Zac Poonen - The Spirit of the fear of the Lord - SPC5

we were saying that the church is the body of Christ and the first body of Christ that was on the earth was the physical body of Jesus and the spiritual body of Christ that was formed on the day of Pentecost it's called the body of Christ because it's supposed to carry on the same ministry that Jesus fulfilled in his earthly body explaining the father revealing what God is like revealing the life of God in a human body that's what Jesus did you know he manifested the life of God the nature of God in a human body that was what he demonstrated facing the same temptations and difficulties not the same circumstances for the same temptations every single temptation we faced he also faced and he overcame and he did not use any resource that we don't have that's the wonderful truth in the Bible it's called in 1 Timothy 3:16 the mystery of godliness that Christ was manifest in the flesh and was pure in his spirit and Hebrews chapter 2 we're talking about the first body of Christ after which we pattern the spiritual body of Christ Hebrews 2:17 he had to be made like his brothers in all things the fundamental principle of all ministry is to be like our brothers in all things and not to exalt ourselves over them he came from earth and became a man that was humility from man he became a bondservant and that's humility again and as a bondservant he went lower and hung on a cross like a criminal sort of three stages of humility in you read in Philippians 2:5 he humbled himself became a man then it says he became a bondservant and then he died on the cross as a criminal so that's why I always say the secret three secrets of the Christian life are humility humility humility and he made himself like his brothers in all things he came underneath people in order to save them why was he born in a stable in a cowshed I have never in my life met anyone who was born in a cowshed not even the beggars in India there women don't deliver on the cow sheds there's no one I don't know if anybody in the world was born in the midst of cow dung and animals and here in the lowest Jesus came underneath everybody in order to lift people up why did he have to die on a cross the crucifixion was the worst type of death that has ever been invented in the cruelty of man and imagine that Jesus waited 4000 years in heaven until the worst form of death was invented and then came and died decided to die he could have died a decent death somewhere without being stripped naked and hung on a cross but it was this principle of coming underneath all men so that nobody could say you don't know what I've gone through there's no human being that can turn to Jesus and say Lord you don't know what I'm going through you don't know what I've gone through we came underneath everybody it says in Isaiah 53 he was despised and rejected by all men so if the first body of Christ was despised and rejected by all men like it says in Isaiah 53 then that by the way his eyes I have 53 and verse 3 then do you expect is the servant greater than the master jesus said if I have been called the Prince of Devil's Beelzebub what type of names are you being called by sometimes we get upset with somebody causes some inferior name or something that we get so easily upset with people who deride us or make fun of us think of the first body of Christ he was the most spirit filled man that walked on the earth I look at Jesus is the perfect example a one who's filled with the Holy Spirit and that's one reason why I say speaking in tongues is not essential the most spirit filled man on earth never spoke in tongues Jesus never spoke in tongues anytime I think God gives it to us for our human limitation why is it when we go to heaven we will not need to speak in tongues because our communication with God will be so perfect it's because of the limitation of our language and the pressures of life that God gives that if Jesus never needed it Jesus his relationship with the father was so perfect and I found that in the early years of my being spirit-filled I needed the gift of tongues more than now I find that in heaven we never need it at all and Jesus I found even in our church we had it more in the early days but not so much now and I find Jesus I mean as we progress to what Jesus how communication with God is so perfect so Jesus is the perfect example of a spiritual man again I'm not talking about ministry I'm talking about life ministry to spirit-filled people may have completely different ministries you can be more spirit-filled than me and yet you may not have the gift of teaching God has given me that's a gift so just because two people are spirit-filled doesn't mean they'll have the same ability to preach or teach it's a question of gift so we are thinking about life the first body of Christ was rejected despised came underneath all people became like his brothers and all things so if we are to fulfill a perfectly spirit filled Church will seek to identify with people without sinning Jesus identified without agreeing with their sin he was a friend of sinners and of spirit-filled Church will be the friend of sinners the worst drug addicts and the prostitutes are welcome to come and hear the gospel in our church a good Hospital will say send us your worst cases we can take care of them an inferior Hospital will say oh we can't handle the worst cases just send us those who have a coffin a cold or something like that so a church that cannot handle the worst sinners is not really a good Church a good church is one that can welcome the worst sinners and tell them how Jesus can save he doesn't tolerate their sin Jesus did not come to call the healthy or he came to call the sick he came to call sinners to repentance not to leave them as sinners though he was a friend of sinners he led them to repentance but he was never influenced by their sin so we must seek to identify with people see that's why in our churches we don't use titles like Reverend or Reverend doctor or pastor all these things tend to elevate us above other believers jesus said don't Lee don't ever be called rabbi father or things like that he said that to the Pharisees in Matthew 23 to his disciples referring to the Pharisees in Matthew 23 verse 8 and 9 and 10 he said you're all brothers you're all servants that's what he said very clearly you are all brothers and you're all servants verse 8 verse 11 so the only two things God is permitted to be in the church I'm called to be a brother and I'm called to be a servant titles tend to exalt us above one another and any way in which you try to exalt yourself over another person by title or any such thing you're not following the principle of the first body of Christ he identified himself with his brothers we read in John chapter 6 they wanted to make him a king he ran away he said I want to be a king I'm here to be a servant so there's a lot we can learn from the first body of Christ Jesus was basically not a rich person he lived very very simply I believe once when he wanted to when people asked him shall we shall we paid that I should be paid tax to Caesar he didn't pull out a coin from his pocket he didn't have one he said show me a coin and somebody else had to give him a coin to say whose figure whose head is on this coin and even when he had to pay his tax he told Peter go to the sea and catch a fish and pay tax for you and me so he was not a rich person and a lot of people try to give the impression that Jesus was a very rich person he wasn't so don't think that and I'm not saying that for nobody in the church must be really Jesus had a calling and what I'm saying is that we must never do anything that exhausts us above others we must always seek to be brothers and servants it's a fundamental principle a spirit-filled Church will consist of people have who feel they are all brothers and sisters and who all have the spirit of being a servant of one another very important so when we look at Jesus is the perfect example of the spirit-filled person what was it that kept him from sin Hebrews 4:15 says he was tempted in all points like as we are but he did not sin what was it that kept him from sin it's very important to understand it because that is the you know 30 years in Nazareth many people call it the hidden years we don't know what he did but we know one thing that he did in those thirty years he resisted temptation Hebrews 4:15 is the one verse about the only verse that tells us what Jesus did for 30 years in Nazareth when he was young a little child he submitted to his parents that we read in Luke chapter 2 but otherwise what did he do for 30 years he faced every type of temptation that you can face as a child as a teenager as a working man as a carpenter earning money every type of temptation the temptations that teenagers face the temptation that young people in their twenties faced Jesus faced it the temptation that five year old children faced Jesus faced it and every time he overcame he never sinned once he had four brothers and sisters two sisters who troubled him Harriston but he never got upset with them or irritated or angry he never sinned it's so difficult even for us to live one day without saying imagine how he lived thirty three and a half years and without sin this is the example of the spirit filled man he wasn't doing miracles for thirty years he never preached a sermon for thirty years what was he filled with the Spirit those 30 years sure can you be filled with the spirit without preaching a sermon or without doing miracles of course but I'm sure he was a blessing to others he was helpful and kind and good and it was must have been always a blessing to talk to him and I've often thought that if you were living in Nazareth in those days and you'd heard about this nice carpenter called Jesus who's working and people give good reports about him and say hey I want to go and spend a little time with him and if you spend a half an hour with Jesus and came away what would be the lasting impression on your mind I've thought about that he would never have given me the impression that he's such a holy person some Christians give you that impression and when we preach victory over sin in our church it's not that we should give people the impression we are so holy holier than thou the Bible says in Isaiah 65 they are a stench in my nostrils God says those who stand apart and say I'm holier than you it's very easy for people in some churches that preach holiness to look upon others as holier than thou if you're not familiar with that words let me show it to you it's a very important words for all Christians who pursue holiness Isaiah 65 verse 5 God says those who say keep to yourself but don't come and join my church because I'm holier than you they are a smoke in my nostrils a fire that burns all the day you know how smoke is when it gets into your nose God uses it's a new field repelled you feel like running away from there God says all these people who tell others I'm holier than you don't you come anywhere near me they're like smokiness now since God detests them Jesus never had gave that impression to anyone sinful people he could mingle with without being affected by their sin he came to help them but he never said stay away from me though the Pharisees were like that stay away from us we are above holy bunch of people need to be very careful that we follow Jesus and not the Pharisees in our pursuit of holiness a spirit-filled person never gives other people the impression I'm holier than you I think if I spend a half an hour with Jesus in Nazareth and came away I would not think boy what a holy man no he would never give me that impression I think the impression I would come away with his boy what a humble man I've never seen a man so Hamo he's obviously so pure but he's so humble about it he's obviously Snow's God so well but he's so humble about it this is the mark of genuine spirit filled people and a spirit filled Church must have that testimony here's a bunch of not holy people here's a bunch of people who really esteem you as more important than themselves not more holier than themselves jesus never esteemed Peter as holier than him or Judas Iscariot as holier than him but he esteemed others is more important than him how do we know that he washed their feet that means we'd be willing to do lowly jobs for others if a visitor came to your church the church that preaches holiness a spiritual church you would seek to serve Him not that he twelves you around his finger and because he says I can get these people to serve me no but you have a spirit of service you'd take you would not try to show off to him in any way a spirit-filled person is a humble person and in their private life that be purity how did Jesus have that I want to show you the answer in Isaiah chapter 11 as I chapter 11 there is a prophecy about Jesus Christ about how he would be when when he came to earth this is a prophetic reference to Christ in Isaiah 11 then shoot will spring up from the stem of Jesse Jesse is the father of David and Jesus Christ is called the son of David so it's referring to Jesus a branch from his roots will bear fruit and is referring to Christ and he's speaking about the spirit-filled Christ the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him it was not only upon him but within him we know that and now there are the Holy Spirit is described here as the Spirit of Jehovah a Sevenfold Holy Spirit like you read in revelation spirit of Jehovah spirit of wisdom spirit of understanding spirit of counsel spirit of strength spirit of knowledge and the spirit of the law is fear of the Lord the seven titles of the Holy Spirit here and out of those seven one particularly is picked out in the next verse out of all these seven titles and says the Spirit of God will make Jesus delight in the fear of the Lord and he will not judge by what his eyes see or make a decision by what his years here but with righteousness he will judge the poor this is something that is a result of being filled with the Holy Spirit the Spirit of God is the spirit of the fear of the Lord and in one translation it says that he will delight in the fear that all his translators he will make him quick of scent quick of scent SCE and T in the fear of the Lord and that reminds me of these police dogs who track criminals maybe a criminal left some cloth of his or something behind if the dog smells it we smell it we get nothing but the dog smells it and it can track that criminal where he walked imagine that and it I'm always amazed by it how that dog can just because he's the guy left a handkerchief behind or something or a cloth the touch that there's a smell there in the dog and it comes to a fork in the road and the dog says oh not this way here and they track the criminal it's amazing this is what I see is quick of scent and I see Lord what does this mean a quick of scent in the fear of the Lord I think it means as I walk along and I come to a crossroad a fork in the road which part shall I take here is this right or wrong and the Spirit of God if I allow this fear of the Lord to fill me will make me quick of sin not that way this way it's a wonderful thing to live like this we read in Isaiah chapter 30 that when you come to that fork in the road where I said 30 verse 21 your ears will hear a word behind you saying this is the way walk in it when you turn to the right or to the left in the fork in the road the Spirit of God tell you this one not that one imagine living life like this that's how Jesus when he was tempted and there was a choice of this or that the Spirit of God tell him this another come place you come to the fork in the road and the Spirit of God will say this and he was lived in the spirit of the fear of the Lord made him quick of sent in the fear of God and it also says here as a result Isaiah 11 3 he would not judge by what his eyes see or zere's here you know we've spent all our life making almost every decision we have made by what we have seen and heard my eyes means what we read and what we see and hear what we hear and we all the information we have accumulated in our mind almost all of it 90% of it or more has come through the eyes in the years think of it all the information you have in your mind has come through the eyes and the years and through the years we have learned to decide based on this information based on the billboards we have seen the advertisements we have seen you know which tell us you can't live without this you have to buy this and when I see such advertisement I see how did man live without all this for five thousand years what do you mean I have to live I can't live without this is a lot of rubbish and different things that are we hear from from the days of school what children teach us and the competitive spirit in schools you must come first and you must beat everyone else and come first whether it's sports or academics or anything all this we we've acquired certain values in our mind and Jesus is very careful not to allow what he saw in her to influence him but take it before the Lord and take a righteous decision this is what helps us later on in life also to discern we hear a lot of things people tell us things and we don't we don't believe everything and we see things and say I'm not gonna make a decision merely by what I see or hear I want to go before the Lord this is what the fear of the Lord made him he was very sensitive that I don't allow myself to even have an attitude towards a person based on what I see or hear I want to take it before the Lord every time it became a habit with him okay I saw this and I heard it now Lord what shall I do I'm not gonna take a decision by what he told me or what I saw I want to hear what God has to say imagine living like this is I remember years ago the Lord told me this he sent you all your life you have grown up from childhood like all other human beings forming decisions by what you see and hear now you got to be different you got to be filled with my spirit and you continue to see and continue to hear but now you evaluate it before me and try to get my understanding of it and the Old Testament the Holy Spirit was outside and God spoke to man from outside Abraham and he would say Here I am Samuel he was a year I am now the Holy Spirit has come inside now the advantage of the Holy Spirit coming inside is that he can not only speak to us he can change us as long as the Holy Spirit outside we think much better to listen to him outside no because he couldn't change Abraham he couldn't change David David after writing Psalms at the age of 28 when they'd committed adultery when he was 52 imagine a man writing Scripture 24 years later commits adultery that's how old covenant was because the Spirit of God was within can you imagine the Apostle Paul committing adultery I can't even dream of it can you imagine Peter committing adultery or Paul or James or John we can't even dream of it even though they were thirty thirty to when they were apostles in the passion of youth you know how a 32 year old is these apostles were like that but they never committed adultery here's David committing adultery when he's 52 that's the difference between Old Covenant and you come the spirit of the fear of the Lord see I feel that a lot of Christians a lot of people among us have not understood the fear of the Lord because there was a difference between the Jews and us in this way Peter never knew anything about the grace of God until he was thirty years old even after he was with Jesus he understood grace only after he was filled with the Holy Spirit so we can imagine for 33 years he grew up in the Jewish Way and the Jewish way spoke zero about Grace but plenty about the fear of the Lord the Old Testament was a fear of God fear of God fear of God fear of God he was drilled in that probably with god-fearing parents from his childhood so when a person has heard about the fear of God for 30 years and then hears the grace of God he appreciates the grace of God in its proper way and understands Grace correctly but we we've not learned anything about the fear of God in our life from the earliest childhood if you are in a Christian home what you hear about is the grace of God grace grace grace grace grace grace grace the result is we take sin lightly we commit sin more easy than those Jewish people who had spent 30 years learning the fear of God and then learned about the grace of God and the end result is what we call grace is a cheap counterfeit grace so I've come to see the greatest need among Christians is to know the fear of the Lord even if you know nothing about the grace of God even if you know nothing about Jesus Christ even if you have no Bible the fear of God can keep you from sin and I'll prove that to you with two Old Testament examples number one spirit of the fear of the Lord Genesis chapter 39 here is a young man taken away taken away from his parents when he was 17 years old hated by his brothers sold as a slave the son of a very rich man Jacob was a very rich man the son of a very rich father grew up in comfort sold as a slave and living in slaves quarters and working hard maybe he's around 20 years old now and he finds his master's wife Genesis 39 7 looked with desire at Joseph and said lie with me and he refused he said see I'm here how can I do this verse 9 last part how can I do this great evil and sin against God where did he hear about that from his father Jacob who told him don't be like the idolaters around us my grandfather Abraham came to know the true God and he gave us that faith in the true God and he hates sin he must not take advantage of women never commit adultery when he was if you want sex you must get married and have a wife Joseph was told all that when he was 17 years old he couldn't have learned it in Egypt and his father taught him as a young teenager to be careful in the sexual area and that's the information he had in his head when he went to Egypt and it teaches us that we need to teach our children before they are 17 years old about being careful in the sexual area and he went there and he knew there's a God in heaven Jacob Allah told him God is watching you all the time remember that and here he is alone with this wicked woman no Bible no knowledge of Jesus no Holy Spirit no fellowship parents are far away in a far country to do some of you know there ference far away in a far country nobody around you all alone tempted twenty years old and all he tells that when a woman comes it's not that you go after a woman that's worse a woman comes after you maybe a pretty looking woman and he says nobody's watching just once Joseph he said no not even once not I might get caught you know how some people live with only one commandment thou shalt not get caught he wasn't living with that one commandment he was living with how can i sin against God where is God she could have asked these God's everywhere he's here right now nobody else is there with me but God is there it says in verse 11 none of the men of the household were there inside the David nobody was there and she grabbed his court come on lie with me and he runs away what was it that made him do that the fear of God he knew zero about the grace of God zero about the Bible there was no Bible zero about Church New Covenant sin shall not have dominion over you nothing what was it that protected him which does not protect so many Christians today why is it so many Christians fall today in similar similar situation only one thing the fear of God that my brothers and sisters is what all of us need today the spirit - the fear of the Lord was upon Jesus that's what kept him from sin for 33 and a half years so if you only know about the grace of God and you don't know the fear of the Lord you've got something completely missing in your life and I feel that that is what is lacking in many churches I want to be in a church that teaches me to fear God the fear God is to hate sin the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom I call that the ABC of wisdom that's the beginning of wisdom is the ABC of wisdom it's says in Proverbs now in the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom so to try and understand the grace of God and other biblical truths before understanding the fear of the Lord is like sending his child to school and he straightaway goes to study physics and chemistry and geography and all that without through without learning the alphabets can you imagine putting a small child into eighth grade or something and studying physics and geography and chemistry without even being able to read the alphabets what will he do it he gets zero in every subject every subject because he should have started in the kindergarten he should have started with learning the alphabets he should have started with learning addition numbers instead of all that this ambitious pair and put them straight into eighth grade this is exactly house Christians are knowing nothing about the fear of God which is the beginning of wisdom they are trying to understand grace of God and victory over saying a new covenant and all that no wonder that some of us have heard about new covenant and victory over sin for so many years and we are still worse than some other people never heard about these things why is it they have more than us they have the fear of God why is it some non-christians behave much better than some believers because they are the fear of God I know non-christians who never would commit adultery never be unfaithful to their wives and no matter how much they're tempted in the office or anywhere else not talking at all laundry since there are some non-christians who know nothing there are Idol worshipers there faithful to their wives why is that why is it so many Christians and leaders and preachers are unfaithful to their wives only one reason the fear of God is missing which they have they don't have worship the true God will go to they know there's some supreme being up there and they have a reverence for that so we see how it's because this element is missing that so many people talk about being filled with the Holy Spirit but they lack the fear of God I remember hearing a man in Canada tell me that they that a non Christian and non-christian told him that Pentecostal girls are the best girls to date because they are they give you so much freedom to touch them and do other things and I was thinking about that why is that I said because the natural reserve that God has given to all women is broken down when they go through highly emotional meetings which is what many Pentecostal churches are characterized by i they work up the feeling so much that that natural reserve is broken away which I go into a village in India of godless women they will not allow you to come anywhere near them they won't even shake your hand they won't touch a fan but all that is broken down that natural reserve is broken down in so-called Christians who yell and scream and imagine that they're speaking in unknown tongues and think they are filled with the Holy Spirit and nowadays you see that reserve is broken down so much that they've started rolling on the floor and behaving like animals and calling it the Holy Spirit such an insult you see where it's gradually progressing more and more into unrestrained evil and then they go out into the world and all that natural protection that God's given women is broken down and I'm not surprised that unconverted people like to date such women so that they can easily do whatever they want to it's such even though they call them such Christians and the name of Jesus is Dishonored and of course they'll come back and say oh Lord I'm sorry I've forgiven the blood of Jesus cleanses me it's living in a terrific deception a self-deception this is not Christianity this is a counterfeit and it's better we know it because we're living in a world surrounded by such Christians who all they talk about is a blood of Jesus on the grace of God the grace of God the blood of Jesus once you're saved you're always saved and all this type of teaching I tell you has sent more people to hell then all the other doctrines in the world believe me because the fear of God is not being preached the beginning of wisdom is not there ABC is not there and people are thinking they can study physics and chemistry and geography brother/sister learn the alphabet first the ABC of wisdom the fear of the law to recognize that God is watching me all the time that is the first thing that prevents me from yelling at somebody getting angry with people forget the grace of God before I come to that the fear of God I see if Jesus were here right now would I get yelled at this person would you yell at your wife of Jesus is living there sitting there right in your house no you wouldn't do that even if a brother from the churches in your in your house then how is it when the brother goes away you continue yelling it's because you say now he's gone is only Jesus here who cares for him there is no fear of God do you know that this is how God describes the entire human human race turn with me to Romans chapter 3 you know there are many things written about the rotten condition of man in Romans chapter 3 verse 10 onwards there is no one righteous no not one Romans 3 verse 11 there's no one who understands there's no one who seeks after God they've all turned aside they've become useless there's no one who does good look at the description of the human race not even one their throat is an open grave verse 13 that with their tongues they deceive the poison of ASPs is under their lips their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness it's interesting that and all these things about three four things refer to the conversation verse 13 throat tongues lips mouth so much to do with the mouth so much of sin through the mouth their feet are Swift to shed blood destruction and misery in their parts and the part of peace they have not known how shall I sum it all up verse 18 there is no fear of God in their eyes it's like totaling up a number of numbers and singing sum total at the bottom that's it that's how the human race is described by the Holy Spirit so when we appeal to the spirit that the world is full of darkness and the thing that characterizes the world is there is no fear of God in their eyes and here I'm supposed to be light the burning fire of God the thing that should characterize me is the fear of God so different from them that restrains me the recognition that God is here watching me all the time the thing that prevents a child from cheating in a class or telling a lie because God is watching me listening to me this is one of the first things that we should teach our children God is watching you all the time my little girl my boy God's watching you be careful you can't say things you mean you may deceive me as a father or mother but you can't fool God it's a wonderful thing if we can teach our children that and I believe that's the thing that must be taught in every church see this thing that david says in psalm 34 verse 11 come you children listen to me I will teach you the fear of the Lord what an expression every father and mother should say that come children listen to me before I teach you ABC I will teach you the fear of the Lord before I teach you how to take a shower how to dress yourself I will teach you the fear of the Lord is what every elder must say to his congregation children you know an elder is like a father let me teach you the fear of the Lord I have been an elder for 40 years this is exactly what I've tried to teach him every one of the churches I have responsibility for the fear of the Lord you cannot understand the grace of God without the fear of the Lord the fullness of the Holy Spirit is the fullness of the spirit of the fear of the Lord Jesus had it in the first body of Christ today's body of Christ lacks it because there's no teaching on it you have to say come I will teach you the fear of the Lord and that's why you have leaders falling into sin and that's why you have so much confusion that's why you have so many husbands and wives fighting for ever and ever and ever in churches that preach victory over sin all the theory of victory is there but the fear of the Lord is not there I believe this is the one thing that's lacking and I want to tell you also that this is why a lot of our prayers are not answered sometimes you know believers have got so used to tell me if I'm not telling you the truth about yourself you got so used to your prayers not being answered that an answer to prayer comes as a surprise oh my prayer was answered that one prayer that you keep speaking about that for the rest of your life there is it's not meant to be like that it's the rare prayer that's not on should not be answered because you tell me honestly when you read the Gospels in the episodes do you get the impression that well once in a while God may answer your prayer is that the impression you get from all the teaching of Jesus not at all then why is it we've come to that experience maybe we have decided to accept the fact that well once in a while some prayer mind gets answered you know it's like the lottery or something let me get it most of the time you don't get it it's like I heard of a some heathen religion where they have a take over someplace in a pilgrimage and there's a big Idol over there some distance away and they're to stay in the math a little wall away from there and they got to write their request on a piece of paper and roll it up in a piece of mud and fling it at the idol if it sticks your prayers answer if it doesn't stick and I think a lot of Christians tell me honestly aren't your prayers also something like that you fling it maybe it gets stuck it doesn't get stuck it just falls down and most of the time it doesn't get stuck we don't know whether it's answered or not why is it turn with me to Hebrews chapter five and you'll see the answer he was yours to hear let him hear speaking about Jesus overcoming sin in the days of his flesh in all the thirty three and a half years that he was on earth Hebrews chapter 5 verse seven in the days of his flesh he offered a prayer supplication I want to tell you something prayer is a mark of a weak person strong people don't pray those who have full confidence in themselves do not pray is those who have no confidence in themselves but confidence in God we'll need to pray prayer is a symbol of a weak person because it's asking somebody else to help you does a rich man go asking other people for financial health no who asks people for financial help a poor person he prays for health so when we go to God prayer is a symbol I'm weak I can't make it jesus prayed because he came as a man he identified with us in our weakness and he prayed with loud crying in tears imagine a beggar coming to your gate and say Oh master please give me some money I'm desperate I'm gonna starve loud crying in tears can you picture Jesus praying like that in the wilderness and what was he praying for he wasn't praying for money he wasn't praying for any physical blessing he certainly wasn't praying for cars and houses like people pray today he was praying to be saved from spiritual death which debt is mentioned your physical death or spiritual death is very easy to find out there only two types of death in the New Testament physical death spiritual death spiritual death is a result of sin we know which it was because it's his prayer was heard that means God answered his prayer God didn't answer his prayer by saving him from physical death so it was spiritual death he was praying father he says in James once sin when it is finished brings forth death I want to be safe from that depth I want to be safe from spiritual death I don't want to smell of sin in me not a smell of death oh it's so difficult in this evil world to be free from sin father I never wanted to split you he prayed and cried out and I've come to see that there can be a cry in your heart without you're opening your mouth a loud cry in your heart to God keep me from sin I'm being tempted now please help me and he was heard and it says he was hurt because of his godly fear that's a broad part I wanted to point out to you because of his godly fear that's the translation in somewhere some passages and some translations because of his fear of God his prayers were heard then I know why some prayers are not heard because I don't have such a desperate cry to be kept from sin we kept from sin we can come into situations for example do you know that when you complain about something you're sinning it's something that happens in the house that I'm not talking about a legitimate complaint you make to some government authority or to the bank or something like that where there's a need to make a complaint I'm not talking about that I'm talking about something that goes wrong at home but you didn't get what you expected from your wife or husband and you have a you want to say something about it because you have an inward demand on your partner you got to do this for me you're not dead that's a problem and you see there that you're about to sin now and you say Lord I'm sinning because I don't consider myself dead I'm selfish I'm seeking my own here I don't want to sin please help me that I don't sin here then I don't open my mouth and sin I want to die I don't I don't expect anything I want to be I want to live like Jesus on the earth knowing that my father is in control of everything he controls everything and everything around me is happening to make me more like Jesus Christ and I will only give thanks for it keep me Lord from sin I fear you that I don't even want to open my mouth and say one word that would dishonor you in my place of work or in the office where are the Christians who live like this I want to be in a spirit-filled Church that challenges me every week to live like this I don't want to be a part of a church that just comforts me saying you're going to heaven when you die when you accepted tries you signed a decision card some years ago you're guaranteed to have it now I don't want to be in a church that preaches that type of rubbish and fools me for all eternity I mean my eternal destiny is too much for me to give into the hands of these preachers who try to fool me I want to go to the scriptures I want to be rooted this is the only book that shows me the way to eternal life and I don't want to be deceived because it's too risky a thing to take chances with so I want to take it seriously that's why I say it's very important what you're listening to take heed to what you hear Jesus said take heed to what you hear because that's influencing you and if you listen to the wrong type of preacher you can waste your life on earth and end up in the wrong place in eternity I take my responsibilities very seriously I've sometimes said to some brothers in our church who think I preach too hard I say brother you may think like that today wait till the judgement seat of Christ and you see what happened to all these other people who listened to other preachers he will turn around and thank me that day I don't want you to thank me today you don't realize your seriousness of your situation but that day you will realize and you will turn around and thank me for the hard words I spoke to saved you from eternal destruction because this is not something we can play the fool with a godly fear Jesus told his disciples in Matthew chapter 10 let me show you this verse he's talking to his disciples the whole chapter is really what he told his disciples you know verse 16 I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves and he said in verse 24 a disciple is not above his teacher in Matthew 10:24 and he said don't fear people worse 26 what I tell you in the darkness was 27 speaking the light verse 28 is one of the words I wanted to show you don't fear those who can kill your body but cannot touch your soul but fear him whom is he talking to his disciples before I teach you about the grace of God fear God who can destroy your you disciples who can destroy your soul and body in hell you know another thing which I discovered in the study of the Scriptures which may surprise you Jesus spoke about hell more to his disciples than to unbelievers if you don't believe me search the Scriptures and see Matthew chapter 5 I already showed you earlier here Matthew chapter 10 show me one place in the Gospels where Jesus threatened unbelievers with hell try and find one verse and sure to me he told the Pharisees how will you escape the damnation of hell they were hypocrites but he talked to religious people about Hell he never spoke about Hell to unbelievers I believe in hell 100% do you need to talk to believers about Hell Jesus did he's telling his disciples fear him who can cast your body and soul into hell is he talking to Pharisees there or unbelievers see the next verse you're not one sparrow will fall to your ground apart from your father who is your father he's talking to disciples what is he telling them fear God this is the message that is missing in much of Christianity the spirit of the fear of the Lord was upon Jesus and he's the captain of our salvation let's learn from him a spirit-filled Church is that one that proclaims the fear of God that will keep us from sin it's the ABC of wisdom and the Bible says in Proverbs wisdom builds the house you cannot build the house without wisdom I'll show you that verse in closing proverbs 24 verse 3 by wisdom a house is built by understanding it is established by knowledge the rooms are filled that's like saying you build the house then you put the furniture inside the knowledge is the furniture don't put all the knowledge of scripture before you built the house do you put your furniture on an empty plot of ground before you built the house are you crazy you build a house and then put the furniture knowledge is the furniture you need it you need a cart you need a sofas but first build the house and the house is built with wisdom and the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom there's only one thing I have to say at the end of it all he who has ears to hear let him hear she who has ears to hear let her hear let's pray Heavenly Father please help us to learn what only the Holy Spirit can teach us in a world full of evil in a world where the devil seeks to lead us astray help us to learn from the example of Joseph and other godly men like Joe who feared God whom you could testify as one who feared God and turned away from evil we pray that you'll be able to say that about us as well to the devil there is a man there is a woman who fears God and turns away from evil Lord we want that testimony that you could say about Joe in our life as well give us that privilege in that honor we pray in Jesus name Amen

Channel: NCCF Church

Views: 12,383

Rating: 4.8293839 out of 5

Keywords: NCCF

Id: hmbTjTikok4

Length: 52min 37sec (3157 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 11 2015