WE ARE THE ONES TO PURGE OURSELVES AND NOT THE CHURCH TO PURGE US
HE DID NOT END WELL: ISAAC OYEDEPO TELLS STORY OF AN USHER WHO USED TO STEAL ENVELOPES FROM OFFERING BAGS
WHEN YOU FIND A MAN OR WOMAN OF ISSUES, IT’S THE ISSUE OF THE HEART
THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOU WHEN PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE SPEAKING WRONG ABOUT ANOTHER PERSON AROUND YOU
GOD WILL NEVER TELL US TO BE WHAT HE HAS NOT EMPOWERED US TO BE
GOD’S BENCHMARK IS THAT EVERY BELIEVER GROWS INTO THE FULLNESS OF THE STATURE OF CHRIST UNTO A PERFECT MAN – IT’S A HEAVY BENCHMARK!
THE CHURCH WILL NOT PURGE YOU,THE ENVIRONMENT WILL NOT PURGE YOU. YOU HAVE THE GOD-GIVEN RESPONSIBILITY TO PURGE YOURSELF
IF YOU ARE GOING TO TO LIVE WITH A GOOD CONSCIENCE BEFORE GOD ALL THROUGH YOUR LIFE, NOT EVERYONE WILL BE COMFORTABLE AROUND YOU
- Pastor Isaac Oyedepo| November 2022 Leadership Empowerment Service|
As we access into this holy word and sweet Holy Spirit we rely upon You for accuracy, do what only You can do and let Jesus be glorified in Jesus precious name.
Praise the LORD, I am more than a conqueror! Congratulations, Amen and Amen.
Let’s give the LORD a hand and please you may be seated.
We will continue looking at the subject that was started so powerfully well in the first Word session captioned “ENGAGING THE CONSCIENCE TOWARDS LIVING A SANCTIFIED LIFE” and this will be Part 2.
We had already established while the first teaching was going on that the conscience is the seat of sanctification and this seat must be jealously guarded against all forms of defilement. Proverbs 4:23. Church Gist. In other words, when you find a man or woman with issues, it’s an issue of the heart. Keep your heart with all diligence! Jeremiah 17:9-10. The heart can be likened among other things to the earth. Mark 4:3-20, we see the parable of the sower there and in verse 13 specifically. The heart, the heart, the heart. So the heart can be likened to the earth, we can call it the “heart-earth” and this heart-earth according to God’s Word is also likened to a vineyard. Isaiah 5:1-4. So the heart-earth can be likened to a vineyard but in verse 1 and 2 of that scripture, we see that in this vineyard very importantly, there was a fence round about it. Church Gist. That’s likened to our conscience, to our conscience there must be a fence round it, it says “keep your heart with all diligence [fence it], for out of it are the issues of life.
An access to our vineyard of our heart has two major en routes:
- The eye-gate – what you see.
- The ear-gate and I am reminded of this, very powerful testimony I have heard our father in the LORD shared many times of how he has never for once allowed anyone speak ill of those he looks up to because that will pollute the conscience. When people are comfortable speaking wrong about another person around you, there is something wrong with you. The conscience! Watch what you watch! Watch what you hear! Church Gist. Watch what you see and watch what you hear. People should be uncomfortable when you are around because of how you refuse evil around you. My prayer for you and I is that the same grace that is at work in our father in the LORD, that same grace will come upon you and I in the name of Jesus!
Every evil act is a product of an evil thought and that comes from the heart of man. Mark 7:21-23, we looked at that in the first teaching.
Now, what is the conscience? Two very quick definitions of the conscience and this will be helpful that each one of us take heart to these definitions.
- The conscience is the you that cannot be seen with the natural eyes that determines the you that we can see. Galatians 3:11 and 1 Timothy 3:9. The mystery of faith, this faith that we are talking about is a mystery and it must be held in a pure conscience, a pure conscience! Church Gist. So the conscience is the you that cannot be seen. If you have ever been in the midst of an argument before and somebody says “I will show you, you don’t know who I am”, then you will know that is the definition out there. There is the hidden man that is not known by others but it proves the things that we can see. Conscience is that you, so the real you is the you that cannot be seen but it will determine ultimately the outcome of what we can see. It’s just like a man wearing his clothes, the way you look when you have your suit on is very different from when it is off. There is the you that no one can see with the natural eyes that determines the outcome of what we can see.
Number 2, what is the conscience? This is the best definition I have had. - The conscience is our most confidential companion. 1 Corinthians 2:11. The spirit of man that is in him there is the conscience. So the conscience is our most confidential, confidant companion. Your conscience is always with you, you never leave it at home. Everywhere you go, your conscience is. Church Gist. For what man knoweth the things of a man, except the spirit of a man that is in him.
We must understand five critical things this morning:
- God cannot tell us to be what He has not empowered us to be.
He wouldn’t say be ye holy, if we cannot be it. 1 Peter 1:14-16. He wouldn’t say be ye perfect, if He has not empowered us to be. Matthew 5:48. Church Gist. So God will never tell us to be what He has not empowered us to be, so if He has said “be ye holy”, it’s because we have been empowered us to be. - We must understand that temptations are not meant to overcome us but we are meant to overcome them. Temptations are meant to be overcomed and not to overcome us. Romans 12:21. We heard during the emphasis week, it just brought a light-bulb to my spirit – Heaven is the homecoming of overcomers! So temptations will come but we are supposed to go over them, that is what it means to overcome. Anything that comes , you go over you have overcomed.
- We must understand that God’s benchmark for believers is to grow into the fullness of the stature of Christ unto a perfect man. God’s benchmark and we must not mistake God’s benchmark with man’s benchmark. Church Gist. God’s benchmark is that every believer, you and I grow into the fullness of the stature of Christ unto a perfect man. Ephesians 4:11-13. It’s a heavy benchmark.
- We must note that we have the God-given responsibility to purge ourselves. 2 Timothy 2:19-21. So, no one will do the purging for you and I, we are the ones with the God-given responsibility to purge ourselves. The Church will not purge us, environment will not purge us, we have the God-given responsibility to purge ourselves. To purge ourselves! 1 John 3:3. So we all have the God-given responsibility to purge or purify ourselves.
- One can live with a good conscience all through his life.
Paul the apostle gave us that standard by the HolyGhost. Acts 23:1. What a moving testimony. You know there is what man applause, but there is what God confirms. Church Gist. I have lived with a good conscience… this is a strange testimony for anyone to have, that is, it’s one thing for you to know my works, on the outside it looks good but Paul is saying God knows my heart. Others outside may know your hand, what your hand has done but only God knows your heart. He looked up to say “LORD you know I have lived in a good conscience till this day” so one can live in a good conscience before God all through his life.
Let me quickly note, if you are going to live with a good conscience before God all through your life, not everyone will be comfortable around you because his ways are not our ways, his thoughts are not our thoughts, his standard is not our standard. If everyone is comfortable around you, your conscience is seared.
What are the characteristics of a good conscience?
- A good conscience will not partake in the unfruitful works of darkness.
Darkness is everywhere. A good conscience will not partake in the unfruitful works of darkness. Ephesians 5:11. Don’t be around it, let it not be around you but rather reprove them, expose them. A good conscience will not partake in the unfruitful works of darkness, it will rather expose it. I remember some years ago in the RajiOba church, I heard this testimony from the Apostle over this commission in one of those days when he was sharing and I remember the testimony or the story [we cannot call it a testimony], of this man who as an usher, everytime offering is collected in the midst of all the overflows, there are about five of them and everything going on, he would carry the bucket to a corner, open the envelopes and be removing the money and keeping them. Hiding it! I don’t know if anyone noticed it but somebody may have seen him and said it is not my business. Now hear this, the end of the man wasn’t a good story. For those of us who have heard the story at all, he couldn’t be recovered. Now, listen to this very carefully, it’s one thing to be a partaker of evil, it’s another thing to be an observer f evil and many times they have the same consequences. It’s not enough for you to say “I will not do it” but “I must not know it”. It is better that I don’t know it but if I know, it must be exposed, … does not partake in the unfruitful works of darkness but rather exposes them.
Number two characteristics of a good conscience because you and I can now weigh ourselves in the balance.
- Demonstrates Godly sincerity in one’s day to day work. Godly sincerity! 2 Corinthians 1:12, Godly sincerity! Godly sincerity! We must look at this [2 Corinthians 1:12]. You know it’s one thing for someone to have a testimony of you, it’s another thing for your conscience to testify the same thing. Church Gist. Place it back on the screen ” the testimony of our conscience that is in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in this world and more abundantly to you all” It demonstrates godly sincerity in one’s day to day work.
- It does not walk in craftiness or falsehood. 2 Corinthians 4:1-2.
#PastorIsaacOyedepo
#BishopDavidOyedepo
#LivingFaithChurchWorldWide
#MorethanAConqueror
#LeadershipEmpowermentSummit2022
#November5th2022
#Shiloh2022
#ChurchGist
Join any of our Telegram Channels
t.me/ChurchGist
t.me/ChurchGist
