Pastor Sydney read out of the book of 1 Corinthians 12:31, continuation of the gifts of the Spirit. Look at the word and see what it has to say about your situation. Earnestly desire the gifts of the Spirit. The best gift is the one needed at that moment. 1 Corinthians 14:1. Self deceiving is where one just becomes the hearer and not doing. Our flesh can hinder God. You don’t have to be without fault to serve the Lord. However, you do have to be under the blood of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:13-14. If we are not desiring the gifts of God it is because we think that God cannot use us. Yield yourself to the Lord and desire the gifts of God. 1 Corinthians 3:1-3. Taking risks! Don’t limit God. The Lord had a message for Kathleen English, He sees her as the diamond that she is. Acts 2. Continually be active in being filled with the Holy Spirit. Pastor Sydney compared it to a car. When you run out of gas you have to keep filling the tank. Ephesians 5:17. It is foolish not to know the will of the Lord. Luke 11:5. In order to live in the Spirit you got to stay full of the Spirit. Baby dedication had taken place.
Gifts of the Spirit – What are you full of?
Learning the Fear of the Lord
Psalm 34
Ephesians 5:17-21
Gifts of the Spirit- Special Faith
Pastor Sydney spoke out of 2 Corinthians 1:20 and Psalm 57 for communion. The key point is that we need to be intentionally thankful. Lagging indicator is something that is behind what has already happened and it is how feelings are. Pastor Sydney mentioned about how tired he was, so he’d begun to just thank the Lord for what He has done for him. In doing so it brought him joy. Mathew 6:25 had been read for offering for Mission Sunday. It is not the hearer that gets the results, it is the doer. Examine yourself and ask God what are you seeing first. Pastor Sydney uses the example of a rope with no slack. Referring to that there is no slack between God and His promise. God is the God of now. Sermon: 1 Corinthians 12:1-11. You want to desire the gifts. The nine gifts are wisdom, knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, to another working mighty deeds, prophecy, discerning of spirits, diverse kinds of tongues, and interpretation. There are three gifts that do something. Known as the power gifts are healing, working of miracles, and special faith. Pastor Sydney points out that we are a move of God. Don’t limit the move of God by being too busy. There are two kinds of faith, common faith and special faith. Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the assurance of what we hope for. Faith is the foundation of what is expected. Titus 1:4, John 1, Romans 10:15, and John 15:4-6. Hear it, believe it, and do it. Romans 4:19, Mathew 8:10, and James 2:22.
Getting God’s Vision for Your Life
Pastor Sydney read out of Psalm 35 and Mathew 18:21. He spoke on getting back to the simple things, the simple love you had at first for Jesus. God is calling everyone to repentance. “Every hindrance and every wall be removed,” was prayed by Pastor Sydney. One of the key subjects talked about was on forgiveness. Unforgiveness will keep a person in bondage. While in Iraq Pastor Sydney had seen a photo of Jesus laughing. The same image kept appearing. The picture of Jesus laughing represented the joy of the Lord. The Lord had given Larry Hostetter a message for the congregation. Larry had a dream that he had several times before. In that dream the demonstration of how God is a God of order was what had been represented in a church service. In that service one by one someone ministered a word, sang, or played and instrument. Jen Ropp had spoke about her encounter with a cashier at the grocery store and the takeaway was what your vision is for your life or situation. Anastashia Groff had shared that seeing Pastor Sydney and Jen’s son miraculously being healed step by step of type 1 Diabetes is her vision. Herb Baughman had talked about the power of forgiveness and how a relative decide to stick with unforgievness and eventually died from bone cancer.
Testimonies of Resurrected Lives
John Lehman shared about his trip to Ethiopia. In John 17 Jesus prayed for us, that we would be one as He and the Father are one. Eternal life is that we may know God and Jesus Christ. It is a father-son, Father-Son, relationship. God goes with us and is in us. It is a personal relationship. Prayer is not an appointment with God and then we leave Him. He wants us to have eternal life and to be with Him constantly. Don’t limit God by being too busy to hear Him. What do you do when you are bored? Let that be a trigger to prompt you to listen to what He wants you to hear. The rest of the service was the congregation’s sharing of their personal relationship with God in action.
How Do We Live a Long Life
This is Victory Sunday. Everyday is a great day to praise the Lord. Let’s be worshipers in truth. God gives grace for finances (2 Corinthians 9:8), so that we can bless others. Pray for greater needs. Sermon: The spiritual side of living long is different from the world’s view. The question is how long is it before I die? People have used Genesis 6:3 which says that man will live 120 years, but that was how many years it was until the flood. Psalm 90:10, which is a prayer of Moses, says that we will live 70 years or if by reason of strength, 80 years. Eighty years is not really long. This was a complaint and was considered short because of a curse. Ask God if you are finished, or if you are short on vision. Some people put more faith in the latest supplement than they do on the Word. It is godly wisdom to take care of your body. Ask God what you are to do to take care of your body. Scriptures to increase your faith for long life are: Psalm 91:14-16; Proverbs 9:10-11; 3:13, 16-18; 4:10; 10:27; 28:16; Isaiah 65:20; 1 Peter 3:10-12; and Ephesians 6:2-3. There is not a set day or time for you to die. You can lengthen your days, so we can do things to shorten our days. Death is an upgrade. We are not afraid of dying. We want to live long to accomplish the most we can on this earth. You can ask God for something more to accomplish. Keep your tongue from evil. Honor your parents. Our faith is not in exercise or a supplement or pill. Charles Capps taught that you can have what you say. He had exactly what he said he would have. Your words will work for you.
Preparation to Do God’s Will
A word was given about God’s trust in Apostle Dale because of his obedience and the calling that He has placed in his heart. God is calling the church to go beyond where it is. God is calling the church to prayer and to lay a supernatural foundation. It is about God’s heart for souls and His kingdom. Pray. Intercede. God needs our intercession and obedience. Learn to know God’s Spirit. Jen Ropp shared a victory testimony of her son’s healing.Sermon: Preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord (Proverbs 16:1). God has a preparation time in your life, which is like a pregnancy. Honor the prep time and where you are now in your life, and don’t get frustrated during it. Commit your works and ways to the Lord, and don’t plan God right out of your life. Enjoy your life where God has you. Commit your destiny to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established. Then, your desires will pull you in a certain direction. Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4). Nurture the God-dreams in you. If you don’t know God’s plan, you are in preparation. If you don’t have a job, spend 8 hours looking for one. Let go to get a hold of what is ahead for you. Ask the Lord: What do You want me to do? Learn what you need to go in the direction of your desires. Get busy where you are. Give. Pray. Do more. Desire puts you on a road that separates you from other things (the Hebrew meaning of Proverbs 18:1). Do not be afraid of your (good) desires, and one will lead to another one. God tells us to not be anxious, but to be filled with care for nothing, not careless, but carefree. Being carefree attracts others. Desires bring motivation. Worry is sin. Don’t fret, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving make your requests known to God (Philippians 4:6). Note: thanksgiving is important. A desire is a passion that you feel responsible for; it has made a claim on you. The result is that the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7). Watch and follow God’s peace.
Jen Ropp & Jon Fike
Jen Ropp: Hebrews 10:35-38 tells us not to throw away our confidence (faith), which has great reward. We need cheerful endurance (patience), so that after we do God’s will, we may receive the promise. Abraham and Sarah’s promise from God looked impossible (Hebrews 11:11-12), and it did not come quickly but manifested twenty-five years later. If God says something, He will do it. Are you obeying and cheerfully enduring? Jon Fike: “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” (Ephesians 3:20). God can do beyond what we think, according to the power that works in us.
Special Faith, Part 1
Let go of your past, and go by faith in the Word, not by feelings. If your sins are forgiven, it’s a lie to believe that your past holds you. The past does not hold you. It’s your holding onto your past that holds you. God doesn’t renovate your past; He removes it. Release your future. Pastor Syd ministered to various people, and in turn people ministered in prophetic words and prayer to him and Jen. Pastor Syd shared three powerful testimonies of great faith and God’s faithfulness, goodness, and protection. Be sensitive and obedient to the Lord, and be quick to change. In 1 Kings 17-19:2 we learn that Elijah was a man who walked in the gifts of the Spirit, especially that of great faith. He also walked in great obedience to the word from the Lord. God will hear you when you are in His will. God expects the prayers of the righteous to work (James 5).
Gifts of the Spirit: The Working of Miracles
Be instantaneous in prayer. Pastor Syd is praying for bigger needs for the kingdom and CWI. He and Jen laid hands on and prayed for the home group leaders and for Jim and Sharon Day. One way God’s power is manifested is in the working of miracles (1 Corinthians 12:10). These are mighty deeds; the force that makes able or possible; the activity in power that makes the impossible possible. The Bible is full of miracles, and that season is not over. If you do your part, God can do His. Moses was 80 years old, and Aaron was 83 when they spoke to Pharaoh. People long for power, and we have the real thing to show them. Exodus 7-11 and again in chapter 14, show how Moses used the rod that God empowered with His Spirit to demonstrate that His power is greater than that of magicians. Even today magicians try to copy Moses and God with “magic” wands. God is a God of miracles. Jesus only did what He saw the Father do. He knew God was His Source when He was on earth. In 2 Kings 2:8 Elijah used his mantle to divide the river, and in verses 13 and 14 Elisha picked up Elijah’s mantle. In chapter 4:38-40 he purified poisoned stew. In chapter 6, a branch caused an iron ax-head to swim. Other extraordinary miracles and signs and wonders are recorded in Acts 19:11-12; Hebrews 2:4; John 2:1-11; Acts 4:33; Acts 5:12; and Acts 8:4. Doing miracles is God’s testimony. Be sensitive and hear the Spirit of the Lord and be obedient to do what He tells you to do. With great power the apostles testified to the resurrection of Jesus, and great (abundant) grace was on them all. God worked extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that people were healed even by handkerchiefs and aprons. Peter’s shadow caused people to be healed. Like Philip after Stephen’s stoning, we preach Jesus. We must walk in faith. Expect the most phenomenal things, the workings of miracles. God can use what is in your hands.
Gifts of the Spirit: Gifts of Healings
Isaiah 2; Isaiah 1:18-19 (If you are willing and obedient you will eat the good of the land.) We have a better covenant and a better way of receiving it. Wealth was intended for God’s people, not the wicked. Get rid of your small, limited thinking. Karen Burrows gave a testimony about their home group. Sermon: The gifts of healings are plural- gifts and healings (1 Corinthians 12:1-14). It is God’s will for us to be healed. Paul healed the man through God’s power, and then he preached and others were healed (Acts 28:1-8). Anyone can be healed by faith. People can be healed by hearing the Word, such as Isaiah 53:4-5. A lame man was healed by hearing the Word and receiving faith (Acts 14:8). Philip preached Christ and those who were paralyzed and lame were healed (Acts 8:4). We need to do what He wants to do through us. Jesus walked away from man sick people, because He did what the Father told him to do, and so should we. Matthew 20:29.
Look to God As Your Source
God is holy. This is the season of answered prayer. In the book of Revelation, the angels, elders, and living creatures worship God for He is holy. [There was a tongue and interpretation about how precious you are to Him, no matter what is going on in your life and heart. He has called you. His blood covers you. He is preparing you to walk in His holiness and His blessing. Jesus stands with you. Continue to walk in His Word, truth, and the Holy Spirit. Do you know Him? He is real and alive and He speaks to you. Jesus sent His Holy Spirit to live in you. God lives in you. May you know the goodness of God. He puts a hunger in you for His Word. Go and be Jesus to others. The anointing lives in you.] [Shane shared about his knowing that God’s hands were holding his during the worship time. God was saying, “I love you,” and Shane was experiencing the glory of God. Pastor Syd said that Shane’s feet will go to the nations whose names he does not even know how to pronounce.] Pastor Syd shared that this morning he made a special request to the Lord, asking for His Presence to be known and to take over the service. Offering sermon: Jesus asked the disciples how many loaves they had in Mark 8:1-21. Where Jesus’ compassion is, the need is met. He wants to work with what you have already. Jesus told all of the multitude to sit down. Order comes before increase. Know your finances. Jesus did what the Father told Him to do in faith. When He fed over five thousand men, twelve small baskets were left. When He fed four thousand men, seven large baskets were left, baskets the size for a person to fit into. Jesus redeems us from stupid with His wisdom. Right after the miracle of feeding the huge crowd, the Pharisees met them. The disciples forgot to bring enough bread. Their minds were stuck in a natural problem. Jesus did not want the disciples to be spiritually misled. Jesus was saying, “I am your source. Stop limiting yourself to your resources.” God is your source. Look at God and obey Him, and then rest in faith. When you give an offering to the Lord, do what He tells you to do. Have compassion. Pastor Syd shared a powerful testimony of how He provided for their recent medical costs. [Levi Lapp shared about collecting baby clothes and items for them to take along with them to an orphanage in Guatemala.]
Suffering Comes with the Gifts of the Spirit
Opening: Pastor Syd shared about the test their family is facing. They are using the Word against symptoms of disease for a victorious testimony. Victory comes from the Lord. Pastor Syd shared how they are working the Word, by believing it, declaring it, and looking for the circumstances to line up with it. Scriptures they and we are standing on: Isaiah 53:1; Psalm 103:2-3; Matthew 18:19-20; Mark 11:23-24. God has already provided healing! [We prayed in the Spirit.] Offering: Focus on the Source, not the blessing. Let God show Himself off in you. Sermon: (See previous notes from 2/5/17.) All of the gifts of the Spirit work in love. In Paul’s day, the people believed in many gods. He stressed that there is one God who gives the gifts to each one (1 Corinthians 12:4-10, 31; 14:1, 39-40). Suffering and persecution come with the gifts of the Spirit. He tells us this to prepare us. God’s chastisement is different from that of the world. Sickness is not part of the chastisement, because we have been redeemed from it. Why do we experience sickness, since we’ve been redeemed from it? We’ve been redeemed from sin, too, but why do we sin? His chastisement includes a choice. John 15:18-21 tells us that we will have persecution and that the world will hate and persecute us. Philippians 1:29 says that when we believe in Him, we will suffer for His sake. The book of Acts is full of examples of the gifts of the Spirit being in operation and persecution coming after it. More is expected than good teaching and preaching. Paul said that what he did was in demonstration of the Spirit and of power so that their faith would not be in words of human wisdom but in the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:1-5). Paul boasted of what he suffered, including being let down in a basket through a window on the wall so he could escape. He was caught up into the third heaven, not being able to tell if he was in his body or not. The thorn in the flesh was given to him because of the visions (1 Corinthians 11:16 – 12:1-7). The thorn in the flesh was a messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he be exalted above measure. God and Satan do not work together. Satan looks for the one whom he may devour. What is a thorn in the flesh? It is people or a spirit that causes people to persecute the believer. If the Israelites did notdrive out the inhabitants of the land from before them, then the people they let remain would be thorns in your sides, and they would harass them in the land where they would dwell (Numbers 33:55). God told the Israelites to separate themselves from the remnants of other nations, or they would be “scourges on your sides and thorns in your eyes” (Joshua 23:12-13). God again told the Israelites to drive the inhabitants out, or they would be thorns in their sides (Judges 2:2-3). Paul’s thorn in the flesh was a spirit that caused the people to persecute him to try to stop him (and us) from operating in the gifts of the Spirit. You have authority over them, and you can have the victory! Hebrews 11; Hebrews 12:8-9. God’s grace is sufficient. His grace is His ability and empowerment. His power is perfected in weakness. Weakness is an opportunity for power to be shown. His grace means victory and power! Grace is NOT a cover-up for sin. It empowers you to act, be healed, and do the impossible. For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, but we shall live with Him by the power of God toward you.5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified (2 Corinthians 13:4-5). Luke 6:22 says that we are blessed when we are persecuted for the sake of the gospel. The book,The Heavenly Man, is written by a Chinese Christian who endured terrible suffering and persecution for his faith. When he received bad press in Austria or Germany concerning upcoming meetings in Canada, he considered that persecution. If you suffer persecution for the sake of the gospel, rejoice and leap for joy (Luke 6:23)! Your rewards will be great in heaven. Mark 10:17-31 says about treasures in heaven and receiving a hundredfold now in this time, with persecutions, and in the age to come, eternal life.
God Is Crazy in Love with You
Kurt’s introduction before his sermon: The local church is the pillar and the ground of the Truth. It gives the foundation for us to stand on and is the pillar for us to remain strong. Pastors are a specific gift from the Lord. We need to be in church services. Pastor Kurt says that he would find out why someone is losing and not making it. He found that flaky people do not have a church that they are faithful to. Be faithful to your pastor and church. Sermon: Kurt got saved by believing that God had to keep His covenant, even if He did not want to. He turned to Jesus because he was dying of a disease and wanted what He had to offer, not because he believed God loved him. He believed that God responds to His Word by integrity. It is not enough toknow that God loves us, but according to 1 John 4:14-16, we need to believe that He does. Many people know He loves them, but they think that they have disqualified themselves because they messed up. Do we believe His love for us personally? Faith works by love, and when you understand how much God loves you, faith works easier. Kurt compared knowing and believing God to someone he hardly knows saying that he will buy him a suit. Kurt is not going to make any changes according to that. However, if Apostle Dale or Pastor Syd say that to him, he is going to be checking out suits, asking where to shop for them in this area, and making room for it in his suitcase. What is the difference? He knows and believes those two men; he did not really know the other one. Know and believe His love for you. He will keep His promises. He told a story of a man who spent huge amounts on long-distant phone bills to a “crazy” woman. When people asked him why he did it, he said, “Because I love her.” People do crazy things when they are in love. God is crazy in love with you! However, be watchful that you do not abuse His love. It does not mean that you don’t have to listen to Him. Don’t beat yourself up for what you have done, and don’t look more at yourself than at God. Don’t try to find out where you have opened the door to the enemy. If he is beating up you or someone you love, deal with him with your weapon! Cry out to God. If you opened the door, you can sort that out later. In Philippians 4:17 it says about the day of judgment. Don’t be afraid of that. It is a positive thing: He will declare you “not guilty!” Even when He corrects you if is for your own good. Kurt broke his ankle in Israel. It was a day of judgment for him. He was quoting healing Scriptures when it happened, but his mind was saying that he had not been meditating on healing Scriptures very much lately. God did mighty works for even evil places, like Sodom and Gomorrah. We love Him because He first loved us. Be more convinced of His love for you than your love for Him. I love Him, but He loves me all the more. A young man could not talk. Kurt told his father to speak of him as “Speaking Isaiah.” People do crazy things when they are in love. God loves you.
Pastor Syd had a word for Apostle Dale and Teri Armstrong about the Rebecca anointing, anticipation, and expectation. Cathy Ginder, Darryl Balmer, and Ann Borg shared financial and healing testimonies of God’s goodness. We are to rejoice in the Lord always, not worry, and look to the Source (Philippians 4:4-6, 13, 19). Keep your eyes on God as your source, not on your own resources, and don’t limit Him. [A book, The Secret Place of God’s Protection by Gloria Copeland was given to someone whose bulletin had a sticker on it.]
Gifts of the Spirit: Suffering and Persecution
Sermon: Are we willing to step out in the gifts of the Spirit? What accompanies the gifts? Obedience, love, power, anointing, peace, selflessness, results, willingness, grace, exhortation, submission, and suffering and persecution. We can overcome or avoid anything that is common with the world’s suffering, such as sickness and accidents, but we are promised two types of suffering: 1) suffering from persecution, and 2) suffering from God’s disposition. We read Hebrews 12:3-9. What is the chastisement of God? Sons of God are disciplined. It should not be what the world is suffering. The discipline of God carries a choice, and that is when we suffer. For example, Jesus had a choice to make in the Garden of Gethsemane. He chose to submit to God’s will. He suffered. Years ago the Lord told Pastor Syd to lay down his dirt bike for six months, because it had become an idol. He had to make a choice. The choice is when we “suffer.” The gifts of the Spirit were in operation in Acts 9:1-20, and what came with them? Persecution came. We are told to expect suffering and persecution: Acts 14:22; Philippians 1:2-9; 2 Timothy 3:11, 12; Romans 8:16-18; 1 Peter 4:12-16. We must believe that there is rescue from persecution: Acts 5; Acts 6:8; Acts 10; Acts 14; Acts 16. We need the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:1-5), and the confirmation of the Word. The more the gifts are on display, the more you will have persecution and opposition. The Lord will deliver you from them all.
There were 13 testimonies of God’s goodness. God is a respector of faith. Jesus is the Finisher. He is our Source. Austin and Cathy Ginder shared the Lord’s vision for them as foster and natural parents. There was prayer for couples soon to be giving birth.
The Purpose of the Gifts of the Spirit
Text: 1 Corinthians 12:1-9. Paul must have thought that the gifts of the Spirit are important in that he wrote three chapters about them. He did not want the Body of Christ to be ignorant, lacking knowledge, of them but He wanted us to be informed to the point of operating in them. The dumb idols referred to in this passage are gods which do not speak. God speaks! The gifts of the Spirit are one way He manifests. The Holy Spirit will inspire you to speak. He is a now God. There are different ministries and gifts. Apostle Dale explained that Jesus is over the ministries (for example: prophet), and the Spirit is over the gifts (prophecy). The gifts are good. Respect all of the gifts of the Spirit. The gifts are not of flesh, talent, or experience but are of the Holy Spirit. Be more available to the Spirit. The gifts are given as He wills. Ask Him, “What do You want me to do?” The closer we are to Him, the more the gifts manifest. Apostle Dale told of a time he was not prepared to be going into a foreign country, so he did not have his passport with him. The Lord made him invisible when he went into and out of the country. The gospel serves His purpose. Years ago Apostle Dale’s mother’s back went out on her. She was healed when a Spirit-filled man ministered to her. She also was filled with the Spirit. If the gift of the Holy Spirit would not have manifested, she would not have been saved, healed, and filled, and all that Apostle Dale and CWI are doing would not have happened. One gift of the Spirit is still working in many people’s lives. If God asks you to do something, do it and expect a miracle.
From Being to Doing: The Great Commission
[A word was given: Jesus, part of the “Us” in Genesis, came that we might know the love of the Father. He is worthy of all praise. He is our only salvation. Will you trust in Him?] Pastor Sydney: If dealing with a life-threatening issue, there is encouragement and warning in Luke 21:34-38. Being drunk, hung-over, or worrying will harden your heart and will dull your senses. Worry is just as bad as being drunk or hung-over. Our hearts should not be weighed down in fear and worry. Repent of it. Talk His will and His answer. Cast all your care on Him. Fear stops progress. Pastor told of someone who came to visit a neighbor for a gathering. She drove her van too close to the pond, and the car’s wheel went into the pond. The homeowner tried to pull the van out with a tractor, but it wouldn’t budge. The woman asked if it would help to take off the brakes. Fear is like having the brakes on; it stops the progress. Brian Wills: Mark 16:17, 18; Acts 5:12, 15-16. Consecration and surrender can bring about a movement, a transition of power on the church. The church is going from being to doing. John 14:12 tells about the works that we will do. In 2009 Jesus appeared to Bob Weiner, who started Maranatha. He said that the Spirit is going to move, that the USA is the only nation founded because people were looking for a place for freedom to worship God. For forty-fifty years, the enemy has been sowing seeds, but God is going to expose and uproot the evil. This means greater responsibility. Signs are supposed to follow those who believe. Believers are to lay hands on the sick for them to be healed. Acts 5:12 says that signs and wonders were done among the people through the hands of the apostles, the sent ones. We are sent ones. They literally dragged in the sick, and they were all healed through the hands of ordinary believers. God created us to do supernatural things. We are carriers of His presence and glory in the earth. We have something that the world needs. We are to be world-changers, world-shakers. We have this treasure (the wealth of heaven) in earthen vessels (our bodies). Jesus said there will be a generation that will look like Him. If you abide in Christ, then you should act like Jesus (1 John 2:4). Are we preaching the gospel and laying hands on the sick? George Pearson prophetically said, “I want My Church back. I want the book of Acts Church, a glorious Church. There will be churches having healing school everyday. Word of Faith churches will be healing churches. Believers shall do the works.” We are all ambassadors. We represent Jesus. Ambassadors are not subject to the law of the land they are in. We are immune (John G. Lake). We are not under the law of sin and death (Romans 8). Keep your soul in communion with Christ Jesus. The laws of your home country apply to you as an ambassador. We need to live from the inside out. We are containers of the life of God. How do we go from being to doing? 1) Begin to go to Luke 4. The Spirit of the Lord is upon you. He has anointed you to preach the gospel, cast out demons, and to heal the sick. 2) Read and study Jesus’ healing Scriptures in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Put yourself in Jesus’ shoes. See yourself doing the works of Jesus. For a long time Brian prayed for the sick to be healed, and they didn’t. Then he went to Mexico as a trainee under a super-healing evangelist. He laid hands on people until he got to someone in a wheelchair. He didn’t know what to do, and the evangelist told him to keep praying and releasing the power of God. You will never do until you see yourself doing it. The excellency is of God, not ourselves. Jesus did and said what He heard and saw the Father say and do. We become one with Him. There will be an anointing on small children. God has put a hunger in us. A worship leader in the Welsh revival prayed for a blind man, and he was healed. Then every blind person he prayed for was healed.
Believe and Receive Healing
[There was a tongue and interpretation given about the Holy Spirit in us.] Brian Wills: Salvation includes healing and wholeness. We can receive healing at any time, at any place. Isaiah 53:4-5 says that by Jesus’ stripes we are healed. Here are three things about healing: 1) God can. Jesus is the Healer. 2) God did. Isaiah 53 says He purchased our salvation. Healing is a promise and a purchase. Healing and salvation are one. We can receive what He already purchased for us. 3) God will heal, because He already did it. It is harder to conquer something you have (sickness and disease) than to receive something you already have (healing). Receive your healing. Brian told of a man who was to minister healing when he did not believe in Jesus as Healer. He ministered to a woman without legs, and the next day she came in walking on legs. God said that in His mind, He saw her with legs. Someone on earth was needed to make a declaration about it. Luke 13:10 is about the woman who was loosed from an eighteen year infirmity. She was a covenant woman. When Jesus ministered, most people were healed or saw miracles, rather than receiving a recovery. Brian told of a Penn State young man who had a metal rod in his leg as a result of being crushed in an accident. Brian ministered to him, and he ran out of the wheelchair. He had new bones and no metal when the doctors checked him out. When Brian was dying of cancer, people from his church drove hours to see him, gasped upon seeing him, and turned around and went home. BUT GOD! We believe in what God is able to do. Brian made a promise of consecration to God to do whatever He wanted him to do, if He would get him healed and out of the hospital. God told him that his healing would manifest as he did the steps God told him to do. He realized that the Holy Spirit is a real person. He is our helper. We can call on Him, and He is there to lead us out of sickness into health. He carries out the Word of God. Kenneth Hagin read Mark 11:23 when he had an incurable blood disease and believed and acted on the truth that he was healed by the stripes of Jesus Christ. God does what you cannot do. He lives inside of you and comes upon you to change you. Receive your healing through the Word and the Holy Spirit. Characteristics of healing are: 1) a seed (truth), 2) a revelation (He will show you something.), and 3) action. Faith is an action. When Brian was dying, one of the steps God told him to take was a victory lap. He walked around the “death” floor of the hospital with his hands raised, praising God, and speaking the Word. The nurses and psychiatrists thought he was crazy. The enemy (Satan) tries to make you feel inadequate, but healing is based on Jesus, not you. Take yourself out of the way.
Spiritual Authority
Pastor Syd shared a prophetic word from Kim Clement from 2007 about the U. S. government, followed by prayer for President Trump. Teaching: P. C. Nelson’s leg was run over by a car. A pentecostal believer prayed for his leg, and it was instantly healed and whole. He became a healing preacher. Healing is an essential thing to know. We have God’s Word on it. Mark 11:23-24 tells us that faith and the words we say in faith can move mountains. Most people miss it in their speaking, rather than in their faith. We are stepping into creative miracles and a move of God. Whoever can have whatever. In Joshua 10:4-15 the Lord killed many of the enemy with large hailstones, and Joshua spoke to the Lord. In the sight of Israel he said that the sun and the moon were to stand still so they could fight longer. What did he need to have in order to speak to the sun and moon? Or what about Elijah telling Ahab it was not going to rain until he said so in 1 Kings 17? It was spiritual authority. There is a revelation of spiritual authority that is greater than what we are walking in. Some people were mocking William Branham and tried to set him up by having him minister to a man who pretended to be blind. Branham asked if he truly was blind, and the man said “yes,” and he became blind on the spot. Spiritual authority means knowing the power of words. Speech and the immune system are connected. Jesus spoke with great authority. He wants us to walk in that same kind of authority over the work of the enemy. We are the army of the Lord. Jesus gave us authority over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt us (Luke 10:19-20). Satan is stripped of his authority, and Jesus has triumphed over sickness, depression, cancer, and pain. He has given us authority over our bodies. We live in the world but are not of it. We are to rule and reign over circumstances and sicknesses. Start ruling and reigning. When Brian was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he went to the top hospital, where his parents were told there was no cure. A tumor grew to the size of a basketball in seventy-two hours, his organs were shutting down, and he had tumors throughout his body. When the doctors saw the x-rays, they said nothing, left the room, and told his parents there was nothing to be done for him, and that he would be dead in three days. He had seen God’s healing power in services before, so his faith was built up. His parents did not tell Brian the doctors’ report but only spoke the Word over him and had him repeat it aloud, over and over. He needed to know his authority. Faith is found in the heart and mouth. The heart needs the mouth’s cooperation. The heart says to the mouth, “Don’t deceive me. Don’t go against this agreement. Don’t disconnect.” James 1:25-26 says to not deceive your heart with your tongue. If you talk about spiritual authority, you need spiritual maturity. Brian told of missionaries in Mexico and how their words cost them. In healing, people often disconnect. We get a wrong mindset, back off of faith, and relinquish the healing. Brian’s father was diagnosed with cancer a few months before Brian’s diagnosis. He was healed, but years later, he started having problems with eating. He said, “That’s it,” and he died that night. We have authority. Our faith must be in both our hearts and our mouths. Brian’s parents did not allow TV or visitors in his room. They spoke the Word aloud. Brian told of a woman who confessed and declared the Word over her invalid daughter from birth. She said, “I call these crooked legs straight. She will run and be like other children.” After fourteen years, the daughter was miraculously healed. Disease is under your feet. Do not let your mouth deceive and disconnect from your heart. Do not be moved from the simplicity of the gospel, and watch who you follow. Declare the Word of the Lord. God’s methods get God’s results.
CWI Vision
Psalm 23 only applies to you if Jesus is your Shepherd. He is the God of abundance. He provides what you need. He restores your emotions, wills, and minds. He causes your life to return. He leads rightly for His name’s sake. Even in the scary places, you do not fear any evil. He has a rod and staff to protect you and to bring you into safety. You resist the devil, if He is your Shepherd. You can eat an abundance in the presence of your enemies. He anoints you. Your cup overflows. He is the God of more than enough. [In OT times, covenanted kings would eat a covenant meal before going out against the enemy of either one of them. Take communion when you are fighting sickness. It is covenant.] Only goodness and mercy, His faithful love, shall chase or follow you all the days of your life, and you will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. He will extend your days.| Matthew 28:16-20 is the Great Commission. The accurate translation is “Having gone,” which is an expected action, then disciple all nations, baptizing them, teaching them to observe (keep) all that He has commanded you. A “keep” was the most secure building. We are to make sure the teachings are followed. We are to make disciples, not converts. Disciples forsake everything and follow Christ.| Ephesians 4:11-16 tells about the five-fold ministry which is for the training of the saints in the work of serving, until we all reach unity. CWI’s vision is to Transform, Equip, And, Mobilize people for the work of the ministry. The benefits of having home groups are that they are: a way to get the Word into us in a more intimate way; a way to build the Kingdom of God and reach out (your own family is a great place to start); a way for more people to operate in their gifts; a way of building relationships within the church by doing life together; a way of providing greater accountability; and a way to plant churches. [Pastor Syd gave details about the home groups starting later in February.]