WEBVTT NOTE Podcast: Acts 29 Vancouver Episode: Accredited 2 Publishing Date: 2023-10-01T06:00:44-07:00 Podcast URL: https://acts29.ca Episode URL: https://acts29.ca/accredited-2/ 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:14.580 So last week we talked about Acts 2 22 and how there are ways that on one hand God wants 00:00:14.580 --> 00:00:20.720 to accredit us, on the other hand there's an attrition of faith that's also at work. 00:00:20.720 --> 00:00:25.400 So Acts 2 22 says Jesus of Nazareth was a man. 00:00:25.400 --> 00:00:29.280 I love the fact that it says Jesus of Nazareth, doesn't say Jesus the Christ. 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:33.480 Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited to you by God. 00:00:33.480 --> 00:00:34.740 How did God approve him? 00:00:34.740 --> 00:00:36.440 How did God endorse him? 00:00:36.440 --> 00:00:38.580 How did God attest him? 00:00:38.580 --> 00:00:40.800 Just like he would like to do now. 00:00:40.800 --> 00:00:47.440 He attested Jesus of Nazareth who was a man with deeds of power, wonders and signs that 00:00:47.440 --> 00:00:50.400 God did through him among you. 00:00:50.400 --> 00:00:54.200 That's Luke's description as he talks about this Jesus. 00:00:54.200 --> 00:01:01.640 Last week we said that this requires faith to walk in the manner that Jesus did because 00:01:01.640 --> 00:01:07.360 he had to depend on and trust and be completely reliant on the Spirit because there was nothing 00:01:07.360 --> 00:01:10.820 that Jesus did because of some intrinsic power. 00:01:10.820 --> 00:01:15.840 Everything he did was sheerly by the power of the Spirit. 00:01:15.840 --> 00:01:18.020 That's something that Christians struggle with. 00:01:18.020 --> 00:01:22.500 They think he did what he did because he was God. 00:01:22.500 --> 00:01:28.100 There's a madness about him that he refused to give up so that he could show us that there 00:01:28.100 --> 00:01:31.880 is a way to live by being reliant on the Spirit. 00:01:31.880 --> 00:01:38.840 So every act of power or every sign and wonder happened because of his reliance on the Spirit 00:01:38.840 --> 00:01:44.060 and not because of his divinity. 00:01:44.060 --> 00:01:48.780 It is in his humanity that he did those miracles, signs and wonders by being reliant on the 00:01:48.780 --> 00:01:51.120 Spirit. 00:01:51.120 --> 00:01:56.540 And so he had to trust the Father and the Spirit to do what he did. 00:01:56.540 --> 00:02:02.180 And we are saying that yes, that requires faith, but we struggle with the attrition 00:02:02.180 --> 00:02:06.500 of faith and the attrition of faith can affect the outcome. 00:02:06.500 --> 00:02:11.620 And then we talked about, so what does failure look like? 00:02:11.620 --> 00:02:13.120 What does the failure of faith look like? 00:02:13.120 --> 00:02:14.420 We talked about that. 00:02:14.420 --> 00:02:17.060 Why does it wreck you? 00:02:17.060 --> 00:02:20.220 Because it wrecks us when things don't happen. 00:02:20.240 --> 00:02:23.480 How do I respond? 00:02:23.480 --> 00:02:24.480 Why does it happen? 00:02:24.480 --> 00:02:26.040 And that's where we ended. 00:02:26.040 --> 00:02:30.480 So today we'll talk about, okay, so how do we correct it when these things begin to happen? 00:02:30.480 --> 00:02:31.480 Because it will be challenged. 00:02:31.480 --> 00:02:39.560 Remember that the enemy, God counters the enemy by giving us something called the shield 00:02:39.560 --> 00:02:40.560 of faith. 00:02:40.560 --> 00:02:41.560 Why? 00:02:41.560 --> 00:02:45.340 Because he shoots fiery arrows. 00:02:45.340 --> 00:02:49.300 He shoots fiery arrows to bring about a destruction of faith. 00:02:49.300 --> 00:02:52.140 And so we were given that part of our armor. 00:02:52.140 --> 00:02:53.880 So the thing is real. 00:02:53.880 --> 00:03:01.000 For anyone here to assume or to say that this doesn't happen is just positional and not 00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:02.000 practical. 00:03:02.000 --> 00:03:06.080 It's not practical. 00:03:06.080 --> 00:03:09.080 Any questions thus far? 00:03:09.820 --> 00:03:12.080 Okay. 00:03:12.080 --> 00:03:17.340 So how do we course correct or how do we fix these things? 00:03:17.340 --> 00:03:20.580 I don't know how far we'll get, but let's see. 00:03:20.580 --> 00:03:27.220 First, if I want to prevent the attrition of faith, this is perhaps one of the hardest. 00:03:27.220 --> 00:03:40.100 Let go of control and exchange it for rest. 00:03:40.100 --> 00:03:42.360 This is perhaps the hardest one. 00:03:42.360 --> 00:03:49.760 Let go of control and exchange it for rest. 00:03:49.760 --> 00:03:51.360 What are we trying to control? 00:03:51.500 --> 00:03:54.540 Usually the outcome. 00:03:54.540 --> 00:03:57.300 Usually the outcome. 00:03:57.300 --> 00:04:04.740 And so because we think we have the ability to be architects of the outcome, we are unable 00:04:04.740 --> 00:04:11.220 sometimes to either let go and do exactly what we are being asked to and resting in 00:04:11.220 --> 00:04:17.040 it, it becomes very difficult. 00:04:17.720 --> 00:04:21.880 That's perhaps the greatest challenge when it comes to faith, to let go of control and 00:04:21.880 --> 00:04:24.160 exchange it for rest. 00:04:24.160 --> 00:04:30.440 A classic example of letting go of control is John chapter 11 when Jesus has to let go 00:04:30.440 --> 00:04:33.960 of control with regard to raising Lazarus. 00:04:33.960 --> 00:04:37.640 That's a surrender of control. 00:04:37.640 --> 00:04:38.640 Because he's human. 00:04:38.640 --> 00:04:46.540 He's Jesus of Nazareth, a man, and his good friend Lazarus, who he loves, is dying. 00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:48.580 And he is asked to go and heal. 00:04:48.580 --> 00:04:54.940 And he knows that he has both the experience, the power from God and the relationship with 00:04:54.940 --> 00:04:57.700 the Father to heal this man. 00:04:57.700 --> 00:05:05.020 And as he's on his way to heal Lazarus, he is now told to let go of control. 00:05:05.020 --> 00:05:09.860 Now the classic example of Jesus letting go of control is when he can turn stones into 00:05:09.860 --> 00:05:12.040 bread. 00:05:12.040 --> 00:05:13.320 It's been 40 days. 00:05:13.320 --> 00:05:14.320 He's not eaten anything. 00:05:14.320 --> 00:05:19.400 He can turn stones into bread. 00:05:19.400 --> 00:05:21.280 But he doesn't. 00:05:21.280 --> 00:05:24.280 He can call down a legion of angels. 00:05:24.280 --> 00:05:27.680 But he doesn't. 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:30.480 This is the hardest part when it comes to faith. 00:05:30.480 --> 00:05:32.940 Letting go of control. 00:05:32.940 --> 00:05:36.120 Not determining the outcome. 00:05:36.120 --> 00:05:44.060 Not trying to construct a plan B on the side in case plan A fails. 00:05:44.800 --> 00:05:49.300 This is the hardest. 00:05:49.300 --> 00:05:51.620 And if you let go of it, what do you exchange? 00:05:51.620 --> 00:05:53.360 Because it's never one thing. 00:05:53.360 --> 00:05:56.120 If you let go of something, something else has to be given to you. 00:05:56.120 --> 00:06:00.900 And the something else that has to be given to us is entering into rest. 00:06:00.900 --> 00:06:07.400 Where you labor to enter into rest and seize from your own machinations. 00:06:07.400 --> 00:06:10.020 Seize from your own works. 00:06:10.020 --> 00:06:12.460 Seize from self-striving. 00:06:12.860 --> 00:06:14.940 Seize from sweating it out. 00:06:14.940 --> 00:06:19.000 Seize from trying to craft something that will help you advance. 00:06:19.000 --> 00:06:21.000 To seize from it. 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:22.620 That is the exchange. 00:06:22.620 --> 00:06:25.300 Letting go of control is not enough. 00:06:25.300 --> 00:06:28.540 I have to strive to enter into rest. 00:06:28.540 --> 00:06:35.460 This week is supposed to be the Feast of Boots or Feast of Tabernacles. 00:06:35.460 --> 00:06:41.380 The idea that you can walk through hostile terrain and be sustained sheerly by the presence 00:06:41.380 --> 00:06:49.380 of God and rest in his provision, protection, supply, shade, life. 00:06:49.380 --> 00:06:52.380 This is why we used to sing a song long ago called, 00:06:52.380 --> 00:06:54.380 I lived the life of another. 00:06:54.380 --> 00:07:01.380 For the life I used to live has now ceased to exist, terminated at the cross. 00:07:01.380 --> 00:07:09.380 Take, I would have to give an example of seizing or striving to enter rest. 00:07:09.380 --> 00:07:14.380 It is very natural for us as humans, right from when we were kids, 00:07:14.380 --> 00:07:18.380 we are told that you need to do your best and then God will do the rest. 00:07:18.380 --> 00:07:22.380 We are told that if you don't work, God will not. 00:07:22.380 --> 00:07:28.380 There are so many of these things that have come up and they've been taught to us from when we were kids. 00:07:28.380 --> 00:07:30.380 That you have to send out resumes. 00:07:30.380 --> 00:07:31.380 That you have to do this. 00:07:31.380 --> 00:07:32.380 That you have to do that. 00:07:32.380 --> 00:07:36.380 And yet, God is saying all that is striving. 00:07:36.380 --> 00:07:40.380 When it comes to finances, look at what he says in Matthew chapter 5. 00:07:40.380 --> 00:07:42.380 Look at the birds of the air. 00:07:42.380 --> 00:07:47.380 That's not sound at all. 00:07:47.380 --> 00:07:54.380 And so he seems to say that everything will come to you through me telling you what to do. 00:07:54.380 --> 00:07:59.380 And you only do that and don't do nothing else. 00:07:59.380 --> 00:08:05.380 That is the ultimate act of letting go control and exchanging it for rest. 00:08:05.380 --> 00:08:09.380 To rest is to live the life of another. 00:08:09.380 --> 00:08:12.380 To rest is to live by the promises of another. 00:08:12.380 --> 00:08:17.380 To rest is what children do. 00:08:17.380 --> 00:08:20.380 Children don't do anything else. 00:08:20.380 --> 00:08:22.380 They just rest. 00:08:22.380 --> 00:08:27.380 To rest is to go around Jericho seven days. 00:08:27.380 --> 00:08:35.380 To rest is to trust that if you put a baby in a basket and float it down the river, that it'll be okay. 00:08:35.380 --> 00:08:40.380 And she was bathing, I am assuming, by the Nile, which isn't some small river. 00:08:40.380 --> 00:08:47.380 It ain't the Fraser. 00:08:47.380 --> 00:08:49.380 This is what rest looks like. 00:08:49.380 --> 00:09:03.380 It is hearing only what has to be done for that particular moment and doing nothing else. 00:09:03.380 --> 00:09:11.380 It is letting God's principles, God's promises, God's covenants, God do the work. 00:09:11.380 --> 00:09:14.380 He does the work. 00:09:14.380 --> 00:09:17.380 I must not. 00:09:17.380 --> 00:09:22.380 Rest is not the absence of a work ethic. 00:09:22.380 --> 00:09:30.380 You are diligent in what He tells you to do, but you don't do one thing more. 00:09:30.380 --> 00:09:37.380 This is why in Hebrews chapter four, He says a few things and such brilliant statements are made there. 00:09:37.380 --> 00:09:42.380 One, I have entered rest. Will you not enter also? 00:09:42.380 --> 00:09:44.380 First statement God is saying. 00:09:44.380 --> 00:09:46.380 I have entered into rest. Will you not enter? 00:09:46.380 --> 00:09:49.380 Because after six days He stopped. 00:09:49.380 --> 00:09:53.380 It is finished has been repeated twice. 00:09:53.380 --> 00:09:57.380 The first time it was said, we didn't hear it because it was said in the heavens. 00:09:57.380 --> 00:10:04.380 On the sixth day He finished everything and He rested because everything was set in motion. 00:10:04.380 --> 00:10:08.380 Seeds, bearing trees, bearing fruits, bearing seeds, bearing trees. 00:10:08.380 --> 00:10:11.380 It was finished. Everything was finished. 00:10:11.380 --> 00:10:17.380 He rested. He went into perpetual rest. 00:10:17.380 --> 00:10:20.380 The seventh day was not a Sabbath, was not a Sunday. 00:10:20.380 --> 00:10:27.380 The very idea of Shabbat means to desist from activity or exertion. 00:10:27.380 --> 00:10:31.380 That's what Shabbat means, to desist from activity and exertion. 00:10:31.380 --> 00:10:40.380 And it was not supposed to be a day. It was supposed to be the rest of my life. 00:10:40.380 --> 00:10:45.380 And so that is the idea of God saying and God was training. 00:10:45.380 --> 00:10:49.380 He was saying, can you give me one day out of seven? Can you give me one year out of fifty? 00:10:49.380 --> 00:10:55.380 But in the New Testament because He lives in us, He says, can you give me your entire life and live only like this? 00:10:55.380 --> 00:10:57.380 You cannot live any other way. 00:10:57.380 --> 00:11:03.380 He was so serious about this that in the Old Testament if you broke the Sabbath, you got stoned to death. 00:11:10.380 --> 00:11:13.380 And now He's asking for our entire life to be lived like this. 00:11:13.380 --> 00:11:19.380 And so Hebrews 4, the first statement He makes is, I have entered into rest. Won't you enter also? 00:11:19.380 --> 00:11:22.380 Then He realizes how difficult it is because of the way we grow. 00:11:22.380 --> 00:11:26.380 So He says, can you labor to enter into rest? Can you labor? 00:11:26.380 --> 00:11:32.380 You'll have to strive because you are so steeped in working, working, working. 00:11:32.380 --> 00:11:35.380 You are so steeped in sweating, sweating, sweating. 00:11:35.380 --> 00:11:40.380 You are so steeped in thinking that you make things happen. 00:11:40.380 --> 00:11:42.380 You are so steeped in having plan B. 00:11:42.380 --> 00:11:49.380 You are so steeped in if I don't do this, nothing will happen. 00:11:49.380 --> 00:11:52.380 Deuteronomy 8.3, Luke chapter 4, what is He saying? 00:11:52.380 --> 00:11:55.380 I fed you manna. Why? 00:11:55.380 --> 00:11:57.380 Why did He feed them manna? 00:11:57.380 --> 00:11:59.380 Not because it is particularly tasty. 00:11:59.380 --> 00:12:04.380 Anything that you eat for forty years is not very tasty in the end. 00:12:05.380 --> 00:12:10.380 The reason He fed them manna, in Deuteronomy 8.3 it says, was to humble you. 00:12:10.380 --> 00:12:12.380 Humble you how? 00:12:12.380 --> 00:12:16.380 So that you would learn that I alone sustain you. 00:12:16.380 --> 00:12:20.380 Every other nation in the world makes bread. 00:12:20.380 --> 00:12:26.380 Bread is a self-generated means of sustenance where you do something with the dough. 00:12:26.380 --> 00:12:29.380 You make it happen. You take yeast and put it. 00:12:29.380 --> 00:12:33.380 But I didn't want you to make bread. 00:12:33.380 --> 00:12:35.380 For forty years you did not eat bread. 00:12:35.380 --> 00:12:38.380 But I humbled you. How did I humble you? 00:12:38.380 --> 00:12:42.380 I made you reliant on me, dependent on me. 00:12:46.380 --> 00:12:47.380 That's the idea of rest. 00:12:47.380 --> 00:12:51.380 Rest brings you to a place of humility. 00:12:51.380 --> 00:13:02.380 Because you cannot rely on your skills, your talents, your giftings, your strengths, your knowledge, your education, your status, your power, your connections, nothing. 00:13:02.380 --> 00:13:07.380 Take all that away and you're left with one thing alone, the spirit of the living God. 00:13:07.380 --> 00:13:11.380 Rest is when Zechariah 4.6 kicks in. 00:13:11.380 --> 00:13:16.380 It is not by might, not by power, but by my spirit. 00:13:16.380 --> 00:13:22.380 Rest is best worked out under hostile circumstances. 00:13:22.380 --> 00:13:28.380 Because it's in hostile circumstances that we resort to things other than the spirit. 00:13:28.380 --> 00:13:34.380 It's in hostile circumstances that you begin to craft things, plan things. 00:13:34.380 --> 00:13:36.380 How do I get this? How do I get that? 00:13:36.380 --> 00:13:38.380 It's under hostile circumstances that that happens. 00:13:38.380 --> 00:13:42.380 Under normal circumstances, rest is easy. 00:13:42.380 --> 00:13:50.380 Show me rest when you are under attack, through circumstances, from people, from the situations of the world. 00:13:50.380 --> 00:13:57.380 And then I will know whether you're a man of rest or whether you only rest when things are normal. 00:14:01.380 --> 00:14:03.380 Then he goes on to say in Hebrews chapter 4, 00:14:03.380 --> 00:14:11.380 labor to enter into rest and then he says, rest can only be entered into if you obey, if you hear and if you obey. 00:14:14.380 --> 00:14:18.380 Rest can only be entered into if you hear and if you obey. 00:14:21.380 --> 00:14:28.380 Which then requires us to keep increasing in our hearing of the word and of the spirit. 00:14:28.380 --> 00:14:32.380 Both, we talked about this last week, can't be one or the other. 00:14:32.380 --> 00:14:35.380 It is of the word and of the spirit. 00:14:35.380 --> 00:14:39.380 And if you don't have both, you'll miss out on a huge chunk of who got us. 00:14:39.380 --> 00:14:41.380 So we keep increasing in it. 00:14:41.380 --> 00:14:46.380 Because I'll never be at a place where I know the word so brilliantly that I don't need to read it anymore. 00:14:46.380 --> 00:14:54.380 Now will I be at a place where I hear so brilliantly that I don't need to listen to the spirit anymore. 00:14:54.380 --> 00:14:55.380 I just know. 00:14:55.380 --> 00:14:58.380 No, this will keep increasing till the end of my life. 00:14:58.380 --> 00:15:00.380 And then it goes on to say in Hebrews 4, 00:15:00.380 --> 00:15:07.380 they did not enter my rest because they did not hear and obey and did not walk in faith. 00:15:08.380 --> 00:15:11.380 They did not enter my rest. 00:15:11.380 --> 00:15:13.380 And so let go of control. 00:15:13.380 --> 00:15:16.380 Let go of control and enter into rest. 00:15:16.380 --> 00:15:20.380 Whatever control looks like to you in your circumstance, it differs for all of us. 00:15:20.380 --> 00:15:22.380 But all of us have it. 00:15:22.380 --> 00:15:24.380 All of us have it. 00:15:25.380 --> 00:15:28.380 And don't think that as you get older, it gets lesser. 00:15:29.380 --> 00:15:31.380 As we get older, it gets more crusty. 00:15:33.380 --> 00:15:36.380 When you bite it, it sounds like what Sheldon is chewing. 00:15:36.380 --> 00:15:38.380 Do it again, Sheldon. 00:15:40.380 --> 00:15:41.380 Okay, no, it didn't work. 00:15:41.380 --> 00:15:43.380 It worked the first time. 00:15:47.380 --> 00:15:50.380 They did not mix faith with the word that they heard. 00:15:55.380 --> 00:15:58.380 So let go of control and exchange it for rest. 00:15:58.380 --> 00:15:59.380 That's one big way. 00:15:59.380 --> 00:16:05.380 The second is exchange self-improvement for faith. 00:16:05.380 --> 00:16:09.380 Exchange self-improvement for faith. 00:16:11.380 --> 00:16:13.380 Exchange self-improvement for faith. 00:16:13.380 --> 00:16:15.380 We are not trying to improve. 00:16:15.380 --> 00:16:20.380 We are trying to be radically faith-filled and faithful. 00:16:20.380 --> 00:16:22.380 We are not trying to improve. 00:16:22.380 --> 00:16:27.380 Improvement is the pursuit of those that walk at their own pace. 00:16:27.380 --> 00:16:33.380 Improvement is the pursuit of those that walk at their own pace. 00:16:33.380 --> 00:16:38.380 Improvement is the pursuit of those that walk at their own pace. 00:16:42.380 --> 00:16:43.380 We're not talking about that. 00:16:44.380 --> 00:16:46.380 We are exchanging self-improvement for faith. 00:16:46.380 --> 00:16:50.380 Faith launches you into a place that you cannot improve into. 00:16:52.380 --> 00:16:54.380 It's not gradual. 00:16:57.380 --> 00:17:00.380 It is illogical. 00:17:03.380 --> 00:17:05.380 It is at the risk of falling. 00:17:06.380 --> 00:17:09.380 It is at the risk of losing everything. 00:17:11.380 --> 00:17:13.380 That's what faith looks like. 00:17:13.380 --> 00:17:18.380 It is not a kid learning how to walk. 00:17:21.380 --> 00:17:25.380 Our faith will increase, but we don't increase it by doing it slowly. 00:17:25.380 --> 00:17:28.380 We increase it by obeying immediately. 00:17:29.380 --> 00:17:32.380 We don't increase in faith by doing it slowly. 00:17:32.380 --> 00:17:37.380 We increase by obeying what is placed before us immediately. 00:17:37.380 --> 00:17:39.380 That is how we increase in it. 00:17:39.380 --> 00:17:41.380 And that's what I mean by this. 00:17:41.380 --> 00:17:46.380 Self-improvement is, yeah, you know, at present I don't have faith for it, but maybe next year. 00:17:48.380 --> 00:17:50.380 You never hear that in the Bible, eh? 00:17:50.380 --> 00:17:56.380 In the Bible it was always, this is what God is saying now, therefore this is what I will do now. 00:17:56.380 --> 00:18:01.380 There is a high possibility that if this is not God, it will end badly. 00:18:01.380 --> 00:18:06.380 There is also a high possibility that this is God and it will still end badly. 00:18:07.380 --> 00:18:11.380 But what choice do I have but to obey? 00:18:17.380 --> 00:18:19.380 Even if it doesn't make sense. 00:18:22.380 --> 00:18:26.380 Self-improvement, exchange self-improvement for faith. 00:18:26.380 --> 00:18:31.380 A slow progression into obedience is actually disobedience. 00:18:31.380 --> 00:18:37.380 A slow progression into obedience is actually disobedience. 00:18:41.380 --> 00:18:44.380 That's when Hagueye kicks in, eh? 00:18:44.380 --> 00:18:46.380 Consider your ways. 00:18:46.380 --> 00:18:52.380 You have brought in 20 Seers of Barley and you have only 8. 00:18:52.380 --> 00:18:54.380 There are holes in your pocket. 00:18:54.380 --> 00:18:55.380 Why? 00:18:55.380 --> 00:18:59.380 Because you haven't paid attention to what I asked you to. 00:18:59.380 --> 00:19:02.380 Sometimes it is good as a church to consider our ways. 00:19:06.380 --> 00:19:08.380 Any questions? 00:19:18.380 --> 00:19:19.380 Yeah. 00:19:19.380 --> 00:19:22.380 They should come to you and ask. 00:19:22.380 --> 00:19:26.380 They should come and say, Diana, this is what I heard and Diana may be able to give them an answer 00:19:26.380 --> 00:19:30.380 or Diana will have to say, let me go pray over it and let me find out. 00:19:30.380 --> 00:19:33.380 And it's a scary thing when people come and ask you, eh? 00:19:41.380 --> 00:19:47.380 A life without expectation, without faith is so much simpler to live in. 00:19:47.380 --> 00:19:53.380 A life without expectation, without faith is so much simpler to live as a Christian. 00:20:03.380 --> 00:20:08.380 Third, exchange your natural life. 00:20:08.380 --> 00:20:20.380 Exchange your natural life for a spiritual life. 00:20:27.380 --> 00:20:30.380 Exchange your natural life for a spiritual life. 00:20:30.380 --> 00:20:39.380 The natural life, as in the life that we all live here on earth, cannot meet the demands of God. 00:20:39.380 --> 00:20:44.380 Every time God places a demand on your natural life, it will resist it. 00:20:44.380 --> 00:20:46.380 We were born in sin. 00:20:46.380 --> 00:20:48.380 We are surrounded by pleasures of the earth. 00:20:48.380 --> 00:20:56.380 It is but inevitable that when God places a demand on you, on your natural life, it will resist. 00:20:56.380 --> 00:20:57.380 It will say, no. 00:20:57.380 --> 00:21:03.380 It will say, let me go bury my father first or let me first make enough money or let me retire 00:21:03.380 --> 00:21:11.380 or let me wait till I say goodbye to my friends and family. 00:21:11.380 --> 00:21:15.380 There will always be a resistance from the natural life. 00:21:15.380 --> 00:21:18.380 The natural life likes being pampered. 00:21:18.380 --> 00:21:20.380 It likes being pampered. 00:21:20.380 --> 00:21:26.380 The only way to go from natural life to spiritual life is through obedience and sacrifice. 00:21:26.380 --> 00:21:32.380 The only way to go from natural life to spiritual life is through obedience and sacrifice. 00:21:32.380 --> 00:21:36.380 This is why athletes become who they are. 00:21:36.380 --> 00:21:42.380 I mean, one of my favorite things to do every night is to watch Messi's goals. 00:21:42.380 --> 00:21:46.380 That guy can curve better than Beckham. 00:21:46.380 --> 00:21:50.380 That guy can curve better than Beckham. 00:21:50.380 --> 00:21:56.380 Bend it like Beckham. Beckham could not bend it at all. 00:21:56.380 --> 00:21:58.380 He just makes the ball swing anyway. 00:21:58.380 --> 00:22:02.380 But then I also saw a video where he practices. 00:22:02.380 --> 00:22:05.380 Hours and hours and hours of practice. 00:22:05.380 --> 00:22:10.380 It is not possible for our natural life to be changed into a spiritual life available for God 00:22:10.380 --> 00:22:14.380 if there is no obedience or sacrifice. 00:22:19.380 --> 00:22:22.380 Therefore now, what has to be done? 00:22:22.380 --> 00:22:24.380 Your natural life has to be sent out. 00:22:24.380 --> 00:22:29.380 As in, you cannot have such a say in the kingdom. 00:22:29.380 --> 00:22:31.380 That's what Abraham does. What does he do? 00:22:31.380 --> 00:22:35.380 He has a son of promise and a son by the slave woman. 00:22:35.380 --> 00:22:38.380 What does he do? He dismisses the natural son. 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:43.380 But he cannot get to the son of promise unless he dismisses the natural son. 00:22:43.380 --> 00:22:46.380 You have to send your natural life into the desert saying, 00:22:46.380 --> 00:22:51.380 you will not have a say in how I live, kingdom. 00:22:51.380 --> 00:22:55.380 If you do that, God will take care of your natural life. 00:22:55.380 --> 00:23:00.380 He will create an oasis in the desert that you can drink out of. 00:23:00.380 --> 00:23:04.380 But as long as you pamper your natural life, 00:23:04.380 --> 00:23:08.380 it will not be able to follow the demands placed by God. 00:23:08.380 --> 00:23:11.380 It will always resist it. 00:23:11.380 --> 00:23:17.380 Only through obedience and sacrifice can you convert your natural life into a spiritual life. 00:23:17.380 --> 00:23:20.380 Examples? 00:23:20.380 --> 00:23:22.380 Inconvenience. 00:23:22.380 --> 00:23:24.380 Does your natural life like it? 00:23:24.380 --> 00:23:27.380 No. 00:23:27.380 --> 00:23:29.380 Giving away what you have. 00:23:29.380 --> 00:23:31.380 Does your natural life like it? 00:23:31.380 --> 00:23:33.380 No. 00:23:44.380 --> 00:23:48.380 Yeah. So my response to that is, who invented that? 00:23:48.380 --> 00:23:53.380 And why would he not have you thrive in it, flourish in it? 00:23:53.380 --> 00:23:57.380 But given that he is the one who said, honor your parents, 00:23:57.380 --> 00:24:03.380 he is the one who was a responsible son, a responsible provider while he was on earth. 00:24:03.380 --> 00:24:07.380 Why can't we trust that if we are obedient to him, 00:24:07.380 --> 00:24:18.380 an oasis will be created so that both my parents and my children and my dog and I can do well. 00:24:18.380 --> 00:24:23.380 There's a fear that rises in us when we think of being inconvenienced, 00:24:23.380 --> 00:24:26.380 when we have to think of obedience, when we think of sacrifice. 00:24:26.380 --> 00:24:30.380 There's a fear that rises in us. And the fear is, but what will happen? 00:24:30.380 --> 00:24:35.380 But we are talking about one who knows how to do this. 00:24:35.380 --> 00:24:37.380 Did any of the disciples suffer while he was with them? 00:24:37.380 --> 00:24:41.380 Were their families starving? 00:24:41.380 --> 00:24:43.380 I would strongly say to you, no. 00:24:43.380 --> 00:24:47.380 And we know at least two instances where that was not the case. 00:24:47.380 --> 00:24:53.380 Do you think anyone's mother-in-law was ever sick when Jesus was around? 00:24:53.380 --> 00:25:03.380 Was there not food provided for them? 00:25:03.380 --> 00:25:07.380 It's a very hard thing to wrap our heads around because our heads scream saying, 00:25:07.380 --> 00:25:10.380 if I don't take care of that, this won't be taken care of. 00:25:10.380 --> 00:25:14.380 He's not going to make demands of you that are going to ruin you. 00:25:14.380 --> 00:25:19.380 But it will still require obedience and sacrifice. 00:25:19.380 --> 00:25:23.380 Here's the other catch about obedience. 00:25:23.380 --> 00:25:28.380 How do you know a child is obedient? 00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:33.380 The child has to receive instructions and you watch how they respond. 00:25:33.380 --> 00:25:36.380 That's how you know a child is obedient. 00:25:36.380 --> 00:25:38.380 It is no different for us. 00:25:38.380 --> 00:25:47.380 Obedience is tested out in the context of a home or a people or an order or a family. 00:25:47.380 --> 00:25:51.380 Obedience does not exist in a vacuum. 00:25:51.380 --> 00:25:57.380 I can't obey in secret by myself 00:25:57.380 --> 00:26:05.380 because there is no one to measure or hold a plumb line against my obedience. 00:26:05.380 --> 00:26:12.380 The way God has constructed things is that obedience and sacrifice is always relational. 00:26:12.380 --> 00:26:13.380 Always relational. 00:26:13.380 --> 00:26:15.380 And it is not just a vertical relationship. 00:26:15.380 --> 00:26:19.380 It is both vertical and horizontal. 00:26:19.380 --> 00:26:27.380 It is impossible to work around that, guys. 00:26:27.380 --> 00:26:31.380 Exchange natural life for a spiritual life. 00:26:31.380 --> 00:26:35.380 Next one. 00:26:35.380 --> 00:26:40.380 Exchange experience. 00:26:40.380 --> 00:26:46.380 Exchange experience as a teacher 00:26:46.380 --> 00:26:55.380 for the Holy Spirit as a guide. 00:26:55.380 --> 00:26:58.380 These are all things that can really attack our faith. 00:26:58.380 --> 00:27:04.380 One of the things that happens is we begin to let our experience 00:27:04.380 --> 00:27:08.380 and some of our experiences are positive, some are negative. 00:27:08.380 --> 00:27:16.380 We let our experience begin to decide how we deal with life. 00:27:16.380 --> 00:27:26.380 Your trauma or your great experience, your success or your trauma cannot be your guide. 00:27:26.380 --> 00:27:29.380 You may have had a bad experience in church. 00:27:29.380 --> 00:27:35.380 You may have had a terrible experience with healing and miracles and saw someone die. 00:27:35.380 --> 00:27:42.380 You may have had a terrible experience being exploited by Christians or by non-Christians. 00:27:42.380 --> 00:27:44.380 These are traumatic events that affect you. 00:27:44.380 --> 00:27:49.380 You may have also had amazing experiences with healing, 00:27:49.380 --> 00:27:53.380 with money, with people, with salvation, with the glory of God. 00:27:53.380 --> 00:27:58.380 All that is good, but it is still not my teacher. 00:27:58.380 --> 00:28:00.380 Why? Because you enter into rest. 00:28:00.380 --> 00:28:02.380 I cannot go by experience. 00:28:02.380 --> 00:28:10.380 Israel went by experience, guys. 00:28:10.380 --> 00:28:15.380 We don't realize how much of our theology is constructed by our experience. 00:28:15.380 --> 00:28:20.380 I beg you, some of you are listening to me and you know I'm talking to you. 00:28:20.380 --> 00:28:27.380 Your experience cannot be the way your theology is written. 00:28:27.380 --> 00:28:35.380 My experience cannot be the way my theology is written. 00:28:35.380 --> 00:28:43.380 As in, my understanding of God cannot be written by my experiences. 00:28:43.380 --> 00:28:46.380 These are things that sometimes can destroy faith. 00:28:46.380 --> 00:28:51.380 I will not give because the last time I gave, I was so gypped by this person. 00:28:51.380 --> 00:28:58.380 I'm going to be careful. Once bitten, twice shy, and all those other phrases. 00:28:58.380 --> 00:29:02.380 I will not go on a mission trip again because the last mission trip I went on, this thing happened. 00:29:02.380 --> 00:29:08.380 I'm not going to pray for healing because I haven't seen any healings yet. 00:29:08.380 --> 00:29:18.380 I do not believe we have to come under order because the last time I came under order, I was abused spiritually. 00:29:18.380 --> 00:29:21.380 101 reasons. 00:29:21.380 --> 00:29:29.380 My life will be private because the last time I opened my life, I got exploited. 00:29:29.380 --> 00:29:30.380 This is how we heal people. 00:29:30.380 --> 00:29:35.380 You've got to stretch your hands out and if the fingers don't match, then we command the shoulders to grow. 00:29:35.380 --> 00:29:40.380 Take some oil and make sure you touch here, here, here, here, and here. 00:29:40.380 --> 00:29:45.380 And that will heal the person. 00:29:45.380 --> 00:29:48.380 Any questions? 00:29:56.380 --> 00:29:59.380 Last one in this set. 00:29:59.380 --> 00:30:01.380 Go beyond your personality type. 00:30:01.380 --> 00:30:05.380 Go beyond your personality type. 00:30:10.380 --> 00:30:12.380 Go beyond your personality type. 00:30:12.380 --> 00:30:21.380 We all have personalities given to us by God, made in His image, but because we live here on Earth, our personalities are flawed. 00:30:21.380 --> 00:30:24.380 So, go beyond your personality type. 00:30:24.380 --> 00:30:32.380 Yes, some of us are gregarious, some of us are quiet, some of us, I mean, I don't even want to use words like introverted or extroverted, 00:30:32.380 --> 00:30:35.380 but some of us prefer not being up on stage. 00:30:35.380 --> 00:30:41.380 Some of us build a stage everywhere we go. 00:30:41.380 --> 00:30:44.380 Each of us is different and our personalities are different. 00:30:44.380 --> 00:30:48.380 We flourish because that's the way God has made us. 00:30:48.380 --> 00:30:53.380 I mean, Derek and Dawn itself are so different. 00:30:53.380 --> 00:30:58.380 One will do things quietly, one will do things not quietly. 00:30:58.380 --> 00:31:02.380 You can figure out who does what. 00:31:02.380 --> 00:31:10.380 But the point is that our personality types, both the wives are laughing. 00:31:10.380 --> 00:31:13.380 Your wife is laughing downstairs even though you can't see her, Dawn. 00:31:13.380 --> 00:31:19.380 So, the thing with personality, my personality, I must go beyond my personality. 00:31:19.380 --> 00:31:25.380 And if you don't, you slowly become pretty useless in the kingdom. 00:31:25.380 --> 00:31:29.380 One of the guys who had an amazing personality was Paul. 00:31:29.380 --> 00:31:37.380 Scholar of scholars, learned under Gamaliel, was highly educated, was a Jew of the Jews. 00:31:37.380 --> 00:31:41.380 And so, what's his desire? What's his personality type? 00:31:41.380 --> 00:31:44.380 You know what, God, let me go to the Jews. 00:31:44.380 --> 00:31:46.380 I've got enough arguments to convince them. 00:31:46.380 --> 00:31:48.380 What does God say to him? 00:31:48.380 --> 00:31:53.380 No, you won't be going to the Jews, you'll be going to the Gentiles. 00:31:53.380 --> 00:32:02.380 Peter, another stuck-up guy who decides that nobody's going to tell him what to eat and what not to eat, 00:32:02.380 --> 00:32:06.380 even though God was the one who authored what should be eaten and what should not be eaten. 00:32:06.380 --> 00:32:10.380 He had that problem again and again. 00:32:10.380 --> 00:32:14.380 After having gone to Cornelius' house, later on in the book of Galatians, 00:32:14.380 --> 00:32:18.380 you see him being a hypocrite again because when the Jews came, he stopped eating non-kosher food. 00:32:18.380 --> 00:32:22.380 Our personality types get in the way. 00:32:22.380 --> 00:32:29.380 Please, push each other in terms of getting over your personality types. 00:32:29.380 --> 00:32:31.380 Push each other. 00:32:31.380 --> 00:32:33.380 Say to Betty, get over this. 00:32:33.380 --> 00:32:34.380 Say to Jacob, get over this. 00:32:34.380 --> 00:32:35.380 Say to Jill, get over this. 00:32:35.380 --> 00:32:39.380 Say to Pawan, get over this. 00:32:39.380 --> 00:32:48.380 The only ones who don't see the flaws of their personality types are the ones who have that personality. 00:32:48.380 --> 00:32:55.380 I'm not talking about the colorful shirt Pawan is wearing. 00:32:55.380 --> 00:32:58.380 Any questions before we move on? 00:32:58.380 --> 00:33:02.380 Go ahead, Jill. 00:33:02.380 --> 00:33:04.380 Yeah? 00:33:04.380 --> 00:33:06.380 What is that that you use? 00:33:06.380 --> 00:33:10.380 I didn't see how that relates to your personality type. 00:33:10.380 --> 00:33:14.380 Is that something that you are interested in? 00:33:14.380 --> 00:33:20.380 If personality and individuality can be seen as one, and individuality, 00:33:20.380 --> 00:33:24.380 then we have our preferences and we have our prejudices. 00:33:24.380 --> 00:33:30.380 We have what we think we are good for and we have what we think is not our cup of tea. 00:33:30.380 --> 00:33:34.380 One of the things God does is, Jacob, I know you're good at this, 00:33:34.380 --> 00:33:39.380 but that is exactly why I'm going to send you somewhere else. 00:33:39.380 --> 00:33:43.380 I'll use you in what you're good at because I put that good there. 00:33:43.380 --> 00:33:46.380 I don't want you to think that that's how you're going to operate. 00:33:46.380 --> 00:33:51.380 I'll take you and put you in the situations where you will be reliant on me, 00:33:51.380 --> 00:33:54.380 and autonomy 8.3 will go into effect again. 00:33:54.380 --> 00:33:59.380 Man shall not live by his strengths, by his unique individual capabilities, 00:33:59.380 --> 00:34:01.380 by his gregarious personality, 00:34:01.380 --> 00:34:05.380 but he shall live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. 00:34:05.380 --> 00:34:10.380 He deliberately does that so that I don't become reliant on the very giftings 00:34:10.380 --> 00:34:14.380 and the talents and the strengths that guess who has given me? 00:34:14.380 --> 00:34:16.380 He. 00:34:16.380 --> 00:34:19.380 He shifts it knowingly. 00:34:19.380 --> 00:34:26.380 Because one of the things he really wants to do is take away our ability to be reliant on ourselves. 00:34:26.380 --> 00:34:29.380 Take away our ability to be reliant on ourselves. 00:34:29.380 --> 00:34:33.380 Once he puts us through those courses, then he can say to you, 00:34:33.380 --> 00:34:37.380 hey, Jill, now let me put you to do what you're really good at. 00:34:37.380 --> 00:34:41.380 Now that you've learned to depend on me in the things that you really suck at, 00:34:41.380 --> 00:34:49.380 now let me put you into what you're good at. 00:34:49.380 --> 00:34:53.380 Our tendency is to think that God will use us in our area of strength. 00:34:53.380 --> 00:34:59.380 There is no fear or trembling in your area of strength. 00:34:59.380 --> 00:35:07.380 There is no stammering or reliance in your area of strength. 00:35:07.380 --> 00:35:14.380 There is no inadequacy in your area of strength. 00:35:15.380 --> 00:35:21.380 There is no inadequacy in your area of strength. 00:35:21.380 --> 00:35:26.380 I'd say to anybody who's being educated here right now, 00:35:26.380 --> 00:35:31.380 like paying thousands of dollars to get an education that us older people who are educated 00:35:31.380 --> 00:35:38.380 will tell you does not count at all, I want to say to you that at the end... 00:35:38.380 --> 00:35:40.380 What did you do? 00:35:40.380 --> 00:35:45.380 Yeah, for your education. 00:35:45.380 --> 00:35:48.380 Oh, you did music. Something worked out for you. 00:35:54.380 --> 00:35:59.380 Yeah, I did zoology and political science. It's been helping quite a lot. 00:35:59.380 --> 00:36:04.380 So here's the thing. For those of you who are right now in school and college, 00:36:04.380 --> 00:36:09.380 be ready that at the end of the day, after having gotten all your degrees and everything else, 00:36:09.380 --> 00:36:14.380 that may not have anything to do with what God is calling you to. 00:36:14.380 --> 00:36:17.380 Nothing will be wasted. Nothing will be wasted. 00:36:17.380 --> 00:36:26.380 But do not think that the amount of money spent on something to become something is what God is going to use. 00:36:26.380 --> 00:36:32.380 What you do in the future may have absolutely nothing to do with what you studied for. 00:36:32.380 --> 00:36:35.380 Look at Toonie. 00:36:40.380 --> 00:36:45.380 Highly educated guy, got a doctorate, was working in a church. Look at him now. 00:36:55.380 --> 00:37:02.380 Stop wavering between two minds. Stop wavering between two minds 00:37:02.380 --> 00:37:08.380 on anything in the word or that God has said. 00:37:08.380 --> 00:37:16.380 In the word or what God has said. 00:37:16.380 --> 00:37:21.380 You might say, but Jacob, I can believe this, but this, how will I not waver? 00:37:21.380 --> 00:37:31.380 One is believable, two is not. Not true. Not true. Not true. 00:37:31.380 --> 00:37:34.380 On one hand, yes, we can trust the word. 00:37:34.380 --> 00:37:39.380 On the other hand, if you have a relationship with the Spirit of God and the Spirit of the Father, 00:37:39.380 --> 00:37:41.380 you know when he says something. 00:37:41.380 --> 00:37:51.380 And he says it with such firmness that you know without a shadow of a doubt that you can stake your claim on that. 00:37:51.380 --> 00:37:57.380 These are dichotomies that were created by us. 00:37:57.380 --> 00:38:02.380 How do you think Paul is operating? How do you think Jesus is operating? 00:38:02.380 --> 00:38:07.380 How do you think Peter is operating? Peter is going against the word, guys. 00:38:07.380 --> 00:38:09.380 Do not eat these things. 00:38:09.380 --> 00:38:13.380 What is he hearing? Eat these things. 00:38:13.380 --> 00:38:16.380 What do you do then? 00:38:16.380 --> 00:38:23.380 Do you let Cornelius find his own solution? 00:38:23.380 --> 00:38:29.380 We must dismantle human dichotomies that have been created in our understanding 00:38:29.380 --> 00:38:34.380 so that we think this is the only way, that is not the only way. 00:38:34.380 --> 00:38:40.380 Our assurances must come from our relationship, and God will progressively increase our relationship. 00:38:40.380 --> 00:38:44.380 But if we choose to say this is the only way, we're in trouble, 00:38:44.380 --> 00:38:58.380 because if you were in Peter's place, Cornelius would die, and Italians to know. 00:38:58.380 --> 00:39:05.380 Say it louder. 00:39:05.380 --> 00:39:12.380 I would say whatever God says will not contradict his nature. 00:39:12.380 --> 00:39:18.380 Whatever God says will not contradict his nature. 00:39:18.380 --> 00:39:20.380 So let's take the Peter example. 00:39:20.380 --> 00:39:26.380 How do we know that it is the nature of God to have Peter eat that which is non-kosher? 00:39:26.380 --> 00:39:27.380 How do we know that? 00:39:27.380 --> 00:39:33.380 Because the word in Leviticus, it very clearly says, Peter, you will not eat this. 00:39:33.380 --> 00:39:35.380 So how come there's a contradictory word? 00:39:35.380 --> 00:39:37.380 And why is Peter agreeing with it? 00:39:37.380 --> 00:39:40.380 Very simple. Genesis 12. Abraham. 00:39:40.380 --> 00:39:46.380 Listen, Abraham, I'm going to bless every nation through you. 00:39:46.380 --> 00:39:49.380 Acts chapter 2. 00:39:49.380 --> 00:39:55.380 This promise is not just for the Jews, it is for the Gentiles also. 00:39:56.380 --> 00:40:01.380 Already a pattern has been set in scriptures where God is saying, 00:40:01.380 --> 00:40:05.380 listen, I chose you as a nation to show people who I am, 00:40:05.380 --> 00:40:08.380 but please don't think that this is going to end here. 00:40:08.380 --> 00:40:11.380 Look at the stars in the sky. Look at the sands on the shore. 00:40:11.380 --> 00:40:19.380 And now don't you know that I'm going to bless every nation through you? 00:40:19.380 --> 00:40:21.380 Acts chapter 15, 16. 00:40:21.380 --> 00:40:22.380 Amos chapter 9. 00:40:22.380 --> 00:40:29.380 A day is coming when the sons of Esau, the sons of Edom, the Gentiles, will be drawn in so that they become one. 00:40:29.380 --> 00:40:34.380 That Jew and Gentile will become one new man. 00:40:34.380 --> 00:40:37.380 That is why Peter is willing to do it. 00:40:37.380 --> 00:40:42.380 But if he stuck to this contradictory word, Peter would never have made a move. 00:40:42.380 --> 00:40:45.380 But because he knew the nature of God, 00:40:45.380 --> 00:40:49.380 Peter was there when the Syrophoenician woman brought her demonized daughter. 00:40:49.380 --> 00:40:57.380 Peter was there when Gentiles would turn up, the Greeks turned up, Philip talked to Jesus about it. 00:40:57.380 --> 00:41:01.380 Peter was there when Jesus reached out to the Samaritans. 00:41:01.380 --> 00:41:05.380 Peter was there. He knows this God. 00:41:05.380 --> 00:41:12.380 We must use the word to know the nature of God so that we know the nature of God 00:41:12.380 --> 00:41:16.380 and can hear and know whether it is him or not. 00:41:16.380 --> 00:41:18.380 Just listen to that again. 00:41:18.380 --> 00:41:25.380 We know the word, we read the word, we dig into the word, we study the word to know the nature of God 00:41:25.380 --> 00:41:29.380 and how he administers the church in the world. 00:41:29.380 --> 00:41:35.380 All the letters, the 13 letters written by Paul and the book of Acts is showing us just one thing. 00:41:35.380 --> 00:41:37.380 This is the nature of God. 00:41:37.380 --> 00:41:43.380 This is how he plans to administer the world through the church, which is his body. 00:41:43.380 --> 00:41:46.380 And then you got the Old Testament and the Gospels. 00:41:46.380 --> 00:41:48.380 Why? Can you know my nature? 00:41:48.380 --> 00:41:53.380 Now that you know my nature, you will judge things by my nature. 00:41:54.380 --> 00:41:57.380 And what is this prevalent, prominent nature? 00:41:57.380 --> 00:41:58.380 Very simple. 00:41:58.380 --> 00:42:01.380 That of a father. 00:42:03.380 --> 00:42:06.380 And the better you know him as a father, 00:42:06.380 --> 00:42:08.380 which is what the son came to do, 00:42:08.380 --> 00:42:12.380 which is the cry that the Spirit of God is going to make him, 00:42:12.380 --> 00:42:14.380 which is the cry that the Spirit gives us, 00:42:14.380 --> 00:42:16.380 the better you know the father, 00:42:16.380 --> 00:42:20.380 the more accurate is your interpretation of the word. 00:42:22.380 --> 00:42:25.380 Such a beautiful tapestry. 00:42:27.380 --> 00:42:31.380 Which, who's the child? Brielle. 00:42:37.380 --> 00:42:40.380 Father, we just pray peace for Brielle. 00:42:40.380 --> 00:42:45.380 And that whatever is causing her to cry will just suddenly disappear. 00:42:48.380 --> 00:42:50.380 Stop wavering between two minds. 00:42:50.380 --> 00:42:54.380 Another thing that is an attrition to faith is wavering. 00:42:54.380 --> 00:42:56.380 Father, please, Lord, there she starts again. 00:42:58.380 --> 00:43:01.380 Stop wavering between two minds. 00:43:01.380 --> 00:43:02.380 Affirming belief. 00:43:02.380 --> 00:43:04.380 How do we waver between two minds? 00:43:05.380 --> 00:43:07.380 Whenever God speaks, 00:43:07.380 --> 00:43:15.380 make sure that there is a very small gap between belief in God 00:43:19.380 --> 00:43:25.380 and grasp of God's goodness. 00:43:31.380 --> 00:43:32.380 These are different, eh? 00:43:32.380 --> 00:43:34.380 And there's usually a gap between it. 00:43:34.380 --> 00:43:39.380 We believe that God is powerful, God is able, God can do stuff. 00:43:39.380 --> 00:43:40.380 We believe that. 00:43:40.380 --> 00:43:44.380 But we don't fully believe that he is able and good. 00:43:45.380 --> 00:43:46.380 Able and willing. 00:43:47.380 --> 00:43:48.380 Able now. 00:43:49.380 --> 00:43:51.380 That is hard towards me. 00:43:51.380 --> 00:43:56.380 Even in deep sin is a heart that is good. 00:43:57.380 --> 00:43:58.380 Even in deep sin. 00:44:03.380 --> 00:44:05.380 Make that gap very little. 00:44:05.380 --> 00:44:10.380 And so what you do is, whenever you want to believe God for something impossible, 00:44:10.380 --> 00:44:13.380 whenever you want to believe God in hostile circumstances, 00:44:13.380 --> 00:44:17.380 whenever you want to believe God when things are not changing, 00:44:17.380 --> 00:44:20.380 then go here before you go here. 00:44:20.380 --> 00:44:23.380 If you know his goodness, you will believe him. 00:44:25.380 --> 00:44:27.380 Don't go to the belief first. 00:44:27.380 --> 00:44:28.380 Go to the goodness first. 00:44:28.380 --> 00:44:31.380 If you go to his goodness, if Jagan goes to his goodness, 00:44:31.380 --> 00:44:35.380 if I go to his goodness, if Prashanth goes to his goodness, 00:44:35.380 --> 00:44:40.380 that this is how you are, father, then belief becomes easier. 00:44:40.380 --> 00:44:43.380 But if you go for belief before you go for goodness, 00:44:43.380 --> 00:44:44.380 it becomes very difficult. 00:44:44.380 --> 00:44:45.380 Very difficult. 00:44:45.380 --> 00:44:50.380 Because you're struggling with holding on to something without knowing the person. 00:44:52.380 --> 00:44:54.380 Saturate yourself with the goodness of God 00:44:54.380 --> 00:44:56.380 and belief becomes easier. 00:44:56.380 --> 00:45:00.380 Saturate yourself with the goodness of God and belief becomes almost unnecessary. 00:45:01.380 --> 00:45:03.380 It's like, what's the big deal? 00:45:05.380 --> 00:45:08.380 And don't do it that way and here's what it'll do. 00:45:08.380 --> 00:45:13.380 Belief will result in you questioning his goodness because things are not happening. 00:45:16.380 --> 00:45:19.380 Get his goodness right, you will get belief right. 00:45:19.380 --> 00:45:23.380 Get belief right, you will question his goodness if it doesn't happen in the right time. 00:45:26.380 --> 00:45:28.380 Expectation is another thing. 00:45:28.380 --> 00:45:32.380 How large is your expectation and how vocal are you about it? 00:45:32.380 --> 00:45:36.380 How large is your expectation and how vocal are you about it? 00:45:38.380 --> 00:45:43.380 If your expectation is not large, you don't need much faith. 00:45:43.380 --> 00:45:49.380 Second, if your expectation is large, do you dare to be vocal about it? 00:45:49.380 --> 00:45:55.380 Second, if your expectation is large, do you dare to be vocal about it? 00:46:02.380 --> 00:46:03.380 To people. 00:46:06.380 --> 00:46:07.380 To people. 00:46:07.380 --> 00:46:11.380 How do we know the Old Testament stories? 00:46:13.380 --> 00:46:14.380 What is Moses doing? 00:46:14.380 --> 00:46:18.380 Standing on a rock, at least in the movie Ben-Hur and Ten Commandments. 00:46:18.380 --> 00:46:20.380 Sorry, in the movie Ten Commandments. 00:46:20.380 --> 00:46:26.380 Standing on a rock, got a staff and he stretches it out and he says, 00:46:26.380 --> 00:46:29.380 Behold, stand and see Charlton Heston. 00:46:30.380 --> 00:46:32.380 The voice was much deeper. 00:46:32.380 --> 00:46:34.380 Stand and see the salvation of God. 00:46:34.380 --> 00:46:37.380 It was always out in the open. 00:46:37.380 --> 00:46:39.380 Seven days we shall walk around the city. 00:46:39.380 --> 00:46:44.380 And on the seventh day we shall walk around it seven times and the city will fall. 00:46:45.380 --> 00:46:47.380 These are make or break things, eh? 00:46:48.380 --> 00:46:51.380 If that doesn't work, Moses goes back to Egypt. 00:46:53.380 --> 00:46:56.380 If that doesn't work, Joshua quits his job. 00:46:57.380 --> 00:47:02.380 If that doesn't work, Noah will never spell the word rain again. 00:47:07.380 --> 00:47:09.380 Expectations must be vocalized. 00:47:10.380 --> 00:47:16.380 It makes us do a double take because now we will go and make sure our expectations are actually tailored by God. 00:47:18.380 --> 00:47:24.380 That aside, our expectations must be large because our God is not mid-sized. 00:47:24.380 --> 00:47:25.380 Not mid-sized. 00:47:46.380 --> 00:47:48.380 Brilliant. That's exactly what you should do. 00:47:49.380 --> 00:47:51.380 What did I miss? 00:47:52.380 --> 00:47:54.380 And that's exactly what you would do at work. 00:47:55.380 --> 00:48:01.380 Any programmer, anyone working would have an expectation that if I do this, this is what I should get. 00:48:01.380 --> 00:48:03.380 And you don't get it. 00:48:03.380 --> 00:48:06.380 And what do you do? You go back and start examining. 00:48:06.380 --> 00:48:08.380 What did I miss? 00:48:11.380 --> 00:48:13.380 This is exactly what I need to do. 00:48:13.380 --> 00:48:15.380 Where did I miss it? 00:48:16.380 --> 00:48:19.380 And then I find out and you fix it. 00:48:19.380 --> 00:48:22.380 Sometimes you don't have to fix it because you get it right. 00:48:24.380 --> 00:48:27.380 What a marvelous privilege to enter this. 00:48:27.380 --> 00:48:33.380 An invisible God speaking in an inaudible voice, being heard by your invisible spirit and you're acting on it. 00:48:39.380 --> 00:48:46.380 And when you look back at your life, you will find that there are more things, there are many, many more things you got right. 00:48:46.380 --> 00:48:48.380 And very few things that you got wrong. 00:48:48.380 --> 00:48:52.380 But a few things that you got wrong stick in your gut and cause you a whole lot of problem. 00:48:53.380 --> 00:48:54.380 Go for surgery. 00:48:55.380 --> 00:48:57.380 Remove it. 00:48:58.380 --> 00:49:04.380 It's just so wrong that the two or three incidents that we got wrong and they may have cost you. 00:49:04.380 --> 00:49:15.380 But when you put it against the 90 things you got right, it's fascinating that those 10 things are able to prevent me from looking forward. 00:49:18.380 --> 00:49:24.380 Yes, you will miss it sometimes. 00:49:24.380 --> 00:49:29.380 You will not get what you expected and sometimes you won't get it in the time that you wanted it in. 00:49:29.380 --> 00:49:32.380 And it seems almost pointless getting it after. 00:49:36.380 --> 00:49:42.380 So you have that happening every day at work and you go and say, where is the problem? 00:49:42.380 --> 00:49:43.380 Where did I get it wrong? 00:49:44.380 --> 00:49:45.380 Go and examine it. 00:49:45.380 --> 00:49:48.380 If you don't, how will the ETW guys learn? 00:49:55.380 --> 00:49:56.380 Pardon? 00:49:58.380 --> 00:49:59.380 Yeah, and then persist. 00:49:59.380 --> 00:50:05.380 Come and get a group of guys that you will open your life to and say, please help me with this. 00:50:05.380 --> 00:50:07.380 You've got to break through this for me. 00:50:09.380 --> 00:50:11.380 These are the difficult things in life. 00:50:11.380 --> 00:50:12.380 These are the difficult things in life. 00:50:12.380 --> 00:50:18.380 When I'm not able to get it, can I call four or five people and say, I need to break through this? 00:50:18.380 --> 00:50:20.380 And they'll know everything. 00:50:20.380 --> 00:50:22.380 They'll know what my financial situation is. 00:50:22.380 --> 00:50:24.380 They'll know what my physical fears are. 00:50:24.380 --> 00:50:26.380 They will know these problems I have. 00:50:27.380 --> 00:50:29.380 But boy, will I break through or not? 00:50:32.380 --> 00:50:36.380 These are the tough things that we, I'm not talking to Jill now. 00:50:36.380 --> 00:50:40.380 These are the tough things that we want to avoid and yet get to an answer. 00:50:42.380 --> 00:50:43.380 Ain't going to happen. 00:50:47.380 --> 00:50:51.380 But if you can pay me $200 an hour, suddenly it becomes legit. 00:50:53.380 --> 00:50:57.380 We go to counselors and do this, but we can't do it with each other. 00:50:57.380 --> 00:50:59.380 All Jane got was a degree. 00:51:03.380 --> 00:51:04.380 Is she here? 00:51:05.380 --> 00:51:06.380 Okay. 00:51:06.380 --> 00:51:07.380 Good, that just slipped. 00:51:07.380 --> 00:51:09.380 Oh, she got it from TWU? 00:51:09.380 --> 00:51:10.380 Okay, it's a Christian. 00:51:11.380 --> 00:51:25.380 Guys, the problem with God, one of God's biggest problems, it's not a problem with God. 00:51:25.380 --> 00:51:26.380 It is a problem with God. 00:51:26.380 --> 00:51:31.380 One of the problems with God is he refuses to do anything without it being relational. 00:51:35.380 --> 00:51:40.380 He refuses to do anything without it being relational in context. 00:51:40.380 --> 00:51:43.380 He refuses it, refuses it. 00:51:46.380 --> 00:51:52.380 The man who was paralyzed will not make it through the roof if he does not have four friends. 00:51:57.380 --> 00:52:03.380 Peter will not pay his taxes unless he comes to Jesus and says, I've got a problem. 00:52:03.380 --> 00:52:04.380 I've got to pay my taxes. 00:52:10.380 --> 00:52:11.380 Very difficult. 00:52:11.380 --> 00:52:14.380 And this is not a casual pray for me thing. 00:52:14.380 --> 00:52:17.380 This is an opening of your life. 00:52:17.380 --> 00:52:19.380 And you can't do it with everybody. 00:52:30.380 --> 00:52:32.380 Yeah, non-believer, absolutely. 00:52:32.380 --> 00:52:34.380 Come because you... 00:52:35.380 --> 00:52:41.380 Because as soon as you're born again, you're baptized into a family and now everything is relational. 00:52:43.380 --> 00:52:44.380 Absolutely. 00:52:44.380 --> 00:52:48.380 As soon as you're baptized, you're baptized in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit 00:52:48.380 --> 00:52:51.380 and you're baptized into the body of Christ. 00:52:51.380 --> 00:52:55.380 We have to think of it as a part of your body existing. 00:52:55.380 --> 00:52:58.380 It cannot exist like it used to before. 00:52:58.380 --> 00:53:02.380 His body was broken so that we were put together. 00:53:02.380 --> 00:53:04.380 He's creating what's called a household. 00:53:04.380 --> 00:53:06.380 He's the Father. 00:53:12.380 --> 00:53:13.380 Yeah. 00:53:13.380 --> 00:53:16.380 Government and mercy exist together. 00:53:16.380 --> 00:53:18.380 Compassion and order exist together. 00:53:18.380 --> 00:53:20.380 It's always like that. 00:53:20.380 --> 00:53:24.380 On one hand, he says to Adam, Adam, you will now have to leave the garden. 00:53:24.380 --> 00:53:29.380 On the other hand, he says, I will cover you and I will provide for you. 00:53:29.380 --> 00:53:33.380 He says to Cain, murderer, you killed your brother. 00:53:33.380 --> 00:53:38.380 And then he says, I'll put a mark on you so that nobody touches you. 00:53:38.380 --> 00:53:41.380 And that is what he then does to Jesus. 00:53:41.380 --> 00:53:43.380 You're my son. 00:53:43.380 --> 00:53:45.380 You will pay for sins. 00:53:45.380 --> 00:53:49.380 Because it is always government and mercy. 00:53:49.380 --> 00:53:51.380 Judgment and mercy. 00:53:51.380 --> 00:53:55.380 There is no compassion, no mercy without judgment. 00:53:55.380 --> 00:53:57.380 It does not exist. 00:53:57.380 --> 00:54:01.380 Mercy and compassion do not exist without judgment. 00:54:01.380 --> 00:54:03.380 They cannot exist in isolation. 00:54:03.380 --> 00:54:09.380 You cannot show mercy till you judge something. 00:54:09.380 --> 00:54:12.380 Everything exists together in God like this. 00:54:12.380 --> 00:54:14.380 And they're not contrary. 00:54:14.380 --> 00:54:17.380 He holds them together. 00:54:17.380 --> 00:54:20.380 And so, yes, for an unbeliever, come. 00:54:20.380 --> 00:54:26.380 That's why Billy Graham's crusade, it would be just as you are, come. 00:54:26.380 --> 00:54:29.380 But after coming, change. 00:54:29.380 --> 00:54:33.380 So if I fall to a land, God in your name will forgive me and make me right? 00:54:33.380 --> 00:54:35.380 Do you think so? 00:54:35.380 --> 00:54:37.380 Do you think so? 00:54:37.380 --> 00:54:38.380 It's not what I'm saying. 00:54:38.380 --> 00:54:41.380 It's God's nature that he will take me back. 00:54:41.380 --> 00:54:42.380 So we're not talking about that. 00:54:42.380 --> 00:54:47.380 Your question is whether someone in the body, someone who becomes a believer... 00:54:47.380 --> 00:54:54.380 My question was that God is going to help you even if you are not in that relationship with God. 00:54:55.380 --> 00:54:56.380 Because he will not refuse you. 00:54:56.380 --> 00:54:57.380 No, but that's not your question. 00:54:57.380 --> 00:55:01.380 Your question was an unbeliever can come and God does dust things. 00:55:01.380 --> 00:55:02.380 That's what the comparison is. 00:55:02.380 --> 00:55:05.380 If you are not a believer, God is accepting you. 00:55:05.380 --> 00:55:10.380 Without any sort of doing himself or whatever. 00:55:10.380 --> 00:55:15.380 But then we already accepted Christ and we are believers. 00:55:15.380 --> 00:55:18.380 And why would God refuse us to help him? 00:55:18.380 --> 00:55:22.380 Won't refuse, but he will require that, Jacob, now that you've accepted me, 00:55:22.380 --> 00:55:25.380 you have to be part of what I have asked you. 00:55:25.380 --> 00:55:28.380 But he will still help us if we falter. 00:55:28.380 --> 00:55:36.380 I can give you so many examples from the Bible where God would send people to help and they would refuse. 00:55:36.380 --> 00:55:40.380 Demas, deserted Paul, had to go. 00:55:40.380 --> 00:55:42.380 Alexander, Hymenaeus. 00:55:42.380 --> 00:55:45.380 You read through the book of Acts and the New Testament, 00:55:45.380 --> 00:55:48.380 you will find many who were part of the believing body, 00:55:48.380 --> 00:55:52.380 who still refused to live by the principles God had ordained. 00:55:52.380 --> 00:55:54.380 Will they go to heaven? Yes. 00:55:54.380 --> 00:55:56.380 Will mercy be shown to them? Yes. 00:55:56.380 --> 00:55:58.380 Is eternal life secure? Yes. 00:55:58.380 --> 00:56:03.380 But will there be consequences? Yes. Absolutely. 00:56:05.380 --> 00:56:12.380 Ananias and Sapphira. My God, there's no... I mean, they were believers. 00:56:12.380 --> 00:56:15.380 Thank God. I mean, we are still the New Testament church. 00:56:15.380 --> 00:56:18.380 God only knows... 00:56:18.380 --> 00:56:21.380 We don't hear about it because no one's writing about it. 00:56:21.380 --> 00:56:24.380 Did they actually ask for forgiveness? 00:56:24.380 --> 00:56:27.380 So now it comes back at you. 00:56:27.380 --> 00:56:31.380 If you don't ask for forgiveness, does that mean that you're not forgiven and you won't go to heaven? 00:56:31.380 --> 00:56:33.380 Or that you will be killed? 00:56:33.380 --> 00:56:37.380 We can't make this cut and dry thing about... 00:56:37.380 --> 00:56:41.380 If that was the case, Marcus, all of us would be dead. 00:56:41.380 --> 00:56:46.380 Because if it is asking forgiveness that matters, all of us would be dead right now. 00:56:46.380 --> 00:56:48.380 The point is this. 00:56:48.380 --> 00:56:50.380 On one hand, God shows kindness and compassion. 00:56:50.380 --> 00:56:54.380 On the other hand, God judges, and there are consequences. 00:56:54.380 --> 00:56:56.380 So we have to ask for forgiveness. 00:56:56.380 --> 00:56:58.380 We have to ask for forgiveness. 00:56:58.380 --> 00:57:00.380 We have to ask for forgiveness. 00:57:00.380 --> 00:57:02.380 We have to ask for forgiveness. 00:57:02.380 --> 00:57:04.380 We have to ask for forgiveness. 00:57:04.380 --> 00:57:08.380 On the other hand, God judges and there are consequences. 00:57:08.380 --> 00:57:13.380 And as a believer, once you come into this thing called the body of Christ, which is what you are baptized into, 00:57:13.380 --> 00:57:15.380 there are principles... 00:57:15.380 --> 00:57:16.380 Paul puts it this way. 00:57:16.380 --> 00:57:20.380 There are rules for the administration of the church. 00:57:20.380 --> 00:57:27.380 And if you choose to flaunt it or push it away, then there are consequences. 00:57:27.380 --> 00:57:29.380 Go ahead, Vivian. 00:57:34.380 --> 00:57:44.380 Would it be possible to forfeit my calling? 00:57:44.380 --> 00:57:46.380 Ananias and Sapphira forfeited the calling. 00:57:46.380 --> 00:57:48.380 Judas forfeited his calling. 00:57:48.380 --> 00:57:52.380 Moses forfeited entering into the promised land. 00:57:52.380 --> 00:57:55.380 Gehazi forfeited his calling. 00:57:55.380 --> 00:58:01.380 Jonah kind of partially forfeited his calling. 00:58:01.380 --> 00:58:03.380 Saul forfeited his calling. 00:58:03.380 --> 00:58:09.380 Demas forfeited his calling. 00:58:09.380 --> 00:58:11.380 Mark forfeited his calling. 00:58:11.380 --> 00:58:12.380 Ran away. 00:58:12.380 --> 00:58:13.380 Had to be brought back. 00:58:13.380 --> 00:58:23.380 Philemon forfeited his calling. 00:58:23.380 --> 00:58:27.380 Yeah, but we think that the calling he's talking about is some kind of destiny that he's given us. 00:58:27.380 --> 00:58:29.380 That's not what it is talking about. 00:58:29.380 --> 00:58:39.380 It is his calling off us into eternal life that he's talking about. 00:58:39.380 --> 00:58:43.380 There's a teaching we did long ago, good seed and bad seed. 00:58:43.380 --> 00:58:49.380 Bad seed, God mitigates so that it doesn't really give you a harvest that will ruin you. 00:58:49.380 --> 00:58:55.380 Good seed, he just pours water onto. 00:58:55.380 --> 00:58:57.380 These things exist together. 00:58:57.380 --> 00:58:59.380 Sorry, go ahead. 00:58:59.380 --> 00:59:15.380 Yeah, totally. 00:59:15.380 --> 00:59:17.380 And go with it when he tells you that. 00:59:17.380 --> 00:59:19.380 Another classic example is David. 00:59:19.380 --> 00:59:21.380 Here's the all thing with David. 00:59:21.380 --> 00:59:23.380 He commits sin. 00:59:23.380 --> 00:59:27.380 He asks for forgiveness, but does that spare him consequences? 00:59:27.380 --> 00:59:31.380 The sword follows him till the day he dies. 00:59:31.380 --> 00:59:37.380 This is a man that the New Testament quotes. 00:59:37.380 --> 00:59:41.380 Not to be trifled with, guys. 00:59:41.380 --> 00:59:45.380 Not to be trifled with. 00:59:45.380 --> 00:59:51.380 David repented, but there were consequences. 00:59:51.380 --> 00:59:59.380 Yeah. 00:59:59.380 --> 01:00:05.380 This is why it says in Galatians 6, and that might put a full stop on this part of it, so I can do one more point. 01:00:05.380 --> 01:00:07.380 Oh, shucks, it's 8.02. 01:00:07.380 --> 01:00:09.380 So I can do half a point. 01:00:09.380 --> 01:00:11.380 And here's a quote from Galatians 6. 01:00:11.380 --> 01:00:15.380 God is not mocked. 01:00:15.380 --> 01:00:17.380 Do not be deceived. 01:00:17.380 --> 01:00:19.380 God is not mocked. 01:00:19.380 --> 01:00:23.380 Whatsoever a man sows, he will reap. 01:00:23.380 --> 01:00:31.380 If he sows to the flesh, as in, if it is contrary to what God has commanded, he will reap destruction. 01:00:31.380 --> 01:00:33.380 This is being written to the church. 01:00:33.380 --> 01:00:39.380 And if he sows to the spirit, he will reap life. 01:00:39.380 --> 01:00:41.380 It applies to me. 01:00:41.380 --> 01:00:43.380 It applies to you. 01:00:43.380 --> 01:00:51.380 It just so happens that God in his mercy even mitigates the harvest that comes from the bad seed I sow. 01:00:51.380 --> 01:00:53.380 Let me finish this. 01:00:53.380 --> 01:00:57.380 We can, may or may not be here next week. 01:00:57.380 --> 01:01:03.380 But stop wavering between two minds, eh? 01:01:03.380 --> 01:01:07.380 So we talked about that part. 01:01:07.380 --> 01:01:17.380 What I want to say is, when you waver between two minds, it's called being double-minded, 01:01:17.380 --> 01:01:23.380 which is a word that comes from a Greek word called dystazo, which is the same word that's used for doubt. 01:01:23.380 --> 01:01:29.380 And so this thing called doubt takes roots. 01:01:29.380 --> 01:01:37.380 And the more you verbalize it, the more you own it. 01:01:41.380 --> 01:01:51.380 And if you don't give it oxygen, it aborts. 01:01:51.380 --> 01:02:03.380 You starve it of oxygen by replacing it with truth. 01:02:03.380 --> 01:02:13.380 To replace it with truth, you have to battle. 01:02:13.380 --> 01:02:23.380 You have to battle emotions. 01:02:23.380 --> 01:02:25.380 We'll stop there. 01:02:25.380 --> 01:02:27.380 So let me go over that one more time. 01:02:27.380 --> 01:02:35.380 To be double-minded is basically the same word that's used for doubt, dystazo, which means doubt. 01:02:35.380 --> 01:02:41.380 Doubt takes root when you are in a state of being, 01:02:41.380 --> 01:02:47.380 and doubt multiplies doubt. 01:02:47.380 --> 01:02:51.380 I mean, in the sense that doubt grows roots, and if you allow thoughts that contradict what God has said in His word, 01:02:51.380 --> 01:02:55.380 it just gets even more active. 01:02:55.380 --> 01:02:57.380 So here's how it works. 01:02:57.380 --> 01:03:01.380 So I begin to doubt, and when I begin to doubt, it takes roots. 01:03:01.380 --> 01:03:11.380 Once it takes root, I begin to offer arguments, reasonings, thoughts that contradict what God has said, 01:03:11.380 --> 01:03:15.380 either to me directly or through the word. 01:03:15.380 --> 01:03:23.380 Doubt is like a machine that begins to churn out thoughts, reasonings, arguments, imaginations. 01:03:23.380 --> 01:03:25.380 And as it does, how do we give form to this? 01:03:25.380 --> 01:03:27.380 We give form to this with our words. 01:03:27.380 --> 01:03:33.380 Verbalize doubt, and it feeds on itself. 01:03:33.380 --> 01:03:41.380 And that's when reasonings, thoughts, imaginations, lofty things rise up against the knowledge of God and what God has told you. 01:03:41.380 --> 01:03:49.380 If I'm able to not speak doubt to myself, to you, to every expert that comes along, 01:03:49.380 --> 01:03:53.380 through every book, through every TV, through Google, through Wikipedia, 01:03:53.380 --> 01:03:56.380 if I'm not able to do that, a strange thing begins to happen. 01:03:56.380 --> 01:04:00.380 Doubt begins to abort. 01:04:00.380 --> 01:04:09.380 But to combat doubt, I have to combat feelings, because feelings and emotions feed doubt. 01:04:09.380 --> 01:04:19.380 To combat doubt, I have to go, let me, if you don't give it oxygen, if you don't give it oxygen, it aborts. 01:04:19.380 --> 01:04:22.380 You starve it of oxygen by replacing it with the truth. 01:04:22.380 --> 01:04:26.380 You starve it of oxygen by replacing it with the truth. 01:04:26.380 --> 01:04:32.380 But if you want to replace it with the truth, you'll have to battle emotions. 01:04:32.380 --> 01:04:37.380 Because your feelings will come up against the truth. 01:04:37.380 --> 01:04:39.380 Doubts come with feelings. 01:04:39.380 --> 01:04:42.380 Truth doesn't necessarily come with feelings. 01:04:42.380 --> 01:04:47.380 Doubt does. 01:04:47.380 --> 01:04:49.380 Doubt comes with feelings. 01:04:49.380 --> 01:04:52.380 Truth doesn't necessarily come with feelings. 01:04:52.380 --> 01:04:59.380 And I've said this before, to move from doubt, or fear, or faithlessness, to the truth, 01:04:59.380 --> 01:05:02.380 go to the Word, but battle your feelings. 01:05:02.380 --> 01:05:07.380 Battle your emotions that say otherwise. 01:05:07.380 --> 01:05:16.380 Doubt is, uncertainty is a result of my double-mindedness. 01:05:16.380 --> 01:05:19.380 Uncertainty is a result of my double-mindedness. 01:05:19.380 --> 01:05:28.380 So how do you differentiate between that and the uncertainty that you have been talking about? 01:05:28.380 --> 01:05:34.380 Yeah, so there's an uncertainty that comes because I'm double-minded about what God has said. 01:05:34.380 --> 01:05:38.380 And there's an uncertainty that you are talking about, which is to figure out what God is saying. 01:05:38.380 --> 01:05:41.380 But let's say I've gone to Him and I've figured it out. 01:05:41.380 --> 01:05:48.380 I'm still uncertain because now what is happening is I know what God has said, but I know reality. 01:05:48.380 --> 01:05:52.380 And God and reality begin to clash. 01:05:52.380 --> 01:05:54.380 And now I'm double-minded. 01:05:54.380 --> 01:05:56.380 There are emotions that come with it. 01:05:56.380 --> 01:06:02.380 The truth says this, but all my feelings scream and say this. 01:06:02.380 --> 01:06:04.380 I often begin to verbalize my doubt. 01:06:04.380 --> 01:06:06.380 Initially it is with God. 01:06:06.380 --> 01:06:08.380 Then it is with myself. 01:06:08.380 --> 01:06:09.380 Then it is with me. 01:06:09.380 --> 01:06:10.380 Then it is with Derek. 01:06:10.380 --> 01:06:14.380 Then it is with every expert who has an opinion on it. 01:06:14.380 --> 01:06:21.380 And the more I express my doubt, my verbalize it, the more it begins to take a very strong route. 01:06:21.380 --> 01:06:27.380 We can verbalize our doubt with God towards an end. 01:06:27.380 --> 01:06:32.380 We don't verbalize our doubts with God except towards an end. 01:06:32.380 --> 01:06:33.380 What is the end? 01:06:33.380 --> 01:06:36.380 That, Father, this is how I'm feeling, but can you take me to the truth? 01:06:36.380 --> 01:06:39.380 David would use the Psalms not to vent his doubt. 01:06:39.380 --> 01:06:44.380 David would use the Psalms to go from doubt to truth. 01:06:44.380 --> 01:06:52.380 So sometimes we vent with God because one, it's a venting, two, it's his fault anyways. 01:06:52.380 --> 01:06:54.380 Most things are, meaning that's how we think. 01:06:54.380 --> 01:06:59.380 And so use Psalms to go from doubt to the truth. 01:06:59.380 --> 01:07:01.380 That is what we use God for. 01:07:01.380 --> 01:07:07.380 Or use Sue or use Echo to speak to them about the doubt, to help. 01:07:07.380 --> 01:07:13.380 You're pleading with them, take me from this doubt to the place of truth. 01:07:13.380 --> 01:07:16.380 That is the intent. 01:07:16.380 --> 01:07:25.380 Nicodemus was doing that that night, but he didn't do much with it after. 01:07:25.380 --> 01:07:26.380 And we make that move. 01:07:26.380 --> 01:07:27.380 And the feelings will come in. 01:07:27.380 --> 01:07:34.380 Doubt comes with feeling. 01:07:34.380 --> 01:07:38.380 Truth sometimes comes just as plain truth, no feelings to it. 01:07:38.380 --> 01:07:46.380 This is what I'm saying to you, Dilna, get up and do it. 01:07:46.380 --> 01:07:50.380 Any questions? 01:07:50.380 --> 01:07:54.380 Sometimes we think we are great men of faith and then suddenly we're women of faith when I mean men. 01:07:54.380 --> 01:07:59.380 And then sometimes you think to yourself, man, you've got such a long way to go. 01:07:59.380 --> 01:08:04.380 October 1st, good day to start. 01:08:04.380 --> 01:08:08.380 Any questions? 01:08:08.380 --> 01:08:14.380 Cool, let's pray. 01:08:14.380 --> 01:08:21.380 Father, Brielle's still crying, Abba. 01:08:21.380 --> 01:08:26.380 Please help her to come to a place where she stops crying, Father. 01:08:26.380 --> 01:08:28.380 It's hard listening to it. 01:08:28.380 --> 01:08:29.380 It must be harder for her. 01:08:29.380 --> 01:08:33.380 So I just ask for your peace, Jesus, to enter her life. 01:08:33.380 --> 01:08:35.380 Peace to enter her body. 01:08:35.380 --> 01:08:38.380 Peace to enter whatever is disturbing her. 01:08:38.380 --> 01:08:42.380 Just you alone can do it. 01:08:42.380 --> 01:08:44.380 So please ask for that. 01:08:44.380 --> 01:08:57.380 Would you cry like this, Jesus? 01:08:57.380 --> 01:09:03.380 A chorus, Father, here. 01:09:03.380 --> 01:09:05.380 It's hard, Abba, but you must have cried too. 01:09:05.380 --> 01:09:07.380 But I think this is a lot of crying. 01:09:07.380 --> 01:09:09.380 So what do I know? 01:09:09.380 --> 01:09:26.380 So Father, we now want to conclude with what we talked about. 01:09:26.380 --> 01:09:35.380 Jesus, I must exchange control for rest. 01:09:39.380 --> 01:09:44.380 I must exchange. 01:09:44.380 --> 01:09:49.380 I must go beyond my personality. 01:09:49.380 --> 01:10:00.380 I must not allow my experiences to dictate how I function. 01:10:00.380 --> 01:10:03.380 Obedience and sacrifice is necessary. 01:10:03.380 --> 01:10:05.380 Inconvenience is necessary. 01:10:05.380 --> 01:10:18.380 So that my natural life turns into a spiritual life, so that Ishmael turns into Isaac. 01:10:18.380 --> 01:10:24.380 Father, everything that I ask for myself, I ask for the church. 01:10:24.380 --> 01:10:27.380 We don't want a comfortable existence. 01:10:27.380 --> 01:10:31.380 We want your Word to change us. 01:10:31.380 --> 01:10:33.380 We want your Word to change us. 01:10:33.380 --> 01:10:39.380 As we go over these notes on faith, on doubt, on the attrition of faith, the growing in faith, 01:10:39.380 --> 01:10:43.380 please ask, Father, that in my life, and as I ask for my life, I ask for everybody here, 01:10:43.380 --> 01:11:01.380 I ask in my life that there be no resistance, Father, that I don't postpone it to the future. 01:11:02.380 --> 01:11:12.380 So give me just one more minute, guys, and we'll end. 01:11:12.380 --> 01:11:16.380 Jesus, I come against doubt in this room. 01:11:16.380 --> 01:11:20.380 I come against disobedience in this room. 01:11:20.380 --> 01:11:31.380 I come against the self-preservation and the nature of only doing things that are convenient in this room. 01:11:31.380 --> 01:11:42.380 I come against deliberate, contradictory ways against the Word of God in this room. 01:11:42.380 --> 01:11:49.380 I come against postponement in this room. 01:11:49.380 --> 01:11:57.380 I come against any shirking back from the offense that the Word causes in this room. 01:11:57.380 --> 01:12:03.380 And I come against these things first in my life. 01:12:03.380 --> 01:12:07.380 Set me free, O God, so that I may walk as a man of faith. 01:12:07.380 --> 01:12:11.380 Set us free, O God, that we may walk as men and women of faith, 01:12:11.380 --> 01:12:16.380 because it is impossible to do the things you have asked us without this. 01:12:16.380 --> 01:12:23.380 Self-improvement is an absolutely no-no in this church. 01:12:23.380 --> 01:12:31.380 Jesus, we humble ourselves to operate by the proceeding Word. 01:12:31.380 --> 01:12:36.380 And so today on the 1st of October, I lay down every past act of faith, 01:12:36.380 --> 01:12:43.380 every past thing, so that you can start me again on something that is newer, greater, larger, 01:12:43.380 --> 01:12:49.380 that will challenge, challenge. 01:12:49.380 --> 01:12:52.380 I ask this for myself and I ask this for this church. 01:12:52.380 --> 01:12:58.380 Granted, Jesus, granted. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 01:12:58.380 --> 01:13:01.380 Hey guys, one quick announcement that I forgot. 01:13:01.380 --> 01:13:08.380 Toonie, and mainly Toonie, but Nick has been helping him. 01:13:08.380 --> 01:13:12.380 They've been looking at an area in North Vancouver. 01:13:12.380 --> 01:13:15.380 It's this huge area in North Vancouver, if you look at the map. 01:13:15.380 --> 01:13:18.380 And in that area there's not a single church. 01:13:18.380 --> 01:13:23.380 So Toonie has been going there. He's taken a few others with him. 01:13:23.380 --> 01:13:25.380 Nick goes there with Toonie often. 01:13:25.380 --> 01:13:28.380 And they've been scouring that area for the last month and a half 01:13:28.380 --> 01:13:35.380 and have felt that what if they could start a church there, begin a service there. 01:13:35.380 --> 01:13:39.380 And so they've been praying over it, going through the streets, meeting people, talking to them. 01:13:39.380 --> 01:13:46.380 And finally, four days ago, Toonie walked into a church that he felt that he should walk into 01:13:46.380 --> 01:13:49.380 and asked them if they will rent the space to him. 01:13:49.380 --> 01:13:52.380 And they gave it to him for a song. 01:13:52.380 --> 01:14:01.380 And so starting next week, this Friday, Toonie and Nick and a few people that he might invite 01:14:01.380 --> 01:14:04.380 will start a service in Northland. 01:14:04.380 --> 01:14:06.380 Yeah? So... 01:14:10.380 --> 01:14:14.380 So next week I'll show pictures of the place he's meeting. 01:14:14.380 --> 01:14:21.380 And the only odd thing about this whole thing is, for a month and a half or two months, 01:14:21.380 --> 01:14:24.380 I've been asking Toonie if he can find us a place to meet. 01:14:27.380 --> 01:14:31.380 And nothing has happened. Plus, the places that we've found, he went and he said, 01:14:31.380 --> 01:14:35.380 it's not good for us. But strangely, in less than a week, he found a place for himself. 01:14:38.380 --> 01:14:41.380 Okay. If you need prayer, there'll be someone here to pray with you. 01:14:41.380 --> 01:14:45.380 I'll see you when the church meets again.