Bishop Noel Jones - Be Strong For Me - February 23, 2020

[Music] [Applause] you can get into something in [Music] [Applause] seems to be a focus on Peter particularly because of his later works when you consider first and second Peter and the way God used him and somehow there has been leaning towards how he became so usable and so powerful when we see him in the Gospels as being braggadocious and haughty cocky and prideful and all of a sudden later we see him being used so marvelously and so wonderfully by God and as you look at Peter you can't help but look at Judas because one might argue that seems as that both of them had gone down the same Road one of course betraying Jesus and one denying Jesus so vehemently that he ended up the cursing and swearing well how many times in our own way we betray Jesus and in many ways we have denied Jesus we have betrayed Jesus in that many times we didn't give him the value that he is where I know that makes it sound as if all of us had little Judas innocent the truth is that all of us have experienced the Judas spirit oh yes I don't want to belabor the point but since you are so resistant there are times when you have bundled up all of your salvation and everything that you have accomplished for God and if God didn't in a seed you would have sold that cheaply you have would have given it up for one night affair or a fling after God has enriched you in such a great way if it wasn't for the power of God you would have gambled it away Vegas would have gotten what God gave you for your children mm-hmm and at that moment you had a Judas experience and that is when you did not value your salvation enough to maintain it by reading the Bible and praying and giving all the time that he is due based on what he has done for you that moment you have had a Judas experience the reason why you still here in spite of your Judas experiences is that even though you may have had a Judas experience you don't have Judas his heart as long as you don't have his heart none of us can argue that we haven't had Peter experiences because there's been many times that our attitude and our disposition would deny that we have ever been with Christ the way we talked to that teller at the bank or the way we acted while we were driving on the street the way we responded to the other church member to the other saint of God would be indicative of the fact just the way you look at somebody but given again an indication that you don't even know the mane the finger you gave while you were driving past that other person who cut you off and the curse words that you so melodiously and euphonious lee and so poetically laid out sound as if you were rapping the curse well it's indicative of the fact that there is in all of us some denial but the truth is that the Lord has such a relationship with us that even when we're weak he restores us and he brings us to that place of strength I give some consideration to the relationship that Peter has with Jesus and in many instances I don't know that I could stand having a relationship with someone who is unquestionably superior in a human existence I don't know how I could ever get along with somebody who was perfect and live with somebody who was totally without flaw can you imagine having to live with somebody who is totally without flaw there's absolutely nothing wrong with them they're perfect from the crown of their head to the sole of their feet every attitude is right every disposition is right and you have to deal with somebody like that when you know you were flawed many times we are very glad when somebody has a flaw we're very glad because it makes it easier for us to live with them with our flaws when we can always bring up the fact when they point out our flaws we can always bring up their how many times have we waited until we were accosted and many times honestly accosted because of our attitude and disposition and instead of dealing with our attitude and disposition we focused on theirs we changed the subject to make it even out things a little bit here so that we could justify our behavior and not feel the brunt and the guilt of how we behaved can you just imagine being with somebody who's perfect in every way and you have to deal with trying to come up to that standard of perfection or fall into that depression of guilt based on the fact that you aren't as wonderful as they are but we have to have a relationship together I'm saying that because I'm asking you how do you respond when someone else is reading you and reading you so perfectly and they're right every time how do you react to the individual that knows you so well that they can even predict what you are going to do in spite of what you say you're going to do how do you get around somebody who can look you in the face and say to you in spite of what you think about yourself before the crows you're going to deny me thrice how do you deal with a God who just looks into you and I and die sexist and tears us apart because the word of course is like a two-edged sword and you say it chops I say it pierces and it pierces all the way through the flesh through the soul and into the spirit and everything you and I are are open to the of God and yet still he on the other side is totally perfect how do you get along in a relationship I could take it even further because you're dealing in a relationship where he's eternal and you are ephemeral and if there's going to be any eternity in you you have to meet the standard that he has exactly and the standard that he has shed his blood for it would seem to me that it is a place of total humility it's a place of you approach not approaching from the standpoint of looking him in the face can i connect take my time for a minute the hours late our politicians and it's political time we got to do it we got to do but there's an interesting thing in relationship to where we stand in relationship to where we stand and in relationship to where God is and in relationship to where Satan is as it relates to us so we become the center point for this illustration when we approached by Satan where does he belong Satan belongs under my feet he does not belong in my face because the power of God has given me the strength to overcome Satan I am NOT a superior angel indeed and in fact I'm not a superior angel to Satan I am indeed a joint heir of Christ which is quite a difference than being a superior angel to understand that in this illustration you'd understand that the first angel who came to Daniel was not a superior angel to the angel who stopped him and that angel who stopped him was not a superior angel to Mike who released the bottom angel from the second angel there's a hierarchy system I am NOT a part of the high but then when Michael approached Satan he said the Bible said he dares not make an accusation against Satan which means Satan is a superior angel to Michael who's a superior angel to the Prince of Persia who's a superior angel to the one who brought the message from God now notice now that I have power over Satan but I'm not a superior angel I'm a joint heir with the garage and so when Michael called for God because Michael said the Satan the Lord rebuke you he puts me on that same plane why because I am a joint heir with Christ so whatever power Christ has over Satan I have over Satan that's why God told me if you resist the devil he will flee from you so when in juxtaposition to Satan Satan belongs under my feet but when I am in juxtaposition to Jesus Christ my lord I belong on my knees I hope you see even though I'm joint heir with Christ I have to understand his total and complete holiness and perfection and when I approach him I cannot approach him as if we are equals I have to approach him understanding you that I am the flawed part of this relationship and he is the whole part of this relationship and if we're ever going to have a meaningful relationship then he has to impart and impute to me righteousness he has to give me something that I cannot get on my own without him giving it to me now the difficulty here now is to realize or accept then a position of total dependence and in human relationships you and I want to make sure that we're recognized for what we bring to the table I don't want to have a relationship with you where it seems as if you are the cat's meow and the dogs bow-wow and I am nothing at all because I want you to understand that I am valuable in this relationship and I want you to understand that I am significant in your life that's the human way that's the human jockeying that's the human arena that's the human battle to see who is really the most significant in this relationship I'm just as important as you and indeed and in fact you could have never achieved what you have achieved without me you could never get where you're going without me because in many instances it becomes a self-esteem situation it becomes a value Who am I and what do I have and you want to feel as if you can contribute it is so much so that many of us want to be needed we have this proclivity maybe this predilection that might be a stronger word for us to be needed because it's an issue of self-worth it's a demand on feeling inferior to prove equality or superiority and so there's always this jockeying this battle between people because you made me but oftentimes we are needed but not appreciated I hate to go it that way because indeed and in fact sometimes you God knows is true sometimes you don't even want to approach who you need there are certain people you need who you don't like because of their attitude towards you and there's sometimes you take your last breath and never say a word to them because of the disposition they have towards you sometimes you're regarded as needy sometimes you're regarded as incapable of handling your own business and sometimes you're regarded as the lesser person in the relationship because all you're bringing is yourself you're not bringing anything with yourself I'm bringing myself and all the money and everything else that goes with it and you just bring in yourself and you think yourself is as much as myself and everything else that I'm bringing so we've got this self-esteem battle and we feel reduced and many times when you feel reduced you talk the most and you get loud then you get you need the attention I'm trying to work it you see Jesus has to recognize and understand as an omniscient Savior he has to understand the attitude that's flowing in and with his own disciples and in this case particularly Peter if you notice the disciples first of all they loved to compare themselves with each other if you remember they didn't want Jesus to go to Zacchaeus his house they didn't want him to talk to the woman at the well if you notice they didn't want him to deal with the children they wanted to send the five thousand and the four thousand away if you notice they were very concerned about him being touched with the woman with the issue of blood and of course they would have a great problem with the lepers if you notice they rebuked him and when they said to him care is the map that I perish and so you notice their disposition about everything else well what are these disciples doing because if they're not feeding people if they don't want people healed if they don't want people visited but they want them to deal with the children what in the world are they doing the Bible says they're sitting and they're trying to decide who is the greatest among them so their life was seeing who can elevate and be significantly important above the rest Peter takes it even a little further because he receives a revelatory experience from God when the question was asked by Jesus who do men say that I am who do you say that I am and Peter blurted out at Thou art the Christ the Son of the Living God and the revelatory experience obviously went to his head because he failed to understand that this was not your cognitive energy this was not your creative intellectual ability this was not your analysis of leaders and spiritual analysis of who Jesus is this simply was revealed to you not by flesh and blood but my father which is in heaven don't take your little revelatory experience and let it go to your head because it's not you that's finding this out it is God who gives it to you in spite of your inadequate ability to figure him out it's only God who can give you that kind of knowledge don't sit and believe that you're better than the person to the left or the right of you or behind you or in front of you because if it was not for the righteousness and the power of God you would not be sitting clothed and in your right mind I feel like preaching today that oftentimes we let position and we let our placing get to our heads isn't it Peter when Jesus was talking a little bit later about dying and going to the cross based upon the fact that Peter in in Luke I think earlier chapter didn't even want Jesus to wash his feet and Jesus said to him if if you don't allow me to wash your feet you'll have no part of you see Jesus is detecting Peters disposition and he's actually bringing out his disposition what Peter is saying is Lord I don't want you to wash my feet because I'm not a foot washing myself and you are elevated above me and since I'm not a foot washer I certainly don't want you to wash my feet because if you wash my feet that opens me up to some stuff that I really don't want to do somebody was with me there's a point with the Lord in what he administers in terms of example puts us in a place where it challenges how we feel about ourselves because he brings us to a point where we cannot deny we cannot deny what he is challenging in us if I can wash your nasty dirty feet because those feet will not Louboutin feet they were not Gucci feet they were not proud of feet they were none of those kind of feet they were feet in sandals walking through mud with clay between their toes and you had to scrub at these feet to get them clean oh no they were not Bruno Maglis they were not covered in wonderful sandals from Paris they were dirty feet that were walk and if you wash my dirty feet then you put me in a position where I gotta do things that don't go with I am the example the Lord doesn't tell you to do something he wouldn't do he goes further down below what you would do in order to show you how you ought to behave you can't walk with my superiority and act as if you're an equal you have got to understand that I know who you are but I do know your struggles so here's what he said to them I call you no longer servants but I call you friends because if I bring you into a friend relationship then you'll understand that this is not dictation from the point of view of me hiring you I want you to admire me it's not what friends do friends admire each other in order to be like each other and seek the common ground that each one of them has because I'm going to open my heart to you I don't open my heart to the hired help I open my heart to people who I'm drawing in to my inner circle and I can't draw you in if I don't open my heart but you have to appreciate my heart to the point where you admire my heart and you want to be and have my heart because we're friends and how can two walk together except they agree you can't be lofty in your attitude and I be lonely in my attitude and we both get along together you have got to reduce your pride and pick up my humility so that both of us can walk together in the power that I have because Peter I want you to know there's no power in being braggadocious there's no power in being cocky and arrogant there is no power in you being self-sufficient because your self-sufficiency can't drive the devil out of anywhere because without me with somebody get it without me you can't do nothing it becomes important now because we understand the significance of that presentation he's talking about the vine and the branches the branches are not connected to the source of power the source of power obviously in this illustration is the earth it is the obese it is that place out of which everything emerges Paul Tillich calls it the Appice of that place where everything that exists emerges from the very throne and grace of God everything then is connected as a branch to the vine which is connected to the source of power what Jesus is saying is if your severed from me you cannot affect anything because the power that comes from the abby's from that place where everything exists has to flow through me and then in to you so first of all you're not walking over here with equality because you're not define secondly you have no independent fruitfulness because you're not connected to the vine thirdly you can have no stability because you cannot be suspended without being connected to the fine that means I am the source of all of your power and all powers are derived from the supernatural source and depend on Jesus Christ to fulfill his own nature and function therefore he that abideth in me and I in him bring it forth much fruit I want you to understand that this language does not repress the endeavor of the human will after righteousness I wish I had the time I tell you a little bit about the Augustine pelada controversy where one argues the human involvement and the other argues the divine involvement that stimulates human involvement but Peter had to come to the place where he understood that you don't protect Jesus Jesus protects you you don't command Jesus Jesus commands you you don't tell him what you're going to do because he'll tell you what you're going to do and what you will do after you do what you shouldn't do I want to talk to somebody here God wants to use you but you got to embarrass yourself before he does you got to come to the place where you understand that you are not God because God blessed you aha you still need God to keep on maintaining the blessing that he gave you and to give you more because you can't get it you can't keep it I can I preach or let me give you another example a firmer said to me one time he said brother pastor I need you to give me a church with some people in it because I'm having a hard time in this little church I have I need you to put me in a church where we have some folk that will do some work that will operate I need some better folk and I said to him very simply I said sir why do you think you can keep who you can't attract do you understand what I'm saying you if you can't my brother if you can't attract her why you think you can keep her and sweetie if you can't you can't say that now that's that's wrong I gotta call your name I can't call you no nicknames but if you can't attract him why you think you can keep him if somebody gives you something you can attract why you think you can keep it you see that's the thing with your gifts and that's the thing with your blessing you can't get it on your own why you think you can keep it if God gives it you oughta give him praise for it because he's the one who gives it and no matter how the devil tries to get it he can't get it because God gave it and if God gave it he'll keep you in it it's a critical thing now because this is not addressed to people without a relationship but two disciples he's talking to a disciple who have to learn that they have a constant need of spiritual contact with their indivisible Lord on Saturday morning at 5 o'clock the prayer warriors will come together in this house at 5 the people who are coming to pray are not people who are looking for a beginning experience with God these people who are coming to pray at 5 a.m. in the morning already have and experience with God but they understand that if we're going to sustain what God bought for us with his blood then we have to constantly be in communication with him because it's not a one-time deal it's over when he died on the cross he declared it is finished but when he saved my soul it's a process so I have to keep on keeping on holding on to whatever he gives because I need new and fresh revelation every day for the Battle of the day that I have to fight I can't get so cocky that I don't need my Savior and act as if I can operate without him because without him I can do nothing I'm almost there Patrick come back from break it's a critical thing now because it's a constant need of spiritual contact with their invisible Lord as a believer as an apostle a bishop I don't care what you are a saint who is severed from Christ living in past reputation or supposed Trent or clearness of intellect or vigor of the body or eminence of position he can and will do nothing that's why there is a danger of having little revelation and misunderstanding the total picture of God I gave you revelation to bring you into a place where you understand who is the power of the house and that's why Peters proclivity to boast too proud to be proud to be equal to be self-reliant to compare himself with others even in the tech sea declares though all men for sake what do you know about all men for you to have the unmitigated gall and audacity to make judgments about me all men what do you know about that person beside you so that you can make judgments as to what they will or will not do your business is not what all men will do your business is what you will do and I'm gonna tell you in spite of your all men's statement I'm gonna tell you what you're gonna do early in the morning before the crows you're going to deny me three times I feel like preaching early in the morning you ought to be seeking me but early in the morning you're going to be denying me I feel like preaching what do you know about all men what do you know about the other brother the other sister why do you spend your time making judgments as to where they are because where they are is not significant to where you are your concern is not where the pastor is or the deacon this person is that that person is or who's over the prayer holes over the singing or who's over the women who's over the men that it's your concern because you are not designated to judge another man's servant your job is to judge where you are I feel like preaching here why you man over my car over her house over his job that ain't your business your business is to handle what he gave you your business is to watch and protect the anointing he gave you not to go pokin to see whether somebody else is anointed the all men what do you know about all men you don't know that I've got some people right besides you who don't look the part but they are the part they don't look like they're anointed but they are anointed because anointing isn't seen by the eyes anointing has to be revealed I'm almost there it's a critical piece because they're total obvious Jesus's relationship with him y'all rest a little bit Peters need to validate himself to strain to force the relationship to prove himself as good as anybody else that's why I think it's Luke 18 there was a little bit of significance to the text in Luke 18 because Oh God the time is upon us and Luke 18 there was a little little piece in about verse 24 or so and if I got it correctly if I can open this page lord have mercy yeah I think I got it now where he says and when Jesus there 18 and 24 and Jesus says all that he was very sorrowful how hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of heaven and when he deals with the issue of being rich and the outward attitude and the outward significance where people are caught up on what they see from a visual point of view but not what God is saying to them in the spirit if you walked in and among the disciples Peter would look exceptional in his attitude towards Jesus swinging swords and chopping off ears and talking vehemently and vociferously about where he would be positioned and what he would do under stress in the retexe I'll go to prison with you and I'll even die with you but that's one thing to say before the tests comes it's easy to talk before you're in the middle of something it's easy to declare what you'll do until you're in the field of furnace and the fire is burning can you still stand up like the three Hebrew boys and look Nebuchadnezzar in the face and look him dead in the season so that we are not careful to answer you concerning this matter but the God we serve is able to deliver us out of the burning fiery furnace and he will deliver us out of your hand Oh King but if not everybody give somebody a high five for the first time and say all of us need and if not Klaus if not are you still going to stand if not are you still going to defy the powers of the enemy if not are you still going to declare the Lord is my shepherd and I if not are you still going to praise Him if not are you still going to lift him up and give him glory if not are you still going to walk the walk and talk the talk if not are you still going to stand up and declare for God I live for God I'll die everybody needs and if not Klaus because sometimes he don't answer when you want him to but somebody told me but he's still right on time that's why the pride and contention go together the revelation of the past a good argument for Peter to use but I heard Jesus tell him get thee behind me Satan because you have allowed yourself to be employed by the devil you have allowed him to try to get me not to operate in where I'm supposed to be because you don't have your place right when you get in the right place touch somebody for the second time and so there's nothing like being in the right place anointing falls in the right place blessings move in the right place attitudes get straight in the right place deliverance comes when you're in the right place and sometimes you have to embarrass yourself in order to get into the right place sometimes you gotta get into the right place sometimes you gotta see how ugly you are to get in to the right place I feel like giving God some glory I feel like lifting him up that's why the Lord is saying to him now I'm not throwing you away I'm not throwing you out of the kingdom but Satan desires to shift you like wheat can I preach like I feel it the devil is a hound dog no no no the devil is a lion seeking whom he may devour can I preach like a seal it and what it's a sin that moves Satan to whom he can devour it's not humility Satan can walk all over humility and never find the person because humility cloaks you from the devil when you are he moves around seeking whom he will devour but he can't pick up the center because where there's humility he can't pick up the center the saint he can pick up is the sinkhole pride when he's seeking whom he may devour he can't devour the humble because God gives more grace he resists the proud give some money high five and say neighbor the devil is looking for somebody that God resists he can't touch anybody else but he can touch who God resists I wish I had some sound sound man he can't touch you when you're humble upon the name of the Lord and the humble declare the name of the Lord is a strong tower the righteous run it into it and I see I feel like preaching that's why the devil is a roaring lion and he reminds me of the three little pigs and the three little pigs and the big bad wolf the big bad wolf said to one pig little pig little pig let me in he built his house out of straw my chinny-chin-chin then I'll blow your house down he blew his house down he ran over to his brother who built his house out of wood and here come the devil like the little wolf that little pig little pig let me in not on the hair of my chinny-chin-chin then I'll huff and I'll blow your house down but I'm so glad there was one brother upon this rock I'll build my church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it and he ran into the rock little lion like a roaring lion up like the little bad wolf Holy Ghost Jesus name channa house down give somebody hearts I'd say he's still still praising the Lord because I found out without him the Holy Ghost that when I'm weak he's still strong give some money high five and say neighbor do you have some strings for me when I don't think I can make it do you have some strength I'm so glad some strength is strong honey I woke up this morning and my face was not on CNN because God has been strong I woke up this morning and I wasn't in a mental hospital because God has been strong this morning with joy in my spirit because God has been strong his strengthens me when I would back up he strengthens me for goodness [Music] [Applause] the days of my life give somebody a high five say neighbor I need a spotter I need a spotter I've been lifting my weight I've been pushing my weight pushing well I'm so glad I got somebody to catch my way somebody to lift my weight I'm so glad give somebody a high five for the last time same name if I'm a week can you help me do you have a world do you have an anointing do you have a prayer I confess I need your lord I confess be strong for me [Music] camera I need a spotter somebody Allah he's been strong [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] his help is always present it's just for us to acknowledge and some of us have great testimonies now because he said after you're converted I am Telling You that you are going to fail but your faith is not going to fail you have to fail for me to be able to use you but these words that I'm giving you right now it's where you're going to put your faith here's where you put your faith and after you're converted hear me now because the Declaration of failure could mess with faith but he countered the declaration of his failure with the declaration of his restoration so your faith is not gonna fail when you fail because your faith is gonna be anchored in your restoration it's a two-fold prophetic utterance fail your restoration and I can take a third and encouraging those who are around you everybody has a testimony that's born out of failure testimony isn't only born out of blessings testimony is born out of failure you heard one this morning my herb listen how many years has he been drug free the testimony born out of failure that's my next subject write that down testimony born out of failure [Music] you you

Channel: Official Bishop Noel Jones

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Length: 52min 7sec (3127 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 25 2020