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NOTE
Podcast: Acts 29 Vancouver
Episode: Knee-deep
Publishing Date: 2019-08-11T06:00:44-07:00
Podcast URL: https://acts29.ca
Episode URL: https://acts29.ca/knee-deep/

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Hey, so we've been talking about Ezekiel 47 verses 1 to 5 and let me read that again

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Ezekiel 47 verses 1 to 5

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Here's what it says

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Yeah, the man brought me back to the entrance of the temple and I saw water coming from under the threshold of the temple towards the east, for the temple faced east.

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The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.

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He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side.

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Here's where the real thing begins.

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As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through the water that was ankle deep.

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He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee deep.

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He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist.

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He measured off another thousand but now it was a river that I could not cross because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in.

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A river that no one could cross. He asked me, son of man, do you see this?

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So we started last week with ankle deep water and today we deal with knee deep water.

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And I think the ankle deep water teaching is up on the website already.

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So this is a river, we said last week, that moves you from your measure to the fullness of God.

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Most of us operate by our own measure, as in we have our skills, our abilities, our spiritual gifts, and our character at its best.

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That's usually what we operate by.

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And that's within our own measure. It's things that we have that we now operate by.

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But once you step into this river or this flow from God that comes from his Holy Spirit,

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what happens is you move from your own measure to the fullness of God and then suddenly your limitations are no longer the ceiling.

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That's a great advantage with stepping into this river.

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Because as long as I operate in my own measure, there's a degree of teaching that I can accomplish because I might have the gift of teaching.

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Or there might be some charisma that I can exude. Or there might be some oratorial skill that I can use.

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But it's still within my measure.

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But what if I'm able to step into this flow that the Spirit of God brings from the very throne of God?

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Because that's where this river starts. And suddenly Jacob is not operating on his own measure, but he's stepping into the fullness of God.

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And limitations are no longer the ceiling and God becomes evident.

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God is on display through mere human vessels like you and I.

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This is the brilliance of stepping into this river.

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Whether you're leading worship, whether you're working on a car, whether you're washing dishes,

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you can step into a whole different way of doing things where the fullness of God becomes your measure.

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This is how Jesus operated. I want to remind us that Jesus had the same limitations that I had.

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The only difference was he could have lived on forever.

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There might have been some talents that I had that he didn't have.

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He was not super gifted. He wasn't the best carpenter in town.

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We just assume that he was this perfect chiseled, atom-like, perfect man who came down to the earth.

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They say that if you looked at him you wouldn't give him a second look. I get second looks.

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The point is... You're laughing too loud. I'll have to talk to your husband about this.

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So the point is that we just assume he was the best carpenter, that his tables and chairs would never break and stuff like that.

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He was diligent. He would have done everything he could, but we must understand that he had limitations just like you and I.

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So how did a man with such limitations, because he had to be 100% man, walk in the fullness of God?

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Because he learned how to step into the fullness of God by the power of the Holy Spirit.

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This is the beautiful thing about Jesus. That's what makes him a high priest.

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Otherwise he's not a high priest. He's a heaven sent God-man who cannot intervene on our behalf.

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Any questions on that?

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So what does it take to walk in knee-deep water?

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That's what we'll talk about today. What does it take to walk in knee-deep water?

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Guys, if you want to walk in knee-deep water, you have to take on a certain characteristic of Christ.

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And it's open to everybody. Everyone can become like this.

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Because if we are the body and we're connected to the head, then we do have what is in the head flow into the body.

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Or in other words, we have to walk in knee-deep water.

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If you are connected to Christ, then his nature becomes your nature by the Spirit of God.

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So one of the things that we need to become if you want to walk in knee-deep water is you have to become a forerunner.

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A forerunner. You have to become a forerunner.

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You have to become a forerunner. Or you have to become a forerunner.

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Or you have to become a forerunner.

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You have to become a forerunner.

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Or forerunners are basically, I mean if you watched ships being towed into port,

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you'll have this small tugboat that's latched onto this huge ocean liner.

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And you can hear every bit of the engine straining as it pulls this massive thing into port.

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A forerunner is the advance guard. They go before.

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And you can hear the engine straining, but they somehow are able to bring this humongous thing behind it into the port.

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To walk in knee-deep water, you have to be a forerunner. Your entrance must open the way for others to follow.

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Your entrance, your entrance must open the way for others to follow.

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This is a predominant characteristic of Jesus Christ.

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And if it is a predominant characteristic of Christ, the bridegroom, it must become a predominant characteristic of the bride.

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We must, if you're a believer, we must if you're part of any church, become like this.

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Because it's critical to knee-deep walking.

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Leave alone what happens when we go waist-deep and then enter water that we'll have to swim in

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because we can't even see the bottom of the river that we're walking in.

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This is just basic stuff, man.

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This is just basic stuff, man.

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Uncle Deep, we said, was about first love, about the ability to dismantle self, and about finding your treasure.

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Knee-deep is about taking on this characteristic of God where you are a forerunner.

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Because why is the Holy Spirit poured on you so that you may pour yourself out?

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How can you pour yourself out?

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By being someone who has the ability to enter into situations and in the process open the way for others to follow.

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Hebrews 6, 19 and 20.

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Hebrews chapter 6, verse 19 and 20.

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The NIR, we put it this way.

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It says, our hope is certain.

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It goes all the way into the most holy room behind the curtain.

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That is where Jesus has gone.

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He went there to open the way ahead of us.

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Hear it again.

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Our hope is certain.

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It goes all the way into the most holy room behind the curtain.

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This is where Jesus has gone.

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He went there to open the way ahead of us.

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Hebrews 6, 19 and 20.

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Jesus is called a forerunner.

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There are people in the Bible who lived like this, eh?

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And the rewards were great.

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And so we need to nurture this mentality of a forerunner.

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Nurture the mentality.

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What mentality is this?

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The forerunner mentality.

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This church, given the promises that have been spoken over it, must have this mentality.

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See, the great thing about a spear is that the spearhead is relatively small compared to the shaft.

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But it's the spearhead that goes ahead.

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The shaft gives it balance, but it's the spearhead that penetrates.

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So one can't do without the other.

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But there must be the ability to be a forerunner so that you can break open that which is not broken open.

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Not so that you can say, I'm a breakthrough person.

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No, no, no, no.

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Once you break it open, you stand aside so that the rest can come in.

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This is what Jesus did.

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Comes down, becomes man, breaks open the way out of sin and bondage, ransoms us, breaks the system that ruled the world and opens the world.

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Opens heaven for the entire world.

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Opens heaven for the entire world.

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And it's his desire to do this again and again and again through his people now.

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We must nurture this mentality, guys.

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I pray, God, that even as I speak today that something will begin to happen inside you where you realize that this is part of who Christ is and therefore must be part of who you are.

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It prevents us from taking a backseat, eh?

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I mean, think of...

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What's his name?

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Isaiah.

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Isaiah chapter 6, verse 8.

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I mean, I know I've said this before, but God is musing in heaven and he decides that his musings will be audible.

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He's not speaking to anyone particular.

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He's just throwing it out there.

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And he says, who shall I send who will go for us?

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It ain't directed at Isaiah.

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It just so happens that Isaiah hears and he rises up and he says,

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I will go, God sent me.

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This is the forerunner mentality that volunteers for assignments that you don't know the full picture of.

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You first volunteer and then find out what this is about.

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And then by that time it's too late.

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Because God is safe, eh?

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God is safe.

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Whenever he wants to...

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I mean, guys, I'm telling you something.

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There are so many opportunities in life that are not supposed to be yours, but can be yours if you so choose.

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It's like Mission Impossible.

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Should you choose this mission, go ahead.

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But this message will self-destruct in 10 seconds.

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Dan, da, dan, dan, dan, dan, dan, dan, dan, dan.

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The point is this, that...

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Listen, listen, listen.

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God gives assignments that aren't necessarily meant for you, but are thrown out there saying,

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Here's something. Do you want to take it up?

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Look at...

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Isaiah was one of the guys who did that.

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The next guy is Jonathan.

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In 1 Samuel 14, in 1 Samuel 14, here's what's happening.

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Saul and about 600 men are sitting under a pomegranate tree.

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They're sitting there even though the Philistines are gathering in the valley below.

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Jonathan and his armor bearer decide that, hey, let's venture out.

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So they begin to go out.

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They go between two cliffs, one called Bozes, the other called Sene, and they march their way up.

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And they look at the enemy.

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And this is what Jonathan says.

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God can deliver with a few or with plenty.

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Let's go up and enter the valley.

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And they go up and enter the valley.

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God can deliver with a few or with plenty.

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Let's go up and engage the enemy.

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If they say, come here, we'll go.

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If they say, don't come, we'll stay here.

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And Jonathan and his armor bearer go out.

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You know what happens?

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They rout the enemy.

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That's in verse 6.

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In verse 22 or thereabouts, Saul suddenly hears that the enemy is fleeing.

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So now what does Saul and the rest of the army do?

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They all gather up, muster their strength, shout.

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And there's a rout of the Philistines from one end to the other.

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But who started the process?

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Jonathan and his armor bearer.

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At the end of the day, all this is for one purpose so that others benefit.

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You pull yourself out so that others can make an entry.

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It's like this machete-wielding guy who cuts through bush.

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Because if he cuts through this bush, the rest of the people can access what needs to be accessed.

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This is the nature of God.

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This is your nature just because he lives in you.

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You don't have to be apostolic for this.

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You just have to be a believer.

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You don't have to be a pioneer and go on a mission trip.

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You just have to be a believer.

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Another guy who did this was Joab, J-O-A-B.

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He was a general in David's army.

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How did he become a general?

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Strange story.

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If he wrote his history, and you'll see it in 2 Samuel 5, 8 and 1 Chronicles 11, 6,

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here's what happens.

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David wants to take Zion.

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Zion is a stronghold of the Jebusites.

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It used to be on a hill.

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It used to be a powerful fortress.

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Nobody could get there.

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So much so that people in that fortress would say,

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even a lame and blind can dispel any attack.

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David hears this and he makes a statement.

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He says, there is a water shaft that goes right up into the fortress.

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Anybody who takes the city by going up through the water shaft,

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here's what I'll do.

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I'll make him the general of my army.

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This is like one of those movies where they say,

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I'm going it alone.

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You guys don't have to come with me.

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But if you want to, and they'll say, I'm on.

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That kind of thing.

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All those movies are built on this simple story.

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And so Joab decides that he's going to do it.

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So he volunteers to go up the water shaft and take the city.

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And guess what happens?

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An ordinary soldier called Joab becomes the next general of Israel's army.

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And he remained that till he was killed much later.

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This is how this man became a general.

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Take another story.

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David, he's come to supply people with cheese and wine and stuff like that

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because he's got a whole lot of brothers who are whining in the foxhole.

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And so David's going around and he wants to fight.

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He walks around in 1 Samuel 17 saying, allow me to fight.

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Allow me to fight.

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Saul puts armor on him.

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He says no to the armor.

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And finally he goes against the Philistine Goliath.

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And what happens next?

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As soon as he takes a sword and cuts off Goliath's head,

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out come the same soldiers who till now were hidden in their foxholes for 40 days.

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Every time Goliath comes out, one man stands up, cuts off Goliath's head.

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And now the entire Israelite army comes storming out

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because we are going to take the Philistines.

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This is what forerunners do.

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Hey, who doesn't want to be someone like this?

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You'll have to be dead if you can't respond to this.

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And obviously you are not dead.

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Yeah, you're not.

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Did I tell you about that church where someone died during the service?

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Someone died during the service in the church and they called 911

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and the medics came and it took them 20 minutes to find the person.

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So, moving on.

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At some point if it clicks, it clicks. Otherwise we move on.

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So, forerunners, I thought it was funny.

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Yeah, so forerunners are those that advance God.

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If you want to walk in knee-deep water, you must nurture the mentality

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of these men I've talked about and of Jesus.

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Any questions before we go on?

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Yeah, because it's the nature of God.

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In the process you may be appointed to different things.

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But we are all called to be ones that open the way for others.

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No one's an exception.

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The opposite of forerunners is what Jesus blamed the Pharisees for and the scribes for.

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He said, you do not enter and you take away the keys so that others cannot enter.

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That's the opposite of forerunning.

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Where we stand before the door, we have the key in our hands,

00:17:49.000 --> 00:18:01.000
we do not open it for others to enter, and we take away their ability to enter.

00:18:01.000 --> 00:18:09.000
We all have the ability to help people enter by cultivating this mentality of being a forerunner.

00:18:09.000 --> 00:18:12.000
It's God's nature.

00:18:12.000 --> 00:18:16.000
And then in the process he may send some off into a missionary land

00:18:16.000 --> 00:18:21.000
or he may send someone to start a business in a really hard place to start a business.

00:18:21.000 --> 00:18:25.000
Or he may send someone to do something that really breaks a system apart.

00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:30.000
Those are roles that God then gives, and those roles are based on one or two things.

00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:35.000
One, the calling upon your life and the gifting he has given you for it, and two, your faithfulness.

00:18:36.000 --> 00:18:40.000
Breakthrough doesn't happen except because you have proven yourself faithful.

00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:44.000
There is no way of taking Goliath if you haven't taken the lion and the bear.

00:18:49.000 --> 00:18:56.000
There's no way you give up Isaac without giving up country clan, Ishmael Hagar, Lot, and finally Isaac.

00:18:56.000 --> 00:18:59.000
In the process, here's the other really cool thing that happens.

00:18:59.000 --> 00:19:09.000
Forerunners create room for Timothes and Tituses.

00:19:09.000 --> 00:19:12.000
Timothes and Tituses.

00:19:12.000 --> 00:19:15.000
Forerunners create room for Timothes and Tituses.

00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.000
As in their intent is not that they be known as forerunners,

00:19:19.000 --> 00:19:22.000
but that they are known as forerunners.

00:19:22.000 --> 00:19:26.000
As in their intent is not that they be known as forerunners,

00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:33.000
I mean Christ was buried in a tomb that was perhaps worthy, but he was hung as a thief.

00:19:33.000 --> 00:19:37.000
Little did they know that this thief, hanging between two thieves,

00:19:37.000 --> 00:19:43.000
would be the one that would open the kingdom of God for all mankind.

00:19:47.000 --> 00:19:51.000
Our intent is can we create room for the next generation of Timothes and Tituses.

00:19:51.000 --> 00:19:55.000
My desire for these young adults is my God, can I create room,

00:19:55.000 --> 00:20:03.000
not by abdicating my responsibility, but by allowing them to stand on my shoulders.

00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:06.000
This is how the father works. What does the father do?

00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:12.000
The father says I'm going to step back and let my son stand in the forefront.

00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:14.000
It's very natural for God to do this.

00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:20.000
It's very natural for anything that God does to be done here on earth by his children.

00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:23.000
So forerunners create room for Timothy and Titus,

00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:27.000
not by abdicating responsibility, not by retiring like Elijah.

00:20:27.000 --> 00:20:32.000
Elijah retired. He was a nice man, but he retired.

00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:39.000
But letting them stand on your shoulder while you step into the background.

00:20:39.000 --> 00:20:41.000
You've got to do this guys, you've got to do this.

00:20:41.000 --> 00:20:44.000
We don't have a choice in these matters, this is the nature of God.

00:20:44.000 --> 00:20:48.000
Do you have a choice? No.

00:20:49.000 --> 00:20:52.000
You don't have a choice.

00:20:55.000 --> 00:20:59.000
Okay, we might not get there tonight, we can get there the day after tomorrow.

00:21:05.000 --> 00:21:07.000
Any questions?

00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:16.000
Okay, to walk in knee-deep water, if you read Hebrews chapter 6, 19,

00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:20.000
it says you have to enter behind the curtain.

00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:27.000
Hebrews chapter 6, verse 19, Jesus entered behind the veil, behind the curtain

00:21:27.000 --> 00:21:30.000
to become the forerunner type, to be able to walk in knee-deep water.

00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:32.000
We talked about this when we talked about ankle-deep.

00:21:32.000 --> 00:21:39.000
You have to enter behind the veil, as in you have to enter and begin to dwell in presence.

00:21:39.000 --> 00:21:42.000
Dwell in presence. We talked about it last time.

00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:45.000
We said some of the ways to dwell in presence is to recover first love.

00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:52.000
First love requires time to dismantle self and to figure out where your treasure is.

00:21:52.000 --> 00:21:54.000
And how do you know where your treasure is?

00:21:54.000 --> 00:21:58.000
Treasure is measured by the pleasure that you have in things.

00:21:58.000 --> 00:22:03.000
Pleasure is the experience of joy that you have over treasure

00:22:03.000 --> 00:22:07.000
and that kind of treasure you will sell anything for.

00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:12.000
This is a question we must confront perhaps on a monthly or a weekly basis.

00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:14.000
Jacob, what is your treasure?

00:22:14.000 --> 00:22:19.000
And Jacob, your treasure will be betrayed by the pleasure you take in it.

00:22:19.000 --> 00:22:23.000
And Jacob, how much are you willing to sell for this treasure?

00:22:23.000 --> 00:22:26.000
And that's a question I want to ask you right now.

00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:32.000
What are you willing to sell for the treasure that you take great pleasure in?

00:22:32.000 --> 00:22:33.000
Who is it?

00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:34.000
What is it?

00:22:34.000 --> 00:22:36.000
And then we talked about the pleasure of God.

00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:38.000
We said what is the pleasure of God?

00:22:38.000 --> 00:22:41.000
And the pleasure of God is very simple.

00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:46.000
If he calls himself the bridegroom, then his pleasure is in his bride.

00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:50.000
And therefore if I lose the centrality of the church in my life,

00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:53.000
then I lose out on the centerpiece of God's heart.

00:22:57.000 --> 00:22:58.000
Just think of that.

00:22:58.000 --> 00:23:00.000
Just think of spending your entire life on earth,

00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:02.000
not having the same pleasure that your father has.

00:23:05.000 --> 00:23:07.000
That will be a stunning awakening.

00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:10.000
I thought it was prosperity, oh God.

00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:12.000
No, son, it was the centrality of the church.

00:23:19.000 --> 00:23:22.000
And then we talked about the pleasure of God.

00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:27.000
To walk in knee-deep water, I must enter behind the curtain and live in presence.

00:23:27.000 --> 00:23:31.000
I want to read something written by Watchman Nee.

00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:34.000
Here's what he said.

00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:36.000
I'll read it twice if necessary.

00:23:36.000 --> 00:23:39.000
How hard we often find.

00:23:39.000 --> 00:23:44.000
How hard we often find it to drag ourselves into his presence.

00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:48.000
We shrink into the presence of God.

00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:51.000
We drag ourselves into his presence.

00:23:51.000 --> 00:23:54.000
We shrink from the solitude.

00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:57.000
And even when we do detach ourselves physically,

00:23:57.000 --> 00:24:00.000
our thoughts still keep wandering outside.

00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:03.000
Many of us can enjoy working among people,

00:24:03.000 --> 00:24:08.000
but how many of us can draw near to God in the holier folies?

00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:13.000
Yet it is only when we draw near to him that we can minister to him.

00:24:13.000 --> 00:24:16.000
Unless we really know what it is to draw near to God,

00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:18.000
we cannot know what it is to serve him.

00:24:18.000 --> 00:24:22.000
Unless we really know what it is to draw near to God,

00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:24.000
we cannot know what it is to serve him.

00:24:24.000 --> 00:24:28.000
It is impossible to stand afar off and still minister to him.

00:24:28.000 --> 00:24:31.000
We cannot serve him from a distance.

00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:32.000
Ezekiel 44, 16.

00:24:32.000 --> 00:24:34.000
They shall enter my sanctuary,

00:24:34.000 --> 00:24:37.000
and they shall come to my table to minister unto me,

00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:38.000
and they shall keep my charge.

00:24:38.000 --> 00:24:43.000
Ministry that is unto me is in the inner sanctuary,

00:24:43.000 --> 00:24:44.000
in the hidden place,

00:24:44.000 --> 00:24:47.000
not in the outer court exposed to public view.

00:24:47.000 --> 00:24:49.000
People may think we are doing nothing,

00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:55.000
but service to God within the holy place far transcends service to people in the outer court.

00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:57.000
Brilliant, eh?

00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:06.000
Ministry unto God is not in the public courts amongst people.

00:25:06.000 --> 00:25:10.000
Ministry unto God is in the inner sanctuary.

00:25:10.000 --> 00:25:12.000
If I get that right, you will benefit.

00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:15.000
If I don't get that right, all you'll get is a teaching.

00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:20.000
Thirst for it, eh?

00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:21.000
Create time for it.

00:25:21.000 --> 00:25:24.000
Any intimate relationship requires time.

00:25:24.000 --> 00:25:26.000
Nothing replaces it.

00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:31.000
No amount of gifts, no service, nothing replaces time.

00:25:33.000 --> 00:25:37.000
And clumsy time, clumsy time,

00:25:37.000 --> 00:25:43.000
as in stumbling, wandering, coming back, falling, spilling tea over the person,

00:25:43.000 --> 00:25:47.000
roses with bees in it, all kinds of things.

00:25:47.000 --> 00:25:51.000
Clumsy time, as in you offer the person a rose and there was a bee in it and you didn't know.

00:25:51.000 --> 00:25:57.000
Meaning you'll make mistakes, but it's still time spent with someone.

00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:00.000
This is important.

00:26:00.000 --> 00:26:02.000
Try this with your spouse, eh, for two weeks.

00:26:02.000 --> 00:26:04.000
Don't spend time with her.

00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:09.000
Bring her gifts and see how it works after two weeks.

00:26:09.000 --> 00:26:13.000
She'll get tired regardless of how much you've spent on her,

00:26:13.000 --> 00:26:15.000
because what she requires is time.

00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:19.000
To walk in knee-deep water, forerunners have to be prophetic.

00:26:19.000 --> 00:26:27.000
To walk in knee-deep water, forerunners have to be prophetic.

00:26:27.000 --> 00:26:29.000
And what do I mean by prophetic?

00:26:29.000 --> 00:26:35.000
It means to be a person who is not so much a person as a person,

00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:39.000
but a person who is not so much a person as a person.

00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:44.000
Forerunners have to be prophetic.

00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:46.000
And what do I mean by prophetic?

00:26:46.000 --> 00:26:47.000
I don't mean prophesying.

00:26:47.000 --> 00:26:53.000
By prophetic, I mean they have to have the ability to take the present

00:26:53.000 --> 00:26:58.000
and connect it to the future

00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:04.000
by looking at the blueprints,

00:27:04.000 --> 00:27:09.000
by looking at the blueprints of the past.

00:27:09.000 --> 00:27:15.000
This is what real prophetic can be like.

00:27:15.000 --> 00:27:17.000
Not real prophetic.

00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:19.000
This is what, this is what,

00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:26.000
this is what biblical prophecy actually looks like.

00:27:26.000 --> 00:27:29.000
If you take any of the prophets in the Old Testament or the New Testament,

00:27:29.000 --> 00:27:33.000
you will find that it was not so much about prophesying.

00:27:33.000 --> 00:27:37.000
It was not known for personal prophecy or prophesying.

00:27:37.000 --> 00:27:41.000
It was about taking the present,

00:27:41.000 --> 00:27:45.000
connecting it to the future of God by looking at blueprints in the past.

00:27:45.000 --> 00:27:48.000
This is what Peter does in Acts chapter 2.

00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:50.000
He stands up and he says,

00:27:50.000 --> 00:27:52.000
this is that.

00:27:52.000 --> 00:27:53.000
And what does he mean by that?

00:27:53.000 --> 00:27:56.000
He's saying, you've just heard these guys speak in tongues.

00:27:56.000 --> 00:27:57.000
This is the present.

00:27:57.000 --> 00:27:59.000
But now let me tell you what it is about.

00:27:59.000 --> 00:28:02.000
It is about the future kingdom that has now come.

00:28:02.000 --> 00:28:03.000
How do we know that?

00:28:03.000 --> 00:28:05.000
Let me show you the book of Joel

00:28:05.000 --> 00:28:09.000
and take you to Joel chapter 2 and show you that this was prophesied then.

00:28:09.000 --> 00:28:11.000
This is that.

00:28:11.000 --> 00:28:15.000
Take Paul, Acts chapter 10.

00:28:15.000 --> 00:28:16.000
Not Acts chapter 10.

00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:19.000
Take Paul, Ephesians chapter 3, verse 3 to 6.

00:28:19.000 --> 00:28:20.000
And he says,

00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:23.000
this is a mystery that has been hidden since the beginning of time

00:28:23.000 --> 00:28:27.000
and has now been revealed through his holy apostles and prophets.

00:28:27.000 --> 00:28:28.000
And what is the mystery?

00:28:28.000 --> 00:28:32.000
That Christ now has decided to reveal himself

00:28:32.000 --> 00:28:35.000
not to the Jews only, but to the Gentiles,

00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:38.000
and to make one man out of the Jew and the Gentile,

00:28:38.000 --> 00:28:41.000
and that Christ in us, the hope of glory,

00:28:41.000 --> 00:28:44.000
is the mystery that has been hidden for the ages.

00:28:44.000 --> 00:28:45.000
What does he do?

00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:49.000
He goes, takes the present amongst the Ephesus,

00:28:49.000 --> 00:28:51.000
connects it to the future,

00:28:51.000 --> 00:28:53.000
that God is redeeming every nation,

00:28:53.000 --> 00:28:55.000
and then takes them back to the past

00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:58.000
and shows them that this has always been the plan of God.

00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:10.000
I'll take the Old Testament story of Elisha.

00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:11.000
He goes to Jericho.

00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:14.000
He's just lost his master,

00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:17.000
who was taken up in a chariot.

00:29:17.000 --> 00:29:18.000
And so Elisha's standing there,

00:29:18.000 --> 00:29:19.000
and the people come and say,

00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:21.000
hey, Elisha, just so you know, while you're in Jericho,

00:29:21.000 --> 00:29:24.000
it's a really pleasant city, but the water is toxic.

00:29:24.000 --> 00:29:27.000
It causes barrenness.

00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:29.000
And Elisha takes the present and says,

00:29:29.000 --> 00:29:31.000
bring me a bowl with salt in it.

00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:35.000
And he's going to make the future completely okay

00:29:35.000 --> 00:29:37.000
by going into the past and breaking a curse

00:29:37.000 --> 00:29:39.000
that was laid upon Jericho

00:29:39.000 --> 00:29:41.000
when Heal, the king of Jericho,

00:29:41.000 --> 00:29:44.000
built the city at the cost of his firstborn

00:29:44.000 --> 00:29:45.000
by sacrificing him.

00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:47.000
He breaks the curse upon a city from the past

00:29:47.000 --> 00:29:49.000
and takes it into the future of God,

00:29:49.000 --> 00:29:50.000
where he says, from now on,

00:29:50.000 --> 00:29:52.000
there shall be no barrenness in this land

00:29:52.000 --> 00:29:53.000
because the waters are healed.

00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:54.000
What are we talking about here

00:29:54.000 --> 00:29:56.000
when we talk about forerunners?

00:29:56.000 --> 00:29:58.000
They have the ability to be prophetic

00:29:58.000 --> 00:29:59.000
by taking the present,

00:29:59.000 --> 00:30:02.000
connecting it to what God says,

00:30:02.000 --> 00:30:04.000
and then taking you back to the past

00:30:04.000 --> 00:30:07.000
and showing you, hey, but this was already revealed.

00:30:07.000 --> 00:30:10.000
This is basically the shutting and the opening

00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:14.000
of ancient doors mentioned in Psalm 24, verse 7.

00:30:14.000 --> 00:30:16.000
There are ancient doors that the forerunners

00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:18.000
are able to shut, as Elisha did,

00:30:18.000 --> 00:30:21.000
or open, as Peter did.

00:30:21.000 --> 00:30:23.000
And once an ancient door is open,

00:30:23.000 --> 00:30:26.000
things of God that have been waiting patiently

00:30:26.000 --> 00:30:29.000
to be unleashed upon the earth are unleashed by who?

00:30:29.000 --> 00:30:31.000
By ordinary people like you and I.

00:30:31.000 --> 00:30:36.000
By a Betty, by a Rosalind, by a Subin, by a Corey.

00:30:36.000 --> 00:30:39.000
Nobody's, except perhaps Betty.

00:30:42.000 --> 00:30:45.000
I mean, you're famous, you sang up front here just now.

00:30:45.000 --> 00:30:47.000
You see how this works, guys?

00:30:47.000 --> 00:30:51.000
Man, I never sell myself short when it comes to these areas,

00:30:51.000 --> 00:30:54.000
because I know a very, very big God.

00:30:54.000 --> 00:30:57.000
I never sell myself short in this.

00:30:57.000 --> 00:31:00.000
I think to myself, if I go into a place,

00:31:00.000 --> 00:31:04.000
there is every possibility that this place might be affected

00:31:04.000 --> 00:31:06.000
by a simple guy called Jacob.

00:31:08.000 --> 00:31:09.000
When Eric comes here next time,

00:31:09.000 --> 00:31:12.000
he's going to be like, hey, I'm going to be a good guy.

00:31:13.000 --> 00:31:15.000
When Eric comes here next time,

00:31:15.000 --> 00:31:18.000
ask him what happened in Vernon the day before yesterday.

00:31:18.000 --> 00:31:20.000
I've been to that city many times,

00:31:20.000 --> 00:31:21.000
and suddenly I feel God saying,

00:31:21.000 --> 00:31:23.000
you need to go to the center of the city,

00:31:23.000 --> 00:31:26.000
and you will find how the city started and what you need to do.

00:31:26.000 --> 00:31:32.000
I expect God to show up in ways that are remarkable

00:31:32.000 --> 00:31:34.000
through a simple, ordinary person like me,

00:31:34.000 --> 00:31:38.000
so that the entire destiny of a city or a nation can be changed.

00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:40.000
Will I see it? Perhaps. Will I not see it? Big deal.

00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:42.000
What if Eric's kids benefit?

00:31:42.000 --> 00:31:46.000
Because the intent is, can I open a door so that the rest can enter?

00:31:46.000 --> 00:31:49.000
Can I shut a door so that the rest can never be affected?

00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:58.000
Don't sell yourself short, man.

00:32:00.000 --> 00:32:02.000
Your God is pretty awesome.

00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:12.000
Any questions?

00:32:14.000 --> 00:32:15.000
Yep.

00:32:19.000 --> 00:32:20.000
Yeah.

00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:25.000
Yeah.

00:32:25.000 --> 00:32:28.000
We don't have these in church.

00:32:33.000 --> 00:32:36.000
We either have prophets or we don't have prophets.

00:32:36.000 --> 00:32:38.000
We either have prophets or we have theologians.

00:32:38.000 --> 00:32:40.000
We don't have prophet theologians.

00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:42.000
People who have a good knowledge of the word,

00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:44.000
but they can go into the past and see,

00:32:44.000 --> 00:32:47.000
aha, so this is what God has already revealed.

00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:49.000
And people who have the ability to look into the future and say,

00:32:49.000 --> 00:32:51.000
aha, this is where God is taking us.

00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:54.000
And then stand in the middle and do what John the Baptist did.

00:32:54.000 --> 00:32:56.000
400 years of silence since Malachi.

00:32:56.000 --> 00:32:58.000
Catch his hold of that.

00:32:58.000 --> 00:33:01.000
And now begins to talk about this Jesus who has come and connects it.

00:33:01.000 --> 00:33:05.000
And suddenly the silence between men and women is so powerful.

00:33:05.000 --> 00:33:11.000
And the silence between Malachi 4 and Matthew 1 is undone.

00:33:11.000 --> 00:33:14.000
No longer is the land under a curse

00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:17.000
because Elijah has come in the type of John

00:33:17.000 --> 00:33:19.000
and he begins to say, behold the Lamb of God

00:33:19.000 --> 00:33:21.000
where for 400 years there was silence.

00:33:21.000 --> 00:33:22.000
What is this?

00:33:22.000 --> 00:33:24.000
This is an ability to see the prophetic

00:33:24.000 --> 00:33:27.000
and to take theology and bring them together.

00:33:27.000 --> 00:33:29.000
And we have that, we don't have that in churches.

00:33:29.000 --> 00:33:32.000
We either have prophets who are always looking into the future

00:33:32.000 --> 00:33:34.000
or we have theologians who are always looking into the past.

00:33:34.000 --> 00:33:36.000
And therefore we are stuck in the middle.

00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:38.000
And the presence sucks.

00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:40.000
What if you put both together?

00:33:55.000 --> 00:33:57.000
You can all hear him, right?

00:33:57.000 --> 00:33:59.000
I'm trying hard to.

00:33:59.000 --> 00:34:02.000
Okay, so here's what Sheldon is saying.

00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:04.000
Sheldon is saying, so it's not...

00:34:04.000 --> 00:34:06.000
Go ahead Sheldon.

00:34:22.000 --> 00:34:26.000
Yeah, and I'm saying that is really what prophetic is about.

00:34:26.000 --> 00:34:29.000
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:34:29.000 --> 00:34:30.000
Because this is what Isaiah did.

00:34:30.000 --> 00:34:31.000
This is what Jeremiah did.

00:34:31.000 --> 00:34:33.000
This is what they would look into what Moses had written

00:34:33.000 --> 00:34:35.000
and then they would begin to talk about the future.

00:34:35.000 --> 00:34:37.000
They would say, God showed us this way.

00:34:37.000 --> 00:34:40.000
It's now can't you be this way because God want to take you here.

00:34:40.000 --> 00:34:41.000
Hosea, all these guys.

00:34:41.000 --> 00:34:45.000
Hosea talks about the Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria

00:34:45.000 --> 00:34:46.000
to the ends of the earth.

00:34:46.000 --> 00:34:47.000
No, not Hosea.

00:34:47.000 --> 00:34:49.000
Amos, Amos talks about it.

00:34:49.000 --> 00:34:51.000
In chapter 9 verse 12 he says,

00:34:51.000 --> 00:34:53.000
and we shall take the ends of Edom.

00:34:56.000 --> 00:34:58.000
How does that even work?

00:34:58.000 --> 00:35:00.000
How does Amos know anything about it?

00:35:01.000 --> 00:35:04.580
To walk in knee deep water,

00:35:04.800 --> 00:35:06.000
you must be cloaked with zeal.

00:35:06.000 --> 00:35:09.000
To walk in knee deep walker

00:35:09.000 --> 00:35:10.000
you must be cloaked with zeal.

00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:12.000
To walk in knee deep walker

00:35:12.000 --> 00:35:15.000
you must be cloaked with zeal.

00:35:15.000 --> 00:35:18.000
It's getting warm here, man.

00:35:18.000 --> 00:35:24.000
To walk in knee deep water

00:35:24.000 --> 00:35:26.000
you must be creect with zeal.

00:35:26.100 --> 00:35:27.000
Psalm 69 9.

00:35:27.000 --> 00:35:32.520
Ha! Man, one of the things that consumes God has been repeated so many times.

00:35:32.520 --> 00:35:34.800
You see it in the New Testament, you see it in the Old Testament.

00:35:34.800 --> 00:35:36.520
Psalm 69 says this,

00:35:36.520 --> 00:35:40.460
Oh God, zeal for your house has eaten me up.

00:35:40.460 --> 00:35:43.060
Zeal for your house has eaten me up.

00:35:43.060 --> 00:35:45.060
Man, you've got to desire this.

00:35:45.060 --> 00:35:49.760
Hey, I'll tell you one of the biggest advantages that I have as a pastor

00:35:49.760 --> 00:35:52.560
and that you have in me being your pastor

00:35:53.520 --> 00:35:57.520
is that zeal for the house of God consumes me, man.

00:35:57.520 --> 00:35:59.520
You are so blessed that it does.

00:36:02.920 --> 00:36:05.720
You are blessed because it consumes me.

00:36:05.720 --> 00:36:09.320
Oh, how blessed will I be and the rest of the world be

00:36:09.320 --> 00:36:12.520
if all of us got into the same river.

00:36:12.520 --> 00:36:16.120
Zeal for your house of God consumes me.

00:36:16.120 --> 00:36:18.120
What happened to Jesus, eh?

00:36:18.120 --> 00:36:23.080
That was a statement that Mark, Matthew, Luke and John wrote

00:36:23.080 --> 00:36:27.080
when he cleansed the temple, zeal for God had consumed him.

00:36:30.520 --> 00:36:37.480
The body, the people of God, the bride, the city, New Jerusalem, Zion, choose any name you want.

00:36:38.380 --> 00:36:42.380
If you want to walk in knee-deep water, learn how to be stirred up by the Spirit.

00:36:42.380 --> 00:36:44.380
Learn how to be stirred up by the Spirit.

00:36:44.380 --> 00:36:46.380
This is so important for some of us here.

00:36:46.380 --> 00:36:48.380
So important for some of us here.

00:36:48.380 --> 00:36:52.380
Why? Because sometimes life is taking over.

00:36:52.380 --> 00:36:57.380
And when life takes over, it becomes very hard to stir ourselves up

00:36:57.380 --> 00:36:59.380
and we get very, very angry.

00:36:59.380 --> 00:37:01.380
And we are very, very angry.

00:37:01.380 --> 00:37:03.380
And we are very, very angry.

00:37:03.380 --> 00:37:05.380
And we are very, very angry.

00:37:05.680 --> 00:37:08.680
To stir ourselves up and we get blunt.

00:37:08.680 --> 00:37:12.180
And then we wonder why it takes so long to chop down a tree.

00:37:12.180 --> 00:37:14.180
When the axe is blunt, it takes longer.

00:37:14.180 --> 00:37:16.780
Some of it is not because you aren't trying.

00:37:16.780 --> 00:37:19.980
Some of it is because there's so much happening in your life

00:37:19.980 --> 00:37:21.980
that draws so much of your attention away.

00:37:21.980 --> 00:37:25.980
Sometimes it's just sheer physical exhaustion or pain.

00:37:25.980 --> 00:37:27.980
Sometimes it's responsibilities.

00:37:27.980 --> 00:37:31.980
And you wish you could be cloaked with the zeal of God.

00:37:31.980 --> 00:37:34.980
That you could wrap yourself up in zeal.

00:37:35.580 --> 00:37:38.580
And so learn how to stir yourself up in the Holy Spirit.

00:37:38.580 --> 00:37:41.580
And here are some beautiful ways that we can.

00:37:41.580 --> 00:37:49.580
One, find, I said this last week,

00:37:49.580 --> 00:37:56.580
to find God's priority, season, mountain He wants you to climb

00:37:56.580 --> 00:38:03.580
or walk on water assignment He has for you at this present time.

00:38:05.580 --> 00:38:09.580
He has for you.

00:38:09.580 --> 00:38:12.580
It can be something very mundane like taking care of your spouse.

00:38:12.580 --> 00:38:14.580
But find out.

00:38:14.580 --> 00:38:18.580
Don't just go with whatever life throws your way.

00:38:18.580 --> 00:38:21.580
Go with what God throws your way.

00:38:21.580 --> 00:38:24.580
And then life begins to behave.

00:38:27.580 --> 00:38:32.580
Find out, oh God, right now between August and December,

00:38:32.580 --> 00:38:34.180
what's your priority?

00:38:34.180 --> 00:38:36.180
What kind of a season am I in?

00:38:36.180 --> 00:38:38.180
What's the mountain that you want me to climb?

00:38:38.180 --> 00:38:43.180
What's the walk on water assignment that you are assigning to me?

00:38:45.180 --> 00:38:49.180
Purpose always provokes the Holy Spirit

00:38:49.180 --> 00:38:52.180
and stirs a man or a woman up.

00:38:52.180 --> 00:38:54.180
Always does.

00:38:54.180 --> 00:38:55.180
Ask.

00:38:55.180 --> 00:38:58.180
Now if you're saying, but I've asked and I've found none,

00:38:58.180 --> 00:39:00.180
then ask again.

00:39:00.180 --> 00:39:03.180
And then go sit with people who know how to ask and ask with them.

00:39:03.180 --> 00:39:06.180
And when they tell you, please embrace it.

00:39:06.180 --> 00:39:08.180
Don't go asking God to confirm it.

00:39:08.180 --> 00:39:11.180
And then when He confirms it, don't go ask for another confirmation

00:39:11.180 --> 00:39:13.180
and another rainbow in the sky.

00:39:13.180 --> 00:39:15.180
Because it will be 2021 by then.

00:39:18.180 --> 00:39:20.180
Second.

00:39:26.180 --> 00:39:28.180
Zeal is still there.

00:39:29.180 --> 00:39:31.180
Zeal is stillborn

00:39:34.180 --> 00:39:36.180
if it's not voiced.

00:39:41.180 --> 00:39:46.180
It says in Isaiah 42, 13, that God stirred himself up with zeal

00:39:46.180 --> 00:39:49.180
and he was marching forward as a soldier.

00:39:49.180 --> 00:39:53.180
And then it says, God began to shout and declare who He was.

00:39:53.180 --> 00:39:56.180
There is something to zeal.

00:39:56.180 --> 00:39:59.180
There's something that happens to zeal when it hits you

00:39:59.180 --> 00:40:01.180
and you do not voice it.

00:40:06.180 --> 00:40:11.180
As in, you stirred up in your spirit and like you know it in your stomach,

00:40:11.180 --> 00:40:15.180
but you don't want to say anything because you're either Canadian or British.

00:40:15.180 --> 00:40:17.180
That doesn't work.

00:40:17.180 --> 00:40:19.180
You have to speak it out.

00:40:23.180 --> 00:40:25.180
Isaiah 42, 13 talks about it.

00:40:26.180 --> 00:40:29.180
I find it very difficult when something is happening inside

00:40:29.180 --> 00:40:32.180
and you can't say it. You've got to say it, man.

00:40:32.180 --> 00:40:35.180
If you want to kill zeal, stay quiet.

00:40:35.180 --> 00:40:39.180
It's the easiest way to destroy zeal.

00:40:39.180 --> 00:40:42.180
Zeal requires expression.

00:40:44.180 --> 00:40:46.180
And sometimes all it'll be is a,

00:40:46.180 --> 00:40:48.180
WHAAAA!

00:40:48.180 --> 00:40:51.180
I know, that frightened everybody. I did that deliberately.

00:40:51.180 --> 00:40:55.180
Sometimes that's all. You don't even have words to put things in.

00:40:56.180 --> 00:40:59.180
Your kids must have woken up.

00:41:00.180 --> 00:41:03.180
They're not frightened, right?

00:41:03.180 --> 00:41:06.180
You can come back next week.

00:41:07.180 --> 00:41:08.180
Yeah.

00:41:08.180 --> 00:41:12.180
So, zeal requires expression, man.

00:41:12.180 --> 00:41:16.180
Sometimes it's just a shout, but it requires expression.

00:41:16.180 --> 00:41:19.180
Do not stifle it, you'll kill it.

00:41:19.180 --> 00:41:22.180
Do not stifle it, you'll kill it.

00:41:23.180 --> 00:41:25.180
Next.

00:41:25.180 --> 00:41:27.180
That's in Isaiah 42, 13.

00:41:27.180 --> 00:41:29.180
Next one.

00:41:29.180 --> 00:41:31.180
Zeal is fueled by knowledge.

00:41:31.180 --> 00:41:36.180
Zeal is fueled by knowledge.

00:41:37.180 --> 00:41:39.180
Proverbs 19, verse 2.

00:41:39.180 --> 00:41:42.180
That zeal without knowledge is like a misguided missile

00:41:42.180 --> 00:41:44.180
that might go sideways.

00:41:44.180 --> 00:41:47.180
It doesn't put it that way. That's my own paraphrased version.

00:41:47.180 --> 00:41:50.180
Zeal without knowledge is dangerous.

00:41:50.180 --> 00:41:52.180
Proverbs 19, verse 2.

00:41:52.180 --> 00:41:54.180
And in Romans 10, 2,

00:41:54.180 --> 00:41:57.180
Paul uses the very same scripture from Proverbs 19, 2.

00:41:57.180 --> 00:41:59.180
And he puts it this way.

00:41:59.180 --> 00:42:03.180
My fellow Jews have tremendous zeal,

00:42:03.180 --> 00:42:06.180
but their zeal is not based on knowledge.

00:42:06.180 --> 00:42:08.180
Romans chapter 10, verse 2.

00:42:08.180 --> 00:42:10.180
And so if you want to stir up zeal,

00:42:10.180 --> 00:42:12.180
if you want to be cloaked with zeal,

00:42:12.180 --> 00:42:16.180
if you want the stirring of the Holy Spirit to now become something for you,

00:42:16.180 --> 00:42:18.180
you have to add knowledge to it.

00:42:18.180 --> 00:42:20.180
And by knowledge I simply mean the knowledge of the Word

00:42:20.180 --> 00:42:22.180
and the knowledge of the nature of God.

00:42:24.180 --> 00:42:26.180
Now you begin to mix them together

00:42:26.180 --> 00:42:28.180
and it's like gunpowder, man.

00:42:28.180 --> 00:42:30.180
It's just waiting for ignition.

00:42:32.180 --> 00:42:33.180
When you receive a prophetic word,

00:42:33.180 --> 00:42:35.180
my God, you've got to take that and run to the Word

00:42:35.180 --> 00:42:38.180
and find out what the Word says about the prophetic word.

00:42:38.180 --> 00:42:42.180
Mix both together and now you're ready for an explosion.

00:42:42.180 --> 00:42:44.180
Let's throw another one in.

00:42:44.180 --> 00:42:46.180
Zeal is kept alive by serving.

00:42:46.180 --> 00:42:58.180
Zeal is kept alive by serving and praise.

00:42:58.180 --> 00:43:00.180
As in one, you have to serve.

00:43:00.180 --> 00:43:04.180
Having a whole lot of zeal inside you with nothing to do

00:43:04.180 --> 00:43:06.180
will cause you to explode.

00:43:06.180 --> 00:43:07.180
It's like a horse.

00:43:07.180 --> 00:43:09.180
It's like a horse.

00:43:09.180 --> 00:43:11.180
It's like a horse that really wants to run,

00:43:11.180 --> 00:43:13.180
but you've tied it to a millstone

00:43:13.180 --> 00:43:15.180
and it goes around and around threshing corn.

00:43:15.180 --> 00:43:17.180
When it's supposed to gallop, man,

00:43:17.180 --> 00:43:19.180
zeal must serve.

00:43:19.180 --> 00:43:21.180
Zeal must serve.

00:43:21.180 --> 00:43:23.180
Zeal must serve.

00:43:23.180 --> 00:43:25.180
Romans 12 verse 11.

00:43:25.180 --> 00:43:29.180
One of the easiest ways to stifle zeal

00:43:29.180 --> 00:43:34.180
is to turn up with a whole lot of Holy Spirit stirring and do nothing.

00:43:34.180 --> 00:43:36.180
This is what often happens in conferences.

00:43:36.180 --> 00:43:39.180
You go to a conference, you get stirred up mighty.

00:43:39.180 --> 00:43:42.180
You pull down things you didn't even know you were pulling down.

00:43:42.180 --> 00:43:44.180
And then you come back to the church

00:43:44.180 --> 00:43:46.180
and everything is back to sedation.

00:43:46.180 --> 00:43:53.180
And now you're on sedatives again and everything is dead.

00:43:53.180 --> 00:43:56.180
And now the zeal that you had stirred up

00:43:56.180 --> 00:43:59.180
becomes harder to stir up next time.

00:43:59.180 --> 00:44:02.180
So you need a better speaker at the next conference.

00:44:02.180 --> 00:44:04.180
It happens again and again and again, man.

00:44:09.180 --> 00:44:13.180
And zeal can be fueled with praise.

00:44:13.180 --> 00:44:15.180
Habakkuk 3, 18 and 19.

00:44:15.180 --> 00:44:17.180
In the message it says,

00:44:17.180 --> 00:44:19.180
even though the fig tree has not blossomed,

00:44:19.180 --> 00:44:21.180
even though there's nothing happening,

00:44:21.180 --> 00:44:23.180
I am expecting God's rule

00:44:23.180 --> 00:44:27.180
and I will engage in cartwheels of that.

00:44:27.180 --> 00:44:29.180
And I will engage in the same thing

00:44:29.180 --> 00:44:34.180
and I will engage in cartwheels of joy and rejoice in God

00:44:34.180 --> 00:44:36.180
who will give me the hind feet of a deer

00:44:36.180 --> 00:44:39.180
and I will scale the mountains for God.

00:44:39.180 --> 00:44:42.180
There is this thing where you persevere.

00:44:42.180 --> 00:44:44.180
Zeal only grows with perseverance.

00:44:44.180 --> 00:44:47.180
I don't know if you've seen steam locomotives.

00:44:47.180 --> 00:44:51.180
In India when I was growing up, all the locomotives were steam.

00:44:51.180 --> 00:44:54.180
I used to love it, man.

00:44:54.180 --> 00:44:56.180
It's so hot in India standing next to a steam locomotive

00:44:56.180 --> 00:44:58.180
doesn't make any difference.

00:44:58.180 --> 00:45:01.180
So you don't know whether it's the heat from the sun

00:45:01.180 --> 00:45:03.180
or the heat of the locomotive.

00:45:03.180 --> 00:45:06.180
And so there's this huge furnace that this guy takes coal into

00:45:06.180 --> 00:45:08.180
and keeps throwing.

00:45:08.180 --> 00:45:10.180
And he has to do that for an hour and a half or two hours

00:45:10.180 --> 00:45:12.180
before the train leaves the station

00:45:12.180 --> 00:45:14.180
because you've got to build it up.

00:45:14.180 --> 00:45:16.180
But he perseveres with it

00:45:16.180 --> 00:45:18.180
until finally he's ready to go.

00:45:18.180 --> 00:45:20.180
And then there's that whistle

00:45:20.180 --> 00:45:22.180
and then the train begins.

00:45:22.180 --> 00:45:27.180
Choo, choo, choo, choo, choo, choo, choo, choo, choo, train.

00:45:27.180 --> 00:45:29.180
The chuck. Sorry.

00:45:29.180 --> 00:45:31.180
That's an old ABBA song.

00:45:33.180 --> 00:45:35.180
Gosh.

00:45:35.180 --> 00:45:37.180
Some of this is being recorded.

00:45:39.180 --> 00:45:41.180
Any questions on this?

00:45:41.180 --> 00:45:43.180
I've got two more points and we're done.

00:45:43.180 --> 00:45:45.180
Any questions on this?

00:45:45.180 --> 00:45:49.180
You guys go listen to these messages, they're pretty good.

00:45:52.180 --> 00:45:54.180
Sometimes I get scared.

00:45:54.180 --> 00:45:56.180
Rosh shucks, this sounds so good.

00:45:56.180 --> 00:45:58.180
What will I do next week?

00:46:06.180 --> 00:46:09.180
Forerunners have the faith to carry the Ark of God

00:46:09.180 --> 00:46:11.180
into the Jordan in flood.

00:46:13.180 --> 00:46:16.180
Every time Israel marched out as an army,

00:46:16.180 --> 00:46:18.180
every time the cloud moved,

00:46:18.180 --> 00:46:20.180
every time the cloud moved,

00:46:20.180 --> 00:46:22.180
every time the cloud moved,

00:46:22.180 --> 00:46:25.180
what would happen after they had the Ark

00:46:25.180 --> 00:46:28.180
was the Ark of God would go in the front.

00:46:28.180 --> 00:46:30.180
When they arrived at the Jordan

00:46:30.180 --> 00:46:32.180
and they're now going to cross into the Promised Land,

00:46:32.180 --> 00:46:34.180
the Jordan was in flood.

00:46:34.180 --> 00:46:36.180
And so there were these priests

00:46:36.180 --> 00:46:38.180
that had to carry the Ark on their shoulders

00:46:38.180 --> 00:46:40.180
and step into the water.

00:46:40.180 --> 00:46:42.180
So the first principle that we need to understand as forerunners

00:46:42.180 --> 00:46:44.180
is that forerunners have the faith

00:46:44.180 --> 00:46:47.180
to carry the Ark of God into the Jordan in flood.

00:46:47.180 --> 00:46:49.180
Joshua chapter 3 verse 8.

00:46:49.180 --> 00:46:51.180
This is a flooded river.

00:46:51.180 --> 00:46:53.180
It overflows its bank.

00:46:53.180 --> 00:46:57.180
And you expect that if you were to take the step of a forerunner

00:46:57.180 --> 00:46:59.180
and stand at the Jordan,

00:46:59.180 --> 00:47:01.180
that something's going to happen. That requires faith.

00:47:03.180 --> 00:47:06.180
Faith is embracing the activity of God because He said so.

00:47:06.180 --> 00:47:09.180
Faith is embracing the activity of God because He said so.

00:47:09.180 --> 00:47:11.180
What a cool, easy statement it is.

00:47:11.180 --> 00:47:13.180
And then it makes it much easier.

00:47:13.180 --> 00:47:17.180
Faith is embracing the activity of God because He said so.

00:47:17.180 --> 00:47:19.180
There's an action that God wants to engage in.

00:47:19.180 --> 00:47:21.180
He wants you to be involved in it.

00:47:21.180 --> 00:47:23.180
So He says, hey, come along.

00:47:23.180 --> 00:47:25.180
And so they go into the Jordan and the water begins to pile

00:47:25.180 --> 00:47:27.180
at a place called...

00:47:30.180 --> 00:47:32.180
I forgot the name of the place.

00:47:32.180 --> 00:47:34.180
A place called Adam.

00:47:34.180 --> 00:47:36.180
80 miles away the water begins to pile up.

00:47:40.180 --> 00:47:42.180
So not only do they have to have the faith,

00:47:42.180 --> 00:47:44.180
they then have to have the obedience

00:47:44.180 --> 00:47:49.180
to carry the ark on their shoulders.

00:47:52.180 --> 00:47:55.180
Because if you carry it any other way,

00:47:55.180 --> 00:47:57.180
it doesn't bring God glory.

00:47:57.180 --> 00:47:59.180
There's this thing that goes with faith called obedience.

00:47:59.180 --> 00:48:01.180
And forerunners have to do it right.

00:48:03.180 --> 00:48:04.180
Forerunners have to do it right.

00:48:04.180 --> 00:48:06.180
They have to say, okay, I'll carry it on my shoulders.

00:48:06.180 --> 00:48:08.180
They have to say, okay, I'll carry it on my shoulders.

00:48:08.180 --> 00:48:09.180
I'll carry it on my shoulders.

00:48:09.180 --> 00:48:11.180
You know what happened to David when he didn't?

00:48:12.180 --> 00:48:16.180
Forerunners know how to accurately represent God's glory.

00:48:16.180 --> 00:48:19.180
Because they know that if they accurately represent God's glory,

00:48:19.180 --> 00:48:24.180
that God's government or God's rule will come into a place.

00:48:24.180 --> 00:48:27.180
You have to do it exactly as God tells you.

00:48:27.180 --> 00:48:29.180
You cannot amend God's ways.

00:48:29.180 --> 00:48:33.180
There is protocol with the Holy One of Israel.

00:48:33.180 --> 00:48:36.180
And some of this protocol, even though He is Father,

00:48:36.180 --> 00:48:38.180
cannot be amended.

00:48:38.180 --> 00:48:41.180
That is the cool thing about the apostolic.

00:48:41.180 --> 00:48:45.180
The apostolic does not amend what God has decreed.

00:48:45.180 --> 00:48:47.180
There is no other way to build it.

00:48:47.180 --> 00:48:49.180
If he says so, Moses had to stick with it.

00:48:49.180 --> 00:48:52.180
He goes up the mountain, he receives a blueprint

00:48:52.180 --> 00:48:55.180
of every thread that should go into the curtain

00:48:55.180 --> 00:48:57.180
that covers the Holy of Holies.

00:48:57.180 --> 00:48:59.180
And he has to do it.

00:48:59.180 --> 00:49:00.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:00.180 --> 00:49:01.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:01.180 --> 00:49:02.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:02.180 --> 00:49:03.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:03.180 --> 00:49:04.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:04.180 --> 00:49:05.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:05.180 --> 00:49:06.180
And he has to do it.

00:49:06.180 --> 00:49:09.180
So the Holy of Holies, and he has to do it

00:49:09.180 --> 00:49:12.180
to the nth degree because he cannot amend

00:49:12.180 --> 00:49:14.180
the vision that he received on the mountain.

00:49:14.180 --> 00:49:16.180
And then it says in Hebrews chapter 12,

00:49:16.180 --> 00:49:20.180
if you approached a mountain that was earthly

00:49:20.180 --> 00:49:22.180
and you heard a voice that shook,

00:49:22.180 --> 00:49:24.180
then imagine what it is right now

00:49:24.180 --> 00:49:26.180
to come to a God who speaks and who is alive.

00:49:26.180 --> 00:49:28.180
And how dare you amend what He says.

00:49:28.180 --> 00:49:30.180
Because there is a shaking that's coming

00:49:30.180 --> 00:49:32.180
that will remove all the junk.

00:49:32.180 --> 00:49:34.180
We cannot amend, guys.

00:49:34.180 --> 00:49:39.220
sell your heart for it, eh? That I will not amend.

00:49:39.220 --> 00:49:44.020
His ways are his ways and they shall be mine.

00:49:51.460 --> 00:49:56.820
This is just knee-deep water. Imagine what the next one will be like.

00:49:56.820 --> 00:50:11.380
When we begin to walk like this, guys, the greatness of God's rule and the greatness of his shalom or unlimited wholeness is released through you into situations.

00:50:11.380 --> 00:50:23.380
It's released through you into situations. And nations recover their desolate heritage. As it says in Isaiah 49, you can lead nations into their inheritance.

00:50:23.860 --> 00:50:28.340
Hey, if you look at the New Testament, this is exactly what is happening, man.

00:50:28.340 --> 00:50:38.180
Paul would go into a place. He would represent God's glory accurately. It doesn't matter whether it's in Athens with all those idols, whether it's in Ephesus with Diana of Artemis,

00:50:38.180 --> 00:50:49.300
or whether it's in Philippi with a woman with the spirit of divination. He knew how to bring the rule of God and the shalom of God into cities.

00:50:49.300 --> 00:50:59.620
So much so that the Christians were known as troublers. We can be troublers. We can be troublers. On one hand, we bring trouble. On the other hand, we dispense peace.

00:50:59.620 --> 00:51:14.740
It's brilliant. You must not sell yourself short. You must understand that you can do it because you belong to a body in whom the nature of God dwells, not Acts 29, the church.

00:51:14.740 --> 00:51:23.860
We sell ourselves short, man. I mean, that phrase that they always use, which I used to think was very silly, is really smart as I grow older.

00:51:23.860 --> 00:51:35.060
Without God, you're zero. With God, you're a hero. Sounds like a little childish ditty, but it makes so much sense now, man. Don't sell yourself short.

00:51:35.060 --> 00:51:42.660
Any questions?

00:51:42.660 --> 00:51:49.460
Greater darkness, greater light. It's in the midst of tumult that glory is revealed.

00:51:49.460 --> 00:51:54.660
Arise and shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon thee.

00:51:54.660 --> 00:51:57.460
In Aftali and in Zebulun, there is a great darkness.

00:51:57.460 --> 00:51:59.700
Where there is great darkness, there is great light.

00:51:59.700 --> 00:52:02.980
For the increase of this government, there will be no end.

00:52:02.980 --> 00:52:07.380
And the government of God shall rest upon his shoulders.

00:52:07.380 --> 00:52:11.380
This whole row is eating, huh?

00:52:11.380 --> 00:52:17.380
Its very advantageous to sit next to Jane.

00:52:17.380 --> 00:52:21.380
Yeah.

00:52:21.380 --> 00:52:23.380
Last point.

00:52:23.780 --> 00:52:25.780
Last point.

00:52:25.780 --> 00:52:33.780
If you want to walk in knee-deep water, you must endure war.

00:52:33.780 --> 00:52:39.780
If you want to walk in knee-deep water, you must endure.

00:52:39.780 --> 00:52:43.780
You must train to endure war.

00:52:43.780 --> 00:52:45.780
What a god, eh?

00:52:46.580 --> 00:52:54.580
If you want to walk in knee-deep water, you must train to endure war.

00:52:54.580 --> 00:52:57.380
And it's a team sport. You cannot do this alone.

00:52:57.380 --> 00:53:00.180
It's not some cage fight between you and Hulk Hogan.

00:53:00.180 --> 00:53:04.180
This is like a huge joint thing, eh?

00:53:10.580 --> 00:53:13.380
You know, Judges, Chapter 3, Verse 1 and 2, we talked about it.

00:53:13.380 --> 00:53:20.580
God says, I will leave opposition in the land so that the descendants of Israel,

00:53:20.580 --> 00:53:27.780
who did not experience war, can now be trained and become battle-ready.

00:53:27.780 --> 00:53:33.780
Church, some of the problems you are having in your life right now need to be persevered through.

00:53:33.780 --> 00:53:36.980
They will not go away. You must endure them.

00:53:36.980 --> 00:53:40.580
Otherwise, you will not be trained.

00:53:40.580 --> 00:53:46.580
Sometimes I deliberately put you into situations which are highly uncomfortable for you,

00:53:46.580 --> 00:53:50.580
just so that you can be trained.

00:53:50.580 --> 00:53:55.380
Without friction being created, there is no grip.

00:53:55.380 --> 00:53:59.380
You only know your sons when you offend them.

00:53:59.380 --> 00:54:03.380
Until then, everyone is happy.

00:54:07.380 --> 00:54:10.980
If you want to walk in knee-deep water, you must train to endure war.

00:54:10.980 --> 00:54:15.380
You know, one of the things I keep thinking is, okay, Father, I've got to persevere through this.

00:54:15.380 --> 00:54:19.780
I was telling God this morning that, Father, there are so many times where I just get tired

00:54:19.780 --> 00:54:23.780
and I think to myself, well, you be God, I'm not going to do this anymore.

00:54:23.780 --> 00:54:27.780
That is such a throwing in the towel where I begin to say to Him,

00:54:27.780 --> 00:54:31.780
You are God, you'll have to deal with this. No, I want to work with you as you deal with this.

00:54:31.780 --> 00:54:33.780
When He comes, will He find faith?

00:54:33.780 --> 00:54:41.780
Will I begin to mourn and complain about the fact that it looks like He's sleeping at the stern of the boat?

00:54:41.780 --> 00:54:43.780
I hate it when I do that.

00:54:43.780 --> 00:54:49.780
Instead of actively participating in what He said and saying to the other disciples,

00:54:49.780 --> 00:54:51.780
Hey, it's okay. He said we're going to cross over to the other side.

00:54:51.780 --> 00:54:53.780
So what if there's a storm?

00:54:53.780 --> 00:54:57.780
Hey, here's a bucket, just pouring out water, bailing out some water so that we don't go under.

00:54:57.780 --> 00:55:00.780
But we won't go under because I don't do that, man.

00:55:00.780 --> 00:55:04.780
Instead, I just start looking at Him and saying, how come you're not coming through?

00:55:04.780 --> 00:55:07.780
It's been so long. I've stood in faith. I've spoken. I've decreed.

00:55:07.780 --> 00:55:09.780
I've declared nothing's happening. Oh, God, now.

00:55:09.780 --> 00:55:13.780
And then I end up saying, okay, you have to do it now because I'm tired of this.

00:55:13.780 --> 00:55:15.780
I hate it when I do that.

00:55:15.780 --> 00:55:20.780
I don't want to hear Him say stuff like, Oh, you have little faith.

00:55:20.780 --> 00:55:23.780
Oh, big Jacob of little faith.

00:55:26.780 --> 00:55:29.780
Big as in big.

00:55:29.780 --> 00:55:31.780
I don't want Him to say that.

00:55:32.780 --> 00:55:34.780
I want to listen to Him and say, Oh, you have little faith.

00:55:34.780 --> 00:55:36.780
Oh, big Jacob of little faith.

00:55:36.780 --> 00:55:38.780
I want to listen to Him.

00:55:38.780 --> 00:55:40.780
Oh, big as in big.

00:55:40.780 --> 00:55:42.780
I don't want Him to say that.

00:55:42.780 --> 00:55:43.780
I wanted to say that.

00:55:50.140 --> 00:55:52.140
It's a little hard preaching to you today.

00:55:55.260 --> 00:55:56.260
So let me end.

00:55:56.700 --> 00:55:59.860
May you be like the 10,000 that Gideon had left.

00:55:59.980 --> 00:56:02.380
I love it man. He started out with 32,000

00:56:02.460 --> 00:56:03.860
and he has to go again.

00:56:03.940 --> 00:56:06.460
So you got 200,000 here and he's got 32,000 here.

00:56:06.540 --> 00:56:10.140
God says, okay, go and ask people who want to go home to go home.

00:56:10.380 --> 00:56:13.020
And so 22,000 go home and he's got 10,000 left.

00:56:13.100 --> 00:56:15.820
You got to be like the 10,000 man who didn't want to go home.

00:56:15.900 --> 00:56:17.300
That's knee deep walking.

00:56:21.580 --> 00:56:23.940
These 10,000 know that 22,000 have gone home

00:56:24.020 --> 00:56:26.300
but they know also that if they win,

00:56:28.180 --> 00:56:30.500
this will be the end of the Philistines for a very long time

00:56:30.580 --> 00:56:32.300
and the rest of Israel can walk in.

00:56:33.500 --> 00:56:35.500
And God was happy with the 10,000 day

00:56:35.580 --> 00:56:39.700
and then he says, go to the river and drink.

00:56:40.580 --> 00:56:43.220
Now why was it that 300 drank one way

00:56:43.300 --> 00:56:44.660
and the others drank the other way?

00:56:44.740 --> 00:56:45.740
Very simple guys.

00:56:47.140 --> 00:56:50.020
300 drank with their eyes still engaged

00:56:50.100 --> 00:56:51.980
because they were in enemy territory.

00:56:52.060 --> 00:56:54.020
And instead of going down on their knees

00:56:54.100 --> 00:56:56.260
and putting their faces to the water,

00:56:56.340 --> 00:57:00.740
they still had eyes for everything that was happening around.

00:57:00.820 --> 00:57:04.180
As they scooped water and began to lap it from their hand.

00:57:05.580 --> 00:57:06.580
Like dogs do.

00:57:07.580 --> 00:57:10.540
They wouldn't let go of the alertness

00:57:10.620 --> 00:57:13.140
that they needed to possess in enemy territory.

00:57:15.020 --> 00:57:16.340
Animals do that.

00:57:16.420 --> 00:57:18.740
If you've watched animals near a watering hole,

00:57:19.700 --> 00:57:22.420
doesn't matter how hot it is, they don't go straight into the water.

00:57:22.500 --> 00:57:26.380
Most antelopes, deer and all those animals that are prey

00:57:26.460 --> 00:57:30.540
always drink by making sure that their eyes and ears

00:57:30.620 --> 00:57:32.420
are alert to predators.

00:57:32.500 --> 00:57:34.220
And out of that he chooses 300.

00:57:34.300 --> 00:57:35.980
Those are the kind that can then proceed

00:57:35.980 --> 00:57:37.180
to waste deep water.

00:57:37.260 --> 00:57:39.100
But the 10,000 are knee deep.

00:57:40.060 --> 00:57:42.860
Lap up water like dogs and we can go next week

00:57:42.940 --> 00:57:46.140
and see what happens to guys who are waist deep in water.

00:57:47.260 --> 00:57:49.020
What does it mean to be 300 strong?

00:57:49.100 --> 00:57:53.020
300 strong is to be unengaged in civilian affairs

00:57:53.100 --> 00:57:54.540
like Paul says to Timothy,

00:57:54.620 --> 00:57:58.620
hey Timothy, if you're a soldier, be disengaged with civilian affairs.

00:57:59.780 --> 00:58:01.060
Don't get caught up in it.

00:58:01.500 --> 00:58:02.900
Be ready, be alert.

00:58:02.980 --> 00:58:04.580
Eyes always looking.

00:58:05.260 --> 00:58:10.020
I love driving around or starting a day or going to Vernon or whatever

00:58:10.100 --> 00:58:11.100
and being alert.

00:58:11.180 --> 00:58:15.980
Father, is there anything you're showing me that will stand out

00:58:16.060 --> 00:58:18.100
even though I've seen it a million times?

00:58:18.180 --> 00:58:20.700
And if it stands out, what do you want to do?

00:58:30.540 --> 00:58:31.940
Isn't that how you are?

00:58:32.940 --> 00:58:36.420
Isn't that how you are when you know danger is around?

00:58:36.500 --> 00:58:39.300
And isn't that how you are when you're in love?

00:58:40.580 --> 00:58:42.700
That's the only two times this happens.

00:58:42.780 --> 00:58:46.340
You're either in love and you're watching her every move

00:58:46.420 --> 00:58:49.940
because if she coughs, you'll bring her not cough syrup but a coke.

00:58:50.020 --> 00:58:55.300
If she snaps a finger, you'll bring whatever she wants

00:58:55.380 --> 00:58:56.580
because you're in love.

00:58:57.420 --> 00:58:59.700
So that's one time when you're highly alert

00:58:59.940 --> 00:59:04.620
and the rest of the world is like shadows like we sang.

00:59:04.700 --> 00:59:07.300
All that surrounds becomes shadows in the light of earth.

00:59:08.580 --> 00:59:10.060
That's one time you're highly alert.

00:59:10.140 --> 00:59:12.740
The other time you're highly alert is when there's danger.

00:59:14.020 --> 00:59:16.060
When you know you're in a dangerous place

00:59:16.140 --> 00:59:18.740
and now you're highly alert, every face,

00:59:18.820 --> 00:59:22.380
every little dog that comes out of the alley

00:59:22.460 --> 00:59:24.100
is something you're frightened of.

00:59:24.180 --> 00:59:26.500
These are the two things that make you highly alert.

00:59:26.580 --> 00:59:29.420
May I suggest to you that that's how we need to walk?

00:59:29.540 --> 00:59:31.260
One, because we are deeply in love.

00:59:31.340 --> 00:59:34.540
Two, because there is a world that is still under the sway

00:59:34.620 --> 00:59:36.300
of the prince of the power of the air.

00:59:44.660 --> 00:59:46.940
Christ's nature is that of a forerunner.

00:59:47.020 --> 00:59:49.060
When I disconnect from this nature,

00:59:49.140 --> 00:59:51.340
here's what happens to kingdom life.

00:59:51.420 --> 00:59:53.660
Kingdom life is reduced to maintenance.

00:59:53.660 --> 00:59:57.620
Kingdom life is reduced to zealous training of gnats.

01:00:04.900 --> 01:00:07.700
Kingdom life is reduced to personalised planning.

01:00:13.100 --> 01:00:16.060
Kingdom life is reduced to preservation.

01:00:17.060 --> 01:00:20.340
Kingdom life is reduced to preservation.

01:00:24.500 --> 01:00:26.780
When you don't live as a forerunner,

01:00:28.460 --> 01:00:31.500
where you're working with God to open the door for others,

01:00:31.580 --> 01:00:34.980
all you end up doing is maintaining or preserving

01:00:35.060 --> 01:00:38.860
what someone else has already run and got for you.

01:00:38.940 --> 01:00:42.700
Isn't it a shame that so many endeavours,

01:00:43.020 --> 01:00:46.500
so many churches, so many movements,

01:00:46.580 --> 01:00:49.700
that was started by brilliant forerunners.

01:00:51.380 --> 01:00:54.340
The following generations have no desire

01:00:54.420 --> 01:00:56.420
to keep walking in being a forerunner.

01:00:56.500 --> 01:00:57.620
So what do they do?

01:00:57.700 --> 01:01:02.860
They maintain or preserve what was won for them

01:01:02.940 --> 01:01:04.620
by a previous forerunner.

01:01:05.780 --> 01:01:06.780
What a shame.

01:01:07.820 --> 01:01:10.300
What if we all die and the next bunch of kids

01:01:10.300 --> 01:01:11.700
that come up after us,

01:01:11.780 --> 01:01:14.260
instead of continuing with what we have done,

01:01:14.340 --> 01:01:16.340
they decide, well, we have this,

01:01:16.420 --> 01:01:20.380
this will last for another 30 years and they don't do anything.

01:01:20.460 --> 01:01:23.540
Problem with settlers is settlers will always turn up,

01:01:23.620 --> 01:01:26.420
turn against the next group of pioneers.

01:01:28.380 --> 01:01:29.940
That's the problem with settlers.

01:01:30.020 --> 01:01:31.020
Go ahead.

01:01:32.620 --> 01:01:33.620
Sorry?

01:01:35.580 --> 01:01:36.580
Yeah.

01:01:36.580 --> 01:01:37.580
Yeah.

01:01:44.540 --> 01:01:45.540
Yeah, it is.

01:01:46.420 --> 01:01:47.420
But together,

01:01:49.180 --> 01:01:51.180
you can't just go into this very often.

01:01:51.260 --> 01:01:54.180
I know so many big churches that we all know of

01:01:54.260 --> 01:01:56.780
that was started by breakthrough people

01:01:56.860 --> 01:01:59.380
that now has gone into maintenance and preservation.

01:01:59.460 --> 01:02:01.780
Maintenance and preservation will still grow you,

01:02:01.860 --> 01:02:04.500
but it will grow so much that it will be a problem

01:02:04.500 --> 01:02:06.420
and preservation will still grow you,

01:02:06.500 --> 01:02:08.940
but it will grow softies that are big bellies.

01:02:11.500 --> 01:02:13.500
Not muscle six-packs like this.

01:02:15.380 --> 01:02:16.380
Okay.

01:02:16.460 --> 01:02:18.540
I can only hold my breath in for that long.

01:02:20.420 --> 01:02:21.860
So that's what happens.

01:02:21.940 --> 01:02:26.140
If you don't go forerunning, you end up here or you end up here.

01:02:26.220 --> 01:02:29.140
Or you get very legalistic.

01:02:29.220 --> 01:02:32.420
You have something that has to be done.

01:02:32.420 --> 01:02:34.940
You nitpick on the colour of the carpet,

01:02:35.020 --> 01:02:37.300
on how many people should be on the committee,

01:02:37.380 --> 01:02:41.180
how many cents and dollars need to be spent,

01:02:41.260 --> 01:02:44.820
whether the pastor took one hour or one hour, five minutes.

01:02:44.900 --> 01:02:47.140
These are the things you begin to focus on.

01:02:51.180 --> 01:02:53.100
Because you've got to have some purpose.

01:02:53.180 --> 01:02:54.180
This is easy.

01:02:55.500 --> 01:02:56.620
Or you end up here.

01:02:56.700 --> 01:02:58.580
Personalised plans.

01:02:58.660 --> 01:03:00.540
Personalised plans,

01:03:00.620 --> 01:03:04.140
which is Christianity becomes highly individualistic.

01:03:04.220 --> 01:03:06.100
I've got to figure out how I do this, how I grow,

01:03:06.180 --> 01:03:08.260
how my family does well, how my business grows,

01:03:08.340 --> 01:03:10.540
how my church grows, how my ministry grows.

01:03:10.620 --> 01:03:14.900
It's all about personalised planning for the glory of the Lord.

01:03:14.980 --> 01:03:15.980
Hallelujah.

01:03:16.540 --> 01:03:21.300
So, this is what happens if you're not forerunning.

01:03:24.020 --> 01:03:25.380
Any questions? I'm done.

01:03:29.220 --> 01:03:30.220
Any questions?

01:03:39.340 --> 01:03:41.620
Are the ones who are not forerunners?

01:03:41.700 --> 01:03:42.700
Yes.

01:03:45.740 --> 01:03:46.740
Yes.

01:03:47.380 --> 01:03:50.900
Yes, remember guys, God does not make leaders and followers.

01:03:50.980 --> 01:03:53.540
God does not make leaders and followers.

01:03:53.620 --> 01:03:55.180
God makes leaders and servants.

01:03:55.260 --> 01:03:56.820
He does not make followers.

01:03:56.900 --> 01:03:58.220
He made us in His own image.

01:03:58.260 --> 01:03:59.620
He's not a leader and a follower.

01:03:59.700 --> 01:04:01.500
He's a leader and a servant.

01:04:01.580 --> 01:04:02.900
All of us are leaders and servants.

01:04:02.980 --> 01:04:05.420
There are no followers in the kingdom.

01:04:05.500 --> 01:04:07.620
So today, if we are forerunning,

01:04:07.700 --> 01:04:10.300
there might be people that come through with us,

01:04:10.380 --> 01:04:14.260
but the intent is tomorrow we can disciple them to be forerunners

01:04:14.340 --> 01:04:15.900
so that they can take on the nature of God,

01:04:15.980 --> 01:04:18.020
so that the next group can come in.

01:04:18.100 --> 01:04:20.900
Because there's always people coming into the kingdom.

01:04:20.980 --> 01:04:23.420
And so the ones that are mature have to take on the nature of God

01:04:23.500 --> 01:04:25.420
so that they walk as forerunners,

01:04:25.500 --> 01:04:27.220
so that the next group can come in.

01:04:29.220 --> 01:04:31.500
There are no followers really in the kingdom

01:04:31.580 --> 01:04:32.900
because God is not a follower.

01:04:32.980 --> 01:04:34.580
God is a leader or a servant.

01:04:34.660 --> 01:04:35.820
He makes us in His image.

01:04:35.900 --> 01:04:37.980
He doesn't make us followers.

01:04:46.060 --> 01:04:48.380
It's odd, but if the church gets it,

01:04:48.460 --> 01:04:51.820
then we will not remain in the pews as followers.

01:04:51.900 --> 01:04:53.660
Because most churches think,

01:04:53.740 --> 01:04:56.220
oh, those guys there are the leaders

01:04:56.780 --> 01:04:58.860
and the rest of us are followers.

01:05:00.220 --> 01:05:01.220
Not true.

01:05:02.900 --> 01:05:04.220
Leaders and servants.

01:05:11.580 --> 01:05:13.500
Yeah, follow me to become what?

01:05:15.620 --> 01:05:16.700
To become like me.

01:05:18.300 --> 01:05:19.940
And He is a leader and a servant.

01:05:20.620 --> 01:05:22.060
We are made in the image of God.

01:05:26.380 --> 01:05:27.500
Very cool, eh?

01:05:27.580 --> 01:05:30.100
Had Adam not messed up, one of us would have.

01:05:30.180 --> 01:05:33.020
But had Adam not messed up.

01:05:33.100 --> 01:05:34.860
Things would have been very different, eh?

01:05:35.940 --> 01:05:36.940
Let's pray.

01:05:37.820 --> 01:05:40.060
Father, I think you're brilliant.

01:05:40.140 --> 01:05:41.980
I think this teaching is brilliant too.

01:05:42.060 --> 01:05:44.740
And that's why I wanted to say first that you are brilliant.

01:05:44.820 --> 01:05:48.460
Because stuff like this only you can provide, Father.

01:05:48.540 --> 01:05:49.540
Really.

01:05:50.620 --> 01:05:53.700
So thank you for showing us this stuff, Lord.

01:05:54.700 --> 01:05:58.220
Thank you for showing us what knee-deep water looks like.

01:05:58.300 --> 01:06:00.220
I'm looking forward to next week, Abha.

01:06:00.300 --> 01:06:02.060
What does waist-deep water look like?

01:06:04.620 --> 01:06:06.020
So we thank you, Holy Spirit.

01:06:06.100 --> 01:06:08.140
And now I just ask Holy Spirit

01:06:08.220 --> 01:06:11.780
that you would take this teaching that you have given

01:06:11.860 --> 01:06:14.220
and begin to do something in my spirit

01:06:14.300 --> 01:06:17.100
so that I'll desire to walk like this.

01:06:17.180 --> 01:06:20.260
So God, that we'll desire to walk like this

01:06:20.340 --> 01:06:22.340
so that we can open the gates for others.

01:06:23.060 --> 01:06:25.660
Everybody here, Lord, without exception,

01:06:25.740 --> 01:06:27.260
I pray for each one here.

01:06:27.340 --> 01:06:32.460
Father, I actually have the faith to pray for each one here

01:06:32.540 --> 01:06:34.580
to step into this role.

01:06:34.660 --> 01:06:36.260
I have the faith for it.

01:06:36.340 --> 01:06:38.940
And there are people here who have the faith for it,

01:06:39.020 --> 01:06:40.980
who can join me in desiring this.

01:06:41.060 --> 01:06:44.780
For everybody sitting here and everyone who isn't here,

01:06:44.860 --> 01:06:48.060
I pray that, O God, for Your name's sake,

01:06:48.140 --> 01:06:50.940
You must do this, O God, for Your name's sake,

01:06:51.020 --> 01:06:52.460
so that others can enter.

01:06:53.540 --> 01:06:57.260
This is our prayer, granted in Jesus' name.

01:06:57.340 --> 01:06:58.340
Amen.

01:07:01.780 --> 01:07:02.780
Cool, guys.