1 00:00:01,160 --> 00:00:05,080 We are one church. We love God, love people, love 2 00:00:05,080 --> 00:00:06,960 His mission, and love His church. 3 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:09,520 Welcome to the One Church podcast. 4 00:00:15,760 --> 00:00:20,040 I have the privilege of being part of this celebration with 5 00:00:20,080 --> 00:00:22,440 you. I'm not going to talk about all 6 00:00:22,440 --> 00:00:24,480 the nations that are gathered in this place. 7 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:30,440 I'm just going to talk about the dynamic of one particular, one 8 00:00:30,440 --> 00:00:34,280 particular space, one particular nation if you like, one 9 00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:37,040 particular Kingdom if you haven't. 10 00:00:37,360 --> 00:00:41,600 The one and only Kingdom that actually surpasses any other 11 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:44,240 Kingdom you could ever think of, any other Kingdom you could ever 12 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:46,640 imagine. Now, the thing about kingdoms is 13 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:48,800 this. Kingdoms are very particular 14 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:51,800 about the appearance of those who reign. 15 00:00:52,560 --> 00:00:55,640 They're very particular about everything that the way you 16 00:00:55,640 --> 00:00:59,280 look, whether it's physically or even how you dress. 17 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:04,519 But the most important thing when it comes to any Kingdom is 18 00:01:04,519 --> 00:01:10,520 the size, the visibility, the dynamism, the magnitude of the 19 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:14,840 crowns. And this morning I want to talk 20 00:01:14,840 --> 00:01:22,280 to you about the kind of crowns that await each and every one of 21 00:01:22,320 --> 00:01:26,880 us on this journey of walking with the Lord. 22 00:01:27,280 --> 00:01:29,480 I want you to turn, just turn to the person next to you and say, 23 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:32,000 man, your head will look good with a crown on it. 24 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:39,760 Just just just just take your listen, I know some of your, 25 00:01:40,160 --> 00:01:42,640 some of your national dress is incomplete. 26 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:46,080 If he doesn't have a head covering or a, some kind of a 27 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:50,440 crown on it, just look to the other person and tell him, I'm 28 00:01:50,440 --> 00:01:53,960 not sure if your head is going to look good in the crown. 29 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:55,200 I dare you. Go on, do it. 30 00:01:56,040 --> 00:02:00,400 Do it. But listen, it's a joy. 31 00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:04,480 It's a joy to be here with you. This has been a long time 32 00:02:04,480 --> 00:02:07,000 coming. We've been talking for quite a 33 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:09,880 while with Pastor David and Pastor Susan to try and make 34 00:02:09,880 --> 00:02:11,520 this happen. And I'm so glad. 35 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,440 I am so glad we've been able to do so. 36 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:17,240 For some of you who don't know me, my name is Mishek and I, I'm 37 00:02:17,240 --> 00:02:19,960 part of the Assemblies of God national leadership team with 38 00:02:19,960 --> 00:02:23,840 the primary responsibility to look after church planting. 39 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:27,600 And, and I love being in this house because you guys don't 40 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:29,800 mess around when it comes to church planting. 41 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:34,800 You guys are moving at a rapid pace of seeing communities 42 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:40,280 reached, churches planted, lives transformed, and we praise God 43 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:44,160 for everything that he is doing in and through you. 44 00:02:44,160 --> 00:02:47,160 You might be pleased to know that since we started really 45 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:50,800 driving forward with church planting as Assemblies of God in 46 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:56,560 this country in 2022, we've actually already seen 129 47 00:02:56,560 --> 00:02:59,200 churches planted across our nation. 48 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:03,920 And I believe that deserves the highest praise being given to 49 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:06,240 the King of Kings and to the Lord of Lords. 50 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:09,680 And you as the House have made significant contribution to 51 00:03:09,680 --> 00:03:12,000 that. You are part of a church 52 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:14,840 planting house. And what an honour and what a 53 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:17,920 privilege. So I'm not just me on my own. 54 00:03:17,920 --> 00:03:19,880 I'm not a single guy, by the way, sorry. 55 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,280 I am married to an amazing woman called Charlene. 56 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:28,120 I listen, if you ever I know, I know. 57 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:32,360 If you ever doubted that I'm a man of faith, just look at the 58 00:03:32,360 --> 00:03:36,240 bride that the Lord gave to me. I know I'm punching above my 59 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:38,320 weight, but hey, listen, that's what faith does. 60 00:03:39,320 --> 00:03:42,400 Faith gives you the things that you know you don't deserve and 61 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:44,160 he's like, it makes it happen for you. 62 00:03:44,960 --> 00:03:47,000 But I don't know about you, but when I got married to this 63 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:51,000 beautiful woman, we were unfortunately given the most 64 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:54,480 devastating news we could ever expect as a young couple. 65 00:03:54,480 --> 00:03:57,760 We're married, we're excited about the adventure ahead, but 66 00:03:57,760 --> 00:04:00,480 actually at that time we received the most devastating 67 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:02,440 news. We lived in a place called 68 00:04:02,440 --> 00:04:05,800 Devon, which is beautiful, absolutely beautiful, part of 69 00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:07,880 this nation. And whilst we were there, we 70 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:09,720 were told that we couldn't have any children. 71 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:13,640 So now we're in this place where you, you, you are expectant, you 72 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:16,480 are excited. There is all this adventure 73 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:20,399 ahead of you and you are hit with the most devastating news. 74 00:04:20,399 --> 00:04:23,640 Have you ever had that? Just when you thought I am in a 75 00:04:23,640 --> 00:04:27,360 good stretch of my life, there is everything seems to be going 76 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:30,760 well and and I'm really looking forward to what's ahead. 77 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:34,760 And in that moment you get hit with the most devastating news. 78 00:04:34,920 --> 00:04:37,720 For us, it was the news that we couldn't have children and we 79 00:04:37,720 --> 00:04:41,200 went to this little hospital called Torbay Hospital in Devon. 80 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:44,600 And as we were sat in this room, there was a panel of three 81 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:47,880 doctors, there was a consultant, our GP and then of course a 82 00:04:47,880 --> 00:04:50,960 junior doctor on that panel. And they gave us this news and 83 00:04:50,960 --> 00:04:55,200 said, look, you need to come back in seven days time for us 84 00:04:55,200 --> 00:04:57,920 to do the surgery because your wife will be better off 85 00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:01,160 medically without her womb in place. 86 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:04,240 We, we, this wasn't part of the plan. 87 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:08,840 What do you do when life deals you a card? 88 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:15,000 That was not part of the plan. Here's the tip, keep going 89 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:19,360 anyway. You got to keep going anyway. 90 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:24,040 Seven days came. That was the longest 7 days of 91 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:28,080 our life. And walking back into Torbay 92 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:31,760 Hospital with my pride in my hand. 93 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:35,680 And as we walked through to this little meeting room again and we 94 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:39,520 saw the same panel of doctors and they said, look, since you 95 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:43,120 are the next of kin, we need you to sign some waiver forms before 96 00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:45,080 your bride, your wife goes into surgery. 97 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:49,320 And just as I was about to sign these forms with tears in my 98 00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:55,280 eyes and with my wife broken, I felt the Holy Spirit clearly 99 00:05:55,280 --> 00:05:58,920 said to me, stop, don't sign anything. 100 00:06:00,120 --> 00:06:03,920 Put the pen down. And the moment I did that, the 101 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:10,040 room changed, the atmosphere in the room changed. 102 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:15,360 And what so happened was that most junior doctor on that panel 103 00:06:15,880 --> 00:06:20,600 just jumped up and said, hey, I know seven days ago we did a 104 00:06:20,600 --> 00:06:25,040 full scan on Charlene's womb and we've already marked out all the 105 00:06:25,040 --> 00:06:27,400 areas we're going to cut to remove her womb. 106 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:30,400 And we know the condition and everything else that's there. 107 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:36,360 But but just would, would it be OK if we just did one more 108 00:06:36,360 --> 00:06:39,800 pregnancy tests before she goes into surgery? 109 00:06:43,280 --> 00:06:52,200 This is the breaking of protocol at a catastrophic level. 110 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:58,960 In that moment, you've got the consultant visibly irritated, 111 00:07:00,480 --> 00:07:04,760 looking at this junior doctor and saying to her, can you not 112 00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:09,520 see the heartbreak that's already on this young man and 113 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:13,800 this young woman and you want to put them through it again? 114 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:17,520 But she persisted. And I knew in that moment, 115 00:07:18,440 --> 00:07:22,320 something is happening here, this is not normal. 116 00:07:22,680 --> 00:07:26,560 I am going to sit back and watch how this whole thing is going to 117 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:28,120 unfold. And they kept going back and 118 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:30,000 forth until the consultant said, OK, fine. 119 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:33,960 When you go, when you take her out to prepare for surgery, get 120 00:07:33,960 --> 00:07:36,400 the pregnancy test done, get over and done. 121 00:07:36,400 --> 00:07:38,280 At that point, he's visibly irritated. 122 00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:41,680 Within moments that the junior doctor walks back into the room 123 00:07:42,040 --> 00:07:44,960 and she pops her head back and then signals to the consultant 124 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:48,800 to come out of the room. Now listen, if you know anything 125 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:53,120 about medical hierarchy, you know, you know that if you're 126 00:07:53,120 --> 00:07:57,520 the most junior doctor on a panel, you just don't speak 127 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:03,240 unless you've been spoken to. But she broke all protocol. 128 00:08:05,400 --> 00:08:11,000 Listen, you serve a God who is going to break all protocol for 129 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:16,080 your sake. He, he listen, he, he will break 130 00:08:16,160 --> 00:08:21,480 all protocol for your sake. And here's the problem, some of 131 00:08:21,480 --> 00:08:24,320 us, you know, all these good Christians that we are, we are 132 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:28,400 probably one of the people who end up emphasising the protocol 133 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:31,400 even to the point where we say to God, God, you got to observe 134 00:08:31,400 --> 00:08:33,360 the protocol. Just just stand to one side. 135 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:37,120 And God says, if only you could let me, I am ready to break all 136 00:08:37,120 --> 00:08:41,320 protocol for your sake. Within moments, the consultant 137 00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:43,679 came back in the room and looked at me in the eye and said, Sir, 138 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:47,560 I can't quite explain anything to you right now, but all I know 139 00:08:47,560 --> 00:08:50,840 is you won't need this paperwork anymore because somehow your 140 00:08:50,840 --> 00:08:58,440 wife is pregnant. Somehow your wife is pregnant. 141 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:02,760 So what we actually need to do now, Sir, instead of taking her 142 00:09:02,760 --> 00:09:06,440 out into surgery, we have got to go back into the ultrasound room 143 00:09:06,640 --> 00:09:08,560 and then we need to take another look again. 144 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:11,960 And when we went back into this ultrasound room and my wife is 145 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:14,880 laid on this bed and they put the ultrasound on my wife's 146 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:16,880 woman, within seconds we could see the baby. 147 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:19,320 Everybody's looking at each other in the room thinking what 148 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:21,320 is going on? Is this a faulty machine? 149 00:09:21,480 --> 00:09:22,920 Let's get a different machine in. 150 00:09:23,080 --> 00:09:25,280 And then they put another ultrasound on my wife's woman. 151 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:28,840 Yet again there is the baby. What do you do when seven days 152 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:30,400 prior there is nothing in the womb? 153 00:09:30,400 --> 00:09:33,080 And then when you come back seven days later, there is a 154 00:09:33,080 --> 00:09:35,400 baby in the womb. What do you do with the 155 00:09:35,400 --> 00:09:39,000 circumstances that don't look anything like what you prepared 156 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:42,440 for? This is the God who breaks all 157 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:50,160 protocol for your sake. And they said we need to find 158 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:51,400 out. We need to measure and find out 159 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:54,560 how far gone she is now, 7 days prior there is nothing in the 160 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:57,400 womb. And as they measured her, she 161 00:09:57,400 --> 00:10:00,840 was now measuring at 7 weeks pregnant. 162 00:10:15,560 --> 00:10:21,960 Seven weeks pregnant. When the Bible talks about a God 163 00:10:22,040 --> 00:10:27,480 who is outside of time, I want to prophecy to some people. 164 00:10:28,360 --> 00:10:30,440 Because in this room there's some of you. 165 00:10:31,200 --> 00:10:33,360 I don't know if you've noticed this, but every time you're 166 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:35,600 about to believe God for something, there is one 167 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:38,200 particular voice that tends to rise up the most. 168 00:10:38,400 --> 00:10:41,880 It's the voice of time. Well, how dare you still expect 169 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:44,280 this? It's been five years already and 170 00:10:44,280 --> 00:10:46,960 nothing has happened. How dare you still plan and 171 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:49,160 expect for this? It's been already 10 years. 172 00:10:49,360 --> 00:10:51,640 Have you? Have you got any sense? 173 00:10:52,240 --> 00:10:59,040 It's the voice of time trying to suppress the voice of the 1 174 00:10:59,680 --> 00:11:07,000 outside of time. And I want to say this to you. 175 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:13,080 I want to say this to you as this news came and the medical 176 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:14,920 professionals are looking at each other. 177 00:11:15,040 --> 00:11:18,840 You know how they have a way of having a full conversation 178 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:21,520 without moving their mouths and they're just looking at each 179 00:11:21,520 --> 00:11:23,560 other and they're just literally having a conversation. 180 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,440 And that's exactly what was happening in the room until they 181 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:31,440 decided, OK, you know what, this is nothing but a miracle. 182 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:38,880 And here's the prophetic word. I want to live in this house. 183 00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,600 And I thought the Lord had said to me, I need to deposit this 184 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:47,040 prophetic word into this house. This is now the era of breaking 185 00:11:47,080 --> 00:11:51,720 all protocols for the sake of what is about to come through 186 00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:55,640 one church, what others may think would take 10 years to 187 00:11:55,640 --> 00:11:58,280 achieve. God says I'm going to break all 188 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:02,560 protocol for the sake of what He has deposited in your heart. 189 00:12:03,080 --> 00:12:08,640 Even any amount of money cannot stand in the way of what God 190 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:10,240 wants to do in and through this house. 191 00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:13,360 And he says I am breaking all protocol when it comes to 192 00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:16,880 financial policies. When it comes to financial 193 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:20,560 raising, he says I will do things my way. 194 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:29,040 Oh Lord, help us. I'm going to behave. 195 00:12:29,040 --> 00:12:31,600 I promise I'm going to. I'm going to stop behaving. 196 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:38,680 So not only do we have one miracle, not only do we have two 197 00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:44,280 miracles, not only do we have 3 miracles, but by God's grace we 198 00:12:44,280 --> 00:12:52,560 have 4 amazing miracles. Somebody give Jesus the highest 199 00:12:53,440 --> 00:13:07,070 praise. I don't know why we we think our 200 00:13:07,070 --> 00:13:10,150 lives have got to be neatly packaged. 201 00:13:10,630 --> 00:13:15,830 The dynamism of being a follower of Jesus Christ is the idea that 202 00:13:15,830 --> 00:13:20,080 you go through circumstances that are so dire and dreadful 203 00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:22,960 and painful, but you will not look like what you've been 204 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:27,040 through. Why? 205 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:30,240 Because people will then ask the question, how? 206 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:34,360 How are you still the way you are? 207 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:36,680 We know what you have just been through. 208 00:13:36,920 --> 00:13:39,200 We know what you are currently going through. 209 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:42,440 How? How are you still the way that 210 00:13:42,440 --> 00:13:44,880 you are right now? In one church gets the privilege 211 00:13:44,880 --> 00:13:52,680 to say, I know a guy, I know a man, I know a king. 212 00:13:53,840 --> 00:14:04,240 His name, he's Jesus. And so today they're beautiful 213 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:06,600 people. Listen, that little one with the 214 00:14:06,640 --> 00:14:12,160 pink top, that's my boss. She's the one who signed my 215 00:14:12,160 --> 00:14:15,920 permission slip to come here and say, yeah, daddy, you can go, 216 00:14:15,920 --> 00:14:19,560 but you make sure you come back before bedtime because you need 217 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:21,880 to tuck me in and give me a kiss before I go to bed. 218 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,200 The Lord said to me today, I need to talk to you about what 219 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:31,240 is to come. We talk a lot about all the 220 00:14:31,240 --> 00:14:35,160 situations we have in our time now, but we need to talk about 221 00:14:35,160 --> 00:14:37,480 what is to come. And he says, I want you to go 222 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:45,200 and talk to them about the crowns that await them, crowns 223 00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:49,240 that await us as believers, and we're going to get into some 224 00:14:49,240 --> 00:14:50,040 Scripture. Are you ready? 225 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:56,080 Second Corinthians chapter 4, verse 16 to verse 17, I'll read. 226 00:14:56,520 --> 00:14:59,560 Therefore, we do not lose heart in spite of what we might be 227 00:14:59,560 --> 00:15:03,320 faced with, though outwardly we are wasting away. 228 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:06,480 Life is happening. Things are going on in your 229 00:15:06,480 --> 00:15:07,520 life. In my life. 230 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:13,200 We do not worry about it because inwardly we are being renewed 231 00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:16,160 day by day. And then watch what he says in 232 00:15:16,160 --> 00:15:20,280 verse 17 about all of the troubles of our lives. 233 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:25,000 Listen to the language it uses says this for our light and 234 00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:28,680 momentary troubles. I want you to think about the 235 00:15:28,680 --> 00:15:33,360 most devastating situation that is happening in your world right 236 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:38,360 now. The Bible says it's light and 237 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:47,000 momentary in the context of what is to come, in the context of 238 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:53,440 what's ahead of us. This is light and momentary. 239 00:15:54,760 --> 00:15:59,040 Imagine what that does to you. To know that the situation that 240 00:15:59,040 --> 00:16:02,160 you thought was going to destroy you, was going to take your 241 00:16:02,160 --> 00:16:05,880 life, was going to completely ruin everything the Bible says. 242 00:16:05,880 --> 00:16:09,320 If you look at it in the fullness of context, it is only 243 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:18,400 but light and momentary because for what's ahead of us, there is 244 00:16:18,440 --> 00:16:22,240 more to come. Listen to what he says next. 245 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:26,720 He says this it is only about light and momentary trouble. 246 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:32,920 And they have a job to achieve for us, an eternal glory that 247 00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:37,480 far outweighs them. All the troubles of this world 248 00:16:37,480 --> 00:16:44,800 have a job description. The troubles of this world have 249 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:52,840 a job description to achieve for us, not for them, for they are 250 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:57,960 doing something for us. When God brings a message like 251 00:16:57,960 --> 00:17:05,000 this, it's like he's now raising up the SAS of church where men 252 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:09,200 and women can be subjected to all kinds of stuff that will 253 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:13,119 happen, but they will still get up and keep going because they 254 00:17:13,119 --> 00:17:16,400 recognise that every circumstance that may happen, 255 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:24,000 God is going to take that and use it because there is a crown. 256 00:17:26,720 --> 00:17:31,240 I wish, I wish the way the crowns came was just me through 257 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:33,680 me sitting down and just relaxing and just turning up to 258 00:17:33,680 --> 00:17:35,840 church and doing what I'm what I love to do. 259 00:17:36,120 --> 00:17:38,080 But unfortunately that's not how it works. 260 00:17:38,360 --> 00:17:42,320 The the, the, the forming of this crowns is through our 261 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:46,760 resilience and our persistence in spite of what we are going 262 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:53,120 through. I recently suddenly lost my 263 00:17:53,120 --> 00:17:57,000 mother-in-law and the first thing that came into my mind was 264 00:17:58,200 --> 00:18:01,480 what do we do? There's so much to get on with 265 00:18:01,480 --> 00:18:03,880 this. We've literally my, my wife is 266 00:18:03,880 --> 00:18:07,720 broken. And it made perfect sense to 267 00:18:07,720 --> 00:18:10,920 phone your pastors and say, guys, I'm so sorry. 268 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:13,640 I can't come. I, I can't be with you. 269 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:20,720 So when I'm talking to you about the, the, the whole thing of 270 00:18:20,720 --> 00:18:25,880 going through the pains of this life and you still keep an eye 271 00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:29,320 on the crown, I am not talking about theory. 272 00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:36,840 This is not theory because the forming of the crown comes 273 00:18:36,840 --> 00:18:42,640 through pressure, it comes through heat, it comes through 274 00:18:42,760 --> 00:18:46,720 circumstances. And when you and I recognise 275 00:18:46,720 --> 00:18:52,200 that in the context of where we are going, this is light and 276 00:18:52,240 --> 00:18:54,400 momentary, we will rise up again. 277 00:18:56,080 --> 00:19:00,320 We get up again and we keep going. 278 00:19:02,400 --> 00:19:05,120 And I post the post. He talks about this in Second 279 00:19:05,120 --> 00:19:08,200 Timothy chapter 4. And he says, guys, speaking to 280 00:19:08,200 --> 00:19:12,680 Timothy, he's like, hey, listen son, I am already being poured 281 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:15,040 out like a drink offering. Wow, what a description. 282 00:19:15,800 --> 00:19:20,960 My life is being poured out like a drink offering and the time of 283 00:19:20,960 --> 00:19:27,000 my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, he 284 00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:31,680 says. I have confidently knows I've 285 00:19:31,680 --> 00:19:35,600 been through some stuff, I've been through some stuff. 286 00:19:36,120 --> 00:19:41,480 I have fought the good fight and he says I have finished the race 287 00:19:41,720 --> 00:19:45,680 and not only just that I have kept, have kept the faith 288 00:19:46,040 --> 00:19:49,240 because it's all thank you, Holy Spirit, He says this, it's not 289 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:55,240 just about finishing the race, but can you keep the faith when 290 00:19:55,240 --> 00:19:57,880 you're under attack all the way through? 291 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:02,840 That's important. That is so important keeping. 292 00:20:03,480 --> 00:20:05,920 The faith and then he goes on to say, but now that I've done all 293 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:09,400 these four non negotiable things for every believer and follower 294 00:20:09,400 --> 00:20:11,760 of Jesus Christ, guess what is in store for me? 295 00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:15,640 Says there is a crown of righteousness. 296 00:20:16,680 --> 00:20:18,400 That's just the first crown. We're going to go to another 297 00:20:18,400 --> 00:20:19,000 crown. Are you ready? 298 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:21,160 Oh, you thought there was just one crown. 299 00:20:21,160 --> 00:20:23,840 No, no, no, there's more crowns. There is more crowns. 300 00:20:24,440 --> 00:20:29,040 Second crown, Are you ready? The crown of life, James, 301 00:20:29,040 --> 00:20:32,040 chapter one. This crown is for those of us 302 00:20:32,040 --> 00:20:36,840 who endure trials and remain faithful unto death. 303 00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:43,520 Wow, Pastor Meshech, no, it's not me, it's the Bible. 304 00:20:45,440 --> 00:20:51,320 There is a crown for enduring. Nobody says enjoy trials. 305 00:20:52,040 --> 00:20:55,240 That's a lie. You cannot enjoy the trials of 306 00:20:55,240 --> 00:21:00,080 this world, he says. For those who ensure the Bible 307 00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:03,400 is not trying to falsely encourage you and say, hey, it's 308 00:21:03,400 --> 00:21:05,560 enjoyable, it's fun. It's not, he says. 309 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:12,600 But if you can endure the trials and tribulations of this world 310 00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:22,240 unto death, there is a crown called the Crown of life. 311 00:21:23,000 --> 00:21:24,440 And it's not just that one Scripture. 312 00:21:24,720 --> 00:21:28,800 It goes even further Revelation chapter 2, verse 10 and it says 313 00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:32,880 this do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. 314 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:37,120 Whoa, what again, not what you're about to enjoy. 315 00:21:37,480 --> 00:21:40,360 There is there are challenges. He says, no, this is real. 316 00:21:40,360 --> 00:21:42,560 I'm not going to lie to you. It's going to be there. 317 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:45,680 I tell you the devil will put some of you in prison to test 318 00:21:45,680 --> 00:21:48,640 you and you will suffer persecution for 10 days. 319 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:54,400 But be it's like, I'm not going to lie to you and tell you we're 320 00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:57,640 going to find a way to negotiate the stuff away, he says. 321 00:21:57,640 --> 00:22:01,200 No, no, in other it actually feels like it's sidelining the 322 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:05,640 trials and the pain and the focus and emphasis is on 323 00:22:06,200 --> 00:22:13,080 faithfulness. I wish, I wish, I wish it 324 00:22:13,120 --> 00:22:16,960 emphasised the the weightiness of what I'm going through, the 325 00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:18,760 weightiness of what you're going through. 326 00:22:19,040 --> 00:22:21,360 But the Bible doesn't even emphasise that he says this. 327 00:22:22,320 --> 00:22:27,960 I, I want you to to focus on your faithfulness. 328 00:22:29,480 --> 00:22:34,040 This is heavy. This is challenging, but 329 00:22:34,040 --> 00:22:37,560 actually when the Lord begins to speak to His people in this way, 330 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:42,240 it must give you an indication that maybe the rules of 331 00:22:42,240 --> 00:22:48,120 engagement have changed. The nation we're living in, even 332 00:22:48,120 --> 00:22:51,840 the nations of the world, the rules of engagement have 333 00:22:51,840 --> 00:22:56,360 changed, especially for those who follow Jesus Christ. 334 00:22:57,200 --> 00:22:58,680 This is why we got to talk about this. 335 00:22:59,360 --> 00:23:02,160 But watch what he says. Then he goes on to say, even 336 00:23:02,160 --> 00:23:05,800 with that, be faithful even to the point of death, and I will 337 00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:09,960 give you life as your victor's crown. 338 00:23:11,760 --> 00:23:15,800 You're not doing this for nothing since there is a crown, 339 00:23:17,960 --> 00:23:19,680 a victus crown. Why? 340 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:22,160 Why are crowns important? Pastor me say you keep talking 341 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:24,720 about these crowns. Who cares why? 342 00:23:25,040 --> 00:23:28,120 Why is this important? OK, I'll explain to you why 343 00:23:28,120 --> 00:23:30,480 that's important for where we're going. 344 00:23:31,560 --> 00:23:35,520 Crowns are crucial. They play an integral part in 345 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:38,480 doing one of the most important things that we will get to do 346 00:23:39,360 --> 00:23:43,800 when it comes to giving the greatest act of worship before 347 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:46,520 the Lord. The first thing we will be hit 348 00:23:46,520 --> 00:23:50,720 with is the magnificence of who God is. 349 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:56,520 And when that hits you, you will not be able to remain standing 350 00:23:56,560 --> 00:24:00,200 on your feet. You will crumble down to your 351 00:24:00,200 --> 00:24:04,120 knees in adoration. And as you fall on your knees, 352 00:24:04,120 --> 00:24:08,600 the only thing you can do is to cast your crown. 353 00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:15,520 This is why it's so important. There will be no band. 354 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:18,960 Tom will not be on keys. News flash, I'm so sorry to 355 00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:24,520 break that to you. Tom will be broken down on his 356 00:24:24,520 --> 00:24:32,040 knees in adoration of his lover, the lover of his soul. 357 00:24:32,680 --> 00:24:37,000 And Tom's response will not be to find the right key, but his 358 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:41,080 response will be to cussed his crown. 359 00:24:41,120 --> 00:24:46,200 And not only that, the next thing that we get to do, why 360 00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:50,920 this is so important is this. When Jesus says I am coming to 361 00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:54,800 reign, to rule and reign, he says he's not doing that on his 362 00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:57,320 own. He says I'm going to do it with 363 00:24:57,320 --> 00:25:00,640 you. But in order to reign with him, 364 00:25:01,120 --> 00:25:07,800 you will also need a crown. If crowns were not important 365 00:25:07,800 --> 00:25:11,640 even in our nation, we know we have to do a big thing about 366 00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:17,760 coronation because the the coronation reveals to us the 367 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:19,320 truth. We already know that, hey, 368 00:25:20,200 --> 00:25:24,240 that's the king. But that moment, that moment, 369 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:31,000 the difference in that moment is just this one thing, the crown. 370 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:36,960 And it's the same for us. Somebody said there's a crown, 371 00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:39,720 We're going to keep going. We're going to keep going. 372 00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:41,960 Oh, this is my favourite one. Are you ready? 373 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:48,720 Crown #3 for pastors, leaders, life group leaders, small group 374 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:53,600 leaders, car park team lead, kids leaders, Anyone who takes 375 00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:58,680 the, the, the responsibility of leading God's people, there is a 376 00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:02,320 crown. Crown of Glory, One Peter 377 00:26:02,320 --> 00:26:07,400 chapter 5, verse 2 to verse 4. Be shepherds of God's flock that 378 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:11,640 is under your care, watching over them, not because you must, 379 00:26:11,640 --> 00:26:16,320 but because you are willing as God wants you to be, not 380 00:26:16,320 --> 00:26:19,400 pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve. 381 00:26:19,960 --> 00:26:23,280 You're not lording it over those entrusted to you, but you are 382 00:26:23,280 --> 00:26:27,320 being examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd 383 00:26:27,320 --> 00:26:32,360 appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never 384 00:26:32,720 --> 00:26:36,560 fade away. So in those dark moments where 385 00:26:36,560 --> 00:26:39,000 you feel like men, can somebody else do this? 386 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:42,640 See, I know what it's like to be in a growing church. 387 00:26:42,640 --> 00:26:44,880 It just means more and more people need to put their hands 388 00:26:44,880 --> 00:26:47,480 to the plough. That's what it simply means. 389 00:26:47,680 --> 00:26:53,520 There is no growth without more people saying, I mean, I mean, I 390 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:57,520 mean, but also the more you have people doing that, there's 391 00:26:57,560 --> 00:27:00,760 always going to be a dark moment where you think men, can 392 00:27:00,760 --> 00:27:04,000 somebody else be in? It's in those moments where I'm 393 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:05,960 now speaking to you about this crown. 394 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:09,520 In the moment where it's easier for you to walk away and say 395 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:12,960 somebody else needs to do that. You keep your hand on that 396 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:18,600 plough because you recognise there is a, there is a crown. 397 00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:20,640 That's why we're still doing what we're doing. 398 00:27:20,720 --> 00:27:22,880 Let's keep going. The next one, this is my 399 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:25,600 favourite again, crown #4 don't panic. 400 00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:29,640 There's only 5 crowns like men. How many crowns? 401 00:27:30,480 --> 00:27:32,160 Some of you are looking at the size of your head. 402 00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:34,320 You're like, how many crowns can I fit on one? 403 00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:39,880 Don't worry about it. This body will be left here, but 404 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:41,280 you will have a completely different body. 405 00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:44,360 Huh. Oh man. 406 00:27:44,360 --> 00:27:47,440 Listen, we I thought, but this is Nations Day. 407 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:51,080 Yes, it is Nations Day. But all of those things don't 408 00:27:51,080 --> 00:27:55,800 matter if we don't focus on where we're going. 409 00:27:55,960 --> 00:27:57,960 Next week, you'll be back in your campuses. 410 00:27:57,960 --> 00:28:00,080 Do you know? I want you to have a renewed 411 00:28:00,080 --> 00:28:05,200 sense of focus and determination as to why you are doing what you 412 00:28:05,200 --> 00:28:07,120 are doing, where you are doing it. 413 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:10,040 This is why we're talking about it. 414 00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:15,040 But here's this particular ground crown #4 the crown of 415 00:28:16,040 --> 00:28:21,480 rejoicing. It also known as the kind of 416 00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:25,840 crown that is given for bringing people to Christ. 417 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:27,680 Did you know there was a crown for that? 418 00:28:29,040 --> 00:28:33,920 Incredible since for the every person you will lead to Christ, 419 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:38,280 there is a crowd. Think about that. 420 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:44,680 Now watch this in the moments where, you know, you should have 421 00:28:44,680 --> 00:28:48,440 spoken to somebody about Christ and about your faith and you, 422 00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:50,480 like me, have decided to walk away. 423 00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:56,440 We can't afford to walk away because we have this privilege 424 00:28:56,880 --> 00:29:01,520 of revealing the good news that has transformed our lives. 425 00:29:01,840 --> 00:29:04,840 And as we speak to people about it, the Bible then tells us 426 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:12,440 there is a crown. Tom, could you come back with 427 00:29:12,440 --> 00:29:14,720 me, please? If we can all stand to our feet 428 00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:24,960 as I come into the land, the crown of rejoicing in the 429 00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:31,880 moments where you find yourself, and I've done it before where I 430 00:29:31,880 --> 00:29:34,840 thought, man, God, it'll be easier for me to speak to 431 00:29:34,840 --> 00:29:36,720 somebody about you if you just brought them to church. 432 00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:39,200 Can they just stagger into church? 433 00:29:39,240 --> 00:29:41,800 And I promise you, God, I'll tell them about you. 434 00:29:43,040 --> 00:29:45,160 And he says, no Sir, I can't. We can't do it that way. 435 00:29:45,560 --> 00:29:47,960 I'm going to prompt you wherever you are going. 436 00:29:47,960 --> 00:29:50,880 It could be in the supermarket, it could be at the petrol 437 00:29:50,880 --> 00:29:55,760 station, it could be at work, but your and yours and my job is 438 00:29:55,760 --> 00:30:00,000 that we hear the prompting of God and begin to follow that 439 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:07,760 particular prompting. This is why it's so important. 440 00:30:12,400 --> 00:30:16,600 See, I asked Tom to come up because when Tom comes up, faith 441 00:30:16,680 --> 00:30:17,880 and hope comes back into the room. 442 00:30:17,880 --> 00:30:20,720 It's like, oh Lord Jesus, we're coming into land. 443 00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:23,880 Thank you, Jesus, but it's a trip. 444 00:30:23,960 --> 00:30:26,800 I just tricked you. We still have another 45 minutes 445 00:30:26,800 --> 00:30:27,800 to go. Don't worry about it. 446 00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:33,320 So thank you, Tom, for doing this incredible job and bringing 447 00:30:33,320 --> 00:30:37,320 that hope back in the room with the Crown of Rejoicing. 448 00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:41,200 The Lord says in every area of your life, I am deliberately 449 00:30:41,200 --> 00:30:43,600 placing promptings in your heart. 450 00:30:45,160 --> 00:30:48,960 And when I place that prompting in your heart to share your 451 00:30:48,960 --> 00:30:55,800 faith, it is an opportunity for you to add to the Crown of 452 00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:58,960 rejoicing. I know you're going to have 453 00:30:58,960 --> 00:31:01,920 sweaty palms. I know your heart is going to be 454 00:31:01,920 --> 00:31:04,120 racing. I know you'd rather have 455 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:07,040 somebody else do it. And the Lord says, I know all of 456 00:31:07,040 --> 00:31:10,320 your anxieties, but I still choose you. 457 00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:15,200 So I still choose you, but God let somebody else do it. 458 00:31:15,280 --> 00:31:18,480 I know I could have chosen somebody else, but there is a 459 00:31:18,480 --> 00:31:25,520 reason why I have come to you, because I need you to also have 460 00:31:25,520 --> 00:31:30,280 the crown of rejoice. But Lord, you know I can't speak 461 00:31:30,280 --> 00:31:33,400 properly. English is my 15th language, 462 00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:41,480 whatever it is got says I know, but I still choose you. 463 00:31:43,320 --> 00:31:49,600 Can I set a challenge? What would it look like over the 464 00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:54,120 next 12 months? You made a commitment to just 465 00:31:54,160 --> 00:31:58,600 add 1 jewel to your crown of rejoicing One, one person. 466 00:32:00,120 --> 00:32:02,280 No, not a revival across Leicester. 467 00:32:02,920 --> 00:32:04,480 God will do all that in his time. 468 00:32:04,640 --> 00:32:08,800 But just an intentional decision that says over the next 12 469 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:16,120 months, Lord, I want to add 1 jewel to my crown of rejoicing 470 00:32:16,120 --> 00:32:24,600 because I'm going to commit to leading just one person, just 471 00:32:24,600 --> 00:32:28,480 one person, whether you're at college or university or at 472 00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:31,320 school. And you're saying, God, I, I, I 473 00:32:31,320 --> 00:32:32,960 don't know how this is going to work, but let's do it. 474 00:32:32,960 --> 00:32:38,280 If I can just get one person. But Lord, but how, how am I 475 00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:39,920 going to look like? What am I going to look like? 476 00:32:39,920 --> 00:32:42,040 When, when, when, when people start talking about me? 477 00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:47,480 That doesn't even matter. When you now stand before the 478 00:32:47,480 --> 00:32:52,560 King of Kings and you cast your crown in worship and you keep 479 00:32:52,560 --> 00:32:54,680 your crown as you reign with him. 480 00:32:55,160 --> 00:32:58,720 All of the things that you thought mattered, you quickly 481 00:32:58,720 --> 00:33:02,920 remember they are only light and momentary. 482 00:33:08,600 --> 00:33:11,240 I've had people ask me this thing and say, oh, you know, I 483 00:33:11,240 --> 00:33:13,800 can't wait to get to heaven. I'm like, OK, why is that? 484 00:33:14,360 --> 00:33:16,840 Because when I get to heaven, I've got questions for David, 485 00:33:17,000 --> 00:33:20,320 I've got questions for Moses, questions for Abraham and all of 486 00:33:20,320 --> 00:33:22,120 those things. And I'm like, OK, all right, OK. 487 00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:25,880 Like, oh man, the stories that we've read are incredible and I 488 00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:27,960 can't wait to ask them about them. 489 00:33:27,960 --> 00:33:30,880 And I then I felt the Lord said to me, tell them, tell him, tell 490 00:33:30,880 --> 00:33:33,200 him that those people are actually waiting for you. 491 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:38,240 I said, what? Yeah, yeah, they are actually 492 00:33:38,240 --> 00:33:42,400 waiting for you. And they don't have a lot of 493 00:33:42,400 --> 00:33:47,200 questions. They have just one question, one 494 00:33:47,200 --> 00:33:51,320 question only. And the question is, could you 495 00:33:51,320 --> 00:33:59,440 please tell us what was it like to live on earth with the 496 00:33:59,440 --> 00:34:06,840 fullness of God in the person of the Holy Spirit active and alive 497 00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:12,360 in you? What was that like? 498 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:15,920 And then you go to Moses and you're like Moses. 499 00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:19,239 I heard about the Red Sea, bro. Could you talk to me about the 500 00:34:19,239 --> 00:34:20,600 Red Sea? What was that like? 501 00:34:20,600 --> 00:34:21,760 And you'll be like, man, it was cool. 502 00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:25,600 It was really cool. But I need you to tell me, what 503 00:34:25,600 --> 00:34:31,280 was it like knowing their crowns to be had, yet you had the 504 00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:37,639 fullness of God in you. And Aaron, the high priest will 505 00:34:37,639 --> 00:34:42,480 come up and he says, listen, you're not even high priest. 506 00:34:43,400 --> 00:34:50,239 You are just sons and daughters, and you had unlimited access to 507 00:34:50,280 --> 00:34:55,280 the fullness of God. What? 508 00:34:57,440 --> 00:35:01,320 And he'll say to you, do you know that as a high priest, I 509 00:35:01,440 --> 00:35:05,200 could only enter into the presence of God once a year? 510 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:13,160 Once a year? So please tell me what, what was 511 00:35:13,160 --> 00:35:22,440 it like to have the fullness of God in you? 512 00:35:22,440 --> 00:35:30,040 What are you? This is why we're talking about 513 00:35:30,040 --> 00:35:34,120 this. This is why this is important. 514 00:35:36,080 --> 00:35:40,960 We have everything we need. Jesus has already done it. 515 00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:47,360 He has given us the fullness of God in the person of the Holy 516 00:35:47,360 --> 00:35:53,160 Spirit and he says every crown is available for you because 517 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:57,200 it's no longer in your strength. It's no longer in your strength. 518 00:35:58,880 --> 00:36:03,640 You have everything you need. So come on one church, every 519 00:36:03,640 --> 00:36:08,960 single one of those crowns is yours in the power of the Holy 520 00:36:08,960 --> 00:36:23,340 Spirit, in Jesus name. The Lord bless you and keep you. 521 00:36:23,540 --> 00:36:27,180 The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. 522 00:36:27,580 --> 00:36:31,060 The Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace.