WE LABOURED DANGEROUSLY IN KUMASI FOR 6 YEARS WITHOUT EXPRESSION.
I HAD NEVER GONE FOR ANY CRUSADE IN OTHER NATIONS WHERE WE HAVE BRANCHES BUT I WENT TO THAT SMALL TOWN FOR TWO CRUSADES.
WE SAW SIGNS BUT WE DIDN’T SEE IMPROVEMENT.
SOME FOLKS ARE AGITATED THAT WE HAVEN’T SPREAD IN CANAANLAND.
YOU ARE NOT THE ONE WHO SENT ME AND YOU CAN’T COMMAND ME FOR A SPREAD.
NEVER ASK AGAIN, “HOW SHALL THIS THING BE?” IT IS NOT A QUESTION TO ASK IN THE SCHOOL OF FAITH.
LEAVE GOD TO IT.
ONLY SERIOUS-MINDED BELIEVERS, NOT CHRISTIAN ACTIVISTS, NOT CHURCH ATTENDEES, EVER GET LISTED AS FRONTLINERS.
-Bishop David Oyedepo, 1st Service, Faith Tabernacle
Prophetic Service
Special End of the Month Thanksgiving
Now very quickly, we have 3 sources of prophecies in the Kingdom.
- First, the Word of God – 2 Peter 1:19-21
Take heed to what the content of the prophetic Word is and what is required to have it delivered and plug your life into it.
Take heed: don’t just trash it, don’t just throw it. Now, some fellows have gotten this (February Prophetic Focus), all they have is that they have a copy, they may never read it once.
But because some will read it, we will keep publishing…someday you may wake up and want to read it. How do you make anything out of the month when you won’t even go through it? In case, you can’t read, ask someone, “read it to me, ‘ka si mi, je ki gbo’ (read it, I want to hear it)”
Take heed!! Get serious about it. That is the way it works.
And you do well as you take heed until the day star arises and they see you just up there flying.
-May Daystars will rise here
That equals stars among stars. Church Gist. That is in spite of the shining of the sun, you will see the star.
Jesus calls Himself, ‘the bright and the morning star’ – Revelation 22:16
But it all comes as a result of taking heed to the prophetic Word and what it commands for you and me to do. - Secondly, we access prophetic Words through personal encounters with God.
Abraham had a personal encounter with God, raw encounter with God: “Arise, get thee out of thy country to a nation I will show you. I will make of you a great nation. I will bless and thou shall be a blessing” – Genesis 12:1-2
Moses had a personal encounter: I turn to see this wonderful sight and the Lord said to me, “come now and I will send you to Pharaoh that thou mayest bring my people Israel out of Egypt” – Exodus 3:4,10
How? Personal encounter with God.
- Thirdly, through God sent prophets who are sent to show us what God wants to do next.
Amos 3:7
There are still Prophets here today.
Abraham told the rich fool in that parable of Christ, “if they will not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they hear if anybody comes down from heaven” – Luke 16:31
Straight! Prophets shall be here forever and there are those who are sent to us.
When we acknowledge those that are sent, He said, “there were many widows but unto none was Elijah sent but unto Zarephath” – Luke 4:25
There are Prophets sent to you. Don’t toy with them. Church Gist. They bear God’s agenda to you, you plug into it, He shows.
-In this year of great multiplication of membership, there shall be great multiplication of grace and blessings in your life.
Because like begets like. As you enlarge your acreage of engagement, He increases your rate of advancement. You sow sparingly, you reap sparingly. You sow bountifully, you reap bountifully – 2 Corinthians 9:6
Don’t take His Word lightly or you carry no weight in His presence.
You can’t treat God’s Word with levity and expect Him to treat you with dignity.
“Move near to Me, I will move near to you; move away from Me, I will move away from you” – James 4:8
“You initiate My acts in your life.” Church Gist. Every believer initiates the acts of God in his life.
“Go to Jordan and wash”: No. I am greater than going to Jordan. Jordan, everybody is passing. Okay, you will be passing, pass away with your leprosy to your house – 2 Kings 5:10
-It shall be an unusual year.
Now, watch how prophecies play out:
“As you pastor this one Church”: We were explosive by grace in town, to have spread while we were still in town.
“As you pastor this one Church, the world will become your parish for I have ordained you to serve your generation”: I hear news of folks around the world who are online in our Services who don’t even belong to our faith.
“As you pastor this one Church”: I don’t know why we have not spread. You are not the one who sent me and you can’t command me for a spread. I know the cost of doing what He has not sent you. Church Gist. Once beaten twice shy.
We laboured dangerously in Kumasi for 6 years without expression. He said, “I am not there.” After 6 years, I asked Him, “why is nothing happening?”
He said: I am not there.
I went there for 2 Crusades. There is no Nation we have been to in my life that I went there for Crusade. I went to that small town. We saw signs but we didn’t see improvement.
Nothing worked. There was even nothing to hire. Church Gist. There was no dignified place to hire, not to beg, to hire, to pay. Land to pay, no way.
“God, what is happening?” He said: I am not there.
We had trouble sometimes in Kaduna, in our satellite Church and I said, “God, what is happening?”
He said: Did I send you?
People don’t know this God ooo. He never breaks His Word.
You move into what He has not sent you to do, you will see your emptiness.
People will say all manners of things…”Is that a man of God?” He has left you.
You look back, there is nobody there.
-God won’t leave anyone.
Please don’t pack your bag. Church Gist. Stop going to where God is not going with you.
You will just suffer head for nothing.
Ask Him, “Lord, I am invited to come. Is that Your agenda for my life?”
When He sends you, “Express!”
Not that you will be running around like that my son, returned from UK: deported.
You go with dignity Sir.
-Your life will never lack dignity.
We will stop wherever we do but the good news is the year is ordained your own year.
-Because it is our year of release which covers you, so your captivity is over.
-Your distress is over.
-Every debtor shall be let go.
-Every slave shall be set free.
-And everyone shall experience new levels of favour.
It takes faith to see prophecies fulfilled.
HOW FAITH FACILITATES FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECIES?
- Faith spiritually strengthens believers not to waver in order to see prophecies fulfilled.
Abraham was strong in faith, giving glory to God and then Isaac came – Romans 4:20
Not shout Hallelujah in the afternoon and cast down your head in the night.
Through faith, Sarah herself received strength – Hebrews 11:11
Faith is a strengthener of our inner man that keeps you actively following, the circumstances around you notwithstanding.
“Who would have thought?” So what people cannot think happens when you refuse to waver.
Who would have thought that Sarah would give suck to a child? No, but God has made me to laugh – Genesis 21:7
When you refuse to waver, you end up with laughter.
-Your issue will end up with laughter this year.
But we must continue to build strength into our faith before our faith can strengthen us on the inside and faith grows by hearing and understanding the Word – Romans 10:17
Spiritual understanding is just being able to see what God is saying.
You are having a chat with a friend, at a point, he says, ‘Oh I see!!” He is just having a grip of what you are seeing. You can’t see a thing and still doubt it. I see.
They call it the eyes of our understanding being enlightened to see – Ephesians 1:18
We build faith by studying the Word to the point of understanding, with the help of the Holy Ghost, who teaches us all things, who brings to our remembrance whatever we have learnt from Him. He is a Master Teacher – 1 Corinthians 2:13
He is a Chemist of the Word, He puts it together, delivers the product: “Yes, I am free”, that is what He does.
So engage His ministry to facilitate spiritual understanding which is a booster of faith.
“Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked him. How can I except someone should guide me? Acts 8:30-31
That messenger of the covenant is the Holy Ghost. He enlightens our spiritual eyes to behold, to see what God is saying. He opens our eyes to see the wondrous things out of His law.
But to see prophecies fulfilled:
- First, we must receive the prophetic Word in our mind so we don’t become a victim like that man on whom the king leaned, “even if God opens the windows of heaven, shall this thing be?”
We start thinking scripturally, whatever things that are pure…think of these things, you will receive it – Philippians 4:8
Most of the times, prophetic Words are very humourous, they are laughable. They are not things that people who operate with their natural minds can grasp easily.
“This time tomorrow, food will be in town”: You can’t blame that man Sir, it is not natural. Is that normal? Did the food come or not?
2 Kings 7:1,16
-Whatever God says, He creates
He said, “I am the Lord I change not” – Malachi 3:6
Whatever He said, He saw. And the Lord said; the Lord saw – Genesis 1:3
Genesis 1:1-31
And the Lord saw every thing that the Lord said, behold, they were very good – Genesis 1:31
He saw everything He said and He hasn’t changed. Whatever He says, all you need is to turn your spiritual sight to it and you receive it.
“He will build this Church in one year” and He did it. We didn’t owe anybody. Nobody Sir.
Not come and get your money next tomorrow. Nobody!!
We didn’t borrow from any bank any day.
He built Covenant University Phase 1: 7 months.
A management team of a bank came here and said, “which bank is bankrolling this project?” They said, “None.”
They said it is not possible. We are heaven rolling, not bankrolling.
Faith! Faith is a most potent force on the earth Sir.
Now let me tell you this, don’t be scared: You believe Him, you shall not die, but if you believe Him before you died, the faith you had will bring you back.
It is in John now, it is not me – John chapter 5
It is an interesting adventure. Church Gist. Faith works even when you stop breathing. That is how potent it is. It works when you are sleeping.
-Death won’t take anyone cheap anymore.
That is the power of faith in bringing His Word to pass. And if you believe it, then prove it by working it out: do your part of it and you can trust God for His part.
-The good news is the end of struggles in the lives of everyone of us has finally come.
Never ask again, “how shall this thing be?” It is not a question to ask in the School of Faith, leave God to it.
When God says, “go forward”: Go forward. Church Gist. The Red Sea can’t stop God, He created it and He threw an overhead bridge across the Red Sea and they walked gallantly, majestically across it. As soon as His people went off, the bridge collapsed. Pharaoh and his host got drowned – Exodus 14:27
“Let’s go back to the other side”: He knew the storm was on the way, but don’t bother, I will take of it. He took care of the storm on the way. Just believe Him. Just refuse to waver and that takes inner strength. An inner strength from strong faith.
-Whatever God has spoken concerning you, no devil in hell or their agents will be able to stop it.
The question of “how shall we find food to eat when the one we carried finish?” did not arise.
“How shall we have water to drink?” did not arise.
The One who said, don’t go through the way of the wilderness although that was short lest peradventure the people repent when they see war and they return to Egypt – Exodus 13:17
That God led them not through the desert but led them about the wilderness of the Red Sea – Exodus 13:18
There is no return. Church Gist. He said, “I will take care of you.” He was feeding them twice a day. A rock was following them, providing them water. Pillar of fire by night to protect them from wild beasts and then the cloud in the day to shield them from the heat of the sun. Their feet were not swollen, the clothes did not wax old; He just took care of them, He clothed them with glory because they followed what He said.
-Things that have never happened, things you have never read of, things you never heard as a testimony in this place is ordained for you this year.
We serve a God of times and seasons and He always reserves the best for the last.
-This is the end of the 7th year, the sweet wine of this Wonder Double prophetic visitation will be served us this year. You won’t miss your portion.
Prayers: Give God thanks. If you heard anything from Him today, give Him thanks. In Jesus precious name we have given thanks.
So set out to enhance your faith level by attending to the Philip sent to you so they can help enlighten you to grow in faith.
-You will never be at the same spot anymore.
ALTAR CALL
Only serious minded people ever get listed among front liners in their fields of endeavours.
Only serious minded believers, not Christian activists, not Church attendees, serious minded; if that my little daughter, she is a mother now, could secure 10 souls in the month of February: my prayer is that before May 2nd, when we are celebrating the end of the 7th year, your minimum 12 standing souls will be standing by you, if you will care to believe it.
“How shall we work the work of God?” The work of God is to believe. No prayer gets priority attention with God as Kingdom advancement prayers.
“Lord, give a thousand souls this month”: I went out personally Sir. He did it. Second month, He did that.
I said, “God, give me a thousand souls this week”: And He did it,
He answers it speedily if you are asking for it seriously.
Not Papa said, we should pray: Oh Gawd. You know I am just from America. Oh Gawd. Oh my Gawd, oh ma ma ma.
You can only impress your neighbours with your grammar, it doesn’t move God. It is the genuine content of your prayers that matters. The genuine content.
Genuine content in your dialect, in your language. With your Nigerian phonetics.
When you are speaking from the East, I know. When you are from the North, I know. When you are from South West, I know you very well.
And He has redeemed us out of every tribe, every tongue, every nation. So every tribe is relevant to God.
“Mo wa su re fun yin loni ooo” (I have come to bless you today). You meet me on the field, one Pastor said, “I don’t even know you speak Yoruba”
I said: I am not a bastard. Your mother’s tongue was born with you, so don’t pretend.
I have travelled and travelled; it can change who God made me.
You say, “Pardon.” I say, “Open your ears. What is pardon? When you speak through your nose, did I disturb you? I am speaking through my mouth.”
…Don’t be another man, just be you. He loves you just as you are.
Approach Him strongly. If you will get your 12 souls in the market, go there and speak their language to them. Speak broken English, they don’t understand all this one that they will need dictionary to hear.
Speak the one they can hear: O boy, na you I come for. I hope you dey do well. Hmmnn, na Jesus send me to you (Hello, I came to see you. Hope you are fine, Jesus sent me to you).
You give it to him, at his level.
-May you receive grace to deliver your minimum benchmark before the anniversary of the Wonder Double visitation.
-You will be glad you did and many will become grandfathers this year because the ones you brought to Christ will also bring their own and some will become great grandfathers. The ones they brought will also bring their own and then you are in the midst of 200 people.
This is how stars are made and it is open to all.
Prayers: Lord, engrace me with a serious minded approach to the great multiplication of membership agenda for the year. Engrace me.
Pray that prayer with intent and purpose.
It will come along with all the benefits that the Word says goes along with it.
Your health shall be established with strength and vigour. If you obey and serve Him, you will spend your days in prosperity and your years in pleasure. Eyes have not seen, those who love Him. Whosoever has my commandments and keeps it is the one that loves Me. What eyes have not seen nor ears heard shall be your portion this year.
Take grace from heaven. It is your year of great turnaround. Just do your part, leave Him to the rest.
Do your part and leave Him to the rest.
Now, let me just show you one thing. Every believer has a Come and See ministry.
You minister to them, they are not listening, just “come into Church, next Sunday is our Covenant Day of Open Doors. You will meet God there and He will open strange doors to you.” You are a Come and See agent.
Our Church growth agenda is built on Come and See task.
“Why is the Church not growing?”
God: Look at the black thing. Look at the devil trying to resist you.
- “When I came to the world”, Jesus talking to me, “somebody had to tell somebody come and see.”
You saw the woman of Samaria: Come and see a man who told me all I ever did and they came and they believed.
Invite them passionately, lovingly, cheerfully. You can’t invite somebody with frozen face:
(Invitee’s response): “I don’t want your trouble, I have enough.
(Inviting someone with a sad tone): Please come to our Church, He will change your story.
(Mocking Response): Hehn hehn, is this how He changes people’s story the way you are looking?
Put on the best of your worn-out shoe, with a big Jesus smile, like the testimony we heard last week and go out there: My friend, Jesus does wonders in our Church every day.
Is that propaganda? Is that not the truth?
Diverse testimonies every Sunday. Is that not the truth?
And bring them to Jesus who will reach out to them and save them. They are in an uncrowded environment, bring them here.
You witness to them: they are saved, praise God. They are not saved, joyfully invite them to Church. You are a come and see agent and He will reward you.
He does not gather with me scatters.
-You will not be listed among the scatterers in the name of Jesus.
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