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NOTE
Podcast: Acts 29 Vancouver
Episode: Transitioning I
Publishing Date: 2011-07-13T06:00:44-07:00
Podcast URL: https://acts29.ca
Episode URL: https://acts29.ca/transitioning-i/

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We've been talking about how we can establish the rule and reign of God in our individual lives.

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We talked about that last week, that we've done a good job of establishing the rule and the reign of Christ in the house,

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but that we need to establish the rule and reign of Christ in our individual lives too.

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And so, how do we transition to that? That's what we're going to talk about today.

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And like Jesus Christ, the Son of God, one of the things we want to do is we want to walk under an open heaven,

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and I'll explain what open heaven is. We want to walk under an open heaven because it's the best climate to establish its rule and reign in your lives.

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The best climate to walk under, if you want to establish its rule and reign in your life, is to walk under an open heaven.

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And we'll see what that word open heaven means today and how we transition into it.

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Okay, so again, let me just say that again. One, we are trying to see how we can establish the rule and reign of Christ in our individual lives.

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We talked about that last week. I'm saying to you that Jesus Christ, when he walked the earth, walked in a way where he was able to establish all the things that his dad wanted, his father wanted in his life.

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And he always walked under an open heaven. And so we're going to try and figure out what an open heaven is from the biblical point of view and then see how we walk in it and how best to transition to it.

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So if you want to turn to Matthew 3, Matthew 3, 13 to 17. Matthew 3, 13 to 17.

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And here's what it says, Matthew 3, 13 to 17. It says that then Jesus came from the Galilee to the Jordan.

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Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him saying, I need to be baptized by you and do you come to me?

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Jesus replied, let it be so now. It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all our wishes.

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Let it be so now. It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.

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Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water.

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At that moment, heaven was opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.

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And a voice from heaven said, this is my son whom I love with him I am well pleased.

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Guys, when we talk about an open heaven, and it's a phrase used quite often now and sometimes very loosely.

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So let's define what an open heaven is. When we talk about an open heaven,

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an open heaven means, an open heaven announces, an open heaven announces a new movement of God.

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An open heaven announces a new movement of God. An open heaven, to begin with, announces a new movement of God.

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So when we talk about walking under an open heaven, it is knowing what God wants to do in your individual life

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or knowing what God wants to do with a church or a denomination or a people or a nation.

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Because an open heaven announces a new movement of God.

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Announces a new movement of God.

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Announces a new movement of God and goes without saying that God is continuously moving.

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He hasn't stopped. No denomination, no church has reached a place where it can say,

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this is what God always wanted to do because God is continuously moving. Eddie mentioned that in the past.

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Every time a church or a denomination or an institution decides that they've reached the

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pinnacle of where God wants to be, that's when they stop hearing because God is continuously moving.

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So the Lutherans didn't get it, the Baptists didn't get it, the Pentecostals didn't get it,

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the Charismatics didn't get it and neither have we got it. So unless we keep moving,

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we'll never be in step with God. Instead, we'll become stagnant. So secondly,

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an open heaven announces the pleasure and the delight of God.

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Announces the pleasure and delight of God.

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You see that in Matthew 3, 13-17. On one hand, you have the heavens open and the Spirit descending,

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announcing first that here stands one who is going to change the way

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that the world ever saw God from there on. Completely change the way God and man related.

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But with the open heavens came a voice that acknowledged Jesus as one who God delighted him,

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delighted in and one who God had pleasure in. So an open heaven announces the pleasure and the

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delight of God. Here's another thing that an open heaven means. An open heaven announces

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reinstatement to your rightful place. An open heaven announces reinstatement to your rightful

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place. An open heaven announces reinstatement to your rightful place.

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Guys, if you read Psalm 27, you'll see that in Psalm 27, there's a scripture where God says

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of David that he's basically saying the same thing that he said over Jesus. Go to Psalm 27.

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Psalm 27 says, I'll proclaim the decree of the Lord. He said to me, you are my son. Today I

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become your father. It's a coronation psalm. And it is suggested that this whole idea of God saying

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to Jesus that this is my son whom I love, with him I am well pleased is drawn from Psalm 2, verse 7,

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where the idea is that God is saying, here is my son in whom I dwell and through whom I'll

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establish my reign. So one of the things that open heaven does is it announces a reinstatement

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of you to your rightful place, meaning it reinstates you. It reinstates you to your rightful place.

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It reinstates you to your rightful place. Fourthly, go to Genesis 28.

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Fourthly, go to Genesis 28.

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Genesis 28, verses 12. Genesis 28, 12.

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Let's start at 10. Genesis 28, 10 onwards. Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Herod.

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When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of

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the stones there, he put it under his head and laid down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a

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stairway resting on the earth with its top reaching to the heaven, and the angels of God were ascending

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and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said, I am the Lord, the God of your

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father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are

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lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and

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the east, to the north and the south. All the peoples on the earth will be blessed through you

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and your offspring. The point being, guys, an open heaven gives you

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a greater glimpse

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of your destiny or inheritance.

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An open heaven gives you a greater glimpse of your destiny or your inheritance.

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Let's look at another scripture, Acts 7.55.

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Acts 7.55.

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Acts 7.54 onwards.

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When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen,

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full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the

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right hand of God. Look, he said, I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of

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God. At this they covered their ears and yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him,

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dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes

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at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, Lord Jesus,

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receive my spirit. And then he fell on his knees and cried out, Lord, do not hold this sin against

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them. When he had said this, he fell asleep and Saul was there giving approval to his death.

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One of the things an open heaven does is it gives you the courage to endure. An open heaven

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gives you the courage to endure against great odds.

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An open heaven gives you the courage to endure against great odds.

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An open heaven gives you the courage to endure against great odds.

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Guys, do you see why it is good to begin to walk under an open heaven? And we talk about how do we

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end up walking under an open heaven? Basically, an open heaven is not a hole in the ozone layer.

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An open heaven is this thing that God wants you to walk in. And you walk in it because you want to

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walk in it because you want to walk in it because you want to walk in it because you want to walk in it.

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It's like a dad who wants his son to walk in his favor. So it's like a dad saying to his son, or it's like

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let's pick on James and Sarah. It's like James saying to Sarah or Jason saying to Tavis,

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listen, if you walk in this area within my sight, within my hearing, and within the pleasure of my face,

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if you walk in this area, this is what's going to happen to you. One, you will always know when I want you to do something new.

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Two, you will always have my pleasure and delight. Three, I will reinstate you in your rightful place

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whenever you're off course. Four, I'll give you a greater glimpse of what's going to happen to you next year.

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Five, I'll make sure that you can see me and have the courage to endure when you're going through difficult times.

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It's an open heaven. It's an invitation by God to step into this place where like Jesus,

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you can have all these things happening for you.

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That's what an open heaven is. Questions, comments, disagreements?

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Yeah, the whole idea of saying this is my beloved son whom I'm well pleased is drawn from Psalm 2,

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which is a coronation psalm where when a king was crowned, you would say that about your son.

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So when it talks about reinstating you to your rightful place, there are many times you and I are not aware of

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who we are in Christ and an open heaven always allows you to be reinstated to your rightful place.

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So you never veer off from a deep knowledge of who God thinks you are.

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And there's nothing as powerful as that. Why is it that some children do very well

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when their circumstances are not as good? Because one of the things some children know

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is that when it comes to who they are, they are not as good as they are in the world.

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They know it because they know what their father and mother say about them.

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Then it doesn't matter how bad the circumstances are. The child knows within his heart that he's loved.

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It changes everything for the child. It's the same manner. Your circumstances can be rotten,

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but once you are reinstated into the place that you actually belong to in terms of how God sees you,

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it's very different. Very different.

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Any questions?

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Q. Do you remember what time you were teaching in open heaven and there was something about the intersection of the Kronos and Kairos?

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A. Yeah. Q. Do you remember what time you were teaching in open heaven and there was something about the intersection of the Kronos and Kairos?

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A. It does, but I'm not touching that right now.

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Questions, comments? Disagreements?

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Q. It seems to me that you can be deceived out of your open heavens.

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A. Yeah, you can.

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Guys, during this week as I've been preparing those notes, I've been thinking,

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my Godfather, I'd like to live here. And it's easy. It's very easy. We'll talk about that.

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But before we go there, just one thing, guys, and use this as a measure.

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With every manifestation of God in the Bible, you will always hear the voice of God after.

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Just remember that. Whenever God manifests Himself,

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one of the things that follows immediately after the manifestation is the voice of God.

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When there is only a manifestation and the voice of God is missing, question the manifestation.

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Because God is not into putting up performances for you.

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He's not into tickling my fancy.

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If He does something that is dramatic, is very supernatural or is a manifestation,

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it is always followed by the voice of God. You can go right back to the beginning, Genesis 1.

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Whenever the Spirit of God moves, the Word of God follows, man.

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Genesis 1 verses 1 to 3 says,

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And the Spirit of God was brewing over the chaotic mass that was the earth.

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And what follows immediately after? And then God said, let there be light.

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Isaiah 6 verses 1 to 4. Isaiah suddenly sees this vision in which he sees heaven's open.

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And after he sees heaven's open, he says that he was... Let's read that. It's fascinating.

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Isaiah 6, 1 to 4.

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In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne high and exalted,

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and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him were the seraphs, each with six wings.

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With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.

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And they were calling to one another, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty.

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The whole earth is full of His glory. At the sound of their voices,

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the doorposts and the thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

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So that is what he sees. That is the manifestation. Look at the voice, verse 8.

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Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, whom shall I send and who will go for?

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Us. The manifestations of God are always followed by the voice of God.

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Just keep that in mind. It's a good way to measure what's happening.

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Let's take another one. Exodus 3. Exodus 3, you know this one.

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You almost see this pattern throughout, man.

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There might be exceptions, but this is the pattern. Exodus 3.

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I can't hear myself today, Matt. I'm kind of shouting.

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Exodus 3, verses 2 onwards.

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There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush.

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Moses saw that though the bush was on fire, it did not burn up.

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So Moses thought, I'll go over and see the strange sight, why the bush does not burn up.

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When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush.

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Moses, Moses, and Moses said, here I am. Manifestation followed by the voice of God.

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The sad thing is today what happens in most churches is that

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if you ask people what they remembered, they'll remember the manifestation.

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If you ask them, and what was taught after that, no one remembers.

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Just make sure that the manifestation is followed by the voice.

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God is more interested in the word that is deposited after and through the manifestation

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than for us to be hung up with the manifestation.

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Being preached, read, taught, whichever way it comes through.

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The voice is vital because the whole idea of God manifesting something is so important.

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The whole idea of God manifesting something is so that the people now listen and obey.

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So guys,

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what is it that will allow me to walk under an open heaven?

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What is it that will allow me to walk in God's pleasure?

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What is it that will allow me to soar in the movements of God?

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You don't want to be stagnant. It doesn't matter how old or young you are.

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The last thing you want to do for the rest of your life here on earth is get to a place with God

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and decide, this is where I'm going to camp. God is saying, hey, but I'm moving on. Move with me.

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So what does it take to transition into a place where this becomes a reality for you?

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What does it take to soar as an eagle does in the movements of God?

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What does it take to walk in God's pleasure? And the answer is so simple that

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it's a kind of a letdown because you would think it's something a little more profound, but it's not.

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If you want to walk under an open heaven,

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If you want to walk under an open heaven,

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all you need to do is walk in obedience.

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Obedience.

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That's all it takes. Jesus

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left Galilee, which was familiar terrain for him,

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where he was dwelling at that time. He goes all the way to the Jordan

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to be baptized by a man, to fulfill all righteousness

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in obedience to what he knew his father was saying.

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At the end of the day, if you want to walk under all the things we mentioned, the one thing that's required of you and me is obedience.

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And by the way, guys, let me define obedience a little differently.

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Obedience is

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willing alignment.

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Obedience is willing alignment.

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And I'd suggest to you every word here is packed with meaning.

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Obedience is willing alignment with

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the nature,

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the ways,

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the acts, and the desires

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of

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God. See, we see obedience as, ah, he's put in a command there,

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got to obey. That's one way of saying it, and that's not

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the correct way of looking at obedience.

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And at the end of the day, it's the knowledge of him. So, obedience is willing alignment.

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Hey, you guys can't see this at all.

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Okay. Obedience is willing alignment.

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Man, tough crowd to please today.

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You happy? Yeah. Guys,

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Obedience is willing alignment because, you know, David got the hang of this.

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If you read Psalm 119, he always says, he doesn't say, I obey your statutes.

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He says, I delight in your statutes. I love walking in your pleasure.

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I find your laws absolutely delightful. The guy got the hang of it.

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When we reduce it to commands, it becomes a list of do's and don'ts.

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But when you see obedience as a willing alignment,

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Isaiah 1, 14, if you are obedient and willing, you will eat the good of the land.

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Many of us know how to be obedient, but not necessarily willing in our obedience.

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Absolutely, man. If the willingness ain't there, it ain't obedience, really.

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Ah, love that.

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I run in the path of your commands because you have set my heart free.

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Psalm 119, 23. You'll see David's delight in God's laws.

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He doesn't see them separate from the nature of God. So obedience is willing alignment

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with his nature, with his ways, with his acts and with his desires.

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And if we get this right, it is promised to you that you will have an open heaven above you.

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It's progressive, Matt.

00:21:47.240 --> 00:21:52.240
I wish one of us could stand right now and say, I'm obedient all the time.

00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:57.240
No. But if you ask me, are you more obedient than you were two years ago?

00:21:57.240 --> 00:22:02.240
I'd say yes.

00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:07.240
Yeah, the whole idea of transformation means it's progressive.

00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:12.240
Bring obedience in my character to these things,

00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:17.240
not necessarily to rules. Because that is the Old Testament way of living.

00:22:17.240 --> 00:22:22.240
Now we bring our character in alignment with God's nature,

00:22:22.240 --> 00:22:27.240
God's ways, God's acts and God's desires. And then there's a natural outworking of walking the way he does.

00:22:27.240 --> 00:22:32.240
Yeah.

00:22:32.240 --> 00:22:37.240
At the Jordan,

00:22:37.240 --> 00:22:42.240
Jesus was basically aligning himself with the principle. Hey, by the way,

00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:47.240
I know we talked about this before, but just think of this. When Jesus was being baptized by John,

00:22:47.240 --> 00:22:52.240
what was he basically saying? What was John's message?

00:22:52.240 --> 00:22:57.240
Yeah. And? Yeah.

00:22:57.240 --> 00:23:02.240
And? Those are the actions. What was his message? The kingdom of God is near.

00:23:02.240 --> 00:23:07.240
So when Jesus is coming and getting baptized in the Jordan,

00:23:07.240 --> 00:23:12.240
because whenever you got baptized by anybody in terms of Jewish tradition, you were coming into

00:23:12.240 --> 00:23:17.240
agreement or alignment with the message of the one who was baptizing you. And Jesus is being baptized

00:23:17.240 --> 00:23:22.240
by John. And one of the things he's doing in being baptized is he's coming into alignment with what

00:23:22.240 --> 00:23:27.240
John was preaching, that the kingdom of God is near.

00:23:27.240 --> 00:23:32.240
And why did Jesus have to do that? Because guys, if you want to get to a place where you have to say

00:23:32.240 --> 00:23:37.240
the kingdom of God is here, you have to first obey the kingdom of God is near.

00:23:37.240 --> 00:23:42.240
Please understand this. Many of us want to be obedient tomorrow and want to be

00:23:42.240 --> 00:23:47.240
obedient to something big that God has for us tomorrow. I'm saying to you, get obedient to what God wants you

00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:52.240
today. You cannot begin now.

00:23:52.240 --> 00:23:57.240
Now. If you want to declare that the kingdom of God is here as Jesus did,

00:23:57.240 --> 00:24:02.240
you have to first come into alignment with the kingdom of God is here.

00:24:02.240 --> 00:24:07.240
Alignment.

00:24:07.240 --> 00:24:12.240
Yeah. Yeah.

00:24:12.240 --> 00:24:17.240
Yeah.

00:24:17.240 --> 00:24:22.240
Yeah.

00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:27.240
Yeah.

00:24:27.240 --> 00:24:32.240
Yeah. Yeah.

00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:37.240
Which is a scary thing because if you do not know the nature of God, then you'll have to live by rules.

00:24:37.240 --> 00:24:42.240
Here's the scary thing, guys. If you do not know the nature of God, you will have to resort to rules.

00:24:42.240 --> 00:24:47.240
It's a terrible place to be.

00:24:47.240 --> 00:24:52.240
Like I said last week, we are not governed by a set of laws outside us.

00:24:52.240 --> 00:24:57.240
We are governed by the rules, a set of laws inside us because Christ is the lawgiver.

00:24:57.240 --> 00:25:02.240
He lives in me. He lives in me.

00:25:02.240 --> 00:25:07.240
Yeah. See, let's put it this way.

00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:12.240
Let's say Tavis and let's say Jason gives him a list of rules to live by.

00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:17.240
So the boy keeps the rules in the house and so he lives.

00:25:17.240 --> 00:25:22.240
But what if Jason opened up his heart to Tavis and showed him what his desires were and Tavis gets it and he begins to live off the heart of his father?

00:25:22.240 --> 00:25:27.240
And then the dad takes time to train both of them.

00:25:27.240 --> 00:25:32.240
It is God sends equipers our way so that we are equipped to learn a certain way.

00:25:32.240 --> 00:25:37.240
But the father is not the father.

00:25:37.240 --> 00:25:42.240
The father is the father.

00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:47.240
So the father is the father.

00:25:47.240 --> 00:25:52.240
It is God sends equipers our way so that we are equipped to learn a certain way.

00:25:52.240 --> 00:25:57.240
But then in perspective of Tavis and Kayla, Tavis being the elder one and Kayla having the spirit of obedience because you are my elder brother, I need to obey you.

00:25:57.240 --> 00:26:02.240
But I think my dad...

00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:07.240
Like, do you know what I'm trying to say?

00:26:07.240 --> 00:26:12.240
No.

00:26:12.240 --> 00:26:17.240
We can talk about it.

00:26:17.240 --> 00:26:22.240
Yeah.

00:26:22.240 --> 00:26:27.240
At the end of the day guys, be governed by knowing the heart of the father within you because if you don't, this is a sad thing.

00:26:27.240 --> 00:26:32.240
We will have to live by rules.

00:26:32.240 --> 00:26:37.240
I better draw this right back to my notes because I know where this is going now. I'll have to now talk about automotives.

00:26:37.240 --> 00:26:42.240
The point is this guys, I think it's such a fine point that if you do not know the nature of God, you will have to resort to living as the Old Testament saints live.

00:26:42.240 --> 00:26:47.240
You will have to live by laws.

00:26:47.240 --> 00:26:52.240
If a church does not know the heart of God, the church will have to institute policy so that it will govern the conduct of people.

00:26:52.240 --> 00:26:57.240
But if the church knows the heart of God, people will be led by him who lives within you instead of a set of rules outside.

00:26:57.240 --> 00:27:02.240
It's magical, that transformation.

00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:07.240
Okay, there you go.

00:27:07.240 --> 00:27:12.240
Say that again.

00:27:12.240 --> 00:27:17.240
Again.

00:27:17.240 --> 00:27:22.240
It does. Moving on.

00:27:22.240 --> 00:27:27.240
Guys, obedience plows loose and draws out that which is hidden in heaven from the earth.

00:27:27.240 --> 00:27:32.240
Obedience plows loose and draws out of heaven what you need to walk here on earth.

00:27:32.240 --> 00:27:37.240
In the sense, once you begin to obey, and this is very simple, God says,

00:27:37.240 --> 00:27:42.240
be faithful in the little things I've already given you, Jacob, and I'll show you greater things.

00:27:42.240 --> 00:27:47.240
I'll give you greater things to be faithful over.

00:27:47.240 --> 00:27:52.240
At the end of the day, my obedience today plows up the heavens in a sense of speaking so that I can draw out of heaven what I need to walk here on earth.

00:27:52.240 --> 00:27:57.240
Look at Exodus 33.

00:27:57.240 --> 00:28:02.240
I've read this verse out to you before. It is such a cool verse.

00:28:02.240 --> 00:28:07.240
I don't know how Moses knew all this then, man.

00:28:07.240 --> 00:28:12.240
Exodus 33.

00:28:12.240 --> 00:28:17.240
He got the hang of it.

00:28:17.240 --> 00:28:22.240
Exodus 33, 12, 13.

00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:27.240
I love these verses.

00:28:27.240 --> 00:28:32.240
Exodus 33, 12, and 13.

00:28:47.240 --> 00:28:52.240
What Moses is saying is,

00:28:52.240 --> 00:28:57.240
great, O God, you say your favor on me. Wonderful.

00:28:57.240 --> 00:29:02.240
Now teach me a way so that I can walk in them so that I can continue to walk in favor.

00:29:02.240 --> 00:29:07.240
That's the whole point.

00:29:07.240 --> 00:29:12.240
And then show me more so that I can continue to walk the way you want me to.

00:29:12.240 --> 00:29:17.240
By the way,

00:29:17.240 --> 00:29:22.240
if obedience opens the heavens, what is it that shuts the heavens?

00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:27.240
Disobedience.

00:29:27.240 --> 00:29:32.240
Deuteronomy 25, I think, the scripture is on top of your page.

00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:37.240
Deuteronomy 8 says that when you're disobedient, the heavens are like bronze.

00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:42.240
The heavens are like bronze.

00:29:42.240 --> 00:29:47.240
Which means that they literally

00:29:47.240 --> 00:29:52.240
shut you off from glimpsing what God wants you to do.

00:29:52.240 --> 00:29:57.240
Shut you off from walking in the pleasure and delight of God because you choose to walk a different way.

00:29:57.240 --> 00:30:02.240
So disobedience.

00:30:02.240 --> 00:30:07.240
Not really.

00:30:07.240 --> 00:30:12.240
Not really.

00:30:12.240 --> 00:30:17.240
You and I are not dads so we don't know this.

00:30:17.240 --> 00:30:22.240
But parents have the ability to see the willingness of the child.

00:30:22.240 --> 00:30:27.240
And even if the child gets it wrong, parents know the heart of the child.

00:30:27.240 --> 00:30:32.240
My heart is able to run after him.

00:30:32.240 --> 00:30:37.240
I've seen so many situations here in church where you mess up, yet I know your heart.

00:30:37.240 --> 00:30:42.240
Doesn't matter.

00:30:42.240 --> 00:30:47.240
Hey, doesn't matter.

00:30:47.240 --> 00:30:52.240
Let me put it this way.

00:30:52.240 --> 00:30:57.240
I know your heart, Matt. So it doesn't matter how many times you mess up, I wouldn't have a problem with you.

00:30:57.240 --> 00:31:02.240
Yeah, but I'm still going to live in the consequences of the mess.

00:31:02.240 --> 00:31:07.240
Because you know the principle. Repent, move on, and validate what Christ has done for you.

00:31:07.240 --> 00:31:12.240
Parents know the heart of their child, man.

00:31:12.240 --> 00:31:17.240
God knows when I'm really running after him, then it doesn't matter how many times I mess up.

00:31:17.240 --> 00:31:22.240
I know that this boy really wants to run after me.

00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:27.240
Deuteronomy 28, 15, and 23.

00:31:27.240 --> 00:31:32.240
Walked in his ways.

00:31:32.240 --> 00:31:37.240
You can't lose on anything.

00:31:37.240 --> 00:31:42.240
You can.

00:31:42.240 --> 00:31:47.240
You can't lose on anything.

00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:52.240
Yeah, that's what James is saying.

00:31:52.240 --> 00:31:57.240
Guys, by the way, an open heaven does activate the demonic.

00:31:57.240 --> 00:32:02.240
An open heaven over you does activate the demonic in the sense that

00:32:02.240 --> 00:32:07.240
the intent of the enemy once you start walking under an open heaven is to abort or prevent you from walking

00:32:07.240 --> 00:32:12.240
in the pleasure of God.

00:32:12.240 --> 00:32:17.240
So in a sense, when you come into a place where you begin to walk in the favor of God, it activates the demonic.

00:32:17.240 --> 00:32:22.240
Not in terms of you being harmed or attacked or stuff like that, but now it is the enemy's intent

00:32:22.240 --> 00:32:27.240
to try and prevent you from walking in the favor of God.

00:32:27.240 --> 00:32:32.240
This is where you get to slay Goliath.

00:32:32.240 --> 00:32:37.240
If you're not frightened by it, just know that when one begins to

00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:42.240
walk in the things of God, there is an attempt

00:32:42.240 --> 00:32:47.240
by the enemy to revisit you with things of the past, sins of the past,

00:32:47.240 --> 00:32:52.240
buttons that used to trigger you off before, to see if you can be

00:32:52.240 --> 00:32:57.240
derailed or your paths can be aborted just through discouragement of sins that

00:32:57.240 --> 00:33:02.240
used to exist in your past. And resist them. Slay those Goliaths and keep walking.

00:33:02.240 --> 00:33:07.240
It's but natural for Satan to try and prevent me from walking in everything that I'm supposed to walk in.

00:33:07.240 --> 00:33:12.240
I'm not supposed to be afraid of it.

00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:17.240
I'm supposed to be aware of it.

00:33:17.240 --> 00:33:22.240
David was doing phenomenally well. Every time David would do very well, there'd be some plot

00:33:22.240 --> 00:33:27.240
hatched or some incitement that would be provoked against him. At times he would beat it,

00:33:27.240 --> 00:33:32.240
at other times he succumbed to it. So that he would never end up walking in the

00:33:32.240 --> 00:33:37.240
fullness of his destiny. But we now have come into a place where we know how to be aware of it

00:33:37.240 --> 00:33:42.240
and then slay these Goliaths so that these buttons that are pressed do not affect us anymore.

00:33:42.240 --> 00:33:47.240
Which one do you think that David succumbed to?

00:33:47.240 --> 00:33:52.240
Taking a census?

00:33:52.240 --> 00:33:57.240
At times when he was doing really well.

00:33:57.240 --> 00:34:02.240
Uriah murdering Uriah.

00:34:02.240 --> 00:34:07.240
So just be aware of that.

00:34:07.240 --> 00:34:12.240
Yeah, he could have killed Saul. He refuses to touch Saul.

00:34:12.240 --> 00:34:17.240
Yeah, but succumbed is when he was at the peak of what he was doing.

00:34:17.240 --> 00:34:22.240
When he was doing really well, there was always a thing that would prevent him from becoming all that he was supposed to.

00:34:22.240 --> 00:34:27.240
So be aware of that.

00:34:27.240 --> 00:34:32.240
So guys, how do we transition into this? How do we transition into this? Just want to pick on one verse

00:34:32.240 --> 00:34:37.240
and then move on to the rest of the teaching. Look at Hebrews 11.13.

00:34:37.240 --> 00:34:42.240
Hebrews 11.13.

00:34:42.240 --> 00:34:47.240
Hebrews 11.13.

00:34:47.240 --> 00:34:52.240
I'm just taking the second part of Hebrews 11.13.

00:34:52.240 --> 00:34:57.240
How do we transition into the pleasure and the movement of God? We said obedience. So how do we go about it?

00:34:57.240 --> 00:35:02.240
Obedience is the way to do it, but what else do we need to know?

00:35:02.240 --> 00:35:07.240
Hebrews 11.13.

00:35:07.240 --> 00:35:12.240
Hebrews 11.13.

00:35:12.240 --> 00:35:17.240
And here's what it says, the second part. Hebrews 11.13.

00:35:17.240 --> 00:35:22.240
It says, And all these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised,

00:35:22.240 --> 00:35:27.240
but here's what they did. They only saw.

00:35:27.240 --> 00:35:32.240
They saw them.

00:35:32.240 --> 00:35:37.240
They welcomed them.

00:35:37.240 --> 00:35:42.240
They welcomed them from a distance.

00:35:42.240 --> 00:35:47.240
And they admitted

00:35:47.240 --> 00:35:52.240
that they were

00:35:52.240 --> 00:35:57.240
aliens or strangers

00:35:57.240 --> 00:36:02.240
or foreigners here on Earth.

00:36:02.240 --> 00:36:07.240
Aliens or strangers or foreigners here on Earth, depending on your version.

00:36:07.240 --> 00:36:12.240
So we just want to pick on that, guys.

00:36:12.240 --> 00:36:17.240
Sorry, Matt.

00:36:17.240 --> 00:36:22.240
Guys, so we said obedience is a way to walk under an open heaven.

00:36:22.240 --> 00:36:27.240
One of the things we need to do as we begin to transition into the

00:36:27.240 --> 00:36:32.240
things that God is calling us to, and I've already started meeting with some of you to talk about stuff

00:36:32.240 --> 00:36:37.240
this week and then every week we'll

00:36:37.240 --> 00:36:42.240
meet with different people to try and figure out, okay, oh God, what am I

00:36:42.240 --> 00:36:47.240
heading towards? Who am I as you see me?

00:36:47.240 --> 00:36:52.240
What is my role as an individual in the large picture? And we've been talking about that.

00:36:52.240 --> 00:36:57.240
And one of the things you need to do is, guys, always try to see

00:36:57.240 --> 00:37:02.240
what God is trying to say about you and who you are and what you're supposed to do.

00:37:02.240 --> 00:37:07.240
Welcome it and admit that today

00:37:07.240 --> 00:37:12.240
where you are

00:37:12.240 --> 00:37:17.240
may not be

00:37:17.240 --> 00:37:22.240
where you're supposed to be.

00:37:22.240 --> 00:37:27.240
Admit the possibility that there is room for improvement.

00:37:27.240 --> 00:37:32.240
One of the things Christians don't quite often do once we get to a certain level is

00:37:32.240 --> 00:37:37.240
we get very settled in what we already know and don't keep moving. So the first thing we need to do

00:37:37.240 --> 00:37:42.240
is make sure that you see what God

00:37:42.240 --> 00:37:47.240
says you are

00:37:47.240 --> 00:37:52.240
and what

00:37:52.240 --> 00:37:57.240
he has pointed out

00:37:57.240 --> 00:38:02.240
as your destiny.

00:38:02.240 --> 00:38:07.240
Just imagine there will be thousands of people who know Christ

00:38:07.240 --> 00:38:12.240
who will never discover their destiny and go to their graves without knowing what

00:38:12.240 --> 00:38:17.240
their inheritance here on earth was, what they were really crafted for, what they were meant to do,

00:38:17.240 --> 00:38:22.240
where they were supposed to fit, what they were uniquely created for.

00:38:22.240 --> 00:38:27.240
Not that they won't go to heaven. It's not to do with our eternal security.

00:38:27.240 --> 00:38:32.240
I'm talking about here on earth.

00:38:32.240 --> 00:38:37.240
So one of the things we need to do is see what God is saying as to who we are

00:38:37.240 --> 00:38:42.240
and what our inheritance and destiny is. Two, an ability to welcome it or embrace it.

00:38:42.240 --> 00:38:47.240
And three, to admit that perhaps there is

00:38:47.240 --> 00:38:52.240
room for much more improvement that we are not where we are supposed to be.

00:38:52.240 --> 00:38:57.240
That we are like foreigners who haven't come to a place where we can settle. That our position

00:38:57.240 --> 00:39:02.240
perhaps is inaccurate or incomplete.

00:39:02.240 --> 00:39:07.240
I'd suggest to you, and I said this last week and I say this to you again,

00:39:07.240 --> 00:39:12.240
that there is not a single person in this church, starting with me, who can at present claim that we are

00:39:12.240 --> 00:39:17.240
operating at the potential we need to as individuals or that we are in a place that is

00:39:17.240 --> 00:39:22.240
accurate and complete. Not one person in this church right now.

00:39:22.240 --> 00:39:27.240
So let's look at John the Baptist and how he did in this regard.

00:39:27.240 --> 00:39:32.240
And draw principles out of him, out of his life.

00:39:32.240 --> 00:39:37.240
Look at John chapter 1, verse 1.

00:39:37.240 --> 00:39:42.240
John 1, verse 29.

00:39:42.240 --> 00:39:47.240
John 1, verse 29.

00:39:47.240 --> 00:39:52.240
The next day John saw Jesus coming towards him

00:39:52.240 --> 00:39:57.240
and said, Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,

00:39:57.240 --> 00:40:02.240
and the sin of the world, and the sin of the world, and the sin of the world, and the sin of the world,

00:40:02.240 --> 00:40:07.240
and the sin of the world, and the sin of the world, and the sin of the world.

00:40:07.240 --> 00:40:12.240
The next day John saw Jesus coming towards him and said,

00:40:12.240 --> 00:40:17.240
Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

00:40:17.240 --> 00:40:22.900
This is the one I meant when I said, A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was

00:40:22.900 --> 00:40:28.240
before me. I myself did not know him, but the reason I came spicy with water was that he might be

00:40:28.240 --> 00:40:33.240
revealed to Israel. Then John gave his testimony.

00:40:33.240 --> 00:40:38.240
I would not have known him except that the one who sent me to baptize with water

00:40:38.240 --> 00:40:43.240
told me, The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will

00:40:43.240 --> 00:40:48.240
baptize with the Holy Spirit. I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.

00:40:48.240 --> 00:40:53.240
Guys, John did see what he needed to see.

00:40:53.240 --> 00:40:58.240
He saw a new movement of God being initiated here on earth through Christ.

00:40:58.240 --> 00:41:03.240
He saw and heard the pleasure and the delight of the Father over

00:41:03.240 --> 00:41:08.240
Jesus. He saw all that.

00:41:08.240 --> 00:41:13.240
There is no doubt to that. He actually turns and calls Jesus the Lamb of God.

00:41:13.240 --> 00:41:18.240
Look at how assured or how easily John welcomed who Jesus was. Look at John 3.

00:41:18.240 --> 00:41:23.240
John 3, verse 30 and 31.

00:41:23.240 --> 00:41:28.240
John 3, verse 30 and 31.

00:41:28.240 --> 00:41:33.240
Or let's start at 28.

00:41:33.240 --> 00:41:38.240
You yourselves can testify that I said, I am not the Christ, but I am sent ahead of him.

00:41:38.240 --> 00:41:43.240
The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him

00:41:43.240 --> 00:41:48.240
and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine and it is now complete.

00:41:48.240 --> 00:41:53.240
He must become greater. I must become less. The one who comes from above is above all.

00:41:53.240 --> 00:41:58.240
The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all.

00:41:58.240 --> 00:42:03.240
He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.

00:42:03.240 --> 00:42:08.240
The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.

00:42:08.240 --> 00:42:13.240
So the point being, John saw what happened with Jesus. He saw the double lighting on him.

00:42:13.240 --> 00:42:18.240
He saw the Spirit of God fall on him. He acknowledged him as the Lamb of God.

00:42:18.240 --> 00:42:23.240
He welcomed the one who had come from above, acknowledged Jesus as the Christ.

00:42:23.240 --> 00:42:28.240
But listen to this guys. After all that, John still did not transition.

00:42:28.240 --> 00:42:33.240
Transition.

00:42:33.240 --> 00:42:38.240
John sees Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God. He says this is the Lamb of God.

00:42:38.240 --> 00:42:43.240
John says he is from above and he is Christ. Yet John fails to transition.

00:42:43.240 --> 00:42:48.240
After seeing, after welcoming who he is, John still fails to transition

00:42:48.240 --> 00:42:53.240
and still continues to operate from where he is operating.

00:42:53.240 --> 00:42:58.240
In John 11, we find that John still had disciples. How come John the Baptist, who has just

00:42:58.240 --> 00:43:03.240
proclaimed Christ as the Son of God, how come John the Baptist, who has just said, Behold the Lamb of God,

00:43:03.240 --> 00:43:08.240
how come John the Baptist still operates in his present parameters?

00:43:08.240 --> 00:43:13.240
Because he failed to transition into what?

00:43:13.240 --> 00:43:18.240
Was new in terms of what God was doing.

00:43:18.240 --> 00:43:23.240
He gets doubtful later on. In Matthew 11,

00:43:23.240 --> 00:43:28.240
you still see that John had disciples when he should have abandoned his ministry and message to follow Jesus.

00:43:28.240 --> 00:43:33.240
Just think of that guys. He should have abandoned his ministry and message to follow Jesus.

00:43:33.240 --> 00:43:38.240
Cost him his head.

00:43:38.240 --> 00:43:43.240
It is crazy how a man who turns and says,

00:43:43.240 --> 00:43:48.240
Behold the Lamb of God, was not able to follow the Lamb of God.

00:43:48.240 --> 00:43:53.240
It is amazing how 9 chapters later, he still has disciples.

00:43:53.240 --> 00:43:58.240
The irony is, his disciples begin to believe what he is preaching.

00:43:58.240 --> 00:44:03.240
Behold the Lamb of God. You see in Matthew 4, 2, that some of his disciples go after Jesus.

00:44:03.240 --> 00:44:08.240
They say, we want to find where you live.

00:44:08.240 --> 00:44:13.240
Jesus says, come and see. They follow Jesus and become his disciples.

00:44:13.240 --> 00:44:18.240
John's disciples followed Jesus, but John refused to shut down his message and his ministry.

00:44:18.240 --> 00:44:23.240
His message was old. Repent for the Kingdom of God is near.

00:44:23.240 --> 00:44:28.240
What was Jesus preaching? Repent for the Kingdom of God is here.

00:44:28.240 --> 00:44:33.240
Jesus said that there is no one greater than John the Baptist.

00:44:33.240 --> 00:44:38.240
Yet the least in the Kingdom of God is greater than him.

00:44:38.240 --> 00:44:43.240
John the Baptist was preaching a message that was old

00:44:43.240 --> 00:44:48.240
while refusing to come into alignment with the message that Christ the Lamb of God was preaching.

00:44:48.240 --> 00:44:53.240
This is what can happen to us, guys,

00:44:53.240 --> 00:44:58.240
if we don't transition in terms of our individual lives into what God wants us to do.

00:44:58.240 --> 00:45:03.240
I just want to re-emphasize how important it is

00:45:03.240 --> 00:45:08.240
to know where God sees you at today and not operate by what you were yesterday.

00:45:08.240 --> 00:45:13.240
It is important for you to do everything in your power to transition into what God sees you as today.

00:45:13.240 --> 00:45:18.240
Otherwise it is possible for you to walk alongside Jesus and yet not follow Jesus.

00:45:18.240 --> 00:45:23.240
I'm not talking about your eternal security. I'm talking about where we are at in life.

00:45:23.240 --> 00:45:28.240
In Matthew 11,

00:45:28.240 --> 00:45:33.240
2-4,

00:45:33.240 --> 00:45:38.240
go to Matthew 11, 2-4.

00:45:38.240 --> 00:45:43.240
Matthew 11, 2-4.

00:45:43.240 --> 00:45:48.240
It just shows you that

00:45:48.240 --> 00:45:53.240
his disciples were still around. When John heard in prison what Christ was doing,

00:45:53.240 --> 00:45:58.240
he sent his disciples to ask him,

00:45:58.240 --> 00:46:03.240
are you the one who was to come or should we expect someone else?

00:46:03.240 --> 00:46:08.240
Look at verse 13. This is Jesus speaking.

00:46:08.240 --> 00:46:13.240
For all the prophets in the law prophesied until John,

00:46:13.240 --> 00:46:18.240
it is a shame that everything that all the prophets in the Old Testament prophesied

00:46:18.240 --> 00:46:23.240
right up till John was present in Jesus. And yet even though

00:46:23.240 --> 00:46:28.240
John had presented Jesus to the world, he refuses to follow the one who he was

00:46:28.240 --> 00:46:33.240
talking about.

00:46:33.240 --> 00:46:38.240
No man, he refused to transition. He saw it, he welcomed it,

00:46:38.240 --> 00:46:43.240
but he could not admit that he was in an inaccurate position.

00:46:43.240 --> 00:46:48.240
We go back to the point. Who pursues whom?

00:46:48.240 --> 00:46:53.240
John pursues Jesus.

00:46:53.240 --> 00:46:58.240
The burden of pursuit is always on the one who wants to

00:46:58.240 --> 00:47:03.240
seek.

00:47:03.240 --> 00:47:08.240
John saw who Jesus was. John even welcomed, embraced and declared it, but he was not

00:47:08.240 --> 00:47:13.240
able to move out of his inaccurate position.

00:47:13.240 --> 00:47:18.240
He would not admit that the message he was preaching and what he was doing was

00:47:18.240 --> 00:47:23.240
no longer necessary. He should have folded who he was into what

00:47:23.240 --> 00:47:28.240
Jesus was doing and he refused to. I know we don't talk about this.

00:47:28.240 --> 00:47:33.240
We like John the Baptist the way he is, but these are examples so that we may learn from it.

00:47:33.240 --> 00:47:38.240
Guys, I must fold what I was yesterday

00:47:38.240 --> 00:47:43.240
into what God wants me to do today. I must fold.

00:47:43.240 --> 00:47:48.240
When we are done, you will realize

00:47:48.240 --> 00:47:53.240
why it's not a question of obedience

00:47:53.240 --> 00:47:58.240
by the time we get to the end. As I would say to Matt, just wait.

00:47:58.240 --> 00:48:03.240
I must fold what I was yesterday.

00:48:03.240 --> 00:48:08.240
You know what John should have done? He should have folded his ministry into what Jesus was

00:48:08.240 --> 00:48:13.240
doing, but he refused to. I must fold what I was yesterday

00:48:13.240 --> 00:48:18.240
into what God wants me to be today.

00:48:18.240 --> 00:48:23.240
I must fold what I was yesterday into what God wants me to be today.

00:48:23.240 --> 00:48:28.240
Fold meaning, let's assume I have an idea of what I was supposed to do till yesterday.

00:48:28.240 --> 00:48:33.240
And it's very successful. It's doing very well. People really think

00:48:33.240 --> 00:48:38.240
that, wow, Jacob, wonderful. My ways, my ministry, my goals

00:48:38.240 --> 00:48:43.240
are great and yet I can be so caught up in it that it becomes an inaccurate

00:48:43.240 --> 00:48:48.240
location that I dwell in. When God is saying, but Jacob, I must fold

00:48:48.240 --> 00:48:53.240
it into what I was yesterday.

00:48:53.240 --> 00:48:58.240
This is how I see you today. Move into it. Then what I have to do is I have to take what I was yesterday

00:48:58.240 --> 00:49:03.240
in terms of my goals, in terms of ministry, in terms of ways, fold it and say, okay, Father,

00:49:03.240 --> 00:49:08.240
this is good, but that is better even though I don't know what it is, even though I have no idea how I'm going to accomplish it.

00:49:08.240 --> 00:49:13.240
I'm going to fold all that I am and join you here today.

00:49:13.240 --> 00:49:18.240
No, that's it.

00:49:18.240 --> 00:49:23.240
If necessary, fold it and throw it away. If necessary, fold it and blend it in.

00:49:23.240 --> 00:49:28.240
Just depends.

00:49:28.240 --> 00:49:33.240
Move.

00:49:33.240 --> 00:49:38.240
Yeah.

00:49:38.240 --> 00:49:43.240
Meaning it can be any which way.

00:49:43.240 --> 00:49:48.240
Guys, I must fold what I was yesterday into what God wants me to be today

00:49:48.240 --> 00:49:53.240
or what God wants me to do today.

00:49:53.240 --> 00:49:58.240
When truth is progressively revealed, if we choose to hold on to our ministry,

00:49:58.240 --> 00:50:03.240
if we choose to hold on to our ways of doing things, if we choose to hold on to our positions,

00:50:03.240 --> 00:50:08.240
if we choose to hold on to our mindsets, if we choose to hold on to our stubborn habits,

00:50:08.240 --> 00:50:13.240
if we choose to hold on to our personality peeves, if we

00:50:13.240 --> 00:50:18.240
choose to hold on to our followers, we set ourselves up. Let me say that again.

00:50:18.240 --> 00:50:23.240
When truth is progressively revealed,

00:50:23.240 --> 00:50:28.240
and for the sake of the CD, I say this again,

00:50:28.240 --> 00:50:33.240
if someone went and asked Noah, what shall I do to be saved? Noah would have said,

00:50:33.240 --> 00:50:38.240
get into the ark. If someone went and asked Moses, what shall I do to be saved?

00:50:38.240 --> 00:50:43.240
Moses would have said, follow the Ten Commandments. If someone went and asked John the Baptist,

00:50:43.240 --> 00:50:48.240
what should I do to be saved? He would have said, repent and be baptized. The kingdom of God is near.

00:50:48.240 --> 00:50:53.240
If someone went and asked Jesus, what should I do to be saved? He would have said, unless you be born again, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

00:50:53.240 --> 00:50:58.240
If someone went and asked Paul, what shall I do to be saved? He would have said, it's not by words, but by faith.

00:50:58.240 --> 00:51:03.240
Truth is progressively revealed to us.

00:51:03.240 --> 00:51:08.240
And if we do not move along with God's revelation of the truth,

00:51:08.240 --> 00:51:13.240
the same truth to us, we will end up trying to get into an ark to be saved

00:51:13.240 --> 00:51:18.240
when we should be doing something else. The truth didn't change.

00:51:18.240 --> 00:51:23.240
The truth is absolute, but it is revealed to us bit by bit by bit by bit.

00:51:23.240 --> 00:51:28.240
And if we do not walk with truth as it's progressively revealed,

00:51:28.240 --> 00:51:33.240
if we choose to hold on to our ministry, our ways, our stubborn, sometimes sinful,

00:51:33.240 --> 00:51:38.240
habits, our mindsets which we refuse to let go of or change,

00:51:38.240 --> 00:51:43.240
our positions, our ways of doing things,

00:51:43.240 --> 00:51:48.240
our positions as in, sometimes it's a position in the church, sometimes it's a position in terms of our spiritual stance.

00:51:48.240 --> 00:51:53.240
It could be any position.

00:51:53.240 --> 00:51:58.240
No, we'll get there.

00:51:58.240 --> 00:52:03.240
You'll see it later. Our positions, our mindsets, our stubborn habits,

00:52:03.240 --> 00:52:08.240
our personalities that sometimes are defective, our pet peeves.

00:52:08.240 --> 00:52:13.240
If we do not let go of these guides,

00:52:13.240 --> 00:52:18.240
we won't be able to walk in what God is revealing at present because it becomes an obstacle.

00:52:18.240 --> 00:52:23.240
I got this email from one of the guys in Bahrain.

00:52:23.240 --> 00:52:28.240
He writes,

00:52:28.240 --> 00:52:33.240
Just thought I'd update you so far. Things are going good.

00:52:33.240 --> 00:52:38.240
I've been able to walk righteously. In fact, learning each day not to sin.

00:52:38.240 --> 00:52:43.240
And like you say, to hate sin with a passion. Not there yet completely, but I know I'll get there soon.

00:52:43.240 --> 00:52:48.240
You were so right about telling me to believe in who I am and to start walking in it.

00:52:48.240 --> 00:52:53.240
And that would lead me into whatever God wants me to go into.

00:52:53.240 --> 00:52:58.240
I'm realizing that people are opening up to me and relating to me, trusting me enough to open and tell me their problems and issues.

00:52:58.240 --> 00:53:03.240
I'm really excited about what God is doing. And at the same time, there's suddenly a demand on me to keep my vessel holy and righteous.

00:53:03.240 --> 00:53:08.240
Because it is this vessel that God will use to pour into others.

00:53:08.240 --> 00:53:13.240
His problem was,

00:53:13.240 --> 00:53:18.240
he wanted to be involved in things and do all that God was doing.

00:53:18.240 --> 00:53:23.240
He wanted to do, do, do. And I was telling him, become, become, become.

00:53:23.240 --> 00:53:28.240
Be who God wants you to be and you will do what God wants you to do.

00:53:28.240 --> 00:53:33.240
And once he started doing that,

00:53:33.240 --> 00:53:38.240
things have changed radically.

00:53:38.240 --> 00:53:43.240
I'll try to finish by 1.05.

00:53:43.240 --> 00:53:48.240
Guys, make sure that you don't see your present position as complete or accurate.

00:53:49.240 --> 00:53:54.240
Because you will be content then.

00:53:54.240 --> 00:53:59.240
And you will start living your life on your own terms and your rate of progress will be limited.

00:53:59.240 --> 00:54:04.240
Don't do what John did.

00:54:04.240 --> 00:54:09.240
John saw and confessed Jesus as God's son, but he did not transition.

00:54:09.240 --> 00:54:14.240
It seems to me, Jacob, that it's set in order.

00:54:14.240 --> 00:54:19.240
That there are things that you,

00:54:19.240 --> 00:54:24.240
God has just put them there so that you have to change.

00:54:24.240 --> 00:54:29.240
Yeah, and if you don't, you're like a potted plant that will have stunted growth because you're not being transplanted into new soil.

00:54:29.240 --> 00:54:34.240
Guys, failure to transition is failure to grow or stunted growth.

00:54:34.240 --> 00:54:39.240
Let's put it this way, failure to transition with God

00:54:39.240 --> 00:54:44.240
will result in stunted growth.

00:54:44.240 --> 00:54:49.240
Because a plant that is in a pot that needs to be transplanted

00:54:49.240 --> 00:54:54.240
will not grow if you don't transplant it.

00:54:54.240 --> 00:54:59.240
No, I heard about it. I do not know that from experience.

00:54:59.240 --> 00:55:04.240
Half the plants that my mother put in pots died after she left.

00:55:04.240 --> 00:55:09.240
So I wouldn't know about it.

00:55:09.240 --> 00:55:14.240
I've heard that that's what's supposed to happen if you don't transplant them.

00:55:14.240 --> 00:55:19.240
Guys, let's look at some other things that transpired in John's life because of his failure to transition.

00:55:19.240 --> 00:55:24.240
This is so sad, man. I was reading this and I felt so sad.

00:55:24.240 --> 00:55:29.240
John is called a type of Elijah, right?

00:55:29.240 --> 00:55:34.240
We just read that. Jesus said John was like Elijah and that John was a type of Elijah.

00:55:34.240 --> 00:55:39.240
And Elijah is supposed to be someone who announces the coming of the King and the Kingdom.

00:55:39.240 --> 00:55:44.240
And so John came and said, prepare ye the way of the Lord, and he announced the coming of Jesus.

00:55:44.240 --> 00:55:49.240
So John is a type of Elijah, but look at what happens to John.

00:55:49.240 --> 00:55:54.240
He's supposed to be like Elijah and imitate Elijah and all the good things that he does.

00:55:54.240 --> 00:55:59.240
But he wasn't supposed to die like Elijah died.

00:55:59.240 --> 00:56:04.240
When you look at the book of Kings, you find that Elijah was basically

00:56:04.240 --> 00:56:09.240
relegated to nothingness by who?

00:56:09.240 --> 00:56:14.240
By Jezebel.

00:56:14.240 --> 00:56:19.240
And here you see another type of Jezebel,

00:56:19.240 --> 00:56:24.240
in the form of the daughter of Herodias, Salome,

00:56:24.240 --> 00:56:29.240
who now renders John the Baptist completely ineffective

00:56:29.240 --> 00:56:34.240
by throwing him into prison.

00:56:34.240 --> 00:56:39.240
The way both these men were brought to the end is so sad, man.

00:56:39.240 --> 00:56:44.240
They weren't supposed to reflect each other in death, by the way.

00:56:44.240 --> 00:56:49.240
But just as Jezebel, put to death, or put an end to

00:56:49.240 --> 00:56:54.240
Elijah's ministry, so Salome, Herodias' daughter, puts an end to?

00:56:54.240 --> 00:56:59.240
John's ministry.

00:56:59.240 --> 00:57:04.240
A type of Elijah is put to death by a type of Jezebel.

00:57:04.240 --> 00:57:09.240
And Jezebel, by the way, is basically, we've talked about this in the past,

00:57:09.240 --> 00:57:14.240
it's a spirit of control. It's not a female, it's just a spirit of control.

00:57:14.240 --> 00:57:19.240
And when you are not controlled by the agenda of God,

00:57:19.240 --> 00:57:24.240
then know this, that there will be some other agenda that will now come to drive and manipulate you.

00:57:24.240 --> 00:57:29.240
Let me say that again. If you are not controlled by the agendas of God,

00:57:29.240 --> 00:57:34.240
then know this, that someone or something else will come

00:57:34.240 --> 00:57:39.240
and begin to drive and manipulate and control your steps here on us.

00:57:39.240 --> 00:57:44.240
So why not come into alignment with God? Everybody is somebody's fool.

00:57:44.240 --> 00:57:49.240
Why not be Christ's fool?

00:57:49.240 --> 00:57:54.240
A failure to transition into what God is calling me to

00:57:54.240 --> 00:57:59.240
will end up with someone else

00:57:59.240 --> 00:58:04.240
like Jezebel setting up my agendas

00:58:04.240 --> 00:58:09.240
and manipulating and driving my steps.

00:58:09.240 --> 00:58:14.240
Another thing that happens to John,

00:58:14.240 --> 00:58:19.240
John ends up in prison.

00:58:19.240 --> 00:58:24.240
John goes from the wilderness to the prison.

00:58:24.240 --> 00:58:29.240
And it says in Matthew 4, 12, that when Jesus heard that John was in prison,

00:58:29.240 --> 00:58:34.240
he left for Galilee. I mean, you would think that Jesus would go visit him.

00:58:34.240 --> 00:58:39.240
But strangely enough, what the Bible says is that when Jesus heard that John was put in prison,

00:58:39.240 --> 00:58:44.240
Jesus left for Galilee. He departed to Galilee.

00:58:44.240 --> 00:58:49.240
Guys, the parallel I want to make is that I want to make it clear

00:58:49.240 --> 00:58:54.240
that when Jesus left for Galilee,

00:58:54.240 --> 00:58:59.240
he departed to Galilee.

00:58:59.240 --> 00:59:04.240
Guys, the parallel I want to draw out is this.

00:59:04.240 --> 00:59:09.240
Failure to transition will result

00:59:09.240 --> 00:59:14.240
in an absence of His manifest presence in the things you do.

00:59:14.240 --> 00:59:19.240
You'll still do them, but His manifest presence will be missing.

00:59:19.240 --> 00:59:24.240
There'll be stagnation.

00:59:24.240 --> 00:59:29.240
There'll be stagnation.

00:59:29.240 --> 00:59:34.240
And there'll be a loss of spiritual influence.

00:59:34.240 --> 00:59:39.240
It's a terrible thing, guys, because there are churches, ministries, individuals

00:59:39.240 --> 00:59:44.240
who, because they failed to transition, are still doing what they're doing.

00:59:44.240 --> 00:59:49.240
You know what happens when the manifest presence of God is not involved in something?

00:59:49.240 --> 00:59:54.240
You've got to do smoke and light and stuff, because now you've got to make your show look attractive.

00:59:54.240 --> 00:59:59.240
When God is in the picture, He's the biggest distractor there can be. So you don't need smoke and lights.

00:59:59.240 --> 01:00:04.240
But when God is missing in terms of His manifest presence, because you failed to transition

01:00:04.240 --> 01:00:09.240
into what God wants you to do presently, then you have to do you, smoke and lights and drama.

01:00:09.240 --> 01:00:14.240
I'm not saying drama is wrong, but you've got to get more dramatic.

01:00:14.240 --> 01:00:19.240
Jesus would keep things

01:00:19.240 --> 01:00:24.240
absolutely quiet. He would not want anyone to know what He's doing,

01:00:24.240 --> 01:00:29.240
but He wouldn't be able to get out of a house because of the crowds around Him.

01:00:29.240 --> 01:00:34.240
How about that today, if we began to do things that way, and yet

01:00:34.240 --> 01:00:39.240
because God is the biggest distraction in the world, people gather around.

01:00:39.240 --> 01:00:44.240
Imprisonment

01:00:44.240 --> 01:00:49.240
is basically stagnation and a loss of spiritual influence.

01:00:49.240 --> 01:00:54.240
Guys,

01:00:54.240 --> 01:00:59.240
at the end of the day, who put the potential that you have in you?

01:00:59.240 --> 01:01:04.240
God. Hand it over back to Him. Let Him cultivate it.

01:01:04.240 --> 01:01:09.240
Let Him develop it. Some of it He develops directly. The rest of it He develops through equipers

01:01:09.240 --> 01:01:14.240
that are appointed to the church and are sent into your lives

01:01:14.240 --> 01:01:19.240
so that you may come into your full potential.

01:01:19.240 --> 01:01:24.240
Three more points and we're done. Guys,

01:01:24.240 --> 01:01:29.240
John displayed strong initial acceptance of what God was doing.

01:01:29.240 --> 01:01:34.240
We talked about that. He was so absolutely convinced that this was the Lamb of God.

01:01:34.240 --> 01:01:39.240
Even though there was strong initial acceptance, I want you to know that

01:01:39.240 --> 01:01:44.240
John did not have the ability to

01:01:44.240 --> 01:01:49.240
see it to the end. What I'm trying to say is this.

01:01:49.240 --> 01:01:54.240
Strong initial acceptance is not a guarantee or an indicator

01:01:54.240 --> 01:01:59.240
of your ability to finish. Strong initial

01:01:59.240 --> 01:02:04.240
acceptance is not

01:02:04.240 --> 01:02:09.240
an indicator or a guarantee

01:02:09.240 --> 01:02:14.240
of your ability to

01:02:14.240 --> 01:02:19.240
finish. At the end of the day,

01:02:19.240 --> 01:02:24.240
what good is it if I start well and do not finish?

01:02:24.240 --> 01:02:29.240
I'm telling you, Christianity is full of people who start well. Because when you start

01:02:29.240 --> 01:02:34.240
well, you've got that, I've got to do it. I'm all that. But at the end of the day, it's how you

01:02:34.240 --> 01:02:39.240
finish that matters, man. And with what is happening in our lives at present where

01:02:39.240 --> 01:02:44.240
as individuals we're beginning to come into who God wants us to be, you may be gung-ho about to

01:02:44.240 --> 01:02:49.240
start, but really it counts for nothing if you don't finish. It counts for nothing.

01:02:49.240 --> 01:02:54.240
It's how I finish the race.

01:02:54.240 --> 01:02:59.240
Have you noticed you don't have any gravestones on which it says,

01:02:59.240 --> 01:03:04.240
I have started the race well? All the gravestones say I've finished the race well.

01:03:04.240 --> 01:03:09.240
Because that's what counts.

01:03:09.240 --> 01:03:14.240
Shockingly, look at John's question. I mean, can you even

01:03:14.240 --> 01:03:19.240
imagine this, guys? It is so hard to put this together. Behold the Lamb of God.

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The one who comes from above is God. He is Christ. And then

01:03:24.240 --> 01:03:29.240
here's the other question. Are you the one who is sent

01:03:29.240 --> 01:03:34.240
or should we look for another?

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Are you the coming one or do we look for another?

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Guys, here's the answer to James's question. When you fail

01:03:44.240 --> 01:03:49.240
to transition, you stop hearing the preceding word.

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Let me say that again. When you fail to transition,

01:03:54.240 --> 01:03:59.240
you stop hearing the preceding word. Let me simplify that.

01:03:59.240 --> 01:04:04.240
The reason people are not able to hear

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is because God is saying, Jacob, come there, come there, come there. I'm there, Jacob.

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I'm on that side of the table. Come there. And I refuse to transition.

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He makes it possible for Ryan and Marcus to come into my life and say,

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Hey, Jacob, we have the strong sense that you need to be there. I thank them for it, bless them, but I refuse to move.

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I go to a conference and they say, Jacob, move. Refuse to move.

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I have dreams in the night. Go ahead.

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But who's the one who's calling?

01:04:39.240 --> 01:04:44.240
Yeah. God knows how much coaxing I need, guys.

01:04:44.240 --> 01:04:49.240
You know, I had a little kid I knew who was very scared of stepping

01:04:49.240 --> 01:04:54.240
into elevators because the one time he did on his own, the door shut.

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Little boy, his name was Vicky. And so

01:04:59.240 --> 01:05:04.240
I didn't know this. The first time I took him out, he was my neighbor's kid and we had to go up.

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I had to walk up the stairs with the kid, which wasn't very enjoyable because I hate stairs.

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The point being that this kid wouldn't get into the elevator and you have no idea

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how difficult it was to convince this boy that it was okay and how

01:05:19.240 --> 01:05:24.240
once I had explained it to him, then I had to stand and show him how the door opens, how much time there is.

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And then finally it was that day when I held his hand and I said, Vicky, when I step,

01:05:29.240 --> 01:05:34.240
you step with me. And Vicky said, okay. And we both stepped across that little threshold

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and stood in the elevator. And you should have seen the relief on this boy's face.

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But it took three or four outings before Vicky decided to step into the elevator.

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So I understand giants, but if I have a heart like that, I'm not a dad and I can have that

01:05:49.240 --> 01:05:54.240
for a neighbor's kid, imagine your dad's heart towards you when it comes to

01:05:54.240 --> 01:05:59.240
massive obstacles. He knows how long he needs to work on you so that you can get to that place.

01:05:59.240 --> 01:06:04.240
Then it becomes a choice where if I refuse to transition, you know what God does? He still loves me as much,

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but he will only speak to me with regard to what is here. And you stop hearing God

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because you have failed to transition. You stop hearing God.

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Failure to transition will end in the proceeding word of God,

01:06:19.240 --> 01:06:24.240
no more evident to you. Listen to this guys. John the Baptist was in the wilderness

01:06:24.240 --> 01:06:29.240
under the rule of Caiaphas and the other guy.

01:06:29.240 --> 01:06:34.240
He was in the wilderness under the rule of Caiaphas and he could hear God.

01:06:34.240 --> 01:06:39.240
The same John now is in prison under Herod and he cannot hear God.

01:06:39.240 --> 01:06:44.240
This man who proclaimed the beginning of the ultimate kingdom here on earth

01:06:44.240 --> 01:06:49.240
cannot hear God, so much so that he has to send his disciples to figure out, are you the coming one?

01:06:49.240 --> 01:06:54.240
It is such a sad story sometimes.

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When I fail to transition to what God is calling me to, I stop hearing the proceeding word.

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Why? Because like Eddie says, you cannot listen to God on a shortwave transmitter

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when God is speaking on satellite. Change your transmitter to satellite.

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Change your transmitter.

01:07:14.240 --> 01:07:19.240
Did I say three more points? I meant two more points.

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Guys, if you fail to transition or align yourself with what God is calling you to,

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you can be involved in inaccurate battles.

01:07:29.240 --> 01:07:34.240
If you fail to transition, you cannot listen to God.

01:07:34.240 --> 01:07:39.240
You can be involved in inaccurate battles.

01:07:39.240 --> 01:07:44.240
If you fail to transition into what God is calling you to,

01:07:44.240 --> 01:07:49.240
it is possible that you can be drawn into inaccurate battles that you were never supposed to be involved in.

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Skirmishes that will end up costing you when you never needed to.

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This is just a supposition. It's just hypothesizing on John's life.

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Guys, can you imagine how different John's life would have been

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had he folded his life into that of Jesus?

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When you transition, you don't fight some battles

01:08:14.240 --> 01:08:19.240
because they are not yours anymore to fight.

01:08:19.240 --> 01:08:24.240
You only take on skirmishes that God sends you out on.

01:08:24.240 --> 01:08:29.240
You don't end up fighting some battles.

01:08:29.240 --> 01:08:34.240
Never know, man.

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Strangely enough, John's name is not mentioned in Hebrews 11.

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At the end of the day, guys, pursue what God is calling you to in Christ.

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Pursue it with violence, with tenacity, with consistency.

01:08:49.240 --> 01:08:54.240
Pursue it with violence, with tenacity, with consistency.

01:08:54.240 --> 01:08:59.240
Pursue it with violence, with tenacity, with consistency.

01:08:59.240 --> 01:09:04.240
Matthew 11.12 says,

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Again, Jesus makes a reference to John.

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Unfortunately, John was one of the guys who did not.

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Matthew 11.12, I think. It's up there on the top of the sheet.

01:09:19.240 --> 01:09:24.240
Pursue what God is calling you to in this season with tenacity,

01:09:24.240 --> 01:09:29.240
with violence, and with consistency.

01:09:29.240 --> 01:09:34.240
Think of it like this, guys. John is what you were yesterday.

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Jesus is what you were meant to be today. So don't follow John when Jesus is around.

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John is what you were yesterday. Jesus is what you are supposed to be today.

01:09:44.240 --> 01:09:49.240
Don't follow John when Jesus is around.

01:09:49.240 --> 01:09:54.240
John is what you were yesterday. Jesus is what you are supposed to be today and tomorrow.

01:09:54.240 --> 01:09:59.240
So please don't follow John when Jesus is around.

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Because Jesus and John can co-exist,

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but John will have limited significance.

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You saw that happening. Jesus had his disciples, John had his disciples.

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Here's the sad thing, guys, and please listen to this.

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Guys, if you don't transition, know that what you will birth on Earth

01:10:24.240 --> 01:10:29.240
will not transition either. Please hear this.

01:10:29.240 --> 01:10:34.240
You know, John did not transition and join Jesus, right?

01:10:34.240 --> 01:10:39.240
Go to Ephesians 18. What do you find there? You find in Ephesians 18, 25,

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a guy called Apollos.

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Go to Acts 18. I'm glad you're still awake.

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Acts 18. You find in Acts 18,

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verse 25, a guy called Apollos. Who was Apollos?

01:10:59.240 --> 01:11:04.240
A disciple of John, preaching

01:11:04.240 --> 01:11:09.240
inaccurately. So Aquila and Priscilla had to come in,

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straighten them out. It says there,

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Apollos, a disciple of John. Acts 19, you see another situation

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where there are 10 or 12 people, and who were they? They were disciples of

01:11:24.240 --> 01:11:29.240
John, who hadn't even heard about Jesus. Just imagine

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this, guys.

01:11:34.240 --> 01:11:39.240
They probably did not hear of Jesus' death and resurrection and did not know of the Holy Spirit.

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You see how

01:11:44.240 --> 01:11:49.240
two people can coexist, Jesus and John on the earth at the same time. And years

01:11:49.240 --> 01:11:54.240
later you're still producing the same offspring. It's a dangerous thing, guys. What then

01:11:54.240 --> 01:11:59.240
will have to happen is Aquila and Priscilla will have to come in, save those that we have produced.

01:11:59.240 --> 01:12:04.240
Even today, in Iraq and Iran, in the southern part of Iraq

01:12:04.240 --> 01:12:09.240
and certain parts of Iran, there's a group called the Mandians,

01:12:09.240 --> 01:12:14.240
M-A-N-D-E-A-N-S. And these Mandians are a group who have a

01:12:14.240 --> 01:12:19.240
mixture of beliefs, but one of their heroes is John the Baptist. Many of their beliefs come

01:12:19.240 --> 01:12:24.240
from John the Baptist. They're not Christians, but they follow

01:12:24.240 --> 01:12:29.240
John the Baptist mixed with a lot of Persian beliefs. Still,

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2,000 years later, you still see the evidence. Guys, understand that

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if you fail to transition, the produce of it is transgenerational. 2,000 years later

01:12:39.240 --> 01:12:44.240
you still have the Mandians.

01:12:44.240 --> 01:12:49.240
For the sake of your children and your children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's

01:12:49.240 --> 01:12:54.240
children, that covers about 500 years,

01:12:54.240 --> 01:12:59.240
transition so that when you leave the earth, you leave from where God wanted you to be, not where God once

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once was. Become all that you're supposed to become. I'm done. Inaccurate transitioning

01:13:13.440 --> 01:13:19.000
is generational. It results in bondage. Do not fail to move in this season, guys. It's

01:13:19.000 --> 01:13:29.720
fresh, it's new, it's under an open heaven. And as, sorry? Yeah, do not fail to transition

01:13:29.720 --> 01:13:36.760
in this season. We already talked about it last week, that God is about to specifically

01:13:36.760 --> 01:13:42.040
take each of our individual lives, as he did with us as a church two years ago, and begin

01:13:42.040 --> 01:13:48.480
to build into our lives what each of us is, who we are supposed to be, so that we can

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do what he wants us to do. That's what he's doing in this season in our lives as a church.

01:13:56.600 --> 01:14:03.520
It's fresh, it's new. We have an open heaven in terms of the favor of God upon us, because

01:14:03.520 --> 01:14:09.380
when he says he wants to do something, he'll go about doing it. Do not fail to transition.

01:14:09.380 --> 01:14:15.000
Do not go halfway. Go all the way, because this is the time for each of us. Some of you,

01:14:15.000 --> 01:14:20.040
I've already met with and we've been talking about how you can move on, and I know that

01:14:20.040 --> 01:14:26.000
some of you have had a huge rock put on your lap saying, here, carry this and run with

01:14:26.000 --> 01:14:30.320
it, and I could hear the nervousness in your laughter, but you're still willing to go.

01:14:30.320 --> 01:14:35.400
Go for it, man, because the demand on your life will always be beyond your present ability.

01:14:35.400 --> 01:14:43.640
Let me say that again. God's demand on your life will always be beyond your present ability.

01:14:43.640 --> 01:14:56.080
Otherwise, you could do it. Then you wouldn't need him. Father, could you please take all

01:14:56.080 --> 01:15:02.680
that we've talked about and stitch it together so that it makes more sense? Some parts of

01:15:02.680 --> 01:15:07.640
what I taught today seem a little disconnected, so could you please stitch it together so

01:15:07.640 --> 01:15:11.960
what needs to make sense will settle deep, Papa. But when you think of John the Baptist,

01:15:12.040 --> 01:15:16.280
who your son walked with, it's stark, Lord, what happened with him, and if it can happen

01:15:16.280 --> 01:15:19.920
to him, it can happen to the best of us, Father, because you said he was one of the greatest

01:15:19.920 --> 01:15:27.840
in your kingdom. So I do ask, Abba, that during this time of transition that we will not fail

01:15:27.840 --> 01:15:38.840
in these areas, Abba. Father, I pray that not one person in this church will stay put

01:15:38.840 --> 01:15:43.240
or choose to not go to where they're supposed to go, Lord. Become all they're supposed to

01:15:43.240 --> 01:15:49.000
in this time, at this time, Abba. Every one of us, Abba. Every one of us. Take us to where

01:15:49.000 --> 01:15:54.880
we need to operate from. Make us who we are supposed to be. We're so willing to do that,

01:15:54.880 --> 01:16:05.880
Father. We just ask that right now. Amen.