Five Warnings The Lord Gives by Zac Poonen

I want to speak today on the message the Lord gave to the churches in the book of Revelation this is important for us because of one reason and that is asked messages that the Lord gave to the churches and we want to look particularly at not all seven but the five churches which the Lord asked to repent the last men you know a lot of people say ask this question in Christian Christendom what is the last message that the Lord gave to the church and they say to go unto all the world and preach the gospel to every creature I said no the last message the Lord gave to the churches in Revelation repent it was long before that was 60 years before that that he said go into all the world and preach the gospel and make disciples of all nations so many have neglected the last message that the Lord gave for the church and that's here in Revelation chapter 2 and 3 so if you look at the five weaknesses that the Lord saw in these churches here are the five things that the Lord tells us in in our time first of all here is a church in Ephesus Revelation chapter 2 to whom the Lord says you you I mean there are many good deeds you've done and your toil and your perseverance you cannot endure evil men and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles we're stew and you know there's so many good things their toil perseverance you can in your evil you test the false teachers a lot of things that are true of our church and of many of you were serious about your Christian life and you have persevered endured for my name's sake and you've not grown weary with all those good qualities which we have we can think we are okay that's the great danger of many many Christians they can look at all these good qualities and I believe every one of these are good qualities that every Christian should have if you look through verse 2 and 3 every one of these qualities we must have you meditate on them sometime but the whole thing gets canceled out because you have left your first love it's like you know you fill a vessel with something valuable milk or something like that and then you make one little hole at the bottom waste of time having filled it with milk because that hole at the bottom drains out everything in it it becomes of no value and this is what happens to us when we lose our first love for Jesus Christ and that is very easy to lose because it many many Christians I have seen their personal devotion and worship of Christ is not as important to them as all their activity and they particularly he maybe some of you are very active in the church which is a very good thing because so many others are lazy and do nothing and definitely we are thankful for those who are willing to serve the church in some way do something for the church volunteer and do things even without volunteering excellent the great danger for you is that in the midst of all your activity and all your devotion and your faithful Bible reading and everything else that that personal devotion to Jesus Christ goes and it's the things that you once did out of love for Christ is now become a burden because you do it still but it's not with the same spring in your step and the light in your eyes no it's it's become different and that's a great tragedy to love Jesus is to worship Him and there's a principle that the Lord taught in the reply he gave the Satan when Satan asked him to worship Him in Matthew 4 and verse 10 Jesus said you shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve so what the Lord taught there is we cannot serve the Lord in any way if we haven't become worshipers first and I believe this is the great tragedy with a lot of Christian work to the people who are serving the Lord are not worshipers if they were worshipers there would be a different tone in their service in their ministry and they wouldn't easily fall into sin like so many preachers are doing nowadays it's all because worship and love for Jesus has gone turn with me to second Corinthians in chapter 11 second Corinthians 11 Paul was burdened for the Christians in Corinth for one particular thing and we have looked at this verse many times and I will tell you honestly and never get tired of looking at it because I want to make sure it never happens to me Paul says I'm jealous for you verse to second Corinthians 11:2 with a godly jealousy because I've betrothed you to one husband to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin he's talking there of him you know a bride getting ready to marry a bridegroom and that is how the attitude we should be in all the time till Christ comes and Christ comes we read the marriage of the lamb is gonna take place and think how a bride looks if she's really in love with her husband think how eagerly she looks forward to that day and he's just waiting and she's not thinking of what she's gonna cook or she's not gonna thinking what she's gonna do she's just thinking that she loves her bridegroom so much and she wants to be with him that is how it must be with the true Christian so I'll tell you honestly that I'm not looking forward to go to heaven to find a comfortable place and freedom from pressure and problems and sicknesses no if you're looking for that like a lot of Christians are you know a lot of people who are sick say Lord take me away from here a lot of people have problems lord please take me away I'm sick and tired of this world see I don't think such people are really in love with Jesus Christ they are looking forward to a heaven where life will be comfortable and easy and the great danger of that is that even on earth we will choose a path of Christianity that is comfortable and easy which does not require too much sacrifice and self-denial because what we are looking forward to in heaven is comfort and ease and big mansion and gold and planning gold on the streets many your money and also Jesus so people are looking to go to heaven for all those things and also Jesus will also be like that on earth they say well thank God that we have so many things we've got a good job I got a good salary I got a good house and lot of comfort and ease and also Jesus Jesus not primary just search your heart and see if that is true what I'm saying or not think of a bridegroom is Oh looking forward to the house that she's going to live in and how much money her husband's gonna earn and not him himself it's not a very healthy it's not going to be a very healthy marriage and unfortunately a lot of marriages in India are like that because this when it says here in the next verse the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness see when a person tries to deceive you with a counterfeit gold or counterfeit currency note he is succeeded only if you think you're not deceived if you think you are deceived he has not succeeded he said his effort was a failure he tried to fool me but he couldn't but here it says Satan deceives people with his craftiness and don't imagine oh no no I'm not deceived maybe you're not but maybe you are and you don't realize it and we need to check ourselves I mean if there's a lot of counterfeit currency going around in this city you'll be very careful about anything that you you receive even in a shop so it says here the way that devil deceives us is our mind is led astray from simple pure devotion to Jesus Christ it gets taken up with some other thing not with evil things I mean if if the devil gives you something even there are evil things the devil offers us like telling lies and stealing and lusting after women and all that but there's no deception there's no deception there at all it's obvious you see us you see the devil asking you to do something which your conscience tells you is wrong where's the deception there zero it's when we are doing so many things which we know are absolutely right and we're zealous and it's just that we have cooled off enough devotion to Christ and that can happen in a church after some years and it can happen to a Christian after some years and so if we are not careful if we don't keep checking ourselves it can happen to you please remember this and if you have lost that say you've lost the most important thing in the Christian life it is the most important thing most important thing is not coming to church regularly it's not even reading the Bible regularly it's not praying always it's not witnessing the most important thing in the Christian life I hope I can impress this upon your heart strongly his personal devotion to Christ every single day and I believe it should increase in our life all the time it's like when a couple get married as I said if they're really looking forward to a comfortable life or looking forward to sex and things like that it's not a good marriage any worldly marriage will be like that a good Christian marriage is where they are devoted to Jesus and devoted to one another they love one another deeply and I often may ask married couples this question do you love each other today more than you did on the day you got married if not your marriage is going the wrong direction I don't care whether you had enough money to build a house and you earned enough to take care of your family those things are not the main thing do you love your wife more than you did on the day you married her do you love your husband more than you did on the day you married her it's a very important question it's a where any married couple here can check up on your own life don't just be satisfied that we don't fight with each other you don't quarrel with each other no if your marriage is healthy you'll really love one another because that's the main thing jesus said characterize our marriage now apply that to our relationship with Christ I go to church regularly it's not the important thing I read the Bible regularly no is your personal devotion to Christ today more do you love to talk to him do you love to spend time with him if you don't love to talk to your marriage partner you don't love to spend time with him or her it's pretty obvious you don't love them do you really long to talk to Jesus you any waking moment you say if you are free from other things see I want to spend time sometimes the Lord I love him I want to I want him to know that I love him so when it says here that the devil led Eve astray in the Garden of Eden from devotion to Christ I mean Jesus was there in the second person of the Trinity even there and in God's mind he was already Jesus Christ so that tree of life which the devil led Eve astray from represents devotion to Jesus Christ so this is the one verse that interprets in the New Testament what the Tree of Life meant there you read it as tree of life and you don't know what it symbolizes here is the one verse in the New Testament that teaches us what it symbolizes what the devil led adamandeva straight from was devotion to Jesus Christ which is the tree of life and that is the tree of life today and if the devil succeeds in leading you away from devotion to Jesus Christ to it anything else that's the same mistake that Adam made in the Garden of Eden because when you think of a tree of knowledge of good and evil have you ever thought of that what is wrong in knowing good and evil is doing evil I understand is wrong but knowing good and evil is anything wrong in that why did God say to Adam in the day you partake of this knowledge of good and evil you will die you need to understand that when our children are small they don't know what is good and evil they even put stones and mud in their mouths they don't know what is good and what is evil as they grow up they begin to learn what is good and evil but that's not the most important thing that we want our children to learn we want them to learn in a home anyway love and submission to their parents not just what is good and what is evil not just getting 100% in math and science No so in the same way there's a lot of knowledge of good and evil which can satisfy us knowledge of doctrine for example I feel it is possible that many of us could be satisfied that we hear truth here which people don't hear in many churches I've met numerous people around the world tell me brother Zhang we're so happy to be able to go to the internet and hear you and learn so many things and I find that they don't join a local church there we have a local church there but they don't want to come there interested in personal devotion to Christ they're just interested in listening good messages and I want to ask you are you a person who just likes to listen to good messages that challenge you particularly if it is a intellectually stimulating type of message I think Paul may have been more intellectually stimulating than Peter Peter was a unlearn at fishermen but they both love Jesus the important thing is not knowledge of good and evil the important thing is not even to be stirred by a message the important thing in the Christian life is to be devoted to Jesus Christ never never forget Matt and I'm never tired of emphasizing it is the thing in which I have tried to preserve myself all these years in the midst of all other ministry when writing and everything else I do I say Lord all these things are useless if I don't preserve myself in a fervent love for you and if I'm not a worshiper if I'm not taken up with you I wish worship it of Christ we can say is one who's taken up with Jesus nothing else interests him not even his ministry not even what he does not what people think of him it means nothing you know went through two lovers husband and wife really love each other they don't really care what others think of them are you like that can you honestly say that you live before Jesus in such a way that the opinion of others in the church doesn't really bother you consider that seriously because when the Lord spoke to the elder in Ephesus he said you have fallen listen to this Revelation chapter 2 what all does he have verse two and three deeds toil hard work perseverance cannot endure evil people test the false teachers expose them persevere endure for the name of Jesus not grown tired and such a person is a fallen Christian he's a backslider who would ever call a person who has all the qualities in two and three as a backslider I don't think you would consider yourself a backslider if you had the qualities of two and three with all your activity for the Lord and going here and doing there and some of you are going to different meetings and helping people and doing so much in in this building yes you could be a backslider you could be a thorough backslider fallen from the place where the Lord wants you to be and fallen so badly that the Lord says you got to repent and if you don't repent what is that to come back to your first devotion to Christ which I'm sure all of you had when you were first born again think of those days when you were not known you were not respected and you just loved the Lord because you had forgiven your sins but now so many activities have taken the place of that and he says if you don't repent the dangerous he says I'll take away that anointing from your life the moving of the Holy Spirit on your life will disappear and it has already happened to a number of people where the anointing of the Holy Spirit that makes everything fresh in their Christian life is gone it's become a stale routine just like in many marriages where that fervent love they had for each other is gone and now is just a dull routine everyday husband and wife are bored to talk to each other etc so that's number one danger and we go to number two which is the to the church in Pergamum the Lord says yeah once upon a time you had a verse 13 a faithful brother called Antipas but he's died but now you the new elder in Pergamum I have something against you you have their who hold the teaching of Balaam now that a lot of things in the teaching of BLM it's mentioned here about idolatry but the main thing we understand about Balaam from the Old Testament and the people were there having this influence they probably got it from the elder was that this man was directed by money more than by the Lord you know Jesus said in Luke 16 that early to master is God and money so when Balaam was invited you read that in numbers chapter 22 to 25 when the King Balak invited Balaam to come and curse Israel Balaam believe it or not he was a man who was in touch with God in fact there is a prophecy of a star rising from Jacob of the coming of Jesus Christ which Balaam prophesy believe it or not Balaam prophesied about the coming of Christ that's how much he was in touch with God and so he said I've got to ask God whether I should come and curse Israel or not and when he sought God God said no don't go and bellick he was a clever guy he says I know how to win all these preachers just give them a little more money and a little more honor and they'll forget about their God that's exactly what happened it's what's happened a lot of preachers today this man was a powerful King told Bella in Belem I'll give you more money I'll give you more honor and then he says pious language let me pray about it again pray about it again you ask yourself sometimes when the Lord has spoken something to you and then you find you're missing an opportunity to make a lot of money you know what the Lord spoken to you and you say hey I think I'm gonna pray about it again maybe I got my guidance wrong if it was less money you'd say no no gods told me not to go there but now it's different that's more money now I'm not talking about a situation by God has said nothing to you but where you felt clearly God was leading you in this direction you know when I was when the Lord spoke to me to leave my job in May I remember the day 6th of May in 1964 the Lord spoke to me clearly from Isaiah 49 but I was a servant and I had to quit and I was on vacation that time as soon as I went back to the Naval Base - and I wrote my letter of resignation that day I went my senior officer said hey do you know that you've been selected by naval headquarters for the most prestigious course in the Navy that everyone what everybody wants to get it was like the devil offering me all the riches of this world if I would bow down to him I didn't even have to think about it I said no sir I'm not gonna accept it and that chap said you're crazy so many people longed to get this course and here it's come to you in your lap and you throw it away I said law the Lord Jesus has called me to serve him that's it you'll find sometimes that when the Lord has called you to something like King Balak offered something to belem something else comes up I'm not saying a higher salary is necessarily not God's will I'm just saying be careful it may not be money maybe something else where God shown you something and then as you see something more attractive in this world you choose that see for example I've seen people who are really growing in fellowship and they've got a good job they have more than enough for their needs but there's a strange covetousness in them that makes them want to get more to get more and more and more not to survive just raise their standard of living and then they make their wives to work and end result children go astray and fifteen years later they say brother please pray for our children they were all gone astray I've seen that happen in CFC and in some other churches related to CFC or it could be something like that where something else becomes more attractive and you put a spiritual reason behind it and you do it and God is not fooled they when they seek for a place now I realize that sometimes we may get a job in a place where there is no fellowship I'm not saying that we should always look for a place where there's a good fellowship but if you have an opportunity to go to a place where there's a good fellowship it's a slightly lesser salary another place where there's no fellowship with a higher salary which would you choose it's a good question to ask yourself remember Balaam you had to pray again and you know what God said go and you ask why does God say go and then get angry with him for going and put an angel in the way to stop him because if you keep on persisting and asking God for something he'll give it to you you see I can see that that's what you want go ahead have it go your way because God does not force anyone to choose the narrow way never never never if he does not see in your heart and eager desire to choose his highest to choose the best he will not force you to go that way turn with me to a verse in Psalm and 106 you know the meaning of craving for something CRA ve crave for something that was more than asking it's a desperate desire for something and it says in Psalm 106 and verse 14 in the wilderness the Israelites craved for something God had not given them he gave them manna he's they craved for meat give us meat manna was good enough to keep them healthy what did God do they tempted God it says they put God to the test can you give us meat here in the wilderness there are no animals he gave them their request but along with it the margin of my Bible says he sent her a leanness a thinness into their soul their soul wasted away a wasting disease into their soul but he gave them their request he said you're more interested in your body than your soul okay have it but your soul will suffer exactly what's happened to a number of people I think of many people who come through the years to CFC and been gripped for a while and then something attracted them I know brothers who were tremendously gifted it's not here in Bangalore but in some other CFC churches where tremendously gifted and they were going to be great brothers in the church and could have been a great blessing in their state to the other CFC churches but they wanted more money and they found that with their preaching gift they could make money in other churches whereas in per CFC you can't make any money with your preaching gift and so with some excuse or the other they left and then they join some other Pentecostal type of church and go off making money in America and different places and then get a lot of money and build their own church building and and they want us to preach our messages to give the impression that they are still preaching the same thing God is not deceived he's not deceived by Anabella he gives them their request but from that day onwards as a leanness as sickness comes into their soul be careful that you don't get deceived by the doctrine of balaam the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil the Bible says not having money having money is not a root of all sorts of evil but loving money in fact you see the in the same chapter both those things are mentioned together turn with me to 1 Timothy 6 one timid Chapter six we read verse nine those who long to get rich getting rich is not wrong but those who are greatly longing I want to be more and more rich listen to God's Word the Holy Spirit says you'll fall into many temptations you'll fall into a snare you'll fall into foolish and harmful desires you'll fall into ruin and destruction because there's a reason because the love not money money is not the root of all evil the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil and some by longing for it not by having it but by longing for it I wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows see what all dangers there are verse nine onwards one temptation snare foolish desires harmful desires ruin destruction all sorts of evil wandering away from the faith pierced themselves through with many sorrows nine things mentioned in those two verses that can happen to a person who makes money his guard pursues it other hand what should rich people do verse 18 over 17 st. chapter just a few verses later instruct those who are rich in this world not to give up all their wealth no no he doesn't say empty your bank account and give it put it in the offering box we never teach that and the Bible doesn't teach that either not to be proud number one there's a great danger of rich people becoming proud looking down on people who are poor and sometimes giving money to poor people in a foolish way by becoming like a benefactor Here I am the rich man you poor brother-sister here's some money for you the best way to give money to a poor brother or sister is by not allowing him to know that you gave it and that is why I've said for the early church did they put the money in the half marked for the poor and the elders decided who was more needy and gave it that way you get no credit and those who are in need get the money those early Christians were wise they laid the money in the Apostles feed and the Apostles distributed knowing who is more needy otherwise what happens is one poor person gets a lot because he makes everybody know that he is for another person who doesn't want to tell anybody in this poor doesn't get anything so it's always wise to let the elders decide such matters if you know that somebody's war inform the others so that they can help but don't be proud and that's one second don't fix your hope on the uncertainty of riches is there advice to rich people many of you are rich which is not like that when we started CFC forty-two years ago when he started CFC nobody had a car everybody came to the meetings on a bicycle or by bus everyone I was the only one who had the scooter from my naval days that's all but we had such wonderful fellowship we didn't need money to make us happy when he opened the offering box in those days there'd be 2 rupees inside it fine we didn't need more than that those days we loved one another have those spiritual values remained I'm not saying that you shouldn't have a car or any such thing think times have changed and we need many of these vehicles nowadays to try and try be transported that's fine all I say is don't let these external things take away you're putting God first in your life don't fix your hope on the uncertainty of riches but always fix your hope on God who will always richly supply you not only what you need I like this verse he supplies you with things to enjoy do you think God will ever tell you to have an ice-cream McConnell you say you can't do that because he doesn't want us to enjoy anything absolute rubbish if he tells me not to have ice cream that's because it's for my good at my age not to increase my cholesterol level but you young people enjoy God wants God does God's not a person who's trying to make your life miserable that he always wants to give you the hardest job to do and make you go and live in the most difficult place and choose the house which is least convenient that's a lie God is a loving father he wants you to enjoy things but don't let those things destroy you and then in addition instruct rich people to do good you have a lot of opportunity to do good and not just to be rich in money but to be rich in good works to be generous to be ready to share that's what a rich person should do so many of you are rich you want to know what to do read verse 17 and 18 there are clear instructions it never says give up your money when it tells you what to do and that's the Holy Spirit's instruction and if you follow it it goes well with you thus you will store up for yourself a great treasure for the future so much for the doctrine of balaam now the third one in the message to the messenger in Fiat IRA the Lord says in revelation 3:18 onwards again a lot of good things verse 19 I know your deeds your love your faith your service your perseverance and your deeds of late are much more than in the beginning you're more zealous and more wholehearted in doing things for the church and for the Lord then you were in the beginning and you say wonderful here's a wonderful brother or sister no hang on but there's a spirit there and it's represented here by the name of a woman Jezebel who you know was the queen of a hub led him astray from being devoted to God by all her scheming and it says here it leads some of my bond servants to commit acts of adultery immorality that means with all this deeds and love verse 19 and faith and service and perseverance and great zeal the these people began to slip up sexually I've seen that happen I've seen pastors I've seen myself pastors with great zeal and all of a sudden they've fallen into adultery with different people in their congregation and there are actual cases like this in the United States more because they're the men and women are more free with each other it's very interesting that I noticed in America the men hugged the women and they shake hands with the men believe it or not it's true it's crazy people come to hug my wife and she says we don't do that in India thank you and so we've been come to hug me and I say hang on I'm okay no wonder there's so much immorality it leads to adultery yeah and some pastors like to give a really tight hug if it's a sister this is the type of evil that goes on in Christendom you know but you got to see it to believe it but there's a lot of zeal tremendous power in preaching and perseverance and all that and big mega church thousands of people but immorality now how does this apply to us you can be very zealous in so many areas in your life Christian areas and yet you maybe have an impure way of thinking you watch impure things on the computer and yet it doesn't reduce your zeal for the Lord in his work it's a tremendous deception you think you can make up for that immorality in your thought life and private life by a lot of activity no you can't the Lord says verse 21 I give you time to repent the Lord always gives us time to repent but I want to show you a verse in Genesis in chapter 6 when there was a lot of sexual sin in the days of Noah and the Bible says the last days will be like the days of Noah and so days of tremendous amount of sexual sin people are very wealthy in the days of Noah that come there were a lot of violence like we see nowadays what a lot of violence and murder in the newspapers nowadays it was characteristic in the days of Noah that there was so much violence violence violence violence Genesis six eleven the earth was filled with violence corrupt in the sight of God that means killing murders fighting quarreling and on top of that there was sexual sin verse two the sons of God saw the daughters of men their beautiful took wives and when the Lord saw that sexual sin in the violence you know what he said to repent but verse 3 is the worst I wanted to show you my holy spirit will not strive with you forever there's going to be a limit they didn't realize that no I warned them God's Spirit is not gonna strive with you people forever he's spoken to you again and again and again and Noah preached for 120 years I mean 120 years may appear a long time in our days but remember those days people lived up to more than 900 years so it was only about one eighth of their lifetime 120 years so in terms of today it would be like 10 years let's say 1/8 of your lifetime God saying I'll give you 10 years and then I'm gonna come down in judgment maybe for some of you that 10 years is almost getting over I will not strive with man for ever with the worldly person God says don't let them go they can live in adultery they can live stealing murdering or whether they like but when you claim to be a child of God in the church and you play the fool with God by fooling around with sexual sin privately being unfaithful to your wife or your husband and fooling around and also indulging in thoughts which are impure I want to say you're in danger acts of immorality I gave you time to repent my spirit will not always strive with you you know the best way to avoid sexual sin is to love Jesus the second best way is to fear God's judgment so if you don't choose the first way choose the second way my holy spirit will not can keep on striving with you I've been patient with you for a long time and then you remember in the Noah's day one day the rain began to fall and the door was locked and it was too late to repent sexual sin is an area where God has taken very very seriously I was looking at a concordance one day where does the fear of God where is the word fear of God mentioned first in the Bible the first time God told a man I know you fear me was when God Abraham offered up Isaac on the altar that's a proof that I fear God that I give up that which I love so much I say Lord it's yours I will not hold on to anything you're first in my life you'll always be first that's a mark of a man who fears God but the phrase fear of God comes two chapters before that and it's very interesting to see where the phrase the fear of God comes and that's in Genesis chapter 20 April Ham uses it you know he had gone to Abimelech he's gone to the territory of a ribbon-like a king and a bin Malik he wanted Sarah's I mean Abraham's wife was very attractive and good-looking and Abimelech said I want to have her and Abraham said oh she's my sister oh I've been like the king said okay then I can have her in my harem I've got many women there you can join her but God spoke to him that night and said you are a dead man Genesis 21 3 because you have taken the woman from who is somebody else's wife remember in the Old Testament even before the law was given to a heathen man God says you touch somebody else's wife you're a dead man what do you think God said today to some so-called believer who's married and who touches somebody else's wife or unmarried and touches somebody else's wife you're doubly a dead man their whim Alexis oh god please forgive me that man said is my sister see this man had a certain fear of God that God could speak to an unbeliever when he touched somebody else's wife when you've done if some of you have done something like that did you hear God speaking to you No Abimelech a heathen King had more fear of God than you it shows how little fear of God there is among Christians you don't fear God but this man God spoke to him and he said Lord in the innocence of my hands I did it verse 5 he says where God says listen to this little read these words I know that in the integrity of your heart you did this because you thought it was his or his sister and you had a right to marry her that is why I kept you from sinning against me I did not allow you to touch her why did God allow you to touch some other women I'll tell you because God saw you did not have integrity in your heart whatever type of Christian or believer you claim to be two heathen king he said I know in the integrity of your heart you did this that is why I does Jesus keep us from falling God kept Abimelech from sinning that's amazing because imagine he took this pretty woman and it was overnight and he didn't touch her one night he only had a dream God said I did not allow you to touch her because I saw the integrity of your heart brothers and sisters value integrity in your heart sincerity uprightness more than a lot of religious zeal now restore him restore the woman to the man because he's a prophet this is one place where Abraham is called a prophet verse seven and then whether maybe like called Abraham and said why have you done this verse nine however I sinned that he brought on me such a great sin Abimelech why have you done it and listen what Abram says I thought there is no fear of God in this place and they will kill me that's the very way the word fear of God comes actually every Malik didn't have a fear of God but Abraham thought there's no fear of God that's the first place in the Bible where fear of God comes and I remember when studying that in a concordance that the Lord showed me that the first place where the phrase fear of God comes in the Bible is in relation to sexual sin and that is why he allows people to be able to sin sexually in their thoughts or in their private life and nobody knows about it because he's testing them to see whether they fear him or not that's why he allows that secret area of mine Cara thought life but nobody can know what you're thinking and all the time he's testing you to see whether you fear him or not or in private you have so much opportunity to sin when you're with a computer or you throw your some other woman in your office and God is always testing the integrity of your heart especially when you claim to be part of CFC as a third area number four church in sardis to the messenger of church in sardis he says the problem with this chap was his reputation first one the last part you have a name that you're alive but you're dead you have a name that you're alive don't many of you have a name haven't you acquired a name through the years in CFC that you're a spiritually minded person you're a zealous person you're a person of integrity many of us have acquired a name in the church and many of you have acquired a name with other Christians when they hear oh you belong to CFC is it great CFC has acquired a name we are no longer a little despised group meeting in some house in a corner with people coming and going nobody's staying for too long it doesn't really we were a despised ridiculed persecuted group against whom they published tracts and wrote things and we were safe those days we're in danger today you are in danger when you have a name that you're alive I recognize that I live in constant fear of that danger I'll tell you honestly Lord I don't want to pretend that I don't face any danger I'm facing danger every day but I'm gonna be careful I don't want to have a name and not have that inner devotion to Christ be careful my brother's sister don't glory that you belong to CFC number one don't glory that you understand doctrines that other people don't know don't lorry in any of these things your glory glory in the fact that Jesus died for you all says I will not glory in anything except the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ Galatians 6:14 if you don't know that words please turn their angulation 6 and verse 14 very important verse particularly when you begin to develop a reputation may it never be may it never be Paul says that I should boast you know Paul had a lot of opportunity to boast occasion to boast because he wrote Scripture he raised people from the dead he healed the sick even a handkerchief that touched his body would bring healing and cast out demons and he planted churches and he wrote Scripture boy plenty ba and he was taken up to the third heaven a vision a lot of opportunity to boast but he says I will never boast except that Jesus died on the cross from me and through that cross I have died to the world and the world has died to me paraphrase of that verse says I now have as little interest in this world as a dead man has I meditated much on that once a man is in a coffin and buried underground how much interest does he have in this world and Paul says I have as little interest in the world and its wealth and honor and glory and pleasures as that man was in the grave and I say Lord make me like that I want to be like that if I have a goal I have many goals and here's one of them I want to be like that man in the grave was as much interested in the glory and honor and wealth of this world is that man all said I'd like that and he said well the world is also dead to me not only I'm dead to the world the world is buried as far as I'm concerned this is a dead thing it says stinking the it's stinking all foul smell is coming out of this dead thing called the world doesn't attract me anymore be careful when you get a name be careful when you get a name in CFC that your wholehearted and oh that you're preaching well good to hear you brother be careful be careful put your face in the dust and say Lord I don't want to be anything I love that picture John in Revelation chapter one it says he fell at the Lord's feet when he saw his him like a dead man revelation 1:17 I saw him and I fell at his feet as a dead man and I've said that to myself if I really see Jesus in my heart I will always fall like a dead man at his feet that is how he keeps from falling like you heard me say if you're standing you can fall if you're sitting on a chair you can fall but if you're already flat on the ground before the Lord you cannot follow that is how the Lord keeps us from falling don't stand up don't sit up before the Lord fall before his face and always lie before his face as a worshiper who's taken up with him and not taken up with how well you can serve or how well you can preach or what a reputation you have in CFC or any of this garbage like I often say put that in that trash can forget it fall down before the Lord and then you will not glory then you won't have a name that you're alive don't give an impression to people about yourself which is not true I'm not saying we should confess our sins in public but we should not try to create an impression that we are more spiritual than we really are have a sober estimate of yourself and don't try to talk type of language that I want to give people the impression that you are very spiritually or not just be sober in your way you'll speak don't take and try to get a name that you're alive if God gives you a name let him do that but you keep your face in the dust please listen to my advice and I assure you you will thank me in the day of judgment he will rejoice in that day that you were preserved and the last one to the message to the angel and layered it to the messenger of ladies here his problem was he says basically in one sentence middle of verse seventeen I have need of nothing I've need of nothing I don't need to grow any more spiritually I'm rich you're not like the old days and you're struggling God has blessed me with wealth God has blessed you with wealth is that the greatest thing God did for you somebody asked me once brother Zhang what is the mark what do you believe is the mark of God's blessing on your life I said I will tell you honestly and I say this before God this is the mark of God's blessing in my life that almost every day he shows me some area in my life where I'm on Christ like some hidden area usually of some selfishness or something like some hidden area which is you know this selfishness like an onion you can peel off a thousand layers of the onion and that's still one underneath that God shows me that it's like showing me a sickness which I never knew I had don't you think you'll be very thankful to a doctor who shows you after taking a scan of your body a sickness that you did not even know how you had it so that you can be cured of it before it gets worse and kills you what if you went around thinking you're healthy and one doctor told you hey you got cancer won't you be thankful to that doctor that you can be cured of it that is the greatest blessing I see in my life and God shows me areas of my life that I'm not Christ like I say Lord I want to be christ-like there and he'll show it to you if your passion is to be like Jesus Christ not just that you say that in the churchyard goal is to be christ-like but it's a passion you know a passion it's like a person wants to get the gold medal in the Olympic Games how his passion is 1090 denies himself does so many things passion to win the gold medal if you have that type of passion to be christ-like he will show you that is the mark of God's blessing wealth is not the mark of God's blessing he's something he throws in like a bonus no you know the difference between a bonus and a salary nobody works in an office for bonus he worked for a salary and I want to say wealth is not a salary it's a bonus what I want from the Lord is a revelation on myself because if he makes me a little more christ-like that's my salary earthly money it's just a bonus some months you may not get a bonus it's okay I get my salary you can't complain if you don't get a bonus but salary you deserve so I say Lord I want to be like Christ that's my salary other things helped and were even helped it's not a salary it's part of the bonus God throws in and he's given me a lot of these bonuses and health and wealth also but that's not my salary I never think of that is Oh God has blessed me with health and wealth no he's blessed me by showing me where I can be a little more like Jesus Christ so never come to the place where I said I need nothing because I'm rich and I'm wealthy verse 17 you don't know that you're miserable poor blind and naked you are lukewarm verse 16 you're not hot or cold and I flee that's really a charge that the Lord may have to say against number of us here you're not cold if you were cold you wouldn't be coming here but you're not on fire for God once upon a time you were but a lot of other things have come into your life and that fire is gone you're not cold you're not like those backs letters yes somewhere in between lukewarm cold coffee is good iced coffee is good hot coffee is good but lukewarm most people say no I don't want this make it hot or ice cold either way it's good it's like that the Lord says lukewarm it's no years he wants us to be on fire how many of you believe that God wants you to be either on fire for him or her only worldly you believe that that's what he says here he doesn't say I want you to be a heart no read it verse 16 you choose you either be hot or cold don't be in between be out-and-out worldly like all these other people another a lot of worldly Christians or be on fire for me but you are neither here nor there and I want to ask everyone of you in Jesus name does that charge apply to you and the Lord says you're not on fire for me but you're not oh thoroughly worldly either I wish you were worldly and imagine Jesus saying to a child of God not only child of God this guy was an elder in a church to an elder born again baptized in the Holy Spirit speaking in tongues type of elder I wish you were worldly but because you're not you don't make this choice you know sort of halfway here and there I'm gonna spit you out of my mouth you're in me now but you will not be in me after some time I'll spit you out I don't want to hear that I believe God doesn't just threaten us with empty threats and I say I'm not going to love Jesus just because I'm afraid he'll spit me out of my mouth I just love Jesus so much that I want to be on fire for him all the time in conclusion you feel the Lord reproved you today if soul read verse 19 revelation 3:19 I reproved you because I love you boy that melts my heart I hope it melts yours that if you heard is a reproof today it was a mark of his love if he's disciplining you verse 19 it's a mark of his love and the Lord says turn around turn around and come back to the life I want you to live because I don't want you to waste your life on earth it's to me it's a picture is of a father telling his son who's in college far away son don't waste all the money I'm giving you I'm a rich father I'm sending you money but you're wasting and wasting and you're just going out for the movies and restaurants and all that and you're not taking a study seriously you're failing in most of your subjects son please take your studies seriously that's what the Lord is telling you these Allah's therefore and turn around and do the things that are most important for life on Earth don't be taken up with all these other things which are cooling you in your devotion to Christ I love you the Lord says I love that last word I mean I'd feel condemned going away from here if I didn't hear that I don't want anybody here to go away feeling condemned or listen to the word of the Lord if you heard my reproof today it is a proof of my love if you did not hear the Lord reproving you perhaps you become deaf I hope not I hope you see the mark of God's love so turn around he's welcome to see he's ready to welcome you let's pray you want you to go away from here with the assurance of God's love a love that reproves you and will discipline you so that you don't miss out on his best Heavenly Father please help us in all these areas where you've reproved us to judge ourselves be part of the household of God we judge ourselves first you want to live in that self judgment and rejoice in you that you love us so much that you reprove us and discipline us so that we can have no regret in eternity help everyone here Lord we believe you love everyone here and that's why you have spoken words to each one I believe I pray that everyone will have ears to hear pray in Jesus name Amen you

Channel: SermonIndex.net

Views: 17,797

Rating: 4.7602997 out of 5

Keywords: Revival, Character Of God, Free Sermons, Video Sermons, Jesus Christ, What Is The Gospel, SermonIndex, What Is The Truth, Zac Poonen

Id: B5LdKcBd67o

Length: 66min 28sec (3988 seconds)

Published: Tue Sep 19 2017