NOTHING PUTS A MAN ON TOP AT ALL TIMES AND IN EVERY PLACE LIKE DIVINE PRESENCE.
DIVINE PRESENCE IS THE GREATEST ASSET OF EVERY BELIEVER. IF GOD BE FOR US, WHO CAN BE AGAINST US?
DIVINE PRESENCE IS UNBEATABLE IN ANY BATTLE
YOU CAN’T WALK WITH THE ONLY WISE GOD AND NOT BE WISE
WAITING FOR A CHANGE OF STORY IS WASTING OF LIFE.
THE HOLY GHOST SPECIALIZES IN SPRINGING SURPRISES BY SHOWING UP SUDDENLY.
WHEN GOD JUDGES YOU FAITHFUL AND MEETS YOU ON DUTY, HE CHANGES YOUR STORY.
THE SUDDEN CHANGE OF STORY TRIGGERED BY THE HOLY GHOST MUST MEET US ON DUTY FOR DELIVERY.
AS LONG AS GOD MEETS YOU ON DUTY, SUDDEN PACKAGES ARE DELIVERED.
TO SUSTAIN COMPANIONSHIP WITH CHRIST, STAY COMMITTED TO THE GREAT COMMISSION AT OUR VARIOUS LEVELS.
BEING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CHRIST THROUGH SPIRITUAL STEWARDSHIP MAKES A BELIEVER TO BE MORE THAN A CONQUEROR.
– Bishop David Oyedepo on THE INCOMPARABLE BENEFITS OF SPIRITUAL STEWARDSHIP at September 2023 Leadership Empowerment Summit || Living Faith Church Worldwide || 9th September 2023.
We will look at the INCOMPARABLE BENEFITS OF SPIRITUAL STEWARDSHIP. God has not asked the seed of Jacob to seek him in vain. Every commandment of scriptures is ordained for our profiting. The principles of scriptures are profitable, the reproofs of scriptures are profitable, the corrections of scriptures are profitable. Matthew 19:27-29. Church Gist. Spiritual stewardship adds value, it makes living profitable for all those who diligently engage it. As we have commonly said here, God is not looking for who to use but who to bless. God is not looking for who to humiliate but who to honour, He is not looking for who to stress but who to make whole. Investment in kingdom advancement endeavours advances people.
What is spiritual stewardship? It is all about engagement in adding spiritual values to our local assembly through soul winning, kingdom advancement prayers and following up our new converts to the point of establishment. Church Gist. There are other kinds of stewardship, they have profits but none compares with spiritual stewardship.
Among other things, the capital benefit of spiritual stewardship is divine presence. Luke 10:1. He sent them to go and He was walking with them confirming the Word with signs following. Mark 16:15,20. Divine presence is the greatest asset of every believer. If God be for us, who can be against us? Matthew 28:18-20. I guarantee you my presence as you are on the go for my mission. Nothing puts a man on top at all times and in every place like divine presence. They were on top of the fiery furnace, on top of the den of lions. Nothing puts a man on top of all situations and circumstances like divine presence. Church Gist. Divine presence is unbeatable in any battle. No gate can be shut against a man carrying divine presence. Psalm 24:7. Divine presence is the capital return on spiritual stewardship. Divine presence secures supernatural victory over the battles of life. Luke 10:17-19. You live above hurt, above failure, above satanic assault when you engage in spiritual stewardship with all intent and purpose.
Spiritual stewardship secures supernatural open doors against all odds. Isaiah 45:1-3. No gate can withstand you when you are in His company. Church Gist. When you become a companion of God which is the legitimate right of everyone serving God and the interests of His kingdom.
3. It puts believers in command of the supernatural.
Mark 16:20. Being on the go for Him empowers the believer to command the supernatural. Acts 10:38.
4. It engenders access to supernatural wisdom that enthrones.
Genesis 39:5, 20-21. Proverbs 13:20. Genesis 41:38. Because God was with him, he got wiser by the day and that got him enthroned. The wisdom from above enthrones believers. As we walk with Him, we get wiser by the day. Proverbs 13:20. The Bible describes God as God, the only wise. Jude 25. He is not wiser, He is not wisest, He is the Only Wise God. Church Gist. No one else is in His class, even His foolishness is wiser than the wisdom of men. You can’t walk with Him and not be wise. It enthroned Joseph, that wisdom enthroned Daniel, it enthroned Paul, it will enthrone anybody that gains access to that realm of wisdom.
5. Spiritual stewardship confers divine authority.
Luke 9:1-2. Jesus called his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority over all devils and to heal the sick. We are told about these 10 servants that were told to occupy till I come. Two out of ten had testimonies out of it, seven absconded, one reacted. Truly many are called but few are chosen. There are many non-engaging believers in Church. No one’s position will ever change without engaging genuinely in Kingdom advancement stewardship. You are never a candidate for promotion when you resign from any organization. Promotion is the lot of those actively in service. Government may promote you based on the number of years you have served but not private companies. Church Gist. They promote you based on your output. You can’t promote a salesman because he has been there for long but that he makes sales. The level of sales he makes determines his lifting in that department.
Waiting for a change of story is wasting of life. Luke 19:17. Authority cannot be achieved, it is conferred. You can’t pray into authority, authority is conferred based on your output. The four lepers said if we wait there long enough sudden mischief may come upon us. Many have waited for long for a change of story. No! Whatever He tells you to do, do it for your desired change of story. If you don’t do it, forget it. We have no wine, shame is staring us in the face, Mary said “Okay, whatever He tells you to do, do it” and they had a surplus of wine that was sweeter than the one they got with their money. Church Gist. A man was born blind, whatever He tells you to do, do it. He said, “Go to the Pool called Siloam”. What a harsh instruction. I have never seen before, how do I know which one is Siloam? Go and find out. He went and washed and came back seeing. John 9:7. He was born blind and yet he had to do what he says. Folding our hands, sitting down and doing nothing will never bring a change of story.
No one goes forward sitting down, people only go forward taking steps. Let’s stop marking times, let’s start taking steps. To sustain companionship with Christ, stay committed to the Great Commission at our various levels. As long as a man can eat, he can pray, pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Anna was serving God with prayers and fasting daily, at 84 she was still serving God. Abraham at 114 was still obeying God, Moses at 80 responded to divine assignment. Church Gist. The three Hebrew boys would rather die than deny God and so they sustained His Presence in the fiery furnace. Daniel would never pray to another God but believed in God, he went through the Den of Lions unscratched because God sent His Angels to shut the mouth of lions. Daniel 6:22. Being in partnership with Christ through spiritual stewardship makes a believer to be more than a conqueror.
-Your days of struggles are over if you will care to do what God sends you to do, in the name of Jesus.
Just before we close, I got this striking light today that will bless us. More often than not, our change of story, a return for our stewardship comes through suddenly, they come through suddenly. The Holy Ghost specializes in springing surprises by showing up suddenly. 2 Corinthians 3:18. So He triggers the changes and these changes come in suddenly but they must meet you on duty for delivery. Church Gist. The sudden change of story triggered by the Holy Ghost must meet us on duty for delivery. I’ve quite a number of instances here of sudden manifestation of the Spirit of God for change of story in our Ministry, not prayed for, not sought after, they just show up. They just show up based on the fact that they just met us on duty doing what He sends to do and so it brings up the next surprises and the next surprise and then the next surprise. The Liberation Mandate came suddenly, there was no orchestration, there was no arrangement, there was no desperation, there was no desire. When He judges you faithful and meets you on duty, He changes your story.
The Publishing Mandate came suddenly one early morning 14th February 1983: ‘The Words I’ve put in your mouth, the same commit into writing, that cause the same unction upon the spoken Word to fall upon the written Word bringing about the same effect’. That’s why our books are not stories, they trigger effects, they make known the power of God, it came suddenly. Church Gist. I heard the walking steps of the Master one glorious day, May 1987. He touched my back and something like warm water came through down my spine, power erupted on Sunday morning, it gave birth to what we call Pentecost Flames, Kaduna where a hole in the skull was filled literally and diverse other miracles, it came suddenly it wasn’t programmed!
-Your changes are coming and they will come suddenly.
Our Church planting phase one began suddenly, I was going to the pulpit like this during Easter Convention 20th April 1987. ‘It’s time to spread out’! And then gave insights to five different locations in the North, we invaded those places and we are still invading till now. Come on, give the Lord praise! It always comes suddenly He must meet you on duty! Galatians 6:9. The reason why many are stagnated and frustrated is because they are always off and on. ‘I think I have tried my best’, who told you? Church Gist. You don’t write an exam and mark it, you don’t mark your scripts in exams, God knows, God says: ‘I didn’t know’ God knows I’ve done my best, no! Your best may not be the right thing, do the right thing and keep doing it. Doing the right things has no lifespan, keep doing it! The day you stop doing the right, you go on the wrong, keep doing it! He must meet you on it! The problem is that we are never on duty when He comes and the devil knows how to take people’s attention: ‘You have tried enough, will they kill you’? He knows your time is just there. Like the Oyibo man will say: ‘There is always darkness before dawn’, he knows about your time for a change of level, he goes around to manipulate.
-You will not be a victim anymore!
It was like a backward movement when the Lord said to me: ‘Arise! Get to Lagos to raise Me a people’. One, I won’t think of Lagos, I don’t have any liking for it but it came, it was a change of story but it came like a backward step in the natural eyes. So we left and came and see where we are today! He must meet you on duty, press for Him to meet you on duty. Everybody needs it! It is grace to be met on duty when the Sudden Rewarder shows up.
– May we all receive it today!
That was July 1989, see where we are today by grace. Then suddenly, He came down: ‘The harvest of Africa is now over ripped, rush now to preserve some decadence’! Suddenly! It wasn’t programmed I was in a car, suddenly. He always comes through suddenly as long as you are on duty! As long as He meets you on duty, sudden packages are delivered! So all these vacations, going on away won’t help you, stay on! Some have stayed up to 28th of the month, visitation is marked for 10 pm of 29th then he gave up, He comes, He can’t find them! Church Gist. Courier won’t deliver your message without finding someone to sign for you, you are not home, you are not home, he returns the stuff back to their store. Can I tell how much of people’s packages that have been returned to Heaven? Because Angels are coming, ascending and descending, they are bringing the blessing, when they can’t meet you at home they take it back, they bring it in they take it back and after sometimes, they say: ‘This address is lost’. Wait! He changed our story supernaturally saying He would build the Tabernacle in one year, suddenly it was not in plan, there was no program for it, no part of the budget. ‘This Tabernacle shall be built and dedicated 18th September 1999, what? It came suddenly.
The Holy Ghost who changes people’s story comes through suddenly more often than none but He must meet you and me on duty to deliver sudden packages as surprise packages, He must meet us on duty!! Thinking Kingdom thought, taking Kingdom steps, praying Kingdom prayers, reaching out to souls with passion, praying for Church meetings. He must meet us on duty. Every of these sudden acts met me actively on duty, I wasn’t guessing, actively on duty! And then came the wonder, wonder double visitation, see what He has done to our Ministry, unthinkable! It met me on duty. Church Gist. His presence filled the entire room, I was wondering what was going on, I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t do anything and then suddenly: ’I, the God of wonder double is visiting’! Landmark visitation! The effect is still here oo and we are here for life. He said: ‘I will be in your midst until when you don’t want Me again’, so we are driving this to keep Him here, we are driving Kingdom endeavours to keep Him here. And then we saw this Church pull double in 7 weeks to prove that He said it. And then we saw the Church number doubled 2019, we saw it redoubled 2020, we saw a number of Cells doubled, we saw a number of nations doubled. What else is double visitations? Wonder double! They all came suddenly! There was no programming, there was no agenda, it’s just the usual sudden acts of the Holy Ghost.
-Receive grace to be met on duty.
On the day of Pentecost, suddenly! That’s the Ministry of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:2-4. That is His Ministry, springing surprises. You know before the year is over, if you care to be on duty and stay on duty genuinely, not carnally not politicking in Church, serving God with all your heart, not as a commentator. ‘You know? You know that man is not doing well, that one is not doing well’. Commentators don’t get prizes, check in any sporting event. You find commentators talking and talking they are just like parrots you can’t find a medal in their hand whether bronze or silver. Face where you are going, stay in tune with God, jealously guard your partnership with God and watch what will keep happening in your life.
-Receive that grace!
——–PRAYERS————-
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