The introvert advantage

I'm currently reading a book-the introvert advantage. To help me to better understand myself and others and for those who are extroverts to understand us.

Interestingly the blood flow of introverts and extroverts are different.
First, in reaseach it has shown that there is more blood flow to the brains in introverts compared to extroverts.
More blood flow indicates more internal stimulation.

The pathway is more complicated and focused internally. The introverts' blood flowed to the parts of the brain involved with internal experiences like remembering, solving problems, and planning. The pathway is long and complex. The introverts were attending to their internal thoughts and feelings.

The extroverts' blood flowed to the areas of the brain where visual, auditory, touch, and taste sensory processing occurs. Their main pathway is short and less complicated.


And there are examples given in the book which shows that.
From my personal experiences, I always felt lousy that I don't think as fast and speak as fast or to verbalise more as extroverts do. But the truth is that whenever someone ask me regarding something it takes me quiet some time to generate what to say because it goes through a lot of thinking and reflecting internally. So often people would think that I'm blur/blank etc but I'm actually internalizing thoughts and feelings.

Wait for your Boaz

For all the single ladies in such a hurry to get married here is a piece of Biblical advice. Ruth patiently waited for her mate Boaz. So while waiting on your Boaz, please do not settle for any of his relatives … Broke-az, Po-az, Lyin-az, Cheatin-az, Dumb-az, Cheap-az, Lockedup-az, Goodfornothin-az, Lazy-az or Married-az and especially his third cousin Beatinyo-az. Please wait on your Boaz and make sure he respects Yo-az!”

—	~Unknown Source~

6 basic human needs

As humans we all have needs and wants and we are motivated in our actions to get away from pain (push) or to get pleasure (pull).

1. Certainty

We all want know that we’re safe, and that we can count on certain things in life to happen (or not to happen).  We want certainty the car will start, the water will flow from the tap when we turn it on and the floorboards will support us when we get up in the morning.

2. Variety

At the same time we need certainty, we also crave novelty. Paradoxically, there needs to be enough uncertainty to provide intrigue and excitement in our lives.

3. Significance

Deep down, we all want to be valued for who we are. We want our life to have meaning and significance. We want to “matter”.

4. Connection/Love

We’re alive because someone (even if it was in a dysfunctional way) loved us. We need to feel loved, feel part of a community, and feel cared for and cared about.

5. Growth

We have a need to become better, to improve our skills, to stretch, expand and excel.  This need may be more evident in some than others, but it is present in all of us.

6. Contribution

The desire to make the world a better place than we found it is the final human need.  It is the need to contribute something of value, to help and uplift others somehow.

Do not feed the monkey

Do not feed the monkey!!!

I was thinking about the situation about someone i know and also in human's life.
Then came this title to me-Do not feed the monkey!

Pray before reading as this can get confrontational. Confrontations of this nature is good so take it with a good heart.

This friend whom i know lets call him James for now. James is a case of being lost and filled with wrong spirits due to things that happened to him in his past. Sad is such a case but sympathy is to be shown not pity.
There are a lot of people who went through and goes through injustice, pain, suffering, torment, abuse etc in this human experience call life. None of us escapes the consequences of what  Adam and Eve done. None of us are spared. The thing is that in life, we may not control what happens to us as life is such that we are all linked together. In another words we are built for relationship by our Creator God. What we do and say do not just affects that person alone but  also people around as well. It is selfish and foolish to think and say that " its my life, i do and say what i want". We may not control what happens but we can control how and what we become from it.

The key word is responsibility. We are to be responsible to how we react, how we talk, how we think, how we feel, how we live. One cannot simply place the blame on the things and happenings in our life for doing so is not taking responsibility. Not being a good steward. Part of being a good and faithful steward and servant is to be responsible first and foremost of ourselves.

What are we feeding our lives with? Negative or positive thoughts? Defeat or victory? Strength or frailness? Pain or joy? Resentment or surrender? Humility or pride?

We see signs that reads "do not feed the monkeys" and there is a reason why it is there. It is there for the purpose of boundary meant to protect the monkeys and the people wanting to feed the monkeys. Monkeys are wild and meant to survive by finding and getting their own food. So by us humans going in and feeding them, it upsets the natural balance and the way they were created to be. When we feed the monkeys we make them adopt the new pattern that they can get food from people and not find and get for themselves so when times comes when they is no one to feed them, because they lose the ability to survive on their own  they end up dying of hunger. How sad is that? Not only that. When we feed the monkeys, because they are wild and the action of feeding them causes them to turn aggressive and injure the person feeding them and also snatching food from the person.

All that starts from the good intention that we have. We may have good intentions and there is nothing wrong with it but we must have wisdom otherwise what started out with good intentions can turn nasty and turn it's head to bite you back.

Intentions are never good enough even if it is good.It has to be done with wisdom. What you think may be good for that person might just become the very thing that becomes the catalyst to the grown of the root issue in the person.

Especially women are to be extra careful in this matter. As women are born with maternal instinct so naturally you would want to nurture and be like a caring figure to the person. You see a hurting person and go "ohhh so poor thing, i shall come and help you and love you". Women are to be extra careful when the person in need of attention is a guy. Guys in such stage are vulnerable and when anyone is in a vulnerable stage he/she is reaching out and grabbing whatever that is in reach to cling onto. If he/she clings onto pain, anger, bitterness, things, or a person then it is unhealthy but if he/she clings onto God then it becomes the turning point. Anything other than that will fall short.

When we go beyond supporting and encouraging the person in pain we end up "feeding the monkey" and he/she loses the ability to fight and stand for him/herself and to draw from God. If you feed the monkey you end up as his/her source of strength.

Struggles of an introvert ( Part 2)

Three things a conscious introvert knows:

Being an introvert is a physical experience and impacts us all the time. As introverts, our brains and bodies are wired differently than extroverts – so we literally experience life differently.
Most people are not introverts. Research shows that about 75% of people are extroverts. Think back to your high school. Only one in four of your classmates was an introvert, like you.
The United States is a very extroverted society. The "American way" reflects extroverts much more than introverts.

Four things a conscious introvert does:

Reframes: Being an introvert is an asset. Negative stereotypes about introverts are easy to come up with: unfriendly, withdrawn, shy, lacking social skills, etc. The gifts of introversion are many – but less understood.
Makes re-energizing a high priority. As an introvert you get re-energized from the inside – from your ideas, impressions, feelings. You need considerable "down time" for that re-energizing to happen.
Creates "introvert" ways of doing things. "Normal" in our culture is extroverted. Getting good at being an introvert on purpose makes life a lot easier.
Develops "extroverting" skills. "….when in Rome, do as the Romans do." Sometimes it's smart or essential to act like an extrovert. Getting some extrovert skills on purpose is a lot more fun than having none or trying to be an extrovert impostor.


Upon researching i came to understanding. Being an introvert have it's pros and cons and i understand why i think, feel and behave the way i do and i don't have to feel lousy because of it.

Being an introvert i re-energize by withdrawing and being alone to think and to feel.
This helped me in my walk with God alone as when i withdraw i withdraw to God and i draw closer to Him and from there i get impressions, ideas, thoughts, dreams, revelations, etc.

I like to be in big groups, to be at parties etc but i will usually will not talk much or at all. I like to just relax and observe and listen to people. But i know i have to be more conversations and though i feel awkward when i don't know what to talk about i just have to do it.
I like to think through before i say things and think through on what to say so that's why i'm often silent or i will pause a long time before i say something. It might come across as being hesitant or that i'm not sure etc but that's not true, i'm just thinking through.

When you ask me things, please do give me time to think it through etc as that's how i internalize things.

Struggles of an introvert(part 1)

Struggles of an introvert.


I have been thinking of this area of introversion and extroversion.
Because now my job requires me to be out there reaching out to youths especially to those youths who are at risk. So it means i have to be more like an extrovert which is the most challenging thing to me like ever. The deal with me is that not only am i an introvert but i'm also a shy person on top of that. So with such combination it scores the home run for social awkwardness.

Just last sunday i went for a birthday celebration for a pastor of the children church. I went there and when i saw people my first natural desire and instinct is to be alone. I wanted to be as far away from groups as much as i can as it's awkward for me. Well i do know a few familiar faces among them but i'm just not that comfortable to be around them. Anti-social it might seem but i just like to be alone. Don't get me wrong i do enjoy people and i like to be in big groups and parties but i get drain after a long period of time and it's time out for me buddy.

Then came a friend. Well she is just the opposite end of me and i mean extreme extroverted. She is like the duracell bunny in commercials that is hyper and never seem to be "dying any time soon". She just came over and said what she says when ever i'm not socializing with others "What are you doing here alone? Don't be so anti-social and talk to others". Well it just always makes me feel really lousy and bad like there's something like seriously wrong with me.

Growing up i was never the "life of the party" or the "woooohooooooo" exploding with limitless energy person. I guess who am i now is the combination of both nature and nurture. I have an elder brother and my mom had to work hard to support us as our father, well our father he is a "father of many nations" and he was no longer a father to us. My mom had to work so me and my bro are left at my grandma's place to be taken care of. My brother and i well we shared a love, hate relationship. We played and fought hard. My mom would come back at night to our grandma's place to visit us and then back home. So that's how my relationship with my mom is like. We are not close because of that.

School life was great, was really fun. I don't really had many friends as i keep to few close friends and i like it that way. Then things happened like friends changing schools and then change of class because of the different subjects like arts and geography etc. Soon i found myself with lesser close friends and as i was growing up i was always thinking about life and the world and i grew angry and bitter. Depression then became part of me and i struggled with it. I became more withdrawn and hence "anti-social".

Yeah so that's for the nurture part and my nature is introverted.

I'm always struggling with this as i feel and think that i'm really messed up and wrong. But i came to realize and know that i shouldn't be.

I learned the difference between and extrovert and an introvert.

Introvert-Draws energy from being alone. To think, to reflect, to imagine, to dream.
Extrovert-Draws energy from being with people. They need to have people around.

I found this and it really helps me.

Introvert? No Apology Required
Adam McHugh
Author, Pastor

Why did you decide to write a resource for introverts?

It started as a personal quest. I knew that I was (1) Called to be a leader in the church. I had gifts of teaching and pastoring and I relished opportunities to help people listen to the voice of God in their lives. But it was also clear that (2) I was an introvert. While I enjoyed people and the various aspects of church leadership, I found them draining and I longed for times of solitude, study, and quiet reflection. I experienced a lot of tension between these two realities, especially in an active, gregarious evangelical environment, and the research I did was a way of trying to make sense of my call in light of my introverted temperament and vice versa.

But then I started talking with other introverts about my experiences, and I realized how prevalent, and even sometimes how crippling, the struggles are for introverts in the church. I even talked with a number of introverts who have left their churches - or even church in general - because of this issue. So what began as a study of introverts in Christian leadership expanded into an exploration of central aspects of the Christian life, like community, spirituality, evangelism, and worship, from an introverted perspective. My deep hope is that the book will help introverts to find peace in their God-given personality preferences and to discover their places in their Christian communities, which so badly need their gifts and strengths.



What are the qualities of an introvert that may be overlooked?

Put bluntly, I think most qualities of an introvert are prone to be overlooked! In our extroverted society, we value aggressive, action-oriented, gregarious people, and I think this extroverted bias has bled over into some of our churches, where often the "ideals" of faithfulness are strikingly extroverted. We praise people who are social and expressive, eager to participate in a wide variety of activities, have an overt enthusiasm, share their faith with strangers easily, assume leadership positions quickly. But introverts do not usually fit this profile, and our lives of faith may be a little slower, a little quieter, a little more solitary. We are often calm, thoughtful, reflective types who may be invisible to others if they are not looking or listening.

Yet I think that introverts have tremendous gifts to bring to others. In the book I start with our listening abilities. Because introverts process internally, we can offer people a non-judgmental presence that helps others open up to us. There is also something about being intimately connected to our inner worlds that produces a great deal of creativity. Many introverts are gifted writers, artists, musicians, and even actors. I also think that having a rich inner life lends itself towards a deep compassion for others, something I have seen in many introverted pastors and chaplains I have worked with. Further, we are capable of an insight that is borne of self-awareness and listening, a peacefulness that spreads to others, and a servant mindset which is often expressed in behind-the-scenes service.



Can introverts be in church leadership?

Absolutely. The reality is that introverts are in church leadership—I've seen studies that estimate anywhere from 25 to 40 percent of Protestant pastors are introverted, with an even higher percentage among Catholic priests. Interestingly, it seems that the larger churches are, the higher is the percentage of introverts leading them. A recent survey reports that 45% of megachurches are led by introverted pastors. Erwin McManus, Dan Kimball, and Mark Driscoll, among many others, are self-confessed introverts.

Perhaps the better question then is how introverts can lead in a way that is life-giving and natural. I think self-care is absolutely critical for introverted pastors and leaders, because my experience is that introverts in ministry are more prone to burnout than extroverts. We need to discover and embrace our rhythms of expending and restoring energy and to care for ourselves—souls, minds, bodies and intimate relationships—so that we can find joy and vitality in ministry and life.



How has being an introvert helped your ministry?

That's a question I haven't been asked much! Too often we define introversion by what's it's not, rather than what it is. I would really like to start defining it by its assets, not its liabilities. I have worked in a number of different ministry settings—in the church, in college campus ministry, and in hospital and hospice chaplaincy—and being an introvert has helped me in all of those roles. My listening abilities as an introvert are probably the greatest gift that I have to offer people. In our culture people so rarely have the experience of being truly listened to- having their words, feelings, and experiences taken seriously. I have developed the skill of listening to what's unsaid - the doubts, questions, and feelings that lie underneath what someone is saying. It's amazing how transformative it can be for a person to simply be listened to, even when no problems are solved or no advice is dispensed.

Some people are surprised when I tell them that my introversion has also aided me in preaching and teaching. My natural bent toward study, thoughtful reflection and writing—all things that come to introverts pretty easily—have all helped me develop as a preacher. I love going deep into the nuances and applications of the biblical text, and I also think that my tendency to observe helps me to speak into the life of the community and the culture. Even though I enjoy writing sermons more than I do preaching, I am very comfortable in the pulpit, as long as I have had ample time to prepare. The fellowship hour after the service is another story though!




Anyway i did some research on introvert and did the meyer test thing and right below is the result meant as reference for me.


Introverted iNtuitive Feeling Judging
by Joe Butt
Profile: INFJ
Revision: 3.1
Date of Revision: 8 Aug 2010

Beneath the quiet exterior, INFJs hold deep convictions about the weightier matters of life. Those who are activists -- INFJs gravitate toward such a role -- are there for the cause, not for personal glory or political power.

INFJs are champions of the oppressed and downtrodden. They often are found in the wake of an emergency, rescuing those who are in acute distress. INFJs may fantasize about getting revenge on those who victimize the defenseless. The concept of 'poetic justice' is appealing to the INFJ.

"There's something rotten in Denmark." Accurately suspicious about others' motives, INFJs are not easily led. These are the people that you can rarely fool any of the time. Though affable and sympathetic to most, INFJs are selective about their friends. Such a friendship is a symbiotic bond that transcends mere words.

INFJs have a knack for fluency in language and facility in communication. In addition, nonverbal sensitivity enables the INFJ to know and be known by others intimately.

Writing, counseling, public service and even politics are areas where INFJs frequently find their niche.

Functional Analysis:
Introverted iNtuition

Introverted intuitives, INFJs enjoy a greater clarity of perception of inner, unconscious processes than all but their INTJ cousins. Just as SP types commune with the object and "live in the here and now" of the physical world, INFJs readily grasp the hidden psychological stimuli behind the more observable dynamics of behavior and affect. Their amazing ability to deduce the inner workings of the mind, will and emotions of others gives INFJs their reputation as prophets and seers. Unlike the confining, routinizing nature of introverted sensing, introverted intuition frees this type to act insightfully and spontaneously as unique solutions arise on an event by event basis.
Extraverted Feeling

Extraverted feeling, the auxiliary deciding function, expresses a range of emotion and opinions of, for and about people. INFJs, like many other FJ types, find themselves caught between the desire to express their wealth of feelings and moral conclusions about the actions and attitudes of others, and the awareness of the consequences of unbridled candor. Some vent the attending emotions in private, to trusted allies. Such confidants are chosen with care, for INFJs are well aware of the treachery that can reside in the hearts of mortals. This particular combination of introverted intuition and extraverted feeling provides INFJs with the raw material from which perceptive counselors are shaped.
Introverted Thinking

The INFJ's thinking is introverted, turned toward the subject. Perhaps it is when the INFJ's thinking function is operative that he is most aloof. A comrade might surmise that such detachment signals a disillusionment, that she has also been found lacking by the sardonic eye of this one who plumbs the depths of the human spirit. Experience suggests that such distancing is merely an indication that the seer is hard at work and focusing energy into this less efficient tertiary function.
Extraverted Sensing

INFJs are twice blessed with clarity of vision, both internal and external. Just as they possess inner vision which is drawn to the forms of the unconscious, they also have external sensing perception which readily takes hold of worldly objects. Sensing, however, is the weakest of the INFJ's arsenal and the most vulnerable. INFJs, like their fellow intuitives, may be so absorbed in intuitive perceiving that they become oblivious to physical reality. The INFJ under stress may fall prey to various forms of immediate gratification. Awareness of extraverted sensing is probably the source of the "SP wannabe" side of INFJs. Many yearn to live spontaneously; it's not uncommon for INFJ actors to take on an SP (often ESTP) role.
Famous INFJs:

Nathan, prophet of Israel
Aristophanes
Chaucer
Goethe
Robert Burns, Scottish poet

U.S. Presidents:
Martin Van Buren
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter

Nathaniel Hawthorne
Fanny Crosby, (blind) hymnist
Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Fred McMurray (My Three Sons)
Shirley Temple Black, child actor, ambassador
Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights leader, martyr
James Reston, newspaper reporter
Shirley MacLaine (Sweet Charity, ...)
Piers Anthony, author ("Xanth" series)
Michael Landon (Little House on the Prairie)
Tom Selleck
John Katz, critic, author
Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul and Mary)
U. S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun (D-IL)
Billy Crystal
Garry Trudeau (Doonesbury)
Nelson Mandela
Mel Gibson
Carrie Fisher
Nicole Kidman
Jerry Seinfeld
Jamie Foxx
Sela Ward
Mark Harmon
Gary Dourdan
Marg Helgaberger
Evangeline Lilly
Tori May
Introverted iNtuiting Feeling Judging
by Marina Margaret Heiss

INFJs are distinguished by both their complexity of character and the unusual range and depth of their talents. Strongly humanitarian in outlook, INFJs tend to be idealists, and because of their J preference for closure and completion, they are generally "doers" as well as dreamers. This rare combination of vision and practicality often results in INFJs taking a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the various causes to which so many of them seem to be drawn.

INFJs are deeply concerned about their relations with individuals as well as the state of humanity at large. They are, in fact, sometimes mistaken for extroverts because they appear so outgoing and are so genuinely interested in people -- a product of the Feeling function they most readily show to the world. On the contrary, INFJs are true introverts, who can only be emotionally intimate and fulfilled with a chosen few from among their long-term friends, family, or obvious "soul mates." While instinctively courting the personal and organizational demands continually made upon them by others, at intervals INFJs will suddenly withdraw into themselves, sometimes shutting out even their intimates. This apparent paradox is a necessary escape valve for them, providing both time to rebuild their depleted resources and a filter to prevent the emotional overload to which they are so susceptible as inherent "givers." As a pattern of behavior, it is perhaps the most confusing aspect of the enigmatic INFJ character to outsiders, and hence the most often misunderstood -- particularly by those who have little experience with this rare type.

Due in part to the unique perspective produced by this alternation between detachment and involvement in the lives of the people around them, INFJs may well have the clearest insights of all the types into the motivations of others, for good and for evil. The most important contributing factor to this uncanny gift, however, are the empathic abilities often found in Fs, which seem to be especially heightened in the INFJ type (possibly by the dominance of the introverted N function).

This empathy can serve as a classic example of the two-edged nature of certain INFJ talents, as it can be strong enough to cause discomfort or pain in negative or stressful situations. More explicit inner conflicts are also not uncommon in INFJs; it is possible to speculate that the causes for some of these may lie in the specific combinations of preferences which define this complex type. For instance, there can sometimes be a "tug-of-war" between NF vision and idealism and the J practicality that urges compromise for the sake of achieving the highest priority goals. And the I and J combination, while perhaps enhancing self-awareness, may make it difficult for INFJs to articulate their deepest and most convoluted feelings.

Usually self-expression comes more easily to INFJs on paper, as they tend to have strong writing skills. Since in addition they often possess a strong personal charisma, INFJs are generally well-suited to the "inspirational" professions such as teaching (especially in higher education) and religious leadership. Psychology and counseling are other obvious choices, but overall, INFJs can be exceptionally difficult to pigeonhole by their career paths. Perhaps the best example of this occurs in the technical fields. Many INFJs perceive themselves at a disadvantage when dealing with the mystique and formality of "hard logic", and in academic terms this may cause a tendency to gravitate towards the liberal arts rather than the sciences. However, the significant minority of INFJs who do pursue studies and careers in the latter areas tend to be as successful as their T counterparts, as it is *iNtuition* -- the dominant function for the INFJ type -- which governs the ability to understand abstract theory and implement it creatively.

In their own way, INFJs are just as much "systems builders" as are INTJs; the difference lies in that most INFJ "systems" are founded on human beings and human values, rather than information and technology. Their systems may for these reasons be conceptually "blurrier" than analogous NT ones, harder to measure in strict numerical terms, and easier to take for granted -- yet it is these same underlying reasons which make the resulting contributions to society so vital and profound.
Copyright © 1996-2011 by Marina Margaret Heiss and Joe Butt

DR. A.R. Bernard 6 may 2012

Dr. A.R. Bernard 6 May 2012

Acts 1:7
7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.
Jesus has risen from the dead and shown Himself to many of His disciples, many witnesses of His resurrection according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15.

Now He is giving closing remarks before He ascends up into heaven. He is basically giving brief instructions to His disciples who will then in turn take His mission and message out into the world. It is interesting because their question here in the case that although they have spent all of this time with Jesus they did not fully comprehend the meaning of His coming and His ministry and His message. But He assured them that once they experience this outpouring of the Holy Spirit which we call the day of Pentecost that the Holy Spirit would take them into a new realm of revelation and understanding.

6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”

Now this question is consistent with their thinking because in the Jewish mind, when the Messiah comes He would restore the former glory Israel experienced, the Messiah would occupy the throne of His Father gave Him, the Messiah would usher in a time of peace and prosperity, the Messiah would free the nation of Israel from any oppression from any nation, the Messiah would establish in Jerusalem a capital from which He would rule not just the nation of Israel but the rest of the world. You could understand and those are just some of the things that the Jewish mind understood that Messiah would bring and this is why it is so difficult for the nation of Israel as a national entity to embrace Jesus.

It was 2 years ago that I was in Israel and I was speaking to one of the Israelis tour guide and I said to him “We Christians believe that Jesus fulfilled what was written in the law and the prophets and the psalms concerning the Messiah” and he responded by saying “That’s the problem we have with you Christians because Jesus did not fulfill those things that were written”. So in the Jewish minds since they are still oppressed, they’ve been 2 thousand years and before 1948 dispersed in all the nations of the earth until they were re-established as a state of Israel in 1948 so in the Jewish mind, Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because there’s still things that were not fulfilled but the book of 1 Peter 1, Peter reveals that the prophets enquire to know and to understand the times and the seasons that the Spirit of Christ in them predicted the sufferings and the glory of Christ. They did not comprehend fully when Messiah would fulfill His sufferings. They only had the vision of the Messiah coming in power and in glory and this is why Jesus referred to the text that speak of His suffering when He was entering into Jerusalem triumphantly He gets on the back of a donkey and He says “Tell the daughter of Zion that her King comes riding on a back of a donkey”.

The donkey was a beast of burden and it was symbolically representing though literally fulfilled that He would take on the burden of the sins of the whole world but to the Jewish mind they could not embrace that. In fact when Jesus told His disciples He started to speak of His death and His resurrection. Peter said “Be it far from you Lord that such a thing would happen to you”. They reject the notion of the death on a cross not understanding that it was still part of the program so it’s no mystery here that they would ask this question after the resurrection and the demonstration of His victory over death as well as His power over life. Will you at this time restore to Israel the kingdom and Jesus responds very powerfully and with great depth and profundity here. He says in verse 7 to them “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority. That’s powerful because what they were asking about the restoration of the kingdom to Israel was already fixed for a particular time and season in Biblical history and the history of humanity and obviously that time had not come yet so Jesus’ response was if I would to tell you I would be communicating what the Father has kept within His own power. This is information that is not for you to know. And then He of cause refers them to waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost which would be the birthing of the church of Christ and the beginning of a new phase of ministry of the Holy Spirit to gather out from both Jew and gentile a new body call the body of Christ. Jesus referred to it in Matthew 16 when He said speaking about something in the future on this rock I will build my church but to the Jewish mind they did not have the concept of the church that Jesus was talking about building. The ministry of the Holy Spirit would make that happen by gathering people out of both Jew and gentile to create this one body.

But what I want to point to today is the language that Jesus used. He used the language of times and seasons. There is another word that is also used when Jesus talked about the end of the age. He spoke of the word age or ages. Now the word age is critical. Now let’s start it this way because we are going to break down this word because I want you to understand.

The word times is the word chronos from where we get intervals of time. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. So it is specific time measurement. The word seasons on the other words kairos means an opportune time. A time that is perfect and just right, favorable conditions, appropriate for a person, a purpose or a situation.

Aion is the Greek word which means age. An age is a period of time somewhere along the time continuum. Age is a period of time in history marked by notable events and particular characteristics so within each period there would be certain key events that takes place that identify that period. They will also be certain characteristics about that period that identify that period. The word aion is also translated in English in the word world and there are places where the word world can be oikoumene which means territory or land or could mean kosmos which mean social order or it could mean and age , a period.

So when in the gospels it speak about the end of the world, it’s not really the end of the planet it’s the end of a particular age, a particular period. The Bible says “heaven and earth will pass away before His words passes and His words will never fail”. There is a period in which God is going to deal with the physical earth but right now humanity is moving through certain periods and certain seasons and certain times.

The apostle Paul in Galatians 1:4 says that we are in a period that the Bible calls this present age. This present period in history he calls this present evil age and the word evil is the Greek word poneros which means that this period or age is characterized by forces that seeks to undermine humanity. Not only to undermine humanity but to undermine the work of God in human society. So it speaks specifically of forces and it make sense because in the prayer that you prayed this morning as you were preparing to receive communion the line and that prayer says “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil or the evil one. So he is represented in poneros as that individual and forces that seek to undermine so Paul calls this, this present evil age. An age is a period of time in history that is marked by certain notable events and certain notable events have taken place in this period or this age. The most significant thing that relays Biblically most recently is the re-establishment of Israel as a national entity. But it will also be marked by certain characteristics now this age will end with the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ. There will be certain things going to happen before He returns, certain conditions that will exist on the earth before His return. And He was very specific through the apostle Paul, his writings to the church and young Timothy.

The Bible reveals a historical progression of an ongoing self-disclosure of God. In another words, God is moving through time and history revealing Himself little by little. The most glorious revelation of Himself was in Christ because remember Jesus was His expressed image of the Father. That’s why He said “If you’ve seen Me then you have seen the Father”. Throughout this period of cause, God is at work in creation, at work in time, at work in human, at work in human society.

Why do I say this? Because at the end of this age the prophetic words said there is going to be certain characteristics and certain things happening in Christendom. This is not synonymous with the church which is the body of Christ. Christendom is the entire grouping of people who have identified themselves with Christ throughout history and till this present day. And why there is a distinction is because everyone who identifies themselves as a Christian is not necessarily a Christian by the Biblical definition of the word Christian. That’s why Jesus said “Not everyone that says to Me Lord, Lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven, not everyone that calls Me Lord shall experience heaven.” So He was very clear that Christianity would grow and become this big religious system.
Jesus said when He talked about the mustard seed that the kingdom would began as a small mustard seed and then grow into a huge tree with many different branches. He also said that the fowl of the air will come and settle and nest in some of the branches. He was talking about the growth and the development of Christendom in terms of humanity’s response to the message of the gospel. So today between Catholicism and Protestantism there are over 330 branches of Christianity in the form of denominations. Therefor fulfilling what Jesus spoke when He talked about everything beginning as a mustard seed and then growing into a great tree.

Mustard seed naturally speaking only grows to about 12 feet and it’s a bush not a tree so the fact that it grew into a tree it turned into something other than what it was intended to be. So we are seeing this all coming to pass right before our eyes. And so this is Christendom and it would have certain characteristics. So this is what Jesus said and He communicated this through the epistles and the apostle Paul. In Paul’s letters to Timothy and I’m giving you a characteristic of this present age as we move towards the return of Jesus and base upon what is happening geopolitically on the earth and what’s happening in many other ways that are indicators and signs, I would say that we are very close.

But before He comes he said specifically in his writings to Timothy that there would be an experience of something called apostasy. An apostasy simply means a departure from, the moving away from certain things.
Timothy in his book 2 Timothy 4, the apostle Paul communicates to young Timothy that the time would come when men would no longer endure sound doctrine or sound teaching. The church has been preserved historically for the past 2000 years on certain core beliefs and certain core values. What some would call the essentials of the faith. Apostle Paul in his writing to young Timothy was telling him that the time would come when individuals who claim to identify as part of this system of Christianity or Christendom will move away from some of those very core teachings of the church.

We live in a day where pop culture has a heavy influence on the church instead of the other way around. We are to impact the culture, the culture should not change the church. The only influence the culture should have on the church is influencing the church to determine better methods of reaching the culture but not to move the church away from the essential doctrines of the faith. That’s why I believe we are now in the season where the Holy Spirit is bringing pastors and teachers back to the place of teaching the sound solid fundamental doctrines of the faith.
Some will depart, men will not endure sound doctrines. An interesting choice of word in the king James language. Endure sound doctrines. You don’t endure something that you like. When you have to endure something it means it tends to go against the grain of what you would like, what you would prefer. So the church will began to like other things because they are going to have their appetites and desires turned to a direction that says ‘Look, this is too much. Make it simple’.

2 Peter 2 and 3. Wonderful passage that talks about what the conditions and characteristics of 2 Peter 2.
These are some of the indicators.

No. 1 there will be those who will deny the atoning work of Christ on the cross. See when you recited that apostle’s creed you are reaffirming that the way of salvation and the true gospel is a message that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, that He was buried and He rose again the third day. That’s the gospel. But the Bible says that the time will come when those who claimed to be Christians will then deny the atoning work of Christ on the cross, they will also deny the deity of Jesus. They will also begin to deny what is essential to our faith and that is Biblical authority, the authority of the Bible and the divine inspiration which is it’s transmission from generation to generation and it’s preservation. So when you start questioning whether the Bible is true or not our faith begins to fall apart.

An apostasy or a departure from moral responsibility which is the movement away from moral standards. So we get to a place we start practicing situational ethics. The scriptures teaches specifically in 2 Peter 2 and 3 that “there will be a mass departure from moral standards” as expressed by popular culture. And popular culture right now has no standards. Our children, our young people will watch these things and get influenced by these things. And then you say ‘Well it’s ok’, ‘It’s ok to engage in sexual activity if you are not married’. We begin to rationalize and reason. I’ve heard this story “Well I’m engaged so we’re about to get married and we’re going to do it anyway so why not start now”. The answer is no.

Children been born out of wedlock is ok and the Hollywood celebrities flaunt that and they are on the cover of magazines but that’s pop culture and it begins to influence and when the church begins to embrace this and agrees with it, it becomes problematic.

If you are an unbeliever and have moral standards, I’m pleasantly surprise but if you are a believer and you lack moral standards then that is the problem.

Apostle Paul said that there will be those who no longer want to have that responsibility so we can get off into an abuse of this present period which is about the grace of God, the Holy Spirit is administering grace to the world. Pulling by faith through grace, gentiles and Jews into the body of Christ and there is this graciousness that God is delivering and presenting to us.

John 8
New King James Version (NKJV)
8 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
2 Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. 3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” 6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.
7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
And that is interesting because the older one had more time to sin so the younger ones left last.
10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”
11 She said, “No one, Lord.”
And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you;

I want to stop there for a reason and I want to reflect on what took place here.

No.1 Jesus did not dispute the charges against this woman so we have to conclude that what she has been accused of happened. The interesting thing is the law not only says that the woman should be stoned but the man who is engaged in adultery with her should also be stoned. And the question is where was he? Another question is how did they know at what time and what place she would be committing adultery? I think she was set up. Were they watching her? How did they know? But they found her and they brought her to Jesus.

Now look at Jesus’s response and it very powerful. This is an expression of God’s grace.

No.1 He gave her protection from the crowd that was waiting to stone her. Gave her protection, didn’t rebuke her. He dealt with her accusers.

No.2 He gave her dignity by pointing out the sins of those accusing her and in doing He was pointing out that she was no worse a sinner than her accusers. So He gave her protection and He gave her dignity. Then He offers her forgiveness from her sin. He says “where are your accusers, neither do I condemn you”. When He says “neither do I condemn you” He’s also releasing her from condemnation.

This is what grace does. Grace brings you under the protection of God’s love and care in Christ. Grace gives you forgiveness for your sins. Grace removes the condemnation. The scriptures says “if any man be in Christ he is a new creature but there is now also no condemnation to those who are in Christ” because grace removes the condemnation, gives you protection, issues forgiveness, gives you dignity by raising you up and cleansing you and calling you a new creation, a chosen child of God.

But then Jesus does something and it’s critical here, Jesus does something that runs against the grain of what pop culture and unfortunately some churches want Jesus and grace to be like.

This is what He says “Now go and sin no more”. He didn’t just offer her protection, forgiveness and dignity and remove the condemnation He also made a demand on her lifestyle. I’ve talked to many celebrities in pop culture and this is the problem they have with Jesus. They want a Jesus who gives them all the love and affection, removes the guilt and condemnation. They want a Jesus that will give them all the benefits of prosperity and healing and everything but they don’t want a Jesus who makes a demand on their lifestyles.

The song that you sang earlier on “Your sacrifice demands my life and I live to honor You” to honor what You’ve done. I’m not going to live a life to dishonor what You’ve done because that is going to frustrate the work of Your grace in my life. So He told the woman go and sin no more.

See people don’t want that. ‘Jesus come into my life make me a Christian and I want Your prosperity, I want all of that but don’t tell me how to live my life because now You are trespassing, Jesus You are butting in’
Now let me adjust something for the scholars in here because this 8 chapter here in the gospel of John does not appear in some of the early manuscripts so they are those who discredit this story. Well there is another story about a man who is crippled for 38 years and is also in the gospel of John and also found in the early manuscript and Jesus told this man the same thing after He healed him and ran into him later in the day on a Sabbath at the temple “you’ve been healed and now go and sin no more”

Ephesians 1:11
11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
We have been predestined. Another words God’s love and compassion has come to us. He continues to say “walk worthy of your calling.

2 Peter 2:9
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

Ephesians 5:8
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.

2 Timothy 1:9
9 who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus

Ephesians 4:1
4 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling
How you live your life is supposed to demonstrate that you are salt and light because you carry yourself in a manner that is worthy of your calling. You’ve been called out of darkness into the light of God.

Colossians 1:9-10
9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,
Worthy means showing, demonstrating by how you live the qualities of character and lifestyle that deserve respect, honor, and recognition as a redeemed child of God. To walk worthy of your calling and you’ve been called out of darkness not to any longer live and engage works of darkness. It means you no longer engage in activities that demonstrate spiritual and moral ignorance. Jesus loves you and He will supply all of your needs according to His riches and glory and you can do all things through Christ which strengthens you, whatsoever born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that overcomes the world even our faith you are more than conquerors in this life and you are persuaded that nothing can separate you from the love of God neither height nor depth, no matter how low you go, nor angels nor principalities, nor power, nor things in the past, nor things in the present, nor things in the future. You are just blessed. However you have a responsibility to walk worthy of your calling. What does worthy mean again? It means showing the qualities of character and lifestyle that deserve, that commands respect, honor and recognition as a child of God. So your lifestyle should allow people to look at you and say ‘That is a redeemed, born again Christian’ not ‘I’m not sure if they are Christians, look at the way they act’. When you walk in a manner worthy of your calling you walk in dignity, you walk in a way people respect who you are because I’m going to tell you that respect gives you power to speak into their lives. You walk in a way that people can honor you.
The cultural mandate is being taken to a world where everybody is suspect, where everybody sort of have something in their closet so when there’s a Christian that comes in as salt and light, the first thing they are going to check is that Christian’s lifestyle. And when that lifestyle, their manner of carrying themselves is one of dignity and respect and brings honor to the Lord and to His kingdom and to His church then their hearts open for that person to influence them because all of a sudden they feel a certain trust for you and they feel the authority of God’s words in your life.

When a Christian carries himself as carnal and carnal Christians simply means a Christian who continues to allow the appetite of their human nature to dominate their lifestyle. So when you conduct yourself in a lifestyle that is contrary to the word of God and contrary to your confession, you undermine the authority of Christ in those people who know you who are not saved.

Apostle Paul wrote about how the word of God and the honor of God is blasphemed because of how Christians were conducting themselves. We live in a time where we want to use the scripture to celebrate all the benefits of the gospel in our lives but we don’t want the same scripture to make any demands on how we live. And yet this is a marriage relationship with Jesus and my wife is married to me and I’m married to her and guess what when we got married we drew boundaries of respect and honor and dignity. We would never no matter how angry we got we would never argue in front of people, we will never raise our hands to each other, will never use profanity to each other. That’s why we stayed married 40 years. Because we set boundaries of dignity, respect and honor. Did we get upset with each other? Yes.

Can Jesus look down from heaven and say to the devil ‘have you noticed, observed my servant?’ can He say your name. Can He present you as a model of how a Christian carries himself.

I’m not talking about legalism. I’m not talking about a life that is filled with laws and don’t do this, don’t do that. No, that should never be your motivation to live a life worthy of your calling. I’m going to tell you what should always be your motivation to live holy to walk right, to carry yourself with dignity, honor and respect. I’m going to give you one word and that is-gratitude.

You live right because you are grateful for what God has done in your life. You live right because of what God delivered you from. You live right because you are grateful for God’s protection over your life, His guidance over your life, blessings over your life. Your life should be one big thank you.
The scripture says “that time will come when people move away from moral standards, move away from God’s call to holiness and take advantage of God’s grace, it frustrates that grace”.

I serve God out of a grateful heart, I live for God out of a grateful heart. I’m not doing these things to gain His favor. No. I live in His favor, I walk in His favor, in His favor I live, move and have my existence. I don’t wake up in the morning and wonder if He loves me. I know He loves me, I know His grace is upon me. Every day I look for favor, I look for doors to be opened, I look for favor with people and I live a life of gratitude. I walk with an attitude of gratitude because my whole life, every day, every situation, every moment is to say thank you Jesus, for saving me, for healing me, for delivering me and I don’t want to do anything that displeases you. So I watch my words, my thoughts, my actions, my motivations. I want to walk worthy of the call upon my life.

Power issue

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely everything.
True or false?
False.

Well i used to think that power corrupts just as money corrupts people and its the root of all evil but that is not true at all.
Money is a material thing and how can a material thing be moral or immoral?
Power is best said in Spiderman 'with greater power comes greater responsibility' and i agree with that.
Why?

It's not what's outside that corrupts a man, it's whats inside of a man-the heart.

Dr. A.R. Bernard- 5 may 2012

I want to link 2 particular passages from scripture, one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament. The first one is Genesis 1:26.

Genesis 1:26-27 (English standard version)
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Matthew 11:29
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

What do these 2 passages have in common? Both speak of relationship with God. Now notice what He said. Not only to take My yoke upon you but He also says to learn from Me and you will find rest for yourself. Notice the relationship Jesus makes between knowledge and rest. Rest is a state of peace. So knowledge brings peace. Specifically the knowledge of God brings peace. So Jesus is saying get to know Me and if you get to know Me, it will bring you to a place of rest. He talks about peace in the other gospels. Says “My peace will I give you, a peace that the world cannot give you nor can the world take it from you.

I’ve been walking with the Lord in ministry for 34 years and relationship with Christ close to 40 years as well and the more i know about God, the more rest i experience in my life. Things that i used to fret over be concerned about even as a Christian, as a believer navigating in society, especially bringing the message of the culture mandate. Learning, understanding God’s purposes plans for human society.

I’m today at a place where i experience a greater degree of peace and rest and it’s not because of my faith, it’s because of what i know. Faith of cause plays a very important part of our relationship with God because without faith it is impossible to please Him but my rest in Him. And Paul talks about that getting to a place where you find rest in God that comes in what you know about God.

So Jesus’ invitation here is a relational invitation because He said something “take My yoke upon you and learn from Me”. A yoke symbolizes a relationship, a very close relationship that I’ll speak about a little later.
So what does this passage in Matthew have to do with Genesis chapter 1? Let me give you a term and i love terms, definitions and things.


Imago dei- Latin term for the image of God.

Genesis 1:26 says that God created men in His own image so men became the imago dei. The image or reflection of God. Just like in Matthew 11:29 it is relational as Genesis 1:26 is. The reason why God made men in His own image and in His own likeness is because He had an objective in mind and that objective was relationship and fellowship. It’s God’s desires. That’s why it puzzled David. God’s interest in humans to the point that David said what is men that You are mindful of Him or the son of man that You visit him. And David continues in that psalm. He was fascinated by this love, this connection that God has with the human species. So much so that when God had to bring judgment on humanity called the flood, He still preserved Noah and His family because it was not a complete end to the human species. It was simply a major adjustment that had to be made to human history and experience. So He made men in His image and in His likeness so that He could have relationship, communion and fellowship with men.

God created men in such a way so that that relationship and that fellowship could take place, so He is very careful. He had to create something call compatibility. It’s the very same you look for in human relationships because you want to know that the person you’re having a relationship with have a degree of compatibility between you and that person. It simply means that you have things in common. We tend to have relationship with people that we have certain things in common. If the imago dei is the image of God and God purposely and specifically designed men for fellowship and communion and relationship, it means that He designed men so that men would be compatible with God.

What does God and men have in common?

Let’s begin to explore the image of God and understand why it is so special. God call forth to the ocean for the creatures to come about created all the fowls of the air, beasts of the field, fish of the sea and He did that with His words. He said let the ocean be filled with all types of sea life, the sky to be filled with the birds of the air, let the land be filled with the beast of the field. All these other things He created with His spoken words but when it came to men, He created men with His own hands. Because this creature will be different will be distinct and hold a special place in God’s heart. So the fact that His hands were involved in shaping and molding and fashioning this distinct creature means that God consider this particular creature and species out of all the other creatures to be the most compatible with Himself.

There are 3 attributes of God that is commonly understood if you take theology or any other Bible study.
And these 3 attributes of God are that God is omnipotent.
1) God is omnipotent – God is all powerful
2) God is omniscient – God is all knowing. His knowledge extends beyond time and space.
3) God is omnipresent – God is present everywhere at the same time

These are the primary and major attributes of God but you and i are not omnipotent, we are not omniscient and we are not omnipresent so that means that whatever attributes that God shared with us had to be communicable. It means it had to be attributes that God could share with men. So another words, He did not make us gods or gods to compete with Him so He only shared with us His communicable attributes. So when God breathed into men the breath of life, it was God sharing with men His divine nature but limited to communicable attributes. He breathed into men the breath of life; He breathed into men those attributes of Himself that He could share. So we don’t carry these attributes but we do carry certain attributes that make us like God.

How are you the image of God?

1) Reason – The power of our mind, our ability to think, to understand and to form judgments.

Our ability to reason is one of the things God shared with us. The purpose for all of these is communion, fellowship that’s why you read in Isaiah 1:18
18 “Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the LORD,

God could say that because He gave men that attribute. The attribute to think, to understand and to form judgment. That’s why when men sinned, Adam sinned, men’s reasoning capacity was affected, it changed the way he thought and you see it immediately because before the fall, Adam was strong in his relationship and communion with God but after he sinned. Now he is hiding himself because he is afraid. Fear takes over the mind and it affects his reasoning. So instead of his reasoning being strong and open towards God it is now hidden and secretive. Fear takes over where there was faith and boldness. So that’s why when we are born again, the Bible says you will be transformed. Transformed what? Into the image of Christ who is the expressed image of God, the original intend in the mind of God for the human species. You’ll be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Because the mind has gone astray so we no longer think like God. But in the beginning He gave us, shared with us the power to reason and to think like Him. That is why the word of God is so important. The word of God, the scriptures helps us to think like God. When you think like God, you are really operating in the realm of faith and creativity is released. Creativity is set free because you are now thinking like God.
When you think like God, you have a set of values and a sense of purpose. The values guide your actions, your thinking. Purpose gives you a sense of awareness that there is more to your life than you experienced in any one moment, there is still more.

2) Creativity – The ability to imagine new things and give meaning to old things

I’m like God because I’m creative and I’m most like God when I’m creative. This is why this ministry strives, has grown, and continues to grow because it employs the attribute of God call creativity. How can we creatively minister to people? How can we creatively create an environment for spiritual growth and development and personal mission in Christ? The power of creativity. What God loves the most of His own attributes is His creativity. You can tell when you look at creation on earth. We have the power to create first of all with our words. Your words create your world. What you are experiencing in the world that you’ve built around you was created by the words you spoke. We have creativity in our actions, the things that we do. 2 Corinthians says that God spoke through faith and we also speak through faith. Creativity is our ability to imagine, to come up with something new.

Genesis 11:6. God came down to see human species building a tower and God testifies, witnesses the power that they had by saying “Nothing that they imagine to do can they not do”. God was testifying, bearing witness to His creative power in His imago dei. Even though He brought judgment to that power because you can have power but use it for the wrong things.

3) Speech – The ability to express our thoughts, our feelings and our perceptions.
How many times we want someone to understand how we feel and we struggle to find the right words to express it. Whether it’s to express our love, our hurt, our anger or our joy. Speech is a special gift. The fact that we can actually communicate it, actually take words and say I love you. I understand some people abuse this attribute, they talk too much but it’s still beautiful to have the ability the power to communicate. In fact communication is still the basis for life. We build life on the foundation of our ability to communicate our feelings, our perceptions, our thoughts, and our ideas.

4) Self-awareness

God designed us to be aware of our own individual identity. In fact we are so aware of our own individual identity that we do everything that we can to make sure that we are uniquely different from someone else.

5) Self-determination – Free will

The will to choose. The power to choose our own destiny was given to us by God.
Deuteronomy 30:19 where He gathers Israel and He gathers the whole spiritual realm and He says:

19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;

The fact is that God lays the facts before them and gave them the power to choose. That is self-determination. So I can determine to do one thing or the other. And in so doing I’m like God. The power to choose one’s destiny.

6) Self-transcendent

God transcends time and space and we do also. Not in the same way that God does in terms of His ability to move into the future, present, past all before Him. But we are self-transcendent. We can transcend ourselves. In our minds we can visit the past, with our minds we can analyze the present, and with our minds we can transport ourselves into a possible future because we can imagine the future.

What was God doing when He gave these attributes to men? He was fitting men for relationship. But instead of fitting we look for someone who fits. We are looking for someone who is compatible. Especially when you want to get married, you want to spend your life with someone with whom you share the same interest, the same values, the same goals, the same objectives, the same sense of purpose. That’s why Bible says that the believer should not be unequally yoked with an unbeliever. Why? Because you don’t share the same destiny, the same values, the same sense of purpose. So it creates an antagonistic relationship of tension that cannot be removed and even the Holy Spirit at work in that believer, problem is that the unbeliever with the absence of harmony, that unbeliever can undermine the work of the Holy Spirit in that believer in that unequally yoked situation. And why God tells us all these things in scripture is so that there will be spiritual harmony. It begins in the spirit.

What does it have to do with “come to Me all you who labor and is heavy laden”? Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me?


What is a yoke?

There is this wooden contraption that is around the neck of the oxen and usually there is 2 oxen yoked side by side together. The reason they yoke them together is so that they can pull something but pull it in a way that it doesn’t tip over. So there has to be a compatibility of size and strength between those 2 oxen and the yoke actually brings their strength together. That’s why marriage is a yoke. But a yoke that is intended to bring the strength and creativity and all the other attributes of the bride and the groom together to make one powerful union. So the oxen are yoked together.

So the yoke no.1 is a support consisting of a wooden frame across the shoulders













And the other yoke is the one used with oxen.

What makes a yoke maker special? And what makes a yoke work is because the yoke has to be fitted. You cannot just take any yoke and put it around the neck of 2 animals and expect it to work. The yoke has to be designed in such a way that it fits just right so the relationship is not heavy or burdensome, it’s easy and it feels light because the yoke is working. The yoke speaks of a relationship with Jesus but it also must be fitted.

So when Jesus says take my yoke upon you, understand that it means that Jesus has taken the time to appreciate who you are as an individual and in creating your yoke. It is a yoke that fits only you. No one else can wear that relationship that you have with Jesus, only you.

He fits that yoke according to your personality. So when you get saved, Jesus doesn’t want you to become somebody else because the yoke He created for you is fitted to your personality. The yoke He’s created for you as a believer is fitted to your learning style. Jesus knows how you learn. It also had to be fitted to your experiences. Jesus created that yoke taking your experiences under consideration. Your good experiences and your bad experiences. He fits it also to your knowledge. Jesus doesn’t expect more of you than you know. He’s considered your personal characteristics, your intellectual characteristics, your social characteristics, your spiritual attributes. If you are one of those people who uses the communicable attribute of speech a lot then Jesus fits that yoke in such a way that you become an evangelist. That means when He releases you to ministry and to fulfill your calling He put you in a context where that speech becomes a positive attribute for the kingdom.

He fits you for the service He calls you to. He doesn’t try to make you into someone that you are not. He takes you understanding who you are and He designs that yoke to fit you uniquely and personally. So that’s why we have to be very careful how we criticize other believers for not being like us. Because every believer has their own specifically designed, especially crafted yoke that Jesus invited them to wear.

When you are in the right relationship you can be who you really are. But when it’s not compatible and you are unequally yoked in a relationship, you have this need to constantly adjust yourself and operate yourself self-consciously because you don’t want to do anything to offend. But when you are amongst those you are compatible with and yoked together with in the right way, you can be who you really are.

So when Jesus says “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me” He is asking us to accept something that He has specifically fitted for you to love Him, to be in a relationship with Him, to serve Him and to bring glory to His name and no one else can fit what Jesus created for you to wear in your relationship with Him.

It is liberating because for so long in the church there was a thinking that we all had to be alike and the same. No. We are all uniquely different and designed by God. I have my own self-identity and my own self-awareness, my own unique experience of walking with the Lord.
Jesus knows in fitting that yoke of relationship between us to make it easy and not a burden, it’s only a burden when you don’t understand this. So you can never say “Lord you’re calling me to do something that I’m not designed to do”. God will never call you to do something He’s not already fitted you for. You just might not know that, that fits you.

I’m doing things today that I never thought I would do. So His invitation to you and I is always one that fits us because He knows everything about you so you can freely and boldly go to new places and do new things. Because He will not place upon you more than you can bear. That’s why He said My yoke is easy, it’s not choking you. It’s not trying to make you into someone you are not. It’s not calling upon you to do something that you can’t do. It’s easy and the burden that the yoke is pulling is light. Why is it light? Because when something that fits you and fits you well, there is no struggle with it.

Too often, we want to wear someone’s yoke because it looks good and when it comes to ourselves, it’s “oh it’s just me”.

Not true. Each person has a purpose and God has fitted you for that purpose considering everything about you. Everybody doesn’t grow at the same pace, some people take a little longer but in His entire relationship with you as a believer, God has fitted you. So you come and you take His yoke and you move with ease. Knowledge of this set you free.

Matthew 11:30
New King James Version (NKJV)
30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Jesus said that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. How then, that often times we feel burdened by worries, by fears etc and we say it’s just too much to take.
Jeremiah 6:16
New King James Version (NKJV)
16 Thus says the LORD:
“Stand in the ways and see,
And ask for the old paths, where the good way is,
And walk in it;
Then you will find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
In other translations, it says stand at the crossroads and see. What crossroads? It might be in your career, relationships, family, studies, habits, lifestyles etc. The commandments is where the good way is and Jesus came to fulfill it. What is that? It’s love. Jesus is God, God is love and He came to reveal the Father to us. What about the Father? It’s His love. For love fulfills all the commandments. What is the first few commandments about? It’s about loving God.

Deuteronomy 6:5
New King James Version (NKJV)
5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
We know that Jesus was heavily burdened in His heart and He prayed earnestly in the garden of Gethsemane and prayed till His blood vessels burst and it came out through His pores.

Matthew 26:36-46
New International Version (NIV)
Gethsemane
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

Luke 22:41-44
41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” 43 Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.[e]

Back to the first verse of the day- For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. So Jesus too had things which made Him sorrowful and burdened to the point of death that was how it felt. But how did He overcome that and say to us for My yoke is easy and My burden is light. You’ve got to be kidding me right? I mean the burden for souls, my life, other’s problems etc are all real and they are right in my face and you are telling me this? Yes. Jesus often withdrew Himself from the crowd, from people to be by Himself and prayed to His Father. Note this. He withdrew from people, people whom He was sent to. Why? Because He drew strength and restored Himself from the Father by being alone with Him.

Often times we have so many voices in our lives especially those negative self-talking from ourselves. Who needs enemies when you have enough of attacks from yourself right? We need to be alone and go to Him. That’s how Jesus can say that His yoke is easy and His burden is light because He goes to His father and cast His cares, humbles Himself etc. Actually there is so much to continue on and it’s for another sermon. But for now I just want to end by this- Are you withdrawing enough to be alone and to be with Him?

Becoming the greatest of all

Pastor Bill Johnson – Becoming the greatest of all


Worshippers have the privilege to summon nations into their destinies. Worshippers have a place before the Father where we not only worship Him but we turn and we summon nations into their purposes.
God is not looking for us to curse nations, to bring about judgment, to curse people groups, sinners etc. He is looking for us to see through His eyes of mercy and summon and call nations into their destinies. In heaven we will be able to see every effect of every dollar you ever gave. You will see in heaven every lives that were touched because of what you did, you will see the effect of every word, every act of kindness, the domino effect as you lay down your life for Christ and the impact it have on eternity. In that day, that is all that is going to matter to us. Is what we did with the time that we had.
Jesus met with His disciples and was able to send them out 2 by 2 to their own cities. We are going to look at His training methods. He was a different kind of trainer than most of us realized so I want to talk to you about that because I’m looking at our great army that I believe God is raising up to impact the course of world history not just the history of your nation.

Matthew 10:7
7 And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 7 And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
Fairly often people will come to me and say “Bill will you pray for me?” “Well of cause what would you like for me to pray for you?”
“I just want to know God’s will for me in my life”
“You already know God’s will for your life. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons.”
“What I meant was should I be a school teacher or a missionary?”
“Well just pick one then heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out demons”
“Well I don’t know whether I should get married?”
“Well just get married then heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out demons.”
It’s funny because you can go to Bible school all over the world and you can be trained in music, you can be in leadership, you can be trained in economics, you can be trained in apologetic, you can trained in a thousand different things and never take a class on how to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. I don’t mean that to be trained in music, leadership etc aren’t important well I think they are valuable but they can’t be more important than what Jesus said to do. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out demons, that is what He said to do.

There are many people who think that well that is the job of the apostles but Jesus trained them.
How many of you believe that Jesus is training them in this verse how to do what He do. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead and cast out demons?

In Matthew 28, after He died and rose again. He met His disciples and said “Now I want you to train your followers, your disciples the same things I taught you” What does that mean? There is no end to the training of generations to walk in the authority and power that the Lord Jesus raised up His disciples to walk in. That means you are designed for the realm of the miraculous as much as Peter was, as much as Paul was.

The uniqueness of a person’s call doesn’t mean they are either qualified for miracles or not. The uniqueness of a call has more to do with how the miraculous is expressed not if the miraculous is expressed.
Once God put the Holy Spirit in you, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of resurrection. Once the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead takes residences inside of you, all of heaven position itself to see what you will conquer in His name. The Holy Spirit is in you and He wants out. The Holy Spirit is in you like a river, rivers flow. He is not in you like a lake, He is not this still body of water. He is like a rushing torrent of water that is looking to shape the cause of history, alter the geography around you. There is this partnership between heaven and earth to release presence to alter history and impact people’s lives. This is our privilege that is why you are alive.
So the Spirit of the Lord took up residence in you and Jesus said heal the sick. Now please notice He didn’t say pray for the sick, He said heal them. But Bill we don’t heal the sick God does. I know. He just didn’t say that. But Bill it’s impossible for us to heal the sick. I believe that too. The problem is we think the rest of the Christian life is actually possible. We have been called, summoned into a family who’s primary assignment is to live the impossible, it’s not just about healing the sick and raising the dead. Have you ever read the verse Jesus said “be perfect as I’m perfect” Who knows without God’s help that one is impossible too. In fact the entire Christian life is impossible. Welcome to the impossible family. It is not normal for a Christian to not to have an appetite for the impossible, it’s in your DNA. It’s the way the Lord made you. You either have to have that bad teaching or disappointing experience, that is the only way you can be robbed of the passion for the impossible because everyone who is born again have that exact same DNA as the one who died in our place and was resurrected. The DNA of Christ defines who you are and what your nature is. Jesus ruined every funeral He attended, including His own. You can’t expect to send the Spirit of resurrection somewhere and not expect something to happen.

Luke 9
Is where we read some of the details of Jesus sending His team out-His disciples. Sometimes we almost deify these 12 mans and they are so practical that we should be able to relate to all of us.
Luke 9:1
9 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.
Jesus brought the disciples into His own realm of power and authority and He let them share it. He gives them power and authority. I want you to realize is that after He died, He let them know they have to get their own power and authority and so He reappeared after the resurrection and commissioned them. The commission releases authority. Then He said “you need to stay in Jerusalem till you get power and authority from on high”. The baptism of the Holy Spirit came in acts 2, that’s where they got power.
The point is this. Authority comes in the commission. Power comes in the encounter. If you want a greater anointing, you’ll want a greater encounter with the anointed One.

2 He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
6 So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
10 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.

Now here is what I want you to see. Here are 3 stories. In the culture of North America, we tend to over train people. We are very focused on giving people knowledge and not experience. Jesus would emphasize constantly throughout scripture. In fact we ‘ve just read a passage. Where the disciples talked to Jesus and they tell Him according to Mark’s gospel, all they have done and all they have taught. Those 2 realms, teaching and doing are supposed to run parallel courses.

Let me illustrate it. You can go to business school in my country, be trained in business, get a degree and never sat under the instruction of anyone who have ever own a business. Because the educational system of the world is shifting to value concept and thought over experience and that is not kingdom.
Jesus actually sent untrained, unqualified people into the battle. Fishermen, people who really had no sense for going out there to shape the course of history. They wouldn’t be qualified in any of our schools or denominations or whatever there might be.

Jesus’ training method is so foreign to most Christian culture in the world right now so that is what I’m wanting to address. I’m wanting to invite you into a learning process with the Lord as a church and as individuals and it’s quite fun and quite scary.

46 Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.”
How many of you understand that discipline is vital to the Christian life? In Hebrews it says if you are not disciplined, if you don’t endure discipline, you’re not a child of God. It’s actually evidence that you are a son, that you are disciplined by the Lord. But we often times, we look at God the same way as we look at earthly fathers who disciplines us and nothing can be further from the truth. Jesus talks about this concept of discipline in john 15

The True Vine
15 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away;[a] and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
What does it tells us? God rewards all growth with pruning. So He says this every branch that bears fruits He prunes.
3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
The word prune and the word clean is the same 2 words. So what is He saying? Every branch that bears fruits He prune, but you are pruned already because of the word I spoken to you. God prunes us by talking to us. People will often avoid the word of the Lord. Jonah did, he avoided the word of the Lord for his calling. What happens when you avoid God’s voice, you run into a conflict and people look at the conflict and you say well God is disciplining me. No. You ran into the conflict because you avoided discipline. The discipline was His word to you. No one has ever being punished into purity. No one ever become holy because they were punished enough. Somehow we have this concept that punishment is a huge part of God disciplining and training. That’s not biblical and not true. It’s not the way that Jesus worked with 12 extremely unqualified guys and now we get to the first story. Jesus sends them out to ministry, they come back, meet together at a private place and they had a conversation and Jesus listens to them talk and they were arguing I’m greater than you, no I’m greater than you. That’s got to be a weird conversation for Jesus to be listening to. You can just imagine. What’s the context? Their ministry experiences in their home towns.so probably when they went something like this. Peter is talking and says you know things happened in my hometown that is quite similar to the way Jesus ministers. I speak this very humbly but I need you guys to know that I’ve the anointing very similar to the Master Himself. John just sitting there and going “Oh Peter, get over yourself. If you had been with me you would have realized that the power of resurrection was all over me as we saw things happened in my hometown” and they were all arguing to as to who is the greatest.

The concept is how they were used in the ministry in their hometown. I don’t know about your culture but in my culture we don’t sit down with each other and say I’m greater than you. The way in our culture we do it is we don’t say I’m better than you, we just criticize another person. And what is being said by criticizing somebody else is I’m better than you. Jesus looks at these 12 disciples and does this. Takes a child and puts next to Him and says “guys this is greatness” Now this is too simple of a moment, it’s too easy to read through these stories and think well this is entertaining and not realizing what is happening. Jesus is looking at a group of guys who bear some fruits that are really good. Here’s their branch, their branches grows out and they have fruits like these. They have breakthroughs in their hometowns, they obeyed the Lord, they did exactly He said, they preached the sermons, they took the risks and they bore beautiful fruits but the branches is getting kind of weird. It has grown out here and they actually think they are better than each other. So Jesus in His mercy says “Hey guys I want you to watch something. Here we need to prune these branches back and I need to do it because you were so successful and it’s amazing in what you did. I love it, I’m happy with you and we are going to prune this branch back, right here. You see this child and He prunes the branch. What did He do? He redefines greatness for them.
Here’s the funny thing. Notice that Jesus never rebukes them for wanting to become great. What is Jesus doing? Somehow He is creating an atmosphere that they actually think they can become something significant. Religion tries to kill that. Kingdom tries to define it. Religion tries to kill anybody’s passion to have significance. Why? Because we are filled with people who are self-centered, egotistical, they think they are better than others and we react to that false standard not realizing God has put a sense of significance in every one of His kids. Religions kills that passion for greatness and kingdom redefines so that we can pursue it correctly.
What does Jesus say to do it? He says you see this child. This is greatness. In another words you want to be at be at the top then you need to go to the bottom. You want to receive? Make sure that you give all. He redefines biblical greatness. Look at the next story.

Luke 9:49
49 Now John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”
50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”
John is in the group and he has something to say which he thinks Jesus is really going to like. It goes something like this-“Jesus I saw those group of folks over here and they were casting out demons, they were using your name. Can you believe it? They are not even in our club, they are not even in our group, they don’t belong to the inner team of important people so I just told them to knock it off, you guys stop there, you don’t have the right in using that name”. He was expecting Jesus to go “oh John I really like your passion for the team”. There’s a misunderstanding of loyalty. We sometimes use worldly definitions for kingdom principles. Honor and loyalty are huge.

What was John doing? He’s displaying loyalty but the wrong kind of loyalty because in the kingdom you never display loyalty to one and prove it by rejecting another. That’s secular loyalty, that is not godly loyalty. That is of this world, it is demonic in nature. Kingdom loyalty allows me to have a spiritual Father whom I’m totally devoted to and I celebrate all this other influences that are in my life. I don’t have to reject them to show loyalty to this one.
John here is wanting to get rid of any social group that is not associated with them. What does Jesus do? It’s like Jesus is saying “alright John you’ve got this beautiful branch here and you are growing fruits because you’ve got passion for the team, you’ve got passion for loyalty, you have the value for deliverance done correctly and I want to honor that. We’ve got part of the branch here that is growing pretty well so we are going to prune it this way and this is what He says “If he is not against us, he is for us” and then He prunes the branch so that it can bear more fruits. He doesn’t want the branch growing out differently because it’s not going to bear fruit, it’s going to grow in directions God is not intending. And so He brings us a word and He trims it. This is how He deals with you this is how He deals with me. He is a wonderful Father who continuously enhances who we are becoming.
Do you know what happens when God gives you a promise? God goes into your future He grabs the word that is necessary to get you there and He gives you the promise. He deposits that word in you at this point because He’s seen where you are going and He brings the word of the Lord to qualify you, equip you, to prune, to trim so that you can actually reach the destination He has designed for you.

Luke 9:51-56
51 Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, 52 and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. 53 But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. 54 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”[e]
55 But He turned and rebuked them,[f] and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.”[g] And they went to another village.
This is fascinating. Imagine yourself sitting in a group and James and John are a little bit irritated because the city of the Samaritans did not receive them gladly and John leans over to Jesus and said “with Your permission Lord, we would like to kill the entire city in Jesus name of cause, we give You all the glory” This got to be the funniest moment in the disciples’ history. There are 2 things that is funny, one is that they actually think they can pull this off. What was it about their meetings they just had in their home towns that Jesus just nods His head and they would call down fire to kill the entire city. Secondly, they thought this might actually be the heart of God. In my translation it says “Permit us to call down fire just as Elijah did” they even had a Bible reference. Sometimes we missed what God is saying because we are so committed to what He said. God told Abraham to sacrifice his son, as he drew his sword God said “No” I’m sure Isaac was very happy his father kept listening.
Faith doesn’t come from having heard, it comes from hearing. Faith is a present tense expression of one who hears from God. You are designed to be a hearer. I don’t care if you do it poorly it’s still a gift every believer has.
So here’s James and John, they’ve got this wonderful idea we will like to kill the entire city in Jesus name and we give you all the glory. I got to be honest with you. This kind of story seems so foreign to us because it’s so weird, we read it in Bible and forget some of its impact.
Jesus got this group of guys who wants to call down fire. What does Jesus do? No.1 Jesus rebukes them and says you don’t know what matter of spirits you are of. Do you know what He is saying? He is saying you have to go to a different spirit to get that anointing because that is no longer what we are doing. In the Old Testaments there were judgments of such nature to reveal the severity of sin and the New Testament, there’s supposed to be an outpouring of Spirit not destruction. Because it is time to reveal His love. It’s time to reveal the Father. I don’t know why there is so many people scattered all around the planet that are still trying to call down fire on cities in Jesus name. They never get the lesson that Jesus tries to release to His own disciples. I’m not doing that anymore, I came to give life, I didn’t come to destroy people’s lives. How many understand? That is not complicated. It may be challenging but its not complicated concept.
So here we got Jesus empowering 12 guys to change the world. Here’s the bizarre thing. He’s meeting with these 12. These are the 3 things that come out after their successful ministry trip. He blessed them and they went out to preach and they bring back fruit, they started arguing about who’s the greatest , they start rebuking people that are outside of the group and they finally want to call down fire and kill an entire city. And this is the fruit of their success in ministry.

Most of us would consider this a failed attempt at training 12 guys. It’s not working well, let’s try something else. Let’s sit them in a classroom and make them work really hard with their brains. At least it would keep them out of trouble.

Luke 10:1
After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also,
That’s funny. From God’s perspective, it was so successful He just brought seventy more under the team.
Here’s the deal. The Lord is not nervous about selfishness coming to the surface into one of His children’s hearts. Why? Because He prunes.

Grace creates an atmosphere where things come from the heart to the surface so that is can be addressed, so it can be spoken to. Religion keeps us controlled so that we’ll never have those kinds of arguments as to who is the greatest. We never have people thinking they can control who comes to Jesus, who works for Him. This people I told them to knock it off. We never have people have those kinds of things come into their hearts. There are many people who creates religious system to prevent the possibility of there ever being a Judas but the system you create to prevent a Judas from arising is the same system that never allows for a Peter or a John to take their place in shaping world history. Grace is the environment. The answer is not control the answer is look what happened here, these people were together and Jesus had the freedom to speak into each one of their lives about the things that were wrong. That attitude about you being the greatest that’s just really a poor idea , that’s not going to work well for you. You see this child I’ve got here. From My perspective this is how I measure greatness. The simplicity of childhood models greatness for Me. So what is He doing? He is recalibrating, He’s resetting their hearts to anchor themselves into heaven’s values which is what? Humility is greater than pride. Being low is greater than being high. Emptying yourself is better than filling yourselves. All these things is recalibrating their focus. Why? Because He is training them to shape the course of history. He’s about to leave everything into the hands of 12 guys, 1 is going to kill himself so 11 guys. He’s about to leave it all into the hands of 11 mans who thinks they are better than the other, they don’t want to let somebody else to associate with them and any cities they have problems with, they want to kill everybody. This is the group He is about to pass the baton onto so they can carry this kingdom ministry all over the world. So He’s got a little bit of pruning to do.

James and John wants to call down fire to burn down the entire city and Jesus says “ you know this branch you’ve got there , that’s a pretty wild branch, that’s growing in places I really don’t want to see it grow but I like the fact that you’ve got passion and zeal. We are going to prune this branch back to this point because you have to go to a different spirit to get that anointing. I didn’t come to destroy people I came to save them. And all He does is recalibrate their hearts to His values. He didn’t send them home, He didn’t say you can’t preach anymore, He didn’t say I don’t trust you anymore to pray for the sick. He just said listen it doesn’t work the way you think so let’s change the way you think.

This makes me feel ok I can do this. I can’t do a lot of what I saw when I was growing up and I grew up in a great home, in a great church. This standard of a miracle lifestyle is something I couldn’t do. I couldn’t stand before thousands, I didn’t have the gifting, the courage. There’s a lot of stuff it seems to take but when I see these guys trying and doing these stupid stuff after they are successful I think I can do that, I can do stupid stuffs and as long as He talks to me I’m ok. It’s so practical yet it gets forgotten in the process of trying to accomplish great things for God. What is it to accomplish great things for God? It is to be a lover of God. It is to have everybody under your influence be able to rest because of your love for God. People should be able to dream because you put them at ease. Children filled with stress no longer dream. Children who are free in their family, in their household they don’t live under the kind of stress that they worry about the next meal, things of that nature. They are able to dream and no child ever dreams of being insignificant.

I want the effect of my life to put people at rest in God so that they have the freedom to dream. I don’t want to have to dictate what they need to do. I want them to dream, to discover what God put in their hearts. God puts stuff in every one of our hearts.

Grace empowers people. We want our people to rule with the heart of a servant and to serve with a heart of a king. To rule with a heart of a servant, realizing that any position of authority that God have put us in is only because we have the privilege of empowering people around us allowing them to become all that God meant for them to be and it’s also to want that same group of people to serve with a heart of a king. What does that mean? That as a servant role I’ve got a towel over my arm and I’m going to serve you but I’m going to serve you with the realization I’ve access to unlimited resources to impart to you and to impact the course of your life. This is who we are.
We had foster children, children without parents live in our home for a season. I’ll never forget the first few days they were with us when we sat at the table to eat as a family. They were in abusive home, they didn’t have food all the time, they had a mom and a dad who both killed themselves. And now they are in our home and when the food was put at the table, they grabbed everything they could and they began to take over the food. Why? Because all they know is they may not eat again. That’s how orphans act. Jesus came to reveal the Father to an orphaned planet so they no longer have to fight for myself. I become free to dream so that others around me can become healthy because I’m free. I’m free in Jesus. I’m free to think, I’m free to dream, I’m free to hope, I’m free to believe, I’m free to give myself away. Why? Because I don’t live out of insecurity. Insecurity is security exposed.

Children don’t get a junior Holy Ghost. There is no economy model of God. He only comes large. Because of that becoming like a child becomes very appealing. A child comes to the table knowing there will always be food tomorrow; I don’t have to fight for myself.
The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophesy. The testimony where He has done it in the past is a prophetic word that He wants to do it again.

In God’s autobiography, He wrote of Himself “Nothing is impossible with God” All of creations have limitations and restrictions. God knows no impossibility. Then it is like He said everything I’ve made have limitations and restrictions but I want to give those made in my image access to the unlimited nature of My own Person so I’m going to add to My clause and say nothing is impossible to those who believe. It’s like the Lord is saying come on up higher, I want you to know what it is like to look at problems with no fears, to look at challengers with no insecurities what so ever. The person with the most hope have the most influence.