Offering: Mark 6:30-44 Jesus gave of what He had, blessed it, and fed the multitude, even so that there were 12 baskets left over. Sermon message: I Cor. 1:30 Jesus became the wisdom of God for us. He will give us His wisdom, if we ask and seek and cry out for it. Wisdom is not knowledge, but helps you to know how to put knowledge to work. Wisdom is skillful. In Ex. 35:30-36:2 we learn that God gave artisans the Spirit of God in wisdom and understanding and knowledge and all manner of workmanship. He gives skill for you to do your job. Prov. 4:1-7 Listen and pay attention to wisdom. It’s not just a confession, but you must apply yourself to go after wisdom. The 3 keys to wisdom are instruction, correction, and rebuke. Prov. 1:1-7 Teaching gets wisdom to you. When there was unbelief, Jesus taught. Prov. 1:20-30 tells us to repent and turn at wisdom’s reproof. Prov. 12:1, 15 The one who hates correction is stupid. Prov. 13:18; Prov. 15:5, 31-32; Prov. 9:8; Prov. 29:15. There are touchy areas where wisdom may be needed but not easily received, such as weight, marriage, children, business. Show where a person is wrong in the Scriptures. Heb. 12:5-9 God chastens by discipline. II Tim. 3:14-4:5 says to preach the Word, rebuke, correct. Heb. 13:17 Receive correction from your pastor, and let others speak into your heart.
The Wealth of Wisdom Part 5
Haiti and Healing
Chester shared videos and testimonies from his recent trip to Haiti, where medical teams and a ministry under his direction were serving. (Sam Zook also shared testimonies.) He also preached on God’s divine healing through Jesus Christ. It is God’s will to heal everyone. Using Scriptures, he affirms that God has provided for our healing, and it’s up to us to access it. Why don’t people receive healing? Lack of knowledge of God’s promises; failing to ask God; questioning God’s will; sin, which separates us from God; failure to act on God’s Word; thinking it’s not God’s time to heal; misunderstanding Paul’s thorn in the flesh; misunderstanding Job. How can a person overcome? Stand on the Scriptures; know you have authority over the devil and sickness; focus and saturate yourself on Scriptures; examine your heart; know you’re delivered from curses, such as sickness; establish a point of contact for your healing; confess the Word; hold fast to the promises and do not waver. We pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven, and in heaven there is no sickness or disease. We are healed, and we are to lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
The Spirit of Truth
John 16:13 The Spirit of Truth guides you into all truth. He tells us what He hears the Father say, and He will tell you things to come. Pray in the Spirit to know what the Father’s plan is for you everyday and then do it. De-clutter your heart of cares and deceitfulness and lusts, because they destroy the ability to hear. I John 4:1-6 There are many false prophets. We must be sensitive to what the Greater One inside of us is saying so we can overcome. The Holy Spirit and God’s peace guide us. Wherever you go, the anointing manifests. John 15:26 The Comforter has come, and He brings you freedom. Are you on the wrong road, a road of the flesh, the world, worry, jealousy…? Get on the highway of the Holy Spirit so you can get to your proper destination and complete your assignment. II Cor. 4:4 The god of this world blinds those who don’t believe, so they won’t receive the Holy Spirit. We can know the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of error.
Whole-Hearted Faith
This is a time when we need to be powerful. Luke 18:1-8 exhorts (commands) us to pray and not get weary. Do the Gospel; share it; lay hands on the sick; pray for people. The heart-confession connection causes change in your life. We must be full of faith in order to fight. What is God doing in you? God will speedily avenge His own who cry out day and night. Heb. 11:1 Faith is a now, quick-work. Situations are subject to change in Jesus’ name. What controls you: what you hear, see, and feel or what the Word of God says? Ps. 103 tells us to bless the Lord with all that is within us and to bless His holy name and to not forget His benefits. Don’t tolerate what you shouldn’t. Don’t let your faith fade and faint. Sharon Hawk shares how she prayed about seed and received a harvest to plant the seed, when Bob’s faith was faint, and he didn’t even think to pray about it. Luke 18:1 There should be constant prayer in the CWI body. We’re connected like a husband and wife. Do we let things slip? Don’t faint. If your faith slips, recognize it, and repent (turn around). There are many demonic forces blocking people, and then people make decisions out of the will of God. Stay in the Word and the Holy Spirit. When we get blessed, God’s kingdom is increase. Awake! Stir yourself up! Repent! Change!
Stay Sharp With the Word
Using the analogy of a butcher sharpening his much-used knife, we need to sharpen ourselves with the “knife” of the Word. We can become “dull” in discernment, but we need greater sensitivity and discernment so we can minister to others to set them free. I Tim. 4:1, 2. If we adapt to what we hear in the world and become apathetic or like the world, we allow compromise and a watering-down of the Gospel to come in. II Tim. 3:10-17 tells us that if we live godly in Jesus Christ, we will suffer persecution. The holy Scriptures are able to make us wise for salvation (sozo) through faith in Jesus Christ. We must be able to discern, because there is deception. We can live godly because of His grace. Who are you seeking? Where is your faith? Always discern what you’re hearing. Listen to God, not man, so that you may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. Using the analogy of a butcher sharpening his much-used knife, we need to sharpen ourselves with the “knife” of the Word. We can become “dull” in discernment, but we need greater sensitivity and discernment so we can minister to others to set them free. I Tim. 4:1, 2. If we adapt to what we hear in the world and become apathetic or like the world, we allow compromise and a watering-down of the Gospel to come in. II Tim. 3:10-17 tells us that if we live godly in Jesus Christ, we will suffer persecution. The holy Scriptures are able to make us wise for salvation (sozo) through faith in Jesus Christ. We must be able to discern, because there is deception. We can live godly because of His grace. Who are you seeking? Where is your faith? Always discern what you’re hearing. Listen to God, not man, so that you may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Sudden Impacts Are You Prepared
The Lord told Bob prophetically that 2011 was going to be a year of sudden impacts, which all of us have seen to be the case. There have been positive suddenlies and negative ones. How we respond to these happenings depends on the place of the Word in our lives. Are you moved by circumstances or by the Word? When these situations hit you, you will find out if you have faith in the Word and the Lord, and there will be a defining line between those who are committed to the Lord and those who aren’t. We are to be world-changers. There is an explosive force in us. If we are operating in the truth and true faith, we will rise to a higher level of discernment, so we can bring a word into people’s lives. How we react to these happenings will also equip us for a stronger anointing. What’s the right response/reaction? LOVE. We must be motivated by love and be agents of love, because love never fails. Satan will try to bring confusion to God’s order, but we must stay in and be controlled by peace and the Holy Spirit. Eph. 4:1 Don’t let Satan take God’s Word from you or the measure of God’s gift that is in you. The five-fold ministry gifts are to equip us so we can get the work done. Pray that we can discern the motives of people and be keen to the activity in the spiritual realm and step into the authority with the Word.
Overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and by Your Testimony
Bob Hawk gives two words to the congregation. Sermon message: Rev. 12:11 We should be overcoming the enemy, and if we aren’t, it’s our fault. We need to get our fight back and invade the kingdom of darkness. Rom. 8:31-39 tells us that God is for us and that He loves us. Love never fails; God is love; His love has been put in our hearts; we are more than conquerors! Say “NO!!!!” to the enemy and don’t lose your faith. First John 4:4 says that we are of God and have overcome, because greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world, and that’s our testimony! In 1 John 5:1-5 we learn that as believers we are born of God, and we overcome the world. Jon Fike shared his testimony of saying “NO!” to what Satan tried to do to him on his family’s vacation and the overcoming power of his testimony and Jesus’ blood. In 1 Tim. 1:18-19 Paul tells Timothy that according to testimonies he could wage good warfare but to make sure his conscience was good. Hold your faith and keep your conscience clear.
The Wealth of Wisdom Part 4
Don’t Lean On Your Own Understanding. Prob. 8:1-5; Prov. 3:5-6; Is. 11:1-2; 1 Cor. 1:19-31; James 4:7-8. You cannot trust your mind, and if your heart is wrong, everything is wrong. Your heart should echo the Word. Talking yourself out of doing what God told you to do is leaning on your own understanding. Suicide is a spirit caused by opening a door to a spirit. You can trust the Word. When you don’t know what to do, praise, pray, give, love, stand, and do what you know to do. Jesus is the source of our wisdom. God made foolish the wisdom of this world. Christ is the power and the wisdom on God. When you cry out for wisdom, you are crying out for Jesus. God uses the foolish things of the world. Reputation is pride in disguise. Jesus is your wisdom. Obey Him. Purify your heart and get rid of the double-mindedness. If you’re facing something, put your heart into going through it, and learn from it. Wisdom is for you.
The Wealth of Wisdom Part 3
Texts: Prov. 8:1-5; Ps. 90:12; Ps. 39:4; Deut. 32:29;Prov. 6:6. Wisdom has more to do with the heart than it does to the intellect. Wisdom is a spiritual product. What is life? It is time, environment, and decisions that a person makes. We are to measure our days and to consider our lives (time). Value time and value wisdom. How do we value our time? 1) Time is a resource, which can be managed and recorded. 2) Time can be measured, so use a calendar to measure the use of your time. 3) Time is limited, so don’t get lazy and waste it. 4) Time is money and money is time. 5) Time can be stolen, so don’t let people steal your time. Most of our time is stolen by relationships and distractions. Want to have a 13th month? Get up an hour earlier every day or stay up an hour later every day. 6) Time can be determined. Write down birthdays, anniversaries, and habits (like reading through the Bible) on your calendar. 7) Time has natural groupings. Group phone calls, check e-mails infrequently in a day. Grouping work and having a routine reduce stress and promote dependability and comfort. There are three types of time from a Bible perspective: 1) rest, 2) work (productivity, preparation, and maintenance), and 3) joy.
The Wealth of Wisdom Part 2
Prov. 8:14-21. Hate the lack of wisdom and seek wisdom as a priority. Riches and honor are with wisdom, and God leads a righteous man to inherit wealth. Inheritance is a legacy of increase. Prov. 2:1-6 You have to apply yourself to the wisdom of God. You have to work on it, just as you work for increase through a job. Wisdom makes you not care what others think of you. It is a treasure. Do you cry out and seek for wisdom? You must be strong in desire and hunger for it. Prov. 1:20-23 A scorner says, “I don’t need wisdom. I know better than that.” The Spirit leads you into all truth. Let the Holy Spirit tell it to you straight. Prov. 9:8-12 Some people you can’t help. A scoffer will hate you when you speak the truth to him. Speak strongly and rebuke a wise man, and he will be wiser. Wisdom gives you riches and honor, and it also gives you the promise of long life. Job 28:12-13. You can’t buy wisdom. Wisdom is the fear of the Lord. If you don’t the price of wisdom, you won’t value it. Cry out to God for wisdom. Wisdom comes from an answer to prayer. James 1:5 Ask God for wisdom. You need it!
The Wealth of Wisdom Part 1
Texts: Prob. 8:11-36 (Wisdom, the fear of the Lord); Matt. 25:14-29 (The Parable of the Talents); John 6:5-13 (The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes); Mark 4:13-20 (The Parable of the Sower and the Seed). Wisdom comes from God and is personified in His Son, Jesus. Wisdom is a spirit. Wisdom is infinite and unlimited and existed before creation. The word “parable “ means to lay side by side and is a comparison. A talent is a measurement of gold. In the Parable of the Talents, the faithful ones doubled what they were given. Jesus said that to whom has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance. God wants us to have abundance and unlimited thinking in our lives. The fear of loss is a crippling thing. Good stewardship is how you double and increase what you have by opening yourself to abundance thinking. God’s resources are unlimited. Don’t have limited thinking and don’t fear loss. Money is an exchange of time and effort. We are commanded to multiply our money. The Word that is sown in our heart is the source of all multiplication. Jesus measures by our faith when we release our money. Get the Word in your heart, and you’ll prosper. Release more faith and give in obedience. Plant the word of prosperity in your heart, and then wisdom will lead and guide you. Don’t allow time to be a limitation, either. Time makes you think you failed. Get the limits off your thinking.
Grace Not in Vain
Offering message: Debt is like bondage and slavery. This is a a debt-free zone. John 6:5. God’s blessings are tied to God’s purposes. If God can get it through you, He will get it to you. Sermon message: Texts: James 1:16-19; 2:14-18; I Cor. 15:9, 10; Eph. 2:8, 9; Rom. 2:1-7; Titus 3:5-8; Col. 1:12. Hear and act. Anything that will lead you away from acting on the Word will lead you to deception, because your being a hearer of the Word only and not acting means you are being deceived. Faith impels you to act. Act on grace and live free from sin. The works come after grace. God is good to all. It is the goodness of God that leads men to repentance. We are saved by grace, and it is His grace that empowers us to live a higher life. Act on the Word. Faith’s highest level is praise. Don’t know what to do? You can always praise God and pray.
The Spirit of Man: Who Is Hindering You
In Rom. 1:9-13, Rom. 15:22, and I Thess. 2:17, 18 Paul writes that often he was hindered from coming to be with the church by circumstances he couldn’t control. Even with amazing things happening, Paul was hindered by Satan. Things don’t always go the way we planned because of adversaries. You have to be determined to fight for the will of God, and don’t just take what life gives you. In I Cor. 16:9 Paul wrote that a great and effectual door was opened to him, and there were many adversaries. Then in Acts 16:5-13 Paul was forbidden by the Holy Spirit to go to preach the Word in Asia. There are some places God does not want you to go. So, you have to determine if it is Satan hindering you or God forbidding you by the Holy Spirit. Regardless, keep moving. God clarified His will to Paul through a vision in Troas. Years later, in II Cor. 2:11-13 Paul came to Troas again, and this time a door was opened for him by the Lord, and he went to Macedonia. The door that was opened to him was a prison door. Your experiences get shaken by Satan. Come back to your spirit. Check your heart. Acts 16:25 In the midnight hour, what is your heart telling you? When you don’t know what to do, praise and pray. In II Cor. 2:12-15 the earthquake opened all the prison doors, and the jailer and his household were saved. There is always victory in your problem. Don’t be quick to run away from problems and victories. You don’t know the impact on others of even one of your victories.
Building on a Firm Foundation: Obedience
Offering message: John 4:35; John 6:5-11. Order before increase. Jesus told Philip to do what would test him, for Jesus knew what He would do. Live by the supernatural. The will of God comes before every financial decision. God gives wealth to fulfill the vision. The issue is souls. Be thankful for what you have and stop operating on limits. The only limits are on what God wants to do. Sermon message: Matt. 7:24-27 Build your life on the Word- hearing and doing it. Jesus learned obedience by the things He suffered (Heb. 5:8), such as loneliness, rejection, abandonment, and death. Through the tough times you can learn obedience. In a problem, stop looking for an answer and simply obey God. Deut. 28:1, 2 Success is measured by obedience. Harken to the voice of the Lord; He still speaks today! I Kings 19:9-12 tells us that God spoke in a still small voice to Elijah. Obedience is suffering. Fast and pray over big decisions. What is God saying to you? Be diligent to obey the Lord. I Tim. 1:18 War a good warfare and don’t let Satan take what God told you to do. Obedience, not results and money, is your measuring stick of success.
Give Him Your All
Offering message: Pastor Pat shares his testimony of God’s faithfulness. Luke 6:38 You give, and God gives to you. Joseph got what the Father promised, even though he went through bad times. We give because we are like our Father. Sermon message: Col. 3:23 Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as to the Lord and not to man. Give God you all. We are working as unto God. We represent God, so do it well. Impact peoples’ lives wherever you go. Cooperate with God. Col.3:17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of Jesus, as if Jesus did it, giving thanks to God. Others will give thanks, too, because of what we do and say. Prov. 22:29 Be diligent in business, and you will stand before kings. The reward is God’s blessing.
Building on a Firm Foundation: God’s Blessings
Offering message: Deut. 28:1, 2 The condition of God’s blessing is conditional: if you harken and obey His voice. God cannot reward disobedience. Sermon message: Text: Matt. 7:24-27. Hear the Word, act on it and do it. God is not your problem, and your problems are smaller than God. James 1:16-19 God is good. If Satan gets you thinking that the problem you’re experiencing is from God, you can’t resist. Why do bad things happen? There is a devil and there is sin in the world. Be a doer of the Word. Hearing but not doing the Word brings deception. Grace empowers you to act on the Word, but mercy is the“free pass”. I John 4:19-5:3 The commandment is to love God and to love our brother. We are to keep this commandment. We forgive, not by feeling, but by commandment. Josh. 1:2, 5-8 The past is dead. Get up and don’t quit. Be courageous. Observe to do. ACT. Meditate on the Word to know what to do, then you’ll make your way prosperous, and then you’ll have good success. Deut. 29:9 Keeping the Word and doing it allows you to prosper in all you do. I Kings 17:2-4 If you obey God, you’ll be in the right place for blessing. John 14:21 If you keep His commandments, He will manifest Himself to you. John 10:17-18 Jesus received the power to lay down His life by obeying God’s commandment. Do you want to walk in God’s blessings? You must keep and do His commandment.
The Fear of the Lord
Acts 9:31 says that the church walked in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, and they were multiplied. Fear of the Lord is different from the world’s concept of fear. Matt. 10:28 tells us to fear God, which means that we are to reverence Him. Phil. 2:12 tells us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. The fear of God removes the desire to sin. Sin causes a distance from God. Caution: God is a loving God and does forgive, but if we continue to sin, there are warnings. Heb. 10:26-31 says that if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Other verses about the fear of the Lord: Prob. 1:7; Prov. 8:13; Prov. 10:27; Prov. 14:26, 27; Prov. 16:6; Prov. 19:23; Prov. 22:4. Is. 66:1, 2; Heb. 12:28, 29. Serve God with reverence and godly fear. We cannot please Him without the fear of the Lord. How do we purpose to develop the fear of God? Don’t adapt to the world’s fear. Develop the fear of the Lord by the Word of God. Meditate in it. Pursue God daily. Rom. 2:4-11 The goodness of God leads you to repentance, but His His wrath and righteous judgment will be revealed. There is a balance between love and justice. Heb. 4:11 Labor to enter into His rest. Ps. 25:14; I Cor. 7:1. Develop a holy fear of God and go into His presence and lay at His feet.
Building on a Firm Foundation: The Fear of God
Prob. 8:1-5; Prov. 3:5-6; Is. 11:1-2; 1 Cor. 1:19-31; James 4:7-8. You cannot trust your mind, and if your heart is wrong, everything is wrong. Your heart should echo the Word. Talking yourself out of doing what God told you to do is leaning on your own understanding. Suicide is a spirit caused by opening a door to a spirit. You can trust the Word. When you don’t know what to do, praise, pray, give, love, stand, and do what you know to do. Jesus is the source of our wisdom. God made foolish the wisdom of this world. Christ is the power and the wisdom on God. When you cry out for wisdom, you are crying out for Jesus. God uses the foolish things of the world. Reputation is pride in disguise. Jesus is your wisdom. Obey Him. Purify your heart and get rid of the double-mindedness. If you’re facing something, put your heart into going through it, and learn from it. Wisdom is for you. Don’t lean on your own understanding.
The Holy Spirit
Who is the Holy Spirit? He is the part of the Godhead who dwells here. He is our access to the promises of God, and He is our communicator with the Father. What does the Holy Spirit do? He is our teacher; and He brings what Jesus said to our remembrance; He guides us in truth; He gives us revelation of what is God’s will and His Word. He gives us power. What is the importance of the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives? He empowers us to be His witnesses; we need Him to be able to minister. What does it look like to have the Holy Spirit in our lives? We should be getting revelation from the Word, walking in the fruits of the Spirit, and coveting the gifts of the Spirit. How much are we moving and desiring to move in the Holy Spirit? Start walking in the Spirit and in love. Ask Him and God will break your heart for others.
Building a Firm Foundation: Tithing, First Fruits First
Offering message: Heb. 5:5-11, Heb. 6:20, and Heb. 7:1-2. What do you give to your High Priest? First, you give the tithe, secondly your sacrifice of praise and worship (which reveals your heart), and thirdly your confession of sin (which cleanses you). Sermon message: Matt. 7:24-29 Build on the firm foundation. Matt. 6:33 Seek first the kingdom of God, then the rest will come. The tithe on your money is not yours, and Mal. 3:8-11 says that you have robbed God if you aren’t giving your tithes and offerings. Deut. 8:16-18 tells us that God gives us the power to get wealth. God’s covenant establishing power is subject to your wealth-gathering power. Prosperity is a spiritual tool to subject this world’s rulers to God. Finances in your hands are a tool.