God Works To Perfect Us - Zac Poonen

well it's good to be back after another time away but sometimes these ten days of meetings can become very hectic especially when you had to speak three four times a day so the end result was SiC and I was down the whole of last week careful today that I'll try and speak softly which is always good you know like we always do when we are sick what we teach in these churches we follow Jesus in every area and there's a verse in which I want to show you there are many things we see in the scriptures which many people don't believe but if is it in the scripture I believed it for example even in the past I have been bit sick I'm asked the Lord Lord Jesus were you ever sick I know that sickness is not always the result of sin sometimes it is but you remember once there was a blind man and Jesus the disciples asked Jesus is it because of his sin or his father's sin John chapter 9 and Jesus said no not his sin not his father saying so but sometimes it is because when He healed the man who was lame in John 5 he told him afterwards now don't sin again because something worse may happen so that guy's sickness was due to sin but in John chapter 9 the blind man sickness is not due to same so we had to distinguish and then I saw in Scripture I want to show you this it says in Matthew chapter 8 and verse 16 when evening came they brought to Jesus many who were demon-possessed and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were ill this was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet he himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases or sicknesses now that verse Matthew 8 17 is a quotation from Isaiah 53 verse 4 when we compare Scripture with Scripture sometimes we discover some amazing truths that's what I discovered here it says here the Holy Spirit says that Jesus himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases and that was fulfilled not on the cross no this was three years before the cross when he took away the infirmities and diseases of these people mentioned in verse 16 he healed all who were ill and that fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah that he took our infirmities and carried away our diseases some people say he took her sicknesses on the cross there's not a single verse that says that he took our sins on the cross and he took our curse on the cross and he defeated Satan on the cross and our old man was crucified on the cross but there's no verse that says he took our diseases on the cross in fact disease is a part of the body that we have which is made of dust and the curse has gone away from our spirit but I want you to know the curse has not gone away from our body that's why we get that's why we perspire the Lord told Adam part of the curses you'll perspire and as long as no matter how holy you are you will perspire when it's hot and the greatest proof that the curse has not gone away from the body is that we die death is a result of the curse on the body but there's no curse in our spirit Jesus has redeemed us from the curse but the curse from the body will go in the resurrection now I'm mentioning this because there's a lot of imbalanced teaching in the world where some people say you're never supposed to be sick but even the people who say that get sick and die so don't be fooled by that at the other other extreme are people who say when you're sick you must never pray because Jesus doesn't heal sickness that's a lot of rubbish so our position always has always been in between these two extremes even in many other areas like speaking in tongues or many other areas we find that the truth is not at that extreme of this extreme it's in between these two extremes and that's what we always seek to walk that narrow way between the two extremes that people go to and in this area of sickness also it's like that we will never be free from sickness on this earth but we must pray every time we're sick to be healed and like you know if a child is sick I've often said if somebody asked me to pray for a child that's sick I said I will keep on praying for that child till it dies when it dies I'd say okay it was not God's will for to be healed that we know many children died even believers children die many believers have miscarriages we accept that but we must pray against it because sickness is not part of God's perfect will so anything that's not part of God's perfect will we pray against it so this verse Matthew 8 17 which I quoted if you remember remember what it says here he took our infirmities and carried away our diseases as Isaiah the prophet said now go back to Isaiah 53 and I want to show you something very interesting I've said it before but for the benefit of many who may not have heard me before Isaiah 53 and verse 4 notice what it says here in verse 4 surely our griefs he bore what did we read in as Matthew 8 our sicknesses he bore but here it says our griefs look at the margin of my Bible and in the margin it says in the original Hebrew it's his sickness but the translators did not dare to translate it as sickness very interesting many times you find in the Bible the translators have used their own wisdom so in the margin they say the original says sickness but we didn't feel it could be sickness so they translated as griefs and I'll tell you why they translated it as grief because the same word is used in verse 3 Jesus was despised and forsaken of men a man of sorrows acquainted with grief and again in the margin it says sickness that's why they didn't want to translate it because those original translators said Jesus couldn't possibly be sick so that must be a mistake but the Holy Spirit says Jesus was acquainted with sickness when you say you're acquainted with a person you means you know that person very well it's not a casual visitor Jesus was acquainted with sickness I believe it and it's been a tremendous comfort for me so that I don't live in an unrealistic world that my Savior experienced headaches stomach aches sickness because he lived with a body that could die it's like asking do you think Jesus perspired when he was working as a carpenter I don't know what you think I believe he perspired like anything because he was a hard worker so if he was perspired perspiration is part of the curse on the body there was no curse on his spirit but he died death is also part of the curse so when it says here he was acquainted with sickness I say Lord why were you acquainted with sickness the answer is because he wanted to understand personally what other people go through when they are sick not know it theoretically you know God can have compassion on our weakness even without becoming a man but he could not have the feeling of our infirmities if he didn't become a man this is one of the great truths that Jesus came in the flesh one of the things that people have fought against fought against fought against and that's the reason they don't get victory over sin but not only that it's the thing that brings comfort to a true disciple to know that my Savior came in my flesh like mine and experienced everything that I go through except sin everything else he experienced when people whipped him do you think Eve suffered pain in my resurrection body if somebody whips me I will suffer no pain but Jesus suffered pain did the blood flow so he was exactly like us the only thing missing in his life was sin teaching us one wonderful thing that if we really seek to follow him and believe that he came like us and seek for the part of the Holy Spirit by which he lived we can also overcome sin and this is the thing that helped me more than 40 years ago when God opened my eyes to this truth that I need never be discouraged no matter what happens I need never lose my temper it may take time to overcome it but I can come to the place where I never never lose my temper that's a whole and the devil wants to rob us of that hope no no you will always lose your temper you will always get discouraged you'll never get victory those filthy thoughts will a slave you and slave you till ever and ever that's a lie and in the church we are called to expose the lie of the devil and we expose it by saying that Jesus Christ my Savior came in my flesh and experienced everything I go through and he never sinned the only thing I'm I want to avoid my life is sin anything that discouragement and anger a sin I believe sexually dirty thoughts are sin and Jesus never had them he was tempted and he never had them and you'll and I will be tempted but the wonderful truth is that we can be overcomers as we look to him looking unto Jesus we run this race and in sickness to to know that he was acquainted with sickness enabled me to understand why you know very often we pray Lord Jesus heal me and we believe he hears our prayer and many of you have experienced this that the healing doesn't come immediately some of us have experienced sickness for a long time and we are not healed I'll tell you I prayed every single day of this week I'm still not fully recovered I keep coughing and coughing and started with a cold but I prayed I even laid hands on my head and prayed and I asked others to pray for me so what is it does Jesus answer a prayer immediately or not I'll tell you something Jesus seeks our eternal good temporary good that's why he allows some of you to lose your jobs why should we allow that why does he allow us to go through certain difficulties in life which we could easily save us from one I'll tell you two reasons one it is to make us a little more like him to detach us a little more from this world and also to enable us to have compassion for others who are suffering can never if you never experience sickness in your life you'll never be able to sympathize with someone else who's sick you can go and pray for that person but you won't but you need to have a little experience of what he's going through for example when the Lord doesn't answer your prayer immediately you pray and pray and pray and pray for something Oh number of days nothing happens you can understand what someone else is going through who's probably prayed for something for six months and something which God could have answered immediately and he doesn't but who who at the end of it you can still say no my Lord is faithful I will not like job said you know even if he slays me I will trust in him what a verse that is let me turn you to book of joven see something interesting that he said over there job 13 and verse fifteen that's a great verse for a man who had no Bible no holy spirit no fellowship no meetings for him to say something like this even if he slays me job 1315 I will hope in him I will trust him I want to ask you my brother sister can you say that particularly when you're going going through deep pain or suffering of some sort you know that which God can relieve in a moment and he doesn't and you wonder why can you say well I don't know the answer to that I'm not God I don't know the answer but I know that even if he kills me I will still die trusting in him see that's what the martyrs have always said see the difference between John the Baptist was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament and when he was in he held on in faith until he was jailed by Herod when he was jailed by Herod do you know that John the Baptist began to lose his faith why did he lose his faith because God had protected him from all evil out there in the wilderness and here was an earthly king just locking him up in a jail and why didn't the Lord release him that's the question in John the Baptist mind so he sends some of his disciples to Jesus you read in Matthew 11 they went to Jesus and said are you really the Messiah how do we have to wait for the Messiah still to come who is asking this question the man who saw heard the voice from heaven saying this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased imagine if you had heard a voice from heaven over Jesus would you ever doubt that he's a messiah and not only he heard the voice from heaven he her saw the Dove coming down and resting upon him and at the end of it he doubts it sometimes we think if I have if I see Jesus once in my life physically I'll never doubt him again my life don't be so sure flesh is so deceptive so John the Baptist loses faith but [Music] New Testament Saints have been in jail for 15 20 years I'm not lost faith you read a people like Richard Graham Bryan and others they trusted the Lord till the end and some of them died in jail how were they better than John the Baptist I don't think they were greater than John the Baptist in that devotion to cried to the Lord but they had the Holy Spirit in them with John the Baptist did not have to me that is the greatest proof that the greatest prophet in the Old Testament did not have the Holy Spirit inside him and so he lost faith just because he was jailed and Jesus did not release him but in the New Covenant those are filled with the Holy Spirit even if they are jailed for 50 years say Lord we trust you think of these martyrs who went to the stake being burned they would die singing songs or thrown to the Lions they never lost faith and so these things encouraged us tremendously what about us do you lose faith when some little prayer you pray didn't get answered in one week or didn't get answered in six months take courage from these people who have stood true to the Lord through many years see this other version job and chapter 23 orsten joke 23 verse 10 it says he knows the way that I take the living bible paraphrase of that is he knows every detail of what is happening to me important verses in the book of Joe which I just showed you though he kills me I'll trust him and the other is this one in the Living Bible he knows every detail of what is happening to me and job said that when he had lost his children lost his property and was sick with sore boils probably leprosy and sitting there outside the gate it's probably leprosy because he couldn't sit in his house he had to sit outside the gate scratching himself he says he knows every detail of what is happening to me amazing that a man under not even under the Old Covenant who will live before Moses could say that it's a tremendous challenge to me Lord would I be able to say that if I lost all my children and lost all my property and money and on top of that I got leprosy and I'm put outside where people don't want to talk to me and I sit there scratching myself and say my lord knows every detail of what is happening to me how little it takes for us to question God to doubt him to complain when we have these great examples of men in the Bible who went through even in the Old Covenant who went through much more and said they would trust him and the wonderful thing is in the New Covenant it's a step further than job 23:10 job 23 or 10 all he says he knows every detail of what is happening to me but Romans 8:28 says he makes those details work for our good that job did not know Giovanni said God knows everything happening to me that itself is a tremendous comfort to know that my Heavenly Father knows every detail of what is happening but imagine the greater comfort it is when you realize that he's making those very things which appear to be harmful to work for our good Romans 8:28 we know and is a very important statement it's not don't start with God causes all things to work together for good that is what many people say it's right but you should be able to say I know that's how it begins I know it's a confession of faith I know that God causes everything to work for good to those who love him and who are called according to his purpose and that purpose is mentioned in verse 29 might be conformed to the image of God's Son that is the good the good is not that I get a better job of marry a better girl or boy or get more money no the good is the greatest good that God can ever do and that is you see this is the verse that teaches me John Romans 8:28 and 29 that when God talks about good doing good to me he's not talking about increasing my salary he's not even talking about healing me he's not talking about giving me a better house or many of you a better marriage partner No he is talking about making us like Jesus Christ because God says that is the greatest good that I can do to any human being and when you come to know the Lord you will agree with God I agree with God completely today I say Heavenly Father the greatest good you can ever do to me it's make me like Jesus Christ not give me a ministry ministry and all is secondary you're not gonna have any ministry in heaven you don't get taken up with trying to be a preacher or an elder or ministry these are all worldly pursuits if you are really a serious New Covenant Christian your one passion will be make me like Jesus that is the greatest good that God Almighty can do to you and I say to you there are many things in the world they'll distract you from it one of the biggest things is the pursuit of money CFC was full of 10 or 12 people or maybe 2030 people in the early days very poor most of them who came walking by bus to the meeting one or two by bicycle that's how we started but look at our state today how many cars there are in the parking lot you think that has made us more spiritual I'm not against it there's nothing wrong in a higher salary cost of living goes up to earn more I'm not saying you'll become spiritual if you ride a bicycle or ride a scooter but I say that wealth has a strange power to draw us away from God that's what I say and if you're not careful it will draw you away as long as we live in the world there'll be snakes but we must be careful wealth will come we must be careful a snake cannot make you unspiritual may bite use maximum kill you physically but wealth can destroy you the pursuit of it all sitting back and relaxing because I have so much whereas in the olden days you need to pray say God I need you I am just saying be careful because that has a tremendous power Jesus himself said you cannot love God and money and the great danger when we have more and more is to love money more and to pursue it so we had to be careful the grain is good that God can do to you does not give you a better job or make you wealthy or more comfortable God may do all of that but it's to make you like Jesus Christ and I want to urge you my dear brothers and sisters never never lose sight of that when people treat you badly or you didn't get what you wanted or you lost something precious or you suffering in a way that you can't understand and suffering is going on and on and on and on physical or emotional or mental or financial whatever struggle remember this verse the greatest good that God can do to you is to make you like Jesus Christ and if you love him see the promise in Romans 8:28 is not for everybody it says those who love God and are called according to his purpose just two things Lord Jesus I love you more than anyone and anything on this earth I love you more than my health I love you more than my house my wife my husband children I love you more than anyone and I want to fulfill your purpose in life those who loved God and were called according to his purpose in other words those who say the only thing I want to do on this earth is to fulfill God's will in my life I don't want to come to the end of my life and discover that something God planned for me I did not complete because I went running after something else Oh God save me from that because that will give me regret for all eternity I'll never be able to come back and do that which God wanted me to do I'm very conscious of that I want to encourage you my brothers please turn to Psalm 139 Psalm 139 speaks about before we were born verse 13 you formed my inward parts you wove me in my mother's womb and we're venues verse 16 you saw in my mother's womb you saw me not yet fully formed but while I was in that unformed state unformed state in your book that is in God's mind whenever it speaks about God's book is God's mind there was something written down in God's mind with my name all the days that were planned for me when there was not even one of them means I was not even born before my first earthly day my entire life not just generally not just at 19 and a half he must get converted no no no the exact date every day every day what his way should be milah in my case anyway when he should leave the Navy what he should do next and what he should do next where he should get frustrated where people should reject him and all types of things is all written down I want to be in that place I don't want to be in some other place if the Lord says I'm supposed to be in a play one particular place where they'll call me a devil one day I don't want to be in some other place where they call me a prophet I want to be in that place where they call me a devil do you wanna do you want that do you want to be in the place where God wants you to be every single day no matter whether it is suffering or pain or ridicule or sickness or rejection or people calling you bad names or misunderstanding you lord if that is the place you have planned in your book for me that's where I want to be I don't want to be in a more comfortable place that's the whole hearted person who wants God's purpose for his life to be fulfilled I hope you will this is what we have preached this is not something new we preached from both for for more than 40 years but it needs to be repeated it needs to be repeated because I see that many are drifting many who were once gripped are drifting and I'm concerned that they are drifting it's like a doctor who sees the patient is sinking we got to do something to restore him to health before he dies isn't that what a good doctor will do so what if it is the same medicine that we have given we've got to keep on giving the same medicine because he's got to recover and so I have no hesitation in giving the same medicine preaching the same message again again if it will make the patient recover and take life seriously dear brothers and sisters please believe there is a plan God has for your life not just a general plan but every single day where you should be where you should not be and make this your prayer Lord every single day of my life I want to be where you want me to be and if you're passionate about it I'll tell you something all hell and all the evil powers in the world will never be able to stop you from fulfilling God's will for your life every single day and when you come to the end of your life you'll be able to say with the Apostle Paul I have finished my course do you want to say that at the end of your life I want to say that I want to give you the example of of even in the Old Covenant for Joseph's life and he gave him a little glimpse of it sometimes we don't get a glimpse of it but I'll tell you why God gave Joseph a glimpse of it because he didn't have a Bible he didn't have the Holy Spirit so when people didn't have the Bible and didn't have the Holy Spirit God spoke to them in visions and dreams but don't think that visions and dreams are superior to the scriptures there are many Christian groups where people get up and say I had a vision I had a dream and that becomes like a competition somebody else's I also had I had two visions somebody has somebody says he saw one angel nobody says I saw two angels we are not in that competition we believe that God's Word where God speaks to us through the Holy Spirit is superior to any vision or dream maybe I should show you that first please turn with me to numbers in Chapter 12 chapter 12 you know there was a time when Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses numbers 12 well they didn't call him an evil man or anything they only criticized him saying in verse 1 why did you marry a non-jewish woman it doesn't look like a criticism but it is why did you marry a coucher a non-jewish woman one who's not a daughter of Abraham Isaac and Jacob Moses didn't reply it says verse 3 he was more humble than anybody on the face of the earth the only other person about whom that's written is Jesus Christ the Old Testament Moses was the most humble man on the face of the earth and suddenly you know the Lord heard it you know that the Lord hears what you speak against his servants and the Lord said to Moses and Aaron when you come here I want to speak to you Moses didn't defend himself the Lord defended him the Lord came down and said now listen to me he said to them to a Miriam and Aaron you guys who are criticizing Moses I want you to hear something he told them if there is a prophet among you prophet that's a great thing to be a prophet in Israel I will reveal myself to him in a vision or in a dream but Moses is not like that he's not a prophet he's more than a prophet so I don't speak to him in visions and dreams I speak to him face-to-face mouth to mouth dark sayings like visions and dreams when he's asleep he sees me middle of verse eight he actually sees me I speak to him face to face that is like a new covenant experience that Moses had may God speaks to us not through visions and dreams but in a heart more clear than a vision in a dream I'll tell you when the Lord called me to leave my earthly job where I was doing very well and earning a huge salary on the 6th of May 1964 I remember that date so clearly and I remember where it was also to somewhere near Bangalore I never knew then that I would be living here it was such a clear word to my heart but I'll tell you honestly if the Lord had spoken to me in a vision or a dream I would have had it out vision the Lord said to me leave your job or in a dream he said to me leave your job I said well I'm not so sure is that the Lord or is it the devil coming as an angel of light because the devil can also come like an angel of light how do I know who's telling me to leave my job is the devil try telling me to leave my job and be stranded out there mess up my life when I'm 24 years old but it was not a vision it is not a dream it was in my heart as if I had spoken to the Lord face to face I was so sure go to the naval base and hand in my resignation immediately I didn't have to think about I didn't have to think about it that's amazing how you can but when you really know the Lord speaking to you in your heart through the Holy Spirit it is more clear than a vision or a dream so I'm not excited when people say they had visions or dreams because that is second level it's what he says here the second level people God says I speak in visions and dreams yes he does but with Moses I speak in a new covenant way he sees my face and I speak to him mouth to mouth that's what we need brothers and sisters so in Genesis 37 we read of a young man called Joseph he hadn't come to Moses level yet but God spoke to him it says in Genesis 37 verse 5 God spoke to him in a dream and told him how - dreams he had which showed that his brothers and all would bow down to him one day and he mentioned that to his parents I don't know whether it was wise to mention it to his parents and his brothers he probably should have kept it to himself that provoked jealousy among his brothers you know sometimes when God says something to you you're not supposed to tell others about it I remember about I need is about one month thrown out of the Baptist Church that we were thrown out of the Baptist Church Ian and I in August 75 one month before that in July 75 away on a trip talk to me something so clearly it wasn't a vision it wasn't a dream but it was words and about one page I wrote it down and at the end of it the Lord said don't tell anybody about anybody about this except your wife so I've never told anybody till today and it was a clear preparation for what was gonna happen I didn't know exactly what would happen or when but it is a preparation for what is gonna happen that I'd be out and that I didn't know then it was going to be the birth of CFC but it was such an encouragement that God spoke to me one month before that and I remember even before these religious folk took us to court on some silly reasons months before that the Lord spoke to me I think when I was in party cheerio somewhere I remember that because I wrote it down warning me that something's going to happen and it sort of prepared me it's a wonderful thing my brothers and sisters to it learn to listen to the voice of God don't look for visions and dreams and I'll tell you the best way to learn to listen is get familiar with the Bible see don't ask God to speak to you in your heart if you don't read what's written down in the Bible I spent years soaking myself in the scriptures why I could hear God speaking in my heart if you don't soak yourself in the scripture don't expect God to speak to your heart then look for second rate level like dreams and maybe a message on Sunday morning or something like that it's not the best it's good but it's nothing to equal God's speaking to your heart develop that habit so because Joseph heard this from God he was sure God is gonna do something and I believe that's what strengthened him you know the story where he was rejected sold into Egypt and he conducted himself well when he was sold in the jail he conducted himself well and ultimately even though it took 13 years he saw these dreams at the age of 17 13 years later he became the second ruler in Egypt but in all those years the thing that didn't I'm sure he what encouraged him which enabled him to work in such a way that everywhere he went when he was a slave what if I said the Lord is with him when he was in jail the G chief jailer said the Lord is with him how did he have that because he had in his mind God has shown me something it's a wonderful thing when you've seen what God has planned for you get familiar with the scriptures then all these external things won't disturb you and that's why finally when his brothers came to him they were starving and they had to go to Joseph's for food and Joseph gave them plenty of food and called his father and gave them the best part of Egypt to live in how did he do all that good to these people who had done so much evil to him can you think of somebody who has done evil to you I mean imagine if a close relative of yours a close friend of yours betrayed you and sold you as a slave and made you miserable servant in somebody's house and that you had to suffer and then somebody accused you falsely then you were put in jail in jail for five or ten years think of that that's what Joseph went through I don't think any of you have been through something as bad is that when somebody did that to you and then one day you meet this person because he wants a favor from you I mean God has blessed you in such a way that this man comes to you for a favor how will you treat him will you first give him a lecture saying you remember how you treated me now God is punishing you no no no this old covenant Joseph look how we treated him see this wonderful this is the Romans 8:28 of the Old Testament Genesis 50 verse 20 Genesis 50 and verse 20 it's a great verse you must always remember it I call it the Romans 8:28 of the Old Testament as for you you meant evil against me God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result to preserve many people alive so you meant it for evil but God meant it for good he didn't have a verse of the Bible to say that he had seen in the dream to him that was the Bible God had spoken to him and so these people did it did evil but that evil itself it's not that God ignored the evil that itself would have been a great thing he used the evil to bring good the evil was sell this fellow to Egypt God used that the evil was put him in jail God used that to help him to meet Pharaoh's Butler so the evil which they did was the very thing God used to bring good it's like Calvary the cross of Calvary where Jesus died is the greatest evil that has ever done on the face of this earth there is no sin greater than that and the killing of the Son of God and the greatest good the best thing that ever happened on the face of the earth was the death of Christ on Calvary what does that teach the cross of Christ teaches us not only there our sins are forgiven but the devil was defeated it teaches us that the greatest evil that the devil can do against a child of God that very thing God can turn into the greatest good for that person have you understood that message from the cross even if you feel your sicknesses come from the devil job sickness came from the devil God allowed it sometimes God allows it even if it came from the devil the cross of Calvary was a devil scheme but it turned the tables on Satan and became the greatest good so never never again complain against a person saying he did this to me or he cheated me or he harmed me because he did this my family suffering because that person did this in the office therefore I couldn't get my promotion when will you become a true Christian when will you become a true disciple of Jesus who can say you meant evil for me I mean if I just say you meant evil for me but it did not harm me that itself would be a great thing but one step higher than that you meant evil for me but that very evil got turned into good we must have one or two experiences like that in our life at least one or two I've had a few experiences like that well the evil that people did became the very thing that turned into something good that I ignore some evil that somebody did that itself is a victory or that you can forgive somebody for the evil that they did not itself is a victory or you say well I don't mind I praise the Lord for that that is a victory but experience where that evil itself is the means by which God accomplishes something for you good which would not have happened if that fellow had not done that evil that's a tremendous experience of walking in the footsteps of Jesus it really is true and we've experienced that as a church as well it's not just as individuals you know when you are an integral part of the church I don't mean just a visitor who comes here listens to messages and goes away there are a lot of people like that they're not 100% committed to CFC CFC is like a restaurant yeah good restaurant it's a type of food you like so you come regularly to the restaurant and the wonderful thing about the restaurant is there's no charges for the food the food is free and you can come and eat and you get lunch as well and you and you say well this is a good place to go to I'm not talking about such people I'm talking about people who have committed themselves to this church for whom this church and everything in this church is their family I can say that my relatives who live in Bangalore are not closer to me than the people in this church and I don't mean everyone in this church I'm not close to a lot of visitors in this church I don't know them a lot of people say they are CMC members but I like visitors were not committed but those who are really totally committed I tell you honestly before God they are closer to me than my family members without a doubt this is my family and I say when you come into that type of relationship in a church only few people come like that but when they do their experience is what God uses to accomplish this purpose in the church so everything that you go through if you are a committed member is going to bless the church I believe that I believe that with all my heart I want you to believe it you know sometimes we limit God by our unbelief we should not limit God it says they Jesus could not do many mighty works in one place because of their unbelief I never wanted to be said about me and the final day when I stand before the Lord is the Lord says you know I wanted to do something through you over there when that person did so much evil to you I wanted to do something fantastic but you did not believe me you got upset with that person you are angry with that person and you sat and thought a lot of evil about that person and because that means you didn't believe in me so I could not accomplish something I wanted to do through you through that situation and the Lord tells me this is the judgment seat of Christ I say Oh Lord forgive me what shall I do now the Lord says there's nothing you can do about it now you should have thought about it then is that gonna happen to you I have many times thought about it I say Lord will you ever have to tell me that the judgment seat of Christ at one particular day when somebody did evil to me because of my wrong reaction to that person you could not bring good out of that evil Lord let it never never happen never never never I want to make full use of everything God gives it's like you know there are children for example of rich parents who'd throw away the money that their parents give them because they have so much they you see rich people children driving around in fancy cars here and if they crash it he doesn't matter and they know they can get another car they run over people on the road and they know their father will somehow get them out of jail and all that type of stuff there are rich people children are spoiled they throw away their money is it possible that many of us because we are receiving so much spiritual wealth and understanding of God when throwing away a lot of the wealth God wants us to have one reason why I believe that annointed profits are not rising up in our midst as they should see the time has come when a younger generation should be getting up here even in CFC and speaking prophetically people in their 40s should be speaking prophetically if you have been here at least 20 years definitely he should be the ones who are bringing a prophetic message because not because you understood the fury and speak so much no not even because you have ability to speak but because you've turned every experience you went through in life into something profitable for the glory of God our ministry does not come merely by studying the Bible it comes through experiencing one of the things we go to experience is what Joseph's experience here forgiving people who have hurt us please turn with me to Matthew Gospel chapter 18 in Matthew 18 Jesus speak some speaks a parable which we have looked at many times Peter came and said to him Lord 1821 you see Peter had heard Jesus speak about forgiveness and I understand I've heard read somewhere rabbis said you must forgive your brothers at least three times after that you can do what you like but three times you must forgiven so Peter said I'm gonna be in the New Covenant he said shall I forgive my brother seven times and he thought Jesus would say Wow Peter you're really great he understood the New Covenant but no here's what I mean seven times try seventy times seven and in another place the question ish forgive your brother seven times in one day so seventy times seven day means 490 times a day and imagine that have you had anyone who hurt you even seven times a day I don't think so what does it mean that I must forgive a person Ceph 490 times it is infinitely seven is the perfect number in Scripture Jesus was saying you just keep on forgiving now let me clarify something forgiveness and fellowship and the clearest example of that is Jesus on the cross I told you the worst sin anybody committed in the world was the crucifixion of Jesus Christ whatever sin you feel other people have done against you is not worse than that so the worst sin that was committed against Jesus he's hanging on the cross he says Father forgive them because they don't know what they're doing but they don't know what they're doing means they don't know how serious a crime it is to hurt the Son of God and a lot of people if you're a son of God or a daughter of God when people hurt you they don't realize what a serious thing it is because zechariah 2 verse 5 and 8 says he who touches you touches the apple of my eye they don't realize that people don't realize that when they're hurting me they're hurting the apple of God's eye so Father forgive them they don't know whom they're harming they're harming the apple of God's eye they're poking their finger in God's eye when they hurt me it's a great verse in Zechariah chapter 2 so if Jesus could say forgive them for that that teaches me that I can forgive people for anything that anybody ever does to me whatever it is it has to be inferior to the crucifixion definitely but this is where a lot of super spiritual Christians make a mistake so what should you do go visit those people no did Jesus go visiting the Pharisees homes to show his love I never see him going anytime except when he went to somebody's house to preach something there but he never went to any Pharisees house saying hey you know I love you fellows even though you called me the devil and all that that is stupidity I don't try to be more spiritual than Jesus I forgive them but I say fellowship is another thing altogether there's a difference between forgiving people and having fellowship with them I can honestly say before God today that I have forgiven every human being in the world who's ever done anything against me that's the honest truth before God but I don't have fellowship with most of them in fact I don't even have fellowship with a lot of believers who are not interested in following Jesus fellowship is those who have fellowship with the father and walk in the light we can have fellowship with them 1 John 1 is very clear forgiveness I can give everybody so that's very important for us to understand so here this man well Peter says I'll forgive seven and Jesus says no you must forgive seventy times seven and then he tells the story of this King Matthew 18 23 and there was a slave who was brought to him who owed him a huge amount of money let's say crores of rupees and that man didn't have we fell down and said please forgive me and the King said okay forgiven and that man went out and found a fellow slave you know the story who owed him just a small amount maybe hundred rupees or something and he caught him by the throat this man who had been forgiven crores he catches the other champ by the throat and says I won't let you go take it in jail if you don't pay up the hundred rupees and the King heard it and said call him back we called a slave back he said you could not forgive that man a hundred rupees when I forgive you crores you go to prison not only prison I'll get the torturers to torture you till you pay up everything what is the lesson my Heavenly Father will do the same to you who is he speaking to he's not speaking to the Pharisees verse 21 he's speaking to Peter remember he's telling Peter Peter my heavenly father will do this to you what is that hand you over to the torturers was 34 if you don't forgive your brother from your heart please remember that there are believers who are being tortured by demons today because they haven't forgiven somebody make sure it doesn't happen to you of course the best way to forgive is because Jesus forgave us the second best way is because you don't want to be tortured by the demons don't live sink to the second best way Lord I want to forgive because you forgave me so much I may never have fellowship with him I may never meet him for the rest of my life I believe some people whom I've forgiven I may never meet for the rest of my life that's okay I may meet them only at the judgment seat of Christ but I've forgiven them and the proof I've forgiven them from my heart is that I don't wish any evil for them so what I do whenever I forgive somebody I usually say lord please bless them also and bless their children let it go well with them I don't want any evil to happen to them just to make sure that I have forgiven them from my heart so that if one day I hear that it has gone well with them I say praise the Lord I'm very happy it's going well with you but it will not go well with them in the day of judgment no because there's a verse in Romans chapter 12 balance picture of this Romans chapter 12 verse 19 it says never take your own revenge beloved but leave room for the wrath of God for it is written vengeance is mine I will repay says the Lord read that carefully certain things which belong to God we are not supposed to touch them glory belongs to God don't take that glory worship that belongs to God don't let anybody worship you vengeance that also belongs to God never never try to take revenge on anyone because that belongs to God it is as bad as getting people to worship you if you try to strike vengeance on someone because God says vengeance is mine but that's not all the Lord says I will repay say to him Lord don't repay then you say how did Jesus say Father forgive them you again forgiveness so sorry sin very often has two directions like the cross all sin is against God if you have a bad thought to sin against God but if you slapped somebody is another realm to that another dimension to that sin horizontal to that man the vertical is always there you slap somebody you've sinned against God but you've also seen against that person now that person can only forgive that horizontal part you slapped me this horizontal part I forgive you Father forgive him but the vertical part you can never be forgiven till you repent and go to God so that's what we see at the cross even though Jesus had Father forgive them they don't know what they're doing do you know that in the day of judgment all those people will be punished for crucifying Christ don't be surprised in that day and say why they being punished when Jesus said Father forgive them as a man Jesus could only forgive that horizontal part those who repented would be forgiven the vertical part so when somebody does harm to me he has committed two sins against God and against me what he's done against me I forgive him 100% but that doesn't mean he'll get away with it God says vengeance is mine I will repay and I can't say Lord don't repay him I can say Lord I don't have anything against him but I can't stop God's rule of judgment No then you understand why you see a verse like this in 2nd Timothy 4 you find how scripture is absolutely consistent you turn with me to second Timothy 4 and verse 14 second Timothy 4:14 Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm Paul says the Lord will repay him according to his deeds you say hey Paul haven't you forgiven oh I forgive him immediately but that doesn't prevent the fact that the Lord will repay him inspired by the Holy Spirit all says this guy who did me harm whom I have forgiven 100% but he will not escape the judgment of God the Lord will repay him because I cannot fight against God and say no no no Lord don't repay him because then I'll be destroying the foundation of justice in this universe I will not do that don't try to be super spiritual Paul was not and I am NOT it is a fact that those who harmed you will suffer one day from God if they don't repent we hope they repent and we hope they will turn but turn to another verse please in revelation 6 and worse 9 & 10 revelation 6 verse 9 and 10 when the lamb broke the fifth seal I saw underneath the altar the souls of those would mean slain because of the Word of God and because of the testimony which they maintained and they cried out saying O Lord holy and true won't you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth I'm sure these people have forgiven them for what they did what they were saying what about you Lord won't you avenge them want your Venture blood so when you see the whole of Scripture I say I leave God's judgment to himself that's not my business don't be a busybody in God's affairs he's a judge he will do his justice my duty is to forgive forgive forgive no matter what people have done till the end of our life and if somebody has forgiven you of that before God however much that gracious man has forgiven you it does not mean that you will escape the judgment of God unless you have repented and set it right how do you set it right by going and asking forgiveness from that person setting it right otherwise even though that person says I have forgiven you you cannot escape the Vengeance of God that is very important to understand these principles forgiveness is very very important dear brothers and sisters because very often when I pray for the sick one question you've forgiven everybody from your heart among all the 10000 sins that a man can commit I asked him only one and I say if you're forgiven everybody at least one big blockage is removed that God can bless you he who has ears to hear let him hear how many father even though these are familiar truths help us to take seriously when you remind us again of eternal truths that we have to live by every single day of our life so many here have heard this truth this day Lord I humbly pray not one of them will regret in the day of judgment that they ignored what they heard here today have mercy on everyone we pray in Jesus name Amen you

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Length: 65min 9sec (3909 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 15 2018