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Sermon 141 – Don’t Tell me I’m the problem

30 Nov

So many people I’ve come across appear to be genuine, willing to help, and agreeable, but everything changes when you suggest they have an issue with their soul.

The average person doesn’t really do anything wrong; they just won’t do exactly what they’re told, and in so doing, they refuse to see that not doing it exactly as told, is wrong.

Modern man hates being told what to do

In 1 Samuel 15, King Saul did what he thought he was told to do, but not exactly as he was told. He did what was right in his own eyes because he couldn’t see that it was wrong, and he couldn’t see it was wrong because he was no longer little in his own eyes (v.17). His pride deduced what was right in his own eyes and he ended up with a stubborn and idolatrous soul (v.23).

This self-rightness spirit can’t be told that it’s wrong. Its pride is offended. Its feelings are hurt and it feels devalued in the eyes of others.

Conceit = fanciful thought about my own self-value

Conceit is the fruit of living in the wounds of, and responding to, my hurt pride.  Your hurt pride becomes your reality and your perspective towards others and the life around you.

The Hebrew interpretation of conceit indicates that it’s … how you see yourself in your own eyes (see Proverbs 28:11). The modern world mollycoddles this hurt pride and promotes its justification; whereas the Word of God confronts it and challenges it as evil.

One definition of Pride = I think I’m a good person. I don’t do anything deliberately wrong.

Whereas, Humility can be defined as = I’m wrong, whether I did it deliberately or not.

If you can’t be told that you’re the problem, then you can’t be told that you’re wrong, and if you can’t be told that you’re wrong, then you can’t be corrected, and if you can’t be corrected then in God’s eyes you’re a bastard and not a son (Hebrews 12:8). That is, despite how good you think you are, you’re not saved, because it’s you who is diagnosing and defining your own goodness; you’re not really open to God’s correction.

Most Christians believe they can be told that they’re wrong, they just hate being told they’re always the problem (pride objects to the ‘always’), but that’s the point; ‘always’ exposes the pride, and the real hidden situation is, that they believe they hold the right to make their own deductions according to how they see it.

The corrector should be the one who diagnoses the true condition of your spirit, not you. If you won’t allow someone else to tell you you’re out of balance, then you simply live in the rightness of your own eyes, and thus lost to heaven.

Pruning for fruit

Every gardener knows that if you want the best results from the tree, the tree must be pruned (John 15:2). If you let a tree grow whatever way it wants, it will not produce the best fruit or flowers, and even produce improperly. Most Christians refuse to be pruned. They want to grow their own way.

The real issue of sin = I don’t want to be told

I don’t want to be told … I’m always the problem

I don’t want to be told … I’m always wrong

I don’t want to be told … what to do all the time. I have the right to prove I can do it myself.

Pride believes it has the right to make its own decisions, and justifies its position with … “all I’m doing is helping”. Humility doesn’t defend that right or justify its position; it trusts God’s rightness and justice.

Any time you allow yourself to believe you’re good, you expose your vanity. Any time you allow yourself to not be told, you expose your conceit. Any time you defend your right, you expose your resistance to authority.

Another Jesus

Most Christians obviously think they know Jesus, but it’s not the true Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4); it’s another Jesus of their own making.  You can’t find the true Jesus Christ if you won’t be told you haven’t found Him.

The modern Christian thinking is “grace”.  To the modern thinker, that means, God’s favour towards ME because I’m good, and because I’m good I believe I can decide what’s right and wrong for me. But they conveniently ignore the Word of God that clearly states that grace is only given to the humble (1 Peter 5:5), and humility is only available to those who respectfully practice His laws (1 John 2:3,4).

And, that’s the point … laws restrict my freedom to do it the way I think is right, therefore, selfishness prefers to believe in grace, not law.

Sadly, the 10 Commandments have been devalued. Every Christian believes they keep them, but refuse to see they don’t exactly. They’re not really in their heart and loved as Christ’s laws, rather they’re observed as a restriction to our freedoms; so, we keep them, but not exactly. Rather we love to ultimately do what we think is right. We love what’s right in our own eyes, and when it comes to the crunch, we won’t be told otherwise, proof that we are really our own judge and therefore our own little god.

Voices

Pride listens to voices that tell you you’re right and good, and that everyone else is misjudging you and wrong. Those voices are the temptation of evil, and when you’re right in your own eyes, you fail to have self-control over them; you fail to rightly interpret the voices as satanic.

Exercise

Write down what someone is silently saying to you, then write down what you are silently saying back.

The laws of God need to be put back in their rightful place

You can never do what’s right in your own eyes and obey the law of God. You have to obey the law of God first and then you will do what’s right in the eyes of God, not you.

How can you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, if you won’t do what’s right in the eyes of the Lord, but rather prefer to rely on your own judgment?

They feared the Lord and served their own gods 2 Kings 17:33

David, and those who followed his philosophy, did what was right in the eyes of God (1 Kings 15:5). King Saul, and those who followed his philosophy, served God and did what was right in their own eyes. The latter were deceived. The latter still appeared to worship the same god as David, but it was another god of their own thinking, not David’s God.

The Curse

Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight (Isaiah 5:21).

The counsel of the Word of God is clear … be NOT wise in your own eyes, but fear the Lord and depart from your own evil conceit (Proverbs 3:7); to do otherwise, is stupid (Proverbs 12:15, 26:12).

 

May God open our eyes to see how we’ve been sucked into fake grace, and then be willing to do whatever the Lord wants, whether we like it or not.

 

Pastor Rick McIntyre

 
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Posted by on November 30, 2019 in Conceit

 

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Sermon 114 – Christ vs Anti-Christ

16 Sep

I was standing next to a lady in our fellowship and began to feel uncomfortable. When I thought upon it, I could sense a disturbance in her spirit. Her outward appearance portrayed a smile and an ease that suggested she was fine but my spirit was saying otherwise. I tried to ignore it but the Spirit in me wouldn’t let it go. So, I asked her what was troubling her. Of course she said “nothing”, but I pushed a bit further. Finally, she admitted that she was hearing a voice that I, as the pastor, was going to make her do something she didn’t want to do.

Now, the thought that I was going to tell her to do a certain thing, had never crossed my mind. Having experienced this many times, I realised I was talking to an opposing spirit. She was a Christian but somewhere she had opened her heart to the demonic and was absorbed with what she might be told to do. She hadn’t stopped to evaluate why she was wallowing in her carnal imaginations. The real fact was that she was the one telling me not to tell her. “Telling” with resistant defiance, is the sign of a demon.

The signs and symptoms

The sign that you are under the spirit of anti-Christ is always … I don’t want to be told what to do, or, you can’t tell me what to do = TELLING. If a righteous authority instructs or corrects you in the Word of God and you say “I don’t like that”, then you are not opposing the authority, you are opposing God, and actually TELLING God how to behave. This opposition can only come from the spirit of anti-Christ. This is the whole reason why society and schools are teaching people to dream what you want and do what you want. The real agenda is not freedom, but to sway people from the rule of Christ.

The real question is … how did she get there?

The answer is always … pride. Pride opens the door to an anti-Christ spirit and gives it licence to manipulate your thinking away from the mind of Christ. This lady is a Christian, but like all of us, if you listen to the voice of pride you will fall to the voices of your carnal imaginations and unwittingly be on the opposing side to Christ. The whole strategy of Satan is to sway your mind away from Christ to yourself.

Biblical examples

King Saul was a Christian who allowed his envy and pride to block his mind against God and ended up opposing righteous David, losing his mind to Satan, and being possessed by a demon.

Judas served Christ as a disciple, was empowered by the Holy Spirit to do signs and wonders, yet allowed his envy and pride to twist his mind against the Saviour, and ended up possessed by Satan.

Samson was empowered by the Holy Spirit, yet let his pride drive him to whoredom in direct contradiction to God’s instructions, and almost lost his soul to hell.

Abram obeyed the instruction of God to kill his only son, without resistance, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Thus, even though he had human weaknesses, he became the father of faith.

David was a Spirit-filled Christian, yet he came under the influence of an anti-Christ spirit when he allowed his pride to suck him into adultery and even murder. When he was corrected by Nathan the prophet he repented and was freed from the demon’s power, unlike king Saul who was only really interested in what others thought of him.

If God’s Word says … do this, but you don’t do it, even though you pretend to, then you are serving the will of the anti-Christ.

In other words, if someone gives you an instruction that conforms to the Word of God and even though you might agree with it but you resist that instruction in your heart, you will unwittingly be in opposition to Christ and thus automatically supporting the camp of the anti-Christ. If you don’t wake up to this, eventually the demon will wholly possess your thinking. You will lose your mind and your salvation.

The real issue

I went on to challenge this lady as to where she had opened the door of pride. She said she didn’t believe she had. I insisted she write it down, and not just try and think it out. It wasn’t long before she realised she had elevated herself over a compliment I had given her about being willing to suffer for the name of Christ. I pointed out that the real issue is never the thoughts or imaginations, nor is it what we fear may happen, nor is it even our pride. Rather, the real issue is …. Christ vs anti-Christ. When you do the opposite to what Christ says, you are supporting the enemy of Christ, and that’s the real issue … which side are you supporting?

Escape

There’s only one way to escape the hold of pride and that is … repent. Trying to work through your imaginations is a waste of time. Repentance of our pride is the only solution against the anti-Christ. Repentance is bringing Christ back into His rightful position in our spirit.

If you can’t get past consistent voices that promote your pride, then it means there’s something in your heart that you won’t give up to God’s will.

Homosexual debate

In Australia, the right of gay marriage is being hotly contested. The real issue hasn’t got anything to do with marriage equality. The real issue is GOD. The real issue is … people hate God because He won’t do what they want, because they want the freedom to sin the way they want. If you don’t want to obey God’s laws, then the easiest solution is to believe there’s no God. Then you can do what you like. This is just the spirit of anti-Christ.

You can argue that the issue is fairness and love equality, but that’s just a lie of Satan. True love is not selfish, neither is it a feeling, it’s an action, and the action of true love is to do what God wants … “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” It’s the action of respect to the Creator to keep His commandments that displays our love. The feelings follow the action. Without the act of obedience, anyone’s love is really the feelings of defiance to God; it’s the fake selfish love of the spirit of anti-Christ.

God is love. Homosexuality is anti-God. Therefore, it is not love but sin and evil. Homosexuality is actually a reaction of hatred against God. Therefore, it is actually Satanic hatred of love under the guise of fairness and equality.

Another experience

A young girl asked her dad for permission to have a kitten. Her father said yes, but first I want you to learn to stop being ‘bossy.’ The girl had a mood of polite silence. When she was confronted about her mood, she replied … “you don’t understand”. Once someone has a mood and then states … “you don’t understand”, then you immediately know you’re up against a demon. If the instruction to the child is based on God’s Word, then any resistance to that instruction is in direct opposition to God. This is the spirit of anti-Christ.

I prayed against the demonic power and sought the Father’s wisdom. With her dad’s permission, I stepped in and pointed out to the child that the issue isn’t a kitten, nor is it sin, nor is it lack of understanding. The real issue is, you’re encapsulated by a demonic spirit as evidenced by the fact that, as the Word of God confirms, your father told you what to do and you won’t do it. Demons oppose God.

If I, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, tell you what to do, and you defy that instruction in your heart, then you are supporting the camp of the anti-Christ. If you support the camp of anti-Christ, then you are being controlled by a demon or demons. God doesn’t defy Himself, demons do. The young girl had her eyes opened, repented of her stubbornness, was freed from the power of a demon, and completely changed her attitude to one of respect and not silent co-operative defiance.

For though we walk in the flesh we do not war after the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Casting down IMAGINATIONS and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of God.  2 Corinthians 10: 3-6

 

May God open the eyes of His remnant to see the demonic powers of opposition to His Spirit.

 

Pastor Raymond Islington

 
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Posted by on September 16, 2017 in Demons

 

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Sermon 109 – Don’t Tell me what to do

28 Jan

In Luke 7 we read the story of the Roman centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant. Jesus concluded the story with … I have not found so great faith, not in all Israel.

What was Jesus hinting at? What clue was He giving us about how to enter the kingdom of heaven?

Clearly, Jesus was telling us that faith and authority are very closely aligned. You can’t have one without the other. If you want faith you must be under authority.

Most people believe they are under authority. Most believe they are willing to be told what to do; but is that the real truth?

  1. You’re certainly not under authority if you won’t do what you’re told
  2. You can’t be under authority if you do what you’re told with a mood.
  3. You aren’t under authority if you do what you’re told with a defamatory questioning of the instructions.
  4. You are not under authority if you do what you’re told, your way (eg. King Saul).
  5. You are not willing to be told what to do if you do it with an expectation of gaining a benefit or reward.

The tree of life

All of us are actually born with the inherent defiance of resisting authority. You don’t have to teach a child to be defiant or to be proud; it’s already in them. That’s because Eve took the fruit against God’s instructions. The tree of life became the tree of death. It wasn’t Satan’s tree to offer it. Satan deceived her into thinking that when she ate the forbidden fruit she would become as god ie. no one would tell her what to do. She herself would know what was right and wrong (but only what’s right in her own eyes); she wouldn’t need God to tell her. But it was a trap of servitude to the evil one who himself won’t be told what to do, and all of humanity has inherited that trait. It has to be killed to be saved.

I’ve lost count of how many Christians I’ve met who at some point won’t be told they’re wrong yet they’re absolutely bound by what’s right (but only what’s right in their own eyes). That’s because Satan has sold everyone the lie of the fruit, so everyone thinks they know what’s right and wrong. The irony is, they do but they don’t. They’re under the influence of Satan who more often than not appears as an angel of right but in his heart is seriously defiant. Your rightness is a lie if you won’t be told it’s a lie.

You don’t understand

I recall talking with a Christian woman who can’t stand knowing anything negative about herself. Any time you hint that there is an unhealthy issue in her spirit she would just reply with “you don’t understand.” But what she’s really saying is … “you won’t tell me. I know me, not you.”

This woman uses silence and knowing right & wrong as her tool of displaying her Christianity, but it’s just a scam. In this case, silent rightness is a satanic technique to control anyone who might expose her inner fear and inFEARiority. Consequently, her goodness is fake. It’s really just a scam under the occupation of a spirit of fear and a spirit of lying. She actually lies to herself that she doesn’t have a problem with her spirit. Using your truth in order to refuse the see the truth, is demonic, not God. You’re simply munching on the fruit you were told not to.

Who do you think you are?

I also recall another woman who controlled others around her by using her fear to aggressively intimidate people who might challenge her inFEARiority, with, “who do you think you are”? She became a church leader on the back of using her self-trained knowledge of knowing right & wrong to counsel people. It gave her great self-value.

Signs of Satan

Rightness and goodness are not necessarily signs of God; Satan can perform the same degree of sweetness.  You can camouflage fear and pride with coolness, helps and silence, but it doesn’t mean you’re good or right or fearless. The thing that separates a fake from a genuine Christian is they’ll be told what to do because they love and trust the Father. This is exactly what Christ did. He made Himself of no reputation and took on Him the form of a servant and became obedient unto death and torture, simply because He loved and trusted the Father (Philippians 2:7). Your inner attitude to authority will define your Christianity.

Don’t tell me what to do are the words of Satan, not Jesus. Besides earthquakes, wars, famines and pestilence, the ultimate sign of Satan, is “don’t tell me what to do.” You’ll never hear Jesus say them, even against the Pharisees. Yes, He didn’t do what the Pharisees wanted but that’s because He loved the Father, not Himself.

What’s a Christian?

Simple. A true Christian is one who does what they’re told (without a mood, without defamatory questioning, and without expectation of reward) because they love and trust the Father. Without the love of the Father in you, all your goodness is a scam. It’s not someone who has just invited Jesus into their heart; it’s someone who’ll be told for Christ’s sake. If you’re not into the love of the Father, you’re not a Christian.

Why is this the definition of a Christian? Because Satan is the exact opposite.

How do you know if you have the love of the Father?

He’ll test you by asking you to do something you don’t want to do. Your moodiness or lack of it, will define your heart’s true condition.

I’m special

The tree of life only gives life through the death and blood of Jesus Christ; not through a fake gift from Satan, and certainly not from eating it. Eating it simply fills you with the idea that you are special and important.

If the basis of your Christianity is founded on the belief that you are special, or gifted, or important then you are not genuine. Just because your mother told you that you are, doesn’t mean she was telling the truth; she was more likely feeding her own pride as she encouraged yours. Your belief will be tested when you are told to do something you don’t want to and you have a mood. You’re simply munching on the fruit that Satan’s offered you from the tree. You need to spit it out.

The self-judgment of God

When someone says “don’t tell me what to do”, they’re actually telling the other person what to do. A good shepherd doesn’t tell people what to do, he advises them away from the direction of the wolf and the cliff. A righteous pastor isn’t telling you, he’s counselling you. When you say “don’t tell me”, you expose, not the counsellor, but yourself as the defiant tell person. You expose Satan in you.

Some time back a young man called me intolerant, but what he exposed was the fact that it was himself that was intolerant of people. You make judgement against people based on what is your rightness. If you think it’s right to just tolerate those you don’t like, then when you are corrected you’ll judge the authority as intolerant, but it’s actually your own judgment on your own head. Christ is always tolerant of people; the only thing he’s intolerant of is the demonic. There’s a time to be intolerant against evil, but general intolerance against people is Satanic.

I recall a man who said I was angry, but when I challenged him, he agreed that it was his anger he was feeling, not mine. Whenever he didn’t get what he wanted he got angry.

All of these judgment reactions against people are simply the fruit of “don’t tell me what to do.” It doesn’t look like it, but they are. It really means that you’re munching on the fruit Satan’s offered you.

Spare the rod and spoil the child

The modern world has outlawed corporal punishment. Under the influence of fake rightness the world contradicts the instructions of God to smack the child when they act defiant. The modern school systems endorse the belief that children should be allowed to learn for themselves without parental discipline. The only consequence of this policy is anarchy. You don’t stop paedophilia by removing discipline to the child; you stop it by not letting the child grow up to be a paedophile. You stop it by retaining disciple not removing it.

Warfare

We’re in a warfare against evil. Satan is selling the church a cheap ticket to self-importance. Will you keep blindly eating the fruit or will you stand up and own your sin and come under Christ’s authority and rule? The truth is, no one truly respects authority until they die to themselves because they love Christ who died for them.

 

Pastor Norm Wakefield

 
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Posted by on January 28, 2017 in Authority

 

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Sermon 108 – Correct me but don’t TELL me what to do

17 Oct

Over the years I’ve counselled many Christians who end up saying to me … I’m happy for you to correct me but don’t tell me what to do. When I dig deeper, what they’re really saying is … if you tell me what to do, then you’re not giving me the right to make my own decisions. If you tell me what to do, then you are making me feel incapable or stupid. I want to make my own decisions.

When I hit this impasse I know I’ve hit a demonic resistance. This person is happy to be a Christian as long as they retain the right to make their own decisions. The irony is, the Holy Spirit already knows He has the right to His own decisions; He doesn’t have to insist on it. When someone insists on that right they are revealing they are under the influence of an un-holy spirit.

Under a lying spirit

In truth, such a person is lying. This person doesn’t really want to be corrected at all, because there is no such thing as being correctable and yet not being willing to be told what to do to correct the error of judgment. What they are really saying is … I want your counsel, but not your authority. With your counsel I can weigh up all my options, and with my own authority I will make the choices that I think are best.

The thinking process of the anti-christ

An anti-christ spirit insists on its rights … you can tell me I’ve made a mistake, but now leave it with me to sort it out. It’s not your business. I’m capable to sort out my own issues. I have the right to make my own decisions. This spirit demands you listen to their explanations of why they did what they did, and then classifies you as rude if you don’t. Effectively, they actually hate being corrected, because correction is the state of being devalued in the eyes of others, and the state of having to give up what you want. The Word of God declares that if you are un-correctable then you are a bastard, not a son (Hebrews 12:8).

It’s the opposite process under the Holy Spirit

If someone who walks under the influence of the Holy Spirit makes an error of judgement they may not like being corrected but they open their heart to being told. They surrender to the correction and the being told. David made some serious errors of judgment but when it came to the correction there was no resistance.

Resistance to the correction is the measure of the spirit in you

Opposite to David’s response was King Saul in 1 Samuel 15. He resisted the correction, he explained and blamed, and when he saw he couldn’t get Samuel to back down, he pretended to be willing. It had nothing to do with serving God; it was all a scam.

Ultimately, any resistance to correction is the measure of your pride

A demonic spirit knows that your pride is its control point so it supports a person in preserving it; so a person has to act like they are willing to be corrected or they will expose their own pride, and pride can’t let this happen. Therefore, a resistant spirit must act willing to be corrected, but at the same time it has to retain its right to do what it wants, its own way. Whenever a Holy Spirit controlled person comes up against this resistance and demand for personal rights, he automatically knows he’s up against a spirit of anti-christ.

The sorry technique

Modern society believes that if you say sorry then the recipient has to forgive and reconcile. That’s not what happened between Jesus and Judas, nor between David and Saul. If you question a person’s sorry as genuine, a person under the influence of an anti-christ spirit will bite back with … I told you I was sorry, now stop pushing the point. I said I was wrong, now just get over it. It blames you for not accepting its apology and it tells you how to behave towards it; it won’t be told.

The diagnostic point

An anti-christ spirit will TELL you how you are to behave towards it, and that’s the diagnostic point; it actually doesn’t like being told, it only likes to TELL. That’s what pride is … TELL and not be told, but pretend to be willing to be told. So when someone in their spirit says correct me, but don’t tell me, they are declaring loud and clear what spirit it is that operates through them.

The modern thinking that exposes an anti-christ spirit

I have the right to my own thinking. Who says you know what’s right? My truth is just as valid as yours. If you’re being nasty to me then I have the right to be nasty to you. These are all the thoughts of Satan. The Holy Spirit does not think or speak that way. If you have any of these thoughts, you are of the spirit of anti-christ no matter how much you pretend to be of God.

Faith doesn’t have to see

I can’t see what you’re saying, and until I see it I can’t agree there is an issue. This is a statement of pride, not faith. The Bible declares that faith is the evidence of things not seen, Hebrews 11:1. If you are under the influence of the Holy Spirit, you know when the correction is true and you’ve done wrong. If you are under the influence of an anti-christ spirit, you will defend your right to see first.

Eventually, the Holy Spirit will leave

Like King Saul and Samson, you can be under the influence of the Holy Spirit and under the influence of an anti-christ spirit at the same time, but if you insist on retaining your pride, eventually the Holy Spirit will depart and leave you to your fate. Eventually, the character of the person changes from being helpful to being defiant, and a defiant spirit won’t be told that this is happening to them. I’ve seen this multiple times in the decay of the modern church.

How to beat a demonic spirit

The Pentecostal church teaches its flock to stand up against Satan by directly confronting him with Biblical text. This is just the pathway of pride, not faith. Michael the archangel didn’t do this technique (Jude 1:9), and neither did Jesus. You can’t win against Satan by defying him, rather it’s important to respect his position and power that the Father has delegated to him. You can only win by dying. The way Jesus defeated Satan was via the cross, fulfilling the will of His Father. If you want to be free from Satan’s power over you, it’s not by willing yourself to be good, or prophetically challenging Satan, it’s by dying to yourself by surrendering to whatever God the Father’s plan is for you. The reason the church can’t find the narrow way is because it refuses to travel via the path of death to self. It says is, but it’s lying to itself.

Salvation is really simple

The church teaches that Jesus died and did it all for us, but that’s only half the truth. The Word of God also teaches that the servant is not above the master. Jesus led the way to show His disciples the path to follow. Eternal life is via the cross, not by holding your position against someone who’s being unkind to you. He teaches this in Matthew 5:39 & Luke 14:26,27. If you don’t come to Christ via the cross, then you’re not saved. You actually can’t repent of your sin without dying to yourself and giving up your defensive position; it isn’t just sorry. The cross is a heart that says … ok God, if You have placed this spiteful person or issue in my path I’ll trust Your plan, not what I want. It doesn’t take the person on for hurting your feelings, but trusts the Lord with the outcome and without any expectation of getting the victory or vengeance. From this death position God raises you up above the opposing spirit, Philippians 2:7-11.

The reason the majority can’t find this simple way is that they are too proud to be told different to what they already believe. In simplicity, their own pride has fostered an anti-christ spirit to delude them to not be told; their pride wants to do it their own way. Too proud to cop it; too proud to lose; too proud to repent; too proud to be told; too proud to trust; too proud to be a nobody. Paul said “I count all things loss that I may win Christ.”

 

May the remnant of Christ awake!

 

Pastor Norm Wakefield

 
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Posted by on October 17, 2016 in Authority

 

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Sermon 82 – WHICH GROUP?

16 May

We recognise that David was on the side of the Israelites and that his enemy were the Philistines, but we fail to see that David’s group was also divided into two groups … those that were with him and those that envied and hated him.

The Israelites represent God’s people, the Church; yet we fail to see that the church has always been divided into two groups. The church at Corinth and the church at Laodicea and Pergamos are just three examples. Even Christ’s own disciples were divided and Judas exposed himself as a traitor.

Group 1 … The TELL group

The largest group of people in the church are those that see God as their Father and thus believe that God is responsible to protect them and supply all their needs and perform for them what they need from Him. This group believes they are a child of God and thus have the right to TELL the Father how He is supposed to perform towards them. This group murmurs when God doesn’t do it according to their expectations. They murmur if God takes longer than they expect.

The Pentecostal Church has flourished on the back of this group’s selfish expectation, to the point where it preaches that if you don’t get what you want from God then you don’t have faith. Like a bacterial infection, this belief has spread like wild-fire through fake churches that promote the worldly lie that you can be whatever you want and have whatever you want, just believe. This group simply expect God to perform their wishes and have a MOOD when He doesn’t. Like a two-year old child, the purpose of a mood is to get the authority to change their mind and give you what you want; and that’s the underlying behaviour of this group. This group is envious of what someone else is achieving or has a better deal.

Example

I was counselling a young so-called Christian who admitted he was wrong but that the punishment he received of being grounded was over-the-top. He was defending that he hadn’t done anything that bad, but was blinded to the real issue that he couldn’t be told. He couldn’t see that it was the resistance that was being addressed, not the act.

If you stop and look at that reaction, what does it tell you? Clearly, it’s telling you that the young man is TELLING the authority what’s right and wrong. He’s more interested in not looking bad than in being corrected. It’s revealing to you that the young man is questioning the authority, and really declaring that he is not that wrong, but that the authority is the one that’s wrong. This is an incorrectable, unrepentant spirit, and as such is really a spirit of anti-christ. Holy Spirit would not react this way! A genuine Christian would admit that he was wrong, full-stop, no BUT.

The angel of light

This group is often perfectly good, not because it flows from God, but because if you’re good you can’t get told you’re bad, and if you’re good you get rewards. Thus goodness is simply a tool to get. In fact, this artificial goodness flows from Satan. Anyone who thinks they’re good is actually declaring that they are not of God. Jesus Himself said in Luke 18:19 that there is no one good except God; so if you think you are good then you’ve been deceived by Satan into being your own god, and thus see yourself as above others. If you think you are good then you are contradicting the Word of God that says you’re not. This is the spirit of anti-christ, and definitely not the Holy Spirit.

We fail to comprehend that Satan can come as an angel of light. Right from the beginning Satan has employed two key tactics … attack and destroy, and infiltrate and soften. He uses these in the church because he has the power over the church. Contrary to Pentecostal mis-conception, Satan’s power has not been diminished and won’t be until he is cast into the bottomless pit. He’s just as powerful now as he’s ever been. Only God is more powerful. But the church tells you that you can put Satan in his place because you’re a child of God and heir to the throne. It’s blind to its arrogance. Like the fake church in Communist China, it’s simply the world camouflaged as the church.

Good + TELL

Goodness and Tell are key signs of the spirit of the anti-christ. Despite its apparent goodness, eventually this spirit will expose itself by TELLing the authority what is right and wrong. Eventually this group will display its control with superiority, intimidation, and obligation. It will use the scriptures to try and control you especially by using the 5th commandment to respect their authority, whilst all the time blindly mis-using the 7th, 9th and 10th commandments.

This group won’t be told even though they act like they will; in their heart they resist instruction as a put-down. They simply have a mood till they get what they want, even a silent mood of goodness (like the rich young ruler); yet they can’t see that they’re being defiant and simply refusing to repent because they believe that they’re not bad and that if you are saying they are, then you’ve got the problem, not them.

Hatred of men is a sign of anti-christ

Embedded in this group are many women who have a hidden hatred of men. They hate the fact that men have authority over them. They secretively don’t like being under authority and being told what to do. They think they’re better than men. They TELL men how they’re supposed to behave towards them. This is the spirit of anti-christ. You can clearly see this spirit flooding the world today, and this worldly spirit is clearly in the church. God decreed in Genesis 3:16 that man would have authority over the woman and anyone who objects to that is clearly against God.

This group is full of their own importance … “I think I’m special or have a special call”

Many men, both in the church and in the world, are under this female spirit. Self-decoration of ear-rings and tattoos, and homosexuality and cross-dressing are just signs of feminism. Many men have been told by their mothers that they can do anything or be anything. Like Eve vs Adam, their mothers have been used of Satan to fill their sons with their own importance. This is the spirit of ant-christ and its purpose is to subtly destroy. Christ said in Luke 14:26 that unless you hate yourself you cannot be my disciple; the opposite to what the world and the church teaches.

Over the years, I’ve become aware that most people think they’re special, to the point that they sincerely believe that if you have a problem with them then you are the problem, and if they have a problem with you then you are still the problem. They sincerely believe that they have a special call on their life and that God values them higher than others. The simple truth is that they feel so inferior and wounded they have to live in the fantasy of their own puffed-up self-importance. Sadly, the church is just copying the world by indoctrinating people with this false positive thinking instead of teaching the flock to die to self so that God reigns in you. The spirit of anti-christ is alive and well convincing people of their self-importance in direct contradiction to the Word of God which declares that God loves a contrite heart.

A spirit of FEAR

This group is like King Saul. It is occupied by a spirit of fear and thus uses intimidation to try and control people to do its will and put you under its fear.

Ezekiel 33:31 … they come unto you and sit before you as my people and hear your words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goes after their covetousness.

Group 2 … The ‘willing to be told’ group

The second group are like David. They don’t think they are good; it doesn’t enter their thinking. They don’t think they deserve anything from God. They serve God because they appreciate His love for them. They don’t serve to get a reward. They don’t serve Him to get to heaven, but like Moses who was willing to go to hell for the people of Israel, they serve God with a grateful heart. This group doesn’t expect anything from God, they’re just grateful for being considered His child.

This group doesn’t TELL God what He’s to do for them; they ask Him what He wants them to do for Him. Like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they ask Him for His protection but leave the outcome to His discretion. This group doesn’t envy what they’re neighbour has, but rather they’re grateful that God has blessed them. This group doesn’t think it’s special, but rather is amazed that God might consider them worthy to serve Him. Moses’ response to God was “who am I?” David’s response to Saul re marrying his daughter was, “who am I?”

This group makes judgments based on their heart relationship with God (it talks it over with God and waits on Him), and not just on whether a person has done good or bad.

FEAR

This group has to face fear from the first group. Like the Pharisees who intimidated the parents of the man born blind in John 9, the first group uses its power to keep you in its group, and if you want to be in the second group you will have to face the fear of what the 1st group thinks.

This second group takes correction when it’s wrong, and doesn’t stand defiantly when it’s mis-judged for doing wrong when it didn’t. It takes its concerns to God; it doesn’t react with a mood.

Conclusion

  • If you love God you serve Him. If you love yourself you get God to serve you by being good.
  • If you love being important then you’re in the first group.
  • If you judge people based on right or wrong/ good & bad, you’re in the 1st group.
  • If you worry whether someone is doing it right or wrong, then you’re under the influence of the spirit of anti-christ.
  • If you disrespect or question your husband, father or pastor then you’re in the first group.
  • If you think you are good, then you are god, and you’ve taken the bait of self-importance from the spirit of anti-christ.
  • If you think you are special, then you’ve taken the bait of the spirit of anti-christ.
  • If you have a mood because it’s not working out the way you want then you are under the influence of the spirit of Satan. Holy Spirit does NOT react that way.
  • The real reason you’re in the first group is that you’re too arrogant/stubborn and too fearful to change.
  • Everyone’s born to be a somebody, but you won’t find God till you’re a nobody. 

You can change groups. In fact, it’s essential that you do. The first group will never find salvation no matter how much they learn about Christ; they’re the tares. Everyone is born in love with themselves; that’s the influence of Satan, but you have to wake up to yourself if you want to change groups. It just takes a revelation that you are the one who is acting and trapped in group one, and the courage to face your fears of what people might think, and swap groups.

May God open the eyes of His remnant.

Pastor Jim Desmond

 
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Posted by on May 16, 2015 in Special

 

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Sermon 73 – Who’s going to TELL who

25 Aug

Trying to keep two fathers happy is impossible. If you’re under the subtle bondage of having to please your earthly father, then you can try as much as you like to impress and please the heavenly Father but it will not work.

Recently I was counselling a young Christian woman who was struggling to develop a healthy relationship with a young Christian man. On further examination it became clear that sub-consciously she was competing against
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Posted by on August 25, 2014 in Authority

 

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Sermon 68 – WHICH CAMP?

11 Feb

In 1 Samuel we recognise there were 3 distinct camps … the camp of Saul, the camp of David and the camp of the Philistines.

Clearly the camp of the Philistines is the camp of the heathen … those who don’t want to bend the knee to God.

But the defining line between the other two camps is blurry. Both these camps worship the same God and carry out the same ceremonies. They are both Israelite camps yet they are enemies. The same was true of Jesus and the Pharisees; they both worshipped the same God but they were enemies.

What are the real defining differences between the camp of Saul and the camp of David? Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on February 11, 2014 in Elevation, Envy, Fake Christian

 

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Sermon 65 – I FEEL SAD

27 Dec

Some time ago I was confronted by a relative who blamed me for making her sad. I began to observe and learn from that and many other experiences that most people don’t take responsibility for their feelings, but rather automatically blame someone else for making them feel bad. This means that these people live their whole life based on how someone else makes them feel and they live for happy feelings. If your mummy made you feel good when you were moody, then as an adult you’ll expect Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on December 27, 2013 in Uncategorized

 

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