I want to read from Luke's Gospel chapter
3, Luke's
Gospel chapter 3 verse 21.
We have spoken in more than one session,
I have anyway, about the power of the
Holy Spirit.
And I have for a long time felt
that the great need in Christendom is to
approach this whole matter with an understanding of
it based on Scripture and that we should
present it in such a way that prejudices
are broken down and that people don't miss
what God has for them before they leave
this earth.
We don't need the baptism of the Holy
Spirit to go to heaven.
We need only the blood of Christ for
that.
The blood of Christ prepares us for heaven.
The baptism of the Spirit is to fit
us for this earth, for the years we
spend here before we go to heaven.
And in Luke chapter 3, we read in
verse 21, it came about when all the
people were baptized that Jesus also was baptized.
And while he was praying, heaven was opened.
Have you ever thought when you read that
verse, what was Jesus praying about?
It's not mentioned, but I think I know
because of one reason.
Whatever Jesus prayed for was answered immediately.
There was never a delay from heaven when
Jesus prayed, except when he was hanging on
the cross for our sin.
And that was different because there he was
an atoning sacrifice.
But otherwise, every time Jesus prayed, his prayer
was answered immediately.
And that's why I know what he was
praying for.
He was made in all things like his
brothers, so that he could be our high
priest, our forerunner, our leader.
Christendom, a large part of Christendom, has been
so taken up with the fact that Jesus
Christ is God, which is true.
He was always God from eternity past when
he was on earth, and for all eternity
he will be.
That they have not considered sufficiently the humanity
of Jesus Christ.
Theoretically, they acknowledge, yes, he became a man,
but it's the fact that he came in
our flesh, which is an important confession.
John makes much of that in his first
letter.
Why is that so important?
Because he's God, we worship him.
Because he became like us, we can follow
him.
And because he became like us, he had
to pray.
There was no need for him to pray.
There is no greater challenge to prayer.
No verse in scripture can challenge you to
prayer as much as this one fact, that
Jesus prayed.
It says in Hebrews 5, 7, He prayed
with loud crying and tears at times, and
he was heard because of his godly fear.
We know what he prayed for because it
was immediately answered in verse 22, The Holy
Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like
a dove.
That's what he was praying for.
He taught us to pray for the same
thing.
How much more shall your heavenly father give
the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?
We never ask, we never receive.
You have not because you ask not.
You ask and receive not because you ask
with wrong motives.
But he prayed, even he had to pray
for the Holy Spirit to come upon him.
He wasn't any holier in his 31st year
than he was in his 25th year.
But something happened from that day.
His ministry began.
And he did things in his ministry he
had never done for 30 years.
And as a preparation for that ministry, even
the Son of God, when he came on
earth, needed the Spirit of God to come
upon him.
You know, logic asks so many questions here.
Didn't he always have the Holy Spirit?
Wasn't he born of the Spirit?
If John the Baptist could be filled with
the Spirit from the mother's womb, how much
more Jesus?
Yeah, there are so many questions here.
I don't attempt to answer them.
Through the years as I've tried to work
out a theology of the Holy Spirit, I
find I'm always confused.
I don't know.
It's like the wind.
We can get the benefit of it, but
to produce a doctrine of it, I don't
even attempt it.
I want to live in the good of
everything that the Bible promises me in the
Christian life, even if I can't explain it.
Explanation is not necessary.
My digestive system works even though I don't
understand how it works.
I don't need to understand.
I mean, if you're a doctor, it's good
to understand it.
But I know doctors who can explain it
whose digestive system doesn't work.
So it's not the explanation that's important.
The important thing is that it should work.
So I'm not particularly keen on getting a
clear, pigeon-holed explanation step by step about
the Holy Spirit.
I don't want to go outside the boundaries
of Scripture.
That would be dangerous.
I don't want to experience anything in my
life that Jesus never had or the apostles
never had.
I don't want to...
You know, when I see so many things
going on in the world today claiming to
be the ministry of the Holy Spirit people
falling down and making noises and all kinds
of things and people have asked me how
to know.
I said, here is a four-fold test
which I have recommended to all the people
in our churches.
At least one of these it must pass.
One.
Did Jesus have it in his life?
Did Jesus teach it?
Number two.
Did the apostles experience it?
Did the apostles teach it?
Very simple.
If it fails on all four counts I
say, I don't want it.
I don't care what it is.
It may or may not be.
I know the Spirit gives different experiences to
different people but it's a dangerous ground for
me.
I want to limit myself to these four.
What Jesus experienced and taught or what the
apostles experienced and taught.
That's it.
But I point out this passage because many,
many years ago when I was seeking God
for the power of his Holy Spirit and
I was disappointed with what I saw in
churches that preached the baptism of the Holy
Spirit and I never felt free to join
those churches.
The Lord directed me and I was studying
his word and seeking God in prayer in
my room many years ago to this passage
and pointed out to me when Jesus received
the Spirit coming upon him it was when
he was baptized in water in Jordan and
that baptism symbolized a surrender.
Jesus was surrendering himself to death and burial.
You know baptism we are told in Romans
6 symbolizes death, burial and resurrection.
And John the Baptist said I can't baptize
you and Jesus said no you have to
do it.
It must be so for only thus can
we fulfill all righteousness.
And there Jesus gave himself into the hands
of someone to be immersed.
Symbolically surrendering himself to death and burial.
And what the Lord said to me that
day was the way of the cross is
the way of power.
That's when the Spirit came upon Jesus.
And what the Lord said to me at
that time was as long as you walk
this way you will have my power resting
upon your life and your ministry.
But if ever a day comes in your
life when you think you've gone beyond this
or learned this thoroughly that day my power
will depart from you.
God spoke to that to my heart 36
years ago.
And I haven't forgotten it.
It opened my eyes that day to understand
not just the cross on which Jesus died
but the cross on which I died with
him.
I've tried, that's another doctrine I have tried
for years to understand and explain.
I can't explain it.
I just believe it.
I never saw Jesus dying for me on
the cross.
But I believe it.
Why do I know?
How do I know that when he died
he took the punishment for all my sins?
There's only one way in which I know
that.
Even if there were history records historical records
that pointed out that somebody called Jesus was
crucified on outside Jerusalem okay, but it still
wouldn't the historical records wouldn't tell me why
he was crucified.
There's only one way that I know that
it was for my sins that he died
and that he took the punishment for all
my sins and that's because the Bible tells
me.
I don't know any other way.
How do I know Jesus rose from the
dead?
I've never seen him.
It's because I believe God's word.
And it's when I believe God's word that
he took the punishment for my sins and
that his blood was shed for my sins
when I believed it I had peace.
My sins were forgiven.
Now the same scripture says your old man
was crucified with Christ in Romans 6.
Paul says in Galatians 2.20 I am
crucified with Christ.
I believe it on the basis of the
same book the Bible that tells me he
took my sins.
Maybe I can't explain how he took my
sins but he took it.
Think of this verse for example.
I find it very difficult to explain Romans
6.21 God made him or is it
5.20 God made him who knew no
sin to become sin for us that we
might become the righteousness of God in him.
What does it mean Jesus taking my sin
I can understand, ok he took the punishment
for my sin I can understand that but
what does it mean when it says Jesus
who knew no sin became sin on Calvary's
cross I can't understand that but I said
Lord I don't know but it just shows
me your tremendous love that you you became
that for me that I might become the
righteousness of God in you I don't want
to explain it or analyze it or any
such thing and so in the same way
when God's word says that I in some
mysterious wonderful way even though I was born
only in this century I was crucified with
Christ 2,000 years ago I believe it
my sins were committed in this century but
they were taken 2,000 years ago so
I suppose it's possible even if I live
in this century for me to be crucified
with Christ 2,000 years ago and I
want to accept that now when I accept
that I'm saying Lord I agree with you
that this old nature of mine that I
have received from Adam cannot be repaired cannot
be improved cannot be modified or changed in
any way it has to be condemned it
has to be crucified it's fit for hanging
crucifixion was reserved for the worst criminals of
that time other criminals were given lesser sentences
but crucifixion was for the worst and I'm
agreeing with God there that this nature I've
inherited from Adam is fit for the worst
punishment possible it's fit only for death what
I need is a totally new nature not
an improved one it's not you know there's
a song one chorus in which one line
goes like this oh thou spirit divine all
my nature refined it's not true it's not
possible I never sing it that way I
always sing that song oh thou spirit divine
make all thy nature mine my nature cannot
be refined it has to be crucified and
when to choose the way of the cross
just means I agree 100% with the
sin of my nature with God's condemnation and
judgment when he condemns sin in the flesh
on Calvary's cross I say Lord I agree
with it 100% when he put my
old man to death on the cross I
say Lord I agree with it 100%
and how do I show my agreement with
words that's easy it doesn't mean a thing
the only way to show to God and
to man that I agree with God's judgment
of my nature on the cross is by
taking up the cross every day in other
words by reckoning myself to be dead that's
what it says in Romans chapter 6 I
began with Luke chapter 3 because I wanted
to see the connection that I believe I
have a personal conviction I'm not here to
judge anybody I'm not here to condemn anyone
my personal opinion is that the biggest mistake
that the Atlantic Gospel and charismatic movement have
made is in not pointing their people to
the way of the cross that would have
been a mighty movement if they had pointed
people to the way of the cross you
see the connection Jesus chose the way of
the cross and the spirit came upon him
the spirit led Jesus to Calvary and the
spirit will lead you and me to the
cross always there's a very close connection between
these it's when the rock is smitten in
the Old Testament that the rivers began to
flow you know I used to think of
when I was younger I used to think
of Moses miting the rock and a little
trickle flowing out how many people were there
600,000 men plus their wives and children
it must have been 2 million people can
you imagine a city of 2 million people
how many square miles would that take 10,
20 square miles sorry 100 square miles perhaps
and no trickle would satisfy the water needs
of 2 million people living in 100 square
miles flowing out of that rock that is
the way for the rivers of living water
to flow the rock has to be smitten
something inside has to die that's myself we
don't realize how strong our self is how
important we make ourselves to be and that's
what hinders the rivers of living water from
flowing we make other people to be small
by our bigness something about Jesus my dear
brothers and sisters which we really have to
learn Jesus said learn from me for I
am gentle and humble in heart have you
just taken that as a verse or do
you sit at Jesus feet and say Lord
teach me what it is to be gentle
teach me what it is to be humble
in heart there is one aspect of it
that when Jesus never made other people feel
small he didn't over all them with his
gifts and his abilities make them feel inferior
if I follow Jesus I will never make
any brother even someone converted today feel inferior
to me he is equal to me I
am clothed with the righteousness and I am
accepted before God and he is clothed with
the righteousness of Christ and that's the only
way he is accepted before God I can't
stand before God and say well Lord I
have served you for so many years so
faithfully on the basis of that I deserve
hell what shall I say even if I
have lived in faith faithfully for God for
60, 70 years and at the end of
it when I stand before God what shall
I say I am damned but Jesus died
for me that's all do I recognize that
in my relationship with other brothers and sisters
if self is slain nobody will feel
inferior to me in my dealings with them
I will never make them feel small because
they have failed or because they have fallen
in areas where I have not perhaps fallen
haven't managed it to do it so well
as I have managed perhaps there is so
much of this in Christendom Christendom is full
of leaders who make other people feel inferior
and small you are a great man of
God or a woman of God if you
can make other people feel equal to you
for that the cross has to do a
deep work of slaying all this sense of
self importance all this sense of how much
I have accomplished for God and everything my
old man is fit only for crucifix not
for display and that's why when we present
Christ to other people by our life or
by our words it's so important to draw
the attention away from ourselves to Jesus I
must say that one of the most difficult
things is to hold up the light of
the world in such a way that the
hand that holds it is not seen to
blow the trumpet of God in such a
way that the person blowing the trumpet is
not seen but that should be our goal
that God allows us to be crucified by
other men and that's why God allowed Jesus
to bear the cross all through his life
I mean the physical cross he bore on
Calvary but there was another cross inwardly he
said if anyone come after me let him
deny himself and take up his cross every
day and follow me Jesus took up
the cross only one day of his life
and tells us to take it up every
day for 40 years that's impossible he took
it up himself every day and we need
to ask the Holy Spirit to open our
eyes to see that when he was tempted
he died so that he would respond in
love it says in Romans chapter 6 knowing
this verse 6 I want to say that
we should no longer be slaves to sin
this is the secret of victory over sin
to accept the cross in our life and
therefore it says therefore even so consider yourself
verse 11 to be dead to sin reckon
yourself to be dead to sin in all
situations I'm called to reckon myself to be
dead to be crucified with Christ it's no
longer I who live but Christ lives in
me what does that mean in practical terms
if somebody insults me speaks evil about me
behind my back or spits on my face
or does anything what does it mean to
reckon myself dead think of a dead man
here we've come for his funeral and somebody
says you're a good for nothing fellow I
always knew you were a rotten chap no
change of expression on his face not at
all you kick him no response or the
other way around you praise him boy you
are a prophet no change of expression still
it doesn't make a difference whether you call
him a prophet or a devil he is
dead now a lot of people who have
heard or have read about these things they
are not really choosing to die they are
playing dead you know children sometimes play dead
somebody tickles them or kicks them hard enough
and they say hey what are you doing
it's like that most Christians are just playing
games in this area but I want to
say to you that if you are really
serious and you ask the Holy Spirit to
really help you in this area it can
become a reality and your life will be
entirely different thereafter you know what Paul speaks
about the power of his resurrection that I
may know him and the power of his
resurrection there is a resurrected life that we
can live even now on earth a resurrected
body I will get only when Jesus comes
that I have to wait for but resurrection
life can gradually penetrate into different areas of
my life where the life of Adam ruled
once that's the message of the gospel but
the point is there cannot be a resurrection
without a death it's only those who choose
to die who will have a resurrection you
choose to die in an area then you
will have a resurrected life you choose to
be crucified with Christ and it will be
no longer you but Christ that lives in
you but you have to choose that way
the way of the cross in all situations
death to self reckon yourself dead I want
to point out this passage in Revelation the
book of Revelation in chapter 4 there is
a little expression we read here where John
says after these things I looked and behold
a door standing open in heaven the first
voice which I had heard like the sound
of a trumpet said to me come up
here come up higher it's a beautiful
word come up higher we know that Christendom
was in a pretty bad shape by the
end of the first century all the other
apostles had died John was the only one
alive and he looked around and he saw
elders who had a name that they were
alive but they were dead like the elder
in Sardis in another church the elder was
tolerating a Jezebel to run the show in
the church in Thyatira in another church they
were so rich and they had so much
that they didn't realize that in God's eyes
they were wretched and miserable and poor and
blind and naked all the way down from
the elder down to the other one down
to the last one and in another church
they were very careful to obey the rules
they had rules and regulations and they kept
all the pigs under control but they had
lost their first love there was no love
in their heart beginning with the elder down
to the last person and he was grieved
Lord, what is going to happen to your
church?
he had a burden and the Lord said
to him come up higher when we see
things like that it's good for us to
be lifted up to heaven's viewpoint where the
Lord says look at these things from my
viewpoint like I said the other day let
the things that burden God's heart burden our
heart and let the things that don't bother
God not bother us anymore there has to
be an elimination of a lot of things
from our lives that don't bother God that
should stop bothering us altogether and the things
that bother God should bother us see I
can either carry my burdens or God's burdens
I can't carry both if I come to
God with a lot of burdens of my
own I can't carry His but if I
learn to cast my burdens on the Lord
I can take His burdens where I eliminate
from my life those petty trivial things that
happen every day of our lives which have
no eternal value which have no eternal significance
which don't disturb God one bit but which
can disturb us so much a little loss
of money here the excitement that comes from
gaining a little money there or somebody insulted
you or you heard somebody spread a story
a false story about you or your family
these things don't bother God shouldn't bother us
the Lord says come up higher and the
only way to come up higher is by
dying to this life here it's a wonderful
way we read in Revelation chapter 1 how
before the Lord showed John the condition of
those churches He first gave him a revelation
of himself and John fell at his feet
as a dead person and he saw Jesus
and then the Lord said now I'll show
you the condition of these churches we always
need to have that vision of Jesus otherwise
we can be so hard on backslidden people
and we don't help them we always need
to keep before us this vision of Jesus
that John had and then we can see
the condition of the churches so we can
help them the Lord says to us come
up higher when Jesus came to earth and
died on the cross it was not just
the fact that he died for our sins
you know in one place Jesus said my
father worketh hitherto and I work for our
sins we read in Genesis chapter 1 that
on the seventh day God rested and then
man sins and ever since that time God
has not rested he's been working Jesus said
that my father worketh hitherto and I work
and when Jesus came to earth he revealed
a principle that we see in the heart
of God that in a sin cursed earth
there is only one way that God can
serve man and that is by the principle
of sacrifice that was what was manifested on
Calvary and if we are to adequately represent
God in the sinful world that principle of
sacrifice must grip us and anyone who has
not been gripped by that for more than
one thing he will not represent God adequately
it has many many applications if there is
no sacrifice in your life you cannot serve
God because Jesus manifested that as a basic
principle that's the only way God could serve
man and that's the only way we can
serve our fellow men now when we look
around we see Christians becoming rich through preaching
the gospel you understand why they haven't understood
the first thing about God they haven't understood
the first thing about the way Jesus went
when we see Christians seeking a life of
ease on this earth where Jesus suffered and
served we can say they haven't understood A
.B. Simpson wrote a poem where he said
there's no time for me in this life
to look for ease and comfort for this
is not the path my blessed master trod
but strenuous toil each hour and power employed
always and all for God always and all
for God all the great men of God
who have walked with God who have understood
God's ways have understood that if I am
to serve the Lord if I am to
be effective for God this principle of sacrifice
must characterize every area of my life the
principle of self-denial for the sake for
Jesus' sake not you know there are heathen
religions that practice self-denial I'm not talking
about that I'm not talking about fasting as
a means of becoming slimmer I'm not talking
about that at all I'm talking about this
principle that Jesus manifested that it's only by
sacrifice that we can serve that's why we
read in Mark's Gospel chapter 12 when it
says here he sat down opposite the treasury
in Mark 12 41 and he was watching
how the multitude were putting money into the
treasury read that carefully very carefully he sat
opposite the treasury and he was watching and
he watches even today not how much people
were putting in but it says he was
watching how they were putting in not how
much it was but he was watching how
and even today as he watches he doesn't
watch how much we do he watches how
we do is there the element of sacrifice
there and then he saw the large rich
people putting in large sums and a poor
widow came and put in two small copper
coins which amount to a cent she is
putting more than all the others because they
put in out of their surplus but she
out of her poverty she put in all
she owned Jesus appreciated that it's not how
much we do he was never interested in
statistics apply this not only to giving money
but to Christian work we can say we
are doing this, this, that and we can
give much but there may be no sacrifice
in it we may do a lot of
things but there is no sacrifice in it
then we have not understood the way of
the cross and then we shall not have
that power resting upon us that rested upon
Jesus the spirit came upon Jesus to lead
him along the way of the cross all
through his life when I was a very
young Christian I think I was about 22
or 23 years old clearly from a verse
in 2 Samuel chapter 24 and that's been
a guideline for me through all these years
and I think keeping it before me has
protected me from many many pitfalls and snares
I've seen a lot of young people zealous
devoted you see them 20 years later either
they are backslidden or they become big people
very important people they are no longer the
humble, broken servants of God they were when
they started God has blessed their ministry so
many wonderful things God has gifted them and
it's gone to their heads they've become big
because they haven't understood the way of the
cross Christendom is full of such people in
2 Samuel 24 and David went to offer
a sacrifice to the Lord and he came
to the threshing floor of one of his
subjects Araunah and he wanted to offer a
sacrifice there because God told him to offer
a sacrifice there Araunah said you can take
whatever you want King 2 Samuel 24-22
take the oxen for the burnt offering take
the yokes of the oxen for wood you
can have it all free and everything and
give it to the king but the king
said no, I'll pay for it because if
I take it free from you and I
give it to God it would not have
cost me anything and he said I will
not offer to the Lord that which cost
me nothing and that's the word the Lord
spoke to my heart never in your life
offer to me that which cost you nothing
and I said Lord help me if I
serve you it must cost me something other
people need never know about it it's enough
if you know about it but it must
cost me something are you willing to offer
a sacrifice like that not just once but
consistently I want to urge you my brothers
and sisters let there be secret places in
your life that no one knows about secret
areas where you have sacrificed where you have
died and you never talk about it nobody
ever knows deep trials and testings that you
have gone through which you never share with
anyone one of the greatest challenges in my
life has been the fact about what all
he suffered in 30 years I'm sure he
suffered a lot I've tried to imagine a
home a poor home with no private bedroom
to retreat into when the temperature gets hot
in the rest of the house it was
a poor home where Jesus lived with four
younger brothers and two younger sisters and those
brothers converted younger brothers how
they would taunt you and tease you particularly
when you are good and upright and holy
they taunt you even more he never sinned
I can imagine him walking down as a
little boy down the streets of Nazareth and
old men sitting there and telling one another
you see that boy the one on the
other side that's Mary's son he went through
that stigma all those growing years Jesus said
when the Holy Spirit has come he will
take of the things of mine and show
it to you but he never spoke about
it himself he never spoke about his sufferings
or what all went on if we ask
the Holy Spirit to show us the glory
of Jesus he will show us these things
these are the things that have challenged me
in my life the things of Jesus and
shown them to me and challenged me to
go that way in daily life I want
to ask you ask the Holy Spirit to
show you the way Jesus went this is
the whole secret of the Christian life looking
unto Jesus how he voluntarily chose the way
of the cross you read one sentence like
he submitted to Joseph and Mary that's all
but think of all that is involved in
that one sentence I've heard people say to
me I can't submit to that brother he's
not spiritual Jesus could have said that about
Joseph and Mary it didn't matter one bit
whether Joseph and Mary were spiritual God told
him to submit and he submitted as a
little boy he was like us at every
stage of life you can see the footsteps
of Jesus one of my sons was sharing
a word in our local church a couple
of months ago when he was home and
he said something that stuck in my heart
I'd never heard it like that before he
said that the Lord had shown him that
at every stage in life he could see
the footsteps of Jesus you know 10 year
old footsteps 12 year old footsteps Jesus' footsteps
were not so big that a little boy
couldn't put his foot in them he was
also a little boy small footsteps and as
they grew bigger bigger footsteps always the way
of the cross what all did he suffer
when he had to obey Joseph and Mary
the new covenant father I think of all
the mistakes I've made I can imagine how
much more it must have been for old
covenant parents who didn't have the Holy Spirit
didn't have the Bible didn't have tapes or
conferences or anything they must have made so
many mistakes and he suffered under them and
he never sinned he never despised authority what
an example he never spoke about it but
the Spirit of God and the glory of
Jesus I pray that there will be in
all of our lives secret areas where we've
had to be broken because God was dealing
with us I say to young people I've
said this in all of our churches if
God has not succeeded I mean if God
calls you in your teenage years and he's
not succeeded in doing a thorough work of
breaking in you well I don't know whether
God will be able to give you authority
and give you a fulfill his ministry through
you when God calls a man or a
woman in their teenage years the primary thing
he seeks to do in their life in
the years before he commits a ministry to
them whether they're 30 or 35 is breaking
breaking the strength of their self and one
of the ways in which he breaks us
is by putting us under authority and as
we submit to that authority we are broken
and broken and you resist it God cannot
commit authority I've seen it again and again
and again I know there are people who
abuse authority I know Christendom is full of
people who are abusing their authority etc that's
got nothing to do with you God is
sovereign I remember the years when I was
a young person now you see I have
sometimes violated this principle that Jesus never said
anything about his past life and I sometimes
said it and I said Lord should I
say it or not but I haven't made
it a rule but I say it sometimes
and I remember when I was in an
assembly as a young man and God had
given me a gift of ministry as I
said when I was about 22, 23 and
here were elders in that church who were
double my age and they saw the gift
I had and how people responded to what
I was saying and they were jealous and
they wouldn't let me speak and they asked
me to sit quietly there and the Lord
said sit quietly keep your mouth shut and
I sat there not one or two days
years I've had experiences subsequently where in churches
where I've had in our own church where
I was going as a young man in
my twenties where I had taken special meetings
keep your mouth shut humble yourself submit to
authority keep a good relationship with that elder
don't ever let any bitterness or rebellion come
in your heart and I said yes Lord
and I'll do it those were the years
God really broke me crushed me and showed
me that I was nothing and as I
took that place in the future as time
went on authority in my ministry authority over
demons authority over brothers not to lord it
over them this is the word the Lord
has given me about authority John chapter 17
and I'm very very careful I keep this
in mind before me always because God has
given me authority over many people now and
I live in fear because of that it
says about Jesus Jesus said in his high
priestly prayer Father the hour has come glorify
thy son and then he says in verse
2 even as thou gavest him authority over
all men that to whom thou hast given
him he may give eternal life and what
the Lord showed me was this I give
you authority only for one purpose to lead
people to eternal life that is the purpose
of authority to lead them to be connected
with God to lead them to be connected
with Christ as the head so that I
can fall out and disappear to lead them
to partake of God's own nature to lead
them to godliness and the Lord has said
to me if that is your goal I
will give you my authority when you speak
I will give you my authority when you
are an elder in a church when you
are an elder for other elders my authority
will back you up in what you say
and do if your goal is nothing but
to lead them to eternal life Jesus he
says he got authority from the Father to
lead people to eternal life not to lord
it over people like some big king who's
got people to serve him no he wasn't
like that he was a servant he was
only interested in leading people to eternal life
where are we brothers and sisters who are
we to think that we are somebody yeah
there must be areas in our life in
secret where God has succeeded in breaking us
and we offer to the Lord that which
has cost us something it was when that
alabaster vial was broken that the odor of
the ointment was in us and until it
was broken it was all there but it
was inside a lot of us Christ lives
in us but that sweet perfume does not
go forth because we are not broken God
arranges circumstances in your life to break you
in your home in your place of work
with a difficult boss it's to break you
in the church maybe with a elder who
is lording it over you fine allow yourself
to be broken it's easy to run away
I've seen the people who've run away and
I see what comes of their life nothing
and I've seen what comes of the lives
of those who humble themselves and fall into
the ground and die much fruit there is
only one guaranteed way of producing much fruit
in our life and that's the way of
falling into the ground and dying you know
this matter of being filled with the spirit
this is the way the Lord has shown
it to me you can be filled with
the spirit the day you're born again but
your capacity is only that of a little
cup how much can a cup if it's
full how much can it contain but if
from that day I faithfully take up the
cross and deny myself and take up the
cross and die to myself everyday gradually this
cup will become a bucket and then when
I'm filled it means something more and I
continue faithfully along the way of the cross
year after year and again can be filled
and then it becomes a tank and then
it becomes a river and then it becomes
many rivers so the new born convert is
filled with the spirit and the apostle Paul
at the end of his life is filled
with the spirit there's a lot of difference
there's the full cup and the full river
ya both are filled people talk about spirit
filled people but what's your capacity you can
remain a cup spirit filled till the end
of my life that is not God's will
He wants you to grow and the only
way for our capacity to grow is if
you choose the way of the cross if
you say Lord I will never in my
life offer to you that which cost me
nothing in the midst of an apostate christendom
where people have not understood this principle at
all God calls people here and there to
manifest it in their lives the principle of
sacrifice the principle of dying to self of
being crushed I want you to turn to
Isaiah chapter 53 Isaiah 53
we know that this is a chapter that
refers to Jesus and for years I read
it like that and it's true but God
opened my eyes to see that there were
parts of this chapter that were meant for
me too there are certain aspects of the
cross like his bearing the sins of the
world in which I have no part he
was crushed for our iniquities the chastening of
our well being fell upon him verse 5
he was pierced for our transgressions smitten of
God and afflicted I have no part in
that the Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all which explain very clearly
to me what the way of the cross
is for example beginning with verse 2 he
grew up before his father he didn't grow
up before man brothers and sisters grow up
before God he grew up before him like
a tender shoot like a root out of
a patch crown and he had no form
or majesty that we should look upon him
nor appearance that we should be attracted to
him well as I read that that's what
the Lord spoke to my heart don't ever
seek to be the center of attraction anywhere
move in the midst of my people as
an ordinary brother unknown just a nobody in
the midst of other nobodies can you be
that?
we can all be that the day we
are converted the day we are converted we
are so small we are so thankful that
we got a place in a church but
after a while after we become known and
people appreciate us for the blessing we brought
to them then we can walk in a
slightly different way now if you take the
cross you don't look for that there was
no form there was no appearance about him
that we should be attracted to him I
don't want to make myself attractive to people
I want to be hidden I want people
to see Jesus that they must be attracted
to him and I have to get out
of the way John the Baptist said I
must decrease if he has to increase and
you know why he doesn't increase in so
many congregations because the preacher is not seeking
to decrease the preacher has made himself so
big for myself the Lord has shown me
even the way you preach you got to
be careful that you don't make yourself so
big that people begin to admire you disappear,
disappear as far as possible there is no
appearance that we should be attracted to him
he was despised and forsaken by men Paul
said we apostles are the scum of the
earth the scum what flows in the sewage
lines that's what the apostles were he said
to the Corinthians I don't have time to
turn to this passage you can read it
in 1 Corinthians 4 in 1 Corinthians 4
he said you Corinthians are distinguished we are
without honor you are accepted, we are rejected
you are honored, we are the scum of
the earth God has appointed us apostles that
last of all there was only one person
underneath them and that was Jesus himself and
they were the closest to Jesus and that's
why they were down there misunderstood rejected falsely
accused slandered and they keep quiet you know
it says he was oppressed, verse 7 and
afflicted and he didn't open his mouth like
a lamb that is led to the slaughter
and like a sheep that is silent before
his shearers he didn't open his mouth did
not open his mouth silent did not open
his mouth we need to know how to
open our mouth aloud when we praise God
but that's only one side we also need
to know how to shut our mouth and
be silent and I know the number of
accusations that have been leveled against me all
across India the letters I get the articles
written against me the books written against me
and the Lord has always told me keep
your mouth shut if they call the head
of the house Beelzebul how much more the
members of his household have you read that
in Matthew chapter 10 if they have called
the head of the house how much more
the members of his household are you a
member of his household if you are a
member of his household what are some of
the names that other people have called you
because you followed Jesus now don't tell me
the names people called you because of your
own foolishness that's different I'm talking about the
names people called you because you stood up
for Jesus Christ I'll tell you some of
the names people have called me in the
last 20-30 years Satan son of the
devil evil spirit antichrist terrorist false
teacher heretic diatrophies all types of things I'm
a member of Jesus household following one who
was called Beelzebul following one who was called
a winebibber and a drunkard and a gluttonous
man following one who was called a lunatic
you read that his own family members said
he was insane yeah he kept his mouth
shut why is it perhaps ask yourself why
is it people have not called us such
bad names perhaps because we are so diplomatic
like the chameleon we can change colors when
we are in different places it's not acceptable
we keep quiet about certain things because that's
not acceptable in this particular society that's the
chameleon you'll never get a bad name then
but if you take up the cross and
deny yourself and stand up for Jesus you'll
suffer I remember reading the story of Henry
Susso I don't know whether you heard of
Henry Susso he was a godly man many
years ago he was a bachelor a godly
man he lived in a little room or
house in a street and he had a
reputation down that street for godliness and he
had a great prayer he said Lord make
me like Jesus make me like Jesus and
God answered his prayer and I'll tell you
how one day he heard a knock on
his door there was a woman standing there
with a baby and said here is the
fruit of your sin and put the baby
into his hands loud enough for all the
people in the street to hear and the
tongues began to wag oh so this is
what this man has been up to in
secret he'd never seen that woman in his
life he was totally innocent um this woman
wanted to dump an unwanted baby and thought
this is the best man to dump it
on and did that and she went away
he closed the door Susso Henry Susso and
he took the baby in his arms and
said Lord what shall I do and Jesus
said to him listen to this I will
forgive you for the sins of others you
wanted to be me be like me right
ok he said fine he never said a
word to anybody down the street he left
his vindication in God's hands and he brought
up that child as if it was his
own and he was broken God delivered him
from being bothered years later that woman
came down to that same street convicted deeply
of her sin of scandalizing a godly man
like this and proclaimed through that street that
she had told a lie but during those
years God had done his work he had
answered his servant's prayer he had made him
like Jesus how many of you want to
be like Jesus praise the Lord are you
willing to pay the price he did not
open his mouth when they said to him
you are casting out demons by the prince
of demons Beelzebul he said have you spoken
a word against the son of man it's
forgiven just be careful you don't speak against
the Holy Spirit and when he was oppressed
and afflicted and they made all types of
false accusations against him in front of the
high priest that is the way of the
cross there is a verse in 1 John
4 which I want to point out to
you 1 John chapter 4 it's a
very lovely verse 1 John 4 it says
in the last part of verse 17 as
he is as Jesus is so also are
we in this world lots of Christians have
never stopped to think about that verse as
he is so also am I let's make
it personal each of us so also am
I in this world as Jesus is so
also am I in this world this is
new covenant life no Elijah or John the
Baptist could say that but as the son
of God is so I am in this
world Jesus said he who receives me so
send I you he who receives you receives
me he who rejects you rejects me if
you are really walking with God walking in
fellowship with God that is really true that
he who rejects you rejects Christ and he
who accepts you accepts Christ and by this
we know who belongs to God and who
doesn't he who listens to us is of
God those are pretty arrogant statements John said
it and a true man of God can
say it too if he is walking with
God he who is of God will listen
to us the others will get offended as
he is so are we in this world
but that includes not just the authority think
of the tremendous authority he was so simple
when he spoke little children could understand him
but there was a powerful authority in that
simple ministry but back of that was a
life a life of being broken a secret
walk with his father of many many sacrifices
which we will never know about till Jesus
comes again a secret walk of self-denial
of keeping his mouth shut when he was
provoked in his home of being broken under
authority in his home for 30 years and
that is how he had that authority in
his ministry and that is what the Lord
wants to do for every one of us
there is no respect of persons with God
this is not for some special people we
may not all be called to be apostles
and prophets and teachers and evangelists but we
are all called to exercise spiritual authority that
even when you speak to a person in
personal conversation there must be a spiritual authority
behind that and that can only come through
a life of taking up the cross in
secret every day I have thought of this
verse in John chapter 15 Jesus said concerning
the Holy Spirit's coming John 15 and verse
26 when the helper is come whom I
will send to you from the Father John
15 verse 26 the spirit of truth he
will bear witness of me and you will
bear witness also notice the connection there notice
the fellowship there he will bear witness of
me and you will bear witness of me
the meaning the way I have understood that
is that when the Holy Spirit has come
upon you and you allow the spirit of
God to speak my word the Holy Spirit
will speak to those people and say listen
to that that's the word of God and
it's not just from a pulpit somebody may
come to your home it's open for sisters
don't people visit your home you may never
stand in a pulpit it doesn't matter somebody
comes to your home and needs a word
and you speak a word and the spirit
of God says listen to that that's from
me says the Lord you don't say it
you don't stand up with proud arrogance like
some of these people in some of these
charismatic churches and say thus says the Lord
I never say that I'm scared be careful
of these people who go around saying thus
says the Lord and calling it prophecy the
arrogance of such people the
spirit of God shall I show you the
mark of a how a true man of
God speaks let me show you 1 Corinthians
7 it's blessed me 1 Corinthians 7 I
want to show you just 2 or 3
verses here in 1 Corinthians 7 Paul says
in verse 12 to the rest I say
not the Lord you see his humility there
1 Corinthians 7 12 this is what I'm
saying and he goes further he says in
verse 25 concerning virgins I don't have any
thus says the Lord I don't have a
command from the Lord but I give my
opinion as one who has had mercy from
the Lord to be faithful I'm just giving
you my opinion brothers and at the end
of the chapter he says verse 40 I
think I have the spirit of God I
would any day listen to such a man
than to the man who claims to be
thus says the Lord leave it to the
Holy Spirit to tell that person that's for
me says the Lord you don't have to
say it you'll bear witness and the Holy
Spirit will take that home and he who
has ears to hear will hear and some
will always get offended we're not going to
be an aroma of life to everyone except
to those who do not want to respond
to God that will always be true we
will be an aroma of life only to
those who want to respond to God he
who is of God listens to us and
he who is not does not the other
thing that has come home to me very
strongly in relation to going the way of
the cross is this I ask myself when
and where did Jesus finally defeat Satan he
did not defeat Satan when he was cast
out he did not defeat Satan when he
healed the sick he did not defeat Satan
even when he preached sermons the Bible says
in Hebrews 2 and verse 14 he took
part of flesh and blood that through death
he might destroy him who had the power
of death render powerless nullify the power of
the one who had the power of death
how did he do it he defeated Satan
only through death he overcame it says in
Colossians and chapter 2 verse 14 that on
the cross verse 15 he disarmed the rulers
and authorities it was on the cross that
Satan was defeated it was on the cross
when Satan and his demons thought at last
we've got him it's on the cross he
said at last we've got rid of this
nuisance of a man who was exposing us
and Jesus quietly died and Satan was defeated
that is God's way God's way of defeating
Satan is not with loud trumpets and pomp
and show and crushing him like a man
would crush an ant under his foot what's
so great about that nothing but when God
became man and in weakness allowed Satan through
evil men to spit on him and beat
him and kill him a picture of weakness
and helplessness that's how Satan was overcome and
that's the way for you and me that's
how we're going to overcome Satan in our
life that's how we're going to have authority
over Satan Satan's afraid of a man who's
taking up the cross everyday because he knows
he cannot touch him Jesus said the prince
of the world comes and he's got nothing
in me John 14.30 the prince of
the world comes and he's got nothing in
me as he is so are we in
this world the prince of the world comes
and he's got nothing in me I'm in
Christ I've got authority over him I've got
authority over everything that he seeks to do
he cannot enter my home I can drive
him out of my home I can drive
him out of my church he's got no
right God is looking for men and women
who will take up the cross in secret
everyday who will sink into nothingness who are
seeking to become smaller and smaller and smaller
so that he can exercise his authority through
them over Satan and all the inroads that
Satan seeks to make into the church so
my brothers and sisters when he takes you
through deep waters he'll be with you but
submit he's got a purpose it says in
Isaiah 53 and verse 10 that it pleased
the father oh these words it pleased the
Lord to crush Jesus putting him to grief
it pleased the Lord to crush him is
there another way for me his disciple no
I have to go that way too I
have to be crushed Paul says from his
own experience of many years in Romans 8
we are, verse 36 we are being put
to death all day long not just once
in a while we are being put to
death all day long all day long we
are considered as sheep to be slaughtered but,
verse 37 in all these things we are
more than conquerors through him who loved us
what a cry of triumph everyone knows Romans
8, 37 we are more than conquerors what
they don't know is Romans 8, 36 all
day long we are slaughtered that's the way
to be more than a conqueror the rest
is all empty words are you willing to
let people crucify you everyday and keep your
mouth shut and the devil will come you
well people will take advantage of you if
you become like that no they won't God
is in control he knows how to turn
the pressure down when it becomes too much
when we are tested beyond our ability that
is God's way the Lord says to us
all of us today come up higher come
up higher see things from my perspective my
ways are not your ways says the Lord
God's ways of serving him are not what
we commonly see in Christendom today they are
hidden no one knows the Son except the
one to whom the Father reveals him the
Holy Spirit has come to reveal Jesus to
us and as I have traveled around Christendom
in many countries I have seen very few
have really seen the way Jesus went in
his earthly life and that's why there is
so much of shallowness and emptiness and that's
why you have authoritarian leaders in Christendom who
don't know what it is to crush people's
feet and to be their servants who are
just becoming bigger and bigger in the pulpits
lording it over people crushing people instead of
being crushed themselves may God have mercy on
us may God open our eyes brothers and
sisters in these last days before Jesus comes
again he is calling people how many of
you will come may God find many among
us let's bow before God in prayer we
have heard words today which if we accept
will lead us into the fullness of all
that you heard in the previous days you
could have been excited about the life you
heard about in all the previous sessions what
you have heard now is the way to
that life he who has ears to hear
let him hear there is no other way
you have to make a choice God will
never force a cross on anyone but if
you choose this way if you fall into
the ground and die you will definitely bear
much fruit your father who sees in secret
who sees the sacrifices you make in secret
will repay you openly and wherever you go
wherever you see a man or a woman
bearing much fruit you can be pretty sure
there has been a falling into the ground
and dying there has been no shortcut to
that place I invite you my brothers and
sisters choose this way the Lord says to
you come up higher come up higher don't
live at that low level that Christendom around
you is living perhaps the low level which
others in your own church are living come
up higher today Heavenly Father give us grace
to see the glory of this way and
to walk it all the days of our
life in Jesus name Amen you know
Jesus said no man taketh my life I
lay it down and as brother Zach was
praying he was talking about choice there I
realized once again about that truth in Jesus'
life he chose the way of the cross
he chose to die the problem with Romans
8 36 is it says there that we
are accounted as sheep for the slaughter that's
God's accounting he knows that's supposed to be
what we choose the problem is our accounting
system isn't always reconciled the way it should
be with God but we can change that
by the choice that we make I know
I believe that the prayer that we just
were part of there was a time of
choosing I know if you're here tonight you're
a Christian you heard the word of God
this message was for the church tonight it
was for the church it was for you
and I receive it as from the Lord
I don't think I'll have an invitation tonight
but I hope you take that time of
prayer we just had as a choice and
again what do we do?
we follow Jesus he says no man taketh
my life I lay it down nobody can
make you die nobody can make you yield
but you have to die daily and reckon
yourself dead and account yourself as sheep for
the slaughter and that's a different kind of
accounting system than we know about than we
hear so much and our flesh doesn't want
to be reconciled to that but may God
the spirit of God work in our hearts
that we would not just hear about it
and see the truth in it you know
it's one thing to see a truth it's
another thing to choose it you know we
can say amen but if that's all it
doesn't reach very far my prayer for myself
is that it would reach and that I
would choose to follow Christ in all ways
I thank our good God for breaking his
word for us tonight I thank our good
God he is so good to you and
I to hear the truth to hear the
word of God it's not a little thing
there are many that are starving many that
are starving to hear the word of God
and here we have it so I praise
God for that well it's a little difficult
to know how to close but I think
that's what we'll do and I would urge
each one to continue in prayer as we
leave this place and as God leads you
in making choices I think