So today I want to talk to you about Kingdom mindset.
Locked in. Everybody say locked in, say it
again. Locked in.
Say it one more time, locked in. That means you're all in.
You're committed. I'm 110% fully committed to the
cause of Christ, fully dedicated to the will and purpose of God,
fully surrendered and submitted to whatever He wants to do,
whatever He wants to say, whatever He wants to display, I
am locked in Hallelujah. And God, he wants to show
himself strong on the behalf of those that are locked in.
So this is a question, are you locked into God 'cause he's
locked into you, He's watching, His eyes are searching
throughout the whole earth and he's looking for somebody who's
locked in Hallelujah. That's your choice, that's your
choice. I said it's up to you to say
God, I'm all in. And I heard this by the Spirit.
He's looking daily, His eyes are looking daily, 'cause he cares
about what's going on the earth, He cares about humanity and he's
looking for a man or woman of God to show himself strong
through, to display his goodness, to display his
miracles, to display his love, to reach a loss in a dying
world, to connect them with truth.
Truth is not a thing. Truth is a person and his name
is Jesus. And in Jesus we have freedom.
Like the song said, our chains are are broken, right?
We've been set free. Amazing Grace.
Thank God for the blood that still speaks today.
The blood of Jesus is on the mercy seat, and He ever lives to
make intercession for His people.
So the question is, are you going to respond?
Today I had these four Rs. As we jump in to today's
message, I'll give these to you #1 is relationship #2 is
responsibility #3 is renewal, and #4 is rain.
I'll say it again. Number one is relationship.
Number 2 is responsibility #3 is renewal #4 is reign.
As you know, if you're part of Anchor Faith Church that the
Holy Spirit gave to Apostle Earl Marcy the year of the reigning
church. But if we're going to reign, we
need to know first of all, relationship with Jesus Christ.
There is no greater aim, no greater focus, no greater thing
you could be locked in on than the relationship that He wants
to have with you and that you want to have with Him.
This is why we advocate Bible reading at Anchor Faith Church,
because this book is a love letter written from God to His
people. It contains His will, His
thought, His purposes, His plans.
And He wants you to be in this thing daily.
How do you get to know somebody? By spending time with them.
And we're never going to reign as a church if we don't know who
He is. We're never going to reign as a
church if we don't know who he is.
So it's our responsibility to make sure that we're in the Word
of God. It's our responsibility to be
people of prayer. Thank God for corporate prayer
that took place at 9:15 today. We have corporate prayer on
Wednesdays at 6:00 AM. But daily God is looking, so
it's our responsibility to make sure that we're communicating
with him as we leave this service.
The Bible says to pray without ceasing.
You know, when I was pursuing my wife, I was no, I already prayed
in faith. Matter of fact, I wrote down 10
things I wanted a wife 'cause I heard one sermon that said, you
know, if if you ask God for transportation, he may send you
a Chevrolet that's shove 1 foot and lay the other one because
God's a God of specific. So I got specific.
I put down, you know, certain hype and all this stuff.
Amen started with God, Christ like characteristics, but I got
specific. I just didn't say God send me a
wife. I wanted a godly woman.
I didn't want a Jezebel. I didn't want a project.
I wanted a spirit anointed wife, so I prayed Hallelujah.
And the Bible says to pray without cease.
And so in the relationship, it's our responsibility.
And that goes both ways. You know, God desires and craves
for you to spend time with him and we need to reciprocate that.
That's our responsibility. Relationships are not one way
and when they're when you you know the proof of desire is in
pursuit. If you really say you desire
something, there's a pursuit in it.
I question your desire if you're not really pursuing it.
You may say you want to lose weight.
All right, I won't meddle too much with that, but the proof of
desire is in pursuit. You may say you want to know
God, but if I checked your Bible reading, it's it's not
condemning you. This is trying to say, listen,
if you really want to know the Father, spend time with them.
That'll show that you're really desiring him.
Hallelujah. So we have a responsibility.
And in that responsibility, there's a thing called renewal.
And that's really the my, my big idea today is mind renewal, a
Kingdom mindset locked in, locked in.
And if we get these three things, then the church is going
to reign. And what what does rain mean?
Rain means to exercise the highest influence.
It means to flow into or on. So the world doesn't get on me.
When I walk into environment or sphere of influence, I bring
Christ with me and I impact and influence that environment.
That environment does not impact and influence me.
We were at Universal on Friday and I where you walk into an
ungodly environment with their beliefs and philosophies and in
that I saw two young males holding hands with their mom in
line and that doesn't get on me. I influenced that.
So like the Holy Spirit was hovering in Genesis chapter one.
I was hovering. Lord, do you need me to say
anything? Do you mean it?
Do you mean to communicate anything in that?
Now you didn't release me, but I was asking why?
Because we're called to reign. We're called to reign.
So in the story of our history,
when I say history, you know, there's the Old Covenant, the
Old Testament, and we have the New Covenant or the New
Testament, but it's one book authored by the Holy Ghost.
And we do live in a new dispensation faced on better
promises and a better covenant in Christ.
But I want to launch out today just going kind of over the
history of our heritage. Can I say it that way?
The history of our heritage, Right.
So in the first five books, which is called the Pentateuch,
we have Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and
Deuteronomy. Those are the first five books
of the Bible authored by Moses, right?
And in Genesis you have the birth of a nation.
In Exodus you have the deliverance of a nation.
In Leviticus you have the sanctification of a nation.
In in Numbers you have the journeys of a nation.
And in Deuteronomy you have the instructions of a nation.
But in Genesis, the Bible really covers 4 men.
There's about 2000 years of history from Genesis 1 to
Genesis 11, but then it slows down.
Genesis 12 to Genesis 50 covers the lives of four men, which is
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and really Joseph.
And in Abraham we see the birth, birth of a nation.
In Isaac we see the son of submission.
In Jacob we see the son of suffering and glory.
Right. And in I'm, I'm sorry, in Jacob
we see the, the son of transformation, cause Jacob was
transformed from Jacob to Israel.
And Joseph we see the son of suffering and glory.
And then we have Exodus where we have Moses.
He was raised up by God to be the deliverer of the nation.
Even though these are God's covenant people, they found
themselves in Egypt, ruled and dominated by Pharaoh, right?
And Egypt is a type of the world and Pharaoh's a type of the
devil. And in Egypt there's not enough.
It's a life of slavery, a life of bondage, a life of
suppression and oppression. Listen, as believers, we need to
separate from sin. Sin always promises to serve and
please, but it only enslaves and dominates.
There's two things that snakes do their mode of operation.
There's a constrictor or a Viper.
And a constrictor will squeeze the life out of you, but a Viper
will bite you to penetrate and release his poison into your
blood. And what happened is Egypt got
around, you know, the children of Israel in Egypt, and they
kind of got suffocated out and poisoned with the culture of
that day. But then God said, I'm going to
bring you out. I'm raising up a deliverer to
bring you out of Egypt, and I'm going to bring you into the
promised land, and that is God's will for your life today.
Even though this was the history and heritage in the Old
covenant, there is still a plan and purpose of God today that He
brings His people out of sin, out of bondage, out of
oppression, and He wants to bring you into Canaan land.
Let's read it in Deuteronomy and see what God says.
Deuteronomy chapter 6, verses 20 through 23.
This is the book of instruction. So listen to the instruction and
the responsibility of parents really to their kids too.
It says when your son's ask you in the time to come saying what
is the meaning of these testimonies, these statues and
judgments which the Lord our God has commanded you?
Then you shall say to your son, we were past tense slaves of
Pharaoh in Egypt, and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a
mighty hand. The Lord showed us signs and
wonders before our eyes, great and severe against Egypt,
Pharaoh and all of his household.
Then he brought us out from there that he might bring us in.
He brought us out to bring us in.
God never brings you out to leave you.
He brings you out to bring you in to give us the land which he
swore to our fathers. You can track this land.
In Genesis 12, when God promised, he swore.
He made an oath to Abraham that I'm going to give your
descendants the promised land. Moses references in Deuteronomy
said God is bringing us out of Egypt to bring us into Canaan
land. That is God's will still today.
God always looks at the finished product.
God is more concerned with where we're going than where we've
come from. If we fail to realize that God
is bringing us out to deliver us into a land that is better and
brighter than like the first generation of freed Israelites,
we can perish in the wilderness of unbelief.
We can miss our promised land by missing the pattern and
principles of God to deliver us from salvation, God had to
deliver us from sin. As God brings us from one level
of living into another, the difficult and even traumatic
transitions produce stress. You know, God wants to bring you
up to another level of living, but it's usually by way of
crisis and that can reduce stress.
But the children of Israel fed to realize what God was doing,
and we don't need to be like them.
We need to learn. As a parent, what do you do?
You try to train. You try to train your kids.
I want you to learn not to make the same mistakes that I did.
Really, the heart of a parent is to pass that baton off at an
earlier age so they could live out the plan and purpose of God,
'cause I know BC wow, thank God that I'm redeemed.
Thank God that's under the blood.
I I was sitting there worshiping.
I thought thank God I traded the porcelain throne for a pure
throne. Y'all know what I'm saying?
You speak English. There was there's nothing to
brag on 'cause my tolerance got up to 1213 cans of alcohol.
That's stupidity. And that does put you at the
wrong throne after a while. OK, I'm trying to clarify that
for you. So that's crisis.
They misunderstood God's purpose for leading them out of Egypt.
God wanted to take his people to Canaan land, the land he had
promised to Abraham and his descendants, but all they could
see was the wilderness through which they had to pass.
So you realize that it was from the time God brought them out of
Egypt. It was a 11 day journey.
Everybody say 11 days, say 11 days, say I'm locked in.
You know how long it took them from the time that he delivered
them out to bring them in? 40 years.
Do the math real quick. Who's got 40 years to waste for
the plan, purpose and assignment of God?
Not me and I. I pray that you don't.
So you got to stay locked in. We must look beyond the stress
of the temporary to the glory of the permanent.
From temporary to eternal. Second Corinthians chapter 4,
verses 16 through 18. I'm going to read this from two
different translations. It said I'm gonna read from the
New King James Version first Second Corinthians chapter 4,
verses 16 through 18. Therefore we do not lose heart.
Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is
being renewed day by day for our light affliction, which is but
for a moment is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory, which we do while we do not look at the
things which are seen, but the things which are not seen.
For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things
which are not seen are eternal. You have to stay locked in.
You need to take the responsibility to stay locked
in. The message Bible says it this
way. So we're not giving up.
How could we? Even though on the outside it
often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the
inside where God is making new life, not a day goes by without
His unfolding grace. These hard times are small
potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish
celebration prepared for us. There's far more here than meets
the eye. The things we now see are here
today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see will
now soon last forever. The children of Israel didn't
stay locked in, they got delivered out of.
You know, it's the power of God that brings you out of Egypt,
but it's the strength of God that brings you through the
wilderness. The power are the miracles and
demonstrations of God. Thank God for power
manifestations, but you just can't live off His power.
You need His strength. I'll say it again, the power of
God can and will deliver you. It can heal you, but it's the
strength of God that gets you through a lifetime with Him.
I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens me.
So Paul picks this story up in First Corinthians chapter 10 and
he really reviews what I just kind of prefaced it with.
So let's read what he says. We're going to read 13 verses.
I must try to do a whole chapter to help you with your Bible
reading. I'm going to read this from the
New King James Version. So listen what the the Apostle
Paul through the Holy Ghost says to the Corinthian church, and
he's referring back to this. There's 3 levels of living,
living, living. You're either going to live in
Egypt, the wilderness, or Canaan land.
The choice is yours. God could deliver you and you
could still be in bondage. God could deliver and you still
could choose to live oppressed. Now some of you have have
experienced another level of living, which means I've come
out of some of the stuff, but I still I'm still in the
wilderness that's a land of just enough.
I have barely enough to get by. I've experienced some small
victories, but then God's desire is to actually to bring all of
his people in the Canaan land, which is the land of more than
enough. It's a land of victory.
It's a land of overcoming. It's a land of conquest and
conquering. You want the right.
I read a book years ago called The Right of a Lifetime by Bob
Iger, but I thought, man, this isn't This is a Kingdom title,
not a secular title. The right of a lifetime is your
life in Christ, not as ACEO as Disney, because we're writing
our story right now with him. And this is the right of a
lifetime if you choose to do it his way and, you know, have that
strong relationship with him. So the apostle Paul says this
more of a brother. And I do not want you to be
unaware that our fathers were under the cloud.
All passed through the sea. All were baptized into Moses in
the cloud and into the sea, and ate the same spiritual food, and
all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank of that
spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.
But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their
bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
Now these things became our examples to the intent that we
should not lust after evil things as they also lusted.
And do not become idolatrous, as were some of them, as it is
written, the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to
play. Nor let us commit sexual
immorality, as some of them did, and in one day 23,000 fell.
Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were
destroyed by the serpents. Nor complain, murmur, as some of
them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
Now all these things happen to them as examples, and they were
written down for our admonition upon whom the ends of the ages
have come. Therefore let him who thinks he
stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation is overtaking you,
except such as is common to man. But God is faithful.
He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you're able.
But with the temptation, we'll also make the way of escape that
you may be able to bear it. Hallelujah, God is faithful.
What the exhortation that Pastor Chase got up and said God was
faithful. God is faithful and He will be
faithful. He will not allow you to be
tempted beyond what you're able to withstand.
And with the temptation you'll make a way of escape.
I'll give you one example. Instead of complaint and praise,
that's a way of escape. Oh my, my family was like this
and I'll never get no, you're in a new DNA now.
You've been born again, blood bought, blood washed.
You're a you're a child of God. I got the, the, the veins or
the, the the heritage or the DNA of the king on the inside of me.
There's no generational curse on me.
There's a generational blessing. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob. He's the God of more than
enough. What are you saying?
What are you saying?
Even in difficult, hard, frustrating, challenging
circumstances, you don't have to deny reality.
It could be super difficult, but in the midst, in the middle,
man, I'm going to say this. God is faithful.
I don't know everything that's happening or why it's happening,
God, but my trust is in you and I'm not going to get stuck in
this temporary situation because I know there's an eternal weight
of glory. You know, sometimes when I'm
lifting weights and there's drop sets or super sets, we have a
saying in the gym, there's no pain, no gain, and really your
muscle doesn't grow until we get to what we call muscle failure
beyond muscle failure, when it really starts to grow.
So sometimes we're looking at the pain of the situation and
God say my grace is sufficient. This is just a spiritual gem.
If you only knew what I'm taking you to and how strong you need
to be in the next season. We don't look at the things that
are seen, but the things that are unseen.
Oh, if we would just trust him, just trust him.
Praise him in the middle, praise him in the middle, James once
says count it all, Joyce. Sometimes you just got to say ha
ha ha. Whoo.
May I have another one please? Is that all you got?
Bring it on. That's the king of mindset
that's locked in because is God always working for our highest
benefit. The only time I have to question
if I'm going to make out if I'm allowing it could be doubt or
I'm caught up in any kind of sense.
Sin is doubt, sin could be substance abuse.
Sin could be negative confession, sin could be
idolatry, but man, if I that's kryptonite to Superman.
You realize that God's got a supernatural life for you.
I don't know if that's just a guy thing or any women.
Watch Superman. At least you know the concept.
Sin is like it will SAP your strength.
God could bring you out with power.
He's the Redeemer. You know in this story, this is
the redemptive nature of God. When Moses was taking the people
out of Egypt, taking them into Canaan land.
Thank God for godly leaders. You know, some people try to.
Rebel. Against.
Moses and it says 3000 people died.
With Korra's rebellion. But you know, on the day of
Pentecost, this is redemptive. 3000 were added.
That's the. Redemptive nature of God.
He is always working for our highest benefit.
So I just want. To stay away from Kryptonite.
And just like Joseph sometimes. It's good to There's no shame in
running from things. When Potiphar's wife tried to
seduce Joseph, you know what he did?
He didn't send sit there and try to have a conversation with her
and witness Jesus to her. He ran.
Amen. Hallelujah.
All right, so. Let's go back to First
Corinthians chapter 10, very first verse that we read.
I just want to break down really 2 verses as we look at Paul's
recalling of this story. He said more of a brother than I
do not want you to be unaware. One translation says I don't
want you to be ignorant. Hallelujah.
God does not want you to be spiritually stupid.
Are you with me? People perish because of a lack
of knowledge. God wants you to be spirit,
spiritually intelligent, he said.
I don't want you to be unaware. I don't want you to be ignorant,
one translation says. I don't want you to forget.
The message says remember. Our history and be warned.
Remember our history and be. Warned So God is bringing this
account through the apostle Paul, 'cause he wants us to be
attuned and attentive to what's happening by the, you know, in
the earth today by the Spirit of God.
And then? He said that all of our
relatives were under the cloud. Could you imagine that?
Say you got up tomorrow morning and there was a cloud over your
house. You're driving to work and
there's a cloud over your car. You're doing transactions.
There's. A cloud.
And then it blows me away. There was a.
Mobile rock following them too. We won't get into that.
There was a rock following them that gave out water, but there
was a cloud. The cloud speaks of God's
guidance and His protection. And then it said they all pass
through the sea. Can you imagine the miracle?
That's God doing what man can't. When they got to the red.
Sea, it said the clouds stood behind them, Pharaoh's trying to
chase them down, the devil's trying to trace you down, right?
But God put up a wall between the children of Israel and
Pharaoh, the clouds between them, the seas in front of them.
And God said, stand still and see the salvation of God.
And an E wind blew all night. And the Bible says, you know,
where there was the Red Sea, it was dry.
They passed through. There was so much.
This is the best air hand dryer you could have.
At Universal. The girls at which I didn't do
it was late at night. They want to do a a a water
ride. I was like, I'm not doing that.
I'm not getting wet. But they had these big dryers
out there. I was like, let's see how this
thing really works. It was like a human dryer.
They get in to get all their clothes, you know, dry.
It worked pretty good. But anyways, God took them on
dry again. That's how powerful God is and
in his redemption he saved you. How many born again blood bought
children of God do we have in the house?
123123123 That's what our mighty men say to say Amen is 123
That's just an that hit my spirit and yes, I've been born
again. I've been purchased with
incorruptible things or corruptible things, but with
incorruptible things, with the precious blood of the Lord Jesus
Christ. He did for me what I couldn't do
for myself. He came to this earth.
He walked it for 33 years. He was crucified, died, was
buried, but on the third day the Spirit of God pulled him out of
the grave. He was seen for 40 days and he
ascended to the right hand of the Father.
He put his blood on the mercy seat.
And whoever calls on. The name of Jesus, whoever calls
on that name, Jesus. So experience the power of God.
What is the power of God? He could actually this dead
spirit on the inside of you because of the fall of Adam, He
can actually, he can actually create a brand new spirit on the
inside of you. That means you're born again,
born from above. I'm now a child of God.
The power of God has gone into operation of my life.
But now we need strength. Now we need strength.
So they saw these. Can you imagine?
You would think there's no way I couldn't stay locked in after a
cloud followed me. And the Red Sea.
Miracle, but they forgot. You know I like what Pastor
Chase. Said, have you looked back on
the faithfulness of God? Don't forget stay locked in
Hebrews chapter 2. Verses 1.
Throughout three. I'm going to read this in just a
second, but I want to before we go there, I want to finish 1st
Corinthians 10. I want to go to 2 verses.
We went to verse one. I want to look at verse 5.
It says with most God was not well pleased for their bodies
were scattered in the wilderness.
God doesn't want you to die church in the wilderness.
That is a low could you be saved?
Yes, but you are not experiencing God's best in the
wilderness and He, he wants to bring you up to a higher level
of living and influence. And so God's not pleased when
you die in the wilderness, the land of just enough.
You may have come out of Egypt, but God really wants to bring
you in a Canaan land one. Translation.
Says the message says about verse 5, most were defeated by
temptation during the hard time in the desert.
Most were defeated by temptation, one translation
says, because their lack of self-control led to
disobedience, which led to death.
Their lack of self-control. Which led to disobedience, led
to death. They were struck down and
overthrown, and God wasn't pleased with that.
So now we go to Hebrews chapter. 2.
Verses one through. 3. It says.
This, therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things
we have heard, lest we drift away.
For if the words spoken through angels prove steadfast, every
transgression and disobedience received a just reward.
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation,
which at first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was
confirmed to us by those who heard Him?
You know this letter is. Written to for the church, but
they were drifting and I got a picture of this in my spirit
when I thought about drifting. We got to give them more earnest
heed lest we drift. That means you need to turn your
mind to the word of God. That means you need to be
attentive to the word of God. That means in a greater degree,
I need to stay locked in to the word of God.
When when the picture he gave me is this when hasn't most of us
are Floridians or in Florida obviously, and have been to the
ocean. You know I've gone out in the
ocean before and you know what happens when there's a riptide
or a strong current? You start to drift.
Cause drifting is not sudden, it's a slow movement from one
place to another. Either by air or by.
Or by water. It's a slow drift and many times
when I'm in the ocean, especially when I'm younger with
the girls, I have my eyes on them, but I'm always have a
marker on the sand of where our items are at and I thought that
that marker is our the word of God.
And if you're drifting? You need to get back in
alignment. I always made sure if I got too
far right, I had to come back to the left because that's my
marker right there. And the word of truth is your
marker in life. And it's our responsibility to
stay in alignment and not drift. We don't want to neglect this
great redemption. We don't want to neglect,
neglect this great salvation. We don't want to neglect the
great plan that God has for us. What?
What does neglect mean it? Means to be careless.
It means to. Have no regard for.
We want to be thankful to. God, you know I'm going to give
an example of a marriage covenant because a marriage has
a covenant and a commitment to it, right?
There's a relationship, but there's also responsibility and
you got to renew your mind. Hallelujah.
It's not 2 roommates living together and.
The and the problem with many. Men is they treat the woman like
another male. This isn't a marriage
conference, but. She's a female, you realize.
Males and females think differently.
Hallelujah if you don't. Don't be ignorant.
I'm giving you truth. That's why guys go to the
bathroom. By themselves.
I've never asked Raphael to go. To the bathroom with me.
But I've had I've heard. Especially when I was high
school. Oh, let's go to the bathroom
together. They.
Think differently. You can say Amen or owe me, but
it's true. But there's a covenant, there's.
A commitment. It's a covenant because.
Listen, in the Kingdom of God, God commands a male and a female
to get married. And to keep this G rated when.
They commence it. You all know what I mean by
commence. He commands the woman to.
Be a virgin. Right.
And because she's a virgin, when that happens, blood is shed.
The hymen is broken. And it's a covenant.
Are you with me? This is why we need to go by
God's standard. Listen, if we were all pure and
did a God's way and thank God for his redemption and His
forgiveness, this is not a ministry of condemnation, but it
is a ministry of truth, right? And thank God for forgiveness
and repentance. But if we did a God's way, you
realize you would never have to worry about any sexually
transmitted disease. And I'll say it this way there.
Is no emotional condom for the heart so there is no safe sex is
what I'm saying. But in in a commitment.
I you know till death do us part.
Have you ever heard that in wedding vows till death do us
part? You know when I got born again,
I was in this for life till. Death do me a part of the great.
Thing about God is that's just a transition, 'cause my spirit's
always alive to Him. And one thing I want you to
take. Away from this message is start
with eternity and work your way backwards.
Start with eternity and work your way backwards.
I am saved. I was saved.
I'll say it the way Pastor Chase said I was saved, I am saved and
I will be saved. You got to I was.
Saved. I am saved and I will be saved.
I didn't get in this for a good time.
I got in this for a long time. Now, thank God, God has.
A goodness 'cause He is good. But this is a long eternity is a
long time. You better like the person
you're with for eternity. Amen.
And you'll love God. Amen.
But I want to read this. This is.
Actually vows that Angie and I read it some, not the whole
thing. I'm not going to do a whole
wedding ceremony, but just to remind you this, you're, you're
locked in for life is what I'm saying.
We're we're really married. To the Lord.
Can I put it that way? We're in covenant with him.
Now God will give. Natural examples.
And he has, he has ordained, you know, the marriage covenant
between a man and a woman, but he's also ordained that covenant
with him. So listen this the marriage
union is the closest relationship that can't exist
between two human beings. When a man and woman decide to
join together in marriage, they should do so with a full
realization of their responsibilities.
Marriage is serious business. When two born again believers
know it is God's will for them to marry, they come together
before God, a minister and witnesses to join their hearts
and lives. They make a public profession of
their mutual love and devotion, pronouncing vows and pledging
their lives to each other. As they pronounce the marriage
vows in faith, the power of God goes in operation and a miracle
takes place. They are united by God and
become as one in His sight. Their union is threefold.
They are joined together spiritually by God, legally by
the contract they entered into, and physically when the marriage
is consummated. A husband and wife are joined
together as Jesus is joined to the church.
It's a miraculous union. So we need to be all.
In the same way that we should be committed if you're married
to your spouse, it's the same way we should be committed to
God Almighty in this relationship.
Now we are a three. Part being.
We are a three-part being. Meaning I am a spirit, I have a
soul, and I live in a body. You know I can give you
scriptures. On this first, First
Thessalonians chapter 5 says that your whole spirit, soul and
body be preserved, blameless until the coming of the Lord.
Over in Hebrews chapter 4, it says that the Word of God is
alive, it's active, it's sharper than any 2 edged sword, dividing
between spirit and soul. So your soul's not your spirit,
your spirit's not your soul. They're closely related, but
it's a 3. It's a 3 part being.
It's who you are. And why do I bring this up?
Because God and His redemption has saved us.
Through the blood of Christ. We've seen the power of God, but
now it's up to us to get strong in the Lord and stay locked in.
And this is where this Kingdom mindset comes in 'cause we need
to renew our mind. Just cause your spirit's born
again. Guess what?
Your soul realm, which is your mind, what you think, your will,
what you choose, and your emotions, what you feel.
That's your soul realm, your mind.
What you. Think your.
Will what you choose. And your emotions, what you
feel, you realize that that isn't born again when your
spirit is. You realize when you give.
Your life to the Lord at the altar, all of a sudden you're
you're changing just doesn't miraculously you're thinking,
thinking just and doesn't miraculous change.
It's not like you go to the altar and all of a sudden all
your thoughts are just perfect now.
If that happened to you, come see me.
After service but. But what's that mean we need to
stay? Locked in.
It was God's responsibility to save us.
It's our responsibility in the relationship to say I'm going to
renew my mind. You know, in Romans chapter. 12.
Verses one through 2. It says this.
I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service, and do not
be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing
of your mind, that you may prove was that good and acceptable and
perfect will of God. Paul is writing by unction of
the Spirit to the Church at Rome to do something with their body
and do something with their soul.
That's up to you. It's said that as a living
sacrifice, the thing with a living sacrifice, it can climb
off the altar. Because it's living.
So you have to make a choice that I'm going to stay on the
altar of God. The new living.
Translation says it like this. So, dear brothers and sisters, I
plead with you, give your bodies to God because of all He has
done for you. Let them be a living and holy
sacrifice, the kind He will find acceptable.
This is truly the way to worship Him.
Don't copy. Don't copy the behavior and
customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new
person by changing the way you think.
Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is
good and pleasing and perfect. Really, if you don't renew your
mind, you're never known, never going to know God's purpose and
plan for your life. Because God wants to bring you
out. To bring you in and you're never
going to do that. Know that unless you renew your
mind. Another verse I want to give you
that was a verse written to the church is from the book of James
in chapter 1 verse #21 it says therefore lay aside all
filthiness and overflow of wickedness and receive with
meekness the implanted word which is able to save your soul.
Isn't that amazing that James is writing to the church and he's
saying that your soul needs saved their?
Spirit man was. Already born again, but he's
saying you need to receive the word because your mind is not
saved. He's saying so receive.
The Word. This is why daily Bible reading
is so important 'cause it gets you in alignment with His
thoughts, His will, His plans. Jeremiah chapter 31, verse 33.
But this is a covenant that I
will make with the House of Israel after those days, says
the Lord. I will put my law in their
minds. I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts. I will be their God.
They shall be my people. Going over to the book of
Ephesians. I'm just giving you multiple
scriptures for the renewing of the mind.
Ephesians is a wonderful book. It's 6 chapters, power packed,
shows 7 pictures of the church. It's easily divided in two
different sections, Christos and Curious which is Lord and
Christos which is the anointed. Christos tells us who we are in
Him, our position. Lordship Curious tells us how we
should behave in him. Didn't Jesus say you call me
Lord Lord, but you don't do what I say?
So the book of Ephesians is really tell us who we are
positionally and how we should behave.
But right in the 4th. Chapter of this book the apostle
Paul says this in chapter 4 verses 20 through 24.
It says you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard
Him and have been taught by Jesus, as the truth is in Jesus
that you put off. Put off concerning your formal
conduct the old man which goes corrupt according to the
deceitful lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind that
you put on the new man which was created according to God in true
righteousness and holiness now. I'm going to give you the.
Verse where this whole message came out of as I was doing my
Bible reading yesterday and it just fit like a glove.
Proverbs 1430 Man, if you could, this is my assignment for you
this week. Raise your hand.
Say I got homework. Say I'm going to do it.
Say I'm going to be a doer of the word.
This thing jumped off the page when I was doing my Bible
reading yesterday. Proverbs 1430 from the Message
Bible. It says a sound mind makes for a
robust body. But runaway.
Emotions corrode the bones. Emotions that drift.
That are not under control. Corrode your life.
They'll make you die in the wilderness.
If you are live solely by your emotional realm and make
decisions just out of your emotions, it's going to corrode
your life. You're going to be a wilderness
wandering 40 year journey believer.
But God said I. Want you to have a sound?
I'm gonna give you a spirit of fear, but a power, love and a
sound mind. It makes a robust body.
I like that full of. Vigor, full of life, full of
activity, full of strange, full of health.
Because I got my mind. Isaiah 26, three, says he who
keeps his mind stayed on him will have perfect peace.
The opposite of that is if you don't keep your mind stayed on
him, guess what? You're going to have runaway
emotions. It's going to corrode your mind.
You'll be the the. Believer that's drifting and the
pastor saying hey back. This.
Way there's a shark, I see the fan get out because we love,
right? Holla.
We don't want Jaws. Hallelujah.
We want life. Amen.
So sound mind makes. Her a robust body.
What are you thinking about? What consumes your thoughts?
What is your mind state? On First Peter chapter 1 verses
13 through 16. I'm going to read this from the
Message Bible. First Peter chapter 1, verses 13
through 16. So roll up your.
Sleeves, get your head in the game.
Be totally ready to receive the gift that's coming when Jesus
arrives. Don't lazily, lazily slip back
into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you felt like
doing. You didn't know any better then,
but now you do know. As obedient children, let
yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God's life, a
life energetic and blazing with holiness.
God said I am holy, you be holy. This is the take away.
Today I gave you one homework assignment of a verse, but
really it was meditation. The big idea of this is
meditation. What are you?
You know what meditation is revolving in the mind over and
over again. It could be what we call.
Murmuring or just speaking You you may be saying the same
thing, but is it what God is saying?
Meditation means you're thinking.
On something perpetually, you know.
What? Everybody's.
Meditating. If I could put your mind.
On the screen right now, Hallelujah.
But God, his eyes and nothing is hidden or naked from his sight.
And if you got stinking? Thinking, I guarantee you I'm
confident. Holy Spirit is saying.
Let's correct that, Let's change that.
It said that he would bring to remembrance the word of God.
Are we leaning on Holy Spirit to say, hey, quicken to me a verse.
You know what's going to take place tomorrow, This week, next
month? God.
Almighty Father, I'm just. Asking you what do I need to be
thinking on during this season? And you got to be locked in on
that. I'm chewing on that thing.
This is a filet mignon. Sorry, vegans.
Prime. USDA.
Steak. With loaded I'm almost done.
So loaded. Mashed.
Potatoes, right? Asparagus.
Green beans? I could take a vote.
Hallelujah that chocolate. Bread at the Chocolate Emporium
that the team got to experience. Praise the Lord, it was like
dessert in your mouth. But that's how much we should.
Crave man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word.
Have you thought, Father, I just want to chew on your word today?
It is so great. His word is more necessary than
food, is what Job said. I desire your word more than my
necessary food, is what he said. That's locked in.
That's going to get you out of the wilderness and get you into
Canaan Land, a land that's more than enough.
Canaan land is equivalent to John 1010 in the New Testament.
John 1010 says a thief comes to steal, kill and destroy.
But I have come to give you life and to give it to you more
abundantly. That's where you're either going
to live in Egypt, which is survival mode.
You're going to live in the wilderness, which is some
success, or you're going to live in Canaan land, which is a land
of significance. That's a land of more than.
Enough. It's a land where I can actually
give you something. You know when you only got 10?
Dollars in the in the bank. You're not inviting anybody out
to lunch. But when I got 100,000.
Hey, church family. I can actually.
That's Canaan living. When you're depressed, what are
you going to give somebody? Oh.
Come and let's complain together.
Woe. Is us, we suck, we are losers.
But if you got joy and that person's depressed, what's on
you should get on them. I mean, my thinking when I was
at Universal was like, is there going to be somebody's going to
repent in front of me? 'Cause you're.
Where I go, there you are. So your presence is with me, and
your mere presence can convict somebody.
Are you thinking like that? Are you locked in when you're
going through Publix? When you're going through
Walmart? When you're at the gas station?
Wherever your journey may take you this week, what are you
thinking on? Because greater is he that's in
you than he that's in the world. So we got to meditate.
We. Don't want to be like the 12
spies from our Old Testament example.
God sent 12 spies into Canaan land to see what the land was
like. And they came.
Back 10 gave a negative report. And said there's Giants.
In the land we cannot do this. They were not locked into.
What God said, They said we're like grasshoppers, which means
we're fragile and insignificant. Those are giants are going to
step on us and kill us. There's no way we're going to
overtake, but oh, this church, anchor faith church, anchor
faith church. We need to be like Joshua and be
like Caleb, who holy God is looking for somebody to wholly
follow him. They wholly believe the report
of the Lord. Whose report are you going to
believe, friends? Are you going to repeat, repeat
believe the report of the Lord or the report of the enemy?
And Joshua and Caleb said. We are Caleb, 85 years old.
He had to wait for 40 years because of the disobedience of
people, but he held on. He was locked in.
He was locked. In he said I am well able give
me this mountain Lord what? What mission and mountain does
God have for you in life? What assignment seems so?
You know, God doesn't give you a small assignment, something you
can do in your own strength. He gives you something large and
significant. You're a world changer.
You're a change agent for the Kingdom of God.
I can't get in all his teaching. But there was seven nations in
Canaan land and God said you're going to overtake those seven
nations and there's seven sectors of society.
That God is saying you go out. And you impact those we can't
have. Thank God for our fellowship,
our family of believers, but we can't hang out 168 hours a day.
That'd be a bad marketing plan by God anyways, because there's
a lost world out there. I've heard some believers say I.
I don't want to be in this ungodly environment.
Maybe God's called you to that ungodly environment.
To be an agent of. Change and to bring your
influence and that mission into that environment to see people
get born again and come into the Kingdom of God.
So I'm going to give you. Several scriptures as we wrap up
today. You got to get locked in.
We got to change our mentality. Are you with me?
I I remember when I went out. I've always been a big football
fan and I remember when I was a freshman.
In high school. I went out for the Gahanna
Lincoln High School football team.
What a great state. I was thinking about that today.
If you don't realize that I'm only reason I'm in Florida
because God called me to Florida.
I don't really love Florida. Sorry if I offend you, but I
think there's more greatness in Ohio.
But that's just preference, not conviction.
But I remember I went out for that team and I was actually
shorter and fatter and SAT the bench the whole year.
Now thank God for godly parents. I wanted to quit so bad and they
said no, you gave your word, you won't keep it.
So the next two years I spent on actually getting the gym and
training. Went back out my senior year and
actually started all the games and we won there our conference
championship. It was awesome, but I wasn't as
locked in as I am today. I shared with my wife something.
Something clicked when it came to athletics and boy, you know
we don't have want to have regrets in life.
I look back and have you ever thought if I could go back and
do that again, oh, I would dominate.
LGI would dominate because I'm locked in.
I mean now I'm so locked in. I got hurt at flag football 2
weeks ago. Hallelujah, I pulled.
Something I said I don't care, I'm going.
And then Todd did a little move on me.
I tried to cut and pulled it again.
But I ain't stopping. I'll bleed out, I'll have broken
bones. I don't care.
'Cause I want to win. I'm blocked in.
I mean, I woke up the next day. There was bruising everywhere.
Glory to God. My wife's like.
And. Then I kind of mentioned, hey,
maybe. I could play next week, she
said. I'm interceding.
You are not playing. Next week.
But that's the mentality. Man, I am just going to go all
out. 'Cause I'm locked in.
Are you locked in? Are you locked into the things
of? God, let me, let me finish with
some meditation scriptures, 'cause if you're going to be a
man or woman of God that's going to take whatever God's assigned
you, 'cause you realize when they got into caneland, this is
the principle of caneland. Get this they possess by
dispossessing. What does that mean?
Whatever's there, I move out of the way and I take it over.
So whatever thought has. Been trying to penetrate your
mind. I take that captive, I throw it
out and I let the mind of Christ possess me.
Did you get that? So these are this is a key to
conquering your Canaan land. You know, the great thing about
Canaan Land is everybody got an inheritance.
There was enough territory for everybody.
And you are unique. You are fearfully and
wonderfully made. I wonder what he's got in store
for you. I wonder.
What he's got in. Store for you.
Because your assignment's not. My assignment, but he's given
you a sphere of influence or a territory to take.
And he's. Saying go do great things for
the Kingdom of God, but you're never going to be there if you
don't get locked in. So let me give you 3 scriptures
on meditation and then we'll close.
Joshua. Chapter One verse #8.
It says this from the amplified. Bible, This book of the Law
shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall read and
meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do
everything in accordance with all that is written in it, for
then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will be
successful. God wants your way to be
prosperous and He wants you to be successful, but don't let the
book of the law depart from your mouth.
How do you practically do that? If, if something comes up where
there's a need, you don't have enough God, I think you supply
that need. You're faithful to your word, a
man, you're a faithful. You're not going to let me down.
I trust in you, trust in Lord with all your heart.
Don't lean to your understanding.
Acknowledge Him. He will direct your financial
path. Lord, when's that right person
going to come? I don't know, but I'm preparing
right now. Preparation is the evidence that
you preparing is the evidence you believe something's coming.
So I'm getting right now trusting.
You When's that new promotion coming?
I don't know when, but I trust God, his favours upon me.
I'm going to work hard. I'm going to ask for wisdom
beyond my years, wisdom beyond my knowledge, and wisdom beyond
my experience. And they're going to see the
value in me as a Kingdom citizen.
But speak the word. Speak the word, let it be on
your lips, let it be on your mouth.
Life and death is in the power of the tongue.
Those that love it will eat the fruit thereof.
God created his world by his word.
What world are you creating by your words?
If we're made in his image and after his likeness?
Thank God. Thank God he didn't say you're
stupid. I'm serious.
If God said that. Do we put that much?
Value in what we're saying, Psalms one, one through 3.
Blessed is a man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of
the scornful, but his delight is in the law of the Lord.
And in his law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that
brings forth its fruit and its season, whose leave also shall
not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper.
I'm not standing. I'm not listening to Doctor
Phil. I'm not listening to Oprah.
I'm not listening to bloggers who say they're experts on the
Internet. Usually you know what that is?
It's. Usually just somebody, their
opinion they've been. Divorced.
Five times they're trying to give you a marital advice.
Hallelujah, I'm listening. I'm not giving myself to
foolishness. I'm giving myself to truth
because I'm in the Word. I'm meditating on the Word.
What a wonderful God promised. God swore.
God made an oath that if you think on His Word and you do it,
you're going to have a successful and a prosperous
path. That's a guarantee.
Last Scripture worship team. You can come First Timothy
chapter 4, verses 13 through 16. It says this till I.
Come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you
by the prophecy. With the lane on the hands of
the elder ship. Meditate on on these things.
Give yourself locked in entirely to them, that your progress may
be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the
doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing
this you will say both yourselves and those who hear
you. Hallelujah.