There are angels that are unemployed, meaning they have an assignment,
but because we don't realize the purpose of angels,
we don't know what to do with them. We don't employ these angels.
And a lot of people wonder, how do we employ the angels?
Sergio Nazeer Chavez, it's great to have you here on Charisma to be able to hear
your story and see how God is moving in the ministry that he's called you to,
which is in the inner Harbor of Baltimore,
but you are having a online reach, which is rather extensive as well.
So welcome to Charisma.
Thank you so much, John.
It's truly a privilege and an honor for me to be able to share on this platform.
I don't take it for granted. And so I'm just glad to be here.
Amen. Amen. Well, Sergio,
let's just jump in because I know our previous conversation right before we hit
record, one of the things that you said really kind of stuck with me,
you were talking about that God is calling us to be a house of prayer.
Talk to me about what it means to actually be a house of prayer and not
just praying, but like God's presence is in his house. So talk to me about this.
Yeah, I'm glad that you asked about that.
That is a message that the Lord has been truly stirring in my heart and my spirit.
We've been sharing it with our congregation and really our reach online.
And that is the scripture instructs us that God no longer dwells only in temples
that are made of human hands,
but rather he is dwelling in the temples that he made with his hands.
And so now the Bible instructs us that we are temple of the Holy Spirit.
So in order for us to truly understand and get to know Christ and develop our
relationship with him, we must first understand who we are in him.
And that has been my passion,
which is to lead a generation to know who they are within the context of who
God is. And that is that we are a house of prayer.
So prayer is not something that we simply do, but it's actually who we are.
And I believe that this is what God is desiring out of his people during this
time, because while programs are wonderful,
this is a time where we need to be focused on the kingdom of God and his
righteousness. So not just seeking performance,
not just simply seeking programs,
but seeking his presence first and foremost.
So before we minister unto people,
first ministering unto him and then out of the overflow of that relationship,
being a house of prayer,
we're able to effectively impact and reach lives when we become a house of
prayer. Amen. Amen.
So how in your own personal life,
how has prayer changed you and how do you cultivate that lifestyle of prayer?
The lifestyle of prayer becoming a house of prayer truly comes from first and
foremost devotion,
because the discipline aspect always proceeds out of the place of first being
devoted and committed.
So it's first and foremost falling in love with him and the place that I've
gone to in God is just encountering him.
And a lot of times getting to that place of devotion and commitment truly comes
from, and I know that, you know, listen, I don't want to mess with people too
early, but the reality is that the crushing produces a humility inside of
us. And that humility,
when we go through crushing experiences,
it really brings us to a place where we fall to our knees when we have nowhere
else to look.
When we look to our left,
to our right,
and we see that there's no help in sight.
David said,
I look to the Hills where my help comes from.
What I find a lot of times is that going through crushing seasons,
it produces a humility inside of us and it grants us the opportunity to see who
truly matters and what truly matters.
And that place of humility brings us to that devotion.
So those fiery seasons in our lives,
those crushing moments are actually really necessary because they bring us to
a place of brokenness and the brokenness brings us to humility,
the humility into a place of devotion.
And that devotion now,
the commitment,
the love we have for him produces this lifestyle of prayer in us and through
us, I would say.
Well, Pastor Sergio,
tell me about the crushing in your own life.
You know, like there's, you said that,
that that basically kind of is the catalyst for a lot of this.
Take me through that place in your life where God had to bring you to a crushing
moment,
where it was,
where it was hard or it was difficult,
but it brought you through and you've seen great fruit in your life from this.
So take me down memory lane a little bit.
Wow.
Well, listen,
I always say that the battles that you,
that you face in life truly reveal the mantle that you carry.
And every true man or woman of God,
they understand that the crushing experience is something that we endure
constantly because while say this,
the apostle Paul said that he had an encounter with God,
though he didn't want to admit it was himself,
but we understand now scholars know that he was referring to himself.
He had an encounter with the Lord where he was taken to the third heaven.
And,
and there were certain mysteries that were revealed to him that he couldn't
even explain and express and articulate to the,
to the fullness of what he encountered.
And the Bible says that he understood that because of those kind of encounters,
because of the kind of mantle that he,
that he carried,
that there was a thorn in his flesh and he began to understand that he,
he almost needed this thorn to keep him in a place of humility so that pride
would not grow within him.
And so throughout my life, since I've been called, you know,
I've found though we don't like it, though we don't prefer it,
I have not liked it. I have not preferred it. I have not prayed for it.
But they're necessary, you know, and going through memory lane,
you know, going through seasons of strong opposition in the ministry,
resistance in the ministry,
experiencing times in the ministry where there was even divisiveness that caused
discouragement and a lot of time,
disappointment and disillusionment going through those seasons,
though in the moment it didn't feel good,
it ended up being good for me and for the rest of the congregation.
Because one of the things that I had to learn going through,
whether it was resistance, persecution, opposition, criticism,
I learned to just simply lean into the presence and surrender because I had no
other option, John, I had to truly surrender in those moments.
I had no help in sight. So all throughout these different seasons,
I learned to just simply surrender. And in that place,
I began to again discover that that was, that was,
and it is the key in those moments to cultivate this devotion in those moments
of crushing, just reflecting on the Lord Jesus.
When he was getting ready to face his greatest moment of pain,
he found himself in the place of crushing.
Gethsemane was literally the place of the olive press, the place of crushing.
He was getting ready. Of course, we understand he knew that he would resurrect.
But before the resurrection, there was a crucifixion.
And in every single one of our lives, before there is any resurrection,
there must always be a crucifixion because it is that crucifixion
that causes for there to be that crushing again, going back to it, the humility.
But we find the master also teaching us during that time that the way that he
navigated that particular moment in season was he went during the time of crushing,
in the place of crushing, he was in prayer.
And of course, he wanted his disciples to join him.
He said, pray with me, watch with me for one hour, because he knew
you're getting ready to be crushed. You need to be in prayer
so that you don't fall into the temptation.
So I've discovered that. And that is something that burns in my heart and my spirit.
Not saying that I've got it right all the time.
There were many seasons and moments where I failed at that.
But throughout the years of maturing, I've learned that that has been the key.
Whether it's going through persecution, opposition, resistance, whatever rises,
just surrendering in that moment and in that surrenderence, you'll find the answer.
And that resurrection is right around the corner.
What type of persecution have you gone through or opposition?
Tell me about some of that stuff and actually tell me some of the stories behind it.
Not just the preaching, but tell me how did Sergio walk through this?
Personally, the message that God has given me is not a lot of time popular
because we're in a time where the reality is many people are seeking to be entertained.
They want performance. So when we begin to talk about sacrifice
and seeking the kingdom of God primarily, it really begins to shake up the kingdom of darkness.
That's what I've learned. Because whenever you are on track,
you're going to find that attacks come whether you're not looking for it,
you're not asking for it, but simply walking in the will of God.
That's what I've discovered.
Just even recently, going through a time in a season where it could be
the message just truly began to cause for there to be a stirring
and a provoking to the kingdom of darkness to attempt to shut the message down.
And interestingly, I was just talking off camera again,
having a conversation with one of my spiritual sons,
and we were talking about just at the beginning of this year.
I remember February of this year, there were people that were taking our clips
and our videos and our teaching, and we're teaching the Word of God.
We're doing what God has called us to do.
We're just sharing the Word of the Lord.
And people are just taking and ripping soundbites and one-minute clips
and completely distorting the message and coming up with assumptions
and really causing for there to be persecution and confusion as a result.
And I remember particularly this year, again, just doing what God has called me to do.
And then I come into my office and one of my spiritual sons says,
he says, Pastor, we're getting ready to go higher.
I said, why do you say we're getting ready to go higher?
He said, well, look, they're making videos about you.
They're commenting on your teaching and they're saying that this is incorrect,
that this is false, that this is not biblical.
And I said, that is actually a sign that we're on track
because the sign that you're on track is that you will be attacked.
Before anyone is ever placed in position, you have to go through the opposition.
So I took that because of the experience we've been going through battles
throughout these seasons of serving the Lord in the ministry.
So we've learned to just endure, not fight, not retaliate,
not to try to seek revenge online, but letting God be the one to fight for us,
to speak and defend us and to truly show that he is backing the message.
Well, that happened in February.
And now let's just say that God has shown up and showed out in our lives
and through the ministry because that same message that was ridiculed,
opposed, resisted and even persecuted, God took that message in the hands of others
and it has now reached millions upon millions of people.
And that's the key, just surrendering in those moments and letting God be the one to fight.
That just happened this year and we're seeing the fruit of just surrendering to him.
So I got to know, what was that message and how was it being misquoted or mistaken?
And give us the true heart behind it.
Sure. That message in particular, I was dealing with the life of Joseph
and we were talking a little bit off camera about the life of Joseph.
I was describing that Joseph, his life was, he was a type of Christ.
He was given by his father a tunic, a coat of many colors.
And I began to describe how everything in the scripture,
the scripture is more than what people truly grasp many times.
Even I myself, I have battled with it because how can we fully apprehend
and comprehend the vastness of God? He's so big, He's so great
and His ways are above our ways, His thoughts above our thoughts.
And what I've learned in delving in the scripture and in my relationship with Him
is that He's so big and that in the scripture there's literal things,
there's esoteric things, there's spiritual meaning.
Just like Jesus, He would use literal physical examples to bring out
spiritual analogies and spiritual truths out of it.
So it was deeper. He was using physical things, but it was spiritual.
So I began to take a poetic expression of the coat of many colors
that that coat of many colors was actually very prophetic in the life of Joseph
because of that coat of many colors, he was getting ready to endure
the worst season of his life, being forsaken, being apprehended by his brothers,
being thrown in a pit, going through a prison experience, being falsely accused.
And that coat of many colors was already depicting for him
whether Joseph realized it or not. It was already depicting the layers
and the different kind of seasons that he was going to endure.
So though it was royal, it was beautiful, but it was actually prophetic
about the seasons that he was getting ready to endure
because he was getting ready to go through seasons of many colors,
diverse situations and circumstances that were ultimately going to bring him
into the place of governmental authority and prominence.
So that was the message that I was sharing, that the coat of many colors
was actually prophetic and that was taken.
I'm finding that spiritual teaching is ridiculed, misunderstood,
because we look at Scripture, many people interpret Scripture
from a physical surface level, but in order for us to grasp the heart of God,
we have to be willing to dig in a little deeper.
This is what I found. I hope that that explains that.
Yeah. So what were some of the things that people were saying
that they were trying to make you say that you weren't saying?
And how do you, like, give us the truth of that.
Well, again, one of the things that was ridiculed,
it was just mentioning that the coat had nothing to do with his experience.
That was the great attack, that the coat had nothing to do with his experience.
And so again, I just shared that the heart and the meaning was
that it was actually very prophetic because it was one amongst many things, right?
He dreamt a dream and he began to share the dream.
So that was one of the things that really provoked his brothers to begin to betray him
and to cause resentment to enter their heart.
But among that was the coat of many colors because it caused him to stand out.
And whenever an individual begins to stand out,
not necessarily they're looking for it because of the favor.
And a lot of times it feels like the favor is not fair.
So because of that, it provoked the brother.
So again, it was just simply saying that the accusation was that the coat
had nothing to do with his experience.
But again, I argue that it was one of the things that truly was already speaking
about the experiences that he was getting ready to endure.
Very interesting. Yeah.
So I know speaking about YouTube and things like that,
I know one of your most popular videos so far is about angels.
And so let's talk about the angels in the angelic realm.
Yeah.
So tell me about that particular teaching and what are some things that God has really shown you?
Now, I got to start this off by asking you, have you personally seen an angel?
Yeah. So to answer that question, the short answer is yes.
Now, that's the short answer.
But of course, there's a longer answer.
I know we don't have all the time in the world.
I wish we did, John, have more time because it's a pleasure to share with you.
But there are actually different kinds of experiences that you can have with angels.
You could have the experience with your spiritual eye.
That's the experience where Paul said,
I pray that the eye of your heart be enlightened, the eye of your understanding.
So there is a realm where we connect with God with our spiritual senses in our eyes.
Then there is around where we begin to experience angels in terms of visions, dreams and trances.
And then there is the physical encounter.
And we see all throughout the scripture, scripture is littered from Genesis to Revelation about those kind of encounters in different realms,
whether it was vision, dreams, trances, and also physically encountering the angels.
So by God's grace, we've been we have had the great privilege, I would say, out of God's mercy.
We have encountered angels in that way.
The angelic conversation is a very vast conversation.
Even explaining that requires teaching and a lot of biblical explanation.
But I would say the main thing that I'm teaching the people of God is that the book of Hebrews says that
angels are actually ministering agents, ministering spirits, and their call,
their assignment is the term angels, angelus is messenger, is to provide service and messages to those who would inherit salvation.
So we understand that in Hebrews, it says that all angels are ministering agents and spirits.
And now the psalmist David had a great revelation about angels.
He said that angels excel in strength in the book of Psalm.
They excel in strength and they hearken to the word of God.
So if we combine those two scriptures together in terms of understanding of angels is that angels,
they minister and they're ready to provide messages for those who would inherit salvation, you and I.
And they excel in strength.
So they have an ability that goes beyond the natural, but they hearken to God's word.
So they are. I can't even put it in numbers.
There's no way to put it in numbers.
We just know that there was one third of angels that were fallen.
So that means that there are two thirds of angels that are ready to excel in strength, that are ready to provide messages.
They're ready to minister for those who are heirs of this great salvation that we have inherited to Christ Jesus.
But can I tell you, John, the reality is most in the body of Christ do not realize that there are angels
that are unemployed, meaning they have an assignment.
But because we don't realize the purpose of angels, we don't know what to do with them.
We don't employ these angels.
And a lot of people wonder how do we employ the angels?
The scripture says in Psalms they hearken or they hear, they adhere to God's word.
So it is when we align ourselves with the word of God, not just meditating upon it.
That's very powerful.
But when we actually begin to speak the word, because there's creative ability in our word.
Proverbs says that life and death is in our tongue.
And based on what we speak, that's the fruit that we're going to eat.
We know that the worlds were framed by the very words of God.
God said, let there be light.
And there was.
So there was something to learn there because now we're created in image and likeness of God.
So because of the resurrection of Christ, we now have the same creative ability when we speak.
Because we're made in image and likeness.
That image, that likeness was marred.
It was distorted because of sin.
But because thanks be to Christ Jesus.
And now that has been restored to us.
So now we can use the creative ability to speak God's word.
We meditate upon it.
And after meditating, we're able to speak.
And when we speak God's word, what people don't realize is the angels hearken not to our command.
Because many people confuse it.
They ask me, Pastor, are you suggesting that we command angels?
No, what I'm saying is that they obey the command of God because he is the highest authority over thrones, dominions, rulers, principalities.
So when they hear God's word, the thing about angels is when there is a vessel speaking God's word, they don't distinguish between this is John, this is Sergio.
They hear the word of the Lord and they obey and adhere and hearken to that word.
So I believe that it's time for us to truly employ our angels because they have messages for us.
And truthfully, we're not able to carry out the work of God without angelic assistance.
Every man, woman of God, child of God needs to align themselves with their angel.
Scripture says that the angel of the Lord encamp them that feel the Lord and those same angels or that angel of the Lord defends and protects.
But it begins with an awareness.
And this conversation actually begins to cause awareness.
That's the first step to encounter the angels.
Awareness, that awareness brings a sensibility.
Yeah. So we need to know the word of God if we're going to be aligning with the ability to command the angels.
It's not our I like how you said it's not our words, but it's us speaking God's words.
Absolutely. Because that's an important thing, because we in our human flesh and our human mentality, even with our best of intentions, if it's not lined up with God's word, then it's just going to fall short and it's not going to accomplish what it's gone out to do.
So as a 55 verse 11, the word of the Lord will go forth and it will accomplish what it will desire.
It will not return empty or void, but it is the word of the Lord.
We know that the devil distorts the word of the Lord.
We saw that in the in the tempting of Jesus during those 40 days where Jesus quickly turned around and said it is written, you know, you know, so the devil was trying to distort that.
I kind of want to take this angel talk into this into the the other side of things.
You know, you said that angels have they excel in strength.
What about fallen angels?
It's a hoax about this because we live in a spiritual.
We are we are affected by a spiritual realm and there is a spiritual warfare that is happening all the time and we need to make sure that we're lined up with the right thing.
But tell us about your understanding of the angels versus the demonic.
John, you're talking good and you're getting me excited. Listen, if you keep at it, I'm going to start.
I'm going to jump from this camera and start running around in my office because this is the kind of conversation that I truly enjoy.
So you mentioned Jesus being tempted in the wilderness and the way that he combated and countered the temptation was through the word.
And if you remember, the same thing occurred in Genesis when the serpent came to deceive.
And the first thing that the serpent we know that is Satan.
The first thing that was mentioned was did God say so there was a word given.
The first word was given by God.
And then the enemy comes to distort and say, did God say now what was lost in Adam was restored in the second Adam.
Thanks be to Christ Jesus.
So he taught us how to counter the attacks, the arrows, the false words of the enemy.
Because scripture says that our war is spiritual.
It's not carnal, according to Ephesians 6. It's not against flesh and blood.
And then 2 Corinthians 10 verse 4 and 5 talks about that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds, taking every thought captive.
And the way that we counter, the way that we combat any attack from demonic spirits, because demonic spirits operate through words.
The same way that the spirit of God operates through the word, demonic spirits operate through words as well.
The serpent came saying, did God say, Satan came in the wilderness and he began to distort the word.
So they operate through the platform of words. What kind of words?
Words of discouragement, words of deception, words of distraction.
So if we understand that, we must seriously consider delving into God's word, because the way that we combat those arrows, those false words, distorted words, is through the word.
Ephesians 6 talks about the armor of God.
And I would suggest to you that in each aspect of the armor of God is actually talking about the word, because it was the word, John chapter 1, the word became flesh.
So when we put on the armor of God, we're actually putting on Christ.
And by putting on Christ, it means put on the word of God, because it is the word of God that protects, the word of God that defends, the word of God that is our greatest weapon.
But in order for us to really, again, you mentioned it, you talked about it, in order for us to operate in that dimension of power in the word of God, we must know it.
We must embrace it. We must cherish it.
It is no wonder that God told Joshua, in order for you to prosper and succeed, he told him, meditate upon the law, the word, day and night.
Same thing was mentioned in Psalm chapter 1.
Blessed is the one who meditates upon the law, upon the word, day and night.
There's something to it when we not only read the words of scripture, but we engage in it with our spiritual senses.
Those words are meant to be living.
The word of God is not myth, fairy tale, something you pick off of a shelf, because we know many people can get in the word.
That's not a question.
The question is, is the word getting inside of you?
And once that word gets inside of you, you are full to combat the arrows, false words, discouragement, deception of the enemy, because they're constantly looking to attack.
And they begin in the platform of the mind through arrows, through words.
So the way that we counter those arrows is through the word of God.
Amen. The word of God is so important in our lives.
And without it, we are starving.
I mean, we know that the word of God is the bread of life.
And so if we don't feed ourselves, if we don't feed our spirit, our flesh is going to get strong and it's going to overcome that.
And so it's going to align with the devil, with the evil one.
Would you just pray for the people that are watching right now, whatever this might be watched, that they would grab at the hold of the word, they would become a house of prayer themselves,
and that they would align with the word of God and let it permeate their lives so they can be full and active with what God has called them to do.
Absolutely. Thank you, John, for the opportunity.
I will be glad to pray for everyone that is connecting this.
This video is actually going to reach people all over the world, different continents, different regions, different nations, different cities, the same God that we're encountering and experiencing here in the city of Baltimore,
where we're not waiting on revival.
Revival is happening now.
We're experiencing salvation, miracles, signs and wonders.
I pray, I pray in Jesus name, we serve the same God.
May he reach you.
May he empower you.
May he lift you.
May he encourage you.
May he bring you back to that place of true surrender.
You've been watching this video and you know in your heart that you have been departing from the secret place.
But yet the secret place is what brought you to the place that you're currently in, the blessings you're experiencing.
The Lord is reminding you, don't neglect the blesser because of the blessing.
I pray that we all return to the secret place of prayer.
I pray that we all return to the heart.
I pray, Holy Spirit, that you would fill inundate, saturate every single life that is watching and hearing.
Father, we know that we're living in chaotic times.
We're living in last days.
But even in the midst of the times that we are living in,
we know that the thing that will bring order into the house of God, into our own household,
is when there is fire for you.
And we know that in order for there to be a fire, there must be an altar for you.
But in order for there to be an altar, there must be a sacrifice.
So I pray, Father, that you help us, guide us, strengthen us, lift us,
lead us through your Word to go back to that place of surrender and sacrifice.
Let that produce a lifestyle of prayer, a heart after you.
And let that heart after you impact every single life that we encounter.
Cause for there to be a revival, an awakening.
Cause for there to be miracle signs and wonders.
Cause for there to be, Father, a spiritual revolution in and around the lives
that are watching and connecting in this very moment, in this hour.
I thank you for allowing us to have this conversation.
Holy Spirit, do what only you can do, because without you, we're not able to do anything.
Living Jesus, let your name, let your nature, let your power be manifested
and reflected in us and through us.
It is in your precious, matchless, holy name that we pray.
In Jesus' name, Amen. Amen.
Wow, Sergio, thank you so much for praying for our audience here.
And just, it's been an honor to be able to talk with you, to hear how God is moving
and just the things that God has been speaking to you
and how you're able to share that right now.
So Sergio, thank you so much for joining us today here on Charisma.
Thank you so much, John. I truly, truly appreciate it.