ALL THESE ARE A RESULT OF PROMPT OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S INSTRUCTIONS. A PROMPT RESPONSE WILL ALWAYS PROVOKE A SWORN BLESSING.
NO BELIEVER HAS A FUTURE WITHOUT A LIFESTYLE OF OBEDIENCE.
DON’T GO YOUR WAY, IT CAN BE COSTLY, GO GOD’S WAY ALL THE TIME AND YOU WILL HAVE GREAT STORIES TO TELL.
OBEDIENCE TO GOD IS WHAT WILL LIBERATE YOU FROM A LIFE OF STRUGGLES.
ENCOUNTERS ARE NOT THINGS YOU FORGET. REAL ENCOUNTERS STICK TO YOU FOR LIFE.
- Bishop David Oyedepo on ‘UNDERSTANDING THE POWER OF OBEDIENCE PART 1A’ at June 2022 Spiritual Week of Emphasis Day 1 || Faith Tabernacle, Canaanland Ota.
Shall we lift our hands to heaven and give God thanks for the spiritual week of emphasis for June and the great things God has in store for us. Give God thanks for the privilege to be a partaker of this awesome time in His presence. Ask Him to speak to you. Jesus, I want to hear from you, let your ancient word impart me with fresh grace.
As powerful as the word is, it is helplessly helpless without man’s obedience of faith. It is lifeless, of zero value but when we inject obedience of faith, we see the power the majesty that the word is loaded with. This thing will never work without man’s obedience. God’s word is relevant for all times but applicable to only those who believe. Church Gist. Luke 1:45. Grace to be a doer of the word, to be a word practitioner, lift your two hands and receive it. That is the only way to tap into the eternal values of the word. Lord grace for obedience of faith to become my new lifestyle for the taking, go ahead and receive it.
Lord Jesus thank you again for bringing us into your presence tonight. As we sit at your feet let each one’s word come through tonight. Let no one return without a definite encounter with you in Jesus precious name.
Once again, a great happy new month to every one of us. Word practice secures profitable living. All scriptures are given by the inspiration of God and are profitable. All scriptures are designed and ordained to make life profitable. It is in place to add value to us. 2 Timothy 3:16, Hebrews 4:2. The word is ordained to profit us when it is mixed with faith in terms of practice. Show me your faith with your practice, I will show you my faith by my practice. So it never profits anyone without practice.
Our teaching series for the Midweek Services of this month is UNDERSTANDING THE POWER OF OBEDIENCE. No believer has a future without a lifestyle of obedience. Matthew 7:24-25. Our future is in doing what He says to do. Matthew 7:26-27. It is doing His word that creates a future for the believer. James 1:22-25. There is nothing in just hearing it and doing nothing. The blessing comes through doing not hearing, not through preaching or teaching. Only through doing. You can be a great teacher of the word but if you are not a doer, it doesn’t add anything, no value, no profit, nothing. Church Gist. That is why obedience of faith is the master key to experiencing the manifestation of God in our lives. John 2:6. They simply did it and they saw wonders. They got sweeter wine than the one they paid for by simply obeying His word. John 14:21. When we do what the word commands believing, we have committed God’s integrity to confirm such in our lives. Mark 16:15-20. Obedience of faith speaks louder than voice. 1 Kings 21:29. The people at Cana of Galilee didn’t have to say anything, they just did what He asked. Obedience of faith speaks louder than voice.
We will be looking at UNDERSTANDING THE POWER OF OBEDIENCE PART 1A. Obedience commands greater results than all other spiritual forces put together. These forces include the force of prayer and fasting, the force of rearing altars of sacrifices. 1 Samuel 15:22-23. That is the prime place for obedience in our walk with God. Nothing else is a substitute. Obedience of faith will open impossible doors to the believer. Exodus 14:15. As they went forward that impossible door opened. He threw a highway, a flyover over the Red Sea. Peter was shut up in prison and God’s presence came in there. An angel said, “Dress up”. As he walked, the first, second and third gates opened on their own accord. Impossible doors will always open when you are walking with obedience. Acts 12:10-12. Psalm 114:4. Church Gist. Obedience will open impossible doors to anyone. You heard testimonies of unthinkable things, many don’t even believe them but they are there for all to see. Paul and Silas were shut up in prison and the word says in everything give thanks so they began to sing praises and God came down. Acts 16:26. Word practice shook the foundation of the prison. It is passing the obedience test that qualifies the believer for enthronement in the kingdom. We must subscribe to a lifestyle of obedience if we will ever get enthroned as God has ordained it.
Deuteronomy 28:1-2, Luke 22:28-30.
Continuity in the lifestyle of obedience enthrones. Our obedience to any commandment of Scripture is absolutely a matter of our choice. It is not a gift. You choose what you believe and do. It is your choice that determines your lot. What becomes of us tomorrow is a result of our choice today. Church Gist. Deuteronomy 30:19. Joshua 24:15. It is a choice, it is not a gift. May each one make that choice for a lifestyle of obedience today. You can’t tell what is in obedience until you have obeyed. The taste of the pudding is in the eating. Psalm 34:18. No faking it, raw obedience, real obedience, genuine obedience.
All enthroned patriarchs in scriptures obeyed their way to enthronement. No shortcut. He is not a respecter of persons. If you want to experience enthronement then sustain your obedience. The obedience that works must align with the following:
- It must be revelation-rooted obedience.
God has shown you what to do and that is what you go after. Revelation-rooted obedience. The word found is the prompting of your obedience not what you feel like. Ezekiel 2:2. When it is revelation prompted, revelation triggered, it keeps you going. “Get thee out of thy country” and Abraham departed. “Circumcise all the sons born in your family” he did it immediately starting with himself. Raw practical obedience.
- Obedience that works must be prompt obedience.
Nobody keeps knocking on a door forever. If you lock for a while, no response – nobody in. Every revelation is a knock on your heart. Revelation 3:20 “Are you interested in this package?” no response? Thank you, back to the courier office. Isaiah 55:6. Prompt obedience. Songs of Solomon 5:2-7. Delayed response is dangerous. Revelation demands a prompt response.
- The obedience that works must be willful obedience
2 Corinthians 8:12. Willing hearted obedience. 1 Corinthians 9:17. I am not just doing it, I am doing it willingly. We have the example of Abraham in all of this.
Psalm 34:18. Taste His goodness according to these rules of scriptures and you will see that the Lord is good. I have a bit of experience in some of these things that have been speaking in my life for years. I recently taught on the lifespan of light. John 12:35-36. Every light of scripture shows up for a while and then it goes off. Sunlight is not for all while. Sunlight is for a period and then the light goes and darkness takes its place. Any light not responded to on time turns to darkness and then you will be gasping to enter into it. It is gone, you wait for another time. It is slow motion response that has been responsible for many people’s frustration in the Kingdom. Church Gist. The Reubenite kind of response, great searching of heart. What if? What if not? How? Genesis 49:2-4. Judges 5:15-16. Every instruction they want to check in Greek and Hebrew. The other ones they are claiming, they didn’t go for it in Greek and Hebrew. The one they don’t want, they want to check other translations including those that are translated by devils. Some unbelievers are translators today. Great searching of heart so Reuben lost his place. To go or not to go, you lose your place.
The first time I saw that the Holy Spirit was a person and a guide, the same day when an opportunity opened up “Holy Ghost I don’t want to ask anybody where these folks are. If truly you are a guide, lead me directly”. I heard Him say “go forward”. I got to a T-junction, He said “make a left”. Same day. That is the power of prompt response. When I got Matthew 6:33 I entered into a covenant the same day. Prompt response! Power of prompt response. When I saw I had been redeemed as a king, I entered into it. I began to check myself “will a king go out like this? No. Will a king speak like this? No!”. When I heard thou shall not borrow, I entered into a covenant the same day. I am debt immune, not debt-free. It can never cross my mind. When I saw it, I had no bank account. It is this delayed response that has been our greatest problem. The Reubenite kind of response. The consideration of pros and cons. Daniel 11:32 – “You don’t need to know anybody to scale any height in life,” He told me (October 4th 1981). I didn’t want to look for anybody or know anyone. Just know God. No connections, just connect with God’s word. I asked since you called me to go into full-time ministry who pays me? He said you are my employee -Luke 10:1. Stay on your job, you are on my payroll. Luke 10:7. Go not to anybody’s house, your payment is not in anybody‘s pocket. In 1982, “my son David, my prophetic plan is not a promise it doesn’t answer to prayer so don’t waste your life on it. It has no respect for fasting. It is a covenant, until your part is paid I am not committed”. Deuteronomy 8:18. I can never be poor. To do this one can never be a problem, tithe is from what you gave me. It is not what I am going to borrow from. Giving is to the level I am not beyond it so let’s go. On March 22nd 1982, I resigned from poverty mentality and lack. Church Gist. We began a new life. On September 4th 1987, I saw the mystery of corporate tithing including tithing of ministry resources. I ran with it, see where we are today. No games, no gimmicks. This is one of the most economically buoyant Church institutions on earth not in Nigeria, on earth. We are not trying to pay off any debt, we are not trying to borrow, no overdraft from any bank. Nothing. No adjustment of salary during the lockdown, no delayed payment. All these are the results of prompt obedience. Genesis 22:17-18. Prompt response will always provoke a sworn blessing. My prayer is that each one’s struggle will come to an end this time. Whatever He tells you to do from His word, please go for it fast. Every light is for a while. When the Lord showed me the mystery of Church Growth, that same month we printed ‘Come and See’ March 1984 and went to the marketplace and all shopping areas with the few copies we had. We are still ‘Come and See’ today. Tomorrow morning they are still going to share ‘Come And See’ tracts for next Sunday. It is not “we are coming, let’s plan first”. The moment He says it, the plan is finished. That is the way to walk with God. My prayer is that no one will be a victim of delayed response anymore.
My son, you have two eyes. Can you make one look up and the other look down? No! Anytime you are looking up to man, never claim to be looking unto me. Psalm 34:5. When God told me, I tried whether one could look up and the other look down. It didn’t work. Church Gist. That was September 6th 1983. Encounters are not things you forget. Real encounters stick to you for life. So I vowed never to look up to anybody for anything we want to do. If God doesn’t make it available, we don’t need it. When He makes it available, then we need it. Somebody’s story is changing. You will not be servants of men anymore.
The good news is that God is taking you somewhere. Nothing like obedience in your walk with God. It has the power to set any dummy, there are no dummies in the body of Christ. We are talking about the youngest believers. It has the power to set you above all the nations of the earth with time, little by little. As you sustain your walk with God, He keeps changing your level little by little. We were a global ministry when we had no identity, that’s what He said and that is where we are going. We are not going to get there tomorrow morning but let’s go. Let’s keep going. This journey is so sweet. He will never ask you to do what He has not enabled you to do. Church Gist. His commandments are not grievous, He is not out to punish anybody. He is not there to torment you or torture you. I give you #10, give me #1 to acknowledge the blessings in your life so I can give you the next blessings. Every of His commandment is for our profiting, nothing is directed at Him. Whether we obey God or not, He is still the I AM. You cast aspersion on Him, I am. You insult His prophets, I AM. Nothing you do impacts God. May word practice level into where no human level or skill can get you into.
Thou shall serve the Lord thy God and He shall bless… (Exodus 23:25). Do you want to be blessed? Find a place to serve and no devil can stop His blessing on your life. God does not reward membership, He rewards stewardship. God does not reward leadership, He rewards stewardship. God does not reward foundership, He rewards stewardship
1 Corinthians 3:8. Everyone shall be rewarded according to their labour, not membership. Enjoy serving God, you live under His blessings perpetually and enjoy His promotions continually. You can’t be promoted when you are out of service. You can’t be promoted when you are not in active service. “I have been here for 20 years” Thank God for you but that does not guarantee reward.
If somebody curses a tither, it’s a lie. The covenant is greater than any curse. I had an experience in Ife, one time I overtook someone on the road and I stopped at a filling station just after a few miles. She got down from her car and said “you overtook me like that? You will never get to where you are going”. I said I will get there and you will hear about it. Between the two of us, it is you that is not sure of getting where you are going. Church Gist. I am in a covenant that gets where you are going. You are not in any covenant, you will just crash for nothing. Do you think if witches can kill me, they wouldn’t have killed me a long time ago? You can’t kill the covenant. You have to kill the day and the night first. It is binding. People fear nonsense because they don’t know the covenant they are into. The good news is serving God makes you unkillable. Serving God makes you immune from all curses from man, from devils.
Now we were out at a meeting in December 1994 and we decided that we are not going for any foreign mission in 1995. As we arrived home from that pastors conference of our Church leaders. He said you are going now. I was the one who chaired the meeting and drew conclusions on all the things that we were looking at that would make it not necessary for us to 1995. I called them and said we are going NOW!. That is the time set, you miss that time, and you will be struggling forever because you are swimming against the tides. Church Gist We were set to start the Ark Project in 2015 or 2016 and no sound, no voice. “Don’t talk to me on this matter till I talk to you”. Thank you, Sir. Now we are doing what He says to do and we can’t feel anything. I decree that obedience will liberate you from a life of struggle. Don’t go your way, it is not safe, go His way. Don’t go your way, it can be costly, go His way all the time and you will have great stories to tell.
This is the book that makes all the difference. Joshua 1:8. This book, not these books. It is the manual for profitable living. Please embrace the instructions of the scriptures. Church Gist. That is what makes high flyers in the Kingdom. Don’t be entertained by the principles, hunt for the instructions. Proverbs 4:13. Please no one’s labour shall be wasted and no one’s reward shall be lost.
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