First of all, I must say what a
tremendous joy it has been for me to
be here these days, to meet with you
dear brothers and sisters, to share the word
of God with you, and I trust that
the effects of this will be eternal, and
I have got to know some of you.
I hope I can know more of you
in the days to come.
We are, we have different ministries, work more
efficiently, not because we are different or separate
or doing different jobs, but to do it
more efficiently he breaks us up into smaller
teams.
And also, not everybody fulfils the same task,
and I have longed for many years to
see in India, people with different ministries, different
emphases, learning to appreciate one another, and to
value one another, and work together, so that
the church can be built, and no one
man is exalted, except Jesus alone.
So I hope that we shall see such
a day in India.
Today there is so much of competition and
strife, and one group calling the other group
names, and servants of God tearing each other
down.
I don't want to have any part in
all this.
I have my convictions, as I said, in
these days I cannot work with everybody, but
if I cannot work with everybody, it is
where the principles of scripture are compromised, not
otherwise.
Otherwise I am very happy to work with
people who are totally different from me, with
a totally different ministry, provided we do not
compromise the principles of scripture.
That is more important than any work we
can do.
Any work that we do where the principles
of scripture are compromised, will not be an
eternal work, and that's why I don't want
to engage in it.
I want in this short life God has
given me to do a work that will
last forever, and if people want to do
a work which is only temporary, I say,
well, I'm sorry, I can't cooperate with that.
If you feel that's the way you should
do it, go ahead and do it, I
will not judge you, but I don't see
eye to eye with you there, and I
can't work with you.
We must have a large heart to all
of God's people, and the only place where
we say, sorry, I can't do it, is
where our conscience will not permit us.
I want to say a little bit this
morning about our conscience.
One of the great secrets of the Apostle
Paul's tremendous life and ministry is found in
this statement in Acts of the Apostles, chapter
24, and verse 16.
See, just as I have spent my life
studying the life of Jesus, I have also
spent quite a bit of time studying the
life of the Apostle Paul.
Not because he was special, but because the
Holy Spirit, in his great wisdom, has given
us numerous details about the life of Jesus
and of the life of Paul in the
New Testament.
We can say that if there are two
individuals whose life and inner life and external
ministry is described in great detail in the
New Testament, it is the Lord Jesus Christ
and the Apostle Paul.
Paul said, follow me, as I follow Christ.
So I find that if the Holy Spirit
has chosen to do that, there must be
a very good reason, and I seek to
find out why has the Holy Spirit given
me so much, written so much about Paul's
inner life and outer life, because there was
an outstanding servant of God, not one who
never fails.
That's the thing that encourages me.
All the biographies written of God's servants nowadays,
you read it and it's almost as though
he never made a mistake in his life,
and such biographies do not encourage me at
all.
But when I read about the Apostle Paul,
I read about an honest man who made
mistakes.
Do you know who wrote the Acts of
the Apostles?
It was Luke.
Do you know who Luke was?
Luke was one of Paul's closest co-workers,
and a lot of the Acts of the
Apostles is about Paul.
And when Luke was writing about Paul, I
know, if I were a co-worker of
some great man of God, and I'm writing
his life story, I will tell you, I
will not like to write about any of
his failures, about any of his mistakes, and
say, how can I write about this great
man of God?
So I would write only the good points,
and I'm sure Luke would have felt like
writing like that.
But when Paul knew that Luke was writing
all these things, he would have told him,
now make sure, Luke, that you tell them
how I fought with Barnabas, and how we
could not get along with each other, and
we separated.
Make sure you write down there how I
circumcised Timothy.
Make sure you write down there how I
shaved my head following the Jewish custom, and
following the temple rituals long after I became
a Christian.
Don't forget to write there how I shouted
at the high priest and told him, God
will smite you, you whitewashed wall.
Let them see that when they slapped Jesus,
he never shouted back.
But let them see that when they slapped
me, I shouted back.
But he repented, he confessed.
I loved such a man.
A man who was transparent.
A man who did not pretend that he
never made a mistake.
A man who was eager that his biographer
should tell other people about the stupid mistakes
he did, so that they can have hope
that even a man who has made mistakes
like that can still serve God.
So here is one of the great secrets
of his life, Acts 24 verse 16.
He says, in view of this I do
my best to maintain always a blameless conscience
both before God and before men.
And I want to say to all of
you, my brothers and sisters, always seek to
maintain a blameless conscience before God and before
men.
A blameless, this is the perfection that I
preach.
People say I preach perfection, I do.
I preach perfection in conscience, not perfection in
life.
And what does perfection in conscience mean?
It doesn't mean I never make a mistake.
It means as soon as I make a
mistake, I set it right.
As soon as I am aware of it.
With God or with men.
As soon as I am aware that I
have done something wrong.
It may not be wrong by the world's
standards, but the Spirit of God convicts me
it's wrong by God's standards.
You know when we are first converted, our
conscience is not very sensitive.
We have to commit some great sins before
our conscience disturbs us.
But God's desire is that as we grow,
our conscience becomes more and more sensitive.
It's something like a weighing machine that has
been spoiled.
You know our conscience is like a weighing
machine, a very delicate weighing machine that is
spoiled.
Now, that needle in the weighing machine will
not move until you put about 5 kilos
in it.
So if you put 4 kilos, the needle
is not moving.
That means certain sins I do, I am
not even disturbed.
But if it becomes 5 kilos, then my
conscience is convicted.
But it shouldn't remain like that.
When God seeks to purify us, and over
a period of time, the machine becomes more
sensitive.
After a while, 1 kilo, and the needle
is beginning to move.
And the Holy Spirit works on us, and
after a while, 100 grams, needle is beginning
to move.
Wonderful, this is progress.
After a while, 1 gram, it's moving.
I am convicted.
And then 1 milligram, I am convicted.
This is spiritual growth, where my conscience is
becoming more and more sensitive.
And I am being convicted about small things,
which 5 years ago I was not convicted
about.
I am not ashamed to say that there
are things I did 5 years ago, which
I will not do today.
Not gross sins, but fine things, fine things.
I listen to my own tapes of 10
years ago, and I am ashamed.
I say, Lord, is this the way to
speak?
No.
See, how shall we make our conscience more
and more sensitive?
By constant self-judgment.
Let a man examine himself, and it says,
let him break the bread.
I want to encourage you along this path
of constant repentance, constant self-judgment.
Not looking inside to discover something, that is
introspection.
I never look inside, because I know it's
all corruption.
And I can't even see myself.
What's the use looking inside?
I am not telling you all to look
inside.
I will tell you how to see what's
wrong in your life.
It says in Psalm 36, Psalm 36 and
verse 9, in the last part of that
Psalm it says, Lord, in your light, we
will see light.
So how do I judge myself?
Not by looking inside, by some type of
method which the psychologists teach.
You know, there is a lot of psychology
going on today, in Christian teaching.
They tell you, now think back to the
time when you were in your mother's womb,
and maybe your mother didn't want you, forgive
your mother.
Then think back to the time when you
were born, and maybe somebody treated you like
that.
Do you see that in scripture?
Do you find the apostles speaking like that?
This is human psychology.
And I am sorry to say, so many
believers who do not know the word of
God, are being led astray by human psychology.
They are good things.
The devil comes as an angel of light,
always.
His servants are servants of righteousness, not servants
of sin.
That is how he leads people astray.
And that righteousness is not the righteousness of
Christ.
And that's why they are led astray.
So, it is in God's light I see
light.
When I come into God's presence, he will
show me if there is anybody whom I
have to forgive.
I don't have to mentally go back to
my mother's womb, or go through any such
psychological trick.
I come into God's light, he tells me
whom I have wronged.
As I come to him, like Jesus said,
you come to the altar, and there you
remember that your brother has got something against
you.
Leave your gift at the altar.
First be reconciled to your brother.
We have two offering boxes at the back
of our meeting hall in Bangalore.
One for the brothers, one for sisters.
And on the boxes, you know what we
have written?
We have not written, give unto the Lord.
We have written, first be reconciled to your
brother and sister.
And then give your offering.
God will not accept it otherwise.
We are trying to stop people from giving,
not encourage them to give.
We are trying to stop people who have
got a bad relationship with another brother from
putting even one rupee into that offering box.
And we have never suffered lack for our
needs.
But we have made people realize, we are
not so crazy after your offerings.
We are crazy after your life, that you
have a good relationship with people.
First be reconciled, then bring your offering.
Otherwise God won't accept it.
If you give an offering to the Lord
of money, or prayer, or singing, or a
message, or service, or anything, without being reconciled
to your brother, I say, you might as
well take that money and put it into
the toilet and flush it down.
It's just as good as putting it in
the offering box.
It does not, it will not be accepted
by the Lord.
First be reconciled.
I want to ask all of you sitting
here this morning, are you reconciled?
Do you have a grudge against somebody?
Have you forgiven everybody who hurt you?
Is your conscience clear on that?
Have you spoken back to somebody just because
they spoke to you in some way?
I remember once, somebody called me on the
telephone.
People hear all types of stories about me,
and they don't even bother to check up,
and they believe it all.
And this man picked up the telephone and
says, Brother Zach, I said yes.
And he said, this thing that you are
saying, and this thing, that, that, that.
He went on and on and on, accusing
me of all types of things.
I never said a word.
I could have put the phone down, but
that would be insulting.
I wouldn't do that.
I listened.
I kept the earphone very close.
You know, such things you must hear very
closely.
And he kept on and on and on
and on and on.
And after some time I said, Well brother,
have you finished?
He said yes.
I said, I have nothing to say.
God bless you.
And I put the phone down.
After he put it down.
Six months later I got a letter from
him.
I said, he said, Brother, I am so
sorry.
I, what I heard was false.
It was all wrong.
I believed it.
And I thought that is how it was.
And I said all that.
What would I have gained by shouting back
at him on the phone, or trying to
explain anything?
Jesus never explained anything to anybody.
He allowed people to misunderstand him left, right
and center.
He knew that one day those who have
ears to hear will hear.
The rest, that misunderstanding itself will be a
test to find out whether they are sincere.
So, don't have a grudge against anybody.
At any time.
I have sought to live by that verse
of the Apostle Paul, I seek to maintain
a conscience blameless of offense toward God and
toward men.
I remember once I went to a bank
to get a bank draft.
And he told me to, they told me
to come a little later at a certain
time.
And I went at that time.
Some hours later.
And it was still not ready.
So, I don't remember the exact details.
It was many, many years ago.
Maybe twenty years ago.
And I said to the bank manager, you
know, when the previous manager was here, things
were more efficient.
But, I'll come back later.
And when I came back home, the Lord
said, that's not the way to speak to
a senior official in a bank.
Go back and apologize.
And don't apologize privately.
Apologize in front of everybody.
I went back.
And I said, I'm sorry for what I
said.
You know, it's little things like this.
Small things the Spirit says.
It's not right the way you did it.
I remember once I had to correct a
younger brother in our church for something that
was wrong.
And I did it for the Lord's sake,
for the church, for the purity of the
church.
And when I came back, after doing that,
the Lord said, you were very hard.
You needed to correct him, but there was
no need to correct him so hard.
So, I went back to him and I
said, brother, what I said was right, but
I'm sorry I spoke so hard to you.
Forgive me.
You know, we're not perfect.
But if we humble ourselves and acknowledge our
failure, the Lord will give us grace.
And I can testify, He has given me
abundant grace in my life, in my ministry,
in my walk with Him, in my family
life, and in everything.
And I want to keep my conscience sensitive,
even in bringing up children.
Like all parents, I have believed firmly in
discipline.
I have used the rod on all my
sons.
But there were times when I have beaten
my sons in anger, and I have gone
to my room and wept, and said, Lord,
forgive me.
The discipline was necessary, but the anger was
not necessary.
I have failed as a father.
Teach me how to discipline my children without
anger.
And I have done it again with anger.
It didn't happen in one time.
And I have wept again.
I cannot think of the number of times
I have apologized to my children for my
failure as a father.
I have never wanted my children to see
their dad as a man who never made
a mistake.
I have always wanted them to see their
dad as an honest, upright, sincere man who
made mistakes, but whom God still used.
Because I know that that is going to
be a greater encouragement to them than if
I present to them an image of a
father who never made a mistake, who is
some great man of God, respected by everybody.
I'm sorry to say there are fathers like
that who give a wrong image to their
children, and that's why their children go astray.
My children have not lost their respect for
me because I apologize.
They respect me much more.
I can communicate to them freely.
I have always wanted my children to grow
up to be my brothers, and they are
my brothers today.
In every relationship in life, whether it's with
our family, or with our fellow believers and
sisters, even with people who are much younger.
You see, we have this crazy idea in
India and in Asian culture that you never
apologize to people who are younger.
It's not true.
In Christ there is no such thing.
If you are wrong, you are wrong.
And even if somebody is 50 years younger
to you, if you have done it wrong,
you have done it wrong.
And you have to apologize to him.
Husband has to apologize to wife.
I have had to apologize to my wife
numerous times.
I have failed as a husband, I have
failed as a father, I have failed as
a brother.
And I have repented.
And I want to live in constant repentance.
I want this weighing machine.
It started off with registering only 5 kilos.
It's become better and better and better through
the years.
I'm not satisfied.
I'm pressing on to perfection.
Where the smallest little unchrist-like attitude or
word or action will be wrong.
There are times when I take my scooter
to a petrol pump to get petrol filled
in it and maybe the little boy there
spills some oil over my clothes accidentally or
something.
What is my reaction?
It must be christ-like.
Or maybe he is a little slow in
doing things.
I know the times when I have gone
away from that petrol pump and the Lord
has said, you didn't speak in a christ
-like way.
I have repented.
I want to speak to these.
I know when I go to a scooter
repair workshop and here is a little boy
who is beaten by everybody in that shop.
The small little boy trying to earn a
living at the age of 8 or 9
years.
And I have to represent Christ to him.
I have to show him that the whole
world is not full of people who beat
you and hammer you.
God has placed some people on the world
to love you, be good to you and
to slip a little money into his hand
when his master is not looking.
To encourage him.
We are called to go around this world
spreading goodness.
It's not just preaching.
Our conscience must be sensitive.
I remember once when a beggar came to
my house.
I was not rude.
But when he went away, the Lord said
to me, would you have spoken to him
in the same way if he had come
with a suit and tie to your house?
And I repented.
I said, Lord, I am sorry.
I tend to speak to people depending on
the dress they are wearing.
Forgive me.
Let me see in a beggar the image
of God as much as I see in
a great officer the image of God.
I am a servant of God.
I am not like people in the world.
Jesus has made me different.
I am to be his representative.
You are to be his representative.
Never mind if other people around you are
not worried in their conscience.
Does your conscience convict you, for example, when
you speak without respect to people?
It says in 1 Peter chapter 3, verse
15, Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts
and always be ready to make a defense
to everyone who asks you to give an
account for the hope that is in you,
yet with gentleness and reverence and keep a
good conscience so that in the thing which
you are slandered, those who revile your good
behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
What does it say, verse 16?
People may slander you, tell all types of
false stories about you, but live in such
a way before them that one day they
will be put to shame that they said
all types of stories about you.
If we love them, we can win them.
But it says here that we must, one
area where we must keep a good conscience
is in speaking to people, verse 15, the
last part, with gentleness and reverence.
How many of you have the habit of
meditating on individual words of scripture?
Blessed is the man who meditates on God's
law day and night.
Whatever he does will prosper.
I have wanted such a life, that whatever
I touch my hand to, it must prosper.
But then I must meditate on God's word
day and night.
I cannot read it day and night.
I may read it only a few minutes,
but meditate, I can meditate.
For example, reverence before God, I know.
But what is this about reverence to men?
I must speak to men with respect.
You know, in our churches, I have taught
all the married people, never call your wife,
Eddie.
I say that's a, I should call her
by some loving name, not Eddie.
And some people say, brother, it is out
of love that I call her Eddie.
I say then, why don't you let her
out of love call you Eddie.
That will never happen.
You don't want that type of love.
It's all hypocrisy.
If it is love, it can be both
ways.
I should speak respectfully.
I have taught people in our churches, don't
even call little children Eddie.
I should call them more like, or by
their name.
Call them respectfully.
I want to speak with respect, even to
little children.
Because I am a servant of Jesus Christ.
And I am a servant of all men.
Does a servant call his master, Eddie?
I am a servant.
I have no other calling on earth till
the end of my life, but to be
a servant.
Everybody is my master.
I remember once when I, not once, different
times when I have been to a local
church, and some people don't come to the
meeting in time.
And you know, I grew up in the
military from the age of 15, where 6
.30 parade means 6.25 you have to
be there.
If you come at 6.31, you are
running around the parade ground 10 times you
will never be late again for the rest
of your life.
So this is the way I grew up.
So, it's very difficult for me to be
late for a meeting, or late for an
appointment, or late for anything.
It's so much again, sometimes it happens because
of unavoidable circumstances, but, but then, all the
other people in my church didn't come from
the military.
Nobody did.
So they, take it lightly and, it used
to disturb me, it doesn't disturb me now.
You know how, the Lord said, if breakfast
is at 8 o'clock, the servant must
be there before 8 o'clock.
The master can come anytime he likes.
You are a servant.
You be there on time.
Let the masters and the mistresses come anytime
they like.
You serve them.
Don't have a, anger against them for being
late.
Serve them.
Some of them, after a period of time,
will also become servants and come on time.
But those who want to remain Maharajas, let
them remain Maharajas and Maharanis, and come whenever
they like.
See, life is so.
If the master shouts at the servant, what
is the servant supposed to do?
Yeah, I am sorry.
Quietly move out.
All the problems that Christian workers have, is
because they are not servants.
They are not slaves.
They don't seek.
Paul said, I have made myself servants to
all men.
That is how we are to be.
In one way.
In another way, I am not a servant
of any man.
I have been bought with a price.
I will not be the servant of any
man.
Nobody can control my mouth.
Nobody can control what I say, what I
do.
I am a servant of God.
But having become free from all men, I
have made myself the servant of all.
That's what Paul said.
Keep your conscience clear.
Any little thing, which the Lord reminds you
of.
We don't have to settle everything in our
past life, because we may not remember all
the things in our past life.
But it's not just paying back money.
I remember when I was converted, and I
took baptism, the Lord reminded me.
I have done probably 101 wrong things in
my life.
But the Lord reminded me only of 2
things to set right.
One was the taxes and duty that I
owed to the government, which is about 3
-4 times salary, month's salary, which I had
to give.
That I did.
But another thing the Lord reminded me at
that time, was more difficult.
And that was, when I was a little
boy, I used to collect stamps.
And you know how those who collect stamps,
exchange stamps with other people, when we have
duplicates.
And one day, I was exchanging stamps with
one of my cousins, and when he was
not looking, I stole one of his stamps.
Now I had stopped collecting stamps, when I
got long after, it was long after that,
that the Lord spoke to me.
And he had stopped collecting stamps, but the
Lord said to me, write a letter of
apology to him.
And that was more difficult than giving 4
month's salary.
Because here my pride.
I thought that fellow will think I am
crazy, to write about 9 years ago, I
stole one small stamp from you, which is
worthless.
He will think I have gone off my
head.
The Lord made me write that letter.
I thank God I did it.
My brothers and sisters, I am not asking
you to look inside, and dig up everything
in the past.
But if there is some particular thing, that
you find the Lord is always reminding you,
humble yourself, write that letter of apology, set
it right.
Keep your conscience clear.
I believe the rivers of living water, are
in abundance in the heavens.
They get choked, in the channel of our
heart.
Because we don't keep a good conscience.
They get dirty, as they flow through the
pipe.
And other people get dirty water, because I
am not keeping my pipe clean.
What am I saying?
Keep the pipe clean.
Always.
And if you can start when you are
young, and determine that you will always do
this, then even when you are my age,
you will do it readily.
You will be glad to humble yourself, and
ask anybody's forgiveness in the whole world.
It won't be a problem to you.
But if you delay it, it will be
very difficult.
There are lots of believers in our country,
who do not know how to humble themselves,
and ask forgiveness, even from their marriage partners.
It is so difficult for their pride to
break.
God has not been able to break them.
If you find it difficult to ask forgiveness,
from somebody much younger to you, much junior
to you, it means you are not a
broken man.
A broken man has no problem.
He knows he is nothing.
He says, what am I?
What dignity do I have to preserve?
What prestige do I have to preserve?
I am not a big man.
I am a sinner saved by the grace
of God.
And I am not God.
So I have made mistakes.
I shall continue to make mistakes.
Next week I will make mistakes.
Next year I shall make mistakes.
As I know them, I shall set them
right.
I won't do them deliberately.
Well, sometimes I may stupidly even do some
deliberate thing, but I shall repent more radically
of that.
But even if we don't deliberately do wrong,
we are still accidentally hurting people.
We must speak to everybody with respect and
reverence, and our conscience must convict us, when
we don't do that.
You know, I believe that it is the
bad use of our tongue, that prevents many,
many believers, from having God's word on their
tongue.
I cannot use my tongue as I like,
during the week, gossip, backbite, speak rudely to
people, get angry, get upset, slander.
And then when I come here, I say,
Oh God, please put your word on my
tongue.
He will not put his word on your
tongue.
Because you rented out your tongue to the
devil, the rest of the week.
That is one of the main reasons, why
God's word is not on the tongues of
many of His servants.
How many of you want to have God's
word on your tongue, when you stand up
to speak His word and preach?
Are you serious?
Do you really want to be God's mouthpiece?
I will show all of you, how you
can be God's mouthpiece.
I don't know how many of you will
take me seriously.
But I will tell you from my experience,
it's been blessed for me.
Here is the answer.
Jeremiah chapter 15, Jeremiah 15 and verse 19.
The Lord says, and here, if you return,
I will restore you, and you will stand
before me.
When do I stand before the Lord?
Not only when I preach, all the time.
And, if you remove all the, if you
extract the precious from the worthless, that is
in your conversation, you will become my spokesman.
Listen to this.
If you, will get rid of all the
worthless things in your conversation, and keep that
which is precious.
By precious I don't mean only scripture.
You speak to me, you will find those
who know me best.
I am not always quoting the word of
God.
I am happy to speak about normal earthly
things.
I am not a unnatural artificial type of
person.
I can speak about any earthly thing, because
I want to build fellowship.
I remember when my children, to build fellowship
with my children, I would read the comics
my children read.
I would read Tintin, and things like that.
And even now, to fellowship with children, when
I go to a child's person's home, I
go to a home and I say, what
do you like to read?
Tintin.
Oh, I say fine, come let's talk about
Tintin, and Captain Haddock, and all those things.
And I get fellowship with that little child.
I don't speak to him about James chapter
4, or something like that.
That will come later.
I first built fellowship through Tintin.
And then, when I speak the word of
God, he will listen to me.
Jesus loved little children.
I want to spend time with little children.
If my children were interested in cricket, I
would be interested in cricket.
I mean, not because that's the thing for
me, because I want to build fellowship.
So that's not worthless.
That's not worthless conversation.
That is precious, because it builds fellowship between
people.
It puts people at ease.
Like Jesus met the Samaritan woman and said,
can you give me some water?
We must talk to people at their level,
the things they are interested in, and gradually
lead them on to better things.
Get rid of all the worthless things in
your conversation, and keep what is precious.
What shall I get rid of?
I shall get rid of all the gossiping,
the backbiting, the evil speaking of other servants
of God.
Many people ask me, what do you think
about this servant of God?
I say, listen, you will never get me
to speak evil about any servant of God,
even if I disagree with that man's methods.
I may say I disagree with the man's
methods, but he is God's servant.
You will never hear me, privately or publicly,
speaking evil of any man who is a
servant of God.
It's completely out of the question, because I
have to give an account to God, one
day, for every word I speak.
I want to extract the worthless from my
conversation, because it is so important for me,
when I stand up to speak God's word,
that God's word should be on my lips.
A thousand people may be dependent on me
to hear the word of God.
Shall I let them down?
Shall I disappoint them by sitting at home
and gossiping?
No, I shall not.
I shall guard my mouth.
I shall be careful, let other people speak
what they like.
I can't.
Other people are permitted to do so many
things.
I am not permitted, because I am a
spokesman of God.
And those one thousand people who listen to
me, must not be disappointed when they have
to hear me.
They must hear a word from God.
And particularly, when I live in a country,
where it is so rare to hear the
prophetic word.
Will you take that challenge?
And say, Lord, I want to be your
spokesman.
Take this word seriously.
Matthew chapter 12.
Matthew's gospel chapter 12.
And verse 36.
Jesus said, I say to you, that every
careless word that men shall speak, they shall
render account for it in the day of
judgment.
Every useless word, careless word, every single one,
every careless word that I speak from the
pulpit, every careless word that I sit at
home and talk, every careless word that I
sit and talk and gossip to other people,
I will give an account to God in
the day of judgment.
It doesn't matter whether you heard it or
not.
I will give an account in the day
of judgment.
I fear.
I am a man who fears God.
I want to live in a greater fear
of God, particularly in two areas.
One is the area of handling money and
the other is my speech.
You be careful in these areas.
Maybe I can add a third area and
that is also in our dealings with the
opposite sex.
Men with women, women with men.
If you are careful, I seek to be
extremely careful in these three areas.
In the handling of money, in the words
that come out of my mouth and in
dealing with the opposite sex.
I want to be like that even if
I am 85 years old one day.
I want to live in fear because I
am a servant of God.
God has given me a great and holy
calling and I cannot let him down.
He has allowed me to be born at
a particular time to fulfill a particular task
in this country and I cannot let him
down.
You have been born at a particular time
in a particular place to fulfill a particular
task.
Don't let God down.
Don't let him down.
Don't be like the other full time workers
and all around you.
Be different.
Keep your conscience sensitive.
We will fail.
I have failed as I have told you.
I have repented.
I have wept.
I have mourned.
And because of that, the weighing machine becomes
more sensitive.
If you never mourn, you never weep.
For example, if you lose your temper at
your wife and you can sleep peacefully that
night, something is wrong.
How in the world can you sleep peacefully
at night when you have shouted at your
wife?
I can't understand it.
But there are many believers who do.
They are the ones who are useless to
God.
When I sin, I have to weep.
I say, Lord, that is so dishonoring to
Christ.
Forgive me.
I repent.
That's not the way for me to speak.
I want to learn to speak like Jesus
Christ would speak.
To all people, I want to show respect
to lepers, beggars, children, particularly to the outcasts
of society for whom nobody cares.
I want to treat them with respect and
speak to them with respect because I am
a servant of God.
And God loves them.
Jesus died for them.
And any man for whom Jesus died is
one whom I must treat with respect.
These are little, little principles.
If you keep your conscience clear in these
areas, you will find it goes extremely well
with you.
Keep your conscience clear in the area of
money.
Oh, how many people have destroyed themselves by
unfaithfulness in money.
You know, I found when I went to
some mission stations as a young person, I
found people who, if it was mission money,
spend it as you like, but if it
is your own money from your own pocket,
be very careful.
And I thought, is it like this?
Is there a difference between, is that the
Lord's money and whose money is this in
my purse?
The devil's money?
I have to be careful with the devil's
money, but the Lord's money can be spent.
It's crazy.
If at all you should be careful with
the Lord's money and the other money, spend
as you like.
And one of the prayers I prayed is,
Lord, help me, that there will be no
distinction in my thinking between Lord's money and
my money.
I want to be equally faithful with that
as with this.
You know, these are little things.
You be faithful with money, let your conscience
tell you, I am not here to judge
you.
Never mind if other people are doing it.
I see other people around me, even in
some of our churches, I find that they
spend the money from the offerings for things
which I will never spend.
I tell them, I say, Brother, I think
we should be careful, but I don't judge
them.
I don't know at what point their weighing
machine is registering.
I know at what point my weighing machine
is registering.
And I have to be very, very sensitive
if I want to be the Lord's spokesman.
And I have seen some of these people.
They don't cheat, they don't steal, they don't
take the Lord's money for themselves, like some
unrighteous servants of God.
They are just careless.
And I see when these people get up
to speak the word of God, there is
nothing in what they say.
Why?
God has seen.
Not that they cheated.
They were not like Judas Iscariot, stealing.
They were just careless.
They never allowed their conscience to be sensitive.
I know whenever I seek to use the
Lord's money, the Lord says, Will you use
it that way, if it is your money?
If it is your hard-earned money?
You know, money which we receive freely as
a gift, we don't value.
Money which we earn by ourselves through hard
work, we learn to value more.
If you have, if somebody gives you a
large gift, say, I got it freely, I
can spend it freely.
If you have received a rich inheritance from
your parents, that's free, I can spend it
as I like.
But what about what you earn with your
own sweat?
That you are very careful about.
Why can't we be as careful about some
money I receive as an inheritance or some
money which is given to me as a
gift?
If you are not careful about these things,
I'll tell you what will be the result.
When you get up to speak, God will
not be with your mouth.
That is the tragedy of Christian work in
India today.
That is the tragedy in the ministry today.
People are not keeping their conscience clear.
You know why God's word was in Paul's
mouth from the beginning to the end of
his life?
Because he was faithful.
He always tried his best, he said, to
keep his conscience clear.
Any of you can be a faithful servant
of God.
I said on the first day, is it
possible that God can leave a country like
India with 970 million people without profits?
Is it because he doesn't love India?
I'm sure God chose many people from the
mother's womb to be prophets.
But he would not force them.
They had to be faithful with their words,
they had to be faithful with money, they
had to be faithful with women, and they
were careless, and they lost their calling.
One last word.
Revelation.
Chapter 3.
Verse 11.
The Lord says, I'm coming quickly.
Hold fast what you have, so that no
one else takes your crown.
What's that?
Somebody else can take my crown?
How is that possible?
That means God had a ministry for me,
and if I were faithful in it, I
would have got a crown?
But, because I was unfaithful, God's work was
still done.
But somebody else did it.
He got the crown.
I have a little theory.
It is not from scripture, you don't have
to take it seriously, you can forget it
if you want.
It is possible that Judas Iscariot was really
supposed to write the epistles, but he failed.
And so God had to choose Paul to
replace him.
Because Judas Iscariot had a brilliant brain, just
like Paul's.
It is possible that God may have a
ministry for you, and you may fail.
Somebody else will do it.
He will get his crown and your crown.
Let us fear, brothers and sisters.
Let us, in the short life God has
given us, give to God a life that
will please Him by keeping our conscience sensitive.
The Lord bless you all.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, we pray You will apply what
we have heard today to our hearts, and
help us to walk in Your light.
In Jesus' name we ask.
Amen.