everybody must heal the sick but I'm amazed that so many believers believe this Pentecostal churches are full of people who believe there's 100% and what is the result a lot of people are forced to speak in tongues they babble something if - syllables back and forth and call it tongues thoroughly deceived by the devil now I speak in tongues I've spoken in tongues for 45 years but tell me I'll tell you it's not babbling in few syllables it's a language but I use it only in communicating with God it's a love language between me and Jesus Christ like Paul said I thank God I speak in tongues more than all of you but in the church I will only speak in a known language so I know what I'm speaking about now I'll tell you and I'll give you an example there are two things written in Acts chapter 2 listen carefully acts 2:4 they all spoke in tongues Acts 244 all of them had everything in common verse 45 they all sold their property and shared it with everybody why don't Christians follow that because that's not convenient it converts money Oh money we want us we won't touch that tongues you can babble anything and call it tongues I want to save you from this fantastic deception that's going on in prison though now I have been in two groups of people I'll give you I mean in many Christian groups but I'll give you an example from two groups I visited a group of Christians called the Hutterites I don't know how many of you know them they are people who have all things in common it started by a man called Jacob hunter in Europe many centuries ago and then migrated to the United States and Canada when they were persecuted in Europe many of them are believers but through the years they have drifted and today most of them are not believers the nominal Christians but they have the teaching they must have everything in common and usually the in one group there'll be over 100 people they buy some land and they farm and they grow turkey and other things and sell them they're technologically advanced I've got computers and they repair cars and all that but nobody earns his own salary everybody works and the income goes to the one leader who is the leader of the group and if you want a tube of toothpaste you go and take money from him and buy your toothpaste it's not your money but you live in your own homes but then lunch is common for everybody every day you lunch with everybody this is all things in common but there are a hundred percent against speaking in tongues now the Pentecostals are people who do not have all things in common everybody the rich is rich and the poor are poor and they don't have things in common but they all emphasize speaking in tongues so once I was with visiting these Hutterites and one of those people were not very happy with my preaching on victory over sin so he wanted to put me on the spot and he was sitting with a number of people in his house and he asked me a question brother Zhang why don't you teach acts 244 that all people had all things in common I said brothers before we go to X 244 let's go to x24 why don't you teach that everybody speak in tongues end of discussion because they don't believe in it now when I go to the Pentecostals and they tell me brother Zak why don't you teach everybody should speak in tongues acts 2:4 I say hang on let me read acts 244 why don't you all have all things in common end of discussion what am I trying to emphasize get a doctrine from the teaching sections of Scripture okay what about the teaching sections in the Gospels there are a number of places where it says jesus healed all of them you remember that I don't have to show them to you there are so many places in the Gospels where it says all the sick came and Jesus healed every single one of them have you ever seen a healing meeting where everybody's healed no one in a thousand gets healed and they say that's a healing meeting it's absolute nonsense I believe in healing I've seen people healed in answer to prayer even in prayer over the telephone and I don't believe healings for all I've experienced healing myself but I don't believe every sick person is healed it's just not true you got to be blind to facts and this is how a lot of non-christians think these Christians are so stupid they are blind to reality believe in preaching whole lot of things which are not true we don't want that testimony as Christians we want to face the truth really and so they excuse they make is I've heard the story of Pentecostal say that no no you must confess that you're healed then you will be healed in other words even if you're sick you keep saying you're healed I hope many people teach that but you remember the story of the man whom jesus prayed for the only instance where Jesus had to pray it twice for a person to be healed you remember that you don't a blind man and Jesus touched him and he's asked him can you see you remember he said I see men like trees walking about what did Jesus say no no confess that you are healed did he say that do you know why Jesus did that - type two step healing to teach this twentieth century Christians that you don't have to confess your healing when you're not healed otherwise why did he allow that one instance to happen he always healed people with one touch I believe that second touch was needed their time to teach 20th century Christians and 21st century Christians don't confess your Healey when you are not healed because you are telling a lie the Bible says we must not tell lies see when Abraham believe that he's going to get a son because God specifically told him you're going to have a son then it's okay but to confess that you're healed when you're not healed I remember a story of a one Pentecostal preacher who went somewhere and prayed for a sick person and he was not healed of course the family was sitting around and when he came visiting him the next day the chap said I'm not healed he said no no no confess that you're healed you're imagining that you're not healed you're healed so a few days later he the Pentecostal pastor met this the 10 year old son of this man he said how's your dad the boy said now he imagines that he's dead he's actually dead but he was taught to imagine that he's not really dead it's absolute deception and I want to save all of you I believe part of my ministry as a teacher of God's Word is to deliver people from deception and there's so much of deception going on in Christianity the Bible says be careful in the last days there will be so much of deception so we have to be very careful in this area are to be are be to baptize in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit to the Lord Jesus Christ now I'll tell you how I do it and tell me which did I follow did I follow Acts of the Apostles I thought oh man 328 Jesus command whenever you have a clear command somewhere and a historical description follow the command simple principle the history may be just there for example we read Paul shaved his head to fulfill a vow what doctrine do you get from that Paul circumcised Timothy so that he doesn't offend the Jews what doctrine do you get from that that's an acts of the apostles if you want to know the teaching of circumcision go to the Galatians where Paul says you are not to be circumcised so I'm giving you some example so how you'll get thoroughly confused if you get a doctrine from Acts of the Apostles I could give you many many more examples like this so in a country like India if I were to baptize a converted Hindu you know the Hindus also got a trinity by the way and I baptize him in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit he goes back and tells his dad you know I was baptized in the name of the Father Son Holy Spirit the father would say that's okay father is Brahma the son is Vishnu and the Spirit is Shiva you were baptized in the name of the Hindu Trinity Brahma Vishnu and Shiva Father Son and Holy Spirit so what do I do i baptize people in the name of the Father and the son the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit that identifies that the son is the Lord Jesus Christ not Vishnu so because I say this is a Christian baptism and there I have baptized in the name of Jesus Christ like it says in the Acts of the Apostles and I baptize in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit now I don't blame other Christians because not all Christians are to be teachers I mean if you don't understand mathematics probably and a mathematics teacher understands it properly you're not inferior you're not called to be a mathematics teacher that's all the same way there are Bible teachers and God is gifted and there are others one not teachers so when people are not teachers try to do something is like you going and doing heart surgery when you're not a heart surgeon you'll kill people and that's exactly what's happening in Christendom today people are not called to be teachers or teaching people are not experienced in heart surgery are doing heart surgery and killing people we would never do that in a min a hospital nobody will allow you to do it you cannot have trained heart surgeon they will not allow you to go into the surgery and do heart surgery but in Christendom you find all types of people have got no calling from God who are teaching all types of nonsense what I call it so when people come to our church and they are baptized in the name of Jesus I tell them lovingly I say brother unknowingly unknowingly you denied the father and the son in your baptism and I don't want you to feel guilty but I you did it in ignorance God forgives you but I want to read to your verse I tell them in 1 John chapter 2 and verse 22 it says 1 John chapter 2 verse 22 this is the Antichrist the one who denies the father and the son it's a serious thing I do not want to deny two persons of the Trinity by saying Jesus his Father Son and Holy Spirit he is not this is what this Jesus only called oneness Christian's teeth that Jesus is the father when he was in heaven he is the father and Jesus when he came to earth he was the son then he went back to heaven and Jesus came as the holy spirit that's such a deception and I'll tell you why because then Jesus is acting on earth he wasn't genuine for example when he said John 6:37 I came from as 3738 rather I came from heaven do you remember that verse not to do my own will but the will of my father so if he is both the father and the son what is he saying I came from heaven not to do my own will but to do my own will because he's a father and the son or when he's praying in Gethsemane Oh father not my will but my will be done because he's the father and the son you see how they deny completely the humanity of Jesus Christ by that teaching I'm just giving you an example another place Jesus is the Holy Spirit will never speak about himself but he will always speak about me you read that in John 16 I don't have time to show you all those verses but if the Holy Spirit and Jesus are the same then he's speaking about himself but jesus said the Holy Spirit will not speak about himself he'll speak about me exalt me so I'm mentioning this how people who are careless in their study of Scripture have produced a doctrine that Jesus is Father Son and Holy Spirit don't be deceived by that so I tell these people you didn't do it deliberately some guy fooled you and baptize you in the name of Jesus you got to now confess the father and the Holy Spirit by being baptized properly in the name of Father Son and Holy Spirit i baptize them again not again i baptize them for the first time properly so many people you know they're they're so diplomatic I'll tell you one thing if you're diplomatic you cannot be a servant of God go and be a diplomat or a businessman or something like that you're a servant of God you cannot afford to please men you cannot afford to compromise the truth because the truth is not my property I can't distribute it as I like it's God's property and I've got to preserve it and so if you really want to serve God you'll have to offend a lot of people and I've offended numerous people in my life because I stand for the truth of God's Word and it doesn't matter if people get offended with that I say I stand on the truth and I found God has always backed me up all these 60 years but you cannot build the church the true Church of Jesus Christ if you don't stand for the truth 100% so it's very very important any of you who are seeking to build a local church you have to decide that lovingly you will stand for the truth you will speak the truth in love of course it must be spoken in love but it's very clearly related to building the body of Christ turn with me to Ephesians in chapter 4 see what it says there Ephesians 4 verse 15 see the balance here speaking the truth in love we will grow up to the head even Christ you want to grow up don't just speak in love don't just speak the truth speak the truth in love and it says you'll grow up there are people who speak the truth but they don't have love the others who speak in love but they don't speak the truth because they don't want to offend anybody but if you want to grow up it says here you got to speak the truth in love and then in all aspects there'll be a balanced growth all aspects means in every part it's not like you know baby grows in one part of the body doesn't grow in the other part grows that's hideous and a lot of Christians like this who you know sometimes you see outside these gyms where you see the picture of a very muscular man muscles all over their body and imagine if you had a picture of a gym where one side of the body is all muscular and the other skin and bones that's how I picture a lot of Christians there's an imbalance that's grace there but no truth or truth but no grace nobody's attracted to that type of gym where one side is all muscular on the other side is skin and bones and nobody's attracted to a christianity which is all Grace and no truth are all truth and no grace speak the truth in love and then in all aspects you will grow up and if you ever want to build the body of Christ in any of locality where you are remember this verse speak the truth never mind if half your church gets offended and goes away I remember years ago my son Sundeep was suddenly having our church's grown up to a bigger church now in his home and a number of people came and he was sharing the truth about the New Covenant and then he said something which is not the main part of the New Covenant but still one part of the New Testament that when a sister prays her prophecies she must wail her head she just taught 1 Corinthians chapter 11 16 verses and half the church left because the number of those married ladies did not veil their head they left with their husbands and the church was suddenly reduced to a small number I told him praise the Lord I said you're a son after my own heart that's exactly how we build the body of Christ and then God that was a test to see whether he would preach the truth even if everybody went away fine and gradually grew up from there so I'm just giving you an example how if you preach the truth some people will go away but you'll be left with the people who are really serious about building the body but if you want to please everybody you'll build a hotchpotch if you don't know what it is it'll never be the body of Christ that's what's happening in different places where we compromise in order to please people such people should be diplomats they're in the wrong profession to be servants of God so Paul went to I was speaking from acts 19 and he saw these people and he said into what were you baptized that itself indicates the question if they were baptized only in the name of Jesus it's understandable they never heard about the Holy Spirit but you get it from that question you haven't heard of the Holy Spirit what were you baptized into Paul believed that they had to have heard of the Holy Spirit if they were baptized in the name of Father Son and Holy Spirit if they were baptized if everybody was baptizing in this those days in the name of Jesus it is understandable they never heard of the Holy Spirit so if you catch that did you catch what I'm trying to say here when they said we not we don't know about the Holy Spirit he said then what in the world were you baptized into how could he be baptized and not heard of the Holy Spirit but truly there are a lot of people were baptized without dimension of the Holy Spirit anyway that's just on the side so Paul began to it says here in verse 11 of Acts 19 there were extraordinary miracles done by the hands of Paul even handkerchiefs and aprons that touch this body would cast out demons and heal diseases and from there the Word of God went all over it says here in verse 17 great fear Acts 1917 fell on all in the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified and so many people this is the place where they brought all their magic books verse 19 and burnt and those books came up to a cost of fifty thousand pieces of silver can he imagined this revival fifty thousand pieces of silver worth of books on magic these people were so taken up with magic and demons and Paul's preaching they burnt it all it's like people burning these rock music DVDs and CDs and all I wish we had revivals like that where people got rid of all their where their parents told the young people to get rid of all those wretched demonic songs that you sing and this was real revival and the word of the Lord was mighty and prevailing it was the finest church in the first century and Acts chapter 20 after spending three years this is the only church where an apostle spent three years day and night preaching acts 20 he called the elders in Ephesus in verse 17 and he wanted to talk to them because he was leaving and he told them remember acts 20 he called the elders of Ephesus in verse 17 and he told them in verse 31 remember that night and day in other words I had morning meeting evening for three years I admonished you with tears you know that Paul sometimes freeze to tears he was a very hard strong preacher but sometimes he would weep weep for what he'd weep but these guys are so half-hearted not serious about Jesus who came all the way from heaven to die for their sins and they take sin so lightly and he was weeping what a preacher he was you know John Wesley in England in the 18th century was another preacher who preached day and night he would get up early in the morning at 5 o'clock and go on his horseback that's the way they traveled those days and he would gather people in some place at six o'clock in the morning before they went to work and preach to them and they went to work and came back and he go back and preach to them in the evening and he had tremendous revival it's relative I mean people are very difficult to get people like that to come for a meeting early morning six o'clock in the morning and come again for a meeting at 7:30 in the evening but that's how revival came but today they have so many other interests and that's why we don't see the type of revival to holiness and purity today that some of these people had so day and night for three years can you imagine listening to the Apostle Paul if you are there in Ephesus every morning you listen to him preach fiery with tears and then every evening you hear them again preach boy what a spiritual person you have the opportunity to become not everybody becomes spiritual by listening to such preaching but they have the opportunity and I'm sure some people really became spiritual but unfortunately not everybody because Paul tells them now the time of my departure is near and he says here I did not shrink verse 20 with declaring to you anything that was profitable to you what did I preach the subject of my preaching verse 21 was repent and faith not faith alone a lot of people today preach faith faith faith faith faith without repentance and that's why their lives are shallow repentance and faith are two things which are the beginning of the gospel and what God is joined together what do we say let no man put asunder what man has put asunder repentance and faith now it's only faith that's preached and that's one of the main reasons for the shallowness of Christendom or you preach only repentance you know what happens you produce a bunch of legalists who haven't understood faith what God has joined together let no man put asunder repentance and faith that's what Paul preached repentance means turning around from sin and faith means we're seeing to use an illustration you'll understand it clearly Here I am when I'm unconverted facing the world sin my flesh my lusts my own will and behind me is God I have no interest in him one day I hear that God is offering me salvation and forgiveness and every blessing in the heavenly place and now my back is turned to him how in the world can I receive it if somebody comes behind you and says hey I want to give you a very expensive gift what do you do first of all you don't stretch out your hand at the back like this and receive it no what do you do first turn around that is the meaning of repentance that means I've got to turn my back now to the world and myself and everything else and face God if you haven't done that you cannot receive the gift you can't stretch out your hand at the back and say give me the gift you never do that to a human being a lot of people trying to receive like that that is without repentance and believe and that's the reason for the shallow Christianity they are not really born again the person was believed without repenting he's not really converted and if any of you did that he better repent at least now there are a number of people who have come to our church in Bangalore who thought they were saved and they have come to me and said brother Zak after listening to you for one year I realized I was not even saved now I hear the truth I want to be saved and even that bapt water baptism I took when I was 15 years old in that other church was not a valid one because I was not really repented now I want to take baptism again and I baptized some people for what they call the second time but I say for the first time because now only you're really repented you may have taken 10 baptisms before that but they're all on valid not valid because you never repented repentance and faith is the way of salvation that's what Peter preached on the day of Pentecost repentance and fail don't ever go to a church that does not preach both these together and if that has been your experience no wonder your life is so shallow and then it's like a shaky foundation you're trying to build a Christian life on a foundation that shaky and that cracks in the wall and cracks in the wall and the reason is the foundation is Shakey's there's no proper repentance and no proper faith no turning around from sin and the world itself and trying to receive God's gift while still hanging on to with one hand to all the things in the world it doesn't work like that so Paul preached repentance and faith and he said I declared to you verse 27 the whole purpose of God you know the entire truth of the New Covenant is like a circle they say white the color white has got seven colors you know the seven colors in the rainbow combine to make white violet indigo blue green yellow orange red all those seven colors make white if any one of those colors is missing you don't have a proper white color and so when you see the whole purpose of God it's like a circle think of the circle with these seven segments and there are people preaching part of the truth not the whole purpose of God there are many people who preach salvation but never preach water baptism there are many people who preach salvation and what about this what never preached about being filled with the Holy Spirit something is left out it's like what is the minimum necessary to go to heaven there is no minimum necessary to be a disciple of Jesus Christ you've got to give everything to him it's um it's like marriage I mean if somebody if somebody's getting married and this girl says to you well will you allow me one month in a year to live with another man I'll stay with you 11 months of the year would you marry that girl and what she says okay you don't want me allowed one month will you allow me to stay one day in a year with another man 364 days with you you mean you're so stubborn that you want this girl to be with you 365 days of the year and 366 days of the leap year doesn't it sound too hard and demanding which if you would marry a girl like that who wants to sleep with somebody else one day in a year just one day what about if you tell the Lord Lord once in a while I've got to have something in the world I've got to watch a worldly movie just once in a while not not every day but once in a while Lord this is this wonderful movie everybody's talking about I know it's got some suggestive sex scenes well it's okay you think Jesus is going to marry you you will not marry a girl like that you think Jesus is going to marry you I don't think so there's a tremendous amount of deception and a lot of Christians who think they are the Bride of Christ but their attachment is to something in the world no wonder their Christian life is shallow and such parents bring up shallow children they don't want their children to be wholehearted they want their children to make a lot of money even if it means a little compromise in their Christian convictions very sad Paul said I did not hesitate to declare to you the whole purpose of God and then he tells these elders you know what's going to happen after I leave I've been here three years I poured out my heart to all of you listen to these sad words very sad words verse 29 I know this is prophetic he's warning them I know what will happen to this church after I go the wolves that are waiting at the door will come right in and tear this flock to pieces that means that Devils got his agents waiting at the door why couldn't they come in when Paul was there because they were scared he was a fiery preacher who would not allow any compromise he would not allow any person to come in and preach anything other than the whole Council of God and they was scared he was a man of God they were afraid of a man filled with the Holy Spirit a man whom God backed and you couldn't fight with Paul without fighting with God and they knew that they were scared they stayed outside but you know what they said Paul is not going to be around forever he'll go one day that'll be our chance we get in and destroy this church and you know the number of churches around the world that are very often being preserved by one man like Paul who's been the doorkeeper he's kept that church pure and that man dies or goes away and at the end of that church why is that why couldn't the other elders be like that apostle I'll tell you because they seek popularity many many preachers and elders seek popularity they want numbers more than quality okay you can have the numbers but some of those people will be wolves and they'll come and destroy the flock and I've seen this happen again and again in my sixty years of being a Christian I've seen it happen again and again in many countries and that's why I fight tooth and nail against this deception that's going on so false said there are two dangers number one these wolves will come in they dare not come in as long as I'm here because they are scared of me they know that God is with me and the Holy Spirit backs me there so they're scared they're it's good for people to be scared of you if you're a servant of God if they don't fear God I mean I have not hesitated to say in my own church dear brothers and sisters the best thing is if you come to this church you fear God and let the fear of God keep you from sin but if you don't fear God the second best is you fear me because I'll make sure you don't play the fool here go and play the fool somewhere else that's second best best is you fear God you don't have to be afraid of me you just fear God and do what is right but if you come here and play the fool is if I'm around I'm gonna straighten you out because this is the Church of the Living God we're not going to allow the devil to come and play havoc here you cannot build a church without that strictness you look at the homes look at the homes where father and mother are lenient and allow the child to do whatever they like oh darling you want to do that go right ahead to my son go right at my girl do that and those children grow up wayward for the world to glorify the devil instead of glorifying Jesus Christ because a father is so lenient and the mother is so lenient they just allow the children to do whatever they like instead of putting their foot down and say no you're not going to do that I brought up four sons and there were a number of times they got offended with me I say fine you can get offended with me what you like as much as you like what I'm going to make sure you grow up to live for God and not for the devil or for the world all all four of you are going to live for God and I don't care how upset you get with you that I'm strict I don't ever regret that I was very strict with my children many things I'm sorry I can't do that for you sometimes they wanted to buy something just expensive and I say I'm sorry I can't I can't afford it and I don't think you need it if they asked me to get them some pair of Nike shoes Oh Nike that's expensive I'll get you a Chinese shoe which is looks like that but it's not exactly the same quality and they cry and say no we want that sorry however much you cry it doesn't put money in my pocket I can't get it for you okay you crys much you like and get over it after some time I'll get you the cheap Chinese substitute of that it's pretty good are you strict with your children I want to ask you or you soften up when they start crying you will destroy them you will lose them to the devil you got to be strict and you got to be strict to church elder in a church must be like a father kind loving I have wept with people also that also we do as a father as a elder I have wept with some people in my church just like Paul but I'm also straight you remember another place Paul says to the Corinthian church I have handed that man over to the devil who committed adultery imagine handing a believer over to the devil you read that in 1 Corinthians 5 boy we need elders like that we'll have a pure Church then in every place because he says I'm not going to let the devil come and corrupt the church that's why those wolves could not come into Ephesus when Paul was there but he said I know what will happen after I go these wolves are just waiting for this strict man of God to go and then they can do what they like they can bring havoc into the church and there are enough people in the church who will cooperate with them because all those people are half-hearted - it's sad and not only that that's only one part of the danger the second part of the danger he told the church in Ephesus is some of you fellas verse 31 acts twenty thirty some of you people have got private ambitions to become a leader on your own and you're not working in cooperation with the other elders maybe there were five elders there and he tells them you some of you don't want to work with each other you want to be the sole leader you want to be the D pastor instead of one of five elders and you you decide things without consulting the other elders that is a mark of a pastor spiritual pastor man who like a Roman Catholic father calls himself father he doesn't call himself father but he acts like a one man leader God never appointed one man leaders in a new covenant Church but I've seen so many people act like one man leaders I've seen some CFC churches where some elders take decisions on their own and then tell the other elder we're going to do it like this they are Roman Catholic fathers they are not new covenant elders yes they are Pope's they should call them sometime Pope so and so I'm not another how can they deceive people think I'm an elder with the other elders but then take all decisions on your own it's absolutely shameful and I've seen it happen I have to correct them strictly I said that's not the way to build a new covenant church go back to the old covenant and gold the Roman Catholic Church and you can be a priest and run the whole church as you like but not in CFC churches sorry that's not the new covenant pattern but here were people who wanted to draw it says in verse 30 you will draw people up to yourself and that elder will draw after himself and that elder will drop themselves ultimately end up with five groups which is one Church once upon a time that desire for leadership that lust I call it a lust don't think sexual lust is the only type of lust the lust for leadership is just as evil as filthy sexual lust some people don't realize it these people had the filthy sexual lust they were not immoral but they had the filthy lust which was as bad as sexual lusts of wanting to be a leader alone taking decisions on their own and he said what will happen you will draw yourself some people after you you'll draw some people unto you ultimately this church will be split it was not a prophecy of what would happen it was a warning of what will happen if you don't take seriously what I'm saying Paul was not hoping it'll be like that he was not hoping that the Wolves will come in he was not hoping that these elders will make separate groups no he was warning them I can you see Paul is a man with discernment that's one of the things I've seen through the years that if you really walk with the Lord one of the needs we have in spiritual leadership is discernment and through the years I mean I've been an elder now and see if she judges for 45 years I can look at a person and listen to him for five minutes and know very Stan spiritually it's very easy I couldn't do that 40 years ago but I can do it today they can't fool me anymore but it doesn't happen overnight if you're an elder brother in any church you need to grow up to the discernment where you can discern where does this guy stands virtue me otherwise you will not be able to build a church because it'll be just another group even if your numbers increase it'll never be the Church of Jesus Christ which functions like a body every part working together so Paul had discernment that's why he said you are elders I only appointed you but I can see you guys have not judged yourself you're not repented and you're not living in a daily repentance you know a true Christian lives in a daily repentance I testify before God I live in a daily repentance I'm not repenting of the sins I committed in the early days I'm not repenting of anger I almost never get angry now I'm not repenting of discouragement and self condemnation those things have disappeared from my life but I have not become 100 percent like Jesus Christ yet and so God shows me more and more areas you see when a postgraduate student of mathematics says he's struggling with mathematics and a kindergarten boy says I'm struggling with mathematics they're both struggling but they are struggling at different levels you understand that it's like that if you are really progressing in the Christian life you will always be repenting because you're struggling but not at the same level you have learned two plus two and five divided by I mean six divided by two and you understood all that but there are other things you're struggling with in the Christian life and if you're not struggling that means you're not progressing that means you have stopped your education you came to fourth grade and you've learned everything I've learned everything about mathematics I've reached fourth grade there are Christians like that no growth what did you think of a fourth grade student who dropped out of school he learned that much and that's all he knows and there are many Christians like that whereas out our life is supposed to be a continuous growth you parents are so eager that your children should even study beyond you I know numerous parents who are eager that their children should have a better education than them why don't you let them allow drop them off at fourth grade why are you spiritually stopping at fourth grade you want your children to progress more and more and more in the education in the world why don't you have a passion to grow more and more spiritually in the same way that your married life must become more and more United how is it that some of you your married life you are fighting and quarreling from almost day one of your marriage and you're still happy with that boy you should be ashamed of yourself bury your face in the dust and say Lord I'm thoroughly ashamed of my marriage I'm still fighting with my wife and we've been married for two or three years what are you going to grow dear brothers and sisters I'm not rebuking you I'm pleading with you because the devil is being honored and glorified if your married life is like that that's why I'm concerned that my saviors name is being dishonored by the way you live in your in your home that's why I'm concerned and the devil is getting a chance to accuse you to God so if the Apostle Paul could preach and at the end of it the elders were like that I say Lord where am I I can preach in some of my elders may also be like this in their own becoming like Pope's instead of being humble servants who want to wash other people's feet one of the things I told the Lord was I say Lord I want to be a perpetual washer of people's feet all my life I want to be at the feet of my disciples of the people in the church to wash their feet to care for them practically I am willing to pick up their shoes I'm willing to polish their shoes if needed I I don't want any honor in the church I want to serve and I'm willing to clean their restrooms I'm willing to do anything I want to serve but I want to build a church of Jesus Christ because I serve a lord who washed people's feet on the last day of his earthly life and when I said that some people say brother Zack but your messages are so hard I say that's because so much dirt on your feet I've got to use a brush to scrub it all off and that hurts a bit but my aim is still to clean your feet don't forget that we want clean feet that's how calling but these elders were not like that and it brought division see what happened turn with me to the second letter to the Ephesians I just read the first letter to the Ephesians let's turn to 2nd Ephesians you know where that is you haven't read the second letter to the Ephesians turn with me to Revelation chapter 2 Revelation chapter 2 is the second letter to the Ephesians the first one is written by Paul the second one is written by John same church where Paul warned them but this is about 28 years after Paul died Paul died around 67 80 this is 95 80 John is the only living apostle now and now the Lord the same Lord who spoke through Paul in 55 ad to those elders now he's speaking through John 40 years later 95 82 perhaps some of those elders have died but the church in Ephesus has deteriorated so much exactly like Paul prophesied not prophesied like he warned and they didn't take his warning seriously he says to them yeah you're still very active first to your toil and your perseverance and you have your conferences and your singing is all wonderful and your music is great you've got more musical instruments there than you had in the early days I'm just adding two things there which is that's the spirit of it and you're very careful about your doctrine you don't allow false doctrine to come verse 2 and you're very steadfast you still have your conferences every year but the most important thing is gone you have left your first love you think I'm interested in all your activity know your love is gone what's the use of that what's use of all your activity if you don't love me anymore you know this happens in marriages you see a newly married couple to set up their home I really love one another and the bride she's just married now just a couple of days or a week or so and waiting eagerly for the husband to come back from work and as soon as the doorbell rings she's there at the door and says honey so good to meet you and kisses him and hugs Amin's has come bad dinners already let's sit down and eat you go to that same house 10 15 years later the doorbell rings husband comes in nobody's there and from some other room the wife says hey I was hungry I ate but some dinner left for you go and eat whatever you feel like this she's still cooking the food yes she's still taking care of the house but the first love is God like they sing in that song like the early do of morning after some time the Sun rises and the dew is disappeared the first love is gone and what is that husband saying well I was not interested in your love I was just interested in the food is that what he says that's what the Lord says you think I'm interested in your conferences and your meetings and your music in and the new musical instruments you have I'm not interested in that at all I'm interested in your love for me just like any good husband would want from his wife and that's what's disappeared in the lives of many Christians when I got converted truly converted that took me some time I used to accept Christ many many times from the age of 13 to 19 I never knew which was the right one but one day I fell in love with Jesus Christ 19 now then I was really converted then I took baptism and I tell you before the Lord that for me today after 60 years of being converted my service for the Lord is unimportant most important thing for me is that I love Jesus with all my heart and everything flows out of that because otherwise I know it has no value before God no value at all I'm nearly 80 years old 80 years old and I say Lord I'll travel for you give me another 20 years and I'll travel still I don't believe I finished saying thank you to you for dying for me on the cross I haven't finished saying thank you to I've written tha n I still got some more letters to write to complete that sentence thank you Lord for dying for me I will never never think of serving the Lord if I don't love him because I've seen from here and is this an important thing you husband's tell me did you marry someone just to cook your food and put your clothes in the washing machine and to keep your house tidy I hope you married someone who you wanted to love you and you whom you wanted to love that's the only basis for a happy married life and that's exactly how it is the Lord with us and this is so serious that the Lord says verse 5 remember from where you have fallen you'd think only falling into adultery or falling into the love of money series now if you've lost your first love for Jesus Christ you have fallen you have fallen from that great height right to the bottom and the Lord says this is such a serious fall that I'm going to remove the lampstand verse 5 from your mill in other words in paraphrasing it it means I'm going to D recognize you as a church you can call yourself first church in Ephesus but Jesus Christ will not be there I'm going to remove the lampstand means my life will no longer be in this church you can continue with your preaching and your conferences and your singing and add more musical instruments all the rest of it but I will not be here imagine being in a church where Christ is not there there are many churches like that Christ is not there think of the Church in Laodicea later on you read do you know that church where the Lord says I stand at the door and knock you remember that verse spoken to the Church in Laodicea if Jesus is standing at the door of a church and knocking where is he inside or outside you know it he's telling a church I stand at the door and knock we preach that to the unbeliever Oh brothers folks Jesus standing at the door of your heart nagi it was not written to unbelievers it was written to a church revelation 3:20 and there are many churches like that where Jesus standing at the door and knocking I don't want to be in such a church I want to be in a church where Jesus Christ is recognized as Lord and loved as Lord and where all the leaders are fervently in love for Jesus Christ even if they are not great preachers doesn't matter if they love Jesus Christ that's the main thing and the Lord says I'm going to withdraw from here but there are some were seven in your midst who are overcomers ah thank God that even in such a church there is a remnant perhaps not the elders but a few younger people there for a fiery in love with Christ - a fervent against sin what is the bride do when the bridegroom leaves the wedding hall unless she still hang around there know when the bridegroom leaves the bride leaves as well so when Jesus Christ left this church in Ephesus in 1895 I don't believe these guys repented what do you think these overcomers who were the Bride of Christ did they left as well maybe they were only 10 15 of them they left and started meeting separately as a second Church in Ephesus and this big 1000 member first church in Ephesus denounced these separators and these people who think there was more spiritual and all that and denounced them but the Lord was there he was no longer here this is what's happened in Christendom through the ages that the Lord has always got to pull out a small group out of a church which started will founded by an apostle but which finally died that's happened again and again and again and again in Christendom thank God for the remnant that's always come out and that's why we have a pure Christianity today I remember when we came out number of us 43 years ago it was the same principle we was sick and tired of churches which did not love Jesus fervently which did not preach the whole counsel of God left out certain things and where elders were seeking their own and not fervently in love for Christ and we pulled out him well people ask me what will happen to the sea of sea movement after some years I'll tell you if our elders become like the elders in Ephesus God with God has got no partiality his loyalty is not to CFC I'll tell you that he will pull out some overcomers and this dead CFC Church will continue because the elders were not serious I've told that to all our elders I work with a hundred and fifty elders and about 75 churches and this is exactly what I tell them if you guys are not wholehearted if you guys are not fervent in love for Christ till the end if you show partiality in your life you don't preach the full counsel of God you're afraid of men more than you're afraid of God I tell you Jesus Christ will withdraw from this church Jesus Christ is not loyal to Zak Puna nor does he have see he's got some standards and we want those standards to be preserved until the day Jesus comes and I would say Lord if the church which I started somewhere is declined please pull out a group and start another one because I want a pure Church everywhere and I'm know my loyalty is not to CFC is to Jesus Christ dear brothers I speak fervently because I'm concerned that the name of Jesus Christ should be glorified in every place wherever you come from you must have a church that that glorifies Christ God allowed you to come here to listen to the truth so that you can be a part of that remnant that stands up for the Lord in your village or town or where you come from may God help you to do that let's pray Heavenly Father we pray that you will help us to take your word seriously we see the we have to learn from the mistakes of others we're not better than them we are all sinners saved by grace but you've been patient with us you've borne with us we want to take our Christian life more seriously we want a turnaround this weekend in this lives of all who have come here so that we can be the testimony you want us to be in the place where you're placed us please help us Lord fill us with the Holy Spirit we pray in Jesus name Amen

Channel: AtlantaCFC

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Id: LbYIt-nKV14

Length: 61min 1sec (3661 seconds)

Published: Mon Jul 01 2019