Recognizing That We Are Nothing - Zac Poonen

so today the world celebrates Christmas which they think mistakenly is the birthday of Christ I personally don't believe Christ was born in December I personally believe he was born around September anyway that's not the issue but since the word the world is celebrating birthday of Christ good for us to know why he came I remember once someone told me I was seeking God saying tell me Lord should I celebrate your birth give me a verse from Scripture and she got a verse which I'd never thought of myself it says about Jesus Christ being after the order of Melchisedec and Hebrews 7 verse 3 who had no beginning of days we all had a beginning of days that's why we celebrate our birthday but Jesus had no beginning of days and that answered her question he was it easy ternal there was no birthday for him he existed from all eternity and that's why the Bible tells us to celebrate his death and not his birth none of us celebrate death we celebrate birth but Jesus came to die he existed from all eternity he had no birth but he came to die and he told us remember my death remember me when you break bread and drink the cup but beyond all that I mean I'm not interested in getting a controversy with people over Christmas I think it's more important to understand the principle behind his coming to this earth and we thought a little bit about it last time and how we are to follow in his footsteps and that's what I see because the Bible says that we had to walk as Jesus walked and when we think of Jesus as our example he said he gave us an example it says in 1 Peter 2 that we should follow in his footsteps you know that verse in 1 Peter 2 Christ gave us an example that's a great verse 1 Peter in chapter 2 that we should follow in his steps 1 Peter 2:21 Christ left us an example to follow in his steps he suffered for you and his suffering his his first steps the very first step that he took that we need to first learn before you know a lot of people are trying to follow Jesus steps when he was 30 years old if you say how are we to follow Jesus the see or do miracles and I presume walk on the water and raise people were dead for four days and all people try to do things and bluff others about what they have done etc and deceive people those are not the steps we have to follow first let's take the first step let's learn the ABC before we go into postgraduate studies and all that so let's think of the first step that Jesus took and that was for God to become man that was the first step so how can we do that that's what we need to learn before we go into other things about the way he fulfill his ministry let me turn to Philippians 2 again which we looked at last time and it's so clear here Philippians 2 verse 5 and 6 have this attitude in yourself which was in Christ Jesus who although he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped or held onto but emptied himself taking the form of a bondservant and being made in the likeness of men this is what people around the world are supposed to be celebrating today but you do you think they've understood anything about this that's why I say a lot of the celebration of Christmas is so empty if you want to understand what it means for Christ to be born on this earth here's where you got to understand it this is where he began have this attitude in yourselves he says that example is should be the one you follow you must have the same mind when just for him a few moments know all through our life we must have this attitude which was in Christ which is what he was God and he came down and became a man a slave I've tried to understand how does that apply to me I'm not God none of us are so how can I follow him in this tremendous step that he took so I look at it like this God is the highest being in the universe and here if he became a man that coming down is such a great descent that for me to follow that means I as a human being must descend until I become a nobody in my own eyes then I have followed him many of you who celebrated Christmas for years I want to ask you have you become a nobody are you can you honestly say that your own opinion of yourself is you're a nobody nevermind what other people think of you a lot of people esteem Christ today the world worships him even when he was on earth people worshipped him but in his own mind he was just an ordinary man he would always say I'm a son of man when they wanted him make him a king he refused to be a king he was Lord we may have our gifts we may have our talents and we may have our abilities we don't deny them Jesus once said to his disciples you know he didn't have a sort of a wrong low self esteem you know it says oh well I'm good for nothing he never said that he said in John chapter 13 and verse 13 he told his disciples in John 13 13 you called me Lord and you are right that's nothing wrong in saying that you call me teacher and Lord and you're right I am if you say to me brother Zack you're an elder I'm not gonna say no no I'm not an elder I'm just a nobody no you're right I am an elder God's given me that responsibility if my children turn around and call me Dad I don't ever say no no I'm not your dad I'm just a nobody that's artificial that's stupidity jesus said you call me Lord and teacher that's what I am but he had descended to the lowest level so it's not a question of not recognizing who we are in relation to others but the thoughts we think about ourselves that's where we need to be nobodies because it's only then that God can use us I through many years of knowing the Lord I have come to this conclusion that God's great the work that he seeks to do in all of us is reduce us down to zero so that he can use us mightily and the more he sucks seeds and reducing us to 0 the more Mythili he can produce the life of Christ in us so that we do not sin so that we overcome sin so that we manifest the glory and the grace of Christ so that the Devils afraid of us the Devils really afraid of those who have become nothing in their own eyes he's not scared of people who think there's somebody I'll tell you why because he became the devil by thinking he was somebody you know that's how he became the devil the way Jesus went and the way Lucifer the devil went are two opposite directions you see the contrast in Isaiah chapter 14 I saw 14 is the opposite of Philippians 2 that's why I'm pointing it out to you if you are not familiar with it let's look at it if you've know it look at it again because you can always learn something more when you look at it another time he's talking about the one who was the head of the Angels we don't know his name in the Latin they called it Lucifer so it's sort of become popular but that's not his name Isaiah 14:12 how have you fallen from heaven o star of the morning son of the dawn that's all God calls him God doesn't give tell us what his name was when he was up in heaven it's not important for us to know it was not Lucifer Lucifer is just the Latin of star of the morning you have been cut down to the earth why because you said in your heart I will ascend to heaven jesus said I will descend to earth you see that Jesus was their equal with God he didn't hang on to that and said I will go down to earth Satan who was before you saved me was in the highest again Jews then he said I'm not satisfied to this high position as the head of the Angels I will ascend to the heavens I will raise my throne to the stuff above the stars of God and I will not only go to the heights of the clouds verse 14 I will make myself like God and the moment you think like that the eternal law of God operates it's an eternal law God humbles the proud as soon as he got this in his heart he didn't you know do something he just said in his heart I'll make myself like this you'll be thrust down to Sheol that's the first sin that was committed in the universe pride lifting up oneself God pushed him down and I want to say to you my brothers and sisters every person who falls into any sin there is only one reason pride do you keep on falling into some sin face it you are a proud arrogant person there is no other reason and therefore when you try to get victory or sin god pushes you down because it's an eternal law of God that began with this one who became the devil I will humble those who prod and if God pushes you down you're not gonna get any big tree you're gonna keep falling have you understood now why you keep falling into sin as God's not exalting you he's not lifting you up he's pushing you down because this is eternal law let me repeated God resists the proud that's written twice in Scripture James foreign 1 Peter 5 verse 5 and and in contrast to that we see Philippians 2 see now he see the opposite in Philippians 2 because if sin came this way by someone trying to exalt themselves then salvation must come the opposite way by someone humbling themselves and all those who follow the devil exalt themselves whether in the world or in the church or anywhere and all those who follow Jesus humble themselves whether in the world or in the church and you can sit in the church and exalt yourself and there are people out in the world who try to humble themselves who put you to shame yeah there are some people in the world who are so modest about their accomplishments I met atheists and non-christians who are very modest about the accomplishments they won't try to show off the way some Christians do we'll get a lot of surprises when we stand before the Lord in the final day a lot of people who you thought were wonderful Christians are probably in hell and only one reason how did the first person go to hell how did the first person go to hell pride the story of the rich man and Lazarus why did the rich man go to hell pride he thought I have worked so hard and my business is prospered and I've made all this money I'm not being lazy like that beggar down the street or such a man definitely deserves to go to hell he's not humble enough to acknowledge that is God's blessing that gave him all that he had on earth what about you brother sister now see the opposite in Philippians chapter 2 now here's one who is not a created being the second person of the Trinity equal with God the Father from all eternity and there was no need for him to come to the earth when the race of Adam sinned God could have just wiped them out or sent them to join Lucifer and the others in hell and he would have been absolutely righteous if he did that well he didn't and we got to be so thankful for that we got to be so thankful lord I deserve hell but you sent your son he came down to earth you humble yourself and you came down and became a man and what did God do the eternal law of God that he exalts the humble it says here when Jesus humbled himself and even went even lower he was willing to be born in a stable in a cowshed he's willing to be called devil and Beelzebul and demon-possessed and he was willing to be called mad and ill-treated an illegitimate child and I don't know what all names they called him he is willing to let people slap him and crucify him and because he humbled himself verse 8 last part even to the death on a cross according to the eternal law of God that operates equally with everyone God exalted him and given him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that's why he's got the highest place in heaven today he had the highest place in heaven in eternity because he was equal with the Father but today if he has the highest place next to the Father in heaven it's because he humbled himself it's not because he said I'm the son of God I've got a right to come back there no see what it says he humbled himself verse 9 therefore for this reason God highly exalted him don't put your own ideas there there was a reason why God highly exalted him and that's because he humbled himself to the lowest place as a man never fighting back with people who abused him criticized him spat on him he said that's okay I'm just an ordinary man he would keep on saying I'm an ordinary man you're forgiven I'm an ordinary man you're forgiven when he said I'm the son of man is that's what he meant I'm an ordinary man and you're forgiven you called me bill Z bold prints of Devils okay you're forgiven I'm an ordinary man don't speak against God he was God himself but he pointed to the Holy Spirit sure don't speaking in the Holy Spirit that'll be serious speak against means okay therefore God has exalted him highly it says have this attitude in yourself and that exaltation begins on this earth with exaltation over sin to be exalted over people as a president of a country or an elder in a church it means nothing there are hundreds of elders of judges I have met in my life and pastors whom I have zero respect for because I don't see godliness in them I don't respect a man because he hangs a cross around his neck Oh wears a skullcap or something like that or calls himself a pastor or Reverend or right reverend or whatever other they call themselves I've no respect for them I respect a man if I see Christ in him if his words are anointed and come straight to my heart and I feel that God is speaking through him I would respect him but not because he has a title not because he says I've been a believer for twenty thirty years so Wyatt you could be a thorough backslider today or even have lost your salvation even though you were saved twenty thirty years ago I respect people who are humble who have low thoughts about themselves and you know humility is not something you can put on there's a humility that even world leaders put on it's artificial humility like pride is not something it's it's something inward if it's not inside you cannot pretend to be humble I've seen enough people in my life Christians who pretend to be humble I can see through them in half a minute as soon as they open their mouth you can make out these guys are not humble you look at their face it's something about them they lack humility it's like the order that comes forth from our body you know when you work hard and perspire a lot there's an order that comes forth from your body which you cannot prevent it comes forth that's why we have showers that's why we used deodorant simple things like that it comes from with in Pride is like that comes from within if you have such thoughts when you're alone you think of what a wonderful guy you are and keep thinking like that or how much better you have done things than somebody else and you're so quick to criticize this person and that person and the other person you're quick to criticize your wife or your husband or that person of the other person the way that person brought up that children there's not the way I brought up my children no wonder brother sister you're so defeated no wonder God is so limited in his ability to speak his prophetic word through you he's not going to exalt you because he knows that thoughts you're thinking about yourself when you're all by yourself they're pretty high thoughts about yourself and you know also that you didn't begin like that I often tell people in this church don't ever forget what you were when you first came to this church I know a lot of people who have forgotten it and I see their spiritual state today financially they're very well-off but I see that spiritual condition pathetic pathetic they don't know they're not aware of it themselves like body order because when they are alone I don't know what they're thinking but it's obvious from their from the order that comes fraught from their spirit that they're thinking pretty high thoughts have locked themselves they're proud because they think God has blessed them because they got more money now than when they first came in the church they think they are blessed by God because the children are doing well I can show you a lot of people out in the world whose children are doing well who are atheists and who made a lot more money than you and me means nothing dear brothers and sisters let's learn this lesson God became man and says have this a detainee in you that I must seek to go down and become a zero that is the meaning of being crucified with Christ you know in the in this church perhaps more than other churches we speak about the way of the cross the way of the cross is the way of death to self we can say that a person has really become 0 when he's died he can't lift a finger he's got no thoughts he's got nothing to do now he's completely dead and there a person has become 0 and when we speak about dying with Christ it's really the same thing what am I saying today nothing different from what we've always said that we got to die with Jesus Christ take up the cross every day let me paraphrase it consider yourself to be a zero every day so that's what a dead man is and then we will taste of his resurrection the Apostle Paul tells the Galatians in chapter 6 please turn with me into Galatians in chapter 6 and we read there about this possibility of thinking that we are something when we are nothing in Galatians 6 and verse 3 if anyone thinks he is something or somebody when he's actually nothing he deceives himself but let every man examine his own work then he left some reason for boasting examine your own work means ask yourself brother before you think you're somebody or sister how much victory over sin did you have last week examine your work how you live during the last week how did you conduct yourself at home how did you conduct yourself in a place of work how did you conduct yourself in the midst of busy traffic on the road or when you travel in a train or a bus examine yourself before you think you're somebody or a very wholehearted spiritual Christian and then you see how you think you're somebody when you're a nobody you're living a defeated life backsliding coming back back siding coming back and you still think you're somebody some of us have been in the church first a number of years and because of that we think we're somebody it's very easy to think like that it says examine your work just examine your work for the last one week or the last one month how is it gone with you as God constantly exalted you so that sin could not pull you down if not what are you thinking you are you're a somebody if anyone thinks he's a somebody when he's a nobody he's just deceiving himself how much longer are we going to deceive ourselves this is the message of Christmas time which the world doesn't understand you think the people who've celebrated Christmas have understood how God became man has given us an example that we should go down like that do you think they've understood that now they've only understood how to waste a lot of money buying expensive gifts and giving it to other people and think they're manifested the Spirit of Christ by giving gifts to others when you can give gifts to others it only manifests that you're a very rich man that's what it manifests that poor person who doesn't have any savings he cannot give gifts like you not because he's not christ-like because he's poor but a lot of people think I'm christ-like because I give gifts no sir you're rich therefore you could give gifts but the real thing that we need to learn in Christmas is that God became man and let that attitude being you come down descend so that God can exalt you now Paul does not preach what he's not practiced turn to 1 Corinthians in chapter 3 you know here's a man who had such fantastic experiences he had this dramatic conversion on the damascus road where he saw Jesus face-to-face none of us have had that he met Jesus face to face he heard Jesus directly speaking to him numerous times he had angels coming and visiting him at different times he was once physically transported up into the very presence of God and one way I know it was real he mentioned his insane Corinthians 12 is that he says I'm sorry I can't tell you what I heard there I'm not permitted to today we have a whole lot of people who say they'd gone to heaven and talked to Moses and David and Paul and they come and tell us all the things they spoke over there and I say that's rubbish and they are telling lies they may have had a dream did you have a dream last night and you thought it was real but they had a dream some people have a dream that they go to heaven and talk to David or Paula something they think it's real it's just a dream but Paul's was real and the proof of it was first of all that he kept quiet about it for 14 years that's how I know it's real when a person talks about it the very next week about some angel he saw you know that this is all a hoax a man was a man of God he doesn't have to boast about it he keep quiet about something for 14 years you read that in 2nd Corinthians 12 he wasn't itching to tell people I went to heaven and even when he said it he said I can't tell you what I heard there this is the man who's taken up to heaven who's raised the dead and there was a man sitting in a meeting who fell down the window and died and Paul raised him up from the dead he healed so many sick people he planted churches he wrote Scripture at the end of all this what is he saying 2nd 1 Corinthians 3 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 6 I planted he's talking about the Corinthians that he went and planted a church there those believers were planted by him Apollo's a co-worker went and watered that means he taught the Word of God to them and watered those plants but who caused them to grow God caused the growth it's not a doctor who heals you it's not a medicine who heals you it's God do you know that a doctor if you got an injury in your hand he cannot make those two bits of skin join the best doctor in the world cannot do that all he can do is stitch it so that it's close together God makes it join even a simple thing like that there's no doctor in the world who can combine two bits of skin in your body he can only bring them together and let God do a miracle and make it join together and become one so as you can take off the stitches Paul is humble enough to recognize that many doctors are not paul is humble enough to say I planted Apollo's watered but God was the one was causing the growth so what a what about the one who plants and one waters what is what are they he gives us the answer in verse seven the one who plants is nothing and the one who waters is nothing so he for asked Paul what do you think of yourself Paul he said I'm just a nobody he says that about himself I am nothing God is everything and when we talk about glorifying God in our lives I want to say this the only way I can really glorify God in my life is if I allow God to be everything in my life and me become nothing that is also the meaning of saying to Jesus I want your will not mine do you think that young man who's determined to marry some girl and whether it's God's will or not calls himself a believer says she's a believer I love her I'm gonna marry her do you think that man thinks he's a nobody No you think that man has died to himself now he may have some religious whitewash and call himself a believer but he's doing his own will and a lots of young people like that they'd go where they want they do what they want they live as they like they spend their money as they like they spend their days if they like they're not nobodies they're not dead no wonder they are perpetually defeated in their life according to God's eternal law that he humbles the proud on the other hand you see some others God exalts the humble so that's if you haven't learned that lesson we haven't understood anything of the Christmas message of Christ's coming to earth at all and one way God humbles us is by making us aware of our need of one another I can tell you personally my study of the word did not give me a victory over sin I'll tell you honestly I study the word thoroughly by the time I was 26 I think I knew the Scriptures to challenge almost anybody I spent seven years day and night studying Scripture when I was in the Navy but it didn't give me victory over sin my being filled with the spirit and speaking in tongues did not give me victory over sin I was still defeated you going to ask all the people who are speaking in tongues whether they have overcome sin in their life they boast a lot and that itself shows they haven't overcome sin so you see how what is it that helped me then the blood of Jesus cleanses me I believe that with all my heart for 52 years never doubted it for one second it didn't give me victory finally I'll to tell you honestly victory became a reality in my life when an addition to all these I don't despise any of these in addition to all these God placed me in a body 36 years ago he placed me along with other brothers and sisters they were not as gifted as me but the Lord showed me I need them and I'll tell you something many of the revelations and God's word that God has given me in these last 36 years amazing revelations from God's Word almost all of them have come when I have been fellowshipping with others not when I'm sitting alone reading the Bible I'll tell you honestly I got a lot of knowledge sitting alone reading the Bible but many times the revelation would flash into my mind when I was talking with another brother or he would ask me a question and that would challenge me to think about it and I would get a revelation and I asked a lot about this I said Lord why is this that I don't seem to get revelation and I'm reading your word but so often in fellowship with others the Lord showed me that I was trying to teach me how much I need the other members of the body of Christ and that's why all these 36 years I have valued fellowship in the body it's been my protection he's kept me from what Jesus has kept me from falling through keeping me in fellowship with the body I feel sorry for a lot of Christians who sit even in CFC who don't value that fellowship and I'll tell you something God's taught me some amazing things as I sat listening to brothers and sisters were much younger than me who are less educated than me as I go down to the villages of Tamilnadu so often in the last 30 years I've sat there and listened to people who can't speak one word of English who are not gone even finished high school but who know the Lord and as they share the word I sit there and listen to them and God blesses me and speaks to my heart now if I sit there and think that oh I'm a somebody I planted this church what the guys did can these guys teach me I'd be lost today but God's taught me how I need those brothers I've got some amazing revelations that have come from other brothers sharing the word I was speaking last Wednesday about something I received when many Wednesday's as I've sat here I've listened to different brothers and sisters much younger than me Speaker I just suddenly listened and being blessed as I've heard as God has spoken to my heart and preserved me and challenged me and given me a revelation I was sharing last Wednesday what one young sister shared three verses that for the first time in my life I it hit me I know those three verses for years but I never saw those three verses to lost- tears relating to the Father Son and Holy Spirit and you were here when his day I you heard me share that but I'll repeat it for you the first one is 1 Corinthians 10 and 13 which says and then God is faithful who will never allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able that's the father making sure that his child is never never tempted beyond his ability I ask all of you who've been through school whenever you sat for your examination did any teacher throughout your time in school give you a question paper that was not for your class if you were doing a six standard examination did you get a tenth standard question paper never I don't think any of us have experienced that when you go through a trial and you say that's too much for me you're actually saying God you are more stupid than any teacher I ever had no teacher ever gave me an examination paper too tough for me but you have come and given me an a trial too tough for me no wonder you're defeated brother you insult God by saying to him this is too much for me have you ever said these words this is getting too much for me your school teachers were cleverer than God right God will never allow you to be tested beyond your ability I believe that with all my heart it's because you think you're a somebody that you don't overcome the trial was something you could have passed but you thought you were somebody so God didn't exalt you the problem is not that the trial was too much the problem was with you you were too proud what a wonderful verse the father ensures that I'll never never never in my whole life we tested beyond my ability I don't know what massive temptation the devil has stored up for me in the future but I know not one of them will come to me without my father filtering it to see whether I can handle it and the second verse that was quoted was from Jude 24 which speaks about the Ministry of the Son of God Jude 24 where it says unto him Jesus who's able to keep you from falling he's able to keep me from falling Jesus keeps me from falling he's able to keep me from falling I hope in the early days I used to say I got victory over sin did the Lord corrected me and said don't say that say Jesus kept me from falling and that's what I say now the Lord keeps me from falling because if he doesn't keep me I can't stand a single day I can't overcome sin if Jesus doesn't keep me from falling he keeps me he says I have you in my hand no one can pluck you from my hand I'm in his hand and so he keeps me from falling if he takes away his hand I'm finished it's as simple as this this Bible is kept from falling because I'm holding it up if this Bible somehow suddenly get some high thoughts about itself and says I have overcome gravity really I've got to remove my hand and discover you haven't overcome gravity that's how you know we begin to think I have overcome some sin no brother Jesus keeps me from falling always recognize that recognize we're nothing and the third verse is 2nd Corinthians 12 which speaks about the Ministry of the Holy Spirit who gives us grace 2nd Corinthians 12 and verse 9 my grace is sufficient for you the Lord said for my strength is made perfect in your weakness the Holy Spirit is the one who communicates grace to us and he says my grace is enough for you to overcome every weakness if you recognize your weak you know in the moment of temptation if I recognize I'm weak I will run the Bible says flee from temptation if a worm comes in front of me I don't run but if a nap and lion comes in front of me you know what I do I run because I'm not weak compared to that worm but I'm pretty weak compared to that line even an Alsatian barking dog is enough to make me run so when a person plays around with temptation on the computer going to sites that he should not go to he's thinks he's pretty strong I can handle that really no wonder you fall no wonder you're a slave to internet pornography because you think you're strong you're not weak only strong people fall into sin only strong people lose their temper only strong people lust weak people run away those who feel well I'm nothing I'm scared I don't want to if God allows me to face the temptation then you give me grace to overcome it but I'm not gonna go and look for temptation like we pray lead us not into temptation that is too strong for us but deliver us from evil flee from idolatry flee from immorality those are the words in Scripture free from the love of money I'm scared with money I'll tell you honestly I Dollar Tree immorality and money are the three things the Bible tells us to flee from we're told to run away from these things flee from idolatry free from immorality free from the love of money why do I flee because I'm weak idolatry I'm scared that I can give some place to something in my life that other than god that's idolatry immorality I'm scared as a man I can be tempted and I so I steer clear I want to keep a little distance from women do you keep that distance flee from the love of money do I say Lord I'm scared too much money can destroy me keep me away from this I'm weak I'm helpless how many of you feel when you got a sudden jump in and you got 50% more than what or 100% more than what you earn Oh God I'm weak now you didn't feel weak did you you felt pretty strong no wonder brothers and sisters you're not growing no wonder God is not making rivers of living water flowing through you my graces of my strength is made perfect in weakness when I recognize that I am weak that in my flesh dwells nothing good I cannot overcome I'm nothing then God will enable me to be an overcomer that's what I have to learn from Jesus Father Son and Holy Spirit God is there the Spirit is there to give me grace but God gives us grace to the humble this is mean God's Way right through the ages he brings a man down to nothing we thought about Moses mighty powerful man at the age of 40 God had to Humble him and make him so weak then he said I can use you you know when he was 40 years old with one blow of his hand he couldn't hit an Egyptian and kill him and it says in acts 7 he thought these lights would see that and say boy what a muscular man he's going to deliver us from the Egyptians imagine if Moses had tried that method of killing the Egyptians one by one how long would it take him to deliver the Israelites he'd have been killed long before that but when he was we can helpless 80 years old a weak old man and the whole Egyptian army comes at him the Lord says just lift up your rod and the whole Egyptian army was buried under the sea what could he do as a mighty 40 year old kill one man what could he do as a weak 80 year old bury the whole Egyptian army it's a lesson God's power is manifested in our weakness he waits why does it say about Jesus that when Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick what do you do when you hear someone loved one is sick you rush but he's he's amazing words in John 11 when Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick John 11:6 he stayed two more days in the same place have you ever heard of anything more crazy than that when Jesus heard that one whom he loved so much was sick he said oh he's sick is he oh I better stay here two more days why was that there's a spiritual lesson here he was waiting for Lazarus to come to zero so he waited one day today he can still move his fingers he can still get a bit upset with Mary and Martha no he's not ready yet wait a few days and now we hear he's buried no I'm still waiting sure he's dead let him be there for four days now we can go do you know what God is waiting for in your case rather you're saying Lord like they send a message to Jesus please help me Lazarus is secure send him I said lord give me victory he's not coming right he hasn't come he's wait two years twenty years you know what he's waiting for he's waiting for you to die to come to zero and say Lord I can't make it he's waiting for you to stop despising other people stop thinking that you're somebody stop comparing yourself with others and think you're superior to them how easily that comes to us God blesses your little in our head gets swollen up and immediately God has to resist us that is the main reason why we don't go from strength to strength to strength I'll tell you the history of many many Christians they really humble themselves especially after they hear a message like this and then God blesses them they go up and they become blessed and they get puffed up God has to push them down and then they hear another message or something in their humble themselves God lifts them up this is the reason for this wavy type of Christian experience sometimes on the mountaintop most of the time in the dumps and again on the mountaintop he doesn't have to be like that it says we can go from glory to glory to glory to glory if we keep on going down like Jesus instead of keeping on going up like Lucifer this is the message that the world that celebrates Christmas needs to understand God became a man have this attitude in you if you're a man go down like him zero and God will exalt you no sin will be able to rule over you no demon will be able to stand before you I'll tell you this honestly if ever in my life I mean there are a number of demons I've cast out every single time with one sentence no screaming no yelling if ever in my life I speak to a demon inside a person saying get out in Jesus name and he does not go with once-quiet sentence you know what I do I don't yell and scream there I go and humble myself before God and say Lord something's wrong with me how in the world did that demon stay there when I told him in the name of Jesus to go that never happened to you Lord he would speak a word and ten kilometres away the demons would leave do you know what amazing authority and power Christ wants all of us to have that demons tremble when they know that you're coming there why aren't we all like that I'll tell you my brothers and sisters because we think we are somebody let's go down from today onwards and make this new year of blessed year learn that we are nobodies let's pray our heads before God dear brothers and sisters don't let this word be taken away by the birds of the air don't let it just give you a temporary boost say lord help me to see clearly the way Jesus went and the way Lucifer went so that I never make a mistake about the path in which I have to go not just for a few days but all the days of my life I never to exalt myself I want you to exalt me thank you Lord hear us Heavenly Father in Jesus name Amen

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Keywords: zac poonen, cfc, Christian Fellowship Church, Church, Fellowship, Christian, Zac, Poonen

Id: mWczKeibLFk

Length: 50min 32sec (3032 seconds)

Published: Tue Aug 26 2014