Thanks for checking out the anchor Faith, Message podcast
from st. Augustine Florida.
Now, enjoy this message. Amen.
You have your Bible turn to Philippians chapter 1 and talk
to you about gained tonight, right?
IMA talk about gaining weight. All right?
Don't let the Kingdom Life. You gain, right?
You gain. It's always about increase.
We have this saying that we say here at a church.
Always advancing Siempre Amazon do that's in Spanish.
All right. We're always advancing.
We're game. We're making games all the time
because you know, with the kingdom of God is always
increasing. Creasing is growing right now.
We know the Bible says that the Gates of Hell grow wider, but
don't think the kingdom is not growing either.
Amen. And the kingdom is growing, and
it's not only, is it growing in numbers, but more importantly,
it's continually growing in as demonstration of power because
the Kingdom's never lost his power.
The kingdom has it. Although the Kingdom's
expression has been Limited in the Earth because of sin but
it's never lost his power. And if someone would dare to
believe then all of Heavens power would show up in the
planet. I mean, would you can you get
that for a moment? I mean, just that mirror thought
on a law, makes me think. Wow, the only thing that stops
the power of Heaven showing up is my belief.
My ability to believe that's all that stops.
IT. And if I would believe, do the
things that release unlock the kingdom, because there are
things that unlock the Kingdom, right?
We know the power to conquer Eternal separation from God.
Is contained in the prayer of faith.
In the prayer Faith, believe in your heart.
Confess with your mouth. Jesus Christ is Lord, and that
power. Has the ability to keep Eternal
judgment to be thrown into the lake of fire away from you.
Wow. And that amazing.
And that same expression of belief in prayer, the prayer of
faith. Okay.
The prayer of faith me, I believe what God says.
So I say it That it has the power to have that come to pass
in our lives. How amazing is that right?
Now we would just have to admit though that all of us get into
these seasons of life where we are more confident, we are more
aware conscious of what we're seeing than who we are in Christ
in the Unseen. And you know, when those Seasons
come, when those opportunities come, we have to arrest her.
Ourselves and say, wait a minute, I just need to believe.
I need to believe. I need to believe.
All right. So with that being said, I want
to look at this phrase that Paul said in Philippians 1:21, this
struck me today when I was reading it, y'all are really
came to my spirit and then I went there.
It says this for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Now in context, all right, in context literal context, Paul is
in prison, he's been thrown in jail and he is pinning the
letter to the Philippians church.
And the reason why he's having this, you know, letter to be
written as because he's actually received from this church and
offering Finance. So caetano offering to his
ministry but money to him. Personally that basically said
Paul when you get out, here's resource for you too.
Back to us and this is their way of communicating Paul.
We love you, we believe in you and we're bringing resource to
you. Are you hearing me?
Because that's what his fourth chapters about.
But prior to that, he's letting them know where he's at the
position that he has been in. And that is, he's been in a
tough spot and it's caused him to contemplate.
Right contemplate. Now the Greek scholar.
Rick Ritter who's an apostle in Moscow, his writing of the this
particular context here in chapter 1, says history
historically speaking in Pastor marching, I've been to this jail
in Philippi that Paul was put in the deepest part of the jail
cell, which means he wasn't on the floor where the prisoners
were, he was down. It underneath the floor where
the prisoners were there was another place.
It's another chamber, because when the prisoners, in the Upper
Floor, defecated are urinated. It would flow down to his floor.
Are you understanding me? And he said history says that
they would chain them within that space and they can be
anywhere from ankle to waist-deep in waste.
That'd be tough, right? I mean it's hard to go into a
porta potty sometimes right? I mean it's hard to go in the
bathroom after somebody sometimes.
I mean for some of you it's just hard to open up a diaper.
Those are some of the funniest videos I've ever seen in my life
is watching these guys gag over a baby's diaper, right?
So I mean that has to be, you know, traumatic myself, right?
And so Rick Renner describes that, this historical moment
that there would be actually rats that would run across the
top of stuff like that. And because they were
underneath, you know, there's not Windows and air condition
happening. You know Stones?
Right, no ventilation happening. All right.
So then everything would be Be moist wet.
And so then the change which were made of iron would begin to
rust. So the prisoner who would
actually be Shackled to that, then all of a sudden, you know,
the rust, what? Because it hanging and stuff
would eventually wear Source or could turn into gangrene next
thing. You know, rat smell that they
come knowing at night when you're kind of hang in there
sleeping. I'm just telling you what the
Greek scholar tells me, okay? Whether that's completely
accurate though? Historically speaking Apparently
that is this is where Paul is. Is, so when he says, I am
betwixt, or I'm between two places, where did the go on and
be with the Lord, Which is far better or to remain here with
you? Okay.
That's kind of where he's at. He's like man a it be better to
die right now, right? And I don't know that any of us
have been in this place where like it'd be better to die.
Now depression will try to get you in that place, but I've told
my like Paul's Place, I don't think anybody in this room has
been in that kind of scenario. Now, we may have been close to
some other types of scenarios outside of this that you're
like, man. It might be better to die right
now but you know, that's probably not a whole lot of us,
right? Okay, so We understand he's kind
of in this particular moment, but he gets a message, they let
him know that he has a letter. There's obviously some Finance
associated with that and out of that, he's having this
conversation for him, you know? I'm asking the question right
now in my life, whether to go on to be able to lower, Which is
far better, or to remain here with you.
So he says, in this verse, he says, for me to live is Christ
and to God, die is gain. So we all know that the minute
we shed this Earth suit more present with the Lord.
That's obviously going to be better, correct.
I mean no one disagrees with that even though we'll come back
to this Earth, where sin will still be during the millennial
Reign and will reign with Christ on the Earth, but will be in
glorified bodies to be totally different existence for us.
All right? And there's things that are
going to take place as a result of that, but we understand that
natural side. But you know what else?
There's a hidden thing. Thing within this when I say
hidden because Paul in his latter letters rights on this
from a figurative standpoint. When I say figurative, I don't
mean physically dying but literally dying somewhere.
There is still a death to occur, so let's take dying.
Look, physically off the table and the phrase is still
accurate. For me to live is Christ and to
die is gain. Okay so if I die then I actually
live y'all know this scripture right?
Of any man tries to save his life.
He'll what loser but if he loses his life for my sake he'll he'll
find his life he'll be saved. Okay so in this context if we
die to self We're gaining. We know physically.
If we left our physical body, we be present with the Lord, is
going to be far better. I get that.
But if we die to self, Gain is there.
Gain, is there. Now, the thing about dying to
self is much like working, I physically is that you've got a,
there's going to be some pressure.
Apply, it's gonna be painful, it's gonna be a layer of pain
associated with that. Because, again, if you want to
get stronger, you've got to undergo some pain in order to
get stronger. The same thing is that in this
kind of dying to self, you've got to die to your flesh.
And that can be painful because there's part, there's a there,
the nature of the world where we can't, what we came out of the
domain of Darkness. We came out of still is trying
to court us because our skin suits themselves have not become
a glorified, body detached from the things of the world.
We have to in our soul realm, once our spirit, man is made the
likeness of God No, I'm not doing it anymore.
And that sense, I consider myself dead to that.
Although everything in my body screams do it.
Right, even though sometimes my emotions say, do it.
But I have to say, but that's dead as David Mackey for years.
If you've ever spent some time, talking with him, he'll say the
old man. The old man, the old man.
Your the Bible talks about an old man and a new man, you don't
want to be associated with the old man.
You want to be a new man, right? You want to be a new man?
And so Paul saying here, look for me to live is Christ.
So if we're going to live, then we have to recognize life is in
Christ. And we say, in Christ, we're not
talking about the last name of Jesus, we're talking about the
title of Jesus which is the king to live.
Right, for me to live is Christ, is the king life is to the king,
to Jesus Christ. The King because Jesus came to
reintroduce, the world to the kingdom of God.
That's why I went in the gospels.
He preached for the Kingdom of Heaven is like this, and the
kingdom of God is like that, right?
And he says, man, if I cast out demons with the Finger of God,
you know, the kingdom is here, he gave all examples of kingdom
and the reality is he's the Kia King of the kingdom.
And so Says I've lived for the king.
Life is with the King. My life is for the king because
the king gave his life for me, it's very easy exchange.
When I didn't deserve the king, the king gave me an opportunity
and life is in the cape and so dying to self is gay.
His game. And in this context in
Philippians 1, he made a very unselfish decision.
He said I'm between two places. Whether to go on to be with the
Lord which means there's something about his physical
body that was talking to him. That was probably saying go
ahead and go ahead and die. Just go ahead and die.
You know, when people are on the verge of physical death, they'll
fight that a lot of times people will fight that, you know.
Have you ever seen y'all know of these stores were people?
You know, they have the will to live and they'll fight that, you
know, that I've been, I don't don't make sense, you know, they
really shouldn't be around but they're fighting, right?
There's something about. I don't want to go, I don't want
to go on others, you know, they slip off, he's a while cause I
don't want to be here, don't even want to be here, okay?
But Paul is like, look, there's some about his body, but he
says, listen to live is Christ for the Inge.
And in this context, I'm between two places where there go on
with him or to stay here with you.
And what did he conclude? I should stay for you not for
him because for him, I can go. I've made Jesus.
Lord, I began I answered a call that he had eyes II.
Got stopped everything I was doing when I was confronted with
God on the road to Damascus. I began to move in fact that you
exist as a church because I answer that call.
So at the end of the day I saw people born against all people
filled with the Holy Ghost, I've planted a church.
Got that on my little you know, resume for And I can go because
this is harder than I thought. I'm getting persecuted.
Now, they throw me in jail over this stuff.
Right. And my body's saying, you know
what, you're right. We God, just go ahead and slip
on off. Amen.
But he said, no, I'm staying because of you.
And I'm glad he stayed because because he stayed, then we have
the current of the church in Corinth, we have the church in
Ephesus. We have the church, I mean,
these churches, he planted the in galatia, and then we have
multiple letters and then the letter to the Roman, and the two
letters to create and ended the relationship he had with
Timothy. I mean, it all the people that
were touched and changed because he decided, you know what, I'm
not going because I sensed the purpose that I'm here, which is
not for me. Still is here and I'm staying.
Amen. We need to come to the place
that we like, Paul died to self so that we can truly gain.
And let me say it this way, you have to do it on a consistent
basis. This is not a one-time event.
Aunt, this is a daily deal. In fact, Paul and one of his
first Corinthians 15 he says I Die daily.
I Die daily. Now, some of that was
persecution out on him, but then, on his own self, he died a
lie because we can see it in his writings, turn over to
Galatians. 2:20, you know, this one he says, I've been crucified
with Christ and it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in
me and the life. I now live in the flesh.
Now, this word flesh is not a the word flesh.
We're going to use later. This word flesh is your skin.
Oh, suit your body. Okay, we are threefold nature,
man. We are Spirit.
We have a soul. We live in a body, so he says,
listen the life. I now live in the, in the body
that I'm in, I live how by faith in the Son of God, who loved me
and gave himself up for me now. Keep this scripture up, going to
break it down, he said I've been crucified with the King Okay,
the king took on my sin and became sin and what he died for.
I've died too. I must say that again what he
died for. I'd I do is dead to me, right?
And and it's no longer I who live now that doesn't mean
Paul's not living because when he says, it's no longer I who
live but Christ lives in me, that doesn't mean Paul was
actually Jesus. Now, it became a possession.
You are not possessed with Jesus.
None of us are possessed but you would think with some of the
Christian knees, talk out there is that we are actually
possessed of Jesus, because we say he's in control, and if he
was in control, he'd make you do stuff.
You don't do. Just go ahead and say, Amen.
Anyway? Because I mean, Jesus don't
understand control then. If he's in control, now, he is
in control of his word to those who believe because he watches
over his word to perform it and if you believe him at his word
he's going to make sure it comes to pass.
No matter what comes against it that happened.
Every time he will make sure that word comes to pass.
Now if he has a plan and he wants you to be a part of that
plan and he's giving you a word to help be a part of that.
Plan. But you don't don't fulfill your
part. Well then he'll still fulfill
his plan. He'll just find somebody else
who can believe and his word will still come to pass,
although it didn't come to pass in you.
So when Paul says, it's no longer I who live, He's not
saying I became possessed by Jesus.
And I'm not even actually in the skin suit really I could say hi.
My name is Jesus Christ incarnate again in a different
suit. Now in one sis, there is a
reality of that. What I mean by that is you're in
Christ, you shouldn't look at yourself only as you you should
see yourself in the image of God.
With the authority of Christ with the authority of a king.
He is the king of kings. So you've been made royalty the
minute you're born again. So in a figurative sense.
It is Christ Living in you because again you're only there
to do his word and do his way and when you do that oh my gosh.
There's nothing that stops you. Nothing.
Nothing can stop you from fulfilling.
Your purpose period no one not even.
A devil in hell. Can't do it.
Cannot happen. Cannot happen.
Are you hearing me? So but Paul had to come to this
realization that if I've been crucified with Christ, the
person Christ died for has to be in the grave with Christ.
So he says that guy no longer lives, no longer.
And we have to set it in our mind on more than one occasion.
That guy doesn't live anymore. That woman does not live
anymore. They are dead.
So how he used to respond. I don't respond that way because
I respond like Christ. Why he goes on.
And says, now the life that I'm living in my body, I live how by
faith. Now Faith is what substance of
things, the evidence of things. How do we get faith?
Faith comes by hearing and hearing our faith comes by
hearing the word of God. So he says, I'm living by faith,
he's saying I'm Living by the word.
I hear from God. So what he says I do, which
means when he tells me something, when a situation
occurs, I when the other thought comes contrary to what my king
just said I say no, I'm dead too.
That I will not do that. The person who would have would
answer that boys is dead. I only listen to this voice
period. So the life that I Live.
Now in this body, I live y by faith in the Son of God.
Who what? Who loved me.
And We Know What Love really is God's.
True love is doing his word and Jesus loved us so much that he
went to the Cross because the father said, this is the only
way. That while I was in Rebellion to
God's kingdom, Jesus still obeyed the father and went to
the cross for me. Wow, he said I'll still be there
sacrifice, even if they never make me Lord, why?
Because Dad said to do it, love is doing dad's word period,
okay? So with that being said, then
turn over to Galatians 5:24 and 25.
This is Amplified classic version.
Because again, when we die to self gain is on, so here's the
kingdom principle. Well, some things you're
sometimes you're going to have to lose something in order to
gain something. Nobody wants to have a loss.
They only want to invest and there's some investments in the
Kingdom, but in God's cares. There is a total loss in order
to have a total game. You got to lose everything
first. In essence, you have to become
bankrupt. You have to be willing to be
bankrupt. The life.
You lived. Must go bankrupt.
You can't have a little savings over here.
Little old me savings account. Well, in case, you know, I get
one of those situations that I need to call him back up.
He's there now. Just pull it out of savings.
I'll give you everything. But, you know, every once in a
while there's a condition by which the old man I think did a
pretty good job. Well, there are some things, the
old man did that I kind of liked, and I'm going to leave
that in there for a rainy day. Jesus told the Rich Young Ruler,
sell it all. now, if you would have went bankrupt that day,
Then he would have gained Beyond his wildest dreams but he
couldn't see it. You know, a lot of times
Believers can't see it. Because Believers can't see
themselves other than what they see themselves as or what others
have told them about themselves. The Little voices in their mind
was usually sounds like their parents or grandparents or
something because they haven't been able to wit that yet.
We only need to listen to what the Lord says, he says.
Now goes on and says, Galatians 5:24 and those who belong to
Christ, Jesus, the Messiah have crucified, the flesh the Godless
human nature with his passions and appetites and desires.
If we live by the Holy Spirit, that's a conditional statement.
If we're living by the Holy Spirit, then what will be the
outcome. Let us also walk by the spirit.
So if you're saying you live by the Holy Spirit, then you're
after walk by it. If the Holy Spirit, we have we
have our life in God, let us go forward.
Walking in line are conduct controlled by the spirit.
Now, it says controlled obviously.
It really A Better Way. Would say yielded Because again
the Holy Spirit won't control you, he will communicate and you
have to yield and when you yield basically you're saying I'll do
it your way. Now you can say, I'm going to
let your words control my life, but you are in control of that,
you have to make the decision. I let you control what I do.
Are you getting what I'm saying? Because there's a lot of issues
with this word could control. And this is why people, you
know, are going through Waiting for God to actually take the
wheel. The Lord's, not taking the well
doors, not kicking you out of your seat and say I got this.
He's like, give me the. Will you have the seat?
Thank you. I've been waiting to get in it.
I don't know why you were there anyway.
No, I mean I don't have a problem with you driving because
we're co-laborers with Christ. Just when you're driving the
car, he's the GPS. I know a shortcut.
Lord, don't do the shortcut. Hey man, stay on God's path.
With all right. Anyway, so those who belong to
Christ Jesus again, the Messiah Christ in Messiah, are the same
word. Messiah is the Hebrew word.
Christ is the Greek word for the anointed one and his anointing,
which means the king. You anoint a king and everyone
was looking for God's anointed king, who would come and
establish a kingdom, that would never end and Jesus.
Is that one? He's Jesus the king.
Say he's the king. Say he's the king.
The king is the savior of the world, but he did more to more
than just save you. He came to save you to conquer
and as long as you identify with the old self, you're going to be
a Slave. Your mentality is going to stay
with the old nature and you're gonna side with it in essence.
You're not dying to self, but if you will go to the new man and
die to self, then you'll say whatever.
God says, going to come to pass period And I believe it and
that's it. And I won't believe anything
else. Man, I was reading in Exodus,
you know, because this, you know, past week we were in
Exodus a man. There was a big Context about
them coming out right Moses. You brought us out here so you
kill us and our kids, right, man, I got a whole sermon I
could have preach tonight on that deal.
I'm not. But, I asked, can I preach on
this right here? This is gonna be good.
This is liberate some people, amen.
Right. You know, when someone still a
victim when they taught like that chapter.
All right, so he says, listen for those who belong to Christ.
What do you have? Crucify.
The flesh was that mean the god, the Godless human nature.
With its passions, appetites and desire.
This word, crucify means to crucify the flesh.
It means to destroy its power utterly.
So you have to look at things that are contrary to God's way
word and nature. With such hatred.
So wait a minute, we're not supposed to.
Hey, we're supposed to love you, haven't read Proverbs.
You haven't read the Psalms where it says, there are some
things God hates love. Hates hate, is not the opposite
of love. At all, lust is actually the
opposite of love. Hate is not because God hates
some things. He hates it, we should hate some
things, we should hate things that are against the word of our
King and we should be at a place where it's utterly destroyed in
my life. Are you hearing me?
It's utterly destroyed in my eyes.
It's not going to happen now that doesn't mean the idea the
thought the Temptation is it going to occur?
It's that when it does you're like it's not going to happen
that is utterly destroyed in my life.
Because as long as you're alive, it becomes an option.
If there's any part of you alive, I guarantee you the devil
will create a condition that will allow you to step back in
and resurrect that old man. He will, he will.
He is the master at creating The Perfect Storm, they can anybody
identify with this? Yeah, he'll did.
I mean there's been times in my life that I've been running
doing and I'm like, man, I'm I sense in my spirit, I need to go
pray in the Holy Ghost and read a little bit because I am.
I am seriously, giving out way more than I'm having an intake
right now. And I've had the thought on a
couple occasions, this is not a great place to even be at
because there could become a perfect storm scenario and the
minute that thought has hit my mind.
I will stop everything. Because I'm like I refuse to
have that man. Resurrected Refuse the things
I'm talking about tonight will set you free.
I'm telling you really will because know, everybody in this
room, everybody in this room has this problem.
Is a resurrection of self and that crazy thing will come.
I was talking to our staff. Who do I preach out of the?
Do I read a let me look. It's an earlier earlier.
In this verse it talks about how the Flesh and the spirit battle
constantly. I told our staff, we've been
doing a church for 19 years and many people have been with me
for 19 years and plus I've known some beyond that I'm like have
we not learned a lot in scripture?
Yeah. Have we not?
I've seen God, demonstrate his power and lat.
Yeah. Have we not like grown
tremendously? Yeah.
Have we not conquered and overcome and won?
Many Faith battle. Yeah.
I said then how is it? No matter how strong and mature,
I get in the spirit that dog gone flesh, can still show up.
Spiritual maturity does not mean, the flesh won't talk.
Spiritual maturity means you keep it dead.
But it never stops. And it's amazing.
You cannot get so spiritually mature, that the flesh can't
talk. That is not a conflict you know
and I feel I see it's that there are many Believers that have
abandoned God because they had this fantasy about their
spiritual walk that they would not have to deal with certain
things. Yeah, you're always going to
deal. It's just that the same thing
that got the victory. The last time is all you got to
do this time, but we get weary in our well doing.
And it's because a lot of times, we just get back in a site
driven thought process because you understand the devil can't
directly destroy you. He'll start picking off people
around you. Are you hearing me?
I mean, his goal is to try to get something that you get.
So like I can't even believe these people are acting like
this doing the. Because again, he's trying to
eat away at your soul. Because he wants a resurrection
himself. He wants your old man to show
back up to start, calling the shots to start making the
decisions. Amen.
The good news is if you do have the old man talk to you for a
second and you respond to it and you're like cheese, I shouldn't
have done that because it's the Newman's.
Like, why did you lie? Why'd you let him talk?
Why'd you do that? You can repent.
Are you hearing me? But again, maturity is not
letting the old man, talk all the time and then repentant real
fast. Well, you know, I Repent every
time. That doesn't mean mature.
That means your baby your tossed to and fro that's in maturity
when you're living. By the flesh.
One moment and living by the spirit.
The next minute living by the flesh.
One minute living by the spirit, and your, I can't help it.
You're I'm just a sinner saved by grace.
You were a sinner. Now, you're a new man.
You're in the likeness of God, put identifying with your old
nature. Come on over to the other side
that God placed you in and that is the kingdom of God, a child
of God. And I have the third person of
the godhead. The Holy Ghost on the inside of
you who's trained in our mind. Renewing our mind and we can
live a conquering life. That's what we have to stay,
right? So we don't identify that way
anymore because I've learned, man.
My gosh gain happens. The more I keep myself dead.
This was the very first concept message.
Not this literal message, but concept message.
I preached when I was hired as a youth, pastor in Oklahoma with
Josh clay, and and Marcus, I don't think Todd was even coming
to church them nor Meredith. I'm trying to think of my
Oklahoma people here. Probably just Josh and Marcus
were the only two teenagers that were there.
And the first message of the I heard me preach was Earl has to
die because there was a country song by The Dixie Chicks.
You're in, Oklahoma, is country capital of the world.
I mean, Oklahoma's more country, capital than Nashville.
Are you okay? And so I'm like, you might as
well go ahead and preach that one because it was popular and
then I'm Pastor Earle, it's coming.
So let's just go away. I played up the portion of the
song, right? When I came out first sermon and
I'm like that's right. Earl had to die because Earl was
killing me. I need to get in Christ.
I need to be crucified with Christ I Quit living according
to my flesh. Amen.
So galatian tells us that we have to under Lee.
Just we have to destroy the flesh, we have to destroy his
power utterly. And here's the thing, you have
the ability because Christ has done it.
And now the third person of the godhead is he listen who raised
Jesus from the dead. who did come on, who did so on the third
day, the Holy Spirit went to the Grave where Jesus was Who became
sin, but he was illegally killed because he was not a sinner.
And the power of God pulled him out of that dead place, which
means then the holy spirit is a conqueror of dead things, and if
he lives in you, the, same spirit that raised Christ from
the dead lives in you, then he has the ability to get you out
of dead things. So, you don't have to live
according to the flesh. If you're born again, it becomes
a choice. Go ahead and say it.
Anyway, it's a choice. So again, when you are lost
without Jesus, it wasn't a choice.
Even though you think you're choosing everything, you're
doing is wrong. Paul said, look man, I was
trying to do everything. I mean the what the good I
thought I was doing. I found myself doing the bad.
I didn't even want to do that. Stuff about myself doing it
anyway. I was just a Wretched Man.
Right? He said, man, when I looked at
my life, my religious life prior to knowing Christ and all the
things I was doing, I mean, according to my religion, I was
the best, but when I met Jesus, it smelled like poop.
Now, he said that that's in scripture.
He said it was dung was the term.
He said that, that whole existent Was human feces, that's
what it smelled like and I thought I was living for God.
Right. But that's what the old man
smells like he's dead. I said he's dead.
He's dead. I mean sometimes you know you
know in my mind I have these ideas.
There's a couple things I'm thankful for number one.
I'm thankful that when we pass gas smoke, doesn't show up
right. I know, I know it's a weird
thought but I had this fall. I thought, man.
Aren't you? Glad he didn't, it wasn't smoke.
Right. I mean, basic is your body
burning off things. It's just it's natural gas.
Its natural gas. I'm just glad it doesn't have
smoke associated with it because there is no such thing as
silent. But deadly anymore, it's like,
why are you smoking over there? It would be easier to identify
where the smell was coming from, right.
Can you imagine being on a plane and God would have done that
been like oh man right. Three key.
Be yeah yeah yeah no doubt. I mean that's embarrassing.
And you know obviously I mean have you ever been embarrassed
that his was loud somehow some I understand you get around some
people. It's a game.
I get that right? I get it and they need to renew
their minds. I understand that.
Because it's not fun. It's not like funny, you know,
to be doing that loud, right? Yes, it's not nice right.
Okay. My point is and I said,
sometimes you just can't help. So you're at running somewhere,
there are place. You're like, I don't want this
to happen right now, am I right? Okay.
So I'm glad that the Lord didn't do that.
Amen. And my point is, that's where
I'm stalling to find that point of gift, because it was, it was
a good point, here it is. Thank you, holy spirit, because
thank you for bailing me out of that.
They be like, why do you talk about gas flagellants in
service? Sometimes I wish the Lord would
allow us to smell like the sin were in Because if you send, and
you started to smell like your flagellant, what's that?
What's up with you? The toughest smell I've ever
smelled before, okay? And again, this is tame for most
people. I get it.
But I went with my dad, he was a contract paying her and we were
working on a hotel and we were doing some finishing touches.
Well, there were some people that were coming to clean and
the person that had come to clean, it happened to be a
female, which was even more shocking.
But the female was cleaning the windows.
Well, they had some serious body odor, serious body odor.
But what made it worse is they put perfume on so for whatever
reason, the perfume in the body odor created a much, Potent
smell that I could not be in the same room when they were
cleaning. It was tough.
Now, I felt for the person got my first, all his do they know
you know, because you can get used to Smells right.
I never knew that nicotine or cigarettes had a smell never in
my life. My dad, smoked my whole life did
had no idea that cigarette smoke gets left on your body.
And about three months after my father died.
There was a new Aroma that showed up in places, I had were
around where people smoked and I had, I realized I went to school
smell like this, my whole life, and didn't know means.
All my friends smelled me like this, and I don't even know it.
You know what's instincts like that except worse.
So Paul realized and look my whole life as Saul of Tarsus,
but really, I was just walking around smelling.
Horrible to God. If if we when we went back to
our old self had that we would man you wouldn't want to live in
that. But Genesis to Weiss living by
faith, not by sight because they are by all right, smelling is a
in the sense realm. And if you can go up, oh wow.
Yeah, everybody's going to know I send this weekend.
I smell horrible. I mean you're not many people
would be asking the Lord to forgive them for they ever walk
in the room, you know, I need a Holy Ghost.
Right now. But you know somebody I need a
hold of goes bath. Because your sin will surely
find you out, which means, and when it's found, I was like,
wow, what do you typically say, find out when someone's blown
it? Well, that stinks.
Right. Oh man.
That stinks. And it does to God.
So, the old man must stay dead. Romans 6, verse 4, and 5.
Therefore we have been buried with him, through baptism into
death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead, through
the glory of the father. So we too might walk in newness
of Life, both in galatia Galatians and now enrollments is
talking about walking now. I'm not going to be preaching on
the fruits of the spirit tonight.
But you want to know whether or not you're walking, you're going
to have the fruits of the spirit Are light flowing out of your
life. People are tasting them all the
time, okay? And you don't have that kind of
fruit if you're alive to yourself.
You stuck fruit production, the fruit of the spirit production,
okay, but I'm not preaching on that.
Anyway, we are to walk in the newness of life.
For if we have become United with him in the likeness of his
death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of his what
Resurrection. So, again, it's not, it isn't
good enough and in fact God never wanted us to have the
realization that Christ died for our sins.
Ins. And he's made a way for our sins
to be forgiven but yet still walk in them.
And still be bound to him that was never.
And that we're still kind of stuck and can't help it till we
go to heaven, because that's when true Liberty happens.
And that's just not true It's not true at all.
Full Liberty can happen. Now, there is a mechanism called
your mortal body that is still decaying.
That has a Detachment out here that can draw on the flesh.
But if you'll keep your spirit strong and your mind renewed,
you can keep that crucified utterly destroy its power And
just be living on the hope and then your body itself will
perform it the best. It can even as it breaks down
because the spirit will Quicken your mortal body and cause you
to be in a house. This eternal life, Spirit, full
of the life of God to fulfill, the purpose God has for.
So we need to walk in this newness of life.
We have to recognize he died for me so that I could be raised up
to walk in this newness of Life. Say I can walk in this newness
of life. You got to get that now.
Jump down to verse 8, verse 8, and same chapter says, now, if
we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live
with him, and that's not heaven. Although most people believe it
that way, but it's not. It's right now.
Say right now, you can live with Christ now, he talks to you now.
He talks and communicates with you through his word revealed by
a spirit, that's on the inside. And when you get in any
situation, all you have to do is say King Jesus.
What do we do? I don't live on my own.
And I'm not going to. I have no idea how to respond or
how I want to respond. Right now, that's an old way of
responding and that person is dead not listening to that.
So I'm waiting on instructions and the many gives you
instructions that that's how we gonna handle this.
That's how we're going to handle this.
Period. That's how we're going to handle
it. Why?
Because I'm dead. That Man's dead.
Jump down to verse 13, verse 13. It says, and do not go on
presenting the members of your body, at to sin as instruments
of unrighteousness. But present yourself to God, as
alive from the dead and your members, as instruments of
righteousness to God. At the end of the day, the one
who controls The outward expression of righteousness that
has been completed in your spirit, by Christ is you.
And the only reason why it's not modeled more frequently, is
because of how we identify Don't doing all right now.
Please don't take this as boring teaching.
Because I'm going to tell you right now this to change your
life. It is this this what I would
consider Elementary principle but yet a consistent one that
has caused me to conquer multiple things because the
minute, you take this thought on my gosh, let me re Colossians.
First Colossians 3, 3 and 4 says this for, you have died and your
life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is our life is revealed?
Then you, Also will be revealed with him in glory, so if you
want to know who I am Christ, is going to show up.
That Christ answers going to show up when I learned this here
for you died and I've always, you know, kind of had this
concept with John. The Baptist says statement I
must decrease, he must increase, right?
So I'm always being renewed in my mind to get rid of me.
The old me. The human nature, the sin
nature, the way of response. That's not the kingdom response.
And anytime that kind of like, you know what, which brought
this thought it's nothing personal.
So now no matter what happens, it's nothing personal.
Because Jesus is really blunt with us in John chapter 17 when
he's talking to the disciples. He said, now, listen, They're
going to hate you in this world. Why?
Because the world lives by the Flesh and you live by the spirit
and they're in opposition. So the world's going to hate you
because they hated me. So, in essence, he saying don't
take it but how can you take it personal if you're dead, Let me
say this way. How can you get offended if
you're dead? Because you can't offend a dead
man. A dead man.
Can't get offended offense. Can come, but it can't stay to a
person dead. So there's a lot of thing
weapons that the enemy form against us.
That doesn't even can't stay with me because it's associated
with the dead man. And I know that Man's dead.
I keep him in the grave. In the grave.
So I'll give you a couple examples.
Obviously, I won't go into great detail on all any of them but in
a, from a pastor church perspective, when we were
located over here across from Cobblestone and we were
Remodeling and the County Inspector came in and says, shut
down the work. You're not allowed to be here at
all. You're not even zoned to be
here, which was a surprise I didn't take it personal, I just
said to them, okay, you know, he said don't shoot the messenger.
I said you're just doing your job.
Thank you for doing your job, no problem.
I just need some instruction and that's when he said, you sure
are taking this. Well, well Christ takes
everything well, because Christ is the answer.
There's not a problem Christ's face that he couldn't conquer.
So, you're not attacking me. I mean, you're just actually
doing your assignment. At this point Christ has an
answer and I need to lean to it because he's like, wow, you
know, what, you're not acting like the other pastors.
They get mad. Well, the old man could get mad
I mean, cause plenty of thoughts are.
Well, I called the county. They said, I could be here.
Who's this guy think he is? Who complained, who called?
And complained on us, because that's what happened.
Somebody called and complained. So it's somebody's call
somebody's complaint against you.
You need to find out who it is. You need to go to their house.
I'm, I can give you all kind of thoughts that the old man would
say, right? You're gonna, you're gonna, you
can't even be here. Now, you've signed a lease
you're gonna have to pay all this money and go somewhere
else. And then you're going to go
broke and everybody's gonna look at you laughs.
I mean, I can tell you all kind of stuff.
Now, you got this whole congregation says coming and now
you're going to have to tell them.
They can't be here. They're all going to leave you.
You're just a waste. You should have never came to
this city. But that Man's dead, that man
would even listening the Christ was listening.
Christ was like, who do we need? Talk to That's all Christ.
Need to know who's the authority.
I have no problem getting in front of authority because the
king is the gate. He is a softy, he changes all
kind of stuff. And sure enough, y'all know the
end of the story froze. Have been here.
A while those who hadn't we want, we stayed in the building.
We overcame the obstacle because we didn't take it personal.
We were friendly. Did not raise our voice.
At the county did not I cussed him out.
I say that because there are some leaders within churches and
Ministries. I could we compare a Church
Ministries, you know, their Ministries outside, the church
that will cuss people out. We're like well how can you talk
holy Hallelujah. Jesus, and because somebody else
when you're mad because you Doug someone up, And you know that
dead man's back in the corner light, Let Me In.
Come on tag, let me remember. Wrestling have the Tag Team tag
me. Clunk just touch me.
Touch me. Just, Just Let Me In The Rain.
I'll take care of this, but you understand?
You're in Christ. You're like the strongest ones
in the ring right now. That's the problem.
The strongest one is in the ring right now.
I let you in, we gonna get whipped honey, I'm not.
In fact, I don't have to have a partner right now.
Okay. Amen.
So You Gotta Die. You know, I know that some of,
you know, that our whole Community, we first bought them
all had a great opinion about stuff.
Many people have opinions People pep personally, attacked me.
And people like are you going to say something like the king?
Then just as my thus saith the Lord, I will repay.
That's my response. I'm not saying nothing because
that guy's dead. They're picking a fight with the
King. You don't want to pick a fight
with the King. Can I say that?
You do not want to pick a fight with King Jesus?
But yet many even believers do. Because they resurrect an old
man and do an old man way of doing it, right?
Hey men and I'm telling you you'll win in life.
If you do that my wife and I we can get in disagreements.
In the home. Why does our marriage
flourishing? Be 32 years.
This year, why? Because I died I don't and I
tell you don't have a right to hold this position.
You're dead. Your, your position is Christ
position and you don't Christ, position is reconciliation.
You got to reconcile this, you've got to get this
reconciled. You have to get this reconciled.
You know, say Pastor Martian, I don't have conflict like a lot
of marriages because we don't live according to the flesh
anyway. So our disagreements are never,
you know, a sin issue. Their opinion based.
Right? I don't want the couch there.
It's opinion-based, you know. Well let's go clean this one.
I'm going to clean it. Are you giving me a sign or
something back there? Don't give you a song, I'm not
done. Anyway, my point is, is that,
you know, well, what do you do this?
Well, I'm going to do it this way, and at the end of day, we
can choose. Am I gonna do it your way, or my
way? Because neither way sinful,
they're just different. But yet, opinions can create
emotions. Same in any way.
I'm helping some of y'all going to get married one day, right?
I learned this lesson give up your right to be right.
I don't have to be right. My wife doesn't have to be
right. That's why we compromise, that's
why it can change. That's why and what seems like a
conflict that we're not resolving, we have to resolve
it. And let me tell you, I've been
adamant about the one scripture says do not let the sun go down
on your anger. Now, when I was a little less
mature, I took it so literal that my wife and I were having a
disagreement. The lights, don't go off, even
if she turned them off, they came back on.
We are resolving this conflict. Now I know my wife is so
merciful to me she resolved in on my behalf so we she could
sleep, I get it. And then Somewhere in the Night,
her and God squared at away and when the morning hit we were
good. I had the championship belt as
if I conquered that. I know that happens, sometimes I
do I'm not delusional, you know, there were some that it worked
other times, it was like okay honey you're right in sh shut
up. Let's go to bed because it's
really not a big deal for me at this point and I feel praise God
we got this right? Can we kiss now?
Right. Hey man.
There's nothing worse than laying in the bed opposite.
Each other You're not even want to touch the person on the other
side. None worse than that.
You're like don't touch them. Yeah, the night before you like
I'm touching you everywhere. Just say, Amen.
Okay. But when you die to self, This
is what you have to do. I'm not alive.
All right to scriptures and will be gone.
Romans chapter 8 when I say to two passages.
Okay. Just want to be clear, Roma's
eighth chapter 5, we'll start there and we'll end somewhere.
The passage translation says that this way, see the guys they
never helped me. They're like oh this is all he's
gonna say. Okay thanks those who are
motivated by the flesh, only pursue what benefits themselves
but those who live by the impulses of the Holy Spirit are
motivated to pursue spiritual realities for the Mind Set On
the flesh, is but the mind set. Controlled by the spirit.
We've already explained what that actually means, finds life
and peace. In fact, the mindset focused on
the flesh fights. God's plans, God's plan and
refuses to submit to his Direction because it cannot no
will no matter how hard they try.
God finds no pleasure with those who are controlled by the flesh.
Now, these are the ones that are trying to convince God their way
is right? And though you scripture to do
that, Okay, do you scripture to do that?
All right. Let's go on bug when the spirit
of Christ, empowers your life. You are not dominated by the
flesh, but by the spirit, and if you are not joined to the spirit
of the anointed one, you are not of him.
Now, Christ lives his life in you and even though your body
may be dead because of the effects of sin, meaning its
mortal. It's decaying, it's not
glorified his life, giving spirit and parts life to you
because you are fully accepted by God.
Amen, this means that we have this comp capacity to say you
know what, flesh is dead. Now for me, I began to see
spiritual maturity play out this way.
How fast? Do I utterly destroy the flesh?
If it takes you three days to get over yourself, right?
I M in it. But then you finally come out
and then you it's only takes two days, you're progressing.
When you get it to where, you know the minute it hits your
like whoa. Because the things of the spirit
are that readily available, you're that much red.
In the words, you're that much time in the spirit that much
time in prayer that it comes up and you're like, okay, now we're
starting to get to spiritual maturity and I'm talking about
in any situation, any situation. Because the devil will Mount
multiple things against your life.
You got to be able to handle any type of situation.
I know what some people if I talked about their kids, as
great as they are, in certain areas, they would be fleshly
unglued because they have not conquered the flesh with their
kids. What do I mean by that?
Don't you talk about my kid? Who are you where did that
person come from? Because the minute you thought
your child was an angel, you there's a problem already.
I mean, I'm not going to talk about your kid, and I must say
you what, your kid may not be doing with the King, and if you
can't handle that, that's the problem.
But you can sure let the coach correct them.
And their, I coach Leo that let you chew them up one side and
down the other, you know, in a nice way.
I know, right? Like, yeah, because your face,
you know, like you better, this is the Old Coach, but then
passed. Like, I'm telling you, you need,
they need to get out of here. Don't you tell me about my kid?
My relationship make me an okay, fine.
Let em fornicate but I don't respond that way because he's
dead. But I want to Go, let you miss
Angel. Go on there and sleep with 5 or
6 people because you are so, asinine and know what thought
thinking that your phone and getting them in trouble right
now. But, you know, coaches can talk
away pastors. Can't there's areas.
You got to ask yourself, is there a place that if someone
went there with me, I would respond fleshly about that.
Then you need to fix that because there's no place, the
devil ought to be able to push a button on you.
That resurrects your whole old being and they show up in the
room. You got to be able to smell your
old self. What is Oh, no, you're not.
You are not coming out. You are not coming out.
All right, I'm praying I'm reading.
You are not coming out. You are not a quit, making the
excuse. Well, we don't, you know,
everybody blows it. You know how crazy that really
is in the realm of the spirit. Can I tell you?
That's like me going down to the cemetery by Craig's funeral home
and dragging a casket on platform Sunday and opening up a
dead body. And be like Pastor.
What did you do? You know that takes effort to
dig that junk up what? I'm saying is you can't all what
I can't help it. You took effort to dig your old
self up. You put work to it, you work to
rest to get grab that thing out of the Grave.
It takes work to dig dead bodies up.
Something this utterly destroy it, it takes work.
To dig that up. Amen, don't let it dig up,
praise the lord, we close with this to scriptures, second
Corinthians 5:14, and 15 for it is, Christ's love that fuels our
passion and motivates us because we are absolutely convinced that
he has given his life for all of us.
This means all died with him so that those who live should no
longer live, self-absorbed lives, but live, but lives that
are poured out, Out for him, the one who died for us and now
lives again. That needs to be our daily
thought I died today. I'm dead today, too.
I only live for one person. Jesus King Jesus.
What have you got to say? Jesus?
I said, I'm for spawning doesn't matter.
What I go through today. You have a word for me.
You have a direction, and if I hear nothing, I stay quiet
because even a fool seems wise. They keep your mouth shut.
I know that scripture and that is keep myself from, stinking in
a situation, like, hmm, what did you say to me?
Oh my gosh. Why you smiling you just walk
off, right? And then they fill all your
puffed up, you know. Whip down.
We told them. We told him who he and your
life. That's all right.
You got an answer for me because I really did not they're dead.
They're dead, not doing it. I'm not doing it because
whatever that was was attacking somebody.
Do you have silly? It looks we think about get this
in your mind. This is what's happening when
they attack you. It's like going to a grave and
yelling at it. I'll beat you.
I'm going to be you. I'm gonna kick you and your kid.
I'm gonna do this on do that. And what, I mean, really, what's
the dead person thinking right now?
Now, those inhale are probably thinking, I wish you could,
because we're, I'm, as bad. I would love to come back and
experience what you're saying to me, because it's bad, but those
that are in the Kingdom up there in heaven with the Lord, I mean,
with the Lord present, because wearing the kingdom now Okay,
it's saying what a crazy, what do you think?
I'm going to get up, Jesus, let me just stand up one time for
fun. I mean right now because no
matter who you are, if all of a sudden, the ground started to
shake and all of a sudden it comes to nobody is like, they go
home and I don't know of anybody that's probably going to stay.
They gonna be freaking out a little bit because there's too
many Walking Dead movies out there.
Right now, right? And they're running.
Okay, my point is that's what it's like, you got it when
they're yell at, you got to be like they're talking to the
cemetery because I'm dead. And I'm only got a response is
from Jesus. And I've seen hard Hearts melt
away. I'll close with this one.
Alright. So my closer, literally, y'all
heard me say this before, I was at Rhema as a student, now
pulled up to get off the campus look one way, look the other
way, right? Because four-lane highway is,
looking looked looked how much shot I took off.
Well, apparently the four-lane highway.
This guy was behind. Someone took off and started
coming. When I came out, they were a
Closer, you know, and they were close enough, made them that.
So I started heading this direction, they were coming,
this direction, they turn that truck around in the road and
boom got on me. I mean, we ain't even a quarter
mile and they're on me and they're say your number one and
he uses finger. You're Number One, You're Number
1, right? And so I'm looking in the
rearview mirror. I mean, they are like all kind
of, you know, beautiful. Language is happening, you know,
about how number one I am. And so in my spirit I pulled
over and got in a parking spot. I mean, typically just keep
driving, I pulled off that and when I pulled off, they come
flying in. Got right here beside me.
I got up and went around my vehicle.
I mean, I came right towards them and they were anticipating.
Now I wasn't a huge guy, I don't remember what year it was.
I feel second year, I'd have been bigger a lot bigger.
I mean, I'd have been bigger But if I was first year ice, pretty
skinny, this guy was skinny too, though.
Okay. But that means nothing because
I'm not a fighter anyway. Anyway, so the guy's got his
wind down. So he pulls back because he
thinks I'm coming in and I came with my hand.
I mean I came leading with my right hand.
I came around. I said, hey man, I just want to
say, I am so sorry. I didn't see you and I'm sorry
that I pulled out in front of you and he was like, I mean.
He, he was dumbfounded. And he laid forward, he shook my
head. All right, man.
Well, God bless you. He said that, I mean, I was
coming out of the church rice of this is what Sinners do when
they get around Christians. They have to act like they're
right. Just and it was over.
Right. But it that other guy was dead.
I didn't have a road rage moment.
I didn't have a house. Tell him who I am.
I can't believe he's cussing me like this.
You know, God forbid of my kids would have been here.
I would you not many people like getting the flesh to defend
their kids. Wow, thanks for showing that So
showing him Jesus. But it disarmed them completely.
Just like that. One time, I got slapped in the
face and I said, here's the other cheek and then that person
pay for my second year, Rhema. Because the person was dead.
That got hit and if you live your life that way you'll be
victorious singing. Thank you so much for listening
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