Vexek — My Sw反逃
The enlightened amid fire burns My heart is cultured to work
I have in me the burning fire Oh a shell of grace
I have in me the burning fire
Alright James chapter 2, even so faith if a heart not works is, come on is, come on is, is dead, being alone.
Now faith if a heart not works is dead. So when faith is alone what do you call it? You call it dead faith. Are we together?
Now the word faith without works, the word works is from the Greek ergon. Now we don't have time to study ergon tonight.
But ergon simply means employment, to employ, to work, to be in business, alright. To be actively engaged in something.
To be actively engaged in something. It also talks about labor, alright. Labor.
So faith ought to have, or faith ought to be employed. Why do people get employed? They get employed to do what?
Come on, to do what? To work. So faith without employment, so the faith that is not actively doing something is dead.
Now I can teach on this for a whole month. Hallelujah. Faith without work is dead.
Now so if I have faith concerning something, if I say alright so I have faith that I can do this, that faith must be employed or that faith must work.
That faith must be given to work. Faith without ergon. So let's take for example, now what is faith? Faith is divine persuasions.
So we can say that divine persuasions that are, that is not employed or divine persuasions that are not put to work is as equal as no divine persuasion.
Are you understand that? So if I believe God in a matter or if I have something that I claim, oh alright so for example I say I have faith that what?
I have faith that let's say I have faith that I'm a giver. That conviction that you have that you are a kingdom financier or you are a kingdom financier,
that faith must begin to work. It must be employed. If you claim you have that faith and that faith is not put to work, it is as equal as you not having that divine conviction.
So it's a man that has the word of God or a man that is convinced of the word of God and does not act upon it is equal to a man without the word.
Can I say that again? A man with the word of God convinced, claims he's convinced of a matter and does not put it to work, that man is as good as a man who never had the word.
Is that okay with us? Come on, hallelujah.
It means that the growth of faith, the multiplication of faith, the doings of faith, the greatness of faith, the greatness of faith, whatever you may call it, begins when it is employed.
So I get my faith employed. Come on, so I get my faith employed. Why must I get my faith employed?
So an unemployed faith is as good as dead. Hallelujah.
Now let's read that portion again, James. If you have it.
All of us, let's go. One, two, go.
He's dead. And the word dead is necros, necros, N-E-K-R-O-S, necros.
Faith without a gun is necros. What is necros? Necros means inanimate, devoid of life, inactive, as good as dead.
So this, you know, the Bible is, you see, the Bible is full of synonyms.
Hallelujah.
So the faith that is dead can also be said that the faith is a bad, or the heart for the faith is a bad land.
All right? Or faith that is not working is as equal as no faith.
Hallelujah. So if I get to believe something and whatever I claim I have come to believe from God's word,
if there are no actions to it, the faith is as good as necros, dead. It's inanimate.
What are some examples of inanimate objects? Stone. So your faith is as dead as stone.
What again? These things can't move. They don't have life. Hallelujah. Come on, praise God.
It means that whatever you have faith in or whatever you have faith of, there must be work.
Come on, there must be what? There must be work.
That means faith will not grow if it is not employed. See, it's like saying the muscles of faith get strengthened when we put it to work.
Let's kind of read a little bit further.
Yeah, a man may say, thou hast faith, and I have works. Show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works.
Thou believest that there is one God, thou doest well. The devils also believe and tremble.
Hallelujah. Did you see that? The devils also believe and tremble.
But would thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
Was Abraham our father justified by what? Was not Abraham our father justified by what?
When he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar. See as thou hast faith, rout with his works.
And by works was his faith made. Come on. Did you see that?
So let's read that again. See as thou hast faith, rout with his works.
So faith worked. Faith worked. And by works was faith made. Come on. By works was faith made what?
So it was when, it is when faith is employed that faith is brought to perfection.
Are you understanding that? It is when you, so to say, when you act on your faith.
Now this is a breaking point. Hallelujah.
Because you can have a lot of people who can say, oh I believed.
And the Bible says even the devils believe also.
It means that the devils also have conviction in them that there is God.
Now if a man says I don't believe there is God, it means that the person is worse than the devil.
The devil believes there is God. In fact the devil believes in God.
But the problem is that their belief caused them to tremble. They tremble.
But it says that, twenty, right? Sorry. Twenty.
See as thou hast faith, rout with his works. Alright?
So let's read that part. One, two, go.
See as thou hast faith, coupled with works.
How faith coupled with works and by their work that faith was brought to perfection.
And the word is teleos. Hallelujah. That's what perfection.
To come unto completeness. To come unto completeness.
So it means that we can say there is incomplete faith.
Can a Christian have incomplete faith? Come on. Can a Christian have incomplete faith?
What would be the biblical definition of incomplete faith?
Faith without works.
So if your faith does not have works, your faith is not complete.
So what is a dead faith? A dead faith is incomplete faith.
Alright? A dead faith is a faith that is not working.
Praise the name of the Lord.
Alright for example, I say Lord this year I am going to double the souls,
the number of souls I won last year. Or this year I am going to double, triple
the amount of money I gave for the Lord to work.
Or this year I am going to pray for, I am going to lay hands on a lot of people who are sick.
Or this year I am going to do what again?
Whatever you want to do.
There should be a point where that faith is giving work to do.
Hallelujah.
You got to give that faith work to do.
See the word that did not become fruitful on all the lands,
we can now say that they never put that word to work.
Hallelujah. So they hurt the word but they never put that word to work.
Come on, are you here together? Are we here together?
They never put that word to work.
And you see, until you have put the word to work, now putting faith to work simply means putting the word to work.
Until you have put faith or the word to work, you will not see results.
You can't have faith results without faith works.
So,
March the Copartist.
Say my faith is getting employed.
And the scripture was fulfilled, which said Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness and he was called the friend of God.
You see then how that by works, a man is justified and not by faith alone.
Now a lot of great people have problems with James on that. Sometimes I jokingly say that.
But there's nothing wrong with this.
Hallelujah.
For example, you can't, what he's saying here is that you cannot say you believe in Jesus without acting upon it.
There's nothing wrong with that.
He says that, you see, then how that by works, a man is justified and not by faith only.
So what the Bible says, when Paul says, it looks like James and Paul, they had personal beef.
When Paul says we are justified by faith without works.
James had a problem. No.
They may have a problem, that's their business, but we don't see the problem in their scripture.
Why?
What works was Paul talking about?
Works of the law.
What works is James talking about works of faith, acting on your faith.
So they are not the same thing.
Are we together? They are not the same thing.
So James is talking about the fact that, for example, I believe in Jesus.
You ask somebody, do you believe in Jesus?
The person says, after you preach to a soul, huh?
And then you tell the soul, you ask the soul, do you believe in Jesus?
The soul says yes, I do.
Okay.
If you believe in Jesus, then confess with your mouth the Lordship of Jesus.
Alright?
So you're not a religion from the dead.
Then the soul says, I'm justified by faith.
Now, would you go home believing that guy is saved?
In fact, you got to know.
Now listen.
Jesus was asked the question, now we don't have time to look at that.
He was asked.
The people says, what works should we do?
Alright?
What works should we do that we can get saved?
And Jesus said, this is the only work, believe.
Alright?
So believing is what?
Come on, according to Jesus, believing is what?
Believing is work.
So if we now see somebody who claims he has believed, and we can't see the works of the belief,
then James says we can conclude that the belief is dead.
Now, James is saying, for example, you cannot say that the word of God is your life,
the word of God blesses you, and you still find it difficult to go to church, to attend church.
Then we can conclude that your faith in the fact that the word of God is your life is dead.
Are we together?
That's why you can't cheat God.
Are you understand that?
You can't cheat God.
You cannot come here, give up a testimonial stage, that it was through coming to church,
getting church, that your life got changed.
Then we have to now begin to chase you after the testimony.
Then we can conclude that whatever testimony you gave was a lie.
So that's what James is talking about.
If you have faith, you know, Jesus said something.
He says, these people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me.
They call me Lord, Lord, Lord.
So the Bible says, it is not all those who say Lord, Lord, Lord, Lord, that shall go into the kingdom,
but those who do with the will of my Father.
What is Jesus talking about?
Faith works.
Come on.
So you can't tell me, man of God, I love your teaching.
Man of God, you see, there's a way that he preaches, when that he preaches,
the message of that he has a way of transforming.
So let's say we call you for a talk show like we do for a lot of the brethren.
They come up here and they talk a whole lot about my messages.
And you know what?
It is possible they might throughout the whole month, they might have not even listened to five messages.
Yet they are out there testifying about my messages.
Come on. You understand that?
Yeah.
Take for example, you put me up on your status.
This is my man of God.
This is my apostle.
This is my babalao, as Mr. Kevri will put it.
This is my all kinds of things that I have no idea about.
You put that on your status and I have written a book for you to read.
And it's more than a year and a half or maybe two years now.
You have not finished the book.
I have every cost to believe that you lied.
See, that's why Jesus was not moved by what people say.
Come on.
In John chapter 6, now, I mean, after he was done multiplying bread one time,
the Bible says the people sought to get him to become a king.
And that is like a promotion.
And the Bible says Jesus would consent not.
He left them because he knew the heart of all people and he knew it was the food.
The reason for them making him a king was the food.
You understand that?
Yeah.
So that's what James is saying.
You can't claim you believe something and we can't see your work in that thing.
It's not possible.
It actually means your faith is dead.
Come on.
Are you here with me, everybody?
Yeah.
I'm a young guy.
I believe in the power of the word of God.
Now, if I tell you that, all right, so tomorrow or maybe next week,
we're all going to do preaching appointment and preaching and stuff like that.
All of you go prepare messages about the power of the word of God.
Now, you're all going to look into the word of God and find something.
All right.
Somebody is going to come for the word of God is quick, active, powerful.
And the Greek word for active is, you know, you mention it.
You mention all the Greek word and stuff like that.
So you believe the word is active.
The word is powerful.
Yet you have a problem studying the word.
The word that you claim is active.
You have a problem studying it.
You know, we have a lot of pastors who don't even read their Bible.
I mean, pastors are not pastors.
They don't read the Bible.
A former pastor, because I don't call that thing a pastor, a former pastor,
saying the Bible is an old book about something he was talking about,
and he quoted the Bible.
Somebody said the Bible is not relevant.
So if you believe the Bible can transform lives,
why are you not giving your mind to the Bible?
So you are simply like a man who says that I have faith and faith is enough.
Come on, are we together?
Yeah.
You believe when you come to church, you get blessed, right?
How many of us believe that church blesses us?
Lift your hand.
How many believe church blesses us?
So we all believe church blesses us.
But how many of us have that compulsion in our heart to go to church?
The church that you claim blesses you.
Going to the church is a problem.
So what kind of blessing are you talking about?
Come on, hallelujah.
A guy texted me and said,
man of God, you have been a blessing to me.
I bless God for the womb that gave birth to you.
You know, all kinds of nonsense, no?
Bless God for the womb that gave birth to you.
And I knew that all the things he was about to say was nonsense.
When people begin to talk and they are giving you fans,
they are just about to mess up.
I remember this meeting when I came.
I have never, you know, talking plenty.
Then he said, so then I asked him.
So he has traveled not outside the country,
somewhere in the country very far from us.
So have you found the church there?
He said, no, no, no, no, no, no.
I'm being sustained by the grace word.
You know what I did?
I blocked him on Facebook.
I didn't want to continue.
You are claiming somebody, somebody's message.
The message is only about two, three years or something.
Before the COVID actually.
You see, and that is what the keeping of the word is about.
I'm going to read the scripture to you right now.
That's what it's about.
All right?
That's what, you see, that is what consistency is about.
See, you're doing the thing, or that's what conviction,
now, that's what conviction is about.
The basic of faith is conviction.
And we act based on our conviction.
So if you claim that you have faith or you have conviction
about something and you are not acting on it,
then there is a problem.
See, like what the Bible says, let us not be hearers of the word only.
Let us not be hearers of the word only.
The same James wrote that.
The guys, they had issues.
Let not be hearers of the word only, but let us be doers of the word.
So the word must be acted upon.
Hallelujah.
The word must be acted upon.
We are not supposed to just keep on hearing information.
You know, we are hearing the word, we are hearing the word,
we are hearing the word, and we don't have any results for it.
The word must be acted upon.
See, I act upon the word.
Come on, help me, say, I act upon the word.
One more time, I act upon the word.
You see, very important.
Very, very, very important.
Alright, let's read that again.
Let's get to 25.
Likewise also was not rehabbed the halot, the prostitute, justified by works.
So the guy is really doing exegesis here from the scriptures.
He says likewise also was not rehabbed the halot, justified by works,
whence he had received the messengers and had sent them out another way.
Now you can find that story in Joshua.
Alright, so this is a prostitute.
This is a prostitute, we don't have time, we have gone to look at it,
we have a lot of things to discuss tonight, you know, and I believe you are in for it, right?
So this is a prostitute and he was somewhere in Jericho, around Jericho, stuff like that.
And then Joshua sent men to go and spy the land that they are about to take,
which the Lord had told them by the mouth of Moses to take.
Now the people get in there to spy the land and rehab the prostitutes,
the leaps, the people, somewhere in the roof.
When the king heard it and sent people and came to her,
they asked her, the king says you have some men here with you,
they had come to spy the land, bring them out,
I said oh I'm sorry, the men truly were here but they are gone.
I didn't know. So then pursue them through this direction because that's where they passed.
Then the people, you know, women are one of the most powerful Christians of God, naturally.
So all the men, all the men.
And then they went.
Then rehab told them that you are going to go through the window and go through the other direction.
But listen, for I know, I think we got to read that, let's get in there.
Let's get in there, let's get in there. Because the lady really said some powerful stuff.
Joshua chapter 2.
Verse 8.
I love the word of God.
You don't love the word, I love the word.
I said Joshua 2 what?
Okay let me get it up here.
Joshua 2, 8.
Okay so, let's begin from 6 or 5.
They let the city at dusk as the city gates were about to close and, okay no, let's begin from 1.
Then Joshua secretly sent out two spies from the Israelites camp at Acacia.
He instructed them to spy out the land on the other side of the Jordan River, especially around Jericho.
So the two men set out and came to the house of a prostitute named Rehab.
Now this is a prostitute and stayed there that night.
But someone told the king of Jericho, some Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.
So the king of Jericho sent orders to Rehab, bring out the men who have come into your house.
They are spies sent here to discover the best way to attack us.
Rehab, who had hidden the two men replied, the men were here earlier but I didn't know where they were from.
They left the city at dusk, as the city gates were about to close and I don't know where they went.
If you hurry you can probably catch up with them.
But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them beneath piles of flats, women.
So the king's men went looking for the spies along the road leading to the shallow crossing places of the Jordan River.
And as soon as the king's men had left the city gates were shut.
Before the spies went to sleep that night, Rehab went up on the roof to talk with them.
The lady climbed, she tells you she was not prostituting in vain.
She has skills because sometimes you have to prostitute and the wife is coming.
You need to climb back.
It's her experience.
That's his testimony.
Then listen to what she says, I know the Lord has given you this land.
She told them, we are all afraid of you.
Everyone is living in terror.
For we have heard how, faith comeeth by.
For we have heard how the Lord made a dry path of you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt.
And we know what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amoran kings east of the Jordan River, whose people you completely destroyed.
No wonder our hearts have melted in fear.
For no one has the courage to fight after hearing such things.
For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.
You see that?
So why did Rehab, why did he hide those men?
Come on, why did he hide those men?
Okay.
She knew a caliber of people they were.
Okay, how would we call that?
She considered a god.
What did you say?
She had faith in the supreme God of the heavens and on the earth.
By what she has heard.
So by what she heard, she had faith.
She had faith.
She hid the men.
So this is what James is saying.
If Rehab had just said, these guys are mighty, their God is mighty.
And she did nothing about it.
Do you think she would have been justified?
The justification of Rehab is in twofold.
When the Israelites went to kill them, they left the house of Rehab.
So that was one.
Number two was that Rehab by, you know, Hebrews mentioned her name.
So Rehab hid the people by faith.
Hallelujah.
So faith without words is dead.
If Rehab had just said, I believe you're God, I believe you're God, I believe, I've heard, I believe, nothing would have happened.
And that is the state of many Christians.
I believe, I know, I know.
Rehab says, I know.
So now faith is actually, it is because I know.
That's why I'm doing this.
It's because I have heard.
That's why I'm doing this.
It's because I believe.
That's why I'm doing this.
So I'm not going to church because I feel like going to church.
I go to church because I know that church blesses me.
Now you move from the realm of emotions and ecstasy and all of that to a place of conviction.
Come on.
You understand that?
And you know by this, Rehab is in the genealogy of Jesus.
Jesus is a descendant of a prostitute, our Lord.
It was by the faith of a prostitute.
You see, so James is saying that don't think that Rehab was just justified because of faith.
No.
She was justified after she had put her faith to work.
After she had given employment to her faith.
You believe God changes life.
Alright?
We all believe God changes life.
Why then do we have it difficult or why then do we, would we find it difficult to be where God is?
Or to be where the instrument for God to change lives is?
Come on.
So it's like God is saying you can't deceive me, my friend, you can't deceive me.
If you really have faith in this thing, you are going to act on it.
That's all.
So if you claim I am your pastor or if you claim that I bless your life, if you claim I, you know, like you believe my man of God is the best teacher in the whole world.
Alright.
When your man of God is teaching, do you come?
Do you sit down to listen?
The guy you call a best teacher in the whole world, when you are listening to another preacher, you have notebook and you are writing whatever the preacher is saying.
When the guy is talking, you are not writing.
So God is saying don't deceive yourself.
Relax.
Accept that my faith is dead.
Last time like I told you, the woman with the issue of blood, the mamu says she heard of Jesus.
And then she said in her heart, if I can touch the hem of his garment, I will be made whole and this fountain of blood will dry.
If she had kept on with that faith inside her.
Now, was that legitimate or not?
Was that a legitimate claim or not?
Come on.
Was that what the woman said?
Was it legitimate or not?
Come on.
Is it legitimate as your problem?
Was it right or not?
Was it legit?
So it was legit.
It means whatever.
I mean, was it true?
If I can touch the hem of the fountain of blood will flow.
That is true, right?
But do you know if the woman had not acted, if the woman had not given employment to her faith, regardless the fact that she knew and she had heard and she knows that if she did not do it,
she knew that if she touches the hem of Jesus garment, she will be well.
If she had not given her faith employment, she would have died.
So faith must be acted upon.
The mamu says they shall lay their hands on the sick and they will recover.
What it means is that when you claim you believe that thing, you must act on it.
Come on.
Let's take for example.
These are simple litmus tests in the Word of God to know whether your faith is dead or your faith is working.
Come on.
For example, you believe that God is, the interest of God is to save all men.
Is that not it?
God wants to save all men, right?
And if you believe that there is no man, there is no mediator between man and God except the man Jesus.
You believe that it is through Christ that a man can see God.
That neither is there salvation in any other for there's no name given under heaven where but we must be saved.
Except the name of Jesus.
And if you believe that wherefore God has also highly exalted giving above every other name of Jesus,
every needs to bow of things in heaven, things on earth, things out of the earth,
and every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
If you believe that this scripture is your faith, if you truly believe in this scripture,
when you hear about missions, you will be stared.
The first thing that will come into your head will not be an excuse.
Your first, the first thing that will come into your head, you will not even consider what you're doing.
Think about pastors who give excuses for all kinds of things.
We are going here, say I'm tired.
We are moving here, say this.
You see, you cannot, sometimes it's like, can't God understand us?
God is rather saying can't you understand me?
Hallelujah.
There are not two ways about it.
Somebody asked me a question.
The person says that, so if you are working like 16 hours a day,
do you think you can do ministry effectively as you are doing now?
I said that's why I'm not working that hours.
Should I get to work it, I will try and see if it will work.
If it will not work, I will find a way of excusing myself.
Because my faith is in what I'm doing.
You cannot claim that your faith is in ministry.
And you spend more time with things that does not relate to ministry.
And still claim that your life is ministry.
It doesn't work that way.
Come on, hallelujah.
It's as simple as that.
Hallelujah.
Yeah.
So like you're talking to a brother, and the brother says,
alright, I have been busy with this, I have been busy with that,
work is here, I have to see my mom, I have to do this, and then,
alright, so you don't have time.
You don't have time to do the work of God.
Yeah, so the little time on me, that's what I used to do the work,
I used to do the work of God.
Okay.
So when you are working, don't you go for break.
Those short periods that you use to text people,
and you are chatting or you upload things on your status,
you can use that small time to upload something ministerial on your status,
or to think through.
You can say, because I'm busy, I don't have time to pray.
Hallelujah.
We are not prayerful because we don't work.
You understand what I'm talking about?
Yes, because on your way driving from the house to work, you can pray.
Come on.
So you can't make, you see, you can't make excuse.
You can't make excuse.
Something, hey, I'm in school, I learn a lot, we are about to write this up.
Okay, do you learn 24 hours?
You don't learn 24 hours.
Because if you are able to learn 24 hours, you don't deserve to call the child of God.
You know why?
Because we are able to learn 24 hours of a dead man's theory.
You got a problem, man.
This year and beyond, you will be forced to do ministry.
You feel so foolish giving excuse for failing.
Yeah, you feel like you are fooling.
Yeah.
Why didn't you come to church?
I forgot that today was church day.
You forgot that today was church day, but when you woke up and you finished bath, you didn't forget to wear your pants.
No, the guys here, how many of you, I mean, those of you who have boxes, how many of you,
after bathing, forgot to wear your boxer shorts?
It's become normal.
This, this, this, this is not a joke.
Like you say, why didn't you brush your teeth?
You say, oh, I forgot.
You can't forget such a matter.
He said, I don't have a president or you don't have a toothpaste or your brush is broken.
So you claim that you have more essential thing like these are more essential matters than going to church.
You got a problem.
You cannot lay claim that you have a heart for God.
Are we together?
Yes.
You may have a seeming life of resemblance with the things of God, but deep down, if we go deep down into your heart,
we will know that there is a king in your heart that is not God.
You have a different king.
And you see that with that, your faith cannot work.
Your faith cannot be audacious.
Your faith cannot be loud.
Tell somebody this year be responsible.
Tell another person this year be responsible.
Tell two people this year, brother, sister, I want you to be responsible.
Tell them.
Hallelujah.
Very important.
So faith must be employed.
Faith without a goal, faith without words is day out.
It's day out.
You can do nothing with it.
It's as good as it never existed.
You can claim that God is making you a kingdom giant when you are not living any life that gives glimpses.
No, you are like that guy who says I'm going to have eight A's and so does no study.
That's what God is talking about.
So the guy says I'm Marko.
It's not about the book.
There's a grace of I have a grace.
My brother, my IQ is unprecedented.
All right.
If it's unprecedented, the reason why your IQ is unprecedented means that you have to learn.
Come on.
Hallelujah.
No, that's what a lot of Christians are.
For example, I'm wealthy.
I'm rich.
Yet they are lazy to work.
I'm not saying maybe there are people who genuinely want to work, but this is Ghana.
There's no work to do.
You carry yourself, go and spend like 12 hours or six hours, 10 hours in a workplace and at the end of the month they give you 321 Ghana City.
That is not work.
That's punishment.
You know, but then like that person, I am wealthy.
Ba ya ya.
Okay.
After the tongues, that's it.
You have how are you putting it to work?
So a lot of people think God has failed them, but they don't know they are.
They are the people who have failed themselves.
See, God does not.
I like something T.D.J. said one time, Bishop T.D.J. said one time.
He says that when you ask God for a chair, he will give you a wood or a tree.
God doesn't make chairs.
When he breathed into man, there's something he imparted into man called creativity.
So it is up to you to design what kind of chair you want to sit on.
And that's your problem.
So get your feet to work.
You can't be sitting down on a couch like a couch potato.
And be wanting to be what?
A billionaire.
What a billionaire.
And you want to be what?
I am going to be one of the mighty men of God that has ever known.
Okay, you don't pray.
You don't study the Bible.
Evangelism, you don't go.
But when we say we are taking over, tears are running.
How do you manage to cry?
When we say we are taking over the world, oh, the world is small.
And you are busy praying and then your tears are coming.
And the next day we say, all right, we are going to a parochial room.
You go one, two, three, say please, I can't come and calm myself.
When you are going, you never reach.
But going is not the problem.
But when you are dying, you are coming back.
When you are coming back, you are walking like that for two hours.
You are still on the road.
And you think you are going to the ends of the world.
Do you know how far the ends of the world is?
We are taking over.
The city is ours.
The nations are ours.
The world is ours.
The world is small.
You see?
Oh, shake it, Ba-da-bye.
See, I'm going to employ my faith.
I'm going to get my faith to work.
Yeah, I'm going to get my faith to work.
I'm going to get my faith to work.
Let that be a solid thing in your hand.
I'm going to get my faith to work.
Yeah.
And gradually monitor the works of your faith.
Are you going to sign that?
Maybe last year you won only three souls.
When you have clocked five souls, celebrate it.
Celebrate it in prayer.
Say, Father, I thank you.
I can say my faith in soul winning has grown.
Yeah.
Maybe last year you were as stingy as a cockroach.
Very stingy.
You did not give anything to the Lord.
Yeah, when you hear we are giving offering, you say offering.
Offering is off of me.
You know, like those great people.
You know, we were talking to one guy who...
Say, mercy.
Mercy.
There's a brother who said he follows Pastor Chris.
And he does not belong to a church.
A local church.
And I'm thinking which of the Onayika's are you following?
See, employ your faith.
Employ this year.
Employ your faith.
You see the progress of your...
You see, Paul said something.
Let's see if we can find it.
Oh, man.
Do you know what I'm still doing?
Like, I was just doing introduction that brought us here.
We have to go into that.
We are not done with the soil, the ground.
Are you here for me?
Okay, I'm also here for you.
We are here for ourselves.
Hallelujah.
Alright, let's go to Romans chapter number 1, verse 8.
Now listen to what Paul says.
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
Now open it.
Everybody open it.
Let's read it together.
If you are not a deserter, hold me.
If you are a deserter, amen.
Okay, Romans 1, 8.
Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
Alright, let me read from NLT.
Let me say first of all that your faith in God is becoming known throughout the world.
So think about it.
It means that he says your faith is becoming.
What does that mean?
It was in someone first.
So now their faith was growing.
Their faith was growing.
How?
They employed their faith.
You believe in sowing.
You believe in the work of your pastor to do, to study the word.
Come and bring you serious delicious work.
Alright.
As we are all winning souls, what is your own in the matter?
See, it doesn't cross your mind that this I'm planting.
You see, there are some things.
It's called our holy convictions.
The New Year New Me resolutions.
One of the resolutions I made for 2023 is that I am going to get God's people solid in the word of God.
Can you imagine that?
And when I said that, I felt it.
I'm like, wow, I think I'm a good preacher.
Because that's my sense.
I want to establish, I want to get people solid with the word of God.
What was your own?
You know somebody's New Year resolution?
New Year New Me.
Everybody who spoke bad against me, I cut them off.
2023, Yen Fend Yagro.
You know, such stupid things.
Then they have the bonus or does it to put it on their status.
You know, if you don't, if you know, this 2023, if you don't check up, we also don't check up.
You got a problem, man?
This year 2023, who two are meeting?
What's your name?
What I mean, like, you know what I'm talking about?
Upstairs is very dirty. It's been a long time she morphed the place.
No, think about Chris, look at what of all that is left to do in the kingdom of God and that is what taking time to hate people.
Like is their duty.
They are calling.
They're always waiting to hear something bad about people to make news.
I mean, boy, you, you, you are retarded.
You know what I mean, retarded growth, social studies.
You don't grow for it. Why is Zin get big?
Boom.
Why is all bull?
You know, it's not growing.
So a person is like 16 years and the person is behaving like three months.
No.
You see, make up your my faith is going to be spoken of throughout the world.
Bye.
The world will speak of my faith.
Glory.
The world will say there is a great soul winner there.
That guy is known for winning souls.
I don't have the spirit of attracting.
I attract.
But that is my holy conviction.
I will be known by the world as a great soul winner.
Reynald Bonk said when I die, don't write on my, don't write on my tomb.
Don't write anything. He was, he was, he was a preacher.
He was, he was one of the best.
No.
So write and say he was a great soul winner.
I want to, he says that, he says that before I die, he says if possible, let me even die after, like, let me die when I'm winning souls.
Think about it.
I know the day he died.
Daniel, what's his name? Daniel Colenda.
They were having crusade.
Think about it.
His ministry was running crusade when he died.
Yeah.
This is how they move you.
No.
No, if you, if you get known that you are like you are what?
You had a lot of money.
You had a lot of houses.
You had a lot of cars.
For what?
No.
You know, Bonky will stand and say one soul more Lord.
One more soul Lord.
One more soul.
Oh my God. And it, it goes through me.
There's one more soul.
One more soul.
It's amazing the things we think of, the things we give our minds to.
The things that, that moves us.
Today our lectures are evangelism and missions.
Lecture I was teaching.
And then he says, so when I entered, I was a bit late, I was a bit like 10 minutes late.
When I entered, when I sat down, then he said, so I'm telling you, this Christian thing is all about Christ.
That's right. Then he looks at me.
He just looks at me like that.
I said, that's right.
Then he said, think about it.
Then he was messaging pastors.
In their meeting. These guys are big men of God in their own nation like in Presby and stuff like that.
Now your pastor brings an account book for the whole year and says, hey we thank God.
The little money we allocated for evangelism was no use last year.
Then he sits there and he says, listen.
It means that in the allocation of funds, even missions and evangelism, small money.
Church money. Then they allocate some for end of year party.
End of year party.
A mid year party.
Call Shakapai.
It will not be so with us.
We will not buy more cars than we buy more souls.
Are you understand that?
It is your faith is poking throughout the whole world.
It means that they had exploit of faith.
Glory.
The pastor comes and says, God has blessed us in this ministry.
I remember this pastor.
When we met he was very young.
Now he is a petroleum engineer.
This one is also a philosopher.
This one is also one of the big politicians.
I'm telling you this is a doctor.
The whole of social and soul. He is the one who is heading.
He has now become a consultant.
I'm telling you.
And you look at the faces of these people.
And none of them is doing exploit with their faith.
Full of money.
Yet very dead in their spirit.
I don't want that life.
Come on. You should be bold to tell the Lord.
If money is going to disturb me, lock the door.
Lock the door. Let me be on fire.
That way I will be fine. Just make sure I'm eating and I'm feeling good.
That's all.
Hallelujah.
He didn't say your money is poking throughout the world.
He said your faith.
He didn't say your fame is spreading throughout the world.
He said your faith.
Hallelujah.
It's very important.
Decide my faith.
My faith is going to be announced in the world.
So it means that throughout the world,
in the context that Paul was talking,
the Romans were known to be faith men.
Faith people.
Just lift up your voice, speak in tongues for 2 seconds.
Let me try and switch these things.
Come on, speak in tongues.
Come on.
Speak in tongues.
Hallelujah.
Let's get to our scripture we were reading yesterday.
Matthew.
Saint Matthew's gospel.
Chapter number 13.
Verse 1.
So he that also received the word among thorns is he that heareth the word and the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches.
Now, I want us to look at this scripture in Mark 4.
Mark 4.
Now we all know the story of the parable.
Let's quickly walk into the meaning.
Now, Mark gives a little bit of twist.
We'll get to look as well.
And these are they by the wayside where the word is sown.
But when they have heard, Satan come in immediately and take away the word that was sown in their heart.
And these are they likewise which are sown on the stony ground.
Who when they have heard the word immediately receive it with gladness and have no roots in themselves.
And so endure but for a time after when affliction or persecution arises for the word's sake immediately they are offended.
And these are they which are sown among thorns such as hear the word.
So they hear the word and the cares of these.
Come on, the cares of this world.
So the cares of this world.
What we know?
Nineteen.
The cares of this world.
So the word cares there is merima.
Alright, like I was saying merima.
So merima.
M-E-R-I-M-M-A.
Merimna.
Merimna, sorry.
I beg your pardon.
Merimna.
It's communicate the idea of distraction.
To be distracted.
Alright, so the cares of this world talks about being distracted.
Being what?
Distracted.
Praise the name of the Lord.
So the cares of this world is being distracted by what?
The cares of the word being distracted by the things of this world.
Hallelujah.
So if your faith is going to be employed or if your faith is going to work.
Then you will not have to give your mind to the things of the world that serve as distraction to you.
Hallelujah.
Now.
It talks about a particular kind of distraction.
Alright.
That is caused by being anxious.
Let me say that again.
So those who receive the word and they become unfruitful because of the cares of this world.
It simply talks about those who get distracted by anxiety with regards to the things of this world.
So they think about the things of this world to the point that they get distracted from pursuing their faith.
Let's take for example.
A young guy who loves the Lord.
Maybe in the university.
Was doing mighty things for God.
Now this guy is done with school.
He is looking for a job and he is not getting a job.
And it looks like he doesn't even know how he is going to eat the next day.
Alright.
Do you know that this person can think about that problem to the point that.
He will not even have the desire to go to church.
So we can say the person thinking about how to get employed or getting employed has gotten to a point where the world has been choked.
Come on.
So the world has been choked.
So it means that the things of this world in as much as they ease us.
Alright.
They ease us.
Because if you have a car you can go to a crying bucket right now.
You get the things of this world.
So some of these things they ease us.
But when they become a distraction.
The other flip side is that they are able to choke the word of God.
And when they choke the word of God the word of God becomes unfruitful.
Hallelujah.
There is a way that somebody who has served the Lord for a point can get to and say Lord please just give me a man I want to marry.
And by the desire to get married.
His faith will be choked.
No think about it you have served God faithfully for 42 years, 45 years.
You don't even have a boyfriend.
Somebody to call a beloved.
You don't have.
And everybody is asking you when are you getting married?
Is there somebody?
When are we coming to your wedding?
I went to my village one day and a guy came to me and said.
The guy recently came to my house.
The guy who has been worrying me that I should give the, at least if I'm not marrying now I should give the, I should find a lady.
Pregnate the lady and give like one, two.
You know?
And he's saying that.
Her wedding.
Mini wedding.
Can you imagine that?
So if you give your mind to that.
If you give your attention to that.
Alright?
You know what is going to happen?
The day, the time you are to pray.
The time you are to go for evangelism.
The time you are to spend time with the word of God.
You will be spending that time looking for, I'm glad I would say a house band.
Yeah, more about to say you are looking for a house band.
So that is how they get to distract you.
You look at your friends who are driving range and Benz and all those kind of cars that will not end them anywhere.
And you look at them and you're looking at.
God, why is my own case different?
Of all these people, I'm the one serving you.
Now, you, it has the power to draw you from faith.
It has the power to draw you from faith.
A brother who left us and has become one of, I'm not mentioning what he has become.
Then he said, Charlie, I need messages.
Where I am, I don't, I am not able to go to church. I am feeling empty.
I said, look at this.
Right now he has more than, he has like three, four cars.
Can't drive anyone to anywhere.
But his insight is empty.
You know?
He's a senior man, so I will not say anything bad. He was my colleague. I said, so what are you doing there?
I just leave.
Nothing is permanent. The empty inside is empty. Leave. Come and feel.
And leave them alone so that you can, you know.
It's a simple decision to take.
Hallelujah.
So the case of this world refers to what?
The things that easily distract us.
It is not only money. It's not only that. Social media.
So the case of this world refers to the things that easily distract us.
Because you see, you're about to sweep and you sit in your couch that, oh, let me look at one Facebook real.
By the time you realize you would have done three hours, 29 minutes until empty.
Empty and will tell you that your data bundle is left with five megabytes.
So anything that serves as distraction.
All right, distracting you from faith.
The main aim is to get your faith not to work.
Come on, is that okay?
Yeah.
So you spend all your time browsing, you spend all your time watching videos, you spend all your time, what again?
Posting stuff.
All your time.
Today I told somebody to take down a video.
A guy was insulting a lady.
And he's using that as my friend to pull it down before I open my eyes.
Hang on. Your minister, what's your problem?
They easily distract us.
You are in church, the word of God is coming on, the worship is going on.
Then you see once the worship is going on, then they'll pick up a video, their camera and like that.
Then the people are watching, then you see one useless friend, two, four, five useless friends who don't even know God.
Who also come and join the video in the church.
While service is going on.
Especially when you invite a celebrity.
And the person is standing, the person is singing, then you see the person wants to know that they so and so came to the church, I was there.
Then they post it one, two, three, then it becomes an archival video in their, this thing.
And they never show it again.
And that moment blessing, they miss it for the rest of their lives.
They just miss it.
How can you have eye?
You are not an official paparazzi.
Then once pastor is preaching, you are taking, you are doing snap, what's that thing?
Snap, snap, snapchat.
And you are doing video.
Think about those Christians, when worship is going on, then they leave the church.
They come with money, they are holding money in their hand inside church when they are singing praise and worship.
Or when prayer or something is going on, then they are spraying money inside the church.
I'm waiting for that wedding that anybody will come and do that rubbish here.
I'll stop the whole ceremony and pick your money, carry all the money right here, pick it, put it in your dirty bag.
That's why we are provided offering basket.
If you want to give, go and walk quietly and let your hand go inside very deeply and put it inside.
How am I holding 200 series notes?
What's wrong with you?
These are distractions.
Distractions.
Hallelujah.
I know a lot of you don't like what I'm telling you or you like what I'm telling you.
You don't take, you don't do selfie videos.
You don't take videos of yourself.
When they want to occur, we should be like that.
We should try to hold each other.
We are desecrating the holy place.
I know people who say that, you know, the church is the people, the place is just like any ordinary, that's how your life is like that.
It's an ordinary place.
It is not.
Those days, people will walk straight to the altar, they will lie there like we are fasting like this.
People will just come, church will be open, let's say around four or five.
You come and you meet people lying on the altar and they are praying.
They are laying on the stage and they are praying.
You think if you don't get anything, they will be wasting their time there?
Yeah.
And right now, now, you know what we are doing, right now, I learned something a pastor said.
The place that we portrayed as an altar right now is stage.
You know?
So, those times, the other churches and all of that, the place was filled with the glory of God.
Now, we have filled the place with lights and smoke.
The people in the Old Testament, they worshiped to the point that divine smoke came inside.
Now, we have artificial smoke.
If God will not come, we have our own smoke.
My friend, bless the thing.
Let the glory, let the sacra be here.
You know?
Then people will come and stand here, they are worshiping and they will say that, they will say,
cancer is living, it's living now.
What cancer?
What, what, what, what, what, what cancer is living?
That's what the Spirit of God told me.
That's mighty thing, he's going to move in our midst as we worship him.
He's going, I just want to take that.
I want to worship him.
Or the pornography.
Yeah.
There's a very big gospel singer in this country.
So if you want to catch him.
Maybe I'm not quite sorry.
Very big.
But on the stage, watching pornography on the stage.
And if I allow the person to sing, I just go, I will just disagree.
You've not seen that thing yet.
Don't worry.
I know maybe we'll meet Saturday, maybe not yet.
Maybe I'm going to preach somewhere or something and I will see it.
I will call you out.
I will say you are watching porn in the house of God.
You are cursed.
No, if you are not cursed, why would you do that?
See recently I was supposed to rent a space, one of my brother's space to a man.
So the man had to come here.
And I think it was Githy or somebody.
While service was going on, he was there and was watching, it was what?
Nude videos.
And then he said, please we don't do that here.
Stop that please.
We don't do that here.
And the pastor is talking.
Stand up.
And the man stood up.
Yeah, in this church.
See that thing, when you see that, just do, I understand.
I know what is there.
In church.
And this is an elder in the church of Pentecost.
For me, I will mention the church.
Disgracing the church of Pentecost because I know that is not what church of Pentecost teach.
To an elder of a church.
You remember, they say a side chick is suing a man.
The man bought a car for the side chick and the man took back the car and the side chick says I'm going to sue you.
That is the most boldest side chick ever.
Then the man says that no, I gave the car out to her for free.
It's not like something is going on too bad.
I saw that she was using the car for hook up and as an elder of my church.
I said look at him.
Elder of your church.
Elder, you are sharing car and your wife doesn't know.
It's serious.
Elder, elder, elder, elder is a bank manager or something.
The lady was a national service personnel or something like that.
All the workers in the bank is the national service personnel who has a hip hip.
That is where she is coming from is very far so that she can be coming with us.
What a fever, elder, elder of a church.
So why would people want to come to church?
Are you understanding that?
Yeah, they secrete the holy place.
They secrete the holy place.
So you are coming to church and you are wondering,
myself and my brother were in a church and somebody was coming for consultation.
And the person was not, baby, the person was wearing top like this and to hear.
He was going to see a prophet from here to here.
And her hand was on your pie hole.
Now when he wanted to sit down, now he, she did not hear.
What's wrong with you?
If I am the prophet's pastor or I am the prophet, you come here and say, Madam, I shall go.
Simple as that.
And they will know it's a church. We have to allow.
We do not allow because this person, the same person is going to a shrine.
So they cares of this world.
Come on, they cares of this world.
So it talks the world.
When we become distracted by these things, the word gets choked and our faith becomes futile.
The faith becomes dead.
What is a dead faith?
Faith without works.
What is faith without works?
Faith given to employment or faith that has been employed.
So if the, if you get distracted by these things, your faith cannot be employed.
Are you understanding that?
The word, the word being choked means faith will not be employed.
Are we together?
Then he says, let's, let's continue.
The cares of this world.
I remind now, verse one.
So the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches.
Now, and the, come on, and the, the lust of other things entering in.
The lust of other things.
The cravings for other things.
See the Bible talks about everything.
You understand something?
The what?
You see the, the, the penchant for things.
The desire for things.
You want to ride the Benz at the age of 25.
You are 24.
Now you are ready.
You will kill, you will destroy.
You will finish.
You have to get it.
You know, so this is a church guy.
This is a guy in church who up on home.
Suddenly, boom, will blow.
But then will blow.
My testimony.
I could try that.
You understand what I'm talking about?
Yeah.
Some of you as you are there, always you are thinking about the, the, the house you are building.
Yeah.
You can picture that you feel the way you feel.
My dog will be like an elephant.
Hallelujah.
You begin to picture, you picture everything perfectly.
Your house will be in the sky.
You, you, you just, you'll be like a city that's set up on a hill that cannot be hit.
And then you begin to gravitate towards it.
There's a lady who says that if you are poor, please don't come and propose to me because it's an irritation.
So what is, what is, what is a poor man doing around love?
I was talking to a friend today and I said the person was like, hey, so today you didn't receive, oh, so I'm like, what?
Today is own day.
I'm thinking, oh, I couldn't say today is vows day.
And I said, when did they change their name?
So no, so because of the give people bring you give them say, oh, I say, hey, this world, we are getting model.
Yes, we are getting model.
Like joke, like joke, we are going.
It's serious and people are buying gift for themselves.
So they, they order.
Then the people now they play this thing, sad or whatever.
Then they are coming.
Then she'll pretend she doesn't know.
She's a different number is from so and so to so and so.
Then she's she's there.
No, I said address in Ruffles.
Then camera is in session, everything.
Then they open the door.
Are you OK?
You know, when you buy when when people buy things from you, when people buy you think I don't appreciate.
Well, yes, that's all right.
Thank you so much.
God bless you.
And I'm done.
I will not remember it again.
How's it the day we get to work out?
You see, like I'll be there.
I can't stop.
No, listen, listen.
It's not me.
You you can't surprise me.
I am surprised.
So I come in the car is there.
And so what?
Oh, really?
Oh, thank you.
Thank you.
Wow.
That's it.
A nice guy.
Thank you.
I'll be nice.
Nice guys.
And I realize I'm in the room.
I'll be something else.
Oh, my God.
I don't know.
We have a bro.
Distractions.
You said to cry.
I want to cry.
Oh, the choir.
You know, like like that thing I told you.
The lady, the lady, the brother surprise.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my.
After that, they say, can I see the video?
Let me see if it was nice.
No, no, please go back.
It wasn't nice.
Let's start again.
Let's please not knock again.
Problem.
The pinch that they want for things.
They want for things is when they enter in, when they get into your heart, when they get
into your heart, when they get when money gets into your heart, you become the one of
God can't work in your life again.
Because you now live above the word.
You understand you live above the word.
It's serious.
No, why do people lie?
Why do people do all the wrong things they do?
Why do people steal?
They want for things.
It means that the word of God is choked in their lives.
If you know, their pastors, when they see you holding something, they begin to crave
for it.
Then the craving will bring it own prophecies.
There's a prophet who told somebody, a lady who was a businesswoman and blah, blah, had
to come to the church and saw the woman was in a very serious, sensible car.
I begin to give a prophecy, give a prophecy, give a prophecy, give a prophecy, give a prophecy,
and told the woman that they've scheduled an accident for her and blah, blah, blah.
So, she didn't be driving this particular car, this accident car.
So, she's not, the car has to be anointed.
It has to sit in the car and lead impartations of the anointing in the car for some time,
for a period.
There's a prophet, why not, why not?
And the prophet had given quite accurate prophecies before.
You get it.
It's not, see, it's not only people who don't see that lie.
People see.
They will give you first, second, through three prophecies.
Then the rest, they will show you shaky.
Then the lady brought the car because, I mean, you prophesied to me about this.
It was like, prophet, the lady brought the car.
Now, the prophet was inside, the prophet was inside.
The prophet was, when the prophet was going for a program, he's driving the car.
Why?
So, that would be impartation.
Now, the prophet is driving the car when the prophet himself had an accident with the car.
Impartation of anointing.
It's serious.
When you begin to want things, when your heart is ruled by material things,
when they are inside, you see, I'm preaching this message to you because we are all young
and we have that temptation.
Yeah, we have that temptation.
Even when you want to choose a partner, you are looking for somebody who is rich
because you can't waste time.
You don't have time to waste time.
Yeah.
I'll say, let's go and...
You yourself, what's wrong with your hand?
You understand what I'm talking about?
Yeah, it's not just marriage.
It's everything.
The want for money can let you go and get a job that you don't have time to even study the Word of God.
It's there. It's everywhere.
And I've seen quite a number of people get involved and they struggle with their fate.
You cannot get your fate to work successfully when your heart is choked
or when your heart is full of want, desires.
It can't work.
So, it is out of that understanding Paul comes to say that,
having what to eat and wear, let us be therefore content.
You see how we struggle to accept that scripture today?
It tells us our heart.
That's the only problem.
I say,
but the truth is that her dealing was with the oboam.
You know why?
Because after Ocasio, all the attack was on the Oya.
You hear that?
Ocasio says,
That's the heart.
See, that's the problem with the heart.
That's the problem with the heart.
When somebody also is desperately enjoying poverty, following for poverty.
That's also vanity.
You understand what I'm talking about?
It is when the heart is freed of every material thing, whether poverty or riches,
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
My focus is Christ.
That is my life.
Christ is my life.
Why are people being prophet for?
Why are people moving helter-skelter to prophet, to this prophet, prophet so-so and so prophet?
And I'm a prophet.
My mom will be prophet.
My father will be prophet.
So will my father.
And stuff like that.
People are using God as a medium to get things.
So our hearts are filled, choked with material things.
Material things.
If your child is not going to Montezori, you're in trouble.
Your child is not going to Montezori, at least your child should know how to...
Dad-ay, I want to ay-tay.
I want to ay-tay.
Oh yeah, that's my first one.
Home school fees, anybody.
Yeah.
370,000 every day.
About a couple of years ago.
Dad-ay.
I want to say, oh, dad-ay.
You know, her heart is choked.
So faith can't work.
Faith can't work.
Look at the apostles.
Alright, I'm closing.
I'm closing right now.
Look at the apostles.
Mighty resounding testimonies of your faith.
There was one common denominator.
None of them was ruled by any things.
They all had the knowledge that they had a future in heaven.
They have treasure, like they say, we have the treasure laid out for us in heaven.
See, so heavenly gain was much real to them than earthly gain.
May the Lord help us.
Myself included.
May the Lord help us.
Yeah, may the Lord help us.
Look at what...
Was it Peter?
Yeah, not Peter.
I think Paul or James, whoever it was, it was one of the apostles.
He said that, tell those, I think it was Paul.
Tell those who are rich in this world not to trust in the uncertainty of riches.
They should not trust in the uncertainty of riches.
They shouldn't trust in the uncertainty of riches.
See, may our hearts be purged.
May our hearts be good grounds.
Hallelujah.
Let's continue so that we can try and close.
We don't have time today.
The time is not on our side.
Today I couldn't preach for long.
So let's get in there.
Verse 20.
20.
And these are they which are sown on good ground.
They hear the word and they receive it and bring forth fruits.
Some 30.
Come on, read it.
Some 30.
Some 60.
And some are 100 fold.
Now let's go to Luke.
Let's read this in Luke.
There's something I'm looking for.
Luke 8.
Are you here with me?
You enjoying the word?
Luke 8.
All right, now.
Let me, let me.
So I went out to sow his seed.
And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside.
It was throating down and the fowls of the air devoured it.
Now, he adds, throating down.
All right?
So look at it.
So I went out to sow his seed.
And he sowed some.
And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside.
And it was, come on, it was throating down.
What do you have in your version?
Trampled upon.
Trampled upon, right?
Okay.
What does it mean to trample upon?
So when somebody say, you're trying to trample on my freedom.
You are trample, you are trying to trample upon me.
What's that?
Come on.
What does that mean?
That's, that's an idiom, right?
So what does that mean?
To trample, to trample upon.
Hey.
Okay.
Eight over ten.
To make something of no use.
No, when somebody is trampled upon you like you don't, you don't matter.
So the wayside refers to where the word is trampled upon.
Are you understanding that?
So faith cannot work when the word of God is trampled upon.
In other words, faith cannot work in a place where the word of God is not regarded.
Come on.
You here with me, everyone?
We don't regard the word of God.
Faith cannot work.
You see, good people die.
Do you know that?
You can't be good and die.
We hear people who are into philanthropy, people who are doing mighty things and they die and people begin to question, where is God?
So didn't God know that this guy is a good guy?
This lady is a good guy and stuff like that?
The question is, was the person really, really, really esteeming the word of God highly?
Because when the word of God is trampled upon, what happens?
The word cannot work.
Okay, so that is Luke.
Let's continue.
And the files of the year devoutly.
And some fell upon a rock and as soon as it was sprung up, it waded away because it lacked moisture.
And some fell among thorns and thorns sprung up with it and took it.
The thorns grew with the word.
Oh man, see, oh boy, we're out of time.
We're out of time.
The thorns grew with the word.
It means that the word grew.
The word started growing.
And then suddenly thorns also started growing.
So the thorns were competing with the word.
And then the thorns took the word.
See, he's giving you, Luke is giving you more details.
So for example, this guy is in church, loving God, receiving the word.
The word of God is working, is working, is working.
Then suddenly there is a strength desire for, or there's a strength desire for the cares of the world.
Suddenly this guy begins to think, oh, I'm growing, I need money.
Or begins to think, I have to marry.
Begins to think, I need to travel.
Begins to think, I have to become a financial advisor, I have to become a banker, I have to become this, I have to become a doctor.
Like all kinds of things.
Then the word that is growing now stops.
Then the person begins to nurse the desire.
Nurse the desire.
So when you nurse the desire, what happens?
The thorns are growing.
So when the thorns grow to a place, then they choke the word of God.
Are you understanding that?
That's what Luke is saying.
Let's continue.
Another fell on good ground and sprang up and bare fruit a hundredfold.
And when he said these things, he cried.
He that have ears, let him hear.
Alright, now let's go to verse 20, sorry, 11.
Now the parable is this.
The seed is the word of God.
Those by the wayside are they that hear the word, that hear, then come at the devil and take away the word out of their heart, lest they should believe.
So when we say the word of God is taken by the devil, what are we talking about?
Does it mean the devil has come to take the word?
What does it mean?
The word is trampled upon.
So when you don't regard the word in biblical terminology, the devil has come to take the word.
Are you understanding that?
So when the word of God comes to you, it doesn't mean anything to you.
You know, like that.
You see, so when the word is trampled upon, we can say that what?
The devil has taken the word.
So who is the devil?
Yourself.
You can decide the word is going to work or the word is not going to work by the value you place on the word.
So there's no devil anywhere who's going to take the word from you.
You are the very devil yourself.
If the word of God comes to you, such a word of God that can change everything about you and you don't place value on it.
Jesus said you are a devil.
That's why Jesus is calling you.
Satan is the man who hears the word of God and does not place value on it.
The Satan we are talking about, that is the person.
So we have satanic Christians.
I'm not saying this in the, trying to add this thing here.
Who is a satanic Christian?
The one who does not, who receives the word and does not place value on the word.
A satanic Christian that has managed to become a satan.
Satan.
That's just, by the way, but it's true.
Let's continue.
Where are we now? Verse 1.
13.
Day on the rock are they which when they hear receive the word with joy and these have no root which for a while believe and in time of temptation they fall away.
So I think I've explained that already.
And that which fell among thrones are they which when they have heard the word go forth and are trope with cares and riches and pleasures of this life.
Pleasures of this life.
I think if every Christian knows this scripture, the person can never fool you.
Like when you get money, you don't even see value in money.
You know because you see, some people can be in church very faithful and committed.
Then, maybe they try to start out a business which is not bad in itself.
They are working.
Then the business begins to boom.
And when business is booming, what comes?
Money.
When money comes, your association changes.
Now you begin to meet people of caliber, people of class, people of your stature.
So now you used to talk with shop pushers, being sellers, and stuff like that.
Now you no more go by, you no more join the queue.
Now you go to bar 205 or now you go to restaurant.
You go to restaurants.
You know, don't say restaurant.
It's not a restaurant.
So restaurant, you go into a restaurant.
You're meeting people, then somebody will give you a business idea.
Or there's somebody here, you meet the person, somebody meets some of your goals, you go.
And now you are making contact.
Then you manage to get friends.
So you get, you got this friend, maybe he's a politician, then he fools you into becoming a politician.
Then you are changing your association.
Now, when you meet those people, then someone will say Sunday, then one of them will say,
oh, we are celebrating a birthday party for my wife.
And it's Sunday, church time.
But this is not done where the poor people are.
Nobody has money for birthday.
In fact, you don't even remember whether you were born on a day.
But up here, birthdays are important.
Vows days are important.
Marriage anniversaries are important.
Naming ceremonies are important.
What again? Beach parties are important.
Um, funeral are important.
Parties are important.
So this place, they place high premium on those things.
You move from where, when was the last time you used to have a party?
No one has to have a party.
But here, you go to, and when you get to the party,
then there are drinks, and then there are more alcoholic beverages.
And inside that class of people, they have their own girls.
So we have girls who are doing makeup, who have their own, as I was saying,
sorryful makeups.
And then they've gone to Turkey to enhance their body.
They call it liposuction.
You know, you look at the tone of their skin, and you know you have met mermaids.
And these are serious people.
Then you see, now you look at the wife that you started with.
Auntie Monica.
Then you look at what you've got here.
Now, then you get the temptation to at least become a friend with one,
so that you know how rich people, their girls taste like.
Then you go and you taste.
After one taste, another taste, then it becomes an eating.
Then you now pull yourself away from church, because right now,
inside church, they are preaching to you, you are going to come to church.
They are going to give you Bible assignment to do.
You are a rich man, you are a businessman, you don't have time.
You have to meet the MP.
After meeting the MP, you have to meet this one.
After meeting the MP, you have to meet this one, and meet that one.
So church has become boring.
Two things, you now begin to suggest to your pastor.
Church is not all about the Bible.
Now, we want to have a program.
Now, you begin to tell us which people to bring on board,
so that we can spice up the meeting.
If your pastor is very crazy like me and tells you no,
then you begin to say, you know what, then you meet one friend of yours who says,
oh, my church is not like that.
No.
My pastor takes beer.
Yeah, my pastor takes beer.
So really, oh, my pastor is a guy, and the definition of my pastor is a guy,
is that my pastor, or we be here.
The pastor is here, the pastor is here.
All right, then I want to come and visit you in your church.
You go and the church is so free.
It's not like 8 o'clock, 8.30, the door is shut.
And you have money, you are business passing, then you are coming.
Your pastor says, stay outside.
This place, they give credence to rich people.
You come in, you go and see the prophet, the pastor, quickly.
You exchange contact.
Now the pastor himself begins to call you because you are rich.
And then thereby, thereby, on and on, on and on, you become an elder in the church.
Now when you're coming and the people see you,
do you have special assistant that will assist you in the church?
You know what you're doing?
You become rich.
You're changing your environment.
You're changing your association.
At first, your church, when you go, the whole place is hot.
You are sweating.
Your anointing will flow.
Now you're looking at your car is air conditioned.
Your room is air conditioned.
Your bath house is air conditioned.
Your everywhere is air conditioned.
Your body cannot contain heat.
By the time you realize, you've walked out of the faith.
And that's what the Lord is talking about.
Let's continue so that we can close.
We don't have time.
Verse 1.
Okay, so the cares and riches and pleasures of this life.
And bring no fruits.
Let me, let me, let me say it again.
And that which fell among thorns are they which, when they have heard the word go forth,
and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life.
And bring no fruit to perfection.
So they never get perfected.
They never get perfected.
Hallelujah.
Then look at the next thing, Jesus says.
And the good ground are they which in the honest, come on, honest and good heart.
Did you see that?
They received the word with sincerity.
They received the word with awe.
There are some people when they were, now they become like, you know,
so let's say like the leaders of the ministry, maybe those you call your leaders.
You mentioned the name of maybe Kelvin, Pastor Wise or stuff like that.
Then they become, they come to a point where now they feel like,
okay, so we've grown a while, so we have kids under us.
So receiving the word, at first you receive the word shaking.
Receive the word with tears.
Receive the word and join with so much joy.
You are going home and you are so happy with the word.
And you just want to listen to this thing over and over again.
Then it comes to a point now you're going to see yourself, you have grown.
That is childish.
Now when you are receiving the word, you sit down.
When you go, you have to face life.
Think about what you have to do.
That's how you feel.
But these ones receive the word with a sincere, with an honest and good heart.
The word comes on the good.
Say, my heart should be good.
No, put your hand there.
Say, my heart should be good.
Yes.
And listen to what happens.
When that happens, he says, having heard the word, they keep it.
That's the only word I wanted to share with you this evening.
But if I started without you, you didn't have understood it.
They keep it.
I'll continue when?
Tomorrow.
Keeping the word.
So tomorrow we'll be keeping the word.
They keep it.
They keep the word.
Receiving the word with a sincere heart, with an honest and good heart, means you're doing what?
You keep the word.
So they keep it and bring forth with patience.
They bring...
They keep it and bring forth fruit with patience.
So the fruit of the word, which is the work of faith or which is the product of your faith, happens with patience.
So you can't see anyone who says the word of God is really working in him and you see the person not having patience.
Did you see that?
They keep the word and they take their time for the word to work.
I like what Andrew Mark will say.
You can microwave your food, but you cannot microwave your spiritual growth.
It's process.
Hallelujah.
It's what?
That's right.
So if you're not allowed to process, you cannot work with God.
Because there are some times God will tell you, we are moving, but hey, wait, let me sit down and relax.
Nobody's going to kill anybody.
And you are warming up.
You take the lead.
Don't rush God.
Hallelujah.
See, you are not in a hurry more than God.
So if God tells you, I'm relaxed, relax, just relax.
All right.
Tomorrow we are going to look at all of that.
Now let's close with this one.
It's just a mention.
I'm making a mention, then we'll be fine.
Okay.
So where are we now?
There's one.
Okay.
Let's go to, I think that is in Mark.
Let's go to Mark.
Mark four.
Okay.
Mark chapter four.
Let's do verse 26.
He said, so is the kingdom of God as if a man should cast seed into the ground.
So what is the seed here?
To what of God?
And should sleep and rise night and day and the seed should spring and grow up.
He does not know how.
For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself.
First the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.
What is he talking about here?
Process.
So he says first the blade.
So you cannot be expecting full corn when there's no blade.
How about together?
Tomorrow we'll talk about it, keeping the word.
So it's very important.
I believe you've learned something today.
Yeah.
So get your heart so solid with this matter.
Don't be in a rush.
Hallelujah.
Success is not crowd.
I want to say that again.
Success is not seen in crowd.
Success is seen in following God.
And in the following of God there can be crowd.
But first of all, success is just following God.
Hamble yourself working with God.
Come on, hallelujah.
Doing the little things you're supposed to do when the Lord tells you to do that.
Praise the name of the Lord.
And it is in that that you begin to see your faith with resounding exploit.
You will not be quoting out of knowledge.
You'll be quoting out of the recesses of understanding in your heart.
You will shoot scriptures from the understanding of the word.
Not just from the knowledge of the word in your head.
Hallelujah.
Come on, praise the name of the Lord.
You can't say you don't want to study the Bible.
You can't say you have a problem coming to church.
And I don't know, I was tired.
I was talking to one of the people.
People who go to churches that...
They still go.
You have a place.
The word of God is taught.
You've got to be very mad to say that you will not give yourself to these things.
Something is wrong with your medulla oblongata.
Oh, that's not it.
Whatever it is, inside your head, something is wrong.
Hallelujah.
Lift up your two hands and be upstanding.
Let's begin to bless the name of the Lord.
Open your mouth and bless the name of the Lord.
Let me hear your voices.
Thank you, Father.
Thank you, Father, for your unfailing word.
Thank you for your unfailing word.
We're not in a hurry.
We give our hearts to your word.
We give our minds to your word.
To be built by your word.
To be raised by your word.
Father, we are not in a hurry.
We are not in a hurry.
We submit to your will.
We submit to your will in the name of Jesus.
In the name of Jesus.
in the name of Jesus and we
declare that our faith has
words. We act on our
convictions. We act on your
word. We act on your word in
the name of Jesus.