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right in. Good evening everyone. I want to thank
God for these opportunities to bring the world
again to us. And I also want to thank the pastorate
for this opportunity. So today we're going to
continue with what we were doing on Sunday, right?
And we were looking at part of what I've been
teaching, the supernatural nature of the Christian
gathering. And Matthew chapter 28 is where we
have been at. Matthew chapter 28, verse 18, verse
18 to 20. And it says, Jesus came and spoke to
them, saying, All authority has been given to
me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit, teaching them to observe all the things
that have commanded you, and, lo and which you
all wish, to the end of the age. Praise the Lord.
And we said that this is the mandate of every
believer this is what God has given to us to
go and make disciples of all nations to go and
preach the gospel praise the Lord the God's desire
is for us that we are discipled so that we disciple
others that his work continues on the earth that
God's work continues on the earth that we carry
out or we continue to carry out the mandate of
God on the earth so he said that He, just as
the Father has sent Him, we saw in John, so also
He sent us, praise the Lord. So we are going
and we are, God is walking through us, we are
in partnership with the Holy Spirit to carry
out the agendas and the plan of God on the earth,
praise the Lord. And we said that that involves
discipleship, praise the Lord. That you learn
the Word, that you learn to minister and also
that you learn to apply it, praise the Lord,
in your daily life. And so we said that Jesus
said to them in verse 20, he said, teaching them
to observe all the things that have commanded
you and law and virtue always, even to the end
of the age. So they were certain things that
Jesus has taught or Jesus has commanded his disciples
that he's saying they should teach, praise the
Lord. And we said it's important that We pay
attention to these things because Christ did
not teach about his experience. Praise the Lord.
Christ did not teach about maybe he would tell
us that, you know, in the world above that there
are some things here and there. He didn't bother
about that. He came to teach particular things
and those things were already given. Praise the
Lord. Those things were already given. So he
came to bring revelation he came to bring explanation
he came and he was bringing explanation to people
praise the lord he was doing he was explaining
to people he was telling them the things that
has been written concerning him he interpreted
the scriptures praise the lord so even as we
go out to teach it's important that we teach
the things that he has commanded us to teach
praise the lord so sometimes I don't know for
any other person but sometimes I might be reading
the scriptures and maybe you just see maybe you're
reading a story and then if you're not very careful
your heart can lean towards something. Praise
the Lord. Your heart can lean towards a direction.
You start maybe applying it, not really interpreting
the scripture but because maybe that thing you're
just seeing for the first time is fascinating
to you. You're just following that direction.
Praise the Lord. So sometimes like this example
a good example is I remember some time ago I
was We you know the cave where David was right
the cave where David was and Actually, I was
okay. Let me just read through that place. There
was already a lot said in the scriptures about
the cave the things Particularly that happened
in that cave. There were not a lot of things
that were said about it praise the Lord so what
sometimes you can be tempted to begin to maybe
talk about it you know maybe David was there
and as he was there you know the Lord was ministering
to him he was there so many things like that
that was not said praise the Lord so it's important
that we pay attention to the things that he has
commanded us to say so Jesus was teaching from
a particular place he was he was teaching from
we said that the Bible that he had was from was
Genesis to Malachi this is what he taught This
is the explanation he was giving people. In Luke
chapter 24, we saw from verse 24 to 25 to 27,
and 44 to 45, where he was explaining the scriptures.
He was interpreting the scriptures containing
himself. So he took his time to explain to them
the things containing himself. So when he says
that he opened their understanding, he did that
by explanation. Praise the Lord. So how people
can understand is by explanation by you diligently
interpreting the scriptures and we said that
it's important that a believer know how to interpret
the scripture you should strive for it praise
the Lord so that you're not confused so that
when you see somebody confused you are able to
help them praise the Lord so that you do the
work of the Father you do the mandate of God
on the earth when you pay attention to learning
how to interpret and we said that the the church
it should be a place where or should be called
a bible school where the word is taught where
the word is prioritized right praise the lord
where there's not a lot of activities that is
being maybe put there to entertain people praise
the lord it's a place of training so we learn
how to behave or move around in the church and
so we also saw from the scriptures that in that
Luke chapter 24 that he talks about the prophet
he keeps talking about the prophet and we say
that one of the ways in which or one of the ways
in which the Old Testament was described is what
the book of prophets praise the Lord it is known
as the book of prophets it is a prophetic it
talks about prophetic scriptures in Romans is
a prophetic book so we now said if if the scripture
is talking about or we call it a prophetic book
it therefore means that we need to understand
who then is a prophet praise the lord because
if he's writing prophetic things then he should
be talking about or his content should be about
prophets so if the book is written by prophets
that means that the context of what he's saying
will be about the prophet so who is a prophet?
who is a prophet? So it's a Hebrew word that
is called Nabi, right? N -A -B -I. It means a
spokesperson for a divine being, right? Or somebody
who interprets words of a divine being or a date.
So a prophet is a spokesperson for a divine being.
So growing up, they had the experience to stay
in the village in the east of Nigeria. And before,
there used to be people that would always hit
the hitting... They come to deliver a message,
basically, right? And so they have a particular
type of a wooden drum that they hit. It's not
a drum, but it's made out of wood. Sometimes
they use the... I don't know the English word
for that. But they use it to... They just hit
it, and the more they hit it, what we used to
do is to tell you how this was 2004, right? It
was still happening like that. So they would
hit it, hit it, hit it, and it goes from one
village to the other village, and from every
street, and it just hits it, hits it, hits it.
People just, whatever you do, you just drop.
This is how they pass messages, right? They would
just keep hitting it, keep hitting it, everybody
would keep quiet. that you know the rhythm, when
it stops, then you're not here for what he will
say, right? Tomorrow, there is a meeting in so
-so -and -so place, these people are supposed
to come, that people are supposed to come, that's
how they pass messages. There was no, oh, let
me text this person, let me, do you understand?
It was not far, it was not far, it was not far,
right? Out to you, we started to use phones and
all of those things, right? So, idzi. A prophet
is somebody who speaks. or a spokesperson for
a divine being who interprets the words of a
divine being a deity so on who hears supernaturally
and communicates it naturally praise the lord
somebody who hears supernaturally and communicates
it naturally right so a messenger of supernatural
information if you like an agent praise the lord
so he's somebody who is sent to pass a message
to deliver a message. So which means that the
context of the scriptures is to see that the
scriptures is a conveyor of supernatural information.
The scripture conveys supernatural information.
So if a prophet is somebody who speaks for a
divine being, it therefore means that the scripture
conveys supernatural information. praise the
Lord the prophet conveys the message of the supernatural
job chapter 15 job chapter 15 deal on that prophet
job chapter 15 from a seven to eight he says
are you the first man who was born or were you
made before the hills have you heard the council
of god do you limit wisdom to yourself Praise
the Lord. Have you heard the counsel of God?
So we see Job's friend, Elphas, asking him a
question. So we see also that he described more
like the first man. He says that the first man
is the man that heard the counsel of God. So
we see he's asking his friend, but he's also
saying that the first man is a man that He had
the council of God, right? That council there,
some other scriptures would put it as the secret
of God, right? So that word council in the Hebrew
is the word sod, S -O -D, right? Which means
to be in an assembly. That word council in verse
eight is that have you heard the council of God?
It's the word sod, right? Which means to be in
an assembly. the council of God. He said, have
you heard in the assembly of God or in the fellowship
of God? So we said that the book or the Bible
is known as the book of the prophets, right?
So prophets are special people. They are special
people. But we see that the friend of Job is
saying that the first man we should be the modern
man is someone who had heard in the council of
God or the assembly of God. Genesis chapter 49
verse 6 Genesis chapter 49 verse 6 it said let
not my soul enter thy council let not my honor
be united to the assembly for in thy anger thou
slew a man in thy self will thou hamstoon an
ox hamstrong an ox so is that word the assembly
we see there again so it means a special information
within the assembly, a supernatural assembly.
So Elphaz is saying, we know that the first man
had from the assembly of God. Job 29 verse 4.
Let's look at those places where this word again
shows up. Job 29 verse 4. Just as I was in the
days of my prime, when the friendly counsel of
God was over my fence. So we see that word again,
council. Psalms 55 verse 14. Psalms 55 verse
14. We took three councils together and walked
to the house of the Lord in the throne. Praise
the Lord. We see that place again. So that word
throne there is the word company, right? It's
usually talking about assembly. Psalms 89 verse
4, verse 7. Psalms 89 verse 7 God is greatly
to be feared in the assembly of the saints and
to be held in reverence by all those around him.
So we see that word again there Jeremiah chapter
6 verse 11 Therefore I am full of the fury of
the Lord and weary of holding it in I'll pour
it out on the children outside on the assembly
of young men together for even the husband shall
be taken with the wife and the aged, and the
aged with him who is full of days." So we see
that word again, assembly, there. So what do
we know about the first man? So in Genesis chapter,
where we read chapter 2 and chapter 3, right,
speaking of Adam, right, so we have, we have
a picture of God's will and plan for man. So
when you read Genesis chapter 2, and also Chapter
3, we see God's will and plan for the first man.
So the first thing that we see is that the Garden
of Eden is God's dwelling. The Garden of Eden
is God's dwelling. Man was brought there, which
means that man or mankind find their purpose
in God's dwelling. The first thing that we see
is that the Garden of Eden is God's home. and
it's all his dwelling, right? Man was brought
in there, right? Which means that man or mankind
find his popples in God's dwelling place. So
man starts to live only when he starts functioning
in God's popples or, sorry, he starts functioning
in God's presence or God's dwelling place. Man
starts to live, praise the Lord, man starts to
live when he starts to function in God's presence
or God's dwelling place. The second thing that
we see, Genesis 2 verse 15, he said then the
Lord took the man and put him in the garden of
Eden to tend it and to keep it, to tend and keep
it. So we see God's purpose for man, he says
that man put him there to tend and to keep it,
that he put him there to dress some other scriptures,
we say to dress and to keep it. So if we keep
reading from Genesis to Exodus, we also see how
Moses, when he was building the tabernacle, what
he gave the priest to do. We see what Moses gave
the priest, what their responsibility was to
do. And part of their responsibility was what
he said for them to dress it. We're going to
see a scripture that talks about that. For them
to dress it. The priest, we have to keep the
tabernacle. the priests were to keep the tabernacle.
So the word, that word, keep it, sorry, that
word, to keep it or to dress it, right, is a
word, adad, right, A -D, sorry, A -B, A -D, right,
we see here is the word to dress it. So man's
purpose was to keep, man's purpose was to be
in God's presence. right or keeper of God's dwelling
place praise the Lord man's purpose was what
to be in God's presence or keeper of God's dwelling
place that is that man has become God has given
man has become it's more like he's supposed to
he's a trustee so God has given him something
to do to keep it to dress it so a minister of
God's dwelling place is to be a minister or a
minister of God's dwelling place if you like
so Adam we can say was a priest because God gave
him something to do and we also saw that Moses
did the same when the priest or the instruction
he gave the priest so Adam was a priest that
is Adam and Eve that is mankind was a priest
so mankind is made to be a priest right to officiate
to minister in God's presence. Mankind is made
to be a priest, to officiate, to be in God's
presence. So let's go back to Job chapter 15.
Job chapter 15. Job chapter 15, verse 7. He said,
Are you the first man who was born? Or were you
made before the hills? Have you heard the counsel
of God? Do you limit wisdom? to yourself so the
council of god right that is to hear from god
and interpret it praise the lord to hear from
god and interpret it that is what god's purpose
for mankind was was to be a priest right to be
a prophet to hear and interpret so you can say
that man's purpose or god's purpose for you is
to be his temple we see that in the new testament
to be his temple to be in his temple what we
are meant to do there is to be what to be priest
right and to be prophet and to be his servant
or as the scriptures will say servant king so
god's purpose for you is to be his temple to
be in his temple and what we are supposed to
do there is to be his priest his prophet and
his servants. So your purpose in life is tied
to God's dwelling place. So your purpose in life
is tied to God's dwelling place. That is God's
plan for everyone. Praise the Lord. That is God's
plan for our life. So if you are looking for
purpose, I don't hear that word these days, I
don't know why, right? About two, three years
ago, Everybody is talking about what is your
purpose? What is your purpose? What is your purpose?
There are seminars about purpose. There are so
many things. Praise the Lord. And see it, people
still are looking for, or they still, from all
of those things, don't still find purpose. Or
even if they find, they will change their mind
after some years. Praise the Lord. They will
find new purpose. So, a purpose that does not
change. God's purpose for your life does not
change. is that you should be his priest and
his prophet on the earth to be a spokesperson
to be somebody who will hear and interpret praise
the lord to be somebody who will hear and interpret
so it therefore means that we ought to take the
ministry or the office or the purpose that god
has given us very seriously praise the lord is
to take the purpose that God has given us very
seriously. And how do we do that? We do that
by sitting down, being discipled, and disciple
others. In doing that, we are able to achieve,
or we are able to live in the purpose of God,
to hear from God, and to interpret it, to see
what God is saying every season. As I've said
earlier, a lot of us, almost everybody is in
Cyprus and they are moving. At some point, they
would move to a different location. At some point,
they would move to a different location. It's
not to make the excuse that you were not taught.
Don't make the excuse that you were not equipped.
Don't make the mistake that you are not equipped.
they are not equipped. Because if you see what
is happening around us, whether it be in the
church, whether you're online and you see people
teaching and you see people saying some things,
you know that what this person is saying is not
sound. Praise the Lord. So for you to identify
that which is not sound, it means that you have
been trained. Praise the Lord. It means that
you are in a position where you also can be a
good teacher of the world praise the Lord where
you can be a good teacher of the world so it's
not to it's not to go and say okay the things
that happened to me in Cyprus where the four
years was it's just four years I just went there
to school and I finished and you know let's just
continue let's just continue what we are hearing
before praise the Lord is to be a priest of God
on the earth so we see also see that in, I think
it was in John, in John chapter 17, we see the
prayers of Jesus for all believers. John chapter
17 verse 20. He says, I do not pray for these
alone, but also those who would believe in me
through their words, that they all may be one
as you, Father, and in me, and I in you, and
that They also may be one in us that the world
may believe that you sent me praise the Lord
So Jesus is saying he's making a prayer, right?
And he says what I pray for this but for those
who will believe He's saying that so the prayer
he's praying is for not just his disciples Right,
but the people that will believe later on but
then he's not praying for those people to believe
to believe He's saying that they will believe
because of what? because these ones here are
going to do something. Praise the Lord. These
ones here, these ones that are listening to him
here, these ones that are listening here are
going to do, he said they are going to believe
what, through what their words. They are going
to believe in him through what their words. So
Jesus is sure that his disciples are going to
carry on the mandate. Praise the Lord. He is
very sure that these people are, so he's saying
that they may be one. Praise the Lord. That they
may be united that they may be in unity but he
knows that his disciples are going to do the
work in which he has sent them to do praise the
lord his disciples are going to do the same thing
that he has instructed them to do so god is trusting
and god knows that you are the person who is
also supposed to what to continue to teach the
word another person man was talking about evangelism
and he was saying that sometimes the reason why
we don't evangelism is because there is anxiety
there is fear there is what would a person say
if they ask me this question it's usually us
just limiting ourselves right we are afraid of
something praise the lord but if only you know
how equipped you are if only you know how equipped
you are if only you can see how God has said
that the things that you have is sufficient enough.
The teaching that you have received is sufficient
enough for you to go about your day and in your
busyness, in the schedules that you have, to
still see someone and say, oh, let me speak to
this person about Christ. Praise the Lord. Let
me speak to this person about Christ. Let me
explain the scriptures to somebody. If only you
allow yourself to see how equipped God has equipped
you. How God has enabled you. Not just through
the power of the Holy Spirit, but through the
discipleship that you have received. Through
the instructions that you have received. Through
the learning and the teaching that you have gone
through. Praise the Lord. So he prays and is
assured that the people will believe because
of the words that these people are going to speak.
So God believes that People are going to be transformed
by the word that you are saying to them. So why
are you anxious? Praise the Lord. Why are you
anxious about it? Why are you thinking too much
about it? So today we're going to pray. We're
going to pray for everything that we have heard
throughout this whole teaching about what makes
the Christian gathering a supernatural one. We're
going to pray that God would enable us God will
give us boldness. God will give us strength.
God would also increase this church. Praise the
Lord. God will also increase this church. Even
as Jesus was praying, he prayed for those who
will believe. So what you're praying also, you're
also praying for those who will also, in 10 years,
in 20 years, be sitting where you are or in a
better place in this camp. Praise the Lord. You're
also praying that the world that they will be
hearing will not be the watered -down world praise
the Lord that they would continue to hear the
sound doctrine of Christ that any CF will continue
whether the lead pastor is currently around or
is not around whether the people that started
the walk were around or not around that the church
will continue to grow right also for your life
that you will continue to grow I said something
within the week that God expects us to carry
out this mandate Praise the Lord. That the people
around us, that are families, that are friends,
will hear the gospel through us. That the busyness
of life, somebody said, I saw something online,
it was like, you think that maybe like school
is, when you're in school, you think it's stressful.
You say wait until you graduate, then maybe you
find out what stress is about, or, praise the
Lord. So, that's why some people... My desire
is that they want to continue school. Praise
the Lord. That the business of life will not
make you, you know sometimes your responsibilities
will increase. You have children, you have things
to take care of, you have parents that are maybe
growing old and they need attention and time
and resources and everything. And you're just
thinking about many things that you forget to
preach the gospel. That you just, you know what?
We used to do that. Praise the Lord. So I just
want us to rise up on our feet. We appreciate
you being here today. We hope you carry this
word with you throughout your week. Don't forget
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Until next time, stay blessed.