THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR ANNUAL CONVENTION: REASONS TO ATTEND
WE WILL FOCUS MORE ON HEAVEN THAN ON THINGS OF THE EARTH IN THIS CONVENTION
THERE ARE THINGS THAT LAST FOREVER AND WE MUST REFOCUS ON THESE THINGS
FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE CRYING TO GOD FOR MERCY, HE WILL SHOW US PERFECT MERCY
WHEN YOU BECOME A CHRISTIAN, YOU MUST BECOME A CHRISTIAN PERFECTLY BECAUSE GOD HAS NO ROOM FOR HALF MEASURES
MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH MY SON, PAUL ENENCHE IN OTUKPO, BENUE STATE
WHEN YOU DEAL WITH GOD THE WAY HE EXPECTS YOU TO DEAL WITH HIM, THERE’D BE NO NEED FOR PREACHING
OUR BRAND OF CHRISTIANITY MUST BE THE ONE THAT HAS NO ROOM FOR ANYTHING CALLED SIN.
WHEN WE APPROACH GOD PERFECTLY, WE GET THINGS WE CAN’T EVEN THINK WERE POSSIBLE.
- Pastor E. A. Adeboye on “AS PURE AS LIGHT” || RCCG 72nd Holy Ghost Convention 2024 || Day 2 Evening Service || 6th August 2024.
I’m sure you will ask yourself at one time or the other, “Why do we come to Conventions? What’s the idea? What’s the purpose?” Church Gist. Well, among many other things, I would love to enlighten you by saying, reason number one why we come together every year for annual convention is:
- So that we can praise God together. You see, when we have corporate praise, we get corporate miracles. We get miracles beyond the normal. Psalm 67:5-7. So when you’re looking for fearful miracles, you come to the convention. Church Gist. The hallelujah of one fellow, no matter how loud he can shout, has a limit but when we all shout together, even the devil has to flee.
- To fellowship together and fellowshipping together in a massive way like can happen during the convention will lead to certain things: Psalms 133:1-3 – in other words, God will say to blessings, “I command you, descend upon these people.” As we fellowship together, blessings have no choice; they have to obey God. Church Gist. So I can decree straight away, because you have come to this year’s convention, in the name of the one that had brought us together, I command you shall be blessed!
- Number 3 reason why we come together for conventions… because I believe some of us must have been asking the questions: why all the preparations? Why all the money spent? Why all the efforts? Church Gist. Why don’t you make convention something we do once in 4 years?
Number 3 is that we can pray prayers of agreement. Matthew 18:19-20.
—-Prayer of agreement for 2 minutes —–
- We are fellow pilgrims; we are travelling together to heaven and we come together so that we can encourage one another on the way. It’s to say, “brother, don’t relax we will make it very soon. Sister, don’t look back, Heaven is our home.” Hebrews 10:23-25. Church Gist. We gather together so that we can remain one to the other an encouragement to say, “hey, we will make it. God who has promised us is faithful.” I want you with all boldness to tell your neighbour, “whether the devil likes it or not, you will make it to Heaven.”
So you see, the convention is not an outreach. Oh a little bit of it will be an outreach like on Friday when the door will be open to Dick and Harry or like, by the grace of God now, through the Dove media, the whole world is watching. Those who are not Christians can watch but basically, the convention is an inreach. It’s a gathering of those who are already on the way; it’s a gathering where we teach deep things. Church Gist. We remind ourselves some of the things we have learnt in the past. We encourage one another; we are revived; we are strengthened within. So that, in a real convention, most of the teachings will be deep things, basic things we need to know about this journey to Heaven. I am extremely grateful to God that He had asked us to discuss Heaven itself this year because after all the years, it looks as if some Christians have forgotten all about Heaven. Attention has been shifted from Heaven to things on the Earth. The world will pass away; sooner or later, we will leave this world. There were people who were here with us last year who had gone to rest now. In an attempt to teach the whole counsel of God, attention has been focused more and more on things of the Earth. “Five ways to breakthrough; Seven ways to prosperity; etc” It’s not that these things are bad, it’s that they are secondary. “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all other things will be added unto you.” So during this Convention by the grace of God, we will be teaching on things that are of Heaven less than the things of the Earth. Church Gist. So I hope you will pray and say, “Lord, teach me things of Heaven. Remind me of things of Heaven that I have learnt and forgotten,” because some of the things we will be saying, they won’t be news to some of you. But if you ask yourself, when was the last time you thought about these things?
I can assure you there is a God in Heaven and He is the all sufficient God. He has the ability to heal and oh, I can assure you he will heal during this Convention. He has the ability to deliver; he will deliver during this Convention. Church Gist. He has the ability to prosper; he will prosper during this Convention. I am sure you know, even if somebody is raised from the dead, sooner or later, he will still die. Otherwise, Lazarus will still be alive today. There are certain things that are good but they are temporal. There are things that last forever and so we must refocus on these things that last forever.
I’ve told the Almighty God, since it has pleased him to keep me alive to see this week, I will tell you the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. It will be up to you to receive them, it will be up to you to reject them. But I would have done my best. Church Gist. I want you to know that the devil knows very very well that there will be tremendous transformations in the lives of many of us that’s why he made all preparations for this particular week to make sure that you won’t be able to come. But you are here, the devil has failed. I will see you in Heaven!
Tonight, we are starting on “AS PURE AS LIGHT”. James 1:17.
- In the name that’s above every other name, during this convention, your testimony will be perfect.
We have a Father, He’s in Heaven, Jesus said so when He was teaching His disciples to pray. He said, “Our Father which art in Heaven”. Church Gist. And this Father is called the Father of lights, according to the text I’ve just read to you. He’s not just a Father of lights, of course, if He is the Father of light, He himself must be light. He said, He’s perfect light. There’s no shadow in Him. Perfect light. John 9:5. John 14:30. Perfect pure light. Church Gist. In Matthew 5:14, Jesus turned to His disciples and I believe you’re one of the disciples, He said, “you are the light of the world”. Ephesians 5:27.
Listen to me very well, children of the Living God, your Father is perfect. He’s perfect in His works. Deuteronomy 32:4. He’s perfect in all His ways. Church Gist. 2 Samuel 22:31. His ways are perfect. He’s perfect in His laws. Psalm 90:7. When He heals, He heals perfectly. 2 Kings 5:1-14. When He healed Naaman, there were no scars left. When He delivers, He delivers perfectly. Mark 5:2-20. Church Gist. When he delivered the mad man of Gadara, there was not a single demon left. When He loves, He loves perfectly. John 15:13. When He shows mercy, He does so perfectly. Mark 1:40-42. A leper came to him begging for cleanliness, healing, all He Had to do was say, “be clean” and the man would have been cleaned but His compassion pushed Him to break even His own law that said we should not touch a leper, He touched him. Church Gist. That’s why I have good news for those of us who are here during this convention, when He heals you, He will heal you perfectly. When He sets you free, He will set you free indeed. In whatever areas He chooses to provide for you, you won’t lack again. For those of us who are crying to Him for mercy, He will show us perfect mercy. Church Gist. But now, He expects we, his children to be like Him. Like Father, like children. He does not expect half measures from us.
People have turned Christianity to a joke. There are even some preachers who preach now that you can be born again and continue in adultery. There’s a preacher who said, “don’t worry yourself, once you’re born again, continue with your sin but just keep on listening to sermon”. Church Gist. The devil is a liar. When you become a Christian, you must become a Christian perfectly. God, your Father, has no room for half measures. Revelations 3:15-16. He has no room for lukewarmness. Whatever you do for Him, you must do it perfectly. Church Gist. When you worship Him, you must worship Him in spirit and in truth. So, from now on, your attitude to worshipping God must change.
When I was coming here last night, I saw the young ones worshipping God the way He wants to be worshipped. With total abandon, with complete consecration. Church Gist. They were worshipping God the way David did – dancing so much that even his belly was coming out of his robes. That’s the way God wants to be worshipped. He wants you to worship Him wholeheartedly. Do you know when God asks you to clap for Him? When He says you should clap for Him, He wasn’t talking to just somebody, He was talking to everybody. Psalm 47:1. Church Gist. Like Bible scholars told us, if only you know the meaning of what He asked you to do, they won’t beg you. Because, according to Bible scholars, what He asks you to do is that you’re to put all your problems between your two hands and jam the hand together. Church Gist. I don’t have the time to go to details of clapping but you know when He says, “clap your hands”, He’s also saying, “give me an indication that from now on you will cooperate with me”. This thing might appear to you as minor things, to God, it is not. He expects everything you do to be done perfectly.
Years ago, in Otukpo, I went there to preach some young students. They were praising God, one of the products of that meeting is my beloved son, Paul Enenche. Church Gist. We were praising God. I was going to preach on Divine Healing but these students, they don’t care who is looking, they were praising God, they were clapping in the real sense of clapping. All of a sudden, the Holy Spirit came down and all of a sudden, you find 2 or 3 students speaking in tongues. I’ve not taught on Holy Spirit baptism and while the others were watching, the power fell on them. Church Gist. You turn to the right, the Holy Spirit was falling, turn to the left…I forgot my sermon. When you deal with God the way He expects you to deal with Him, there’d be no need for preaching. The Almighty God will do what He alone can do. Now, put your hands together and clap for the Almighty.
When you read Revelation chapter 19 from verse 5 to 6, you will discover that when God asks you to shout, it is…(congregation shouting). The kind of shouting He expects is to be like thunder. An American Preacher came to visit us when we were in the very first auditorium by the road side and if I remember correctly, he said “I don’t think I can come back.” Church Gist. I said why not Sir? He said “Your shout of hallelujah frightens me” Many at times, we do know what we miss when we approach God lukewarmly. We don’t know what we miss. If we approach Him perfectly, we get things we can’t even dream possible.
There are some people here, at least on the Altar here, who will remember very well the case of a woman, whatever she ate, she vomited. Very wealthy woman. They took all the X-ray, there was nothing wrong, nothing they could see on the X-ray. She went all over the World, no cure and she came to Ebute Metta. Church Gist. All we said was “Let somebody shout hallelujah!” and there’s the hallelujah of those who are comfortable, it’s always different from the hallelujah of those who are desperate. (Shout of hallelujah) Thank you. Don’t worry. I’ll give you an opportunity just once more. As she opened her mouth to shout, right there in the Church, out of her mouth came a big worm, a demon that the enemy had put in her, a kind of demon that won’t appear on X-ray and that was the end of her problem.
Do you know that even tonight you can get all your problems to be over? Church Gist. My Daddy asked me to tell you, you will testify of tonight!
So when you claim to be a child of God, you are supposed to be as pure as light. Your brand of Christianity, our brand of Christianity must be the one that has no room for any thing called sin. Others may tell you that your own is too much, that your standard is too high, tell them as I used to tell them, “it’s not my standard, it’s the standard of my Father, my Father who art in Heaven.” Church Gist. 2 Timothy 2:19. People who tell you, so called Christians, that there are certain things God will understand, that there are certain things not too bad, He knows you are in the flesh, hmm…you know the problem with ‘not too bad?’ It is that it is already bad.
Let me just take one example. They will tell you there’s nothing wrong with just a little bit of wine as long as you don’t get drunk. I’ve heard that one from big, big men of God. “Nothing wrong, it’s not too bad, just a little bit” When you read Genesis chapter 9 from verse 19 to 27, the Bible tells us what happened to Noah. Church Gist. That Man who got such a tremendous deliverance from God, whose family was the only ones rescued from the whole world. He began to be a husbandman and he began to drink just a little bit of wine, just a little bit. But one day, a little bit will become a little too much. Then he got drunk. Noah? Oh yes. By the time he woke up and he heard what had happened, he pronounced a curse on one of his 3 children, Noah.
Take Lot, that’s another great fellow rescued by the Almighty God. He too usually drank just a little bit of wine, not much. Never got drunk before. Church Gist. But you read Genesis chapter 19 verse 29 to 38, his daughters, 2 daughters, got him drunk one night after the other and slept with their father. The result, that great Man Lot produced Moab and Ammon through his daughters. Deuteronomy 23:3. Lot, because of a little drink at a time, destroyed his legacy forever.
“Oh, daddy, you know I don’t drink wine. Daddy, I don’t have…well, I may get angry once in a while. This is the only little problem. But I mean, you know it’s unless somebody caused it” Church Gist. A little weakness unattended to will be what the devil will use as a joker card particularly when you are closest to Heaven.
I am going to stop there tonight, we pick it up from there tomorrow. “But Daddy, how can anyone be as pure as light?” The blood of Jesus cleanses from all sins and if you’re willing to cooperate with him, according to Galatians 5:16, you cooperate with the Holy Spirit, you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Church Gist. How perfectly does God want you to be? I will remind you of two little stories quickly and then I release you to go and pray; because it has pleased the Almighty God to make me your father and I want all my children in Heaven and I will see you there!
You see, if you are true Christian, if you are a genuine Christian, you won’t tell a white lie. To you, all lies will be lies. I’ve told you the story; some of you who are old, I’m reminding you so that you get back. Let’s get back to the old ways. Heaven is near. Church Gist. I travelled to Ilesha, came back to Lagos. I was living in Surulere and I decided to go and greet my Father in the Lord. On the way I remembered, “oh I can’t go to my Father in the Lord empty-handed.” So I saw some oranges by the way side in Surulere and I bought the oranges, took it to him. He knew I’ve just returned from Ilesha. As soon as I got there, I got the orange peeled. And as he was sucking the first one, fortunately, it was sweet. He turned to me, he said, “ah, this orange is sweet. You bought it on the way?” I said, “yes Sir”. The Holy Spirit grabbed me immediately, “You understand the question? The question was, you bought it on the way from Ilesha?” Church Gist. So, I began to argue with the Holy Spirit, “so, what? Whether on the way from Ilesha or on the way from Surulere, he’s already sucking the orange and enjoying it”. The spirit of God said, “tell him the truth”. When the Spirit won’t let me rest and I pray for everyone of you, from now, anytime you’re getting involved in anything contrary to the will of God, the Holy Spirit won’t let you rest. Church Gist. So, I turned to Papa and said, “Papa”, he said, “Yes, my son”. “You asked me where I bought the orange”. He said, “yes”. I said, “I didn’t buy it on the way from Ilesha oh. I bought it on the way from Surulere”. The old man smiled and said, “hmm, Holy Spirit”. He knew who was dealing with me. Church Gist. To you, that kind of life doesn’t matter but it matters to God. He expects you to be as pure as light. He expects every word you speak to be the truth.
I remind you of another story, some of you know. I was at the University of Lagos and because of my position, letter headed papers and letter headed envelopes on my table. So, I wrote a letter to someone, personal letter and I stretched my hand to take one of the envelopes and the Spirit of God said to me, ‘That envelope is for official letters, not for personal letters’ Church Gist. Then my hand froze and then I began to argue with God, ‘Ah ah, what is in an envelope? How much do they sell one?’ God spoke to me and said, ‘When you know it is that cheap, go and buy yours’ How many of you want that kind of relationship with God? You want to walk with Him in absolute holiness, absolute purity. You’re going to pray tonight and ask God to help you because you must be as pure as light.
For your information, I wrote a book on that topic, ‘As Pure As Light’ several years ago, more than 30 years ago. You might find it at the CRM Bookshop. But there might be some of us who have not even been born again or who claimed to be born again but we are just living our lives as we like. Church Gist. What the Bible says is if you are in Christ, you are a new creature, old things are supposed to be passed away, all things are supposed to become new. Who is deceiving who? If the Trumpet should sound tonight and Jesus should return, He’s coming only for Christians who are without spots, who are without wrinkle, without blemish.
—Salvation Call—
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